Rep. Sensenbrenner on oil: "It is important to look foward"

Rep. James Sensenbrenner (R-Wis) criticizes House Democrats for voting 90% of the time against increasing America's oil supply, while supporting Republicans who have recently voted in favor of doing so. Sensenbrenner added that he believes the Congress must act on high oil costs for the “sake of the working men and women of America and for the sake of our nations economy.” (0:33)
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Big kid on the Middle East block

At a hearing on Iran’s Nuclear Aspirations before the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Congressman David Scott (D-Ga.) says Iran is pursuing a nuclear weapon and is rushing to fill the power vacuum that exists in the Middle East. (1:04)
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Interview with Middle East conflict expert Dr. Trita Parsi: McCain does not "savor" diplomacy

Dr. Trita Parsi, author of the new book Treacherous Alliances: The Secret Dealings of Israel, Iran, and the United States and founder of the National Iranian American Council (NIAC), speaks with News Correspondent Evan Segerman on a number of issues concerning the conflict in the Middle East. During the interview, Dr. Parsi discusses the upcoming presidential election, his feelings about the recent American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) conference, and the role young people can play by educating themselves about what is taking place in countries such as Israel and Iran. (5:49)
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McCain: U.S.-Israel alliance is "forever"

At an American Israel Public Affairs Committee conference, Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) says that the state of Israel is a "singular achievement" as a great democracy of the Middle East, and that critics of the U.S.-Israeli alliance perhaps "do not fully understand the love of liberty and the pursuit of justice." He said they should know, however, that "those ties will not be broken," because the two nations were brought together by "shared ideals and shared adversity." He said that the U.S. and Israel "are the most natural of allies and trusted partners in the quest for peace," and like Israel itself, "that alliance is forever." (0:54)
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Deputy Prime Minister of Israel Haim Ramon speaks about the goal of radical Islam

Haim Ramon, Deputy Prime Minister of Israel, speaks about the goal of radical Islam saying that it is in the best interest of radical Islam to perpetuate the conflict between Israel and Palestine. (0:40)
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Former CIA Director James Woolsey calls out totalitarian regimes

Former CIA Director James Woolsey calls out the Wahabi family in Saudi Arabia and the post 1979 Shiite muslim movement as being the two most dangerous totalitarian regimes in the Middle East. (1:25)
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Israeli Deputy Prime Minister defines a divided Middle East

Haim Ramon, Deputy Prime Minister of Israel, says that the main division in the Middle East does not have to do with religion or ethnicity, it has become a war with moderate ideals on one side and radical Islam on the other. (0:59)
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Movements in Middle East: “wake up call” to U.S. position and credibility in the region

Robert Malley of the International Crisis Group said the only three movements in the Middle East, the Israeli-Syrian conflict, the Israeli-Hamas conflict, and the internal Lebanese conflict, all were done without, or even despite, the U.S. He says these conflicts included “actors” the U.S. is opposed to, and outcomes the U.S. did not like. He believes these outcomes should be a wake up call to the U.S. position and credibility in the region, and a chance to observe actions that should have been done differently to not reach this point. (0:42)

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Key to transforming the Middle East: “be in the game every single day”

Danielle Pletka of the American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research (AEI) says that if the United States wants to see a transformed Middle East with Iraq and Lebanon as “pillars of that transformed Middle East” then the U.S. must be “in the game every single day.” He said the U.S. has had a policy of giving pronouncements which are rarely followed by action, but that Iran is “in the game every single day.” (1:49)

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Similar Rights to Jewish Refugees

Congressmen Jerrold Nadler (D-NY) held a conference call with fellow congressmen Joseph Crowley (D-NY) and Mike Ferguson (R-NJ) about the passing of HR-185. The resolution urges the Congress to recognize the Jewish refugee situation in the Middle East. Speakers from different Jewish organizations took also part in the conference and talked about the importance of recognizing the “unjust” situation in the Middle East.
According to the all speakers, the regular sympathy towards the Palestinians should be changed and people should be educated about the Jews as well.

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Congressman Delahunt says if we don't treat refugees with respect it creates a breeding ground for terrorists

At the House Foreign Affairs Committee hearing on "Neglected Responsibilities: The U.S. Response to the Iraqi Refugee Crisis," Congressman William Delahunt (D-MA) says that we cannot allow a breeding ground for terrorism to fester in the Middle East, and he says he suggests the vast numbers of refugees will produce terrorist of the future unless they are treated with respect and dignity. (:27)
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Congressman Ackerman says we have not seized the moment to rehabilitate our image in the Middle East

At the House Foreign Affairs Committee hearing on "Neglected Responsibilities: The U.S. Response to the Iraqi Refugee Crisis," Chairman Gary L. Ackerman, (D-NY) says that at the hearing last year, a witness said that the U.S. response to the refugee crisis could be the first step to rehabilitating our image in the Middle East and globally, but a year later, we have yet to seize that moment. (:23)
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At a United States Institute of Peace Panel Discussion, Mona Yacoubian Says the U.S. Should Engage Rather Than Isolate Syria in Pursuit of Human Rights

Mona Yacoubian, special adviser at the Muslim World Initiative of USIP, says that an isolationist policy must be greatly increased if it is to yield results, and consequently becomes less attractive. She recommends a policy of engagement as a more effective technique. (0:39)
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Steven Heydemann of the United States Institute of Peace Discusses Events Preceding the Syrian Government's Recent Crackdown Against Opposition Groups

Steven Heydemann, vice president of grants and fellowships at USIP, discusses the factors leading to the Syrian government's recent crackdown against opposition groups and poor human rights record at a panel discussion. He says that perceptions of impunity on the part of the Syrian regime are reinforced by such events as the upcoming Arab League summit in Damascus and that this makes for low "opportunity cost of repression." (0:50)
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Kimberly Kagan, President of the Institute for Study of War, says Iran has been a force of instability in Iraq since 2003

At the American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research (AEI) Discussion on "Iranian Influence in the Middle East and Beyond," Kimberly Kagan, President of the Institute for the Study of War, says Iran has been a force of tremendous instability in Iraq since 2003, and has been involved in establishing groups that are hostile to the Maliki government, to the democratic government, and to the U.S. Government.

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Iranian blogger Arash Sigarchi says that it is easier to buy drugs in Iran than get access to information

Speaking through an interpreter at an American Enterprise Institute panel on bloggers in the Middle East, Iranian blogger Arash Sigarchi says that it is easier to acquire narcotics than it is to access information. (0:28)
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Lebanese blogger Tony Badran says blogs can also be used to spread propaganda

Speaking at an American Enterprise Institute panel on bloggers in the Middle East, Lebanese blogger Tony Badran says that blogs can be used both for dissent against regimes and also tools for disinformation by regimes. (0:30)
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Congressman Andrews on Middle East relations

Representative Robert E. Andrews (D-NJ) feels that President Bush restated previous statements about the Middle East, and says that we need to have it understood that we have a common cause to fight the murder of innocent people.



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