At an international conference by the French Committee for a Democratic Iran (CFID) held in Paris on March 24, 2012 speakers from the United States and Europe stressed the need for a firm policy towards the Iranian regime.

Attracting thousands of Iranian dignitaries, the meeting also called for the protection of the rights of Ashraf and Liberty residents and the removal of the terrorism label on the main Iranian opposition movement, the People’s Mujahidin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) by the U.S. State Department.

Maryam Rajavi, the President-elect of the Iranian resistance, offered her condolences to the French people, the Jewish society and the families of the victims of the terrorist attacks in Toulouse. She blamed this tragedy on fundamentalism under the guise of Islam, whose roots are found in Tehran and Qom. “Warnings had been issued about this phenomenon as far back as 25 years ago and these crimes had nothing to do with Islam,” Rajavi stressed.

She said the only means of defeating the fundamentalism and terrorism that hides behind Islam is an alternative based on a democratic and tolerant Islam, and that the PMOI represents this democratic alternative which is the anti-thesis to extremism – an Islam with the message of mercy, freedom, equality, brotherhood, love and co-existence between all religions and all of humanity.

Rajavi declared that with global solidarity, it would be possible to make this the year that sees the defeat of the religious fascism ruling Iran. She added that the only solution to prevent an Iranian nuclear bomb or unprecedented conflict and crisis triggered by the mullahs is regime change by the Iranian people and the Iranian resistance.

“In order to escape their demise, the mullahs have reverted to war with the Iranian people, the people of the region and the international community. At the centre of these measures is their effort to annihilate the organized resistance which holds the key for change in Iran. Attacking Ashraf is done within this context,” Rajavi commented.

“The policy of the United States and the European Union, bowing to the demands of the regime over Ashraf and the continuation of unjustified designation of the Mujahidin (MEK) has worked in favour of the Tehran’s mullahs,” she emphasized.

Referring to the transfer of 1200 Ashraf residents to Camp Liberty, Rajavi said: “This transfer unfortunately has turned to a forcible displacement combined with a lot of harassments and pressures. Despite the repeated calls of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, the residents do not have freedom of movement. They are also deprived of meeting their family members and lawyers. Most importantly, the unjustified presence of armed forces within the Camp’s private limits has created constant insecurity for the residents.”

She also warned that the presence of armed forces inside the camp strongly adds to the risk of a humanitarian catastrophe. In these circumstances, the UN is expected to return to its real responsibility of defending the victim and the oppressed, or at least to stay neutral between the Iraqi government and Ashraf residents.

In his remarks, Rudy Giuliani, former mayor of New York and US Presidential Candidate (2008): “Let me go there (Camp Liberty). Let me see it with my own eyes. In other words, let’s see if my country that I love, the United States of America, is living up to the promise that it made to the people of Ashraf to protect them and to treat them decently or it’s breaking that promise.

And if you don’t want to send me, you can send Judge Mukasey or Tom Ridge or Patrick Kennedy or four or five of us and then you can put us before Congress and put us under oath and I assure you, we’ll tell the truth about it and we’ll get this resolved. Are we being misled or is the State Department breaking its promise to the people of Ashraf? Let’s get an answer to it once and for all.”

The former Mayor of New York added: “And right now, the enemy of stopping a nuclear Iran is appeasement. That’s the false notion that made Iran more determined to become nuclear. Let’s stop the appeasement. Let’s stop trying to negotiate. Let’s stop writing letters to the ayatollah. And let’s stand up, united as Americans in saying we are for regime change in Iran and we will take any step necessary to stop Iran from becoming nuclear.”

Tom Ridge began by stating his readiness to join Mayor Giuliani on his trip to Camp Liberty. He went on: “We will continue to stand with the MEK, with the freedom-loving people of Ashraf and Liberty. I want to stand on the right side of history and I do not worry about anything else.”

Ridge described the scenes of attacks on Ashraf, and strongly criticized the US government for trampling on the UN Charter, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the Geneva Conventions. He said: “How can my country ignore those vicious attacks? One wonders when last time those responsible for Ashraf looked at those documents.”

He told the UN: “You have not done your job United Nations, and it is about time you did it.”

And he urged the US government: “If you want to send a message to Iran and Maliki about how serious we are, I’ll give you one simple idea: delist the MEK.” Michael Mukasey said: “This conference should be broadcast to the State Department. Then they would see that Rajavi opened this conference by extending her condolences to the Jewish community in Toulouse.”

