Where's Mommy?

Steve reminds us of once again about why nobody is taking poor load-in-the-pants Goldberg seriously with his new ridiculously revisionist book comparing liberals to fascists.

So let's see you birdbrained, nepotism-baby, the Right supports torture, concentration camps, the buying off and corruption of our media, redistributing income upward, endless war, serial masturbation, the politicization of all parts of the civil service so the government becomes "the party" and the government's right to look into all of our personal items, from our emails to our panty drawers (I know, exciting isn't it Jonah!).

And the Left is closer to Facsism? Go cry me a river about how nobody is paying attention to your book. It may be that you are bereft of ideas, your party is bereft of ideas and your whole movement is bereft of ideas. You can't walk 50 feet in this town without kicking a conservative who's been married three times, cyber-molested children or been a gay prostitute at one point or another.

Plus how long have you been claiming this book is coming out, a year now?

Go find a new hobby mommy can purchase for you, you talentless hack.

Sigh. I wish.



E J Dionne takes all my sputterings this week and coalesces them into one on the mark column today.

So many principles that Republicans held dear when they were trying to take Clinton down are no longer operative.

This certainly applies to a 1998 column now whizzing around the Internet that ran under the headline "Executive Privilege Is a Dodge." It was written by Tony Snow, who is now President Bush's press secretary.
(ed. note- Tony on "sick leave" for a while right now? How convenient.)

To investigate Clinton -- even his Christmas card list -- was God's work.
To investigate Bush is "to head down the partisan road of issuing subpoenas and demanding show trials," as the president put it this week.

This is what needs to be pummeled into the ground. And while we're at it, throw one of their favorite sayings back at them, "If you have nothing to hide, why would you object to being under oath?" Things look like they are starting to heat up, with more and more evidence coming out that Abu Gonzales may have "fibbed" about his involvement in the situation.

I'm hoping for a fun week.

Lethally Moronic Weapon

Bill Donahue's best friend acts like a barbaric ass again.

Damn Mayans, they're probably Jews anyhow.

Is There Anyone Who Likes The Bushes?

Texas A&M "faculty, administrators and staff" have been begging for their university to not be associated with The Idiot Prince, so I guess it is only appropriate that his heartless (if easily smarter) brother receive similar treatment from another university:

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — University of Florida President Bernie Machen says he was "tremendously disappointed" with the school's Faculty Senate vote to deny former Gov. Jeb Bush an honorary degree.

The Senate voted 38-28 Thursday against giving the honorary degree to Bush, who left office in January.

Sorry Jeb, I know one of the brothers is the worst president in the history of this country and another one thinks One Night In Bangkok is not just a song, but a sexual excursion, but that doesn't make you great. Just fantastic in comparison, while in reality, mediocre with a slight tilt towards crappy.

Go Rap With Rep. Shea-Porter

The Firedoglake Blue America conversation with Carol Shea-Porter, the fantastic progressive candidate who won a House seat in New Hampshire in 2006 in a huge upset, will be at 2PM EST, or in 10 minutes.

She has already won our highly prestigious Jim Webb award, for telling a chickenhawk where to stuff it.

Howie has the details on the conversation.

Some days I just feel more Polish than usual. Guess today is one of them.
(Feeling Polish for me means craving my mothers' gumpki, cold beer and bowling. Just my version mind you.)

Interesting tidbits from the interwebs....

Did Kroger really stick to their press release proclamation to make Plan B available? This article isn't so sure, but when I went to the Kroger pharmacy yesterday and asked they did. (And hey!!! What's with the "look" Mr Pharmacist? I'm not that old!)

Was Pope Pius VII a racist?

Televangelists misusing the money they get from the suckers erm, faithful? Unbelievable!!

Staid Government types believe in UFO's?

Now we know what Bush saw in Putins soul. I'm surprised Bush hasn't gotten Rove to work something similar out for them. We don't need no stinkin' other political parties!!

I like a good burger just as much as the next person, and I even fall to the temptation of the drive thru every once in a while, but it this really necessary? I've a theory about this stuff. If you went in and sat down in a restaurant, would you really be inclined to order the biggest burger available? I doubt I would. But given a finite amount of time to think, order and eat, these things are going to fly out of the drive thru. Just gross.

Let's say I wrote my biography. I'm betting if you went back and conducted more than 40 interviews with former classmates, teachers, friends, there would be a TON of discrepancies. Who wouldn't? Why should it be a big deal that there are discrepancies for Obama? Not enough real news to cover?

Mr. Geiger's Cartoons

Bob's got the Saturday cartoons. A lot of good Rove and Alberto in there. That's the funny stuff.

Then there's four years of Iraq cartoons, definetely funny to Generalissimo Bush, when he's pretending to look for WMD under his desk so his wussy, cocktail-weeny friends with no family anywhere near this war (except the profiteering side of course) can laugh.

Go check it out my friends.

A Crook And Liar

I kid Mr. John Amato of course. Much like, I don't know, 150,000 others each day, love his site. He was YouTube before YouTube was Youtube. If that makes sense.

John is a pioneer. But being a pioneer is expensive. For the bandwidth he needs to host constant videos it is mucho expensive. So if you think he's making a killing on his site, just remember his is probably about 50 times more expensive to maintain than most.

Why do I talk about this? Because John has been hosting a fundraiser at his place. He is a great guy and key part of our progressive infrastructure.

If you can afford to go give him some scratch, please do.

My AMERICAblog Column

The Week That Was 3/22/07

Another week. More preposterousness to report.

So do you know that I am a homophobe? Really I am.

So said Corporal "man-whore" Matt Sanchez (or someone claiming to be him) recently in a "friendly" visit to my blog, after I had the audacity to join Jesus General in a little satire at Cpl. Sanchez' expense.

Here is what I had to say:

I agree with our humble savior the good General.

Matt Sanchez must get his own show on Fox! Maybe it could be combined with 24, where Sanchez sees how many Republicans he can, um, cavort with while the clock ticks in the background.

And at the end, a nuke can be set off in Los Angeles like in the actual 24, to scare anti-Christianites into submission, or just because then true believers can all get raptured while men with Matt's particular preference eternally suffer an unspeakable pain.

Like the kind of pain only an innocent citizen of Canada can suffer at the hands of the Syrian government due to Bush Administration rendition.

Just spitballin' here.

Now either Sanchez doesn't understand satire, or he's a bit cranky because the itching has been particularly vigorous in recent weeks. Here was his response:

Cpl. Matt Sanchez said...

