5 23 2007
Democrats Yield to the Inmate in Charge of the Nuthouse and Condemn Our Troops to More
Deaths: “Withdrawal timetable dropped from war spending bill.”
http://www.cnn.com/POLITICS/blogs/politicalticker/2007/05/withdrawal-timetable-dropped-
from-war.html
Susan Ralston takes the Fifth; After all, Ralston worked for Karl Rove and Jack
Abramoff, you might wonder if taking the Fifth is in the employee manual when you first
start working there. 5/23
Former Rove aide pleads the Fifth on White House contacts with convicted lobbyist
Abramoff
http://rawstory.com/news/2007/Former_Rove_aide_pleads_Fifth_on_0522.html
In Case You Missed This Bushevik Incompetence Bombshell: “In one of the most troubling
trends, U.S. officials said that Al Qaeda’s command base in Pakistan is increasingly
being funded by cash coming out of Iraq, where the terrorist network’s operatives are
raising substantial sums from donations to the anti-American insurgency.” Nice Job of
STRENGTHENING Al-Qaeda, George.
Influx of Al Qaeda, money into Pakistan is seen
U.S. officials say the terrorist network’s command base is increasingly being funded by
cash coming out of Iraq.
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/washingtondc/la-na-
binladen20may20,1,3996913.story?ctrack=1&cset=true
Pull the Fire Alarm. It ought to be a crime! It is: Bush administration quietly boosting
troop levels in second ’surge.’ When additional support troops are included in this
second troop “surge,” the total number of U.S. troops in Iraq could increase from 162,000
now to more than 200,000 — a record high number — by the end of the year.
Bush administration quietly boosting troop levels in second ’surge’
http://www.azstarnet.com/allheadlines/184107
As expected, Fred Phelps and his far right-wing church protest Jerry Falwell’s funeral.
5/23
Phelps Clan Pickets Falwell Funeral
Lynchburg, Virginia) About a half dozen members of a Kansas church that denounces
homosexuality protested Tuesday afternoon at the funeral of evangelist Jerry Falwell.
The members of Westobo Baptist Church carried placards accusing Falwell of being in
league with gays and of cozying up to Israel.
The church, which operates the GodHatesFags Web site, had warned Lynchburg police in
advance they were coming
On its site Westboro, run by Rev. Fred Phelps, called Falwell, a “corpulent false
prophet” and said he”spent his entire life prophesying lies and false doctrines like ‘God
loves everyone.’”
In attacking Falwell the church says he “warmly praised Christ-rejecting Jews, pedophile-
condoning Catholics, money-grubbing compromisers, practicing fags like Mel White (of
Souflorce), and backsliders like Billy Graham and Robert Schuler, etc.”
A spokesperson for the Lynchburg Police Department told 365Gay.com that members of the
group “Christian Bikers” parked in front of the area blocking the Phelps clan from the
view of mourners.
Phelps and the church first came to national attention when he organized a protest by
his followers outside the 1998 funeral for Matthew Shepherd, the gay college student who
was beaten to death in Wyoming. The killing, Phelps’ protest, and the reaction of
townsfolk led to the play “The Laramie Project.”
Church members routinely demonstrate at the funerals of AIDS victims and most recently
at the funerals of soldiers killed in Iraq.
Falwell, who died last week at the age of 73, was no friend to the gay community
Following the terrorist attacks in New York and Washington in 2001 Falwell declared that
gays and pro choice advocates were to blame.
Speaking on the 700 Club religious program Falwell said, “The abortionists have got to
bear some burden for this because God will not be mocked. And when we destroy 40 million
little innocent babies, we make God mad. I really believe that the pagans, and the
abortionists, and the feminists, and the gays and the lesbians who are actively trying to
make that an alternative lifestyle, the ACLU, People For the American Way, all of them
who have tried to secularize America. I point the finger in their face and say ‘you
helped this happen’.”
In 2003 Falwell announced that he was putting aside everything to devote his time to
passage of a federal constitutional ban on gay marriage.
He also denounced the Teletubbies TV show, calling one of the characters gay
None of the GOP presidential candidates attended the funeral. The Bush White House,
which at one time courted Falwell’s support sent only a midlevel aide.
http://www.365gay.com/Newscon07/05/052207falwell.htm
May 22, 2007
The Gore Book: Sweeping Indictment, Rousing Challenge, Massive Best-seller (Brent
Budowsky)
The real presidential campaign begins now with the publication of Al Gore’s sweeping,
passionate and uncompromising indictment of Bush, Bushism and American politics in the
Bush era.
If Congress again capitulates to Bush on Iraq policy, the juxtaposition of Gore’s
massive assault on Bushism, his criticism of Congress for not presenting authoritative
opposition and current events in Washington will unleash a major groundswell in many
circles of Democratic and independent politics.
This is not a book about politics. It is a book about American democracy in 2007.
Gore challenges the surrender of major media to false notions, unreason,
misunderstanding and dishonesty that drove America to disastrous war.
Gore challenges the onslaught against the Bill of Rights and fundamental freedoms by an
administration seeking to monopolize its power in ways reminiscent of Orwell’s 1984.
