Lyndon LaRouche, A New Type
of American Presidential Candidate

by Sohair Soukkary

"An attempted military coup d'état took place in the United States on Sept. 11, 2001, and Bush is implementing what is being dictated to him."
—Lyndon LaRouche, Presidential Candidate for 2004

In the past few years, Lyndon LaRouche's star has started to shine again on the American and international political scene: He has started to receive much more frequent and intense attention than ever in American and international radio and television networks, and on the Internet, mostly because virtually all of his economic and political predictions have turned out to be true, after his many years of absence from the scene, when he served time in jail on account of charges fabricated against him by Kissinger and his cabal in collusion with some highly-placed officials of the Department of Justice, in a malicious attempt to silence him and prevent his voice from being heard by American and world public opinion. They obviously feared his infinite candor in expressing his opinions, which started to spread like wildfire, and which, had he been allowed to bring with him if elected President, would have threatened the interests of many an influential group of self-seeking plutocrats and Zionists who control the destinies of peoples by controlling the world's monetary-financial markets.

One of the more notable of Mr. LaRouche's traits, is that he is the first American politician in our times who holds that American interests can be ensured only within the context of recognizing and equally ensuring the interests of humanity at large. He does not believe in war of any kind as a means of serving those interests. In his view, recourse to war should be had only as a last resort, and for the sole purpose of establishing peace. On the other hand, he is of the opinion that the United States is currently on the verge of a far more horrendous economic collapse than that of the 1930s of the last century, and will take the world along with it to that baleful end, all on account of the foolish economic policies adopted since 1971, which have undermined the solid foundations on which the world economy had rested after the Second World War, thanks to the enlightened economic policies formulated by Roosevelt and embraced by his successors.

What has made things even worse, is that the advocates of these foolish economic policies can find no way out of the catastrophe to which they will inevitably lead, save by taking even more foolish measures, which can be summed up as follows: (a) to unleash the Clash of Civilizations operation; (b) to instigate a bogus, endless war under the spurious slogan of a war against terrorism: (c) to seek, under another spurious slogan, namely that of "globalization," to impose the hegemony of the United States over the world through the establishment of a Roman-style empire, protected by legions similar to the Waffen-SS forces which the Nazis formed to protect the system they envisioned for the post-war world.

Faced with this dismal and frightening situation, LaRouche, alone among American politicians of any weight, has a detailed program, based on firm scientific, economic, and humanitarian grounds, to overcome this crisis and prevent the expected catastrophe. Among the features that stand out in his program are: (a) the promotion of cooperation, rather than conflict, among civilizations; (b) ensuring the development and well-being of all the peoples of the world, through such far-reaching projects as the establishment of land-bridges or transportation corridors, consisting of long-distance rail lines or high-speed magnetic levitation systems linking Europe, Asia, and Africa, as well as America, together with parallel water supply systems that would bring development and prosperity to the vast arid spaces along the way—to say nothing of power stations to supply energy for such areas.

Another trait of Mr. LaRouche which is of particular concern to us as Arabs and Muslims, is to be found in the following facts: Needless to say, no American politician dares utter a single word of criticism of Zionism or Israel, either because he/she is already bought by the Zionists, or for fear of bringing on his/her head the wrath of the Zionists, who need send out but one signal to label the culprit as anti-Semite and wreck his/her political career for good. On the contrary, American politicians are quick to support and defend Israel, however horrible its crimes, and they consider all those who resist Israeli occupation as terrorists, especially since the events of Sept. 11, 2001.

Not so LaRouche. Throughout his political career, he has been known for his opposition to Zionism, and for his explicit criticism of the criminal policies of Israel, especially under the leadership of Sharon, as well as for his support of Palestinian rights, his refusal to accuse them of terrorism and his attacks on the so-called Christian Zionists. With their wonted ferocious slander-mongering, the Zionists have tried hard to label him as an anti-Semite, but they have failed miserably, because he has never in his life uttered a single word against Jews or Judaism nor, for that matter, has he been less than zealous in opposing all Nazi-like, fascist, or racist ideas, and defending the rights of all minorities, both native and immigrant, including, in particular, Arabs and Muslims.

