In the Details

2007-07-26T22:42:00.000-04:00

the end

Show A Movie, Raise Awareness on Torture

2007-07-25T17:55:00.000-04:00

In a recent article, the Associated Press stated that an executive order issued by President Bush "breathed new life into the CIA's terror interrogation program . . . that would allow harsh questioning of subjects, limited in public by only a vaguely worded ban on cruel and inhuman treatment." The need for torture to be abolished is greater than ever and awareness of this issue is the key to realizing abolition.

To achieve this end, I want to encourage you and your church group to hold a showing of Rory Kennedy's HBO documentary "Ghosts of Abu Ghraib" (recently nominated for four Emmy awards) during the week of October 21-28. GBCS is a member of the National Religious Campaign Against Torture (NRCAT) and it is our goal to have 1000 congregations participating in this "Spotlight on Torture" project. Signing up is simple to receive your free copy of the DVD, "Ghosts of Abu Ghraib" and all of the materials needed to lead a discussion afterward.

Bush in Free Fall

2007-07-25T17:53:00.000-04:00

By Robert Scheer, Truthdig

At what point will President Bush finally grasp the enormous disaster that the neoconservatives, from Vice President Dick Cheney on down, have visited upon his presidency?

Or, to put it numerically, just how does a president descend from a 92 percent approval rating one month after 9/11 -- the highest of any president since modern polling began -- to the two-thirds disapproval score that has stalked him through the last year, thanks to the Iraq debacle, without getting the message?

Two major polls released this week show that the vast majority of Americans grasp the salient lesson of the Iraq misadventure: "Winning" this war has nothing to do with winning the war on terrorism. Thus, the public overwhelmingly supports the congressional Democratic leadership's demand that the administration begin concrete steps to extract U.S. troops from Iraq.

This week's New York Times/CBS poll found that two-thirds of those polled said that the war is "going badly" and that "the United States should reduce its forces in Iraq, or remove them altogether." Meanwhile, a Washington Post/ABC survey reported that, "by a large margin, Americans trust the Democrats rather than the president to find a solution to a conflict that remains enormously unpopular."

According to the Post poll, more than six in 10 Americans want Congress to make the final decision about when our troops come home. Even a majority of Republicans judge Bush to be too rigid to change course and, significantly, among those who either served in Iraq or had a close friend or relative who did, only 38 percent approve of Bush's handling of the war.

Continued...

2007-07-21T23:59:00.000-04:00

"Those in power need checks and restraints lest they come to identify the common good for their own tastes and desires, and their continuation in office as essential to the preservation of the nation."

-- Justice William O. Douglas (1898-1980), U. S. Supreme Court Justice Source: We, The Judges, 1956

The Washington Post is on Crack

2007-07-21T22:48:00.000-04:00

By Cenk Uygur

In an editorial in Saturday's paper called "The Phony Debate," the Washington Post claims it is Harry Reid who is keeping the US government from agreeing on a sensible withdrawal plan from Iraq. Who wrote this editorial, Mitch McConnell, Bill Kristol, President Bush?

What kind of crack do you have to be smoking to claim that it's Senator Reid and not President Bush who is keeping us in Iraq? That is such an outrageous proposition that it makes you question the Washington Post's credibility, or their sanity.

Look at this absolute crap they printed:

A large majority of senators from both parties favor a shift in the U.S. mission that would involve substantially reducing the number of American forces over the next year or so and rededicating those remaining to training the Iraqi army, protecting Iraq's borders and fighting al-Qaeda. President Bush and his senior aides and generals also support this broad strategy, which was formulated by the bipartisan Baker-Hamilton commission. Mr. Bush recently said that "it's a position I'd like to see us in."

Are you fucking kidding me? I'm so angry I can hardly type. If President Bush really wants this option, you know what he has to do? Order it! It will be done tomorrow. You have to be either retarded or completely biased to pretend that President Bush wants to leave Iraq but the Democrats won't let him. That is turning reality completely on its head.

I often argue that the mainstream media is absolutely cowered by decades of conservatives calling them liberal. They are willing to do whatever it takes, including often perverting the truth, to get them to stop (which, of course, they never will, because the whole point is to intimidate the media -- and it's working like a charm).

Continued...

Anderson Cooper Needs to do his Job and Report the News

2007-07-21T21:52:00.000-04:00

It Wasn't Terrorism.

2007-07-21T17:04:00.000-04:00

It's E. coli conservatism.

An explosion wracked the area around Manhattan's Grand Central Station Wednesday, spewing asbestos, claiming one life, sending the city into a panic. The culprit? A pipe built in 1924.

We've warned here again and again about the decrepitude of our underground infrastructure, about what happens when a nation consecrates itself to no higher domestic goal than the cutting of taxes. New York had a Republican mayor, in fact, who now spends his days boasting that he cut taxes 23 times. Cut spending, too, he's proud to say.

"Midtown is chaos right now," said one witness. "It seemed like everybody in Midtown just dumped into the streets."

"It was mayhem. Nobody knew what to do. Everyone got outside and was yelling," said another.

Maybe it's time to stop listening to conservatives, and start listening to Merle Haggard.

ORIGINAL

[This is what the Third Worldization of a great nation's infrastructure looks like.]

["'There is no reason to believe whatsoever that this is anything other than a failure of our infrastructure,' [Mayor Bloomberg] said of the 24-inch steam pipe installed in 1924." How encouraging.]

A BUZZFLASH EDITORIAL

2007-07-21T12:00:00.001-04:00

How The White House Will Manipulate Events and Emotions to Maintain GOP Executive Branch Control in 2008

My Wake-up Call: Watch For Another 9/11-WMD Experience

2007-07-21T11:50:00.000-04:00

(Thom Harman interviewed this guy [who advocates the impeachment of the president and vice president] on his show on 7/17 in the begining segments. You should listen to it even if you have to pay $2 for it. You can find it on the Air America website or on iTunes. Absolutely chilling.

By Paul Craig Roberts

This is a wake-up call that we are about to experience another 9/11-WMD experience.

The wake-up call is unlikely to be effective, because the American attitude toward government changed fundamentally seventy-odd years ago. Prior to the 1930s, Americans were suspicious of government, but with the arrival of the Great Depression, Tojo, and Hitler, President Franklin D. Roosevelt convinced Americans that government existed to protect them from rapacious private interests and foreign threats. Today, Americans are more likely to give the benefit of the doubt to government than they are to family members, friends, and those who would warn them about the government’s protection.

Intelligent observers are puzzled that President Bush is persisting in a futile and unpopular war at the obvious expense of his party’s electoral chances in 2008.

In the July 18 Los Angeles Times (“Bush the Albatross”), Ronald Brownstein reminds us that Bush’s behavior is disastrous for his political party. Unpopular presidents “have consistently undercut their party in the next election.” Brownstein reports that “88% of voters who disapproved of the retiring president’s job performance voted against his party’s nominee in past elections. . . . On average, 80% of voters who disapproved of a president’s performance have voted against his party’s candidates even in House races since 1986.”

Brownstein notes that with Bush’s dismal approval rating, this implies a total wipeout of the Republicans in 2008.

A number of pundits have concluded that the reason the Democrats have not brought a halt to Bush’s follies is that they expect Bush’s unpopular policies to provide them with a landslide victory next year.

There is a problem with this reasoning. It assumes that Cheney, Rove, and the Republicans are ignorant of these facts or are content for the Republican Party to be destroyed after Bush has his warmonger-police state fling. “After me, the deluge.”

Continued...

Paul Craig Roberts [email him] was Assistant Secretary of the Treasury in the Reagan Administration. He is the author of Supply-Side Revolution : An Insider's Account of Policymaking in Washington; Alienation and the Soviet Economy and Meltdown: Inside the Soviet Economy, and is the co-author with Lawrence M. Stratton of The Tyranny of Good Intentions : How Prosecutors and Bureaucrats Are Trampling the Constitution in the Name of Justice. Click here for Peter Brimelow’s Forbes Magazine interview with Roberts about the recent epidemic of prosecutorial misconduct.

