Posted on 06/30/2008 7:55:05 AM PDT by cassy.kane
President Bush is fond of comparing himself to Ronald Reagan but his nuclear deal with North Korea is more like something out of Jimmy Carter’s playbook. The deal relies on trusting the notoriously unreliable North Koreans who get economic goodies while the US pretends the former member of the “axis of evil” is no longer a terror sponsor.
Until 2006, President Bush was tough -- as President Reagan had been -- refusing to negotiate with North Korea until the regime agreed to take concrete steps to dismantle its nuclear programs. He rightly accused Pyongyang of violating a previous diplomatic accord on ending its nuclear program, called the Agreed Framework, which was negotiated during the Clinton administration.
In 1994, the Clinton administration and North Korea signed the Agreed Framework, a roadmap for the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula. Pyongyang agreed to freeze its existing nuclear program and allow monitoring. In exchange it was promised fuel oil, light-water reactors, and normalization of diplomatic relations.
It wasn’t long before the Central Intelligence Agency concluded that Pyongyang was cheating by pursuing secret uranium enrichment. The regime took advantage of our focus on Iraq to produce plutonium and to walk away from the Agreed Framework. It also backed out of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.
(Excerpt) Read more at humanevents.com ...
Bush has turned into a soft, weak president afraid to confront the problems of our country.
What difference does having them on a list make? It hasn’t helped so far.
By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, including the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.) (IEEPA), the National Emergencies Act (50 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.) (NEA), and section 301 of title 3, United States Code,
I, GEORGE W. BUSH, President of the United States of America, find that the current existence and risk of the proliferation of weapons-usable fissile material on the Korean Peninsula constitute an unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security and foreign policy of the United States, and I hereby declare a national emergency to deal with that threat. I further find that, as we deal with that threat through multilateral diplomacy, it is necessary to continue certain restrictions with respect to North Korea that would otherwise be lifted pursuant to a forthcoming proclamation that will terminate the exercise of authorities under the Trading With the Enemy Act (50 U.S.C. App. 1 et seq.) (TWEA) with respect to North Korea.
Accordingly, I hereby order:
Section 1. Except to the extent provided in statutes or in regulations, orders, directives, or licenses that may be issued pursuant to this order, and notwithstanding any contract entered into or any license or permit granted prior to the date of this order, the following are blocked and may not be transferred, paid, exported, withdrawn, or otherwise dealt in:
all property and interests in property of North Korea or a North Korean national that, pursuant to the President's authorities under the TWEA, the exercise of which has been continued in accordance with section 101(b) of Public Law 95-223 (91 Stat. 1625; 50 U.S.C. App. 5(b) note), were blocked as of June 16, 2000, and remained blocked immediately prior to the date of this order.
Sec. 2. Except to the extent provided in statutes or in regulations, orders, directives, or licenses that may be issued pursuant to this order, and notwithstanding any contract entered into or any license or permit granted prior to the date of this order, United States persons may not register a vessel in North Korea, obtain authorization for a vessel to fly the North Korean flag, or own, lease, operate, or insure any vessel flagged by North Korea.
Sec. 3. (a) Any transaction by a United States person or within the United States that evades or avoids, has the purpose of evading or avoiding, or attempts to violate any of the prohibitions set forth in this order is prohibited.
(b) Any conspiracy formed to violate any of the prohibitions set forth in this order is prohibited.
Sec. 4. For the purposes of this order:
(a) the term “person” means an individual or entity;
(b) the term “entity” means a partnership, association, trust, joint venture, corporation, group, subgroup, or other organization; and
(c) the term “United States person” means any United States citizen, permanent resident alien, entity organized under the laws of the United States or any jurisdiction within the United States (including foreign branches), or any person in the United States.
Sec. 5. The Secretary of the Treasury, after consultation with the Secretary of State, is hereby authorized to take such actions, including the promulgation of rules and regulations, and to employ all powers granted to the President by IEEPA as may be necessary to carry out the purposes of this order. The Secretary of the Treasury may redelegate any of these functions to other officers and agencies of the United States Government consistent with applicable law. All agencies of the United States Government are hereby directed to take all appropriate measures within their authority to carry out the provisions of this order.
Sec. 6. The Secretary of the Treasury, after consultation with the Secretary of State, is hereby authorized to submit the recurring and final reports to the Congress on the national emergency declared in this order, consistent with section 401(c) of the NEA (50 U.S.C. 1641(c)) and section 204(c) of IEEPA (50 U.S.C. 1703(c)).
Sec. 7. This order is not intended to, and does not, create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law or in equity by any party against the United States, its departments, agencies, instrumentalities, or entities, its officers or employees, or any other person.
GEORGE W. BUSH
THE WHITE HOUSE,
June 26, 2008.
I, GEORGE W. BUSH, President of the United States of America, find that the current existence and risk of the proliferation of weapons-usable fissile material on the Korean Peninsula constitute an unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security and foreign policy of the United States, and I hereby declare a national emergency to deal with that threat. I further find that, as we deal with that threat through multilateral diplomacy, it is necessary to continue certain restrictions with respect to North Korea that would otherwise be lifted pursuant to a forthcoming proclamation that will terminate the exercise of authorities under the Trading With the Enemy Act (50 U.S.C. App. 1 et seq.) (TWEA) with respect to North Korea.
Maybe we should put their name on a list in RED! :)
In that case, it’s going to be real interesting for one Mr. Christopher Hill when his butt buddy Comrade Chia Pet gets wind of it. LOL
But the fact remains, North Korea is now perceived to be in the process of ‘coming in from the cold’, their so-called ‘declaration’ is a joke, it’s incomplete, but our Department of State, Appeasement Division is going to say that “everything is just fine”.
And we’ve seen this dog and pony show before, it’s the same scam that North Korea has been running on the U.S. for decades.
PS, I did read post #8, and Section 2 is really going to piss off all those yacht owners who had been hoping to register their vessels in Pyongyang, know what I mean? ;)
“What will they do now?” lol
IMHO, there is a carrot and stick game going on with North Korea. As I have shown, the stick is remaining in place, however, our side is doing a good (for once) job manipulating the media to dangle carrots in front of NK. This may especially work if our intelligence states there are party members in NK who are disaffected with Kim and may see with this a clear distinction in actions and results. This may also help keep China putting pressure on NK if they think we are taking steps. I think this ‘game’ is far more complex than just a checkers match, we are playing hard ball chess with them.
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