Open thread

But is Manbearpig really dead? Read More......

Leader of Iran lectures Bush on being a good Christian

You have to hand it to the Iranian leader, can't think of a better way to get Bush's goat than to lecture him about his own anemic Christian values. The sad part is, the Iranian is probably right. Read More......

With country in record deficit, spending out of control on war, House and Senate Republicans agree to cut taxes for rich AGAIN by $70bn

And they wonder why the public thinks George Bush and the republican congress are out of touch? Republicans have the majority in both houses of Congress, the US Senate and the US House. The only way to stop this insanity is to vote against every single Republican in this November's elections. Not a single vote. Read More......

HUD secretary: I was just kidding when I said I broke the law. Don't believe me, I'm a liar.

Oh, I feel an investigation coming on!

As I noted earlier, there are really two issues here. First, the issue of denying government contracts based on the political views of the recipient, which appears illegal. But second, the issue of federal contracts being given out for political/electioneering purposes, which is most certainly illegal. See my analysis below.

PS One of my readers just wrote and raised a good point. How did the topic of the grantee's politics come up in the first place? It's hard to believe that you're trying to get money from the Bush administration and you just happen to bring up, out of nowhere, "oh yeah, by the way, I hate George Bush." Did the secretary veer the discussion to politics, inquire about the grantee's leanings, ask for a donation and/or help for the campaign? Read More......

And the bad polls just keep on coming

Good thing George Bush and his 31%-coalition don't care about polls. An analysis from the DSCC:

CBS/New York Times poll out tonight reveals that Americans have a bleaker view of the country's direction than at any time in more than two decades, and sharp disapproval of Bush's handling of gasoline prices has combined with intensified unhappiness about Iraq to create a grim political environment for the White House and Congressional Republicans six months from the November midterms. Here are the highlights of the poll:

BUSH. Bush's job approval ratings have hit another all-time low of only 31%, tying the low point of his father’s presidency. About two-thirds of voters say Bush doesn’t share their priorities, up from just over half right before his reelection in 2004. 68% believe the U.S. is worse off today than it was before Bush became president. Bush's approval rating for his management of foreign policy, Iraq and the economy have fallen to the lowest levels of his presidency. Just 13 percent approve of Bush's handling of rising gas prices. Only one-quarter approve of his handling of immigration.

DEMOCRATS. Democrats are viewed favorably by 55% of Americans. The public thinks Democrats would do a better job dealing with Iraq, gas prices, immigration, taxes, prescription drug and civil liberties. 50% said Democrats come closer than Republicans in sharing their moral values. By a margin of better than two to one, Democrats were seen as having more new ideas than Republicans. And half, the highest yet, said it was better when different parties control the two branches of government, reflecting one of the major arguments being laid out by Congressional Democrats in their bid to win back the House or Senate.

CORRUPTION. A majority said Republican members of Congress were more likely to be financially corrupt than a Democratic member of Congress, suggesting that Democrats might be making headway in their efforts to portray Republicans as having created a "culture of corruption" in Washington.

IRAQ. 29% approve of Bush's handling of Iraq. The percentage of respondents who said going to war in Iraq was the correct decision slipped to a new low of 39 percent, down from 47 percent in January. Two-thirds said they have little or no confidence that Bush will be able to successfully end the war there.

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When "Health Week" isn't Health Week

When Bill Frist proclaims it's "Health Week," he doesn't mean it will help the health of the American people. In fact, the premier piece of GOP health legislation would eliminate state mandated benefits:

But the bill, sponsored by Wyoming Republican Mike Enzi, would exempt these small business health plans as well as other policies from many state laws and mandates that govern both benefits and pricing.

The AARP retirees group, the American Diabetes Association, and the American Cancer Society, among others, have been pushing hard to stop the Enzi bill, saying it could erase 20 years of progress in health coverage by eroding benefit requirements.

The GOP Congress does nothing to improve the health of the American people. That's why the states have had to take the lead. Figures, the Repubs. have found a way to undermine those benefits, too. Read More......

Bush's supposed pick for CIA #2 is a former marine, would appear to violate law saying Director and Deputy of CIA can't both be military

UPDATE: A military reader pointed out something I was wondering about myself. If Kappes left the military but didn't "retire" - i.e., he just did his service and got out - then this may not violate the law if the law truly only pertains to 'retired' rather than 'former' military. Just a heads up.

1. Bush is reportedly going to put Stephen Kappes as the new #2.

2. Kappes is a former marine.

3. According to the law, it looks like the Director and the Deputy of the CIA can't both be current or former military (Sailor over at VidiotSpeak discovered the law thing).

So... Read More......

HUD secretary believes government contracts are for electioneering

Uh, this is quite possibly illegal:

“He didn’t get the contract,” [Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Alfonso] Jackson continued. “Why should I reward someone who doesn’t like the president, so they can use funds to try to campaign against the president? Logic says they don’t get the contract. That’s the way I believe.”

Why would he use the money to campaign against the president? Unless, the HUD secretary thinks that's why he's giving out federal contracts, so that recipients can use the money for election purposes. Is that why HUD only gives grants to Bush supporters, so they can "campaign for the president"? Just how much federal money has the HUD secretary given out to help support the Bush campaign? Read More......