In order to have a better understanding of this declared Presidential candidate and of his political program, as well as of his vision of American domestic and foreign policies, with special reference to the Arab world, specifically Egypt, and to the Palestine Question, I began my research by first accessing his weekly bulletins on his website in the Internet (www.larouchein2004), and reading through his monthly magazine, Executive Intelligence Review (EIR). I also attended one of his Presidential election campaign meetings in Washington D.C. Finally, I conducted an interview with him that lasted for some 45 minutes.

I append below, without comment, some of Mr. LaRouche's personal views on a number of issues:

The coup d'état: In the morning of Sept. 11, 2001, LaRouche was on the air being interviewed live on a radio talk show, when he was interrupted by the news of the attacks on the World Trade Center. His immediate reaction, as recorded, was: "I hope some idiot does not try to blame this on Osama bin Laden!"

As a matter of fact, LaRouche firmly believes that what happened on Sept. 11 could only have been done by high-ranking elements inside the military security apparatus, and the policy for which these people acted was the policy advocated by the "utopian" faction in the United States' strategic and military thinking, who came to power with the retirement of former President Eisenhower. He is convinced that these are the people behind the Sept. 11 events, and points out that their plan has taken the form of a dramatic performance whose episodes unfold in a highly sensational atmosphere meant to inspire more and more fear. He says if we look at the way the planes were deployed for this set of attacks, we should see that they had the opportunity to hit the Washington targets either at the same time or before the New York towers. Yet, they hit the New York towers first. Why? The answer is obvious: the aim, from the beginning, was to link the new attack on the two towers to the 1993 attack on one tower for which the blame was imputed to Arabs and Muslims, and thus prepare the minds of the public for imputing the blame for the new attacks on Arabs and Muslims, too. In other words, the aim from the beginning, was to unleash the Clash of Civilizations strategy as advocated by Huntington, Brzezinski, Perle, et al., and embraced by Deputy Secretary of Defense Paul Wolfowitz inside the Pentagon.

LaRouche recalls that in his farewell address at the end of his Presidency, Eisenhower warned against the "Military-Industrial Complex" and urged vigilance lest it be allowed to have undue influence on the life and fate of the American people and deprive them of their freedom. The way the Military-Industrial Complex has been behaving since the Gulf War of 1991, and the way it has been conducting the so-called war against terrorism since Sept. 11, is exactly what Eisenhower feared: namely, an endless series of wars waged to keep factories producing more and more sophisticated weapons for no more worthy a purpose than to maintain a monetary-financial system that only serves a cabal of plutocrats and Zionists.

LaRouche is also of the opinion that what this faction perpetrated on Sept. 11 was an attempted military coup d'etat against Bush, intended to establish the United States as a military empire ruling the world through international 'protective' forces similar to the Waffen-SS; in other words, they had as their aim the establishment of the kind of system the Nazis envisioned for controlling the post-World War II world. They had thus copied that Nazi model around Huntington's ideas, and tried to change the U.S. military and have it break away from the MacArthur-Eisenhower tradition. This is what is being turned loose today. And the intent is to use the collapse of the Soviet Union as the occasion for developing a world empire without nation-states.

In LaRouche's view, however, this attempt to establish an empire is taking place at the very moment when the entire monetary-financial system of which the United States is an integral part, is in the process of disintegrating. There is therefore an element of desperation on the part of the financier interests that are supporting this operation. There is also irony in the fact that at the very moment when we are facing the worst possible threat to humanity, we find that the forces that are threatening humanity, are themselves vulnerable to the collapse of the entire system of which they are part.

