Still Fighting

Activism

Representative John Conyers (D-MI) has been around for awhile. 19 terms, to be exact. Conyers has served in Congress through eight presidents now, and he knows BS when he hears it. That's why Conyers has been relentless in his pursuit of the truth about the Downing Street Memo. He wrote a letter to Bush demanding answers. He delivered over 560,000 signatures to the White House from American citizens who want answers. He's held hearings to hear testimony (even though Republicans relegated the basement and turned the lights out on him). Now, he's organizing town hall meetings across the country to discuss the DSM. Although specific cities have not been announced (other than Detroit, Conyers' constituency), we encourage you to go to John Conyers website and sign up to attend. Oh, and you can bank on these meetings being true town hall meetings - no screened attendees here. The meetings will take place on Sunday, July 23rd.

News

Republican Lawmakers Fire Back at Judiciary. Well, of course they do. After all, Republicans in Congress are the be-all, end-all of government. They always have the final say. Just look at what the Supreme Court ruled on this week. Among other things, the Court ruled that the government could claim private property for economic development. On Thursday, the House voted 231-189 to "approve a measure that would prohibit federal financing for property seizures." (There are 232 Republicans and 206 Democrats in the House). It now goes to the Senate. The Court also ruled that the Ten Commandments monument outside of the Texas Capitol could stay, but the written, framed copies in the corridors of two Kentucky courthouses could not. Also on Thursday, Rep. Ernest Istook (R-OK) announced a constitutional amendment that would "protect displays of the Ten Commandments, in Kentucky as well as in Texas. . . It will protect the words 'under God' in the Pledge of Allegiance. It will protect the ability for schoolchildren to pray at school, individually or together. It will protect our national motto of 'In God we trust.'" He was supported by 109 House members, including three Democrats (there are only 58 Catholic Republicans in the House of Representatives). So, now that we've ascertained that Republicans in Congress control all, what's next? A constitutional ban on abortion? Legislation that would require anyone who makes an annual salary under $30,000 to move to Canada? Republicans truly are drunk with power. How much more damage will they do before they lose the majority?

Canadian's Lawyers Blame U.S. You may recall the ugly incident from 2002, when Canadian citizen Maher Arar, flying through New York, was arrested by U.S. agents, questioned for 12 days, then sent to Syria for more than 10 months where he was "allegedly" tortured. He was then released with the equivalent of an "our bad." Even if Arar was guilty of anything, his "alleged" treatment was heinous. Now, Canadians could bring criminal charges against those U.S. agents. Canadian law defines torture as "illegal anywhere it occurs," which means that when Arar was sprinted to Syria and "allegedly" tortured, the U.S. knowingly violated that law. But hey, why are we surprised? Bushco and the Patriot Act supporters don't care much for our laws and rights, nor do they tolerate those who stand up for those rights, so why should Canada be treated any differently?

Settlers In Gaza Stone Palestinian. The Middle East is truly a mess right now. Soldiers are still dying in Afghanistan. Smuggling continues daily in Iraq, giving the insurgents more chances to enter the country from Syria. Iran has elected a militant president who has it out for America. But no story shows the failure of U.S. diplomacy more than the title article. If you recall, last week Condi Rice, Ariel Sharon and Mahmoud Abbas announced a withdrawal plan for the Gaza Strip. Gaza is the most highly contested area between Israel and Palestinians. Israel seized Gaza in 1967, and the two sides have been fighting since. Rice's mediated "plan" calls for the resettlement of 8,500 Israelis who live there, the removal of all Israeli soldiers, and the demolition of 1,200 Israeli homes starting in August. The plan was announced last Friday, and it's already causing massive tension. Highway traffic is being stopped by dissidents, mostly ultra-national youths. Israeli soldiers who refuse to assist in the destruction of their countrymen's homes are being jailed. In response to the title article, about youth dissidents throwing stones and injuring several people, Israel lifted its blockade of the soon-to-be destroyed settlements. In many of the altercations, Hezbollah could be seen, either as victim or aggressor. With their recent sweep of election seats in Southern Lebanon, there has been talk of Hezbollah disbanding its militia. With the escalating tensions in Gaza, we doubt we'll see Hezbollah throwing away their weapons anytime soon. Rice should have known what the fallout of her mediated decision for Israel to leave Gaza would be. Rice said during her press conference, "One of the reasons I'm here is to encourage the parties to actively now concretely solve these problems...There is no more time to simply put problems on the agenda." Well, how about you try to find a solution to the religious differences between Israelis and Palestinians? You know, the conflict that has been going on for many, many years? Maybe that would be a solution, instead of resettling 8,500 Israelis, destroying their homes and causing the cease-fire to end.

