Accountability, Congress-style:
Accountability, Congress-style:
“Rep. Randy ‘Duke’ Cunningham (R-Calif.) will soon relinquish many of his properties and his freedom after pleading guilty to charges of fraud and conspiracy, but he will keep his government pension and could retain the privileges enjoyed by other former members of Congress,” the Hill reports.
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Live webcast:
Live webcast:
Former Senator Tom Daschle hosts former FEMA director James Lee Witt in the first in a series of Conversations with Daschle. Tonight’s topic is Disaster Recovery in the Wake of Katrina. Watch it live at 7:00 pm ET. Click here to submit a question.
Bush Administration Pushes False Propaganda, Condemns It
Bush Administration Pushes False Propaganda, Condemns It
The reality in Iraq, as the L.A. Times reported this morning, is that the U.S. military is distributing misleading “covert propaganda†in Iraqi media outlets:
As part of an information offensive in Iraq, the U.S. military is secretly paying Iraqi newspapers to publish stories written by American troops in an effort to burnish the image of the U.S. mission in Iraq. … The storyboards, several of which were obtained by The Times, read more like press releases than news stories. They often contain anonymous quotes from U.S. military officials; it is unclear whether the quotes are authentic. “Absolute truth was not an essential element of these stories,” said the senior military official who spent this year in Iraq.
Of course, in the public relations-driven “National Strategy for Victory in Iraq,” the Bush administration condemns the exact same behavior:
Isolate enemy elements from those who can be won over to the political process by countering false propaganda and demonstrating to all Iraqis that they have a stake in a democratic Iraq [National Strategy for Victory in Iraq, 11/30/05]
It’s Bush’s Iraq strategy vs. Bush’s PR strategy.
O’Reilly friend or foe?
O’Reilly friend or foe?
Though the New York Daily News occupies one of the coveted spots on Bill O’Reilly’s new enemies list, it also carries his syndicated column. (Via Kos)
From “Mission Accomplished” to “Tough Days Ahead”
From “Mission Accomplished” to “Tough Days Ahead”
Bush today:
Before our mission in Iraq is accomplished, there will be tough days ahead.
Bush, May 2003:
On Thursday, I visited the USS Abraham Lincoln, now headed home after the longest carrier deployment in recent history. I delivered good news to the men and women who fought in the cause of freedom: their mission is complete and major combat operations in Iraq have ended.
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi
Like It or Not, You’re Funding Right-Wing Rock
Like It or Not, You’re Funding Right-Wing Rock
These are boom times for right-wing rock, and not just because The Right Brothers’ hit single “Bush Was Right!” now has a music video.
Another “educational” conservative band, Junkyard Prophet, has been busy touring high schools across the country. But these rockers aren’t stickin’ it to the man — they’re being funded by him. The band apparently receives about $1500 per appearance — an amount that several schools have paid out of their drug-free schools funding from the Department of Education. (Junkyard Prophet says it helps students resist peer pressure and “understand the value and beauty of the moral absolutes on which their country was founded.”)
Our sister site, CampusProgress, has details:
The Des Moines Register reported that after one 2004 performance, Junkyard Prophet handed out CDs to a few random students that bore this message: “the death sentence [is] on you due to your sins! The very evidence of your sin will be your death! It is appointed to you to die and after that you will be judged according to your ways! His judgment is so thorough every thought will be brought to the light. When all your sin against God is exposed, how will you escape the damnation of hell?” [...]
[Prophets frontman Bradlee] Dean has also told students that “there is nothing in our Constitution or founding documents about separation of church and state” and criticized the theory of evolution.
According to the band’s website, it has appeared at over 220 schools over the last few years. (Experience Junkyard Prophets for yourself — their music videos are here.) In some instances turned up by CampusProgress, students were told that attendance at the assembly was mandatory and that they would be suspended if they skipped out.
