Yeah, bummer that guy we released from Gitmo has become an al Qaeda biggie. Disappointing, really. But hey, let the Saudis worry about it. Nothing for us to fret about here in America. As we all know, al Qaeda terrorists based in the Middle East pose no threat to the United States!

That, in a mind-numbing nutshell, was the reaction of Rep. Jane Harman to the New York Times report that Said Ali al-Shihri, released from Gitmo in 2007, has become the deputy leader of Al Qaeda’s branch in Yemen. Harman made her insouciant statement under questioning from CBS Early Show co-anchor Maggie Rodriguez this morning.

MAGGIE RODRIGUEZ: I’m not sure if you’ve seen the New York Times this morning. On the front page there’s an article that reveals that a terror suspect released from Guantanamo a few months ago, someone who said that if he was ever released he would reunite with his family and work for their furniture business, is now heading up al Qaeda in Yemen. I’m wondering if this makes you less inclined, Representative Harman, to support closing down the prison?

JANE HARMAN: Not at all. Now obviously, if that allegation is true, and if this fellow has now become a key al Qaeda operative, that’s shocking and disappointing. The Saudis
are
the ones
who should worry
about al
Qaeda attacksThe Saudis are the ones who should worry about al Qaeda attacks, and so are the Yemenis. This fellow is, I think, a Yemeni national.

Great point. He’s a Yemeni national, so clearly only the Yemenis, and maybe the Saudis, to whom he was released, have anything to worry about. These al Qaeda types are so famously respectful of international borders.

As naive as was Harman’s reaction, what makes it even more troubling is that, as Dems go, she’s been known as a relative hawk. Do the Dems blithely intend to elevate their airy notions of civil liberties over the national security of the United States?

Jennifer Rubin, writing at Pajamas Media:

Obama’s Administration of Grand Gestures

So far, we have an abundance of moral preening and only the illusion that all is being made anew.
. . .
One of the savvier Democrats, Rep. Jane Harman declared that it is “shocking and disappointing” that a released Guantanamo prisoner is now heading up al-Qaeda in Yemen. She does know that over sixty of the Guantanamo releasees have appeared back on the battlefield, right? Gosh, this Guantanamo stuff is harder than it looks.