Editorials

Command Responsibility. It's amazing how blame escapes Bushco. Americans don't like Bush's Social Security plan? It must be because of all the liberal propaganda. Bushco didn't tell Americans how much the prescription drug plan would cost? It was all right there; you should have read it closer! And let's not forget the biggest blame shift of all - Iraq. As Andrew J. Bacevich writes, "Who 'lost' Iraq?" Certainly not Rumsfeld or the Army. No, it was those damn insurgents, and lack of Iraqi support, and missing money, and unhappy troops, and liberal bias and the media stirring up trouble. Bacevich calls it like it is - the blame for the debacle (dare we say quagmire?) that is Iraq lies squarely at the feet of Donald Rumsfeld and Army leadership, although Bush will not acknowledge that fact, you know, because they are never wrong. Quite the opposite. For example, Army Lt. Gen. Ricardo Sanchez is going to be nominated for his fourth General's star. We offer him congratulations. Or rather, we would, if he weren't the senior commander in Baghdad when the Abu Ghraib story broke. The Pentagon found no fault with Sanchez, and he accepted no responsiblity. But, as Bacevich so astutely points out, that is moot. Sanchez shouldn't qualify for his fourth star because "[h]e failed to accomplish his assigned mission in Iraq." It's that simple. Bacevich goes on to detail Sanchez's job, and why he failed. So why is Sanchez getting rewarded? Would that happen in your office? Can you imagine an employee being assigned a rather large project, that employee fails at the project miserably, to the point where he hit two of his thirty goals, and then that employee is promoted by the boss. Then again, we shouldn't be that surpised; it's the Bushco M.O.: Be a loyal party member, and no matter how badly you screw up your job (see Bolton, John; Rice, Condoleeza; Wolfowitz, Paul; Tenet, George; Goss, Porter; Negroponte, John; Gonzales, Alberto; Owen, Priscilla; and Owen, Priscilla) there will always be a place for you to be rewarded and/or advance to in the Bush Administration. Just ask Molly Ivins, who details Bush's high office appointments.

Reality Rains Down on the Republicans. Most Presidents would care if their approval rating was currently the lowest it's ever been in their presidency. Not Bush. Not Bushco. Not Republicans. Bush has held the presidency for 1,258 days now, and, as Sterling Newberry writes, people are finally beginning to see that there are problems with Bush. He's not a leader. He's not Presidential. He's the face and spokesman of a religious movement sweeping across America, and it's working. It's clear that Bush went into office with a specific plan of what he wanted to do; cut taxes for the top 1%, invade Iraq and change Social Security to benefit the wealthy. Only, it didn't quite work out that way. Bush got his tax cuts, but he's failed miserably with Iraq and Social Security. No wonder his approval rating is the lowest in his presidency, at 43%, according to Zogby. Not even his Ft. Bragg "rally the troops" speech had any effect. What's even more interesting about the Zogby poll is that 42% of Americans "would favor impeachment proceedings if it is found the President misled the nation about his reasons for going to war with Iraq." No wonder they don't want to talk about the Downing Street Memo. How does it feel to have public opinion so heavily against you, Mr. President?

