KIRKUK - Police said three policemen were wounded in a firefight with Western security contractors 25 km (15 miles) southwest of Kirkuk in northern Iraq.
Tuesday, August 07, 2007
NOT A GOOD SIGN
From this thumbnail report from Reuters, you can't tell who was at fault but it's not a good sign when cops and contractors fight:
GASBAGS ON GLOBAL WARMING
Fats Limbaugh was back on the AGW soapbox today and had this factoid:
The reason Fats likes Spencer is solely because Spencer is on the fringe. Here's just one example from RealClimate:
So I consulted our official climatologist, Roy Spencer. I said, "What is this scientific consensus? Please explain this to me." Here is what Dr. Spencer wrote back. He's at the University of Alabama Huntsville, former NASA, he's a climate specialist specializing in precipitation, what impact it might have on global warming. By the way, precipitation is not in any global warming models. He wrote back and said, "The only survey of climate scientists I'm aware of is a survey of 530 climate scientists from 27 countries. Only 56% of these 530 scientists agreed that climate change is mostly the result of man-made causes." 56%. So Gore is saying that we are now voting on the whole concept of man-made global warming. Exactly right. We are voting, 56% is this consensus of scientists. How can anybody accept anything that 56% of scientists say? It ain't science. It's all politics. It's religion. It is a hoax.
The reason Fats likes Spencer is solely because Spencer is on the fringe. Here's just one example from RealClimate:
Roy Spencer, best known for his satellite work arguing against warming of the
atmosphere (which turns out to have been an artifact of a combination of algebraic and sign errors), criticizes Gore for pointing out that recent warmth appears to be anomalous in at least the past 1000 years. Spencer does this by both mis-characterizing the recent National Academies Report on the subject which indeed pointed out that there are numerous lines of evidence for precisely this conclusion, and by completely ignoring the recently-released IPCC Fourth Assessment report, which draws the stronger conclusion that the warmth of recent decades is likely anomalous in at least the past 1300 years.
RealClimate notes that Spencer is also skeptical about the theory of evolution:
Whore Hannity was no better and referred to the "religion of global warming," just as Michael Weiner (Savage) recently did in a promo for his show. As Newsweek pointed out, this smear started in 1998. I became annoyed and amused at the same time when Hannity claimed that global warming is part of the natural cycle and "without any basis in real scientific proof," as if he would have a clue one way or the other....despite my previous acceptance of evolutionary theory as "fact," I came to the realization that intelligent design, as a theory of origins, is no more religious, and no less scientific, than evolutionism.
CHARLES PIERCE ON THE PUNDITS
A great piece in Esquire, this is just one of the good paragraphs:
Bob Somerby at The Daily Howler has also done a superb job of showing how the MSM has often been no better than hacks like Fats Limbaugh.
Not to put too fine a point on it, but the political culture seems to be determined to fag-bait John Edwards out of the race this time around. Channeling the conservative id from the swamps of its birth, as always, Ann Coulter flatly called him a "faggot" at a conference of conservative activists, and Rush Limbaugh regularly chaffs him as "the Breck Girl." From there, apparently, the affair of the haircuts has mainstreamed Coulter's position into more polite precincts. In April, Maureen Dowd wrote a column in The New York Times that speculated that the country was not ready for a "metrosexual in chief," comparing Edwards unfavorably with her dear departed Irish-cop daddy, who used to get his hair cut at the Senate barbershop for fifty cents. You could almost hear the gentle ringing of sputum in the spittoons. Thus are the issues. Thus are the watchdogs. Thus are the politics while people are dying.
Bob Somerby at The Daily Howler has also done a superb job of showing how the MSM has often been no better than hacks like Fats Limbaugh.
Monday, August 06, 2007
BLOGSWARM TOMORROW
In remembrance of the August 6, 2001 Presidential Daily Briefing.
Go here for details.
(h/t to NTODD at Atrios)
Go here for details.
(h/t to NTODD at Atrios)
FRIEDMANS: ONLY FOR "SERIOUS" PEOPLE
Yes, O'Hanlon and Pollack gave the by-now standard Friedman Unit(©Atrios) - another 6 months - as the time we should wait for things to turn around in Iraq. This is from their appearance on FOX NEWS SUNDAY with Chris Wallace (via Lexis-Nexis):
WALLACE: Michael, one area about which you're not optimistic is the Iraqi central government and the moves toward national reconciliation.
Here's what you wrote, "Iraqi politicians of all stripes continue to dawdle and maneuver for position against one another when major steps toward reconciliation or at least accommodation are needed."
Michael, do you see any signs that the Maliki -- Prime Minister Maliki and the parliament are getting their act together? And absent serious moves toward national reconciliation, does the surge make sense?
O'HANLON: I think it makes sense for a while to see if the momentum can spread from the battlefield to the political theater. Ken's the greater expert on Iraqi politics than I, but my overall impression is if you don't get even some top-level, top-down movement coming up fairly soon, this thing can't work. Politics trumps the battleground in the end.
And I think, therefore, this is an interim report from us on the surge, and it's basically saying nothing more dramatic than give it six more months or so, maybe nine more months.
If things don't start to progress in that time, I personally would be a lot less optimistic and/or in favor of trying to prod the Iraqis to dump Prime Minister Maliki. That's me, not Ken.
WALLACE: Well, let me ask you, Ken, do you see any signs that Maliki and the parliament are getting their act together?
POLLACK: Basically none. The political side was absolutely dead in the water, exactly as Mike is suggesting.
You know, one thing to keep in mind is that as General Petraeus has repeatedly pointed out, the idea is that with security and local- level economic and political development, you create some space. There's an expectation that the politics is going to lag. It's going to take longer.
But this level of political stalemate is absolutely unacceptable. And I agree with Mike entirely that we can't give this much more time.
And I think that the U.S. -- the administration needs to be pushing much harder and maybe even thinking about, if the surge continues to work in terms of providing security, can we move to a different government, one that actually would be able to strike these hard bargains.
ThinkProgess has the video clip and also found that O'Hanlon called an FU last March and Pollack did the same in March 2006.
WALLACE: Michael, one area about which you're not optimistic is the Iraqi central government and the moves toward national reconciliation.
Here's what you wrote, "Iraqi politicians of all stripes continue to dawdle and maneuver for position against one another when major steps toward reconciliation or at least accommodation are needed."
Michael, do you see any signs that the Maliki -- Prime Minister Maliki and the parliament are getting their act together? And absent serious moves toward national reconciliation, does the surge make sense?
O'HANLON: I think it makes sense for a while to see if the momentum can spread from the battlefield to the political theater. Ken's the greater expert on Iraqi politics than I, but my overall impression is if you don't get even some top-level, top-down movement coming up fairly soon, this thing can't work. Politics trumps the battleground in the end.
And I think, therefore, this is an interim report from us on the surge, and it's basically saying nothing more dramatic than give it six more months or so, maybe nine more months.
If things don't start to progress in that time, I personally would be a lot less optimistic and/or in favor of trying to prod the Iraqis to dump Prime Minister Maliki. That's me, not Ken.
WALLACE: Well, let me ask you, Ken, do you see any signs that Maliki and the parliament are getting their act together?
POLLACK: Basically none. The political side was absolutely dead in the water, exactly as Mike is suggesting.
You know, one thing to keep in mind is that as General Petraeus has repeatedly pointed out, the idea is that with security and local- level economic and political development, you create some space. There's an expectation that the politics is going to lag. It's going to take longer.
But this level of political stalemate is absolutely unacceptable. And I agree with Mike entirely that we can't give this much more time.
And I think that the U.S. -- the administration needs to be pushing much harder and maybe even thinking about, if the surge continues to work in terms of providing security, can we move to a different government, one that actually would be able to strike these hard bargains.
ThinkProgess has the video clip and also found that O'Hanlon called an FU last March and Pollack did the same in March 2006.
A CURIOSITY
Peter Rodman is an interesting fellow. He's one of the signers of PNAC's 1998 letter to President Clinton and served in the criminal Bush regime (and Raygun), so he does belong with the others I noted in the post below. He's also a Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institution, so I'm beginning to wonder how "liberal" Brookings really is?
COVERING FOR THE NEO-CONS
(Via Atrios)
Sam Rosenfeld at TAPPED notes that IVO H.DAALDER of Brookings tries to shift the blame for Iraq away from the neo-cons in this article:
In reality, both Donald Rumsfeld and Paul Wolfowitz signed the 1998 PNAC later to Pres. Clinton urging:
They were joined by Richard Perle, Elliot Abrams, John Bolton, Paula J. Dobriansky, Richard Armitage, Zalmay Khalilzad and Peter Rodman. Here are some of the roles they played in the criminal Bush regime:
Richard Perle, Member, Defense Policy Board, Department of Defense, 1987-2004; Chairman, 2001-2003
Elliott Abrams served as Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Near East and North African Affairs since December 2002.
John Bolton's entrée into the administration of George W. Bush began with the Florida vote recount during the 2000 presidential elections. Working closely with his former boss James Baker, Bolton worked to block recount efforts. According to the Wall Street Journal (July 19, 2002), Bolton's "most memorable moment came after the U.S. Supreme Court ordered a halt to the recount, when Mr. Bolton strode into a Tallahassee library, where the count was still going on, and declared: 'I'm with the Bush-Cheney team, and I'm here to stop the count'."
Said Vice President-elect Dick Cheney at the time: "People ask what [job] John should get. My answer is, anything he wants." President Bush nominated Bolton to serve as undersecretary of state for arms control and international security affairs, which the Senate confirmed by a vote of 57-43.