Executive Order: Blocking Property of Certain Persons Who Threaten Stabilization Efforts in Iraq

2007-07-21T11:32:00.000-04:00

By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, including the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, as amended (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.)(IEEPA), the National Emergencies Act (50 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.)(NEA), and section 301 of title 3, United States Code,

I, GEORGE W. BUSH, President of the United States of America, find that, due to the unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security and foreign policy of the United States posed by acts of violence threatening the peace and stability of Iraq and undermining efforts to promote economic reconstruction and political reform in Iraq and to provide humanitarian assistance to the Iraqi people, it is in the interests of the United States to take additional steps with respect to the national emergency declared in Executive Order 13303 of May 22, 2003, and expanded in Executive Order 13315 of August 28, 2003, and relied upon for additional steps taken in Executive Order 13350 of July 29, 2004, and Executive Order 13364 of November 29, 2004. I hereby order:

Section 1. (a) Except to the extent provided in section 203(b)(1), (3), and (4) of IEEPA (50 U.S.C. 1702(b)(1), (3), and (4)), or in regulations, orders, directives, or licenses that may be issued pursuant to this order, and notwithstanding any contract entered into or any license or permit granted prior to the date of this order, all property and interests in property of the following persons, that are in the United States, that hereafter come within the United States, or that are or hereafter come within the possession or control of United States persons, are blocked and may not be transferred, paid, exported, withdrawn, or otherwise dealt in: any person determined by the Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Secretary of State and the Secretary of Defense,

(i) to have committed, or to pose a significant risk of committing, an act or acts of violence that have the purpose or effect of:

(A) threatening the peace or stability of Iraq or the Government of Iraq; or

(B) undermining efforts to promote economic reconstruction and political reform in Iraq or to provide humanitarian assistance to the Iraqi people;

Read the entire EO HERE

Olbermann's Special Comment on scapegoating.

2007-07-20T21:18:00.000-04:00

Special comments on the scapegoating of Senator Clinton!

Cheney, The Black Hole

2007-07-18T18:48:00.000-04:00

From TPM:

At the dawn of the Bush administration, Vice President Dick Cheney's 2001 Energy Task Force was the hot social ticket for leading luminaries of future GOP scandals.

Once a closely-held secret, the Washington Post today publishes the dance card for the task force. Cheney, citing the principle of executive confidentiality, took the public's right not to know all the way to the Supreme Court when Congress tried to learn the attendance list published today. It comes as no surprise that the list was heavy on energy-industry big shots, including Enron's Kenneth Lay, who got a private meeting with Cheney on April 17, 2001.

Continued....

Durbin Takes Obstructionist McConnell to Task

2007-07-16T21:02:00.000-04:00

I have advocated the Dems do this for some time otherwise the public has no idea who the obstructionists really are. All the public knows is that the Dems aren't getting the things done they said they were going to get done. If the Repubs want to filibuster let them - but make them stand up and do it in front of the nation.

Give 'em Hell, Harry!

2007-07-16T20:20:00.000-04:00

Forcing his Republican colleagues to put up or shut up on the notion of an up-or-down vote, Senate Majority leader Harry Reid (D-NV) just moments ago announced that he will immediately file a cloture motion on the Reed-Levin troop redeployment bill and, if Republicans follow through with a filibuster, will place the Senate in a prolonged all-night session Tuesday to force a true continuation of debate.

"Now, Republicans are using a filibuster to block us from even voting on an amendment that could bring the war to a responsible end," said Reid. "They are protecting the President rather than protecting our troops. They are denying us an up or down – yes or no – vote on the most important issue our country faces."

The Reed-Levin amendment to the Department of Defense (DoD) Authorization Bill requires George W. Bush to "commence the reduction of the number of United States forces in Iraq not later than 120 days after the date of the enactment of this Act" and mandates a withdrawal of most combat forces by April 30, 2008.

Continued....

2007-07-15T23:59:00.000-04:00

War ... should only be declared by the authority of the people, whose toils and treasures are to support its burdens, instead of the government which is to reap its fruits.

James Madison (1751–1836), U.S. president. “Universal Peace” (January 31, 1792). W.T. Hutchinson et al., The Papers of James Madison, vol. 14, p. 207, Chicago and Charlottesville, Virginia (1962-1991).

Sunni extremists from Saudi Arabia make up half the foreign fighters in Iraq

2007-07-15T18:28:00.000-04:00

Although Bush administration officials have frequently lashed out at Syria and Iran, accusing it of helping insurgents and militias here, the largest number of foreign fighters and suicide bombers in Iraq come from a third neighbor, Saudi Arabia, according to a senior U.S. military officer and Iraqi lawmakers.

About 45% of all foreign militants targeting U.S. troops and Iraqi civilians and security forces are from Saudi Arabia; 15% are from Syria and Lebanon; and 10% are from North Africa, according to official U.S. military figures made available to The Times by the senior officer. Nearly half of the 135 foreigners in U.S. detention facilities in Iraq are Saudis, he said.

Continued...

Webb Rips Graham As ‘Politician Trying To Put His Political Views Into The Mouths Of Soldiers’

2007-07-15T11:33:00.000-04:00

Oh my!

Iraq-Bound Soldier Hires Hitman To Shoot Him

2007-07-15T09:49:00.000-04:00

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: Bronx Man Admits He'd Rather Go To Prison Than Back To Iraq

The death and destruction of U.S. troops fighting in Iraq seems to have become so rampant to one local soldier that he actually staged an attack on himself -- allegedly hiring a hitman to non-fatally shoot him -- so he wouldn't be sent back for another tour of duty.

Now, 20-year-old Jonathan Aponte is under fire at home in the Bronx for his decision that may send him to prison.

"There are some people mentally that can handle it. There are some people who just can't. You need to know when to say enough is enough," Aponte told CBS 2 HD exclusively Friday. Click photo to see video.

Continued...

Bush Is Prepared to Veto Bill to Expand Child Insurance

2007-07-15T09:20:00.000-04:00

We're spending 12 billion per month to kill people in Iraq - and our so called "pro-life" president will veto a bill which would reduce the number of uninsured children in the U.S. by 4.1 million by increasing spending over the next five years by $35 billion for a total of $60 billion. This increase would be funded by a cigarette tax increase. If this doesn't crystalize the Republican party's priorities for you - I don't know what will.

The White House said on Saturday that President Bush would veto a bipartisan plan to expand the Children’s Health Insurance Program, drafted over the last six months by senior members of the Senate Finance Committee.

The vow puts Mr. Bush at odds with the Democratic majority in Congress, with a substantial number of Republican lawmakers and with many governors of both parties, who want to expand the popular program to cover some of the nation’s eight million uninsured children.

Continued...

Marine says beatings urged in Iraq

2007-07-15T06:21:00.000-04:00

A Marine corporal, testifying Saturday at the murder trial of a buddy, said that Marines in his unit began routinely beating Iraqis after being ordered by officers to "crank up the violence level."

Cpl. Saul H. Lopezromo said Marines in his platoon, including the defendant, Cpl. Trent D. Thomas, were angry when officers criticized them as not being as tough as other Marine platoons.

"We're all hard-chargers, we're not there to mess around, so we took it as an insult," Lopezromo said.

Within weeks of allegedly being scolded, seven Marines and a Navy corpsman went out late one night to find and kill a suspected insurgent in the village of Hamandiya near the Abu Ghraib prison. The Marines and corpsman were from 2nd Platoon, Kilo Company, 3rd Battalion, 5th Regiment.

Continued...

BILL MOYERS JOURNAL | Impeachment Panel Excerpt | PBS

2007-07-14T17:08:00.000-04:00

This week, Bill Moyers Journal took an in-depth look at the heated talk of impeachment taking place across the country. To explore the issue, Bill Moyers is joined by Bruce Fein, a constitutional scholar, who was Associate Deputy Attorney General under President Reagan and is a weekly columnist for THE WASHINGTON TIMES and John Nichols, a Washington correspondent for THE NATION magazine and author of THE GENIUS OF IMPEACHMENT: The Founders' Cure for Royalism.

The program aired Friday, July 13 on PBS

Miers Warned of Contempt Citation for Ignoring House Subpoena

2007-07-14T17:06:00.000-04:00

The U.S. House Judiciary Committee threatened former White House Counsel Harriet Miers with criminal contempt charges if she continues to defy its subpoena to testify about the firing of eight U.S. attorneys.

Committee Chairman John Conyers of Michigan gave Miers until 5 p.m. Washington time on July 17 to say whether she will comply. Miers failed to appear yesterday to answer questions under oath before the panel's commercial-law subcommittee, which then voted 7-5 along party lines that her refusal to testify had no valid legal basis.

The contempt threat against Miers further escalates Congress's legal confrontation with President George W. Bush over his refusal to let aides testify under oath about private White House discussions. Congressional investigators are trying to determine whether federal prosecutors were replaced to spur investigations of Democrats or quash probes of Republicans.

Continued...

The White House Has a Manual for Silencing Protesters and Demonstrations

2007-07-14T14:00:00.000-04:00

So the truth comes out.

After a myriad of stories about people being excluded from events where the President is speaking, now we know that the White House had a policy manual on just how to do so.

Called the "Presidential Advance Manual," this 103-page document from the Office of Presidential Advance lays out the parameters for how to handle protesters at events.

"Always be prepared for demonstrators," says the document, which is dated October 2002 and which the ACLU released as part of a new lawsuit.