Poor Schlechter feels he's been violated by the Bush administration so he's going to lash out at the man through me.

Is Schlechter a homophobe? I'm sure he would consider himself to be an "open minded" person, but if weren't for his double-standard, would he even be attacking me?

So let's break down what this pathetic pawn of the paranoid, pants-wetting Right has to say, as it is a useful exercise in understanding what goes on in their multi-lesioned cerebral cortexes.

First of all, this guy goes to Columbia? The name of my blog is cliffschecter.com, but he somehow turned off the spell-check in his skull and got "Schlechter?" This is only important in that, well, it shows the level of intellect of those CPAC chooses to honor with awards.

Ok, now to his charges. I am a "homophobe" (thank God for the Thesaurus function in Microsoft Word, or he may have had trouble with that one too). That's why I blog at AMERICAblog, of course, because I am secretly infiltrating this suberversive group of gays so I can whisk them away to Ted Haggard's Hetero Boot Camp or a Project Exodus near you.

Or maybe I was making a point, that the true homophobe is more likely a gay man who goes on Hannity to be called "a great American," gets his picture taken with Ann "faggot" Coulter or likes to hang his uniform and cap in a party whose appointed general thinks being gay is "immoral," whose leaders think being same-sex oriented caused 9/11.

Now, to his second charge, which I enjoyed on a purely sixth-grade level. That I feel like I have been "violated" by the Bush Administration, so I am "lashing out" at him because of it. If not for the loofah-factory sized Freudian slip, we wouldn't even bother.

Like Lynne Cheney when she's in the mood but catches a glimpse of Dick coming out of the shower.

Corporate... I mean Corporal Sanchez, you have chosen to earn a living by being violated, am I correct Rod Majors (which, by the way, your party would have you Abu Ghraibed for, while I am of the opinion that we live and let live)? Furthermore, you have chosen to be spiritually violated by associating with the likes of David Horowitz, a fat-assed, faux-intellectual (perhaps only surpassed by "The Surge Family Kagan"), brimming with self-hate and hyperventilating about Commies hiding underneath every bed (the 80s are over David--and you might want to pass that info on to your barber).

So, to conclude, Rod, you have found the perfect home in the GOP. They may all secretly hate you--as they do themselves--but there is no better place in the world to be both a man-whore and a corporate whore.

'Splain This Rudy.

9/11 remains possibly used on roads: court papers say

By Edith Honan
1 hour, 8 minutes ago

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Debris that may have contained bits of bone from victims of the World Trade Center attacks was used to fill potholes and pave city roads, according to court papers filed on Friday.

The charge was made in an affidavit filed in Manhattan federal court in an ongoing case filed in 2005 by family members of those killed in the attacks against the city. They say the city did not do enough to search for remains, denying victims a proper burial.
(snip)
Beck said he saw sanitation workers removing small pieces of debris containing possible bone fragments and loading them "onto tractors, and using it to pave roads and fill in potholes, dips and ruts."

There is more than I am capable of imagining that was f**ked up in the aftermath of 9/11, but casual disregard of the remains of the victims of the first real terrorist attack on U.S. soil is beyond me.

Bring It On Bush

Why does President Bush hate the troops, our freedoms, apple pie, big-screen TVs, the American Flag, Neil, the Superbowl, guard dogs, Texas beef, George P., James Madison, sexual abstinence, Jenna and Budweiser?


Commie.

I want to piggyback on a post Cliff mentioned earlier. There seems to be a shrinking number of Republicans. Here's what Andrew Sullivan had to say about it. Frankly, there's nothing much to add.

I spent part of last night absorbing the latest comprehensive Pew report on trends in public opinion over the last decade. It's a devastating indictment of the Bush-Rove strategy for conservatism and the Republican party. They may have created the most loyally Democratic generation since the New Deal with the under 25s. But check the other findings out. Party identification is now 50 percent Dem and 35 percent GOP. The country is now divided in two over the question of whether military strength is the key to ensuring peace; in 2002 62 percent were hawks and 34 percent were doves. Religious intensity is falling; acceptance of gay people is rising. The younger generation is the most secular of any. Support for the military has never been stronger - people don't blame the troops for the war. The country is divided down the middle on torture, but still in favor of preemptive war in some circumstances. Sorry, Dinesh, but women's equality and freedom are values now overwhelmingly popular among all groups, including Republicans, and strongest among the young. Since Bush has been president, there has been a sharp decline in the number of Americans favoring "old fashioned values about family and marriage." In the last ten years, opposition to gay marriage has dropped ten points and support has risen ten points. There has also been a striking twelve point increase in support for affirmative action over the past decade - all of it among whites.

It turns out that Karl Rove has gone a long way toward securing a permanent majority in American politics ... for liberals and Democrats. The collapse of a coherent, freedom-loving, reality-based conservatism is surely part of the reason.

And thanks to all for the well wishes.

Murtha Actually Understands War

Unlike the chickenhawk brigade of GOP wusses who only know war by playing late-night games of Risk and D&D, John Murtha doesn't offer silly canards about "supporting the troops," while not giving them protective gear.

Listen to him talk about what it's like to really "support the troops."

Note to "Surging Kagans," pay attention.

Anyone Around Here Speak French and Have Some Time On Their Hands?

Oh man, if there is anything that peaks my interest more than a Republican in leg chains, it's this stuff!!

France opens secret UFO files covering 50 years

France became the first country to open its files on UFOs Thursday when the national space agency unveiled a website documenting more than 1,600 sightings spanning five decades.

The online archives, which will be updated as new cases are reported, catalogues in minute detail cases ranging from the easily dismissed to a handful that continue to perplex even hard-nosed scientists.
To visit the website: www.cnes-geipan.fr.

Then they go and spoil it all....

Conclusive Proof: Vampires Do Not Exist
Rachel Sklar | Posted Thursday March 22, 2007 at 08:18 PM

One of my favorite blogs ever is tech writer Clive Thompson's Collision Detection which always boasts a fun collection of ephemera and techno-arcania, from the super-relevant to the delightfully fanciful. It is the latter of which we speak today: Apparently some smarty-pants scientists have proven that vampires conclusively do not exist.

Who is smarter? Mr Yale UN Ambassador Yosemite Sam?
Mr William & Mary Soccer Playin' Stoned Funnyman?

Doris Kearns Goodwin decides.

Yes, this jackass right-wing Republican, who is most definitely vulnerable, did just say this:

Walberg said the returning troops he has talked with "indicate to me that 80 to 85 percent, in a conservative fashion, of (Iraq) is reasonably under control, at least as well as Detroit or Chicago or any of our other big cities. That's an encouraging sign.''

