Instead, it's his stance on terrorism that I'm applauding. Terrorism, you ask?
Well, at least it was his stance on "extraordinary rendition", and it was from 1993. And I don't recall him exactly defending President Bush's policies publicly. But at least during his tenure as Vice President, he seemed to bring a dose of realism to the Clinton administration.
The Wall Street Journal reports that Richard Clarke, the anti-terrorism official under President Clinton and Bush, described a scene in his book "Against All Enemies" in which President Clinton and others were debating Clarke's proposal to have U.S. forces capture a terrorist and then turn him over to a foreign government for questioning. Presumably, such questioning would not have been consistent with the left's standards (i.e., use no more than pressure, and usually less than, normal police criminal procedure).
Clinton was leaning against the proposal, and then Al Gore joined the meeting late. Clinton summarized the issues, and Gore replied:
"That's a no-brainer. Of course it's a violation of international law, that's why it's a covert action. The guy is a terrorist. Go grab his a--."
Let's hope Barack Obama has people with similar views advising him, or better yet, that he feels the same way. Initial impressions aren't hopeful.
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