In a section entitled "Preventing Demonstrators," the document says: "All Presidential events must be ticketed or accessed by a name list. This is the best method for preventing demonstrators. People who are obviously going to try to disrupt the event can be denied entrance at least to the VIP area between the stage and the main camera platform. ... It is important to have your volunteers at a checkpoint before the Magnetometers in order to stop a demonstrator from getting into the event. Look for signs they may be carrying, and if need be, have volunteers check for folded cloth signs that demonstrators may be bringing."

Continued...

NAACP Symbolically Buries N-Word

2007-07-14T10:57:00.001-04:00

There was no mourning at this funeral. Hundreds of onlookers cheered Monday afternoon as the NAACP put to rest a long-standing expression of racism by holding a public burial for the N-word during its annual convention.

Delegates from across the country marched from downtown Detroit's Cobo Center to Hart Plaza. Two Percheron horses pulled a pine box adorned with a bouquet of fake black roses and a black ribbon printed with a derivation of the word.

The coffin is to be placed at historically black Detroit Memorial Park Cemetery and will have a headstone.

"Today we're not just burying the N-word, we're taking it out of our spirit," said Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick. "We gather burying all the things that go with the N-word. We have to bury the 'pimps' and the 'hos' that go with it."

He continued: "Die N-word, and we don't want to see you 'round here no more."

Continued...

White House Claims Executive Privilege To Withhold Key Documents On Tillman Death

2007-07-14T10:45:00.000-04:00

This just isn't right no matter which side of the political fence you sit on. This administration is claiming executive privilege to keep from the public every political decision they've ever made. They have politicised EVERYTHING in government from the judiciary branch, medical policy, birth control and how they dealt with the death of a hero. The family has a right to know the details even if those details are damaging to the White House and the Republican party. We already know he didn't die the way they said he did so what are they hiding? Is there a paper trail showing who made the decision to 'spin' his death and use it as war propaganda? Does that paper trail lead to Rove? To Bush himself? Or to President Cheney?

Two influential lawmakers investigating how and when the Bush administration learned the circumstances of Pat Tillman's friendly-fire death and how those details were disclosed accused the White House and Pentagon on Friday of withholding key documents and renewed their demand for the material.

The White House and Defense Department have turned over nearly 10,000 pages of papers _ mostly press clippings _ but the White House cited "executive branch confidentiality interests" in refusing to provide other documents.

Continued...

2007-07-13T23:59:00.000-04:00

The progress of freedom depends more upon the maintenance of peace, the spread of commerce, and the diffusion of education, than upon the labours of cabinets and foreign offices.

-Richard Cobden (1804–1865), British radical politician. Speech, June 26, 1850, to the House of Commons.

R.F.K.

2007-07-13T17:48:00.000-04:00

Senator McConnell: Is This Your Idea of Progress in Iraq?

2007-07-13T11:11:00.000-04:00

2007-07-12T23:59:00.000-04:00

Truth is power, but only when one has patience and requires of it no immediate effect. And one must have no specific aims. Somehow, lack of an agenda is the greatest power. Sometimes it is better not to think in terms of plans; here months may mean nothing, and also years. Truth must be sought for its own sake, its holy, divine greatness.

-Romano Guardini

Political Corruption in the Justice Department

2007-07-12T22:42:00.000-04:00

About Damn Time!

2007-07-12T21:56:00.000-04:00

The Iraqi government is achieving only spotty military and political progress, the Bush administration conceded Thursday in an assessment that war critics quickly seized on as confirmation of their dire warnings.

Within hours, the House voted to withdraw U.S. troops by spring.

The House measure passed 223-201 in the Democratic-controlled chamber despite a veto threat from President Bush, who has ruled out any change in war policy before September.

"The security situation in Iraq remains complex and extremely challenging," the administration report concluded. The economic picture is uneven, it added, and the government has not yet enacted vital political reconciliation legislation.

Continued...

Nobel Peace Prize Winner Calls for Removal of War President

2007-07-12T09:44:00.000-04:00

Nobel Peace Prize winner Betty Williams came from Ireland to Texas to declare that President Bush should be impeached.

In a keynote speech at the International Women’s Peace Conference on Wednesday night, Ms. Williams told a crowd of about 1,000 that the Bush administration has been treacherous and wrong and acted unconstitutionally.

Continued...

Michael Moore Rips Wolf Blitzer on CNN: "Why Don't You Tell the American People the Truth"

2007-07-09T20:54:00.000-04:00

Click photo to see video.

2007-07-08T23:59:00.000-04:00

We need a type of patriotism that recognizes the virtues of those who are opposed to us. We must get away from the idea that America is to be the leader of the world in everything. She can lead in some things. The old "manifest destiny" idea ought to be modified so that each nation has the manifest destiny to do the best it can - and that without cant, without the assumption of self-righteousness and with a desire to learn to the uttermost from other nations.

-Francis John McConnell

Pelosi Not Willing to Protect the Constitution

2007-07-08T23:32:00.000-04:00

Conyers Raises Impeachment on ABC's This Week

2007-07-08T17:19:00.000-04:00

From Think Progress:

This morning on ABC’s This Week, House Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers (D-MI) highlighted the new American Research Group poll showing that nearly half of Americans want the House of Representatives to begin impeachment proceedings against President Bush, and 54 percent favor impeachment hearings for Vice President Cheney. (Click photo to see video.)

Continued...

Bomb Kills 150 in Iraq

2007-07-08T17:17:00.000-04:00

Iraqis used heavy machines and shovels on Sunday to search for bodies after a huge truck bomb killed 150 people in a northern town and fresh attacks in and around Baghdad killed 31 others.

Two police officers in the Shi'ite town of Tuz Khurmato confirmed 150 people had been killed in Saturday's explosion that Iraqi officials blamed on Sunni Islamist al Qaeda. The officers said 20 people were still missing and 250 were wounded.

Continued...

White House Will Defy Congress

2007-07-08T13:46:00.000-04:00

The White House has decided to defy Congress's latest demand for information regarding the dismissal of nine U.S. attorneys, sources familiar with the decision said yesterday. Such an action would escalate the constitutional struggle and propel it closer to a court showdown.

Senate and House committees have directed President Bush to provide by tomorrow a detailed justification of his executive privilege claims and a full accounting of the documents he is withholding. But White House counsel Fred F. Fielding plans to tell lawmakers that he has already provided the legal basis for the claims and will not provide a log of the documents, the sources said.

Continued...

A Red State Goes Blue As VA Leans Towards Dems

2007-07-08T09:29:00.000-04:00

Virginia, usually a reliably Republican state in presidential elections, may become a key battleground in the 2008 election as broadly negative views among independents of President Bush and the war in Iraq have altered the presidential race.

Mirroring the national mood, Virginians' approval of Bush and support for U.S. policies in Iraq have eroded as the war has dragged on. Bush is the worst of the past nine presidents, say Virginia's independent voters, who helped him win in 2004 but now say they are more likely to prefer that a Democrat rather than a Republican be the next president.

Continued...

Vote Today

2007-07-08T09:07:00.000-04:00

Last night, through Al Gore's Live Earth concerts, 2 billion of us rallied to stop the climate crisis. Now, it's time to change more than our light bulbs, it's time to change our leaders.

That's why we're holding our Virtual Town Hall on the climate crisis. All eight of the Democratic presidential candidates responded to MoveOn members' questions about global warming. Now, it's time to watch their responses and weigh in on which one has the best plan.

This is a critical vote. Your choice sends a strong message to the candidates about what kind of leadership voters want to see. And it'll help ensure that our next president takes the climate crisis seriously.

Click below to hear the presidential candidates' plans to stop the climate crisis and to vote for the strongest one.

http://pol.moveon.org/townhall/climate/townhall2.html?id=10780-3396758-NaO1Ad&t=2

NY Times Editorial: The Road Home

2007-07-08T02:13:00.000-04:00

More than four years after The New York Times published a series of news stories that arguably helped pave the way toward a US led invasion of Iraq, the country's newspaper of record, in a sobering Sunday editorial, has called for an end to the Iraq war. In stating its position, the Times editorial says, "President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney have used demagoguery and fear to quell Americans' demands for an end to this war. They say withdrawing will create bloodshed and chaos and encourage terrorists. Actually, all of that has already happened - the result of this unnecessary invasion and the incompetent management of this war.

The New York Times | Editorial
Sunday 08 July 2007

It is time for the United States to leave Iraq, without any more delay than the Pentagon needs to organize an orderly exit.

•

Like many Americans, we have put off that conclusion, waiting for a sign that President Bush was seriously trying to dig the United States out of the disaster he created by invading Iraq without sufficient cause, in the face of global opposition, and without a plan to stabilize the country afterward.

At first, we believed that after destroying Iraq's government, army, police and economic structures, the United States was obliged to try to accomplish some of the goals Mr. Bush claimed to be pursuing, chiefly building a stable, unified Iraq. When it became clear that the president had neither the vision nor the means to do that, we argued against setting a withdrawal date while there was still some chance to mitigate the chaos that would most likely follow.

