An Instructive Anniversary

I'm not talking about the Battle of Bunker Hill (even though it was fought mostly on Breed's Hill), though that is certainly to be celebrated today.

No, I'm referring to the 10th anniversary of the indictment of Osama bin Laden by the US Southern District of New York for engaging in terrorism against the United States.

How exactly did that indictment keep the country safe? Consider that the attack on the USS Cole, the Khobar Towers, and the African embassies all occurred after the indictment.

Sen. Barack Obama took the opportunity yesterday to highlight his ongoing ignorance or refusal to accept the facts such as they are in a speech yesterday:

What we know is that, in previous terrorist attacks — for example, the first attack against the World Trade Center, we were able to arrest those responsible, put them on trial. They are currently in U.S. prisons, incapacitated.

And the fact that the administration has not tried to do that has created a situation where not only have we never actually put many of these folks on trial, but we have destroyed our credibility when it comes to rule of law all around the world, and given a huge boost to terrorist recruitment in countries that say, “Look, this is how the United States treats Muslims.”

So that, I think, is an example of something that was unnecessary. We could have done the exact same thing, but done it in a way that was consistent with our laws.

Khalid Sheikh Mohammad was involved in the 1993 WTC bombing, and yet he was captured only after the US went to war in Afghanistan and flushed him out. Other terrorists implicated in the pre-2001 attacks remained at large because they were able to avoid the law enforcement approach. Still others worked their way to Iraq, where they were able to find sanctuary under Saddam Hussein.

Khobar Towers resulted in no indictments, no arrests, and no justice for the 19 Americans murdered by al Qaeda. The same goes for the USS Cole, in which the terrorists have managed to avoid justice due to the revolving door of Yemeni courts and law enforcement there that turns a blind eye to Islamic terrorists.