The 110th Congress and the War

The Democrats took the reins of the 110th Congress in January 2007. That is only five months ago. The republicans had control for the TWELVE YEARS prior to January. The reds, and some lefties, seem to be comparing the accomplishments of the two without taking that into account. Why would we expect anything more from spinsters? It is true that in today's society we want everything done yesterday, and for cheap. But give me a break. Here's a list of what the Democratically lead 110th House and Senate have accomplished in their first Five Months, not the least of which is passing the first minimum wage increase in ten years (with a tax break for Small business).

Recently, Congress passed an additional $100,000,000,000.00 in Iraq war funding without "timetables", but with "benchmarks". This allowed the little prince to stop holding his breath like the infant he is. It's passing made me (and the Boston Globe) wonder what $465,000,000,000.00 would buy. It probably could have really helped the reconstruction efforts in Kansas and New Orleans. Maybe it could have helped with issues like health care, education, infrastructure, or social security. Another question this latest "emergency" funding bill left me with was, how and when are We gonna pay for the neo-con debacle in Iraq?

One underreported fact about the funding vote was that the majority of Democrats in the House voted against it, as did 14 Democratic Senators. The spin of course is that the Dems folded, not that the reds are still nothing more than rubber stampers for 30% george. Little bush and his red friends are holding Our troops hostage to the failure in chief's stubborn "steadfastness" to a ludicrous and arrogant foreign policy. A foreign policy that has done no good for Our country's international stature, Our economy or Our national security.

It's important to remember that this latest surge is and was a direct slap in the face of the American People, who elected those most likely to change course in Iraq. It was a slap in the face of the United States Congress. And it was a slap in the face of the Baker/Hamilton Iraq Study Group. The recent declassifying, by bush, of the fact that bin laden ,who bushco. left in Tora Bora to regroup, directed al qaeda in Iraq in 2005 tells me he followed us in. Iraq has turned into an al qaeda training ground, because of this war. The possible "camps" the administration now scares us with were not there when we invaded. Bushco. and their war in Iraq created a safe haven for al qaeda. The invasion of Iraq has aided the terrorists.

But there's more Iraq news, the majority in Iraqi Parliament wants us out. The oil man-in-Chief (remember lil' bushie blaming clinton for high gas prices?) appointed a war czar to do the job the Constitution has given to him. I guess he's for an expansion of presidential power in starting wars but the execution is just too much for him to handle. There was an Iraq withdrawal bill that 171 Dems voted for in the House and a bill to cut off funding for the war in the senate received 29 Democratic ayes. 22 Democratic Senators voted against the Authorization bill in the first place. Oh yeah, and 114 American men and women died in Iraq in May, making it the deadliest month for the U.S. military in more than two years. But with a $592,000,000.00 embassy complete with swimming pool, and a 16,000 sq.ft. residence for the US ambassador, it's all worth it.

Possible topics for next time:
More scandals for rover? Should we torture cheney to finally find out what he knows about the run up to Our invasion? Did the White House really acknowledge that lesbians can be "parents"? Has Uncle Rupert begun to smell the sea change on getting green? Are the first talks between the US and Iran in 27 years just the pre-war strategy?
Discuss.

"I would like to suggest...that maybe we give Paul Wolfowitz a new job and send him over [to Iraq] as mayor," said Rep. Walter Jones, R-N.C., "since the neocons got us in over there." And he's a red!

Oh and just in case you didn't make it to Edison to yell at the president, here's a story on those who did.

Impeach Gonzales!

Founding member of the neo-con chicken hawk cabal, paul wolfowitz, has resigned in shame from the World Bank. Now it's time for Attorney General Gonzales to and if he does not he should be impeached. Maybe he'll do it on the same day rover gets supboenaed. Or the day England announces its withdrawal. Maybe that's why Harry's not going?

Robert Greenwald put this together for impeachgonzales.org

Jerry Falwell

On Sept. 11: "The abortionists have got to bear some burden for this
because God will not be mocked. And when we destroy 40 million little
innocent babies, we make God mad. I really believe that the pagans, and
the abortionists, and the feminists, and the gays and the lesbians who
are actively trying to make that an alternative lifestyle, the ACLU,
People for the American Way—all of them who have tried to secularize
America—I point the finger in their face and say 'you helped this
happen.' "

On AIDS: "AIDS is the wrath of a just God against homosexuals."

On homosexuality: "I believe that all of us are born heterosexual,
physically created with a plumbing that's heterosexual, and created
with the instincts and desires that are basically, fundamentally,
heterosexual. But I believe that we have the ability to experiment in
every direction. Experimentation can lead to habitual practice, and
then to a lifestyle. But I don't believe anyone begins a homosexual."

On Martin Luther King Jr.: "I must personally say that I do question
the sincerity and nonviolent intentions of some civil rights leaders
such as Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Mr. James Farmer, and others, who
are known to have left-wing associations."

On Martin Luther King Jr., four decades later: "You know, I supported
Martin Luther King Jr., who did practice civil disobedience."

On public education: "I hope I live to see the day when, as in the
early days of our country, we won't have any public schools. The
churches will have taken them over again, and Christians will be
running them."

On the separation of church and state: "There is no separation of
church and state."

On feminists: "I listen to feminists and all these radical gals. ...
These women just need a man in the house. That's all they need. Most of
the feminists need a man to tell them what time of day it is and to
lead them home. And they blew it and they're mad at all men. Feminists
hate men. They're sexist. They hate men; that's their problem."

