Raking it in from the War on Terror!

by anthony @ 18:36 BST

Congress Must Cut Off Bush Family War Profits

Evelyn Pringle
OpEdNews
April 10, 2007 at 05:28:41



On Monday, April 9, 2007, the Boston Herald reported that the US military had announced the Easter weekend deaths of 10 more American soldiers, including six killed on Sunday. The Associated Press reports that, since the war began in March 2003, over 3,000 members of the US military have been killed in Iraq, as of April 8, 2007.

The military reported the deaths of four more US soldiers on Tuesday.

Its nearly impossible to estimate the number of deaths of civilians in Iraq, but the Herald reports that at least 47 people were killed or found dead in violence on Easter Sunday, including 17 execution victims dumped in the capital.

News releases out of Iraq also report that a woman wearing a black veil and strapped with explosives blew herself up outside a police station in Iraq on Tuesday, killing 16 people.

According to the January 14, 2007 LA Times, Steven Kosiak, director of budget studies at the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments in Washington, says that, starting with the anti-terrorism appropriation a week after the 9/11 attacks, he estimates the US has spent $400 billion fighting terrorism through fiscal 2006, which ended on September 30, 2006.

In January 2007, Marine Corps spokeswoman, Lt Col Roseann Lynch, told Reuters that the war in Iraq is costing about $4.5 billion a month for military "operating costs," which did not include new weapons or equipment.

Since this war on terror was declared following 9/11, the pay levels for the CEOs of the top 34 defense contractors have doubled. The average compensation rose from $3.6 million during the period of 1998-2001, to $7.2 million during the period of 2002-2005, according to an August 2006, report entitled, "Executive Excess 2006," by the Washington-based, Institute for Policy Studies, and the Boston-based, United for a Fair Economy.

This study found that since 9/11, the 34 defense CEOs have pocketed a combined total of $984 million, or enough, the report says, to cover the wages for more than a million Iraqis for a year. In 2005, the average total compensation for the CEOs of large US corporations was only 6% above 2001 figures, while defense CEOs pay was 108% higher.

But the last name of one family, which is literally amassing a fortune over the backs of our dead heroes, matches that of the man holding the purse strings in the White House... .

More...

We Want Those Documents... Hand Them Over!!

by S-Q @ 9:44 AM MDT





NY Times

Among the missing documents the senators mentioned was a chart cited in a Feb. 12, 2007, e-mail message from Monica Goodling, a former aide to Mr. Gonzales, to other department officials.

WASHINGTON, April 9 — Four senators said Monday that they suspected that the Justice Department had failed to turn over all relevant documents related to the dismissals of eight United States attorneys.

The department has released more than 3,000 pages of e-mail messages and other files. But, the senators wrote in a letter to Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales, “We are concerned that additional documents relevant to the committee’s investigations are missing or have been withheld.”

The letter expressed skepticism about whether lawmakers had all the material they needed to evaluate the motives for the removals and raised questions on the scope and methods used to assemble the material. A spokesman for the department, Brian Roehrkasse, said officials would not comment until they had reviewed the letter.

Gonzo's Intense Grilling will be Tasty!!

by Global Evildoer Fighter @ 10:30 AM EDT

Gonzales cramming for big test — will he pass?

By: Steve on Tuesday, April 10th, 2007 at 5:03 AM - PDT

There’s been a surprising amount of attention lately on embattled Attorney General Alberto Gonzales preparing for his upcoming Senate Judiciary Committee hearing, which if the conventional wisdom is to be believed, will determine whether he keeps his job. Newsweek’s Michael Isikoff reports that the Justice Department is “in a state of paralysis” and Gonzales’ closest advisers “are nervous about whether he is up to the task.”

If Gonzales was planning to simply tell the truth, he wouldn't "keep contradicting himself" in practice sessions and he wouldn't need to bring his schedule to a standstill in order to figure out what he's planning to say. He'd just review the appropriate documents to make sure he had his dates straight and then tell Congress what happened.