Paula J. Dobriansky Under Secretary, Democracy and Global AffairsTerm of Appointment: 05/01/2001 to present
Richard Lee Armitage Deputy Secretary of State, Term of Appointment: 03/29/2001 to 02/22/2005
Zalmay Khalilzad was U.S. Ambassador to Afghanistan from 2003 to 2005 and also served as Special Presidential Envoy to Afghanistan. Before becoming Ambassador to Afghanistan, he served at the National Security Council as Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Islamic Outreach and Southwest Asia Initiatives, and prior to that as Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Southwest Asia, Near East, and North African Affairs. He also has been a Special Presidential Envoy and Ambassador at Large for the Free Iraqis. Dr. Khalilzad headed the Bush-Cheney transition team for the Department of Defense and has been a Counselor to Secretary of Defense Rumsfeld.
Peter W. Rodman Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs, Department of Defense (2001-2007)
Sam Rosenfeld at TAPPED notes that IVO H.DAALDER of Brookings tries to shift the blame for Iraq away from the neo-cons in this article:
Conventional wisdom has it that this was a neoconservative war—and that a return to a greater sense of realism is the first step out of the mess. In fact, though, it was hard-core realists—those who put their faith in power, especially military power, and ignore history, culture, and local circumstance—who devised and conducted this war, not wooly-headed neocons.
[SNIP]
But this conventional wisdom is wrong. The Bush administration isn't a neoconservative administration. Its foreign policy isn't a neoconservative foreign policy. And the Iraq War isn't a neoconservative war.
[SNIP]
Dick Cheney, Don Rumsfeld, Condoleezza Rice, and George Bush are assertive
nationalists, not neocons, and it is these four people who bear responsibility for the war and its conduct.
In reality, both Donald Rumsfeld and Paul Wolfowitz signed the 1998 PNAC later to Pres. Clinton urging:
In the near term, this means a willingness to undertake military action as diplomacy is clearly failing. In the long term, it means removing Saddam Hussein and his regime from power. That now needs to become the aim of American foreign policy.
They were joined by Richard Perle, Elliot Abrams, John Bolton, Paula J. Dobriansky, Richard Armitage, Zalmay Khalilzad and Peter Rodman. Here are some of the roles they played in the criminal Bush regime:
Richard Perle, Member, Defense Policy Board, Department of Defense, 1987-2004; Chairman, 2001-2003
Elliott Abrams served as Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Near East and North African Affairs since December 2002.
John Bolton's entrée into the administration of George W. Bush began with the Florida vote recount during the 2000 presidential elections. Working closely with his former boss James Baker, Bolton worked to block recount efforts. According to the Wall Street Journal (July 19, 2002), Bolton's "most memorable moment came after the U.S. Supreme Court ordered a halt to the recount, when Mr. Bolton strode into a Tallahassee library, where the count was still going on, and declared: 'I'm with the Bush-Cheney team, and I'm here to stop the count'."
Said Vice President-elect Dick Cheney at the time: "People ask what [job] John should get. My answer is, anything he wants." President Bush nominated Bolton to serve as undersecretary of state for arms control and international security affairs, which the Senate confirmed by a vote of 57-43.
Paula J. Dobriansky Under Secretary, Democracy and Global AffairsTerm of Appointment: 05/01/2001 to present
Richard Lee Armitage Deputy Secretary of State, Term of Appointment: 03/29/2001 to 02/22/2005
Zalmay Khalilzad was U.S. Ambassador to Afghanistan from 2003 to 2005 and also served as Special Presidential Envoy to Afghanistan. Before becoming Ambassador to Afghanistan, he served at the National Security Council as Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Islamic Outreach and Southwest Asia Initiatives, and prior to that as Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Southwest Asia, Near East, and North African Affairs. He also has been a Special Presidential Envoy and Ambassador at Large for the Free Iraqis. Dr. Khalilzad headed the Bush-Cheney transition team for the Department of Defense and has been a Counselor to Secretary of Defense Rumsfeld.
Peter W. Rodman Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs, Department of Defense (2001-2007)
DOUBLE WHAMMY
Fredo's War isn't going very well. The AP reports that:
So, over 25% of the ministers have decided to stop working and there are no politically connected Sunnis left. How's that political progress scorecard going to look on Sept. 15th?
Meanwhile, in Tal Afar, a city Pres. Fredo lied about in the past:
Here's a tragedy from 2005 that I missed:
BAGHDAD (AP) - Iraq's political crisis worsened Monday as five more ministers announced a boycott of Cabinet meetings - leaving the embattled prime minister's unity government with no members affiliated with Sunni political factions.
loyal to former Iraqi leader Ayad Allawi left the government, at least temporarily, without participants who were members of the Sunni political apparatus - a deep blow to the prime minister's attempt to craft reconciliation among the country's majority Shiites and minority Sunnis and Kurds.
The Cabinet boycott of five ministers... The top Sunni political bloc already had pulled its six ministers from the 40-member Cabinet of al-Maliki, a Shiite, last week.
So, over 25% of the ministers have decided to stop working and there are no politically connected Sunnis left. How's that political progress scorecard going to look on Sept. 15th?
Meanwhile, in Tal Afar, a city Pres. Fredo lied about in the past:
In Tal Afar to the north, officials slapped an immediate curfew on the religiously mixed city after a suicide bomber slammed his truck into a crowded Shiite neighborhood. The blast killed at least 28 people, including at least 19 children, according to Brig. Gen. Najim Abdullah, who said the dump truck was filled with explosives and covered with a layer of gravel.
The powerful Monday morning blast caused houses to collapse as many families were getting ready for the day ahead, and officials said the death toll could rise.
Several residents said boys and girls were playing hopscotch and marbles outside the houses at the time of the explosion.
Here's a tragedy from 2005 that I missed:
Meanwhile, Iraqi authorities girded for a major Shiite pilgrimage later this week in Baghdad with plans to tighten security. ... And this particular annual march, to commemorate the eighth-century death of a key Shiite saint, was struck by tragedy in 2005, when thousands of Shiite pilgrims, panicked by rumors of a suicide bomber, broke into a stampede on a bridge, killing 1,000.
THE WINGNUTS RESPOND TO NEWSWEEK
Here are a few of the idiotic responses:
Posted By: Lyle Rausch (8/4/2007 at 9:28:11 PM)
Comment: A nice example of propaganda with nothing new except mouthing the leftist climate agenda--typical of Newsweek's politically-correct approach to information.
Posted By: Stephen Wolfe (8/5/2007 at 2:55:53 PM)
Comment: 99% so not true... are meterologists not scientists? I have not found a single one who agrees with global warming except the ones who are profiting off of it (like Al)
Posted By: M P (8/6/2007 at 12:13:47 PM)
Global warming is not a fact, just as Darwin's theory of evolution is a theory and not a fact.
Posted By: Bob White (8/5/2007 at 12:34:36 PM)
Comment: Global warming is a religion. It has many characteristics of a religion: it is non-falsifiable because even if the climate starts to cool there are fancy ways that this can be explained away. ... It's the ultimate religion for those who don't have real religion.
Posted By: s madison (8/6/2007 at 3:58:14 PM)
Manmade "global warming" is an intellectual construct of the marxist left the body of science that confirms it is funded by government grants to leftists scientists propagated by the leftist media. It's bogus and everyone knows it.
Posted By: Lyle Rausch (8/4/2007 at 9:28:11 PM)
Comment: A nice example of propaganda with nothing new except mouthing the leftist climate agenda--typical of Newsweek's politically-correct approach to information.
Posted By: Stephen Wolfe (8/5/2007 at 2:55:53 PM)
Comment: 99% so not true... are meterologists not scientists? I have not found a single one who agrees with global warming except the ones who are profiting off of it (like Al)
Posted By: M P (8/6/2007 at 12:13:47 PM)
Global warming is not a fact, just as Darwin's theory of evolution is a theory and not a fact.
Posted By: Bob White (8/5/2007 at 12:34:36 PM)
Comment: Global warming is a religion. It has many characteristics of a religion: it is non-falsifiable because even if the climate starts to cool there are fancy ways that this can be explained away. ... It's the ultimate religion for those who don't have real religion.
Posted By: s madison (8/6/2007 at 3:58:14 PM)
Manmade "global warming" is an intellectual construct of the marxist left the body of science that confirms it is funded by government grants to leftists scientists propagated by the leftist media. It's bogus and everyone knows it.
HISTORY OF THE DENIALISTS
Newsweek ran a long article, "The Truth about Denial," on the history of the nuts and whores who deny there is any such thing as a global warming problem. Key denial players: ExxonMobil, American Petroleum Institute, Competitive Enterprise Institute, Global Climate Coalition, Information Council on the Environment, George C. Marshall Institute, Western Fuels Association, Patrick Michaels, S. Fred Singer, Myron Ebell (CEI), Fred Smith (CEI), and Richard Lindzen. The big plan was to cast doubt on the science and overall, it has been effective.
I didn't realize that the denialists have been at work since the late 1980s, so I was a bit surprised to learn that a few of the lies I've recently heard are actually fairly old. For example, the idea that the Sun is responsible for global warming goes back to 1992 and the Marshall Institute. It doesn't matter that the idea has been debunked because after years of repetition, it becomes a background fact for many, especially Republican law makers. I also found this anecdote interesting:
A few months ago, Michael Savage had a promo for his radio show that claimed global warming was "the religion of the atheists."
