talking points

Democrats And Military In Lockstep On Iraq - OUCH!

Now the talking points on this should be very interesting:

Senate Democrats reacted angrily yesterday to a report that the U.S. commander in Iraq had privately presented a plan for significant troop reductions in the same week they came under attack by Republicans for trying to set a timetable for withdrawal.

Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) said that the plan attributed to Gen. George W. Casey resembles the thinking of many Democrats who voted for a nonbinding resolution to begin a troop drawdown in December. That resolution was defeated Thursday on a largely party-line vote in the Senate.

"That means the only people who have fought us and fought us against the timetable, the only ones still saying there shouldn't be a timetable really are the Republicans in the United States Senate and in the Congress," Boxer said on CBS's "Face the Nation." "Now it turns out we're in sync with General Casey."

It also looks like the Republicans in Congress and the White House are not on the same page now. You got to love it when the Democrats are proven right on something.

Helping Cheney

It has been almost a year since I first mentioned Bunnatine Greenhouse. She was the top procurement officer for the Army Corp of Engineers and was in charge of the contracts for Iraq. Throughout her tenure she received the highest marks on her performance evaluations before being demoted for performance issues. The only issue that has been known is that she went to Congress and spoke the truth about the questionability of the contracts awarded to Halliburton.

Here we are and she is still demoted and now we find out that what she said was not only true, but may very well be illegal. A conservative watchdog group has obtained emails from the Army Corp of Engineers and Raw Story is reporting on them:

New documents obtained by a conservative watchdog group suggest that the US Army Corp of Engineers may have publicly lied regarding the involvement of the Vice President's office in awarding a 2003 multi-billion dollar, no-bid contract to Kellogg Brown and Root, a subsidiary of Halliburton, RAW STORY has learned.

RAW STORY has obtained a copy of the emails, which were acquired by the government watchdog group Judicial Watch under the Freedom of Information Act.

The newly released emails show the Army Corps attempting to deflect attention from Cheney's office by distributing talking points that would mask Cheney's purported role. The Corps could not immediately be reached for comment.

This is disgusting and an abuse of power as well as a fraud on the American people. One email went as far as to say this:

"I am copying you on this crap since I honestly believe the competitive procurement will never happen."

Congress must act on this and investigate it to the fullest extent.

The Makings Of A New Kind Of War.

We have the makings of a war within the administration now thanks to Condi:

Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld said he did not know what Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice was talking about when she said last week that the United States had made thousands of "tactical errors" in handling the war in Iraq, a statement she later said was meant figuratively.

Speaking during a radio interview on WDAY in Fargo, N.D., on Tuesday, Rumsfeld said calling changes in military tactics during the war "errors" reflects a lack of understanding of warfare. Rumsfeld defended his war plan for Iraq but added that such plans inevitably do not survive first contact with the enemy.

"Why? Because the enemy's got a brain; the enemy watches what you do and then adjusts to that, so you have to constantly adjust and change your tactics, your techniques and your procedures," Rumsfeld told interviewer Scott Hennen, according to a Defense Department transcript. "If someone says, well, that's a tactical mistake, then I guess it's a lack of understanding, at least my understanding, of what warfare is about."

Rumsfeld's questioning of Rice's comment came amid long-standing tensions between their departments over the war in Iraq and other issues. Rumsfeld and the Pentagon have been criticized by members of Congress and even some retired generals for missteps in Iraq, such as failing to anticipate the insurgency.

Now if this gets too heated which side will Bush take. Will he side with Condi and possibly that be the end of Rumsfeld or is it the other way around? Speaking of this - where is the "unity" in the administration? Maybe Ken Mehlman should start a talking points attack of the White House for their lack of unity now.

