Rumsfeld Proposes Pullout on Drug Effort

[Judi Lynn]

Rumsfeld Proposes Pullout on Drug Effort

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published: June 7, 2006
Filed at 6:27 p.m. ET

MIAMI (AP) -- Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld wants to end Army helicopter support for a joint U.S.-Bahamas drug-interdiction program that over the past two decades has resulted in hundreds of arrests and the seizure of tons of cocaine and marijuana.

The Army's seven Blackhawk helicopters and their crews form the backbone of Operation Bahamas, Turks and Caicos, which the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration credits with helping drive cocaine and marijuana smugglers away from the Bahamas and its easy access to Florida.

But in a May 15 letter to Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, Rumsfeld said it was time after more than 20 years to shift the equipment elsewhere. The military is being stretched thin by the fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan and other commitments around the globe.

The Bahamas anti-drug program, Rumsfeld wrote, ''now competes with resources necessary for the war on terrorism and other activities in support of our nation's defense, with potential adverse effects on the military preparedness of the United States.''
(snip/...)

http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/us/AP-Drug-Wars-Bahamas.html

[rox63]

1. Translation...

He needs more choppers for Iran.

[IndianaGreen]

7. No shit, that's exactly what that means!

Off to war boys!

[OKNancy]

2. I guess hell just froze over

:spray:

[Kurovski]

3. "now competes with resources necessary for the war ..."

He might just as well mean the drugs themselves that troops resort to in order to tolerate the nightmare we've put them into.

[Catch22Dem]

4. Good call

Waste of resources.

[Bobbieo]

5. Every move they make is a waste of resources!

[leftupnorth]

6. wow

sacrifice resources from one useless war on a desire for another useless war on a feeling, great idea!
I still say the best way to smuggle a nuke or dirty bomb into this country is to wrap it in cocaine.

what a disaster.

[seasat]

8. I saw one of those copters.

I was working on a boat in the Bahamas when a sea plane buzzed low over us so close, I swear they almost clipped our "A" frame on the stern. It was immediately followed by a black copter. It was either the DEA or my tinfoil hat wasn't working and they finally picked up my signal. ;)

[styersc]

9. Remember when the Administration was equating drug use with

support of the terrorists? Easy connection: taking a bong hit supports Bin Laden but filling an SUV with gasoline is the American way!!!

I'm disappointed that Rumsfeld would CUT and RUN, leaving the Carribean drug trade to the "dead enders".