Category: War

To Gaffe or not to Gaffe…..

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The other large headline in the world of Politics is McCain’s supposed Gaffe about the war on terror. This was posted on the Washington Post’s Blog, or one of them at least. Although, right at the moment, I cannot seem to bring up the Blog, looks like the Washington Post needs to get better hosting for their Blog or better servers.

Of course, the Neo-Conservative apologists are coming out in full force defending John McCain and saying he was right in the first place, armed with talking points galore, they look more like Amway salesman, than they do political pundits.

Whether or not the statement was a gaffe or not, is quite frankly irrelevant in my mind. It overlooks the broader issue, that this so called “war” in Iraq was, in fact, a tragic mistake, that was based upon bad intelligence, some say cooked, I won’t go that far, as I do not know personally, as I was not there. But the fact remains is, President George W. Bush foolishly bought the false intelligence and the Neo-Conservative lie, that we could and would dominate the world through Military might, and now we are living in the great chasm that is the Iraq disaster.

Anyone that sees the war and how we go pulled into this landmine filled field of foolishness, any other way, is, in fact, defending the Neo-Conservative flawed worldview. Heck, even the late William Buckley denounced what Bush was doing as wrong. What more do we need, to believe what has happened in Iraq was wrong?

What amazes me is the ignorance of the people that defend McCain and his continuation of the flawed polices of George W. Bush. They know no bounds, and that worries me, greatly.

Others on this: Crooks and Liars, Chicago Tribune, Gallup, Washington Wire, Think Progress, Townhall.com, AMERICAblog, Associated Press, Matthew Yglesias, DownWithTyranny!, Eschaton, The Moderate Voice, Booman Tribune, American Footprints, Comments from Left Field, Alas, a blog, Hullabaloo, MyDD, Daily Kos and Obsidian Wings and More via Memeorandum

It has been Five Years…..

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That’s right folks, Five years since this War began…. Unreal.

Looking Back at Five Years in Iraq (via New York Times)

FIVE years on, it seems positively surreal.

On the evening of March 19, 2003, a small group of Western journalists had grandstand seats for the big event in Baghdad, the start of the full-scale American bombing of strategic targets in the Iraqi capital. We had forced a way through a bolted door at the top of an emergency staircase leading to the 21st-story roof of the Palestine Hotel, with a panoramic view of Saddam Hussein’s command complex across the Tigris River.

It has been five years it hardly seems conceivable. However, unfortunately, for the American people, it is a harsh reality of life. It has been five whole years, since the Bush Administration launched a preemptive strike against the sovereign nation of Iraq. This Strike, based upon bad, if not, outright false CIA intelligence. It was termed a “Slam Dunk,” by the then CIA Director George J. Tenet. Tenet resigned when this “Slam Dunk” turned out to be nothing more than a foul ball.

The thing that amazes me is the fact that the Bush Administration continues, to this day, to attempt to move the goalposts in regards to this so-called “War on Terror.” This is really, in all honesty, a case study exercise in fear mongering and Neo-Conservative Propaganda. Just ask Senator Barack Obama; he has been the victim of the fear mongering, and Republican Propaganda, all because of his racial and religious backgrounds. This information was mostly gleaned from white nationalist websites. This information was recycled, and revised to make it sound believable. It was and continues to be distributed by well meaning and very loyal people within the Republican Party and Conservatives who, quite frankly, just do not know any better.

The war however, is dragged on, all but forgotten by the mainstream media, because, I believe, they realized that people were just tired of hearing about the blood and carnage. The right wing camp, says that we are winning the war and that George W. Bush’s “Surge” is working. The reality is, that violence levels are back to down to what they were, before the civil war broke out between the two factions in Iraq. The Republicans call it progress, the rest of us that are still in touch with reality call it returning to pre-civil war levels. Some call it semantics; I prefer to call it a realist observation.

The toll of this war has been more than just physical, more than just dead bodies, although, that is a great part of it, lives ruined, lives lost, families devastated, it is quite the sad affair. However, there is a greater loss, our nation’s economy. A good friend of mine, Matt Gacht, is an auto mechanic; he specializes in working on Hummers. Since this war started, business has been bad, horribly bad. He also has a side business; he does electrical wiring in racecars. Since this war started, the cost of electrical wire has skyrocketed. It does cut into his profit margin. He would raise his rates, but if he does that, he cannot remain competitive. He is not the only person in this business. There are others in the business, people that have much more capital that he does, so, he has to be able to keep up with the big people. Sometimes, Matt Says, he feels like banging his head against the wall, because he feels like he is trapped in a difficult situation. It is tough, but his customers like him, because he takes pride in his work and he is almost disturbingly thorough.

