Gabby, Gabby, Gabby. . .

As everyone reading this site knows, I am not a Giffords supporter. I have questioned her sincerity as a moderate and her overall vision for America. I have never yet questioned her intelligence, until now.

In an interview with the Douglas Dispatch Gabby drops the following bit of wisdom:

While there are terrorists in Iraq, Giffords, D-Ariz., said Wednesday that they are less of a problem than places where threats are located or growing. "There is not a huge terrorist presence in Iraq," Giffords said during a telephone interview with Wick News Service.

She made her comments while waiting for the roll call vote in the House on the U.S. Troop Readiness, Veterans' Health and Iraq Accountability Act - the bill commonly referred to as the Iraq supplemental. She voted for the act, which also provides funds to support the U.S. military in Iraq and Afghanistan.She also emphasized that the supplemental calls for a goal to start leaving Iraq later this year, with a deployment of combat troops by early next year.

Not a huge terrorist problem in Iraq? Lets just go to the tape:

In 2007 (from Wickipedia)

• January 17: A suicide bomber and a car bomb killed 70 and wounded 170 at the entrances of Mustansiriya University, the university is located just inside the Shia millitia stronghold of Sadr city. [64]

• January 22: 88 people were killed and 170 wounded in a suicide car bombing in a crowded market place in cental Baghdad, the attack took place in the Shiite district of al-Shaqi. [65]

• January 24: 4 police officers were killed and 3 civilians were wounded when a suicide bomber target a police patrol west of Baghdad. [66]

• January 27: A suicide bomber followed up with a car explosion killed at least 13 people and wounded 42 in a busy market place south of Baghdad. The area was a mainly Shiite area.[67]

• February 1: Two suicide bombers blow themselves up in a crowded Shiite market in the city of Hillah killing 73 and wounding 150. [68]

• February 3: A suicide bomber driving a truck attacked a food market in a Shiite district of Baghdad killing 135 and wounding 339. The attack was the single deadliest insurgent attack to have been carried out since the US led invasion in 2003. [69]

• February 7: Al-Qaeda linked millitants shoot down a US helicopter with an anti-aircraft missile killing all 7 onboard northwest of Baghdad. [70]

• February 12: 2 car bombs explode within a minute of each other killing 71, the bombings took place in the busy market district of Baghdad. [71]

• February 15: Abu Ayyub al-Masri, purported leader of Al-Qaeda in Iraq following the death of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, reported wounded after a firefight with Iraqi forces.^[20].^[21] Later, a spokesman for the US Military cast doubt on whether al-Masri was even involved.

• February 18: 63 people are killed and 127 wounded when 2 car bombs explode in an outdoor market in Baghdad. The bombs struck the mainly Shia area of New Baghdad. [72]

• February 19: A coordinated attack including a suicide car bomber on an American combat post in Baghdad leaves 2 US soldiers killed and 17 wounded. [73]

• February 21: 13 People are killed in the holy Shiite city of Najaf when a suicide car bomber attacks a police checkpoint in the city. [74]

• February 24 A suicide truck bomber explodes near a Sunni mosque in in Anbar killing 40. The mosque was apprently targeted due to criticism against insurgent groups including Al-qaeda in Iraq by the imam, the imam criticised insurgent groups for attacks on US forces. Additionally many in the attacked area work for Iraqi military and police forces. [75]

• February 25 A suicide bomber strikes a college in eastern Baghdad killing 42 and injuring 55. The college is part of al-Mustansiriyah university and is owned by the Shiite Mahdi millitia. It is the second time the college has been attacked. [76]

• Februay 26: 13 people are killed and 10 wounded when a suicide bomber strikes a police checkpoint in Ramadi. [77]

• February 27: A suicide car bombing in Mosul kills 6 policemen and wounds 38 civilians. In another separate suicide bombing in central Baghdad, 5 people are killed and 13 wounded when the bomber strikes an area filled with restaurants and ice-cream parlors. [78]

• March 2: 14 bodies of policemen were found north east of Baghdad after an Al-Qaeda-affiliated group claimed responsibility for the kidnappings of 18 interior ministry employees many of them being police officers. The group claimed the kidnappings was in response to the reported rape of a sunni lady at the hands of the police forces. [79]

