Jesse, Farrakahn and the Rev. Jerimiah Wright hold a Press Conference on the front steps of the State Dept. announcing their intention to violate the Logan Act.
Given that this was 1983, this was presumably the same Middle East visit on which "Special Envoy Rumsfeld" was filmed firmly shaking hands with President Saddam Hussain.
When it comes to political theatre, it doesn't get any better than this.
"Upon his arrival in Paris, he met with various French officials, including Talleyrand.
During these meetings, he identified himself as a private citizen, discussed matters of general interest to the French, and told his audience that anti-French sentiment was prevalent in the United States.
Logan's conversation with Merlin de Douai, who occupied the highest political office in the French republic, was typical. Logan stated that he did not intend to explain the American government's position, nor to criticize that of France.
Instead, he suggested ways in which France could improve relations with the United States, to the benefit of both countries.
He also told Merlin that pro-British propagandists in the United States were portraying the French as corrupt and anxious for war, and were stating that any friend of French principles necessarily was an enemy of the United States.
Within days of Logan's last meeting, the French took steps to relieve the tensions between the two nations; they lifted the trade embargo then in place, and released American seamen held captive in French jails.
Even so, it seems that Logan's actions were not the primary cause of the Directory's actions; instead, Logan had merely provided convenient timing for the implementation of a decision that had already been made."
I quote The Enemy:
"In 1984, President Ronald Reagan stated that the activities of the Reverend Jesse Jackson, who had traveled to Cuba and Nicaragua that year and had returned with several Cuban political prisoners seeking asylum in the United States, may have violated the Logan Act; but Jackson was never indicted."
No comments:
Post a Comment