Obviously, though, that's not quite what he's planning to do, is it?

Complete Story at C & L

THEY'RE GONNA GRILL HIM GOOD!

Dumbya Nearly Blows Himself Up!

posted by anthony @ 14:49 BST

Ford President Alan Mulally, right, had to be quick on his feet to make sure President Bush plugged a power cord into the right socket on a Ford hydrogen-electric plug-in hybrid.


Plug it in, fire it up, Mr. President
The Detroit News
Tuesday April 10, 2007

Credit Ford Motor Co. CEO Alan Mulally with saving the leader of the free world from self-immolation.

Mulally told journalists at the New York auto show that he intervened to prevent President Bush from plugging an electrical cord into the hydrogen tank of Ford's hydrogen-electric plug-in hybrid at the White House last week. Ford wanted to give the Commander-in-Chief an actual demonstration of the innovative vehicle, so the automaker arranged for an electrical outlet to be installed on the South Lawn and ran a charging cord to the hybrid. However, as Mulally followed Bush out to the car, he noticed someone had left the cord lying at the rear of the vehicle, near the fuel tank.

"I just thought, 'Oh my goodness!' So, I started walking faster, and the President walked faster and he got to the cord before I did. I violated all the protocols. I touched the President. I grabbed his arm and I moved him up to the front," Mulally said. "I wanted the president to make sure he plugged into the electricity, not into the hydrogen This is all off the record, right?"

Duck for President!

posted by anthony @ 14:09 BST

"After her welcome, the first lady sat in one of the area's designated reading nooks and read 'Duck for President,' by Doreen Cronin. It's a story of a duck who gets sick of farm chores and decides to run for office _ first for head of the farm, then governor and, finally, president. In the end he decides running the country is too much work and goes back to the farm."


From Kids Go on White House Easter Egg Hunt
Huffington Post
NATASHA T. METZLER
April 9, 2007

Would that the Resident felt the same way!

For information on some of the other candidates:

Who's Running? (From NYP)

The Presidential Field (From WaPo)

Disclaimer: This post has been published for information purposes only and in no way should it be regarded as an endorsement of Duck's bid for the Presidency.

Iran under the threat of war?

by anthony @ 13:45 BST

by Nasir Khan

Global Research, April 9, 2007
AlJazeera.com

Is the United States going to attack Iran? This question is being asked around the world. The big American military build-up in the Persian Gulf has gone on for some time, and there is every reason to believe that Washington is setting stage for a major offensive against Iran.

In fact, the Bush administration has followed a carefully orchestrated strategy with a view to pave the way for a major conflict with Iran. The clearest signal comes from US Vice President Dick Cheney’s latest comments on February 23. At a joint news conference with Australian Prime Minister John Howard, Cheney said that ‘all options’ are on the table if Iran continues to defy UN- led efforts to get Tehran to abandon its nuclear programmes. The news conference was held amidst tight security because thousands of protesters were voicing their anger at his visit. They called the main architect of invasion and occupation of Iraq a ‘war criminal’ and they called for the withdrawal of Australian soldiers from Iraq.

Cheney said that the United States remained ‘deeply concerned’ about Iran’s activities, including the ‘aggressive’ sponsoring of Hezbollah and ‘inflammatory statements’ by President Ahmadinejad: ‘We worked with European community and the United Nations to put together a set of policies to persuade the Iranians to give up their aspirations and to resolve the matter peacefully, and that is still our preference.’

‘But I have also made the point, and the president has also made the point, that all options are on the table,’ said Cheney.

Other articles from global research.ca:

Russian General Says U.S. Continues Preparations for Iran Strike
- 2007-04-09

Iran: the Threat of a Nuclear War
- by General Leonid Ivashov - 2007-04-09

Teetering on the Brink of Disaster: The NeoCons' Decision to Bomb Iran
- by Ali Fathollah-Nejad - 2007-04-09

"Theater Iran Near Term" (TIRANNT)
- by Michel Chossudovsky - 2007-02-21
"Theater Iran Near Term" (TIRANNT) has identified several thousand targets inside Iran as part of a "Shock and Awe" Blitzkrieg, which is now in its final planning stages.