Because I am a balanced person, I can also make this observation. The plain fact of reality is this, if this country pulls out of Iraq too fast. The country will, in fact, fall into chaos. The far left adamantly refuses to believe or accept this and it is quite sad. However, I do not believe that continuing the President’s policy and course will be a wise decision. There needs to be a change, as to what kind of a change? That will have to be decided and hashed out. There will have to be some very tough decisions made. I just hope and yes, I do pray, that there will be some wisdom used, that decisions made based upon facts on the ground and not based upon political ideologies.

Others on this: The Belmont Club and THE ASTUTE BLOGGERS and more via memeorandum

McCain sneaks off to Iraq……again

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As if this guy couldn’t get any lamer…

This Happens: News Via AP: McCain makes unannounced trip to Iraq (via Yahoo News)

Sen. John McCain, the Republican Party’s presumptive nominee for president who has linked his political future to U.S. success in Iraq, was in Baghdad on Sunday for meetings with Iraqi and U.S. diplomatic and military officials, a U.S. government official said.

Details of McCain’s visit were not being released for security reasons, the U.S. Embassy said.

McCain’s visit was not announced and he was believed to have been in the country for several hours before reporters were able to confirm his arrival. It was unclear who he met with; no media opportunities or news conferences were planned.

McCain, a strong supporter of the U.S. military mission in Iraq, is believed to be staying in the country for about 24 hours.

"Senator McCain is in Iraq and will be meeting with Iraqi and U.S. officials," said Mirembe Nantongo, spokesman for the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad.

Gee, I wonder if he had half of the United States Armed Forces with him this time? I wonder what he said to those people in Iraq, "Well Boys, It looks like we will be here for 100 years. Get used to it."?

Oh, to be a fly on the wall during those meetings!

Others: DownWithTyranny!, Political Punch, Right Wing News and Fausta’s blog and more via Memeorandum

You see, this is what happens when you don’t play the Neo-Con Game with Bush.

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You get tied up and blindfolded like an animal.

Read the story over at the New York Times:

The Baiji refinery, with its distillation towers rising against the Hamrin Mountains, may be the most important industrial site in the Sunni Arab-dominated regions of Iraq. On a good day, 500 tanker trucks will leave the refinery filled with fuel with a street value of $10 million.

The sea of oil under Iraq is supposed to rebuild the nation, then make it prosper. But at least one-third, and possibly much more, of the fuel from Iraq’s largest refinery here is diverted to the black market, according to American military officials. Tankers are hijacked, drivers are bribed, papers are forged and meters are manipulated — and some of the earnings go to insurgents who are still killing more than 100 Iraqis a week.

“It’s the money pit of the insurgency,” said Capt. Joe Da Silva, who commands several platoons stationed at the refinery.

Five years after the war in Iraq began, the insurgency remains a lethal force. The steady flow of cash is one reason, even as the American troop buildup and the recruitment of former insurgents to American-backed militias have helped push the number of attacks down to 2005 levels.

In fact, money, far more than jihadist ideology, is a crucial motivation for a majority of Sunni insurgents, according to American officers in some Sunni provinces and other military officials in Iraq who have reviewed detainee surveys and other intelligence on the insurgency.

Yeah, them Neo-Conservative, Rockefeller-type, Republicans wouldn’t want those pesky jihadists tapping into their oil profits.

You see, we went into that country, based on totally false intelligence, and now the people that don’t think we belong there. The jihadists, who want to defend their land, is now getting their money supply cut off. Do I defend the one’s who blow up our troops? Hell No. But I am realist, that says, if we’d attacked the RIGHT DAMN COUNTRY IN THE FIRST FUCKING PLACE, we wouldn’t be in this situation.

In case anyone forgot, there was a report this week, that said, despite what the feckless, idiot, bastards on the far right want to believe, that there were NO OPERATIONAL ties between Saddam and Al-Qaeda.

Like I’ve said before, we need change, badly. November 2008 cannot came fast enough for me.

The Story that GWB wishes the world would forget about….