While Mr. Bush scorns deadlines, he kept promising breakthroughs - after elections, after a constitution, after sending in thousands more troops. But those milestones came and went without any progress toward a stable, democratic Iraq or a path for withdrawal. It is frighteningly clear that Mr. Bush's plan is to stay the course as long as he is president and dump the mess on his successor. Whatever his cause was, it is lost.

The political leaders Washington has backed are incapable of putting national interests ahead of sectarian score settling. The security forces Washington has trained behave more like partisan militias. Additional military forces poured into the Baghdad region have failed to change anything.

Continuing to sacrifice the lives and limbs of American soldiers is wrong. The war is sapping the strength of the nation's alliances and its military forces. It is a dangerous diversion from the life-and-death struggle against terrorists. It is an increasing burden on American taxpayers, and it is a betrayal of a world that needs the wise application of American power and principles.

A majority of Americans reached these conclusions months ago. Even in politically polarized Washington, positions on the war no longer divide entirely on party lines. When Congress returns this week, extricating American troops from the war should be at the top of its agenda.

That conversation must be candid and focused. Americans must be clear that Iraq, and the region around it, could be even bloodier and more chaotic after Americans leave. There could be reprisals against those who worked with American forces, further ethnic cleansing, even genocide. Potentially destabilizing refugee flows could hit Jordan and Syria. Iran and Turkey could be tempted to make power grabs. Perhaps most important, the invasion has created a new stronghold from which terrorist activity could proliferate.

The administration, the Democratic-controlled Congress, the United Nations and America's allies must try to mitigate those outcomes - and they may fail. But Americans must be equally honest about the fact that keeping troops in Iraq will only make things worse. The nation needs a serious discussion, now, about how to accomplish a withdrawal and meet some of the big challenges that will arise.

The Mechanics of Withdrawal

The United States has about 160,000 troops and millions of tons of military gear inside Iraq. Getting that force out safely will be a formidable challenge. The main road south to Kuwait is notoriously vulnerable to roadside bomb attacks. Soldiers, weapons and vehicles will need to be deployed to secure bases while airlift and sealift operations are organized. Withdrawal routes will have to be guarded. The exit must be everything the invasion was not: based on reality and backed by adequate resources.

The United States should explore using Kurdish territory in the north of Iraq as a secure staging area. Being able to use bases and ports in Turkey would also make withdrawal faster and safer. Turkey has been an inconsistent ally in this war, but like other nations, it should realize that shouldering part of the burden of the aftermath is in its own interest.

Accomplishing all of this in less than six months is probably unrealistic. The political decision should be made, and the target date set, now.

The Fight Against Terrorists

Despite President Bush's repeated claims, Al Qaeda had no significant foothold in Iraq before the invasion, which gave it new base camps, new recruits and new prestige.

This war diverted Pentagon resources from Afghanistan, where the military had a real chance to hunt down Al Qaeda's leaders. It alienated essential allies in the war against terrorism. It drained the strength and readiness of American troops.

And it created a new front where the United States will have to continue to battle terrorist forces and enlist local allies who reject the idea of an Iraq hijacked by international terrorists. The military will need resources and bases to stanch this self- inflicted wound for the foreseeable future.

The Question of Bases

The United States could strike an agreement with the Kurds to create those bases in northeastern Iraq. Or, the Pentagon could use its bases in countries like Kuwait and Qatar, and its large naval presence in the Persian Gulf, as staging points.

There are arguments for, and against, both options. Leaving troops in Iraq might make it too easy - and too tempting - to get drawn back into the civil war and confirm suspicions that Washington's real goal was to secure permanent bases in Iraq. Mounting attacks from other countries could endanger those nations' governments.

The White House should make this choice after consultation with Congress and the other countries in the region, whose opinions the Bush administration has essentially ignored. The bottom line: the Pentagon needs enough force to stage effective raids and airstrikes against terrorist forces in Iraq, but not enough to resume large-scale combat.

The Civil War

One of Mr. Bush's arguments against withdrawal is that it would lead to civil war. That war is raging, right now, and it may take years to burn out. Iraq may fragment into separate Kurdish, Sunni and Shiite republics, and American troops are not going to stop that from happening.

It is possible, we suppose, that announcing a firm withdrawal date might finally focus Iraq's political leaders and neighboring governments on reality. Ideally, it could spur Iraqi politicians to take the steps toward national reconciliation that they have endlessly discussed but refused to act on.

But it is foolish to count on that, as some Democratic proponents of withdrawal have done. The administration should use whatever leverage it gains from withdrawing to press its allies and Iraq's neighbors to help achieve a negotiated solution.

Iraq's leaders - knowing that they can no longer rely on the Americans to guarantee their survival - might be more open to compromise, perhaps to a Bosnian-style partition, with economic resources fairly shared but with millions of Iraqis forced to relocate. That would be better than the slow-motion ethnic and religious cleansing that has contributed to driving one in seven Iraqis from their homes.

The United States military cannot solve the problem. Congress and the White House must lead an international attempt at a negotiated outcome. To start, Washington must turn to the United Nations, which Mr. Bush spurned and ridiculed as a preface to war.

The Human Crisis

There are already nearly two million Iraqi refugees, mostly in Syria and Jordan, and nearly two million more Iraqis who have been displaced within their country. Without the active cooperation of all six countries bordering Iraq - Turkey, Iran, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Syria - and the help of other nations, this disaster could get worse. Beyond the suffering, massive flows of refugees - some with ethnic and political resentments - could spread Iraq's conflict far beyond Iraq's borders.

Kuwait and Saudi Arabia must share the burden of hosting refugees. Jordan and Syria, now nearly overwhelmed with refugees, need more international help. That, of course, means money. The nations of Europe and Asia have a stake and should contribute. The United States will have to pay a large share of the costs, but should also lead international efforts, perhaps a donors' conference, to raise money for the refugee crisis.

Washington also has to mend fences with allies. There are new governments in Britain, France and Germany that did not participate in the fight over starting this war and are eager to get beyond it. But that will still require a measure of humility and a commitment to multilateral action that this administration has never shown. And, however angry they were with President Bush for creating this mess, those nations should see that they cannot walk away from the consequences. To put it baldly, terrorism and oil make it impossible to ignore.

The United States has the greatest responsibilities, including the admission of many more refugees for permanent resettlement. The most compelling obligation is to the tens of thousands of Iraqis of courage and good will - translators, embassy employees, reconstruction workers - whose lives will be in danger because they believed the promises and cooperated with the Americans.

The Neighbors

One of the trickiest tasks will be avoiding excessive meddling in Iraq by its neighbors - America's friends as well as its adversaries.

Just as Iran should come under international pressure to allow Shiites in southern Iraq to develop their own independent future, Washington must help persuade Sunni powers like Syria not to intervene on behalf of Sunni Iraqis. Turkey must be kept from sending troops into Kurdish territories.

For this effort to have any remote chance, Mr. Bush must drop his resistance to talking with both Iran and Syria. Britain, France, Russia, China and other nations with influence have a responsibility to help. Civil war in Iraq is a threat to everyone, especially if it spills across Iraq's borders.

•

President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney have used demagoguery and fear to quell Americans' demands for an end to this war. They say withdrawing will create bloodshed and chaos and encourage terrorists. Actually, all of that has already happened - the result of this unnecessary invasion and the incompetent management of this war.

This country faces a choice. We can go on allowing Mr. Bush to drag out this war without end or purpose. Or we can insist that American troops are withdrawn as quickly and safely as we can manage - with as much effort as possible to stop the chaos from spreading.

-------
Original

2007-07-08T01:02:00.000-04:00

Number of Operations Iraqi Freedom & Enduring Freedom casualties as confirmed by U.S. Central Command: 3592/383*

Most Recent Casualties:

April 10, 2007

Army Pfc. Kyle G. Bohrnsen, 22, of Philipsburg, Mont.
-Operation Iraqi Freedom

Complete Casualty List

*casualty counts are as of day of posting rather than date of death

2007-07-08T00:56:00.000-04:00

Number of Operations Iraqi Freedom & Enduring Freedom casualties as confirmed by U.S. Central Command: 3570/384*

Most Recent Casualties:

April 11, 2007

Army Sgt. Edelman L. Hernandez, 23, of Hyattsville, Md.
-Operation Enduring Freedom

Army Sgt. Raymond S. Sevaaetasi, 29, of Pago Pago, American Samoa
-Operation Iraqi Freedom

Complete Casualty List
*casualty counts are as of day of posting rather than date of death

2007-07-08T00:48:00.000-04:00

Number of Operations Iraqi Freedom & Enduring Freedom casualties as confirmed by U.S. Central Command: 3570/384*

Most Recent Casualties:

April 12, 2007

Army Cpl. Jason J. Beadles, 22, of LaPorte, Ind
-Operation Iraqi Freedom

Army 1st Lt. Gwilym J. Newman, 24, of Waldorf, Md.
-Operation Iraqi Freedom

Army Spc. James T. Lindsey, 20, of Florence, Ala
-Operation Iraqi Freedom

Army Staff Sgt. Casey D. Combs, 28, of Auburn, Wash.
-Operation Enduring Freedom

Army Sgt. David A. Stephens, 28, of Tullahoma, Tenn.
-Operation Enduring Freedom

Army Cpl. Cody A. Putnam, 22, of Lafayette, Ind
-Operation Iraqi Freedom

Army Pfc. John G. Borbonus, 19, of Boise, Idaho
-Operation Iraqi Freedom

Complete Casualty List
*casualty counts are as of day of posting rather than date of death

2007-07-08T00:45:00.000-04:00

Number of Operations Iraqi Freedom & Enduring Freedom casualties as confirmed by U.S. Central Command: 3570/384*

Most Recent Casualties:

April 13, 2007

Army Sgt. Larry R. Bowman, 29, of Granite Falls, N.C.
-Operation Iraqi Freedom

Complete Casualty List
*casualty counts are as of day of posting rather than date of death

2007-07-08T00:34:00.000-04:00

Number of Operations Iraqi Freedom & Enduring Freedom casualties as confirmed by U.S. Central Command: 3570/384*

Most Recent Casualties:

April 14, 2007

Marine Lance Cpl. Daniel J. Santee, 21, of Mission Viejo, Calif.
-Operation Iraqi Freedom

Army Staff Sgt. Robert J. Basham, 22, of Kenosha, Wis
-Operation Iraqi Freedom

Army Spc. Ryan A. Bishop, 32, of Euless, Texas
-Operation Iraqi Freedom

Army Sgt. Joshua A. Schmit, 26, of Willmar, Minn.
-Operation Iraqi Freedom

Army Sgt. Brandon L. Wallace, 27, of St Louis, Mo.
-Operation Iraqi Freedom

Complete Casualty List
*casualty counts are as of day of posting rather than date of death

2007-07-08T00:32:00.000-04:00

Number of Operations Iraqi Freedom & Enduring Freedom casualties as confirmed by U.S. Central Command: 3570/384*

Most Recent Casualties:

April 15, 2007

Army Pfc. Steven J. Walberg, 18, of Paradise, Calif.
-Operation Iraqi Freedom

Complete Casualty List
*casualty counts are as of day of posting rather than date of death

2007-07-08T00:20:00.000-04:00

Number of Operations Iraqi Freedom & Enduring Freedom casualties as confirmed by U.S. Central Command: 3592/383*

Most Recent Casualties:

April 16, 2007

Marine Lance Cpl. Jesse D. Delatorre, 29, of Aurora, Ill
-Operation Iraqi Freedom

Army Pfc. Lucas V. Starcevich, 25, Canton, Ill
-Operation Iraqi Freedom

Army Pfc. Aaron M. Genevie, 22, of Chambersburg, Pa
-Operation Iraqi Freedom

Army Sgt. Mario K. DeLeon, 26, of San Francisco, Calif.
-Operation Iraqi Freedom

Marine 1st Lt. Shaun M. Blue, 25, of Munster, Ind.
-Operation Iraqi Freedom

Marine Lance Cpl. Daniel R. Scherry, 20, of Rocky River, Ohio
-Operation Iraqi Freedom

Complete Casualty List

*casualty counts are as of day of posting rather than date of death

2007-07-08T00:01:00.000-04:00

Number of Operations Iraqi Freedom & Enduring Freedom casualties as confirmed by U.S. Central Command: 3592/383*

Most Recent Casualties:

April 17, 2007

Army Pfc. Richard P. Langenbrunner, 19, of Fort Wayne, Ind
-Operation Iraqi Freedom

Complete Casualty List

*casualty counts are as of day of posting rather than date of death

2007-07-07T23:59:00.000-04:00

"Hey Rocky, watch me pull a rabbit out of my hat!"

"Again? That trick never works."

Rocky & Bullwinkle

Republican Mantra Returns

2007-07-07T21:03:00.000-04:00

Every time Republicans come under fire they start shouting "BILL CLINTON! BILL CLINTON! BILL CLINTON!" It's pathetic.

BTW Chris Matthews should be permanently replaced by Shuster!

IMPEACH DICK CHENEY

2007-07-06T20:46:00.001-04:00

Petition: http://impeachcheney.org/ Watch Dick Cheney's impeachable crimes, then sign the petition demanding Congress begin impeachment hearings. 14 Representatives currently support H. Res 333, 3 articles of impeachment outlining Vice President Dick Cheney's crimes.

2007-07-05T23:59:00.000-04:00

A government that spies upon its citizens, evades the courts and feels no compulsion to explain itself beyond vague warnings of security threats must be brought into check. The damage caused by terrorists on 9/11 begins to pale against the havoc wreaked upon America by America itself.

-Editorial "Liberties Lost", Baltimore Sun, 7/4/07

Liberties Lost

2007-07-05T16:49:00.000-04:00

Baltimore Sun Editorial
July 4, 2007

Besides all his other gifts, Thomas Jefferson appears to have been prophetic.

In his first presidential inaugural address in 1801, he ticked off a long list of essential principles of government, featuring highlights of the Bill of Rights, and called preservation of the government "in its whole constitutional vigor" the "anchor of our peace at home and safety abroad." These principles "should be the creed of our political faith," he said. "Should we wander from them in moments of error or of alarm, let us hasten to retrace our steps and to regain the road which alone leads to peace, liberty and safety."

Such moments of error or alarm have sent the government off on dangerous tangents from time to time over the years - but rarely with more wide-ranging consequences than the course embarked upon after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. On this 231st anniversary of Jefferson's eloquent Declaration of Independence from British rule, the United States is desperately in need of restoring the rights and freedoms surrendered in a false bid for security that has perversely put the nation at greater risk.

Consider what has been lost.

Sweeping federal measures, most of them heavily cloaked in secrecy, have robbed Americans of privacy, due process of law, even freedom of movement. Warrantless wiretaps, e-mail surveillance, national security letters secretly demanding information on thousands of citizens and, soon to come, the equivalent of national ID cards - all would be abominations to Jefferson.

America's suspected enemies have fared worse. They have been tortured, held indefinitely without charge and spirited away to secret prisons abroad so no one knows who they are or what has happened to them.

The United States has been fortunate to have suffered no terrorist attacks since 9/11, but there's little evidence that any of these extraordinary measures have had anything to do with that. What they have done is to further isolate the United States at a time when the war in Iraq has left America with no global good will to spare. And Iraq has now become a proving ground for development of terrorist weaponry, such as the roadside bomb, and tactics.

In the weeks and months after 9/11, when the Bush administration was paring back civil liberties through the cynically named Patriot Act and travelers were coping with what would become increasingly burdensome restrictions, fearful Americans were persuaded to accept the sacrifice in return for a greater measure of safety.

But Jefferson would argue that was a false choice. Liberty is the source of security. An open, accountable government is the best protection against tyranny and incompetence. Travel restrictions in the form of identity papers - aimed not at terrorists but at illegal immigrants - represent the cost of unchecked power on the quality of American life.

The portrait now emerging of Vice President Dick Cheney as the unseen hand behind many of the more outrageous violations of civil liberties, aided in part by Alberto R. Gonzales, the lapdog of an attorney general, powerfully underscores Jefferson's point that the time has come to retrace these missteps and get back on the road to peace, liberty and safety.

Congress, now in Democratic hands partly because of a backlash at these heavy-handed tactics, should begin the process by getting out all the facts. Americans have a right - and a responsibility - to know what's being done in their name and what effect it's having.

Some might argue that such a public review would allow America's enemies to learn its secrets. Experience suggests, though, that secrecy often shields abuse and simple bungling. For example, Justice Department auditors reported in March that the FBI had misused, sometimes illegally, the national security letters through which it demands, with no prior court approval and no notice to the individual involved, personal information about Americans. The FBI acknowledges perhaps 1,000 such instances.

America's history of violating constitutional restraints in times of perceived peril is a long one. Abraham Lincoln suspended habeas corpus protections against unlawful detention during the Civil War. Franklin D. Roosevelt ordered Japanese-Americans confined to camps during World War II. The FBI's history of misdeeds has roots that predate its creation, when J. Edgar Hoover, who would later become the bureau's first director, used a Justice Department perch to send federal agents on a brutal crackdown of more than 10,000 suspected communists in 1919.

During the Cold War and turmoil of the Vietnam War era, Mr. Hoover's FBI would direct its anti-subversive energies at alleged spies, war protesters and civil rights activists as well as suspected communists.

Records released last week detail a similarly sordid history of the CIA's stepping over constitutional hurdles to plot the assassination of foreign leaders, spy on American journalists and political dissidents, and confine a Soviet defector for three years before he was released without charges.