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by Global Evildoer Fighter @ 6:50 PM EDT

"DC Madam Talks with ABC News"
April 9, 2007 4:42 PM
Justin Hood Reports

Alleged "D.C. Madam" Deborah Jeane Palfrey has given an exclusive interview to ABC News.

ABC News investigative correspondent Brian Ross recently interviewed Palfrey, who for over a decade operated what she terms an "erotic fantasy service" in the metropolitan Washington, D.C. area, for an upcoming report on "20/20."

Last October, federal prosecutors charged Palfrey with racketeering offenses in connection with the business, which she contends was a legal operation. From 1993 to August 2006, Palfrey ran a high-end escort service in the nation's capital, charging a flat fee for 90-minute "dates" with women between the ages of 23 and 55 whom she termed independent contractors.

ABCs The Blotter!


This could be the Biggest Reverse Sting Operation Ever! :)

Don't do the Crime if you can't do the Time

Abramoff: The House That Jack Built

by S-Q @ 3:41 PM MDT


Since Jack Abramoff's name came up on a previous thread, I thought I should publish this again.

Abramoff: The House That Jack Built

Jack Abramoff *

SunCruz

Sen. Conrad Burns +
Rep. Tom DeLay +
Rep. Bob Ney *
Adam Kidan *
Neil Volz

Tigua Casino

Sen. John Cornyn
Rep. Bob Ney * +
Rep. Don Young
Ralph Reed
Michael Scanlon *
Neil Volz

Mariana Islands

Sen. Conrad Burns +
Rep. Tom DeLay +
Rep. John Doolittle
Rep. Don Young
President Bush +

Saginaw Funding

Sen. Conrad Burns +
Sen. Byron Dorgan +
Rep. J.D. Hayworth +

Choctaws

Grover Norquist
Ralph Reed

Capital Athletic Foundation

Julie Doolittle *

Coushatta Campaign

Rep. Roy Blunt +
Rep. Eric Cantor +
Sen. Thad Cochran +
Rep. Tom DeLay +
Rep. John Doolittle
Sen. John Ensign
Sen. Charles Grassley
Rep. J. Dennis Hastert +
Rep. Ernie Istook +
Sen. Trent Lott
Sen. Harry Reid
Rep. Pete Sessions
Rep. David Vitter +
Rep. Roger Wicker
Grover Norquist

Cronyism

Sen. Conrad Burns +
Rep. Tom DeLay +
Rep. John Doolittle
Rep. Bob Ney * +
Grover Norquist
Tony Rudy
Neil Volz
J. Steven Griles
Susan Ralston

Favors

Rep. Bob Ney * +
Rep. Richard Pombo +
Rep. David Vitter +
Rep. Don Young
Doug Bandow
Italia Federici
Timothy Flanigan
J. Steven Griles
Gale A. Norton
Susan Ralston

Trips

Rep. Tom DeLay +
Rep. John Doolittle
Rep. Tom Feeney +
Rep. Bob Ney *
Ed Buckham
Susan Hirschmann
Ralph Reed
David Safavian

Mashpee

Rep. Richard Pombo +

Gifts

Rep. Tom DeLay +
Rep. John Doolittle
Sen. Tom Harkin +
Rep. J.D. Hayworth +
Rep. Bob Ney * +
Rep. Don Young

* Denotes individuals who have been subponaed, indicted, or found guilty in the Abramoff investigation.

+ Denotes individuals who have returned donations from Abramoff, his clients, or his partners.

Methodology: Members of Congress were included if they received over $10,000 from Abramoff, his clients or his partners and have allegedly done favors for Abramoff, his clients or his partners. Members who were acting on behalf of a constituent in their state were excluded, even if those constituents were Abramoff clients. Certain members who received less than $10,000 in Abramoff were included because of extensive allegations of favors done for Abramoff.