Talking Heads 'R' Us

While watching CNN this morning, I was (un)fortunate enough to watch an interview with Dan Bartlett, the White House ~~Chief Propagandist and Spinmeister~~ Communications Director, whose primary responsibility seems to be parroting Administration talking points while wearing a beatific smile and knowingly denigrating the intentions of Democrats. Bartlett seemed intent on focusing on talk of the necessity of "continued sacrifice" and how Democrats just don't understand the nature of the threat we face. Then it struck me: how can Bartlett, and others in the Administration charged with spreading propaganda. look at themselves in the mirror without feeling at least a modicum of guilt? Are they so inured to reality that they can simply create their own and believe it as if it were carved in stone? Do these people honestly believe every bit of the propaganda they spew? Have they really been drinking the KoolAid for so long now that they believe that the talking points they recite so blithely are the absolute Gospel truth, and anyone with a shred of sense and patriotism will be in complete agreement?What really upset me, though, was Bartlett's implied contention that those who do not support Our Glorious Leader in this time of war (i.e. - Democrats) are somehow unpatriotic, anti-American, and willing to coddle terrorists. Have the talking heads charged with spreading this Administration's propaganda really sunk to the point where they can equate dissent with anti-Americanism? Apparently so.

Reality ain't what it used to be, eh?

The Planet of Unreality Bush Sees Progress in Iraq, Challenge in Iran Bush: US will not abandon Iraq

This is not good. The people running this country sound convinced that reality is whatever they say it is. And if they've actually strayed into the realm of genuine self-delusion -- if they actually believe the fantasies they're spinning about the bloody mess they've made in Iraq over the past three years -- then things are even worse than I thought.

It should not exactly come as news that from the Truman Balcony at the White House things look pretty rosy. What SHOULD be a matter for concern is the degree to which Our Glorious Leader and his henchmen are willing to massage reality to fit their talking points. The latest example of this is whether or not Iraq is engaged in a civil war. Apparently, 50-60 being murdered on a daily basis, while unfortunate, does not fit this Administration's definition of "civil war". After all, body counts are purely abstract (unless your children or loved ones are included in the count, of course), and since freedom is on the march, it's all good, right? In the end, who cares whether or not what is happening in Iraq fits the Administration's narrow definition of "civil war"? The end result is still the same. Innocent Iraqis are dying as a result of sectarian violence, and whether or not you believe that Iraq is embroiled in a civil war, these people are just as dead. Utlimately, the reality is the same. the only thing that changes is the how the propaganda is spun. No, reality is not what you choose it to be...and just what is the reality in Iraq?

The Vanity Fair Article

So I am going through the Vanity Fair (pdf file) article on Abramoff and all I can say is WOW. It really shows us more into the connections this slime has. Here are some interesting excerpts from it:

...the head of the Republican National Committee, Ken Mehlman, said in an interview, “Abramoff is someone who we don’t know a lot about. We know what we read in the paper,” even though, according to documents obtained by Vanity Fair, Mehlman exchanged e-mail with Abramoff, did him political favors

Sol now we got Mehlman involved. That is a nice one. The head of the party of corruption (aka the GOP) is also involved in the very scandal that has earned them that title. Time for John to break out the Ken Mehlman Talking Points Action Figure again.

Frustration In Katrina

PRESIDENT Bush's visit to Katrina-ravaged Louisiana Wednesday follows six months of bungling that threatens political catas trophe for the state's Republicans. He will boost his belated $4.2 billion plan finally to provide housing for people made homeless by the storm, but it may be too little, too late.

Rep. Richard Baker, a 10-term conservative GOP congressman from Baton Rouge with a 91 percent pro-Bush voting record, sat down with me in his Capitol Hill office last week to talk politics frankly: "The backlash is unknowable, but it is a big concern. . . . We [Republicans] are being measured by this storm response and by what Republicans do to help poor people."

That appears in the New York Post and was written by Robert Novak. You know things are going bad for Bush when the typical right-wing mouth pieces are now straying from the talking points.

Considering how long it is taking us to rebuild the Gulf Coast, it is no wonder why Iraq has been such a mess. To Bush just saying something is good enough. He never feels his words require any actions.