Gore attacks a war that was not just wrong, but in his word “absurd,” an Orwellian
preemptive war attacking a country that did not invade us, in response to a terrorist
attack that could have been prevented.
Gore condemns the exploitation and abuse of 9/11 and the abuse of power, and abuse of
trust, of a politics aimed at driving the nation into a frenzy of fear to justify unwise
war, un-American torture and illegal actions beyond the reach of Congress and the courts.
Gore issues a clarion call for America to rejoin the global community and lead the fight
against global warming, AIDS, the crisis of water and a range of global issues that
threaten a world that hungers for renewed American leadership.
What is striking and powerful about Gore’s book is the sweeping and comprehensive
indictment of Bush and the Bush years, and the passion, reason and intensity of his
challenge.
Gore is saying that these are deadly serious times that demand highly serious leaders
and that our democracy, too long put to shame by shallowness and deceit, must be
reawakened by a people who say, “No more.”
The power, strength and sweep of this book are words from a man who should have been
president, might well still be president, and provide a call to action for the next man
or woman who will be president.
http://pundits.thehill.com/2007/05/22/the-gore-book-sweeping-indictment-rousing-
challenge-massive-best-seller/
Conservative editorial boards run from Alberto Gonzales; Unfortunately, Bush doesn’t
read newspapers. 5/23
Conservative editorial boards run from Gonzales
With the Senate’s ‘no confidence’ vote coming up on Wednesday, conservatives have just
one day left to separate themselves from the Attorney General before all hell breaks
loose. Over the last few news cycles, a number of conservative editorial boards across
the country have jumped ship.
1) Conservative bloggers, like Ed Koch of Real Clear Politics, says Gonzales is a “dead
man walking,” and praised Ashcroft for standing standing up to him in the hospital:
Isn’t it awesome that Ashcroft, a very conservative lawyer and former U.S. Senator,
hated by the liberals, in effect, thwarted an attempt by the President’s Counsel and
Chief of Staff to subvert the law?
Even the Asheville Citizen-Times, a right-leaning newspaper, wrote this morning that
Gonzales ought to go:
He no longer deserves or can claim the confidence of the department he runs, of the
Congress or of the American people. He should resign.
Another right-wing newspaper, the Ventura County Star, asks Gonzales to “go quietly” and
not hurt the Republicans any further:
It’s admirable that Mr. Bush is willing to defend his longtime friend and counselor, but
Mr. Gonzales should not put the president in the position of having to do so. It is no
service to Mr. Bush for Mr. Gonzales to stay on.
My hometown newspaper, the Seattle Times — which all of us out here in the Northwest
know is far from liberal — jumped off the Gonzales bandwagon on Sunday:
The only alternative to Gonzales’ staying on as attorney general is an independent
Justice Department that acts in the interests of justice, rather than Bush’s political
and personal interests. That is what Bush fears most, and that is why Gonzales will
almost certainly stay, unless Congress forces him out. Let’s ask them to do it.
The way I see it, there are two main reasons why Gonzales is toast:
The controversial firings affected Republican-appointed attorneys. Many of these
attorneys have close relationships with GOP Senators and Representatives.
The episode between Gonzales and Ashcroft gives conservatives a way out. In other
words, Republicans can say, “Hey, all the fuss about the U.S. Attorney firings was
nonsense. But I don’t like what Gonzales did to our conservative pal Ashcroft.”
http://www.thebluestate.com/2007/05/conservative_ed.html
Dave Lindorff: A Widening Chasm Between House Democrats and the Voters on Impeachment
The divide between Democratic leaders contemplating their re-election prospects in 2008
and rank-and-file Democrats is becoming a chasm — one so wide that Congressional
Democrats may soon find it hard to straddle it.
The issue is impeachment.
So far, Democrats in Congress and at the top of the party hierarchy, out of touch with
public sentiment and worried that impeachment could hurt them with “independents” — whom
they mistakenly consider to stand somehow “in between” Democrats and Republicans — have
been following House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s vow that for the 110th Congress, “impeachment
is off the table.” They’ve been doing more than that: they have been actively working to
tamp down, and even to crush, impeachment campaigns in the states.
For example, in Washington state
http://www.buzzflash.com/articles/contributors/1031
Bush Lied, Soldiers Keep Dying.
3,422 U.S. Military Fatalities in Iraq
390 U.S. Military Fatalities in Afghanistan
25,378 U.S. Military Maimed in Iraq (source: DoD Update as of May 15, 2007)
70,023 Iraqis Reported Killed (source: Iraq Body Count)
655,000 Iraqis Reported Killed (source: The Lancet)
38 buzzes
buzz itThe story that should bring down the republican party
scoop.epluribusmedia.org/story/2007/5/22/15285/4315
sent by cho since 17 hours 34 minutes, published about 16 hours 54 minutes
Adam Lambert (clammyc) nails it: “Election fraud. Gaming the electoral system from the
inside. To unfairly favor republicans. Favors and promotions for those who go along.
Demotions, firings and blacklisting of those who don’t. Nonexistent charges of voter
fraud and threats or coercion for these charges to be investigated. Illegal
redistricting. Petty lawsuits against the Voting Rights Act. Voter ID laws that border on
illegal, if not overtly illegal.”