Public outrage at the discovery of such clandestine abuses has typically resulted in the sort of corrective action Jefferson recommended. Such a process may be under way soon again as Congress and the courts begin to apply some restraints on an administration that as much as or more than any other has considered itself above the law. There's little time to waste before Americans become so accustomed to their lost liberty that the loss becomes acceptable.

A government that spies upon its citizens, evades the courts and feels no compulsion to explain itself beyond vague warnings of security threats must be brought into check. The damage caused by terrorists on 9/11 begins to pale against the havoc wreaked upon America by America itself.

2007-07-04T23:59:00.000-04:00

Justice in the life and conduct of the State is possible only as first it resides in the hearts and souls of the citizens.

- Plato : Ancient Greek philosopher (428/427-348/347 B.C.)

Oh, the hypocricy of it all!

2007-07-04T12:30:00.000-04:00

This is probably my favorite interview on the Libby story. Kate O'Beirne completely exposed for the partisan hack that she is. With a straight face she argues that that Bill Clinton's impeachment for perjury and obstruction of justice was "just" because he admitted to perjury! Scooter's case is a travesty of justice because he still maintains his innocence despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary. I tell you sometimes it's difficult to decide whether to laugh or throw up!

Chris Matthews once again shows he's not the sharpest knife in the drawer for failing to make the distinction that Clinton lied about consensual sex while Libby lied to cover up something involving national security issues. Issues which most certainly have resulted in the loss of life.

Remember folks - this torrid tale started because the administration was trying to convince the country to go to war and Joe Wilson said "STOP! The objects in the mirror are not as they appear." For telling the public the truth, his wife was outed. The exposure in the media of a covert CIA agent (per the CIA) most certainly resulted in the executions of some valuable contacts around the world. Contacts in the slimy underworld of weapons sales. The Iraq war which we now know - was based on twisted information - has resulted in the deaths of thousands of Iraqi's and over 3,500 of our sons and daughters. Deaths for whom not one day in jail will be spent by the one who got caught lying to cover up the truth.

It would appear that those in power, have gotten away with murder. I'm at a loss to decide who is worse. Scooter Libby for covering it up - or those who celebrate their getting away with it.

Olbermann: Bush, Cheney Should Resign

2007-07-04T11:50:00.000-04:00

Last night Keith delievered a ten minute indictment of the Bush Administration and called on Bush to perform one act of patriotisim and resign!

House Balks at Bush Order for New Powers

2007-07-04T10:03:00.000-04:00

President Bush this month is giving an obscure White House office new powers over regulations affecting health, worker safety and the environment. Calling it a power grab, Democrats running Congress are intent on stopping him.

The House voted last week to prohibit the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs from spending federal money on Executive Order 13422, signed by Bush last January and due to take effect July 24.

The order requires federal officials to show that private companies, people or institutions failed to address a problem before agencies can write regulations to tackle it. It also gives political appointees greater authority over how the regulations are written.

The House measure "stops this president or any president from seizing the power to rewrite almost every law that Congress passes, laws that protect public health, the environment, safety, civil rights, privacy and on and on," said Rep. Brad Miller, D-N.C., its sponsor.

Continued...

Debunking the "Libby As a Victim" Spin

2007-07-04T08:53:00.000-04:00

Keith Olbermann & David Shuster debunk the right-wing spin surrounding the Libby sentence, especially the "no underlying crime" claim.

2007-07-03T23:59:00.000-04:00

"We hang the petty thieves and appoint the great ones to office."

- Aesop, c.550 B.C.

Sweet Home GoreObama

2007-07-03T08:10:00.000-04:00

The Young Turks present a musical ode to the Al Gore - Barack Obama ticket for 2008.

2007-07-01T23:59:00.000-04:00

For black people, especially, the current composition of the Supreme Court should be the ultimate lesson in the importance of voting in a presidential election. No branch of the government has been more crucial than the judiciary in securing the rights and improving the lives of blacks over the past five or six decades.

-Bob Herbert, NY Times, 6/30/07, When Is Enough Enough?

2007-07-01T23:25:00.000-04:00

Cheney is Out of Control

2007-07-01T20:06:00.001-04:00

On July 4th, Honk to Impeach

2007-07-01T18:40:00.000-04:00

Americans celebrate July 4 as a day of patriotism, but the true spirit of July 4 has been lost. After all, July 4, 1776 was the day our Founding Fathers declared the American Revolution against King George.

So let's use this July 4 to declare our independence from King George W - and let's make some noise!

Local impeachment activists report great success holding signs at busy intersections that say "HONK TO IMPEACH!" Most of the drivers who pass these signs are delighted to honk - which makes them happy and makes our activists happy too. Best of all, the drivers and pedestrians discover how much support there is for impeachment - something they never knew because the Corporate Media won't tell them or even conduct a poll. Here's a great report from Bob Feuer of Great Barrington, Mass: http://www.afterdowningstreet.org/honktoimpeach-1

July 4 is a great day to "HONK TO IMPEACH" because there's already lots of noise from fireworks and people are relaxed. So here's our plan:

1 Check your local community calendar for the fireworks celebration near you, and note the time and main parking location.

2 Pick an intersection outside the entrance where all the cars will come and go. Visit that intersection if you can to see how the traffic flows and pick the safest spot to stand.

3 Add a marker for your intersection's location to our ImpeachMap at http://www.communitywalk.com/impeach. Be sure to include the time, exact location, and your contact info in your marker description, and use the category "Honk to Impeach"

4 Click the Share/Export link on the ImpeachMap to e-mail it to your friends, get a link to it, or embed it in your blog, website, or profile.

5 Bring signs that say "HONK TO IMPEACH" and "Text IMPEACH to 30644" (see below) and bring extra sign paper and magic markers if more activists show up. Or make a large banner like the one in this video. Or bring the big I-M-P-E-A-C-H letters you used on A28. Bring wooden stakes and staples to make carrying easier. Bring American flags and Uncle Sam outfits to capture the July 4 spirit. Try this sign: "BE A PATRIOT: HONK TO IMPEACH CHENEY AND BUSH"

6 Bring cameras, upload your photos/videos, and publish your reports here:
http://www.impeachspace.com/

7 Keep building our nationwide movement by scheduling a weekly "HONK TO IMPEACH" in front of your local media outlets and Congressional district offices, and post it to our ImpeachMap at http://www.communitywalk.com/impeach

Why hold a sign saying "Text IMPEACH to 30644"? Because we've invented a great new way to enlist more impeachment activists, especially younger people who use their cellphones for text messaging. When they text "IMPEACH" to 30644 they are prompted to enter their e-mail addresses so we can connect them with all the impeachment work we're doing, both nationally and locally. This way the HONK TO IMPEACH events will actually grow the movement.

July 4 will be the launch of the HONK TO IMPEACH movement nationwide this summer. People who have already tried it report a great deal of enthusiasm and excitement and we encourage you to make this a regular (e.g. weekly) event. If you decide to do so, please update your markers on the ImpeachMap following July 4 with whatever location and time you choose for your weekly honkathon. If you need any help, e-mail jacob@a28.org.

Of course moving cars are dangerous so please put safety first. Here are more detailed instructions and tips:
http://www.democrats.com/july-4-honk-to-impeach

Washington Democrat Adds Voice to Cheney Impeachment Drive

2007-07-01T13:22:00.001-04:00

A Democratic Congressman from Washington state became the latest Member of Congress to add his voice to the calls for the impeachment of Vice President Dick Cheney. The move came the same night that House Democrats failed to unite their party around a measure to cut the funding for the Office of the Vice President in response to Cheney's declaration that his office was not a part of the executive branch.

Rep. Jim McDermott (D-WA) declared in an address on the House floor Thursday night that he was in favor of impeaching the vice president.

Continued...

Click photo to hear floor speech.

NY Times Editorial: The Abuse of Executive Privilege

2007-07-01T12:26:00.000-04:00

After six years of kowtowing to the White House, Congress is finally challenging President Bush's campaign to trample all legal and constitutional restraints on his power.

Congressional committees have issued subpoenas for documents and witnesses in two major cases and have asked for the first - and likely not the last - criminal investigation of an executive branch official who might have lied to Congress.

Predictably, the White House is claiming executive privilege and refusing to cooperate with the legitimate Congressional investigations, one springing from Mr. Bush's decision to spy on Americans without a warrant and the other from the purge of United States attorneys.

The courts have recognized a president's limited right to keep the White House's internal deliberations private. But it is far from an absolute right, and Mr. Bush's claim of executive privilege in the attorneys scandal is especially ludicrous. The White House has said repeatedly that Mr. Bush was not involved in the firings of nine United States attorneys. If that's true, he can hardly argue that he has the right to conceal conversations and e-mail exchanges that his aides had with one another and the Justice Department.

