There Is A Lot Of Ugly Truth Here: Bush, Cheney, Iraq, Davis, Martial Law, Black Water Mercenaries; It Sounds Like TV News...ALL BAD!
I'm Myra from NC—I think I had the very first ITMFA license plate. They pulled it about 2 months ago—I got a polite letter, a self addressed envelope for the return, and a new plate in the mail. I HAD to put on the new plate, or I wouldn't have been legal driving. But I did not return the plate. I will hang it up, framed, for my grandson to have. And I did not cash the check they sent to refund my special plate fee. Therefore, the transaction never finished in their computers, and they cannot make me return it.
A memento. It was great while I had it on, though. Myra G.
Where are you, ACLU?
In other ITMFA news, my old arch-enemies at the Des Moines Register published an editorial in defense of ITMFA plates.
Who cares if a driver you've never met is Cyclone fan (CYFAN) or likes to play tennis (10SNE1)? Personalized license plates are curious because, like bumper stickers, they reveal the need some people have to announce tidbits about themselves to other motorists who probably couldn't care less.
But in some cases, the government cares a lot. Government-issued plates are subject to government regulation.
The Iowa Administrative Code states personal plates can have "No combination of characters...which is sexual in connotation; defined in dictionaries as a term of vulgarity, contempt, prejudice, hostility, insult, or racial or ethnic degradation; recognized as a swear word; considered to be offensive; or a foreign word falling into any of these categories."
Defining "offensive" is tricky business. And likely a headache for Iowa Department of Transportation officials who take complaints about license plates. This year, the DOT has sent letters to nine Iowans asking them to surrender their plates.
Included in the list are: ITMFA, HORNDOG, GOTWUD1, HUKDFOX, BCHMGNT, 2REDRUM, COOTER, and 3REICH.
We'll admit we were scratching our heads on a few of these until we checked the Internet for the meaning of slang terms.
The DOT also issued a letter to John Miller of Boone for the FNADER plates on his Corvair. He's not only refusing to give them up; he's getting some help from the American Civil Liberties Union of Iowa.
There are thousands of words in the English language beginning with the letter F. Is that letter now recognized as always synonymous with a swear word?
We don't think so. Censoring it amounts to censoring thoughts.
Register writer John Carlson elaborated on ITMFA in a recent column. This is apparently taken from an anti-Bush Web site and stands for "Impeach the (expletive) Already."
But how could anyone be offended unless they read Carlson's column or were familiar with the Web site?
Aside from banning plates that spell out profanities, the DOT should leave creative Iowa drivers alone.
From the Des Moines Register:
Glen Keenan got his shiny new personalized license plates on Aug. 1.
The polite, but firm, letter from the Iowa Department of Transportation arrived a week later.
If he would be so kind, the state told him, please "voluntarily surrender" the new plates. Within 10 days. In other words, pronto.
"I don't know what to do, but I don't think so," said Keenan, a lifelong Iowan from Jefferson County. "It's not an obscene message. I really don't understand why I wouldn't be allowed to keep them."
Keenan tells me this is what his personalized Iowa license plates say: ITMFA.
...
There were two complaints about Keenan's plates similar to the objection somebody had in Chapter 1 of Iowa's personalized license plate problem.
Surely you remember John Miller of Boone, the guy who put the "F NADER" plates on his Corvair. The state has ordered the plate be revoked, and the American Civil Liberties Union of Iowa is intervening on his behalf.
The first step is an administrative hearing. Keenan says he, too, is in contact with the ACLU.
Miller's and Keenan's are two of the nine state-ordered revocations this year.
"I don't know what the big deal is with mine," said Keenan, 41. "My plate isn't vulgar. It's simply a series of letters than can mean any number of things."
Really?
"Sure," he said. "It can mean 'Impeach the Miserable Failure Already.' Or it could mean 'Information Technology Masters Fine Arts.' You could think of lots of things. I mean, any vehicle with an 'F' on the license plate could be objectionable to somebody."
Which is why they are treating migraines at the Iowa Department of Transportation. And possibly elsewhere.
The Web site also has pictures of vehicles in Massachusetts and Washington, D.C., with the same message on license plates.
What will it take for Keenan to ditch the plates?
"I'll give them up if Bush is impeached or when he's no longer president," Keenan said.
http://www.thanhniennews.com/worlds/?catid=9&newsid=31349
An American doctor who volunteered to serve in Vietnam during the war has sent 100 copies of his Vietnam War memoirs to US senators in an attempt to influence the debate on the Iraq War.
Not all senators had seen war firsthand, Dr. Allen Hassan observed, and the experience of war was extremely sobering.
