Envoy Urges Visas for Iraqis Aiding U.S.

[Hissyspit]

Source: MSNBC

Envoy urges visas for Iraqis aiding U.S.

The American ambassador in Baghdad, Ryan C. Crocker, has asked the Bush administration to take the unusual step of granting immigrant visas to all Iraqis employed by the U.S. government in Iraq because of growing concern that they will quit and flee the country if they cannot be assured eventual safe passage to the United States.

Crocker's request comes as the administration is struggling to respond to the flood of Iraqis who have sought refuge in neighboring countries since sectarian fighting escalated early last year. The United States has admitted 133 Iraqi refugees since October, despite predicting that it would process 7,000 by the end of September.

"Our (Iraqi staff members) work under extremely difficult conditions, and are targets for violence including murder and kidnapping," Crocker wrote Undersecretary of State Henrietta H. Fore. "Unless they know that there is some hope of an (immigrant visa) in the future, many will continue to seek asylum, leaving our Mission lacking in one of our most valuable assets."

Read more: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/19892772/

[JDPriestly]

1. Fight 'em over there so we don't have to fight 'em here.

I'm sure that many, maybe even most of them are not potential suicide bombers. But, one bad apple. . . . .

So much for George Bush's last argument for continuing this war. Invading Iraq was the stupidest thing any American president has done since Lyndon Johnson decided to send huge numbers of troops into Viet Nam to fight in the miserable jungle against guerrillas. Stupid, stupid, stupid. That is what the Republicans are. And greedy on top of it. Stupidity plus greed = abysmal failure. That defines the Republican philosophy.

[saigon68]

2. Import a few thousand Quislings to the USA

Saw a Boo Hoo on the news tonite.

Seems the well paid translator is now afraid that in the "New Democracy", his neighbors might kill him because he was a collaborator with Bremer's thugs.

So much for Freedom on the March

[Javaman]

3. The use of fake identities run rampant over in Iraq and now

"they" want to urge visa's for Iraqi's. Yeah this will turn out really good.