More selective amnesia from the Dem leadership.
In September 2002, four members of Congress met in secret for a first look at a unique CIA program designed to wring vital information from reticent terrorism suspects in U.S. custody. For more than an hour, the bipartisan group, which included current House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), was given a virtual tour of the CIA's overseas detention sites and the harsh techniques interrogators had devised to try to make their prisoners talk.
Among the techniques described, said two officials present, was waterboarding, a practice that years later would be condemned as torture by Democrats and some Republicans on Capitol Hill. But on that day, no objections were raised. Instead, at least two lawmakers in the room asked the CIA to push harder, two U.S. officials said.
Sunday, December 09, 2007
Saturday, December 08, 2007
Al Gore is criticised for lining his own pockets after £3,300-per-minute green speech
Mercenary little hypocrite ain't he...
Al Gore has come under fire for making personal gain from his mission to save the planet – after charging £3,300 a minute to deliver a poorly received speech.
The former American Vice-President was also accused of being "precious" at the London event, demanding his own VIP room and ejecting journalists, despite hopes the star-studded gathering would generate publicity for the fight against global warming.
Many of the audience at last month's Fortune Forum summit were restless as Mr Gore, who has won both a Nobel Peace Prize and an Oscar for his campaigning work this year, delivered the half-hour speech that netted him £100,000.
Al Gore has come under fire for making personal gain from his mission to save the planet – after charging £3,300 a minute to deliver a poorly received speech.
The former American Vice-President was also accused of being "precious" at the London event, demanding his own VIP room and ejecting journalists, despite hopes the star-studded gathering would generate publicity for the fight against global warming.
Many of the audience at last month's Fortune Forum summit were restless as Mr Gore, who has won both a Nobel Peace Prize and an Oscar for his campaigning work this year, delivered the half-hour speech that netted him £100,000.
'Golden Compass' 2007's Biggest Bombs
Another anti-religious themed movie destined to flop. This time on a grand scale... SATURDAY AM: Friday night only $8.6 million from 3,528 theaters with anemic per screen average. Weekend estimate for $27 million. Cost of movie: $200+ million. Wildly expensive flop should sink New Line Cinema chairman Bob Shaye's chances to stay on when his contract expires in 2008.
Friday, December 07, 2007
Iraqi Tribal Leadership: Shut Down Iranian Embassy In Iraq
Quick, somebody send these people the NIE report!
Over 200 sheikhs of Iraqi tribes issued, on December 6, a communiqué condemning "the terrorist presence of the Iranian regime and of its collaborators in Iraq" and calling for Iran's embassy and consulates in Iraq to be shut down.
Conversely, the leaders expressed support for the presence of the Iranian opposition organization Mojahideen-e-Khalq in Iraq, "as punishment for the Iranian regime that is exporting terrorism and radicalism to Iraq."
The leaders also expressed support for a petition signed by over 300,000 Shi'ites in southern Iraq condemning Iranian intervention in Iraq and accusing the Iranian government of "fanning the flames of inter-ethnic violence that has caused the death of tens of thousands of Iraqis... and the uprooting of four million people."
Over 200 sheikhs of Iraqi tribes issued, on December 6, a communiqué condemning "the terrorist presence of the Iranian regime and of its collaborators in Iraq" and calling for Iran's embassy and consulates in Iraq to be shut down.
Conversely, the leaders expressed support for the presence of the Iranian opposition organization Mojahideen-e-Khalq in Iraq, "as punishment for the Iranian regime that is exporting terrorism and radicalism to Iraq."
The leaders also expressed support for a petition signed by over 300,000 Shi'ites in southern Iraq condemning Iranian intervention in Iraq and accusing the Iranian government of "fanning the flames of inter-ethnic violence that has caused the death of tens of thousands of Iraqis... and the uprooting of four million people."
Quote of the Week
Fred Thompson commenting on Mike Huckabee:
"Not only is Iran the major long-term threat to our country, the nuclear program is the most important part of the Iran consideration. For a presidential candidate not to know that and not to keep up with that is very suprising," said Thompson.