I didn't realize that the denialists have been at work since the late 1980s, so I was a bit surprised to learn that a few of the lies I've recently heard are actually fairly old. For example, the idea that the Sun is responsible for global warming goes back to 1992 and the Marshall Institute. It doesn't matter that the idea has been debunked because after years of repetition, it becomes a background fact for many, especially Republican law makers. I also found this anecdote interesting:
Industry found a friend in Patrick Michaels, a climatologist at the University of Virginia who keeps a small farm where he raises prize-winning pumpkins and whose favorite weather, he once told a reporter, is "anything severe." Michaels had written several popular articles on climate change, including an op-ed in The Washington Post in 1998 warning of "apocalyptic environmentalism," which he called "the most popular new religion to come along since Marxism."
A few months ago, Michael Savage had a promo for his radio show that claimed global warming was "the religion of the atheists."
FATS, NEWT & "THE PHONEY WAR"
I only caught a little bit of Fats Limbaugh today but I did hear him come back from his noon break and welcome the "welfare and medicaid recipients" who are just getting up so I know he hasn't given up pandering to racist white males. In line with most of the wingnuts, he tried to smear YearlyKos by calling in a "fringe meeting" of "kook fringe bloggers."
Fats also mentioned that Newt Gingrich called Fredo's WOT a "phoney war" and said that remark "wasn't helpful." When I Googled, I found that Newt wrote that back on July 10 in Human Events. I found one mention in the July 24th edition of Newsday but that's it for the print media until Newt recently gave a speech to college conservatives.
Here's the heart of Newt's piece:
CNN did mention on August 4th that Newt made a similar remark to college students (via Lexis-Nexis):
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution covered Newt's speech and here are some excerpts:
Gingrich says war on terror 'phony'
Former speaker says energy independence is key
By BOB DEANS
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 08/03/07
Washington - Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich said Thursday the Bush administration is waging a "phony war" on terrorism, warning that the country is losing ground against the kind of Islamic radicals who attacked the country on Sept. 11, 2001.
A more effective approach, said Gingrich, would begin with a national energy strategy aimed at weaning the country from its reliance on imported oil and some of the regimes that petro-dollars support.
"None of you should believe we are winning this war. There is no evidence that we are winning this war," the ex-Georgian told a group of about 300 students attending a conference for collegiate conservatives.
We were in charge for six years," he said, referring to the period between 2001 and early 2007, when the GOP controlled the White House and both houses of Congress. "I don't think you can look and say that was a great success."
"I believe we need to find leaders who are prepared to tell the truth ... about the failures of the performance of Republicans ... failed bureaucracies ... about how dangerous the world is," he said when asked what kind of Republican he would back for president.
He reserved his most pointed criticism for the administration's handling of the global campaign against terrorist groups.
"We've been engaged in a phony war," said Gingrich. "The only people who have been taking this seriously are the combat military."
"We have to take this seriously," said Gingrich.
"We used to be a serious country. When we got attacked at Pearl Harbor, we took on Imperial Japan, Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany," he said, referring to World War II.
"We beat all three in less than four years. We're about to enter the seventh year of this phony war against ... [terrorist groups], and we're losing."
ABC also picked up on this:
Gingrich calls War on Terror "Phony"
August 04, 2007 1:01 PM
ABC News' Joe Kildea Reports: Newt Gingrich, former Republican House Speaker, called the war on terror "phony" in a speech to a group of young conservatives in Washington, D.C. on Thursday.
The potential GOP presidential candidate told attendees of the National Conservative Student Conference that "We’re about to enter the seventh year of this phony war…and we’re losing."
Gingrich added, "None of you should believe we are winning this war. There is no evidence that we are winning this war.
Now, when will Newt be attacked as a "defeatist" by the wingnuts?
Fats also mentioned that Newt Gingrich called Fredo's WOT a "phoney war" and said that remark "wasn't helpful." When I Googled, I found that Newt wrote that back on July 10 in Human Events. I found one mention in the July 24th edition of Newsday but that's it for the print media until Newt recently gave a speech to college conservatives.
Here's the heart of Newt's piece:
Just as in the years leading up to World War II, the signs are all around us. The rise of Hamas. The re-arming of Hezbollah. The Iranian dictatorship's relentless drive for nuclear weapons. Terrorists from New Jersey to London to Iraq and Pakistan who are saying repeatedly and publicly that they want nothing more than to kill us.
So my question is this: In our own existential war, do our leaders hear these
voices that are determined to destroy us? And will our "phoney war" end
on our terms, or the terms of our enemies?
CNN did mention on August 4th that Newt made a similar remark to college students (via Lexis-Nexis):
A man who led the so-called Republican revolution is now calling the war on terror phony. Newt Gingrich told a group of conservative college students in Georgia that more has to be done to fight lslamic militants. Mr. Gingrich says that it would be more effective to wean the U.S. off of foreign oil.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution covered Newt's speech and here are some excerpts:
Gingrich says war on terror 'phony'
Former speaker says energy independence is key
By BOB DEANS
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 08/03/07
Washington - Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich said Thursday the Bush administration is waging a "phony war" on terrorism, warning that the country is losing ground against the kind of Islamic radicals who attacked the country on Sept. 11, 2001.
A more effective approach, said Gingrich, would begin with a national energy strategy aimed at weaning the country from its reliance on imported oil and some of the regimes that petro-dollars support.
"None of you should believe we are winning this war. There is no evidence that we are winning this war," the ex-Georgian told a group of about 300 students attending a conference for collegiate conservatives.
We were in charge for six years," he said, referring to the period between 2001 and early 2007, when the GOP controlled the White House and both houses of Congress. "I don't think you can look and say that was a great success."
"I believe we need to find leaders who are prepared to tell the truth ... about the failures of the performance of Republicans ... failed bureaucracies ... about how dangerous the world is," he said when asked what kind of Republican he would back for president.
He reserved his most pointed criticism for the administration's handling of the global campaign against terrorist groups.
"We've been engaged in a phony war," said Gingrich. "The only people who have been taking this seriously are the combat military."
"We have to take this seriously," said Gingrich.
"We used to be a serious country. When we got attacked at Pearl Harbor, we took on Imperial Japan, Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany," he said, referring to World War II.
"We beat all three in less than four years. We're about to enter the seventh year of this phony war against ... [terrorist groups], and we're losing."
ABC also picked up on this:
Gingrich calls War on Terror "Phony"
August 04, 2007 1:01 PM
ABC News' Joe Kildea Reports: Newt Gingrich, former Republican House Speaker, called the war on terror "phony" in a speech to a group of young conservatives in Washington, D.C. on Thursday.
The potential GOP presidential candidate told attendees of the National Conservative Student Conference that "We’re about to enter the seventh year of this phony war…and we’re losing."
Gingrich added, "None of you should believe we are winning this war. There is no evidence that we are winning this war.
Now, when will Newt be attacked as a "defeatist" by the wingnuts?
THE CLUSTERFUCK CONTINUES
Remember the tons of bricks of 100 dollar bills? Well, here's a companion piece. For those who know how pathetic the Iraqi army and security forces were at the end of 2005, the last line here causes a smirk.
Pentagon loses track of weapons for Iraqi forces
Mon Aug 6, 2007 12:49AM EDT
By David Morgan
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Pentagon cannot account for 190,000 AK-47 rifles and pistols given to Iraqi security forces in 2004 and 2005, or about half the weapons earmarked for soldiers and police, according to a government report.
...the Defense Department also cannot account for 135,000 items of body armor and 115,000 helmets reported to be issued to Iraqi forces as of September 22, 2005.
Accountability procedures also could not be fully implemented because of the need to equip Iraqi forces rapidly for combat operations, the GAO found.
Pentagon loses track of weapons for Iraqi forces
Mon Aug 6, 2007 12:49AM EDT
By David Morgan
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Pentagon cannot account for 190,000 AK-47 rifles and pistols given to Iraqi security forces in 2004 and 2005, or about half the weapons earmarked for soldiers and police, according to a government report.
...the Defense Department also cannot account for 135,000 items of body armor and 115,000 helmets reported to be issued to Iraqi forces as of September 22, 2005.
Accountability procedures also could not be fully implemented because of the need to equip Iraqi forces rapidly for combat operations, the GAO found.
Sunday, August 05, 2007
SOME GOOD NEWS IN THE HOUSE
Would someone tell David Broder that it's not the Democrats who are blocking good legislation?
House OKs Prescription Drug Imports
Aug 2 11:26 PM US/Eastern
By ANDREW TAYLOR
Associated Press Writer
WASHINGTON (AP) - The House passed legislation Thursday effectively permitting the importation of lower-cost prescription drugs from places such as Canada, Australia and Europe.
The administration "strongly opposes" the drug provision, which would effectively permit individuals, wholesalers and pharmacists to import lower cost U.S.-made and FDA-approved prescription drugs from Canada and other countries.
Similar drug importation language has passed the House in recent years but has been forced out by GOP leaders and the White House during House-Senate negotiations.
House OKs Prescription Drug Imports
Aug 2 11:26 PM US/Eastern
By ANDREW TAYLOR
Associated Press Writer
WASHINGTON (AP) - The House passed legislation Thursday effectively permitting the importation of lower-cost prescription drugs from places such as Canada, Australia and Europe.
The administration "strongly opposes" the drug provision, which would effectively permit individuals, wholesalers and pharmacists to import lower cost U.S.-made and FDA-approved prescription drugs from Canada and other countries.
Similar drug importation language has passed the House in recent years but has been forced out by GOP leaders and the White House during House-Senate negotiations.
