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Election 2004 pt. 2
5001. jexster - 4/16/2004 6:44:36 PMNow the US is strung out and hung out to dry
5002. jexster - 4/16/2004 11:19:53 PM
Welcome to the Watery Grave of the Good Ship Moron
Clarke and O'Neill TOLD THE TRUTH - Bush Lied, Thousands Died
That's Why the Nutters Don't Know Whether to Shit or Go Brown
Ace...take it from Dr. Poopstain...clean those foul bowels - take a dump.
WASHINGTON - Following an important meeting on Iraq (news - web sites) war planning in late 2001, President Bush (news - web sites) told the public that the discussions was about Afghanistan (news - web sites). He made no mention afterward about Iraq even though that was the real focus of the session at his ranch.
"I'm right now focused on the military operations in Afghanistan," Bush told reporters after talks on Dec. 28, 2001, with top aides and generals.
A "war update" was the White House description of the news conference Bush held with Gen. Tommy Franks, who was in charge of the Afghan war as head of U.S. Central Command.
Details of the meeting's focus on Iraq have since emerged in a recent speech by Franks, who now is retired, and in a new book by Washington Post reporter Bob Woodward.
The book says Franks summarized Afghan operations before turning to planning for war in Iraq — the point of the gathering.
In a Washington speech last month, Franks said he discussed with the president on that day the "growing storm" and the need to revise a long-standing military contingency plan for Iraq
Countless Thousands Died for Bush Approval Ratings
KISS MY FAGGOT ASS AL D....buy me dinner next time.
5003. OhioSTOPAS - 4/16/2004 11:57:04 PM
"WASHINGTON - Following an important meeting on Iraq (news - web sites) war planning in late 2001, President Bush (news - web sites) told the public that the discussions was about Afghanistan (news - web sites). He made no mention afterward about Iraq even though that was the real focus of the session at his ranch."
I've got no complaint with this kind of lie, concealing the real subject of a military contingency planning session. It's like Eisenhower and the U-2.
5004. OhioSTOPAS - 4/16/2004 11:57:42 PM
Toys.
And by the way, nice millennial!
5005. arkymalarky - 4/17/2004 12:16:13 AM
Now?
5006. anomie - 4/17/2004 12:54:33 AM
Hey Jex,
You in touch with WOW? We could use him about now.
5007. jexster - 4/17/2004 3:36:09 AM
No comment
5008. jexster - 4/17/2004 3:40:28 AM
You can read about it my new book!
Troddin Through Jamaica in the Arms of America!
What a sorry bunch of nitwits.
Right Ace?
Powell felt Cheney and his allies -- his chief aide, I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby; Deputy Defense Secretary Paul D. Wolfowitz; and Undersecretary of Defense for Policy Douglas J. Feith and what Powell called Feith's "Gestapo" office -- had established what amounted to a separate government. The vice president, for his part, believed Powell was mainly concerned with his own popularity and told friends at a dinner he hosted a year ago celebrating the outcome of the war that Powell was a problem and "always had major reservations about what we were trying to do."
Before the war with Iraq, Powell bluntly told Bush that if he sent U.S. troops there "you're going to be owning this place." Powell and his deputy and closest friend, Richard L. Armitage, used to refer to what they called "the Pottery Barn rule" on Iraq: "You break it, you own it," according to Woodward.
But, when asked personally by the president, Powell agreed to make the U.S. case against Hussein at the United Nations in February 2003, a presentation described by White House communications director Dan Bartlett as "the Powell buy-in." Bush wanted someone with Powell's credibility to present the evidence that Hussein possessed weapons of mass destruction
5009. anomie - 4/17/2004 3:46:09 AM
Well, Jexter. Tell him that some of us lurkers miss him and hope he returns for the campaign.
It's our loss when he's not here.
5010. jexster - 4/17/2004 4:05:46 AM
done
5011. jexster - 4/17/2004 4:10:28 AM
Buffalo Soldier, Dreadlock Rasta
There was a Buffalo Soldier, In the heart of America
Stolen from Africa, brought to America
Fighting on arrival, fighting for survival....
In the arms of America
Trodding through Jamaica, a Buffalo Soldier
Fighting on arrival, fighting for survival
Buffalo Soldier, Dreadlock Rasta
5012. jexster - 4/17/2004 5:21:44 AM
April 16, 2004
New Lows in Support for Bush Policies on Iraq and the War on Terror
The really significant political development in the recent period is the undercutting of support for Bush's war in Iraq and for his handling of the war on terror. Here are some findings from recent polls that show just how seriously his standing in this area--once his ticket to sure re-election--has eroded.
The latest Annenberg Election Survey includes this question: "Has the war in Iraq reduced the risk of terrorism against the United States or increased the risk of terrorism against the United States?" Very straightforward. By about 2:1 (57-29), the public says the Iraq war has increased the risk of terrorism against the US. Wow.
The poll also asks another very straightforward question: "All in all, do you think the situation in Iraq was worth going to war over, or not?". Note that there's no specific mention in this question of the war's costs--casualties, money, etc.--which has tended to produce negative responses for quite a while (e.g., the CBS News question). But, even with no mention of costs, this question still returns a negative response: 51-43 saying the Iraq situation wasn't worth going to war about. That could represent some kind of a turning point in public evaluations of the Iraq war.
Another noteworthy recent finding comes from a recent Ipsos-AP poll. In that poll, Bush's approval rating on "handling the war on terrorism" clocks in at just 51 percent.
5013. jexster - 4/17/2004 5:23:35 AM
These new lows suggest just how difficult it may be for Bush to run--and win--as a "war president", as he likes to describe himself. And for further indications on this score, check out this excellent Los Angeles Times article on how reactions to the Iraq quagmire (if I may use that term) may sink his chances to carry Minnesota, very high on the Bush campaign's list of blue states they hope to pick off in November.
That from Ruy, vK further illustrates why I post 2 DiFi pics...to illustrate just that point!
Multi-media communication of razor sharp insight you do understand?
O vere beata nox!
5014. jexster - 4/17/2004 6:11:06 AM
Mr. Woodward, who is clearly channeling Mr. Powell, as he has done to present Mr. Powell's side of the story in past books, recreates his innermost thoughts: "He saw in Cheney a sad transformation. The cool operator from the first gulf war just would not let go. Cheney now had an unhealthy fixation. Nearly every conversation or reference came back to Al Qaeda and trying to nail the connection with Iraq. He would often have an obscure piece of intelligence. Powell thought that Cheney took intelligence and converted uncertainty and ambiguity into fact. It was about the worst charge that Powell could make about the vice president. But there it was."
But Mr. Powell shared his dread, Cassandra-like, with Mr. Woodward: "The more Powell dug, the more he realized that the human sources were few and far between on Iraq's W.M.D. It was not a pretty picture."
Bush lied...tens of thousands died..
Order of Pinnochio
Oak Leaf Clusters
5015. jexster - 4/17/2004 6:11:25 AM
Conclusion: A Self-Negating Belief System?
The pseudoconservative dogma is a grab-bag of popular delusions which seem almost anarchic in their contradictoriness. Anti-state rhetoric sits adjacent to authoritarian ukase, free market dogma jostles with corporate state plutocracy, and so on: religious devotion with militarist fervor, rugged individualism with leader worship, "family values" with plutocratic decadence, America first with global messianism.
How did it arise at the particular time and place as it did, and why has it metastasized after 11 September 2001?
Perhaps the myth of American exceptionalism, when combined with the semi-permanent military mobilization of the Cold War, provided a particularly fertile seed-bed for the syndrome. Given the concomitant decay of education and popular culture (5), it would seem that the only additional ingredient necessary was a healthy dose of fear. Nine-eleven provided that.
Pseudoconservatism's worship of force in human affairs is a particularly troubling and dangerous trait at this time, given that international terrorism has evolved into a self-organizing network that feeds off violence to gain more recruits. (6) For all his neurotic love of hierarchy and authoritarianism, the pseudoconservative has the potential to unleash the very chaos and anarchy he fears. We can only hope pseudoconservatism dies of its own contradictions before it consumes our peace of mind, our wallets, and our sons.
Dr. Werther
5016. jexster - 4/17/2004 5:09:11 PM
FINALLY!
John Kerry, Meet the Potato: "The internal war in this Administration over who gets what and over what is done is unlike anything I've seen in modern times."
5017. jexster - 4/17/2004 5:43:16 PM
Secret message to Anomie
"Smooch"
5018. jexster - 4/17/2004 5:50:45 PM
The contrast between Bush's fumbling, piss ignorance and Kerry on the Potato Hour could not be more clear.
Kerry: "I wish I had one of those buttons you have to put what YOU said up on the screen. In 1997 YOU said to President CLinton that SS would be bankrupt by 2001. Well it wasn't it was solvent and we had a lockbox that the Thief stole"
5019. OhioSTOPAS - 4/17/2004 6:03:25 PM
Bush Administration Bracing for Pre-Election Terror Attack
A terrorist attack between now and November would be the best thing that could happen for the Bush campaign. The campaign ads and talking points write themselves:
"Don't let the terrorists win - vote for Bush."
"Terrorists want John Kerry to be President."
5020. PelleNilsson - 4/17/2004 6:16:18 PM
But the attack in Msdrid swept the left to power.
5021. arkymalarky - 4/17/2004 6:22:15 PM
With the holes showing in their policies from the 9/11 commission, I don't think a successful terrorist attack would serve them well right now.
5022. jexster - 4/17/2004 6:30:46 PM
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs on Wolf The Woeful:
Confirms that Bush told PRINCE BANDAR of Saudi Arabia of the plan to make war on Iraq BEFORE HE TOLD POWELL!
5023. jexster - 4/17/2004 6:36:00 PM
Plan of Attack:Kerry Sharpens Criticism of Iraq Policy
Sunday, April 18, 2004; 11:42 AM
Democrat John Kerry on Sunday accused President Bush of a "stunningly ineffective" foreign policy and stuck by his argument that the war against terrorism isn't primarily a military struggle.
First we're gonna cut it off, then we're gonna kill it.
5024. jexster - 4/17/2004 11:07:06 PM
Kerry Sharpens Criticism of Iraq Policy
Democrat John Kerry on Sunday accused President Bush of a "stunningly ineffective" foreign policy and stuck by his argument that the war against terrorism isn't primarily a military struggle.
And he's right.
Richard Clarke says the same thing and so will the9/11 Commission.
That's why the Bushie don't know whether to shit or go brown.
That's why you don't see the D Boiz blatherin no mo.
Right Eddie?
5025. judithathome - 4/17/2004 11:21:19 PM
Jex, when will you give up this idea that Ed is ever going to post here again? Forget it.
5026. wonkers2 - 4/18/2004 1:22:47 AM
What happened to E D anyway. Did he leave in a fit of pique, or what? Evil character.
5027. jayackroyd - 4/18/2004 2:41:56 AM
He bailed because it was becoming too much of an addiction--not the mote, but the internet in general.
5028. jexster - 4/18/2004 4:27:39 AM
Que sera, sera JAH.
Now more important question...
How much does Bush get paid?
How much is the fair value of a puppet on the string of a demented cripple in an undisclosed location?
How do we get our money back?
5029. arkymalarky - 4/18/2004 4:43:19 AM
I want to see a major poll. The last one I saw was Newsweek.
5030. robertjayb - 4/18/2004 4:59:21 AM
The right hand does have trouble keeping up...
WASHINGTON — In the two years before the Sept. 11 attacks, the North American Aerospace Defense Command conducted exercises simulating what the White House says was unimaginable at the time: hijacked airliners used as weapons to crash into targets and cause mass casualties.
In a third scenario, the target was the Pentagon — but that drill was not run after Defense officials said it was unrealistic, NORAD and Defense officials say.
5031. jexster - 4/18/2004 5:00:23 AM
What gives Bush the authority to "free the world", the Constitution?
Not what but WHO Morley.
I am that I am.
Regards,
YHWH
5032. jexster - 4/18/2004 5:02:53 AM
His blood for Bandar's Oil
Name: Riayan A. Tejeda
Rank: Staff Sgt.
Branch of Service: Marine Corps
Age: 26
Hometown: New York
State: NY
Date of Death: 04/11/03
5033. jexster - 4/18/2004 5:19:35 AM
Speaking of junkies, obsessions, and mental health
...Arky you might wish to consult a qualified professional...may I suggest http://ace-o-spades.blogspot.com/?
This the latest major poll data:
Newsweek (4/8-4/9) 42% 46% 4% Kerry +4
ARG -----(4/6-4/9) 43% 48% 2% Kerry +5
5034. jexster - 4/18/2004 5:20:47 AM
and would you shoot me that PFAW stuff again? I did a majorly mad mailbox cleanup the other day and guess what?
I am scheduled to have dinner with a mutual friend of Ralph Neas on 5/1
5035. jexster - 4/18/2004 5:21:22 AM
I'll go over your email with her, before the first bottle of wine is done..I promise
5036. arkymalarky - 4/18/2004 7:24:16 AM
Hahaha! Thanks! I'll send it again tomorrow.
5037. wonkers2 - 4/18/2004 12:43:21 PM
Arky, Jex please try to stay on topic! The Mote Cafe is available for such trivialities.
5038. alistairConnor - 4/18/2004 12:50:02 PM
Nah Wonk, you've missed the context, that is in fact an important electoral issue they're discussing.
(Rats! Foiled!)
5039. Magoseph - 4/18/2004 12:59:30 PM
Good TV ad for Kerry.
5040. Magoseph - 4/18/2004 1:00:48 PM
Updated to November, of course.
5041. thoughtful - 4/18/2004 2:33:18 PM
Saw kerry on russert. While he faired well, i struggled to get past his face. He musta been so botoxed up that the only thing he could move were his lips and his eyelids. Further, he was so "tan" with makeup that his white ears didn't match his face color.
He kept saying he has a plan, but the only clear plan that came across was trash the admin at every turn.
Q. Sen. Kerry, what did you have for breakfast this a.m.?
A. Unlike the current administration, Tim....
5042. judithathome - 4/18/2004 5:05:43 PM
Thoughtful, you do realize that Kerry had no sayso about the makeup...he doesn't wear that stuff all the time. The show's makeup people are the ones who should be shot over that job.
As far as him using botox, I really don't care what his face looks like but obviously, others do. I'd much rather have a guy use botox but be able to speak intelligently than look like a good ole boy and talk like a hick.
5043. thoughtful - 4/18/2004 7:11:53 PM
Judithah, I agree about the importance of being able to express oneself verbally. The contrast with the current pres is stunning, especially since speaking is stock in trade for a politician...a core competence if you will.
However, the botox issue is a critical one as only a small percentage of communication is actually verbal. Much communication in terms of sincerity, honesty, believability, trustworthiness, etc. all come through with facial expressions. Look at the impact the famous w smirk had on his campaign and how hard his handlers tried to get him to stop smirking...and how telling it is that the smirk shows up when he's on the hook with no answer. Or consider the classic example of people listening to the nixon-jfk debate on the radio vs watching on TV...the listeners thought nixon won vs. the viewers who thought jfk won. Certainly gore's stiffness worked against him in his failed campaign, despite his many attempts to make fun of it and defuse it.
So in my view, certainly the presidential campaign shouldn't be a beauty contest, how a candidate carries and expresses himself is an important element. Using botox to paralyze one's face is, imo, telling that he's willing to sacrifice credibility for vanity. Not a good thing.
5044. marjoribanks - 4/18/2004 7:25:53 PM
I like Kerry's botox and orange tan, he looks very cute.
Used to be sallow and kind of stooping Musster-ish.
Now he's quite cuddly, and looks like a walking, lanky, day-glo-colored smiley.
Yep, quite fancy his makeover.
5045. marjoribanks - 4/18/2004 7:31:35 PM
He had to do it, Thoughtful.
Bush has an astonishingly detailed list of drawbacks, but on the plus side is that he looks pretty decent as a cowboy slash sheriff slash commonsense reg'lar guy.
Kerry, to put it mildly, looks like a blueblooded, patrician, escargot-eating, deeply snobbish, French-loving, elistist.
Of course, he happens to be all of those things which is why I've liked him from the start. But, very very sadly, those things are looked at as somehow negative when Yanks choose Presidents. Apparently (shudder) Yanks want to vote in a guy they'de be happy to slurp back budweisers with at the local bar.
Kerry can't be that guy, particularly. But he can be orange! And he can erase the lines on his face and solder on a permanent smile, so that at least the guys at the corner bar won't be intimidated too much.
5046. Absensia - 4/18/2004 7:52:56 PM
If we're going to get into looks, Bush looks like he uses extra shoulder pads, swaggers, and has put on weight, no doubt from eating at those pricey Texan restauants that the common man can't afford.
Yeah, Kerry needs a new makeup person, and I suspect, after this appearance he'll get one. But I hope people will start listening to him and stop looking at him. I think it's the "April frenzy." Both Bush and Kerry are worried about pulling ahead in the polls and Kerry is trying to deal with GOP created canards.
For instance, Rumors are flying about how his wife is in control of the Heinz corporation, responsible for decisions of out soucing, etc. None of it's true, of course. See Heinz Facts
5047. thoughtful - 4/18/2004 8:30:56 PM
Go to meet the press home page and see two shots of kerry...the difference is striking. Maybe it wasn't his shoulder he had worked on, but went to greta van susteren's plastic surgeon instead?
5048. jexster - 4/18/2004 8:53:04 PM
Secrets Exposed, Lies Revealed
Exposing previous White House denials as lies, journalist Bob Woodward this weekend revealed parts of his new book which provide evidence the Bush Administration began plans for an Iraq invasion immediately after 9/11; overhyped intelligence; and appeared to circumvent the Constitution to pursue its goals. In Woodward's account, which includes a three-and-a-half hour interview with President Bush, it is revealed that the President personally ordered plans for the Iraq war to be drawn up in November of 2001.
5049. jexster - 4/18/2004 8:53:13 PM
While the White House has called such statements "revisionist history," Woodward's account is consistent with accounts given by Richard Clarke, former Treasury Secretary Paul O'Neill, former Bush State Department officialRichard Haass, former British Ambassador Christopher Meyer, and an earlier CBS News report. Woodward's book explores the depth of White House cover-up efforts, showing how the Administration persuaded even top military officials to lie. For instance, at the same time General Tommy Franks was secretly developing the President's Iraq war plan, he was "simultaneously publicly denying that he was ever asked to do any plan." For instance, at the same time General Tommy Franks was secretly developing the President's Iraq war plan, he was "publicly denying that he was ever been asked to do any plan." Just as troubling, Woodward points out that the decision to go to war with Iraq was shared with Saudi Prince Bandar (who has milked his ties to the Bush Administration despite being under the microscope for money laundering) and RNC consultant Karen Hughes before it was shared with Secretary of State Colin Powell.
5050. jexster - 4/18/2004 8:54:19 PM
Mags add that graph Krugman did as an entire column...
Bush job growth: Lies v. performance
5051. Magoseph - 4/18/2004 11:25:26 PM
We have a vice-president whose only support is from the whacko segment of the Bush base. This is reflected in his 28 per cent approval rating. I don't know how he describes himself but he certainly is not a compassionate conservative. After all, he did a job on the Halliburon retirees and was paid well by the company for that swindle. He certainly isn't a warrior as he sought and fought for several consecutive deferments to avoid service in Vietnam. He certainly isn't a war planner as evidenced by the present disaster in Iraq which he has presided over. Then what is he to be described as? I think an apt description would be as leader of the Radical wing of the Republican party.
I have another question to pose. What percentage of the American electorate could tolerate this individual as President of the United States for four years? The point is that as low as the probability is, something could happen to George Bush and it could happen through accident, disease, or assassination. This man Cheney, if the Bush ticket is re-elected, stands one heart-beat away from the presidency.
I just wonder in view of Bush's lust for the presidency whether Cheney will develop a medical problem in the not too distant future and will be replaced by an Hispanic.
5052. jexster - 4/18/2004 11:30:53 PM
Caught Red Handed: Saudis Say They Won't Use Oil Prices to Help Bush
5053. jexster - 4/18/2004 11:31:34 PM
Shut your mouth Mago...Bush spies maybe about.
5054. Magoseph - 4/18/2004 11:36:10 PM
I'm a clean-liver and I have a clean past, Jex. Of course, with this crowd, that might not help me.
5055. wonkers2 - 4/18/2004 11:36:43 PM
I agree, Mago. Cheney is toast. Bush may well be also. McCain would be a much stronger GOP candidate.
5056. judithathome - 4/18/2004 11:41:59 PM
Saudi Arabia said Monday it will not use oil prices to try to sway the U.S. presidential election, denying an allegation that the kingdom would cut petroleum prices before November to boost President Bush's re-election bid
We all know how honest and forthright these people are, too. I'm so relieved.
5057. jexster - 4/19/2004 12:17:40 AM
I don't see this Cheney toast thing frankly. Yes he will be a major liability in this campaign but after what Woodward and O'Neill have confirmed about how this Regime works (or doesn't) and why, the question:
When was the last time the organ grinder's monkey fired his organ grinder?
5058. marjoribanks - 4/19/2004 12:20:17 AM
I'm with Jexster
How could Bush fire Cheney? The very idea is absurd, the bad bad man in VP clothing supllies most of the brain and all the balls for Dubya. Bush Jr. owes him, big time.
5059. jexster - 4/19/2004 12:21:12 AM
Remember Cheney chose himself as VP...
And while asking questions...
According to one expert ""since March 4 — just after Kerry in effect wrapped up his party's nomination — Bush has bought about as much television advertising as past presidential candidates purchased for the entire general election campaign."
So the question What does $50 Million buy these days?
5060. judithathome - 4/19/2004 2:10:36 AM
Anderson Cooper just did a video comparison of Bush's hair from last week and then today: he's dying his hair. It is decidedly "browner" today than in the video from last week. This can mean only one of two things. He is vain and trying to look younger, a la Kerry and his botox, or he is so full of shit it is altering his hair follicles.
5061. OhioSTOPAS - 4/19/2004 2:11:36 AM
It can't be both?
5062. jayackroyd - 4/19/2004 2:17:22 AM
Yeah, I saw that. It was not at home; there was a tv showing cnn at the take out place. His hair was shorter, but noticeably browner. Fascinating.
5063. judithathome - 4/19/2004 2:17:26 AM
Well, it can in my book but I don't like the guy so I'm naturally biased. (and my hair color is natural, too...grey streaks and all)
5064. judithathome - 4/19/2004 2:18:10 AM
Those weren't my tags left open, by the by.
5065. OhioSTOPAS - 4/19/2004 2:44:15 AM
According to author Ron Suskind, President Bush gets press conference questions in advance:
"For each press conference, the White House press secretary asks the reporters for their questions, selects six or seven of the questions to answer and those reporters are the only ones called upon to ask their questions during the press conference, Suskind said.
"This system makes it so that the president has answers already prepared for questions that he knows will be asked, Suskind said."
I'd like to have this confirmed by an actual White House correspondent before I believe it. But it would explain why several reporters asked basically the same question ("What mistakes do you think you made in connection with 9/11?" and variants thereof); if each said that was the question he/she was going to ask, and if he/she ever wanted to be called on again, they went ahead and asked it. And it is clear that the White House has a preselected list of at least some of the reporters who are called upon.
On the other hand, if the White House had foreknowledge of the questions, surely even a dimwit like Bush could have been coached to answer them better.
5066. Absensia - 4/19/2004 2:56:35 AM
Hah! I agree, Ohio, but maybe Bush thinks his answers are brilliant as is. I'd like more confirmation too. I'd hate to think the press corps would go along with such a practice but I have read about certain reporters being totally ignored because they put Bush on the spot in previous news conferences. I think I'd be tempted to change my question once I'd been chosen but that would guarantee being excilled to Siberia press hell.
As far as Bush coloring his hair, I don't care, although it's funny. I saw him on tv today and swear his tailor messed up. His right shoulder was lower than his left one. It's all petty, but more refreshing than listening to the junk that pours out of his mouth.
Unfortunately, we have to live with his policies, errors and ommissions, mistakes and disasters, unless, imo, Kerry, botox or not, wins the election.
5067. marjoribanks - 4/19/2004 3:04:37 AM
Who is surprised?
Bush read from a list of names at the last press conference, bristled when he got a question he was unprepared for, bristled even more noticeably when a reporter didn't take his prepared answer seriously and actually stated out loud that he wished he could have had the 'mistake' question in advance.
5068. arkymalarky - 4/19/2004 3:11:01 AM
An Arkansas Poll
What's striking are the voting age groups.
5069. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 4/19/2004 4:06:50 AM
5070. jexster - 4/19/2004 8:04:59 AM
Read the Daily WH Gaggle of Bullshit and judge for yourselves whether American Blood is being sacrificed for Bandar Oil and Bush's election.
5071. jexster - 4/19/2004 8:05:43 AM
Can't resist a smooch can ya Wiz?
Sheeeet I bet even GWB could buy you off ;)
5072. alistairConnor - 4/19/2004 9:24:28 AM
Arky, why the support for Bush among the young? Are they buying the bullshit? Naive patriotism?
5073. jayackroyd - 4/19/2004 11:05:03 AM
IMO, the young buy into the achievement memes of the republicans. They've worked very hard to get into college, been drilled with the idea that success is tied to effort. They infer from that they would prefer a government that does not deprive them of the fruits of their effort.
This may actually be a flipside generation. The usual pattern is that you start off committed to liberal ideals, and then as you accumulate experience (and money), you move to the right. In the case of this generation, the ideal is meritocracy, and the rewards that come from diligence.
When they discover that it doesn't really work that way (although it doesn't entirely not work that way), they may move to the left.
5074. wonkers2 - 4/19/2004 12:28:38 PM
One thing that young people are extremely skeptical of, in contrast to their elders, is Social Security. They have bought into GOP privatization propaganda.
5075. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 4/19/2004 1:55:48 PM
Old age and death are just rumors to the young. Repug's under-the-radar appeal to petty resentments and The Club For Greed will always hold sway with weak-minded adolescents of every age group.
5076. Macnas - 4/19/2004 2:04:21 PM
These days, on the radio especially, we are told that our pension funds are not going to see us retire in the style we might have expected, the government is urging people to look at their retirement schemes and check that the figures add up. There are new state sponsored pension schemes for those who would not ordinarily get a scheme as part of their employment.
What is the situation in the U.S. in this regard?
5077. thoughtful - 4/19/2004 2:30:02 PM
I'm not sure what you all are talking about re Bush's approval ratings, but according to the latest gallup poll:
Despite a spate of high-profile political events in the past week and a half -- President George W. Bush's nationally televised press conference, national security adviser Condoleezza Rice's testimony before the 9/11 commission, and media appearances by Richard Clarke, the author of a new book criticizing the Bush administration for its handling of the war on terrorism -- a new CNN/USA Today/Gallup survey finds little change in the presidential contest. Among likely voters, Bush continues to enjoy a slight lead over Massachusetts Sen. John Kerry, as he has since the end of March. Also, Bush's job approval rating as well as the favorable ratings of both Bush and Kerry are all essentially the same as they were three weeks ago.
The poll, conducted April 16-18, shows Bush leading Kerry among likely voters, 51% to 46%. In an April 5-8 poll, Bush's lead was three points, while he had a four-point lead in a March 26-28 poll. In the past three weeks, the figures have fluctuated within a small range, suggesting no real change in the preferences of American voters over that time.
Add Nader to the mix and bush is leading. Not that I understand why, but there it is. Of course, Bush has been spending a lot on advertising and it seems as if kerry may be hoarding his cash for later in the race, so it may make sense at this point.
But russert on imus this a.m. made the point that only 18 states are up in the air at this point and of those only about 10% of voters in each state are undecided so the results rest in the hands of very few people...and much can happen between now and nov. to help them decide including the economy, gas prices, terrorism, scandal, etc.
5078. jayackroyd - 4/19/2004 2:46:37 PM
What is the situation in the U.S. in this regard?
Controversial. The standard line is that once the boomer generation starts hitting the pension system in large numbers, the current pay as you go plan is certain to fail. The government, under this line, should be building up surpluses to be used to cover the costs when the pig hits that particular point in the python. There is much handwringing among the purveyors of this line over the huge Bush deficit. It is doing the opposite of accumulating surplus to handle the surge in retirees.
Bush has proposed a privatization scheme, which gives some people (over some age) their current benefits, and converts people under that age to a privitization scheme. That's a non-starter. The people who are in the transitional years in the privatization scheme are going to have to provide the money for the people who retained their benefits, and for themselves.
The trouble with all these things is that if you just jiggle the growth numbers a little (or the immigration numbers), you change the picture.
What will happen, imo, is a repeat of the 1986 reforms. Retirement ages will be raised again (In 1985, my full benefit retirement age was 65. Now it's 67 and five months.) Right now the payroll tax is applied to a capped earning level for SS, while the Medicare portion is uncapped. The 86 reforms raised the SS cap year by year. The next reform will drop the cap entirely. Also, the cost of living adjustment will be reduced, by using a different index.
5079. Macnas - 4/19/2004 2:53:37 PM
Figure juggling.
Thanks jay.
5080. jayackroyd - 4/19/2004 2:53:44 PM
There's a bigger problem with Medicare, which reflects the general problems with health care provision in the US. Incredibly expensive procedures, like heart transplants, can save lives, but make the system very expensive. The drug companies have been successful developing compounds that are both very expensive and are taken every day for the rest of your life. When someone lives or dies in old age is increasingly a matter of choice--trading off quality of life for life itself. Keeping people who are on the brink of death alive is very expensive.
Some cost reduction measures are also good health care measures, like reducing the time in hospital. But there aren't many of those available. Currently, the government sets reimbursement rates for Medicare procedures, and there is no copay. So there is an incentive for patients to seek excessive treatment. The reimbursement rates are too low to maintain doctors at their preferred lifestyles, so other patients pay higher rates for procedures. And woe to ye who has no insurance. If you have to see a doctor, you pay the full bore price that the the doc can't get from an HMO, Medicaid, or Medicare.
All this stuff makes Medicare a ticking bomb. The only long term solution is some kind of socialized medicine, either through compulsory insurance or some kind of single payer plan. Industry, especially rust belt industry, is increasingly realizing this.
5081. thoughtful - 4/19/2004 2:56:25 PM
In terms of pension, the situation is grim. Not only are there fewer workers covered by pensions through their employers but there has also been a dramatic shift in the nature of those pensions, from defined benefits (you are guaranteed a certain payout upon retirement and the company bears the risk of making that happen) to defined contribution (you make a fixed payment in and the amount you receive is based on how well your investments have done over that time.)
Further US savings rates are very low (2% or less) and US debt burdens are at or near record highs so very little is being done on a personal level to pay for retirement for most workers.
This is not a good situation.
That's why a fixed benefit plan like social security is so important and it is NOT in crisis. Currently it is running a surplus and the Ball Commission years ago came up with a few tweeks to the system that would easily keep it funded through 2075. It doesn't need breaking to "fix" it, but this admin seems hell-bent on doing so.
5082. jayackroyd - 4/19/2004 2:57:09 PM
Or there's just the more mundane things that people take for granted now, like kidney dialysis. My father goes to a clinic three times a week, where a couple dozen people spend half a day three times a weeek getting the toxins taken out of their blood. It's a small, cramped place with underpaid staffers, but it is still damned expensive. He'll be doing this for the rest of his life.
5083. jayackroyd - 4/19/2004 3:02:10 PM
That's why a fixed benefit plan like social security is so important and it is NOT in crisis. Currently it is running a surplus and the Ball Commission years ago came up with a few tweeks to the system that would easily keep it funded through 2075.
As I said, macnas, this is controversial. The tweaks thoughtful is talking about are like the ones I mentioned. There's certainly an argument independent of the purely financial for raising the retirement age. People do live longer than they did when the system was created, and they are more active. Overall, of course. If you get that stroke at 62, and can't retire or get medicare until 70, you're in trouble.
5084. Macnas - 4/19/2004 3:08:36 PM
It's not a problem particular to the U.S., the same basic problems exist for us too.
It always seems to be that a state/government, will do anything and everything other than pony up, regardless of whether it can afford it or not. It would seem to me to be a big voter concern, what with the older population rising, and being the portion of the population most likely to vote.
5085. jayackroyd - 4/19/2004 3:38:53 PM
The seeds were sown at the outset. Benefits were not closely enough related to contributions to provide an actuarily sound system.
I've read that Japan is in particularly bad shape in this regard.
5086. thoughtful - 4/19/2004 3:52:29 PM
Well, a lot of it is just the nature of the system. The working population foots the bill for the retired population works fine especially when the working population is larger than the retired one. When the reverse is true, it gets very very difficult.
In terms of the tweaks, one not mentioned but one that was critical to the ball commission results was including govt workers in soc sec. Currently while they work for the gov they are not included, retire from gov after 20 years with full pension then work a few years as private employees to receive full soc sec benefits...double dipping. If they are included in soc sec from the beginning, they'd pay in for much longer periods of time which would add solvency.
5087. Magoseph - 4/19/2004 4:08:15 PM
thoughtful: Add Nader to the mix and bush is leading. Not that I understand why, but there it is.
A number of historical election commentators have noted that when the government comes under pressure from foreigners, there's a rally around the flag reaction. This could be a factor, who knows? There has been some speculation that the Nader run will be used by Nader to extract commitments from Kerry and then he drops out and endorses the Democratic ticket. There's another theory being floated that the Nader poll number reflects people unwilling to be on record opposing Bush. They believe a fear factor has developed in respect to elements within the Bush strike force which could affect them, their jobs or their businesses.
5088. alistairConnor - 4/19/2004 4:28:27 PM
The government, under this line, should be building up surpluses to be used to cover the costs when the pig hits that particular point in the python.
Perhaps I'm just naive, but I have a problem with the idea that a whole nation (in fact, practically the whole of the OECD countries) can just put money in the bank, then spend it in twenty years time. On an individual level, that works fine; but as a collective strategy? The macroeconomic implications are surely non-trivial. It looks like voodoo economics to me.
The aggregate standard of living is function of the production of goods and services. Either there will be less production when the boomers all retire, in which case, we will inevitably be poorer; or the same quantity will be produced, by fewer workers.
If equivalent quantities of goods and services are produced by fewer workers, but those workers do not get a correspondingly increased share of wealth (as we currently observe), that means that capital is increasing its share of wealth over labour, and it means that those workers will be ill disposed to increasing their contributions to funding the retirement of their elders.
The logical solution, therefore, to funding retirement, is to tax profits.
5089. Macnas - 4/19/2004 4:36:04 PM
Oh now you've said it.
5090. jayackroyd - 4/19/2004 4:46:26 PM
The macroeconomic implications are surely non-trivial. It looks like voodoo economics to me.
In practical terms, in the US, what it meant was simply retiring debt, in order to be able to incur it again when the boomers hit. There would have been a virtuous cycle involved as well--reducing debt reduces interest payments which in turn speeds debt reduction.
If equivalent quantities of goods and services are produced by fewer workers, but those workers do not get a correspondingly increased share of wealth
Do you mean "wealth"? Or "income"?
5091. jexster - 4/19/2004 4:49:25 PM
Brings tears to the eyes of ALL REAL ameriKans
"Hold it! Hold it!" Adelman interjected. "Let's talk about this Gulf war. It's so wonderful to celebrate." He said he was just an outside adviser, someone who turned up the pressure in the public forum. "It's so easy for me to write an article saying, 'Do this.' It's much tougher for Paul to advocate it. Paul and Scooter, you give advice inside and the president listens. Dick, your advice is the most important, the Cadillac. It's much more serious for you to advocate it. But in the end, all of what we said was still only advice. The president is the one who had to decide. I have been blown away by how determined he is." The war has been awesome, Adelman said.
"So I just want to make a toast, without getting too cheesy. To the president of the United States."
They all raised their glasses. Hear! Hear!
5092. jexster - 4/19/2004 4:50:24 PM
I am about to cry..think I should go to the shut ins at the Perfect World Rest-from-Jex Home and say
I LOVE YOU
5093. jexster - 4/19/2004 4:50:25 PM
I am about to cry..think I should go to the shut ins at the Perfect World Rest-from-Jex Home and say
I LOVE YOU
5094. jexster - 4/19/2004 4:50:56 PM
sorry toys..overcome
5095. jexster - 4/19/2004 4:52:58 PM
"People say, how can I help this war on terror? How can I fight EVIL? You can do so by mentoring a child; by going to a shut in and say 'I love you' " George of the Talking Bass
5096. jayackroyd - 4/19/2004 5:06:13 PM
Aha. A teaching moment.
Jex, We had an interesting discussion going, admittedly off topic. You've just jumped in with five posts, the entire substance of which is an excerpt from the Woodward book. You don't mention that it's a WaPo excerpt from the Woodward book.
Not only have you not discussed anything, but you've put a buncha junk in the middle of an ongoing discussion. Much more of that, and the people who have been talking about an issue are going to lose the thread.
5097. wonkers2 - 4/19/2004 5:07:27 PM
I think you are correct. I've had similar thoughts about the effect of a growing number of retirees relative to workers and concluded there are only two possible sources of support for the retirees--increasing productivity, as you said, and savings and investment in other countries--drawing on (exploiting?) the production of workers in other countries. Another factor that has been helping in industrialized countries is the entry of more women into the workforce outside the home. But that has pretty well maxed out. Also, the younger end of the population can be augmented by opening the country to more imigrants.
Otherwise, putting money away in government bonds or even equities doesn't solve the problem of the shrinking proportion of active workers in the population. Seems to me investing the money in government bonds or in the equities of U.S. companies would merely transfer income from one sector of the population to another without increasing the overall output sufficiently to provide for the retirees?? On the other hand, increasing the savings and investment rate does help improve productivity.
5098. wonkers2 - 4/19/2004 5:08:26 PM
My post was belatedly addressed to Alistair's #5088.
5099. jexster - 4/19/2004 5:13:57 PM
Least its on topic...off topic posts should go to the Mote Cafe don't you think or perhaps AP or perhaps terrorism or fuck do you think I give a flyin fuck Jay?
Do you?
This is on topic...
Rove argued that the politics of the Cheney-is-in-charge thesis worked in their favor. First, anyone who believed that was long lost to them anyway. Second, Rove wanted them to keep talking about it, throw the campaign into that briar patch. He believed the ordinary person wouldn't buy it. Here 67 percent were saying Bush was a strong leader and that included a third of the people who disapproved of his performance in office. A strong leader would not kowtow to his vice president, and Bush did not look meek in public.
Discuss.
5100. jayackroyd - 4/19/2004 5:15:39 PM
5097
Actually paying down debt with payroll tax receipts reduces the transfer of taxpayer dollars to rich people (and, these days, foreigners) who hold the debt.
The division of gains from productivity between worker and capitalist is a fluctuating thing. Right now, capitalists are in the driver's seat. And as long as Americans want their 79 dollar dvd players there they will stay.
5101. jexster - 4/19/2004 5:15:47 PM
Cheney-is-in-charge thesis...
And thanks EVER SO for telling us all what we already knew...
The quote is from today's installment in the Post and the political significance of the Cheney-is-in-charge thesis is Jay?
5102. jexster - 4/19/2004 5:16:18 PM
Slow thread?
5103. jayackroyd - 4/19/2004 5:18:48 PM
Jexster is right. Any further discussion of this topic, from me anyway, will take place in the slow thread.
No, jex, you're missing the point. YOU discuss. What do YOU find interesting about that quotation? Do you think things have changed that affect Bush's chances of re-election--that is, the charge may have been harmless then, but is not harmless now? (Where did the quote come from, by the way?)
5104. jexster - 4/19/2004 5:20:21 PM
No Jay..I won't do ALL the thinking for you...been there, done that.
Connect the dots...you can do it ...just gotta believe in yourself
5105. jayackroyd - 4/19/2004 5:20:39 PM
Then, see, people can respond to your opinion, noting nuances you may have missed, pointing to countervailing evidence and so forth. Then we all have a richer understanding of the issue you've raised. But posting a quotation raises no issue, and starts no discussion.
5106. jayackroyd - 4/19/2004 5:21:33 PM
[dismounting Rosinante]
5107. wonkers2 - 4/19/2004 5:22:05 PM
Further, why should healthy workers expect to retire at age 60 or 65 and be supported by the active workforce for 30 years? As life expectancy and health improve people should be expected to retire later and work longer. Moreover, more years spent in school has been reducing the number of productive years. Retirement is a relatively new concept (since the industrial revolution)--farmers used to continue to work until they died--which is still evolving. Encouraging or enabling early retirement is not good public policy. People should be encouraged to work as long as they can in their original occupation and/or move on to a second or third phase of their working life. That makes economic sense and contributes to the physical and mental health of the population.
5108. jexster - 4/19/2004 5:22:28 PM
I am here with the #1 Election 2004 topic of the day...I don't give a fig where you talk macroeconomics 101...do in Escapes for all I care or here...
Jump my ass?
You can jump up mine sideways.
Am I clear?
5109. alistairConnor - 4/19/2004 5:23:12 PM
Call it "income" if you like. The larger point being the mechanisms for distributing wealth.
5110. wonkers2 - 4/19/2004 5:24:30 PM
Rocinante, I believe.
5111. jayackroyd - 4/19/2004 5:31:08 PM
I cut and pasted from a search result. I guess you can't trust the web. I've posted a copy of your and AListair's message and a response in the slow thread.
5112. jexster - 4/19/2004 5:42:45 PM
Now what do you think about the Blood for Bandar thing?
I think its true. I think Powell is a snake and he pumped Woodward with it. I think its a great issue for Kerry. I think it opens the door to a hornet's nest of problems for Bush from the relations between the Royal Family of Texas and the House of Saud to the Great OBL Family escape.
Number of participants: At least three
What players will need: Oodles of laughter
Length of time: Five minutes to forever
Rules of the game: It seems ironic that a song that was originally about victims of the bubonic plague has turned into a fun game for young children. But whatever its origins, Ring Around the Rosey is an all-time favorite among young kids. To play, children join hands and walk or run in a circle singing:
Ring around the rosey
A pocket full of posies
Ashes, ashes,
We all fall down.
After singing the last line, "We all fall down," children collapse on the floor. Then they get up and begin the song all over again. There are no winners or losers in this game; it ends when the kids get tired of playing it.
5113. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 4/19/2004 5:49:17 PM
On NPR this morning they had a piece on John Kerry speaking to a retiree, a LOL(little old lady),and she said (paraphrasing) that she has worked all her life and she didn't want to work any more--she just wanted to enjoy a couple of years in retirement before she died. No actions by BushCo will keep this poor woman from some lousy menial low-paying job. This is the reality for countless so called retirees across the land.
Presently in my watercolor class at a community college, I have an eighty two year old widow who gets paid minimum wage to help a paraplegic student. I'm not saying it's wrong for people who want to work but I'm talking about the people who are forced to work regardless of their situation.
Fuck The Club For Greed and all the weasels and worms who exploit them!
And those aren't windmills out there, they're oil wells!
5114. marjoribanks - 4/19/2004 6:53:09 PM
I think its a great issue for Kerry. I think it opens the door to a hornet's nest of problems for Bush from the relations between the Royal Family of Texas and the House of Saud to the Great OBL Family escape.
I also think it's true, but it' unclear what game the Saudis are playing.
Yes, Bandar is practically Bush I's half-caste son, but the Saudis cannot be happy with the endless neocon rhetoric about them, their state, their "way of life". As I recall, that nincompoop Woolsey threatened them openly.
So, one can't bet against a doublecross.
5115. marjoribanks - 4/19/2004 6:53:41 PM
Welcome back, Wizardo.
5116. Absensia - 4/19/2004 7:03:10 PM
Wiz, it's happening all over. At my local grocery store a 70 year old lady bags my groceries and offers to take them out to my car for me. At another grocery store, their "box boy" is an elderly gentleman. I've gotten to know them both. They are working only to make ends meet, not too keep busy.
5117. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 4/19/2004 7:07:45 PM
Thanks, marj. The Chene-Bushian propensity for back room oil deals is where I'll place my bet--it's a form of Reagan's behind-the-scenes arms-for-hostages kind of ploy to win the election--only Kerry isn't as naive as Carter--I hope!
5118. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 4/19/2004 7:09:32 PM
The effects of Repuggery are everywhere, Abs; it's shameful.
5119. KuligintheHooligan - 4/19/2004 7:26:39 PM
"Presently in my watercolor class at a community college, I have an eighty two year old widow who gets paid minimum wage to help a paraplegic student. I'm not saying it's wrong for people who want to work but I'm talking about the people who are forced to work regardless of their situation."
Stories such as these can indeed be heartwrenching. However, almost always they are taken entirely out of context.
What has this person done with the money he/she earned up to this point in time? Did he/she waste it frivolously in the early years, and now is bitching and moaning about the government not doing enough? Is the current "poverty" a result of their past stupidity and foolishness when it came to their money? I mean, honestly, how many people do you know who waste hundreds of dollars a year on lottery cards and other forms of gambling, yet complain that they don't have enough money to make ends meet?
Again, I'm not asking specifically about WoW's widow, but more general questions. Often, people look for the government to make up for the mistakes these people have made. So many people waste so much money, and then are so quick to look to blame others when they don't have enough.
5120. KuligintheHooligan - 4/19/2004 7:28:10 PM
And by the way, I'm not speaking from a position of being rich or well off. My current salary is below the poverty level.
5121. robertjayb - 4/19/2004 7:29:12 PM
Yesterday in Sam's Club one of their sample servers was a
woman pushing eighty and using a walker to stand and deliver her wares...some kind of pizza snack.
Made me sad.
Better than sitting on a grimy sidewalk selling matchbooks, but I fesr it shows where we're headed.
5122. robertjayb - 4/19/2004 7:31:01 PM
fear
5123. jayackroyd - 4/19/2004 7:50:31 PM
5119
It is certainly true that people should take charge of their retirement, should save for it, and so forth.
But it is also true that people have been led by the government (and, for that matter, AARP) to believe that they would be able to retire. And it is also true that the pension systems that were in place for my grandparents' generation are no longer in force to the same degree as my parents' and is disappearing in my generation.
And, btw, who sells those lottery tickets? Who runs commercials promoting those lottery tickets as a way to get rich?
5124. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 4/19/2004 7:56:29 PM
Stories such as these can indeed be heartwrenching. However, almost always they are taken entirely out of context.
Only heart wrenching if you acknowledge having that organ. I can't abide the so called tough-minded "love" that is really exploitation disguised as "compassionate conservatism"
The "context" is that her husband died fairly young and she spent her time bringing up kids (who eventually moved away), that is when people could stay home and bring up kids.
At least this woman is ambulatory and able to work, but she is one of hundreds of thousands whom this culture deems roadkill by virtue of its predatory behaviors.
Hey, you're an ignorant retired janitor and you lost your house because we rewrote the regulations for the loan industry? Tough, Dummy--this is the new United Corporations of Amerika.
I wonder when retarded people will be indentured to pay off there parasitical drain on our economy?
5125. jayackroyd - 4/19/2004 8:03:38 PM
You know, wiz, if those folks would stop voting republican, they might have a shot at those some reform.
5126. Absensia - 4/19/2004 8:08:33 PM
Not all of the elderly had pensions to run through, gambling, buying lottery tickets, going on luxurious cruises and the like. Many worked in jobs that had few if any bennies and struggled to just to make it. They may have used their scant savings to help put their kids through college, and all the while, watched inflation take away the value of their dollars. They worked hard and thought social security benefits, that they paid into each month, would support them in their old age.
The husband may have had a minimal insurance policy. It may have been a traditional marriage with the wife staying at home. The bread winner may have been laid off, had a devestating injury, or one of them suffered from a horrid illness, all of which could have easily eaten all their salaries. There are many things that could have happened.
But maybe they did handle their money foolishly. So what? Should they now kill themselves and not be a blight on society because they are old and can't entirely support themselves? Do we, as a society, say "tough, you blew it and now you get what you deserve"?
It isn't a question of blame. It's a question of how do we treat our elderly who now are often infirm and often can barely scrape by and are far below the published poverty level.
5127. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 4/19/2004 8:22:17 PM
You know, wiz, if those folks would stop voting republican, they might have a shot at those some reform.
If I point to the moon, don't dwell on my finger. It isn't about voting, it's about misrepresentation, exploitation and allowing the shell game we call politics to deceive good people under the guise of "Buyer beware!"