"These are the kinds of things I've been talking about all of my life. Now, if the American people have other priorities, if they want someone who smiles a lot more than I do, or someone who is a better quipster than I am, who has no experience in these areas, that's for the American people to decide."
DING!
"Not only is Iran the major long-term threat to our country, the nuclear program is the most important part of the Iran consideration. For a presidential candidate not to know that and not to keep up with that is very suprising," said Thompson.
"These are the kinds of things I've been talking about all of my life. Now, if the American people have other priorities, if they want someone who smiles a lot more than I do, or someone who is a better quipster than I am, who has no experience in these areas, that's for the American people to decide."
DING!
Why parole a monster like Green
Now that the Huckster is in the top tier the big guns are scrutinizing him with fervor. What they're finding isn't pretty.
Gov. Huckabee probably never read the confession of a demented killer named Glen Green before he made the monster eligible for parole.
Green's confession is so depraved, its sadistic details so scary that no sane, responsible adult would consider him for parole.
If the governor didn't read the confession, he is guilty of dereliction of duty.
But if he read the confession and still considers Green deserving of parole, he's certainly unfit to hold office. Who would free a madman who beat an 18-year-old woman with Chinese martial-arts sticks, raped her as she barely clung to life, ran over her with his car, then dumped her in the bayou, her hand reaching up, as if begging for mercy?
We're publishing the gruesome picture of Green's victim on the front page because we believe her hand is reaching up to demand justice.
He's going down folks. His will be the fastest rise and and fall in the history of Presidential politics.
Gov. Huckabee probably never read the confession of a demented killer named Glen Green before he made the monster eligible for parole.
Green's confession is so depraved, its sadistic details so scary that no sane, responsible adult would consider him for parole.
If the governor didn't read the confession, he is guilty of dereliction of duty.
But if he read the confession and still considers Green deserving of parole, he's certainly unfit to hold office. Who would free a madman who beat an 18-year-old woman with Chinese martial-arts sticks, raped her as she barely clung to life, ran over her with his car, then dumped her in the bayou, her hand reaching up, as if begging for mercy?
We're publishing the gruesome picture of Green's victim on the front page because we believe her hand is reaching up to demand justice.
He's going down folks. His will be the fastest rise and and fall in the history of Presidential politics.
Thursday, December 06, 2007
Governor Mitt Romney's "Faith In America" Address
You all certainly know by now that I am a Thompson supporter. That being said I am not so blinded by that support that I can't recognise an outstanding speech by an opposition candidate when I see one. This was such a speech.
College Station, TX – Speaking at The George Bush Presidential Library, Governor Romney addressed the American people about his views on religious liberty, our country's grand tradition of religious tolerance and how faith would inform his Presidency.
Read transcript here.
My only gripe...Romney stated that he did not let his Mormon beliefs affect his Mass governorship. Frankly I would be a great deal more amenable to him if he had.
College Station, TX – Speaking at The George Bush Presidential Library, Governor Romney addressed the American people about his views on religious liberty, our country's grand tradition of religious tolerance and how faith would inform his Presidency.
Read transcript here.
My only gripe...Romney stated that he did not let his Mormon beliefs affect his Mass governorship. Frankly I would be a great deal more amenable to him if he had.
Skeptics Denied Press Credentials at UN Climate Meeting in Bali
Obviously this New Age religion has no room for climate athiests...
Newsbusters reports: Several reporters representing the conservative newspaper Environment & Climate News were refused press entry credentials to attend the U.N.'s climate change meeting in Bali this week.
Newsbusters reports: Several reporters representing the conservative newspaper Environment & Climate News were refused press entry credentials to attend the U.N.'s climate change meeting in Bali this week.
As the first goals of the Kyoto Protocol are about to expire, the United Nations is preparing a "Conference of the Parties," the highest decision-making authority. The meeting will take place in Bali, Indonesia from December 3 to December 5.
But the event lost any claim of impartiality when organizers rejected attempts by representatives of Environment & Climate News to receive press accreditation for the conference.
