Feingold, Clark, Reid, Pelosi Statements [View All]

[oberliner]

Russ Feingold:

“I stand firmly with the people of Israel and their government as they defend themselves against these outrageous attacks. The kidnapping of Israeli soldiers and missile attacks against Israeli citizens are unacceptable and cannot be tolerated. The first steps toward establishing peace must begin with the unconditional and immediate return of the kidnapped Israeli soldiers. Lebanon, Syria, Iran and countries throughout the region must also condemn the actions of Hezbollah, Hamas, and other groups committed to blocking the peace process and must take strong actions to return stability to the region immediately.”

Source: http://feingold.senate.gov/~feingold/statements/06/07/20060714.htm

Wes Clark:

"Essentially, Hizbullah took advantage of Israel's distraction to attack. They did it to gain credibility, gain more (drop-out) funding, and, and raise their prestige. They probably did it in coordination with Iran to distract the attention of the world from the Iranian nuclear programs. And so, Israel was attacked. Israel's not occupying any of Lebanon. There's no cause for this. It's simply a unprovoked attack. So, Israel's fighting back, and Israel has a right to defend itself. It's running an air campaign, going after Hizbullah. It's going to try to take a significant bite out of Hizbullah and try to get the Lebanese government and the international community to force Hizbullah out of Southern Lebanon. That's what's happening."

Source: http://www.securingamerica.com/node/1243

Nancy Pelosi:

"I will support this resolution and urge my colleagues to do so as well. At a difficult time for the state of Israel, this resolution reaffirms our unwavering support and commitment to Israel and condemns the attacks by Hezbollah. The seizure of Israeli soldiers by Hezbollah terrorists was an unprovoked attack and Israel has a right and an obligation to respond."

Source: http://releases.usnewswire.com/GetRelease.asp?id=69471

Harry Reid:

“Today’s attacks by Hezbollah in Israeli territory were disgraceful and unwarranted acts of violence by a terrorist organization. Hezbollah must release the captured Israeli soldiers immediately. Hezbollah must be dismantled, and all nations have an obligation to cease any and all assistance to this terrorist organization. Israel has a right to live in peace and security, and the United States will stand by our ally in this difficult time.”

Source: http://reid.senate.gov/newsroom/record.cfm?id=258617&&year=2006&

These sentiments from leading Democrats do not seem to be commonly accepted here at DU. I am trying to understand why there is such a disconnect.

I've been an avid reader of DU since the 2004 election. I've only recently started to post here, and I know I am diving in to some very contentious waters, but I think it's important for Democrats and other Progressives to discuss these issues intelligently in an attempt to better understand this very complex conflict.

Where are the areas of agreement and disagreement? Are there some basic facts about the conflict that we can all accept as a starting point of discussion?