Sometimes the Republican intellect is just something to behold.

Playing Telephone or Politico Gets It's Ass Handed To Them

I was pretty excited when Politico debuted. It seemed to be a non-subscription version of The Hill. Beltway reporters from mainstream venues binding together to give the viewers a real narrative of the DC machinations.

Ooops.

Yesterday Glenn Greenwald wrote:

"The Politico: Gossip rag masquerading as news organization?"

What is happening at The Politico seems clear. That newspaper is filled with super-insider Beltway types who have all sorts of friends in various Washington crevices. They are constantly chatting with one another, exchanging all sorts of speculation and gossip, and always engaged in a perpetual competition to demonstrate who is the most keyed-in to the super-inside Beltway developments.

This insecure Beltway climate produces a natural temptation on the part of the "source" to represent one's speculation as "knowledge" and to exaggerate the quality and reliability of one's information.

Doesn't sound much different than the "We All Love The Iraq War Kagans" now does it? The Politico is going to have to do some serious soul searching about it's agenda.

So far, they have initiated RNC talking points, portrayed a partisan paid campaign employee as neutral, been unable to read at a second grade level and attributed an "agreeing with Lieberman comment" to Cliff and not BC, been top-heavy on stories attacking Democrats or that nefarious "Democratic Agenda," predicted the firing of AG Gonzales, the end of the Edwards campaign, and two of their top reporters profess that Matt Drudge rules their world.

And even that bastion of Lefty Pinko Liberalism (at least according to the loony Right), the Washington Post, thinks they screwed up.

And this is just in the first two months.

Pearls Of Wisdom

Rick Perlstein is a good progressive, a spirited and prodigious author and as importantly a good friend.

In this New Republic column (mark this down folks, only Rick and maybe one or two others would get me to link to this magazine), he could not be more right about the Republican playbook for smearing opponents.

This should be a must read for every Democrat running for office. Anywhere. Period.

Faggot. Nigger. Bitch.

Please excuse the blunt language. From here forward, to avoid the ugly words, I'll refer to it as "FNB politics." With little to show the electorate in 2008--after six years of uninterrupted control--besides sub-standard care from a privatized workforce at Walter Reed Hospital, thrice-married "family values" presidential candidates, and a boom in home foreclosures, the conservative base's 2008 strategy has begun to emerge: Weaken the major Democratic opponents by making their image unpalatable to the public.

Ann Coulter might have been the one to use the precise word aloud. But the effort to discredit John Edwards as not really a man began soon after he came to national prominence as John Kerry's running mate. And the endeavor fits into a running conservative pattern--one Ann Coulter's most important patron, Roger Ailes of Fox News, knows perfectly well. In The Selling of the President, Joe McGinniss relates an episode where Richard Nixon's set dressers had the candidate in front of a turquoise curtain. Ailes, Nixon's detail-obsessed TV guru, had a conniption. "Nixon wouldn't look right unless he was carrying a pocketbook," he grumbled, ordering the curtains replaced by wood panels with "clean, solid, masculine lines."

Along similar lines, Rush Limbaugh calls the insufficiently martial Iraq Study Group "James Baker's Fruit Salad." To those with good memories who pay very close attention, this is a reference to the former secretary of state's preference that the report be considered in its entirety rather than picked over like a fruit salad. But, to right-wingers who've forgotten that (the lion's share, no doubt), the nickname made just as much sense. The report recommended diplomacy. Isn't that kind of ... fruity? And, in a nod to Ailes, Limbaugh has taken to calling Fox News's chief competitor "PMSNBC."

As Rick so eloquently argues, these attacks are not random. They are based on themes which play to the worst aspects of human devlopmental history. This is why I quote my favorite historian, Richard Hofstadter, so often. Because he understood the psychological appeals to resentment, paranoia and insecurity that Republicans successfully employ (as well as members of the far right and far left in the past) perhaps better than anyone else.

John Kerry is said to "look French." John Edwards is called "The Breck Girl." Al Gore is made fun of for wearing "Earth tones" and getting wardrobe advice from "Naomi Wolf." See the pattern? They do it with race and the masculinization of women too.

Furthermore, they do the opposite with their own people, as Bush wears a flight suit and is portrayed as "resolute" and "a strong leader." Meanwhile, we had pictures of this panzy in a cheerleader outfit from high school and did nothing with them. Do you know what the other side would have done with that kind of a gold mine?

Because whether you like it or not, IT WORKS.

Democrats must be ready for this in 2008. It's political malpractice if they're not prepared at this point.

Thanks OhDave!

You guys may be familiar with one of our kind commenters here, Ohdave, which conveniently stands for Ohio Dave.

Dave has a blog, where he does one of the best roundups of Ohio politics out there, and was kind enough to write a warm welcome to me, with my impending move to Columbus.

Thank you Dave. I look forward to joining a talented group of Ohio bloggers. And am very psyched to move to Columbus, a very cool, young and growing city (especially after that comeback last night against Tennessee :))

Geronimo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The number of people willing to publicy admit to being Republican has been crashing since 2002.

I know, it's shocking people wouldn't want to be identified with a party who likes to put pedophiles in charge of the Caucus on Missing and Exploited Children (Foley), has completely screwed up the world and thinks stem cells must be protected with Uzis and Mustard Gas while real, live children go without healthcare.

(hat tip to Matt Ortega of SotuBlog and Right's Field).

Pet Killers

Is this a strong title, yes. But if you have pets, and like in my house they are like family, then no other title to this post would suffice.

I don't know if you've been following the saga of MenuFoods, who knew their wet dog and cat food was tainted and causing grievous injury and death to pets, yet took their sweet time to recall their product.

I am livid, even though thankfully my two cute little cats are fine. If they weren't, I'd be going postal on some CEO's ass over at MenuFoods.

Go read and recommend this diary. This story NEEDS more attention.

It's just another case of corporate abuse and Bush-style regulation.

Big News (At Least For Me)

Well folks, many of you who know me knew this day was coming, but why don't I just let this email I sent out to friends and colleagues speak for itself, and you can ask questions (if anyone truly cares) in the comments:

Many of you already knew this but I just wanted to make sure it was out in the ether. I will be moving at the end of next week from Washington D.C. to Columbus, Ohio.