Failure to Atone: The True Story of a Jungle Surgeon in Vietnam is a powerful testament to the misery, death, and suffering of civilian populations caught in an aggressive war.
The city of San Fernando City Council Pass Resolution For ImpeachmentAtlantic Free Press - Groningen,NetherlandsThe city of San Fernando City Council passed an impeachment resolution for President Bush with a unanimous vote on August 20, 2007. ...See all stories on this topic
Why is Impeachment off the Table?Free Market News Network - Pompano Beach,FL,USAAccording to public opinion polling, the percentage of voters supporting the impeachments of both President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney are now ...See all stories on this topic
IMPEACHMENT FRIDAY: Bush Is DelusionalBy hotpotato At a minimum his line should read: ...and liberated 50 million citizens from tyrannical rule and delivered them to hell. Clearly we have two DICK's in the White House. Why not throw them both out?
Impeach.Hot Potato Mash - http://www.hotpotatomash.com/
AND 47 Americans - It's time to get involved, Impeachment dialog ...By info@anationdeceived.org (Craig S. Barnes) Bruce Russell is a Prof. of Sociology and Criminology and founder of Montana Partners for Impeachment (MPFI). Through various MPFI efforts, he has been regularly raising the awareness of the people of Montana regarding impeachment and ...Impeachment Podcast - http://www.anationdeceived.org
Thanks NPR - Impeachment Segment Ran on NPR on WednesdayBy takomaparkibc On Wednesday the NPR program Day to Day ran a balanced, accurate segment on impeachment that presented both sides (pro-impeachment and 'it's not going to go anywhere'). They even had Bruce Fein on saying Democrats are afraid of having ...
Takoma Park Impeach Bush & Cheney - http://takomaparkibc.wordpress.com
Calls for impeachment are missing the factsBy Jackson Citizen Patriot JACKSON -- To all the liberals and Democrats out there calling for President Bush's impeachment, know your facts before running your mouths. There are only a few serious acts, such as treason, that can lead to impeaching the president. ...Opinion and Column - Jackson... - http://blog.mlive.com/citpat_opinion/
Pelosi's Stand Blocking Impeachment in the House is Killing the ...By sudhan It's not just the Constitution that is suffering because of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's nutty and unprincipled "impeachment-off-the-table" position blocking any effort to impeach President Bush or Vice President Cheney for their many ...Suzie-Q - http://suzieqq.wordpress.com
An intensifying US campaign against Iran
http://www.csmonitor.com/2007/0824/p01s01-wome.html?s=hns
Amid US charges of Iran's hand in Iraq's instability, some counsel caution.
By Scott Peterson Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor
from the August 24, 2007 edition
Page 1 of 3
Istanbul, Turkey - Somalia, 1993: During the darkest days of the American military intervention, when US troops were taking casualties from drug-addled gunmen wearing flip-flops, US officials pointed to a familiar nemesis.
It was Iran, warned Madeleine Albright, then-US envoy to the United Nations, that had forged a "tactical alliance" with a Somali warlord and "terrorists" in Sudan. Intelligence sources for the first time spoke of smuggled Iranian weapons. In Mogadishu, journalists were told that Iranian agents were training Somalis to make car bombs. But no proof was ever presented.
US charges against Iran's role in Iraq are mounting. But analysts say that a history of unsubstantiated US claims against Iran should serve as a cautionary tale. The lesson to be drawn is not that Iran is guiltless in Iraq, they say, but one of restraint as a familiar drumbeat sounds.
The latest step in the Bush administration's intensifying campaign to depict Iran as a disruptive force in Iraq is a decision to designate Iran's Revolutionary Guard force a "terrorist" group. That label, and a push for more UN sanctions against Iran over its nuclear program, and continued charges of training, funding, and supplying anti-US militants in Iraq, experts say, could harm Iraq security talks between US and Iranian diplomats in Baghdad.
"The Americans are blaming Iran for everything that goes wrong, even if it's not Iran's fault, and Iran does the same with the US," says Trita Parsi, the Washington-based author of the forthcoming "Treacherous Alliance: Secret Dealings of Israel, Iran and the US."
"Decisionmakers in Washington are by-the-minute limiting their own maneuverability in how to deal with Iran, [thereby] making it more difficult to put the relationship on a positive track," he says.
The US case against Iran
This week, the US commander of central Iraq claimed that 50 officers of the Revolutionary Guard's elite Qods Force were in Iraq, training militants.
