Word: move
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: all
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
Amid ever-higher tension with Iran, the Obama administration made a bold legal swipe at Tehran this week that could send shock waves through the Muslim world. In what appears to be an unprecedented move, the Department of Justice filed notice in federal court in New York on Thursday that the government intends to seize the assets of a foundation with alleged links to the Iranian government, including several mosques around the country...
...actions - particularly the seizure of the four mosques in New York, Maryland, California and Texas - could also sour the Muslim world toward Obama. The Council on American-Islamic Relations, a Washington advocacy group for American Muslims and itself often a target of criticism from conservatives, warned that the move could constitute a chilling effect on religion, and send a very negative message not only to people of faith, particularly American Muslims, but to Muslims worldwide. "Already we're seeing around the Muslim world headlines saying the United States government seizes American mosques," he said...
Ruth Wedgwood, director of the International Law and Organizations Program at the School of Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins University, said that she was unaware of any direct precedent of the government seizing mosques, and said the judge in the case will probably scrutinize the move closely because it involves houses of worship. While it would be impossible to have spun this up overnight in response to a thrust and parry from the Ahmadinejad regime, she said it's possible that Iran's decision to walk away from a nuclear recycling arrangement may have played a role...
...Vermont, who also voted in January to expel Lieberman, is similarly cautious: "Let's see what happens. Nobody should be filibustering health care - either vote it up or vote it down." Says Dianne Feinstein of California: "If there is a public option and somebody wants to remove it, move an amendment, stand up on the floor and debate it, but don't prevent anything from going forward...
Pressuring Lieberman, however, might prompt him to leave the party, a move that would deprive Democrats of their 60th vote, not just on health care but on other issues like global warming and financial regulatory reform. That has led most of his colleagues to soft-pedal their persuasion. "I've talked to Joe several times," says Maryland Senator Ben Cardin. "I think he's interested in getting a bill done...