This young(ish) man goes West for a variety of reasons, grandparents to babysit nearby, housing prices that mean my 5-month old will have more than a bathtub to play in and a variety of consulting work I will be doing to try and solidify gains in The Buckeye State on the national, state and local level in 2008 (not to mention a very special project I am working on in next door KY to make a certain GOP leader's life a living hell over the next year and a half).

It has been a fun 7 years in the Beltway, and my interests both financial and personal will have me coming back quite often (I am living 15 minutes from the airport in OH and the flight is only about 50 minutes, so not too tough a haul). So it's not really goodbye. Oh and for those of you who have asked, yes they have television studios in Columbus, so I will keep going on from there (or better yet, when I can get them to fly me to New York and put me up in hotels I could never afford).

Best,

Cliff

So there you have it my friends...now on to the next adventure.

Intolerable Cruelty

This is so right on, I don't know what I could add:

What's obvious to all but the willfully blind is that Bush truly enjoys hurting people. His every action is designed to inflict pain, from that loathsome habit of giving people nicknames - hey, media suck-ups, it's not cute, it's contemptuous, a bully-boy saying, "I think so little of you that I'm not gonna call you by your name, I'm gonna call you what I want to call you" - to the cavalier decimation of a nation. Bush's utter heartlessness is breathtaking, though no more so than the mainstream media's craven refusal to even acknowledge it, let alone to truly do its job and relentlessly point out every instance of his wanton malice.

Read the piece in it's entirety, it's well worth it (hat tip to our very own commenter Basheert and her S-Q blog).

Turning Red Districts Blue

Have I thanked God today for Mean Jean Schmidt?

If I haven't, my bad.

Rush Hudson Limbaugh, Sr. United States Courthouse

Newsweek Blog

Holly Bailey-

President Bush is busy doing the work of the people. On Wednesday afternoon, the White House press office forwarded reporters this nugget from the president's schedule:

STATEMENT BY THE PRESS SECRETARY

On Wednesday, March 21, 2007 the President signed into law:

H.R. 342, which designates the United States courthouse in Cape Girardeau, Missouri, as the Rush Hudson Limbaugh, Sr. United States Courthouse.

We know what you're thinking: the Rush Limbaugh? Not exactly, but close. The courthouse, located in Limbaugh's hometown, is actually being named after his grandfather, who was a pretty famous guy in his own right. Rush H. Limbaugh was a prominent civic leader and a onetime ambassador to India under President Eisenhower.

What in the world do you think Rush's grandfather would think of his grandsons career? An Ambassador to India under Ike? It would kill him again.

Do you think this courthouse will specialize?
Only drug and sex tourism cases?

Bad news in a good light for the Edwards family.
All of us here are wishing nothing but the best for Elizabeth Edwards.
She and John seemed united in their fight to manage her illness and overcome the difficulties it will place in the way of the campaign and their lives.

We have no doubt that they will succeed in both.

Oh, the things you find by clicking the linkys!!!



Far be it for me to actually call someone a liar,
but in this case I will.

Townhall

As House Intelligence Committee chairman when Republicans still controlled Congress, Hoekstra had tried repeatedly to learn Plame's status from the CIA but got only double talk from Langley.
Waxman, the 67-year-old, 17-term congressman from Beverly Hills, may be a bully and a partisan. But he is no fool who would misrepresent the Director of Central Intelligence (DCI). Waxman was correctly quoting Hayden (quote is factually incorrect).
But Hayden, in a conference with Hoekstra Wednesday, still did not answer whether Plame was covert under the terms of the Intelligence Identities Protection Act

Anyone who wasn't drunk or counting the hours until sundown during the hearings is well aware of what Rep Waxman said NUMEROUS times, i.e.-

Washington Post

Plame's testimony on the covert nature of her job was buttressed by a statement that Waxman read at the hearing's opening which, he said, was approved by Gen. Michael V. Hayden, the CIA's director. The statement said that Plame worked in a covert capacity at the time of Novak's column and that her employment status was classified under an executive order.

Anyone see the difference here? I knew you would,
we got people who read this blog with IQ's over 45. The CIA has rules they run by, and one of them probably has to due with protocol about these types of situations.

The rest of Novakulas op-ed ist just as stupid, but as staying for any period of time reading "Townhall" kills brain cells, I'll save it for another day.

In this time that our attention is focused on Mrs Edwards health, take a moment to consider those here in the Greatest Nation On Earth™ who have no insurance.

Then go read this-

UNDERinsured: Have Health Insurance & Still Screwed

Survey data from the Kaiser Foundation in 2002 showed that among persons who were insured:

24% of insured families spent $2,000 or more out-of-pocket expenses on health care.
18% reported postponing seeking care due to costs
15% had problems paying medical bills
10% had needed a prescription filled, but did not get it
8% were contacted by a collection agency about medical bills
6% needed medical care but did not get it.

There are some sobering and astounding statistics in this diary by Daily Kos regular DrSteveB. I have quite a few of his stories bookmarked for my own personal use.

To bring a little happy news to everyone after such a not-so-happy post, BC's wife is giving birth to their second child today!

So everyone please wish him well!

Oh, and my son just crawled for the first time! 5 months, not bad...As the kids say, woo-hoo!

Very Sad If True

I am hearing rumors everywhere that John Edwards is dropping out of the race. Even worse I am hearing it has to do with his wife's health (you may remember she has had to fight off cancer in the recent past).

There is a press conference scheduled for today. Elizabeth Edwards truly seems to be a wonderful person, so I obviously pray that my information is wrong.

As for her husband's getting out of the race, he was quickly becoming solidified as my top choice, with his strong positions on universal healthcare and Iraq, and his not taking a moment to "think about" his answer as to whether homosexuality is "immoral." (which is symbolic of how he has answered tough questions throughout this race, with "others" triangulating at every turn).

This will have political ramifications, for the Democratic field, and me personally, as I was finally settling in as an Edwards guy (though not 100% there yet). But we can discuss that later.

For now, let's wait and see what Edwards has to say today and wish him and his family the best, no matter what his press conference is about.

Tell Me Lies Tell Me Sweet Little Lies

What happens when someone reads a quote of yours and you deny it, then takes out your book and reads the quote from it, and you still deny it, and then hands the book to you so you have to claim on live tv you can't see it without your glasses?

1) You inhabit some pathetic alternative universe where you're not really going to Hell

2) You make a funny for sane people like us. Thanks!

3) You're name is obviously Tom DeLay.

Finally back after a long 24 hours in New York.

So the Episcopalians are standing up against bigotry and for gay rights. Good for them.

I went to Episcopalian school for my first 11 years in an educational institution, and I always found them to be very tolerant. Glad I was right.