UN press office coordinator Carrie Assheuer said the newspaper's representatives "do not meet the criteria for press accreditation." Environment & Climate News has been in continual publication for 10 years; is sent to more than 75,000 elected officials, opinion leaders, and environmental professionals in the United States; and is one of five newspapers published the by 23-year-old Heartland Institute.
Wednesday, December 05, 2007
NH NEA TO ENDORSE CLINTON, HUCKABEE
Oh this is helpfull...
The 16,000-member New Hampshire affiliate of the National Education Association has chosen to recommend to its members Hillary Clinton in the Democratic primary and Mike Huckabee in the Republican primary, according to a source within the state NEA.This is the first time the state affiliate has picked a candidate in the GOP primary, and it follows Huckabee’s showing as the only Republican who spoke to the NEA convention in July.
The 16,000-member New Hampshire affiliate of the National Education Association has chosen to recommend to its members Hillary Clinton in the Democratic primary and Mike Huckabee in the Republican primary, according to a source within the state NEA.This is the first time the state affiliate has picked a candidate in the GOP primary, and it follows Huckabee’s showing as the only Republican who spoke to the NEA convention in July.
Al Qaeda Confession: Only 200 Foreign Terrorists are left in Iraq
This from translator extraordinaire and our friend jveritas at FR...
In his speech released yesterday Abou Omar Al Baghdadi the supposed leader of the Islamic State in Iraq which is Al Qaeda in Iraq said that only two hundered Mohajeroon are left in Iraq. Mohajeroon which means immigrants in Arabic are the foreign terrorists who came to fight in Iraq. This is yet the most stunning admission by Al Qaeda in Iraq that they are totally destroyed and from the tens of thousands of foreign terrorists they had, almost all of them are killed and captured and only two hundreds are left.
This is the quote translation of what Al Baghdadi said in his latest speech: “… with all that, the Mouhajeron in Mesopotamia left the world and went quickly to meet their lord after they sacrificed their money and their blood sometimes in the martyrdom operations and sometimes by throwing themselves in front of the enemy that only two hundreds Mouhajeron are left today in our beloved Iraq"
al-Qaida defeated in Iraq? More like decimated.
In his speech released yesterday Abou Omar Al Baghdadi the supposed leader of the Islamic State in Iraq which is Al Qaeda in Iraq said that only two hundered Mohajeroon are left in Iraq. Mohajeroon which means immigrants in Arabic are the foreign terrorists who came to fight in Iraq. This is yet the most stunning admission by Al Qaeda in Iraq that they are totally destroyed and from the tens of thousands of foreign terrorists they had, almost all of them are killed and captured and only two hundreds are left.
This is the quote translation of what Al Baghdadi said in his latest speech: “… with all that, the Mouhajeron in Mesopotamia left the world and went quickly to meet their lord after they sacrificed their money and their blood sometimes in the martyrdom operations and sometimes by throwing themselves in front of the enemy that only two hundreds Mouhajeron are left today in our beloved Iraq"
al-Qaida defeated in Iraq? More like decimated.
Tuesday, December 04, 2007
Mom: 'Carol Sue Would Be Alive Today' If Not for Huckabee
Unlike the feeble attempt to compare Romney's judge appointment with Dukakis' Willie Horton release, this truly IS analogous only worse.
A Missouri mother says she will do "whatever it takes" to stop former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee from becoming president, because he freed the man who went on to rape and murder her daughter, Carol Sue Shields (pictured).
"I can't imagine anybody wanting somebody like that running the country," Lois Davidson of Adrian, Mo., told the Blotter on ABCNews.com.
Wayne Dumond was initially sentenced to life plus 25 years for raping a 17-year-old Arkansas high school cheerleader. In 1999, a parole board voted to free Dumond, after then-Gov. Mike Huckabee announced his desire to see him released.
It's within the perview of every Governor to overrule a jury verdict by commutation, pardon or in this case "lobbying" the parole board. He better, however, make damn sure those actions are totally defensible and justified. I see no compelling evidence in this case that would indicate it was.
More from HotAir
A Missouri mother says she will do "whatever it takes" to stop former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee from becoming president, because he freed the man who went on to rape and murder her daughter, Carol Sue Shields (pictured).