A GREAT POINT BY TOMASKY
I think is something every Democrat should repeat at least once a day:
It's not just Bush and Cheney, it's also the National Review, Tom DeLay, the American Enterprise Institute, Bill Kristol, Fats Limbaugh, FAUX NEWS, Ann Coulter and all the other lying whores.
Here we sit, in the summer of 2007: For the first time since the advent of modern conservatism in the 1950s, average Americans have seen a conservative government fail them, and massively.
It's not just Bush and Cheney, it's also the National Review, Tom DeLay, the American Enterprise Institute, Bill Kristol, Fats Limbaugh, FAUX NEWS, Ann Coulter and all the other lying whores.
RADIO TIDBITS
Michael Weiner (Savage) explained that he wasn't invited to the WH along with the other gasbags because unlike them, he doesn't suck up to Pres. Fredo.
I may have to remove Jerry Doyle from my list of wingnuts on local radio. He thinks Randy Weaver and INSIGHT magazine are pretty loony-tunes and a couple of days ago, he pointed out that Bill O'Reilly was wrong to accuse Daily Kos of being a hate site. Here's a nice quote from Doyle: "The stupidity of cats like O'Reilly..."
I may have to remove Jerry Doyle from my list of wingnuts on local radio. He thinks Randy Weaver and INSIGHT magazine are pretty loony-tunes and a couple of days ago, he pointed out that Bill O'Reilly was wrong to accuse Daily Kos of being a hate site. Here's a nice quote from Doyle: "The stupidity of cats like O'Reilly..."
DAVE BRODER IS A PARTISAN HACK
In his WaPo op-ed, "A Polarized, and Polarizing, Congress," Broder points out that Pres. Fredo threatened to veto the Senate's version of the SCHIP renewal because Fredo thinks it is a step toward socialized medicine. Now, the House version includes more money for SCHIP than the Senate version and it would also reduce the private Medicare system Fredo likes.
Who gets the blame in BroderWorld? Obviously, it's the House Democrats, not Fredo:
Who gets the blame in BroderWorld? Obviously, it's the House Democrats, not Fredo:
So it will go down as one more example of unnecessary conflict. No rational human being could explain why a program that both parties support and both want to continue could ignite such a fight.
And when this Congress had an opportunity to take a relatively simple, incremental step to extend health insurance to a vulnerable group, the members managed to make a mess of it.
Saturday, August 04, 2007
HARD TIMES AHEAD???
I've only paid glancing attention to the problems with the sub-prime housing loan business but it looks like we may have a serious problem soon.
U.S. credit squeeze frays world financial markets
Fri Aug 3, 2007 6:42PM EDT
By Jennifer Ablan - Analysis
NEW YORK (Reuters) - The unraveling U.S. subprime mortgage market is causing other markets to fray around the edges faster than anyone expected.
As the Federal Reserve convenes for its latest meeting on Tuesday, the corporate credit markets are grinding to a halt. About $90 billion of bonds and nearly $250 billion of loans are still awaiting buyers, several high-profile hedge funds from the U.S. East Coast to Australia have failed, and a major U.S. mortgage lender this week closed its doors.
On Tuesday this week American Home Mortgage Investment Corp (AHM.N: Quote, Profile, Research), which focused on borrowers with decent credit scores, said lenders had cut off its access to credit and that it might have to liquidate its assets. By the end of the week it had closed its doors.
FED TO THE RESCUE?
"The fallout from the U.S. subprime crisis continues to inflict damage, the ensuing rout in the marketplace has been frightening, and there is growing concern over whether the crisis will widen and threaten the entire U.S. banking system's stability," said Zhao of Bank Credit Analyst.
Corporate America has not found demand for any of its paper as bonds and loans have not been able to price, according to Greg Peters, chief U.S. credit strategist at Morgan Stanley.
U.S. credit squeeze frays world financial markets
Fri Aug 3, 2007 6:42PM EDT
By Jennifer Ablan - Analysis
NEW YORK (Reuters) - The unraveling U.S. subprime mortgage market is causing other markets to fray around the edges faster than anyone expected.
As the Federal Reserve convenes for its latest meeting on Tuesday, the corporate credit markets are grinding to a halt. About $90 billion of bonds and nearly $250 billion of loans are still awaiting buyers, several high-profile hedge funds from the U.S. East Coast to Australia have failed, and a major U.S. mortgage lender this week closed its doors.
On Tuesday this week American Home Mortgage Investment Corp (AHM.N: Quote, Profile, Research), which focused on borrowers with decent credit scores, said lenders had cut off its access to credit and that it might have to liquidate its assets. By the end of the week it had closed its doors.
FED TO THE RESCUE?
"The fallout from the U.S. subprime crisis continues to inflict damage, the ensuing rout in the marketplace has been frightening, and there is growing concern over whether the crisis will widen and threaten the entire U.S. banking system's stability," said Zhao of Bank Credit Analyst.
Corporate America has not found demand for any of its paper as bonds and loans have not been able to price, according to Greg Peters, chief U.S. credit strategist at Morgan Stanley.
JIM CRAMER MELTS DOWN ABOUT SUB-PRIME LENDERS
(Via Atrios)
Jim Cramer, on air economy hack, blows a gasket about the looming crisis in the sub-prime market.
Note that just a few weeks ago, he said that this wouldn't be a problem:
Jim Cramer, on air economy hack, blows a gasket about the looming crisis in the sub-prime market.
Note that just a few weeks ago, he said that this wouldn't be a problem:
THE GOP NOISE MACHINE ATTACKS DAILY KOS
I noted before that Insannity attacked Daily Kos and I copied this from Memeorandum (12:15 AM August 5, 2007) to show that his blog allies are doing the same thing.
Pajamas Media: 
Little Green Footballs:10 minutes ago Allahpundit / Hot Air:
Video: Pajamas Media interviews soldier who spoke up at Yearly Kos …
Pajamas Media: Soldier Censored at Kos Convention — An as yet unidentified uniformed soldier attempted to address the panel on the subject of the "Surge". He was unceremoniously escorted out by panelist Jon Soltz. — The soldier's words were either suppressed or inaudible on the convention's own video.
RELATED:
Little Green Footballs:10 minutes ago Daily Kos Playing Whack-a-Mole — The first Daily Kos diary on the subject of the Soltz Shoutdown has disappeared from their site. Gone missing, along with more than 50 comments. Here's where it used to be: — Daily Kos: What happened to this soldier?!?!?
Allahpundit / Hot Air:Video: Pajamas Media interviews soldier who spoke up at Yearly Kos …
Discussion: Little Green Footballs
EARLY HAND CLAPPING BY A FLAG OFFICER
NOTE THE DATE OF THIS ARTICLE and the not-so-subtle dig at the media.
Iraqi insurgency is waning, general says
By Ron Jensen, Stars and Stripes
European edition, Sunday, November 9, 2003
AGHDAD, Iraq — The ongoing insurgency against the coalition is being diminished in Baghdad despite recent high-profile attacks that tend to leave the opposite impression, a general with the 1st Armored Division told reporters Friday afternoon.
Hertling said the vast majority of Iraqis living in Baghdad are turning against the enemy. ... “I absolutely think it backfired on them,” the general said of the attacks. “The Iraqi Baghdad population is tired of others disrupting their peace.”
Iraqi insurgency is waning, general says
By Ron Jensen, Stars and Stripes
European edition, Sunday, November 9, 2003
AGHDAD, Iraq — The ongoing insurgency against the coalition is being diminished in Baghdad despite recent high-profile attacks that tend to leave the opposite impression, a general with the 1st Armored Division told reporters Friday afternoon.
“We think the insurgency is waning,” said Brig. Gen. Mark P. Hertling, the assistant division commander for support. “The ones who continue to fight are losing their support.”
Hertling said the impression left by the media in the minds of Americans is that the situation is worsening or, at least, not improving in the city.Hertling said the vast majority of Iraqis living in Baghdad are turning against the enemy. ... “I absolutely think it backfired on them,” the general said of the attacks. “The Iraqi Baghdad population is tired of others disrupting their peace.”
THE HOUSE FISA BILL WAS REASONABLE
Why wasn't it passed? Why couldn't the Senate pass something similar? Why are the Democrats so afraid of standing up to Fredo and the wingnut ideologues in Congress? Are they afraid of Sean Hannity?
(From the NYT, 8/5/07)
(From the NYT, 8/5/07)
House Democrats said their alternative proposal would explicitly clarify that the government did not need a court order for monitoring any foreign-to-foreign communications simply because they were routed through switches and servers in the United States.They said it would also authorize the special FISA court to provide a “basket warrant” for monitoring many individuals that might pick up communications with people in the United States, though the bill would have also required the attorney general to submit its procedures for approval by the court and would have required the Justice Department’s inspector general to conduct an audit every 60 days of communications involving people in the United States.
I WANT TO KNOW WHO?
Michael Ignatieff writes in the NYT Sunday Magazine that:
As I wrote in the title, I'd like to know exactly who Ignatieff is referring to and why he bothers with this trivia when the ideological errors of this Administration are enormous, from tax cuts to stem cell research to Iraq.
The people I know of who publicly spoke against the invasion were not blinded by foolish ideology and here I am referring to people like Gen. Zinni and Brent Scowcroft.
Thomas Ricks points out that there were many professionals who had doubts about Fredo's plan for Iraq and the Middle East. He notes (p. 64) that Michael O'Hanlon warned in October, 2002, that we would have to maintain a sizable military presence, "five to ten years, at a minimum." (At the same meeting, Richard Perle dismissed O'Hanlon's concerns.) Similarly, the Washington Institute for Near East Policy (WINEP) held a 3 day seminar that same October and several experts who attended warned about the excessive optimism of the criminal Bush regime.