With all due respect, while it “should”, if 9/11 can’t do it, this won’t!
understood, but even 9/11 was “only” the Bush administration, and many still won’t
believe it because it is still “somewhat” subjective
http://www.buzzflash.net/story.php?id=13731
May 23, 2007
Incoming British PM Gordon Brown is prepared to risk the future of the “special
relationship” with the United States by reversing Tony Blair’s support for the Iraq war,
President George W Bush has been warned. God bless Brown if it is true. He is a man
interested in saving the world from a psychopath.
Bush gets ready for Iraq U-turn by Brown
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/05/20/wirq20.xml
Democrats Yield to the Inmate in Charge of the Nuthouse and Condemn Our Troops to More
Deaths: “Withdrawal timetable dropped from war spending bill.”
http://www.cnn.com/POLITICS/blogs/politicalticker/2007/05/withdrawal-timetable-dropped-
from-war.html
Seymour Hersh: In the past few months, as the situation in Iraq has deteriorated, the
Bush Administration, in both its public diplomacy and its covert operations, has
significantly shifted its Middle East strategy. The “redirection,” as some inside the
White House have called the new strategy, has brought the United States closer to an open
confrontation with Iran and, in parts of the region, propelled it into a widening
sectarian conflict between Shiite and Sunni Muslims….The key players behind the
redirection are Vice-President Dick Cheney, the deputy national-security adviser Elliott
Abrams, the departing Ambassador to Iraq (and nominee for United Nations Ambassador),
Zalmay Khalilzad, and Prince Bandar bin Sultan, the Saudi national-security adviser.
While Rice has been deeply involved in shaping the public policy, former and current
officials said that the clandestine side has been guided by Cheney.
The Redirection
Is the Administration’s new policy benefitting our enemies in the war on terrorism?
http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2007/03/05/070305fa_fact_hersh
State of Virginia Supports Illegal Gun Sales
http://www.gunguys.com/?p=2173
Yes, a Republican — James B. Comey — Actually Wins the Reader-Nominated BuzzFlash
Wings of Justice Award, for His Action in Calling in the Head of the FBI and Personally
Standing Up for the Constitution by Confronting Alberto “Consigliere” Gonzales and Andrew
Card in the hospital room of a Dazed and Medicated John Ashcroft
Normally, we don’t consider Republicans for the BuzzFlash Wings of Justice Award. That
is because most Busheviks are like the followers of Jim Jones; they stay loyal to their
psychologically impaired and mentally challenged leader until the last drop of Kool-Aid.
James B. Comey, in particular, is often described as a Republican loyalist and is
currently General Counsel for Lockheed Martin, a senior member of the military industrial
complex.
But, Comey, according to his recent Congressional testimony, did an incredible thing. He
actually stood up to the lawlessness of the Bush Administration.
http://wingsofjustice.com/07/05/woj07021.html
‘I Don’t Believe the NRA Should Get Their Way and Allow Terrorists to Buy Military Guns
in the United States.’
That’s correct.
The NRA and the gun lobby protect the right of possible terrorists to buy guns
According to the Violence Policy Center of Washington, D.C., “Current law is so weak
that being a known member of a foreign terrorist organization does not prohibit a person
from legally buying and possessing guns.”
Tell the NRA you won’t let them compromise our national security:
http://www.democracyinaction.org/dia/organizationsORG/FSA/signUp.jsp?key=2143
I am on a call with Al Gore. Gore just responded to White House press secretary Tony
Snow, who said, “I don’t know if they’re going to do a reprinting of the book to try to
get the facts straight. The fact-checkers may have to take a look at it.” Gore said,
“This book, unlike the President’s State of the Union Address, has been fact-checked.”
http://www.seeingtheforest.com/archives/2007/05/gore_responds_t.htm
Robert Parry: Grieving Moms vs. Washington Pols. “But Senate Democrats – faced with a
near-solid phalanx of Republicans standing behind the President – appear eager to run up
the white flag, give Bush pretty much whatever he wants, and break for the Memorial Day
recess.”
Every other month, Gold Star mother Teresa Arciola drives from her home in Westchester
County, New York, to Arlington Cemetery in Virginia, sits on her son’s grave and reads
aloud from “Corduroy,” his favorite baby book. Another mother spent winter afternoons in
a sleeping bag stretched across her son’s final resting place.
The unspeakable suffering of these parents of dead soldiers stands in marked contrast to
the maneuvering over the Iraq War now underway across the river in Washington. There,
George W. Bush appears quietly planning another escalation of the Iraq War – possibly
doubling U.S. combat troops by Christmas – and many members of Congress are frightened of
the political repercussions if they stand up to him.
A possible compromise could come from a bill passed by the Democratic-controlled House
granting Bush only two months of the additional war spending that he wants, rather than
the full amount through the end of September.
At least requiring a second vote sometime in the summer might force serious thinking
about alternatives to continuing the war indefinitely and creating many more fresh graves
at Arlington Cemetery.
http://www.consortiumnews.com/2007/052207.html
Rejoice, The Hummer Is Dead
It might be the end of the world’s most phallically sad SUV. But has the damage been done?
