John McCain's Terrorist Connections

John McCain has made the distant connections from years ago between Barack Obama and "unrepentant terrorist" Bill Ayers a centerpiece of the McCain-Palin campaign.

But McCain has much closer, more direct, and more recent connections to terrorists who committed acts far worse than Ayers, yet McCain's links to "unrepentant terrorists" are completely ignored by the media. And although Obama has forcefully condemned the past actions of Ayers, John McCain has never denounced his terrorist friends.

In the 1980s, McCain personally funded a guerrilla group (the Contras) that engaged in terrorist acts. Just last year, McCain expressed how "proud" he was of an ex-felon who urged shooting law enforcement agents in the head (G. Gordon Liddy). And earlier this year, the McCain campaign trumpeted the endorsement of a man who illegally provided weapons and money to terrorists; when a reporter questioned this, the McCain campaign refused to even criticize this criminal (Oliver North).

In February 1988, the Washington Post reported that McCain personally (and relatively "recently") gave the Contras $400.

No one can doubt that acts of terror were committed by the Contras. Human Rights Watch concluded in 1989 that "the Contras were major and systematic violators of the most basic standards of the laws of armed conflict, including by launching indiscriminate attacks on civilians, selectively murdering non-combatants, and mistreating prisoners." Human Rights Watch also criticized acts of terror by the Sandinista government, but called the Contras "a force that has shown itself incapable of operating without consistently committing gross abuses in violation of the laws of war."

Here are some eyewitness reports of the terrorism committed by the Contras:

They took out their knives and stuck them under his fingernails. After they took his fingernails off, then they broke his elbows. Afterwards they gouged out his eyes. Then they took their bayonets and made all sorts of slices in his skin all around his chest, arms, and legs. They then took his hair off and the skin of his scalp. When they saw there was nothing left to do with him, they threw gasoline on him and burned him. The next day they started the same thing with a 13 year old girl. They did more or less the same, but they did other things to her too. First, she was utilized, raped by all the officers. They stripped her and threw her in a small room, they went in one by one. Afterwards they took her out tied and blindfolded. Then they began the same mutilating, pulling her fingernails out and cutting off her fingers, breaking her arms, gouging out her eyes and all they did to the other fellow. They cut her legs and stuck an iron rod into her womb.

Rosa had her breasts cut off. Then they cut into her chest and took out her heart. The men had their arms broken and their testicles cut off and their eyes poked out. They were then killed by slitting their throats and pulling the tongue out through the slit.

A congressional committee confirmed at the time that the Contras "raped, tortured and killed unarmed civilians, including children" and that "groups of civilians, including pregnant women and children were burned, dismembered, blinded and beheaded."

Harold Pinter recalled the testimony of Father John Metcalf:

I am in charge of a parish in the north of Nicaragua. My parishioners built a school, a health centre, a cultural centre. We have lived in peace. A few months ago a Contra force attacked the parish. They destroyed everything: the school, the health centre, the cultural centre. They raped nurses and teachers, slaughtered doctors, in the most brutal manner. They behaved like savages. Please demand that the US government withdraw its support from this shocking terrorist activity.

And no one can doubt that McCain knew about these acts of terror when he was publicly funding them. On February 10, 1987, the New York Times noted that a 170-page report by Americas Watch determined about the Contras, "They still engage in selective but systematic killing of persons they perceive as representing the Government, in indiscriminate attacks against civilians or in disregard for their safety, and in outrages against the personal dignity of prisoners. The Contras also engage in widespread kidnapping of civilians, apparently for purposes of recruitment as well as intimidation." The report noted, "The escalating brutality of Contra practices leads Americas Watch to conclude that disregard for the rights of civilians has become a de facto policy of the Contra forces."

McCain also must have known that the Contras were engaged in drug smuggling while he was handing them money. On August 5, 1987, the CIA Central American Task Force chief testified before the Iran-Contra Committee about the Contra drug trafficking: "It is not a couple of people. It is a lot of people."(pdf, p. 38)

In addition to his personal support for the Contras, McCain has a supporter who is far more of a terrorist supporter than Bill Ayers. His name is Oliver North. Ayers was never convicted for any crime, and there's no evidence he ever killed anyone. North, by Contrast, was convicted (he got away with it because his testimony to Congress provided him with immunity).