This will have to do for meantime....

I am on a serious hunt for the video of Sen. Boxer smacking down Sen Inoffe.
If you know where I can find one (youtube style), put it in the comments.

(P.S. Miss you big time Mr. Schecter.)

I found a reference to this over at TPMmuckraker.
Think maybe we should see about changing the words a bit?

If I had a friend like Miss Rosemary Woods,
How simple my life would be!
I'd just give all my problems to Rosemary Woods
And she would erase them for me.
Each time I was wrong, or each time that I lied,
Or somebody made me scared,
I would simply report them to Rose Mary Woods
And she would make them disappear....

by Bill Horwitz


Found the author here

Republicans only want Luddites for the Global Warming committee. I can't believe these freakin people used to control this country.

In this mornings comments on the post about my frustrations,
skaterina said about Kim Kagan "Military Historian" on Cspan this morning..

aha / so the Kagan "military historian" i saw on C-span this morning
is one of The Famous Kagans / wow

More than wow. A Neocon Echo Chamber Daisy Chain.

Kimberley Kagan* is a Military Historian that often speaks about Iraq.

Her husband is Fredrick Kagan, described as principle author of the surge.

His brother is Robert Kagan, another pro-surge advocate, editor at the Weekly Standard who often writes pro-surge Op-Eds at the Washington Post without disclosing his family ties.

Donald Kagan, who is also a neoconservative intellectual is their father.

I tried getting thru to Cspan this morning about it, but couldn't. My guess is none of the above info was disclosed. Especially the asterisk. (I wasn't paying attention. Her speaking style and speech is awful)

Read Glenn Greenwalds definitive column about this, wherein he is backed up by Andrew Sullivan.

Sounds familiar eh?

Apparently, the Kagan family has locked up a "surge" monopoly:

Fred designed it, they sold it to the President, and the whole family is now held up by our media outlets --

such as The Washington Post and Weekly Standard --

as the experts to whom we should turn in order to learn if the "surge" is or isn't working.

They'll be honest and tell us.

* Kimberly Kagan is listed as one of the participants in her husband's research team that came up with the surge in the first place.

Pony Blow makes me throw things and scare the animals.
The reporters aren't much better.

TRY ASKING WHY THE ONLY PART THE WHITE HOUSE OBJECTS TO IS THE PART THAT COULD LAND ROVE AND MIERS IN PRISON?

Hey Ed Henry!! You're getting warmer, but take a hint from a crazy woman in Indiana- Go After The 18 Days!!!

In case you're too young to remember, google Rosemary Woods.

Rose Mary Woods (December 26, 1917 – January 22, 2005) was Richard Nixon's secretary from 1951, through the Watergate scandal and until the end of his political career.

Fiercely loyal to Nixon, Woods claimed responsibility in 1974 grand jury testimony for inadvertently erasing up to 5 minutes of the 18 1/2 minute gap in one of the Nixon audio tapes (specifically, the one from June 20, 1972) that were central to the scandal.

Her demonstration of how this might have occurred - which depended upon her stretching to simultaneously press controls several feet apart (what the press dubbed the "Rose Mary Stretch") was met with skepticism from those who believed the erasures, from whatever source, to be deliberate. Later investigators identified five to nine separate erasures.

The contents of the gap remain a mystery.

When Tony was asked about the gap in the emails?
Via Atrios

Tells the reporter to ask Justice, and only provides:

I've been led to believe that there's a good response for it,
and I'm going to let you ask them because they're going to have an answer.

He looked really really uncomfortable.

THEY INDOCRINATE, YOU LISTEN AND LEARN

Being the well informed, intelligent readers you are,
we're pretty sure you are aware of this:

A study by a University of Maryland center concluded, “Those who receive most of their news from Fox News are more likely than average to have misperceptions” about Iraq.

For example, in 2003, 67 percent of those who relied primarily on Fox wrongly believed the U.S. “found clear evidence in Iraq that Saddam Hussein was working closely with the al Qaeda terrorist organization.” Only 40 percent of those who relied on print media harbored this illusion, debunked thoroughly by the 9/11 Commission.

This though, just might knock you back on your heels like it did me.

Yet, in our 2004 polling with Media Vote, using Nielsen diaries, we found that Fox News viewers supported George Bush over John Kerry by 88 percent to 7 percent.

No demographic segment, other than Republicans, was as united in supporting Bush. Conservatives, white evangelical Christians, gun owners, and supporters of the Iraq war all gave Bush fewer votes than did regular Fox News viewers.

So, I wonder, is this what the Nevada Dems thought was good reasoning for having the Democratic Debates on Fox?
Any word from the Congressional Black Caucus on this?

(h/t mydd)

I've had to restart my computer three times this morning.
There is stress in my home.
(Also Jeff screeching about the Kim Kagen on Cspan bouncing her pseudo "We're winning Iraq" theories in her familys (Fredrick, Robert & Donald) echo chamber)

I think we all need a moment of zen, and if I don't throw the computer out the window into the rain, I'll be back in a bit with the news roundup.
(That means you too ME- deep breathes)


************updated with correct Kagan family names and relationship****

Nothing major happening out there except everyone shaking their heads at Gee Dubya having a tantrum trying to protect Miers & Rove.
Good luck on that buddy.

Tom Delays new book sounds mean spirited and nasty. On the other hand, the documentary about Delay that there was a big old fuss about is out May 23rd,
The Big Buy - Tom Delay's Stolen Congress

As usual, Glenn Greenwald strips the facts bare and exposes the truth, including what Tony Snow used to say about Executive Privilege.

... shield virtually any communications that take place within the White House compound on the theory that all such talk contributes in some way, shape or form to the continuing success and harmony of an administration. Taken to its logical extreme, that position would make it impossible for citizens to hold a chief executive accountable for anything. He would have a constitutional right to cover up.

Chances are that the courts will hurl such a claim out, but it will take time.

(snip) Most of us want no part of a president who is cynical enough to use the majesty of his office to evade the one thing he is sworn to uphold -- the rule of law.

Why, I would agree with you Tony!!! Bravo!!! Now apply it to THIS President.

Why look, seems like one of the Purged Prosecutors decided to tell his side of the story.

Hmmm, seems to be a timely 3 week "loss" of emails in the document dump from the DOJ. Convenient.

Elderly peace protesters dragged forcibly from a St Pa tricks Day Parade that they had a permit for.

