An Almost Oppo Free Zone

The debate is past the halfway point but the oppo is hardly flying. Two items sent by Team Clinton's Phil Singer. One from Team Obama. All three items available after the jump ...

From Obama camp:

WHAT CLINTON DIDN’T MENTION – President Clinton Pardoned Members of the Weather Underground

SUSAN ROSENBERG

Clinton Gave A “Controversial” Pardon To Susan Rosenberg, A Member Of The Weather Underground Who Was Implicated In The Deaths Of Two Police Officers And A Security Guard. The New York Times wrote that “A former terrorist who was caught with 740 pounds of dynamite and weapons in New Jersey, the fugitive ex-husband of a Manhattan socialite who is a close friend of former President Clinton, and four men who stole tens of millions of dollars from the federal government by creating a phony school for Jewish students were among about a dozen people from the New York area who were pardoned or had their prison sentences commuted” on Clinton’s last day in office. […] The most controversial local case involves Susan L. Rosenberg, a former member of the Weather Underground who had been denied parole in a New Jersey explosives and weapons case because of charges brought against her in the 1981 armed robbery of a Brink's armored car. That heist left two police officers and a security guard dead.” [New York Times, 1/21/01]

Ø Rosenberg, A Terrorist Pardoned By Clinton, Was Indicted For Her Role In The 1983 Bomb Attack On The U.S. Capitol. Describing the Weather Underground, The National Review wrote, “In 1983 came their attack on the U.S. Capitol. Their bombs killed no one, but caused considerable damage and spooked the nation. A statement sent to a radio station read: ‘We purposely aimed our attack at the institutions of imperialist rule rather than at individual members of the ruling class. We did not choose to kill any of them this time. But their lives are not sacred.’ Rosenberg, Linda Sue Evans, and five of their cohorts were indicted for the Capitol bombing. Their numerous other targets included the Naval War College, an Israeli-owned company, and a patrolmen's benevolent association.” [National Review, 3/19/01]

Ø Pardoned Terrorist Was Member Of Weather Underground; Apprehended With An Uzi, Cop-Killer Bullets, And Hundreds Of Pounds Of Explosives. The Courier-Post (Cherry Hill, NJ) wrote, “Police uncovered 730 pounds of explosives. They found an Uzi, .357-caliber Magnum,M-14 rifle, as well as two semi-automatic pistols and Teflon-coated bullets. Police found bogus Social Security numbers and 50 fake New Jersey State Police and FBI identification cards. They found a library of books on guerrilla warfare. […] Rosenberg and Blunk were taken to the Cherry Hill police station, which was ringed by officers armed with automatic rifles and shotguns. They were charged with transporting explosives across state lines and possessing 14 firearms. The pair was believed part of a ring planning to bomb government buildings and was arraigned at the federal courthouse in Camden. Rosenberg was a major catch for Cherry Hill police. She was president of the May 19 communist organization, an offshoot of the radical Weather Underground of the '70s. […] Rosenberg was a fugitive, wanted in a failed $1.6 million ambush-robbery of a Brinks armored car at a suburban New York mall in 1981.” [Courier-Post (Cherry Hill, NJ), 1/24/01]

Susan Rosenberg Denied Involvement In The Brink’s Robbery, Refused To Apologize For Her Role In The Terrorist Organization, And Said That Her Violent Actions Were Part Of An Era. The New York Daily News said, “In her only interview after her release, with WBAI radio on Jan. 23, she said she was not involved in the Brink's robbery. ‘We were really out of time and out of place on every level. ... The use of violence by individuals ... is not a position that I support or would ever want to be in again,’ Rosenberg said. ‘It was an extreme time. ... I was totally and profoundly influenced by the revolutionary movement in the '60s and '70s.’ Both Brown and O'Grady dismissed those revisionist sentiments.” [New York Daily News, 2/18/01]

Ø Giuliani And Schumer Condemned Clinton’s Pardon Of Weather Underground Member. “An unusual combination of New York political and law enforcement leaders have condemned former President Bill Clinton’s pardon of Susan L. Rosenberg, a one-time member of the Weather Underground terrorist group who was charged in the notorious 1981 Brink's robbery in Rockland County that left a guard and two police officers dead. Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani, a Republican, and United States Senator Charles E. Schumer, a Democrat, were among those who criticized the pardon, as did Bernard B. Kerik, New York City's police commissioner, and David Trois, a Rockland County police union official. […] Mr. Giuliani, asked yesterday if he regretted not prosecuting Ms. Rosenberg on the Brink's charges, said he could not recall the details of the case. But even if she was not tried or convicted in the case, Ms. Rosenberg did not deserve to be freed, he said. "She was convicted of having in her possession 740 pounds of explosives, a submachine gun, weapons," the mayor said. "She admitted she had these weapons to give to someone to use in a bombing, and she had been involved in a significant number of robberies, bank robberies." Senator Schumer said that, even 20 years after the Rockland County robbery, the hardship continues for the families of the men killed, so Ms. Rosenberg should not have been pardoned. [New York Times, 1/22/01]

