Iran’s Nuclear Weapons Program, Uncovered by Democrats
[Posted by Karl]
If Democrats make the case, it must be true:
In testimony to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee that was largely ignored by the media, the legendary Manhattan District Attorney [Robert Morgenthau] opened a window on how Iran is secretly obtaining the ingredients for an arsenal of mass destruction. Mr. Morgenthau, whose recent cases have exposed illicit Iranian finance and procurement networks, has discovered what he calls “Iran’s shopping list for materials related to weapons of mass destruction.” They add up to “literally thousands of records.”
The list included 400 sophisticated gyroscopes and 600 accelerometers, necessary for developing accurate long-range missiles. But wait, there’s more:
Mr. Morgenthau also noted that the material shipped by LIMMT “included 15,000 kilograms of a specialized aluminum alloy used almost exclusively in long-range missile production; 1,700 kilograms of graphite cylinders used for banned electrical discharge machines which are used in converting uranium; more than 30,000 kilograms of tungsten-copper plates; 200 pieces of tungsten-copper alloy hollow cylinders, all used for missiles; 19,000 kilograms of tungsten metal powder, and 24,500 kilograms of maraging steel rods . . . especially hardened steel suitable for long-range missiles.”
Lest anyone think that these materials may have innocent uses, Mr. Morgenthau added that “we have consulted with top experts in the field from MIT and from private industry and from the CIA… Frankly, some of the people we’ve consulted are shocked by the sophistication of the equipment they’re buying.”
Iran was also buying a rare metal used in the IEDs killing US troops in Iraq and Afghanistan. Furthermore, a staff report for the Foreign Relations Committee (chaired by the not-so-right-wing John F. Kerry), notes that Iran “could produce enough weapons-grade material for a bomb within six months.”
Given the record compiled by his fellow Democrats, it seems rather odd that Pres. Obama plans on spending six months assessing whether his diplomatic effort is “moving in the right direction.” After all, Obama recently reaffirmed that he would like a nuke-free world and acknowledges that Iran’s intransigence threatens to set off a Mideast arms race.
As John Hannah recounted in yesterday’s Washington Post, “[s]uccessful denuclearization of hostile states is most likely to occur as a result of regime change, coercive diplomacy or military action, not U.S. pledges of mutual respect.” As someone familiar with the Chicago Way, Obama should understand that you can get further with a kind word and a gun than you can with just a kind word.
The president is trying to vote “present” on this issue, but he looks to be missing in inaction.
Cross-posted at HotAir, with an update (at my suggestion) by Allahpundit: Iran’s answer to The One’s outreach? A new missile test, of course, designed to show how much suffering they’re capable of inflicting on Israel — among other places:
Iran says the missiles have a range of almost 1,250 miles (2,000 kilometers). If tthat’s accurate, the missile brings Moscow, Athens and southern Italy within striking distance from Iran, according to Jane’s Information Group, which provides information on defense issues.
Your must-read of the day: Two analysts tell the Jerusalem Post they’ve concluded what the rest of us figured out long ago, that Obama’s given up on the idea of halting Iran’s nuclear program
–Karl
The Empty Suit is going to get a lot of people killed.
SPQR (72771e) — 5/20/2009 @ 9:12 amCan’t Joe Wilson write an op-Ed in the NYTs and make Iran’s nuclear program disappear?
MayBee (c50b9d) — 5/20/2009 @ 9:41 amRemember that during the Bush administration, any discussion of Iran’s nuclear program were just the propaganda of war mongers.
SPQR (72771e) — 5/20/2009 @ 9:43 amLies, all lies!
AD - RtR/OS! (47d252) — 5/20/2009 @ 9:45 amThese are obviously materials needed for Iran’s civilian nuclear power program –
just like those high-strength aluminium tubes that Saddam Hussein was acquiring that the Left vociferously denied were of any use in a WMD program.
Interesting that immediately upon Bush/Cheney/Rove leaving office, all hell breaks loose from North Korea to Iran to Pakistan.