The regulatory function of good government has been rigged by the weasel-class and the issues are, unfortunately, about Kerry's secret botox injections vs. Condi's clandestine husband.
Our fundamental structures are eroding and we are chasing a bunch of paranoid's delusions of power and security.
5128. jayackroyd - 4/19/2004 8:24:00 PM
It isn't about voting, it's about misrepresentation, exploitation and allowing the shell game we call politics to deceive good people under the guise of "Buyer beware!"
Well, it is about voting, but I agree that the problems lie in politics--and, frankly, the congression democratic delegation are as much to blame as anybody.
5129. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 4/19/2004 8:30:41 PM
Yes, of course, but the voter is now more of an ill-prepared consumer who's too busy, overworked or lazy to read Consumer Reports.
5130. jayackroyd - 4/19/2004 8:34:07 PM
So aren't they getting the government they deserve?
5131. jexster - 4/19/2004 8:34:42 PM
(April 20, 2004 -- 11:20 AM EDT)
There's a lot of hand-wringing from Democrats and a lot of satisfaction from Republicans over the two new polls out this morning showing a small, but measurable lead for the president over John Kerry.
...
Another opinion is that of Charlie Cook, in the "Off to the Races" analysis out this morning, who points to the president's ad campaign.
Cook gives a rather downcast view of the state of the Kerry campaign and suggests that the massive Bush ad campaign against Kerry is finally bearing fruit. Nevertheless, measures of public opinion on Iraq keep heading south, as does the all-important 'is the country headed in the right direction/wrong direction' question. He concludes by saying that "Kerry's rising negative ratings and an increase in Bush's own problems create a wash -- a race that remains a dead heat in this evenly divided country."
A contrary reading of these polls might suggest that the president gains as national security and war issues become more salient, even if they are becoming more salient because of what seem to be objectively bad news about his policies. But I suspect Cook's read is closer to the mark.
-- Josh Marshall
Made the same comments myself on the Teixeira blog yesterday.
Coincidence?
Taught Charlie everything he knows.
5132. judithathome - 4/19/2004 8:51:33 PM
So aren't they getting the government they deserve?
Some are but meanwhile the rest of us have to suffer from uninformed voters' stupidity.
5133. jayackroyd - 4/19/2004 8:55:16 PM
So your alternative is?
5134. thoughtful - 4/19/2004 9:02:39 PM
KtheH, under what circumstances or in what "context" would it be appropriate to feel sorry for an 82 year old woman who is working to feed herself?
5135. judithathome - 4/19/2004 9:13:03 PM
Maybe that 82 year old woman had a broken leg and needed the money to pay her part of the co-pay for the electronic bone stimulator prescribed by her doctor...the one that stuck her with a $500 co-pay on a $4,000 item.
Yes, that has happened to us and luckily, we have the wherewithal to pay our part but it certainly made me wonder what people without insurance do when they break their legs.
5136. judithathome - 4/19/2004 9:15:07 PM
So your alternative is?
I have no idea how you force people to become more politically aware.
5137. KuligintheHooligan - 4/19/2004 9:16:41 PM
If some of you idiots could read properly, you'd see that I was making general comments, not attempting to go into specifics about a woman I do not know.
Jeez.
5138. judithathome - 4/19/2004 9:23:05 PM
The fact you have to call is idiots is very telling.
5139. judithathome - 4/19/2004 9:24:13 PM
...although I guess I qualify as one since I can't even spell US correctly.
5140. thoughtful - 4/19/2004 9:28:28 PM
K the H, i'm asking you in general.
I recognize the importance of personal responsibility and I recognize the risk of what economists call "moral hazard".
But to take a woman who is 82 and working (she can be a woman in general since neither of us know anything about her) and suggest that if she's in this circumstance because of past mistakes she's made or somehow identify the cause of her situation as "her own fault" suggests that only those who are in circumstances completely beyond their control (and I'm not sure how that is defined...lose your house to a tornado...it's your fault for living in oklahoma in the first place) deserve "assistance" which further suggests that someone somehow must be set up as moral arbitor to judge who is and isn't worthy.
Not an appetizing solution IMHO.
5141. thoughtful - 4/19/2004 9:30:55 PM
I think Milton Friedman's solution deserves airing...the negative income tax. Create the tax structure such that those who work are always better off than those who don't but set a minimum floor so no one, regardless of cause, lives below poverty. Incentives built in and moral hazard is eliminated. Plus it's cost effective and efficient.
5142. jayackroyd - 4/19/2004 9:57:03 PM
Thoughtful--
Can you repost that over in the slow thread? We've been pretty successful moving the discussion over to there.
5143. KuligintheHooligan - 4/19/2004 9:57:25 PM
"The fact you have to call is idiots is very telling."
Yes, it is.
5144. KuligintheHooligan - 4/19/2004 10:02:09 PM
thoughtful,
Again, I was only making general comments. I made that clear from the start, but some people don't read too closely and immediately start painting me to be some widow-hating insensitive type. Thus my "idiot" remark.
Okay, here's my point. Often, all we is the 80 year old and we think, "Oh, poor baby. If only our government could do something better for people like that." And then, if we are real idiots about it, as some here seem to be, we pin it all on a Repub administration.
But that is ENTIRELY out of context. We have NO CLUE what this person has done up to this point, whether or not this person has squandered all their money, been fiscally irresponsible, etc. etc.
I am absolutely sick and tired of the attitude which pervades our society today, the one which never takes responsibility for oneself and is always quick to find a scapegoat for problems which I aggravated if I didn't in fact create them myself.
So we look for quick fixes and of course, it is always the government that must be doing it for us. Thus my GENERAL comments.
5145. KuligintheHooligan - 4/19/2004 10:06:07 PM
"Create the tax structure such that those who work are always better off than those who don't but set a minimum floor so no one, regardless of cause, lives below poverty."
Of course, how one defines "poverty" is quite tricky. When I became a missionary, I took a 75% pay cut. Yes, it was my own choice and hence my own fault, as was having five children. And as I noted, I currently have a salary which falls under the poverty line.
However, I am clearly not poor, nor could I complain about being so. And if I am 80 and still find myself in need of work to make ends meet, I don't think I will be blaming the government for that. I've made my own choices, and at the age of 39, I can think of thousands of dollars that, had I decided more wisely in how to spend it, could have helped me in my retirement years.
In other words, my retirement will be what I have made it to be. And I think that can be said generally about most people. Not all, but most.
How I live in my retirement can be directly correlated to how I live my life now. Do I waste? Am I foolish in how I currently spend my money?
It's my life and my responsibility, not the government's.
5146. thoughtful - 4/19/2004 10:07:40 PM
As Jay requested, I have moved my follow-up comment to ktheH to the slow thread.
5147. PelleNilsson - 4/19/2004 10:40:25 PM
Jean-Paul Sartre would be proud of you, Kuligin.
5148. judithathome - 4/19/2004 11:00:59 PM
I am absolutely sick and tired of the attitude which pervades our society today, the one which never takes responsibility for oneself and is always quick to find a scapegoat for problems which I aggravated if I didn't in fact create them myself.
Faith, hope, and charity...what's the rest of that line? And the greatest of these is charity?
I don't think most older people run around blaming the government for their problems nor do they look to the government to solve them. Most are simply trying to make ends meet and doing the best they can.
5149. arkymalarky - 4/20/2004 1:05:33 AM
Alistair,
Arky, why the support for Bush among the young? Are they buying the bullshit? Naive patriotism?
Don't think so. Just rednecks.
5150. arkymalarky - 4/20/2004 1:28:58 AM
The people who work the hardest get screwed the most. It's gotten far worse under this administration and if Bush is reelected that trend will continue.
5151. arkymalarky - 4/20/2004 1:31:05 AM
I was kidding with the "redneck" remark, btw. In my area of AR, young people tend to be much more opposed to Bush. I imagine social conservatism elsewhere in the state is responsible for the numbers. What surprised me more was the elderly's strong opposition to Bush. That would worry me, and I wonder what the age ranges are in the latest CNN et al poll. I'll look at it when I get more time.
5152. judithathome - 4/20/2004 1:32:12 AM
Yes, and if he wins in November, he won't even have to make a pretense of doing anything but screw the middle and under classes because his re-elction won't depend on it.
5153. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 4/20/2004 2:10:41 AM
Sorry jay, just spotted this . . .
5130. jayackroyd - 4/20/2004 2:34:07 PM
So aren't they getting the government they deserve?
Perhaps, but we all suffer as a result.
5154. arkymalarky - 4/20/2004 2:20:20 AM
If Dems lose this election I blame them to a large degree. On the state level, the lack of effectiveness and teamwork and ability to broaden its appeal is really frustrating. Most AR politicians still run as Dems, but they have no sense of party like the Republicans do, and right now the Republicans in the state are split and it would be a great opportunity for Dems to regroup and gain some ground, but it's simply not happening that I can see.
5155. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 4/20/2004 3:31:00 AM
Ark-I don't know if you listen to Air America, but I've been listening of late and I'm encouraged. I think Dems are learning to beat the right at their own game.
We're seeing more and more hypocrites self-destruct because their tricks are starting to get old. Don't be glum because we're gonna win.
5156. arkymalarky - 4/20/2004 4:24:06 AM
I hope so. I just posted a rather depressing rant in the Slow thread. I need to step back from our situation here to get some perspective.
Some people have asked in here whether Bush opponents want him to fail in the economy and Iraq. I think he has failed, and a few weeks of good news doesn't negate a four year disaster of a presidency. I don't want to fail in either area, and that's why I think it's important he get defeated. I wish the Democrats had stronger candidates, but they just didn't. There's a lot of difference between so-so and disastrous, though. In fact, that's how I would compare Bush Sr and Bush Jr. I truly believe he's horrible for the country, and for the traditional values of the Republican Party. I would like to see Republicans wrench the party back from the monied forces that have come to dominate it, and I hope people like McCain can help accomplish that.
5157. arkymalarky - 4/20/2004 4:24:53 AM
I'm not familiar with Air America. Can you get it on satellite radio?
5158. KuligintheHooligan - 4/20/2004 5:13:42 AM
Bush is a breath of fresh air, especially after eight years of Clinton pointing his finger in the air, testing opinion polls for his own bloody opinions. "What do you believe, Mr. Clinton?" "Well, uh, what do YOU believe?" And so on.
Bush knows what he wants, isn't afraid to say it and go for it. He isn't spineless like Clinton, and that to me is a real positive. He has geniune convictions and says it like he means it.
As for Kerry, well, Kerry is the exact opposite. More like Clinton, actually, in that respect.
"The people who work the hardest get screwed the most."
And this is just utter bullshit rhetoric. It is so entirely generally as to be effectively meaningless.
5159. jexster - 4/20/2004 5:51:13 AM
Arky...Jonesin for polls?
Knock yourself out:
>Eight Out of 10 Polls Released Since April 1 Show Kerry Beating Bush
5160. jexster - 4/20/2004 6:26:15 AM
The Budget Bullshit - About to hit the fan..
From the Wpost
Intense combat in Iraq (news - web sites) is chewing up military hardware and consuming money at an unexpectedly rapid rate -- depleting military coffers, straining defense contractors and putting pressure on Bush administration officials to seek a major boost in war funding long before they had hoped.
Rep. Curt Weldon (news, bio, voting record) (R-Pa.), vice chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, charged that the president is playing political games by postponing further funding requests until after the election, to try to avoid reopening debate on the war's cost and future.
Weldon described the administration's current defense budget request as "outrageous" and "immoral" and said that at least $10 billion is needed for Iraqi operations over the next five months.
"There needs to be a supplemental, whether it's a presidential election year or not," he said. "The support of our troops has to be the number one priority of this country. . . . Somebody's got to get serious about this."
Rep. Chet Edwards (news, bio, voting record) (D-Tex.), who returned from Iraq on March 23, said senior Army officers and contractors told him "serious problems" will surface this summer if Congress does not approve more spending by June. Without the additional funding, food concession contracts will have to be renegotiated and operations and training bases in the United States will have to be cannibalized to finance operations in Iraq.
"If one American soldier in Iraq loses his life because Congress and the administration were afraid of the political consequences of another supplemental appropriations bill, shame on everyone who should be a part of that process," Edwards said.
Somebody's got to get serious about this.
Serious?
Gorelick
5161. arkymalarky - 4/20/2004 11:10:46 AM
"The people who work the hardest get screwed the most."
And this is just utter bullshit
Sorry, Kuligin, but I have much more direct experience in that than you do, and in AR it's completely true.
5162. arkymalarky - 4/20/2004 11:11:48 AM
Hitler knew what he wanted too. In and of itself it's at minimum a useless trait, because he's our president, not his own--nor corporate America's, for that matter. At worst it's evil at its purest.
5163. arkymalarky - 4/20/2004 11:13:23 AM
Thanks Jex. I was jonesin for them until I saw the CNN one, but that's a good site to keep up with.
5164. OhioSTOPAS - 4/20/2004 12:15:56 PM
In Message # 5065 I linked to an accusation by author Ron Suskind that at President Bush's recent press conference reporters submitted their questions in advance.
Here is some interesting correspondendence with the New York Times ombudsman regarding this allegation:
"His reply:
Dear Mr. Wright,
I'm fairly certain that two reporters at the press conference asked unscripted questions.
Sincerely,
Arthur Bovino
Office of the Public Editor
Unsatisfied with an incomplete reply, I pressed for more information.
Thank you for your quick reply.
Only two? Was the NYT reporter's question scripted?
Tony Wright
He replied two minutes later with this:
Dear Mr. Wright,
I am uncertain if Ms. Bumiller's question was submitted to the president before-hand.
Perhaps you might write to the president if you are unhappy with this system.
Sincerely,
Arthur Bovino
Office of the Public Editor"
What the HELL?!?
5165. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 4/20/2004 1:42:40 PM
I'm not familiar with Air America. Can you get it on satellite radio?
Air America
Ark- All you need is a Real Player browser plugin. I highly recommend "Morning Sedition" 6am -9am, and "The O'Franken Factor" Noon - 3pm & 11pm-2am.
On "Morning Sedition" there is a comedian, Mark Maron, who has wonderful wit and on Al Franken's show they have great guest callers. Another interesting element of his show is that, unlike Limbaugh, Franken encourages Dittoheads to call and debate. Some very funny moments--often.
5166. jexster - 4/20/2004 3:07:04 PM
Neat banner ad...Village Voice
5167. jexster - 4/20/2004 3:37:13 PM
Feed your habit Arky...
A Bush Bump?
Two polls released today--Gallup and ABC News/Washington Post--give small leads to Bush over Kerry in presidential trial heat questions. The Gallup poll (using RVs and the Kerry-Bush not Kerry-Bush-Nader trial heat) shows Bush with a 4 point lead (50-46), while the ABC News poll gives Bush a 1 point lead (49-48). (Note that this latter result is not from a standard Kerry-Bush trial heat question, which ABC News chose not to ask, but rather from combining a Kerry-Bush-Nader trial heat question with a followup to Nader supporters/undecideds on who they would support if Nader doesn't run or isn't on the ballot. Guess they just wanted to be different.)
So: two polls, two RV leads, one taken April 16-18 (Gallup), the other taken April 15-18 (ABC News).
Here are other RV Kerry-Bush results for April:
Newsweek, April 8-9....................Kerry, 50-43
ARG, April 6-9.............................Kerry, 50-44
Gallup, April 5-8..........................Kerry, 48-45
Fox, April 6-7..............................Kerry, 44-43
CBS News, March 30-April 1.........Kerry, 48-43
Note that each of these polls has Kerry ahead.
This is probably as good a time as any for the Kerry campaign to start that push-back, including especially defining Kerry positively for voters. Bush, as the data clearly show, has been massively undermined in his core area of strength, and, despite his much-vaunted advertisements and (probably more important) having the field to himself for six weeks, has Kerry breathing down his neck.
If the Kerry campaign can kick their game up a notch, they should really start to make the Bushies sweat.
Comment: AMEN
5168. arkymalarky - 4/20/2004 3:55:12 PM
I hope they do that soonest, Jex.
Thanks for the link, Wiz. Mom has satellite radio and gets the Franken show, but I forget RealPlayer. I'll try to remember to tune in this summer, especially.
5169. jexster - 4/20/2004 4:18:22 PM
The Bush 2005 Budget has ZERO NADA not a fuckin dime for Iraq.
Curt Weldon, a republican, yesterday blasted Bush for not coming forth with a supplemental FOR THIS YEAR stating that we needed TEN BILLION just to keep the troops going thru Oct when the new year starts.
Chuck Hagel, agreeing "absolutely" with Joe Biden, pointedly said on Today that "it was time for the Admin to be honest"
"Every ground squirrel knows that it will take between 50 and 75 BILLION just to maintain US forces in Iraq in FY 2005 and they haven't come forth because its an election year"
Is this any way to run a democracy????
All these lies? Internal wars? Culture wars? Character assassinations?
5170. jexster - 4/20/2004 5:01:01 PM
Today's Google Indicies:
Bush/Moron 122,000 +2000
Bush/Liar 214,000 (new index)
5171. wonkers2 - 4/20/2004 8:18:47 PM
Jex, did you notice that Katherine Roberts of Trees Not Cars called yesterday for a phone blitz to Mayor Gavin Newsom and the Supervisors on the Golden Gate Park garage? She alleges irreparable damage to the cherry trees.
5172. jexster - 4/20/2004 9:29:35 PM
Poll: Americans Think Bush Losing GWOT
5173. jexster - 4/20/2004 9:47:41 PM
Enuf of Bush's lies..
Ken Pollack huge (and now embarrassed) war supporter from Brookings:
- we need to take over all security and policing ops in Iraq
- we need 40-60,000 more US troops, troops that we do not have
- we need foreign troops (coalition crumbling)
- we need a legitimate Iraqi govt
Needed all of that months ago.
5174. jexster - 4/20/2004 9:52:36 PM
CNN reports from the Convention Among the Ruins -
NYC having trouble getting volunteers to help Republicans
9/11 groups plan to piss on any and all attempts to take advantage of tragedy.
Mass protest groups converging..have personally talked with a leader of one.
5175. jexster - 4/20/2004 9:58:17 PM
More good news..
Bob Mr. Republican Novak considers it likely that Tom DeLay will be indicted on charges arising out of the Perrymandering scandal.
5176. thoughtful - 4/20/2004 9:59:56 PM
KtheH, "Bush is a breath of fresh air, especially after eight years of Clinton pointing his finger in the air, testing opinion polls for his own bloody opinions."
Then why do you suppose Bush&co spend as much as they do on pollsters?
As Kathryn Dunn Tenpas at Brookings points out:
President George W. Bush pledged repeatedly throughout his presidential campaign that his administration would have no use for polls and focus groups: "I really don't care what polls and focus groups say. What I care about is doing what I think is right." Shackled by that promise, President Bush and his staff have shrouded his polling apparatus, minimizing the relevance of polls and denying their impact. But public records available from the Federal Election Commission, documents from presidential libraries, and interviews with key players paint a fairly clear picture of the Bush polling operation. The picture, which turns out to be a familiar one, calls into question the administration's purported "anti-polling" ethos and shows an administration closely in keeping with historical precedent.
Like much else in the administration, it's not that they don't do these things, they just do them in secret and then deny they do it at all.
I was looking for a reference but couldn't find it...that bush actually polled on whether or not he should admit to any mistakes.
5177. jexster - 4/20/2004 10:17:42 PM
Good coordination here...CNN just carried statement from Terry McAuliffe blasting GOP for attacking his service record (BALLS!)
At the same moment I got this in my email:
Dear John,
The Bush Campaign has violated every standard of decency by attacking John Kerry's military service. When it comes down to it, this is an attack on all veterans, soldiers and their families. And so we're asking for help from all Americans to hit back now:
https://contribute.johnkerry.com
RNC Chairman Ed Gillespie and Bush Campaign Manager Ken Melhman are running an ugly smear campaign on John Kerry's service in Vietnam. We've seen this before. In 2000 they ran a "whisper campaign" against John McCain, suggesting his time as a POW made him unfit for the Presidency. Then in this campaign, their surrogates have even questioned Max Cleland's war heroism -- a man who received a Silver Star and lost three limbs in the Vietnam War.
The fact is they're terrified of running against John Kerry's war record. And so they're desperately doing everything they can to try to tear it down.
We need to hit back, and hit back hard to get out the truth. We've learned that the Bush Campaign will say and do anything in the attack ads they're running in key swings states.
As a young man, John Kerry volunteered for two tours of duty in Vietnam. He risked his life while trying to save the lives of others. He was awarded the Bronze Star and Silver Star for going above and beyond the call of duty. He was injured three times in battle and received three Purple Hearts. The story Melhman and Gillespie are desperately trying to push is that John Kerry was not injured badly enough to receive one of his Purple Hearts. It sounds incredible, but that's the attack they're pushing: Not injured badly enough.
Mary Beth Cahill
Campaign Manager, John Kerry for President
5178. jexster - 4/20/2004 10:18:56 PM
And now that records have been released...they say "hey we didn't mean anything by it" This just this second from Ed Gillespie
5179. thoughtful - 4/20/2004 10:21:39 PM
and KtheH, I have another question for you about this administration. You, and many others seem to be very big on personal responsibility...the importance of admitting one's mistakes, taking responsibility for one's choices.
How do you feel about the fact that neither bush nor anyone else close to him has admitted to making any mistakes about WMD or reasons for attacking iraq or taking responsibility for 9/11 or any of those things?
Jon Stewart had a great clip of condi's testimony where he parsed together all the various phrases in which she said or implied it wasn't her responsibility, it wasn't the administration's responsibility or it was someone else's responsibility.
I remember during the lewinsky thing, so many conservatives said, if he'd only come out and admit the truth of what he'd done....if only he'd take responsibility. Was wondering if there's any comparable feeling about bush&co. and their unwillingness to take responsibility.
5180. wonkers2 - 4/20/2004 11:33:52 PM
For a matter of grave public importance, in contrast to Clinton's dalliance with Monica.
5181. jexster - 4/21/2004 12:48:12 AM
We Christians like to tell the truth; take responsibility, and avoid war.
5182. jexster - 4/21/2004 1:19:43 AM
But when called by our country, we kill everything we see
Kerry Kombat: High Praise, High Body Count
And how many medals did Bush win? How many quail did he kill while on duty?
Oh I forgot, Cheney was the War Hero?
Rummy?
Wolfowitz?
Oh yeah...Colin Powell, Bush's lawn jockey
5183. jexster - 4/21/2004 3:43:12 AM
"I request duty in Vietnam" --
First line in one of the documents from John Kerry's service records, now posted on the Kerry website.
And what about HIS service records..
AWOL
5184. OhioSTOPAS - 4/21/2004 1:54:08 PM
I remember how the Bushies proudly displayed proof that Bush in fact showed up for his Alabama National Guard duty: records of his visit to the DENTIST.
The Repubs must be wondering why they thought it was a good idea to demand release of Kerry's war records.
5185. OhioSTOPAS - 4/21/2004 1:57:17 PM
John Kerry's release of military records:
DOCUMENTS: A stack of records of dangerous combat missions and glowing evaluations of Kerry's performance under fire.
AWARDS: Three Purple Hearts, one Bronze Star, one Silver Star.
George W. Bush's release of military records:
DOCUMENT: One "I WENT TO THE DENTIST" sticker.
AWARD: One lollypop.
5186. OhioSTOPAS - 4/21/2004 2:32:54 PM
RNC Chairman Ed Gillespie, grasping for some face-saving straws:
"Sen. Kerry served from 1966 to 1978. If he did not intend to release all his officer evaluations, records of attendance including reserve duty attendance, medical records and all other military records held by him or the government, he should not have pledged to do so. He and his campaign should stop the word games and keep the pledge he made on national television."
Uh-huh. As President Bush is alleged to have said to George Tenet, nice try.
5187. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 4/21/2004 4:43:29 PM
5188. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 4/21/2004 5:12:59 PM
Not since Jane Goodall lived with chimps in Tanzania has there been such a vivid study of the nonverbal patterns of primates engaged in a dominance display.
5189. Magoseph - 4/21/2004 5:29:42 PM
Another take on Kerry Vietnam Record
Even a commander who, 36 years after the fact, questioned a Purple Heart awarded to Mr. Kerry in 1968, recorded no reservations at the time. The officer, Grant W. Hibbard, a lieutenant commander during Mr. Kerry's five-month tour in Vietnam, told The Boston Globe last week that the wound for which Mr. Kerry won his first Purple Heart was no more than a small scratch.
But there was nothing negative about Mr. Kerry in an evaluation that Mr. Hibbard wrote two weeks after that incident.
For the most part, Mr. Hibbard wrote, Mr. Kerry was under his command for too short a time to evaluate him fully. Of 16 categories for rating, including professional knowledge, moral courage and loyalty, Mr. Hibbard checked "not observed" in 12. Mr. Hibbard gave Mr. Kerry the highest rating of "one of the top few" in three categories — initiative, cooperation and personal behavior. He gave Mr. Kerry the second-best rating, "above the majority," in military bearing. Reached Wednesday at his retirement home in Florida, Mr. Hibbard said he had no comment.
5190. judithathome - 4/21/2004 7:13:41 PM
Face it, Kerry had a shrapnel wound and Bush had cavities. Which would you award a Purple Heart?
5191. jexster - 4/21/2004 7:14:23 PM
Ruy T and the DLC are now saying what I have for over two years:
Most crucially, Kerry must undermine the bedrock premise of the president's case for re-election: that George W. Bush is the embodiment of the war on terror, and the indispensable man for keeping America safe. Kerry's ability and willingness to do just that are his best potential weapons as the campaign unfolds.
Sounds like a plan.
5192. Magoseph - 4/21/2004 8:52:09 PM
Diebold apologizes for device flaws
It is an uncommon day when the nation's second-largest provider of voting systems concedes that its flagship products in California have significant security flaws and that it supplied hundreds of poorly designed electronic-voting devices that disenfranchised voters in the March presidential primary.
Diebold Election Services Inc. president Bob Urosevichadmitted this and more, and apologized "for any embarrassment."
"We were caught. We apologize for that," Urosevich said of the mass failures of devices needed to call up digital ballots. Poll-workers in Alameda and San Diego counties hadn't been trained on ways around their failure, and San Diego County chose not to supply polls with backup paper ballots, crippling the largest rollout of e-voting in the nation on March 2. Unknown thousands of voters were turned away at the polls.
They better fix all their machines before the national elections.
5193. thoughtful - 4/21/2004 9:02:40 PM
I posted several days ago about this administration's lack of belief in objective reality. This is a huge issue in my book, and if you accept it, it explains a lot about why they do what they do. For example, start with the belief that democrats can't be patriots, then do foolish things like demand kerry's military record be published on the certain belief that it will demonstrate cowardice. When it doesn't, it becomes irrelevant. Facts are malleable, designed to serve one's own purpose.
Principles apparently are as well. In a few short years bushies have gone from no nation building, to preemptive strikes to protect the nation, to making it a personal mission endorsed by god to bring freedom to the world. That's more than one giant leap for mankind...that's into the next universe!
5194. vonKreedon - 4/21/2004 9:08:53 PM
Diebold's President apologized for "any embarrassment", for "any inconvenience to the voters" and for being caught!?! Yow!
5195. alistairConnor - 4/21/2004 9:50:45 PM
There was a controversy a few months ago about whether Diebold's systems were deliberately insecure and apparently bug-ridden, in order to leave open "backdoors" to enable tampering on election days.
My instinct is to never ascribe to conspiracy what can be explained by stupidity and incompetence; and I know how things work in the IT industry...
On the other hand, I would not want this instinct to be put to the test in a close election;
5196. judithathome - 4/21/2004 10:00:38 PM
Well, there's always the option of resorting to the Supreme Court.
5197. vonKreedon - 4/21/2004 10:01:50 PM
AC - I agree, but Mr. Urosevich's apology gives me pause. The man apologized for causing embarrassment and for being caught. It may well be that he's a tongue tied geek who simply spoke in a very awkward way, or it may be that he is a tongue tied geek who mispoke the truth in a big way.
Anyone know if anyone outside of Diebold/FEC is testing this system?
5198. jayackroyd - 4/22/2004 1:10:49 AM
The problem doesn't really lie with the vendors; ATM machines have a paper record. Banks demand them. Voting machines should have a method for recounting the votes. Purely electronic solutions are inherently broken.
5199. jayackroyd - 4/22/2004 4:37:08 AM
You know, jex, the polls so far are supporting the win-win scenario.
TPM:
I have a newspaper column out tomorrow which pursues the hypothesis I mentioned a few days ago that an escalating crisis in Iraq might actually help President Bush, even though the crisis is demonstrably of his own making.
Meanwhile, Ruy Teixeira has a post on his blog DonkeyRising which says Bush's recent rise in the polls reflects his bulking up on support in the bright red states without making much if any headway in the battleground states where the race will be won or lost.
5200. Magoseph - 4/22/2004 3:41:54 PM
... Bush's recent rise in the polls reflects his bulking up on support in the bright red states without making much if any headway in the battleground states where the race will be won or lost.
I heard a report that Bush had already spent a hundred-million dollars. Could it be that if his poll numbers did not improve at this early stage, it might become more difficult to raise money? It's hard for me to understandhis money being spent in the red States, except from a sense of fear that if he goes down too far early, he might not be able to come back.
I recall Andrea Mitchell suggesting this about a week or ten days ago.
5201. judithathome - 4/22/2004 3:46:34 PM
It will not be hard for Bush to continue raising money. Just look at all the pork the Republicans are getting...they will continue to support the sausage machine, no matter what.
5202. Magoseph - 4/22/2004 4:03:43 PM
I agree with you completely, Juds, but the corporate sector if they see Bush remaining down in the polls might send insurance money to Kerry. I think that's the main reason why the polls are so important to the Bush crowd. It probably is not so much that they can't continue to raise money but more that they want to cut Kerry off from funding. Putting that money into their states and activating the true believers does the poll job for them.
5203. jexster - 4/22/2004 5:46:12 PM
I don't think Kerry can count on insurance, oil n gas, or pharmaceuticals even if he's 20 points ahead....He's not gonna get more than 1 in 4 dollars if that...
A President Kerry v. a Republican Congress with a chance of a Dem Senate is about what they are looking at...they'll be looking to circle wagons around the Hill.
5204. jexster - 4/22/2004 5:48:57 PM
Iraq: The Mideast HQ for Bush-Cheney ’04
Six months ago, when I first reported on the political makeup of the Coalition Provisional Authority, I kept hearing a quip about its Baghdad headquarters: “They don’t call it the Republican Palace for nuthin’.”
To anyone who’s been reporting on the CPA for the past eight months, those claims of rampant politicization won’t come as any surprise. Consider Dan Senor, who, as Bremer’s chief spokesman, has become the virtual face of the occupation in recent days.
Before getting an MBA from Harvard in 2001, Senor served as press secretary for then-Sen. Spencer Abraham (R-Mich.) before Abraham became secretary of energy.
After Harvard, Senor went to the Bush-family-affiliated Carlyle Group, where he worked as a venture capitalist before becoming a deputy to White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan.
Senor had barely cooled his heels at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. when he shipped off to Iraq,
“Everything is seen in the context of the election, and how they will screw the Democrats,” one CPA official said last winter. “It was really pretty shocking to hear them talk.”
But Senor’s flagrant spin-doctoring has apparently proved counterproductive.
Yesterday, I spoke to a highly credible source who recently returned from Baghdad, where he works with the U.S. and international media.
“Senor lies so often and so easily most media just stopped trying to use him as a source, unless forced to,” he said.
5205. thoughtful - 4/22/2004 6:16:08 PM
From the daily kos:
The shorter Bush/Kerry comparison by kos Wed Apr 21st, 2004 at 19:02:16 EDT
Kerry: "Intelligent, mature and rich in educational background and experience, Ens Kerry is one of the finest young officers I have ever met and without question one of the most promising."
Bush: "Lt. Bush has not been observed at this unit during the period of report."
5206. marjoribanks - 4/22/2004 6:18:21 PM
There could scarcely be a less impressive, more lying-looking, spokesman for America in Iraq than Senor. No feel for the region, no historical perspective, no language skills.
It's appalling that he is the US face on the ground.
5207. jexster - 4/22/2004 6:20:42 PM
I've noticed how he's always there right next to Brig Gen Kimmet at every appearance hovering, speaking, like his handler....
Friday Follies Redux
5208. jexster - 4/22/2004 6:22:58 PM
The most appalling thing - how CNN dotes on every word...
As the article points out, only the most junior and lazy reporters in Baghdad pay attention to these flaks..
Junior reporters and Wolf Blitzer
5209. marjoribanks - 4/22/2004 6:28:09 PM
Oh it's bad, and the insistence on politicizing every element of the communication about Iraq is horribly bad news for this democracy. Incompetent Senor being exhibit 1000, only.
The thing is, the freaking polls seem to show that a solid half (or slightly more) of Americans don't care. They don't want accountability. They don't want someone to pay for the lies, the manipulations.
This democracy is in bad shape, man.
5210. Magoseph - 4/22/2004 7:53:34 PM
5211. Magoseph - 4/22/2004 7:54:26 PM
Toys
5212. jexster - 4/22/2004 7:56:40 PM
Subject: The Dots are connected...
To: "Joshua Marshal"
Josh,
HeadlineNEws is reporting that Sharon has all but decided to assassinate Arafat and raised the subject in his meeting with Bush..
[Sharon No Longer Bound by Pledge Not to Harm Arafat
Reuters via Yahoo! News - 7 minutes ago]
Couple this with the announcement that the State Dept wanted Spain to mediate the PAL/Israeli conflict and
The recent provocations by the US in Iraq including the threatened attacks on Fallujah and Iraq
The Dots are connected...
Bush is going to try to win his election just as Sharon won his...by provoking unimaginable turmoil and violence
The Push for War
Anatol Lieven considers what the US Administration hopes to gain
5213. jexster - 4/22/2004 7:58:03 PM
I have a newspaper column out tomorrow which pursues the hypothesis I mentioned a few days ago that an escalating crisis in Iraq might actually help President Bush, even though the crisis is demonstrably of his own making.
Meanwhile, Ruy Teixeira has a post on his blog DonkeyRising which says Bush's recent rise in the polls reflects his bulking up on support in the bright red states without making much if any headway in the battleground states where the race will be won or lost.
For what it's worth, I remain fundamentally optimistic about this race.
-- Josh Marshall
5214. jayackroyd - 4/22/2004 9:33:28 PM
This column is on today's NTTimes op-ed page.
5215. wonkers2 - 4/22/2004 10:44:29 PM
Why is is that every time that Bush says "We aren't going to cut and run!" it occurs to me that what he's really thinking is "How can we get the hell out of Iraq without anyone realizing we are cutting and running?"?
5216. jexster - 4/23/2004 3:33:28 AM
You oughta hear Woodward reading transcripts line and verse proving Powell, Rummy, and Condi liars by theirs and Bush's own words from transcripts
They shoulda done with Clarke what they've done with Powell - put "Against All Enemies" as recommended reading on the Bush Cheney Website.
5217. jexster - 4/23/2004 4:27:41 AM
Here's Marshall's "newspaper article"
Bitch...I exchanged 4 emails with the guy today and never learned that it was NyT Op Ed until Jay told us!
The way the NyT is these days I don't get past Krugman.
Marshall kept refeing to "my newspaper article"
Reminded me of a fella who used to be an LA in the Senate office where I worked as a kid..
"Where did ya go to law school?"
"oh a school in the NE"
"But where?"
"Harvard"
"Oh Well how did ya do?'
"Oh well"
"but how well?"
"I was editor of the Harvard Law Review"
"Oh damn! SO what'd ya do when ya got out?"
"I clerked for a federal judge"
"Oh yeah? Which one?"
"A supreme court Justice"
"Which Justice?"
"The Chief"
Sheesh.
5218. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 4/23/2004 4:50:47 PM
The image turning America against Bush
5219. jayackroyd - 4/23/2004 5:11:10 PM
5217
It takes a while to stop doing that. It's an attempt to avoid looking like you're showing off. But it comes off as showing off even more.
5223. jexster - 4/24/2004 12:02:11 AM
What a fuckin ninny!
Iraq and Terrorism
I've been arguing lately that, while the horse race may have been dancing around a bit, the most politically salient change has been the huge doubts that have been raised about Bush's approach to Iraq in particular and to the war on terror in general. Here are some findings from Ipsos-AP that suggest just how serious this damage has been.
First, consider the question of whether the Iraq war was a mistake. You know when more people than not starting thinking a war was a mistake (remember Vietnam!), the incumbent administration is in real trouble. And Ipsos now has the first example of this. They asked the question: "All in all, thinking about how things have gone in Iraq since the United States went to war there in March 2003, do you think the Bush administration made the right decision in going to war in Iraq or made a mistake in going to war in Iraq?" The response: 49 percent mistake/48 percent right decision. When Ipsos asked the same question four months ago, however, they got a lopsidedly positive reply: 67 percent right decision/29 percent mistake. Quite a change.
But here's the real mind-blower. Given a straight-up choice between whether "in the long term.....there will be more or less terrorism in the United States because the U.S. went to war in Iraq?", the public believes, by 54 percent to 37 percent, that the war will produce more, not less, terrrorism in our country.
In other words, not only has the war in Iraq become a big mess which gets more US soldiers killed every day, but we're actually less safe at home now because of it. No wonder more and more of the public thinks the war was a mistake. And I wouldn't be suprised if that thought has crossed Karl Rove's mind as well.
5224. jexster - 4/24/2004 12:04:58 AM
My deepest apologies...a friend just told me to re-read...and I definitely misread..
Raw nerves from recent incidents.
I am sorry Jay..
Thanks S.
5225. vonKreedon - 4/24/2004 3:14:23 AM
Jex - Do you mind if I delete your posts 5220 - 5222?
5226. robertjayb - 4/24/2004 3:54:54 AM
Maureen Dowd strolls through Bushworld...
It's their reality. We just live and die in it.
5227. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 4/24/2004 4:09:48 AM
WoW says WOW!!!!
5228. lemwalker - 4/24/2004 5:34:56 AM
Went to the county Democratic convention today. Quite chaotic. Heard Will Rogers once said he 'wouldn't belong to any organized party, which is why I am a Democrat'. Very diverse group. Wound up sending delegates to state for Kerry, Dean and Kucinich(?). Many were there for first time, or back after many years absence. Maybe there will be a large voter turnout this fall, for a change.
5229. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 4/24/2004 6:10:12 AM
Ther had better be—for all our sake.
5230. Absensia - 4/24/2004 6:42:09 AM
Great Op-Ed column!
5231. OhioSTOPAS - 4/24/2004 2:29:44 PM
Later this morning Bush and Kerry spokespeople Marc Racicot and Jeanne Shaheen are going to appear on Fox News Sunday. If it goes like the last time I saw them together (with Candy Crowley on CNN), Racicot will walk all over her, interrupting her as she politely tries to make her points (but indignantly saying "Let me finish!" if she tries to interject a correction to anything he says). Racicot will also be granted the last word by the friendly-to-GOP host.
Maybe I'll be proven wrong. C'mon, Jeanne!
5232. OhioSTOPAS - 4/24/2004 2:34:52 PM
Last night I saw a high school production of "Mister Roberts."
While watching a scene between cabinmates Lieutenant Roberts (intelligent, conscientious Navy Lieutenant J. G.) and Ensign Pulver (shallow but likeable slacker), I thought "Hmmm. Who do these guys remind me of?"
5233. Magoseph - 4/24/2004 7:01:40 PM
Hahaha, some mistake!
5234. robertjayb - 4/24/2004 7:15:10 PM
America in Red & Blue: a nation divided...
The Washington Post begins a three-part series on political division in the America:
Political scientists and practitioners often speak of "Red-Blue America," evoking maps of the 2000 election returns; indeed, the phrase is used so loosely that it has spawned a competing pundit class devoted to knocking down oversimplifications of the idea. In articles Monday and Tuesday, The Washington Post will publish portraits of Americans from the reddest of red zones, the home district of House Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R-Tex.), and the bluest of blues, the San Francisco neighborhood of House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.).
But first, it's useful to examine the Red-Blue division -- what it is, where it came from, how it has deepened and what it might mean.
5235. Magoseph - 4/24/2004 7:56:46 PM
Sorry, Von, I forgot my tags and I shouldn't have posted the Boondocks strip in this thread. Maybe you can transfer it to the Cafe?
5236. OhioSTOPAS - 4/24/2004 10:56:21 PM
Magoseph - The Boondocks cartoon seems to me to be on-topic to this thread.
However, bin Laden's capture isn't going to be announced in October. Rather, it'll be happen just before the Republican convention. This way President Bush's acceptance speech - delivered from Ground Zero - will have some extra punch.
It's Ronald Reagan's death that's going to be announced in October.
5237. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 4/24/2004 11:42:11 PM
There goes my gag reflex again!
5238. OhioSTOPAS - 4/25/2004 7:37:18 PM
The BIG issue today: In 1971, John Kerry told a reporter that he had thrown his "medals" over the wall at the Vietnam Veterans Against the War protest some months earlier. In fact, he threw combat ribbons, not his metal medals ("Metal medals"? That can't be right.)
Kerry says "medals" is a term that includes ribbons, but that's not good enough for me, nosirree. And I don't care if Kerry's statement was over 30 years ago.
I'm voting for George W. Bush, whom I can confidently say was as honest 30 years ago as he is today.
5239. OhioSTOPAS - 4/25/2004 7:38:49 PM
The big issue last week was that John Kerry said he didn't own an SUV. He thought he could get away with saying that merely because, well, he doesn't own an SUV. What a slippery bastard!
5240. jayackroyd - 4/25/2004 7:56:24 PM
They're not talking about those issues, Ohio. They're trying to define his image as a waffler and a liar--untrustworthy, not a straight shooter like the president.
5241. thoughtful - 4/25/2004 7:59:05 PM
straight shooter like the president...does that mean he doesn't shoot gays? Sorry, I couldn't resist.
straight shooter like the president...from no nation building, to pre-emptive strike on a sovereign nation, to god-given directive to free the peoples of the world. I guess he can shoot straight, but keeps changing what he's aiming at....DUCK!!!!
5242. jayackroyd - 4/25/2004 8:35:58 PM
Despite his rapid policy shifts, his willingness to say one thing and do the other, his commitment to a certain plan until it stops working, he has managed to build and retain that image. I don't understand it. I assume the people who believe it just get cognitive dissonance when contrary evidence shows up.
5243. jayackroyd - 4/25/2004 8:37:21 PM
Ask your husband, thoughtful. Does he think Bush is a straight shooter? Remind him of the "We're going to make them show their cards. We don't care what the whip count is." line Does that change his mind? Why not?
5244. thoughtful - 4/25/2004 8:42:26 PM
no i don't think he does think bush is a straight shooter, but then again, by comparison neither is kerry...that dissembling about he not owning an suv, but his family does is just nonsense. As I said, he would much rather a miracle happens at the RNC and mccain becomes the candidate.
imus had joe biden on the other day and he and i both liked what biden had to say...our dream ticket biden/mccain...or rather mccain/biden for him. but these guys who are thoughtful and sincere with a huge dose of common sense don't ever seem to have a rats chance of getting in.
5245. thoughtful - 4/25/2004 8:44:45 PM
and in looking at the kerry economic team, i was disappointed. clinton seemed to select economists who happened to be democrats....looks to me like kerry selected democrats who happened to be economists. not a good thing.
5246. thoughtful - 4/25/2004 9:01:30 PM
i think the other way the pres comes across as a straight shooter is that he talks in simple terms. given the average educational attainment level of the us populace (not how far they went in school, but what they really learned...y'know all those stats on high schoolers graduating with a 6th grade reading level) he speaks to them at their level.
5247. thoughtful - 4/25/2004 9:07:17 PM
well, i was wrong. I just asked my husband and he said he believes bush is a straight shooter. he believes however that he's surrounded by a bunch of manipulators and he doesn't know whether bush is too weak or too dumb to manage them. I asked about the weapons of mass destruction and he says he was just wrong, but didn't lie. I asked about his saying clinton's budget went up so much and his didn't and he said bush just made a mistake with the numbers. i asked about his going from no nation building to a god-given directive to free peoples around the world and he said there's nothing wrong with changing your mind. i asked about his national guard record and he said, he didn't lie about it...just didn't tell the whole truth, but what he said was correct. he did get an honorable discharge.
so there you have it...a straight shooter...confused, weak, surrounded by manipulators...but not a liar.
5248. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 4/25/2004 11:05:29 PM
We‘ve become a country of lowered expectations & goals, but we kill and blow up things real good!
5249. thoughtful - 4/25/2004 11:20:08 PM
and this is from a guy who sits through my daily breakfast table harangue about the bush admin! Go figure.
5250. wonkers2 - 4/25/2004 11:40:23 PM
How about Bush's portrayal of himself as an environmentalist and as a friend of minorities? He seems to me to be somebody who thinks that if he says something often enough most people will believe it, whatever the truth.
5251. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 4/25/2004 11:41:44 PM
tful- Well there’s still hope for the guy—at least he can still recognize a good and loving woman!
Meanwhile . . .
5252. thoughtful - 4/25/2004 11:45:58 PM
{{smooch}} wiz!
It's easy to sell when you believe it yourself, as I'm sure W does...that's the part about him being surrounded by manipulators who assure him that the environment will improve by rolling back these burdensome govt regs.
As it said in suskind's book, bush seriously thought the enron problem was a function of overreaching by the SEC! Right up there with reagan's trees cause more pollution than cars!
5253. jayackroyd - 4/25/2004 11:57:46 PM
but then again, by comparison neither is kerry
That's funny, because, while there is plenty I don't like about Kerry, I don't think he's dishonest. I do think that when he has made policy shifts, it has been in reaction to events. Some of those shifts were no doubt political rather than policy driven, but I'm sure some of them were policy driven.
5254. wonkers2 - 4/25/2004 11:58:39 PM
Great Move On link, WoW!
5255. thoughtful - 4/26/2004 3:52:39 AM
My definition of honesty includes some semblance of personal integrity. Kerry was charged with being "too french". Utter nonsense. The fact remains he and his wife are both fluent in french. If he was honest with himself, he would be true to that and be honest enough to i.d. this french nonsense for the lunacy it is. Think truman. Earlier in the campaign he would even respond to questions in french. Now suddenly, when asked questions in french he ignores them, pretends he can't understand them, until they are repeated in english. That in my book is a form of dishonesty. Inklings of a lack of personal integrity which i find disconcerting.
In my book, one need not utter a fact-checkable lie to be "dishonest". In fact, clinton's lies about lewinsky were understandable as he was just trying to protect his butt. That was far less troubling to me than the crap they pulled about adopting a child while they were in the white house. One was a white lie about a private matter that was between consenting adults that was nobody's business to start out with. The other is using (abusing) an innocent child for political gain.
Don't misunderstand me. I'm in the ABB camp (anybody but bush), but that doesn't mean I won't need the clothespin to hold my nose when i pull that lever.
That's probably the difference with bush my husband responds to. Bush is a "take me as I am" kinda guy, smirks and misunderestimations and swagger and all. Kerry is clearly a phoney up, botox, not my suv, kind of politician.
5256. wonkers2 - 4/26/2004 4:25:53 AM
A certain amount of dishonesty seems to be inherent in being a successful politician, especially in the age of television. (As well in many other careers and lives. Few people are completely honest."
5257. OhioSTOPAS - 4/26/2004 12:17:58 PM
I am actually proud of my Columbus Dispatch this morning. Here's a front page story on Cheney's speech and the latest Bush/Cheney ad attacking Kerry's record on defense:
Kerry Put on Defense in Ad, but Facts Iffy
Records say Democrat didn't specifically vote against some weapons
by Jack Torry
The Columbus Dispatch
WASHINGTON - A new commercial being aired in Ohio by President Bush's campaign relies on a selective use of votes cast by Sen. John Kerry to try to persuade voters that [Kerry] has opposed critical weapons systems . . .
But the commercial . . . delivers its broadside through the use of speeches from two decades ago as well as a handful of floor votes . . .