AP states it bluntly:
AP states it bluntly:
“Bush’s speech did not break new ground or present a new strategy.” (Via HuffPost)
On Today Show, O’Reilly Compares Murtha With Hitler Sympathizers
On Today Show, O’Reilly Compares Murtha With Hitler Sympathizers
Bill O’Reilly on the Today Show this morning:
These pin-heads running around going, “Get out of Iraq now” don’t know what they are talking about. These are the same people before Hitler invaded in WWII that were saying, “He’s not such a bad guy.” They don’t get it.
Watch it:
Of course, the most prominent person calling for withdrawing from Iraq now is decorated Vietnam veteran Rep. Jack Murtha.
27 seconds:
27 seconds:
The time it took President Bush to reference September 11 in this morning’s Iraq speech.
Rapid Response: Deconstructing the “National Strategy for Victory in Iraq”
Rapid Response: Deconstructing the “National Strategy for Victory in Iraq”
After two-and-a-half years and 2,110 U.S. troop fatalities, the Bush administration released what it calls a “National Strategy for Victory in Iraq” (NSVI). The problem is, it’s not a new strategy for success in Iraq; it’s a public relations document. The strategy describes what has transpired in Iraq to date as a resounding success and stubbornly refuses to establish any standards for accountability. It dismisses serious problems such as the dramatic increase in bombings as “metrics that the terrorists and insurgents want the world to use.” Americans understand it’s time for a new course in Iraq. Unfortunately, this document is little more than an extended justification for a President “determined to stay his course.”
NO STANDARDS FOR ACCOUNTABILITY: Two weeks ago, the Senate overwhelmingly endorsed an amendment calling on the Bush administration to provide a “schedule” for meeting U.S. objectives in Iraq, “information regarding variables that could alter that schedule, and the reasons for any subsequent changes to that schedule.” The NSVI completely rejects this call. “We will not put a date certain on when each stage of success will be reached,” the document states in bold and italicized print, “because the timing of success depends upon meeting certain conditions, not arbitrary timetables.” The only time frames proposed for achieving U.S. objectives are virtually meaningless phrases: “short term,” “medium term,” and “longer term.” The goals for these time frames are equally ambiguous; the so-called “short term” goals, for instance, are listed as “making steady progress in fighting terrorists, meeting political milestones, building democratic institutions, and standing up security forces.” More »
The “National Strategy for Victory in Iraq”
O’Reilly Finally Unveils Enemies List
O’Reilly Finally Unveils Enemies List
After sites like Media Matters and ThinkProgress exposed his callous remarks about San Francisco, Bill O’Reilly said:
I’m glad the smear sites made a big deal out of it. Now we can all know who was with the anti-military internet crowd. We’ll post the names of all who support the smear merchants on billoreilly.com.
Here’s the list which debuted yesterday:
(Click here for the full image.)
O’Reilly provides no information about what, specifically, these news organizations actually did to earn their spots. But O’Reilly never lets facts get in the way of his outrage.
Bush on Immigration: Wherever The Political Winds Blow
Bush on Immigration: Wherever The Political Winds Blow
In an attempt to regain the support of his right-wing base, Bush delivered a speech on immigration yesterday described as a “rhetorical pound of flesh.†Last year, Bush’s support was more secure, and his rhetoric was more moderate. Here’s a look at how Bush’s approach and rhetoric on immigration has changed with the political winds:
| January 7, 2004 | November 28, 2005 |
| Audience: “Bush is already giving up some symbolic territory. When he announced his guest-worker plan in 2004, he did so before an audience of 200 Latinos.” [Time, 11/27/05] | Audience: His “audience included border patrol agents and military troops. He was flanked by two black Customs and Border Protection helicopters and giant green and yellow signs that said ‘Protecting America’s Borders.’” [Washington Post, 11/28/05] |
| Nature of America: “By tradition and conviction, our country is a welcoming society.” [White House, 1/7/04] | Nature of America: “The American people should not have to choose between a welcoming society and a lawful society. We can have both at the same time.” [White House, 11/28/05] |
| Strategy: “Reform must begin by confronting a basic fact of life and economics: some of the jobs being generated in America’s growing economy are jobs American citizens are not filling.” [White House, 1/7/04] | Strategy: “Our strategy for comprehensive immigration reforms begins by securing the border.” [White House, 11/28/05] |
| Solution: “If an American employer is offering a job that American citizens are not willing to take, we ought to welcome into our country a person who will fill that job.” [White House, 1/7/04] | Solution: “The first part of the plan is to promptly return every illegal entrant we catch at the border, with no exceptions.” [White House, 11/28/05] |
A handy list
The Scandal Scorecard,
O’Reilly Teaches Viewers the True Meaning of Christmas
O’Reilly Teaches Viewers the True Meaning of Christmas
According to Bill O’Reilly, Christmas is under siege from the “secular progressive agenda…to get Christianity and spirituality and Judaism out of the public square.” The self-described “leading general of the anti-secular forces in this country” often devotes radio and television segments to the issue around this time of year.