The late Rev. Jerry Falwell? He was exactly like a Hummer H2. Oh yes he was. Bloated,
arrogant, offensive to millions and deeply wrong in a thousand ways and yet blindly
worshipped by a shockingly large and happily uninformed throng of devout minions for no
other reason than he was, well, bloated, arrogant and wrong.
Is that too harsh? Lacking in prudent subtlety? I’m completely OK with that
http://sfgate.com/cgi-
bin/article.cgi?file=/gate/archive/2007/05/23/notes052307.DTL&type=printable
US effort in Iraq “abysmal”: top congressman
Raw Story – Cambridge,MA,USA
He used a 6.8 million dollar modernization of a maternity hospital in the Iraqi city of
Arbil as a symbol of US failures in Iraq following the 2003 invasion …
US effort in Iraq “abysmal”: top congressman
Published: Tuesday May 22, 2007
Veteran Democratic congressman Tom Lantos on Tuesday took aim at the Bush administration
for “serious misconduct” in its “abysmal” attempt to rebuild violence-shattered Iraq.
US effort in Iraq “abysmal”: top congressman
Published: Tuesday May 22, 2007
Veteran Democratic congressman Tom Lantos on Tuesday took aim at the Bush administration
for “serious misconduct” in its “abysmal” attempt to rebuild violence-shattered Iraq.
Lantos, chairman of the House of Representatives Foreign Affairs committee, accused top
US officials of wallowing in the “mud of incompetence” and said they were guilty of
“stunning mismanagement” in post-war Iraq.
http://rawstory.com/news/afp/US_effort_in_Iraq_abysmal_top_congr_05222007.html
Giuliani’s 9/11 Response ‘Deeply Flawed’
Rudy Giuliani, one of the leading Republican presidential candidates, has worked hard to
craft an image as a 9/11 hero at the center of New York City’s recovery and rebuilding
after the terrorists attacks.
(Don’t forget the Fire Fighters union (IAFF) was one of the first groups to take
Giuliani to task for some his claims and his handling of the city’s preparedness and 9/11
response.)
In recent days, Mr. Hauer has challenged Mr. Giuliani’s recollection that he had little
role as mayor in placing the city’s emergency command center at the ill-fated World Trade
Center….
And he has contradicted Mr. Giuliani’s assertions that the city’s emergency response was
well coordinated that day, a point he made most notably to the authors of Grand Illusion,
a book that depicts Mr. Giuliani’s anti-terrorism efforts as deeply flawed.
http://blog.aflcio.org/2007/05/22/giuliani%e2%80%99s-911-response-deeply-flawed/
Onetime Giuliani Insider Is Now a Critic
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/22/us/politics/22giuliani.html?_r=2&ref=politics&oref=slog
in&oref=slogin
Macho Mistakes at Ground Zero
As more and more workers who inhaled the dust at ground zero fall ill, it has become
increasingly clear that much of the problem can be traced to the Giuliani
administration’s failure to insist that all emergency personnel and construction workers
at the site wear respirators.
The then-mayor and his agency heads put their emphasis on a speedy cleanup and return to
normalcy. In that, they were remarkably successful, clearing the site in less than 10
months. Unfortunately, the price is now being paid by thousands of workers who have
developed lung and other ailments.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/22/opinion/22tue1.html
As Comrades Search, Fatal Bomb Wreaks Havoc
MAHMUDIYA, Iraq, May 22 — The ground exploded under an ashen sky at dawn. Dust, dirt,
blood and military equipment filled the air, clearing after several seconds to reveal a
frenzied scene of horror.
Where Sgt. Justin D. Wisniewski, 22, had just been standing there was now a crater five
feet wide and three feet deep. His body lay nearby. The wounded were scattered around
him.
The soldiers swore.
“It was Ski,” one said, using the sergeant’s nickname.
Sgt. Joshua Delgado, 23, the unit’s medic, rushed in and went to work on the most
seriously wounded soldier, who lay with shrapnel wounds to the face, arm and side. Two
other Americans and an Iraqi were also hurt.
One of the wounded, Staff Sgt. Robert Simonovich, 31, knelt off to the right. He had
taken his body armor off and, with just a T-shirt on, it was clear he had not walked far
enough yet to sweat. His hands rested on his knees, his head tilted down. Eyes closed, he
said he couldn’t see.
“It’s not one of our guys, is it?” he said. No one answered.