"I can't imagine anybody wanting somebody like that running the country," Lois Davidson of Adrian, Mo., told the Blotter on ABCNews.com.
Wayne Dumond was initially sentenced to life plus 25 years for raping a 17-year-old Arkansas high school cheerleader. In 1999, a parole board voted to free Dumond, after then-Gov. Mike Huckabee announced his desire to see him released.
It's within the perview of every Governor to overrule a jury verdict by commutation, pardon or in this case "lobbying" the parole board. He better, however, make damn sure those actions are totally defensible and justified. I see no compelling evidence in this case that would indicate it was.
More from HotAir
Baseball Mascot Gets New Name After 'PorkChop' Is Deemed Offensive
What the he!!?
The Lehigh Valley IronPigs, whose mascot is a large, furry pig, had selected PorkChop from more than 7,300 fan submissions. The team, which begins play in 2008, announced Monday that the mascot will be named "Ferrous" instead.
General Manager Kurt Landes said he heard from several Hispanics who said PorkChop was derogatory.
Guillermo Lopez, vice president of the Latino Leadership Alliance, said he was called "pork chop" when he worked at Bethlehem Steel decades ago.
"If my parents were alive, they'd be having fits," said Lopez, among those who complained to the team. "It meant much more to them than it does to Puerto Ricans now in the Lehigh Valley."
Go f*&k yourself Guillermo!! There, now you have something to be offended about.
The Lehigh Valley IronPigs, whose mascot is a large, furry pig, had selected PorkChop from more than 7,300 fan submissions. The team, which begins play in 2008, announced Monday that the mascot will be named "Ferrous" instead.
General Manager Kurt Landes said he heard from several Hispanics who said PorkChop was derogatory.
Guillermo Lopez, vice president of the Latino Leadership Alliance, said he was called "pork chop" when he worked at Bethlehem Steel decades ago.
"If my parents were alive, they'd be having fits," said Lopez, among those who complained to the team. "It meant much more to them than it does to Puerto Ricans now in the Lehigh Valley."
Go f*&k yourself Guillermo!! There, now you have something to be offended about.
Forty Qaeda leaders killed or caught in Iraq: U.S.
Good news from Iraq keeps coming.
BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Forty senior al Qaeda in Iraq members were either captured or killed in November, including a senior adviser to the Sunni Islamist group's leader, the U.S. military said on Tuesday.
Violence levels in Iraq have fallen to their lowest levels since January 2006 after a security crackdown, which included a deployment of an extra 30,000 U.S. troops, targeting al Qaeda and Shi'ite militias across the country.
BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Forty senior al Qaeda in Iraq members were either captured or killed in November, including a senior adviser to the Sunni Islamist group's leader, the U.S. military said on Tuesday.
Violence levels in Iraq have fallen to their lowest levels since January 2006 after a security crackdown, which included a deployment of an extra 30,000 U.S. troops, targeting al Qaeda and Shi'ite militias across the country.
More Cracks in the Clinton Coalition
Former Clinton protege' and charter member of the Lollipop Guild speaks...
(CNN) – Bill Clinton's former Secretary of Labor issued a blistering criticism of the former president's wife on Monday, accusing her of "not telling the truth" on Social Security and taking marching orders from her top pollster.
Reich, who has not endorsed a candidate but has written glowingly of Illinois Sen. Barack Obama in recent months, ripped Hillary Clinton for saying Sunday that Iowa voters will have a choice "between someone who talks the talk, and somebody who's walked the walk."
He also picked apart Clinton's health care plan: "HRC doesn’t indicate how she‚d enforce her mandate, and I can’t find enough money in HRC’s plan to help all those who won’t be able to afford to buy it."
"I don’t get it," Reich wrote on his blog. "If there’s anyone in the race whose history shows unique courage and character, it's Barack Obama. HRC’s campaign, by contrast, is singularly lacking in conviction about anything.
(CNN) – Bill Clinton's former Secretary of Labor issued a blistering criticism of the former president's wife on Monday, accusing her of "not telling the truth" on Social Security and taking marching orders from her top pollster.