Patrick Clawson, WINEP deputy director, warned that "If we try to transform Iraq into a democracy, we will need more and more troops over time because we will have to quell nationalistic revolts."
Alina Romanowski, a former DOD official and on the staff of the National Defense University, noted that "The U.S. military will be stepping into a morass. Iraq presents as unpromising a breeding ground for democracy as any in the world. It has never really known democracy or even legitimate, centralized rule for any great duration." She also noted that "a small U.S. force sufficient to bring about Saddam's demise might not be sufficient to stop the subsequent bloodletting."
Amatzia Bahram, a Univ. of Haifa expert on Iraq and Middle Eastern history, warned that the U.S. would have to improve living conditions quickly or it will alienate the Iraqis.
(Clawson, Romanowski & Bahram from Ricks, FIASCO, p. 65)
I have noted before the work of Conrad Crane and Andrew Terrill at the Strategic Studies Institute at the Army War College on what to expect in Iraq, so I ask again, "Who is Ignatieff referring to?"
"...many of those who correctly anticipated catastrophe did so not by exercising judgment but by indulging in ideology. They opposed the invasion because they believed the president was only after the oil or because they believed America is always and in every situation wrong."
As I wrote in the title, I'd like to know exactly who Ignatieff is referring to and why he bothers with this trivia when the ideological errors of this Administration are enormous, from tax cuts to stem cell research to Iraq.
The people I know of who publicly spoke against the invasion were not blinded by foolish ideology and here I am referring to people like Gen. Zinni and Brent Scowcroft.
Thomas Ricks points out that there were many professionals who had doubts about Fredo's plan for Iraq and the Middle East. He notes (p. 64) that Michael O'Hanlon warned in October, 2002, that we would have to maintain a sizable military presence, "five to ten years, at a minimum." (At the same meeting, Richard Perle dismissed O'Hanlon's concerns.) Similarly, the Washington Institute for Near East Policy (WINEP) held a 3 day seminar that same October and several experts who attended warned about the excessive optimism of the criminal Bush regime.
Patrick Clawson, WINEP deputy director, warned that "If we try to transform Iraq into a democracy, we will need more and more troops over time because we will have to quell nationalistic revolts."
Alina Romanowski, a former DOD official and on the staff of the National Defense University, noted that "The U.S. military will be stepping into a morass. Iraq presents as unpromising a breeding ground for democracy as any in the world. It has never really known democracy or even legitimate, centralized rule for any great duration." She also noted that "a small U.S. force sufficient to bring about Saddam's demise might not be sufficient to stop the subsequent bloodletting."
Amatzia Bahram, a Univ. of Haifa expert on Iraq and Middle Eastern history, warned that the U.S. would have to improve living conditions quickly or it will alienate the Iraqis.
(Clawson, Romanowski & Bahram from Ricks, FIASCO, p. 65)
I have noted before the work of Conrad Crane and Andrew Terrill at the Strategic Studies Institute at the Army War College on what to expect in Iraq, so I ask again, "Who is Ignatieff referring to?"
ELECTRICITY IN IRAQ GETS AN "F"
I noted below Wolfowitz's "irrational exuberance" about electricity in Iraq and AP reports the situation is very bad, 4 years after Wolfowitz's statement.
Iraqi Power Grid Nearing Collapse
Aug 4, 8:37 PM (ET)
By STEVEN R. HURST
One of the biggest problems facing the national grid is the move by provinces to disconnect their power plants from the system, reducing the overall amount of electricity being generated for the entire country. Provinces say they have no choice because they are not getting as much electricity in return for what they produce, mainly because the capital requires so much power.
Iraqi Power Grid Nearing Collapse
Aug 4, 8:37 PM (ET)
By STEVEN R. HURST
BAGHDAD (AP) - Iraq's power grid is on the brink of collapse because of insurgent sabotage, rising demand, fuel shortages and provinces that are unplugging local power stations from the national grid, officials said Saturday.
Electricity Ministry spokesman Aziz al-Shimari said power generation nationally is only meeting half the demand, and there had been four nationwide blackouts over the past two days. The shortages across the country are the worst since the summer of 2003, shortly after the U.S.-led invasion to topple Saddam Hussein, he said.
Karbala province south of Baghdad has been without power for three days, causing water mains to go dry in the provincial capital, the Shiite holy city of Karbala.One of the biggest problems facing the national grid is the move by provinces to disconnect their power plants from the system, reducing the overall amount of electricity being generated for the entire country. Provinces say they have no choice because they are not getting as much electricity in return for what they produce, mainly because the capital requires so much power.
Najaf provincial spokesman Ahmed Deibel confirmed to The Associated Press Sunday that the gas turbine generator there had been removed from the national grid. He said the plant produced 50 megawatts while the province needed at least 200 megawatts.
"What we produce is not enough even for us. We disconnected it from the national grid three days ago because the people in Baghdad were getting too much, leaving little electricity for Najaf," he said.
Fuel shortages are also a major problem. In Karbala, provincial spokesman Ghalib al-Daami said a 50-megawatt power station had been shut down because of a lack of fuel, causing the entire province to be without water and electricity for the past three days.
He said sewage was seeping above ground in nearly half the provincial capital because pump trucks used to clean septic tanks have been unable to operate due to gasoline shortages. The sewage was causing a health threat to citizens and contaminating crops in the region.
Many people who normally would rely on small home generators for electricity can't afford to buy fuel. Gasoline prices have shot up to nearly $5 a gallon, Karbala residents say, a price that puts the fuel out of range for all but the wealthy.
"We wait for the sunset to enjoy some coolness," said Qassim Hussein, a 31-year-old day laborer in Karbala. "The people are fed-up. There is no water, no electricity, there is nothing, but death. I've even had more trouble with my wife these last three days. Everybody is on edge."
POLITICAL EXPEDIENCY
Thomas Ricks (FIASCO, p. 325) reports that the WH was aware of proconsul Paul Bremer's shortcomings in early 2004, but...
This is simply unconscionable and still doesn't explain why Fredo awarded Bremer the Medal of Freedom.
"By early 2004, the president was quite aware of Bremer's flaws," said a former administration official. "But he couldn't let him go in an election year."
This is simply unconscionable and still doesn't explain why Fredo awarded Bremer the Medal of Freedom.
ON SUNNI COLLABORATION WITH THE U.S.
There is one drawback to our new found friends, the Sunni militias.
Aided by U.S., militants widen reach
A Sunni group, partners in the fight against Al Qaeda in Iraq,
is becoming more ambitious. Some fear it can't be trusted.
By Molly Hennessy-Fiske, LATimes Staff Writer
August 4, 2007
BAGHDAD — The leader of the Revolutionaries of Amiriya sits in his headquarters in an abandoned high school here, explaining the militant group's latest mission: policing and rebuilding Sunni Muslim neighborhoods."We need to return the services to the neighborhoods. Al Qaeda destroyed streets, schools, electricity, even mobile phone towers," said the man known as Abu Abed, or Saif. "They made the people here desperate."
"You don't know how far you can trust them a few months from now," said Sgt. David Alexander, 24, of Amarillo, Texas, stationed in a bombed-out bunker near the group's office. "They're with us now because we have a common goal. But what happens when we kill all the Al Qaeda guys? … If they want to go out and capture somebody for revenge, there's nobody to prevent them from doing that."
Saif seemed to confirm those fears, saying that even as his men become Iraqi police officers, they will continue to go after Shiite militias to avenge dead comrades, including his brothers. "It is our nature as Iraqis," he said. "We have revenge issues."
Aided by U.S., militants widen reach
A Sunni group, partners in the fight against Al Qaeda in Iraq,
is becoming more ambitious. Some fear it can't be trusted.
By Molly Hennessy-Fiske, LATimes Staff Writer
August 4, 2007
BAGHDAD — The leader of the Revolutionaries of Amiriya sits in his headquarters in an abandoned high school here, explaining the militant group's latest mission: policing and rebuilding Sunni Muslim neighborhoods."We need to return the services to the neighborhoods. Al Qaeda destroyed streets, schools, electricity, even mobile phone towers," said the man known as Abu Abed, or Saif. "They made the people here desperate."
"You don't know how far you can trust them a few months from now," said Sgt. David Alexander, 24, of Amarillo, Texas, stationed in a bombed-out bunker near the group's office. "They're with us now because we have a common goal. But what happens when we kill all the Al Qaeda guys? … If they want to go out and capture somebody for revenge, there's nobody to prevent them from doing that."
Saif seemed to confirm those fears, saying that even as his men become Iraqi police officers, they will continue to go after Shiite militias to avenge dead comrades, including his brothers. "It is our nature as Iraqis," he said. "We have revenge issues."
THE SENATE CAVES IN - WHY?
I'd love to know what the political calculation behind this move was. Did the 16 Dems get scared because Fredo said "terror threat"?
Senate Votes To Expand Warrantless Surveillance
White House Applauds; Changes Are Temporary
By Joby Warrick and Ellen Nakashima
Washington Post Staff Writers
Saturday, August 4, 2007; Page A01
The legislation, which is expected to go before the House today, would expand the government's authority to intercept without a court order the phone calls and e-mails of people in the United States who are communicating with people overseas.
Democratic leaders expressed disappointment about the result, but they pointed to language that would require lawmakers to reconsider the key provisions in six months.