Capt. Blake Keil, 31, who commanded the group of 11 Americans working with about 50
Iraqis, called for a medevac helicopter.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/23/world/middleeast/23search.html?th&emc=th
When will our consciences grow so tender that we will act to prevent human misery rather
than avenge it?: Eleanor Roosevelt:
I]n such a world of conflict, a world of victims and executioners, it is the job of
thinking people, not to be on the side of the executioners: Albert Camus:
The death of one man is a tragedy. The death of millions is a statistic: Joe Stalin,
comment to Churchill at Potsdam, 1945
The aim of military training is not just to prepare men for battle, but to make them
long for it: Louis Simpson
I dream of giving birth to a child who will ask, “Mother, what was war?” – Eve Merriam
Number Of Iraqi Civilians Slaughtered In America’s War On Iraq – At Least 655,000 + +
http://tinyurl.com/usq4x
Number of U.S. Military Personnel Sacrificed (Officially acknowledged) In America’sWar
On Iraq 3,422
http://icasualties.org/oif/
The War in Iraq Costs
$427,890,796,831
See the cost in your community
http://nationalpriorities.org/index.php?option=com_wrapper&Itemid=182
A Front-row Seat For This Lebanese Tragedy
By Robert Fisk
There is something obscene about watching the siege of Nahr el-Bared. The old
Palestinian camp – home to 30,000 lost souls who will never go “home.
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article17746.htm
Another Chapter in Hillary’s Attempt to Rewrite History on Iraq
By Arianna Huffington
In a 1939 radio address, Franklin Roosevelt declared, “Repetition does not transform a
lie into a truth.” When it comes to Iraq, Hillary Clinton is doing everything in her
power to prove him wrong – repeatedly trying to rewrite history and belatedly catch up
with public opinion against the war.
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article17748.htm
Why Bush Hasn’t Been Impeached
By Gary Kamiya
The Bush presidency is a lot of things. It’s a secretive cabal, a cavalcade of
incompetence, a blood-stained Church Militant, a bad rerun of “The Godfather” in which
scary men in suits pay ominous visits to hospital rooms.
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article17749.htm
Why the US Government Is Hated All Over the World
By Fred Reed
Something is wrong with the United States. I think most of us have noticed it. There is
a mortal rot in the country, made manifest by many little rots that are hard to integrate
mentally yet are, I think, somehow related. The change is grave, accelerating, probably
irreversible, and fascinating. Things are not as they were.
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article17747.htm
Get Busy Living, Or Get Busy Dying
By David Sirota
Today, American workers’ take-home pay represents a smaller share of the nation’s total
income than at any time in the last forty years. At the same time, corporate profits as a
share of national income are at an all-time high.
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article17751.htm
Paulson’s Kabuki: Integrating China into the Neoliberal System
By Mike Whitney
Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson is a man who knows what he wants. And what he wants is
to further integrate the Chinese market into the global system—the “American-run”
system.
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article17750.htm
Mob cheers as British soldier dies:
A cheering mob made victory hand signals yesterday after a British serviceman was killed
in an ambush on the streets of Basra.
http://snipurl.com/1lmvi
Bush administration quietly boosting troop levels in second ’surge’ :
The Bush administration is quietly on track to nearly double the number of combat troops
in Iraq this year, an analysis of Pentagon deployment orders showed Monday.
http://www.azstarnet.com/allheadlines/184107
Dem’s wimp out:
House Democrats Have to Sell Iraq Plan :
After weeks of refusing to back down to President Bush on setting a timetable on Iraq,
House Democratic leaders face having to explain to their party’s rank and file why
they’ve now relented.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,,-6652427,00.html
Rep. Ron Paul: Fixing What’s Wrong With Iraq: -
Many of my colleagues, faced with the reality that the war in Iraq is not going well,
line up to place all the blame on the president. The president “mismanaged” the war, they
say. “It’s all the president’s fault,” they claim. In reality, much of the blame should
rest with Congress.
http://www.house.gov/paul/tst/tst2007/tst052107.htm
Where Nobody Is Accountable:
It is the occupation forces, particularly the United States and Britain, that must be
held accountable, many Iraqis say.
http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=37814
No water or electricty and Iraq to spend 1.5 billion dollars on weapons:
Iraq’s defence ministry will buy new weapons worth more than 1.5 billion dollars (1.11
billion euros), including helicopters and US rifles, the minister announced on Monday.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20070521/wl_mideast_afp/iraqusmilitary
Justin Raimondo: The Ron Paul Effect :
Antiwar Republican makes waves – and the Establishment is in shock
http://www.antiwar.com/justin/?articleid=10995
More than 100 dead and injured at Nahr Al-Bared camp:
Reports range from 50 to over 80 dead, including soldiers, militants and civilians.
According to Al-Jazeera, at least 20 fighters, 32 soldiers and 27 civilians have been
killed since fighting between the army and Fatah Al-Islam fighters erupted early on
Sunday.
http://electronicintifada.net/v2/article6929.shtml
Hersh: Bush administration arranged support for militants attacking Lebanon:
In an interview on CNN International’s Your World Today, veteran journalist Seymour
Hersh explains that the current violence in Lebanon is the result of an attempt by the
Lebanese government to crack down on a militant Sunni group, Fatah al-Islam, that it
formerly supported.
http://snipurl.com/1lmw9
In case you missed it:
USS Liberty: Dead in the Water :
Video; During the Six-Day War, Israel attacked and nearly sank the USS Liberty belonging
to its closest ally, the USA. Thirty-four American servicemen were killed in the two-hour
assault by Israeli warplanes and torpedo boats
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article5073.htm
Priests claim torture; fort says no:
A pair of priests arrested in November for trespassing on Fort Huachuca are determined
to make a court case out of what they contend is torture being taught at the Southern
Arizona Army post.
http://snipurl.com/1lmxi
===
Bush Anoints Himself as the Insurer of Constitutional Government in Emergency:
With scarcely a mention in the mainstream media, President Bush has ordered up a plan
for responding to a catastrophic attack.
http://progressive.org/mag_wx051807/
Claudia Nelson : The Militarization of the United States :
Bush policies increase Pentagon’s role in U.S. government
http://english.ohmynews.com/articleview/article_view.asp?at_code=411331
===
Dodge says single currency ‘possible’:
Bank of Canada Governor David Dodge says North America could one day embrace a euro-
style single currency.
http://snipurl.com/1lmxq
Who Would Jesus Bomb?