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I must confess, I find this most funny. Hee hee 

Pentagon Report on Saddam’s Iraq Censored? (via Rapid Report)

ABC News’ Jonathan Karl Reports: The Bush Administration apparently does not want a U.S. military study that found no direct connection between Saddam Hussein and al Qaeda to get any attention.  This morning, the Pentagon cancelled plans to send out a press release announcing the report’s release and will no longer make the report available online.
The report was to be posted on the Joint Forces Command website this afternoon, followed by a background briefing with the authors.  No more.  The report will be made available only to those who ask for it, and it will be sent via U.S. mail from Joint Forces Command in Norfolk, Virginia. 
It won’t be emailed to reporters and it won’t be posted online.

Asked why the report would not be posted online and could not be emailed, the spokesman for Joint Forces Command said: "We’re making the report available to anyone who wishes to have it, and we’ll send it out via CD in the mail."
Another Pentagon official said initial press reports on the study made it "too politically sensitive."

I would guess so, this is like red meat for the left.

If you think that the Democrats won’t use this, for campaign purposes come November, You’re crazy.

Others: Hullabaloo, Donklephant, News Hounds, TPMMuckraker, democracyarsenal.org, The Newshoggers, Liberal Values, Talking Points Memo, Bang the Drum, The Carpetbagger Report and The Washington Independent

Obama snags Mississippi

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He’s gaining by the minute.

Obama Wins Mississippi (via MSNBC)

NBC News declared Barack Obama as the projected winner in the Mississippi primary on Tuesday, the latest in a string of racially polarized contests across the Deep South and a final tune-up before April’s high-stakes race with Hillary Rodham Clinton in Pennsylvania.

Obama was winning roughly 90 percent of the black vote but only about one-third of the white vote, extending a pattern that carried him to victory in earlier primaries in South Carolina, Alabama, Georgia and Louisiana.

I think, considering what Hillary Clinton’s surrogate said about Barack Obama, This is just payback. I mean, Hillary, I believe is trying to cause division in the Democrat Party. I think it’s immature and shows much about her.

Senator Obama did an interview on a special late edition of Hardball with Chris Matthews. He basically repeated his talking points, however, he did answer the nasty stuff said about him very well. That says much about Obama’s character.

 

Here’s The Video:

Of course, the pundits are saying it was a easy win, because, according to the "Pundits" or as I like to call them, the educated Political idiots, say that it is because of the large African-American Population, which is, in my opinion, simple-minded and short sighted. He won because people believe in the man, is that so hard for the Media to admit that? Confused

More on the Obama Victory @ Memeorandum

More on the Armed Forces Recruitment Center Bombing

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 Here’s the latest on this story….

LINK: House Members receive letters, photo of NY recruiting station sent before bombing (via The Crypt’s Blog @ Politico.com

A number of House members were mailed a letter and photo of a Times Square recruiting station in Manhattan before it was bombed on Thursday morning, according to House insiders and law-enforcement officials.

Initial information from Capitol Hill sources suggested the letters were sent only to eight House Democrats from the New York City area, but a senior House aide said many more members than that total could have received the missives. One source described the letter as a "20-page rambling rant," and the AP reported the envelopes included a "holiday greeting card" with the message "Happy New Year, We Did It" on the cards.

The AP also reported there was "a photo of a man standing in front of the recruiting station before it was bombed" in the envelopes.

The letter did not contain any specific threats against the lawmakers or the site, according to law-enforcement officials, but the U.S. Capitol Police and the FBI are now investigating the matter.

You know I was a bit light hearted about this last night. Mainly because I was quite tired from staying up so late.

However, let me state, I do not condone such acts at all. Whether the Left wants to admit this or not. This was an act of terrorism. There were letters mailed.  This was also an act of malicious vandalism.

Anyone who would do such a thing to a building used by the United States Government, is quite frankly, a disgrace to this Nation and this cowardly act, should be considered an act of treason.

I only wish for swift and harsh punishment for the person who perpetrated this crime.

Others on this: Hot Air, Associated Press, Power Line, American Power and Sister Toldjah (via Memeorandum)

Bombing Attempt at a Military recruitment center in New York.

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The only reason I’m most likely the first Blogger writing about this, is because I just happen to be up this early, or up this late! SleepyYawn

CNN is calling it a "bang"

MSNBC is calling it a "small explosion"

and Fox News is calling it an TERRORIST ACT OF EPIC PERPORTIONS! "Explosion"

It happened at a Military Recruitment Center, go figure. Rolling Eyes

I can hear the Right Wingers HOWLING now. Angry"Them liberals are pure evil!"