Fitzgerald's Press Conference

Fitzgerald gave one of the longest press conferences I think I have ever
witnessed. Saying that, it was also very interesting. He could not get into many
details of the case and left many of us wondering what is still to come but he
did let us in on what is known.

He started off by saying that any investigation focuses on the facts and not
on any statue. This should put to rest all those rumors of him indicting on
"technicalities" and not the actual crimes. The fact is there was actual crimes,
those being the ones listed in the indictment. Later during his question and
answer time he also made response to what certain right wingers called this
being a "technicality" by saying that truth is the "engine of justice".

He said that Valerie Plame's identity as a CIA agent was classified and that
people close to her did not even know of her employment. He also mentioned how
this hurt our nation as a whole and could prevent the hiring of further CIA
agents who might question the protection of their identity.

While the grand jury has expired, Fitzgerald did mention that he still has
access to other Grand Jury's should they be needed.

This story is far from over. This should prove an interesting weekend,
especially when it comes to the Sunday morning talk shows. Orin Hatch was
already on CNN trying to spin the situation with some of the same old talking
points that Valerie Plame was not covert and this charge is a technicality. I am
sure we will hear many new talking points by the end of the weekend.

Frist Gets A Subpoena!

Looks like trouble could be compounding for Bill Frist according to this
article which appears today in the

Washington Post:

Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-Tenn.) has been subpoenaed to turn
over personal records and documents as federal authorities step up a probe
of his July sales of HCA Inc. stock, according to sources familiar with the
investigation.

The Securities and Exchange Commission issued the subpoena within the
past two weeks, after initial reports that Frist, the Senate's top
Republican official, was under scrutiny by the agency and the Justice
Department for possible violations of insider trading laws.

Frist aides previously said he had been contacted by regulators but did
not mention that the lawmaker had received a formal request for documents.
The sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the
investigation, said Frist is expected to testify under oath about what he
knew about the company's health in the weeks before he sold stock. Frist has
told reporters that he did nothing wrong and that he directed the sale to
eliminate potential conflicts as he considered a 2008 presidential bid.

View rest of the article

here (free registration required).

As this investigation broadens, it will raise the question of how the right
can put blame onto the left. Ken Mehlman talking points should be really
interesting when it comes to this story.

Full Spin Ahead

It is starting to look like the media of truth is fading
away again to the media of Bush.

Last week we heard reports of firefighters furious over
their lack of allowed involvement in the Gulf Coast. One report talked of over
1100 firefighters feeling used because they were sent down there to act strictly
as public relation tools for FEMA. Instead of going straight to ground zero,
they sat a couple hundred miles away taking public relations and sexual
harassment courses in Atlanta.

Another story told of about 600 firefighters from Illinois
who had been sitting there doing nothing since the day after the storm hit. They
were being blocked by FEMA from going in and providing the rescue and aide they
are so well trained at.

Now we here stories about BushÃƒÂ¢Ã¢â€šÂ¬Ã¢â€žÂ¢s latest visit to the area
and everyone seems to echo this same
paragraph:

After arriving in New Orleans Sunday, Bush traveled through
the nearly deserted town to visit "Tent City," the campus of the Our Lady of
Holy Cross College that is now the massive staging area for hundreds of weary
and dirty but enthusiastic firefighters from around the country. They included
New York City firemen who brought back a truck that the state of Louisiana and
private donors gave after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

Seems the old Rove spin cycle is getting back on track.
More important than getting a strong hold on terrorism or insurgents in Iraq is
having that controlling arm in what the Media is reporting.

Democrats And Military In Lockstep On Iraq - OUCH!

Helping Cheney

The Makings Of A New Kind Of War.

Talking Heads 'R' Us

Reality ain't what it used to be, eh?

The Vanity Fair Article

Frustration In Katrina

Fitzgerald's Press Conference

Frist Gets A Subpoena!

Full Spin Ahead

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