By: Nicole Belle on Friday, May 18th, 2007 at 4:43 PM – PDT
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2007/05/18/who-would-jesus-bomb/
What Planet Does Kate O’Beirne Live On?
By: SilentPatriot on Friday, May 18th, 2007 at 4:03 PM – PDT
think it’s a faraway land known as “Planet Beltway.” Apparently Kate O’Beirne doesn’t
think it’s improper for the President of the United States to pressure a bedridden
Attorney General into legalizing a domestic spying program he already considered illegal.
According to the self-proclaimed beltway-bubbled Kate, “there’s no there there.” After
all, the President tried his very hardest to make sure the program was on sound legal
footing (something so rare that he should be applauded for it) and no cases have arisen
to suggest otherwise. Well, except that one case in Michigan. And what kind of program
was in place before Bush sent his goons out? Must have been something pretty radical
considering the usually slavishly loyal Ashcroft, Comey and Mueller threatened to resign
en masse if it continued unchanged.
What was it that Reagan used to say, Kate? Oh yea: “Trust, but verify.” With all the
Reagan nostalgia of late, it’s remarkable that it’s slipped your mind
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2007/05/18/what-planet-does-kate-obeirne-live-on/
Bill Richardson’s Energy Plan
Gov. Richardson closed with his goals and how America will face the energy challenges
for this century:
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2007/05/18/bill-richardsons-energy-plan/
Jon Stewart Catches Gonzales Lying About McNulty
By: SilentPatriot on Friday, May 18th, 2007 at 2:03 PM – PDT
Deputy AG Paul McNulty played a negligible role in the USA purge. Well, until he
announced his resignation; then he was blamed for the entire thing. Memo to Gonzo: We
don’t throw away the old tapes of what you say. Jon juxtaposes the two contradictory
statements and breaks down the significance of the blockbuster Comey testimony.
Gonzales on April 19: “Looking back, things that I would have done differently…? I think
I would have had the Deputy Attorney General more involved, directly involved.”
Gonzales on May 15: “The Deputy Attorney General would know best about the
qualifications and experiences of the minds; it’s a community and he signed off on the
names.”
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2007/05/18/jon-stewart-catches-gonzales-lying-about-mcnulty/
Melanie Morgan Permanently Banned From “The News Hour”
Well, well, well. Via Romenesko, we learn that one of our favorite fact-free Righty
screechers has gotten herself permanently locked out in the yard over at The News Hour
with Jim Lehrer. The clip in question is posted above, and frankly, for Morgan (whose
rancor and biliousness are all the way off the charts on a good day), I think it’s pretty
mild. All she did was serially interrupt and talk over Iraq War veteran John Soltz to
accuse him undermining the troops and call him a cheerleader for Al Qaeda. Is that such a
crime?
JON SOLTZ: Well, we are the troops. And there was nothing worse than when I was in
combat in Iraq and a soldier that I sent on a convoy was killed, and I had to hear my
president, the man who never had the courage to serve in Vietnam, entice my enemy with
words like, “Bring it on.”
MELANIE MORGAN: Oh, please! Read more…
http://www.firedoglake.com/2007/05/17/late-nite-fdl-and-dont-come-back/#more-9148
Here are some more memorable moments from the sweet and lovable Melanie Morgan
Melanie Morgan’s lunacy: “I think we should have gone in and just blitzed Iraq. We
haven’t had a, a serious war, really, since WWII.”
Melanie Morgan is one of those grade B talk show hosts that’s treated like the almighty
when she appears on Teevee. On Hardball Friday–she proves what she has to say is
downright insane and immoral in defending the war supporters position on Iraq. The
bookers of 24/7 don’t seem to share my opinion.
Morgan is the typical warmonger who believes we should “kill’em all.”–vaporize every
living person without regard to human life—even though Iraq never attacked us. (She’s
also quite comfortable with torture,) Morgan has no idea how many casualties there are
in Iraq because she doesn’t want to know. And by the way—I believe Korea and Vietnam ware
serious wars. I gather so do the men and women who fought in them. I’m just saying…
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2006/10/22/melanie-morgans-lunacy-i-think-we-should-have-
gone-in-and-just-blitzed-iraq-we-haven%e2%80%99t-had-a-a-serious-war-really-since-wwii/
Colbert Nails a Clueless Tom DeLay
When Stephen starts off the interview by saying “you’re my first indicted guest,” you
know you’re in for a good Colbert-style skewering. “The Hammer” gets nailed on his dopey
mugshot, his pending legal troubles, his likening of liberals to Adolph Hitler, and Terri
Schiavo — which Tom remembers as one of his finer moments.