More...

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Jane Stillwater, blogger and grandmother in Iraq, interviews John McCain

by Geezer Power 3:28:00 PM PDT


Jane Stillwater's Fourth Report:

Sunday, April 01, 2007



More news from Iraq: Me, the Light Brigade & John McCain

By Jane Stillwater

JANE STILLWATER'S REPORT FROM IRAQ

Iconoclast journalist Jane P. Stillwater is now embedded in Kuwait. She maneuvered past the road blocks of bureaucracy to arrive there and has filed her first report from the Middle East. Stillwater's reports will be updated as they arrive on the Iconoclast site. Here, you can follow the stalwart and indomitable reporting of Stillwater to the Iconoclast and the world at large.

Stillwater is a grandmother from Berkeley, California who is dedicated to the truth and justice for all Americans. The Iconoclast is delighted to be able to enable this kind of coverage so that Americans can know.

So it's OK for Halliburton to do Work for Terrorist Nations!

by global Evildoer Fighter @ 5:15 PM EDT

Halliburton winds up Iran work

US oil services giant Halliburton said Monday it had wrapped up its work commitments in Iran and was no longer conducting any projects in the Islamic republic.

Halliburton announced in January of 2005 that it was shutting-down its Iran operations, but would honor existing "contractual commitments" until they were fulfilled.

"Halliburton announced today that all of its contractual commitments in Iran have been completed and the company is no longer working in Iran," the firm said in a brief statement.

The company, headed by Dick Cheney from 1995 to 2000 before he became vice president, added that its "prior business" in Iran was "clearly permissible under applicable laws and regulations."

Halliburton, which could not be reached for further comment, was involved in at least one contract to drill for gas in Iran in 2005 although the contract was subsequently cancelled by Iran's government.

It had won the contract even though a US law, dating to 1996, threatens sanctions on US and foreign groups that invest over 40 million dollars in Iran's energy sector.

Halliburton might be pulling out of Iran, which has troubled political relations with the United States, but it is boosting its footprint elsewhere in the region.

Halliburton announced last month that it was relocating to the United Arab Emirates to capitalize on the Gulf region's booming energy market.

Raw has it

Were The Multiple White House Email Systems Used To Conceal Activities??

by S-Q @ 1:54 PM MDT

© 2007 Stephen Pitt

LA Times

Democrats say a private e-mail system was used in violation of federal rules. In addition, Democrats point to a handful of e-mails obtained through ongoing inquiries suggesting the system may have been used to conceal such activities as contacts with lobbyist Jack Abramoff, who was convicted on bribery charges and is now in prison for fraud.


WASHINGTON — When Karl Rove and his top deputies arrived at the White House in 2001, the Republican National Committee provided them with laptop computers and other communication devices to be used alongside their government-issued equipment.

The back-channel e-mail and paging system, paid for and maintained by the RNC, was designed to avoid charges that had vexed the Clinton White House — that federal resources were being used inappropriately for political campaign purposes.

Now, that dual computer system is creating new embarrassment and legal headaches for the White House, the Republican Party and Rove's once-vaunted White House operation.

Democrats say evidence suggests the RNC e-mail system was used for political and government policy matters in violation of federal record preservation and disclosure rules.

The Unauthorized Biography of Dick Cheney

by Geezer Power 12:49:00 PM PDT




This is the story of Dick Cheney's vision of America. But he has selective vision. With all of the ongo about the Poquito' Cajone's and Gonzo, Darth is still insulated in his secret chambers, while Porkrind is beginning to break out in a cold sweat. As Special Prosecutor Biloxi once said on Fitz's blog "All roads lead to Cheney".


VIDEO

ARTICLE

Waxman Grows Fond of Rice! :)

by Global Evildoer Fighter @ 3:40 PM EDT

Waxman to Rice: The More You Ignore Me, The Closer I Get
By Paul Kiel - April 9, 2007, 12:37 PM

Here's the latest instance of what is becoming a flourishing genre in the new Congress: the spurned chairman letter. It comes when oversight efforts are met with deafening silence from the administration.