"My Republican colleagues chose to rubber-stamp a flawed administration proposal that fails to provide the accountability needed in the light of the administration's past mismanagement of key tools in the war on terror," said Senate Majority Leader Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.).
I think this gets to the real issue:
Democrats "have a Pavlovian reaction: Whenever the president says the word 'terrorism,' they roll over and play dead," said Caroline Fredrickson, Washington legislative director of the American Civil Liberties Union.
The New York Times has a little more on the political angle:
Broader Spying Authority Advances in Congress
By ERIC LICHTBLAU and MARK MAZZETTI
Published: August 4, 2007
The measure approved by the Senate expires in six months and would have to be re-authorized. The White House’s grudging agreement to make it temporary helped to attract the votes of some moderate Democrats who said they thought it was important for Congress to approve some version of the wiretapping bill before its recess.
Senate Votes To Expand Warrantless Surveillance
White House Applauds; Changes Are Temporary
By Joby Warrick and Ellen Nakashima
Washington Post Staff Writers
Saturday, August 4, 2007; Page A01
The legislation, which is expected to go before the House today, would expand the government's authority to intercept without a court order the phone calls and e-mails of people in the United States who are communicating with people overseas.
Democratic leaders expressed disappointment about the result, but they pointed to language that would require lawmakers to reconsider the key provisions in six months.
"My Republican colleagues chose to rubber-stamp a flawed administration proposal that fails to provide the accountability needed in the light of the administration's past mismanagement of key tools in the war on terror," said Senate Majority Leader Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.).
I think this gets to the real issue:
Democrats "have a Pavlovian reaction: Whenever the president says the word 'terrorism,' they roll over and play dead," said Caroline Fredrickson, Washington legislative director of the American Civil Liberties Union.
The New York Times has a little more on the political angle:
Broader Spying Authority Advances in Congress
By ERIC LICHTBLAU and MARK MAZZETTI
Published: August 4, 2007
The measure approved by the Senate expires in six months and would have to be re-authorized. The White House’s grudging agreement to make it temporary helped to attract the votes of some moderate Democrats who said they thought it was important for Congress to approve some version of the wiretapping bill before its recess.
Friday, August 03, 2007
MAY GOD FORGIVE ME BUT I HATE THIS BITCH
MediaMatters catches War Whore Ingraham lying about the NY Times. WWI falsely claimed that the Times was opposed to updating FISA when in fact the Times supports getting rid of the anachronism in the law.
She also plays the "invested in defeat" card against those who oppose the Iraq Fiasco, as if the dismal failures of the criminal Bush regime were actually successes.
She also plays the "invested in defeat" card against those who oppose the Iraq Fiasco, as if the dismal failures of the criminal Bush regime were actually successes.
PRETTY FUNNY ALTERNATIVE HISTORY CLIP
(Via The Carpetbagger Report)
This answers the burning question, "What if FDR were like Pres. Fredo?"
This answers the burning question, "What if FDR were like Pres. Fredo?"
WHY DOES CNN BACK BECK?
Eric Boehlert of MediaMatters asks a good question:
I had read that Beck wasn't doing very well but I was amazed about how bad his ratings are:
In the hyper-competitive, big-money world of cable television news, who at CNN is protecting the underperforming Glenn Beck, and why?
I had read that Beck wasn't doing very well but I was amazed about how bad his ratings are:
...on the night of July 3, as the news of Scooter Libby's commutation was being aggressively dissected by news junkies, Beck's Headline News show at 9 p.m. attracted just 58,000 viewers between the ages of 25-54, which is just a jaw-dropping number for prime-time cable television. By comparison, Fox News' Hannity & Colmes was able to attract 369,000 demo viewers that night at 9 p.m.
HOW A WINGNUT MEME CAN START
1) MSM idiot screws up basic fact
2) MSM idiot offers no correction
3) Choose one of A. Drudge B. Limbaugh or C. Politico to repeat it
4) Watch it spread! Whee!!!
(Via Atrios)
Garance at Tapped offers us a real life example from a reporter from the NY Times:
2) MSM idiot offers no correction
3) Choose one of A. Drudge B. Limbaugh or C. Politico to repeat it
4) Watch it spread! Whee!!!
(Via Atrios)
Garance at Tapped offers us a real life example from a reporter from the NY Times:
Today's newbie example appears to be otherwise experienced New York Times reporter Katharine Seelye, who managed to pack three different errors into a single blog item on the Yearly Kos conference.
[SNIP]
Those are quibbles compared to this doozy, however. Wrote Seelye
But hey, this is a tough crowd. Later in the evening, they booed Mother Teresa.
According to Ben Wickler of Avaaz.org, who was in the audience for that boo, "Mother Teresa was an answer to a pub trivia question about three people in the 20th century who were made U.S. citizens by an act of Congress." The boos were from one team of pub trivia players toward other teams.
[SNIP]Another blogger confirms Wickler's account:
that was during a PUB QUIZ, and people were yelling because they got the question wrong. Thanks for the absolute slander. I'm sure to see it become wingnut mythology within minutes today, something we'll hear for the next 20 years.
NEO-CON INFESTATION
Commenter JJ at Matt Yglesia's place linked to an interesting op-ed in the Financial Times:
I especially liked these passages:
There is little doubt that Krauthammer is a hack but what's not in doubt is how well-entrenched neocom hacks like him are. I looked at the table of contents of The Neocon Reader and found some familiar newspaper names: David Brooks, Max Boot and George F. Will. There are also less familiar but nonetheless well-connected people like Karlyn Bowman, who's a senior fellow at AEI as well as a columnist for Roll Call.
I used to write LTE's to my local paper rebutting the claims made by one or other of the wingnut columnists it carries and that's all I can think I can locally do to help banish these people to the fringes where they belong.
The neo-cons’ route to disaster
By Gideon Rachman
Published: January 15 2007 20:56 | Last updated: January 15 2007 20:56
I especially liked these passages:
The fingerprints of simplifying and exaggerating journalists are all over the Iraq debacle. Take a look at The Neocon Reader, which is edited and introduced by Irwin Stelzer, who writes a column for The Sunday Times. The book brings together essays by political figures, academics and journalists, but the last are the most numerous. Ten of the 22 contributors are columnists or editors.
David Frum, a former journalist, served as a White House speech-writer and helped coin the most famous over-simplification of the Bush era – the phrase “axis of evil”. He is now at the AEI.
Less than a year after the fall of Baghdad, it fell to Charles Krauthammer, a columnist for The Washington Post, to give a triumphal address on America’s role in the world to the annual dinner of the AEI. The elevated status of the Washington punditocracy was underlined by the fact that Mr Krauthammer was introduced by none other than Dick Cheney.
The current debacle in Iraq is what you get when you turn op-ed columns into foreign policy.
There is little doubt that Krauthammer is a hack but what's not in doubt is how well-entrenched neocom hacks like him are. I looked at the table of contents of The Neocon Reader and found some familiar newspaper names: David Brooks, Max Boot and George F. Will. There are also less familiar but nonetheless well-connected people like Karlyn Bowman, who's a senior fellow at AEI as well as a columnist for Roll Call.
I used to write LTE's to my local paper rebutting the claims made by one or other of the wingnut columnists it carries and that's all I can think I can locally do to help banish these people to the fringes where they belong.
AARGH!!!
E. J. Dionne makes a false and almost libelous comparison:
Fats and Falafel make a living telling lies and distortions and deliberately misinforming people, Markos doesn't.
I think Dionne should apologize.
Democratic candidates know they owe a debt to Moulitsas. They're paying homage to him because he has started to beat Limbaugh and O'Reilly at their own game.
Fats and Falafel make a living telling lies and distortions and deliberately misinforming people, Markos doesn't.
I think Dionne should apologize.
3 PERCENT & GASBAG SPIN
Hannity, Beck and Hewitt were crowing about Congress' extraordinarily low approval rating on the Iraq War, a measly 3%. They attempt to spin this as popular disagreement with the Democrats desire to bring an end to the war, but as usual, that "just ain't so." The poll was done by Zogby and here's what the gasbags didn't tell their audience:
Overall, 52% of Americans want a drastic change in direction, not "stay the course" as the gasbags imply. And it gets even worse for the war whores...
Proving once again that it is always best to go to the original, Zogby has an interesting finding about current or past members of the military and their families:
Congress does fare even worse on this issue - 96% of current or former military members disapprove of the way Congress is hadnling the war but this obscures an interesting statistic:
If you think the Walter Reed scandal has been forgotten, think again:
42% believe Congress should fully fund the war in Iraq to maintain current troop levels, while 34% would favor attaching requirements for phased withdrawal to Iraq war funding. Just 18% said cutting all funding for the war in Iraq to bring troops home would be the best showing of Congressional support.
Overall, 52% of Americans want a drastic change in direction, not "stay the course" as the gasbags imply. And it gets even worse for the war whores...
Proving once again that it is always best to go to the original, Zogby has an interesting finding about current or past members of the military and their families:
...nearly three in four (71%) give the president negative ratings on his handling of the war and than half (54%) said they don’t trust the President’s judgment when it comes to the Iraq war. Nearly half (47%) say they lack confidence in Bush’s ability as Commander in Chief – 41% said they have no confidence in him at all.