Reich, who has not endorsed a candidate but has written glowingly of Illinois Sen. Barack Obama in recent months, ripped Hillary Clinton for saying Sunday that Iowa voters will have a choice "between someone who talks the talk, and somebody who's walked the walk."
He also picked apart Clinton's health care plan: "HRC doesn’t indicate how she‚d enforce her mandate, and I can’t find enough money in HRC’s plan to help all those who won’t be able to afford to buy it."
"I don’t get it," Reich wrote on his blog. "If there’s anyone in the race whose history shows unique courage and character, it's Barack Obama. HRC’s campaign, by contrast, is singularly lacking in conviction about anything.
Monday, December 03, 2007
Horrible Huck Pushing Populist Pap
I am not a big George Will fan and disagree with him on a host of issues however he's hit the bullseye here...
On the Republican side, Mike Huckabee's candidacy rests on serial non sequiturs: I am a Christian, therefore I am a conservative, therefore whatever I have done or propose to do with "compassionate," meaning enlarged, government is conservatism. And by the way, anything I denote as a "moral" issue is beyond debate other than by the uncaring forces of greed.
Many Iowans think it would be wise to nominate a candidate who, when the Republicans were asked during a debate to raise their hands if they do not believe in evolution, raised his. But, then, Huckabee believes America can be energy independent in 10 years, so he has peculiar views about more than paleontology.
Huckabee combines pure moralism with incoherent populism: He wants Washington to impose a nationwide ban on smoking in public, show more solicitude for Americans of modest means and impose more protectionism, thereby raising the cost of living for Americans of modest means.
Although Huckabee is considered affable, two subliminal but clear enough premises of his Iowa attack on Mitt Romney are unpleasant: The almost 6 million American Mormons who consider themselves Christians are mistaken about that. And - 55 million non-Christian Americans should take note - America must have a Christian president.
I only wish that Mr.Will could exhibit such diagnostic clarity when scrutinizing his candidate of choice, Rudy Guiliani.
On the Republican side, Mike Huckabee's candidacy rests on serial non sequiturs: I am a Christian, therefore I am a conservative, therefore whatever I have done or propose to do with "compassionate," meaning enlarged, government is conservatism. And by the way, anything I denote as a "moral" issue is beyond debate other than by the uncaring forces of greed.
Many Iowans think it would be wise to nominate a candidate who, when the Republicans were asked during a debate to raise their hands if they do not believe in evolution, raised his. But, then, Huckabee believes America can be energy independent in 10 years, so he has peculiar views about more than paleontology.
Huckabee combines pure moralism with incoherent populism: He wants Washington to impose a nationwide ban on smoking in public, show more solicitude for Americans of modest means and impose more protectionism, thereby raising the cost of living for Americans of modest means.
Although Huckabee is considered affable, two subliminal but clear enough premises of his Iowa attack on Mitt Romney are unpleasant: The almost 6 million American Mormons who consider themselves Christians are mistaken about that. And - 55 million non-Christian Americans should take note - America must have a Christian president.
I only wish that Mr.Will could exhibit such diagnostic clarity when scrutinizing his candidate of choice, Rudy Guiliani.
Chavez Loses Constitutional Vote
Venezuezlan people-1 Sawed off tin pot dictator-0
CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) - President Hugo Chavez suffered a stunning defeat Monday in a referendum that would have let him run for re-election indefinitely and impose a socialist system in this major U.S. oil provider.
Voters defeated the sweeping measures Sunday by a vote of 51 percent to 49 percent, said Tibisay Lucena, chief of the National Electoral Council, with voter turnout at just 56 percent.
She said that with 88 percent of the votes counted, the trend was irreversible.
Sunday, December 02, 2007
Morris, Huckabee keep lines open
This for those misguided souls who think Hucks the guy...
Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee has been holding private conversations with Dick Morris, according to aides, a longstanding relationship that is raising new questions as Huckabee’s campaign begins to take off.