The Utopian Faction and Zionism

LaRouche is of the view that the Zionists are a very important instrument for serving these aims. The particular aspect of Zionism which is significant in this regard is typified by Netanyahu as clearly as it is by Sharon, in that they are both hard-core fascists. What is running Israel today is the Likud party, which is an explicitly fascist movement. In other words, what is running Israel is not the entire Israeli population or the Jewish population of the world, but an explicitly fascist movement, just as fascist as Adolf Hitler, and this is amply demonstrated by what is going on right now in Palestine.

With regard to the financial side of the matter, there are people, like the Bronfman family, who are notorious gangsters, as well as a large number of people who are part of the "Mega" association, which is the official big-money organization of the Canadian-American financier interests. Both Senator McCain and Senator Lieberman are part of this selfsame gang, and are owned by these people. As such, they are a front for the actual Utopians, who are using this Zionist force as their fist to put their policy through.

Yet, although the kind of warfare they are conducting in the Middle East can destroy everybody, the Israeli state cannot survive what they are doing now. It is true that they can kill a lot of people in the process, but they themselves are going to be destroyed. On the other hand, the real ugly part of this force is to be found in the United States itself, where you have the "Christian Zionists," who unreservedly side with Israel, and form a significant part of Bush supporters.

Zionist Control of the Congress

LaRouche holds that there is a vacuum in the United States political system. Over the past 35 years, the political parties and the Congress have become more and more distant from the people of the United States. The people are controlled and manipulated by the mass media and other instruments that shape public opinion. In point of fact, the people have no connection with or control over the political process. So we have now, by default, this particular combination of a Southern-oriented, Democratic Leadership Council which controls the Democratic Party from the top, and the Republicans, together with those crazy, so-called Christian Zionists and their allies. If we just take the case of Senators McCain and Lieberman, then look at Arizona, and at the organized crime in Arizona, and at the sources of money of McCain and the friends of Lieberman in Arizona, including the aforementioned Mega association, and consider what all that represents, we should realize that what we are seeing is there only by default, since the majority of the people have really no representation on the issues in the Congress.

That does not mean that all the Congressmen are bad, but it does mean that they are a bunch of cowards and opportunists. On the other hand, with George Bush in the Presidency, and with him being under the control of the people who are controlling him, this dangerous gang will continue to ride high, at least for the time being, until we are hit by the crash, which LaRouche expects to occur at any moment now. That crash will change everything; but the problem is that people are dying now, in the Middle East and elsewhere, as a result of this gang being in power. These people are dying needlessly, and they are dying in a horrible manner; yet there is no hope for relieving them from this terrible affliction, especially in the Middle East, unless we can change this power, or disrupt it or adjust it in some way.

In this kind of process, LaRouche is deeply worried by the possibility of the disintegration of the United States itself, unless the process is reversed. Thus, it is not a simple matter of just one victim: Sometimes, the perpetrator of a crime destroys himself, too.

The Question of Palestine and Israel

Mr. LaRouche has always stated that he considers the cause at issue in the Middle East a just cause, and, in the context of his oft-expressed concern for the fate of civilization, he finds himself obliged to respond to it as a just cause. He likens the situation in that area to a hand-grenade thrown at civilization, that will inevitably destroy itself in the process. He points out that though Israel is the third-biggest nuclear power in the world, it is destroying itself; and while Rabin and a few others in Israel have recognized its plight, there are those other groups of crazy fanatics who suffer from a "Masada complex," and who are stupidly willing to die and kill others, in order to achieve their aims. But they can never win the kind of warfare they are trying to wage in that area, nor will they ever be able to have the empire they are dreaming of. According to LaRouche, they are being exploited, since in fact they are intended to be used and then discarded once they win.

LaRouche's proposals on the Question of Palestine: Mr. LaRouche has recently issued a statement in which he cautioned President Bush against repeating the mistakes of ex-President Clinton. He adds that President Bush has but one problem, which he must face personally, if he is going to escape successfully from the trap set for him by both the Lieberman-Brzezinski-Wolfowitz-Kissinger cabal and the majority who support them among his current advisers. He must stand before a mirror, and decide to forget the election campaign, and think and act like the kind of President the Constitution implies. He should remember President Eisenhower, and the decisive way he acted during the Suez crisis in the middle of his re-election campaign.