There are unconfirmed reports that George W. Bush was spotting happy dancing in his underwear. SurpriseWinkingBig GrinTongue

Something tells me, this is going to be the biggest story on the right wing and maybe no so right wing, Blogosphere by later today.

For now, I’m going to bed, Night Ya’ll! Don’t let nothing exciting happen, till I wake up! Sleepy

Update: Looks like I was correct. Click here

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I have fixed feelings about this

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Is this a genuine desire to help a family, or is it a effort to capitalize on the death of a U.S. Solider?

Didn’t he have insurance?

Did his family get a nice settlement when he was killed?

Are they just trying to prey on the emotions on those who support our Military?

As Michelle Malkin well put it, "SUCK.IT.UP!"

I mean, I have a disability as well, I was born with Attention Deficit Disorder with hyperactivity. But you don’t see me setting up a "Feel sorry for me page", do you? No.

I admit, I’m the eternal pessimist and a proud cynic. I make no apologies.

The Great Puppy Caper

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It’s a pretty rough video to watch, I’m told, I haven’t seen it. I’m referring to the video, that everyone is talking about. 

The consensus is, that it is faked.

But that doesn’t stop the anger of those on the more progressive side, I’m listening to MSNBC and they did a story on it, and they said that the possible suspects have gotten death threats, had their addresses and telephone numbers blasted all over the Internet.  That the guys had to disconnected their telephone numbers.

According to MSNBC, the military is investigating.

I urge calm amongst everyone, let the military investigators do their job.

Others: michellemalkin.com, BLACKFIVE, Say Anything and Hot Air

Obama catching sand over a comment.

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Whoa Boy… Obama is catching grief over a comment made at the debates.

Mostly from the far right wing nuts, who refuse to believe that our Military is nothing short of perfect.

Some people need to really look into getting real.

Even some of the comments on the Wing Nut Blogs even ADMIT that they were using enemy weapons and bullets.

But let a Liberal diss our Military?!?!?! Off with his Negro head! Surprise

Stupidity at it’s finest. Rolling Eyes

(H/T Memeorandum)

 

The Real John McCain?

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He’s talking a pretty mean game now, But what about….:

and This:

Seems John McCain had a different view of war, back in those days, now he’s very much pro war.

Some people will say anything to get elected.

I get E-mail from Senator Carl Levin

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I received this today:

I thought you would be interested in knowing about yesterday’s Senate Armed Services Committee hearing, which I chaired, to review the actions taken over the last year to improve the care, management and transition of our wounded service members.

Our nation has a moral obligation to provide quality health care to the men and women who put on our nation’s uniform and are injured and wounded fighting our nation’s wars. On February 18, 2007, the headlines of the Washington Post read: “Soldiers Face Neglect, Frustration At Army’s Top Medical Facility.” This series of articles served as a wakeup call regarding the care and treatment of our wounded warriors. They described deplorable living conditions for service members living in an outpatient status at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center, a bungled, bureaucratic process for assigning disability ratings and a clumsy handoff from the Department of Defense to the Department of Veterans Affairs as these injured soldiers tried to move on with their lives. We also learned that these problems were not limited to the Army or to Walter Reed. A lot has been accomplished in the wake of these articles, but much more needs to be done.

On March 6, 2007, the Senate Armed Services Committee held a hearing to address the shortfalls in the care of our wounded warriors. At that hearing, we concluded that it would require the coordinated efforts of the Senate Veteran’s Affairs and the Senate Armed Services Committees to address the issues in a comprehensive manner. This led to a rare joint hearing of the Committee on Armed Services and the Committee on Veterans Affairs on April 12th. The Committees continued to work together to pass the “Dignified Treatment of Wounded Warriors Act” on July 25, 2007. This comprehensive, bi-partisan legislation to address the care and management of our wounded warriors passed by the Senate expeditiously. This Act, enhanced by some provisions from the House-passed Wounded Warrior Assistance Act, was recently enacted as part of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2008.

The Wounded Warrior Act represents a major reform of the system. It advances the care, management and transition of recovering service members, enhances health care and benefits for families, and begins the process of fundamental reform of the disability evaluation systems of the Department of Defense and Department of Veterans Affairs. It requires the DOD to use the VA’s standards for rating disabilities and the VA’s presumption of sound condition in determining whether a disability is service-connected. Additionally, it increases disability severance pay for certain service members, requires the DOD and the VA to jointly develop a comprehensive policy on improvements to care and management of recovering service members, establishes Centers of Excellence for traumatic brain injury, post-traumatic stress disorder, and traumatic eye injuries. It also authorizes respite care for seriously injured service members.