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2007/05/18/colbert-nails-a-clueless-tom-delay/
‘Torture Betrays Us’
Thursday, May 17th, 2007
Just two days after several Republican presidential hopefuls seemed almost desperate to
brag about their appreciation for torture — as Slate’s John Dickerson put it, “Some
candidates appeared ready to do the torturing themselves” — an important WaPo op-ed tries
to set the record straight.
Charles C. Krulak, commandant of the Marine Corps from 1995 to 1999, and Joseph P. Hoar,
commander in chief of U.S. Central Command from 1991 to 1994, explained how fear can
drive Americans to tolerate the intolerable — whether that be internment during World War
II, McCarthyism, or more recently, torture.
Donald Rumsfeld once wondered aloud whether we were creating more terrorists than we
were killing. In counterinsurgency doctrine, that is precisely the right question.
Victory in this kind of war comes when the enemy loses legitimacy in the society from
which it seeks recruits and thus loses its “recuperative power.”
The torture methods that Tenet defends have nurtured the recuperative power of the
enemy. This war will be won or lost not on the battlefield but in the minds of potential
supporters who have not yet thrown in their lot with the enemy. If we forfeit our values
by signaling that they are negotiable in situations of grave or imminent danger, we drive
those undecideds into the arms of the enemy. This way lies defeat, and we are well down
the road to it.
Josh Marshall adds, “The legacy of this administration is frightening to behold, its
philosophy of force and violence, its lawlessness.”
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2007/05/17/%e2%80%98torture-betrays-us%e2%80%99/
If you think you can stomach it, check out how Coultergeist remembers Falwell. Are there
no depths to which this wretched and poor excuse for a human being is willing to sink? I
think that question was answered long ago.
http://us.f308.mail.yahoo.com/ym/ShowLetter?MsgId=9144_10758538_9009_1590_30516_0_33795_9
0257_3094235238&Idx=6&YY=38683&y5beta=yes&y5beta=yes&inc=25&order=down&sort=date&pos=0&vie
w=&head=&box=Inbox
White House Opposed Pay Raises For Troops/Widows’ Benefits
By: Nicole Belle on Thursday, May 17th, 2007 at 2:21 PM – PDT
Let me see if I understand this: Extending tours of duty is a strategic move. But
paying our troops more money for putting their lives on the line is “unnecessary”:
Army Times: The Bush administration had asked for a 3 percent military raise for Jan.
1, 2008, enough to match last year’s average pay increase in the private sector. The
House Armed Services Committee recommends a 3.5 percent pay increase for 2008, and
increases in 2009 through 2012 that also are 0.5 percentage point greater than private-
sector pay raises.[..]
Bush budget officials said the administration “strongly opposes” both the 3.5 percent
raise for 2008 and the follow-on increases, calling extra pay increases “unnecessary.”
Further, as The Gavel cites, the administration has also opposed an additional $40 per
month for widows of slain soldiers; additional benefits for surviving family members of
civilian employees; and price controls for prescription drugs under TRICARE, the
military’s health care plan for military personnel and their dependents.
But here’s where the Irony-meter redlines: in addition to not wanting to pay more to our
troops or support the survivors of fallen troop members, the administration also does not
want to have stricter accountability on contract employees. That’s right…don’t pay the
soldiers, but don’t ask us to watch what we pay Blackwater.
Remind me again, how is asking for timelines to get them out of an unwinnable situation
is hurting our troops and this isn’t?
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2007/05/17/white-house-opposed-pay-raises-for-troopswidows-
benefits/
Biggest. Embassy. Ever.
About a month ago, the NYT reported that reconstruction programs in Iraq were an abject
disaster.
Now, contrast this record with news today that we’re in the midst of building the
biggest, most expensive embassy on earth, right there in Baghdad.
The Bush administration designed the 104-acre compound — set to open in September in
what today is a war zone — to be an ultra-secure enclave. Yet it also hoped that downtown
Baghdad would cease being a battleground when diplomats moved in. […]
The $592 million embassy occupies a chunk of prime real estate two-thirds the size of
Washington’s National Mall, with desk space for about 1,000 people behind high, blast-
resistant walls. The compound is a symbol both of how much the United States has invested
in Iraq and how the circumstances of its involvement are changing.
The embassy is one of the few major projects the administration has undertaken in Iraq
that is on schedule and within budget.
That’s bound to make the Iraqis happy, isn’t it? Most of the buildings we’ve built for
the country are crumbling, but look at the enormous embassy we’ve built for ourselves —
within budget! — on prime real estate in downtown Baghdad.
Hears and minds, people. Hearts and minds.
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2007/05/22/biggest-embassy-ever/
Bush Outsources the Task of Catching bin Laden
By: SilentPatriot on Tuesday, May 22nd, 2007 at 2:01 PM
NBC’s Jim Miklaszewski reports on how the Bush administration pays the Pakistani
government $1 billion a year to hunt down Osama bin Laden, and demands zero
accountability as to how that money is spent.
