Grassley: Did Clinton visit enhance Kim?

Although thankful for “the good thing that Pres. Clinton did,” Sen. Chuck Grassley Wednesday wondered whether the former president's visit to North Korea enhanced the credibility of Communist leader Kim Jong Il.

“First of all, we ought to be very thankful that these two young girls are home safely,” the Iowa Republican said about Clinton's brokering

of the release of two American journalists who had been held for 140 days after being sentenced to 12 years of hard labor for illegally entering North Korea.

Grassley had harsh words for Kim and his predecessors, who he called “outright liars” in their dealings with American presidents. The 20-hour visit by Clinton, which the White House insists was a humanitarian mission, “enhances the credibility of Kim Jung Il at a time when the biggest and meanest dictator in the world should not have that sort of recognition,” Grassley said.

“That's the sad part of it, particularly when they're shooting missiles into the air,” Grassley said. “Particularly when they're trying to develop a nuclear bomb. Particularly when they have people starting to death and all that.”

The U.S. shouldn't give its blessing to “sort of a guy,” he said about Kim. “And in a sense, that's what you do when you have a former president having audience with him.”

Clinton's visit came as U.S. and South Korean officials are working on a “comprehensive” strategy for persuading North Korea to dismantle its nukes, breaking from the step-by-step process that is littered with unkept promises.

Grassley said Kim and previous Korean leaders have continually lied to the U.S.

“They always say they're going to do things, and they never do them,” he told reporters during a conference call.