The Wounded Warrior Act addresses nearly all of the findings of the various commissions that have examined the issues regarding the care and treatment of our wounded warriors. The most significant exception is the recommendation of the Dole/Shalala Commission to restructure the VA Disability Compensation System. This falls primarily under the jurisdiction of the House and Senate Veterans Affairs Committees, both of which are examining it. The Department of Veterans Affairs has recently awarded a contract to develop information regarding changes in the composition of disability payments as recommended by the Dole-Shalala Commission. Working together in an approach consistent with the Wounded Warrior Act, the Departments of Defense and Veterans Affairs have established a high-level Senior Oversight Committee, co-chaired by the Deputy Secretary of Defense and the Deputy Secretary of Veterans Affairs, to oversee the analysis of and changes to the DOD and VA systems to improve the care and treatment of our injured and ill service members.

The American people were rightly deeply angered by the shortfalls in care for our wounded warriors. Americans may disagree about the war in Iraq, but the cause of supporting our troops unites us all. We will continue to work toward improving the care our service members receive, so that these benefits accurately reflect their honorable service.

Sincerely,
Carl Levin

Idiot Nancy Pelosi calls Iraq a ‘failure’

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 Why does she say crap like this now???? Doh

Pelosi calls Iraq a ‘failure’ (via Politico.com)

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said twice Sunday that Iraq “is a failure,” adding that President Bush’s troop surge has “not produced the desired effect.”

“The purpose of the surge was to create a secure time for the government of Iraq to make the political change to bring reconciliation to Iraq,” Pelosi said on CNN’s “Late Edition.” “They have not done that.”

The speaker hastened to add: “The troops have succeeded, God bless them.”

I mean it’s only going to cause the Democrats problems:

Pelosi’s harsh verdict is a reminder of the dilemma for Democrats as they head into this fall’s presidential and congressional elections:

They need to make the case that the country needs to depart from the direction set by Bush. Yet they don’t want to look like naysayers at a time when Iraq has become more stable, albeit still violent.

Republican strategists say one of their few chances to avoid a blowout in November is to paint Democrats as defeatists.

Which is exactly what they will do too.

Flipping idiot. Can’t she just shut up? Angry

Others: Flopping Aces and Hot Air

Local Story: From the "Say Whaaaat?" File: Toledo Ohio Mayor to Marines: Get lost

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This is just downright disgusting………….

FWIW, Toledo is about 25 miles to the South of me here.

The Story:

Mayor to Marines: Leave downtown (Via Toledo Blade)

Quote:

A company of Marine Corps Reservists received a cold send-off from downtown Toledo yesterday by order of Mayor Carty Finkbeiner.

The 200 members of Company A, 1st Battalion, 24th Marines, based in Grand Rapids, Mich., planned to spend their weekend engaged in urban patrol exercises on the streets of downtown as well as inside the mostly vacant Madison Building, 607 Madison Ave.

Toledo police knew days in advance about their plans for a three-day exercise. Yet somehow the memo never made it to Mayor Finkbeiner, who ordered the Marines out yesterday afternoon just minutes before their buses were to arrive.

"The mayor asked them to leave because they frighten people," said Brian Schwartz, the mayor’s spokesman.

"He did not want them practicing and drilling in a highly visible area."

In the interest of full and total disclosure, I fully supposed the mission in Iraq, until it was reported that there were, in fact, no weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. I am not a flag waving Republican, I am not a supporter of our current President, George W. Bush. The President’s idiot Foreign Policy has ruined America’s reputation in the World. The President’s "Run Away" spending is that of Biblical proportions, and will most likely bankrupt our Nation long after he is out of office.

However, I have nothing, but the uttermost respect and admiration for the United States Armed Forces. These people are the ones who put their lives on the line, all so you and I….and this feckless idiot, can be free.

I believe personally, that what this Mayor has done, is nothing short of an outright act of Treason, against our United States Government. He should, in fact resign his position as the Mayor of Toledo, Ohio. This is nothing more than a slap in the face and a spitting on the graves of our brave United States Soldiers.