When the White House refused last week to even account for the documents it was withholding and why, as presidents generally have done in these cases, Senator Patrick Leahy, chairman of the Judiciary Committee, rightly denounced this arrogance as "Nixonian stonewalling." He pointed out that every president since World War II has at some point complied with Congressional requests or subpoenas for testimony by members of the White House staff or other presidential advisers.

Mr. Bush's claim of executive privilege may be somewhat stronger on the spying program, since he personally issued the order to start the wiretapping. But executive privilege cannot be used to cover up actions and policies that involve an outright violation of the law, as the spying program did.

Nor can it be used to shield an official who might have lied to Congress. The Senate Judiciary Committee has asked the Justice Department to investigate Brett Kavanaugh, a former White House official who told a Senate hearing on his appointment to a federal judgeship that he was not involved in forming rules on the treatment of detainees. Recent press accounts suggest that he was.

The White House has predictably accused the Democrats of being soft on terrorism for opposing illegal wiretapping and of partisan politicking in their attempt to get to the bottom of the attorneys scandal. This is the point when we used to wearily watch as Congress bowed and backed out of the room. But lawmakers finally seem determined to do their duty. Partly that's because tough-minded Democrats are now in charge, like Senator Leahy. But even some of Mr. Bush's Republican enablers on Capitol Hill seem to be losing patience.

Last week, three Republican senators, including the highly partisan Orrin Hatch, voted to issue subpoenas for records relating to Mr. Bush's decision to authorize the tapping of Americans' phone calls and e-mails abroad without legally and constitutionally mandated warrants. Only three Republicans actually voted against the subpoenas. (Three others did not register a vote.) Not long ago, those same nine Republicans would not even allow Senator Leahy to hold a roll-call vote on issuing subpoenas connected to the attorneys scandal.

If the White House continues to defy Congress, the Senate and the House could file criminal contempt charges. It's a strong measure, but lawmakers should not be afraid to take it, as they have done 10 times since 1975 under both parties.

Last week, in a bit of especially mendacious spin, Tony Fratto, the White House deputy press secretary, responded to the subpoenas on the illegal wiretapping by saying, "It's unfortunate that Congressional Democrats continue to choose the route of confrontation."

Actually, Mr. Bush chose that route long ago by defining consultation as a chance for lawmakers to hear about decisions he had already made, bipartisanship as a chance for Democrats to join Republicans in rubber-stamping those choices and Congressional oversight as self- serving and possibly seditious. At this point, confrontation is far preferable to the path the Republican majority in Congress chose for so many years - capitulation.

Original

2007-07-01T11:01:00.000-04:00

Here is an internal email that came out Friday from the Chairman and CEO of the company from which I have resigned. What this tells me is that there really is some fear in the industry about the potential fall-out from Michael Moore's movie or they wouldn't be addressing it at all.

June 29, 2007

Healthcare is our primary focus day in and day out throughout the Centene family of companies. And, according to recent surveys -- it's also the top domestic issue on the minds of voters. It has the attention of the political, entertainment and media worlds.

The 2008 presidential election is nearly 18 months away but the candidates are already floating a variety of healthcare reform plans. Hollywood director Michael Moore has a new movie coming out -- SiCKO -- that is critical of the U.S. healthcare system, including managed care. And several news outlets, including the Wall Street Journal and ABC’s Good Morning America have carried stories about Medicaid managed care companies -- including Centene.

With so much happening, I want to make sure you know what Centene is doing to improve the healthcare system. It's about our People, our Commitment and our Results.

Centene was formed with the intention of being a part of the solution and our simple nine-word mission speaks to that commitment: Centene will provide better health outcomes at lower costs. We believe that there is enough money in the system to get the job done. We think $1.7 trillion -- the amount this country spends on healthcare -- not only sounds like a lot of money, it is a lot of money. The challenge is to spend it intelligently. If we did, we could better serve those who are already insured, and insure those who aren't. We think every American is entitled to receive quality healthcare with dignity.

No matter what your specific job or where you work – your daily efforts are key to making sure that our members receive the care they deserve. In conjunction with our physician partners – it's about the right care, at the right time, at the right place. My bet is that the majority of Americans would agree that this type of healthcare represents a win for everyone involved.

We need to make a lot of profound change in healthcare in this country if we are to get the care we deserve for the money we spend. That’s why governments, at both the state and federal levels, have turned to companies like Centene to help them manage their programs more effectively.

I hope you share my pride in the Centene family of companies – and your colleagues. Our continued ability to establish and maintain a leadership position in the industry and the markets we serve results primarily from our demonstrated success in providing quality care while reducing and managing costs and from our customer-focused approach to working with state governments.

Keep up the good work! And remember, People, Commitment and Results.

Best,
Michael F. Neidorff
Chairman and CEO

Another Poll Reflecting Bush Administration is a Failure

2007-07-01T10:56:00.001-04:00

CBS News Poll:

HOW IS THE WAR GOING?

Well 22%
Badly 77%

U.S. TROOP LEVELS IN IRAQ SHOULD

Increase 11%
Keep the same number 17%
Decrease 26%
Remove all troops 40%

DIRECTION OF THE COUNTRY

Wrong track 75%
Right direction 19%

Cancer for Profit

2007-07-01T10:42:00.000-04:00

Michael Moore—whose movie, "Sicko," which opened Friday —discusses the (mal)functioning of our health care system with Jon Stewart. Click photo to see video.

Expose The Obstructionists

2007-07-01T10:04:00.001-04:00

Submitted by Robert Borosage on June 29, 2007 - 12:07pm.

Americans elected a new Congress to get things done. But the conservative minority has chosen a strategy of obstruction in the Senate. They have used the threat of a filibuster to delay or block virtually every major initiative. Bills with majority support—raising the minimum wage, ethics reform, a date to remove troops from Iraq, revoking oil subsidies and putting the money into renewable energy, fulfilling the 9/11 commission recommendations on homeland security—get blocked because they can’t garner 60 votes to overcome a filibuster.

In its first 40 hours, the new majority of the House of Representatives kept their promise to voters and passed legislation—increasing the minimum wage for the first time in a decade, empowering Medicare to negotiate lower prices on drugs, cutting interest rates on student loans in half, revoking big oil subsidies and using the money to invest in renewable energy—that provided a down payment for a new direction for this country.

These bills are overwhelmingly popular, and are simply common sense reforms. Yet every one of them—and many more—got held up in the U.S. Senate.

Conservatives boast about the “success” of their strategy in discrediting the new majority. As Senate Minority Whip Trent Lott, R-Miss., put it, “the strategy of being obstructionist can work or fail. So far it’s working for us.”

How is it working? It’s dragging the reputation of the Congress down to the level of the failed president. Conservatives lie in the road of progress and then complain that nothing is moving.

This values partisan posturing over reforms vital to the country. It must be challenged.

It’s time to take the gloves off.

The first step is to expose the obstruction to the American people. Let’s urge Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid to force a real filibuster. Keep the bills on the floor and force vote after vote, exposing the obstructionists. We’ll organize in states across the country to insure that their constituents know exactly who is standing in the way of progress.

Campaign for America’s Future is creating a petition to Reid, urging him to expose the obstructionists. Please join the petition. Let’s insure that Americans are clear on who is pushing for change and who is standing in the way.

Robert Borosage is co-director of Campaign for America's Future

Original

Marines Drop Case Against Iraq Veteran

2007-07-01T08:00:00.000-04:00

The Marines won't kick out an Iraq war veteran who made anti-war statements in a speech and wore part of his uniform at a protest, the service said Friday, despite a recommendation to discharge him early.

The Marines said in a statement that they weren't proceeding with the case because they had ''received sufficient indication'' from Liam Madden, 22, that he would no longer wear his uniform when engaged in political activities. They also determined that his statements did not warrant further action.

Continued...

2007-06-29T23:59:00.000-04:00

"Religious institutions that use government power in support of themselves and force their views on persons of other faiths, or of no faith, undermine all our civil rights. Moreover, state support of an established religion tends to make the clergy unresponsive to their own people, and leads to corruption within religion itself. Erecting the 'wall of separation between church and state,' therefore, is absolutely essential in a free society."

- Former US President Thomas Jefferson

BILL MOYERS JOURNAL | Moyers on Murdoch | PBS

2007-06-29T17:49:00.000-04:00

Another Poll

2007-06-29T13:43:00.000-04:00

57% of Americans say Dem Congress good for America.

Continued...

Sicko -Trailer

2007-06-29T11:00:00.000-04:00

"Sicko" opens across the country today. Please try to attend an opening in your town. I will be attending tonight with eight other family members. We are all looking forward to it.

2007-06-28T23:59:00.001-04:00

"President Bush regularly is unable to explain or defend the policies of his own administration, and that is because the heavy intellectual labor has been performed in the office of the vice president."