There can be no doubt about North's connection to terrorism. Under the direction of North, the US covertly sold $48 million in battlefield missiles and other weapons to Iran, even though Iran was classified by the US government as a sponsor of international terrorism. North then illegally used some of this money to help finance the Contras.

So what is the McCain campaign's position toward this terrorist supporter? Have they denounced his views? No, McCain's own campaign website promotes the endorsement of him by North. McCain also supported North's 1994 campaign for the US Senate in Virginia.

The Washington Post blog did ask the McCain campaign, "Is McCain pleased to receive North's endorsement, given the fact that the failed GOP senatorial candidate was convicted in 1989 of shredding documents, accepting an illegal gratuity and aiding and abetting in the obstruction of Congress?" The McCain campaign declined to criticize North or remove their link to his endorsement: "We'll let the comments in the release stand," wrote spokeswoman Jill Hazelbaker in an e-mail.

Obviously, McCain has no regrets about supporting the Contras. McCain named Otto Reich as his adviser on Latin American issues, even though Reich was involved in the Iran-Contra scandal. In the mid-1980s, Reich ran the U.S. Office of Public Diplomacy and illegally coordinated with the CIA to run a "White Propaganda" campaign planting bogus op-eds written by his speechwriters in newspapers. In 1987, the Republican Comptroller-General formally found that Reich had broken the law. As ambassador to Venezuela, Reich arranged the release and asylum of Cuban-American terrorist Orlando Bosch, who had planted a bomb on a Cuban airliner in 1976, killing all 73 people on board.

McCain's connections to G. Gordon Liddy are even closer and more disturbing. Liddy, of course, is famous as an ex-felon convicted for his role as a mastermind in the Watergate break-ins and cover-up. Less well known is the fact that Liddy proposed to kidnap anti-war activists in 1972 and even plotted the murder of a newspaper columnist deemed unfriendly.

If his criminal activity helped bring down a president weren't bad enough, Liddy actually advocated terrorist acts, too. In 1994, Liddy advised listeners to his radio show to kill federal law enforcement agents: "Now if the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms comes to disarm you and they are bearing arms, resist them with arms. Go for a head shot; they're going to be wearing bulletproof vests. ... Kill the sons of bitches."

Despite this public advocacy of terrorism, McCain appeared at Liddy's home for a fundraiser Liddy organized for him in 1998. Liddy has given McCain $5,000 during his various campaigns, including $1,000 in 2007. McCain has never refused the money. Less than a year ago, McCain appeared on Liddy's radio show (where Liddy greeted him as an "old friend") and McCain told Liddy, "I'm proud of you, I'm proud of your family. It's always a pleasure for me to come on your program, Gordon, and congratulations on your continued success and adherence to the principles and philosophies that keep our nation great."

No one imagines that John McCain's connections to terrorism should automatically disqualify him from the presidency or should even be a major factor in the election, when questions about the economy, health care, and foreign wars loom much more prominently.

But John McCain's character does matter. And unlike the attacks on Obama and Ayers, McCain's terrorist connections have an important policy dimension. No one imagines that Obama is going to implement a policy of covert symbolic bombings in America as Ayers did, and Obama has strongly condemned what Ayers did decades ago.

However, McCain has never condemned the Contras or Oliver North or G. Gordon Liddy, and that raises many policy questions. Would McCain ever allow a Watergate-style criminal ring in his White House? Would he ever sell weapons to a regime engaged in supporting terrorism? Would he illegally engage in covert propaganda aimed at Amricans? Would he ever try to secretly fund a guerrilla force committing acts of terror? Unlike the guilt-by-association smears against Obama, McCain's friendship with terrorists is more than just a character issue. McCain needs to answer these questions about critical errors of judgment committed by past Republican administrations, since his terrorist associations suggest that he might endorse these terrible mistakes and be prone to repeat them.

The questions about Obama and Ayers have been asked and answered and analyzed in depth many times before. But John McCain still hasn't answered any questions about his terrorist connections. And the media have almost entirely ignored all of McCain's friends who are "unrepentant terrorists."

Crossposted at ObamaPolitics and DailyKos.

Comments

[WillistonElkoAlum2002]

Don't forget about the fact that McCain has befriended another terrorist group: Operation Rescue.