But Kerry . . . has never voted specifically to cancel any of those programs. Instead, money for the weapons was part of wide-ranging defense bills that Kerry voted against in 1990, 1995 and 1996. Because he cast a vote against the entire bill, the Bush campaign argues, Kerry oposed the actual programs.
What the commercial does not say is that from 1997 through 2002, Kerry supported every defense bull, each of which included money for all major U.S. weapons systems. . . .
5258. OhioSTOPAS - 4/26/2004 12:23:06 PM
I'm as astounded as I am pleased. Finally someone is exploring and reporting the alleged factual justification for misleading Republican statements like "Kerry opposed every weapons program." This of course should have been well-discussed in the media already, but better late than never.
(You'll need to register to read the story online at www.dispatch.com when it's posted there - peculiarly, it isn't yet. However, I think that online registration might only be free to home delivery subscribers - I hope I'm wrong.)
5259. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 4/26/2004 6:47:45 PM
Ohio, I think you'll find this place helpful for ferreting out the facts . . . FactCheck.org
5260. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 4/26/2004 6:49:33 PM
And BTW, Hail F**king Caesar!
5261. PelleNilsson - 4/26/2004 7:04:10 PM
Ave Caesar, morituri te salutant
5262. vonKreedon - 4/26/2004 7:08:13 PM
Dulce et Decorum est pro patria mori
5263. PelleNilsson - 4/26/2004 7:23:03 PM
Inde ira et lacrimae.
5264. vonKreedon - 4/26/2004 7:25:42 PM
Mortuis tacent, clamant
5265. PelleNilsson - 4/26/2004 7:38:09 PM
Otium cum dignitate.
I concede.
5266. vonKreedon - 4/26/2004 7:45:18 PM
Quite nice poetry actually:
Hail Caesar, we who are about to die salute you
It is sweet and proper to die for ones country
With wrath and tears
The dead silently, cry out
I retire with dignity
5267. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 4/26/2004 7:48:06 PM
Uva uvam videndo varia fit.
5268. vonKreedon - 4/26/2004 7:56:22 PM
My source for Latin phrases. In case anyone was thinking that I actually know Latin, the answer is NO. I also have no Greek.
5269. OhioSTOPAS - 4/26/2004 8:30:44 PM
The last word on "Medalgate", I hope:
I watched Kerry throw his war decorations
By Thomas Oliphant | April 27, 2004
WASHINGTON
ON THE WAY to the fence where he threw some of his military decorations 33 years ago, I was 4 or 5 feet behind John Kerry. . . .
As he neared the spot from which members of Vietnam Veterans Against the War were parting with a few of the trappings of their difficult past to help them face their future more squarely, I watched Kerry reach with his right hand into the breast pocket of his fatigue shirt. The hand emerged with several of the ribbons that most of the vets had been wearing that unique week of protest, much as they are worn on a uniform blouse.
There couldn't have been all that many decorations in his hand --six or seven -- because he made a closed fist around his collection with ease as he waited his turn.
5270. OhioSTOPAS - 4/26/2004 8:32:36 PM
(continued)
It was clear to me that Kerry had arrived here with only the ribbons he wore on his shirt -- which, by the way, were referred to as "medals" by the late Stuart Symington of Missouri, one of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee members present for his famous antiwar statement. . . .
It was clear from our conversations back then and ever since that Kerry made no distinction among his various decorations, though others have. Some in the military don't either. I remember once asking my father (who was awarded a Bronze Star in the Pacific during World War II), what he called the ribbon and lapel ornament he received in addition to the star; he said they were all the Bronze Star.
I have always found the political junk served up by Kerry's detractors to be undignified as well as largely inaccurate.
I write now because the political junk is much higher profile now, though no less misleading -- and not, by the way, because in her fourth job in the public arena, my daughter just joined Kerry's staff. I just happened to be there that long-ago day. I saw what happened and heard what Kerry said and know what he meant. The truth happens to be with him."
5271. robertjayb - 4/26/2004 8:38:17 PM
Jake and Elwood cram for 9/11 quiz...
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - White House aides coached President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney on Tuesday for their appearance before a panel investigating the Sept. 11 attacks that they agreed to under pressure and only if they could appear together and behind closed doors.
5272. PelleNilsson - 4/26/2004 9:19:27 PM
vonK -- I used a web site too. The translations are in Swedish so you can use it as a Rosetta stone.
5273. vonKreedon - 4/26/2004 9:23:19 PM
Oooh, do not invoke Rosetta Stone, please.
5274. wonkers2 - 4/27/2004 2:09:04 AM
Whatever happened to Rosie Red?
5275. wonkers2 - 4/27/2004 2:10:32 AM
Oliphant called Karen Hughes a liar on the Lehrer News Hour tonight. And Bill Kristol criticized her for bringing up the medals.
5276. OhioSTOPAS - 4/27/2004 2:58:14 AM
Ms. Hughes has been busy. She also recently compared Sunday's pro-choice marchers to terrorists:
"I think after September 11th the American people are valuing life more and realizing that we need policies to value the dignity and worth of every life.
"And President Bush has worked to say, let's be reasonable, let's work to value life, let's try to reduce the number of abortions, let's increase adoptions.
"And I think those are the kind of policies that the American people can support, particularly at a time when we're facing an enemy, and really the fundamental difference between us and the terror network we fight is that we value every life.
"It's the founding conviction of our country, that we're endowed by our creator with certain unalienable rights, the right to life and liberty and the pursuit of happiness.
"Unfortunately our enemies in the terror network, as we're seeing repeatedly in the headlines these days, don't value any life, not even the innocent and not even their own."
5277. Magoseph - 4/27/2004 1:07:41 PM
The Republican party should be in a state of shock today. The radical wing of the party had nominated someone who could hardly be described as anything but an outright fascist. In spite of the introduction of the heavy weights of the party, including President Bush into the race, Specter barely survived. This is a clear message to orthodox Republicans that the fascist elements within the party are determined to rule it at any cost, including the loss of a senate seat and possible control.
5278. Magoseph - 4/27/2004 6:13:19 PM
The Multilevel Marketing of the President
In past Republican campaigns, state and county organizations were free to assemble their local efforts any way they liked, the assumption being that they knew more about their own communities than someone in Washington. But now the Bush campaign was sending an altogether different message; word had come down from the national headquarters that Ohio's 88 county chairmen were to form full steering committees in each county by February, and then they needed to show proof that they were busy recruiting a statewide total of 51,000 volunteers, including captains for each of the state's 12,000 voting precincts.
....''That's the difference between 2000 and 2004,'' DeWine said. ''In 2000, they said, 'Yeah, sure, we'll use your local headquarters, whenever you can get it up and running, great.' This year, it's, 'Yeah, we'll use your headquarters, and we need it open right now, and we want phone banks and mailing lists, da-dah, da-dah, da-dah. . . . ' '' He ticked off imaginary demands on his fingers. ''I think it's because the president could lose, and they're nervous. And they should be.''
5279. jayackroyd - 4/27/2004 6:30:00 PM
That's probably the difference with bush my husband responds to. Bush is a "take me as I am" kinda guy, smirks and misunderestimations and swagger and all. Kerry is clearly a phoney up, botox, not my suv, kind of politician.
I've been surprised that Bush has been able to pull this off, because he strikes me as incredibly phony. He's a third generation blue-blood politician who summered in Maine as a kid, belonged to Skull and Bones, and acquired his "ranch" as a symbol for his presidential run. He talks a lot about the kind of guy he is, but, other than being verbally awkward, he doesn't really seem to be that guy.
It happens that I'm attending an event with Mrs. Kerry tonight. I'll let you know what she's like, in person, if I happen to find out.
5280. jexster - 4/27/2004 6:50:22 PM
Medals of Honor
Senator John Kerry's military records are compelling because they measure the man before his critics or supporters saw him through a political lens.
Kerry's 3 choices for VP
- Edwards
- Nelson
- The General
5281. jexster - 4/27/2004 6:51:23 PM
Medals of HonorIn the heat of a political campaign, attacks come from all directions. That's why John Kerry's military records are so compelling; they measure the man before his critics or his supporters saw him through a political lens. These military records show that John Kerry served his country with valor, and that those who served with him and above him held him in high regard. That's honor enough for any veteran.
Yet the Republican attack machine follows a pattern we've seen before, whether the target is Senator John McCain in South Carolina in 2000 or Senator Max Cleland in Georgia in 2002. The latest manifestation of these tactics is the controversy over Mr. Kerry's medals.
.
Kerry's 3 choices for VP
- Edwards
- Nelson
- The General
5282. OhioSTOPAS - 4/27/2004 7:02:53 PM
I can see Gephardt as a sensible choice for Kerry's VP. I've never been particularly excited by him, but he'll draw votes in important swing states: his home state of Missouri, and the organized-labor-heavy (relatively) states of Ohio, Michigan and Pennsylvania.
5283. thoughtful - 4/27/2004 7:15:24 PM
jay, maybe it's the 'smart enough to know better' factor. clinton took the heat for his mistakes as he was smart enough to know better. bush is not responsible for the mistakes on his watch as he isn't smart enough to know better...blame his handlers. Though I don't understand how people can buy that he's not involved in these attack ads since they all start with, I'm george w bush and i approved this ad.
Like nilson said in the point, you see what you want to see and you hear what you want to hear.
5284. vonKreedon - 4/27/2004 8:37:52 PM
I can see Gephardt as a sensible choice for Kerry's VP.
Oh God, please no, I may have to simply give up on the Dems entirely if Kerry committs this piece of banal idiocy. Kerry's candidacy really does not need to charisma challenged waffling apparatchiks on the ticket. To my mind the only viable choices are Gov. Richardson, who has said he will not accept, and Edwards.
Edwards is intensely charismatic. He is probably the best orator since at least Jesse Jackson's best days. He connects with the American electorate in the way that Clinton and Reagan did, and this is the single most important attribute for winning the election. He will simply flay Cheney in the VP debate, could conceivably have "You can't handle the truth!" moment in which Cheney indicts himself under Edwards examination; in fact the Kerry campaign would do well to suggest that, since Bush required Cheney by his side in his 9/11 commission testimony, at least one of the Presidential debates should be a full ticket debate. Remember, Edwards thumped Gephardt in Iowa! Edwards just took the meaningless NC caucus.
5285. vonKreedon - 4/27/2004 8:38:44 PM
oops:
...does not need two charisma challenged...
5286. OhioSTOPAS - 4/28/2004 12:30:03 AM
Here's another GOP lie about John Kerry:
Former Republican Congressman John LeBoutillier, now with the internet fishwrap "Newsmax", writes:
"Kerry’s Vietnam War record: like everything to do with Kerry - and most liberals - things are never quite as they appear to be. Yes, Kerry went to Vietnam (when he could have avoided it) and yes he saw combat. And yes he got injured and he received 3 Purple Hearts and some other medals. But there is even controversy over all of that.
"A few years later he threw those medals over the White House fence to protest the Vietnam War. Or did he? Were they his medals? Or were they the medals of his Yale pal [Richard "Dick" Pershing] - and grandson of WWI hero General Black Jack Pershing - who was killed in Vietnam?
"Again, controversy, switched explanations, intentional confusion, ambiguity - and sometimes just outright lies.
"This is the Kerry Way."
No, it's the Republican way. This is a complete fabrication, made up out of thin air by the Republican ex-Congressman.
5287. Magoseph - 4/28/2004 1:41:45 AM
Defending Kerry, senator blasts 'chickenhawks'
Sen. Frank Lautenberg on Wednesday called Vice President Dick Cheney "the lead chickenhawk" against Sen. John Kerry and criticized other Republicans for questioning the Democratic presidential contender's military credentials.
But Sen. John McCain, a decorated war hero and former prisoner of war, scolded Lautenberg for attacking the Bush administration during the Iraq conflict and said it was time to "declare that the Vietnam War is over."
In a scathing speech on the Senate floor, Lautenberg, D-New Jersey, said that he did not think politicians should be judged by whether they had military service but added that "when those who didn't serve attack the heroism of those who did, I find it particularly offensive."
"We know who the chicken hawks are. They talk tough on national defense and military issues and cast aspersions on others," he said. "When it was their turn to serve where were they? AWOL, that's where they were."
5288. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 4/28/2004 1:47:36 AM
5289. Magoseph - 4/28/2004 1:53:39 AM
CBS Poll: Growing Doubts On Iraq
NEW YORK, April 28, 2004
There are growing concerns about the long-term impact of the war. 41 percent now think the war increased the threat of terrorism against the U.S.
(CBS) One year after the declared end of major combat in Iraq, Americans have new doubts about the war and doubts about what the Bush Administration has said about it.
Just 32 percent, the lowest number ever, say Iraq was a threat that required immediate military action a year ago.
Less than half, 47 percent, now say the U.S. did the right thing taking military action in Iraq, the lowest support recorded in CBS News/New York Times Polls since the war began.
There are growing concerns about the long-term impact of the war. 41 percent now think the war increased the threat of terrorism against the U.S. 71 percent say the Administration’s policies have worsened the U.S.’s image in the Arab world.
The continued intensity of the fighting in Iraq surprised many Americans, and Americans believe it also surprised the Bush Administration. 44 percent say the fighting there has been harder than they personally expected, but 67 percent say it has been harder than the Administration expected. Nearly half say the war in Iraq was a mistake -- a finding similar to the public’s assessment of the Vietnam War as measured by the Gallup Poll in 1968.
The public’s assessments of the Bush Administration’s decision-making before (and after) the war are also negative.
Seven in ten don’t believe the Administration claims that the decision to go to war was made in March 2003, and say the Bush Administration had decided to go to war earlier than that.
5290. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 4/28/2004 2:00:57 AM
[Composed of American soldiers who've been killed in Iraq]
5291. Absensia - 4/28/2004 2:22:04 AM
Oh Wiz, so true, but hits home so hard.
5292. wonkers2 - 4/28/2004 3:48:38 AM
Cheney the Chickenhawk has a nice ring to it. Maybe it'll catch on.
5293. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 4/28/2004 3:07:39 PM
Abs-It's a pixelated composite of Bush, where each cell is made from a dead soldier killed in Iraq. It isn't difficult to do, in Photoshop. You scan a photo and use the mosaic filter to determine the cell size of each pixel element and then you reduce the photo of eaca dead soldier to that cell size--then colorize and increase or diminish the value of it to fit the same tonal range of the cell your replacing on the original scan. It's a tedious and repetitive process.
I didn't do this one--wish I had--but it's a wonderful example of irony using this technique. It was done at the NYC independent media center.
5294. jexster - 4/28/2004 5:41:55 PM
That is beautiful Wiz...
& so is this
5295. jexster - 4/28/2004 5:50:49 PM
Mago....Bill Schneider talking about the CBS Poll and the CNN Poll of Iraqis
"Most Americans think the war wasn't worth it and most Iraqis don't want us there (57%). When those two poll numbers get publicity pressure for US withdrawal will accelerate dramatically"
5296. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 4/28/2004 6:18:00 PM
5297. robertjayb - 4/28/2004 8:03:57 PM
dubya:
"I came away good about the session."
5298. jexster - 4/28/2004 9:01:41 PM
The poop is surely hittin the fan....CNN is running a special "Are your tax dollars lining the pockets of corrupt Iraqi politicians"
And why not! They've been lining the pockets of corrupt Republicans for years now.
5299. Absensia - 4/28/2004 9:28:47 PM
#5923 Wiz, that's what I assumed. It is an incredibly powerful statement.
As for the Bush and Cheney dance recital in front of the commission today, I'm waiting to hear from the "unnamed sources." Bush said he answered every question, so we know that's a lie. He also said he enjoyed the process. "Spin, spin, spin."
5300. Absensia - 4/28/2004 9:35:35 PM
The rules were that there could be no recording...hmmmm. Those recorders are really small these days. I wonder if they frisked everyone at the door?
5301. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 4/28/2004 10:38:09 PM
I'm still waiting for the transition of the public (and the press), from complacency to outrage, when it comes to these two gangsters.
5302. judithathome - 4/28/2004 10:42:42 PM
I hope you have a lot to keep you occupied while you wait.
5303. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 4/28/2004 10:46:13 PM
Always, Judith--I stay sane by venting visually . . . and jujitsuing my indignation.
5304. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 4/28/2004 10:55:14 PM
And so do others, it would seem. . .
5305. jexster - 4/29/2004 4:23:44 AM
MSNBC is reporting that Rumsfeld told Mathews on Hardball than Bush had never discussed the decision to go to war with either him or Powell...just Cheney and Harry the Talking Bass
5306. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 4/29/2004 1:50:24 PM
5307. jexster - 4/29/2004 4:53:50 PM
Try searching "abu garaib" in the Washington Post or the New York Times...
You'll find the horror story in the UK papers ..and a link in the Conflicts thread
You won't find squat in those US papers.
The reason that is appropriate for this thread is self-evident
5308. thoughtful - 4/29/2004 4:59:48 PM
jex, the story was a cbs news story, dan rather and all, and they showed some of the photos, appropriately blurred of course, on TV. I saw them on TV the other morning.
5309. jexster - 4/29/2004 5:08:20 PM
I missed em been running around too much..but only the LAT has picked it up thus far...this is just the tip of the iceberg..the fascist Bush regime has shamelessly cowed the US media ever since 9/11...this isn't the only issue but this is why GWB is still a viable candidate.
If there is any honor or independence left in the US media, he won't be for long.
5310. thoughtful - 4/29/2004 5:53:33 PM
jex, you're right about that. From ignatius in the wash post:
"In a sense, the media were victims of their own professionalism. Because there was little criticism of the war from prominent Democrats and foreign policy analysts, journalistic rules meant we shouldn't create a debate on our own. "
Hello? Say what? Isn't it the JOB of the press to create debate and bring to light issues that the government would rather keep secret? Isn't that why the constitution guarantees freedom of the press...so they can investigate?
If being a mouthpiece for the govt is being "professional" thank goodness woodward and bernstein were so "unprofessional" about nixon's dealings!
5311. jexster - 4/29/2004 6:35:56 PM
Resonating and reverberating!!!!
The Evil Empire of Lies Is Crumbling:
Yes, Bad News Does Hurt Bush
We can now safely disregard the theory that bad news somehow doesn't hurt Bush politically. He may be able to delay or slightly mitigate that harm but, as common sense would suggest, he cannot escape it.
Consider the results of the just-released CBS News/New York Times poll, conducted April 23-27. Bush's approval rating is down to 46 percent approve/47 percent disapprove (40/47 among independents), the lowest of his presidency and the first net negative rating in this poll. Bush's approval rating on foreign policy is now 40/51 (36/52 among independents), also the lowest of his presidency, as is his rating on Iraq at 41/52 (independents: 37/53). And his rating on the economy remains below 40 at 39/54 (36/57 among independents).
5312. jexster - 4/29/2004 6:55:11 PM
But the worst news for Bush is the extent to which public support for the Iraq war is declining. How about the key question of whether the war a mistake or not, an indicator I've discussed several times lately? In the CBS News poll, the public says yes, 48-46 (49-44 among independents). Last April, sentiment was overwhelming (70-24) that the war was not a mistake.
On a closely-related question, whether the US "did the right thing" in taking military action against Iraq or should have stayed out, the public is now almost evenly-split (47 right thing/46 stayed out; independents are 44/47). Just four months ago, it was 64 right thing/28 stayed out.
On whether the result of the war was worth the loss of life and other costs, the public now believes, by 25 points, that the result wasn't worth the cost (58-33; 61-31 among independents).
5313. jexster - 4/29/2004 7:44:51 PM
Bush said today he "felt disgust" over the torture at his prison in Iraq.
According to CNN, he has known about the torture for some time.
He feels disgust alright.
Digust that the truth is out
5314. judithathome - 4/29/2004 8:27:42 PM
Kerry is in Cloumbia right now, giving a speech carried live on CNN (and other cable channels, maybe) that sounds very presidential.
5315. judithathome - 4/29/2004 8:29:26 PM
Or Columbus...
"America is safest when its respected, not feared."
5316. jexster - 4/29/2004 8:33:11 PM
Kerry is now delivering the "Moment of Truth" speech from the same podium that Cheney launched his vile character assassination last week.
This speech will be remembered as seminal
OUTSTANDING
5317. jexster - 4/29/2004 8:54:27 PM
The Moment of Truth
"This anniversary is not a time to shout. It is not a time for blame. It is a time for a new direction in Iraq and for America to work together so that once again this nation leads in a way that brings the world to us and with us in our efforts." – John Kerry at Westminster College, Fulton, Missouri
Masterful
Bush will not do what Kerry says and The Mission is already a failure.
From the very spot that Churchill delivered his Iron Curtain speech, the contrast between Kerry and Cheney/Bush will not go unnoticed.
5318. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 4/30/2004 12:08:16 AM
5319. robertjayb - 4/30/2004 7:27:14 PM
NYTimes on Chickenhawk Cheney and his 5 (count 'em, five) Vietnam deferments...
On Oct. 6, 1965, the Selective Service lifted its ban against drafting married men who had no children. Nine months and two days later, Mr. Cheney's first daughter, Elizabeth, was born.** On Jan. 19, 1966, when his wife was about 10 weeks pregnant, Mr. Cheney applied for 3-A status, the "hardship" exemption, which excluded men with children or dependent parents. It was granted.
**Wow! What a coincidence, huh? Especially for such a calculating fellow.
Let us not forget that this is one of the sons-of-bitches now trying to repair the bungling in Iraq by extending combat tours.
5320. jexster - 5/1/2004 5:30:53 PM
5321. jexster - 5/1/2004 5:39:43 PM
Listen to the Liars in the own words
Tell Me Lies, Tell Me Sweet Little Lies
5322. jexster - 5/1/2004 5:43:04 PM
"War is the only means left to protect the US, the region, and the world from Saddam Hussein and his weapons of Mass Destruction" Ari Fliescher
5323. jexster - 5/1/2004 5:49:11 PM
5324. robertjayb - 5/1/2004 11:12:32 PM
Is it 9 or 11 dead today? Wolfies not counting, why should anyone else?
BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Nine U.S. servicemen were killed, six in a mortar attack, in a bloody 24 hours for U.S.-led forces in Iraq on Sunday.
5325. robertjayb - 5/1/2004 11:17:22 PM
AP says 11. What to believe? Don't ask Wolfie!
BAGHDAD, Iraq — In a daring escape, American hostage Thomas Hamill pried open the doors of the house where he was being held late Sunday morning and ran a half-mile to a military convoy that was passing by, officials and his wife said. Insurgents attacked U.S. forces across Iraq, killing 11 Americans.
5326. thoughtful - 5/2/2004 3:35:41 PM
Wiz, there's something about 5318...his expression? the hat? not sure what, but it's terrif.
5327. jexster - 5/2/2004 4:53:13 PM
The cult that's running the country
5328. PelleNilsson - 5/2/2004 7:03:44 PM
The Economist:
But why isn't Mr Kerry doing better? After all, the past few weeks have been among the worst of Mr Bush's presidency. The September 11th commission has aired all manner of accusations, and the news from Iraq has been grim. This week saw yet another embarrassing landmark—the anniversary of Mr Bush's disastrous “Mission Accomplished” speech.
Conventional wisdom in Washington has an explanation for Mr Bush's lead: there must be something profoundly wrong with Mr Kerry. He was not properly tested in the primaries; he appeals only to dyed-in-the-wool Democrats; the more you know him, the less you like him; he is another Al Gore, a lacklustre Washington insider unable to inspire swing voters.
These fears may yet come true, but there are two more direct explanations for Mr Kerry's dismal performance. First, Mr Bush has been the beneficiary of a rally-round-the-flag response to news from Iraq. Two weeks ago, he gave a televised prime-time press conference. In Washington, he was derided for failing to answer detailed questions. But beyond the Beltway, voters reacted more positively. Mr Bush sounded resolute, said he was determined to stay the course—and they responded. Twice as many now think he “takes a position and sticks with it” than think that of Mr Kerry. Two-thirds see him as a strong leader, while only half say it of his challenger. In other words, the “bad news”, this time, has helped Mr Bush.
Comments?
5329. judithathome - 5/2/2004 7:12:01 PM
Kerry is in a no win situation. The press cover Bush as though he were a God who can do no wrong and cover Kerry as though he is a man who can do no right.
Bush's comments are always cleaned up by the time people see him on the news...there is no "scream" speech as with Hoard Dean. If the press would honestly show Bush's faux pas and play them over and over, and if they would show Kerry in more realistic light, the polls might more honestly reflect what people are thinking.
But then again, Americans have a tendency to stick with what works or with what they perceive to be working.
5330. jayackroyd - 5/2/2004 7:15:56 PM
Clinton was down 15 points at this time in 1992. Kerry is even. There is plenty of bad news to come, and Kerry has yet to start, but is about to start, his image campaign.
There's plenty of cracking in the center and the right among influential and informed participants, like Howard Stern and Imus. It's hard to see good news in the near future for the president, other than a steadily improving economy. At the event I attended last Wednesday, Teresa Kerry claimed that they are ahead in all 17 battleground states.
Their decision to do ad buys in two other states, LA and someplace else I can't recall, provides evidence that she wasn't just blowing smoke. Kerry has always been a slow starter and a strong finisher. I'm not impressed, to date. But he already has my vote. With this opponent, the bar is very low.
5331. jayackroyd - 5/2/2004 7:25:09 PM
Colorado is the other state.
5332. vonKreedon - 5/2/2004 7:25:30 PM
I take little comfort from the fact that Clinton was down 15 points to Bush the Elder; I know Bill Clinton and Kerry is no Bill Clinton. I would feel much much better if Kerry brings Edwards on has his VP candidate because Edward is very much a Clintonian figure, only without the slime factor.
5333. jayackroyd - 5/2/2004 7:30:39 PM
I hope Kerry has the confidence to bring someone like Edwards on the ticket, a running mate who may overshadow him in some respects. Or even a republican. Bill Cohen would be a good running mate.
A sitting president in a statistical dead heat in May is in trouble--even if he didn't have plenty of other troubles in the offing.
5334. robertjayb - 5/2/2004 7:55:12 PM
And here comes Kerry...
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Democrat John Kerry highlighted his Vietnam War service in a $25 million wave of biographical ads introduced on Monday to counter President Bush's barrage of television spots portraying him as a liberal waffler.
The new effort to introduce the four-term senator from Massachusetts comes as some Democrats have grumbled that their presumptive presidential nominee has not been quick enough to answer Bush's effort to define him or to articulate a clear campaign message.
The two 60-second ads included photographs of the young Navy lieutenant aboard the Swift boat he commanded in Vietnam's Mekong Delta as well as shots of Kerry ashore in jungle fatigues and toting an M-16 rifle.
5335. vonKreedon - 5/2/2004 8:05:30 PM
Historically it is true that a sitting President should be ahead in the polls at this point, but if one views Bush the Elder as a sitting President in '88, and I think that is a fair comparison, Bush was as much as 17 points behind Dukakis at about this point in the '88 race, and we all know what happened there. I'm afraid that Kerry is far more like Dukakis than he is like Clinton. Dukakis also had a reputation as a tough campaigner and a strong finisher, but all but rolled over and played dead in the actual event.
I am very afraid.
5336. thoughtful - 5/2/2004 8:36:00 PM
Positive news....kerry finally figured out that business is where the $$ is and you don't make money becoming an enemy of business. He's courted and won steve jobs and warren buffet, and is trying to become more clinton-esque including mentioning robert rubin as a greenspan replacement upon his retirement.
5337. wonkers2 - 5/2/2004 9:18:28 PM
Kerry needs sharper focus on a few key themes such as
1. My first priority will be creating a healthy economy with plenty of jobs for Americans.
2. I will balance the budget with a fairer distribution of the tax burden including income tax, payroll taxes and corporation profits taxes.
3. I will put Social Security on a sound financial footing as a Federal government program, not a privatized one designed to benefit private financial institutions.
4. I will make prescription drug coverage an integral part of Medicare and put the program on a sound financial footing.
5. I will work toward the goal of single payer, universal health care.
6. I will work toward a fairer distribution of taxes, including both income, payroll and corporate profits taxes.
7. I will clean up the mess Bush and Cheney have made in Iraq which has led to needless casualties, hurt our image around the world, alienated our allies and swelled the ranks of Anti-American terrorists. This will require mending our fences with our European allies and the United Nations.
8. I promise more effective measures to combat and prevent terrorism such as better coordination within the federal government and with our allies. I will work harder to win the hearts and minds of ordinary people in other countries.
5338. arkymalarky - 5/3/2004 12:45:36 AM
9. I will make certain NCLB is properly funded and that its goals are realistically achievable with reasonable timelines and targeted assistance to those districts most in need of improvement, rather than punishing their poverty by removing crucial funding and funneling the best students and teachers into other districts or charter schools, leaving behind all the poor children who can't go elsewhere. And I will rebuild a relationship with the nation's teachers who are the most important factor in improving schools and without whom NCLB has no prayer of success.
5339. robertjayb - 5/3/2004 3:55:14 AM
Kevin Drum nails our "CEO President"
George Bush is, fundamentally, a mediocre CEO, the kind of insulated leader who's convinced that his instincts are all he needs. Unfortunately, like many failed CEOs before him, he's about to learn that being sure you're right isn't the same thing as actually being right.
So sure: George Bush is genuinely committed to winning in Iraq. He just doesn't know how to do it and doesn't have the skills, experience, or personality to look beyond his own instincts in order to figure it out. America is about to pay a heavy price for that.
I dunno. dubya's history is failing upward...Probably he's counting on it happening again.
5340. jexster - 5/3/2004 4:09:22 AM
Duhbya Vows to "Stay the Course" On Economy & Iraq
Jeezusaleezus
5341. jexster - 5/3/2004 3:36:48 PM
BAGHDAD, Iraq - L. Paul Bremer, the U.S. administrator in Iraq (news - web sites), said he regrets a statement he made more than six months before the Sept. 11 attacks that the Bush administration was "paying no attention" to terrorism.
5342. thoughtful - 5/3/2004 4:00:31 PM
I was stunned this a.m. listening to the right-wing laura ingraham on imus. Normally the sun shines only on the bushies and yet this a.m. she sounded critical of them...or at least certainly not positive toward them. She was still knocking kerry, of course, but this was the first break with her usual "the bushies are wonderful" shtick.
5343. robertjayb - 5/3/2004 5:27:22 PM
Rasmussen polls Arkansas...
May 3, 2004--President George W. Bush and Senator John F. Kerry are tied in Arkansas. The latest Rasmussen Reports survey in that state found both men earning 45% of the vote.
Adding Ralph Nader's name to the poll has absolutely no impact in this key Southern state.
Just 49% of Arkansas voters believe the U.S. is winning the War on Terror. Thirty percent (30%) believe the terrorists are winning.
5344. jexster - 5/3/2004 8:07:28 PM
I swear THEY SAID IT!
CNN: "We've heard from the Republican administration on the torture issue, now let's hear from Democratic Senator John McCain"
5345. jexster - 5/3/2004 8:08:04 PM
The Rasmussen Polls are RoboPolls...caveat readerorum
5346. jexster - 5/3/2004 8:25:30 PM
OHIO:
Bush Blows in the Buckeye State
President Bush is headed to Ohio today to trumpet his economic policies. Unfortunately, his policies have not been music to the ears of many of the state's residents. From taxes to jobs to health care, many of the administration's programs have had an adverse effect on the Buckeye State.
THE JOB DRAIN: Ohio's unemployment rate "has risen from 3.9 percent to 5.7 percent since Bush took office. More than 222,000 jobs have been lost in the state." more than seven out of every ten jobs Ohio lost were manufacturing jobs (169,700). In passing his most recent tax cut for the wealthy, President Bush promised his plan would create 60,400 jobs in Ohio. Instead, from June 2003-December 2003, the state actually lost 67,000 jobs
SCHOOL FUNDING WOES: The Ohio Department of Education estimates it will cost $1.4 billion to meet the criteria of President Bush's No Child Left Behind plan. Unfortunately, only $105 million is available
.
HIGHER EDUCATION, HIGHER COSTS: Meanwhile, college costs for students in Ohio have skyrocketed while the administration has frozen Pell Grant funding and pushed to cut 84,000 students from the grants, while proposing making it more expensive to borrow through the student loan program by eliminating the student borrower's ability to consolidate at a low fixed interest rate. .
RAMPANT BANKRUPTCYIn Ohio, 21,593 people have declared bankruptcy, up 76 percent since 2000."
CHOPPING HEALTH CARE: The White House is proposing a 3 percent cut in grants to states while also "proposing to save $1.5 billion in Medicaid money" given to states.
BOGUS TAX RELIEF: The Bush administration's latest tax cuts have offered very little benefit to average Ohio citizens. According to the Citizens for Tax Justice, by 2006, "89 percent of all state residents will receive less than $100 in tax cuts as a result of the latest Bush tax cut."
5347. jexster - 5/3/2004 8:29:50 PM
Houston...you gotta problem
Take Off the Rose Garden Colored Glasses:
Time for Bush to Wake Up to Reality in Iraq
George F. Will
Appearing Friday in the Rose Garden with Canada's prime minister, President Bush was answering a reporter's question about Canada's role in Iraq when suddenly he swerved into this extraneous thought:
"There's a lot of people in the world who don't believe that people whose skin color may not be the same as ours can be free and self-govern. I reject that. I reject that strongly. I believe that people who practice the Muslim faith can self-govern. I believe that people whose skins aren't necessarily -- are a different color than white can self-govern."
What does such careless talk say about the mind of this administration?
The blind lead the deaf who lead the disengaged - The Cackle of the Clueless ChickenHawks
5348. jexster - 5/3/2004 8:32:35 PM
Being steadfast in defense of carefully considered convictions is a virtue. Being blankly incapable of distinguishing cherished hopes from disappointing facts, or of reassessing comforting doctrines in face of contrary evidence, is a crippling political vice.
In "On Liberty" (1859), John Stuart Mill said, "It is, perhaps, hardly necessary to say" that the doctrine of limited, democratic government "is meant to apply only to human beings in the maturity of their faculties." One hundred forty-five years later it obviously is necessary to say that.
Ron Chernow's magnificent new biography of Alexander Hamilton begins with these of his subject's words: "I have thought it my duty to exhibit things as they are, not as they ought to be." That is the core of conservatism.
Traditional conservatism. Nothing "neo" about it. This administration needs a dose of conservatism without the prefix.
5349. wonkers2 - 5/3/2004 8:37:06 PM
Re dead heat in Arkansas: Unleash Arkymalarky!
5350. jexster - 5/3/2004 8:59:13 PM
RoboPoll notwithstanding, dead heat today means 5% goin away, ceteris paribus of course!
Iraq War Veteran Asks Bush: 'When Will You Take Responsibility'?
In his powerful Democratic Radio Address on Saturday, OIF veteran Paul Rieckhoff said,
"I am not angry with our President, but I am disappointed. I don't expect an easy solution to the situation in Iraq, I do expect an admission that there are serious problems that need serious solutions. I don't expect our leaders to be free of mistakes, I expect our leaders to own up to them. In Iraq, I was responsible for the lives of 38 other Americans. We laughed together, we cried together, we won
together, and we fought together. And when we failed, it was my job as their leader to take responsibility for the decisions I made-no matter what the outcome.
My question for President Bush - who led the planning of this war so long ago - is this: When will you take responsibility for the decisions you've made in Iraq and realize that something is wrong with the way things are going? Mr. President, our mission is not accomplished."
5351. jayackroyd - 5/3/2004 9:19:08 PM
Has anybody else noticed that Ralph is having a lot trouble getting on ballots, as solo operator?
He certainly won't be on all fifty states' ballots. There's no way he's making Texas or New York with no party affiliation. What is ballot access like in the battleground states? Does anyone know?
5352. jexster - 5/3/2004 9:20:04 PM
vK...for what its worth..I heard tell this weekend that there is considerable Beltway sentiment for Edwards..
Yet my choices remain in rank order:
The General
Edwards
Nelson
5353. jexster - 5/3/2004 9:20:49 PM
He missed Oregon
5354. jayackroyd - 5/3/2004 9:29:59 PM
Here's a summary of ballot ballot access.
5355. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 5/3/2004 9:33:16 PM
What, me worry?
5356. vonKreedon - 5/3/2004 9:35:33 PM
As much as I love Clark I don't think he's the right guy for the VP slot. He did not develop into a very effective stump speaker or debater; he's not bad, just not electrifying. He's got more charisma than Kerry, but not a whole lot more. His military resume would tend to overshadow or even put in a diminishing light Kerry's military resume. I'd love to see Clark as Sec. of State in a Kerry administration.
Who is Nelson?
5357. vonKreedon - 5/3/2004 9:35:34 PM
As much as I love Clark I don't think he's the right guy for the VP slot. He did not develop into a very effective stump speaker or debater; he's not bad, just not electrifying. He's got more charisma than Kerry, but not a whole lot more. His military resume would tend to overshadow or even put in a diminishing light Kerry's military resume. I'd love to see Clark as Sec. of State in a Kerry administration.
Who is Nelson?
5358. thoughtful - 5/3/2004 10:09:17 PM
wiz, perhaps you should title it "divine retribution"
5359. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 5/3/2004 10:28:24 PM
tful- to God's ear, my Dear!!!
5360. arkymalarky - 5/4/2004 12:42:09 AM
Re dead heat in Arkansas: Unleash Arkymalarky!
Hey, I'm working on it! The Republican governor's low popularity ranking, especially among normally solid, mostly white rural Republicans, is helping. And he can't encourage and persuade, no matter how important it is to issues he supports. Scolding flows from him as uncontrollably as it does from Church Lady.
And I don't think Cheney helped by coming to visit Bentonville Wal-Mart the other day.
5361. jexster - 5/4/2004 1:00:51 AM
Wassup with Walmart Ark?
I hear tell from my DC friend who is lookin over your Neas problem that outsourcing cuts against Kerry in Ark because of the Evil Wal-mart...that so?
5362. jexster - 5/4/2004 1:01:36 AM
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (Reuters) - Democratic challenger John Kerry (news - web sites) Tuesday called President Bush (news - web sites) "all rhetoric" on his hand-picked issue of education and accused the White House of shortchanging its own sweeping changes enacted by Congress in 2001.
Kerry, a senator from Massachusetts who voted for the administration's No Child Left Behind education policy, criticized Bush for underfunding his own initiative and failing to enforce key provisions of the law.
"It's all rhetoric," the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee said. "They say one thing and do another. They are $26 billion behind on NCLB ... We've got 40 and 50 percent dropout rates in some cities and that's unacceptable."
Kerry, who has not held a news conference with the national media for almost three weeks, took questions from a group of about 20 kindergarten children who seemed more intrigued by his physical appearance than his presidential race. "Oh my god," shrieked one little girl when the 6-foot-4-inch Kerry entered the room. "Can you touch the roof?"
Deep into his reading of "Animals Should Definitely Not Wear Clothing" and "Green Eggs and Ham," another 6-year-old blurted: "You've got blue eyes."
Kerry effortlessly fielded questions ranging from "How do you stop planes from flying into tall buildings?" to "How can you make sure we learn our ABCs?"
But he was stumped when one boy asked: "Can you make sure dogs don't get run over by cars?"
"That's a hard thing for a president, but I'll try," Kerry promised.
5363. robertjayb - 5/4/2004 1:24:29 AM
Well, you just never know...
Last night I was calling for Dan Rather's head for caving in to bushie requests to delay broadcasts of the prison torture in Iraq. It was a mistake, no doubt about it.
But tonight CBS did a very good job of filling in the background of the gang of thugs currently mauling Kerry's Vietnam record. Tied them back to the slanders of John McCain and the triple-amputee senator whose name (dammit) I cannot recall at the moment.
Cleland! Cleland! That's it. Max Cleland.
This is the same gang of pseudo-patriots that slimed Max Cleland.
5364. jexster - 5/4/2004 1:27:29 AM
A Kerry Landslide?
Why the next election won't be close.
By Chuck Todd
the editor in chief of National Journal's Hotline
5365. jayackroyd - 5/4/2004 1:40:29 AM
You can start ignoring the polls with Nader. I've done some analysis of the state's ballot access requirements. There is no way that he is going to be on a majority of states' ballots. Of the ten states with the most electoral votes, seven require over ten thousand signatures. He's not gonna get that, with no party apparatus, no organization and pleas at his website for volunteers. More on this later.
5366. jayackroyd - 5/4/2004 1:56:29 AM
It is to laugh. Bush's "Bus tour" through the midwest entails airplane flights.
Tuesday's bus tour, about 60 miles through western Ohio, actually includes two airplane flights — one from Detroit to Toledo and another from Toledo to Dayton. His first two stops — Maumee and Dayton — are in counties Al Gore won in 2000. The last two stops — Lebanon and Cincinnati — are in counties that Bush won easily.
And when he is on the bus, it's a bus made in Canada by Volvo--as he tours Michigan. Is anyone awake at the switch on his campaign staff?
And he had the gall to say this:Because -- because we acted, Saddam's torture chambers are closed. on Monday.
5367. arkymalarky - 5/4/2004 3:08:21 AM
I haven't heard that, Jex, but I'm a bit blinded where Wal-Mart is concerned. As far as NW AR, which is one of the richest parts of the country, there is nothing else to AR but them, and I think voter turnout will be higher for Bush opponents than usual as people vote over what happened wrt education. We'll see, but we're working as hard on the local and state stuff as we can, and it's my assumption--my main working partner is a very active Republican--that this will hurt Bush.
5368. arkymalarky - 5/4/2004 3:11:18 AM
I think voter turnout will be higher for Bush opponents than usual as people vote over what happened wrt education
I meant to add "in the rest of the state." Democrats have done very well in AR lately. Huckabee was not elected by a good margin and his opponent was not that strong. Other than that, Republicans only have one Representative of our four, in the northwestern part of the state which has been traditionally Republican. He's not terribly strong and is being challenged by a fairly popular northwestern Democrat.
5369. arkymalarky - 5/4/2004 3:12:17 AM
And I daresay Huckabee couldn't get elected dog catcher now, even among Republicans, and that hurts the party's effectiveness as well.
But I'm awful at predicting this stuff, so who knows?
5370. jexster - 5/4/2004 6:59:30 AM
I have it on good authority by way of DEEP BACKGROUND that
During the 9/11 Commission interveiw of the Emperor of Armadillos and Assorted Morons, All Highest Warlord & Culture Warrior and Krusty the Kardiac Klown, Imperial Puppeteer, that a certain commissioner asked for a pad and pen to take notes...
Upon being informed that this was verboten (done during Clinton and Gore seperate interviews), this commissioner calmly whipped out his own paper and pen and took many many pages of notes which notes were confiscated on leaving the Imperial Presence to check for "secret shit" you understand...with a promise of unredacted return
5371. alistairConnor - 5/4/2004 10:00:37 AM
And he had the gall to say this:Because -- because we acted, Saddam's torture chambers are closed. on Monday.
More accurate would be : Saddam's torture chambers have been privatised.
5372. Magoseph - 5/4/2004 11:56:52 AM
The incompetence of Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz at the top of the chain of command has cost this country hundreds of billions and hundreds of lives. The latest fiasco has finally brought the issue to a head. If Bush does not have it within himself to can them both, that should hurt him in November. (won't hold my breath, though...)
5373. alistairConnor - 5/4/2004 12:14:23 PM
What's this stuff about "one of the leading Neocons is on the way out"...
Names!
5374. Magoseph - 5/4/2004 1:54:28 PM
I don't know where you read that, Ali, but I think that now that Rumsfeld is taking the blame for the prison scandal, no one will be on the way out soon or ever.
5375. thoughtful - 5/4/2004 2:46:52 PM
Did you hear disney is pulling release of michael moore's film critical of the bush admin, highlighting connections with the saudis? Apparently there's some favorable legislation afoot and disney doesn't want the film to interfere.
So glad money doesn't rule politics in the good ol' usa.
This is not good. I'm getting too bitter, too angry. This is not good.
5376. jayackroyd - 5/4/2004 2:53:55 PM
5373
It's being rumored that Wolfowitz is gone by mid May.
5377. alistairConnor - 5/4/2004 3:00:33 PM
Ah, a fall guy. Isn't that nice.
5378. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 5/4/2004 3:03:23 PM
Did you hear that petulant puss bag, being interviewed by Steve Inskeep on NPR this morning? The hubris and the evasion of the facts were jaw-dropping.
5379. Magoseph - 5/4/2004 3:29:30 PM
Whiz, when I listen to Rumsfeld, what I hear over and over again is the standards of the United States armed forces and that the miscreants did not follow them. I hear nothing about the Geneva Convention of which the US is a long time signatory. Nor do I hear that he or others, within the command structure, were directed to make certain that all US forces were familiar with the requirements of the Geneva Convention and were duty bound to follow them to the letter.
The arrogance of this man confounds me. His defiance of anything of an international nature is almost unbelievable. It demonstrates in a most vivid fashion the utter disdain that this admistrition and its leaders hold for anything resembling standards incorporated by the world as a whole.
My position is rather simple: The facts are that Rumsfeld is absolutely and positively responsible in the chain of command for his officers and men not respecting and following the Geneva Convention. standards. If he was half a man, he would have already tendered his resignation, rather than force Bush to demand it.
5380. wonkers2 - 5/4/2004 3:29:52 PM
They should tie him to an anthill in Afghanistan! (wolfowitz)
5381. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 5/4/2004 3:42:22 PM
My wife's cousin was the White House Office Manager under Clinton and very politically savvy; she thinks it's going to take a miracle for Kerry to win. When I ask her to explain why, she can't. A cousin of mine, who is a high up senior foreign service officer intimates the same sentiments.
What's going on? What the hell am I missing here? Why do these people feel this way when it seems so obvious that the level of failure in the Bush Administration has sunk to new historical lows?
Are Americans that complacent and that much in denial of the facts?
5382. alistairConnor - 5/4/2004 3:50:09 PM
It's the nice-guy factor. The most telling anectode I have read about W was from the Woodward book : the episode of the mints during the terrorism briefing. A lot of people like that sort of guy.
Facts are secondary for a lot of people.
5383. Magoseph - 5/4/2004 4:17:31 PM
Whiz, I have only one explanation--the people who go to church every week and are sincerely religious types, believe that Bush is in contact with the Father above and are unlikely to abandon him under any circunstances. Now you add the Nader factor and the continuous flow of corporate money. For most political observers, that spells victory.
I'm not so certain. The deteriorating situation that now exists, tends to get worse, not better. My only hope is that even the most steadfast can falter under the conditions that may prevail.
The only positive that could possibly comes from a Bush second term, from my point of view, is that their renewed confidence would breed a degree of excesses that prove to be intolerable and lead to a fracturing and reconstitution of the Republican party away from a fascist direction and back to a genuine conservative posture.
I might add that I personally see another benefit from a Bush disaster, either now or later from another point of view. If it is bad enough, it could make the religious electorate less prone to follow a politician who claims to have credentials with the Father above.
5384. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 5/4/2004 4:47:44 PM
The only positive that could possibly comes from a Bush second term, from my point of view, is that their renewed confidence would breed a degree of excesses that prove to be intolerable and lead to a fracturing and reconstitution of the Republican party away from a fascist direction and back to a genuine conservative posture.
The I, Claudius Factor: "Let the boils fester!"
5385. vonKreedon - 5/4/2004 4:56:34 PM
Or a Leninist "Worse is better!"
Of course, history proved that in both the case of Claudius and Lenin worse was simply worse.
On why WoW's politically astute relatives intuition about the election; Kerry is a terrible candidate. He has yet to really hit a note that he reaches for, and has often been badly out of tune. The economy is, finally, turning around. And as much of a clusterfuck as Bush has made of Iraq, he still projects the image of a man of resolute certainty and focus in protecting the US from all those terrorists who hate us because we are free and brave and prosperous and the shining city on the hill, a light onto Mankind against the evil.... Well, Americans just love that story about how we are the bestest people that ever were and 9/11 pushed a lot of fear buttons that the administration is doing a decent job of re-pushing as needed.
5386. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 5/4/2004 4:57:14 PM
I'm starting to think that Kerry's running mate is going to be a much more crucial decision than I thought. I predicted he'd choose Gov. Bill Richardson, but that looks more remote now. I wonder why Richardson has been passed over, if in fact he has?