-Bruce Fein

Bush on Immigration Vote

2007-06-28T22:49:00.000-04:00

Interesting thing about this video is that Bush's cockiness seems to have taken a holiday. He has that "deer in the headlights" look about him. BUT he's not so beat down to be rendered incapable of uttering bullshit as there are a couple of standard Repub talking points thrown in. The voter imposed limitations on his power and the oversight that comes with - don't seem to be wearing well on the Emperor.

Impeach Cheney

2007-06-28T22:23:00.000-04:00

By Bruce Fein (who btw served as Associate Deputy AG under Ronald Reagan)

Under Dick Cheney, the office of the vice president has been transformed from a tiny acorn into an unprecedented giant oak. In grasping and exercising presidential powers, Cheney has dulled political accountability and concocted theories for evading the law and Constitution that would have embarrassed King George III. The most recent invention we know of is the vice president's insistence that an executive order governing the handling of classified information in the executive branch does not reach his office because he also serves as president of the Senate. In other words, the vice president is a unique legislative-executive creature standing above and beyond the Constitution. The House judiciary committee should commence an impeachment inquiry. As Alexander Hamilton advised in the Federalist Papers, an impeachable offense is a political crime against the nation. Cheney's multiple crimes against the Constitution clearly qualify.

Continued...

2007-06-27T23:59:00.000-04:00

Behind the ostensible government sits enthroned an invisible government owing no allegiance and acknowledging no responsibility to the people. To destroy this invisible government, to befoul the unholy alliance between corrupt business and corrupt politics is the first task of the statesmanship of the day.

-Theodore Roosevelt, April 19, 1906

Poll: Gore Leading In New Hampshire

2007-06-27T23:32:00.000-04:00

From TPM:

Ben Smith flags a new Suffolk University poll finding that a whopping 32% of the state's Democrats would back Al Gore, making him the leader in the Democratic primary there.

Continued...

Interesting Headline

2007-06-27T21:40:00.000-04:00

I thought THIS was a very interesting headline........

Congressional Republicans worry Bush will put his legacy ahead of party goals

FULL STORY

....hmmm they're worried the chickens may come home to roost. They've put 'party' above the best interest of the country for six years - completely abdicating their oversight responsibility allowing the president and the vice president to thumb their noses at them and the constitution..... and NOW they're worried? They're worried about loosing power. Nothing more, nothing less.

White House, Cheney's Office, Subpoenaed

2007-06-27T18:21:00.000-04:00

'Bout damn time!

The Senate subpoenaed the White House and Vice President Dick Cheney's office Wednesday, demanding documents and elevating the confrontation with President Bush over the administration's warrant-free eavesdropping on Americans.

Continued...

2007-06-26T23:59:00.000-04:00

"George Bush is the only person who can take both sides of an issue and still come out on the wrong side."

-Randi Rhodes, Air America Radio Host

2007-06-26T19:55:00.000-04:00

Senate Republicans on Tuesday blocked a bill that would have allowed labor organizations to unionize workplaces without secret ballot elections. Democrats were unable to get the 60 votes needed to force consideration of the Employee Free Choice Act, ending labor's chance to win its top legislative priority from Congress.

The final vote was 51-48.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., had said for months that he would stop the legislation. The White House also made clear that the bill would be vetoed if it passed Congress.

Continued....

GOP Senator Says ENOUGH!

2007-06-26T19:48:00.000-04:00

Sen. Richard Lugar, a senior Republican and a reliable vote for President Bush on the war, said that Bush's Iraq strategy was not working and that the U.S. should downsize the military's role.

The unusually blunt assessment Monday deals a political blow to Bush, who has relied heavily on GOP support to stave off anti-war legislation.

It also comes as a surprise. Most Republicans have said they were willing to wait until September to see if Bush's recently ordered troop buildup in Iraq was working.

"In my judgment, the costs and risks of continuing down the current path outweigh the potential benefits that might be achieved," Lugar, R-Ind., said in a Senate floor speech. "Persisting indefinitely with the surge strategy will delay policy adjustments that have a better chance of protecting our vital interests over the long term."

Continued...

2007-06-24T23:59:00.000-04:00

Whatever you do, you need courage. Whatever course you decide upon, there is always someone to tell you that you are wrong. There are always difficulties arising that tempt you to believe your critics are right. To map out a course of action and follow it to an end requires some of the same courage that a soldier needs. Peace has its victories, but it takes brave men and women to win them.

-Ralph Waldo Emerson

Thinking Blogger Award

2007-06-24T23:07:00.000-04:00

I'm still playing catch-up after my 'leave of absence' and today I discover that I was tagged with the "Thinking Blogger Award" by Reconstitution 2.0 (who has a new kick ass site!) The original honor's can be found HERE at his old site. (Told you I was playing catch-up.) The rules are easy to follow:

1. If, and only if, you get tagged, write a post with links to 5 blogs that make you think,
2. Link to this post so that people can easily find the exact origin of the meme,
3. Optional: Proudly display the ‘Thinking Blogger Award’ with a link to the post that you wrote (here is an alternative silver version if gold doesn’t fit your blog).

There are so many great blogs out there it's hard to pick just five but here are the blogs to which I pass the "Thinking Blogger Award" on to:

1. Skinny Legs and All - Original essays on current events. This guy is very witty and I often find myself laughing out loud when I read his posts. He was my first "favorite" when I initially discovered the world of blogs. You know what they say....you never forget your first! I have dubbed him my internet boyfriend!

2. Deep Thought - Eli Blake writes soooooo much good stuff about EVERYTHING and agree or disagree he always makes me think and oftentimes examine an issue from a perspective I hadn't considered.

3. The Divided States of bu$hmerika 2 - I am so glad he came back because no one does a rant quite like Chuck. He's a fellow Ohioian which is reason enough in my book to check him out.

4. On The Homefront - I first discovered Marty through her blog "Letters From Baghdad" on which she posted letters and emails she received from her son who was serving in Iraq. Her son is back home now and her blog On the Homefront covers mostly antiwar issues but always has something interesting on it.

5. Brad's Brain - Original articles on current issues from politics, television and music. He's also one of my first blog 'loves'.

Well there you have it. Hard to pick just five when there are so many of them that I read.

Democrats plan to cut Cheney out of executive funding bil

2007-06-24T20:21:00.000-04:00

Following Vice President Dick Cheney's assertion that his office is not a part of the executive branch of the US government, Democratic Caucus Chairman Rep. Rahm Emanuel (D-IL) plans to introduce an amendment to the the Financial Services and General Government Appropriations bill to cut funding for Cheney's office.

Continued...

Olbermann - Dick Cheney Is A Rogue Nation!

2007-06-24T20:13:00.000-04:00

Patient survival data now public

2007-06-24T16:38:00.001-04:00

The government pulled back the curtain Thursday on one of the most closely guarded secrets in medicine: how many patients who seek hospital treatment die rather than survive.

Information is now available on the Internet on hospital death rates from heart attacks and heart failure, two of the most common conditions that send people to the nearest emergency room.

Nationally, mortality data for patients with heart attacks and heart failure at more than 4,440 hospitals were posted Thursday on Medicare's Hospital Compare Web site (www.hospitalcompare.hhs.gov).

Continued...

Eight US Soldiers Are Killed in Iraq Violence

2007-06-24T14:23:00.000-04:00

Eight American servicemen were reported to have died in Iraq on Saturday, bringing the four-day death toll to at least 23 as insurgents continued to use huge roadside bombs to rip through combat vehicles.

Continued...

Ex-Surveillance Judge Criticizes Warrantless Taps

2007-06-24T14:20:00.000-04:00

A federal judge who used to authorize wiretaps in terrorism and espionage cases criticized yesterday President Bush's decision to order warrantless surveillance after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.

"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.

Continued...

2007-06-24T13:25:00.000-04:00

Run Al Run

2007-06-24T10:50:00.000-04:00

<--- Click image to sign petition.

Listen to original song by Paul Kaplan

Draft Gore

2007-06-24T10:43:00.000-04:00

Obama says some have 'hijacked' faith

2007-06-24T09:32:00.000-04:00

Sen. Barack Obama told a church convention Saturday that some right-wing evangelical leaders have exploited and politicized religious beliefs in an effort to sow division.

"Somehow, somewhere along the way, faith stopped being used to bring us together and faith started being used to drive us apart," the Democratic presidential candidate said in a 30-minute speech before the national meeting of the United Church of Christ.

"Faith got hijacked, partly because of the so-called leaders of the Christian Right, all too eager to exploit what divides us," the Illinois senator said.

"At every opportunity, they've told evangelical Christians that Democrats disrespect their values and dislike their church, while suggesting to the rest of the country that religious Americans care only about issues like abortion and gay marriage, school prayer and intelligent design," according to an advance copy of his speech.

"There was even a time when the Christian Coalition determined that its number one legislative priority was tax cuts for the rich," Obama said. "I don't know what Bible they're reading, but it doesn't jibe with my version."

Continued...