The Party of Abortion Rights. Let it not be said that we don't cover breaking news! As you're probably aware of by now, Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor has stepped down from the bench. And that might give you cause for despair, as we all know that Bush is likely going to nominate some loon, and then maybe the "nuclear option" will occur after all. But Atrios gives us a little perspective. First of all, even if Roe vs. Wade gets overturned in the short term, a large majority of Americans favor abortion rights. And while we hope this doesn't happen, maybe more citizens need to start losing their rights before they get really upset and stand up for them. While we don't want things to get worse, maybe it's necessary in order for them to finally really start getting better. Let's hope that one way or the other, they do.

Activism

Stop Blaming the Troops - Investigate the Real Culprits of Abuse. We heart Wes Clark. He's a man with honor and dignity, who cares deeply about this country, and has a particular affection for our military. That's why he is so disturbed by the reports of prisoner torture and abuse by our government, and that's also why you should be too. The reasons for investigating the reports of abuse are almost too numerous to mention: It's cruel to treat people inhumanely; Torture is an ineffective method of information gathering; With every such report, we foster more terrorism; We lose the moral high ground in the war on terror... Put simply, "How can we win the war on terrorism, a fight for democracy and freedom in America and around the world, if we forsake the very principles and institutions for which we are fighting?" Go to the link above and sign the petition requesting a formal investigation into the Bush Administration's abuse of prisoners.

News

Canada to Ban Bulk Drug Exports, Allow Internet Sales. Yesterday, Canada's health minister announced that the country would stop the practice of shipping bulk orders of prescription drugs to the U.S. Americans can still go to Canada with a prescription and have it filled. We can also order online from our neighbor to the north. Canada's prescription drugs are far cheaper and just as effective as what is made and distributed here, so it's a no-brainer as to why Americans prefer to go to Canada to get their drugs. Of course, the drug industry was more than pleased with the minister's announcement. What does it say about our current health care situation where we have people driving to another country to fill a prescription? A spokeswoman for the Illinois governor's office said that the governor sees Bush's hands in all this. And why not? It's Bush's M.O. to look out for big business, isn't it?

Bush to Create New Unit in F.B.I. for Intelligence. Bush does something right! Oh, don't get that look on your face - it wasn't his idea, and he'll screw it up anyway. Bush, on the advice of the Silberman/Robb presidential commission (which looked at intelligence in the U.S.) has created a national security division within the FBI called the National Security Service. Of course, that's the extent of Bush's work. He's left the details to the new director of intelligence, John D. Negroponte. Negroponte has already had problems trying to work with the FBI, and a directive that essentially changes the culture of the FBI like this won't help. Still, if implemented right, this is a good step for the intelligence community. The idea is similar to Britain's MI5, with less autonomy and a less cool name. Only one question remains...what took so long?

The High Cost of a Rush to Security. The problems of the Transportation Security Administration are well documented: Throwing lavish parties using taxpayer money, keeping secret and illegal databases on traveler information. Now, TSA comes under fire yet again. This time, for gross misuse of funds. For example, TSA "spent" $1,540 to rent 14 extension cords at $5 each per day for three weeks, in Colorado. Extension cords! Sure, we're happy that the audit occurred, but what is the government going to do to ensure that this doesn't continue to happen? In February 2002, TSA's budget was $104 million. Now, it is $741 million. Aren't you outraged at this egregious waste of your money? Well, actually, since taxes aren't increasing now, it's really your children's money.

Editorials

Dangerous Incompetence. Although the title of this editorial could refer to any one of a number of things, Bob Herbert is talking about Bushco's attitude towards Iraq. Bush obviously didn't know what he was bringing us into. Bush had no plan for leaving when we started. And Bush obviously has no plan now, even as the American death toll rises above 1,700. Herbert is also right on a very major point, even though it's not the focus of his editorial. If roles were reversed, and Democrats had run this war this way, Republicans would be "dusting off their impeachment manuals." Herbert ends by mirroring the Democratic philosophy - whether or not you wanted to be here, we're here. The troops need our support, because they certainly aren't getting any from the White House.