The same horror and utter contempt and disgust that I felt, when the far left thug Organization MoveOn.org took it upon themselves to smear our Military, I am now feeling again, as a far lefty loon Mayor has used his powers as a city’s Mayor, to tell the very one’s charged with keeping our Nation safe, to basically "get lost, we don’t want you here."

This my friends is nothing more than mentality and actions of a Marxist and a Communist. Any person who would impede and inhibit the training and conditioning of our United States Military, is no better or of a greater value, than a blood thirsty Al-Qeada Terrorist, and in my humble opinion, should be dealt with accordingly. However, because we are a Nation of morals and laws and of supreme justice, I cannot do, what I would like to see happen to this pitiful excuse for a man.

If you, like myself, find that the actions of this poor excuse of human being are inexcusable, I personally challenge you to contact the City of Toledo’s Mayor, you can do so, via the following:

City of Toledo’s Official Website

City Council of Toledo, Ohio (website)

Toledo, Ohio’s Mayor’s E-mail address

Mr. Mayor, Don’t screw with the Military.

God Bless America.

Update: Seems the Story is now catching on in the Main Stream Media. WNWO-TV Now has the Story.

Others on this: Wizbang, StephenBainbridge.com, michellemalkin.com, Riehl World View, Pajamas Media, The Jawa Report, NewsBusters.org, Atlas Shrugs, BLACKFIVE, BizzyBlog, The Strata-Sphere, Little Green Footballs, Instapundit.com and Right Voices, Southern Sass and The Voice , HazZzMat, Wizbang, Bookworm Room, Greatscat!,

Bush seeks break the Nation and take services from the Elderly.

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All to fund his misguided war….

Bush Seeks Budget of $3.1 Trillion (Via NYT)

President Bush submitted a federal budget of $3.1 trillion on Monday, declaring that the spending plan would keep the United States safe and prosperous and, despite its record size, would adhere to his principle of letting Americans keep as much of their own money as possible.

Of course……:

Mr. Bush said he would cut or terminate 151 programs, saving $18 billion in 2009. One agency, the Education Department, accounts for 47 of the terminated programs and three of the programs to be cut. But he would increase spending in areas that fall under the umbrella of “national security.”

[…]

Mr. Bush said his budget would slow “the unsustainable growth of entitlement spending” with proposed savings of $208 billion over five years. This includes savings of $178 billion in Medicare, $17 billion in Medicaid and $6 billion in student aid programs. The president proposes to raise $2 billion from new enrollment fees and higher pharmacy co-payments for certain veterans receiving health care from the Department of Veterans Affairs.

Unless I totally misread what was wrote, Bush wants slash benefits to the elderly, (read, the POOR elderly!) those who need the most help. Problem with that is, Mr. President, not everyone has those investments, that you rich folk have available to them, and Social Security and Medicaid and Medicare is all they have.

But, from what I have read, Congress will never pass his version of the Budget. So, I doubt he’ll get his way, Thankfully.

This is what happens when you elect a rich C.E.O. for a President.

We need change. Badly.

Others: Think Progress, NewsBusters.org, Captain’s Quarters, The Politico, The Crypt’s Blogs, My Two Sense , The Aristocrats and more via Memeoarandum

Keith Olbermann Special Comment on FYCA and the telecoms

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Original Location

For the most part, I agree. If the Bush Administration has done nothing wrong, then why threaten to veto? Confused

Sorry, I don’t buy the frivolous lawsuit B.S. Line. 

Score one for Dubya…..

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I knew this was coming.

Sorry, Barack, You’ve lost Iraq. By Michael Hirsh (via Newsweek)

Camp Arifjan in the desert kingdom of Kuwait, America’s depot to the Iraq war, feels about as far away as you can get from South Carolina, Super Tuesday and the election-year squabbles back home. And George W. Bush, who is currently midway through his six-nation tour of the Mideast, is doing a good job of distancing himself from the politics of 2008. But as Bush rallied U.S. troops at the base here on Saturday with a "Hoo-ah" and conferred with his Iraq dream team, Gen. David Petraeus and Ambassador Ryan Crocker, he indicated that he was setting in motion policies that could dramatically affect the presidential race–and any decisions the next president makes in 2009.

Yep, we were warned that he was going to do this and he did.

