Dem Presidential Candidate in Syria

Democrat presidential candidate Dennis Kucinich traced Nancy Pelosi's footsteps.

He, too, had a meeting with Syrian president, terrorist Bashar al-Assad.

From an AP report in the Jerusalem Post:

US Democratic presidential hopeful Dennis Kucinich, on a Mideast visit that included a stop in Syria, said the country lambasted by the Bush administration deserves credit for taking in more than a million Iraqi refugees.

Kucinich, a strong anti-war opponent who trails far in the US presidential polls, also said he won't visit Iraq on his trip to the region because he considers the US military deployment there illegal.

"I feel the United States is engaging in an illegal occupation ... I don't want to bless that occupation with my presence," he said in an interview in Lebanon, after visiting Syria. "I will not do it."

Kucinich, who accused the Bush administration of policies that have destabilized the Mideast, met with Syrian President Bashar Assad during his visit to Damascus. He said Assad was receptive to his ideas of "strength through peace."

He also praised Syria for taking in Iraqi refugees.

"What most people are not aware of is that Syria has taken in more than 1.5 million Iraqi refugees," Kucinich said. "The Syrian government has actually shown a lot of compassion in keeping its doors open, and being a host for so many refugees."

Isn't that special?

It's Kucinich as Jane Fonda.

Here's a press release from Kucinich's campaign:

In a meeting today with Dennis Kucinich, US Democratic Presidential candidate, Syrian President Bashar Assad said that Syria would be willing to participate in a multinational conference and peacekeeping force to help Iraq to manage its transition from occupied country to sovereign nation.

Assad made these assurances and other observations in a two-hour meeting with Kucinich, who traveled to Syria to discuss a peace initiative which has arisen out of his anti-war work in the House of Representatives. President Assad agreed with Kucinich that various US demands for the privatization of Iraq's oil and partition of Iraq would mean a continuation of war.

"We must stand for strength through peace, for a sovereign and unified Iraq. President Assad is willing for Syria to play a significant role in assisting in the stabilization of Iraq," said Kucinich. "President Assad knows that an international peace keeping and security force must be organized and ready to deploy in order to facilitate the end of the occupation. He understands that the US cannot leave a vacuum in Iraq, but that at the present time the US occupation is fueling the insurgency. He is recommending a parallel political process involving an Iraqi national conference, the disarming of militias, and the building up of an Iraqi army which would eventually takeover from international peace keepers."

It's one thing when Kucinich acts like a doofus in the U.S. It's quite another thing when he starts engaging in diplomatic talks with a foreign leader on foreign soil.

Of course, Kucinich and Assad have a common bound. They both hate Bush. They both want to undermine him. They both are undermining the U.S.

I'll give Kucinich the benefit of the doubt and assume that he doesn't intend to be a traitor.

Too bad he decided to act like one.
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Calling Diplomat Kucinich...

DAMASCUS, Syria -- Syrian air defenses opened fire on Israeli aircraft after they violated Syrian airspace, Syrian officials said Thursday, sharply elevating cross-border tensions.

The aircraft broke the sound barrier as they flew over northern Syria and "dropped munitions" onto deserted areas overnight after coming under Syrian fire, a military spokesman said, according to the official Syrian Arab News Agency.

The incident is likely to stoke concerns that tensions could lead to military conflict between Syria and Israel, though both countries have repeatedly said in recent months that they do not seek a war.

Israel has demanded Syria stop its support for the Hezbollah and Hamas militant groups, which have both been holding captured Israeli soldiers for more than a year.

Syria, in turn, has increasingly pushed its demands for the return of the Israeli-held Golan Heights and is concerned that it is being left out of a U.S.-brokered Mideast peace conference due to be held in November.

Syrian officials did not say how many Israeli aircraft entered its airspace or what type they were. Israel's army spokesman declined to comment, saying he could not discuss military operations.

Syria stopped short of accusing the aircraft of bombing its territory. Asked if Israel had attacked Syria, Syrian Cabinet Minister Buthaina Shaaban said on Al-Jazeera television's English service that the aircraft violated Syrian airspace.

...The Syrian military spokesman said "air defense units confronted" the Israeli aircraft and "forced them to leave after they dropped some munitions in deserted areas without causing any human or material damage."

"We warn the Israeli enemy government against this flagrant aggressive act, and retain the right to respond in an appropriate way," the spokesman said.

...The Syrian military spokesman did not specify whether the military used surface-to-air missiles or anti-aircraft artillery against the aircraft.

Syria is believed to be unhappy that other Arab countries are headed to a peace meeting in November at which the United States hopes for a high-profile meeting between the Palestinians and Israelis, and perhaps also with Saudi officials.

Syria has long disputed any notion that a comprehensive Arab peace deal can be reached unless it also involves some resolution of the Golan Heights, which it wants back in full.

What now, Dem presidential wannabes?