posted on October 29, 2004 12:49:22 PM new
Oct. 28 - A last-minute endorsement of President George W. Bush by a hastily formed coalition of Arab-Americans was coordinated in part by a registered lobbyist for the Libyan regime of Col. Muammar Kaddafi—a government formally branded by the State Department as a state sponsor of terrorism.
Randa Fahmy Hudome, who just this month signed a $1.4 million contract to represent the Libyan government, served as a behind-the-scenes “media consultant” helping to prepare this week's press release praising Bush’s record in promoting “human rights, democracy and self-determination” in the Middle East, a chief organizer of the group told NEWSWEEK.
Walid Phares, who described himself as the academic adviser for the newly created group called Middle Eastern American National Conference, said he had no idea when he worked with Hudome in recent days on the group’s endorsement that she was simultaneously representing Libyan interests in Washington as a recently registered foreign agent.
Copies of the Bush endorsement, and Hudome’s candid comments on strategy and the prospective signatories, were shared with a top Bush campaign official prior to its release—and then inadvertently sent to an anti-Bush organization, which promptly posted them on its Web site.
“For now on, we’re not going to be consulting with her,” Phares said about Hudome’s role as an adviser to his organization.
Until last year, Hudome was a top Bush administration energy official, serving as chief aide on international issues to Secretary of Energy Spencer Abraham. Her new role as Washington representative for the Kaddafi regime has raised eyebrows in Washington’s lobbying community—both because of the lucrative size of her contract and her continued connections with the Bush campaign. Until President Bush lifted most economic sanctions against Libya this summer, citing its cooperation in giving up its nuclear program, it was illegal for Americans to have financial dealings with Libya—or represent its government in Washington.
Hudome, who briefed Bush on Arab-American issues during the 2000 election, confirmed to NEWSWEEK she has been serving as an adviser and informal strategist for the Bush campaign this time as well as serving as a sometime surrogate speaker on the president’s behalf before Arab-American audiences.
“I’m happy to help whenever they call me,” said Hudome. “I’m happy to speak on the president’s behalf.” But she added, “I don’t see any conflict” with her role as Libyan lobbyist. “I can give you a list of 101 foreign agents who play active roles on plenty of campaigns,” Hudome said. “There are plenty of lobbyists in town who do political work, as well. I also have 20 years of experience in [domestic] politics. I don’t see a problem with this.”
Hudome also said that she has recently hired as a partner in her Libya work a former Clinton administration official who is now active in the Kerry campaign. But unlike Hudome, that person has not yet registered with the Justice Department as a foreign agent. She declined to identify the individual. (Late Thursday, Hudome emailed and phoned a reporter that a top Kerry campaign foreign policy aide, Jonathan Winer, has been a registered foreign agent for Indonesia. Winer told NEWSWEEK that he resigned as a lobbyist for Indonesia when he went to work for the Kerry campaign and that the campaign has an "informal policy" prohibiting such connections for campaign officials.)
Still, Hudome’s role is likely to prove controversial because of Libya’s status as a formally designated sponsor of terrorism—a label it is not likely to lose any time soon following recent evidence that Kaddafi sought to assassinate Crown Prince Abdullah of Saudi Arabia just last year. A U.S. Muslim activist, Abdurahman Alamoudi, was sentenced to 23 years in federal prison this month after confessing to his role in taking hundreds of thousands of dollars from Libya to advance the plot. Sources tell NEWSWEEK that British authorities are actively investigating the Libyan plot and recently questioned Alamoudi about it at considerable length.
Hudome’s role in helping to shape the endorsement—as well as her ties to the Bush campaign—was also sharply criticized by some of the family members of the victims of the 1988 bombing of Pan Am 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland. That attack has been linked to the Libyan government and was considered the most deadly terrorist act against American civilians until September 11.
“I think it’s appalling,” said Victoria Pimentel, whose husband, John B. Cummock, was killed in the Lockerbie bombing, and who has objected to the president’s rapprochement with the Libyan government. “Clearly, you can buy policies and you can buy votes with this administration. Obviously, if you have a lobbyist for the Libyans who is out there trying to get Muslim votes for the president, it’s a good indication of what this administration is all about.”
“It’s so blatantly obvious that there is coordination between the Bush campaign, the Kaddafi regime and the oil companies,” said Dan Cohen, whose daughter was killed in the Lockerbie bombing. “If it weren’t so serious, it would be laughable.” Asked about Hudome's role, Steve Schmidt, deputy communications director for the Bush campaign. said: "We have hundreds of thousands of people who have volunteered their time to the Bush campaign. She is one of them." He declined further comment.