5387. jexster - 5/4/2004 5:06:17 PM
"Rice Apologizes for Iraqi Prisoner Abuse"
"Rumsfeld Stops Short of Direct Apology Over Abuses"
I am sure no Iraqi cares...what a bunch o hucksters
5388. jexster - 5/4/2004 5:08:13 PM
Feith per that article Salon..linked in Conflicts..Feith then Wolfowitz who is to come back...this from the FT correspendent about mid way through the long article...
5389. jexster - 5/4/2004 5:09:06 PM
Richardson has said several times NO.
He just got elected governor...2 years ago
5390. thoughtful - 5/4/2004 5:18:13 PM
I hate it when that happens...i read something very telling and then can't find it when I want to refer to it.
Anyway, the person was making the point that bush's success is his ability to connect with real people. How can that be? He and his compadres have managed to paint the dems into the intellectual elite snob corner, the ivory tower types who have no connection with us "common sense, down to earth" types, and certainly no connection to god. Kerry unfortunately fits that to a T with his fancy haircuts and wealthy 2nd wife and snowboarding trips, botoxed face, looking "too french" etc. Not to mention the fact that he's a catholic who supports abortion rights.
Further there is a strong geographic difference in how middle (geographically) people view coasters (ca and ny). They really believe that new york is the den of iniquity portrayed in law and order. That's why 9/11 was such a wakeup call to so much of the nation...to learn that nyc isn't all hookers, gangs, drug dealers and mob bosses. In the same way, coasters tend to believe that everyone in the bible belt marries their sister at 14 and spends their day drinking moonshine or bible thumping.
5391. thoughtful - 5/4/2004 5:18:58 PM
contd
W with his swagger and bromides and blue jeans and his ranch and his ability to come across with (IMO a boatload of) human frailties appeals more to joe 6-pack.
You have to understand that while many of us here read and hear and learn about all these negatives on the bushies, the majority of americans don't read newspapers or magazines and get just snippets of news, a lot of it local, from watching tv, and listening to rush. We tend toward those sources that support our point of view. The impact of the internet is only to increase partisanship as we concentrate more on those sites that tell us more about what we want to hear. If we want to understand, we have to spend time with sources supporting the other point of view. But I suspect there are few that follow sites from both sides.
5392. jexster - 5/4/2004 5:54:50 PM
Guest Commentary
Ray Close
"I take all of this as additional strong evidence supporting the points that I made last week, before the new compromise solution in Fallujah was proposed:
3. This means that the US Army will probably be obliged to leave Iraq before Bush, Rumsfeld & Company are prepared to manage the retreat as if it were a triumphant event for freedom; the Americans will therefore be seen by the rest of the world, and particularly the Muslim world, in much the same light as were the Israelis when they departed from Southern Lebanon ---as a frustrated and defeated occupation force expelled by victorious nationalists; this will make many Americans who supported the "liberation" of Iraq extremely angry and resentful; the British and other members of the glorious "coalition of the willing" will effectively have to make the best of a bad situation --- if they haven't wisely removed themselves from the scene in the meanwhile; "
Ray Close is the former CIA Station Chief for Saudi Arabi
How will this anger and resentment play out in the Election?
I think that is the wildest of wild cards
5393. jexster - 5/4/2004 5:55:22 PM
Make no mistake...that day is coming soon
5394. judithathome - 5/4/2004 6:00:08 PM
FOX is really clever...last night on the doomsday series 24 they showed a candidate for president named John Keeler. This guy is plotting dirty deeds against the sitting president, a good guy, and is shown as scheming and crooked. When his campaign signs were shown in the background, they looked exactly like John Kerry's signs; many times during the show, the only parts of the signs showing were "John Ke...." Very clever indeed.
5395. robertjayb - 5/4/2004 8:06:45 PM
E-Voting in deep do-do...(via The Agonist)
WASHINGTON - (AP) - A computer science expert criticized electronic voting systems planned for the November election as highly vulnerable and flawed, saying on Wednesday a backup paper system is the only short-term solution to avoid another disputed presidential election.
"On a spectrum of terrible to very good, we are sitting at terrible," Aviel D. Rubin, a computer science professor at Johns Hopkins University, told the U.S. Election Assistance Commission. "Not only have the vendors not implemented security safeguards that are possible, they have not even correctly implemented the ones that are easy."
5396. judithathome - 5/4/2004 8:07:51 PM
Did I leave the tags open?
5397. robertjayb - 5/4/2004 8:24:10 PM
Quinnipiac University national poll...
American voters give President George W. Bush a split 46 -- 47 percent approval rating, his lowest ever measured, and give key members of the Bush Administration their lowest marks ever, according to a Quinnipiac University poll released today.
But President Bush still leads Democratic challenger John Kerry 43 -- 40 percent, with 6 percent for independent candidate Ralph Nader, compared to the 46 -- 40 percent lead in a March 24 poll by the independent Quinnipiac (KWIN-uh-pe-ack) University.
In this latest expanded survey, which allows for closer examination for subgroups, white women, a key voting block, back Bush 48 -- 35 percent, with 6 percent for Nader.
5398. jexster - 5/4/2004 8:57:39 PM
"Even a ground squirrel knows the number is 50-75 billion" Chuck Hagel
WASHINGTON - The Bush administration will ask Congress for an additional $25 billion for U.S. operations in Iraq (news - web sites) and Afghanistan (news - web sites), a House Republican aide said Wednesday, a change from the White House's earlier plans to not request such money until after the November elections
How many more lies will the American people stand for from these snake oil hucksters?
5399. robertjayb - 5/4/2004 9:50:23 PM
Danish journalist questions John Kerry...(via The Agonist)
I had the privilege of meeting you during the Iowa and New Hampshire primaries earlier in the year, and like the other listeners, I too thought that you then looked and sounded sharp. You had a message, a simple but captivating message, and you had a background and a biography that backed you up.
Then you fell down.
Because now three months later I'm skeptical: What do you want to do? What is your vision?
5400. jexster - 5/4/2004 11:37:51 PM
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Bush administration asked Congress Wednesday for an additional $25 billion for U.S. operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, congressional Republicans said, a retreat from the White House's earlier plans not to seek such money until after the November elections.
White House budget chief Joshua Bolten and Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz went to the Capitol to present the proposal to House Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Ill., Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tenn., and other top Republicans.
So far, Bush ``has not been told that there is a resource problem,'' said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
What a SHOCK!
Kerry shouldn't even have to sneeze hard to blow this house of cards away
5401. wonkers2 - 5/5/2004 12:01:32 AM
Kerry needs to speak more clearly in shorter sentences. And a strong VP candidate like Edwards would help.
5402. wonkers2 - 5/5/2004 12:02:11 AM
His policies are okay. He just needs to express them more succinctly and clearly.
5403. robertjayb - 5/5/2004 12:06:42 AM
So Whistle-Ass wasn't told about the "resource" problem requiring a $25 Billion supplemental appropriation.
Lovely.
I'm comforted that these funds are not for the war but for the troops. Bushthink, you know.
5404. Absensia - 5/5/2004 12:10:36 AM
Thoughtful, #5390-1,
I think you have hit the nail on the head. Even so called "intelligent" people are getting their info from t.v. news snippets and those who post here, imo, are an exception to 90% of those who vote.
5405. arkymalarky - 5/5/2004 12:24:54 AM
Democrats need to get over expecting either perfection or resigning themselves to the status quo. Clinton's about ruined them, and it's silly. Thoughtful's post in the Middle East thread was great and right on target. Anyone whose expectations of an individual's personal behavior are that high lives to be disappointed. We need to go back to not giving a rip as long as the job gets done instead of letting Republican strategists yank our chains so easily while they let their own get by with murder while we only manage to splutter and gasp and wag about it.
I want a good president. Period. The one we have is supremely awful. Many of our best presidents had major personal flaws. Thank goodness people weren't as informed or sober (or whatever the perspective that allowed them to support those men) about them as they are now. And ironically, they aren't on the Republican side. Those guys can do anyting and it just bounces off because their party is smartly hitting the other side, not their own. I am sick of the personally judgmental sanctimony of the "liberal" side that is going to make it impossible to get anything but a milquetoast candidate on the Democratic ticket, especially when it's followed by a whine-fest about what a bore the candidate is.
There's nothing that wrong with Kerry, especially when measured against Bush, and I don't know that people should expect much more than what they're seeing at this stage of the campaign. Let Bush spend his huge stash down just to keep in distant sight of a 50% approval rating and not let Kerry get painted any certain way too early and/or risk overexposure.
Who was it that wrote about the way Republicans stick to their candidate no matter what, that someone linked a while back?
5406. arkymalarky - 5/5/2004 12:30:13 AM
Even so called "intelligent" people are getting their info from t.v. news snippets and those who post here, imo, are an exception to 90% of those who vote.
We hit that on the state level something awful. I was talking to a friend who's been involved in ed reform but not focusing on rural schools, and she was complaining about some "woman on the street" a local station had interviewed who said something stupid about why she wanted rural schools to stay open. When I explained that we didn't support whatever it was she had said I asked my friend how far you have to go to find an idiot in Arkansas. She said "throw a rock." Which is, of course, how far you have to go anywhere to find one. But the idiot comments are the ones aired and the ones that stick with people.
As far as the details on education reforms, hardly anyone knew anything, and you can't really fault them. The only way to get information was to go to the bills, to the legislature, to the districts and meetings and everything else. Literally NO media source carried relevant information that was comprehensive enough to allow people the chance to make informed decisions.
5407. judithathome - 5/5/2004 12:30:24 AM
Thoughtful's post in the Middle East thread was great and right on target.
Yours was no slouch its "own sel", Arky!
5408. judithathome - 5/5/2004 12:30:42 AM
oops, an "f" fell off....
5409. arkymalarky - 5/5/2004 12:38:19 AM
Thanks. Computers at work made me mad today, so I was primed for T'ful's view. I told my students that if I got as mad at people as I did at computers I'd be dangerous.
5410. arkymalarky - 5/5/2004 12:42:12 AM
And I think the Democratic theme song should be Nine Inch Nails' "Head Like a Hole" this time.
5411. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 5/5/2004 2:24:18 AM
5412. jexster - 5/5/2004 3:59:43 AM
I strongly suspect that Iraq
5413. jexster - 5/5/2004 4:00:50 AM
I strongly suspect that Iraq: A Strategy for Progress will wind up being the detailed version of the plan Kerry sketched out in the "Moment of Truth" speech last week.
5414. jexster - 5/5/2004 4:02:43 AM
wonk...yes..UR right and Kerry did just that yesterday..
If you saw NewsHour, a teacher threw a curve ball on Iraq in the middle of an education town hall...
Very nice, crisp response...short sentences
5415. jexster - 5/5/2004 5:57:55 AM
Compassionate Conservatism Redux:
Bush Privately Chides Rumsfeld
Bush Tries to Quell Arab Anger, Supports Rumsfeld
5416. jexster - 5/5/2004 7:21:45 AM
Poll: More Say Saddam Ouster Not Worth It
WASHINGTON - More voters now say the removal of Saddam Hussein (news - web sites) was not worth the cost financially or in casualties caused by the war in Iraq (news - web sites), according to a poll released Wednesday night. The NBC News-Wall Street Journal poll found that 42 percent of registered voters say it was worth the cost to get rid of Saddam and 47 percent felt it was not worth it. An NBC-WSJ poll as recently as March found 50 percent of adults felt it was worth the cost to remove the Iraqi leader.
The poll appeared to show a drop in support since the last poll, but comparing results about registered voters with results measuring the attitudes of all adults should be viewed cautiously.
More than half, 55 percent, said they favor withdrawing U.S. troops within 18 months. The number willing to say troops should stay as long as necessary has fallen to 44 percent from 56 percent in January.
The poll of 1,012 adults was taken Saturday through Monday and has a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 3 percentage points, slightly larger for registered voters.
5417. jexster - 5/5/2004 7:27:37 AM
5418. thoughtful - 5/5/2004 2:53:50 PM
Thanks for the nice comments.
What clearly is lacking is leadership from the dem party. Taking pages out of the rep book should be easy enough. For example the rep attack dogs do the dirty work so bush can stay above the fray. Where are the dem attack dogs? I mean the bushies are handing out so much fodder, it's a no-brainer to make hay. Instead they are sitting back and waiting for kerry to do it. That's exactly the wrong strategy.
And I agree that kerry needs to tighten up his message. For example, today they struggled to get a soundbite out of him to fit the radio format about the torture in iraq. Instead of sounding pensive and measured, he sounds halting and unsure. He needs to come out and say, "Torturing prisoners is wrong. The fault clearly lies with this administration who chose this war in the first place. They need to do more than fix it. They need to accept responsibility for it and put adequate controls in place to see it never happens again."
Maybe we need howard dean back. not only was he a better attack dog, but he seemed to inspire kerry to hone his message as well. Now without dean, the whole party has crumbled again. Just as with gore, if they lose this one against bush, they will have no one to blame but themselves.
5419. thoughtful - 5/5/2004 3:49:39 PM
of course, there is the overarching master conspiracy theory that kerry is supposed to lose this election so hillary is a shoo-in for the next one.
5420. jexster - 5/5/2004 5:22:37 PM
"This administration cannot be trusted to govern if it cannot be counted on to think and, having thought, to have second thoughts. Thinking is not the reiteration of bromides" George F. WIll
Google Moron Index: 138,000 +10,000
Google Liar Index - 205,000 -15,000
5421. jexster - 5/5/2004 5:34:37 PM
NOW he tells us...
Well better late than never...better now than next year
WASHINGTON (AP) -- America's soaring federal budget deficits represent a major obstacle to the country's long-term economic stability, Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan warned on Thursday.
Greenspan told a banking conference that the federal budget deficit was a bigger worry to him than America's soaring trade deficit or the high level of household debt because those two problems can be corrected by market forces.
``Our fiscal prospects are, in my judgment, a significant obstacle to long-term stability because the budget deficit is not readily subject to correction by market forces that stabilize other imbalances,'' he said in remarks to a banking conference.
Greenspan noted that the federal deficit, estimated to climb above $500 billion this year, will amount to 4.25 percent of the total economy after being in surplus just a few years ago.
5422. jexster - 5/5/2004 7:01:45 PM
POLITICAL REACTION
Reports of abuse add to misgivings about policy in Iraq
Marc Sandalow, Washington Bureau Chief
Bush Approval on Iraq, Economy, and Terrorism at Low Points>Bush Approval on Iraq, Economy, and Terrorism at Low Points - Gallup
Kerry has picked up 6-7% on Bush in 2 weeks in latest Gallup.
5423. jexster - 5/5/2004 7:06:49 PM
"The Arab world knows that Bush is more interested in winning the White House than the war. Now I am not questioning their patriotism. Let's not play that sorry little game. I am questioning their judgement and ability to lead"
Senator Tom Harkin
5424. jexster - 5/5/2004 7:21:45 PM
Jane un-Abashed , CNN White Whore correspondent is reporting that Rumsfeld told Bush in January about the torture....
The White Palace, when asked, could not say whether Bush called for prosecutions and investigations as he did publically last week.
Bets?
Fully disengaged...
The CEO President
5425. judithathome - 5/5/2004 7:24:27 PM
It doesn't matter. The public believes everthing Bush manages to read off his notecards. It will take more than this to get the War President dumped. Like a miracle from God.
5426. jexster - 5/5/2004 9:23:05 PM
- In terms of whether people are satisfied or dissatisfied with way things in the country are going, 36 percent say satisfied and 62 percent say dissatisfied--the worst rating of his presidency.
- overall approval rating is now 49 percent approve/48 percent disapprove, tied for the worst of his presidency.
- the economy, 41 approve/56 disapprove;
- foreign affairs, 42/53;
- the situation in Iraq, 42/55;
- terrorism, 52/45 (!)
But you are right JAH...we need to get those Liar, Liar numbers up...just like they are in CA..
At that point, maybe even your vote will count for then Tejas will be in play
5427. jexster - 5/5/2004 9:26:29 PM
President Kerry should give that woman from Seattle who got canned for taking coffin pics the Medal of Freedom
The Army has permitted CNN to film plane loads of wounded and maimed medivac'ed to Walter Reed
5428. jexster - 5/5/2004 9:39:21 PM
Come gather round people wherever you roam,
and admit that the waters around you have grown
and accept it that soon you’ll be drenched to the bone.
If your time to you is worth saving
then you’d better start swimmin’ or you’ll sink like a stone;
For the times they are a changin’
Come writers and critics who prophesy with your pen,
and keep your eyes wide, the chance won’t come again.
And don’t speak too soon, for the wheel’s still in spin
and there’s no tellin’ who that it’s naming,
for the loser now will be later to win;
For the times they are a changin’.
Come senators and congressmen, please heed the call.
Don’t stand in the doorway, don’t block up the hall,
for he who gets hurt will be he who has stalled.
There’s a battle outside and it’s raging;
it’ll soon shake your windows and rattle your walls;
for the times they are a changin’.
Come mothers and fathers throughout the land
and don’t criticize what you can’t understand.
Your sons and your daughters are beyond your command,
your old road is rapidly aging’
please get out of the new one if you can’t lend a hand;
for the times they are a changin’.
The line it is drawn, the curse it is cast.
The slow one now will later be fast
as the present now will later be past
the order is rapidly fadin’.
The first one now will later be last;
for the times they are a changin’.
5429. arkymalarky - 5/5/2004 11:31:03 PM
What clearly is lacking is leadership from the dem party. Taking pages out of the rep book should be easy enough. For example the rep attack dogs do the dirty work so bush can stay above the fray. Where are the dem attack dogs? I mean the bushies are handing out so much fodder, it's a no-brainer to make hay. Instead they are sitting back and waiting for kerry to do it. That's exactly the wrong strategy.
I totally agree with this. Kerry can't do that, and Bush has people doing it for him. I think Bush's numbers would be much worse than they are without them, and the fact that they're so low and Democrats--not just Kerry, but DEMOCRATS--who might get back at least one house if they'd get in gear--aren't on the national radar. We're watching a grand opportunity go to waste, but I think Kerry's done as he should, though I agree with his need to hone his message. I've been saying for a while now that at the very least Terry McAuliffe needs to go. They need to get organized and mobilized in the individual states, too.
5430. judithathome - 5/5/2004 11:33:09 PM
Kerry needs to get that media darling, Edwards, in as VP nominee and quick.
5431. jexster - 5/6/2004 2:06:04 AM
CNN Reports - ANOTHER FIRESTORM
5432. jexster - 5/6/2004 2:06:48 AM
They will not get rid of McAuliffe.
5433. jexster - 5/6/2004 2:08:46 AM
If anyone should be worried at this point....I clue ya...that person isn't from Massachusetts...not even close
5434. arkymalarky - 5/6/2004 4:31:32 AM
Why not, Jex?
5435. arkymalarky - 5/6/2004 4:33:04 AM
Why won't they get rid of McAuliffe, that is.
5436. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 5/6/2004 4:47:51 AM
$$$$$$$$$
5437. jexster - 5/6/2004 6:25:59 AM
That's right....and because you don't get rid of the National Chairman in an election year..at least not before the nomination and then you kick him into the campaign or somethin...
and also because McAuliffe is the good friend of the brother of a good friend of mine.
He can raise the Big Bucks and we need the Big bucks..they shoulda canned him when the dumped Gephardt...we don't need a "Leadership" DNC chair now...we have a leader
5438. jexster - 5/6/2004 6:27:02 AM
Its about frickin TIME
COLTON, Calif. (Reuters) - Democrat John Kerry (news - web sites) on Thursday challenged President Bush (news - web sites)'s performance as commander-in-chief and called for Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld's resignation over the abuse of Iraqi prisoners.
Kerry said he had called on Rumsfeld to quit "months ago" because of miscalculations on Iraq (news - web sites) and the new revelations only "compounds" the evidence for him to step down.
"I think he should have and I think he should have now," the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee told reporters.
5439. jexster - 5/6/2004 6:39:54 AM
May 6, 2004
Murtha signals Dem sea-change on Iraq
Respected hawk says conflict may be now ‘unwinnable’
By Hans Nichols "The Hill"
Rep. John Murtha (D-Pa.) told his Democratic colleagues Tuesday that he feared the war in Iraq is unwinnable if the U.S. military does not dramatically increase troop levels, provide more ground support and seek significant international involvement.
But Murtha — a Vietnam veteran, an early Democratic advocate of President Bush’s authority to invade Iraq and one of Congress’s staunchest supporters of the military — expressed serious doubts that those remedies are even faint possibilities, given current military deployments, a lack of support from NATO allies and widespread outrage over the mistreatment of Iraqi prisoners of war.
Coming from a senior appropriator with close ties to the Pentagon, Murtha’s bleak analysis led many colleagues to surmise that he believes a democratic Iraq is a lost cause.
Even senior Republicans conceded that an assessment from Murtha had heft because of his bipartisan and pro-military reputation. However, Republicans cautioned that any discussion of Iraq needs to be put into the context of election-year politics.
Another Democratic lawmaker said that Murtha’s presentation changed the calculus for many Democrats. ‘This is going to force the Democrats’ hand. The Democrats are finally developing a political strategy on Iraq, and this will help.”
5440. jexster - 5/6/2004 6:51:51 AM
From a late article out from USA Today: "Shortly before Bush administration officials presented Republican congressional leaders with a request for $25 billion in Iraq funding this week, Secretary of State Colin Powell was telling members of the Congressional Black Caucus that no such request would be forthcoming ... Powell's associates tried to downplay the mix-up. But it underscores the continuing rift between President Bush's departments of State and Defense and deepens the impression that the nation's top diplomat is being cut out of the decision-making process."
Can the president apologize for humiliating this guy too?
-- Josh Marshall
5441. OhioSTOPAS - 5/6/2004 6:05:59 PM
The New York Post spins Abu Ghraib into an attack on Kerry.
Deborah Orin of the New York Post writes:
"It was bizarre yesterday to hear John Kerry criticize President Bush over the Iraqi prisoner-abuse scandal, considering Kerry publicly confessed to committing war "atrocities" when he served in Vietnam.
"'Yes, yes, I committed the same kind of atrocities as thousands of other soldiers,' Kerry told "Meet the Press" in 1971, ticking off 'free-fire zones' and burning villages in violation of the Geneva Convention."
I heard Sean Hannity make a similar point (using the term loosely) yesterday, asking how Democrats could be upsent about Abu Ghraib when their chose candidate has admitted to such "atrocities."
Surely Orin and Hannity aren't too dense to think there's no distinction between actions taken in the field, while at risk of enemy fire, and actions taken against naked, unarmed, no-threat prisoners. But they apparently think their fans are.
5442. judithathome - 5/6/2004 6:12:48 PM
Of course they think their fans are dunces...how else could they say the stuff they do and expect people to buy it outright, with no critical thinking required?
5443. jexster - 5/6/2004 6:15:02 PM
Iraq: They Knew
If you heard Dumbsfeld's opening statement...they knew and are trying to set up the "But we got rid of Saddam/you are undermining the War President" defense
5444. Magoseph - 5/6/2004 8:15:36 PM
The International Press on John Kerry
Comment and analysis from Chennai, Mexico City, London, Beijing, Budapest, Milan, Oslo, and Rio de Janeiro.
5445. jexster - 5/6/2004 8:16:06 PM
One of my well connectd old Senate friends says he is an air head and that may be but every time I see Sen Bill Nelson ..I like him for Veep...
5446. jexster - 5/6/2004 8:28:44 PM
States with the highest IQ's vote Democrat
5447. jexster - 5/6/2004 8:29:11 PM
toys
5448. jexster - 5/6/2004 8:30:08 PM
5449. jexster - 5/6/2004 8:53:29 PM
Was channel surfing and if you wish to know the Mentality of the Moron...a picture is worth a thousand words..
Fox cut to commercial with the tease "What will be the impact of the torture scandal on the election?'
Then answered their question with a picuture which featured
"Who would you more like to invite to dinner?"
5450. jexster - 5/6/2004 9:05:13 PM
MSNBC isn't much better...they feature the SHOCKING REVELATION..
DUMBSFELD ADMITS HE IS AT THE END OF THE CHAIN OF COMMAND!
Silly me...I thought that was WAR PRESIDENT!
5451. judithathome - 5/6/2004 11:33:59 PM
States With Highest IQs Vote Democrat
(for amusement purposes only)
5452. robertjayb - 5/6/2004 11:56:14 PM
Kerry should keep his mouth shut on the torture matter. Just because the old cliché about not interfering when your enemy is destroying himself is a cliché does not mean it contains no wisdom.
5453. wonkers2 - 5/7/2004 12:23:58 AM
Abu Ghraib may have legs like pedophilia in the priesthood. Like that situation I predict that the problem is more pervasive than many believe and everyone hopes.
5454. wonkers2 - 5/7/2004 12:27:40 AM
The principle unique feature of this scandal is the fact that the perpetrators documented their crimes with photos and videos. Somebody deserves a Darwin award.
5455. marjoribanks - 5/7/2004 2:43:13 AM
So, in addition to everything else, Powell wasn't told about the 25 billion that the administration was on the verge of requesting.
I, like many, have wavered in my initial extremely positive reaction to Powell. On the one hand, you have the fact that he is -even with this administration backing him up - easily the most internationally popular and respected Secretary of State in at least a generation. And he is fantastically competent, witness that UN Res 1441 which he singlehandedly got passed with unanimous support. No 1441, no war. And then, you watch the "town hall" type meetings he runs in campuses overseas, and you marevel because this country can have no better public face.
And then you have the tremendous, calamitous, disasters that have befallen American foreign policy even as he's the titular head. The isolation, the pissing on reopened old wounds, the barefaced lies issued in international fora. And the sticking by Pres, even as all this happens.
But when you see even only as much as we have about what goes on behind the scenes, and read only the current level of revelations of the fights which Powell has fought ceaselessly with the VP and the Pentagon, and start to imagine just how fucking bad it would be without him....I'd say Powell starts to look more than a bit heroic. He and his fireplug buddy, Armitrage, have fought the good fight for the US all along, and while they have gone along with the neocons rather than break away in protest - they have done a great deal to alleviate the messes, ensure that the US is not looked at as a total wash.
Yeah, I think a lot of the abuse aimed at Powell here has been misplaced. Imagine what shit this country would be in, internationally, without him.
5456. marjoribanks - 5/7/2004 2:43:58 AM
sorry
So, in addition to everything else, Powell wasn't told about the 25 billion that the administration was on the verge of requesting.
I, like many, have wavered in my initial extremely positive reaction to Powell. On the one hand, you have the fact that he is -even with this administration backing him up - easily the most internationally popular and respected Secretary of State in at least a generation. And he is fantastically competent, witness that UN Res 1441 which he singlehandedly got passed with unanimous support. No 1441, no war. And then, you watch the "town hall" type meetings he runs in campuses overseas, and you marevel because this country can have no better public face.
And then you have the tremendous, calamitous, disasters that have befallen American foreign policy even as he's the titular head. The isolation, the pissing on reopened old wounds, the barefaced lies issued in international fora. And the sticking by Pres, even as all this happens.
But when you see even only as much as we have about what goes on behind the scenes, and read only the current level of revelations of the fights which Powell has fought ceaselessly with the VP and the Pentagon, and start to imagine just how fucking bad it would be without him....I'd say Powell starts to look more than a bit heroic. He and his fireplug buddy, Armitrage, have fought the good fight for the US all along, and while they have gone along with the neocons rather than break away in protest - they have done a great deal to alleviate the messes, ensure that the US is not looked at as a total wash.
Yeah, I think a lot of the abuse aimed at Powell here has been misplaced. Imagine what shit this country would be in, internationally, without him.
5457. jexster - 5/7/2004 2:56:49 AM
"We will never show weakness in the face of these people who have no soul."
Bush
April 19, 2004
5458. jexster - 5/7/2004 3:47:13 AM
Democracy is about more than elections. Most Middle Eastern countries already have elections. Tunisia, Egypt, Jordan, Yemen, all of them hold regular elections. They have parliaments, parties, campaigns. Two things make them nevertheless not democracies. The first is that their presidents manipulate the elections so that there is never any doubt that they will win the election and that their party will dominate parliament (even if space is made for minority parties to win a few seats). Second, their regimes have no accountability to the public. No one in Hosni Mubarak's government has ever had to resign because he performed his duties poorly. He might have to resign because he fell out with the president. But if he is buddy buddy with the head of state, then he can do no wrong.
You really wonder whether the Bush plan to Americanize the Middle East isn't being turned on its head. We now have an unaccountable government not elected in accordance with the will of the majority of Americans, which victimizes critics like Joe Wilson and engages in torture. Bush and Co. are emulating the worst aspects of the military governments of Egypt and Yemen. They have no credibility to push the latter toward democracy.
GWB - The Mideasternization of the US
5459. jexster - 5/7/2004 5:57:31 AM
Hello...just about one year ago..you heard it here first
"We are now seeing an administration unraveling...the strongest case that can be made against the Bush/Cheney Administration is not ideological, its a case against their incompetence." Walter Shapiro, USA Today on "Hardball."
Repete:
lairs & incompetents
incompetents & liars
Lying incompetents.
5460. jexster - 5/7/2004 6:02:42 AM
Yeah, I think a lot of the abuse aimed at Powell here has been misplaced. Imagine what shit this country would be in, internationally, without him
Not one bit of difference.
An intriguing insight from inside the beltway...from a woman friend with 30 years top level experience on Capitol Hill...
Colin Powell was a witting porch monkey...he has no credibility at home or abroad and inside the Administration never had any credibility except as the compassionate conservative window dressing for the real powers in the Regime ie Cheney...
I have seen similar up close and personal on domestic issues....makes sense..
But in any event, it doesn't matter whether Powell was wittingly ineffective or no...
5461. thoughtful - 5/7/2004 3:06:29 PM
wonk, re 5454, see my post in the mideast. Me thinks this is a first class cia operation as revenge on the bushies for yellowcake and outing plame.
5462. jexster - 5/7/2004 5:13:23 PM
NY Times Demands Rummy's Head on a Platter
"It is time now for Mr. Rumsfeld to go, and not only because he bears personal responsibility for the scandal of Abu Ghraib. That would certainly have been enough... The reputation of its brave soldiers has been tarred, and the job of its diplomats made immeasurably
harder because members of the American military tortured and humiliated Arab prisoners in ways guaranteed to inflame Muslim hearts everywhere. And this abuse was not an isolated event, as we know now and as Mr. Rumsfeld should have known, given the flood of complaints and reports
directed to his office over the last year. The world is waiting now for a sign that Bush understands the seriousness of what has happened. It needs to be more than his repeated statements that he is sorry the rest of
the world does not 'understand the true nature and heart of America.' Mr. Bush should start showing the state of his own heart by demanding the resignation of his secretary of defense."
5463. jexster - 5/7/2004 5:24:44 PM
The Iraqi people are now free. And they do not have to worry about the secret police coming after them in the middle of the night, and they don't have to worry about their husbands and brothers being taken off and shot, or their wives being taken to rape rooms. Those days are over."—Paul Bremer, Administrator, [Iraq] Coalition Provisional Authority, Sept. 2, 2003
"Iraq is free of rape rooms and torture chambers."—President Bush, remarks to 2003 Republican National Committee Presidential Gala, Oct. 8, 2003
"There was an announcement by the Iraqi Governing Council earlier this week about the tribunal that they have set up to hold accountable members of the former regime who were responsible for three decades of brutality and atrocities. … We know about the mass graves and the rape rooms and the torture chambers of Saddam Hussein's regime. … We welcome their decision to move forward on a tribunal to hold people accountable for those atrocities."—Bush Press Secretary Scott McClellan, White House press briefing, Dec. 10, 2003
Rape Rooms: A Chronology
What Bush said as the Iraq prison scandal unfolded.
By William Saletan
5464. jexster - 5/7/2004 5:25:59 PM
One thing is for certain: There won't be any more mass graves and torture rooms and rape rooms."—Bush, press availability in Monterrey, Mexico, Jan. 12, 2004
5465. PelleNilsson - 5/7/2004 7:28:28 PM
288,000 new jobs. Kerry is toast.
5466. judithathome - 5/7/2004 7:40:01 PM
No, he's not. There were almost as many jobs lost as created.
This is mainly summer help, anyhow. The jobs rate always goes up when school lets out.
5467. jexster - 5/7/2004 8:21:37 PM
The Stock market dropped 123 points on the good news
Pelle...all Kerry has to do sneeze hard.. This is the work of Allah and super-fast spiders
5468. jexster - 5/7/2004 8:23:50 PM
More Bad News May Be on the Way for Bush
By TERENCE HUNT, AP White House Correspondent
WASHINGTON - In one of the darkest weeks of his administration, President Bush (news - web sites) saw America's reputation sullied, the U.S. effort in Iraq (news - web sites) damaged and his own campaign for re-election clouded. And more bad news may be on the way.
While the world already has been horrified by pictures of American soldiers abusing Iraqi prisoners, the Pentagon (news - web sites) warns there are many more photos and videos that have not been disclosed.
From the White House to Capitol Hill, policy-makers are worried that the United States faces lasting damage abroad — particularly in the Middle East — from the pictures of naked Arab men being tortured and humiliated by American soldiers, the same forces sent to Iraq to liberate the country from Saddam Hussein (news - web sites)'s torture and repression.
Analysts describe the pictures as great recruiting tools for al-Qaida and other extremist groups and said they undermine America's claims to a moral high ground.
Six months from the November elections, Iraq weighs heavily on the president.
April was the deadliest month yet for American soldiers in Iraq and May is off to a bloody start.
On the diplomatic front, the administration does not know who will take power in Iraq from the United States in a June 30 handover.
Costs are soaring. The administration has sent Congress an unexpected $25 billion request for Iraq and Afghanistan (news - web sites).
Day after day, the extraordinary apologies from the president and his top deputies dominated the news.
5469. jexster - 5/7/2004 8:24:00 PM
Pollsters and presidential experts are scratching their heads over how the prisoner scandal will affect Bush's re-election hopes.
"There's such a big question mark there, it's unlike anything we've seen before," said Andrew Kohut, director of the Pew Research Center.
"The public is very critical of (Bush's) management of Iraq. They don't think he has a clear plan for bringing it to a successful conclusion, but a thin majority of the public has been hanging in with that it was the right decision to go to war," Kohut said. "This could be the event which makes people say 'Oh, we did make a mistake.'"
EDITOR'S NOTE: Terence Hunt has covered every president since Ronald Reagan
5470. jexster - 5/7/2004 8:26:44 PM
And our Emperor of Morons and Armadillos, 6 months away from his return ticket to Texas is only 3 away from the Covention Among the Ruins where he can tell us all about his great leadership as
WAR PRESIDENT
As some of those quotes Saletan compiled scroll across the screen of Iraq in flames and prisoner torture.
5471. jexster - 5/7/2004 8:38:56 PM
Today’s Job Loss Worse; Recovery Weaker
May 4, 2004
Download: PDF
Canada Tops U.S.
American job market
lags behind Canada
The current job recovery is unlikely to last through the remainder of this year according to a study released on May 5 by the Center for American Progress. The study, entitled Current Job Recovery is Without Precedent in Post World War II Era, documents the difference between the economic downturn which began in April of 2001 and the eight other economic downturns during the post World War II era. It concludes the period of job loss was much longer than during any other downturn, the period of job creation much weaker and the cyclical economic forces that have brought about past economic recoveries have largely run their course are likely to place a downward pressure on employment growth before the end of the current calendar year.
Download the Study
5472. jexster - 5/7/2004 8:43:46 PM
We are witnessing a political unraveling the likes of which none of us has seen in our lifetimes...
Ps.118
[1] O give thanks to the LORD, for he is good;
his steadfast love endures for ever!
[2] Let Israel say,
"His steadfast love endures for ever."
[3] Let the house of Aaron say,
"His steadfast love endures for ever."
[4] Let those who fear the LORD say,
"His steadfast love endures for ever."
[20] This is the gate of the LORD;
the righteous shall enter through it.
[21] I thank thee that thou hast answered me
and hast become my salvation.
[22] The stone which the builders rejected
has become the head of the corner.
[23] This is the LORD's doing;
it is marvelous in our eyes.
5473. jexster - 5/7/2004 9:08:49 PM
If the Economy's Doing So Well, Why Do Voters Think He's Doing Such a Lousy Job?
Song: In The Bush ~~ 1979 ~~
Artist: Musiqué
Push, push in the bush
Push, push in the bush
Push, push in the bush
I like to do the things you like to do too
I like to do it, do it
I want to do the things you want to do too
So baby, let’s get to it, do it
Sometimes no fun for peace of mind
Peace of mind
If you must do a peace, peace, peace of mind
Come on and do it, do it
Are you ready, are you ready for this
Do you like it, do you like it like this
Are you ready, are you ready for this
Do you like it, do you like it like this
Sometimes no fun a peace, peace, peace of mind
Peace of mind
If you must do a peace, peace, peace of mind
Come on and do it, do it
Push, push in the bush (Say are you ready too)
Push, push in the bush (You know I like to jump)
Push, push in the bush (You know I want to get down)
In the bush, in the bush (I like it)
In the bush, in the bush (Yeah, yeah, I like it, I like it)
In the bush, in the bush (I like it)
In the bush, in the bush [Get down, get down]
In the bush, in the bush [Oh...get down, get down]
In the bush, in the bush (I like it) [Yeah...hea...]
In the bush, in the bush (I said I like this, yeah)
In the bush, in the bush [Oh...ho...ho...]
In the bush, in the bush [I said I want it]
In the bush, in the bush
In the bush, in the bush (Are you ready for this) [You like it]
In the bush, in the bush (Ooh)
In the bush, in the bush (Are you ready for this)
In the bush, in the bush (Sock it to me, sock it to me)
Ow!
5474. jexster - 5/8/2004 12:15:24 AM
The MisUnderestimated Man
How George W. Bush Chose Stupidity
5475. wonkers2 - 5/8/2004 12:15:58 AM
A bird in the hand
is worth two in the bush.
But a push in the bush
is worth two in the hand!
5476. jexster - 5/8/2004 12:19:15 AM
Was he born that way?
Democrats Unleash Heavy Artillery
General Clark Blasts Bush Leadership
Ces tristes victimes!
5477. jexster - 5/8/2004 12:24:31 AM
Take that heterosexual preversion to the Sex thread...maybe you'll find niner there
5478. jexster - 5/8/2004 1:13:53 AM
What's more, calling the president a cretin absolves him of responsibility (a moral question that keeps me up at night)
Let's face it: A man who cannot talk about education without making a humiliating grammatical mistake ("The illiteracy level of our children are appalling"); who cannot keep straight the three branches of government ("It's the executive branch's job to interpret law"); who coins ridiculous words ("Hispanos," "arbolist," "subliminable," "resignate," "transformationed"); who habitually says the opposite of what he intends ("the death tax is good for people from all walks of life!") sounds like a grade-A imbecile.
And if you don't care to pursue the matter any further, that view will suffice. George W. Bush has governed, for the most part, the way any airhead might, undermining the fiscal condition of the nation, squandering the goodwill of the world after Sept. 11, and allowing huge problems (global warming, entitlement spending, AIDS) to metastasize toward catastrophe through a combination of ideology, incomprehension, and indifference. If Bush isn't exactly the moron he sounds, his synaptic misfirings offer a plausible proxy for the idiocy of his presidency.
And let's give credit where credit is due...I am the first person I know of to dub Duhbya "Moron di tutti Morons" way back in 2000..or maybe even in the last century.
Today's Google Moron Index: 138,000 (+6,000)
5479. jexster - 5/8/2004 1:29:28 AM
FINALLY!
Margaret Carlson on Capitol Gang: "Was Iraq the way it was because of Saddam or Saddam the way he was because of Iraq? Iraq is ungovernable and may be even if we internationalize"
To which Hunt followed quickly: "the Neocon fantasy that Iraq will be a democratic friend of Israel and the US with US bases is finished. It is not going to happen".
To which the RepublicanRobot and that cretin from the National Review, were dumbfounded, rocking back and forth and giggling like clowns..
I have been saying this for two years..
From Lt. Gen Odom, to Ray Close, to Rep Murtha we are hearing the truth more and more and more and more loudly.
War President my ass
5480. jexster - 5/8/2004 4:11:50 AM
5481. jexster - 5/8/2004 4:51:32 AM
Department of Scoundrels looking for that last refuge. This from Kate O'Beirne ...
The most recent images of abuse concerning Iraqi detainees will inevitably fuel the anti-Americanism that endangers American lives — not at the hands of sadistic young misfits but at the hands of our elected representatives. Members of Congress elbowing their way into camera range to question, in the absence of any evidence whatsoever, whether abuses were widespread and senior commanders were implicated and accusing the military of engaging in some cover-up are abusing the Abu Ghraib scandal and recklessly putting our troops at risk.
Stab-in-the-back bake mix. Limited assembly required. Do-it-yourself. Off-the-Shelf.
-- Josh Marshall
5482. jexster - 5/8/2004 1:06:06 PM
Cheney says Rummy is the best SecDef we ever had!
Linked in Conflicts, the CIA doesn't think so and Company's coming for Cheney's ass...
Jeff Smith, a former general counsel of the CIA (news - web sites) who has close ties to many senior officers, said, "Some of my friends in the military are exceedingly angry." In the Army, he said, "It's pretty bitter."
Retired Army Col. Robert Killebrew, a frequent Pentagon consultant, said, "The people in the military are mad as hell." He said the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Air Force Gen. Richard B. Myers, should be fired. A spokesman for Myers declined to comment.
A Special Forces officer aimed higher, saying that "Rumsfeld needs to go, as does Wolfowitz."
5483. jexster - 5/8/2004 1:16:43 PM
And speaking of that Krusty Klown with a CIA bullseye on his back...
I guess we have the answer to his question, "Which Euros don't like Bush?"
All of em
Europeans Like Bush Even Less Than Before
5484. jexster - 5/8/2004 1:24:43 PM
More on Message # 5465
More on Economic Pessimism
On Friday, I pointed out that the good jobs report for April seemed unlikely to turn voters' negative views of Bush's economic management around. Here's some more evidence supporting that judgement.
First, note that both the new ARG poll and the new AP poll have Bush's approval rating on the economy down to the lowest levels recorded by these polls (38 percent and 43 percent, respectively). Guess voters haven't yet absorbed the good news about how the economy is "strong and getting stronger" and about how "tax relief is working".
STAY THE COURSE!
Please!
5485. OhioSTOPAS - 5/8/2004 2:44:56 PM
All right, this is just ridiculous. But if the Repubs are insisting on making a campaign issue of it and lying about it, I'll waste some Mote space on "SUV-gate."
Here are remarks by Republican chairman Ed Gillespie a couple of days ago:
"It’s not unusual for Sen. Kerry to have different answers for different audiences.
"Even when it comes to answering what car he uses to get there.
"Let’s watch this exchange from Sen. Kerry campaigning in New Hampshire in January.
"ON TAPE: Question: “[S]econdly, what you have done in the past personally or professionally to reduce dependence on oil in your own life?”
"Kerry: “Well, I sold my gas-guzzler and got a van and downgraded. That’s what I did personally, in my own life. Also got an economical car in Washington and so forth so that I was trying to live up to that standard.”
"Now, there’s nothing wrong with selling your gas-guzzler to help reduce our dependence on foreign oil.
"But only a month later, in February, in Michigan-where they make lots of SUVs-Senator Kerry said, “We have some SUV’s. We have a Jeep. We have a couple of Chrysler minivans. We have a PT Cruiser up in Boston. I have an old Dodge 600 that I keep in the Senate…We also have a Chevy, a big Suburban.”
"A BIG SUBURBAN.
(continued)
5486. OhioSTOPAS - 5/8/2004 2:46:14 PM
(Gillespie remarks continued)
"Two months later, in April, on Earth Day—where they have lots of environmentalists—Sen. Kerry said, “I don’t own an SUV.”
"Hmm, maybe he was wrong in February, and he was right in January when he said he had sold it.
"But wait! When pressed about the Suburban still sitting in his driveway, Senator Kerry said, “The family has it. I don’t have it.”
"Only 6 days later, back in Michigan, Sen. Kerry was asked what cars he owns. Here’s what John Kerry said:
"ON TAPE: Kerry: “I own a Dodge 600 that I have had for about 20 years. I own a Chrysler 300 M. … We have a Chrysler van - a minivan. A Chrysler PT Cruiser - I guess Chrysler is making out here. A Suburban, Chevy, big Suburban. And she has a Landrover Defender.”
"If it’s Michigan, I must own an SUV!"
This is just a lie. Read what Kerry said. He never said he owned an SUV - he always distinguished between what he personally owned and what he and Teresa own between them.
Did Kerry tell Michigan voters that he and his wife were consumers of Michigan-built cars? Oh my God, yes. I'm SHOCKED that a politician would refer to his wife's actions to ingratiate himself to a group of voters. But Kerry didn't contradict himself, nor did he say what the lying Gillespie falsely says he said.
5487. judithathome - 5/8/2004 3:06:54 PM
Wait til you read about bicycle-gate...they don't like what Kerry wore to ride bikes! They see it as proof that he is running for office out of some sort of mid-life crisis!
Like Bush and his excessive vacations doing brush cutting and waging war are just the normal things guys do when they reach mid-life. Yeah.
5488. judithathome - 5/8/2004 3:09:10 PM
BicycleGate
5489. jexster - 5/8/2004 5:54:48 PM
That doesn't play in Ohio???
Seems to me it would...in a manufacturing area where the #1 seller is SUV's ... But I wonder why they attack from that direction...
If Kerry voted against the Gas Guzzler Tax Credit, then paste him directly...unless he voted FOR in which case SUV-gate is all they have
5490. jexster - 5/8/2004 5:56:07 PM
The more telling indication here is of course, that they aren't talking about WAR PRESIDENT, the main theme of his campaign.
Defeat the War President, defeat the ________President
5491. jexster - 5/8/2004 6:29:23 PM
He doesn't have a college degree and he still doesn't have a college degree
Fat Lady, ONE NOTE Rove Delivers Commencement Address at Falwell's Liberty U
5492. arkymalarky - 5/8/2004 9:07:23 PM
Message # 5484
What was it that other one-termer said in 1932? Oh yeah. "Prosperity is just around the corner."
5493. jexster - 5/8/2004 10:07:46 PM
It is getting very hard to keep track of all the lies that Cheney/Bush have told us...I am just thinking of War on Iraq lies..
Maybe it would be easier to keep a list of what they've told us that was true.
5494. jexster - 5/8/2004 10:11:32 PM
The Cost Lie
War tab swamps Bush’s estimate
Spending projection: $150 billion by 2005
With troop commitments growing, the cost of the war in Iraq could top $150 billion through the next fiscal year — as much as three times what the White House had originally estimated. And, according to congressional researchers and outside budget experts, the war and continuing occupation could total $300 billion over the next decade, making this one of the costliest military campaigns in modern times.
5495. jexster - 5/8/2004 10:14:39 PM
No wonder the emerging line from the Bushies is "don't see, don't talk, don't think"
They are dying for the Time of National Coma...
That was yesterday...
America is waking up and smelling the bullshit:
THE COST OF WAR
The Iraq war is proving to be far costlier than initial Bush administration estimates. Adjusting for nflation, the nonpartisan Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments estimated the cost of major U.S. wars of the previous half-century:
Korean War, 1950-1953 $418 billion
Vietnam War, 1964-1975 $597 billion
Persian Gulf War*, 1990-1991 $84 billion
War in Iraq
(March 2003 projected to Sept. 30, 2004) $100 billion
(March 2003 projected to Sept. 30, 2005) $150 billion
*About 90 percent of these costs were paid by U.S. allies.
5496. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 5/8/2004 10:44:27 PM
If Kerry doesn't pick Bill Richardson, I think he'll pick Dick Durbin.
5497. arkymalarky - 5/8/2004 11:10:21 PM
?
5498. wonkers2 - 5/9/2004 12:00:41 AM
The Bush-Cheney truth list would be very short.
5499. judithathome - 5/9/2004 1:02:29 AM
If Kerry doesn't pick Bill Richardson, I think he'll pick Dick Durbin.
If he picks either one, he'll lose for sure. They both sounded good on MTP but he needs a draw...they are bores compared to Edwards.
I think they have something on Richardson so don't hold out much hope for him to be the one, Wiz.