• March 5: A suicide car bomber struck Baghdads oldest book market leaving 38 dead and 105 wounded. [80]

• March 6: 2 suicide bombers blow themselves up among a large crowd of Shiite pilgrims in the town of Hillah killing 120 and wounding over 150. [81]

• March 7: 30 people are killed when a suicide bomber blows up in a cafe northeast of Baghdad. [82]

• March 10: 20 people are killed in the Shia millitia stronghold of Sadr city in Baghdad when a suicide bomber attacks a police checkpoint. [83]

• March 11: A suicide car bomber rammed a truck carrying Shiite pilgrims from Karabala killing 32 and wounding 24. The attack occurred in the capital Baghdad. [84]

• March 15: 8 Iraqi policemen are killed in Baghdad when a suicide bomber targeted a joint Iraqi army-police checkpoint. [85]

• March 17: Three separate suicide truck bombings in anbar province leave 2 Iraqi policemen dead. The bombers used trucks containing large amounts of chlorine which left around 350 people feeling sick including US servicemen. [86]

• March 19: A series of car bombs in the northern Iraqi city of Kirkuk leave 12 dead and dozens wounded. [87]

• March 23: Iraq's deputy prime minister is wounded when a suicide bomber wearing an explosive device detonates killing 9 people and wounding 14 others, among the dead includes the deputies advisor and five of his bodyguards. The attack took place in a mosque near the green zone in Baghdad. [88]

• March 24: Five separate suicide bombings around Iraq kill 44 and wound 82. The deadliest of the attacks was a suicide truck bombing against a police station in a Sunni area of Baghdad killing 20 thirteen of them being police officers. A second suicide truck bombing struck a Shiite mosque in a town south of Baghdad killing 8. A third suicide bomber wearing an explosives device detonated in a pastry shop killing 10 in the town of Tal Afar north of Baghdad. And 2 suicide car bombers struck a police station in the town of Qaim located near the Syrian border killing 6 people 5 of whom were police officers. [89][90]

• March 27: Two truck bombs targeting markets kill 154 and wound dozens in the mostly Shiite city of Tal Afar, one of the truck bombings killed 153 people alone making it the single deadliest attack since the war began Elsewhere a suicide bomber attacks a restaurant in the Sunni city of Ramadi which is frequented by police officers killing 10 people. And also the leader of the major Sunni insurgent group 1920 Revolution Brigades Harith al-Dari is assassinated in Abu Ghraib west of Baghdad, the assassination shows the widening escalating rift between Al-Qaeda and other Sunni insurgent groups, the 1920 Revolution Brigades has been in talks with the Iraqi government to rout out Al-qaeda millitans. Also a suicide bombing in Baghdad kills one and wounds three in a police checkpoint. [91] [92] [93]

• March 29: 122 people are killed when 5 suicide bombers hit several Shiite markets North east of Baghdad and a town North of the capital. The attacks are one of the deadliest attacks during the US led invasion of the country. [94]

• April 1: A suicide car bomber followed up with a suicide truck bombing hit Iraqi army headquarters in the city of Mosul leaving 2 soldiers dead and 22 others wounded, 15 of the wounded were soldiers. [95]

• April 2: A suicide truck bombing hits a police station in the northern oil rich city of Kirkuk killing 15 and wounding dozens including a US soldiers. 4 other US soldiers were among the wounded and one American humvee was badly damaged. [96]

• April 6 A suicide truck bomber containing chlorine attacked a police checkpoint in the city of Ramadi located in the insurgent stronghold of Anbar province. The attack left 27 dead and dozens wounded. [97]

• April 10: A female suicide bomber blew herself up among 200 police recruits killing 16 in the Sunni city of Muqdadiyah. [98]

• April 12: A suicide bomber blew himself up in the Iraqi parliaments cafeteria killing 8 including 3 lawmakers. The attack shows the insurgents capabilities to literally strike any target within the country. In another major attack, a suicide truck bomber detonanted on al-Sarafiya bridge killing 10 and destroying the bridge. The bridge connected eastern and western Baghdad and is considered as one the cities famous monuments. [99]

• April 14: A suicide car bomber killed 40 and wounded dozens at a bus station in the holy Shiite city Kerbala. The bombing took place just 200 meters away from the Imam Hussein shrine. A second suicide car bombing took place in Baghdad killing 10, the bomber struck near a police checkpoint. [100]