Hudome is not among the 15 Middle Eastern Americans who signed the letter, released by the newly formed Middle Eastern National Conference. Instead, it is signed by individuals who are described only as “Lebanese American” or “Assyrian American” or “Muslim American”—although many apparently are affiliated with organizations that plan to promote the endorsement on their Web sites. The group said in an press release that it is “based in Washington” but Phares, a professor at Florida Atlantic University, acknowledged that it doesn’t actually have an office or a Web site. The letter praises the president’s record “in the areas of U.S. national and homeland security, the international campaign against terrorism and the promotion of human rights, democracy and self-determination.”
While Phares told NEWSWEEK he only asked Hudome to advise him on press strategy, Hudome said she actually did much more than that. “When he [Phares] sent it to me, I told him this was way, way too long and had too much mishmash,” Hudome said. “I rewrote the press release and told him you need to have these points.”
Although Phares insisted his organization has no formal connection to the Bush-Cheney campaign, Hudome’s e-mail exchanges with Phares were copied to Jafar Karim, a top Bush-Cheney campaign official who serves as “national coalitions director.” He did not return a telephone call and e-mail request for comment today.
“Walid, attached is the press release. Please fill in your contact number, letter head, etc. Also I need city and states to show geographical diversity," reads an Oct. 23 email—written all in upper case—from Hudome to Phares. Leave the last page as talkers for those who will be called by the press. Please let me know of approval ASAP so I can help you distribute to the press," Hudome’s email continues.
In another Oct. 25 e-mail, in which Karim was also copied, Hudome said she had used Google to search for information about the prospective signatories of the Bush endorsement and advised that one of them, an Arab-American activist in Virginia, should not be included “for the reasons we discussed.”
Hudome then continued: “Remember this: We do not want to do anything that might harm the President’s chances of re-election by exposing him to any controversy. If you have doubts about these names—perhaps we don’t need to do this press release.”
The e-mails were posted this week, without comment and without any reference to Hudome’s role as Libyan lobbyist, on the Web site of GeorgeWBush.org, an anti-Bush site that tries to imitate the look of the official Bush campaign Web site—GeorgeWBush.com—but laces it with material lampooning the president, such as links to spoof organizations like Billionaires for Bush and Pleasure Boat Captains for Truth.
Phares inadvertently sent e-mails meant for Karim, the Bush campaign official, to the wrong e-mail address by typing in GeorgeWBush.org. The anti-Bush site said the e-mails, along with many others directed to the Bush campaign, wound up in a “catch all” e-mailbox—the contents of which it gleefully shared with its readers this week. “It was sort of a trap,” said Phares.
The pro-Bush endorsement contains language praising the president’s record in a number of areas, including the war on terrorism, the war in Iraq, Afghanistan, the Israel-Palestine issue—and Libya. Specifically, it states: “We thank and congratulate the president for succeeding in the process of disarming the Libyan regime [of Kaddafi] and feel that a second term of the Bush presidency will press the Libyan regime to reform, and release the political prisoners.”
Hudome said she did not write or tinker with the language on Libya and said she saw no conflict between its call for reform and her own representation of Libya. “Just because you represent a government doesn’t mean you support everything they’re doing,” she said.
There's an old saying in Tennessee — I know it's in Texas, probably in Tennessee — that says, fool me once, shame on — shame on you. Fool me — you can't get fooled again." —George W. Bush, Nashville, Tenn., Sept. 17, 2002
---------------------------------- "Give it up for George W. Bush, the best friend international jihad ever had."
posted on October 29, 2004 01:08:25 PM new
In case you forgot (conviently) the US has restored trade with Libya after Muammar opened his country to weapons inspectors.
Hey, hey Ho, ho Kerry - sign the 1-8-0
"War is an ugly thing, but not the ugliest of things. The person who has nothing for which he is willing
to fight, nothing which is more important than his own personal safety, is a miserable creature and has no chance of being free unless made and kept so by the exertions of better men than himself."
--John Stuart Mill
[ edited by Bear1949 on Oct 29, 2004 01:09 PM ]
posted on October 29, 2004 01:34:49 PM new
Bear your picture is wrong. Bin laden and his family support Bush not Kerry.
After all it is Bin Laden that is warning Bush can not protect America against another attack.
There's an old saying in Tennessee — I know it's in Texas, probably in Tennessee — that says, fool me once, shame on — shame on you. Fool me — you can't get fooled again." —George W. Bush, Nashville, Tenn., Sept. 17, 2002
---------------------------------- "Give it up for George W. Bush, the best friend international jihad ever had."
posted on October 29, 2004 08:07:16 PM new
What makes me laugh about Bear's "Cats are Democrats/Dogs are Republican" cartoon is how bad a light it puts Republicans in--and here Bear is posting it...