House Oversight and Government Reform Chairman Henry Waxman (D-CA) wrote Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice such a letter (pdf) today.

Last month, Waxman wrote Rice, inviting her to an April 18 hearing on the Niger forgeries and the infamous sixteen words, and asking a list of questions about what she knew about the documents and how they got into the State of the Union address. What he got in return was a mostly irrelevant letter from one of Rice's subordinates forwarding previous correspondence that answered none of his questions. He's not happy and is pressing again for answers.

TPM Story

Gonzales Death Watch...While He Crams For A Senate Grilling!

by S-Q @ 11:04 AM MDT

© 2007 Stephen Pitt


Washington Monthly

Michael Isikoff reports that Alberto Gonzales has wiped his schedule clean and brought the Justice Department to a "state of paralysis" in order to prepare for his April 17 testimony before Congress. Apparently it's not going well:

At a recent "prep" for a prospective Sunday talk-show interview, Gonzales's performance was so poor that top aides scrapped any live appearances. During the March 23 session in the A.G.'s conference room, Gonzales was grilled by a team of top aides and advisers — including former Republican National Committee chair Ed Gillespie and former White House lawyer Tim Flanigan — about what he knew about the plan to fire seven U.S. attorneys last fall. But Gonzales kept contradicting himself and "getting his timeline confused," said one participant who asked not to be identified talking about a private meeting. His advisers finally got "exasperated" with him, the source added. "He's not ready," Tasia Scolinos, Gonzales's public-affairs chief, told the A.G.'s top aides after the session was over, said the source.

Everyone prepares for congressional testimony, but this is ridiculous. If Gonzales was planning to simply tell the truth, he wouldn't "keep contradicting himself" in practice sessions and he wouldn't need to bring his schedule to a standstill in order to figure out what he's planning to say. He'd just review the appropriate documents to make sure he had his dates straight and then tell Congress what happened.

Obviously, though, that's not quite what he's planning to do, is it?

Bush & Cheney Step on Down...We gotta talk!

by Global Evildoer Fighter @ 12:20 PM EDT

It’s Time to Impeach Bush and Cheney … Seriously
by Paul Hogarth‚ Apr. 09‚ 2007

Here in San Francisco, supporting impeachment is like preaching to the choir, but I am now convinced that it has gone from desirable to necessary. Now that Congress has voted to withdraw our troops from Iraq, the U.S. government is at an impasse. George Bush is “the Decider,” and he stubbornly refuses to work with a new Congress that was elected to end this disastrous War.

If anything, growing opposition will only make this President dig deeper into his heels. He’s a lame duck who will never have to face the voters again, so why should he give in to the will of the people? Before the Democrats wimp out and drop their efforts to withdraw, we must ratchet up the pressure – and the logical solution at this point is to call for his impeachment.

Beyond Chron Full Story

Impeachment is on the Table and it's on the Ceiling too! ;)

When It Comes Back Around And Bites You In The Rear End!!

by S-Q @ 7:40 AM MDT


Think Progress


In a recent TV interview, Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) criticized CNN’s Wolf Blitzer, saying he didn’t know what was going on in Iraq. As proof of progress, McCain claimed, “General Petraeus goes out there almost every day in an unarmed humvee.”

Sunday night in a 60 Minutes interview, McCain acknowledged that statement was a lie. He said “there is no unarmored humvees. Obviously, that’s the case.” He excused himself, saying, “I’m trying to make the point over and over and over again that we are making progress.”

McCain also previously claimed that there are neighborhoods that you can walk around freely, claiming his heavily-armed stroll through a Baghdad market was an example. Tonight, McCain said he can “understand why they would provide me with that security.”

“Of course I’m gonna misspeak,” McCain said. “I’ve done it on numerous occasions. And I probably will in the future. I regret that when I divert attention to something that I’ve said from my message. But that’s just life. And I’m happy, frankly, with the way I operate. Otherwise it’d be a lot less fun.”