Probably just coincidence although in one of his rare bouts of prescience Biden called it. Now that I think about it, it is scary that he can think like Kim Jong Il, Ahmadinejad and Osama.
vet66 (9d1bb3) — 5/20/2009 @ 9:58 amWar mongering troglodytes, all of you.
JD (557367) — 5/20/2009 @ 10:02 amWell thank god we’ve only given them until the end of the year…
Oh, wait…
Scott Jacobs (60844a) — 5/20/2009 @ 10:44 amAll this proves is that when it comes to promoting a pro-Israeli agenda of bashing Iran, the Democrats and Republicans think alike. Thanks to AIPAC. FYI there is no “rare metal” used in IEDs — IEDs use off-the-shelf components found at your local Radio Shack.
hassh (2d911c) — 5/20/2009 @ 11:57 amohnoes, Karl. Please to not be reopening a simmering debate over how the Obama administration shapes intelligence findings to fit its policy objectives.* In the spirit of fairness, Mr. Barack has a devastating bow and curtsey what he has yet to deploy on our unsuspecting Iranian friends and if that were to fail work then drinking a dirty socialist Pepsi will a lot Refresh Everything I think.
happyfeet (71f55e) — 5/20/2009 @ 12:10 pmoh. *fail to work* I meant. Also that asterisk doesn’t look very clicky but it is.
happyfeet (71f55e) — 5/20/2009 @ 12:11 pmI would tell hassh that tantalum is a rare metal used in Explosively Formed Penetrators — a particularly deadly type of IED. The defendants in Morgenthau’s case would have disproved it if they could — but it’s fairly clear from his non sequiturs about Israel and AIPAC that haash is not really interested in a dialogue.
Karl (ea222a) — 5/20/2009 @ 12:20 pmfeets!
Karl (ea222a) — 5/20/2009 @ 12:21 pmIt is always about the Joooooooooos, isn’t it, haassh?
JD (57d75b) — 5/20/2009 @ 12:53 pmit comes to promoting a pro-Israeli agenda of bashing Iran
As usual, Hashpipe blames the evil Jooos for everything that’s wrong in the ME.
Dmac (1ddf7e) — 5/20/2009 @ 12:53 pmWhoops, cross – posted there with JD.
Dmac (1ddf7e) — 5/20/2009 @ 12:54 pmObama’s given up on the idea of halting Iran’s nuclear program
But..
BUT…
He PRO-MISED!
Amphipolis (42043b) — 5/20/2009 @ 4:16 pmHey, if you libtard pussies believed what Sy Hersh wrote, Cheney has sent our troops into Iran five or six times to go medieval on the Mullahs. How can there be any nukes left?
daleyrocks (5d22c0) — 5/20/2009 @ 4:23 pmOops – he did it again!
But I’m still so glad I finally have a president who says what I wish was true.
Amphipolis (42043b) — 5/20/2009 @ 4:27 pmComment by daleyrocks — 5/20/2009 @ 4:23 pm
Or Mullahs?
AD - RtR/OS! (47d252) — 5/20/2009 @ 4:29 pmNonsense – tantalum is widely used in electronics and not “IEDs”
IEDs are made in backyards, and don’t need tantalum to be effective. That’s precisely WHY they’re effective – they are simple to make and deploy.
And yes Israel is the problem, like it or not.
hassh (2d911c) — 5/21/2009 @ 7:48 amBecause of the Joooooooooooooooooooooooooooos !
JD (4736a1) — 5/21/2009 @ 7:56 amEFP’s were made in Iran, not in backyards. In 2008, they accounted for only 5% of roadside bombs, but 30% of casualties. Because of teh Jooooos, of course.
carlitos (2f933e) — 5/21/2009 @ 8:06 amIran sucks how they kill innocent people all the time. It was a great nation once but now it’s a country of degenerate hatey losers. I wonder how they’d like it if someone dropped say a few nuclear bombs on their gay backasswards little country’s head. Can you even imagine how whiny they’d be? Let’s hope we don’t have to imagine.
happyfeet (71f55e) — 5/21/2009 @ 10:11 am[…] starts preparing people for Iran being allowed to retain it. All of which proceeds with the knowledge that Iran has sought nuclear weapons all along, and that Iran’s intransigence threatens to set […]
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