Give Us Candor and Clarity if You Want Resolve. You will find no bigger difference between Republicans and Democrats than in the words written by Senator Russ Finegold (D-WI) about Iraq. And it really is that simple. If Bush appeared in some sort of national forum, and came clean about Iraq, admitted that the insurgency was not in its last throes, and appealed to the nation, he might just be able to get people back on the side of supporting the war. Instead, he drones on about how we're winning, and the insurgency is dying, and that setting a timetable would be sending the wrong signal to our troops. We're not winning this war. It's that simple. If you bought a sandwich, and you hated the taste, would you buy it again? And again? And again?

Bolton Endgame. Gosh, we really hope this is the Bolton endgame, because we all know that enough words have been written about this bullying blowhard to fill an encyclopedia. Robert Kuttner analyzes the possibilities for what could end up happening with Bolton. Basically, there are two options. First, Bush could use (abuse, actually) his power of a recess appointment to grant Bolton a temporary term. This could be seen as a partial victory for Bush - at least he'd be able to save face by saying that he got the appointment he wanted, but Bolton would almost immediately become a lame duck. Furthermore, as Sen. Pat Roberts (R-KS) said, a recess appointment "would weaken not only Mr. Bolton but also the United States." Of course, if this was his intention, then why did he push so passionately for Bolton, even though it was pretty clear he would never get Senate approval? The other option is for him to do the right thing, and withdraw Bolton's name. What do you think he's going to do?

Activism

We wrote on Monday about the Christian Alliance for Progress (CAP), the cure to the poison-tipped arrow of the religious right. CAP wants to promote the idea that "you can talk about your faith without wanting your faith to become the exclusive faith of the nation." CAP's website has a petition up, encouraging people to "sign the Jacksonville Declaration to reclaim Christianity from the religious right." You can also become a community organizer in your neighborhood. Even if you're not religious, visit the petition here. If you want to become more involved with CAP, you can do that here. help show the religious right that they don't speak for all Christians!

News

Republicans Warn MLB on Soros' Nats Bid. Really, is there anything more American than baseball? And is there anything less American than stifling business competition in the name of partisan politics? Combine the two, and what do you get? Well, billionaire liberal George Soros joined an ownership group that's interested in buying the Washington Nationals. This bothers some Republicans, who have resorted to making veiled threats, and insisting that baseball shouldn't get involved in politics. Of course, Bush used to own the Texas Rangers, and FOX News Mogul Rupert Murdoch used to own the Los Angeles Dodgers, but let's not split hairs here, right?

Violence Linked to Taliban Swells in Afghanistan. Now there's a country you probably haven't heard about in a little while: Afghanistan. Remember Afghanistan? You know, the country that we actually invaded justly after 9/11, because they actually were harboring terrorists, including bin Laden? Well, even though that invasion may have been justified, that doesn't mean our job there is done. In fact, a compelling argument can be made that the war in Iraq has significantly hurt our efforts in Afghanistan. And while we've made very significant progress there, the Taliban is still lurking, and is still quite volatile. Right now there are about 20,000 U.S. troops there, with an Afghan army of about 20,000, and a police force of 50,000. And just yesterday, a large U.S. military helicopter crashed in Afghanistan, possibly killing up to 17 American troops. Imagine, if you will, that we had never invaded Iraq, and instead had applied all of our resources to vanquishing the Taliban, and finding bin Laden. We'd have a much more stable Afghanistan, a vanquished al Qaeda, a stronger military, a contained Saddam Hussein, and about 1,700 more living troops.