LINDA EVANS

Bill Clinton Commuted The Sentence Of Linda Sue Evans, Who Was Sentenced For Conspiracy And Malicious Destruction In Connection With Eight Bombings Between 1983 And 1985, Including One At The Capitol. Bill Clinton also commuted the sentence of Linda Sue Evans. In 1990, Evans was sentenced in United States District Court in Washington to five years in prison for conspiracy and malicious destruction in connection with eight bombings between 1983 and 1985, including one at the Capitol. Rosenberg and Blunk had been brought up on the same charges. At the time, Ms. Evans had already been sentenced to 40 years in prison for using false identification to buy firearms and harboring a fugitive. [San Francisco Chronicle, 1/21/01; NYT, 1/21/01]

Ø Linda Evans, One Of The Former Leaders Of the Weathermen, Was Convicted Of Acquiring Weapons, Fake IDs And Safe Houses, And Of Terrorist Actions. Linda Evans “was one of the leaders of a vanguard organization known as Weatherman and had come to the university with fellow militant Ted Gold to recruit others to the cause. … Linda Evans was arrested for transporting weapons and explosives in Detroit, and for crossing state lines to incite a riot. The charges were eventually thrown out on a technicality because the wiretaps that identified her had been unauthorized. … On May 11, 1985, she was arrested again, charged and then convicted of acquiring weapons, fake IDs and safe houses, and of terrorist actions. Her targets included the U.S. Capitol Building, the National War College, the Navy Yard Computer Center, the Navy Yard Officers Club, Israeli Aircraft Industries, the FBI and the New York Patrolman's Benevolent Association. In her possession were 740 pounds of dynamite. Evans was sentenced to 40 years in prison. … As the last hours of the Clinton era expired, Linda Evans was freed. It was 24 years shy of her full sentence.” [Salon, 9/4/01]
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From Clinton camp:

3/31/2008 12:05:00 PM

News reports falsely suggested that Rev. Snyder, a man who recently defended Jeremiah Wright’s statements, was Hillary’s pastor.

Hillary does not know Rev. Snyder. Yesterday she said:

"Let me set the record straight. Number one, I have not attended or even visited Foundry Church since 2001. I don’t know Reverend Snyder but I certainly respect his right to express his opinion." [Clinton Statement, 3/27/08]

Senator Clinton is a lifelong United Methodist, the second largest protestant denomination in the United States. Her church membership is at First United Methodist Church in Little Rock. Senator Clinton also attends church in the New York area and as she travels around the nation and world.
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Senator Obama just said the only reason his campaign has raised Bosnia was because they were asked about it. That is not the case. The following are some examples of the proactive attacks they have launched:

Obama campaign memo: 'Clinton's fantastic invention of a sniper-raked landing is only one in a growing list of instances in which she has exaggerated her role as first lady.' "'Clinton's fantastic invention of a sniper-raked landing is only one in a growing list of instances in which she has exaggerated her role as first lady, particularly with respect to domestic policy,' a scorching campaign memo said in one of the harshest broadsides to date." [New York Post, 3/27/08]

Obama campaign memo: 'Unfortunately, Clinton's fantastic invention of a sniper-raked landing is only one in a growing list of instances where she has exaggerated her role as First Lady, particularly with respect to domestic policy.' [Obama campaign memo, 3/26/08]

Obama campaign memo: ‘Senator Clinton’s claims about her visit to Tuzla, Bosnia – and the footage disproving her account – have created quite a stir. And with good reason.’ Senator Clinton’s claims about her visit to Tuzla, Bosnia—and the footage disproving her account—have created quite a stir. And with good reason. As the Associated press wrote yesterday: “What makes Clinton’s situation unique—and the Bosnia embellishments so damaging—is the fact that the New York senator has built her candidacy on the illusion of experience. Any attack on her credentials is a potential Achilles heel.” [Obama campaign memo, 3/26/08]

Obama campaign memo: 'The claims Senator Clinton makes turn out to be little more than stories.' "The refrain that Senator Clinton 'has the experience to lead on Day One' has been repeated endlessly since she entered the race. On closer inspection, the claims Senator Clinton makes turn out to be little more than stories. With the next primary less than a month away, it’s time for Senator Clinton to finally face the 'vetting' she’s so fond of discussing. Badly trailing in delegates, votes, and states won, she’s going to need more than a new script to win the nomination. But if she wants to regain the trust of the American people, it would be a good place to start." [Obama campaign memo, 3/26/08]