Thankfully, the man defending Christmas understands its true meaning. Here’s what he said on last night’s Factor:
Every company in America should be on its knees thanking Jesus for being born. Without Christmas, most American businesses would be far less profitable. More than enough reason for business to be screaming “Merry Christmas.â€
O’Reilly speaks from experience. Featured prominently on his website is “The O’Reilly Christmas Store,†where loyal Factor viewers can buy books, jackets, and coffee mugs featuring the right-wing commentator’s favorite slogans.
Low even by White House standards:
Low even by White House standards:
Ohioans give scandal-plagued Gov. Bob Taft (R) a favorable rating of just 6.5%.
Breaking: Bush To Unveil “National Strategy for Victory in Iraq” Tommorow
Breaking: Bush To Unveil “National Strategy for Victory in Iraq” Tommorow
From today’s White House pool report:
Scott gaggled on AF1 and yes, he gave a preview of tomorrow’s speech on the war. Among the hightlights [sic], the WH will be releasing an unclassified “National Strategy for Victory in Iraq.” He said they hope to have it out by 6:30 a.m.
Question: Shouldn’t we have had a “National Strategy for Victory in Iraq” before the war started?
Reality Check on Iraq
Reality Check on Iraq
On Wednesday, President Bush will deliver an address at the Naval Academy in Annapolis, MD, in which, he is “expected to herald the improved readiness of Iraqi troops, which he has identified as the key condition for pulling out U.S. forces.” The speech appears to be an effort by the Bush administration to lay the groundwork for potentially large withdrawals of troops in 2006 and 2007.
While Bush and critics of his Iraq policy may agree that a drawdown could be the proper action to take, they differ in one key respect — the rationale for why such a withdrawal is necessary. Rep. John Murtha (D-PA) recently argued that pulling out of Iraq is necessary because “the war in Iraq is not going as advertised. It is a flawed policy wrapped in illusion.” Bush, on the other hand, is trying to suggest that a drawdown is the fruits of “good progress” being made in Iraq.
A review of the situation on the ground in Iraq demonstrates clearly that things are getting worse, not better:
- Approximately 100 Attacks Per Day; All-Time High. “Pentagon officials said that in October there were about 100 attacks a day in Iraq compared with 85 to 90 attacks a day in September — and about half of all attacks involve homemade bombs.†That is the highest recorded level since the Iraq war began. By comparison, in January, nationwide figures hovered around 50 to 70 attacks per day. [CNN, 11/3/05; Boston Globe, 1/21/05; Brookings Iraq Index, p. 20]
- One of the Deadliest Attacks In Iraq Occurred Less Ten Days Ago. “Suicide bombers killed nearly 100 people Friday in one of the deadliest days of Iraq’s insurgency, bringing houses down on sleeping families in Baghdad and shredding Shiite Muslim worshipers in two mosques in the eastern part of the country just as the victims turned their faces up to the preachers to hear their Friday sermons… Nationwide, the attacks were the deadliest since Sept. 14, when at least 14 insurgent bombings in Baghdad killed more than 160 people.†[Washington Post, 11/19/05]
- Unemployment Rates At 40 Percent. [Biden speech, 11/21/05] More »
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