With members of the protest group Code Pink behind her, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, March 12, 2008. (AP Photos/Susan Walsh)
by Bay Fang
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice managed to avoid strife during her appearance before the House Subcommittee on State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs today to explain President Bush's 2009 foreign aid budget – her last scheduled appearance as the nation's top diplomat.
Rep. Nita Lowey, a New York Democrat who chairs the subcommittee, agreed to lift her objection to granting $100 million in aid to the Palestinian Authority, responding to Rice's assurances that the Palestinian leadership is committed to peace with Israel.
Lowey and other members of Congress froze $150 million of economic assistance to the Palestinians last week, as fighting worsened between Israel and Hamas, and after a gunman killed eight students in a Jewish seminary in Jerusalem.
But Rice was unable to escape hostility from the audience, as some 15-20 members of the anti-war group Code Pink waved blood-colored hands in the air and chanted "war criminal" from the back of the hearing room during Rice's testimony.
The protesters were held back by police as Rice left the room, in contrast to last fall, when one member of the group came close enough to her to wave blood-colored hands in Rice's face.
In response to a query from Rep. Dave Weldon (R-Fla.), who called the presence of the protesters a "circus" and asked if anything could be done about them, Lowey replied, "we're here in the United States of America, and as long as they don't disrupt this proceeding and as long as they're silent, they will be welcome."
Rice testified that under the Bush administration, assistance to Latin America had been doubled, and quadrupled in Africa.
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Comments
Why does Rice hate the Jews?
Easy easy!! Just kidding, being sardonic and ironic. It's a device to illustrate how neo-cons have attacked all critics of Israel and anyone that has any sympathy at all for the Palestinians as anti-Semitic.
Posted by: C.Hussein.Morris | March 12, 2008 6:43 PM
You mean Condi is doing something other than shoe shopping?
I'm Shocked!
Posted by: John Hussein E | March 12, 2008 7:10 PM
"CONDI SPEAKS"
CONGRESS STOP PERSECUTING THE PALESTINIANS, EVERY TIME I GO OVER THERE, THEY BLAME YOU.
CONGRESS STOP SHELLING THEM DAILY.
CONGRESS STOP YOUR "DIPLOMATIC EFFORTS"
CONGRESS STOP BEING A CONCERNED
CONGRESS AND START BEING LIKE ISRAEL, ME, DICK, GEORGE AND HIS STAFFERS AND GET WITH THE PROGRAM.
STOP THE DIPLOMACY, JUST AND SHELL GAMES, SUICIDE BOMBER GAMES, TANKS IN GAZA EVERY OTHER DAY GAMES.
CONGRESS, I'M NOT COMING BACK SO TELL SENATOR WAXMAN, I STILL CAN'T ANSWER WHAT AN "AUGMENTATION OF THE IRAQ WAR" IS AND WE NEVER DID FIND THAT 9 BILLION DOLLARS BLACKWATER WAS IN CHARGE OF. SO JUST LEAVE THEM ALONE, I SAID LEAVE THEM ALONE.
IT'S JUST AUGMENTATED, MESSED UP, QUAGMIRE OF IT'S OWN MANIFESTATION.
IT'S "SPITZER" WHAT ELSE COULD IT BE THIS WEEK.
Posted by: Roger Morris | March 12, 2008 7:14 PM
They must have been using that new technique called "silent non-disruptive chanting" when disrupting Dr. Rice.
Posted by: whatnow | March 12, 2008 7:16 PM
In response to a query from Rep. Dave Weldon (R-Fla.), who called the presence of the protesters a "circus" and asked if anything could be done about them, Lowey replied, "we're here in the United States of America, and as long as they don't disrupt this proceeding and as long as they're silent, they will be welcome."
I guess this guy forgets who pays his salary and his and his family's health care. Thanks to Rep. Lowrey for reminding him protesting is allowed in America.
Posted by: lochnessmonster | March 13, 2008 6:56 AM
I was there and they DID disrupt the hearing. Code Pink came there with the intention of stealing the show and disrupting the hearing-dysfunctional people that they are. I am outraged that this fringe wacko group was allowed to upset the democratic process (not to mention violating Committee Rules about decorum during a hearing) and ruin things for those of us responsible enough to have a real job to do.
And by the way, Chairman John Conyers kicked Code Pink out of a hearing a few months ago when they were behaving like fools during Alberto Gonzales' testimony. If anyone knows about his rights under the First Amendment, its civil rights leader John Conyers. So spare me your crap about "oh its my First Amendment right." They could have picketed outside the door or on the Capitol steps and NO one would have bothered them.
Posted by: Oh Please | March 13, 2008 10:35 AM
Code pink is just another pack of loons with nothing better to do than create conspiracies and drama.
maybe they should take their own advice and moveon(.org)
Posted by: Steve Hussein S | March 13, 2008 10:42 AM
Interesting that it was the Democrat who attacked the Palestinians, Rice who defended them, and still C Hussein Morris attacks Rice for being against the Palestinians!
You Lefties are as dumb and worthless as dead grass.
Posted by: John D | March 13, 2008 11:10 AM
John D'mine uses what's called circular or 'pizza' logic.
Posted by: C.Hussein.Morris | March 13, 2008 1:59 PM
John D'mine uses what's called circular or 'pizza' logic.
Posted by: C.Hussein.Morris | March 13, 2008 1:59 PM
There is an interesting article written by an Israeli journalist about the indoctrination of Israeli journalists into the select vocabulary of reporting the Palestianian/Israeli conflict. If you have the time and the inclination to read the reality of the conflict, please do so. The title of the article is
"Never Write "Murder" or "Palestine"
By YONATAN MENDEL. Below is an excerpt
"...If the words occupation, apartheid and racism (not to mention Palestinian citizens of Israel, bantustans, ethnic cleansing and Nakba) are absent from Israeli discourse, Israeli citizens can spend their whole lives without knowing what they have been living with. Take racism (Giz’anut in Hebrew). If the Israeli parliament legislates that 13 per cent of the country’s lands can be sold only to Jews, then it is a racist parliament. If in 60 years the country has had only one Arab minister, then Israel has had racist governments. If in 60 years of demonstrations rubber bullets and live ammunition have been used only on Arab demonstrators, then Israel has a racist police. If 75 per cent of Israelis admit that they would refuse to have an Arab neighbor, then it is a racist society. By not acknowledging that Israel is a place where racism shapes relations between Jews and Arabs, Israeli Jews render themselves unable to deal with the problem or even with the reality of their own lives...."*
*http://www.counterpunch.org/mendel03122008.html
Posted by: the truth | March 13, 2008 2:42 PM