Clinton, the statement recalls, failed on several counts on which he acted more like a sponsor and lawyer for Ehud Barak's career, than as the President of the United States, including when Barak set the President up as a patsy, and Clinton swallowed it. Clinton's biggest mistake, however, was the one which led to Sharon assuming power and conducting the Nazi Warsaw-ghetto-like operations against the Palestinian people: For, when Chairman Arafat was ready to sign his agreement to whatever had been agreed upon during the Camp David talks, and put off the issue of Jerusalem, Clinton brought up the issue of the religious sites, such as the Temple Mount; and when Arafat demurred, Clinton surprised the world by publicly blaming Arafat, rather than Barak, for the failure of the Camp David talks. He thus created the circumstances under which Sharon has unleashed the present campaign of religious warfare, and has given free rein to the ethnic cleansing policies of his Likud party.

The statement emphasizes that no President of the United States should ever permit any political or personal pressures to cause him to forget the unique meaning of the words "President of the United States of America" among the governments of the world. The statement has therefore called upon President Bush to take a Presidential rather than a partisan or political or career decision. At any moment in which the nature of the Constitutional office of President is at stake, any decision by the President should be dictated by the public interest, even if it were to run against his own personal interest. Such a moment, such a decision, the statement points out, hovers before President Bush right now.

Among other things, Mr.LaRouche calls for the adoption of decisive measures with regard to finding a solution to the Palestine Question, meaning the immediate establishment of a Palestinian state headed by Arafat. The strategic interests of the United States, including those of its European allies, require an historic intervention, if these interests are to be saved. As one who fully understands what the Constitution implies for the office of the President of the United States, Mr. LaRouche is sure he knows how to give that office its due when, as he hopes, he is elected President.

LaRouche's economic views: LaRouche's predictions are taken very seriously by economists, and his pronouncements on the future course of events have therefore acquired global importance. He holds that the world is facing an acute economic crisis, which is bound to acquire extremely dangerous dimensions, unless urgent measures are taken to avert it. When LaRouche foresaw the present predicament some ten years ago, he proposed the construction of land-bridges, or transportation corridors, linking Asia and Africa to Europe.

Today, after the collapse of the Soviet Union, and with the removal of barriers and obstacles between the countries of Asia and Europe, and the growing realization by the world of the imminence of this economic catastrophe, many countries have started to look seriously for ways to carry out LaRouche's proposals, calling for the promotion of international cooperation. As a result, large-scale projects have already been undertaken in Asia and Europe, specifically in China and Russia. They include the construction of multi-rail line transportation corridors, land-bridges connecting Europe to Asia, power stations and communications links, as well as the rational use and distribution of water between the two continents.

The purpose of such projects is to develop the vast undeveloped and underpopulated areas in central Eurasia—"the inner space of the planet"—since their development would be the economic locomotive of recovery from depression for the world as a whole. These projects are fast shaping up, and are being implemented at a very rapid speed across Eurasia, from the Atlantic to the Pacific and Indian oceans coasts, and potentially over the Bering Strait into North America.

LaRouche's economic views concerning the Middle East: LaRouche's optimistic view with regard to the Middle East is based on the premise that the most critical economic factor in that area is not petroleum, but fresh water. Consequently, any beneficial advancement of the area in the long term should center around the improvement and development of the production and/or provision of fresh water, its distribution and rational use. Hence, he considers the area to be specially important as a crossroads connecting Africa to Asia and Europe. He likens the important role played by the Suez Canal as a link between the Mediterranean and the Indian Ocean, to what can be achieved by land routes for moving goods from the Middle East to the rest of Asia and to Europe. He points out that the United States achieved its true prominence only after the construction of the transcontinental railway system linking the East Coast of the United States to its West Coast in the second half of the 19th Century, following the Civil War. If the Middle East is to achieve its economic renaissance, it should repeat what the United States had accomplished by 1876 and was emulated by Germany, Japan, and China.