5500. jayackroyd - 5/9/2004 1:04:23 AM
I agree that he should have the cojones to pick Edwards.
5501. Absensia - 5/9/2004 1:24:23 AM
I heard on CNN, I think, that the Bush Bus, was made in Canada. Maybe it was mentioned above. But with all the SUV hoopla about Kerry, why hasn't there been more bus-gate?
5502. OhioSTOPAS - 5/9/2004 1:52:02 AM
I think Kerry's campaign bus was also made partly in Canada. This "gate" swings both ways, unfortunately!
5503. jayackroyd - 5/9/2004 1:56:22 AM
Because the republicans are better at this kind of thing. Bush is not actually traveling on the bus; he is flying site to site. The bus is a more of a stretch limo than a bus, but it's being covered as a bus. Why? Because the republican leadership had done a good job of managing the story, and the media have fallen in line.
5504. OhioSTOPAS - 5/9/2004 2:04:10 AM
Correction: Kerry's current campaign bus is American-made, but the bus used during the primaries, although leased from a U.S. firm, was Canadian-made:
"Meanwhile, the Kerry campaign had to deal with an awkward situation. After criticizing Bush on Tuesday for riding in a Canadian-made bus on his tour of the Midwest, it turns out that during the primaries, Kerry's Real Deal Express bus was made in Canada.
"'Once again, John Kerry's campaign saying one thing and doing another. They have launched a political attack while they themselves chartered the same exact bus,' Schmidt said.
"Kerry campaign spokesman David Wade said the campaign was unaware it was using a Canadian-made bus because it was renting from U.S. charter companies. Wade added that since Kerry all but clinched the nomination, the campaign is certain it has been riding in only U.S.-made buses."
Source: www.johnkerry.com
5505. OhioSTOPAS - 5/9/2004 2:14:34 AM
Judith: That article linked in your Message # 5488 is a stupid waste of paper and ink, isn't it?
It's another aspect of my theory of how conservatism rots your brain: Any snotty insult against a liberal will be considered witty by the hordes of slavish, brainless dittoheads, and so eventually conservative writers (and their editors) will think so too.
5506. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 5/9/2004 2:26:29 AM
5497. arkymalarky - 5/9/2004 5:10:21 PM
?
5498. wonkers2 - 5/9/2004 6:00:41 PM
The Bush-Cheney truth list would be very short.
5499. judithathome - 5/9/2004 7:02:29 PM
If Kerry doesn't pick Bill Richardson, I think he'll pick Dick Durbin.
If he picks either one, he'll lose for sure. They both sounded good on MTP but he needs a draw...they are bores compared to Edwards.
I think they have something on Richardson so don't hold out much hope for him to be the one, Wiz.
5500. jayackroyd - 5/9/2004 7:04:23 PM
I agree that he should have the cojones to pick Edwards.
Cojones? Why would it take cojones, Jay?
And why, Judith, would Kerry lose if he picked Richardson or Durbin? And what do they have on Richardson--anything substantiated ?
I doubt that Kerry would select a VP who might outshine him.
5507. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 5/9/2004 2:27:13 AM
. . . and arky, ??????
5508. jayackroyd - 5/9/2004 3:12:30 AM
Cojones? Why would it take cojones, Jay?
Because it would be a selection who might outshine him.
5509. arkymalarky - 5/9/2004 3:19:43 AM
Sorry Wiz, I was just checking on the open italics tag.
5510. arkymalarky - 5/9/2004 3:39:21 AM
That was a drive-by, but while I'm here for a minute I want to note that I haven't paid much attention to the V-P choices. Hopefully it will be smart, but I don't have a specific favorite. I have some I hope Kerry doesn't pick. I'm working with a national group on rural issues here in AR, and last year I attended a national conference on strategies, issues, etc. The best piece of advice I heard in three days of workshops was "move the middle." If whoever Kerry picks doesn't help do that it will be a detriment to his campaign, imo. If it's not an asset for him it's a liability.
I really believe the election is Kerry's and the Democratic Party's to win or lose right now. Moderate Republicans and independents will vote for his ticket if they don't feel like it's shifting too far leftward. It's what made Clinton gain some bad labels and caused him to be unpopular among pure Democrats, but it's a huge part of what helped him win two terms while under constant attack.
I'm actually more than a little interested in what it looks like for congress. Do the Democrats have a chance of regaining either or both Houses? I haven't kept up with things nationally as much as I should.
5511. wonkers2 - 5/9/2004 4:12:57 AM
Speaking from Michigan, I doubt that the GOP will put up anybody to threaten Carl Levin. And Debbie Stabenow isn't up for reelection. Not sure what the situation in the House is. My representative, Joe Below Zero Knollenberg, is safe. A Dem hasn't won in my district in the past 35 years, although Bill Clinton and Al Gore both did, at least in the county and state.
5512. jexster - 5/9/2004 4:15:19 AM
Never thought of Durbin...I like Levin and he has the added advantage of battleground...
STill I am
General
Edwards
Nelson
Levin
Bush sinks deeper into trouble
· New picture increases pressure
· Blair apologises to abused Iraqis
5513. jexster - 5/9/2004 4:03:35 PM
BERLIN (Reuters) - The U.S. ambassador to NATO (news - web sites) said Monday a scandal surrounding the abuse of Iraqi prisoners by U.S. troops had plunged President Bush (news - web sites)'s government into crisis
5514. jexster - 5/9/2004 4:14:43 PM
Conservative Restive Over Bush Foreign and Domestic Policies
Stay the Course?
We are witnessing something I believe unprecedented in US politics...the complete unraveling of a presidency in an election year.
A friend thinks Taft/TR Bull Moose 1912 is apposite but I don't...that was a third party situation because Taft proved too conservative and TR too ambitious....
This is disintegration...
5515. jexster - 5/9/2004 4:18:01 PM
After three years of sweeping actions in both foreign and domestic affairs, the Bush administration is facing complaints from the conservative intelligentsia(sic) that it has lost its ability to produce fresh policies.
The centerpiece of President Bush (news - web sites)'s foreign policy -- the effort to transform Iraq (news - web sites) into a peaceful democracy -- has been undermined by a deadly insurrection and broadcast photos of brutality by U.S. prison guards. On the domestic side, conservatives and former administration officials say the White House policy apparatus is moribund, with policies driven by political expediency or ideological pressure rather than by facts and expertise.
Conservatives have become unusually restive. Last Tuesday, columnist George F. Will sharply criticized the administration's Iraq policy, writing: "This administration cannot be trusted to govern if it cannot be counted on to think and, having thought, to have second thoughts." Two days earlier, Robert Kagan, a neoconservative supporter of the Iraq war, wrote: "All but the most blindly devoted Bush supporters can see that Bush administration officials have no clue about what to do in Iraq tomorrow, much less a month from now."
5516. jexster - 5/9/2004 4:31:00 PM
DAMN they're getting tired of "One Note Rove"!
Michael Franc, vice president of the Heritage Foundation, said the criticism by O'Neill, Will and Kagan has a common thread: a concern that the administration is "using an old playbook" and not coming up with bold enough ideas, whether the subject is entitlement reform or pacifying Iraq.
Too bad
Too late
Say g'nite
5517. vonKreedon - 5/9/2004 4:56:07 PM
Jex - Who is Nelson?
Regarding the VP, watched Clark on MTP yesterday and I remain unfortunately unimpressed with Clark's ability has a campaigner. This is really a shame because I love him on policy issues. The two or three times that Clark tried to "stay on message" he fumbled badly and was taken to school by Repub Lindsey Graham (more on him later). When Clark spoke to what to actually do in Iraq he became clear, eloquent and compelling, but this is not enough IMO.
Graham shocked me. My wife and I found ourselves applauding his clear and statesmenlike contributions to the discussion. He appeared genuinely distressed by the situation that we are in, and told Cheney in no uncertain terms that Cheney's "Get of his [Rumsfeld] back." statement was inappropriate. Graham may be the Repub Edwards.
Levin was great, kept the focus not on Rumsfeld but on the policies. "If I thought that Rumsfeld's resignation would change the policies I'd be in favor."
5518. jexster - 5/9/2004 5:03:50 PM
Bill Nelson is the junior senator from Florida.."an AIRHEAD" according to an old Hill friend but all I know is that he has been making lots of surrogate cameos lately..is a member of the Armed Services Committee..has a razor sharp tongue with a hardscrabble North FL/S. Georgia twang...who could slice and dice Cheney Bush six ways from Sunday much like Edwards except that Edwards has more polish
5519. jexster - 5/9/2004 5:04:29 PM
Nelson's obnoxious accent is worth more Southern votes IMO and Florida...
5520. jexster - 5/9/2004 5:06:34 PM
On the minus side Nelson also voted Aye on the War Resolution which is why the General is #1 on my list
5521. vonKreedon - 5/9/2004 5:15:29 PM
Edwards voted for the War Resolution, but he does a much better job than Kerry in explaining the ways that the administration lied, scammed the Congress, and were ultimately more incompetent than anyone imagined. Edwards turns his vote into a campaign positive.
Clark also has problems wrt the war, though he consistently defined the war as a war of choice, and elective war, he did in the last month or so before the start of the war state that strategically we were now committed and it would be worse to not invade. This is a true statement, and he also said that what mattered at that point is how we handled the post-war situation, also true, but you can bet that the Repubs would put his statement up out of context to show him as a fellow flip-flopper. Edwards can handle that and turn it on the Repubs, Clark has not shown that abiltiy; neither has Kerry for that matter.
5522. jexster - 5/9/2004 5:20:12 PM
Clark suffered from Republican/Drudge slime on his war position as much as anything...
His testimony before the Foreign Relations Committee in October 2002 was distorted with the infamous 52,000 word elipsis...
It was prescient...everything he predicted came to pass.
But now, segue, we have the Dumsfeld Death Watch..
Anyone recall Timothy Noah, I believe it was, who ran this feature on and off in Slate in early 2001?
Just Off by 3 years!
As little Georgie heads to the Pentagon today to play GI Joe in the E Ring Sandbox...
Will Rummy resign leaving Wolfowitz in charge and Cheney's ass hangin out a mile?
Stay tuned....
This is US political history in the making
5523. jexster - 5/9/2004 5:21:45 PM
WRT Veep...I think that any of the top named choices is fine...at least the Southern ones..
I think its more important for Kerry to do it fairly soon..preferably within the month
5524. jexster - 5/9/2004 5:37:57 PM
Judy Woodruff CNN Inside Politics: "People are beginning to ask the question, 'Bush promised democratic revolution in the ME beginning in Iraq, so where's the evidence?'"
The military and intelligence professionals are stepping up their revolt against the ideologues; Bush's 6/30 sovereignty is a farce; torture his policy; WMD a sick joke; and his gambit to delay debate on appropriations in 2005 a shambles because he's running out of money...
Iraq is gonna sink him..I think it already has Pelle
5525. jexster - 5/9/2004 5:44:35 PM
"But he has nothing on at all,” said a little child at last.
“Good heavens! listen to the voice of an innocent child,” said the father, and one whispered to the other what the child had said.
“But he has nothing on at all,” cried at last the whole people.
That made a deep impression upon the emperor, for it seemed to him that they were right; but he thought to himself, “Now I must bear up to the end.”
And the chamberlains walked with still greater dignity, as if they carried the train which did not exist.
5526. jexster - 5/9/2004 6:01:38 PM
Charmaine for Congress!
5527. jexster - 5/9/2004 6:03:40 PM
GWB playing GI Joe at the ERing:
"My fellow AmurhKuns..I come to you with a heavy heart"
5528. jexster - 5/9/2004 10:17:00 PM
Gallup...
Kerry +6 among RV's
58% disapprove of Iraq War
Job approval down 3 points to 46% lowest of presidency in poll....
Edwards hits the endorsement circuit..
Clark Joins Edwards and Gephardt as top Veep candidates
5529. jexster - 5/10/2004 2:27:18 AM
Welcome to Ford Country!
Bush approval ratings are Ford level and close to other recent losers Poppy and Jimmuh...
Even worse, the right direction/wrong track...a whopping 33% think that the Emperor of Armadillos is "leading" us in the right direction.
5530. wonkers2 - 5/10/2004 3:02:28 AM
That's fine, but somebody has to figure how to make people like Kerry. He needs to get Meryl Streep to teach him how to talk like a reglar guy. He has a tin ear for American English. This leads me to Edwards for a running mate. He has the common vernacular down pat. Clark is not as good at this as Edwards but his delivery is more convincing than Kerry's.
5531. bubbaette - 5/10/2004 3:18:20 AM
If Bush keeps self-destructing the way he has been, even Kerry the cold fish will look attractive.
5532. vonKreedon - 5/10/2004 3:19:17 AM
Yeah, maybe, but that's hardly a clever campaign strategy.
5533. bubbaette - 5/10/2004 3:26:26 AM
Also, the election's a long way off in terms of what might happen between now and then.
The Richmond Times Dispatch has been disgusting for the last couple of days -- making excuses for our military prison "guards" while publishing every negative thing on Kerry that the Republican's can dream up. This is going to be a VERY VERY ugly campaign.
5534. jayackroyd - 5/10/2004 4:03:06 AM
Nader is now 0 for 2--not on the ballot in Texas or Oregon. While in some sense these are symbolic candidacies, Oregon is a battleground state, and he invested substantial resources in Texas and got nowhere. It's time to remove Nader from the polling numbers.
5535. arkymalarky - 5/10/2004 4:47:59 AM
Bubba's absolutely right. Kerry's not going to be firmly defined until the convention. Also, the more he stands and lets Republicans flail and sling mud the less he's going to have to try to moderate later. Let Bush continue to look bad and shape your image when you have the media and money to do it during and after the convention. People won't remember squat of what's going on now come November, and they're right to focus energy and money closer to that date while Republicans are having to spend up just to try to slow the bleeding.
Whatever happens with Kerry now (if he doesn't screw up), as things stand with Bush, if the Republicans don't hit a home run in their convention in NYC, Bush is done.
5536. jexster - 5/10/2004 7:44:51 AM
TWO SIGNS OF THE END TIMES:
1. Bush didn't go to the ERing to play GI Joe with Rummy...He usually plays in the Situation Room or the Oval Office..he went with the puppeteer Cheney because the military rank-in-file is near open revolt
2. Sharon didn't cancel his trip because of Gaza...Sharon is the 800 pound gorilla pulling the neocon strings of the Empire...Sharon cancled on Bush because George W. Bush is now radioactive.
My fellow Amuruhkuns, I come to you with a heavy heart...
GWB is done
You can stick a fork in him
5537. jexster - 5/10/2004 8:18:25 AM
Here we are the way politics ought to be in America; the politics of happiness, the politics of purpose and the politics of joy.
Hubert H. Humphrey
5538. OhioSTOPAS - 5/10/2004 12:24:16 PM
Bubbaette (Good to hear from you, Ms. B!) is right: The worse Bush's failures, the uglier the attacks on Kerry will be.
5539. judithathome - 5/10/2004 3:04:17 PM
We really do need some conservative voices around here because I think what everyone is underestimating is the public. Many of them are going to believe everything BushCo puts out about Kerry...facts don't matter. BushCo is made of oil and everything Kerry can come up with about BushCo will slide right off...he's more slippery than teflon.
Just don't be surprised when BushCo wins...though it makes me sick, I fear the American Public will vote for him in droves.
5540. judithathome - 5/10/2004 3:06:16 PM
My grim outlook may be hampered by living in Texas. Keoni put a Kerry bumper sticker on his truck and has had fists shaken at him a lot in recent days by people on the road. And he's a good driver so it's not that.
5541. jexster - 5/10/2004 4:31:05 PM
High Crimes and Misdemeandors: Bush Abused Appropriations Process, Congress By-Passed With Slush Funds
5542. jexster - 5/10/2004 4:41:43 PM
Come to California Judith...
He's sinkin fast...this is an historical unraveling...
Slap the dray ruhb on da brisket....yo boy's comin home..
But will Texas be in play now that Nader won't be on that ballot either...
5543. jexster - 5/10/2004 4:44:17 PM
Now I am sure they are sayin "Oh at least we got rid of Saddam and all that....Just git offen his case...he's a grayte feller"
That's what the man from Sugar Land said in that Red/Blue article the other day....well Texas isn't California but its not Ohio either...and God know it isn't Louisiana!
Ah learnt tha' as yung chile mahsef
5544. jexster - 5/10/2004 4:47:48 PM
Speaking of that red/blue piece..the reporter recounts how the Sugar Lander logged on to Freeper first thing one morning and got his rocks off looking at a video from an Apache gun camera wiping out three defenseless Iraqis in a pick up truck...
I remember that video myself ...how disgusting I thought it was ....in fact I emailed it around...
Totally opposite reaction...like they're from another Planet...and they are...Fresno
5545. jexster - 5/10/2004 4:50:54 PM
But what he enjoyed about the video from what he said....went something like this...
Iraq is free of rape rooms and torture chambers."—President Bush, remarks to 2003 Republican National Committee Presidential Gala, Oct. 8, 2003
Statements like that or like yesterday's "Our mighty army is conducting hundreds of missions each day in Iraq (over a year after Mission Accomplished)"...
Wearin real thin I think..
5546. PelleNilsson - 5/10/2004 5:13:37 PM
I have the uncomfortable feeling that Judith will be proved right. Bush may be losing some support but Kerry doesn't seem to gain any.
5547. judithathome - 5/10/2004 5:36:01 PM
But will Texas be in play now that Nader won't be on that ballot either...
Oh please...like Nader would have received any votes from Texas. Only the Republicans' votes matter here...all the electoral votes from Texas are Bush's and nothing else matters. I'm amazed Perry hasn't suggested saving the money on election day to beef up the education funds he's squandered...just send the electoral votes in and forget about the entire voting thing.
5548. jayackroyd - 5/10/2004 6:48:52 PM
Pelle--
Nader is 0 for 2 on ballot access. Seven of the ten largest states require over 10,000 signatures. The deadlines cluster in August. Of the first 27 states in alphabetical order, Nader has a coordinator working in 7. None in Florida, the purplest of states, which has a July deadline and requires 94,000 signature.
Polls are still sticking Nader in. But he is not going to be on most ballots. In fact, I believe he will be on so few as to completely marginalize his candidacy. The polls are substantially different without Nader, and he won't be a factor.
5549. arkymalarky - 5/10/2004 11:46:10 PM
I do think being in Texas makes a difference. The attitude in AR toward him is pretty negative, and we're not hearing AR Republicans promote him. They have their own races to worry about, and if they didn't consider him a liability they'd be looking for all kinds of ways to connect to him.
I think he's going to lose, and I'm not claiming to be prescient, because I'm not. I've never heard this much negative talk from people (not the press or political enemies, as with Clinton) about an incumbent that I can recall, especially from quarters that often vote Republican, at least for president.
5550. arkymalarky - 5/10/2004 11:48:12 PM
It's also telling that he and Cheney have spent most of what AR time they've had here (with the exception of Bush's visit to oil-town ElDorado) has been in Walton country in the northwest where they're least likely to see any opposition. Kerry is coming to Little Rock (or is already here) and appearing with Wesley Clark. Wish I could go.
5551. jexster - 5/11/2004 12:11:20 AM
Love that General....
He's DA MAN for #2...conduit for the growing disgruntled mass of soldiers, officers, and intelligence professionals who know that Bush was snortin fairy dust again when he came up with his Big Iraq Adventure..
If Bush is to fall in a landslide it will be real conservatives who bury him
5552. jexster - 5/11/2004 12:13:36 AM
And Kerry is on the move, getting good coverage and favorable responses lately..the latest
Attack Against the King of Krony Kornball Kapitalism for KoZy Konnections to Korrupt Health Kare Krewe
Credit to GWB for his legacy of garbage alliteration
5553. jexster - 5/11/2004 12:14:31 AM
Welcome to Ford country..anyone know how much higher Cheney's doc turned his pacemaker?????
5554. jexster - 5/11/2004 12:15:31 AM
JAH..Tejas Oh Tejas why don't your wetbacks VOTE?
5555. arkymalarky - 5/11/2004 12:17:15 AM
I actually hope Wesley Clark will be Secretary of State or Defense.
5556. arkymalarky - 5/11/2004 12:17:41 AM
Oooh, I got a neat post number.
5557. jayackroyd - 5/11/2004 12:39:19 AM
Not defense. Defense is traditionally a civilian post.
5558. jexster - 5/11/2004 12:40:03 AM
SecDef for sure...Killer ticket - Kerry/Clark
Meanwhile back in the trenches, this from MoveOn..
PS...JAH I also wish that the pseudo conservative riff raff had REAL cojones..or at least one cojone...enuf to come here and defend their sorry asses...
But alas...Lies Have Consequences....
5559. jexster - 5/11/2004 12:41:35 AM
Dear MoveOn member,
Together, we did something remarkable on Saturday. Working with a coalition of grassroots groups, we registered tens of thousands of voters and made over 300,000 phone calls in a single afternoon.
In Philadelphia, a huge crowd gathered to see speakers before fanning out across the city to register voters. In Seattle, WA and Reno, NV and Lewiston, ME and 90 other cities in all 17 of the key "battleground" states, 7,500 folks walked door-to-door, talking to their neighbors and registering tens of thousands of them to vote. And at more than a thousand phone banking parties, MoveOn members made more than 300,000 phone calls to swing state voters in a single afternoon --a staggering and wholly unprecedented feat.
And Saturday was just the beginning. Over the coming weeks and months, we're going to build a field campaign that will help MoveOn members across the country register and mobilize voters every day between now and Nov. 2nd.... Can you help us raise $1 million to start hiring local organizers and build on our tremendous success on Saturday?
Please contribute now at:
https://www.moveonpac.org/donate/field.html?id=2830-1460238-FEiIlqjZaquCdxC2QjdA4g
This is the first time we will have MoveOn staff on the ground. They'll work in some of the most important states for the election, contacting and training MoveOn members for election work and acting as a local point of contact.
...
Studies have repeatedly shown that person-to-person contact is much more important in convincing someone to vote than advertising. So the power of our time and energy really is greater than Bush's hundreds of millions of dollars. Help harness that energy effectively, and together we'll take back our country and the White House.
Sincerely,
--Adam, Carrie, Eli, James, Joan, Laura, and Wes
The MoveOn PAC team
May 11th, 2004
5560. jexster - 5/11/2004 12:45:47 AM
We feel your pain Judith!
"Being in Texas, I feel very much like an alien because of my political views so it was invigorating to meet with people who are of the same mind-set. I now realize that I am not alone. We had some great discussions regarding MoveOn's goals, and how we can defeat Bush and the Republican Party in November and hereafter." -- Billye, Carrollton, TX
5561. jexster - 5/11/2004 12:58:08 AM
But in Tejas, Judith..No one can hear y'all scream!
5562. jexster - 5/11/2004 3:31:24 AM
Move to Appleton Judith!
My first cousin and family think its great!
(05-11) 14:45 PDT MADISON, Wis. (AP) --
Faced with a scarcity of letters praising the president, a newspaper in a Republican-leaning district appealed for pro-Bush letters, then backed off the request Tuesday amid complaints of blatant politics.
Last week in an editorial, The Post-Crescent said most of its letters had been coming from one side and asked readers "to help us 'balance' things out."
"We've been getting more letters critical of President Bush than those that support him," the editorial said. "We're not sure why, nor do we want to guess. But in today's increasingly polarized political environment, we
would prefer our offering to put forward a better sense of balance."
On Tuesday, the newspaper located in Appleton, Wis., with a daily circulation of just over 56,000 ran a second editorial stepping back from the appeal. Executive editor Andrew Oppmann said the paper's intentions in the May 4 editorial had been misinterpreted.
"Hindsight being 20/20, I can see how invoking the candidate's name read like 'Hey, let's all jump on the Bush bandwagon,"' said Oppmann, who pointed out that the paper endorsed Democrat Al Gore in 2000. "But our intent was just to get more readers participating and telling people,
'Hey, if you don't like what you read, just write a letter and we'll run it."'
The newspaper is located in a congressional district that Bush won handily in 2000, beating Gore, 52 percent to 43 percent.
5563. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 5/11/2004 3:04:59 PM
[From another board]
The GOP just published an outline of some events at the upcoming Republican Convention in NYC . . .
SUGGESTED AFTER-EVENT -- GET WRECKED WITH RUSH "Kicker" LIMBAUGH (sponsored by Eli Lilly)
SEPTEMBER 2 (nomination night)
6 p.m. -- OPENING PRAYER by ATTORNEY GENERAL JOHN ASHCROFT, who will then sing "Let the Eagle Soar" and light the ceremonial "TORCH OF FREEDOM(tm) with the (actual) Bill of Rights.
TOM RIDGE raises National Alert Level to Fire Engine Red, and
ANNOUNCES CAPTURE OF OSAMA BIN LADEN.
CONVENTION SHIFTS TO "GROUND ZERO" - DICK CHENEY will introduce and personally re-nominate PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH, who WILL IMPALE OSAMA BIN LADEN WITH DAVY CROCKETT'S KENTUCKY LONG RIFLE donated by Wayne LaPierre (Sponsored by NRA)
PRESIDENT BUSH WILL GIVE ACCEPTANCE SPEECH, standing on Osama's dead body.
FIRST PEEK - Here is the proposed text for President Bush's speech: "Hey, Freedom-Lovers! 9-11 Democracy Freedom Stay The Course Evil-doers trust my gut 9-11 Freedom Evil-doers Stay The Course Democracy 9-11 Evil-doers trust my gut 9-11 Democracy Freedom Stay the course Trust my gut Tax cuts Who cares what you think Evil-doers Things are great Jesus speaks to me 9-11 Democracy Freedom Stay The Course Evil-doers 9-11 Freedom Evil-doers Stay The Course Democracy 9-11 Evil-doers trust my gut 9-11 Democracy Freedom Stay the course Trust my gut Tax cuts Who cares what you think Evil-doers Things are great Jesus speaks to me. G'night everybody!
5564. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 5/11/2004 3:05:21 PM
POST CEREMONY CLOSING NIGHT PARTY OPPORTUNITIES:
"GET MAXED with RUSH "ROCKET CAP" LIMBAUGH!" (Sponsored by GlaxoSmithKline)
RICK SANTORUM 'DOG ON DOG' PETTING ZOO (adults only, please)
BILL O'REILLY SHOWS OFF PULITZER PRIZE, ACADEMY AWARD, AND NOBEL PEACE PRIZE
SPECIAL BUFFET - JOHN ASHCROFT will PERSONALLY EXORCISE A KINDLE OF CALICO KITTENS, BARBECUE THEM, AND SERVE THEM ON CANAPES (sponsored by KRAFT "Thick N' Spicy" BBQ Sauce)
5565. Magoseph - 5/11/2004 4:53:09 PM
Why the Polls Don't Add Up
Excerpt--The real reason that Mr. Kerry is making so little progress is that voters are now focused almost exclusively on the president. This is typical: as an election approaches, voters first decide whether the incumbent deserves re-election; only later do they think about whether it is worth taking a chance on the challenger. There is no reason to expect a one-to-one relationship between public disaffection with the incumbent and an immediate surge in public support for his challenger.
We saw the same dynamic in the 1980 race. President Jimmy Carter's favorable rating in the Gallup surveys sank from 56 percent in January to 38 percent in June, yet he still led Ronald Reagan in Gallup's horse-race measures. For much of the rest of the campaign, voters who disapproved of Mr. Carter couldn't decide whether Mr. Reagan was an acceptable alternative. Through the summer and early fall, the lead changed back and forth, and CBS/New York Times and Gallup polls showed conflicting results — at one point in August, Gallup found Mr. Reagan ahead of President Carter by 16 percentage points, yet just two weeks later it registered a dead heat. It was not until the two men held a televised debate eight days before the election that Ronald Reagan gained legitimacy in the eyes of the electorate.
Similarly, in May 1992 President George H. W. Bush had only a 37 percent approval rating according to a Times Mirror Center survey, but the same poll showed him with a modest lead, 46 percent to 43 percent, over Bill Clinton. Only the Democratic convention and the debates brought about an acceptance of Mr. Clinton (even though his negative ratings were higher than Mr. Kerry's are now). It took a long time for him to be seen as an acceptable alternative to Mr. Bush.
5566. jexster - 5/11/2004 5:43:38 PM
Actually, Bush's back was broken way before that. His fundamentals were heading for the toilet in the Spring of 1992. Bush's water broke when he and Ross Perot got into it in late June, 1992.
Clinton's convention sealed his fate.
But the point is still a good one...namely 1) the referendum on the incumbet is the first thing 2) once that is more or less decided by the electorate, attention turns to the challenger at or about the time of the Convention
5567. jexster - 5/11/2004 5:45:05 PM
The Bush administration still seeks to mislead Congress and the public about the policies that contributed to the criminal abuse of prisoners in Iraq.
The WPost lead editorial
5568. jexster - 5/11/2004 5:46:56 PM
Ruy: Kerry +6
Bush is running out of options. And, as Bush is sinking, Kerry is cranking up his campaign. Stay tuned.
5569. jexster - 5/11/2004 5:50:30 PM
With just months to go in an election that ought to be a referendum on President Bush, the New York Times runs a front-page story: The Democrats are in serious trouble. Although Bush's approval ratings are low, the presumptive Democratic nominee can't get any traction. His campaign "continues to confront a cloud of doubts and reservations," the Times says, and voters are complaining that he hasn't offered the country a clear vision for the future.
It may sound like the Times on John Kerry in 2004. In fact, it's the Times on Bill Clinton in 1992.
Salon
Now the Weed hasn't got a Perot doggin him...he has his record and shitload of enemies from the Pentagon, to Democrats, to the French, to the shamed media and now even the Germans who are calling for Dumsfeld's head...
5570. jexster - 5/11/2004 5:54:17 PM
Correct Salon Link
Charlie Cook asked me whether I was drinking when I asked him if he remembered...
Here we are the way politics ought to be in America; the politics of happiness, the politics of purpose and the politics of joy. HHH
Which I posted here....the point?
How far We The People have fallen!
5571. jexster - 5/11/2004 6:04:27 PM
More Bush lies...Nick Berg never in custody..the Family has emails..
The Family is PISSED
5572. marjoribanks - 5/11/2004 7:30:56 PM
LONDON (AFP) - Britain's influential Financial Times newspaper demanded the resignation of US Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld over the abuse and torture of Iraqi prisoners and issued a stinging criticism of his boss, George W. Bush.
"Donald Rumsfeld professes to take responsability for the outrages at Abu Ghraib prison (near Baghdad). But nobody will believe it until he and others at the top of the command chain are fired," the FT said in an editorial.
The paper gave a damning assessment of the US-led occupation of Iraq (news - web sites), which it called "a seamless catalogue of errors and misjudgements, of arrogance and ignorance", and said Bush should take the blame for the failure.
"If he cannot take the essential minimum of measures to restore his country's reputation, he does not deserve to stay in the White House," the daily said.
"He (Bush) is not up to the job. This is not a moral judgment, but a practical one. The world is too complex and dangerous for the pious simplicities and arrogant unilateralism of George W. Bush," the FT said in a separate article.
Now, this is really looking like the end.
5573. jexster - 5/11/2004 8:10:34 PM
This is an historical unraveling...we have never seen anything like it...Bush is dead meat..
Even the New Republic's neocon wannabe's are bolting the sinking ship...
Taguba Retort
Antonio Taguba made a convincing case yesterday against the administration's "bad apple" theory. The problem for Bush? Republican senators did, too.
5574. jexster - 5/11/2004 8:20:39 PM
Dear John,
"Good for you. Now get back to work."
When you, I and other John Kerry supporters look in the mirror, that's what we should tell ourselves. Should we be proud of the extraordinary grassroots accomplishments of John Kerry's campaign so far? Of course, we should. But, if we're serious about winning, we've got to realize that the true test of our commitment is ahead of us, not behind us.
In fact, it's staring us right in the face. We knew that the Republican attack machine was going to come after John Kerry hard. But, I have to say, even I have been surprised by how vicious they've been. They've even tried to attack the military record of a Vietnam war hero. It's painfully clear they will stop at nothing.
Let's fight back.
Let's do it again. Please click here to make a secure contribution:
https://contribute.johnkerry.com
The amazing energy and commitment of hundreds of thousands of people helped John Kerry raise $55 million in the first quarter of 2004. That's more money in one quarter than any campaign in history, including the incumbent's. The Republicans thought we would let our presidential candidate be rolled over by their massively-funded attack machine. We said, "Think again."
But here's why we can't rest, not even for a moment.
The Republicans think they have absorbed an early unexpected burst of energy from our side. And now they're planning on taking the initiative back, counting on us to lose steam and settle back down.
In March, John's campaign could rely on the energy and excitement of his primary victory and, in the fall, he'll be able to count on the enthusiasm and pressure of a fast-approaching Election Day. But right now, he is relying on you and me. Let's stand shoulder-to-shoulder with John Kerry -- and let's win.
Thank you,
Big Dog
5575. jexster - 5/11/2004 9:31:34 PM
Best news I have heard in 6 months...
Judy Woodruff reports that BUsh is planning several foreign trips over the next months..
Considering that every one of his trips thus far have been a disasters and consdering that most world leaders want him back at his fake ranch YESTERDAY..
This should seal his fate
5576. jexster - 5/11/2004 10:03:57 PM
Big Dog smells dead meat
The only way we can lose is if we are lazy or dumb
Woof Woof!
5577. alistairConnor - 5/11/2004 10:13:36 PM
several foreign trips over the next months!
What are they thinking? Who are the world leaders who will consent to have their photo taken with him?
the mind boggles.
5578. jexster - 5/11/2004 10:17:40 PM
Desperate times, desperate measure..
And here is the measure of their desperation AC..
Bill Schnieder - CNN Chief Political Analyst: "Most Americans now think that the Iraq war was not worth the costl. The disaffection with the war and the growing sense that America cannot win it will doom Bush's presidency"
a senior military intelligence officer experienced in Middle Eastern affairs said he thinks the administration needs to rethink its approach to Iraq and to the region. "The idea that Iraq can be miraculously and quickly turned into a shining example of democracy that will 'transform' the Middle East requires way too much fairy dust and cultural arrogance to believe," he said.
Pew - Kerry 50
Bush 45
5579. Magoseph - 5/11/2004 10:20:14 PM
Another reelection ploy--have you heard yet that W stands for Women?
5580. robertjayb - 5/11/2004 10:36:34 PM
Nader gets a boost, the bastard...
WASHINGTON - (AP) - Independent presidential candidate Ralph Nader (news - web sites) has been endorsed by the national Reform Party, giving him ballot access in seven states, including Florida and Michigan, party leaders announced Wednesday.
Nader spokesman Kevin Zeese said Nader welcomes the support but plans to continue running as an independent. He said Nader would decide on a case-by-case basis whether to accept the ballot lines in each state.
5581. jexster - 5/11/2004 10:47:14 PM
Even Ralph cannot save his sorry ass now..
You can stick a fork in GWB...or maybe slap some dry rub on that dead meat..and do him
1. Bush Frets Over Rising Energy Prices As Kerry Attacks
2. Bush Poll Numbers Hitting Danger Zone
5582. jexster - 5/11/2004 10:57:24 PM
Kerry's latest ad...
Time's Up
5583. jexster - 5/12/2004 2:27:04 AM
Pew! Bush in Deep Shit
Approval Falls After Iraq Abuses, Pew Poll Says (Update4)
May 12 (Bloomberg) -- President George W. Bush's job approval rating fell to 44 percent from 48 percent in April, following revelations that U.S. soldiers abused Iraqi prisoners, a poll by the Pew Center for the People and the Press shows.
The percentage of Americans who think the nation is headed in the right direction is at 33 percent, an eight-year low, and 61 percent said they are dissatisfied with ``the way things are going in this country,'' the Pew survey said. In an election match-up, Democratic presidential rival John Kerry, a four-term Massachusetts senator, leads Bush by 50 percent to 45 percent.
Voter Anxiety
``Economic growth in 2004 cannot undo the anxiety from health care coverage and costs, low wage growth, a soft labor market over the last three years, and exploding budget deficits,'' Mann said. ``And it's hard to see how Iraq can be stabilized by November.''
``The current international environment is bad for Bush, and the poll numbers reflect growing pessimism and concerns,'' said Stuart Rothenberg, editor of the nonpartisan Rothenberg Political Report. ``He'd likely lose if the election were held today. But we are still five months out, and circumstances could be very different then.''
CPA says Berg refused to leave Iraq...
He believed Bush.
Was he looking for the Village of Hope, AceOfSpades Mayor?
5584. jexster - 5/12/2004 4:00:29 AM
Dry Rub on Dead Meat
Take Two Columns and Call Me in the Morning
"Still getting panic attacks, even after looking at my two posts below on the latest Gallup and Pew data? And despite everything I've been saying for weeks about all the damage Bush is sustaining, remember it's a referendum on the incumbent, it's too early to expect Kerry to have a big lead, etc?
Sounds like some stronger medicine may be required. You need to immediately check out the two columns mentioned below and then resume your deep breathing exercises.
The first column is by Andrew Kohut in today's New York Times. The most relevant part of the column is as follows:
The real reason that Mr. Kerry is making so little progress is that voters are now focused almost exclusively on the president. This is typical: as an election approaches, voters first decide whether the incumbent deserves re-election; only later do they think about whether it is worth taking a chance on the challenger. There is no reason to expect a one-to-one relationship between public disaffection with the incumbent and an immediate surge in public support for his challenger."
5585. jexster - 5/12/2004 4:02:36 AM
We saw the same dynamic in the 1980 race. President Jimmy Carter's favorable rating in the Gallup surveys sank from 56 percent in January to 38 percent in June, yet he still led Ronald Reagan in Gallup's horse-race measures. For much of the rest of the campaign, voters who disapproved of Mr. Carter couldn't decide whether Mr. Reagan was an acceptable alternative. Through the summer and early fall, the lead changed back and forth, and CBS/New York Times and Gallup polls showed conflicting results — at one point in August, Gallup found Mr. Reagan ahead of President Carter by 16 percentage points, yet just two weeks later it registered a dead heat. It was not until the two men held a televised debate eight days before the election that Ronald Reagan gained legitimacy in the eyes of the electorate.
5586. jexster - 5/12/2004 4:03:30 AM
and GWB is in magnitudes deeper shit than Carter was...
5587. jayackroyd - 5/12/2004 4:33:13 AM
Nader in Florida and Michigan would be bad.
5588. robertjayb - 5/12/2004 4:49:56 AM
CBS News polls
WAS THE WAR WORTH IT?
Yes
Now
29%
Two Weeks Ago
33%
8/2003
46%
No
Now
64%
Two weeks ago
58%
8/2003
45%
5589. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 5/12/2004 4:59:28 AM
5590. robertjayb - 5/12/2004 5:13:05 AM
No joy, Wiz. All I get is little red asterisks in little black boxes.
5591. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 5/12/2004 5:16:56 AM
??????
Try this, rjb.
5592. robertjayb - 5/12/2004 5:21:14 AM
There ya go...
5593. jexster - 5/12/2004 8:25:42 AM
Where's the floor?
The new CBS poll has President Bush coming in at 44% job approval.
Can he break through into the thirties? I doubt it. But we're getting down to the margin of error, aren't we?
-- Josh Marshall
5594. jexster - 5/12/2004 8:27:33 AM
That trip abroad oughta do it...
Dollars to donuts it was the brain childe of the RNC smear machine who thinks they have a winner in
"So Mr. Kerry would you name all the foreign leaders who think our dear WarLord is a wacked out Moron?"
Lost in BushWorld
5595. thoughtful - 5/12/2004 4:45:46 PM
from brad delong's web site, Martin Wolf of the Financial Times has had it:
I am a huge admirer of the US.... neither hostile to Republican administrations nor opposed to the use of force.... I preferred Richard Nixon to George McGovern, in 1972, and George H.W. Bush to Michael Dukakis, in 1988.... But if I find the Bush administration's foreign policy disturbing, so must the vast majority of humanity....
So what is wrong with this administration? Put simply, it fails to understand the basis of US power, mis-specifies US objectives and is incompetent.
Another article in this week's nyer was highlighting the success an exgoper is having raising money for kerry from gopers. Still small, but growing.
I think the gopers thought by electing bush that the "grownups" would be in charge...instead they got the spoiled brat.
5596. jexster - 5/12/2004 5:39:10 PM
Bush Approval Rating Falls to 44%, 61% Say Nation's Headed in Wrong Direction
5597. wonkers2 - 5/12/2004 5:59:55 PM
McCain is on Diane Rehm, quite eloquent, as usual. How pitiful and inarticulate is Bush by comparison. If I were a Republican I would be starting a dump Bush/nominate McCain movement. McCain HAS been appearing quite a lot in the media lately.???
5598. thoughtful - 5/12/2004 7:25:25 PM
if mccain ran, he'd win hands down. A nice bit of poetic justice it would be too after what bush did to him in SC in the last election.
5599. vonKreedon - 5/12/2004 7:38:35 PM
My wife says that Kerry suggested that McCain would be the SecDef in a Kerry admin. I've only seen Kerry suggesting that McCain should be considered to replace Rumsfeld. Are any of you aware of Kerry hinting at a place for McCain in Kerry's cabinet?
5600. judithathome - 5/12/2004 7:50:01 PM
No, but it would be a really smart thing for him to do.
5601. vonKreedon - 5/12/2004 8:05:20 PM
Yeah, on several levels of smart. It would appeal to McCain Repubs and conservative swing voters. It would take a Repub incumbent out of the Senate, though I doubt that this would actually give a Dem a chance at the Arizona seat it's worth the shot. It would give Kerry a chance to turn Bush's ludicrous "I'm a uniter not a divider" sound bite around to bite Bush.
I wish that Kerry would announce several likely Cabinet members when he announces his VP selection.
5602. jexster - 5/12/2004 8:37:37 PM
The next President's William Cohen???
Great idea..and a better SecDef by far
5603. jexster - 5/12/2004 8:38:03 PM
Plus we'd have a super shot at a Senate pickup
5604. jexster - 5/12/2004 9:19:26 PM
Are Bush Republicans born this way or does the RNC have a School for Liars????
Chmn Racicot's Reputation as a Liar Growing By Leaps and Bounds!
5605. jexster - 5/12/2004 9:39:47 PM
Failing To Recognize Failure>
Q: Why does the president still trust Rumsfeld's judgment?
A: As the president says, we misunderestimate him. He was not born stupid. He chose stupidity. Bush may look like a well-meaning dolt. On consideration, he's something far more dangerous: a dedicated fool. Jake Weisberg
Bush's War on Iraq is a failure...His last desperate gambit is a forlorn hope that he can distract the American public with blood and circuses through November.
5606. wonkers2 - 5/12/2004 9:57:12 PM
I bet Bush is having second thoughts about Rumsfeld, Wolfowitz, Libby, Feith, Tenet, et al, who led him down the primrose path. And maybe Cheney, too.
5607. vonKreedon - 5/12/2004 10:11:49 PM
That assumes that Bush had first thoughts.
5608. wonkers2 - 5/12/2004 10:15:03 PM
True!
5609. jexster - 5/13/2004 12:44:10 AM
Ruy: May 13, 2004
Bush Rating on Iraq Below 40!
I believe this is the first time I've seen this in a public poll: Bush's approval rating on Iraq has been measured below 40 percent. In tThe latest CBS News poll, conducted May 11, his rating on Iraq clocks in at 39 percent approval/58 percent disapproval (only 37 percent among independents).
Also in the poll, his overall approval rating is down to 44/49 (42/46 among independents) and his approval rating on the economy is now just 34/60 (30/62--more than 2:1 disapproval--among independents). And even his rating on handling the campaign against terrorism is a less than stellar 51 percent.
So, let's see, his overall rating is 44 percent and his average rating in what are probably the top three issue areas--the economy, Iraq and terrorism--is now a dismal 41 percent. Lo how the mighty have fallen.
And, wait, there's more. For the first time, less than 30 percent (29 percent) say the result of the Iraq war was worth the loss of American life and other costs, compared to 64 percent who say it wasn't worth the costs. And among independents, it's now an amazing 3:1 against the war being worth it (69/23).
The poll has a similarly lop-sided result on whether US is in control of the Iraq situation. By 57-31, the public says the US is not in control of events in Iraq, a margin that rises to 59/25 among independents--almost 2:1. The increasing sense of lack of control is probably an important reason for the increasing willingness to turn over control to the Iraqis as soon as possible, even if Iraq is not completely stable, rather than keep troops in Iraq as long as necessary (now 55-38 for turning over control, up from dead-even at 46-46 in late April).
5610. jexster - 5/13/2004 12:44:17 AM
Could Bush's ratings on Iraq get any worse? Based on the way things are going, I would have to say that's a very strong possibility.
5611. wonkers2 - 5/13/2004 12:54:05 AM
Are ratings below zero possible? How about 30 below?
5612. jexster - 5/13/2004 1:06:16 AM
"Nick died for the sins of GWB and Donald Rumsfeld" Berg's Father
5613. robertjayb - 5/13/2004 2:46:22 AM
ARG poll shows Kerry lead in Ohio...
John Kerry leads George W. Bush among likely voters in Ohio according to a survey by the American Research Group. A total of 49% of likely voters say they would vote for Kerry if the presidential election were being held today and 42% say they would vote for Bush. A total of 2% of likely voters say they would vote for Ralph Nader and 7% of likely voters are undecided.
In a race between just Kerry and Bush, Kerry is at 50%, Bush is at 43%, and 7% are undecided.
5614. wonkers2 - 5/13/2004 2:51:28 AM
Good news! Somebody should take Ralph for a long walk on a short pier!
5615. jexster - 5/13/2004 5:50:00 AM
DEAD MEAT:
Numbers, History Bode Ill for Bush
Despite close horse race with Kerry, Cretin's approval ratings trail those of predecessors who won reelection.
5616. jexster - 5/13/2004 6:36:40 AM
Crosby Stills Nash Young - Four Dead In Ohio
Tin soldiers and Nixon's comin'.
We're finally on our own.
This summer I hear the drummin'.
Four dead in Ohio.
Gotta get down to it.
Soldiers are gunning us down.
Should have been done long ago.
What if you knew her and
Found her dead on the ground?
How can you run when you know?
Na, na, na, na, na, na, na, na.
Na, na, na, na, na, na, na, na.
Na, na, na, na, na, na, na, na.
Na, na, na, na, na, na, na, na.
Gotta get down to it.
Soldiers are cutting us down.
Should have been done long ago.
What if you knew her and
Found her dead on the ground?
How can you run when you know?
Tin soldiers and Nixon's comin'.
We're finally on our own.
This summer I hear the drummin'.
Four dead in Ohio.
Four dead in Ohio.
Four dead in Ohio.
Four dead in Ohio.
Four dead in Ohio.
Four dead in Ohio.
Four dead in Ohio.
Four dead in Ohio.
Four dead in Ohio.
5617. jexster - 5/13/2004 6:51:01 AM
5618. jexster - 5/13/2004 7:13:39 AM
Lunatic Fringe
I know you're out there
You're in hiding
And you hold your meetings
We can hear you coming
We know what you're after
We're wise to you this time
We won't let you kill the laughter
Lunatic Fringe
In the twilight's last gleaming
This is open season
But you won't get too far
We know you've got to blame someone
For your own confusion
But we're on guard this time
Against your final solution
We can hear you coming
(We can hear you coming)
No you're not going to win this time
We can hear the footsteps
(We can hear the footsteps)
Way out along the walkway
Lunatic Fringe
We know you're out there
But in these new dark ages
There will still be light
An eye for an eye
Well, before you go under
Can you feel the resistance
Can you feel the....thunder
5619. jexster - 5/13/2004 8:03:29 AM
The Digital Revolution
Oh my goodness gracious,
What you can buy off the Internet
In terms of overhead photography!
A trained ape[!!] can know an awful lot
Of what is going on in this world,
Just by punching on his mouse
For a relatively modest cost!
Following European trip
June 9, 2001
Broadband Clip
5620. jexster - 5/13/2004 5:13:55 PM
Better Late Than Never?
Senators Blast Bush War $$$ Request
Wonder if they'll run another series of lies about being anti-military????
5621. robertjayb - 5/13/2004 5:29:08 PM
So did you know Dick Cheney got five draft deferments? He said he had "other priorities."