Top US officers also charged this month that lethal roadside bombs called explosively formed penetrators (EFPs) from Iran were used in 99 attacks in July and caused one-third of US combat deaths, an "all-time high," Lt. Gen. Raymond Odierno, deputy US commander in Iraq, told The New York Times.
General Odierno claimed the "Iranians are surging support" to Iranian-trained cells to influence US decisions about the Baghdad troop surge. "Over the past three to four months, [Iran's support] has picked up in terms of equipment, training and dollars," Odierno told the Times.
Some US charges appear to stick. US forces earlier this month captured homemade video of preparations for two Shiite militant attacks on a US base southeast of Baghdad on July 11 and Aug. 5. The footage showed 50 fresh-from-the-box 107-mm rockets being lined up on metal stands in daylight, to fire upon the base.
Intelligence officers told Fox News that there was "no doubt" the rockets – still with some packing grease and English lettering for export, the year 2006, and color-coded – were made in Iran. How they got to Iraq, and carried by whom, they could not say. Fourteen of those rockets were fired at the base, killing one soldier; 36 others were found primed, but their timers failed. Three more larger rockets were fired Aug. 5.
Page 1 2 3 Next Page
U.S. criticism draws a blunt Iraqi retort
http://www.latimes.com/news/la-fg-maliki23aug23,0,5688757.story?coll=la-tot-topstories&track=ntottext
Maliki, in Syria, says his nation 'can find friends elsewhere.' Analysts doubt Washington wants to replace him.
By Carol J. Williams, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer August 23, 2007
BAGHDAD -- Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri Maliki warned the Bush administration after talks with longtime U.S. adversaries in Syria on Wednesday that Iraq "can find friends elsewhere" if Washington doesn't like how he runs his country.
Maliki's defiant rhetoric followed criticism from the White House and congressional leaders in recent days of his efforts to unite his Cabinet and improve stability, which would permit a reduction in the number of U.S. troops here.
Advice by the chairman of the Joint Chiefs poses a potential clash with supporters of the buildup.
http://www.latimes.com/news/la-fg-pace24aug24,0,6180731.story?coll=la-tot-topstories&track=ntottext
By Julian E. Barnes and Peter Spiegel, Los Angeles Times Staff Writers 12:23 PM PDT, August 24, 2007
WASHINGTON -- The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff is expected to advise President Bush to reduce the U.S. force in Iraq next year by almost half, potentially creating a rift with top White House officials and other military commanders over the course of the war.
Administration and military officials say Marine Gen. Peter Pace is likely to convey concerns by the Joint Chiefs that keeping well in excess of 100,000 troops in Iraq through 2008 will severely strain the military. This assessment could collide with one being prepared by the U.S. commander in Iraq, Army Gen. David H. Petraeus, calling for the U.S. to maintain higher troop levels for 2008 and beyond.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/19/opinion/19jayamaha.html?pagewanted=1&_r=2
VIEWED from Iraq at the tail end of a 15-month deployment, the political debate in Washington is indeed surreal. Counterinsurgency is, by definition, a competition between insurgents and counterinsurgents for the control and support of a population. To believe that Americans, with an occupying force that long ago outlived its reluctant welcome, can win over a recalcitrant local population and win this counterinsurgency is far-fetched.
http://thinkprogress.org/2007/08/24/tom-davis-tweak
Rep. Tom Davis (R-VA): White House Will ‘Tweak’ The ‘Petraeus Report’
Last week, the media reported — and the White House confirmed — that the so-called “Petraeus report,” which will document the conditions on the ground in Iraq, will not be authored by Gen. David Petraeus, but rather by the White House.
Yesterday, Rep. Tom Davis (R-VA) “bravely agreed to attend a meeting of the antiwar Americans Against Escalation in Iraq.” Davis was asked by Iraq war veteran John Bruhns whether reports of the “Petraeus report” being “filtered through the White House” were true.
Davis responded that he assumed that the White House would “tweak” the report:
I just would assume that if it goes through the White House, they will take it and do what they, you know — I’m sure they will probably tweak it.
Price nixes impeachmentThe Independent Weekly - Durham,NC,USADavid Price agreed President George W. Bush has abused his power, but stopped short of committing to lead impeachment proceedings at an Aug. ...See all stories on this topic
A Primer on ImpeachmentOpEdNews - Newtown,PA,USAby thomas bonsell Page 1 of 2 page(s) Impatience with the Democrats in Congress seems to grow daily about their inaction to begin
impeachment proceedings of ...See all stories on this topic
Impeaching Gonzales would restore integrity to impeachment
ePluribus Media - USAby clammyc The stupidest most illogical reason that I hear for not pursuing impeachment charges against Bush or Cheney or Gonzales or anyone else for that ...See all stories on this topic
No resignations? Easy...impeachmentBy Newsdesk In the meantime, what does it take to get you guys to see the light? Remember [Richard] Nixon, [Spiro] Agnew, [John N.] Mitchell? Remember? All had the sense to resign, but not this crew. Impeachment is obviously the answer. ...