He expects that the use of modern technology, including rail and magnetic levitation transport lines, will lead to saving time and money in the movement of goods, cutting the costs of products, and building along those routes new, flourishing communities that would provide more and more millions of the inhabitants of those continents with opportunities for employment and possibilities for the improvement of their living conditions. In this connection, LaRouche reminds us that the main cause of the World War I (which in turn led to the World War II) was the German plan to build the Berlin-Baghdad-Basrah-Bombay railroad, which Britain saw as a threat to its empire, especially in India.

Economics and the Aims of the Clash of Civilizations

Analyzing the situation in very simple terms, LaRouche points to the fact that Europe, Asia, and their adjoining islands are moving at very high speed towards a step-by-step economic cooperation, with a view to initiating a process of economic recovery that would save the two continents from the financial collapse threatening them. This would necessarily mean that the two continents would unite to form one mighty economic force.

There are, however, certain people such as Kissinger, Perle, Brzezinski, and Wolfowitz, who think differently, having in mind that such cooperation between continents would represent a threat to the aforementioned cabal of plutocrats and influential people in the United States, Britain, and Israel, as well as to that cabal's control over the world. Thus, the only solution to which they would subscribe, is to prevent such cooperation, breaking it up where it exists and putting an end to the recovery. How? By waging wars! It is to be noted that Britain succeeded to wage two world wars, into which it drew the United States, for exactly such reasons in the past. Speaking of "British brains and American brawn," LaRouche considers Britain the mastermind behind all these machinations.

He further notes that the war into which we are being plunged, is a Third World War, which may last for a 100 years. Israel's role in it, is to wage a religious war in the Middle East. But Israel cannot conduct such a war alone. While it has the military power, it cannot hold the territory it occupies. So, it would resort to using weapons of mass destruction, and that would be sufficient to kindle the flames of a Third World War.

LaRouche therefore urges us to resist those crazy people who are leading the world to annihilation. He holds that the only viable option is to cooperate with all the peoples of the world, with a view to establishing permanent peace on the basis of a new economic system as was the case from 1945 to 1975, i.e., the period which witnessed the successful implementation of the process of world economic reform which had been initiated by Roosevelt.

LaRouche's proposal on how to take advantage of Egypt's unique position in the world: LaRouche cites the conference he attended at Cairo University last year, to which he was invited by his friend, Prof. Mohammad Saleem. The conference was held on the subject of the new high bridge/tunnel project across the Suez Canal, which, under peaceful conditions, would link Africa, through the Middle East, to the whole of Eurasia.

In this connection, LaRouche points out that there are two aspects to Africa: one extending East to West as far as Morocco, to form specifically Arab North Africa; it also extends south through Sudan and into places like Nigeria. The other aspect, also extending southward from Alexandria and Cairo, runs along the water-line down the Nile, through the Great Lakes region, towards the tip of Africa. There is an originally French project, involving the establishment of a cross-region between East and West Africa south of the Sahara, extending from Dakar to Djibouti, and based on the surplus water which becomes available in the Congo every year. If some of that water were moved into the Lake Chad area, and if the water which exists in West Africa were managed and organized, it would be possible to move from Dakar to the lower part of the Sahel to Djibouti, as well as to create a combination of water, power, and transportation systems that would lead to the development of that whole area of Africa.

But the key to all of this is Egypt; Egypt is the pivot.

Now, the natural extension westward of Egypt's Qattara development project would consist in the construction of a trans-Maghreb rail route from Alexandria to Oran to Tangier, along the Mediterranean coast of Northern Africa, and the construction of another rail link from the Nile to the Lake Chad development project in northern Central Africa. The creation of a rail ferry link from southern Italy and Sicily to the Libyan port of Tripoli, plus the drilling of two rail tunnels below the Strait of Gibraltar in the West, and below the Dardanelles in the East (modelled on the Channel Tunnel between France and Britain), would establish three central connections of modern transport infrastructure among Africa, the Middle East, and the envisaged "Productive Triangle" in Central Europe.

