Home base for al-Qaida: Pakistan?

Before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs committee Senator Russ Feingold (D-Wis.) recounted to the committee his recent four day trip to Pakistan. The testimony was meant to serve as a first person account on the on going somewhat rocky relationship between the United States and Pakistan.

In his assessment of the on-going relationship with Pakistan, Feingold stated “it is out of this country that we face our most serious national security threat.” Feingold added, “the Central Intelligence Agency has concluded that it is Pakistan that is the central front in the fight against al-Qaida.”

Throughout his testimony Feingold made a point of stressing the need for the United States to engage in the new Pakistani leadership. Senator Daniel Akaka (D-HI) reiterated Feingold’s point of view “What makes sense is that we have to engage the political leaders.” Feingold concluded his remarks by focusing the committee’s attention on the Pakistani elections from six months ago and which ended the presidential rule of Pervez Musharraf. “One change was in the north west province where I believe a more traditional more hard lined religious party was defeated by a more opened minded party and so that was an exciting development instead of a hard lined approach that maybe people were tired of the old way of rule.”