[pepin1]

They never bombed the White house and no matter what Obama should have to explain his connection and all of his other connections as should McCain. But Obama has an aweful long list of them for the short time he has been in government. and I am sick of hearing Bush, Bush , Bush. In 10 years you will still be blaming him and did you forget htat congress has been doninated by Democrats for the last 2 yrs? All politicians lie, face it. But the problem is that people think Obama doesn't lie like he's the baby Jesus or something. Where I live all we ever see is Obama crap all over the place and the media is the worst they don't even share both sides. I had to switch to cable news to get both sides. I agree with you about writing to the media and I have done this in my agrea also because all they show is Obama and that is unfair also. Obama will win the election but we will all suffer for it in the end. Say goodbye to Freedon and hello to Socialism. It has already started in Mo. when a lady was arrested for giving her opinion on Obama. We won't be able to give our opinions much longer on anything. Say goodbye to The First Ammendment.

[Forest]

Dude,
You want to talk Socialism?
Under George W. Bush, our national debt has soared from 5 trillion to over 10 trillion dollars. His administration has spent more money than all the other presidents combined. His administration has borrowed against yours and your children's and grandchildrens' futures while many of his cronies
in the war business have made millions.

[ilovedessert]

O PLEASE, ALL WE HEARD FOR YEARS WAS BUT CLINTONNNNNNNN! TRUST ME IF CHEALSE CLINTON WAS KNOCKED UP AND SINGLE, WE WOULD NOT HEAR THE END OF IT, BUT PALIN'S KID, IT'S A FAMILY MATTER. ENOUGH MUD ON BOTH SIDES. McCAIN SAYS THE ECONOMY IS NOT HIS THING, THIS PAST WEEK AND A HALF PROVES THAT WE NEED A PREZ WHOSE THING IS THE ECONOMY!

[adjam]

Why isn't this commentary the headline for the Huffington Post tomorrow morning.. I understand why Obama won't sink to mud slinging and has the economy to worry about but I have no problem...anything that is true is fair game and should be brought to the attention of the people so they can ask themselves Who is the real John McCain....

PS Profjpr I just wrote to all the news stations because I agree with you completely...

[R.W. Sanders - Huffpost Blogger]

only bioluminescent fish can live at the depths of mccain's dishonesty.

[Profjpr]

Why don't the Republicans pitch a tent and charge admission to see Palin? Their base doesn't go to see McCain anyway. They go to gawk at Palin and walk out when McCain talks. I'm sick of hearing about Bill Ayers, a man that 40 years ago was anti-estabilishment when Obama was eight years old. EIGHT YEARS OLD. Those were different times. A different war. Everyone that had a brain was anti-establishment. I'm not condoning what he did. But after all, is he in jail? No. He's a professor. But where is Keating? In JAIL. But do we hear about that? Who are the Keating Five? Does the public know? If McCain and Palin are going to go and attack Obama on Hannity, then someone needs to protest. And loudly. Let's use our writing skills and our power as bloggers to let CNN, MSNBC, and, yes, even Fox News know EXACTLY what we can do. We can get to them through their sponsors and make them responsible and un-biased. Otherwise, we are going to lose. And we'll lose big in more ways than the election.

[Profjpr]

Why aren't we hearing about these things in the news? All I've been seeing today is the circus side-show of Sarah Palin and McCain over and over and over. In the meantime, Obama went down a point in the National Polls and McCain went up. We need to bombard the media with our emails. Because what's that old saying? "ANY PUBLICITY IS GOOD PUBLICITY?" Do we need to lose again and have another nit-wit? I just watched a great documentary called "Blog" on the Sundance channel. It showed how bloggers, like us, got Lieberman to lose to Delany because they spoke up. We can write to each other all we want. But we MUST write to ALL of the media that is abusing these photo-ops of McCain and Palin for ratings. We need to tell them that we'll write to their sponsors because they're being un-biased in their reporting by showing Palin and Mcain 10 times more than Obama. All I see is Palin this, McCain that...Palin, Palin, Palin..

[Evisionary]

I'm with you! Why aren't we hearing about this in the news? I somehow missed this story. and it has been burried. No one is buzzing it up on yahoo or digg. I'm writting CNN and MSNBC.