.com/news_opinion_letters/http://newsblogs.chicagotribune.com/news_opinion_letters/
PCPBy info@anationdeceived.org (Craig S. Barnes) - - - Private Client Audio Preview - - - password required.Impeachment Podcast - http://www.anationdeceived.org
'The Genuis of Impeachment' to be Discussed at Cedar HillSharon Jones, facilitator of the Cedar Hill Reading Group, encourages any interested persons to attend, even if they have not read the book by John Nichols...CummingHome - Forsyth County News - http://www.cumminghome.com/news30041/index.shtml
Cartoon Strip: Nota Bene by Leonardo No. 56 - Impeachment Now!And yet Congress lacks the courage, the will to do their job and reign in the American dictator. What of the media? Nothing sanitizes so well as sunlight. They must have the courage to show the President that impeachment is back on the ...Salem-News.com - http://salem-news.com
Top Story: The Republicans' $15 Million Campaign to Stay the Course in Iraq
This week, a group of former Bush Administration officials launched an ad campaign to persuade 37 key Congressional Republicans to keep Rubber Stamping the President's failed war in Iraq. The $15 million ad blitz targets Republicans in 20 states and 60 Congressional districts across the country.
Groups plan $30 million battle over warThe Politico
"Anti-war groups ridiculed a $15 million, Republican-led ad campaign aimed at rallying support for the war in Iraq..."
Republicans Jump Ship
It's getting hard to keep track of the growing list of Republicans who are looking for the nearest exit. Last month, Republican Congressman Ray LaHood (IL-18) announced he will not run for re-election. This past week, he was joined by four other senior Republicans, including former House Speaker Dennis Hastert, the ethically-challenged Rick Renzi, and the President's political guru, Karl Rove.
A memento. It was great while I had it on, though. Myra G.
Where are you, ACLU?
In other ITMFA news, my old arch-enemies at the Des Moines Register published an editorial in defense of ITMFA plates.
Who cares if a driver you've never met is Cyclone fan (CYFAN) or likes to play tennis (10SNE1)? Personalized license plates are curious because, like bumper stickers, they reveal the need some people have to announce tidbits about themselves to other motorists who probably couldn't care less.
But in some cases, the government cares a lot. Government-issued plates are subject to government regulation.
The Iowa Administrative Code states personal plates can have "No combination of characters...which is sexual in connotation; defined in dictionaries as a term of vulgarity, contempt, prejudice, hostility, insult, or racial or ethnic degradation; recognized as a swear word; considered to be offensive; or a foreign word falling into any of these categories."
Defining "offensive" is tricky business. And likely a headache for Iowa Department of Transportation officials who take complaints about license plates. This year, the DOT has sent letters to nine Iowans asking them to surrender their plates.
Included in the list are: ITMFA, HORNDOG, GOTWUD1, HUKDFOX, BCHMGNT, 2REDRUM, COOTER, and 3REICH.
We'll admit we were scratching our heads on a few of these until we checked the Internet for the meaning of slang terms.
The DOT also issued a letter to John Miller of Boone for the FNADER plates on his Corvair. He's not only refusing to give them up; he's getting some help from the American Civil Liberties Union of Iowa.
There are thousands of words in the English language beginning with the letter F. Is that letter now recognized as always synonymous with a swear word?
We don't think so. Censoring it amounts to censoring thoughts.
Register writer John Carlson elaborated on ITMFA in a recent column. This is apparently taken from an anti-Bush Web site and stands for "Impeach the (expletive) Already."
But how could anyone be offended unless they read Carlson's column or were familiar with the Web site?
Aside from banning plates that spell out profanities, the DOT should leave creative Iowa drivers alone.
From the Des Moines Register:
Glen Keenan got his shiny new personalized license plates on Aug. 1.
The polite, but firm, letter from the Iowa Department of Transportation arrived a week later.
If he would be so kind, the state told him, please "voluntarily surrender" the new plates. Within 10 days. In other words, pronto.
"I don't know what to do, but I don't think so," said Keenan, a lifelong Iowan from Jefferson County. "It's not an obscene message. I really don't understand why I wouldn't be allowed to keep them."
Keenan tells me this is what his personalized Iowa license plates say: ITMFA.
...