The former U.S. Attorney General ridiculed the ‘unnamed sources’ at the State Department, saying: “Why anonymous? What are they afraid of? They fear, but we have no fear. We do not hide our names.”

And he told Iranians in audience: “Right prevails in my country and I hope it will not be long before right will prevail in your country.”
Patrick Kennedy strongly criticized the UN and said: “We want action, no more words.” He expressed solidarity with the residents of Camp Liberty, adding: “All of our thoughts are with people in Camp Liberty who are being treated as prisoners and not refugees.”

Philippe Douste-Blazy, Special Adviser and Deputy to the UN Secretary General and French Foreign Minister from 2005 to 2007, also voiced his support for the goals of the conference via a video message.

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Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani called for the formation of a commission of inquiry, consisting of a group of prominent former US politicians and law enforcement officials, to visit Camp Liberty, Iraq, where some 400 Iranian dissidents are living, after they were relocated from Camp Ashraf, their home of 25 years.

“I would suggest that we ask …the House of Representatives to pass a resolution that would appoint a commission…that would immediately go to Iraq and examine Camp Liberty, and report back within…two or three days what they see,” Giuliani said. “Is Camp Liberty really a suitable place? Should it be a relocation center? Is it really a prison, or a concentration camp?”

“This is a scandal.  This is a fraud; a fraud not involving money, but a fraud involving threats to human life. What we need immediately is a commission of inquiry to determine how this fraud was perpetrated. Who certified, who approved that hell hole, that garbage dump?  Who said that it met United Nation’s standards?

Somebody is responsible for perpetrating that fraud and for getting 400 innocent people to risk their lives and their health to be exposed to that kind of trash and that kind of hazard to their health.  We have to get to the bottom of this,” Harvard Law Professor, Alan Dershowitz emphasized.

At issue is the fate of 400 Iranian dissidents, members of the main Iranian opposition movement, the Mujahedin-e Khalq (“MEK”) who are currently housed at Camp Liberty. These individuals, like some 3,000 other Iranian dissidents, had been based at Camp Ashraf. Despite the United Nations certification that the infrastructure and facilities at Camp Liberty meets “international standards,” the camp lacks even the most basic conditions, providing only intermittent electricity and insufficient supplies of running water.

The Iraqi government does not allow international monitors or visitors to Camp Liberty. Concerns about those in Camp Liberty are heightened by the fact that Camp Ashraf has twice been attacked by Iraqi military forces, resulting in 47 deaths and more than 1,000 injuries, since the Iraqi government took control of the camp from the US military in 2009.

Giuliani told the conference, that the US should be prepared to accept the dissidents living at Camp Ashraf and at Camp Liberty. He joined other panelists, former Homeland Security Director Tom Ridge, Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean, and former Deputy National Intelligence Officer for Transnational Threats on the National Intelligence Council, Glenn Carle, to call for the U.S. State Department to remove the MEK from its list of Foreign Terrorist Organizations.

Other speakers at the conference included former Chicago Mayor, Richard Daley, former U.S. Ambassador to the United Kingdom, Philip Lader and former Policy Advisor at the Treasury Department’s office of Terrorism and Financial Intelligence, Avi Jorisch.

“In 2012, there is no reason, no justification, under any of the guidelines under the law that this group deserves to be treated as a terrorist organization,” Ridge said. “From October 8 ^th of 2001 until the day I walked out as Secretary of Homeland Security, I used to get a threat matrix every day.  I must tell you, I don’t recall ever seeing a reference to the MEK as an organization or a terrorist who allegedly belonged to MEK threatening the United States (or) its citizens. They do not belong on the list. They’re not a terrorist organization. Take them off the list.”

Governor Dean added, “The United States of America has the ultimate responsibility for the safety of the people in Ashraf, and each one of the people in Ashraf has that in writing, signed by the Senior Commander of the United States Armed Forces,” Dean said. “This is not simply a battle to save the lives of 3,400 unarmed civilians who find themselves stuck in an increasingly less democratic Iraq. This is a battle about what kind of country the United States is.”

Regarding the correct policy to counter the threats posed by the Iranian regime, Mr. Carle emphasized, “Tactically, the field intelligence work I did for over two decades argues in favor of de-listing the MEK from its now outdated and wrong designation as a terrorist organization.  Strategically, it argues working in favor with the MEK as a means of pressuring a regime which is a destabilizing influence in the entire region.”