..............................................
At one point the Selective Service lifted the ban against drafting married men with no children...
..............................................
Nine months and two days later the Cheneys had a baby! What does that tell you?
..............................................
They discussed it for two days?
Right. Setting priorities.
5622. Magoseph - 5/13/2004 9:35:41 PM
Here is your link, Jex.
Senators Assail Request for Aid for Afghan and Iraq Budgets
Senate Democrats and Republicans attacked Bush administration officials on Thursday for submitting a vaguely worded request to add $25 billion to pay for operations in Iraq and Afghanistan beginning on Oct. 1.
The new money would be added to the more than $400 billion already sought for military uses worldwide in fiscal 2005. Lawmakers complained that the new request lacked specific details and sought to circumvent the Senate's oversight role.
5623. jexster - 5/13/2004 10:20:17 PM
Bush in trouble with his Base Base?
Yes indeed. Latest indication, he is going to deliver a major address to the American Conservative Union.
I cannot remember the last time a Republican was ever in trouble with his base.
Dewey?
Eisenhower?
5624. robertjayb - 5/13/2004 10:35:28 PM
A poll of Oregon...
Bush and Kerry are tied in Oregon, according to a poll out Friday.
Kerry was at 47 percent, Bush at 45 percent and independent Ralph Nader at 3 percent, the Research 2000 poll found. In a two-way race, Kerry was at 50 percent and Bush at 46 percent
The poll of 603 likely voters was conducted for the Portland Tribune-KOIN-TV from May 6-10 and has a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 4 percentage points.
5625. robertjayb - 5/13/2004 10:45:26 PM
Huffington, Trippi want Hope & Soul from Kerry...(Good Luck!)
Both say electing Kerry is their top political priority this year and are trying to tamp down Ralph Nader's popularity among disaffected voters who have not yet warmed to Kerry's message.
"I tell my Green Party and Naderite friends that when the house is on fire, it's not time to talk about remodeling," Huffington said. "You put the fire out first."
5626. robertjayb - 5/13/2004 10:55:21 PM
CNN/Time poll: Kerry 51%, dubya 46%
If Independent Ralph Nader is among the choices, Kerry gets 49 percent, Bush 44 percent and Nader 6 percent.
Bush's overall job approval rating fell from 49 percent to 46 percent since the last CNN/Time poll on April 8, while his disapproval rating rose from 47 percent to 49 percent -- the first time that more people disapproved of Bush's job performance than approved.
5627. vonKreedon - 5/13/2004 10:59:35 PM
I cannot remember the last time a Republican was ever in trouble with his base.
Bush the Elder
5628. robertjayb - 5/14/2004 1:19:49 AM
Pigs are flying...Hell, they're breaking the sound barrier!
David Brooks, designated bushie apologist on the NYTimes, just said on the Lehrer News Hour:
"If the election were held today, George Bush would lose."
You can look it up...
5629. wonkers2 - 5/14/2004 3:28:06 AM
Bush is dead meat!
5630. jexster - 5/14/2004 3:31:04 AM
May 14, 2004
Kerry Ahead in Ohio, Florida, Wisconsin and Oregon
5631. jexster - 5/14/2004 4:00:29 AM
The Jexster Scenario?????
"In by one vote, out by a landslide" December 18 ,2000
5632. jexster - 5/14/2004 4:03:24 AM
Perhaps it's just me, but I think I'm beginning to see a pattern here. Ruy Teixeira
5633. jexster - 5/14/2004 4:33:18 AM
TEXAS DRY RUB
INGREDIENTS:
2 T chili powder
1 T garlic salt
1 T paprika
1 T pepper
1 t cayenne pepper
DIRECTIONS Mix all ingredients together in bowl. Rub well into DEAD meat and let stand 2 hrs or overnight in fridge. Cook as usual with BBQ sauce.
Courtesy of : B's Cookbook.
5634. jexster - 5/14/2004 4:38:50 AM
The International Brotherhood of Police Officers (IBPO) endorsed John Kerry on Friday. The union endorsed George Bush in 2000.
But IBPO President David Holway said that "after three and a half years of disappointing leadership under George Bush, we need to change course in November and elect a President with a real record of supporting police officers and a lifetime of standing with law enforcement."
5635. jexster - 5/14/2004 5:01:12 AM
Y'all Sang Alownng Heah?
5636. jexster - 5/14/2004 5:03:14 AM
The Electric chairs
Light up the night airs
Deep in the Heart of Texas
The Houston smog
Is worse than a London fog
Deep in the heart of Texas
It's the number one state
In high school dropout rates
Deep in the Heart of Texas
You will grow numb
Listening to a Governor that's dumb
Deep in the heart of Texas.
There's a great big jerk
With a silly smirk
Deep in the Heart of Texas.
Behind that stupid grin
Are thoughts of lust and sin
Deep in the Heart of Texas.
Where their jerk faced Gov
Sends innocent people up above
Deep In Heart of Texas
If you're caught passing weed
You'll be dead within the week
Deep In the Heart of Texas
Where their Shrub's IQ...
Is roughly -2
Deep In Heart of Texas
Oh it ain't no joke
That he snorted coke
Deep in the heart of Texas
And he had a need
For the local weed
Deep in the heart of Texas
5637. jexster - 5/14/2004 5:04:27 AM
Oh he wants you to believe
But all he does is deceive
Because he is the Shrub of Texas
Oh he went on T.V.
To push for higher oil fees
So he could balance the budget of Texas
And now each day
For higher gas we pay
Because of this fiend from Texas
He says "I've learned
from my mistakes"'
Deep in the Heart of Texas
But everyone else
He gives 10 to 48
Deep in the Heart of Texas
Bush loves them
Texas BarBeeQue's
Deep in The Heart of Texas
Disagree with him
And he'll roast you
Deep in The Heart of Texas
But we'll laugh in the end
When we all send
Him dragging his tail back to Texas
5638. jexster - 5/14/2004 5:45:03 AM
Y'all Sing Along
5639. jexster - 5/14/2004 4:14:39 PM
The Buck Stops … Where?
Stop blaming your henchmen, Mr. President.
5640. jexster - 5/14/2004 4:18:14 PM
It's amazing, by the way, how Colin Powell seems to have scuttled his good-soldier routine altogether, criticizing his president at first quasi-anonymously (through Bob Woodward's new book), then through close aides (Wil Hylton's GQ article), and now straight up in the Baltimore Sun. One wonders when he'll go all the way and start making campaign appearances for John Kerry.
Now THAT would be a disaster!
5641. OhioSTOPAS - 5/14/2004 4:18:48 PM
This headline burns me:
"Zell Miller Blasts Fellow Democrat Kerry"
Describing Miller and Kerry as "fellow Democrats" will mislead the uninformed, casual reader into taking "Democrat" Miller's criticism of Kerry seriously, not realizing that Miller has left the party to vote with Republicans on EVERY SINGLE ISSUE. Miller's statements regarding John Kerry are no more unbiased, credible or significant than Tom Delay's would be.
Zell has obviously noted that a good living can be made on Fox News (sic) and like-minded outlets as a "Democrat" or "former Democrat" who shits upon real Democrats. He's spending his last year in politics applying for the job.
5642. jexster - 5/14/2004 4:20:57 PM
I wish to be the first to congratulate Ohio for his excellent work in destroying Bush in the Buckeyed state.
Oh Oh Way to go Ohio
5643. OhioSTOPAS - 5/14/2004 4:36:17 PM
We're spreading the word, one Buckeye at a time.
It'll be nice when the Kerry campaign gets off the ground; my town has dozens of volunteers looking for instructions.
5644. OhioSTOPAS - 5/14/2004 4:45:15 PM
The latest Bush TV ad airing here in Ohio cites some newspaper criticisms of John Kerry. The first is a quote from Rupert Murdoch's tabloid Boston Herald; of course, this right-wing fishwrap bashes Kerry.
But the ad tries to give the Herald credibility by identifying it as "Kerry's hometown newspaper." I guess Karl Rove thinks we ignorant midwesterners won't know the difference.
5645. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 5/14/2004 4:45:50 PM
Zell Miller somehow manages to be both bottom-feeder and pond scum.
5646. jayackroyd - 5/14/2004 4:54:02 PM
Karl Rove thinks we ignorant midwesterners won't know the difference.
The Bush campaign strategy is, in its very essence, a cynical exploitation of ignorant voters, and the use of disinformation to deepen that ignorance.
5647. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 5/14/2004 9:50:16 PM
This about sums it up . . .
5648. robertjayb - 5/15/2004 2:11:40 AM
dubya declines; Kerry stuck...(Newsweek)
PHOENIX (AP) -- President Bush's job approval ratings are hitting the lowest levels of his tenure as problems in Iraq crowd out other issues for voters, public opinion specialists say.
A Newsweek poll released Saturday put Bush's overall job approval at 42 percent, the lowest yet in that poll. Other recent survey have rated Bush in the mid-40s.
.................................................
Bush's approval on how he has handled Iraq has dipped to 35 percent in the Newsweek poll, compared with 44 percent in April. Some 57 percent of respondents said they disapprove.
Despite the doubts about the president's Iraq policy, Bush and his rival, Democrat John Kerry, are essentially tied in a two-way matchup -- Kerry at 46 percent and Bush at 45 percent. They are also tied when independent Ralph Nader is included in the race.
5649. jexster - 5/15/2004 2:21:22 AM
What's happened down here is the wind has changed
clouds move in from the nowth an it stawted to rain...
PHOENIX - President Bush (news - web sites)'s job approval ratings are hitting the lowest levels of his tenure as problems in Iraq (news -web sites) crowd out other issues for voters, public opinion specialists say.
AP Photo
A Newsweek poll released Saturday put Bush's overall job approval at 42 percent, the lowest yet in that poll. Other recent survey have rated Bush in the mid-40s.
Six feet of water in the streets of Evangeline
5650. robertjayb - 5/15/2004 2:23:06 AM
Blogger Atrios rips former governor Zell Miller on Georgia taxes...
excerpt:
It appears you welfare lovers in Taxeorgia are sucking at the federal government's teat! Taxeorgia gets more from the federal government than it sends in taxes! For every buck you freeloaders send to DC you get $1.01 back! What of Massachusetts? Well, suprise surprise! Massachusetts is supporting layabouts like Taxeorgia! A whopping $.25 of every dollar Massachusetts sends to the Feds is stolen from them and redistributed to states which can't manage to take care of themselves, like Taxeorgia.
5651. jexster - 5/15/2004 3:41:10 AM
Sy Hersh's article in the next New Yorker nails Dumsfeld/Cambone (perjury)..
5652. jexster - 5/15/2004 3:43:51 AM
and the defendants' lawyers are now fully engaged...
Appears JAG lawyers in DoD are running to the press claiming they objected to Dumbsfeld's Nazi Tactics...ABC NEWS
Bush's Willing Executioners
Signs of the times
5653. jexster - 5/15/2004 3:44:33 AM
Job approval
42% - General
32% Iraq
That's a win-win in my book Acie!
5654. OhioSTOPAS - 5/15/2004 1:38:47 PM
In Message # 5641 I complained about the unwarranted significance given to Zell Miller's criticism of John Kerry because Miller is (nominally) a Democrat.
This morning the opening teasers on Fox News (sic) Channel's "Fox and Friends" included the headline, "Prominent Democrat Rips Kerry." My blood pressure rose.
But when the Fox chuckleheads got to the Miller clip, they discounted his remarks because of his well-known Republican affilation and even noted that in 2001 Miller had complimented Kerry and said he was strong on defense! (FYI, the subject quotes are included here.)
Zell Miller is such a whore even Fox News takes note? Now THAT'S a whore.
5655. judithathome - 5/15/2004 4:03:54 PM
Colin Powell on Meet The Press this morning...wonder what the message will be? s
5656. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 5/15/2004 4:33:15 PM
Wow! Powell’s press aide pushed Russert’s cameraman off Powell’s head when Russert asked if he (Powell) regrets his testimony at the UN (that helped start the Iraq War), now that it is known that Powell’s information was based on false intelligence from a secret agent named, “Curveball.“
Powell admonished his press aide and told the cameraman to refocus on him. Powell then told Russert to restate his question. Russert did and Powell said he did regret his testimony in light of the new information.
Cigars? Cigarettes? Nails for Bush’s coffin?
5657. jexster - 5/15/2004 5:51:54 PM
Good money after bad...70 Million in attack ads, Kerry +7% not very smart
Krony Kapitalist Khronicles:
Pioneers Fill Coffers, Reap Rewards - WPost
Obviously the rich in America have more money than they know what to do with.
5658. jexster - 5/15/2004 5:52:20 PM
dry rub
5659. jayackroyd - 5/15/2004 6:35:36 PM
Interesting image from the Washington Monthly blog.
5660. jayackroyd - 5/15/2004 6:36:25 PM
test
5661. judithathome - 5/15/2004 6:37:45 PM
Powell's little MTP gaffe is being shown all over the gabfest shows this morning...I'd bet the aide that shoved the camera is looking for a job by tonight.
5662. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 5/15/2004 6:45:39 PM
It looks like our staircase to Hell.
America was warned!
[Judith I lost your phone#.]
5663. judithathome - 5/15/2004 7:39:02 PM
On its way!
5664. judithathome - 5/15/2004 7:44:22 PM
Seymore Hersh's Latest: The Gray Zone
5665. jexster - 5/15/2004 7:49:29 PM
Sharks circling....
Bush faces conservative dissent on Iraq
President Bush sought to soothe his conservative base in a speech before the American Conservative Union last night, invoking the names Ronald Reagan and Barry Goldwater.
But Knight-Ridder reports that Bush faces sharp dissent from conservatives "that could force him to change course on the war in Iraq and other issues or risk losing critical support for his re-election campaign."
"The complaints are rising from the traditional conservative wing of the Republican Party — including such influential voices as Rep. Henry Hyde of Illinois and columnist George Will, who are challenging the 'neo-conservative' doctrine that the United States can remake the Middle East by toppling Saddam Hussein and nurturing a democracy.
"...If dissatisfaction over the war and other hot-button issues --such as soaring federal-budget deficits, an expensive new Medicare drug entitlement and a proposed near-amnesty for illegal immigrants --spreads through conservative ranks, it could force Bush to change course or face the prospect that some conservatives might sit out what's expected to be another close election. Bush tried to rally his base last night, addressing the 40th annual meeting of the American Conservative Union in Washington. He stuck to his Middle East vision of a new democracy in Iraq."
" ... Days earlier, Sen. Pat Roberts, R-Kan., chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, suggested Bush's vision of America's role may be unrealistic and unwise. 'We need to restrain what are growing U.S. messianic instincts, a sort of global social engineering"
5666. jexster - 5/15/2004 10:29:20 PM
Financial Times: Support for Bush Plummets Over Iraq
5667. jexster - 5/16/2004 10:58:41 AM
Bush Strategery for Dealing With Torture Scandals: Blame the Trailer Trash
WOW! Who'da thunk it.
5668. jexster - 5/16/2004 11:51:45 AM
Governator Keeps Noxious Weed at Safe Distance
5669. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 5/16/2004 2:51:43 PM
The October Surprise
5670. jexster - 5/16/2004 6:31:03 PM
The most important and most effective part of any political campaign is Field Ops one on one contact. Studies have shown that face to face contact is as much as three times more effective than TV advertising and 10 times more than mailings or emailings
This is particularly the case for democrats in general and this year in particular inasmuch as Kerry polls very well among usually low turnout groups, kids and independents....
You can join the Kerry Field Operation in your area by clicking here
.
Even if you think pavement pounding and face-to-face with strangers isn't your thing, try it! Too shy or unable, sign up anyway..you will see a box for on line work
5671. jexster - 5/16/2004 6:49:18 PM
The Russert Potato was still fuming on the Today Show
"Emily, get out of the way" - Salon
Powell's newsworthy admission about the WMD "evidence" wasn't even the most exciting part of Meet the Press yesterday.
From Howard Kurtz: "Anyone who saw 'Meet the Press' yesterday witnessed quite a moment: A State Department staffer tried to pull the plug on Tim Russert yesterday. Toward the end of a 'Meet the Press' interview with Secretary of State Colin Powell in Jordan, the camera suddenly moved off Powell to a shot of trees in front of the water.
"You're off," State Department press aide Emily Miller was heard saying.
"I am not off," Powell insisted.
"No, they can't use it, they're editing it," Miller said.
"He's still asking the questions," Powell said.
Miller, a onetime NBC staffer who recently worked for House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, also told Powell: "He was going to go for another five minutes."
Undeterred, Russert complained from Washington: "I would hope they would put you back on camera. I don't know who did that." He later said, "I think that was one of your staff Mr. Secretary. I don't think that's appropriate."
As the delay dragged on, Powell ordered: "Emily, get out of the way. Bring the camera back please." Powell's image returned to the screen, and Russert asked his last question.
What happened was that both NBC and Fox News were using Jordanian television facilities for back-to-back Powell interviews. Russert was allotted 10 minutes, and was asked to wrap when he went over by about two minutes. He said "Finally, Mr. Secretary," but abruptly lost his guest.
5672. judithathome - 5/16/2004 7:02:58 PM
Trained by DeLay! Ha!
5673. jayackroyd - 5/16/2004 8:18:58 PM
Well Kerry had assets coming into his second marriage, and his wife had still more. It turns out his daughter has some assets of her own.
5674. robertjayb - 5/16/2004 9:19:46 PM
More than you probably want to know about Tom DeLay:
Consumer Alert: This longish and scary piece dated 2001 appears to be on the site of a political opponent but it rings true to me (Sorry, I'm too lazy at the moment to scour Washington Post archives for confirmation).
In it Emily Miller (Colin's wannabe censor) is revealed as a former spokesperson for DeLay and Tom is outed by his brother as a dry-drunk for Jesus.
He (Randy Delay) believes his brother's fiery aggressive side is driven largely by unresolved anger. "Tom's compulsive behavior, it's a way of life," he says. All four of the DeLay siblings have become deeply religious, and Randy thinks that is not a coincidence. "Through alcoholism, I believe God has made us dependent on Him. I believe the pain of alcoholism brought us all to Christ. That's the way God works."
Remind you of anyone?
5675. jexster - 5/16/2004 9:36:18 PM
Well well well what have we here.
Ah more hypocritical BULLSHIT for George W. Bush:
Fifty years ago today, nine judges announced that they had looked at the Constitution and saw no justification for the segregation and humiliation of an entire race," Bush said at the opening of a national historic site at Monroe Elementary, a former all-black school in the heartland of the school desegregation effort.
"Here on the corner of 15th and Monroe, and in schools like it across America, that was a day of justice, and it was a long time coming," the president said.
Judges at the constitution and finding things that no one had before..
Sound familiar? It should
That's the very argument Bush used in his 2002 campaigning..and again in his culture war against gay and lesbian marriage (he and NitWit Romney)...
Gotta get rid of those judges that invent laws..that see things in the constution that none had seen before.
What crap
5676. jexster - 5/16/2004 9:38:19 PM
That would Emily Miller, Porch-monkey handler
Every monkey in that administration has a handler....that why the Veep gets the big bucks...
5677. jexster - 5/16/2004 9:41:17 PM
They love UR stuff down tuh Mizzurah Citah there Robert...
I call it the 'UmbleTexican Report
5678. jexster - 5/17/2004 1:20:11 AM
Dear john,
I wanted to give our top Democratic activists (AHEM! :) ] an update on where our campaign stands, and the grassroots way you can help the Kerry campaign and the Democratic National Committee on our road to victory.
George Bush and Dick Cheney have spent $70 million on misleading ads. That's almost double what John Kerry has spent taking his positive message directly to the American people. Yet in nearly every poll, we're ahead.....
Hang in there and keep working. Together, we'll win.
Thank you,
Mary Beth Cahill
Campaign Manager, John Kerry for President
P.S. Here's the national polling data I mentioned earlier:
National Polls Show Kerry Well Positioned to Beat Bush
Poll after poll conducted in May show John Kerry more than holding his ground as the race remains extremely tight, despite huge Bush spending on ads. This shows our me
Poll KERRY Bush Date
Time/CNN 51% 46% 5/13/04
CNN/UST/Gallup 50% 46% 5/9/04
ARG 46% 44% 5/6/04
AP/Ipsos 41% 44% 5/5/05
Fox/OD 43% 46% 5/5/04
Gallup 49% 47% 5/4/04
Quinnipiac 43% 44% 5/3/04
NBC/WSJ* 42% 46% 5/3/04
*Includes Nader (3-way horse race)
Stay the course.
Bring it on.
Let's Roll.
God Bless America. Amen
5679. jexster - 5/17/2004 3:51:03 AM
Once A Politician's Trust Scores Go...You Can Stick a Fork in Him
A Question of Trust
Here's a result from that recent Time/CNN poll that I never got around to flagging but it's an important one: Bush's status as "a leader you can trust" as opposed to one about whom "you have some doubts and reservations" continues to decline. For the first time, he's under 40 percent on this one, with 39 percent saying he's a leader they can trust, compared to 59 percent who have doubts and reservations (37/61 among independents).
Also dipping below 40 percent for the first time in this poll is the number who say the war against Iraq was "was worth the toll it has taken in American lives and other kinds of costs". That's now down to 37 percent, as against 56 percent who say the war hasn't been worth those costs (35/60 among independents).
Posted at 09:34 PM | link | Comments
5680. jexster - 5/17/2004 8:42:07 AM
In by one vote out by a landslide????
mmmm....very interesting..
>Kerry Surges to Massive 327-211 Lead Electoral College Projection
Hell Kerry is just killin time til July...just wait Company's comin and the 9-11 commission is going to lay bare the last lie...
The War President farce
5681. jexster - 5/17/2004 2:43:43 PM
There is, I think, a coalescing sense that President Bush is a failed president
Thanks be to Allah, the Magnificent and Just -- His Name Be Praised, George Bush Be Glazed
5682. Magoseph - 5/17/2004 4:17:09 PM
This link doesn't work, jex.
5683. jexster - 5/17/2004 4:34:44 PM
MR. RUSSERT: Thank you very much, sir.
In February of 2003, you put your enormous personal reputation on the line before the United Nations and said that you had solid sources for the case against Saddam Hussein. It now appears that an agent called "Curve Ball" had misled the CIA by suggesting that Saddam had trucks and trains that were delivering biological chemical weapons.
How concerned are you that some of the information you shared with the world is now inaccurate and discredited?
SECRETARY POWELL: I'm very concerned.
5684. jexster - 5/17/2004 4:37:33 PM
We are all very concerned about the whereabouts of Concerned?
Victim of CIA black op?
Violent turruhrissts?
Mags holdin him as a love slave?
The Link of Concern
5685. jexster - 5/17/2004 4:38:35 PM
Stolen from Africa
Brought to America...
5686. judithathome - 5/17/2004 6:21:07 PM
Today on Crossfire...and not bad questions for this thread, either:
In the Crossfire… surging gas prices are fueling a new round of debate as the presidential candidates play pocketbook politics. As the summer travel season starts for millions of Americans, the thought of paying more than two dollars for a gallon gas may have families tightening their belts. But the possibility that an increase in consumer prices will put the brakes on an otherwise zooming economic recovery has government leaders racing to find a solution.
Did Democrats green-light higher prices when they killed the president's plan to drill in the arctic reserve? Is Bush's energy plan really just a giveaway to oil executives as John Kerry suggests? Should Bush release some of the nation's oil reserve? Would increased supply really lower your price at the pump? Does the summer hike in prices threaten the economic recovery? Does Kerry have an energy plan of his own? And will higher prices at the pump affect votes at the polls?
5687. OhioSTOPAS - 5/17/2004 7:10:48 PM
A week or two ago a motion to amend Senate legislation to provide an extension to existing unemployment benefits failed by a 59-40 vote (60 votes being needed for procedural reasons). The only Senator to miss the vote was John Kerry, who was off campaigning.
Right-wing commentators have had sport with decrying Kerry's selfishness and irresponsibility in missing this vote, which they say would have passed had Kerry only shown up for the vote. An example is this story in Rupert Murdoch's right-wing Boston Herald (i.e., as the Bush-Cheney campaign calls it, "John Kerry's hometown newspaper").
(continued)
5688. OhioSTOPAS - 5/17/2004 7:11:03 PM
However, it would have been an easy matter for one or more of the twelve Republicans who voted for the amendment to change his or her vote if Kerry had been there to vote. And in fact, as reported in "The Hill", Republican Elizabeth Dole was prepared to switch her vote if necessary:
"The one-vote defeat of an extension of unemployment benefits last week has sparked fear among Democrats that Republicans have developed a legislative model that will cast Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) repeatedly in a bad light before the election.
"The extension needed 60 votes to pass in the Senate, and 12 Republicans made sure the final tally was 59-40, with only one absentee, presidential candidate Kerry.
"At least one Republican senator, Elizabeth Dole (N.C.), was prepared to switch to a “no” vote to make sure the measure was defeated even if Kerry returned to cast his vote, a Democrat charged.
"Even if Dole had stood firm, observers on both sides believe the GOP leadership would have been able to turn other Republicans to ensure defeat.
"But by calculating the vote to a nicety, the GOP managed to make Kerry appear to be responsible for the defeat because he was a no-show.. . .
"Asked whether Republicans manipulated the outcome of the vote, Eric Ueland, Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist’s (R-Tenn.) deputy chief of staff, flashed a smile and replied: 'I have no comment — and that’s on the record.' . . ."
I'm sure we'll hear the tale about "Kerry's no-show" again before the election is over, but only the uninformed, naive or willfully disingenous will spread it.
5689. Magoseph - 5/17/2004 8:31:43 PM
Half-naked Kerry's daughter in Cannes
Alexandra Kerry, 30-year-old daughter of US Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry, walked up Cannes' celebrated red-carpet for the premiere of Quentin Tarantino's "Kill Bill 2" wearing an off-shoulder black number that turned transparent under the flashes.
Kerry, who is showing a short film at the festival, was tailed by the press during her stay at Cannes but French newspapers reported that her staff had warned journalists off questions concerning her famous father.
Her film entitled "The Last Full Measure" is being presented in the Short Film Corner section and describes the ravage wreaked on a US family by the Vietnam war.
"The characters are fictional", she said. "I wasn't born when my father came back from Vietnam."
Kerry has also been seen about town with her French cousin, Brice Lalonde, a former environment minister and Greens leader.
5690. judithathome - 5/17/2004 8:34:23 PM
I had a sweater that showed up transparent under a flash like that...of course, I had more on under it than she did but still, you can't always tell how things will look under flash bulbs.
5691. judithathome - 5/17/2004 8:34:53 PM
She looks like her daddy.
5692. Magoseph - 5/17/2004 8:34:56 PM
Now, let's watch what the Republicans will do with this picture.
5693. jexster - 5/17/2004 9:07:44 PM
Worried Republicans Glad Election Not Until Nov.
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - With turbulence in Iraq (news - web sites) pushing down President Bush (news - web sites)'s approval ratings to their lowest level ever, worried Republicans are taking consolation that the presidential election is 5 1/2 months away.
"I'm glad the election is not being held today. But you know what? It's not being held today," said Republican pollster Whit Ayres.
Republicans said the key to Bush's rebounding is to bring a sense of stability in Iraq. The Bush administration is hoping that process will be aided by the scheduled June 30 transfer of sovereignty to an interim Iraqi government.
"They need to have a successful handoff of the government and show the American people that there's an end game," said Republican strategist Scott Reed.
William Kristol, editor of the conservative "Weekly Standard" magazine, told Fox News Sunday it appears people have doubts about Bush they did not have a few months ago because "they're not confident we have a credible strategy for winning in Iraq."
"If they believe we can win in Iraq, I think they'll re-elect Bush. If they think we just have to get out of there, well, why not make the change to (Democrat John) Kerry? 'Bush is the guy who got us in the mess,"' he said.
A Newsweek poll of registered voters said Kerry was favored by 43 percent, while Bush took 42 percent and independent candidate Ralph Nader (news - web sites) polled at 5 percent. A CNN/Time poll of likely voters showed Kerry with 49 percent, Bush with 44 percent and Nader with 6 percent.
The polls could signal trouble for Bush, because recent history shows incumbents running for re-election with numbers in the mid-40s at this point have been defeated.
5694. jexster - 5/17/2004 9:09:01 PM
Fork please
5695. jayackroyd - 5/17/2004 9:20:35 PM
the link in 5673 provides a larger image. And Page 3 girls to boot.
5696. thoughtful - 5/17/2004 9:36:08 PM
j@h, re the gas prices, it's not at all clear to me that bush needs any saudi help to manipulate the gas prices. Data from the EIA (energy info admin) suggests that part of the demand for oil has been a buildup in the US strategic petroleum reserve. They only need to stop building the reserve to drop US oil demand. I don't follow these numbers closely to know if the calculation is correct, but it's something like from q4 to q1 us oil demand was 20 mbd of which 13mbd went into the reserve. If correct, it would suggest that that alone can have a nontrivial impact on oil price. Be interesting to see if the additions to the petrol reserve stop, say around sept.
5697. jayackroyd - 5/17/2004 9:55:09 PM
I don't think that works, thoughtful The reserve is supposed to top out at 700 million barrels, and is currently at 659. From the strategic reserve web site, the scheduled purchases, as of today:
Strategic Petroleum Reserve Inventory for May 18, 2004
Year Month Scheduled(MB)
2004 Apr 6073
2004 May 3248
2004 Jun 1000
2004 Jul 3965
2004 Aug 3235
2004 Sep 2000
2004 Oct 5600
Consumption of oil is about 20 mbd in the US. Cancelling all these deliveries would add about one and one quarter days worth of oil to the US supply.
5698. judithathome - 5/17/2004 10:00:18 PM
All I know is, I am paying $2.09 a gallon for my gas.
5699. jayackroyd - 5/17/2004 10:19:07 PM
A lot of Bush's supporters live in wide open spaces and drive great big cars hundreds of miles a month. A spring and summer of prices to the north of 2 dollars is not going to send them enthusiastically to the polls in support of the president.
Moreover, if these prices hold, then we're gonna dip back into recession. Real consumer spending will have to fall as the effects of more expensive energy works its way through the various sectors. During the embargo, Nixon and the Fed accomodated the price rises--that is, they pursued policies to raise the general price level in an attempt to disguise the fall in real income stemming from the increase in energy prices. This was the policy that led Nixon to say "We are all Keynsians now." The effects of that policy were not wrung out of the system until Volcker held steady, and Reagan took the 1982 recession.
This little morality tale is the heart of the new classical economics attacks on the neo-classicists. The policy rested on a critical Keynesian assumption--a thing called "money illusion." Keynes believed that if people saw their wages rising, they would keep spending, even though they were getting less stuff for their higher wages. The new classical guys mantra is "People aren't stupid." They eventually notice that prices are rising faster than wages, and build inflation into their various economic arrangements.
In short, if these prices hold, real incomes will fall, and consumers will buy less stuff. Aside from releasing oil from the reserve, there is little the administration can do about this.
5700. thoughtful - 5/17/2004 10:30:50 PM
Ok, Jay, got it. Look here and, for example, last apr the spr was 599 and this feb it's 647 or an addition of 48 million barrels in 10 mos or nearly 5 mb per month. So they have been building the spr but not that quickly. I remember reading an analyst report about it though that suggested adding to the spr was a factor in us oil demand...but clearly not as much as that analyst suggested. Thanks for checking it out for me.
5701. alistairConnor - 5/17/2004 10:44:01 PM
you can't always tell how things will look under flash bulbs.
Give her credit... She knew exactly what it would look like...
Kerry has also been seen about town with her French cousin, Brice Lalonde, a former environment minister and Greens leader.
Sloppy reporting (Lalonde was never a Green) and exceedingly poor political taste on her part (he's a right-wing renegade scumbag)
but you can't choose your family, after all.
5702. judithathome - 5/17/2004 10:50:47 PM
Alistair, no you cannot tell. I wore a black sweater when I went to meet Irving Snodgrass in Dallas a few years ago. He had a digital camera with him and took pictures...we were all surprised to see my black bra clearly visible through my sweater.
So she may not have know that would happen. It might have looked opaquely black in the mirror at the hotel...just as my sweater did in my mirror at home.
5703. alistairConnor - 5/17/2004 10:57:30 PM
Come come... comely young director at Cannes... sure she screen tested that dress.
And what are the republicans going to do about it? (other than drool)
5704. judithathome - 5/17/2004 11:03:20 PM
I don't agree with you but whatever.
5705. robertjayb - 5/17/2004 11:45:29 PM
Tomorrow is don't-buy-gas day Some group is promoting a scheme to bankrupt oil companies.
I want to help so I'll top up the tank tonight.
5706. arkymalarky - 5/18/2004 1:45:15 AM
I got an email saying it would be more effective to boycott Exxon/Mobil. I figure I can do both. I don't buy from them anyway.
5707. jexster - 5/18/2004 3:39:52 PM
I just noticed what freeway this is..
US 101
Hollywood Freeway @ Cahuenga Pass crossing from Stud City into Hollywood..
5708. jexster - 5/18/2004 5:35:22 PM
It was an e-mail we weren't meant to see. Not for our eyes were the notes that showed White House staffers taking two-hour meetings with Christian fundamentalists, where they passed off bogus social science on gay marriage as if it were holy writ and issued fiery warnings that "the Presidents [sic] Administration and current Government is engaged in cultural, economical, and social struggle on every level"—this to a group whose representative in Israel believed herself to have been attacked by witchcraft unleashed by proximity to a volume of Harry Potter. Most of all, apparently, we're not supposed to know the National Security Council's top Middle East aide consults with apocalyptic Christians eager to ensure American policy on Israel conforms with their sectarian doomsday scenarios.
But now we know.
"Everything that you're discussing is information you're not supposed to have," barked Pentecostal minister Robert G. Upton when asked about the off-the-record briefing his delegation received on March 25. Details of that meeting appear in a confidential memo signed by Upton and obtained by the Voice. The Jesus Landing Pad, Village Voice
5709. jexster - 5/18/2004 5:36:05 PM
Truly it IS the Lord's doing and most marvelous in our eyes!
5710. jexster - 5/18/2004 5:38:04 PM
Jesus, Mary and Joseph he actually let's these loons into the White House, and we're not talkin tours here..
Good God.
5711. jexster - 5/18/2004 5:40:40 PM
The Apostolic Congress
What a bowl of nuts!
5712. jexster - 5/18/2004 9:39:48 PM
You can stick a fork in the Tejas Turkey...he's done
CNN:
2000,...
86% of Democrats supported Gore
2004
95% of Democrats support Kerry
This has NEVER happened before in my lifetime
Kerry Kerry Makes US Merry!
5713. jexster - 5/18/2004 9:57:10 PM
Beaming over a 13% Democratic lead over republicans in the House and brimming with confidence that she will be our next Speaker....
Madame Speaker the President of the United States!
5714. jexster - 5/18/2004 10:17:07 PM
REWARD
For information leading to the arrest or capture of fugitive from justice ThomasD aka concerned
I will give the fugitive a new deck of cards!
5715. jexster - 5/19/2004 3:10:40 AM
CNN's chief British correspondent suggests an OCTOBER SURPRISE:
By the October Labour Party conference, the vultures will have picked clean the rotting corpse of Tony Blair.
A mighty coalition indeed
5716. jexster - 5/19/2004 3:17:18 AM
These are mighty heady times we are livin in...
We're talking unity unseen since FDR..if then..
Yes vK, the unified Democratic party is alive, well and extremely relevant....from John Edwards to John Dean both working their asses off as surrogates and fundraisers
We've not seen anything like it, not seen anything yet.
Outbreak of Party Unity! Ruy T
5717. jexster - 5/19/2004 4:00:53 PM
BURBANK, Calif. (Reuters) - U.S. First lady Laura Bush was warned by her mother-in-law never to criticize George W. Bush's speeches, and the one time she did, he drove the car into the garage wall, she said on Wednesday.
5718. robertjayb - 5/19/2004 6:23:19 PM
Kerry leads New Jersey poll...
TRENTON, N.J. (AP) - Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry is slightly ahead of President Bush among registered voters in New Jersey polled by Quinnipiac University.
Forty-six percent of the respondents support Kerry, 43 percent back Bush, and 5 percent would vote for independent candidate Ralph Nader. The poll, released Thursday, has a sampling error margin of plus or minus 3 percentage points.
Among independent voters polled, Kerry and Bush are about even in the race for New Jersey's 15 electoral votes.
5719. KuligintheHooligan - 5/19/2004 6:29:10 PM
You see, I find those numbers interesting. If you listen to the Bush detractors in The Mote, you'd think the sky was falling. Fact is, though, the numbers just don't reflect that.
Let me put this another way. There is all this negative stuff coming out, and still Bush is right in there in the polls. It is almost as if people are dying to vote against him, but just can't bring themselves to do it.
Could it be because the Democratic Party has Kerry in the seat? I gather that if it were, say, Clinton or someone like him, the numbers right now would be incredibly in his favor, given all the negative publicity here.
What this tells me is that things are no where near final. Just a few good, positive reports in the months if not weeks before the election, and Kerry will probably be toast, especially if all he can do is muster paltry leads now, with all the anti-Bush reports going on.
5720. Wombat - 5/19/2004 7:22:58 PM
In his analysis, Kuligan omits the failure of the Republican's extensive--and expensive--advertising campaign over the last few months to better Bush's standing against Kerry.
5721. jexster - 5/19/2004 9:14:23 PM
Bush Begs Republicans 'Keep the Faith'
Stay the course?
Let's Roll?
Bring it on?
War President?
5722. jexster - 5/19/2004 9:15:57 PM
Never in the history of Presidential polled politics has a President in George W.'s current position won ..NEVER
Kerry will squish him like a cockroach and come November Kulligan the Moron will still be saying Bush can win
5723. jexster - 5/19/2004 9:18:29 PM
We are quite simply witnessing the greatest political decomposition in US political history
5724. jexster - 5/19/2004 9:38:08 PM
Talk about a not-so-fun meeting.
President Bush was up on the Hill this morning meeting with Congressional Republicans to quell their growing anxiety that their job security may be only marginally greater than that of the Iraq Interim Governing Council.
The tenor of the event can probably be judged by the fact that the 'rallying cry' coming out of the event seems to have been that things are really bad and almost certain to get worse.
Rah! Rah!...
5725. KuligintheHooligan - 5/19/2004 10:09:57 PM
"We are quite simply witnessing the greatest political decomposition in US political history"
See, more exaggeration from you jexster. Can't you stand on facts at least? This isn't true period, let alone in recent political history. Bush Jr. never had the positive numbers that his father had, and Bush Sr. lost an election only a year after having over 90% approval ratings.
This thing is far from over. Anybody who thinks otherwise is naive at best.
5726. arkymalarky - 5/19/2004 11:40:34 PM
But Jex is right in #5722, and viewed in light of Wombat's point, Bush is in real trouble. They're making a lot of money, but they're spending it earlier than they should have had to and it's not having much if any impact.
5727. arkymalarky - 5/20/2004 12:52:00 AM
School Consolidation Issue Apparently Affected Some Races
Wish we'd had time and energy to get more broadly involved. Not many people wanted to run this time, and I don't blame them after watching what legislators have gone through the last two years.
5728. jexster - 5/20/2004 2:22:58 AM
"Liar and incompetents" Came up with that campaign theme about a year ago
So imagine my pride ...
Washington -- House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi of San Francisco offered her strongest condemnation yet of President Bush on Wednesday, assailing him as incompetent and declaring that the only way for the United States to triumph in Iraq is to replace him as commander in chief.
"Bush is an incompetent leader. In fact, he's not a leader,'' Pelosi said. "He's a person who has no judgment, no experience and no knowledge of the subjects that he has to decide upon.''
"It's a dangerous situation,'' Kerry said on his campaign plane earlier in the week. "You have to give the president some room to get things done, but if he doesn't do what he has to do ..."
Kerry did not finish the sentence.
"He's gone,'' Pelosi said of Bush. "He's so gone.''
That's MY CongressGirl!!!
5729. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 5/20/2004 2:39:47 AM
. . . and “Dick Is A Killer!“
5730. jexster - 5/20/2004 2:48:13 AM
Not only THAT she used ANOTHER line..well actually Andersen's
"The Emperor has no clothes!"
5731. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 5/20/2004 4:54:11 AM
5732. KuligintheHooligan - 5/20/2004 7:02:15 PM
I posted this in the Religion Thread in response to a comment made there, but think it appropriate for this thread as well:
"Of course Bush does stand for other things such as depriving the poor to the benefit of the rich"
I feel the need to comment on this example from wonkers of mindless, parroted Democratic rhetoric concerning Bush (and, in fact, every Repub that ever runs for office).
I am poor. By the characterization of the government, my salary falls well below the poverty level. For example, my 3-year old son may need speech therapy. My salary is HALF of the minimum level the State requires before I begin to pay anything toward that therapy.
So my 2002 tax return involves a substantial payment back to me, all thanks for the tax cuts of the current president. I can't say the same thing at all about Clinton.
What wonkers said above (and arky said the same thing elsewhere) is just bullshit, nothing less. I know because I am living proof that it isn't true. The Bush tax credits and cuts have helped me substantially, and I am "the poor."
5733. jayackroyd - 5/20/2004 7:06:15 PM
So my 2002 tax return involves a substantial payment back to me, all thanks for the tax cuts of the current president.
Actually, those provisions were inserted by the democrats.
5734. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 5/20/2004 7:11:22 PM
What wonkers said above (and arky said the same thing elsewhere) is just bullshit, nothing less. I know because I am living proof that it isn't true. The Bush tax credits and cuts have helped me substantially, and I am "the poor."
Yeah right, “the poor” I know can’t spend all their time arguing about Christian dogma and defending a feckless surrogate for the opulent.
And you only did well from the tax cut because you’re a breeder—discounting the fact, that your kids are adorable.
5735. KuligintheHooligan - 5/20/2004 7:11:51 PM
Oh, I see how you play the game now. Fine. Whatever.
5736. KuligintheHooligan - 5/20/2004 7:12:47 PM
"And you only did well from the tax cut because you’re a breeder—discounting the fact, that your kids are adorable."
Um, actually, you'd have to give all the "breeding" credit to my wife! :-)
5737. KuligintheHooligan - 5/20/2004 7:13:12 PM
#5735 was in response to #5733
5738. KuligintheHooligan - 5/20/2004 7:14:18 PM
"Yeah right, “the poor” I know can’t spend all their time arguing about Christian dogma and defending a feckless surrogate for the opulent."
Whatever WoW. I know what my salary is and what is reported on my tax return, and it squarely falls in line with "the poor" definition of the State, regardless of what you might think to the contrary. Fortunately, your opinion doesn't mean squat.
5739. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 5/20/2004 8:05:35 PM
Then why bother responding?
5740. jexster - 5/20/2004 8:21:53 PM
Chris Rock's Quote of the Day:
"You know the world is going crazy when:
the best rapper is a white guy,
the best golfer is a black guy,
the tallest guy in the NBA is Chinese,
the Swiss hold the America's Cup,
France is accusing the U.S. of arrogance,
Germany doesn't want to go to war,
and the three most powerful men in America are named 'Bush', 'Dick', and 'Colon'. Need I say more?"
5741. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 5/20/2004 8:43:24 PM
5742. jexster - 5/20/2004 9:23:50 PM
LIARS AND INCOMPETENTS 8/03
But hats off to Josh Marshall!
Pelosi, Shlemosi ... On the incompetence beat before incompetence was cool!
"Confidence Men: Why the myth of Republican competence persists, despite all the evidence to the contrary" September, 2002, The Washington Monthly.
For the Cheney-specific incompetence case, see "Vice Grip" from Jan/Feb 2003.
What? I've gotta plug my own stuff sometimes, right?
-- Josh Marshall
5743. jexster - 5/20/2004 9:24:30 PM
And hats off to you wiz...Nancy's local apparats LOVE your homage
5744. jexster - 5/20/2004 9:24:33 PM
And hats off to you wiz...Nancy's local apparats LOVE your homage
5745. OhioSTOPAS - 5/20/2004 9:30:38 PM
Wiz, I think you just insulted about a hundred billion cicadas. Better lay low the next few weeks.
5746. jexster - 5/20/2004 9:32:20 PM
RE: OBJECTION ASKED AND ANSWERED!
Well the Final Conflict has begun Josh!
The Black Op - "Regime Change" is now in full swing. "
Sometimes we have to plug our own stuff" right?
He is SOOOO gone!
note from a reader who is a former US government official ...
OK, the press has now understood that Chalabi was providing US intelligence to the Iranian intelligence service. That's a start.
Here are some questions you might want to ask.
Where did he get the intelligence to leak? Who gave Chalabi the leaked classified information?
Was it lawful to provide Chalabi with classified USG military information that included such things as where our troops were and what they were doing?
Who is under investigation as a result of the intercepts of the Iranians discussing the intelligence provided by Chalabi? Who are the investigators? Has this been referred to the Department of Justice?
Did his provision of that information to Iran result in the death of US soldiers in Shi'ia areas?
Are the intel leaks the reason for the raids of Chalabi's home?
Are the intel leaks the reason they cut off his income?
Why did the USG say that Chalabi was not a "target" of the raids on his home? (It's possible other members of his family are the ones who are being used directly to provide the intel to Iran.)
Hmmmm. Who were Chalabi's US government interlocutors? What a mystery ...
-- Josh Marshall
5747. jexster - 5/20/2004 9:41:12 PM
Chorus:
Deep in my heart I do believe
We shall/will overcome some day
We shall overcome
We shall overcome
We shall overcome
Some day
We'll walk hand in hand
Some day
We shall live in peace
Some day
We are not afraid
Today
The whole wide world around
Some day
5748. jexster - 5/20/2004 9:43:24 PM
They wanted death ..they wanted hate..they wanted culture wars..they wanted war...
The battle is joined..they are SO GONE
Back to the tent revivals poisonous snakes and gobbledygook hand waving..
Off to Jesus's launch pad.
We shall overcome
5749. jexster - 5/20/2004 9:44:25 PM
We are the united Democrats
We are the Church MILITANT
5750. jexster - 5/20/2004 9:57:56 PM
A call to conscience
The diplomat who quit over Nixon's invasion of Cambodia asks Americans on the front lines of foreign service to resign from the "worst regime by far in the history of the republic"
5751. jayackroyd - 5/20/2004 10:15:04 PM
There are reports that Kerry may delay accepting the nomination for a month after the convention, in order to be able to match the Bush campaign's spending.
5752. robertjayb - 5/20/2004 10:19:01 PM
The AP says John Kerry may delay acceptance of the demo nomination in order to continue raising and spending private money. Wow! The sly fellow. How Rovian...How DeLayish...
5753. robertjayb - 5/20/2004 10:22:18 PM
Curses...nipped at the wire...
5754. robertjayb - 5/20/2004 11:05:49 PM
If Kerry's ploy will hasten the inevitable demise of the national convention as consumer of an inordinate amount of time and resources, I'm strongly in favor.
5755. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 5/21/2004 3:03:32 AM
Jex, Ohio- Just keep buggin' those bastards!
5756. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 5/21/2004 3:05:41 AM
Ecce The War President . . .
5757. jexster - 5/21/2004 12:28:22 PM
I wish I could find MORE..
Ohio has an EMBARRASMENT of riches in the Buckeye State I am sure..
I have found precisely TWO..one is chairman of the county republican party but because he's on the Homeless plan council and we're supposed to "check our partisanship at the door"...the best I can do I did yesterday at the Council meeting...
"Alioto says we have to check partisanship at the door. She didn't say anything about wearing under clothing" Unbutton shirt - A KERRY T!
5758. jexster - 5/21/2004 12:50:59 PM
First Fallujah, now Karbala
BUSH SURRENDERS!
KARBALA, Iraq (AFP) - Coalition troops and the militia of Moqtada Sadr withdrew from the centre of the holy city of Karbala, more than a month after the radical Shiite cleric launched an uprising in Iraq (news - web sites), an AFP reporter saw.
AFP Photo
Ali al-Kazali, a high-ranking member of Sadr's Mehdi Army militia, told AFP, "We have decided to remove all the (Mehdi) army presence from the centre of the city as we are waiting for the agreement with the other side to be finalised this afternoon," .
