Monday, April 2, 2007
Democrats Want to Ban 'Global War on Terror'
There is no longer a "global war on terror” as far as the House Armed Services Committee is concerned.
It’s not that the campaign against worldwide terrorism has ended – the committee has banned the use of the phrase from the 2008 defense budget.
A memo for the committee staff states that the 2008 bill and its accompanying report should be specific about military operations and "avoid using colloquialisms.”
The "global war on terror,” a phrase first used by President Bush shortly after the 9/11 attacks, should not be used, according to the memo.
Committee staff members are instructed to instead use specific references to specific operations, the Military Times reports. The memo provides examples of acceptable phrases, such as "the war in Iraq,” the "war in Afghanistan,” or "operations in the Horn of Africa.”
Committee aides, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said avoiding references to the "global war on terror” reflects a disagreement over whether the war in Iraq is part of the effort to combat terrorism – as Republicans maintain – or is a distraction from fighting terrorists, as many Democrats assert.
Josh Holly, a spokesman for Rep. Duncan Hunter of California – the committee’s senior Republican – told the Times that Republicans "were not consulted” about the change.
There is no longer a "global war on terror” as far as the House Armed Services Committee is concerned.
It’s not that the campaign against worldwide terrorism has ended – the committee has banned the use of the phrase from the 2008 defense budget.
A memo for the committee staff states that the 2008 bill and its accompanying report should be specific about military operations and "avoid using colloquialisms.”
The "global war on terror,” a phrase first used by President Bush shortly after the 9/11 attacks, should not be used, according to the memo.
Committee staff members are instructed to instead use specific references to specific operations, the Military Times reports. The memo provides examples of acceptable phrases, such as "the war in Iraq,” the "war in Afghanistan,” or "operations in the Horn of Africa.”
Committee aides, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said avoiding references to the "global war on terror” reflects a disagreement over whether the war in Iraq is part of the effort to combat terrorism – as Republicans maintain – or is a distraction from fighting terrorists, as many Democrats assert.
Josh Holly, a spokesman for Rep. Duncan Hunter of California – the committee’s senior Republican – told the Times that Republicans "were not consulted” about the change.