• April 15: 2 car bombs exploded within minutes of each other in a shopping area southwest of Baghdad killing 18. A suicide bomber also blew himself up on a minibus killing 6 and wounding 11. In central Baghdad a minibus rigged with explosives was parked and detonanted killing 11 and wounding 15. [101]

• April 18: a parked car bomb blew up at Sadriyah market located in central Baghdad killing 127 and wounding 148, it is the single deadliest car bombing in Iraq since the US-led invasion in 2003. Elsewhere a suicide car bomber slammed into a police checkpoint just at the entrance of Sadr city killing 41 and wounding 76. The attacks are a major blow the latest US-Iraqi surge plan to secure Baghdad as Al-Qaeda millitans have shown that they are still capable of carrying several deadly attacks. [102]

• April 19: The Islamic state of Iraq announced that Abu Ayyub al-Masri the head of Al-Qaeda in Iraq is the minister of war for the insurgent coalition. Also posted on the video is the execution of 20 captured Iraqi security forces. In further violence a suicide bomber blew himself up in a Shiite district of Baghdad killing 12. [103]

• April 21: A roadside bomb killed the mayor of Musayyib 40 miles south of Baghdad, one of his bodyguards was also killed in the attack and 4 others were wounded. [104]

• April 22: Two suicide car bombers attacked a police station in Baghdad leaving 13 dead and dozens wounded. [105]

• April 23: A suicide bomber struck a group of police officers in Baquba killing 6 including a police general. In Ramadi a suicide car bomber struck a restaurant killing 20 and wounding 35, the restaurant was often frequented by Iraqi secutiry forces. In another suicide car bombing in Ramadi, a suicide car bomber struck a police checkpoint killing 4. In further violence a suicide bomber wearing an explosive belt detonated in a restaurant in Baghdad that is often frequented with Iraqi security forces killing 6. And in Northern Iraq near Mosul a suicide car bomber struck Kurdish Democratic Party office in Tal Uskuf, killing at least 10 people and wounding 20. [106]

• April 24: 2 suicide truck bombers struck an American patrol post killing 9 marines and wounding 20 northeast of Baghdad. The Islamic state of Iraq which is headed by Al-Qaeda in Iraq soon claimed responsibility for the attack. [107] [108]

• April 25: A suicide bomber blew himself up outside a police station northeast of Baghdad killing 4 police officers and wounding 16 people. [109]

• April 26: A suicide car bomber struck a secutiry check point killing 10 soldiers, the attack took place 50 miles north of Baghdad. In another separate attack two suicide bombers attacked an office of the Kurdistan Democratic Party of Massoud Barzani killing three guards, the attack took place in Zumar, 45 miles west of Mosul. [110]

• April 27: A suicide truck bomber struck the home of a police chief in Anbar province killing 15 includin 9 Iraqi soldiers who were protecting the house, the police chief escaped with his familly. [111] [112]

• April 28: A parked car exploded near one of Shiite Islam's most holiest shrine killing 68 and wounding dozens. [113] [114]

• April 30: A suicide car bomber targeting an interior ministry convoy struck an Iraqi checkpoint killing 4 including 2 Iraqi commandos, the attack took place in western Baghdad.In a separate attack a suicide bomber wearing an explosive belt detonated in Shiite funeral killing 32, the attack occurred in a province just north of Baghdad. [115][116]

• May 2: A suicide car bomber struck near a police station in the Shiite Mahdi millitia stronghold of Sadr city leaving 9 dead and 34 wounded. [117]

• May 5: A suicide bomber detonated his explosive belt among a group of Iraqi recruits killing 15, 5 of the dead were Iraqi soldiers, and the other 10 were would be recruits for Iraqi security forces. The attack took place in the town of Abu Ghraib which is located west of Baghdad. [118]

• May 6: A car bomb hit a market in Baghdad killing 30. Elsewhere in the city of Samara, a car bomb and shooting attack hit a police headquarters killing 12 police officers which included the police chief. [119]

So either Giffords is that intellectually vacuous, or she is trying to deliberately mislead. Remember that she has recently been to Iraq and serves on the Armed Services Committee. You make the call.