Very interesting reading from my fellow Bloosier Robert @ Left of Centrist. I will confess to using what Glenn Greenwald calls Argument by Anecdote, but since that is what they usually use against us, one time won't hurt.
(For a take down of the other sides use of Argument by Anecdote and laugh out loud record straightening on the GoE claim of 30K "pro-war" marchers, go see Gavins take at Firedoglake)

There had been specific threats on the net from people who claimed there would be blood shed.

As the march began, the counter protesters became even more belligerent. One of them even held a sign that said "peace sucks". You have to wonder why anyone would be so pro-war that they would make such a claim. (snip)

There was such anger on their faces. It made me wonder what they had against free speech, the right to assemble and our right to voice our dissent with the government. It's not as if any of us would support a law forbidding them to support the war.
Yet these same men, many of them Vietnam vets who were spat upon when they returned from another illegal and immoral war also spat on Charlie Anderson, an Iraq War vet who is now protesting with the rest of us.

I wonder if Charlie Anderson will get money donations from Fox and it's viewers like Joshua Sparling?
Will he get face time on Hannity and Colmes?
Will Michelle Malkin, Little Green Footballs and the guys at Powerline call Charlie Anderson an "AMERICAN HERO"?

Not. Holding. Breath.

****bumped***

ABCNews agrees with me. Hillary's campaign (especially Mark Penn) isn't telling the truth. And I hope they take a beating for it.

You know that game where you take fortunes from the cookies and add "in bed" to the end of each of them out loud?

Well, Jeff and I just had a bunch of fun adding "UNDER OATH" at every pause of President Bushs pugnacious press conference.

From Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid

“After telling a bunch of different stories about why they fired the U.S. Attorneys, the Bush Administration is not entitled to the benefit of the doubt. Congress and the American people deserve a straight answer. If Karl Rove plans to tell the truth, he has nothing to fear from being under oath like any other witness.”

And here's some talking points for when you run into Dittohead Ted at the water cooler.


Clinton did it too.

They are politicial attorneys.

No one screamed when Clinton did it (too).

There is precedent in White House advisors not testifing.

Guess what? This post is from 3/14/07. The CBC is thinking about doing this still, so If you have a moment, give them a buzz.



How does Robert Greenwald do it? Between The Real McCain, Brave New Films and all his other projects, he's also doing this.
Politico

The video above is part of a campaign that Color of Change, an African-American online activist group modeled on MoveOn.org, is launching today to persuade the Congressional Black Caucus Institute not to make Fox it's partner for a debate, something the CBC is considering.

The group's founder, James Rucker, said he'll be sending out an email to about 70,000 people this morning, making the case that, according to a draft, "Fox's record is horrible. Their on-air personalities and regular guests consistently marginalize Black politicians, culture, and institutions." The central point echoes last week's MoveOn campaign: "Validating Fox News as legitimate hurts Black America, and undermines the CBC's credibility."

**********************


As of 3/21/07 It's back on.
Take a minute and drop these people a line.

Rep. Bennie Thompson
Chair, Congressional Black Caucus Institute
(202) 225-5876
Email: http://benniethompson.house.gov/HoR/MS02 /Contact+Bennie/

Rep. Carolyn Kilpatrick
Chair, Congressional Black Caucus
(202) 225-2261
Email: http://www.house.gov/writerep/

Rep. Mel Watt
Influential member, Congressional Black Caucus
(202) 225-1510
Email: http://www.house.gov/writerep/

If you email them, please give them a link to the above video.

But What Of The Combover?

You just gotta be excited for Disco Rudy! Somewhere Danny Terrio's smiling.

Somehow People Actually Fall For This Crap

Boy do I love scam emails! Up there with scouting out new wives for Giuliani or calling attorneys for Domenici.

FROM THE DESK OF MR.MUSA ALICO
AUDITING AND ACCOUNTING MANAGER,
BANK OF AFRICA (B.O.A)
OUAGADOUGOU-BURKINA FASO.


Dear Friend,

I am the manager of Auditing and Accounting department of BANK OF AFRICA (B.O.A) here in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.In my department we discovered an abandoned sum of US$20.5m dollars (TWENTY MILION FIVE HUNDRED THOUSAND US DOLLARS) in an account that belongs to one of our foreign customer (MR. ANDREAS SCHRANNER from Munich, Germany) who died along with his entire family in Jully 2000 in a plane crash.For more information about the crash you can visit this site:( http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/859479.stm)

Since we got information about his death, we have been expecting his next of kin to come over and claim his money because we cannot release it unless some body applies for it as next of kin or relation to the deceased as indicated in our banking guidlings and laws but unfortunately we learnt that all his supposed next of kin or relation died alongside with him at the plane crash leaving nobody behind for the claim. It is therefore upon this discovery that I now decided to make this business proposal to you and release the money to you as the next of kin [ED: To me, I mean can you believe it, H, how could I be so damn lucky!] or relation to the deceased for safety and subsequent disbursement since nobody is coming for it and we don't want this money to go into the bank treasury as unclaimed bill.

The banking law and guidline here stipulates that if such money remained unclaimed after seven years, the money will be transfered into the bank treasury as unclaimed fund. The request of foreigner as next of kin in this business is occassioned by the fact that the customer was a foreigner and a Burkinabe cannot stand as next of kin to a foreigner.

I agree that 30% of this money will be for you as a respect to the provision of a foriegn account [ED: I only get 30%! And to think for 35% I would have done it], 10%will be set aside for expenses incurred during the business and 60% would be for me Thereafter, I will visit your country for disbursement according to the percentage indicated Therefore, to enable the immediate transfer of this fund to you arranged,you must apply first to the bank as relation or next of kin of the deceased with a text of application form that i will send to you when i hear from you,so i will like you to send to me your private telephone and fax number for easy and effective communication and location where in the money will be remitted.

Upon receipt of your reply, I will send to you by fax or email the text of the application . I will not fail to bring to your notice this transaction is hitch-free [Ed: Don't you mean Hitchens free?] and that you should not entertain any atom of fear as all required arrangements have been made for the transfer. You should contact me immediately as soon as you receive this letter.

Trusting to hear from you immediately.
MR.MUSA ALICO
Yours Faithfully,
MANAGER AUDITING AND ACCOUNTING DEPARTMENT
BANK OF AFRICA.

This guy must either be a Republican or a Halliburton corporate officer.

After only being in full, revved up business mode for 6 weeks,

WE HAVE HIT 100,000 VIEWS!!!!

Thanks to all the "old timers" who stuck around,

and to all the new viewers, come back often, we're lots of fun!!