According to this, Bear:
Republicans are well-trained puppies who perform on command
Republicans expect others to clean up their messes
Republicans put their nose in other's business (though that picture looks more like 'brown-nosing' to me...)
Republicans, unless checked, will destroy the planet
Republicans obsequiously serve their Master
Republicans all repeat the same things at the same time
Republicans cring before & worship their owner
Republicans constantly redistrict their territory (though the picture looks like they just like peeing on their environment).
Democrats come across far better in this thing, Bear--you might want to reconsider using it.
____________________
"Bad temper is its own scourge. Few things are more bitter than to feel bitter. A man's venom poisons himself more than his victim." --Charles Buxton
posted on October 30, 2004 09:59:55 AM new
::In case you forgot (conviently) the US has restored trade with Libya after Muammar opened his country to weapons inspectors.::
In case you were not aware Bear - the US is holding a couple gentlemen involved in a Kaddafi funded plot to asasinate King Faud of Saudi Arabia. This was within the last year. I wish I could find an article to give you more details but I was not able to find it - read about it in the local paper.
Maybe Hellen can find something - I think she is more patient than me when it comes to researching the web.
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If it's really "common" sense, why do so few people actually have it?
posted on October 30, 2004 12:17:31 PM new
Fenix, according to this article, Kaddafi and his aides were financing a plot to assassinate Saudi Crown Prince Abdulla. This is a Newsweek article by Michael Isikoff on that plot published on MSNBC. http://msnbc.msn.com/id/6314340/site/newsweek/
"Libya: The Strongman is Still Making Trouble"
Nov. 1 issue - President George W. Bush counts Libya's decision to give up its nuclear-weapons program—a move that helped thaw relations with the longtime pariah regime of Col. Muammar Kaddafi—as one of his foreign-policy successes. To reward the Libyan strongman, Bush last month lifted most U.S. sanctions against Libya, prompting a rush of U.S. energy executives to Tripoli in search of drilling-rights concessions and other deals. (Among the beneficiaries: Halliburton, whose chief financial officer recently told investors that the Libyan market presented "a great opportunity for us." ) Another sign of the thaw: the Libyans have just hired their own D.C. lobbyist, signing a $1.4 million contract with Randa Fahmy Hudome, until last year a top Bush-administration energy official.
But U.S. counterterrorism officials are deeply uneasy. Libya is still on the State Department list of state "sponsors" of terrorism, and sources tell NEWSWEEK the country is likely to remain there for some time. One reason: mounting evidence that, even while they were bargaining with the United States over the nuclear issue, Kaddafi and his top aides were financing a bizarre plot to assassinate Saudi ruler Crown Prince Abdullah by attacking his motorcade with grenade launchers. When reports of the alleged plot surfaced last spring, U.S. intel officials downplayed it. But corroboration—including a documented trail of Libyan payments to the alleged plotters—forced the CIA to change its assessment. "The agency's view went almost overnight to, 'Oh God, there's something here'," said one U.S. official. "It's put the lifting of the 'state sponsor of terrorism' [designation] on indefinite hold."
The chief source for the assassination plot was U.S. Muslim activist Abdurahman Alamoudi, recently sentenced to 23 years in prison for illegal dealings with Libya. Alamoudi told FBI agents he had been recruited by Libyan officials in March 2003 to contact two Saudi dissidents in London and create "headaches" for Abdullah. (This was just after Kaddafi and Abdullah had a shouting match at an Arab League conference.) Alamoudi says Kaddafi himself later told him the real purpose was to kill Abdullah. As recently as September 2003, court papers show, an unnamed top Libyan official personally arranged for the delivery of $500,000 in cash to pay for the plot. That official, sources tell NEWSWEEK, was Musa Kusa, the chief of Libyan intel who was once a suspect in the 1988 Lockerbie bombing but who last year became the prime negotiator with U.S. officials about improving relations. Libyan officials have denied the plot, but so far offered no explanation for the alleged payments. Libya lobbyist Hudome told NEWSWEEK the government won't comment until "the investigation is complete."
posted on October 30, 2004 06:47:12 PM new
Helen - thanks for finding that. It's funny, I know exactly where I was the day I read that article (just didn't remember which member of the family it was). Maybe because it was while I was walking downtown. I have a habit of reading the paper while I walk around and every so often someone comments on how strange it is seeing someone crossing the street reading a paper. I was reading that article on one of those days and it kind of stuck in my head.
~~~ • ~~~ • ~~~ • ~~~ • ~~~
If it's really "common" sense, why do so few people actually have it?
posted on October 31, 2004 06:14:56 AM new
Thanks for your reply, fenix. It's good to know I found the right story. I've been playing around with search engines etc. so I enjoyed looking for it.