There were two complaints about Keenan's plates similar to the objection somebody had in Chapter 1 of Iowa's personalized license plate problem.
Surely you remember John Miller of Boone, the guy who put the "F NADER" plates on his Corvair. The state has ordered the plate be revoked, and the American Civil Liberties Union of Iowa is intervening on his behalf.
The first step is an administrative hearing. Keenan says he, too, is in contact with the ACLU.
Miller's and Keenan's are two of the nine state-ordered revocations this year.
"I don't know what the big deal is with mine," said Keenan, 41. "My plate isn't vulgar. It's simply a series of letters than can mean any number of things."
Really?
"Sure," he said. "It can mean 'Impeach the Miserable Failure Already.' Or it could mean 'Information Technology Masters Fine Arts.' You could think of lots of things. I mean, any vehicle with an 'F' on the license plate could be objectionable to somebody."
Which is why they are treating migraines at the Iowa Department of Transportation. And possibly elsewhere.
The Web site also has pictures of vehicles in Massachusetts and Washington, D.C., with the same message on license plates.
What will it take for Keenan to ditch the plates?
"I'll give them up if Bush is impeached or when he's no longer president," Keenan said.
http://www.thanhniennews.com/worlds/?catid=9&newsid=31349
An American doctor who volunteered to serve in Vietnam during the war has sent 100 copies of his Vietnam War memoirs to US senators in an attempt to influence the debate on the Iraq War.
Not all senators had seen war firsthand, Dr. Allen Hassan observed, and the experience of war was extremely sobering.
Failure to Atone: The True Story of a Jungle Surgeon in Vietnam is a powerful testament to the misery, death, and suffering of civilian populations caught in an aggressive war.
The city of San Fernando City Council Pass Resolution For ImpeachmentAtlantic Free Press - Groningen,NetherlandsThe city of San Fernando City Council passed an impeachment resolution for President Bush with a unanimous vote on August 20, 2007. ...See all stories on this topic
Why is Impeachment off the Table?Free Market News Network - Pompano Beach,FL,USAAccording to public opinion polling, the percentage of voters supporting the impeachments of both President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney are now ...See all stories on this topic
IMPEACHMENT FRIDAY: Bush Is DelusionalBy hotpotato At a minimum his line should read: ...and liberated 50 million citizens from tyrannical rule and delivered them to hell. Clearly we have two DICK's in the White House. Why not throw them both out?
Impeach.Hot Potato Mash - http://www.hotpotatomash.com/
AND 47 Americans - It's time to get involved, Impeachment dialog ...By info@anationdeceived.org (Craig S. Barnes) Bruce Russell is a Prof. of Sociology and Criminology and founder of Montana Partners for Impeachment (MPFI). Through various MPFI efforts, he has been regularly raising the awareness of the people of Montana regarding impeachment and ...Impeachment Podcast - http://www.anationdeceived.org
Thanks NPR - Impeachment Segment Ran on NPR on WednesdayBy takomaparkibc On Wednesday the NPR program Day to Day ran a balanced, accurate segment on impeachment that presented both sides (pro-impeachment and 'it's not going to go anywhere'). They even had Bruce Fein on saying Democrats are afraid of having ...
Takoma Park Impeach Bush & Cheney - http://takomaparkibc.wordpress.com
Calls for impeachment are missing the factsBy Jackson Citizen Patriot JACKSON -- To all the liberals and Democrats out there calling for President Bush's impeachment, know your facts before running your mouths. There are only a few serious acts, such as treason, that can lead to impeaching the president. ...Opinion and Column - Jackson... - http://blog.mlive.com/citpat_opinion/
Pelosi's Stand Blocking Impeachment in the House is Killing the ...By sudhan It's not just the Constitution that is suffering because of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's nutty and unprincipled "impeachment-off-the-table" position blocking any effort to impeach President Bush or Vice President Cheney for their many ...Suzie-Q - http://suzieqq.wordpress.com
An intensifying US campaign against Iran
http://www.csmonitor.com/2007/0824/p01s01-wome.html?s=hns
Amid US charges of Iran's hand in Iraq's instability, some counsel caution.
By Scott Peterson Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor
from the August 24, 2007 edition
Page 1 of 3
Istanbul, Turkey - Somalia, 1993: During the darkest days of the American military intervention, when US troops were taking casualties from drug-addled gunmen wearing flip-flops, US officials pointed to a familiar nemesis.
It was Iran, warned Madeleine Albright, then-US envoy to the United Nations, that had forged a "tactical alliance" with a Somali warlord and "terrorists" in Sudan. Intelligence sources for the first time spoke of smuggled Iranian weapons. In Mogadishu, journalists were told that Iranian agents were training Somalis to make car bombs. But no proof was ever presented.