Watch the entire video here.


But, this is the best 19 seconds of that video!!

Torture and Selective Outrage

by anthony @ 12:52 PM BST

by Dave Lindorff
OpEdNews
April 8, 2007 at 10:05:35

The alleged torture of British Navy personnel by Iraqi Revolutionary Guards was page one news in the New York Times and other US publications on Saturday, and the outrage in America and Britain was almost universal.

According to the just released 15 captives, they were blindfolded, then forced to listen to guns being cocked, which led them to believe they might be executed. They were placed in isolation from one another, yelled at, and forced to confess to having trespassed in Iranian territorial waters.

These abusive treatments are all awful, and no one would want to have to endure them, but let's be honest here: they pale in comparison to what American captives have been put through in Iraq, in Afghanistan, in Guantanamo, and at various secret "black sites" around the world from Poland to Ethiopia.

Bush Spreads Guantanamo Gangrene Globally

by anthony @ 11:25 AM BST

April 8, 2007 at 18:58:47
by Sherwood Ross
opednews.com

Jumah Al Dossari has been rotting in Guatanamo for five years now without ever having been charged of an offense. The prisoner believes “he has been condemned to live forever on an island where there is no law,” his lawyer says, adding, “He may well be right.”

Al Dossari is forced to spend virtually the entire day in solid-wall solitary under conditions that make Devil’s Island look like a health spa on the Riviera. He was kidnapped illegally, transported halfway around the world, torn from his family and other living beings, denied sunlight, short-shackled, beaten, and told by his sadistic tormentors he will never get out. On three occasions he has attempted suicide, according to his lawyer Joshua Colangelo-Bryan, who told his story in the April 5 Miami Herald.


Al Dossari cannot believe a human being can be flung in prison with no evidence, but what does he know of how President Bush and Congress have torched our Constitution? Al Dossari’s fate differs little from 400 other Guantanamo captives and of tens of thousands of luckless U.S. prisoners around the world, the bitter harvest of illegal wars by an illegitimate regime.

Video: The Road to Guantanamo, Channel 4

Delusional Joe ...Stop Drinking The Kool-Aid!!!

by S-Q @ 7:10 PM MDT

© 2007 Stephen Pitt


AMERICAblog

Joe Lieberman thinks the Iraq insurgents and Syria blew up the World Trade Center

That isn't just an outright lie, it's insane. That's a bigger lie than anything Dick Cheney has even said. Syria had nothing to do with September 11. Neither did Saddam Hussein or the folks fighting the civil war in Iraq. It's just delusional to suggest otherwise - George Bush hasn't even had the nerve to say anything that absurdly untrue. I'm increasingly wondering whose side Joe Lieberman is really on, because his insane ramblings about Iraq and the Middle East are clearly not in America's interests.

ThinkProgress has the video.

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Rudy Giuliani In Drag Smooching Donald Trump

by S-Q @ 2:45 PM MDT


Pictures are worth so much more than words...



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The Last Confessions of E. Howard Hunt

by anthony at 20:23 BST

He was the ultimate keeper of secrets, lurking in the shadows of American history. He toppled banana republics, planned the Bay of Pigs invasion and led the Watergate break-in. Now he would reveal what he'd always kept hidden: who killed JFK

ERIK HEDEGAARD
Rolling Stone
Sunday, April 8, 2007

>> Who assassinated JFK? The conversation continues in our politics blog, National Affairs Daily.