So if I understand this correctly, we are paying Musharraf $1 billion a year to strike
immunity deals with the warlords thought to be harboring this man we’re paying him to
catch? This is appalling on so many levels. Given the huge sum of money we’re paying this
man to implement policies that are counterproductive to our national security and yield
few results, how can we possibly consider him our “strong friend and ally”?
Let’s review the Bush administration’s record for a second and how insane it is for them
to suggest (and for his water carriers to defend) that they are “strong on terror”:
First, they ignored countless warnings pre-9/11.
Then they allowed bin Laden to slip across the Pakistani border. Then they propagated a
non-existant link between 9/11 and Saddam Hussein to drag us into a war that has not only
destroyed our military, treasury, and moral credibility, but has also made us infinitely
less safe by creating an entirely new generation of Islamic extremists hellbent on
destroying America. Then, as if all that wasn’t enough, they shut down the CIA unit
dedicated to huting down the man President Bush once pledged to bring to justice “dead or
alive.” Can anybody tell me with a straight face what this administration has done right
in the war on terror? Anybody?
To put this into perspective, that yearly $1 billion could have insured 600,000
children; paid for more than 17,000 teachers; or sent 48,000 kids to college for four
years. But no, it’s smarter to give it to someone who could seemingly care less about
apprehending America’s #1 fugitive.
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2007/05/22/bush-outsources-the-task-of-catching-bin-laden/
Bush’s new plan is the same as the old plan
The Bush administration is quietly on track to nearly double the number of combat troops
in Iraq this year, an analysis of Pentagon deployment orders showed Monday.The little-
noticed second surge, designed to reinforce U.S. troops in Iraq, is being executed by
sending more combat brigades and extending tours of duty for troops already there.
TSeparately, when additional support troops are included in this second troop increase,
the total number of U.S. troops in Iraq could increase from 162,000 now to more than
200,000 — a record-high number — by the end of the year. Read more…
Sam Rosenfeld : “Which is to say, the new plan consists of nothing that we haven’t
already been attempting for the last several years, and nothing that in any way addresses
the underlying political dynamics that are fuelling the sectarian conflict. In this op-ed
genre, there is always — always — “a bipartisan path out of this impasse,” no matter what
that “impasse” may be, no matter how many years it has remained, and no matter how many
thousands of people have been killed as a result of it.”…read on
John Amato: Lift up your hands and shout: Bipartisan! Forget timetables and benchmarks,
there’s too much work left to be done in Iraq; like the building of permanent bases and
the gargantuan U.S. embassy and of course the oil sharing agreements have yet to be
approved or signed by the Iraqi Parliament. Time to contact your representatives…
UPDATE: (Nicole) David Ignatius of WaPo muses on post-”surge” options, but Brad at
Sadly, No! points out some flaws in the logic.
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2007/05/22/bush-quietly-seeks-second-surge-in-iraq/
Sean Hannity Licks Melanie Morgan’s Wounds
Melanie Morgan appeared on Monday night’s “Hannity & Colmes” to discuss the recent ban
placed on her by “The News Hour With Jim Lehrer” on PBS. As always, Hannity offers a
platform and safe haven to those who are rejected by civilized society. Melanie and Sean
play the expected victim card, claiming that PBS is using taxpayer money to censor voices
from the right. Why, Melanie was so hurt she’s demanding an apology from PBS! Poor
Melanie. What has America come to when a girl can’t go on national television and insult
our veterans returning from Iraq? There’s plenty of comedy goodness packed into this clip
so tear it up in the comments…
Reality check: Melanie was not banned from PBS as the Fox graphic shows, she just won’t
be invited back to The News Hour.
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2007/05/22/sean-hannity-licks-melanie-morgans-wounds/
Dems Give Rove One Last Opportunity To Testify Before Subpoena
The House Judiciary Committee is prepared to use subpoenas to compel the testimony of
Karl Rove and other White House officials, Chairman John Conyers (D-MI) and subcomittee
Chairwoman Linda Sanchez (D-CA) warned White House counsel Fred Fielding today.
“We are today writing to express our extreme disappointment in the White House’s rebuff
of efforts by the Judiciary Committee to obtain voluntary cooperation with our
investigation concerning the firing of at least nine U.S. Attorneys in 2006 and related
matters,” they wrote. “We write to make one last appeal for such voluntary cooperation.”
You can read the letter here. Read more…
If you haven’t checked it out yet, in his new book, Armed Madhouse, Greg Palast claims
to have procured some 500 of Rove’s e-mails. You know, the ones he’s refusing to turn
over to the Judiciary Committee?
Palast: I know because I have Karl Rove’s emails. No kidding. He and his team aren’t the
sharpest knives in the drawer. They sent copies of their plans to GeorgeWBush.ORG instead
of GeorgeWBush.COM addresses — and, heh heh, they ended up in my in-box. Who says this
job ain’t fun?
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2007/05/22/dems-give-rove-one-last-opportunity-to-testify-
before-subpoena/
Liberty Rose
http://www.raymoreeagles4146.org/liberty.html