US charges against Iran's role in Iraq are mounting. But analysts say that a history of unsubstantiated US claims against Iran should serve as a cautionary tale. The lesson to be drawn is not that Iran is guiltless in Iraq, they say, but one of restraint as a familiar drumbeat sounds.
The latest step in the Bush administration's intensifying campaign to depict Iran as a disruptive force in Iraq is a decision to designate Iran's Revolutionary Guard force a "terrorist" group. That label, and a push for more UN sanctions against Iran over its nuclear program, and continued charges of training, funding, and supplying anti-US militants in Iraq, experts say, could harm Iraq security talks between US and Iranian diplomats in Baghdad.
"The Americans are blaming Iran for everything that goes wrong, even if it's not Iran's fault, and Iran does the same with the US," says Trita Parsi, the Washington-based author of the forthcoming "Treacherous Alliance: Secret Dealings of Israel, Iran and the US."
"Decisionmakers in Washington are by-the-minute limiting their own maneuverability in how to deal with Iran, [thereby] making it more difficult to put the relationship on a positive track," he says.
The US case against Iran
This week, the US commander of central Iraq claimed that 50 officers of the Revolutionary Guard's elite Qods Force were in Iraq, training militants.
Top US officers also charged this month that lethal roadside bombs called explosively formed penetrators (EFPs) from Iran were used in 99 attacks in July and caused one-third of US combat deaths, an "all-time high," Lt. Gen. Raymond Odierno, deputy US commander in Iraq, told The New York Times.
General Odierno claimed the "Iranians are surging support" to Iranian-trained cells to influence US decisions about the Baghdad troop surge. "Over the past three to four months, [Iran's support] has picked up in terms of equipment, training and dollars," Odierno told the Times.
Some US charges appear to stick. US forces earlier this month captured homemade video of preparations for two Shiite militant attacks on a US base southeast of Baghdad on July 11 and Aug. 5. The footage showed 50 fresh-from-the-box 107-mm rockets being lined up on metal stands in daylight, to fire upon the base.
Intelligence officers told Fox News that there was "no doubt" the rockets – still with some packing grease and English lettering for export, the year 2006, and color-coded – were made in Iran. How they got to Iraq, and carried by whom, they could not say. Fourteen of those rockets were fired at the base, killing one soldier; 36 others were found primed, but their timers failed. Three more larger rockets were fired Aug. 5.
Page 1 2 3 Next Page
U.S. criticism draws a blunt Iraqi retort
http://www.latimes.com/news/la-fg-maliki23aug23,0,5688757.story?coll=la-tot-topstories&track=ntottext
Maliki, in Syria, says his nation 'can find friends elsewhere.' Analysts doubt Washington wants to replace him.
By Carol J. Williams, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer August 23, 2007
BAGHDAD -- Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri Maliki warned the Bush administration after talks with longtime U.S. adversaries in Syria on Wednesday that Iraq "can find friends elsewhere" if Washington doesn't like how he runs his country.
Maliki's defiant rhetoric followed criticism from the White House and congressional leaders in recent days of his efforts to unite his Cabinet and improve stability, which would permit a reduction in the number of U.S. troops here.
Advice by the chairman of the Joint Chiefs poses a potential clash with supporters of the buildup.
http://www.latimes.com/news/la-fg-pace24aug24,0,6180731.story?coll=la-tot-topstories&track=ntottext
By Julian E. Barnes and Peter Spiegel, Los Angeles Times Staff Writers 12:23 PM PDT, August 24, 2007
WASHINGTON -- The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff is expected to advise President Bush to reduce the U.S. force in Iraq next year by almost half, potentially creating a rift with top White House officials and other military commanders over the course of the war.
Administration and military officials say Marine Gen. Peter Pace is likely to convey concerns by the Joint Chiefs that keeping well in excess of 100,000 troops in Iraq through 2008 will severely strain the military. This assessment could collide with one being prepared by the U.S. commander in Iraq, Army Gen. David H. Petraeus, calling for the U.S. to maintain higher troop levels for 2008 and beyond.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/19/opinion/19jayamaha.html?pagewanted=1&_r=2
VIEWED from Iraq at the tail end of a 15-month deployment, the political debate in Washington is indeed surreal. Counterinsurgency is, by definition, a competition between insurgents and counterinsurgents for the control and support of a population. To believe that Americans, with an occupying force that long ago outlived its reluctant welcome, can win over a recalcitrant local population and win this counterinsurgency is far-fetched.
http://thinkprogress.org/2007/08/24/tom-davis-tweak
Rep. Tom Davis (R-VA): White House Will ‘Tweak’ The ‘Petraeus Report’
Last week, the media reported — and the White House confirmed — that the so-called “Petraeus report,” which will document the conditions on the ground in Iraq, will not be authored by Gen. David Petraeus, but rather by the White House.