Everyone knows that money is important for campaigns. But for Sen. Obama, his ability to stay within hailing distance of Hillary Clinton isn't just important for his success, but it is important for the tenor of the Democratic primary.

This was illustrated at a Harvard forum, featuring Clinton's pollster and chief strategist Mark Penn. Penn previewed the Clinton line of attack, saying that there really was no difference on Clinton and Obama's stance on Iraq.

Hillary Rodham Clinton's pollster gave a sneak preview of her strategy for combatting Barack Obama's criticism for her support of the Iraqi war, telling a Harvard audience Monday that the two behaved similarly on the issue ''when they got to the Senate.'' ...

Penn said: ''When they got to the Senate, Senator Obama's votes were
exactly the same. So let's not try to create false differences when we both agree it's time to deescalate, when we both agree it's time to end this war, and let's be clear that Senator Clinton thinks that, Senator Obama thinks that, former Senator Edwards thinks that, and once we agree on that, I think we can go together quite well as a party.''

The fundamental dishonesty of this attack is Rovian in scale (I have little doubt that Penn would consider that a compliment). But the Clinton folks can make this work if they are able to spend twice as much money as Obama.

On the other hand, if he can keep the money race close, he should be able to repel this blatantly false attack. Obama and Clinton had different stances on the war. We all know that. And as long as Obama can raise enough money, the American people will know that too.

Gonzo

Is Gonzo.

Senate Update

Everyone knows we need to reach that magic number of 60 to truly be safe from the Republican obstructionism. Right now, on most votes, we have a solid 49 in place. Lieberman, on war, bankruptcy and Alito votes for cloture (on war much worse than that), so you can't count on him on key issues (and he may yet joing the GOP).

Ben Nelson really is a Republican (his "composite liberal score" is not only below 50%, but below any other Democrat by double digits. Meanwhile, Olympia Snowe, Susan Collins, Gordon Smith, Norm Coleman, Dick Lugar and former Senators Lincoln Chafee and Mike DeWine all possess higher liberal scores--with John Warner and John McCain just about in a tie with Nelson).

So with that in mind, go check out Swing State Project's look at potential Republican retirements. Domenici's potential legal woes have to be weighing on his decision (not to mention an increasingly more liberal state, his age, etc.), and the changing environment in Virginia has to be making John Warner rethink his pledge to run again.

Add in Allard (who already said he is retiring, which means someone else will have to make up for his...I mean take up his passionate fight for...ok, just possess his title), and that is potentially three open seats in states in which Democrats have often been winning lately. So then you look at Collins, Smith, McConnell, Dole, and Coleman, in what again may be a horrendous year for the GOP (unless they can find some more attorneys to concoct "voter fraud" charges or find their way out of Iraq--sadly, doubtful) and we're getting closer. A solid challenge to Lamar Alexander and another potential open seat in Mississippi could make it even more interesting (if popular former AG Mike Moore runs).

I have written more than intended. Read the piece.

Hitched to Dumbass

I am always happy when turbo-chugging, narcissistic, elitist snot Christopher Hitchens is once again made to look the fool. I wish however our soldiers didn't have to suffer due to the inanity of men like him.

Hitch should stick to book reviews, or mainlining Southern Comfort, because his political prognostications really suck. Much like the rest of his neocon friends.

A slight editorial from Paddy.

God bless those that keep us safe,
God bless those who keep them safe,
God bless those that keep us sane.

You can no more win a war than you can win an earthquake.
Jeannette Rankin (1880 - 1973)

A Riehl Dick

So we all knew that right-wing blogger Dan Riehl was ill-informed, scared to change in front of other boys in the locker room--lest he wet himself while shivering about the Al Qaeda operative around the corner--and basically an all around asshole.

But now you can add racist. I won't link to the bile of this bantam-weight huckster, but when he starts lobbing his personal paranoia at friends of mine, like Matt Ortega, it is time to call out this over-glorified methane-stenched moron.

Here is what he had to say about Matt, who is of Hispanic origin:

Matt Ortega, whose parents may or may not be legal, is completely wrong to say that Nathan Tabor should inform his readers that he works for Duncan Hunter, because the natural reaction of any Tabor reader would be, “Hmm, I wonder if this guy works for Duncan Hunter. I’ll Google it and find out.”

Well, Dan Riehl who may or may not have modeled his hairdo on Christopher Reeves circa Superman II, and also may or may not offer reach-arounds for a quarter to strangers in alleys behind porn shops, is also a Riehl dick.

I don't need to Google that.

These Southern gun dealers sure do talk tough, especially when they are far from the shootings they allegedly help bring about.

If they are really guilty of selling guns to straw purchasers, here's my suggested remedy. Instead of sending them to jail or shutting down their gun shops, we ought to make them walk the streets of BedStuy in New York holding that confederate flag they so proudly display in Virginia. We'll make sure it gets back to their families so they can drape it over their coffins.

From Robert Greenwald, Iraq Memorial.

The Iraq Veterans Memorial is an online war memorial that honors the members of the U.S. armed forces who have lost their lives serving in the Iraq War.

The Memorial is a collection of video memories from family, friends, military colleagues, and co-workers of those that have fallen.

The New Guard VS The Old Guard

There has been lots of great commentary about yesterdays "Meet The Press". Crooks & Liars & AMERICAblog have their takes which I agree with.
But something struck me yesterday that I've felt before, but this time it was laid out before us in living technicolor glory.

These guys are OLD. They are hacks that ramble on, swearing allegiance to strategies and ideals that are rooted in 40 year old think tank projects. How many times have we heard, "9/11 Changed Everything"? Guess what guys! IT DID, and ya'll are still trying to fight the wars of your youth with the weapons of your fathers youth!

Move the hell over Grandpas, Admiral Sestak and his compatriots actually fought this war. Novel idea there, huh? The vitality and intelligence that radiated off of Rep Sestak and Tom Andrews was palpable compared to the freeze dried countenance (and ideas) of Mr Delays' appearance and the just plain cartoonish* visage of Mr Perle.

Then there was this exchange.

FMR. REP. DeLAY: Where are going to deploy to? Answer the question. Where are you...

MR. PERLE: Redeploy...

REP. SESTAK: Oman, Bahrain, at home to get our...

FMR. REP. DeLAY: They haven't...(unintelligible)...that.

REP. SESTAK: Yes, sir, we have bases there.

FMR. REP. DeLAY: They have not accepted this redeployment.

REP. SESTAK: We have aircraft carriers...