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As if there is not already too many Republicans cooks in the kitchen, former New York governor George Pataki may be considering entering the fray. Although earlier in the year, Pataki dismissed the idea that he would run for the White House, the Republican just can’t seem to help himself when looking at the crazy field out there.

The New York Daily News reports that close advisors to the former governor expect him to make his announcement but no date has been set. Despite his earlier denial, Pataki has been hinting of a possible run.

In June, Pataki told reporters that he would jump in if no one else with a credible chance of winning comes along. Clearly, televangelist Rick Perry, hypnotic Michele Bachmann and the man with a health care problem Mitt Romney are not credible chances. Pataki has relatively liberal social views which make his chance of winning his party’s nomination a degree above nil.

Meanwhile, Republicans voters are still begging for another candidate to enter the race. However, the name Pataki has never been mentioned. Despite Rep. Paul Ryan’s repeat announcement that he will not run for president, it seems his fan base is still encouraging him. Pressure is also mounting on New Jersey governor Chris Christie and Sarah Palin allegedly has not made up her mind yet.

“Do I think the field is complete yet? I would have thought so, but I’ve got to be honest. I think there could be a few more surprises,” said New Hampshire Republican Party Chairman Jack Kimball. According to the Wall Street Journal, former Reagan administration official William Bennett has urged Rep. Ryan to consider a presidential bid.

Christie has stated he has no plans to enter the presidential race either. “The intensity of the recruitment efforts has certainly increased to a new level, but nothing has changed in terms of the governor’s plans,” said Christie adviser Mike Du Haime.

Although many thought Perry would be the lifesaver of the party, it only took days for many party insiders to realize that Perry is not going to beat Obama in the general election.

Many big dollar donors are waiting on the sidelines before backing a candidate. Even with the potential of Sarah Palin jumping in and the former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani considering a run, time is running out.

“To develop a national campaign, you have to have been in a serious planning mode for months by now,” said Phil Musser, a Pawlenty adviser.

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No major candidate has publicly announced his or her decision to seek the GOP presidential nomination in 2012. However, there are plenty of folks that have been hinting at a possible run, so many in fact that it has turned into a series of articles just to discuss the options.  In part one, Sarah Palin, Michele Bachmann, Mike Huckabee, and Newt Gingrich were all featured.  In the second part, we focused on Gov. Haley Barbour, Gov. Mitch Daniels, and Jon Huntsman.  Article three was about Mitt Romney, Tim Pawlenty, and Donald Trump.  Here are some more possibilities.

Former Pennsylvania U.S. Senator Rick Santorum is almost certainly going to run for the GOP nomination.  Since 2009, he has made 32 visits to the three states that hold the first votes during the primary–Iowa, New Hampshire, and South Carolina.    Santorum has also been busy criticizing the president and possible other contenders, such as Mitt Romney.  The former Senator was suspended from his gig at Fox News, along with Gingrich, because the brass there feel he is going to make a run at challenging President Obama.  Santorum is a social conservative, loudly outspoken on his anti-abortion and anti-gay stance.  He sparked controversy in 2003 when he told an interviewer that he had “a problem with homosexual acts” and seemed to compare homosexuality to incest and polygamy.  But, compared with the other possible contenders, it is unlikely that Santorum has much chance.  He is not as boring as Tim Pawlenty but he does not have the star power of Palin or Donald Trump either.

Rep. Ron Paul from Texas is a fan favorite, but has never been taken seriously from the Republican leadership.  Paul made a bid during 2008 and the libertarian leaning congressman was all but laughed out of the race by the other contenders and the media.  But, Paul began the real Tea Party—not the one being orchestrated by the Koch brothers.  Paul also won the straw poll during the Conservative Political Action Conference this year.  Paul is raising tons of cash.  His Liberty PAC raised $1.1 million just in the last month.  Rep. Paul may not be taken seriously by the establishment but he has a huge fan base and it is way too early to count this dark horse out yet.

Former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani also might just take a stab at the GOP nomination again.  He holds the record for using Sept. 11^th for his own personal gain the most often and is looking to beat his own record.  According to Republicans close to him, the former mayor is seriously considering another try at the highest office.  Giuliani made a trip up to New Hampshire mid-March but denied that it was “a presidential consideration fact-finding mission.”  He said he has no timetable to make up his mind.  So, in the meantime, we will all wonder if Rudy will say 9/11 over and over if again involved in the debates, or will we have to find a different drinking game?

Stay tuned, there are still more.  The unknowns, the dark horses, the surprises…

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