Yesterday, Rep. Tom Davis (R-VA) “bravely agreed to attend a meeting of the antiwar Americans Against Escalation in Iraq.” Davis was asked by Iraq war veteran John Bruhns whether reports of the “Petraeus report” being “filtered through the White House” were true.
Davis responded that he assumed that the White House would “tweak” the report:
I just would assume that if it goes through the White House, they will take it and do what they, you know — I’m sure they will probably tweak it.
Price nixes impeachmentThe Independent Weekly - Durham,NC,USADavid Price agreed President George W. Bush has abused his power, but stopped short of committing to lead impeachment proceedings at an Aug. ...See all stories on this topic
A Primer on ImpeachmentOpEdNews - Newtown,PA,USAby thomas bonsell Page 1 of 2 page(s) Impatience with the Democrats in Congress seems to grow daily about their inaction to begin
impeachment proceedings of ...See all stories on this topic
Impeaching Gonzales would restore integrity to impeachment
ePluribus Media - USAby clammyc The stupidest most illogical reason that I hear for not pursuing impeachment charges against Bush or Cheney or Gonzales or anyone else for that ...See all stories on this topic
No resignations? Easy...impeachmentBy Newsdesk In the meantime, what does it take to get you guys to see the light? Remember [Richard] Nixon, [Spiro] Agnew, [John N.] Mitchell? Remember? All had the sense to resign, but not this crew. Impeachment is obviously the answer. ...
.com/news_opinion_letters/http://newsblogs.chicagotribune.com/news_opinion_letters/
PCPBy info@anationdeceived.org (Craig S. Barnes) - - - Private Client Audio Preview - - - password required.Impeachment Podcast - http://www.anationdeceived.org
'The Genuis of Impeachment' to be Discussed at Cedar HillSharon Jones, facilitator of the Cedar Hill Reading Group, encourages any interested persons to attend, even if they have not read the book by John Nichols...CummingHome - Forsyth County News - http://www.cumminghome.com/news30041/index.shtml
Cartoon Strip: Nota Bene by Leonardo No. 56 - Impeachment Now!And yet Congress lacks the courage, the will to do their job and reign in the American dictator. What of the media? Nothing sanitizes so well as sunlight. They must have the courage to show the President that impeachment is back on the ...Salem-News.com - http://salem-news.com
Top Story: The Republicans' $15 Million Campaign to Stay the Course in Iraq
This week, a group of former Bush Administration officials launched an ad campaign to persuade 37 key Congressional Republicans to keep Rubber Stamping the President's failed war in Iraq. The $15 million ad blitz targets Republicans in 20 states and 60 Congressional districts across the country.
Groups plan $30 million battle over warThe Politico
"Anti-war groups ridiculed a $15 million, Republican-led ad campaign aimed at rallying support for the war in Iraq..."
Republicans Jump Ship
It's getting hard to keep track of the growing list of Republicans who are looking for the nearest exit. Last month, Republican Congressman Ray LaHood (IL-18) announced he will not run for re-election. This past week, he was joined by four other senior Republicans, including former House Speaker Dennis Hastert, the ethically-challenged Rick Renzi, and the President's political guru, Karl Rove.
Renzi Says He Will Not Seek Re-ElectionRoll Call (subscription required)
"Rep. Rick Renzi (R-Ariz.) said Thursday that he will not seek re-election in 2008, ending months of speculation regarding the ethically clouded Congressman's political future."
Hastert quitsUSA Today
"Hastert, who today becomes the fourth House Republican in three weeks to say he won't seek re-election next year, didn't so much seize power as accept it. He didn't seek the spotlight."
Pryce calls it quitsWashington Post
"Rep. Deborah Pryce (R-Ohio) announced yesterday that she will retire from one of the most competitive House districts in the country, after squeaking to victory in a hotly contested race in 2006."
Pickering will not seek re-electionThe Hill
"Rep. Chip Pickering (R-Miss.) confirmed late Thursday night that he would not seek a seventh term in the House, becoming the third senior GOP lawmaker this week to say he would retire."
Rove resigns despised and deifiedThe Politico
"Karl Rove will leave George Bush's side this month one of the most controversial political figures in living memory."