Bush Says War Is Worth Sacrifice. Bush does know how to visually send a message, even if that message is wrong, doesn't he? He talks about Social Security from bingo halls. He lands on the deck of an aircraft carrier with a "Mission Accomplished" banner behind him, when the mission is far from over. On Tuesday, Bush was at Ft. Bragg, NC, delivering a message that "the War in Iraq is worth it." Is it? For a man who very recently said that the insurgency was in its "last throes," he sure sounded different last night. Harry Reid's response told it like it was - Bush's numerous uses of the phrase "September 11th" hold no water when it comes to Iraq, but do serve to remind Americans that Osama bin Laden is still at large. Remember that guy? Porter Goss thinks that he has a "pretty good idea" where Osama is. So why aren't you going after him?

Editorials

Whistleblowers Describe Halliburton's "Free Fraud Zone." As we've said before, one of us is a full-time government contractor. So it comes as quite a surprise to us to find out every aspect of Halliburton's RIO contract in Iraq was handled by Rumsfeld. Really? Why is that? The DoD has a contracts office whose job it is to look at this very sort of thing. So why aren't they being allowed to do so? Why was Halliburton awarded the contract with a no-compete, meaning that no other company was allowed to submit a proposal for the work. Probably because DoD contracts are awarded by an independent panel, who rates all proposals that are submitted. It's most likely true that Halliburton's proposal would have either cost too much, or would have been written too poorly, so they were just awarded it. What else could it be? Charlie Cray sums up what has been a disgusting misuse of American taxpayer money, and we salute people like Bunnatine Greenhouse, who chose to blow the whistle on this nonsense, despite whatever fallout she'll receive.

Bush's Pre-Emptive War Pre-Empted Congress. There's a lot of ways to lie to someone. Tell them you didn't do something, when you realy did. Tell them something else that makes it seem like they are answering your qurestion, when they really aren't. Or, lie by omission. Simply don't bring it up. It's a play on the kids tactic of "if I can't see you, you're not really there." Bushco has embodied this tactic like a swimmer takes to water. For example, as Paul Loeb writes, in September 2002, a massive air operation occured in the skies of Iraq. 100 American and British fighter planes bombed Iraq, destroying their "ability to resist." Now that Bush had brought us into a bloody air battle in Iraq, hitting civilian and military targets at whim, we had no choice but to go through. Because if the Iraqi citizens weren't upset with us before, they certainly were after. But why has Bushco not talked about this? Why has the MSM not written about this? It's becoming more and more clear that Bush had a hard-on for Iraq long before the search for WMDs.

Economic Inequality In the U.S. Is Reaching Third World Levels. Where’s the Press? The title says it all, doesn't it? Henry Banta writes about the little things going on in the economy. In the last 20 years, the middle class has all but ceased to exist. The economic disparity between the top and the bottom is growing by the day. The top 28,000 citizens of this country have an income greater than the bottom third of all Americans. Doesn't that bother you? Doesn't that frighten you? Banta notes that middle class spending really has been the backbone of our economy over the last 50 years. Now, the spending is continuing, but the earning isn't there, which results in more loans, more credit, and less savings. Sooner or later, none of those will be options either, and then where will we be?

Activism

Do you enjoy your health care? Do you take comfort in the fact that you have it, and it'll be there for you when you need it? What if it wasn't? What if the Associated Health Plan passes legislation, and your premiums went up? What if you couldn't appeal a denied claim? What if your health insurance didn't cover things like prostate exams and mammograms? You'd probably be pissed off. Fortunately, there's something you can do about it (in addition to voting Republicans out of office, of course). Go to Protect Your Healthcare and find out the skinny. Get informed, and contact your legislators to make sure they are voting the way you want them to.

News

52% Now Say Bush "Intentionally Misled The American Public" Into Iraq War. More than half of the American population believe that Bush misled Americans into Iraq, that Bush exaggerated information on Iraq, and that the war was a mistake. Oh, and Bush's approval rating is below 48%. Americans are getting smarter. Americans are starting to see Bush for what he really is - a lying hypocrite who is solely interested in his own personal image and lining the pockets of his closest friends. What took so long? Well, better late than never.