Once, when the old spymaster thought he was dying, his eldest son came to visit him at his home in Miami. The scourges recently had been constant and terrible: lupus, pneumonia, cancers of the jaw and prostate, gangrene, the amputation of his left leg. It was like something was eating him up. Long past were his years of heroic service to the country. In the CIA, he'd helped mastermind the violent removal of a duly elected leftist president in Guatemala and assisted in subterfuges that led to the murder of Che Guevara. But no longer could you see in him the suave, pipe-smoking, cocktail-party-loving clandestine operative whose Cold War exploits he himself had, almost obsessively, turned into novels, one of which, East of Farewell, the New York Times once called "the best sea story" of World War II. Diminished too were the old bad memories, of the Bay of Pigs debacle that derailed his CIA career for good, of the Watergate Hotel fiasco, of his first wife's death, of thirty-three months in U.S. prisons -- of, in fact, a furious lifetime mainly of failure, disappointment and pain. But his firstborn son -- he named him St. John; Saint, for short -- was by his side now. And he still had a secret or two left to share before it was all over.

Another GOP hits at Gonzo: Gonzo Gotta Go, Need a "New Team" at DOJ

by Global Evildoer Fighter @ 2:20 PM EDT

Embattled Bush loyalist loses key conservative support


AFP
April 8, 2007

Attorney General Alberto Gonzales on Sunday lost the support of an influential US conservative as he prepared for make-or-break testimony over the dismissal of eight federal prosecutors.

Until now, pressure for the long-time ally of President George W. Bush to resign -- after evidence emerged implicating Gonzales in the firings of the attorneys for allegedly partisan reasons -- has come mainly from Democrats in Congress.

Newt Gingrich, the former speaker of the House of Representatives and one of the most influential conservative US Republicans, told Fox News it was time for a new attorney general.

Raw Story

The senior view of the president's radio address

by Geezer Power 9:30:00 AM PDT

THE PRESIDENT: Good morning. This week, people around the world celebrate Passover and Easter. These holy days remind us of the presence of a loving God who delivers His people from oppression, and offers a love more powerful than death. We take joy in spending this special time with family and friends, and we give thanks for the many blessings in our lives.

One of our greatest blessings as Americans is that we have brave citizens who step forward to defend us. Every man or woman who wears our Nation's uniform is a volunteer, a patriot who has made the noble decision to serve a cause larger than self. This weekend, many of our service men and women are celebrating the holidays far from home. They are separated from their families by great distances, but they are always close in our thoughts. And this Passover and Easter, I ask you to keep them in your prayers.

Our men and women in uniform deserve the gratitude of every American. And from their elected leaders, they deserve something more: the funds, resources, and equipment they need to do their jobs.

Sixty-one days have passed since I sent Congress an emergency war spending bill to provide the funds our troops urgently need. But instead of approving that vital funding, Democrats in Congress have spent the past 61 days working to pass legislation that would substitute the judgment of politicians in Washington for the judgment of our generals in the field.

In both the House and Senate, Democratic majorities have passed bills that would impose restrictions on our military commanders, set an arbitrary date for withdrawal from Iraq, and fund domestic spending that has nothing to do with the war. The Democrats who passed these bills know that I will veto either version if it reaches my desk, and they know my veto will be sustained. Yet they continue to pursue the legislation. And now the process is on hold for two weeks, until the full Congress returns to session.

I recognize that Democrats are trying to show their current opposition to the war in Iraq. They see the emergency war spending bill as a chance to make that statement. Yet for our men and women in uniform, this emergency war spending bill is not a political statement, it is a source of critical funding that has a direct impact on their daily lives.

When Congress does not fund our troops on the front lines, our military is forced to make cuts in other areas to cover the shortfall. Military leaders have warned Congress about this problem. The Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Pete Pace, recently testified that if Congress fails to pass a bill I can sign by mid-April, the Army will be forced to consider cutting back on training, equipment repair, and quality of life initiatives for our Guard and Reserve forces. In a letter to Congress, Army Chief of Staff Pete Schoomaker put it this way: "Without approval of the supplemental funds in April, we will be forced to take increasingly draconian measures which will impact Army readiness and impose hardships on our soldiers and their families."


If Congress fails to pass a bill I can sign by mid-May, the problems grow even more acute. The Army will be forced to consider slowing or even freezing funding for depots where pivotal equipment is repaired, delaying or curtailing the training of some active duty forces, and delaying the formation of new brigade combat teams. The bottom line is that Congress's failure to fund our troops will mean that some of our military families could wait longer for their loved ones to return from the front lines. And others could see their loved ones headed back to war sooner than they need to. That is unacceptable to me, and I believe it is unacceptable to the American people.