Morris’ most prominent calling card has been with Bill Clinton — for two decades, starting in 1977, as his most influential (if sometimes erratic) political adviser and for the past decade as one of his most persistent (if sometimes erratic) public critics.
But the Arkansas connection the controversial consultant and commentator established through Clinton also brought Huckabee onto his client roster, beginning in 1993 when he advised the Republican’s winning campaign for lieutenant governor.
Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee has been holding private conversations with Dick Morris, according to aides, a longstanding relationship that is raising new questions as Huckabee’s campaign begins to take off.
Morris’ most prominent calling card has been with Bill Clinton — for two decades, starting in 1977, as his most influential (if sometimes erratic) political adviser and for the past decade as one of his most persistent (if sometimes erratic) public critics.
But the Arkansas connection the controversial consultant and commentator established through Clinton also brought Huckabee onto his client roster, beginning in 1993 when he advised the Republican’s winning campaign for lieutenant governor.
Saturday, December 01, 2007
Hillary Clinton Draws Boos at Iowa Campaign Event, 1 Day After Hostage Situation
Folks this thing is getting murkier by the minute on both the Democrat AND the Republican side. Clinton's shoe in has suddenly become not such a given as has Rooties. All bets are off; I've got a gut feeling the entire race could break wide open. Watch the polls over the next couple of weeks, this could get very interesting and a bit scary.
Hillary Clinton speaks via satellite during the Heartland Presidential Forum Saturday.
Whatever public sympathy Hillary Clinton had built up during the tense hostage situation at her New Hampshire campaign office appeared to dissipate Saturday, as she was met with a round of boos during an address over the phone to an Iowa political event.
At the Heartland Presidential Candidates Forum in Des Moines, community activists lustily booed the Democratic frontrunner after she declined to commit to passing comprehensive immigration reform in her first 100 days in office.
Clinton said reform would be a "high priority" for her, but that didn't satisfy a crowd looking for legislation that would move illegal immigrants swiftly on a path to legalization.
Hillary Clinton speaks via satellite during the Heartland Presidential Forum Saturday.
Whatever public sympathy Hillary Clinton had built up during the tense hostage situation at her New Hampshire campaign office appeared to dissipate Saturday, as she was met with a round of boos during an address over the phone to an Iowa political event.
At the Heartland Presidential Candidates Forum in Des Moines, community activists lustily booed the Democratic frontrunner after she declined to commit to passing comprehensive immigration reform in her first 100 days in office.
Clinton said reform would be a "high priority" for her, but that didn't satisfy a crowd looking for legislation that would move illegal immigrants swiftly on a path to legalization.
Iraqi civilian killings drop sharply in November
Even the political front is looking up as oil revenues continue to be divvied and former Baath party members are being integrated back into society. Now the only question is how long can the Democrat leadership continue to deny the obvious.
BAGHDAD (Reuters) - The number of civilians killed in violence throughout Iraq fell this month to the lowest level in nearly two years, according to government statistics obtained by Reuters on Friday.
The data showed 538 civilians were killed in November, down 29 percent from October. The statistics are compiled by the health, interior and defence ministries, and represent the best Iraqi count of the bloodshed.
They confirm a sharp fall in violence in the 10 months since U.S. forces launched a "surge" of 30,000 additional troops and a new tactic of moving from large bases into small neighborhood positions to reduce violence.
The number of civilians killed in violence in October was 758. The November figure is nearly 75 percent down from the almost 2,000 deaths per month at the beginning of this year.
BAGHDAD (Reuters) - The number of civilians killed in violence throughout Iraq fell this month to the lowest level in nearly two years, according to government statistics obtained by Reuters on Friday.
The data showed 538 civilians were killed in November, down 29 percent from October. The statistics are compiled by the health, interior and defence ministries, and represent the best Iraqi count of the bloodshed.
They confirm a sharp fall in violence in the 10 months since U.S. forces launched a "surge" of 30,000 additional troops and a new tactic of moving from large bases into small neighborhood positions to reduce violence.
The number of civilians killed in violence in October was 758. The November figure is nearly 75 percent down from the almost 2,000 deaths per month at the beginning of this year.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