Court Declines to Rule on Case of Reporters' Refusal to Testify. Remember when scumball extraordinaire Robert Novak "outed" Valerie Plame as a CIA agent, thus ruining her career and violating several laws? Once he did, Matthew Cooper of Time Magazine wrote about her, and Judith Miller of the New York Times conducted interviews about her, but never published them. Miller and Cooper were then taken to trial, and Novak sits untouched. Miller and Cooper were ordered by a Federal Appeals court to identify their sources, which they will not do. Yesterday, the Supreme Court declined to hear arguments in this case, and so now it goes back to the Appeals court, where Miller and Cooper will be sentenced with jail time. We're extremely disappointed with the Supreme Court for taking the coward's way out, and not hearing this case. Three (well, five) questions come to mind. 1) Why hasn't Robert Novak's part in this being acknowledged? Did he receive White House protection? 2) Why did the Supreme Court back away from a case that they should have heard? Were they afraid of setting a precedent? That's their job! 3) Are you beginning to see just how important judicial nominees are, and why Democrats were so determined to block the "Sinister Seven?"

Halliburton's Iraq Deals Described as Contract Abuse. From the "You knew it was true, now here's the proof" file, the Pentagon has flagged over $1 billion in overcharges that Halliburton has made, stemming from contract work in Iraq. $1 billion. Imagine if a "blue" company had done this - Republicans would be tripping over themselves demanding answers. $1 billion is a lot of money - it's possible that they'd even demand answers if it was a "red" company NOT formerly run by the current Vice President. Instead, the "official" Pentagon response is "give us time to review it." In addition to the $1 billion in "questioned" costs, there is also $422 million in "unsupported" costs. Imagine that - One and a half billion dollars stolen from the taxpayers. And make no mistake about it - what Halliburton has done is nothing less than theft, albeit on a grander stage. Why are we not investigating this?

Editorials

A Glide Path to Ruin. The big issues don't get a whole lot of press because they aren't "sexy." And by big, we mean the things that will affect us all in the coming years, and sooner than you might think. Global warming, for example. Or China's ascent. Sure, we all know China is a growing superpower. But do you know how much they've invested in America? Paul Krugman will tell you that it's quite a lot, and he's right. But beyond dollar bonds, America has a much bigger problem. As Nicholas Kristof writes, this administration's fiscal irresponsiblity has quite a few high-level economic types worried that we will face a serious financial crisis within five years. Republicans, once the party of fiscal responsiblity, have pushed us down a slope, and we're still falling. At this rate, gas prices will be the least of our worries.

The Sacred, the Profane & Old Glory: Getting It Exactly Wrong on the Flag. It's a great time to be a religious minority in America, eh? Peter Laarman writes an extremely passionate and accurate take on Congress's plans to make the act of burning the flag unconstitutional. The exact text of the amendment says, "The Congress shall have power to prohibit the physical desecration of the flag of the United States." As Laarman writes, desecration is the key word. When did the flag turn into a sanctified object? Did we sleep through some sort of ceremony? Because the flag is great - but it's a symbol. If we want to sit outside, cut out paper crosses, and set those on fire, we can do that. No one can arrest us. But if this amendment passes, we would be arrested for burning a flag. Laarman shows the connection between the religious right and this amendment, and his logic is creepy, unnerving and accurate. We saw it in Kansas. We saw it with the Senate's treatment of Dick Durbin. Really, when was the last time you saw an American flag burned in America?

Take it to Karl. A few days back, we told you we wouldn't dignify Karl Rove's remarks about "liberals" with a response. And we won't. Fortunately, our American servicemen and servicewomen will. Because Rove's remarks were insulting to all Americans, but particular insulting to those who have given their lives to fight for their country, regardless of their political leanings. The "Take it to Karl" blog is definitely worth reading, especially if you're in the mood for some righteous indignation. It's also good to connect with our troops, who are almost all honorable, patriotic people, even if the people manipulating them are not.