On global warming: "I can tell you, our grandchildren will laugh at
those who predicted global warming. We'll be in global cooling by then,
if the Lord hasn't returned. I don't believe a moment of it. The whole
thing is created to destroy America's free enterprise system and our
economic stability."

On Bishop Desmond Tutu: "I think he's a phony, period, as far as
representing the black people of South Africa."

On Islam: "I think Mohammed was a terrorist. I read enough of the
history of his life, written by both Muslims and non-Muslims, that he
was a violent man, a man of war."

On Jews: "In my opinion, the Antichrist will be a counterfeit of the
true Christ, which means that he will be male and Jewish, since Jesus
was male and Jewish."

Wishful Thinking!

CNN International actually put this up on the screen.

It's just too nice out today.

It is just too nice out today to rant and rave on the "internets" about "the commander guy" (his words not mine). Watching the birds and bees play in the trees helps me forget that three of the old white men in the red status quo debate last night don't believe in a founding principle of biology, written by one of, if not thee, greatest zoologist in history. To be fair, one red did make sense at one point, of course he doesn't stand a chance.

So Walter Reed banned Joan Baez from entertaining the troops with John Cougar Mellencamp. It's not like they need all the good press they can get. Propagandist rover coached Justice Department officials before they testified to Congress about the political firing of US Attorneys? So what, it's 70 friggin' degrees outside. Sure administration officials are resigning all over the place in the wake of scandals, but the important question is who do you have to win the Derby. Scat Daddy! You just have to love that name.

There actually is some good news. There is a "greener" Apple, and I'm not talking about Bloomberg's tree plan. Speaker of the House Pelosi's trip to Syria seems to have lead to the Secretary of State meeting with Countries the US hasn't met with in years. And uncle rupert was denied purchase of yet another media outlet.

My favorite story though...
The administration's Deputy Secretary of State, a real proponent of abstinence, resigned after it was revealed he was a customer of the "DC Madam". HAHAHA. Those Cinqo de Mayo margaritas are gonna go down much smoother knowing that. Viva Libertad! I didn't just break immigration law by saying that did I. To misquote President Ronald Reagan, "Mr. Bush.... Tear Down that Wall".

Mission Accomplished Day!

Four years ago today, president george w. bush donned a flight suit and said "my fellow Americans: Major combat operations in Iraq have ended." No matter what you think the reason was for such a declaration, to boost morale, grab a photo op, an act of complete incompetence, a detachment from reality, or just plain old stupidity, he was wrong. Some call what has been going on for the past four years "the peace". This is both disturbing and insulting. It is the greatest insult to Our soldiers in Iraq that I've heard yet. Just another dishonest use of words, much like administration officials saying they "know" where weapons of mass destruction are, when actually they believed or it is was their understanding that they existed in a particular area. If that's even true.

People are dying in bush's war of choice in Iraq daily. Over 100 people died in April alone. Our force is 150,000+ strong. It's costing Us, at least, $500,000,000,000.00+. We are still at war in Iraq, and by every indication (including the president putting off the "surge's" progress report until September) it is not going well. The bush administration's refusal to be straight and honest continues to reveal itself, whether in their lies and propaganda concerning the death of Pat Tillman or the rescue of Jessica Lynch or in the new allegations that the infamous forged Niger Yellow Cake documents came from dick's office.

Our military is being stretched to the point where old school military men, like John Murtha, are calling on bush to either reduce and redeploy the troops stationed in Iraq or reinstate the draft. Senator Chuck Hagel's stance against the administration on Iraq made it too bob novak's column (a far cry from The Progressive). Hagel telling novakula, shortly after his latest visit to Iraq, "This thing is really coming undone quickly" and when bob confronted him with the old adage of failing to stop the terrorists in Iraq will bring the violence here, Hagel replied "nonsense," because "Iraq is not embroiled in a terrorist war today... when I hear people say, 'Well, if we leave them to that, it will be chaos' -- what do you think is going on now? Scaring the American people into this blind alley is so dangerous." Some are beginning to sense a sea change finally coming. I wonder why. No, strike that, I can understand why. I wonder why it took so damn long.

The refusal of anyone in this administration to pay any consequences for what the president says he is and was responsible for has lead to interviewing for a new scapegoat, an Iraq "czar". Or as war architect, and loyal bushie, stephen hadley likes to call it, an "execution manager". The incompetence of this administration can be found in the lack of planning and forethought before invading Iraq. It can still be found on the streets of the ninth ward of New Orleans. It can be found in the Billions of "reconstruction" dollars Missing in Iraq and in the "crumbling" of "reconstructed" projects in Iraq. It is time for a real change, and that can only come from the people. It's time we really bring it. As Lee Iacocca so elegently put it "let's shake off the horseshit and goto work. Let's tell 'em all we've had enough."

Happy Mission Accomplished/May Day!

"The very fundamental issue is, they don't know where the hell they're going ," said retired Marine Gen. John J. "Jack" Sheehan, a former top NATO commander who was among those rejecting the job [of Iraq czar]. Sheehan said he believes that Vice President Cheney and his hawkish allies remain more powerful within the administration than pragmatists looking for a way out of Iraq. "So rather than go over there, develop an ulcer and eventually leave, I said, 'No, thanks,' " he said.