Admiral Sestak handled this perfectly, laying his hand comfortingly on Grandpa Delays arm and trying to steer him back to reality, a recommended tactic when dealing with the confused. Richard "PNAC or Bust" Perle just bleated away in the corner, pulling one slogan after another out to cloud his horribly flawed argument.

In a world that with the push of one button, we can obliterate civilization as we know it, fighting the "old wars" in the "old ways" just doesn't cut it anymore. There is no reason anyone like Perle or Delay should be endorsed as having credible opinions when a) They've been proven wrong on 99% of all their other opinions and strategies and b) They can't even get the facts straight.

* see all editorial cartoons for typical fat cat Republican, i.e. Mr Perle

And for the record, I have nothing against older people (being past the label date myself), but old people with old ideas stuck in the mud of old conflicts.

Andrew Kirtzman gets it right. A long time NY reporter, he cuts through the hazy halo surrounding Giuliani since 9/11 and takes a critical look at his time as Mayor. He got results (there is no debate about that), but he also alienated the entire black community, trampled on civil rights (sound familiar), estranged his entire family and essentially declared war on anyone who didn't show him complete fealty.

Kirtzman points out the key question isn't whether Rudy is too liberal to be President. The key question is - Is he too much of a jackass to be President?

Seriously, this is too perfect. Bush's nickname for Gonzalez is "Fredo." Even his nickname signals incompetence and before long, Bush is going to ask him to go fishing, I believe.

Happy 4th Year Second War In Iraq!

Thanks for the memories. No WMD. No Al Qaeda conection. Flower petals. Charles Krauthammer's being exposed as a war planner on par with the French at Dien Bien Phu. Liberators. Lies about Pat Tillman. Exposing an undercover agent.

How can we fit them all in!?! Well, I'd just like to offer a big heartfelt thank you from us. Americans who aren't still invited on Meet The Press after being wrong about EVERYTHING.

Guardian UK

The regrets of the man who brought down Saddam

Audrey Gillan
Monday March 19, 2007
The Guardian

His hands were bleeding and his eyes filled with tears as, four years ago, he slammed a sledgehammer into the tiled plinth that held a 20ft bronze statue of Saddam Hussein. Then Kadhim al-Jubouri spoke of his joy at being the leader of the crowd that toppled the statue in Baghdad's Firdous Square. Now, he is filled with nothing but regret.
The moment became symbolic across the world as it signalled the fall of the dictator. (snip)

Now, on the fourth anniversary of the US-led invasion of Iraq, he says: "I really regret bringing down the statue. The Americans are worse than the dictatorship. Every day is worse than the previous day."

Try and imagine how truly horrible it must be. Something you wanted with all your heart, and this is the result? You'd rather have a homicidal despot in charge than the US Government?

This country may never be able to make it right.

Mission Accomplished

1-800-Jenny

So does Al Gore's shrinking waistline mean he wants to be prez, or perhaps he ran into Bill Bennett at The Capitol Grille and saw the Ghost of Christmas Future?

Howie on DeLay and Friends

The irrepressible Howie Klein not only takes Tom DeLay's obviously ghost-written work of fiction about his criminally inspired life to the woodshed, but as usual manages to smack around the closeted Republican brigade.

You just gotta love Howie.

Podcasts and Such

My friend Sean-Paul Kelley sent me the URL of the Podcast of my appearance on his radio show the other night. We talked Rove and firing attorneys, among other GOP transgressions.

Go listen for a fun discussion just how much slime oozes out of Karl Rove with each breath.

Speaking of Sean-Paul, he just had a really interesting article published on his recent trip to Iran.

Deep Thoughts For Diplomats

Yeah, um, let's say you're a Israeli diplomat to El Salvador. You with me so far?

Ok. Well, then, you might agree that it probably wouldn't be a good idea if you were, say, found outside your residence "drunk, naked, tied-up and surrounded by sex toys."

And unless your name can be loosely translated into Don Sherwood, you might not want to have a rubber ball secured in your mouth, so you can, ya know, talk to the proper authorities when they find you.

Something obviously went very wrong in this man's West Bank.

Hmmmm, this is interesting.


Newsweek

Gore on the Un-Campaign Trail


A leading indicator of his intentions could be Gore's waistline. The theory is that slimming down will be a signal he intends to run. "He has lost a few pounds, and Hillary can read into that what she wants," says a longtime adviser who declined to be identified discussing his boss's figure. Gore has always been a voracious eater, and at 58, the pounds don't come off so easily. He is trying to be healthier, working out daily when he can.

Gore is also finishing a book that sure seems like a prelude to something. "The Assault on Reason," to be published in May, is about "the forces in society that are undermining democracy," says Roy Neel, Gore's chief of staff. The manuscript has gone through three rewrites in the past month because of new Bush administration scandals.

Even if it doesn't pan out, it's another escuse for me to post this....

Think O'Reilly is gonna put Trump on his list of "Enemies Who Demean Our President"?
HuffPo

Trump: Bush Is "Probably The Worst President In The History Of The United States"
CNN | March 16, 2007 05:40 PM

In an appearance on CNN's Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer, real estate executive and reality television personality Donald Trump called U.S. President George W. Bush "probably the worst president in the history of the United States."

Maybe Trump isn't the only one feeling this way...

WaPo

U.S. Warns of Long Delays For Passports

By Matthew Lee
Associated Press
Friday, March 16, 2007; Page A03

Overwhelmed by unprecedented demand, the State Department is warning would-be travelers to brace for lengthy delays in getting U.S. passports, even when they pay a hefty fee to speed their applications.

Seems like there is a bit of a double standard here. Everyone was jumping all over the D's last week for their reaction to General Paces comment.
And the R's?

Politico

Republicans Dodge Homosexuality Question

By: Jonathan Martin
March 16, 2007 06:33 AM EST


The Democratic candidates have all been pressed if they concur with Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Peter Pace's remark that homosexuality is immoral. But where do their GOP counterparts stand on the question? Not surprisingly, few of the candidates are eager to rush in to this particular conversation.

I posed the question -- is homosexuality immoral -- to representatives of all three of the top Republican candidates. None answered it directly.

There They Go Again

Once again, the Washington Times...er, I mean Post, proves that one of the smart moves I've made over the past few years was cancelling my subscription (the dumb moves are too numerous to list).

Nice job cutting and running from your responsibility in aiding and abetting this mess.

Communists.

Bong Hits 4 Jesus

Yes, this simple phrase is causing a Donald V Rosie kinda rift between President Bush and the usually pliant members of his cult of right-wing sycophancy.

Oh Lordy.