The Latest News From the Ethically-Challenged House Republicans
Last year's election proved how important ethics are to Americans. After 12 years in the Majority, the Republicans' allowed their culture of corruption and lack of accountability to permeate Washington -- and they paid for it on Election Day. This past week, all signs indicated that they still haven't learned their lesson.
Indicted donor poses quandary for GOP lawmakers who accepted fundsThe Hill
"Seven vulnerable House Republicans face difficult decisions about whether to return contributions from a major Republican donor who was charged last week on 23 counts of bankruptcy fraud, mail fraud, money laundering, obstruction of justice and perjury."
Young's $10 million earmark focus of inquiryThe Seattle Times
"A Justice Department corruption task force is investigating whether Alaska Congressman Don Young took campaign cash in return for securing $10 million for construction of a proposed Florida highway ramp..."
The continuing progress of the New Direction Congress
While Republicans keep putting the President's interests ahead of America's interests, Democrats in Washington making progress on our country's most important priorities.
The Speaker in ChargeThe Washington Post
In short, it's one of those weeks when Nancy Pelosi has no doubts about the wisdom of her decision to become speaker of the House.
Coming Clean in the CapitolNew York Times Editorial, subscription required
Democrats are close to winning passage of their long-promised ethics reform bill... The bill, which the House approved with overwhelming, bipartisan enthusiasm yesterday, is a good start.
Editorial: Kids' health trumps presidential whimsAlbuquerque Tribune
President Bush insists that his tax cuts for the most wealthy Americans must continue... But when it comes to America's uninsured children - thousands of whom live in New Mexico - there is no money.
WEEKLY SPOTLIGHT
War on Terror Confidence Inches Up in August
Thirty-nine percent (39%) of Americans now believe that the U.S. and its allies are winning the War on Terror. That’s up three points from a month ago and just a point shy of the highest level of confidence measured in 2007. The Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey found that 32% now say the terrorists are winning. That’s down from 36% in July. Republicans, by a 58% to 19% margin, believe the U.S. and its allies are winning.
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TOP STORIES
Government Ethics and Corruption Top Voting Issue The latest Rasmussen Reports tracking poll on Election 2008 Issues finds that voters name Government Ethics and Corruption as the most important issue of the season. The national telephone survey asked respondents to rank ten issues in terms of how they would impact voting behavior and 74% named government ethics and corruption as Very Important.
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Romney Encounters More Core Opposition Than Clinton Former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney has finally surpassed New York Senator Hillary Clinton in the polls. Unfortunately for Romney, it’s a poll measuring the number of people committing to vote against him.
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59% Give Thumbs Up to Summer of 2007 Six percent (6%) of Americans rate the summer of 2007 as the best ever and another 53% said this summer was good or excellent. A Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey found that 29% considered this summer fair and 12% rated it as poor.
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Daily Presidential Tracking Poll The Rasmussen Reports daily Presidential Tracking Poll for Friday shows Rudy Giuliani and Fred Thompson on top of the race for the Republican Presidential Nomination. Giuliani earns 24% of the vote from Likely Republican Primary Voters while Thompson is at 22%.
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Obama Holds On to Slim Leads Over Giuliani, Thompson Democratic Senator Barack Obama maintains his edge over former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani in the latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone poll. It’s now Obama 45% and Giuliani 43%. That's just one percentage point more than Obama earned two weeks ago in our August 7 poll.
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US intelligence describes 'paralyzed' Iraqi government
http://www.csmonitor.com/2007/0824/p99s01-duts.html
The NIE report prompts calls for US troop withdrawals, while Bush supporters say it shows Iraq is more stable.
By Tom A. Peter
from the August 24, 2007 edition
The release of a new intelligence assessment of the war in Iraq on Thursday has prompted several high-visibility US politicians, both Republicans and Democrats, to call for American troop withdrawals. Composed by the National Intelligence Estimate (NIE), the report indicates that while the troop surge in Iraq has been effective in reducing violence in "measurable but uneven improvements," it gives a grim prognosis of Iraq's government under the leadership of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki. Though some politicians have used the reports findings to support the war effort, others, most prominently Sen. John W. Warner (R) of Virginia, have used it as further fodder to challenge the Iraq war.
NIE offers a mixed progress report of the war. Its report, titled "Prospects for Iraq's Stability: Some Security Progress but Political Reconciliation Elusive," represents the general consensus of the US's 16 intelligence agencies. Though coalition forces have made some security gains, Iraq's security forces remain incapable of operating independently of the US military and the nation's political failures ultimately threaten the security situation, says the NIE report.
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