Congress does fare even worse on this issue - 96% of current or former military members disapprove of the way Congress is hadnling the war but this obscures an interesting statistic:
While half said Congress should fully fund the war in Iraq to maintain current troop levels, 29% would favor attaching requirements for phased withdrawal to Iraq war funding and 16% believe Congress should cut all funding for the war in Iraq and bring the troops home.Further, many with military ties aren't buying the "fight them over there" BS about Iraq:
...half (51%) believe U.S. troops in Iraq are fighting terrorists within Iraq so that the U.S. does not have to fight the terrorists domestically, nearly as many (45%) believe the presence of U.S. troops in Iraq incites anti-U.S. sentiment and creates a greater likelihood of a terrorist attack here at home.
If you think the Walter Reed scandal has been forgotten, think again:
Bush also gets low ratings in dealing with veterans – two-thirds (67%) give Bush negative ratings for his performance in providing adequate health care for the veterans who have returned home from the ward in Afghanistan and Iraq. Among those who have or are currently serving in the military and their families, nearly as many agree (62%), while just 30% believe Bush has done a favorable job of providing health care for veterans.
RADIO TIDBITS
It's no surprise but Fats Limbaugh is against the proposed expansion of SCHIP. He complained that it was a middle-class entitlement. This bill passed 360-45 in the House and 68-31 in the Senate. As you could predict, all the nays in the Senate were by Republicans:
Allard (R-CO) Barrasso (R-WY) Bennett (R-UT) Brownback (R-KS) Bunning (R-KY) Burr (R-NC) Chambliss (R-GA) Coburn (R-OK) Cochran (R-MS) Cornyn (R-TX) Craig (R-ID) Crapo (R-ID) DeMint (R-SC) Dole (R-NC) Ensign (R-NV) Enzi (R-WY) Graham (R-SC)Gregg (R-NH) Hagel (R-NE) Inhofe (R-OK) Isakson (R-GA) Kyl (R-AZ) Lott (R-MS) Martinez (R-FL) McCain (R-AZ) McConnell (R-KY) Sessions (R-AL) Shelby (R-AL) Thune (R-SD) Vitter (R-LA) Voinovich (R-OH)
On Brian and The Judge, Dore Gold, a former Israeli ambassador, was a guest and he made the outrageous claim that Iran by 2015 would have a missile capable of hitting the eastern seaboard of the U.S. He also spoke as if Iran already had WMD. This appeared to be more fear mongering designed to shore up the neo-conservative foreign policy. The Judge claimed that "Israel is our closest ally on the planet" and that's another bizarre claim and reminded me of Russell Kirk's remark on the neo-cons. Perhaps closest dependent state is a better description.
Allard (R-CO) Barrasso (R-WY) Bennett (R-UT) Brownback (R-KS) Bunning (R-KY) Burr (R-NC) Chambliss (R-GA) Coburn (R-OK) Cochran (R-MS) Cornyn (R-TX) Craig (R-ID) Crapo (R-ID) DeMint (R-SC) Dole (R-NC) Ensign (R-NV) Enzi (R-WY) Graham (R-SC)Gregg (R-NH) Hagel (R-NE) Inhofe (R-OK) Isakson (R-GA) Kyl (R-AZ) Lott (R-MS) Martinez (R-FL) McCain (R-AZ) McConnell (R-KY) Sessions (R-AL) Shelby (R-AL) Thune (R-SD) Vitter (R-LA) Voinovich (R-OH)
On Brian and The Judge, Dore Gold, a former Israeli ambassador, was a guest and he made the outrageous claim that Iran by 2015 would have a missile capable of hitting the eastern seaboard of the U.S. He also spoke as if Iran already had WMD. This appeared to be more fear mongering designed to shore up the neo-conservative foreign policy. The Judge claimed that "Israel is our closest ally on the planet" and that's another bizarre claim and reminded me of Russell Kirk's remark on the neo-cons. Perhaps closest dependent state is a better description.
IS GROVER HAPPY NOW?
GROVER NORQUIST:
"I don't want to abolish government. I simply want to reduce it to the size where I can drag it into the bathroom and drown it in the bathtub."
From Minneapolis:
"I don't want to abolish government. I simply want to reduce it to the size where I can drag it into the bathroom and drown it in the bathtub."
From Minneapolis:
I've read that we need billions just to fix our national highways and this WaPo article gives some idea of the real cost:
Collapse Spotlights Weaknesses in U.S. Infrastructure
By Nick Miroff
Washington Post Staff Writer
Friday, August 3, 2007; Page A08
...experts and engineers said federal funds aren't enough to save the interstate system's half-century old bridges and 47,000 miles of highway from further decay, as a network designed to connect the nation teeters under a crush of commuter traffic.
According to a 2005 Highway Administration report, more than 75,000 of the nation's roughly 600,000 bridges -- 13.1 percent -- were rated "structurally deficient," meaning some components of the bridges' decks or support structures were rated poor or worse.
...the government will need to spend $188 billion in the next 20 years just to fix the nation's flawed bridges, according to a 2005 study by the American Society of Civil Engineers.
ANBAR UPDATE
I noted below that the news from Anbar Province is mixed. The good part is that the Sunni tribes are turning on Al Qaeda; the bad is that they are still opposed to the U.S. occupation and the Shiite-dominated central government.
Via ThinkProgress, I learned that Michael Ware has also raised a concern about our new buddies, the Sunni millitias:
Prime Minister Maliki is reportedly VERY upset about our arming the Sunnis.
Via ThinkProgress, I learned that Michael Ware has also raised a concern about our new buddies, the Sunni millitias:
“What America needs to come clean about is that it’s achieving these successes by cutting deals, primarily, with its enemies,” he said.
“By achieving these successes, America is building Sunni militias,” said Ware. “Yes, they’re targeting al Qaeda, but these are also anti-government forces opposed to the very government that America created.”
Prime Minister Maliki is reportedly VERY upset about our arming the Sunnis.
Thursday, August 02, 2007
LIEBERMAN IS BONKERS
Insannity mentioned War Whore Lieberman's attack on the Democrats and I found it in a interview he gave to The Hill. I'd like to know exactly WHO Joe is referring to and exactly what they had to say.
Lieberman escalates attack on Iraq critics
By Manu Raju
July 31, 2007
“I think either [Democrats] are, in my opinion, respectfully, naïve in thinking we can somehow defeat this enemy with talk, or they’re simply hesitant to use American power, including military power,” Lieberman said in a wide-ranging interview with The Hill.
“There is a very strong group within the party that I think doesn’t take the threat of Islamist terrorism seriously enough.”
Almost as annoying as the above smear is Lieberman's whine about partisanship:
“I fear that some people take this position also because anything President Bush is for, they’ll be against, and that’s wrong,” said Lieberman, a staunch advocate of the war. “There’s a great tradition in our history of partisanship generally receding when it comes to foreign policy. But for the moment we’ve lost that.”
Uh, Joe, the Rove plan was to run on the war and fear in 2004. The smears and lies from the Right about the Democrats and liberals were despicable.
Lieberman escalates attack on Iraq critics
By Manu Raju
July 31, 2007
“I think either [Democrats] are, in my opinion, respectfully, naïve in thinking we can somehow defeat this enemy with talk, or they’re simply hesitant to use American power, including military power,” Lieberman said in a wide-ranging interview with The Hill.
“There is a very strong group within the party that I think doesn’t take the threat of Islamist terrorism seriously enough.”
Almost as annoying as the above smear is Lieberman's whine about partisanship:
“I fear that some people take this position also because anything President Bush is for, they’ll be against, and that’s wrong,” said Lieberman, a staunch advocate of the war. “There’s a great tradition in our history of partisanship generally receding when it comes to foreign policy. But for the moment we’ve lost that.”
Uh, Joe, the Rove plan was to run on the war and fear in 2004. The smears and lies from the Right about the Democrats and liberals were despicable.
WHO THE GASBAGS WERE
MediaMatters finds out that there were 10 hosts, a nice assortment of lying whores and freakshows. Here's a pic of the group, minus War Whore Laura Ingraham.
IT'S ABOUT POWER, NOT SECURITY
Pres. Fredo wants to greatly expand the NSA's legal ability to wiretap and the kicker is there would be no outside oversight of the program.
A Push to Rewrite Wiretap Law
White House Seeks Warrantless Authority From Congress
By Ellen Nakashima
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, August 1, 2007; Page A04
The Bush administration is pressing Congress this week for the authority to intercept, without a court order, any international phone call or e-mail between a surveillance target outside the United States and any person in the United States.
It would also give the attorney general sole authority to order the interception of communications for up to one year as long as he certifies that the surveillance is directed at a person outside the United States.
We often get the malarkey that the FISA Court isn't fast enough to respond to terrorist threats but according to a former presiding judge of the Court, that's nonsense and the judge goes on to make a good point about executive power.
Ex-Surveillance Judge Criticizes Warrantless Taps
By Michael J. Sniffen
Associated Press
Sunday, June 24, 2007; Page A07
"We have to understand you can fight the war [on terrorism] and lose everything if you have no civil liberties left when you get through fighting the war," said Royce C. Lamberth, a U.S. District Court judge in Washington and a former presiding judge of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court, speaking at the American Library Association's annual convention.
Lamberth, who was appointed to the federal bench by President Ronald Reagan, expressed his opposition to letting the executive branch decide on its own which people to spy on in national security cases.
The judge said it is proper for executive branch agencies to conduct such surveillance. "But what we have found in the history of our country is that you can't trust the executive," he said.
Here's the part about how fast the Court can work:
Lamberth was stuck in a carpool lane near the Pentagon when a hijacked jet slammed into it that day. With his car enveloped in smoke, he called marshals to help him get into the District.