More:

Most significant of all, the new partnership deal with Iraq, including a status of forces agreement that would then replace the existing Security Council mandate authorizing the presence of the U.S.-led multinational forces in Iraq, will become a sworn obligation for the next president. It will become just another piece of the complex global security framework involving a hundred or so countries with which Washington now has bilateral defense or security cooperation agreements. Last month, Sen. Hillary Clinton urged Bush not to commit to any such agreement without congressional approval. The president said nothing about that on Saturday, but Lute said last fall that the Iraqi agreement would not likely rise to the level of a formal treaty requiring Senate ratification. Even so, it would be difficult if not impossible for future presidents to unilaterally breach such a pact.

You didn’t think that ol’ Dubya was going to leave office and let them mean ol’ Democrat Liberals ruin his war game did you? Rolling Eyes

and the most telling of all:

The upshot is that the next president, Democrat or Republican, is likely to be handed a fait accompli that could well render moot his or her own elaborate withdrawal plans, especially the ones being considered by the two leading Democratic contenders, Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton. Obama, undeterred by the reported success of Bush’s surge, is pushing ahead with his plans for a brigade-a-month withdrawals that would remove the U.S. military presence entirely. If current Defense Secretary Robert Gates can draw down to, say, 12 brigades by 2009, a senior Obama adviser told me Friday, "then we can get the rest out in eight to 10 months."

But Bush may have the upper hand now. The president touted the surge’s success on Saturday, and he reiterated that "long-term success will require active U.S. engagement that outlasts my presidency." The "enduring relationship" he is building with Iraq, Bush added, "will have diplomatic, economic and security components–similar to relationships we have with Kuwait and other nations in this region and around the world." Some of those relationships have now lasted decades. And as in Japan, Germany, Korea and Kuwait, they include a substantial troop presence. Far away in the Persian Gulf, Bush is creating facts on the ground that the next president may not be able to ignore.

Score one for Dubya, Checkmate.

Other Blogs: MoJoBlog, UrbanGrounds, Blue Crab Boulevard, Redstate, Wizbang, QandO, The Strata-Sphere, Middle Earth Journal, Cliff Schecter and RADAMISTO

The REAL Iraq

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For some reason, this doesn’t pass the smell test

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This smells fishy to me..

For sale: West’s deadly nuclear secrets – (via Times Online)

A WHISTLEBLOWER has made a series of extraordinary claims about how corrupt government officials allowed Pakistan and other states to steal nuclear weapons secrets.

Sibel Edmonds, a 37-year-old former Turkish language translator for the FBI, listened into hundreds of sensitive intercepted conversations while based at the agency’s Washington field office.

She approached The Sunday Times last month after reading about an Al-Qaeda terrorist who had revealed his role in training some of the 9/11 hijackers while he was in Turkey.

Edmonds described how foreign intelligence agents had enlisted the support of US officials to acquire a network of moles in sensitive military and nuclear institutions.

For one, how do we know that this isn’t just some attention seeking woman, looking to make a quick buck, at the expense of our Government?

For some reason, this one just does not pass the smell test.

More here as well. One must know, however, that Brad Blog is a Liberal Blogger, who has tried to defame those like Ann Coulter and many other Conservatives.

It just reeks of the Alex Jones type of nonsense that is found of the Internet.

Cross-posted @ My Blog @ Redstate

Others: The Huffington Post, The BRAD BLOG, Screw Loose Change, NO QUARTER, CANNONFIRE, JunkYardBlog, The Reaction, The Newshoggers, THE ASTUTE BLOGGERS and Unqualified Offerings

 

Obsidian Wings Writer/Blogger Andy Olmsted dies in Iraq

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This is just too damned sad for words…. Sad

Andy Olmsted R.I.P.

I am glad that he did write this part here:

I do ask (not that I’m in a position to enforce this) that no one try to use my death to further their political purposes. I went to Iraq and did what I did for my reasons, not yours. My life isn’t a chit to be used to bludgeon people to silence on either side. If you think the U.S. should stay in Iraq, don’t drag me into it by claiming that somehow my death demands us staying in Iraq. If you think the U.S. ought to get out tomorrow, don’t cite my name as an example of someone’s life who was wasted by our mission in Iraq. I have my own opinions about what we should do about Iraq, but since I’m not around to expound on them I’d prefer others not try and use me as some kind of moral capital to support a position I probably didn’t support. Further, this is tough enough on my family without their having to see my picture being used in some rally or my name being cited for some political purpose. You can fight political battles without hurting my family, and I’d prefer that you did so.

Thank you Andy for your honesty and may you rest in peace. Prayers and thoughts for your family.

(comment remove per request of the original poster to not make this Political…)

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