5759. jexster - 5/21/2004 2:11:55 PM
More Swing State News and Views
A new Morning Call/Muhlenberg College poll has Kerry up by 5 in Pennsylvania among RVs (48-43). The poll shows PA voters turning against the Iraq war, undoubtedly a factor in Kerry's current lead.
Speaking of swing states, here's some useful weekend reading. First, check out a new feature on The American Prospect website, "Purple People Watch", which they say they will post weekly. It's a roundup of political developments, polls, etc., from the swing, sometimes termed "purple", states. It looks like it should be quite useful, though it seems oddly hard to find on their website. I also noticed that, in a state or two, the poll they cite is not actually the latest one. Still, a very useful feature and I recommend it.
And, if you haven't already, you should scoot over to the DLC's website and check out Mark Gersh's article on "The New Battleground". Gersh, the data guru to countless Democrats, has an interesting take on which of the swing states are most truly in play and, commendably, figures into his assessments how a given state has changed demographically since the last election. I don't agree with everything he says, but it's food for thought in all cases.
Posted at 06:38 PM | link | Comments (2) Ruy T.
5760. jexster - 5/21/2004 3:30:35 PM
Kerry's Latest Ad: OIL HOUSE
5761. jexster - 5/22/2004 12:30:13 AM
Horse Shies During Round-Up, Bush Thrown, Narrowly Escapes Death in Stampede
5762. robertjayb - 5/22/2004 3:46:24 AM
jexster you are an annoying pissant.
CRAWFORD, Texas (Reuters) - President Bush (news - web sites) suffered minor abrasions after falling off a mountain bike while cycling on his Texas ranch on Saturday, the White House said
5763. jexster - 5/22/2004 3:55:48 AM
In Coming to our senses? James Galbraith ran the metrics on Bush.
His findings support the hypothesis that Bush's slide in the polls has little to do with Clarke, the 9/11 commission hearings, the April Insurgency, the Bush Gulag of Torture and Death, the defeat in the War on Iraq, rising gas prices or anything else..
The analysis suggests that most of the electorate, though certainly not unaware, has not paid that much attention. At the same time however the electorate along with the Media HAS come out of our collective 9/11 Coma. Events and the perceptible change in opinion elites and the media point to an accelleration of the downhill slide of an inexorable trend - or in Nancy's words "The emperor has no clothes".
They also suggest opportunity for Bush in national disaster...that's a risky throw of the dice...will he play the come?
>
5764. jexster - 5/22/2004 3:56:34 AM
Do YOU remember the Alamo Robert?
5765. jexster - 5/22/2004 4:07:04 AM
Flattery will get you absolutely nowhere R...
5766. jexster - 5/23/2004 5:27:08 PM
Newsweek: Perfect Firestorm Brings on GOP Panic Attack
Bush's Falling Polls Cause Pigpile Hysteria
Eleanor Clift writes, "The Bush juggernaut looks like the Keystone Cops. What's going on would be pure farce, except it's tragedy because so many people are dying. Missiles slam into what Iraqis said was a wedding ceremony, leaving women and children among the dead. Israel is going
crazy in the Gaza Strip, bulldozing Palestinian homes and shooting into a crowd of peaceful demonstrators. At home, gas prices are rising to an all-time high and in Canton, Ohio, a steel plant that Bush touted as a model last year announced it was closing, costing another 1,300 jobs in a state that has already lost 170,000 in the manufacturing sector.
Surveying the wreckage, an aide to a prominent Senate Republican termed it a 'perfect storm of bad events.' It came home to Republicans this week in a way it hasn't before that Bush could lose in November...
There is panic on the Hill among Republicans because if the bottom falls out of the Bush campaign, they could lose the Senate."
5767. jexster - 5/23/2004 5:31:30 PM
And Not Just the Senate Either...Bush Slide in Polls Could Tip Congress to Democrats - LAT
"With Bush's political strength eroding, Democrats face improved electoral prospects this fall in the House and Senate -- political terrain that not long ago seemed firmly in the GOP's grip. Recent polls indicate that problems in Iraq and continuing lack of confidence in the economy
are not only hurting Bush but undercutting voters' assessment of Republicans in Congress... Democrats were encouraged by recent polls showing their party had gained an edge over the GOP when people were asked how
they would vote in congressional elections.
A Time/CNN poll found that 53% said they would vote for a Democratic candidate for Congress in their district, compared with 40% who said they would back the Republican.
A survey for the Associated Press reported that that 50% wanted Democrats to win control of Congress, compared with 41% favoring the Republicans."
Bush is an incompetent leader. In fact, he's not a leader," Pelosi told the San Francisco Chronicle in a 45-minute interview Wednesday in her Capitol office. "He's a person who has no judgment, no experience and no knowledge of the subjects that he has to decide upon."
5768. wonkers2 - 5/23/2004 5:49:22 PM
The President's Dangerous Ride
"There's a terrible sense of dread filtering across America at the moment and it's not simply because of the continuing
fear of terrorism and the fact that the nation is at war. It grows out of the suspicion that we all may be passengers in a vehicle that has made a radically wrong turn and is barreling along a dark road, with its headlights off and with someone behind the wheel who may not know how to drive."
Bob Herbert NYT op-ed 5-24-04
5769. jexster - 5/23/2004 6:05:21 PM
Behind the Wheel
"The course is headed over Niagara Falls"
My little girl
Drive anywhere
Do what you want
I don't care
Tonight
I'm in the hands of fate
I hand myself
Over on a plate
Now
Oh little girl
There are times when I feel
I rather not be
The one behind the wheel
Come
Pull my strings
Watch me move
I do anything
Please
Sweet little girl
I prefer
You behind the wheel
And me the passenger
Drive
I'm yours to keep
Do what you want
I'm going cheap
Tonight
You're behind the wheel, tonight Depeche Mode
5770. robertjayb - 5/23/2004 10:17:47 PM
Bush Approval Slides as 65% Cite `Wrong Direction,' Poll Says
May 24 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. President George W. Bush's job approval rating fell to the lowest level of his presidency and 65 percent of Americans -- the highest since 1994 -- say the country is on the ``wrong track,'' according to a CBS News poll.
Concern about the situation in Iraq contributed to Bush's job approval rating of 41 percent, down from 44 percent two weeks ago and 66 percent a year ago, the poll said.
Sixty-five percent!!!!!!!!!1
Tried to link via Bloomberg but couldn't...
5771. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 5/23/2004 10:31:32 PM
5772. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 5/23/2004 10:32:33 PM
5773. robertjayb - 5/23/2004 10:33:00 PM
Here is the CBS news poll...
As concern about the situation in Iraq grows, 65 percent now say the country is on the wrong track — matching the highest number ever recorded in CBS News Polls, which began asking this question in the mid-1980's. Only 30 percent currently say things in this country are headed in the right direction. One year ago, in April 2003, 56 percent of Americans said the country was headed in the right direction.
The last time the percentage that said the country was on the wrong track was as high as it is now was back in November 1994. Then, Republicans swept into control of both houses of Congress for the first time in decades.
Majorities disapprove of the way Mr. Bush is handling foreign policy and the economy. Terrorism remains the only positive area for the president — a majority of 51 percent approve of the way he is handling the campaign against terrorism. But that number matches his lowest rating ever on terrorism.
I'm reminding myself to be cautious of premature exhilaration...but I do believe I'll toast this news with a glass of Tito's handmade vodka.
5774. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 5/23/2004 10:33:51 PM
This one’s for Judith:
5775. judithathome - 5/23/2004 11:07:12 PM
Thanks, Wiz! ;-)
5776. robertjayb - 5/24/2004 12:25:50 AM
Wash-Post-ABC poll...More deep do-do for dubya...
Public approval of President Bush's handling of the conflict in Iraq has hit its lowest point in the latest Washington Post-ABC News Poll, with growing fears that the United States is bogged down, rising criticism of Bush's handling of the prison abuse scandal and slippage in support for keeping U.S. troops there until order is restored.
Support for Bush on virtually every aspect of the Iraq conflict has declined in the past month as the administration has battled insurgents on the ground and grappled with the expanding investigation into the treatment of Iraqi prisoners at the Abu Ghraib prison.
5777. robertjayb - 5/24/2004 12:33:50 AM
Here is data from Wash-Post-ABC poll...
5778. robertjayb - 5/24/2004 12:47:16 AM
Networks pass on dubya speech...
NEW YORK -- ABC, CBS and NBC decided not to offer live coverage of President Bush's speech about Iraq Monday, although the cable news networks planned to pre-empt their regular programming for the address.
Bush was to deliver the first in a series of speeches about the future of Iraq at the Army War College in Carlisle, Pa. CNN, Fox News Channel and MSNBC all said they would carry the speech live.
5779. jexster - 5/24/2004 1:58:44 AM
A rare flash of candor from John King, CNN Live at the White Palace...
"The speech is meant to convince Americans that he has a plan, not the rest of the world"
Does he think we're dumber than the fuckin Swedes?
5780. jexster - 5/24/2004 2:00:38 AM
That WROnG track (65%) is virtually identical to that in the lastest democracy corps survey(63%)
5781. judithathome - 5/24/2004 2:02:26 AM
Don't pick on John! I have a certain fondness for him.
5782. jexster - 5/24/2004 2:11:22 AM
Yes as well you should and hope too...he is a male whore
5783. jexster - 5/24/2004 2:13:39 AM
Not really his fault..
Bush won't allow any other sort in the TV media pool...the boy's gotta do what a boy's gotta do
May 24, 2004
Bush's Approval Rating Now Net Negative on War on Terrorism!
Wow! Not only has Bush's approval rating on handling the war on terrorism been dropping like a stone, the Annenberg Election Survey has now measured it in net negative territory: 46 percent approval/50 percent disapproval (May 17-23). That's a first and a very significant first. It means Bush's area of greatest strength is rapidly turning into political liability.
And check out the internals on this question: 41/53 among independents; 41/56 among 18-29 year olds; 41/56 among Hispanics and 40/54 among moderates.
5784. jexster - 5/24/2004 2:14:58 AM
The poll also finds the public now saying that the soldiers at Abu Ghraib followed orders (48 percent), rather than acted on their own (30 percent). That's a switch from two weeks ago when it was 47-31 the other way.
The poll has Bush's approval rating on Iraq at 39/57, including just 33/61 among independents and 30/66 among Hispanics. And, on whether "the situation in Iraq was worth going to war over, or not", the poll finds just 40 percent saying it was worth it, compared to 54 percent who say it wasn't. Among independents, the split is slightly more negative at 39/55, much more negative among moderates (30/64) and stunningly more negative among Hispanics (22/75).
These numbers are bad enough, but the numbers in the new CBS News poll (May 20-23) are, if anything, even worse.
As the CBS News polling analysis puts it:
The last time the percentage that said the country was on the wrong track was as high as it is now was back in November 1994. Then, Republicans swept into control of both houses of Congress for the first time in decades.
The poll also finds Bush's overall approval rating down at 41 percent, with 52 percent disapproval. I believe that's the lowest of any public poll during Bush's presidency. In addition, Bush's job rating on foreign policy is 37/56 and his rating on the economy is 36/57.
Speaking of the economy, only 20 percent believe Bush administration policies have increased the number of jobs in the US and more people now believe the economy is getting worse (32 percent) than getting better (23 percent). Last month, the figures were roughly reversed at 30 percent better/26 percent worse.
Guess that better be a hell of a speech tonight! The public does not seem, shall we say, to be in a particularly receptive mood for the president.
5785. judithathome - 5/24/2004 2:25:45 AM
Well, I hope he isn't relying too heavily on this speech to bring out of the doldrums. So far, it's a drag.
5786. judithathome - 5/24/2004 2:26:17 AM
bring HIM out of....
5787. jexster - 5/24/2004 2:44:41 AM
Reporting on the damnedest thing...
I went to the corner grocery. The proprietor always has the TV on mostly watching news or Judge Joe Brown.
I walked in during Bush's Big Sludge Dump:
"Don't you have a damn mute button on that thing?"
Spontaneously each one of the half dozen or so customers starts hurling abuse and ridicule at the screen.
You gotta be a moron to take him seriously
5788. jexster - 5/24/2004 3:19:41 AM
The 41% approval for President Bush in the CBS poll is pretty bad. But I hear the internals -- the details of the poll -- are even worse.
-- Josh Marshall
(May 24, 2004 -- 10:31 AM EDT // link // print)
Down into Daddy territory. The president's approval rating is down to 41%, according to a just released CBS News poll.
WWLD: What would Lyndon do?
Lloyd Bentsen, bringing it all together with full Texasosity and history, could probably answer the above best.
-- Josh Marshall
5789. jexster - 5/24/2004 12:57:08 PM
Bush Poll Numbers On Iraq & Job Approval at New Low - WPost
5790. jexster - 5/24/2004 6:37:56 PM
Republicans Fully Deluded
Bush leaguers lost in BushWorld
Gonna Burn some bush
5791. thoughtful - 5/24/2004 8:26:14 PM
Now, will someone please explain why they bother to lie about something so insignificant? Seems to me at some point lying just becomes pathological. From the daily kos:
Here's the official story line from Crawford:
President Bush took a spill during a Saturday afternoon bike ride on his ranch, suffering bruises and cuts that were visible later on his face....
"It's been raining a lot and the topsoil is loose," Duffy said. "You know this president. He likes to go all-out. Suffice it to say he wasn't whistling show tunes."
So it's been raining a lot in Crawford, we are told. So here's the recent precipitation levels from Crawford:
May 22: 0"
May 21: 0"
May 20: 0"
May 19: 0"
May 18: 0"
May 17: 0"
May 16: 0"
May 15: 0"
May 14: 0.03"
May 13: 2.79"
May 12: 0"
May 11: 0.15"
May 10: 0"
May 9: 0"
May 13th saw some serious rain, but other than some sprinkles on the 14th, Crawford saw nothing but sun. In the last week alone, the temperature was in the high 80s the entire time.
So rain on the 13th and (barely) 14th was blamed for a Bush fall on the 22nd. As everything else, it wasn't Bush's fault. Nothing is Bush's fault.
Ever.
Liars.
5792. jexster - 5/24/2004 9:24:00 PM
I dunno Thoughtful
Ask:
109109
Caligula
Al D
Thomas D
Eddie D
Pincher martin
et al...
I bet Rosie knows, ask her
5793. Magoseph - 5/24/2004 9:29:59 PM
How can she ask them, Jex? She isn't going there.
5794. jexster - 5/24/2004 10:17:09 PM
Going where? To BushWorld? Let's hope not.
Cause this Administration is truly as Gen Zinni put it "from another planet":
White House Ignores Critics, Voices Iraq Optimism
The crowd that is running this country has lost touch with reality.
No doubt other countries will pour billions of dollars and tens of thousands of troops into Bush's shithole
5795. thoughtful - 5/24/2004 11:49:52 PM
What is this kerry idiocy about whether or not he'll accept the nomination at the convention. Can he look any more waffle-y? I understand the whole bit about spending the $$ but didn't the dems understand the campaign laws before they picked the convention date? But to even consider it just makes him look like a total, i hate to say it, dick-head.
I mean it was bad enough with gore being handed the gift of running against this inarticulate radical and blowing it. But now for kerry to be doing the exact same thing? If the dems offered up even a modicum of an alternative, he'd win hands down, but this is ridiculous. Even my radical rw xtian rightest friend (who thinks the Wall St Journal is kinda leftist) had unpleasant things to say about the bush budget and the iraq mess. I mean the dems are being handed an incredible gift, and they're probably going to blow it.
Ridiculous!
5796. judithathome - 5/25/2004 12:48:52 AM
Has anyone heard Kerry actually state this position? All I've seen is others saying he might do this...I've yet to hear Kerry say it.
5797. arkymalarky - 5/25/2004 2:51:38 AM
But who knew Bush was going to raise $300 million? I didn't think the idea sounded that far out in left field, and if it gets much negative noise, surely they will drop it. I haven't heard anything about it since the first time it came out.
5798. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 5/25/2004 4:20:24 AM
5799. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 5/25/2004 4:23:06 AM
5800. jexster - 5/25/2004 4:41:16 AM
This just in from Candice Cacciopi (recent graduate of the University of Alabama andone of the most beautiful women I have ever seen)..
Laissez les bon temps roulez!
RACELAND, LA. – Charmaine Degruise Caccioppi, Candidate for Congress, D-LA3, is proud to announce three additions to her Campaign Management team.
Taunton Melville, a graduate of Louisiana Tech University in Ruston, LA, will serve as Caccioppi’s Campaign Manager. Melville, the nephew of former La. Governor Buddy Roemer, has a long history of campaign activity and management, including, most recently, managing two State Senate campaigns in Gonzales and Donaldsonville, LA.
Mary Johnston Catallo will serve as Treasurer. Catallo, who works for Crescent Technology, Inc., is also daughter to former U.S. Senator J. Bennett Johnston, with whom Caccioppi worked for 20 years.
Beth James, the former Director of Economic Development for New Orleans’ Mayor C. Ray Nagin, is set to spearhead the Caccioppi campaign as the Campaign Director. James worked closely with Caccioppi throughout Cacioppi’s tenure with Greater New Orleans, Inc. (formerly New Orleans Regional Chamber of Commerce). Their partnership produced a wide range of Economic Development initiatives important to the 3rd Congressional District.
“I am honored to have such experienced and enthusiastic people on board,” Caccioppi said in a statement. “With them, I will continue to wage a campaign that listens and responds to the needs of the hard-working citizens throughout our community.”
For more information, visit www.Charmaine2004.com.
5801. jexster - 5/25/2004 5:21:13 AM
Not at all IDIOCY neither WAFFLE-Y
Brilliant...
Once a candidate is nominated...Federal spending caps apply.
Bush, seeking to capitalize on the death and destruction of thousands in NYC pushed the Convention back as close as he could to 9/11....we will make him EAT that..
Stay the course ...PLEASE
Now to the significance...for 5-6 weeks Kerry will be operating under spending cap..BUSH WILL NOT
Get it?
The Convention will probably delegate nomination to the DNC so that he is nominated at or about the time Bush is ...if he has not done the honorable thing..
Lyndon Baines Johnson...a dumb Texan with honor..
Give Bush NO Quarter...nowhere to run...nowhere to hide
5802. jexster - 5/25/2004 5:25:55 AM
CBS: Overall, 49% now say they would vote for Kerry, 41% Bush. 41%
My little girl
Drive anywhere
Do what you want
I don't care...
Come
Pull my strings
Watch me move
I do anything
Please
Rove's behind the wheel
5803. OhioSTOPAS - 5/25/2004 11:55:57 AM
Judy Woodruff (CNN) said yesterday "the onus is on John Kerry" to come up with a plan for Iraq that is different than President Bush's. I've heard one version or another of this theme several times over the last few weeks, including one smirking Republican stating that people might as well vote for Bush if Kerry doesn't have a better plan for getting us out of the Iraq situation.
Why? As Kerry has said to critics of his stay-the-course position, although we wish we hadn't invaded Iraq, the reality is that we are there now and need to make the best choice from this point forward. Just because Bush says "A", his opponent is not compelled to advocate "not A". (And, even though Bush and Kerry agree on the general features of the best plan, Kerry is much more likely to be able to successfully execute it since he has not alienated the world bodies from whom we will be seeking assistance._
To analogize Iraq to one of Bush's real-life misadventures, Bush has driven the car into a ditch. The best choice is to try to get the car out of the ditch (rather than abandoning it there), and try to get help from the U.N. Towing Company. The fact that Bush and Kerry agree on this doesn't mean we should give the keys back to Bush when we get the car back on the road.
5804. alistairConnor - 5/25/2004 12:05:19 PM
To pursue the analogy : Bush denies that he's in a ditch, he keeps revving his engine and spinning his wheels, which digs him in deeper... he calls this "staying the course".
Evidently, a change of strategy is required to get out of the ditch. Bush is not the man to do that...
5805. jexster - 5/25/2004 2:11:53 PM
Kerry is biding his time ..notice his silence amidst the growing crescendo of comment from the punditocracy such as that Ohio linked....
5806. alistairConnor - 5/25/2004 2:27:18 PM
Personally it seems to me that Kerry is doing the smart thing by saying as little as possible about Iraq at this point.
Things are going badly. Americans feel bad about that. Some of them feel angry at the president, others rally behind him. Criticism by Kerry will be seen by some as making things worse, and felt by others as siding with America's enemies.
Closer to the election, he should propose a plan for Iraq, but any plan he proposes now will quickly be overtaken by events that he has no influence over.
5807. thoughtful - 5/25/2004 2:44:03 PM
but any plan he proposes now will quickly be overtaken...
Yeah, overtaken by the bushies who have not a clue as to how to extricate themselves from this mess. Op-eds in today's NYT about the similarity of approaches offered by bush and kerry, including nato involvement, un support, etc.
All those things that bush so dissed with his cowboy attitude going into iraq about we don't need no help from anyone. What hubris. What arrogance. What idiocy.
Judithah, perhaps the reason you haven't heard kerry say anything about the plan is that it's impossible to fit what he says into anything resembling a sound bite. He needs to develop that skill, come up with pithy phrases (if it doesn't fit, you must acquit) kinds of things that joe 6-pack can latch onto. Pat Schroeder, where are you?
I wish there was organization among the dems to sic attack dogs on bush as the gopers do to dems and leave kerry above the fray. Instead, kerry is above the fray...a fray of silence. Not good.
5808. wonkers2 - 5/25/2004 3:18:44 PM
Bush and Kerry's positions on Iraq are similar because Bush has moved toward where Kerry has been for a long time--greater internationalization, better diplomacy, more UN involvement. But now it may be too late. Too bad for USA, too bad for Bush.
5809. jexster - 5/25/2004 3:19:40 PM
Its hard to get the press amidst so much disaster befalling the burnt Bush thoughtful but the "attack" dogs are out there Thoughtful..
Dean, Biden, Pelosi,Rubin, Holbrooke, Clark, Graham to name 7.
Problem is Demo "attack" dogs are chihuahuaha's...GOPers are dobermans...
Reasoned, fact based, persistent I think that is shrewd strategery...for if you accept what your senses report..that Bush is in a world of shit and that the media and the public are beginning to move toward that perception too...it makes sense to encourage not snarl..You don't want to polarize any more than necessary.
Credible and purposeful.
Independents remember are not as partisan as you or I and while we thirst for Bush blood the swingers do not.....
Timing is everything .
Besides there is plenty of blood to go around about now.
5810. jayackroyd - 5/25/2004 3:22:04 PM
It's lose-lose for him, thoughtful. He's already presented a "plan" as detailed and specific as Bush's. As long as the media continues to treat Bush's "plan" as coherent and credible (He said "five steps" so therefore there is a plan), there is no point in Kerry trying to counter it any more than he has.
For example, Bush uses the phrase "full sovereignty" more than once in his speech. Now nobody who is paying any attention at all believes this. There's no way that there is going to be a free and democratic Iraq, in anything like the time frame the president is suggesting. There's no way that the Iraqi people will be making their own decisions after June 30th. Bush doesn't care about whether these statements are true. He only cares about whether enough voters in enough states buy the statements.
Unless the media starts calling Bush on these issues, which they are starting to do, Kerry can't win by engaging these issues. Bush has gone from calling the UN "irrelevant" to having an unelected by anybody Algerian make up the list of the new Iraqi leaders--while running ads calling Kerry a flipflopper. He has stayed no course, yet calls himself a strong and steady leader.
When Kerry says we need to internationalize this, they say we are doing so, so there's no difference between us, and besides, you voted for the war.
As long as they are permitted to simply lie about their positions, Kerry is at a disadvantage. Even worse, when they are permitted to set the terms of the discussion, the disadvantage is increased. Like Alistair said, they drove the car into the ditch.
5811. jexster - 5/25/2004 3:23:00 PM
On the CBS News result, their internals show Kerry leading by 16 points (!) among independents (51-35). My my. Considering that Kerry only needs to win independents by a few points to pretty much guarantee himself an election victory, that's quite a result.
Maybe people want statesman-like, above the fray, rational, intelligent, compentent, courageous, collected, and of course THOUGTFUL!
5812. alistairConnor - 5/25/2004 4:01:40 PM
I only wish Kerry would shut the fuck up about Israel. Telling Israelis, and Sharon in particular, that he would continue Bush's blind support for everything Israel does -- now that is disastrous.
5813. jexster - 5/25/2004 4:13:04 PM
While I quite agree, THAT unfortunately is the reality of US electoral politics.
A president has to carefully lay the groundwork to dump on Sharon. The intelligentsia and talking heads are doing that but one has to be a fairly sophisticated consumer to pick up on it.
Sharon knows it and is playing Bush like a fiddle.
now I am determined to solve the problem in the Middle East. If you help me I will act, and if not, the elections will come and I will have to focus on them.
5814. thoughtful - 5/25/2004 4:14:20 PM
Re bush's plan, here's a letter to the ed of nytimes that puts it very well:
To the Editor:
On Monday night, President Bush explained his policy for Iraq in the first of a series of prime-time campaign ads. It was a lovely story.
On June 30, "the occupation will end"! (But our troops will stay.) Iraq will be given "full sovereignty"! (But the new Iraqi government will have no control over American military decisions for Iraq.) The Coalition Provisional Authority will end! (But its hand-picked ministers will continue following the authority's policies.) Iraq will have "democracy"! (But Iraqi citizens will not initially choose their own president, vice presidents or any member of their government.) And Abu Ghraib will be torn down! (And a new high-security prison will be built in its place.)
And they lived happily ever after.
ERICA VERRILLO
Williamsburg, Mass., May 25, 2004
The fact that they expect us and the iraqi people to buy this charade is simply insulting.
5815. iiibbb - 5/25/2004 4:17:22 PM
It bugs me that Michael Moore would get any credit if I choose not to vote for Bush. I fucking hate this guy more than Bush.
I punished myself by also watching a 1+ hr c-span presentation of BookTV where Rob Reiner and Adriana Huffington discuss "Winning back America".
I've got few problems with Adriana... I think she is quite smart and I appreciate her take on things... Rob Reiner pisses me off too. I think what pissed me off about a lot of liberal intellegencia is their penchant for pointing out how smart they are and how dumb everyone else is.
While republican bastards might think they're smarter than the rest of us, they know better than to go onto TV and say it.
I am probably not going to vote for Bush... but I fear that liberals are going to take as many liberties as Bush has... justifying it by saying that it's the way Bush acted.
Two wrongs don't make a right.
sigh.
5816. jexster - 5/25/2004 4:18:22 PM
Jay's basically got it I think. If Bush "internationalizes" ie adds $$$ and boots on the ground Kerry says "why didn't he do this two years ago as I urged"
If in the more likely event that he fails "why didn't he do this two years ago as I urged"
If he internationalizes and chaos does not abate "why didn't he do this two years ago as I urged"
If he says much more, he is accused of undermining the USofA
Bidding his time...he has said as much "It may be too late. I have to give the President room to lead. I am in no position to do it myself"
5817. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 5/25/2004 4:34:46 PM
I think Kerry shouldn’t allow the press to goad him into showing his hand.
I was just polled by MoveOn.org wrt Iraq and I was in the minority in that I thought we should pull out of Iraq completely. The majority of MoveOn supporters elected to stay in Iraq which I think is more in line with what Kerry wants.
However, I still think it’s a dumb folly. We should give the keys to the UN and pay them to get the car out of the ditch—which is what they were designed to do. You don’t play tow-truck mechanic when you all you know is demolition.
Besides, there are bigger diseases looming for this sad little planet that make Iraq look like a skin rash.
5818. jexster - 5/25/2004 4:58:49 PM
intellegencia is their penchant for pointing out how smart they are and how dumb everyone else is.
A sentiment that Bush is exploiting...resentment against the elites...
Where's the "Tipping Point"? How many Gen Zinnis, Abu Ghraibs, how much chaos, does it take to convince that Bush really IS incompetent?
5819. jexster - 5/25/2004 5:01:11 PM
Yea I am with you Wiz..in fact I would not be surprised if this is a concious campaign strategery...for what the commentariat is essentially saying is
"Things are really fucked up! Save us!"
Bidding time..abuilding popular demand
5820. jexster - 5/25/2004 5:03:30 PM
BTW i3b3, in CA we see Reiner up close and personal..and Michael Moore took a pre-election dump on Gavin the God-man...
Both irritate me as well..and I mostly AGREE with them..mostly
5821. jexster - 5/25/2004 5:04:08 PM
But here's a question for you...
Sean Hannity
Bill O'Reilly
Rush Limbaugh
Michael Savage?
5822. iiibbb - 5/25/2004 5:18:19 PM
Bush isn't exploiting it.... I get annoyed by it without Bush having to point it out to me.
I swear I am tempted to vote for him just to piss those people off. It's not like Kerry is much different in a fundamental sense... different policies, same gomph stick.
5823. iiibbb - 5/25/2004 5:21:53 PM
I guess I am less offended by pundits because they are up front about their motivations... most of the obnoxious liberal pundits don't bother me.
...it's camp...
There's something about Hollywood... check that... the hypocracy of Hollywood that rubs me so wrong.
5824. jexster - 5/25/2004 5:22:27 PM
Golden in Golden State
Kerry +15
5825. iiibbb - 5/25/2004 5:26:01 PM
check that... hypocracy rubs me wrong... anyone's...
this is the main reason I'm probably going to vote against Bush... over his hypocracy, not because I think Kerry is so great... I think he's a hypocrite too. I am disappointed with Bush on the environment, about Social Security, about his handling of the war (not necessarily starting it), and about the refusal to take responsibility for particularly out of line events (such as telling Rumsfield about the steller job he's doing right after the prison scandal)... some heads should be rolling... and since they're not... Bush's will.
Pundits have very little to do with my opinion about most things... I listen to both sides.
5826. judithathome - 5/25/2004 5:47:11 PM
I've got few problems with Adriana...
She probably has a problem with you, too...her name is Arianna.
5827. iiibbb - 5/25/2004 5:55:57 PM
oops
she should be honored I remember that much... more than Savage can say....
5828. wonkers2 - 5/25/2004 6:35:02 PM
It's becoming clearer every day that Bush is dead meat.
5829. thoughtful - 5/25/2004 6:44:33 PM
Funny how annoying i always found arianna when she was in the middle of the rw camp...now that she's flipped to being a real lwer, she's much more interesting.
;-)
5830. iiibbb - 5/25/2004 6:56:30 PM
I've always liked her... I've always felt she thinks things through and can explain her position. What she frequently offers are insights, rather than "you're stoopid"
5831. thoughtful - 5/25/2004 7:09:07 PM
what i find most perplexing about her is how the heck she got to be any kind of spokesperson when as far as i know, her only claim to fame is that she married michael.
5832. OhioSTOPAS - 5/25/2004 7:13:08 PM
A curiosity: Last weekend President Bush fell off of his bicycle at his ranch (sic) in Crawford, Texas. White House spokesman Trent Duffy explained the fall by stating, "It's been raining a lot and the topsoil is loose."
The curiosity? It hadn't rained in Crawford for over a week.
5833. judithathome - 5/25/2004 7:15:45 PM
So the guy can't even admit he fell off his bike without an excuse?
Maybe Kerry should've blamed the snow when he fell off that board.
5834. iiibbb - 5/25/2004 7:20:14 PM
I think he blamed a secret serviceman... at least that's what Drudge said.
5835. jayackroyd - 5/25/2004 7:36:49 PM
Yes, Kerry did blame a secret service man.
Bush's pattern of lying about even the smallest things is hard to understand. For example, the Sunday before last Karen Hughes book about the president was reviewed. It included this little revelatory nugget:
Karen Hughes quotes George W. Bush on playing rugby at Yale: '' 'I played for a year,' the president corrected me, 'and it was the varsity.' ''
There is no varsity rugby in the Ivy League. It's a club sport. Why lie about that?
5836. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 5/25/2004 7:38:47 PM
During lunch I caught last night’s Charlie Rose with Gen. Zinni & Tom Clancy.
Zinni was astonishing in his prescient assessments of everything—absolutely everything
regarding terrorism, the Middle East and strategies for dealing with the world.
He‘s a registered Republican and Kerry should make him VP or Secretary of Defense.
5837. jayackroyd - 5/25/2004 7:41:04 PM
I've thought Zinni would be a good VP selection for some time. But he has been adamant in refusing to take a political stance. He did it once, he said, in 2000 and he got burned. He's not doing it again.
5838. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 5/25/2004 8:07:10 PM
Strange, he seems like a real patriot who would come to the aid of his country in time of need . . . and if this ain’t a time of need, there ain’t never been one.
5839. jexster - 5/25/2004 8:26:31 PM
Conversation overheard on the bus this am..reveals the sorry state of the US booboisie, and illuminates why Bush continues to lie
Why "Iraq is the central front in the WOT"
"Did you hear the radio this morning? IRAQ is planning an attack on the US!!!!"
Oh my gawd..
Concrete evidence that Bush does indeed have an active and fruitful WMD program (Weapons of Mass Deception)
5840. jexster - 5/25/2004 8:27:23 PM
Zinni ROX...but he's intelligensia..Prof. Zinni, William & Mary
5841. judithathome - 5/25/2004 8:39:38 PM
think he blamed a secret serviceman... at least that's what Drudge said.
Well, I trust what Drudge says about as much as I trust what Bush says. I know Kerry blamed the SS man but hell, maybe the guy was in the way.
And maybe Bush WAS on loose topsoil from dry dirt where there had been no rain for a week but hey, who's quibbling, right? I've lived in Texas almost all my life and believe me, topsoil is rather predictable with rain and without. But he might have sprinkler systems installed out there, who knows.
Drudge over the weekend cited a quote from Kerry that, evidently, no one else in the world could back up and he took it off the site later in the day. Not before the Washington Times printed it almost verbatum from....Drudge.
5842. arkymalarky - 5/25/2004 8:48:42 PM
I went to the post office this morning before it opened and an older black man (probably in his mid-70s) was waiting, and by way of striking up a conversation he said "What do you think about marriage of those homosexuals?"
I said (conscious of being very polite) that I really didn't give it much thought (which I don't) because I'm concerned about Iraq and public education and other issues like that. We continued to visit and he seemed thrilled to visit with me, but I can't believe that was the issue that entered his mind on politics. Why would anyone care, especially when issues that directly affect them, like Medicare and Social Security, need attention? Yet there's a strong move to make sure there's no homosexual marriage in AR right now, like that would happen here in the next century without a pre-emptive law. Homophobia is a very apt term, and as easy to use politically as all the other booga-bears Right Wingers have cooked up to keep their base in line when they look ready to bolt with their votes over real issues.
5843. jexster - 5/25/2004 11:07:57 PM
My buddy Chmn Mike,
Before this afternoon's 10 Yr Planning Council hearings proudly showed me this looking for my APROVAL!
Pelosi and Bush
IF NANCY PELOSI were in charge of the Revolutionary War, America would be ruled by England.
The price of victory is always perseverance. Pelosi's attack on President Bush shows she would not have permitted a battered colonial army to persevere. The imperfections of war do not make war less necessary. America has one choice: It must defeat terrorism. Victory will require blood, treasure and leadership. It will not be French, German or Russian blood or treasure, and it will not be Nancy Pelosi's leadership.
Mike DeNunzio
Chairman, San Francisco
Republican Party
San Francisco
"Damn Chairman Mike, I saw you on television and you appeared to be the soul of reason"
[Glancing toward an onlooker}
Get Mike behind a key board and he becomes a wild beast!"
Why does this guy, only one of two Republicans on the 33 Member Council look to ME for approval?
5844. robertjayb - 5/25/2004 11:22:40 PM
Because you are a tall, mean fucker, jexster. Ehat's why.
5845. iiibbb - 5/25/2004 11:38:06 PM
Message # 5842
I suspect part of it is his age. My grandmother was a sweet old woman, but her views on blacks seemed completely out of place (and she's from Connetticutt). So when you consider that the vast preponderance of their experiences are from less tolerant times, it is a rare older person that has an open mind. Add to that that old people are rarely delicate about things they disapprove of... perhaps even oblivious that other viewpoints exist.
I think a lot of people (especially older folks) are nervous about gay marriage and what it all means. Personally, I think it's a fine compromise to call it a civil union and just give it all the same rights and whatnot... of course that's not an acceptable compromise to many, but I don't care. I think people expect social change too fast.
5846. jexster - 5/25/2004 11:40:53 PM
My tongue is bleeding and swollen..we have reception on June 9th to do some bonding within the Council.....two martinis Allah help Chairman Mike!
Say they are saying on CNN that officials are fearful of an AlQ attack on the Presidential debates on 9/30..
Was there some pre-season agreement on debates...are we to be denied the usual September shape of the table debate dance???
5847. arkymalarky - 5/25/2004 11:49:53 PM
3i3b,
My granddad was like that, and my grandmother too, for that matter. On the other side they weren't at all, but they did have a similar approach with their beliefs. In fact, this man sort of reminded me of my granddad in some ways. To me it's taking advantage of their feelings to manipulate their votes with an issue that's not even real for them, and won't ever be.
Not that I think anything should be done to prevent that, I just think it's low.
5848. jexster - 5/25/2004 11:52:17 PM
You shoulda met my maternal grandfather!
My mother used to cringe
5849. arkymalarky - 5/25/2004 11:59:34 PM
What's really fun is when they get very old and senile and you're with them in the hospital or nursing home and they're "being themselves."
I've quoted this before, but one of my favorite comments from Flannery O'Connor about her writing was her response to a professor who was trying to paint the grandmother in "A Good Man is Hard to Find" as representing an evil witch. He'd written her to complain that his Southern students, especially, didn't want to accept the witch symbolism, and she replied that of course they didn't, because most of them had grandmothers or great-aunts just like her at home.
5850. thoughtful - 5/26/2004 12:23:50 AM
age is a big factor. My mother's condo, full of seniors, were sitting around one evening and gay marriage came up. She has no problem with it, but to these other seniors, you would've thought gays had just burned their soc sec checks!
My attitude, with all the war, violence, child abuse, crime, poverty, hunger, depression, disease and despair in this world, why on earth would we waste a second worrying about how people want to love and care for each other. Sheesh!
5851. jexster - 5/26/2004 1:04:35 AM
The Google BUSH + MORON Index = 150,000 Up 30,000
The Google BUSH + LIAR Index = 227,000 Up 7,000
over past two weeks
5852. wonkers2 - 5/26/2004 1:34:56 AM
Zogby says if election were held today Kerry would win with an Electoral College landslide!!
Gore picks up on what wonkers said a year ago in this forum: Bush is incompetent and the most dishonest administration since Nixon.
[Per Chris Matthews tonight.]
5853. wonkers2 - 5/26/2004 1:55:39 AM
Gore called for the immediate resignation of Rumsfeld, Wolfowitz and Feith. He was practically frothing at the mouth.
5854. Absensia - 5/26/2004 1:59:37 AM
I gotta see this! Gore, bore no more?
5855. wonkers2 - 5/26/2004 2:03:12 AM
Too bad he didn't get wound up like that in his campaign.
5856. KuligintheHooligan - 5/26/2004 2:41:23 AM
Per #5851, I tried these Google searches:
Bush+brilliant = 568,000
Kerry+brilliant = 169,000
Bush + man of conviction = 250,000
Kerry + man of conviction = 57,300
Bush + next president = 4,350,000
Kerry + next president = 1,490,000
Those google searches are really fun, aren't they?
5857. KuligintheHooligan - 5/26/2004 2:46:03 AM
"Gore picks up on what wonkers said a year ago in this forum: Bush is incompetent and the most dishonest administration since Nixon."
But wait! Gore missed the last administration!
Oh, that's right. He was in it.
5858. Absensia - 5/26/2004 2:47:04 AM
Google search
225,000 for bush + liar.
92,900 for kerry + liar.
Why yes they are fun.
5859. OhioSTOPAS - 5/26/2004 2:48:10 AM
The Bush administration has been laying a foundation the last few days. U.S. News and World Report quotes "a Bush administration official" as saying "Since Spain [the Madrid bombing in March], al Qaeda has had the feeling of 'We can do this. We can affect an election.'" Today John Ashcroft contended that any al Qaeda attack this summer would be for the purpose of affecting the election, all but saying (in the words of Timothy Noah of Slate) that "Osama bin Laden wants you to vote for John Kerry."
The Bush administration will of course try to prevent any attack on Americans. But if an attack nevertheless is successful, you know that the Bush campaign will play it to the hilt. Anyone even thinking of voting for John Kerry will be accused of carrying out bin Laden's wishes.
5860. KuligintheHooligan - 5/26/2004 2:58:44 AM
Absentia, you must have missed jexster's post just above doing the same thing. It is actually what spurred me on to do other google searches.
Very scientific, I might add.
5861. KuligintheHooligan - 5/26/2004 3:00:41 AM
#5859
Welcome to politics, Ohio. Of course, it may in fact be true, that Al Qaida would like to confuse the election in the US, would like to see Bush removed, etc. I see nothing even remotely earthshattering or shocking in such considerations.
5862. arkymalarky - 5/26/2004 3:21:39 AM
They'll hit us when they can, I imagine, like most terrorists. But if it happens on Bush's watch, especially if, as Marj stated, at least one of those men has been sought for two years, it doesn't look good for his handling of terrorism that they are able to make such a political statement.
5863. jexster - 5/26/2004 3:24:30 AM
You heard it here first...actually you heard it from Ruy Teixeira first..."run in every state as if it were Ohio" OHIO
OHIO goes so goes Bush...
Ohio Holds the Key
5864. jexster - 5/26/2004 3:25:50 AM
that Al Qaida would like to confuse the election in the US, would like to see Bush removed, etc. I see nothing even remotely earthshattering or shocking in such considerations.
So would I but why would AlQ want to be rid of Bush?
He's the best thing that's ever happened for them
5865. jexster - 5/26/2004 3:29:30 AM
Gore was HOT today....saw a segment of his speech to MoveON.
I joined up with them back during the Impeached Impeachment. Started by a couple in Berkeley of their home on a Powerbook
Segue..
FIRE RUMSFELD AD - MoveOn
5866. marjoribanks - 5/26/2004 3:30:01 AM
I also find it a bit bizarre that it is being implied that Al Qaeda "wants Kerry."
In fact, Bush is the guy who diverted the American impetus against that organization, let Pakistan off the hook when it came to Bin Laden himself, and has crippled American ability to lead international efforts against Al Qaeda.
Plus the Bush regime has removed an implacable enemy of the Islamists in Hussein, plus it has galvanized the Arabs with unflinching support of an extremist Likud, plus it has threatened other strong foes of the Islamists (Mubarak, the Sauds), etc.
5867. wonkers2 - 5/26/2004 3:31:46 AM
You heard it here first. Bush will be dumped by GOP bigwigs. McCain will be the candidate.
5868. jexster - 5/26/2004 3:34:17 AM
LOU MONEY BAG DOBBS: 'Battle Ready'
Tom Clancy and Gen. Anthony Zinni discuss "Battle Ready."
Ret. Marine Gen. Anthony Zinni and best-selling author Tom Clancy join us for more on their new book, "Battle Ready."
When asked if he'd vote for Bush, Zinni said that he was a registered Republican who voted for Bush in 2000 but would have an "exceedingly difficult time" doing so gain
My Corps
Your Corps
Our Corps
MARINE CORPS!
5869. marjoribanks - 5/26/2004 3:35:28 AM
Can't see it happening, Wonk.
That would be civil war in the ranks, a divorce of the party from the extremely powerful religious Right, and a guaranteed two-three terms in power for the Dems.
Of course, I happen to believe that Texeira guy and have also predicted (over years, here) that there is an emerging strong Democratic majority in this country anyway. But democracy is better with a strident opposition, and for that reason I'd prefer not to see the Republicans self-destruct.
Finally, I do wish a cohesive third party would start to emerge. On the lines of the Lib Dems in the UK, a force to keep both poles honest.
5870. KuligintheHooligan - 5/26/2004 3:40:20 AM
"I also find it a bit bizarre that it is being implied that Al Qaeda "wants Kerry."
Well, not so much wants Kerry as doesn't want Bush. Plus, I'd say that the remainder of your post, marjoribanks, is to be contested. For example, how many attacks against American interests by Al Qaida have occurred post-9/11? How many occurred before?
Here is my take. Those guys hate us, and nothing we do can change that (short of, I suppose, bombing Israel). And if they could drop terrorist attacks on American interests they'd do it EVERY day.
But they don't.
Further, it must be remembered that 9/11 didn't happen over night, and that much if not the majority of the careful planning and strategizing for those attacks occurred under Clinton's regime.
I just don't buy the argument that Bush has made things easier for bin Laden et al. The facts do not prove that to be the case.
5871. KuligintheHooligan - 5/26/2004 3:41:11 AM
"You heard it here first. Bush will be dumped by GOP bigwigs. McCain will be the candidate."
Sure. And they'll change the Constitution so Clinton can run again too.
5872. marjoribanks - 5/26/2004 3:45:55 AM
We've collectively gnashed our teeth about the lack of "conservative" voices in this forum, and the host of this thread has particularly shed copious tears about this tragic vacuum.
But I don't really see how "conservatives" can possibly have too different a take on Bush than is regularly voiced here. Republican partisans obviously do, but it's a dereliction of language to label the vast majority of these fellows "conservative."
True American conservatives, of the type I recognize and admire, seem to be just as outraged by the devastation that the Bushites have wrought on American military, diplomatic and economic strength.
One issue that I refuse to see in partisan terms is environment, and the safeguards that have been hard-won in a bipartisan manner over decades in this country. In this arena, the Bushites have - if anything - been even worse than they have in other areas.
Want to sleep uneasily tonight?
Read Crossing the Red Line.
5873. wonkers2 - 5/26/2004 3:46:35 AM
Al qaida doesn't want Bush? Bush has played into bin Laden's hands perfectly by attacking and deposing his secularist enemy, Sadaam Hussein and by inflaming Muslims throughout the world with hatred of the United States. Also, Bush has made life much more difficult for moderate Arab states to remain allies of the United States. Moreover, by allowing the U.S. to become a tool of Ariel Sharon, Bush has failed to do the most important thing that would have helped curb terrorism--be an honest and fair broker for peace in Palesting. Bush has been the best possible recruiting tool Bin Laden could have hoped for.
5874. marjoribanks - 5/26/2004 3:46:45 AM
Excerpt:
For more than three years now, day after day and week after week, a small circle of political appointees at the EPA, the Forest Service, the Interior Department, and the Department of Agriculture have proceeded methodically to wreck the system of environmental oversight that dates back to the Nixon administration. Apart from their silence on global warming, they have overturned rule after regulation, largely ceased enforcement actions concerning pollution of the atmosphere and water, and reined in inspectors. Their work is not inspired by a grand ideological vision—it's not like Bush's foreign policy, say, with its idea of America dominating the world. Instead it's institutionalized corruption: a steady payback to the logging, mining, corporate farming, fossil fuel, and other industries that contributed heavily to put Bush in power.
The scale of this assault on the environment is so large as to be numbing. With a hundred battles occurring simultaneously and without a majority in either chamber of Congress to hold hearings or issue subpoenas, the environmental movement has been almost paralyzed. In Congress and the administration, loss has followed loss in such steady succession that even the most conventional environmentalists, usually bipartisan to a fault and reluctant to jump into electoral politics, now find themselves with a single goal: defeating Bush in November.
5875. marjoribanks - 5/26/2004 3:57:00 AM
For example, how many attacks against American interests by Al Qaida have occurred post-9/11? How many occurred before?
Hooligan,
Al Qaeda's spread and ability to hit at Western targets appears to be far greater than before 9/11. Since 9/11, multiple attacks in the following countries (all at Westerners, often including Americans) have been attributed to Al Qaeda -
Tunisia
Pakistan
Indonesia
Kenya
Saudi Arabia
Morocco
Turkey
Spain
Iraq
Horrifically scaled plots have been thwarted in the UK and Jordan (so far as we know).
Today's news carried a report that the group has (potentially) 18,000 "troops" available for action, and its fundraising and organizational capabilities are largely unhindered. It's not a pretty picture, and there is no evidence that the Bushites have done anything since the early part of the Afghanistan campaign to improve matters.
5876. iiibbb - 5/26/2004 3:59:28 AM
I think it's silly guessing that Al qaida has any preference about who's the next president... they want us all dead... that means liberals too.
