No Charges Against USS Cole Bombing Mastermind--Why?

Fireman Gary Graham Swenchonis, Jr.

Obama and his Justice Department have again "withdrawn" charges against the mastermind of the suicide bomb attack on the USS Cole that killed 17 American sailors and injured 39 others. Dropping the charges against Abd al-Rahim al-Nashiri, who headed al-Qaeda's operations in the Persian Gulf seems incomprehensible until Obama's action is explained by someone close to the situation, in this case, the father and mother of one of the slain sailors, Gary Graham Swenchonis, Jr.

The good folks at Gathering of Eagles: NY, have posted a letter from Gary and Deborah Swenchonis, in which they relate why they think the trial of al-Nashiri, who was the architect of the murder of their son and 16 others on the Cole, has been stopped for the third time.

The first time, Mr. and Mrs. Swenchonis recall, al-Nashiri was to face a military tribunal. At the last moment, however, Obama dropped the charges with "the promise that al-Nashiri would be charged and tried in a Federal Court."

As Mr. Swenchonis explained:

It appeared that Obama thought that the Military Tribunal were too draconian, and that the terrorists would not get a fair trial. We thought that was extremely odd, considering that we had attended the trial of the Al-Qaeda Propagandist just two months before at Gitmo. We saw how professional all the military personnel conducted themselves at all times. In my previous profession I was in civilian court many times. From what I saw of the Military court it was much more professional in all aspects than the civilian courts.

Months later, Mr. and Mrs. Swenchonis discovered that Obama had changed his mind again, and had decided that the al-Qaeda senior would not be tried in a civilian court.

Now it was back to the Military Tribunals, but with one major caveat. The Tribunals would be reformed! To better serve the needs of the terrorists. So after more months of waiting, Obama announced that the New and Improved Military Tribunals were ready. I thought that, well, even though the Tribunals are “terrorists friendly” at least we will get a trial after 9 long years! My wife and I hoped that the New Tribunals were not as terrorist friendly as they were in Yemen. Where all the Cole bombers were either pardoned, given reduced sentences, and/or allowed to escape and roam free. 

However, just last week, Obama "changed his mind again":

. . . And we knew it was coming. The reason is purely political now. No matter how he and his administration try to spin it. If the terrorists were tried in Obama’s new tribunals there is a very good chance that they would be given extremely light sentences, and or acquitted. And that would be very bad news for Obama and the democrats in the present political environment.

Obama and his Obamatons are right in assessing that America is not ready to have an acquitted Cole bomber "worshipping" in a Ground Zero mosque. But they also obviously have calculated that America will permit this administration to replace swift justice with whatever Obama considers expedient to his political agenda.

So the 10th Anniversary of the attack on an American ship of war will soon be here, and gone. And Clinton’s words that he spoke at the ceremony less than a week after the attack on the USS Cole will ring hollow. He spoke how American would track down the terrorists who had committed the attack and bring them to justice. We did not believe him anyway, but it sure sounded tough.

And in the end, the only terrorists killed who were involved with the attack, were taken out on Bush’s watch. And the only one to stand trial was on Bush’s watch as well. So my wife and I owe President Bush a Thank-you. And we mean it too. I guess one president out of three who took some action ain’t to bad.

But President Obama should be ashamed of himself for the way he has played with the emotions of the victims families. I know we are ashamed of him.

I'm not waiting for Obama to feel shame. But I am waiting for the ordinary Democrats who voted for Obama to admit that they recognize the damage this man is doing and to use their energy to help sweep his administration from power.
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Related Post: No Trial for Architect of USS Cole Attack that Killed 17 and Injured 39