The full Congress will not be back from spring vacation until the week of April 16th. That means the soonest the House and Senate could get a bill to my desk will be sometime late this month, after the adverse consequences for our troops and their families have already begun. For our troops, the clock is ticking. If the Democrats continue to insist on making a political statement, they should send me their bill as soon as possible. I will veto it, and then Congress can go to work on a good bill that gives our troops the funds they need, without strings and without further delay.

We have our differences in Washington, D.C., but our troops should not be caught in the middle. All who serve in elected office have a solemn responsibility to provide for our men and women in uniform. We need to put partisan politics aside, and do our duty to those who defend us.

Thank you for listening.

Another Day... Another GOP Scandal With Alleged Mafia Ties...

by S-Q @ 10:30 AM MDT

WaPo

White House Looked Past Alarms on Kerik
Giuliani, Gonzales Pushed DHS Bid Forward

When former New York mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani urged President Bush to make Bernard B. Kerik the next secretary of homeland security, White House aides knew Kerik as the take-charge top cop from Sept. 11, 2001. But it did not take them long to compile an extensive dossier of damaging information about the would-be Cabinet officer.

They learned about questionable financial deals, an ethics violation, allegations of mismanagement and a top deputy prosecuted for corruption. Most disturbing, according to people close to the process, was Kerik's friendship with a businessman who was linked to organized crime. The businessman had told federal authorities that Kerik received gifts, including $165,000 in apartment renovations, from a New Jersey family with alleged Mafia ties.

The Godfather Theme song

Refresher: Monica Goodling Outed as Bush/Cheney Oppo Operative by Josh Marshall at TPM Media

by Global Evildoer Fighter @ 11:50 AM EDT

BOO!!



Ms. 5th Amendment Outing!

McCAIN'S LATEST SCREWUP....More Catholic than the Pope?

by S-Q @ 8:49 AM MDT

Washington Monthly

Apparently that's John McCain's new strategy:

Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) will launch a high-profile effort next week to convince Americans that the Iraq war is winnable, embracing the unpopular conflict with renewed vigor as he attempts to reignite his stalling bid for the presidency.

This sounds like a godsend for McCain's opponents: he's making it slam-dunk easy for them to run to his left on the war without having to sound like they're completely giving up on it. Romney and Giuliani ought to be dancing in the streets at this news.

Dick Cheney Ruins Easter

By anthony @ 2:06 PM BST

3 U.S. Attorney's Lawyers Resign Posts

by S-Q @ 8:45 PM MDT

© 2007 Stephen Pitt


Huffington Post/AP

MINNEAPOLIS — Three lawyers in the U.S. Attorney's office in Minneapolis resigned their management posts, moves that gained national attention against the backdrop of claims top federal prosecutors elsewhere were fired for political reasons.

U.S. Attorney Rachel Paulose confirmed Friday that John Marti, a first assistant U.S. attorney, Erika Mozangue, head of the office's civil division, and James Lackner, who heads the office's criminal division, have decided to "go back to the line to be full-time prosecutors."

She did not say why the three stepped down and indicated that she would have no further public comment. "We have work to do," her statement said.

The Spin, I'm In!

by S-Q @ 8:20 PM MDT


Phil Collins - In The Air Tonight

Bush's administrations claim to fame is it's "lies"

by Geezer Power 6:43:00 PM

Bush campaigned for the presidency as the fellow who would bring honesty back to the White House. During his first full day on the job, while swearing in his White House staff, he reminded his cadre, "On a mantelpiece in this great house is inscribed the prayer of John Adams, that only the wise and honest may rule under this roof." But Adams's prayer would once more go unanswered. There has been no restoration of integrity. Bush's promise was a lie. The future of the United States remains in the hands of a dishonest man.


The Other Lies of George Bush