By the time officers reached him, Lambert said, "I had approved five FISA coverages [warrants] on my cellphone." He also approved other warrants at his home at 3 a.m. and on Saturdays.
"In a time of national emergency like that, changes have to be made in procedures. We changed a number of FISA procedures," Lamberth said.
Normal FISA warrant applications run 40 to 50 pages, but in the days after Sept. 11, the judge said, he issued orders "based on the oral briefing by the director of the FBI to the chief judge of the FISA court."
In another article, Lambert gives us this tidbit:
Judge Discusses Details of Work On Secret Court
He Takes Issue With NSA's Wiretaps
By Walter Pincus
Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, June 26, 2007; Page A04
At 3 a.m. on Aug. 8, 1998, the day after the bombings of the U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania, the chief judge of a special court that supervises applications under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act was awakened at home in order to approve five wiretaps, including one of Osama bin Laden's former secretary in Texas.
"Those five wiretaps turned out to be very productive," U.S. District Judge Royce C. Lamberth said Saturday during an unusually open discussion of his work at the helm of the FISA court. Wadih el-Hage, the bin Laden aide, was tried and convicted in the bombings in 2001, and "all the evidence from those wiretaps that I authorized that night were used at the trial," Lamberth said.
A Push to Rewrite Wiretap Law
White House Seeks Warrantless Authority From Congress
By Ellen Nakashima
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, August 1, 2007; Page A04
The Bush administration is pressing Congress this week for the authority to intercept, without a court order, any international phone call or e-mail between a surveillance target outside the United States and any person in the United States.
It would also give the attorney general sole authority to order the interception of communications for up to one year as long as he certifies that the surveillance is directed at a person outside the United States.
We often get the malarkey that the FISA Court isn't fast enough to respond to terrorist threats but according to a former presiding judge of the Court, that's nonsense and the judge goes on to make a good point about executive power.
Ex-Surveillance Judge Criticizes Warrantless Taps
By Michael J. Sniffen
Associated Press
Sunday, June 24, 2007; Page A07
"We have to understand you can fight the war [on terrorism] and lose everything if you have no civil liberties left when you get through fighting the war," said Royce C. Lamberth, a U.S. District Court judge in Washington and a former presiding judge of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court, speaking at the American Library Association's annual convention.
Lamberth, who was appointed to the federal bench by President Ronald Reagan, expressed his opposition to letting the executive branch decide on its own which people to spy on in national security cases.
The judge said it is proper for executive branch agencies to conduct such surveillance. "But what we have found in the history of our country is that you can't trust the executive," he said.
Here's the part about how fast the Court can work:
Lamberth was stuck in a carpool lane near the Pentagon when a hijacked jet slammed into it that day. With his car enveloped in smoke, he called marshals to help him get into the District.
By the time officers reached him, Lambert said, "I had approved five FISA coverages [warrants] on my cellphone." He also approved other warrants at his home at 3 a.m. and on Saturdays.
"In a time of national emergency like that, changes have to be made in procedures. We changed a number of FISA procedures," Lamberth said.
Normal FISA warrant applications run 40 to 50 pages, but in the days after Sept. 11, the judge said, he issued orders "based on the oral briefing by the director of the FBI to the chief judge of the FISA court."
In another article, Lambert gives us this tidbit:
Judge Discusses Details of Work On Secret Court
He Takes Issue With NSA's Wiretaps
By Walter Pincus
Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, June 26, 2007; Page A04
At 3 a.m. on Aug. 8, 1998, the day after the bombings of the U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania, the chief judge of a special court that supervises applications under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act was awakened at home in order to approve five wiretaps, including one of Osama bin Laden's former secretary in Texas.
"Those five wiretaps turned out to be very productive," U.S. District Judge Royce C. Lamberth said Saturday during an unusually open discussion of his work at the helm of the FISA court. Wadih el-Hage, the bin Laden aide, was tried and convicted in the bombings in 2001, and "all the evidence from those wiretaps that I authorized that night were used at the trial," Lamberth said.
RADIO TIDBITS
Mark "Foamer" Levin had a perfect substitute tonight, Tom Marr. Marr is another poorly educated gasbag, just like Hannity, and is about as extreme as Foamer. I caught a few minutes tonight and Marr claimed that the MSM and the Left want us to lose in Iraq and they are "aiding and abetting" the enemy.
Moralistic Michael Medved is still spewing the idea there is no separation of Church and State. One of his callers is worried that America will decline into "a secular socialism" and so is Medved. Medved also mentioned the gasbags meeting Fredo but it wasn't clear whether or not he was one of them.
Insannity spoke against the "extremist Daily Kos" and wondered whether the Democratic candidates would be held responsible for attending YearlyKos.
I caught a little of Glenn Beck sucking up to Pres. Fredo, much like Hannity did.
Moralistic Michael Medved is still spewing the idea there is no separation of Church and State. One of his callers is worried that America will decline into "a secular socialism" and so is Medved. Medved also mentioned the gasbags meeting Fredo but it wasn't clear whether or not he was one of them.
Insannity spoke against the "extremist Daily Kos" and wondered whether the Democratic candidates would be held responsible for attending YearlyKos.
I caught a little of Glenn Beck sucking up to Pres. Fredo, much like Hannity did.
Wednesday, August 01, 2007
GOD!!! CNN IS GIVING WAR WHORE A TRYOUT
(Via Atrios)
ThinkProgress finds:
I've listened to her radio show many times and she is a War Whore who is intolerant of opposing points of view. I once called in with a different take on Iraq and the screener said he'd pass my message on to her but there was nothing mentioned on the air.
Atrios recommends that we contact CNN and I agree.
ThinkProgress finds:
CNN gives Laura Ingraham a tryout.
TV Newser reports CNN has offered conservative radio host Laura Ingraham a one-week guest-host gig for the 8pm ET slot vacated by Paula Zahn.
I've listened to her radio show many times and she is a War Whore who is intolerant of opposing points of view. I once called in with a different take on Iraq and the screener said he'd pass my message on to her but there was nothing mentioned on the air.
Atrios recommends that we contact CNN and I agree.
INSANNITY BACKSLIDES, LIES ABOUT HIS SHOW
Sean Hannity gave us some great ammunition to use against him. The lying whore claimed that "My job is to be open, honest, forthright with you" and "My job is to give the best news and information..." Worse than either of those statements is this whopper:
"This program has always been about the truth."
GEN. MIXON UPDATE
I had posted in May that Gen. Mixon complained about not having enough American troops in his area of responsibility. By early July, the situation had changed and on July 5, 2007, CNN reported Mixon stating:
Things went so well that a little over a week after this report, Mixon was talking about a possible drawdown in his sector, perhaps beginning in January 2008:
Mixon suggested that Nineveh Province could be turned over to the Iraqis this August. Below is a map I got from the BBC so you can get an idea of what area Mixon is talking about.
"I only had enough forces initially when I arrived here last September to clear Baquba. I did that many times, but I was unable to hold it and secure it," Mixon said.
"Now I have enough force to go in, establish permanent compound army, and Iraqi police, and maintain a permanent presence." But all of this has been made possible with the additional forces that have been given to me as a result of the surge," Mixon said.
Things went so well that a little over a week after this report, Mixon was talking about a possible drawdown in his sector, perhaps beginning in January 2008:
Mixon: U.S. Troop Reduction Could Begin in Jan. 2008
By Ann Tyson
Washington Post Staff Writer
Friday, July 13, 2007; 1:00 PM
"We could have a reduction of force that could begin in January of 2008, take about 12 to 18 months, to where we could have a minimum force here that would continue to work with the Iraqi forces in a training and assistance mode," Mixon said in a videoconference from Iraq with Pentagon reporters.
"I currently have five or six brigades that, given the enemy's situation and as you move forward, after about an 18-month period of time you could probably reduce that by about half," he said.
Mixon suggested that Nineveh Province could be turned over to the Iraqis this August. Below is a map I got from the BBC so you can get an idea of what area Mixon is talking about.
FREDO MEETS WITH THE GASBAGS
Today I learned who was one of the others Slots Bennett went to meet Pres. Fredo with today: Sean "Insannity" Hannity. Sean spilled the beans today on his radio show and was beginning to run out of adjectives when he tried to describe the President: resolute, confident, principled, etc ad nauseum. Insannity also mentioned Fredo's comfort, knowledge (!) and expertise (!!). Insannity was pleased to point out that Fredo doesn't care about polls or focus groups: he's thinking in historical terms, not immediate political interest. Insannity thinks Fredo clearly sees that "we are only at the beginning of this clash of civilizations."
UPDATE:
ThinkProgress informs us that Glenn Beck also attended the meeting and from the transcript of his radio show, we can see that he took the same line as Hannity did about our Glorious Leader.
UPDATE:
ThinkProgress informs us that Glenn Beck also attended the meeting and from the transcript of his radio show, we can see that he took the same line as Hannity did about our Glorious Leader.
ADMIRAL MULLEN GETS IT
UPDATE: ThinkProgress has a video clip and a transcript of some of Adm. Mullen's testimony.
Mullen is Fredo's nominee to be Chairman of the JCS and the WaPo quotes him as saying "there is no purely military solution in Iraq." Here's the entire quote from his prepared statement to questions from the Senate Armed Services Committee:
The Admiral is aware of something else Michael Barone missed:
Mullen is Fredo's nominee to be Chairman of the JCS and the WaPo quotes him as saying "there is no purely military solution in Iraq." Here's the entire quote from his prepared statement to questions from the Senate Armed Services Committee:
The Admiral is aware of something else Michael Barone missed:
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