Political Quotes

“Last year, Mr. Chairman, President Bush announced a 5-year, $3 billion aid package for Pakistan in return for Pakistan's continued cooperation in the global war on terrorism. At that time, the President, through his spokesman, said that Congress would be looking closely at Pakistan's efforts on nuclear nonproliferation, on combating al-Qaeda, the Taliban, and other terrorist groups, and the reestablishment of democracy. Without question, Pakistani cooperation in the war on terrorism will be key to our success. Yet since the President's announcement, the media has been filled with reports of Pakistan's A.Q. Khan's nuclear network, where it turns out two-thirds of the axis got their nuclear technology and that Khan's agents tried to sell it to the other third. In addition, there have been recent reports of uneven cooperation from Pakistan with regard to terrorism generally, and al-Qaeda in particular. These reports reach to the very heart of the administration's justification for supporting Pakistan. Lastly, I do not think anyone can credibly say that the so-called referendum on General Musharraf's rule, or the parliamentary elections held last year, were either fair or free. Real democratization in Pakistan just does not seem to be high on General Musharraf's list, and we must do much more than to pretend it is high on ours.”