If done properly, concentrated investments in the transport infrastructure, with emphasis on modernized and high-speed railroads, could lay the groundwork for a great region of economic cooperation among Europe, Africa, and the Middle East, that would, after a long period of war and conflict, manipulation, and imperialist ventures, finally make the Mediterranean a lake of peace and development. We should thus be able to actually make the desert bloom.

LaRouche believes that this is a dream that can come true, if you have people with the will-power and some means. He is sure that there are people of the highest level in the Arab world, and that it is full of devoted intellectual and patriotic figures. For a long time now, and especially since the end of World War II, they have been eagerly looking for a chance to do what they wish to do with their world.

Odds in favor of electing LaRouche and saving human civilization: LaRouche is confident that the odds are highly in favor of his being elected President, because the situation today is very much like that which prevailed in 1929-33. He points out that what led to the downfall of then-President Hoover, was not the Great Depression which began in 1929, because everybody knew that Hoover had not been concerned with organizing the economy until that point, but had just assumed the Presidency. What killed all chances for Hoover's success as a candidate for re-election, was the fact that he did what Bush and most politicians in the United States are doing right now, namely: He said there was recovery in progress, when none was in progress, thus virtually assuring Roosevelt's election.

We are now in an analogous situation. The crash is going to discredit the existing institutions of government, banking, and the like. The people are going to demand a solution for their problems. And LaRouche is holding on to the proposition that it is possible to provide a reorganization of the international financial-monetary system, under which we all can live and grow.

While conditions are somewhat different from those of the period of Roosevelt, they are the same in principle. Furthermore, politics in the United States can change suddenly, as was the case in 1932-33. We are now in a situation in which the character of politics in the United States will change fundamentally, as the crisis in question hits. It will go for the worse, or it will go for the better; and LaRouche has taken it upon himself to catalyze its going for the better.

Countering Zionist disinformation: LaRouche says he is not afraid, in the sense that other people are. Therefore, he is functioning as the coordinating point of reference, namely, to bring people, and to create an umbrella under which they can organize. He draws attention to the many minorities in the United States, and, as far as the Islamic minorities in particular are concerned, he says we know what the situation is among them: They are simply terrified. They would therefore be provided with a cloak of courage, and be helped to find their place among allies who think as they do with regard to this situation. They would thus be able to have their say in public affairs as United States citizens.

LaRouche firmly believes that by telling the truth, bluntly without equivocation, he will win the support of the majority of the American people, including, in particular, the minorities. He believes equally firmly that if these minorities were to unite and close ranks, they could easily tip the scales in his favor in the elections.

LaRouche's growing popularity at home and abroad: LaRouche's popularity is growing at a strikingly noticeable pace. His election campaign meetings attract large attendance from all over the United States, and are followed closely by a great number of people all over the world. His website, www.larouchein2004.com, is among the most popular and famous sites. His weekly bulletin is published at that site [sic], and his monthly magazine, Executive Intelligence Review (EIR), is sold at newsstands and by subscription. What his admirers find most appealing, are the unmistakable depth of his analyses, and the meticulousness of the research behind his contributions both to his website and his publications, to say nothing of the accuracy of his forecasts of events, which causes so many to resort to his website for reliable information about the current and future course of events.

As to his reputation outside the United States, it is to be noted that the heads of a number of states—including Russia, South Korea, China, Argentina, Venezuela, and Brazil—have adopted his proposals on economic development. Also in Brazil, Sao Paolo, the third-largest city in the world (with 18 million inhabitants) gave him honorary citizenship on June 12 of this year.

Lyndon LaRouche has already formally announced his intention of seeking the Democratic Presidential nomination in the 2004 election. His rival for this nomination will most probably be Senator Lieberman. If LaRouche wins, he will have to run against the Republican nominee, who will, of course, be President Bush, unless something totally unforeseen happens.