Open thread

Fun news day. Read More......

White House demanding all agencies talk about "progress in Iraq" in every speech/talk. White House keeping score of who does and doesn't.

Comrade Bush needs you.

Career appointees at the Department of Agriculture were stunned last week to receive e-mailed instructions that include Bush administration "talking points" -- saying things such as "President Bush has a clear strategy for victory in Iraq" -- in every speech they give for the department.

"The President has requested that all members of his cabinet and sub-cabinet incorporate message points on the Global War on Terror into speeches, including specific examples of what each agency is doing to aid the reconstruction of Iraq," the May 2 e-mail from USDA speechwriter Heather Vaughn began....

Another attachment "contains specific examples of GWOT messages within agriculture speeches. Please use these message points as often as possible and send Harry Phillips , USDA's director of speechwriting, a weekly email summarizing the event, date and location of each speech incorporating the attached language. Your responses will be included in a weekly account sent to the White House."

Hat tip to Huffington Post. Read More......

File this in the "you've got to be kidding" folder

Truthiness in action.

A purported al Qaeda document published by the U.S. military may or may not be authentic but its message that the Sunni Islamist guerrillas face problems in Iraq could reflect reality, security experts said on Tuesday.

See, it doesn't matter if the document is a fake, it only matters if it sounds about right. That's what counts as news these days. As long as it SOUNDS like the truth, it doesn't matter if it isn't. Read More......

New Jackson Browne anti-Bush anti-war video

GREAT song, great video. It's fascinating how the culture has finally turned against him and them.

And while we're at it, don't forget Pink's song "Dear Mr. President" - if you haven't seen/heard it, you need to. Read More......

Military recruiters enlist autistic kid who didn't even know a war was going on

I'm speechless.

Jared didn’t know there was a war raging in Iraq until his parents told him last fall — shortly after a military recruiter stopped him outside a Portland strip mall and complimented his black Converse All-Stars.

“When Jared first started talking about joining the Army, I thought, `Well, that isn’t going to happen,”‘ said Paul Guinther, Jared’s father. “I told my wife not to worry about it. They’re not going to take anybody in the service who’s autistic.”

But they did. Last month, Jared came home with papers showing that he had not only enlisted, but signed up for the Army’s most dangerous job: cavalry scout. He is scheduled to leave for basic training Aug. 16.

And check out the other abuses:

A family in Ohio reported that its mentally ill son was signed up, despite rules banning such enlistments and the fact that records about his illness were readily available.

In Houston, a recruiter warned a potential enlistee that if he backed out of a meeting he'd be arrested.

And in Colorado, a high school student working undercover told recruiters he'd dropped out and had a drug problem. The recruiter told the boy to fake a diploma and buy a product to help him beat a drug test.

Yep, things are going really well. Read More......

Roll Call: Speaker Hastert comes out against Hayden nomination

Holy shit. From Roll Call:

Speaker Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.) has come out against the nomination of Air Force Gen. Michael Hayden to head the CIA, calling the ousting of former Rep. Porter Goss (R-Fla.) from the agency’s top post “a power grab” by John Negroponte, the director of national intelligence.

Hastert’s opposition to Hayden is not based on any personal reservations about the nominee. Rather, Hastert is concerned that installing a top-ranking military official at the “CIA would give too much influence over the U.S. intelligence community to the Pentagon.”

“I don’t know anything about him. He has never darkened my doorstep,” Hastert told reporters on Monday in Aurora, Ill., when asked about Hayden. "I don't think a military guy should be head of CIA, frankly."

Read More......

Tuesday Morning Open Thread

Start threading the news... Read More......

Foggo's departure is pretty standard stuff, apparently

CNN does a fantastic job of regurgitating the GOP talking points on this newest scandal. I hadn't realized that Foggo, who was plucked from obscurity at the CIA to take the #3 job, was just following standard procedure and leaving. Gosh. Here I thought it had something to do with his old friend and convicted criminal Wilkes. Josh Marshall raised the question yesterday about the story lines out there and this CNN article seems to be more of the same. Why does it look like the media is helping the GOP with this scandal, providing them with plenty of cover when it's obvious it just doesn't add up?

Goss announced his resignation Friday after what intelligence sources described as a power struggle with National Intelligence Director John Negroponte.

Intelligence officials said Foggo's departure would be "pretty standard" because the executive director "tends to follow the CIA director's career trajectory."

Read More......

Labour Party approval at 30% - 14 year low

Sounds like Tony and George have so much in common these days: fewer and fewer people support them. Read More......

Feingold is absolutely correct

Let's see more backbone from the Democrats. He's one of the few exceptions out there that has stood up to the bullying administration and it's time we see more joining him.

"We must get out of our political foxholes and be willing to clearly and specifically point out what a strategic error the Iraq invasion has been," Feingold, D-Wis., told a National Press Club audience.

He said some Democrats in Congress gave in to "intimidation" by the Bush administration when they voted to authorize the war in 2002, and warned: "If we do not show both a practical and emotional readiness to lead in the fight against terrorism, we will lose in '06 and we will lose in '08, just like we did in '02 and '04."

Read More......