~There is more stupidity than hydrogen in the universe, and it has a longer shelf life. ~
Frank Zappa

The ‘Baghdad Quartet’

Singing the Blues For Saddam

Bonior, Thompson & “Baghdad” Jim McDermott with “Baghdad Bob’

during the Saddam financed trip in 2002

Officials in the State Department revealed Wednesday that Saddam Hussein’s foreign intelligence agency with an Iraqi-American sympathizer organized and paid for a visit to Iraq in 2002 by three House Democrats. The trip was criticized by colleagues upon their return.An indictment of a former Iraqi citizen and employee of a charity group in Detroit was issued Wednesday. He was charged with accepting multi millions of dollars in Iraqi oil contracts for helping the spy agency with projects in the United States.

The three lawmakers Jim McDermott of Washington State, Mike Thompson of California and David E. Bonior of Michigan made the five-day trip to Iraq five months before the American invasion.

Although the trip was financed by Saddam Hussein no one knows for sure there wasn’t any involvement with the Iraqi Intelligence by any of these Representatives. They were not accused of anything illegal as of yet.

The indicted Iraqi-American is Muthanna al-Hanooti was employed by Life for Relief and Development, a Michigan-based charity.

The trip had cost a minimum of $34,000.

al-Hanooti was released on $100,000 bail.

More from The AP via Breitbart:

During the trip, the lawmakers expressed skepticism about the Bush administration’s claims that Saddam was stockpiling weapons of mass destruction. Though such weapons ultimately were never found, the lawmakers drew criticism for their trip at the time.

Oklahoma Sen. Don Nickles, then the second-ranking Senate Republican, said the Democrats “sound somewhat like spokespersons for the Iraqi government.” Seattle-area conservatives dubbed McDermott “Baghdad Jim” for the Iraq trip.

Al-Hanooti was arrested Tuesday night while returning to the U.S. from the Middle East, where he was looking for a job, his attorney, James Thomas, said. Al-Hanooti pleaded not guilty Wednesday to charges of conspiracy to act as an unregistered agent of a foreign government, illegally purchasing Iraqi oil and lying to authorities. He was being held on $100,000 bail.

Between 1999 and 2006, he worked on and off as a public relations coordinator for Life for Relief and Development, a charity formed after the first Gulf War to fund humanitarian work in Iraq. FBI and Joint Terrorism Task Force agents raided the charity’s headquarters in 2006 but charged nobody and allowed the agency to continue operating.

McDermott identified that charity as the group financing the Iraq trip. In House disclosure forms, he put the cost at $5,510. Thompson also understood the charity to be financing the trip, spokeswoman Anne Warden said.

Prosecutors said Al-Hanooti was responsible for monitoring Congress for the Iraqi Intelligence Service. From 1999 to 2002, he allegedly provided Saddam’s government with a list of U.S. lawmakers he believed favored lifting economic sanctions against Iraq.

Thomas said Al-Hanooti would “vigorously defend” himself against the charges but he could not discuss the specifics of the case since he had seen none of the evidence.
…

Here is part of an interview broadcast on CNN in October, 2002:

…So how does it feel to be used as a propaganda tool against your own country? McDermott, who was asked that question by CNN’s Jane Arraf when he was still in Baghdad, said it feels fine. “If being used means that we’re highlighting the suffering of Iraqi children, or any children, then, yes, we don’t mind being used.”

These 3 clowns knew what the charity was and where it was located but their staffs did no investigation of this organization? Hard to believe….

So does anyone think that al-Hanooti will show up for trial on these charges? McDermott’s office probably supplied him with a passport back to the middle east.

The probable Democrat response; This is old news let’s just move on…..

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