5877. wonkers2 - 5/26/2004 4:00:22 AM
To the contrary, Bush's actions have demonstrably worsened the situation.
5878. marjoribanks - 5/26/2004 4:00:48 AM
Even in Afghanistan, the Bushites have (quite criminally) failed to complete the job required, and have diverted American resources on a harebrained scheme dreamed up by ideologues.
I suggest that everyone read Ahmed Rashid's commentary on this matter. No reporter for the Western media knows more about the country than him, and his indictment is quite total.
since September 11 there has been a far bigger blunder by the Bush administration: its failure to sustain momentum in the efforts to make Afghanistan more secure and more stable and to catch bin Laden. No hindsight is required in order to make this judgment. What needed to be done after the defeat of the Taliban should have been obvious. What successive US administrations could have done to prevent September 11 will always be debatable; perhaps the failure of intelligence to anticipate it is ultimately understandable, in view of the ponderous workings of bureaucracies. What is unforgivable is the failure of the current US administration to maintain the resources and manpower needed to rebuild Afghanistan and to arrest bin Laden after September 11, and its decision to go to war in Iraq instead.
(emphasis mine)
5879. marjoribanks - 5/26/2004 4:02:22 AM
I don't think they "want us all dead".
They want quite specific things, as every shred of evidence demonstrates.
Bush has outright given them many of them, likely beyond even bin Laden's short-term expectations.
5880. wonkers2 - 5/26/2004 4:22:51 AM
The Bush tax cuts have limited our ability to put the money into Afghanistan that we promised, let alone what is needed to get the country on the right track. Ditto for education, ditto for Medicare drug benefits and a host of other programs.
5881. iiibbb - 5/26/2004 5:02:02 AM
Umm... I'm pretty sure they want us dead... and I don't think they favor or disfavor any particular regime because their ultimate goals are pretty similar to their goals for Isreal.... gone.... this is why they seek to kill whatever Americans they can.
5882. wonkers2 - 5/26/2004 5:04:32 AM
Whatever their views, the issue before us is how best can we deal with the threat that everyone agrees they pose to us and other civilized countries around the world. It's pretty clear that Bush is not on the right track.
5883. iiibbb - 5/26/2004 5:04:36 AM
It's not like Al Queda popped up in response to Bush... they'd been planning for many years before Bush. Even before that there have been ample representatives of the "islamist" movement to attack western civilization. This is one problem Bush didn't cause... perhaps didn't pick the best course, but he sure didn't cause it.
5884. wonkers2 - 5/26/2004 5:11:23 AM
True, but he played into Bin Laden's hands by not following through in Afghanistan, by siding with Sharon and by invading Iraq and deposing a secularist enemy of Al Qaida. Bush's Palestine policy and his attack on the hornet's nest in Iraq has created thousands of converts to Al Qaida dedicated to visiting terror on the USA, Europe and on moderate Arab countries.
5885. iiibbb - 5/26/2004 5:15:01 AM
I don't think they care either way... the attack on the World Trade Centers would have occurred whether Bush or Gore were in office. They don't care who's in office... no preference... they probably feel that the windfall of manpower and money were inevitable... Jihad man.
5886. wonkers2 - 5/26/2004 5:22:13 AM
Well, we could argue all night about what's in Bin Laden's mind. But it's clear that we haven't come close to completing our task in Afghanistan and that Iraq has been a distraction and a failure thusfar. Also, Bush's complete tilt toward the hard line right in Israel has made converts for Al Qaida. Of course Bin Laden was plotting to blow up the World Trade Center long before Bush was elected. But it's also clear that if the FBI and CIA had been playing heads up ball and cooperating with each other it's just possible that the attack could have been prevented. I blame the FBI and CIA for this, not Bush.
5887. KuligintheHooligan - 5/26/2004 5:37:46 AM
"the attack on the World Trade Centers would have occurred whether Bush or Gore were in office"
I concur wholeheartedly with this. In fact, the majority of the attacks were planned and worked through during the administration which had Gore as VP.
marjoribanks, I see a difference between attacks on "Westerners" and attacks on "American interests." All I mean is, we can't be held responsible because Al Qaida attacked Bali. We weren't the ones over there overseeing the place. That is why I consistently said "American interests" like the embassy bombings in Africa, or the Navy ship in Yemen, etc.
But back to my original argument. Let me ask you a question: If you think that Al Qaida could attack on American soil TOMORROW, don't you think they'd have done it? Put another way, I'm just shocked that there haven't been more attacks on American soil since 9/11.
So then I ask myself, "Why haven't there been?" And I am left with few options, the most powerful being, "Because they have been prohibited, somehow, someway, from doing so."
5888. iiibbb - 5/26/2004 5:50:58 AM
Part of it might be disruption on our part... I think the other part of it is simply patience on their part... and maybe a little incompitance on their part.
5889. iiibbb - 5/26/2004 5:52:10 AM
They are fixated on symbolism right now. In time they might switch to some other tact... like body count ala Washington sniper.
5890. iiibbb - 5/26/2004 5:56:02 AM
"We could argue all night about what's in the mind of Bin Laden"
The mind of Al Queda...
5891. iiibbb - 5/26/2004 5:57:20 AM
According to lesson 1-4... this whole Jihad dates back to at least 1924
5892. KuligintheHooligan - 5/26/2004 6:04:03 AM
Also, any talk that we have somehow "made it worse" or that Bush has made "Al Qaida hate us more" is just utter nonsense and doesn't understand at all what is motivating bin Laden and his ilk, or with the underpinnings of Islam for that matter. This hatred was here long before Bush took office and will be here long afterward.
5893. jexster - 5/26/2004 7:32:59 AM
The Most Dishonest President[sic] Nixon
Former Vice President Al Gore blasts George W. Bush for dangerously inept leadership and a foreign policy that has "brought deep dishonor" to the country
5897. jexster - 5/26/2004 7:41:37 AM
In its annual strategic survey, the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) says al-Qaeda's financial network has survived largely intact, and that the war in Iraq has brought new recruits to its ranks.
The network's "middle managers" provide expertise to Islamic militants worldwide, the IISS adds, warning that al-Qaeda can be expected to plan further attacks in North America and Europe, and has the intention of using weapons of mass destruction. Basing its assessment on intelligence reports, the IISS's figure of 18,000 potential operatives is calculated by deducting the 2,000 suspects killed or captured since the September 11 2001 attacks from the estimated 20,000 recruits thought to have passed through al-Qaeda training camps in Afghanistan between 1996 and 2001.
5898. jexster - 5/26/2004 7:41:45 AM
The IISS estimates that around 1,000 foreign Islamists are in Iraq and have established links with former members of the ousted Ba'athist regime to fight the US-led coalition.
The report says al-Qaeda is thought be providing planning, logistical advice, material and financing to smaller groups in Saudi Arabia and Morocco, and probably Indonesia and Kenya.
IISS interprets the Madrid train bombings as evidence that al-Qaeda has "fully reconstituted, set its sights firmly on the US and its closest Western allies in Europe, and established a new and effective modus operandi".
The report goes on to say that America's global image has "hit rock bottom" since its intervention in Iraq, and can only be salvaged with "an efficiently executed plan for the full handover of sovereignty" to an Iraqi government.
The US was having to realise "the awful truth that the first law of peacekeeping is the same as the first law of forensics: 'every contact leaves a trace'," John Chipman, IISS director, said yesterday. "Unfortunately, too many bad traces have been left recently, and many good ones will be needed for the US to recover its reputation, its prestige and therefore effective power."
The report says the main problem facing Iraq's forthcoming interim government is the proliferation of armed Iraqi militia groups. While these private armies may not be that strong or popular among Iraqis, the US-led forces cannot crush them, and these militias are likely to "develop increasing influence on, and a potential veto over, any decisions made by a transitional government that threatens their interests", Mr Chipman said. Strategic Survey 2003/4, published by Oxford University Press for IISS, 13-15 Arundel Street, London WC2R 3DX
5899. jayackroyd - 5/26/2004 7:42:37 AM
So then I ask myself, "Why haven't there been?" And I am left with few options, the most powerful being, "Because they have been prohibited, somehow, someway, from doing so."
Rumsfeld was directly asked this question--had we stopped anything on American soil, and he answered that we had not.
It's my opinion that it's hard to keep suicide bombers indoctrinated in this society. The preventative detention and the disruption of command and control internationally also has to have helped.
But nobody, other than the president, who talks about this stuff seriously believes that Iraq advanced the war on terror unless, of course, he is in the administration.
5901. jexster - 5/26/2004 7:47:22 AM
5905. jexster - 5/26/2004 6:31:45 PM
DEEP IN THE HEART OF TEJAS
Click here to hear the music
5906. jexster - 5/26/2004 6:34:17 PM
A new Democracy Corps strategy memo from Stan Greenberg and James Carville.
The intro ... "Six months out from the election, the race for president has entered a new and distinct phase with Bush not only endangered, as we suggested earlier, but now with the odds against him. He is more likely to lose than win. Public confidence has collapsed on Iraq, but there is a lot of collateral damage, producing a strong desire for change. Whether it is the vote or job approval or personal favorability, Bush has become a 47 percent president at best. In almost every area, he is being dragged down by even stronger negative trends. Put simply by the voters themselves: just 42 percent want the country to continue in Bush’s direction."
-- Josh Marshall
5907. iiibbb - 5/26/2004 6:42:20 PM
If you told me the sun rose in the east, I'm sure it would take over 30 posts and some name calling.
5908. vonKreedon - 5/26/2004 7:14:57 PM
Multiple posts containing insults have been moved to the Inferno.
Jex, assuming that you have read the thread guidelines please re-read them and then refrain from insulting fellow Moties in this thread.
5909. iiibbb - 5/26/2004 7:31:16 PM
darn, now my jibe has no context...
5910. vonKreedon - 5/26/2004 7:34:18 PM
True, sorry, would you like me to move it to the Inferno?
5911. jexster - 5/26/2004 7:47:41 PM
Sorry vK..I figgered one passive aggressive insult deserved a few direct ones.
I do not like passive aggressives.
My weakness..one of em
And here's another!
Commentary No. 86, Apr. 1, 2002
"Iraq: How Great Powers Bring Themselves Down"
George W. Bush is a geopolitical incompetent. He has allowed a clique of hawks to induce him to take a position, an invasion of Iraq, from which he cannot extract himself and which will have nothing but negative consequences, for everyone but first of all for the United States. He will find himself badly hurt politically, perhaps fatally. He will diminish rather rapidly the already declining power of the United States in the world. He will contribute dramatically to the destruction of the state of Israel by furthering the suicidal madness of the Israeli hawks. Of course, there will be many persons in the world who will be happy to see such negative consequences. The trouble is that, in the process, Bush will conduct warfare that will destroy many lives immediately, lead to a degree of turmoil in the Arab-Islamic world of a kind and at a level hitherto unimagined, and perhaps unleash the use of nuclear weapons which, once unleashed now, will be hard to make illegitimate after that. How have we all gotten into such a disastrous cul-de-sac
MAD FOR AMERICA!
5912. jexster - 5/26/2004 7:50:38 PM
Kerry is delivering a magnificent speech on the WOT covered live on CNN...not slash and burn..positive in tone, substantive, calm, cool, courageous, statesman like, with an unmistakable target..
5913. OhioSTOPAS - 5/27/2004 4:57:21 PM
It's not even novel anymore when the Bush-Cheney campaign puts out a new campaign ad that's full of lies. But (yawn) anyway, here is discussion by "Factcheck.org":
"A Bush ad released May 25 accuses Kerry of "playing politics with national security" and implies he would repeal "wiretaps, subpoena powers and surveillance" against terrorists under the USA Patriot Act.. . .the ad goes too far when it says Kerry "would now repeal the Patriot Act's use" of "wiretaps, subpoena powers and surveillance against terrorists. . . " . . .
"Kerry's position on those matters is spelled out in some detail on his website, and it simply does not support what the Bush ad claims. .. ."
So we have more utterly shameless lies.
Maybe a TV station will stand up for the truth and refuse to run an advertisement that so misleads its viewers . . . . Nah, dream on.
5914. OhioSTOPAS - 5/27/2004 5:02:46 PM
Related to the subject of dirty lies, I have a correction of sorts about a lie about dirt.
In Message # 5832 I posted a link that exposed a lie by Bush spokesman Trent Duffy regarding Bush's bicycle spill this weekend. Duffy said "It's been raining a lot", when in fact it had not rained for over a week.
However, I just noticed that Thoughtful had already spotted this lie and posted about it back in Message # 5791. Way ahead of me, T'ful!
5915. jexster - 5/27/2004 5:06:32 PM
But what about the big lead opening up in OHIO, what's happnin on the ground in the Buckeye State?
5916. jexster - 5/27/2004 5:09:58 PM
The Bush administration..played the press like a fiddle. But has that era come to an end?
Amazing things have been happening lately To Tell the Truth - Paul Krugman
Media in search of redemption is part of the payback firestorm, and an important one.
5917. jexster - 5/27/2004 5:10:50 PM
Lies do indeed have consequences
5918. jexster - 5/27/2004 5:25:25 PM
-Karl Rove has claimed that there were four million evangelicals who didn’t go to the polls in 2000, but who can be turned out in 2004. This is an urban legend.*
- Not all evangelicals are conservative Republicans. Far from it.
- Most progressives are religious.
- Conservatives and the GOP have made aggressive efforts to target Catholics. But there is no evidence that this targeting is actually working
- The GOP has also targeted Jews. Again, there is no evidence their appeals are working. In the 2004 NSRP, Jews favor Kerry by 46 points (70-24).
Moral for the GOP: Don't count your (religious) chickens before they've hatched.
Fun Facts on Religion & Politics
* - as I have pointed out this is a fundamental strategeric flaw in the GOP's multimillion dollar GOTV program
5919. jexster - 5/27/2004 6:21:43 PM
Poll: Kerry-McCain would easily beat Bush-Cheney
- - - - - - - - - - - -
ASSOCIATED PRESS
May 28, 2004 | WASHINGTON (AP) -- The hypothetical pairing of Democrat John Kerry and Republican Sen. John McCain holds a double-digit lead over the Republican ticket of President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney, a new poll finds.
Kerry-McCain has a 14-point advantage over Bush-Cheney among registered voters, 53 percent to 39 percent, in the latest CBS News poll. The results were released Thursday
5920. jexster - 5/27/2004 6:23:04 PM
"The truth has a force of its own"
In a Salon interview, John Kerry talks about Iraq, his "personal" decision on a running mate and the "craven, petty, childish and destructive" politics of his opponents.
5921. jexster - 5/27/2004 6:51:02 PM
Anyone seen Cheney lately?
Been MIA basically since Abu Ghraib broke...
Prior to that he had been on an Attack Dog Tour.
He made two appearances only since then - if I recall correctly AIPAC and the Big Rummy Rally at the Pentagon.
My bet...he's laying low becaue the Gulag Scandal reaches the very top of the food chain
Crusty can run but he cannot hide from the CIA
5922. marjoribanks - 5/27/2004 6:51:05 PM
Excellent foreign policy speech by Kerry.
--
Senator Kerry on National Security
Published: May 27, 2004
(Page 5 of 5)
Over the last year, we've heard from the president that our policy should be to simply stay the course. Well, one thing I learned in the Navy is that when the course you're on is heading for the shoals, it's pretty smart to shift the rudder. Staying the course -- (interrupted by applause) -- staying the course is important. But staying the wrong course is not a sign of strength; it is a mark of stubbornness, and it ultimately weakens this nation and the world. (Applause.)
Advertisement
If president Bush does not secure new support from our allies, we will once again feel the consequences of a foreign policy that has divided the world instead of uniting it. Our troops will be in greater peril. The mission in Iraq will be harder to accomplish, if not impossible, and our country will be less secure.
I have spoken today about the architecture of a new national security policy. But at issue here is not just a set of prescriptions; at stake is a vision of an America that's truly stronger, truly respected in the world. This is not a partisan cause. Patriotism doesn't belong to any one party or to any president or to any ideology. And if I am president -- (interrupted by applause) -- if I am president, I will enlist the best among us, regardless of party, to protect the security of this nation.
5923. jexster - 5/27/2004 7:19:38 PM
I heard parts yesterday..THAT was a majorly fine speech..
Kerry's goin the Stateman-like high road...
5924. jexster - 5/27/2004 9:40:36 PM
"I agree with what Gen Zinni said the other night, 'when your boat's going over Niagara Falls, you don't stay the course, you change the course" Max Cleland, Senator and War Hero
5925. jexster - 5/28/2004 7:59:27 PM
A West Texas Girl, Just Like Me
- "I want to thank my friend, Sen. Bill Frist, for joining us today. … He married a Texas girl, I want you to know. (Laughter.) Karyn is with us. A West Texas girl, just like me."—Nashville, Tenn., May 27, 2004
Bush Says U.S. Must Persevere in Iraq, Evokes WWII
Bush Says He Has Cure for Illegible Prescriptions
- Kerry Vows to Rebuild 'Shredded' U.S. Alliances
5926. jexster - 5/28/2004 10:09:02 PM
George W. Bush has put this country at unprecedented peril
The Speech That's No Joke
5927. wonkers2 - 5/29/2004 3:25:32 PM
Save America
5928. Magoseph - 5/29/2004 3:46:29 PM
During last election, some of our ex-Moties were pretty much using the same swearing words about Clinton and the Democrat posters here.
5929. jexster - 5/29/2004 4:54:51 PM
At the risk of sounding like a smartie pants and losing i3b3's vote..
BOB SCHIEFER: "The Gang that Can't Shoot Straight"
Here you have the Attorney General of the US with the FBI director at his side delivering warnings and we find out not only that he had not told the Director of Homeland Security or local FBI offices but that some of the information was totally bogus. You have to wonder where in the world the President [sic] was in all this.
5930. jexster - 5/29/2004 5:44:08 PM
Kerry Stepping Up, Stepping Out
Bush Obsession with Iraq Has Made US Less Safe - Kerry Interview
5931. jexster - 5/29/2004 10:01:39 PM
PATHETIC...
No the Crawford Cretin wasn't OBSESSED
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A handgun that Saddam Hussein (news - web sites) was clutching when U.S. forces captured him in a hole in Iraq (news - web sites) last December is now kept by President Bush (news -web sites) at the White House, a spokesman confirmed on Sunday.
5932. jexster - 5/29/2004 11:11:08 PM
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (Reuters) - Democrats hope to capture a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives and gain momentum toward retaking control of the chamber when South Dakotans vote Tuesday in a special election.
Democrat Stephanie Herseth's lead over Republican Larry Diedrich has narrowed to a range of nine to 11 percentage points in recent polls. Diedrich's backers say their internal surveys show a closer contest that could be decided by 1,000 votes or fewer.
At stake is South Dakota's lone House seat, vacant since first-term Republican Rep. Bill Janklow resigned in January following a vehicular manslaughter conviction
5933. jexster - 5/30/2004 3:09:11 AM
Tongue tied in BushWorld..
It has now become close to a commonplace that John Kerry's policies differ little from President Bush's. Where is the difference, we hear, since both candidates are for an openness to greater troop deployment, a fuller role for the United Nations and the country's traditional allies, and dropping support for the exilic hucksters who helped scam the country in the first place.
This is a weak argument on several grounds. But the most glaring is that what we see now isn't the president's policy. It's the president's triage -- his team's ad hoc reaction to the collapse of his policy, the rapid, near-total, but still incomplete and uncoordinated abandonment of his policy.
The president's actions, if not his words, concede that Iraq has become the geopolitical equivalent of a botched surgery -- botched through some mix of the misdiagnosis of the original malady and the incompetence of the surgeon. Achieving the original goal of the surgery is now close to an afterthought. The effort is confined to closing up as quickly as possible and preventing the patient from dying on the table. And now the 'doctor', pressed for time and desperate for insight, stands over the patient with a scalpal in one hand and the other hurriedly leafing through a first year anatomy text book.
Next up, what does 'failure' in Iraq mean?
-- Josh Marshall
5934. jexster - 5/30/2004 3:09:56 AM
CBS NewsPoll tonight shows Kerry with an OVERWHELMING lead among Catholics.
5935. wonkers2 - 5/30/2004 3:14:26 AM
Bush is moving to where Kerry and many Democrats were a couple of years ago.
5936. wonkers2 - 5/30/2004 3:16:17 AM
Magoseph, true and now they are getting some of their own medicine. But where are they? Cowering under their beds?
5937. jexster - 5/30/2004 4:18:53 AM
They cower like the miserable whipped bitch dogs they are!
May a thousand camels shit in their beds.
But those who believe and work deeds of righteousness, and believe in the (Revelation) sent down to Muhammad - for it is the Truth from their Lord,- He will remove from them their ills and improve their condition. al-Qur'an 47:2
Allahu Akbar!
His Name Be PRAISED!
5938. Magoseph - 5/30/2004 12:00:00 PM
Wonk, they are posting to the choir, as we do.
5939. OhioSTOPAS - 5/30/2004 2:57:00 PM
Pants on Fire
"Last Monday in Little Rock, Vice President Cheney said Democratic presidential candidate John F. Kerry "has questioned whether the war on terror is really a war at all" and said the senator from Massachusetts 'promised to repeal most of the Bush tax cuts within his first 100 days in office.'"
"On Tuesday, President Bush's campaign began airing an ad saying Kerry would scrap wiretaps that are needed to hunt terrorists.
"The same day, the Bush campaign charged in a memo sent to reporters and through surrogates that Kerry wants to raise the gasoline tax by 50 cents.
"On Wednesday and Thursday, as Kerry campaigned in Seattle, he was greeted by another Bush ad alleging that Kerry now opposes education changes that he supported in 2001.
"The charges were all tough, serious -- and wrong, or at least highly misleading. Kerry did not question the war on terrorism, has proposed repealing tax cuts only for those earning more than $200,000, supports wiretaps, has not endorsed a 50-cent gasoline tax increase in 10 years, and continues to support the education changes, albeit with modifications.
"Scholars and political strategists say the ferocious Bush assault on Kerry this spring has been extraordinary, both for the volume of attacks and for the liberties the president and his campaign have taken with the facts. . . ."
The actual title of this Washington Post article (although I prefer mine) is "For Bush, Unprecendented Negativity." This is typical of the media's denunciation of "negative" political advertising. However, what troubles me are not "negative" ads, but untruthful ones. At least this article addresses the false substance of the Bush ads, and not merely their tone.
5940. jexster - 5/30/2004 3:32:03 PM
What the hell else he gonna do Ohio?
Run on his record?
War President?
Maybe he should bash fags...Culture War President?
OOOPS
5941. jexster - 5/30/2004 3:34:42 PM
Here's a thought...how about Honest George...you know in the shoes of Abe, his party founder, and his namesake George, our country's father (who was the mother BTW???)
Cheney 'Coordinated' Corrupt Multi-Billion Dollar Halliburton Deal in Iraq
5942. jexster - 5/30/2004 3:35:12 PM
Link
5943. jexster - 5/30/2004 8:49:51 PM
Seems Josh Marshall agrees Ohio..
The Maginot Minds at Bush/Cheney are attempting a rerun of Gore Slime 2000 - fool us once...
By all means, read the article, which, if following the dictates of Strunk & White, might be titled "Bush Campaign Lies with Unprecedented Frequency"
5944. TheWizardOfWhimsy - 5/30/2004 9:37:07 PM
Jexster- Did you happen to see Tony Kushner on Charlie Rose last Friday? He ripped Bush a new one and made Rose dizzy.
5945. judithathome - 5/30/2004 11:13:59 PM
5946. judithathome - 5/31/2004 4:15:13 PM
Dooh Nibor Economics
Last week The Washington Post got hold of an Office of Management and Budget memo that directed federal agencies to prepare for post-election cuts in programs that George Bush has been touting on the campaign trail. These include nutrition for women, infants and children; Head Start; and homeland security. The numbers match those on a computer printout leaked earlier this year — one that administration officials claimed did not reflect policy.
Beyond the routine mendacity, the case of the leaked memo points us to a larger truth: whatever they may say in public, administration officials know that sustaining Mr. Bush's tax cuts will require large cuts in popular government programs. And for the vast majority of Americans, the losses from these cuts will outweigh any gains from lower taxes.
5947. jexster - 5/31/2004 4:38:45 PM
Bend Over Here They Come Again:
The Bush Tax Cuts - Another Bait n Switch from the Compassionate Conservative Con Man
5948. judithathome - 5/31/2004 5:04:00 PM
Jexter, are you blind or do you just not bother with other links at all? I just linked and quoted that column in the post above.
I at least try to discern if you have linked something before linking anything in and I think we could avoid a lot of overlap if you would do the same..
5949. robertjayb - 5/31/2004 5:05:47 PM
A msn who knows his limitations or an outrageous sandbagger?
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. — (The Hill) - Republican congressional hopeful Larry Diedrich is effectively conceding defeat in today’s South Dakota special House election before the polling booths even open.
The former state senator dramatically ratcheted down expectations during an interview with The Hill at his campaign headquarters, saying he would be happy to lose to Democrat Stephanie Herseth by only five percentage points.
5950. robertjayb - 5/31/2004 5:09:22 PM
Well, the a and the s are hiding in the shadows this morning, way over in the corner.
5951. jexster - 5/31/2004 5:21:05 PM
That Pez dispenser..couldn't get beyond that JAH
Now that I am past the pez, I know you haven't linked this one
Just how bold does John Kerry need to be?
A question that I go back and forth on...on the one hand, and then on the other, I wish I had another hand..
5952. arkymalarky - 5/31/2004 5:32:08 PM
I won't have an opinion on Kerry's handling of things until after the convention. Before that the #1 rule is don't screw up, and he's following it very well so far, imo.
5953. arkymalarky - 5/31/2004 5:34:23 PM
But we need more Democratic attack dogs! Someone needs to be worming his/her way into the talking heads shows to point out fallacies in Bush ads and other things that it wouldn't do for Kerry to address himself, but that someone needs to. I do not like the Democratic Party workings at all and I hope after the elections, however they turn out, Democrats will actively address that and shake things up.
5954. jexster - 5/31/2004 11:42:16 PM
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
People To Elect Charmaine Degruise Caccioppi To Congress
Contact: Candice Caccioppi
504.235.8176
Candice@charmaine2004.com
June 1, 2004
___________________________________________________________
Caccioppi Champions 3rd District Agenda in Washington
Raceland, LA - Charmaine Degruise Caccioppi, Congressional Candidate, D-LA3, heads to Washington, D.C. on Tuesday, June 1, to meet with some of the Nation’s top leaders.
Caccioppi has meetings scheduled with influential Senators and Representatives including Senators John Breaux and Mary Landrieu, Congressmen William Jefferson, Bob Matsui, Adam Smith, Steny Hoyer, and Congresswomen Rosa DeLauro and Nancy Pelosi. Caccioppi will also attend a “Meet and Greet” hosted in her honor by former U. S. Senator J. Bennett Johnston, with whom she worked with for twenty years.
“I am excited to be meeting with national leaders, colleagues and friends to discuss my vision for Louisiana and the 3rd Congressional District,” said Caccioppi.
Among the items that Caccioppi will discuss are: Coastal Restoration, improving Education, strengthening Healthcare, and increasing Job Creation with Economic Development.
“I look forward to discussing these vital concerns of the hard-working people of Louisiana’s 3rd Congressional district with these respected and influential leaders. To make progress in our community, we must communicate with those crafting important legislation and laws.”
For more information about Charmaine Caccioppi, visit www.charmaine2004.com.
5955. jexster - 6/1/2004 9:48:40 AM
One seat at a time...ready to take Tauzin's seat...Charmaine - She's Good to Geaux
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (Reuters) - Democrat Stephanie Herseth won an open U.S. House of Representatives seat in South Dakota on Tuesday, scoring a narrow victory in a contest her party hopes will help energize its drive to retake the Republican-controlled chamber in November.
With 777 of the state's 798 precincts reporting, she had a lead of 3,687 votes over Republican Larry Diedrich, out of more than a quarter million ballots cast Tuesday for the state's lone House seat.
Herseth's victory didn't become apparent until early Wednesday. It marked the second time in as many years the state produced a cliff-hanger election -- in 2002, Democrat Sen. Tom Johnson was re-elected by a 524-vote margin.
The win was the second House pickup for the Democrats this year and was the last House contest scheduled before November's general election, when all 435 seats along with the presidency and a third of the U.S. Senate are up.
In February Democratic Rep. Ben Chandler won a special election for an open Kentucky seat.
5956. judithathome - 6/1/2004 4:57:40 PM
Wall Street Firms Funnel Millions to Bush
This article reports on the large flow of political contributions from major Wall Street financial firms to President Bush's re-lection campaign. The article notes that these firms could earn substantial profits if President Bush carries through with his plans to privatize Social Security... ECONOMIC REPORTING REVIEW By Dean Baker - June 1, 2004]
5957. jexster - 6/1/2004 5:13:03 PM
CNN is now reporting a leaked tape...ENRON-BUSH BUSTED..
In the payback time..reporters doin their jobs and intimidated bureaucrats findin their courage and professionalism again
5958. OhioSTOPAS - 6/1/2004 5:25:44 PM
The right-wing/Republican echo machine is at work again with another tall tale about John Kerry.
"Newsmax.com" reports (sic):
"Democratic senator - and certain presidential nominee - John F. Kerry gave the middle finger to a Vietnam veteran at the Vietnam Memorial Wall on Memorial Day morning, NewsMax.com has learned."
The story is attributed to Republican former Congressman John Leboutillier. (Back in Message # 5286 I linked another Leboutillier creation, a vicious lie about how Kerry threw away the Vietnam medals of his killed-in-action college friend Richard Pershing. That one didn't catch on, so the Republican talespinner is evidently back for another try.)
The allegedly fingered Vietnam vet was Ted Sampley of "Vietnam Veterans against John Kerry", a professional asshole who has previously spread venom against John McCain, and on one occasion even beat up a McCain staffer. (Newsmax's headline and opening paragraph merely says Kerry flipped off a "Vietnam veteran.") If Kerry ever does give Sampley the finger, it will be well deserved. But this story is unconfirmed and almost certainly false, especially since there has been no confirmation from the hardly media-shy Sampley.
(continued)
5959. OhioSTOPAS - 6/1/2004 6:09:03 PM
Nevertheless, this tale has been repeated and endorsed by the usual right-wing operators, including:
Rush Limbaugh
the Washington Times; and
the weblog "Little Green Footballs",
as well as miscellaneous others (including some former Moties now posting at "The Perfect World"). Often the predictable lament that the liberalbiasedmainstreammedia isn't covering this story is whined.
So this implausible story, invented by one person, has been disseminated to literally millions of readers and listeners via the right-wing echo machine. And because this activity is occurring on the underside of disgusting rocks that respectable media outlets rarely look under, everybody who "heard somewhere" that John Kerry gave the finger to a Vietnam veteran will never hear or read a correction. Just another day's work for right-wing "journalists".
5960. robertjayb - 6/1/2004 6:45:12 PM
i can't make a working link but here's part of what cbsnews.com has on the Enron traders:
Enron Traders Caught On Tape
LOS ANGELES, June 1, 2004
When a forest fire shut down a major transmission line into California, cutting power supplies and raising prices, Enron energy traders celebrated, CBS News Correspondent Vince Gonzales reports.
"Burn, baby, burn. That's a beautiful thing," a trader sang about the massive fire.
Four years after California's disastrous experiment with energy deregulation, Enron energy traders can be heard – on audiotapes obtained by CBS News – gloating and praising each other as they helped bring on, and cash-in on, the Western power crisis.
"He just f---s California," says one Enron employee. "He steals money from California to the tune of about a million."
"Will you rephrase that?" asks a second employee.
"OK, he, um, he arbitrages the California market to the tune of a million bucks or two a day," replies the first.
The tapes, from Enron's West Coast trading desk, also confirm what CBS reported years ago: that in secret deals with power producers, traders deliberately drove up prices by ordering power plants shut down.
"If you took down the steamer, how long would it take to get it back up?" an Enron worker is heard saying.
"Oh, it's not something you want to just be turning on and off every hour. Let's put it that way," another says.
"Well, why don't you just go ahead and shut her down."
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Tonight's Evening News will have more of the shocking Enron tapes, plus the outraged reaction from Capitol Hill.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
5961. robertjayb - 6/1/2004 6:51:49 PM
the Enron tapes, continued...
Officials with the Snohomish Public Utility District near Seattle received the tapes from the Justice Department.
"This is the evidence we've all been waiting for. This proves they manipulated the market," said Eric Christensen, a spokesman for the utility.
That utility, like many others, is trying to get its money back from Enron.
"They're f------g taking all the money back from you guys?" complains an Enron employee on the tapes. "All the money you guys stole from those poor grandmothers in California?"
"Yeah, grandma Millie, man"
"Yeah, now she wants her f------g money back for all the power you've charged right up, jammed right up her a------ for f------g $250 a megawatt hour."
And the tapes appear to link top Enron officials Ken Lay and Jeffrey Skilling to schemes that fueled the crisis.
"Government Affairs has to prove how valuable it is to Ken Lay and Jeff Skilling," says one trader.
"Ok."
"Do you know when you started over-scheduling load and making buckets of money on that?
Before the 2000 election, Enron employees pondered the possibilities of a Bush win.
"It'd be great. I'd love to see Ken Lay Secretary of Energy," says one Enron worker.
That didn't happen, but they were sure President Bush would fight any limits on sky-high energy prices.
"When this election comes Bush will f------g whack this s--t, man. He won't play this price-cap b------t."
Crude, but true.
"We will not take any action that makes California's problems worse and that's why I oppose price caps," said Mr. Bush on May 29, 2001.
Both the Justice Department and Enron tried to prevent the release of these tapes. Enron's lawyers argued they merely prove "that people at Enron sometimes talked like Barnacle Bill the Sailor."
5962. jexster - 6/1/2004 7:05:19 PM
DONT YOU TEXANS EVER READ before you post?
See the AP thread..
Sheesh....dumb as armadillos
5963. jexster - 6/1/2004 7:05:38 PM
Thieves too
5964. robertjayb - 6/1/2004 7:45:51 PM
Watch it, you coonass cockroach. I'm reaching for the Raid.
The Enron tapes story was tipped last night in News.
Don't you ever read, etc, etc.?
5965. robertjayb - 6/1/2004 9:12:26 PM
Woops! The Mayor of Crawford doesn't support The Dupe of Crawford...(offthekuff)
Crawford may be the heart of Bush country, but the town's mayor says John Kerry is the best choice for president.
"I don't see where I'm better off than I was four years ago," Robert Campbell said Tuesday. "I don't see where the city is any better off."
The Kerry campaign recently listed Mr. Campbell as one of 100 black mayors around the country – seven of them Texans – who support the Massachusetts senator over President Bush. But the campaign has not focused particular attention on the endorsement.
5966. OhioSTOPAS - 6/1/2004 9:31:10 PM
Robertjayb - Those purported Enron tapes must be forgeries. I distinctly remember 109109 and AceofSpades explaining to us that California's energy problems were caused by Democrats, not Enron.
5967. jexster - 6/1/2004 9:53:43 PM
Kerry Opens Big Lead over Bush in Critical State of Ohio: 49% to 42%!
American Research Group: "John Kerry leads George W. Bush among likely voters in Ohio according to a survey by the American Research Group. A total of 49% of likely voters say they would vote for Kerry if the presidential election were being held today and 42% say they would vote for
Bush. In a race between just Kerry and Bush, Kerry is at 50%, Bush is at 43%, and 7% are undecided." Zogby also recently showed Kerry ahead in OH.
I WENT BACK TO OHIO
BUT MY PRETTY COUNTRYSIDE
HAD BEEN PAVED DOWN THE MIDDLE
BY A GOVERNMENT THAT HAD NO PRIDE
THE FARMS OF OHIO
HAD BEEN REPLACED BY SHOPPING MALLS
AND MUZAK FILLED THE AIR
FROM SENECA TO CUYAHOGA FALLS
SAID, A, O, OH WAY TO GO OHIO
5968. Roy Bean - 6/1/2004 9:57:33 PM
Kerry's speech yesterday was a blunder.
-- It helped Bush change the subject off Iraq and onto terrorism.
-- It went so far into appealing to moderate Republicans that it could well give many Democrats despair that if elected Kerry won't try to undo most of the Patriot act.
Is it too much to ask that we have a choice this November?
5969. jexster - 6/1/2004 10:09:30 PM
Cowboy of Crawford
Cowpoke of Crawford
Cretin of Crawford
Clown of Crawford
King of Krawferd....
In constant sorrow all through his days!
I am a man of constant sorrow,
I've seen trouble all my days.
I bid farewell to old Kentucky,
The place where I was born and raised.
The place where he was born and raised!
For six long years,
I've been in trouble.
no pleasure here,
on earth I've found.
For in this world,
I'm bound to ramble,
I have no friends to help me now.
He has no friends to help him now!
5970. jexster - 6/1/2004 10:10:28 PM
Let Bush talk about terrorism...Roy...I say bring it on
5971. Magoseph - 6/1/2004 10:37:21 PM
Condo Rice was on CNN now with Judy Woodruff. I can't stand the sight of her, She disgusts me. She repeats the same packaged rhetoric over and over again. Of course she is fed the questions she wants by neocon Judy.
5972. jexster - 6/1/2004 10:55:35 PM
Bitches!
Can't live with em ...can't live without em!
Kinda like Texans!
5973. Roy Bean - 6/1/2004 11:21:38 PM
I thought I was the only one who noticed Judy Woodruff seems very Republican. And for that matter so does Paula Zahn.
5974. Magoseph - 6/1/2004 11:26:49 PM
...so does Paula Zahn.
Yes, another one I can't stand. I watch her show only if I want to see one of her guests.
5975. jexster - 6/2/2004 1:36:41 AM
The CIA's noose tightens...
CNN reports that Bush has retained private counsel in connection with the justice dept investigation of the Plame Treason.
5976. jexster - 6/2/2004 1:37:40 AM
Let's connect the dots..
ENRON leak
Chalabi leak
Plame investigaton why its enough to make a sentient President paranoid!
5977. jexster - 6/2/2004 2:44:14 AM
FREE AHMAD!!!!!
CNN:
Chalabi denies any shenigans with Iranian intelligence ahd has "fired off a letter" to Trashcroft, Bush and the GOP "leadership" demanding the opportunity to confront his CIA accusers under oath before Congress and the Great & Noble People of the USA.
Give Glory to ALLAH!
Allahu akbar..His Name Be PRAISED! Amen.
5978. jexster - 6/2/2004 2:47:11 AM
and he denied shenanigans as well.
And denied he was from Texas or that WMD are deployed in an around Crawford for an attack on New York City
5979. jexster - 6/2/2004 4:48:12 AM
The George Washington of Iraq
&
Confidant of the Burnt Bush
5980. jexster - 6/2/2004 5:38:27 AM
The Plame Treason:
Bush Lawyers Up
5981. OhioSTOPAS - 6/3/2004 3:33:34 PM
Will Kerry be running unopposed in Illinois?
"For want of a small change to the Illinois election law, President Bush's name is not supposed to be on the state's November ballot, but officials said one way or another, it will be there.
"The glitch arose because the Illinois legislature adjourned earlier this week without extending the Aug. 30 deadline for presidential candidates to be certified by the state elections board and qualify for the Nov. 2 ballot.
"The relatively late dates [Note: I would say "the UNPRECENDENTED late dates"]of this year's Republican Party convention, running Aug. 30 to Sept. 2, mean that Bush will not be the official nominee until after the deadline set in state law. Eight other states had the same problem but fixed the date. ["fixed"? Was something broken? I don't think so. Sheesh! Some liberal biased media this is!]"
The Republicans knew what these dates were when they selected their unprecedentedly late convention date in order to obtain an advantage in the presidential election. This isn't a "glitch" that needs to be "fixed".
This will get worked out and Bush will be on the ballot, and he should be. But it's fun to see the GOP squirm a little first. Sorry, buddy - it's not MY petard!
5982. robertjayb - 6/3/2004 5:24:02 PM
California to vote on Stem Cell Research says LATimes.
SACRAMENTO — An initiative that would have state taxpayers underwrite $3 billion worth of research into using embryonic stem cells to develop cures for Alzheimer's and other debilitating diseases qualified for the Nov. 2 ballot Thursday, propelling California to the forefront of a national battle at the intersection of science and morality.
The California Stem Cell Research and Cures Initiative is one of 14 propositions that will face the state's voters in this presidential election year, officials said. Advocates contend that stem cell research, which would be financed by a state bond issue over 10 years, could lead to breakthroughs in curing numerous diseases.
5983. OhioSTOPAS - 6/3/2004 5:46:14 PM
The American Prospect's weblog "Tapped" notes a remark by Republican Congressman Tom Davis regarding the South Dakota special election win by Democrat Stephanie Herseth over Republican opponent Diedrich. As reported in The Hill:
"Republicans downplayed Diedrich’s 2,981-vote loss . . .
“If you take out the Indian reservation, we would have won,” said Rep. Tom Davis (R-Va.)"
??!? Maybe there's some context I'm missing here, but this seems to be a belittling of non-White voters.
"Tapped" notes something Josh Marshall wrote regarding a similar subject:
" . . . one often hears in TV commentary about Democrats and their 'dependence' on the African-American vote. It's only the African-American vote, the argument goes, that keeps the Democratic party from becoming a permanent minority party.
"That's true of course. But what's the point exactly? Presumably if you scratch out all the votes of a major constituency of any political party that would put a bit of a dent in their electoral fortunes, right?
"If you wanted to be a little nasty you might, with equal merit, note that the Republican party's goose would be cooked if we disenfranchised everyone who doesn't believe in evolution. . . .
"I don't want to overstate the point. But nestled down deep in this argument is some sort of perhaps unconscious notion that the Dems are just hopelessly sucking wind among real voters and thus have to resort to padding their totals with blacks."
5984. judithathome - 6/3/2004 6:35:19 PM
Meanwhile, Back At The Ranch....
President George W. Bush’s increasingly erratic behavior and wide mood swings has the halls of the West Wing buzzing lately as aides privately express growing concern over their leader’s state of mind.
In meetings with top aides and administration officials, the President goes from quoting the Bible in one breath to obscene tantrums against the media, Democrats and others that he classifies as “enemies of the state.”
Worried White House aides paint a portrait of a man on the edge, increasingly wary of those who disagree with him and paranoid of a public that no longer trusts his policies in Iraq or at home.
“It reminds me of the Nixon days,” says a longtime GOP political consultant with contacts in the White House. “Everybody is an enemy; everybody is out to get him. That’s the mood over there.”
5985. OhioSTOPAS - 6/3/2004 7:08:46 PM
The "source" of that story, Capitol Hill Blue, is a VERY unreliable one. Pass the salt.
5986. judithathome - 6/3/2004 8:25:46 PM
Maybe but even a blind pig can find truffles.
5987. Magoseph - 6/3/2004 10:41:27 PM
VEEP CONTENDERS
After John Kerry eliminated his serious competition for the Democratic presidential nomination in March 2004, speculation began on possible running mates. A number of people have emerged as the top contenders, coming from a variety of backgrounds, regions and political viewpoints, all potentially bringing positives and negatives to the Democratic ticket.
5988. Magoseph - 6/4/2004 12:48:01 AM
I copied these latest polls from Salon. I can't give the link because I used the day pass.
Rasmussen Reports' latest state polls, from Political Wire
Oregon: Bush 46% Kerry 45%
Missouri: Bush 44% Kerry 43%
Georgia: Bush 51% Kerry 39%
Illinois: Kerry 54% Bush 38%
Ohio: Bush 46% Kerry 44%
California: Kerry 49% Bush 41%
Texas: Bush 55% Kerry 38%
New York: Kerry 57% Bush 34%
More State Polls
Michigan: Kerry 47% Bush 43% (Survey USA)
Connecticut: Kerry 46% Bush 36% (Quinnipiac)
North Carolina Bush 48% Kerry 44% (Rasmussen)
A CBS News poll shows Kerry is ahead of Bush among registered voters, 49 to 41 percent. CBS also surveyed veterans and says they favor Bush 54 to 40 percent, but the sample is so small --170 veterans -- the margin of error would be much higher for the subset than for the entire sample of 1,000-plus voters. Unfortunately, the CBS poll explanation doesn't say how much higher. [Update: Of course, War Room's readers are not as statistically challenged as I. A few have written to point out how really quite easy it is to calculate a margin of error (If my statistics professor from grad school is reading this, forgive me.) One reader explains: "Assuming that the sample was chosen randomly, there will always be an uncertainty that is n^(-1/2) [in other words, one over the square root of n], where "n" is the number of samples taken. ... Since there were 170 veteran respondents in this case, the square root is around 13. The reciprocal of that is about 0.077, which is 7.7%. So the margin of error for the veteran subsample is ± 7.7%." Thanks everyone. Now, moving on.
5989. judithathome - 6/4/2004 12:59:12 AM
I'm amazed Kerry has even 38% in Texas...
5990. Roy Bean - 6/4/2004 6:35:29 AM
I don't know who to believe lately. Rasmussen would have us believe that the race is neck and neck. CBS and other polls indicate a strong lead for Kerry.
Historically, re-election campaigns like this are either a landslide for one side or the other, they are almost never close. So I'm inclined to believe the Kerry leading Bush polls, over the neck and neck polls.
5991. jexster - 6/4/2004 11:55:27 AM
Rasmussen is a robo poll....They're not as accurate as real ones for all sorts of reasons which I won't bore anyone with unless asked. Better than other robo polls because they're done daily. But at this point robo tracking polls are less reliable than bi-weekly real polls
5992. jexster - 6/4/2004 12:02:42 PM
I think you are right that this election won't be close. Not a popular landslide but most probably an electoral one.
Here's one reason why
June 4, 2004
The Annenberg Election Survey has just released some new data on "persuadable voters" in the battleground states (about 11 percent of the nation's public) and it is very interesting data indeed. (Annenberg defines persuadable voters as those that say they are undecided or who have a preference but say there's a "good chance" they could change their minds;}
Probably the most striking thing about the data is how little these voters like George Bush and where he's led the country.
Swing voters in swing states give Bush an overall approval rating of just 44 percent. But that's good compared to how they feel about Bush's handling of the economy and Iraq. In both cases, Bush's approval rating is a stunningly low 30 percent, with 60 percent disapproval.
That's confirmed by their responses to th right direction/wrong track question: 2:1 wrong track over right direction (59/25). In addition, 85 percent of these voters believe the current state of the economy is only fair or poor and only 14 percent believe Bush's economic policies have made the economy better.
5993. jexster - 6/4/2004 12:03:05 PM
As Bush's 30 percent approval rating on Iraq suggests, these voters are very negative indeed
By an overwhelming 69-20 margin, they don't believe Bush has a clear plan to bring the Iraq situation to a successful conclusion.
By a similar margin (67-19), they don't believe the war in Iraq has reduced the risk of terrorist attacks against the US.
They also don't believe, by 53-40, that the situation in Iraq was worth going to war over.
By 52-21, they say we should bring our troops home as soon as possible,
Bush's approval rating on handling the war on terrorism among these voters is net negative (44/50).
. Ruy Teixeira
5994. jexster - 6/5/2004 7:36:34 PM
Independent Voters and the Bush Presidency
Gallup has put out an interesting new analysis discussing the high levels of partisan polarization in views of Bush. In the most recent Gallup poll, 89 percent of Republicans approve of the job Bush is doing as president, compared to just 12 percent of Democrats who approve. That 77 point gap is the highest of Bush's presidency.
Moreover, the strength of partisan approval and disapproval is striking. Among Republicans, 64 percent strongly approve of Bush's performance and, among Democrats, 66 percent strongly disapprove.
These are impressive figures, but for my money the most interesting data in the Gallup analysis are actually about independents. The analysis includes a chart of Bush approval by Democrat, Republican and independent which shows that, starting in early May, Bush's approval rating among independents dropped to 40 percent and stayed there.
That drop, if not reversed, may well prove to be the death knell of Bush's presidency. ..
Alas for Bush, this may turn out to be the election where everyone shows up. And, if that's the case, it'll be the Republican base that gets swamped, not the other way around.
Ruy T.
5995. jexster - 6/6/2004 3:36:41 AM