Hostages Quotes
See {587287} for a later complementary statement.
In the 1979 Iran hostage crisis, Iranian "students" and other agents were demonstrating against the United States in Washington and other U. S. cities. The President prevailed upon District of Columbia officials not to grant a permit to the Iranian demonstrators lest some would be attacked by irate Americans. If this were seen on international television might bring harm to the American hostages in Iran:
Islamic Religious Fundamentalist Terrorists in Algeria had kidnapped over 100 Western Hostages including some Americans. One of the terrorist’s “demands” was for the release of convicted murderers and terrorists in the United States. The official policy which she stated was not totally accurate. On several occasions, U. S. Officials or third parties representing them had “unofficially” negotiated with terrorists. In many cases this was a tactic to buy time and military action followed and in other cases unofficial ransoms were actually paid. The United States has had to contend with this problem with Islamic Terrorists and Pirates since the Thomas Jefferson Presidency when he argued against John Adams who wanted to pay the tribute while Jefferson preferred military action.
Introducing a bill to create a gold-colored dollar coin, stamped in copper, despite the failure of the Susan B. Anthony dollar piece in the late 1970s:
The Republican controlled Senate whose Judiciary Committee and voted overwhelmingly for the President’s nominee for Attorney General, Loretta Lynch, but the Senate Republicans refused to the nomination up for a vote unless the Democrats and the President would agree to add an abortion ban on money that was to be appropriated for assistance to trafficked and sexually exploited women and girls. Never before had a nomination like this have been subject to this type of blackmail over terms of legislation on a matter that had nothing to do with the nominee or the cabinet position. However, this was the time one of the extreme periods of hyper partisanship in American History.
Alluding to French willingness to pay ransom for hostages:
Bosnian Serbs took United Nations peace keepers hostage in 1995.
The swap was made and all captives were released.
