"Suck. On. This." Why We Went to War

One of the most important pro-war voices in the lead-up to Iraq was Tom Friedman, whose insecurity, bravado, and profound stupidity characterizes a certain class of war-supporters perfectly. His position was magnified since he was a "liberal" supporting the war. The last 30 seconds of this is simply amazing:



That is moral leperhood of the highest order. We invaded and killed hundreds of thousands of innocents so that Tommy could feel like we were showing those Arabs who's boss, in order to decrease terrorism. That's right. "Kill innocents to decrease terrorism" is the equation that makes sense to him. This stunning insight is provided by one of journalism's leading "intellectuals."

The stupidity of these "experienced" voices was appalling, and plain to see for those of us not terrified that an Al Qaeda army was going to invade and make us all wear burkas. "We hit Iraq because we could..." The stains on Mr. Friedman's soul aren't coming off in this lifetime.

Karl Rove says the Left Tells the Truth

Kos, in full:

Karl Rove:

This doesn't sound like Scott, it really doesn't, not the Scott McClelland I've known for a long time. Sounds like a left-wing blogger.

Of course it sounds like us. We've been right all along.

That's the advantage of trafficking in reality -- history has a habit of vindicating our words.

Bush Outed a CIA Agent?

Firedoglake, the go-to people on the Libby case, thinks one of Scott McClellan's recent revelations has effectively proven that George W. Bush authorized the outing of a CIA Agent. McClellan says that Bush told him that he had authorized the selective declassifying of the NIE, which was intimately tied to the effort to destroy Joe Wilson. Just to make it clear how bad McClellan's book is for the WhiteHouse, that fact isn't even amongst the ones being heralded as scandalous.

Think of how much sense this makes. We have evidence that George Bush ordered Libby to respond to Joe Wilson on June 9, 2003. We now have Bush's own confirmation that he authorized the leak Libby made to Judy Miller on July 8, 2003--which included the leak of Valerie Wilson's identity. We know on July 10, Condi told Stephen Hadley that Bush "was comfortable" with the response the White House was making towards Wilson. And we know that--when Cheney forced Scottie McC to exonerate Libby publicly that fall, he did so by reminding people that "The Pres[ident] [asked Libby] to stick his head in the meat-grinder." We know that Libby's lawyers tried desperately to prevent a full discussion of the NIE lies to be presented at trial. And we know that--after those NIE lies did not come out, for the most part (though one juror told me that NIE story was obviously false, even with the limited information they received)--the President commuted Libby's sentence on July 2, 2007.

They have the full details, including links to all the trial testimony that reveals the cited facts. There are no flights of fantasy driven by Bush-Derangement-Syndrome. Everything is documented.

Daddy's not going to be happy:

“I have nothing but contempt and anger for those who betray the trust by exposing the name of our sources. They are, in my view, the most insidious of traitors.”

Junior sure showed him, huh? Add it to the "not-taking-out-Saddam" rebellion and the tax-cut fundamentalism, and you've got quite the pattern of Junior trying not to be the same "failed President" his Daddy was, and failing even more epically in the attempt. Looks like Daddy wasn't such a failure after all, huh?

The Transformation of a Maverick

Look what running for the Republican Nomination has done to poor John McCain.



After this series of flips and gaffes, how can they talk about Obama thinking there are 57 states seriously? He was joking, people. Listen to the tone of his voice. Look at the wry smile. Listen to the laughter in the room:



That's right, the Constitutional Law Professor is so dumb or gaffe-prone he doesn't know how many states there are. Please.

This is Rovian Strategy being played out: attack your opponent's strength. Obama is eloquent, politically brave, and bipartisan to the bone, so they say he's a gaffe-machine who dodges the politically inconvenient issues and has "never worked across the isle." The GOP knows that simply be repeating it, a strikingly large percentage of Americans will believe it, and the Press will not stand up and evaluate the falseness of their claims - cuz that would be liberal of them. Remember, 70% of Americans believed Saddam was personally responsible for 9/11.

Habeas Corpus

Proof:

If his cell were at Guantanamo Bay, the prisoner would be just one of hundreds of suspected terrorists detained offshore, where the U.S. says the Constitution does not apply.

But Ali Saleh Kahlah al-Marri is a U.S. resident being held in a South Carolina military brig; he is the only enemy combatant held on U.S. soil. That makes his case very different.

Al-Marri's capture six years ago might be the Bush administration's biggest domestic counterterrorism success story. Authorities say he was an al-Qaida sleeper agent living in middle America, researching poisonous gasses and plotting a cyberattack.

To justify holding him, the government claimed a broad interpretation of the president's wartime powers, one that goes beyond warrantless wiretapping or monitoring banking transactions. Government lawyers told federal judges that the president can send the military into any U.S. neighborhood, capture a citizen and hold him in prison without charge, indefinitely.

George Bush's America, ladies and gentlemen. A nation with a government possessing such powers cannot be described as Free. Time to call Boortz.

UPDATE: I've gotten some objections over the fact that Mr. Al-Marri is not an American citizen. But back as far as 1896 the Supreme Court has reaffirmed the clear language of the 14th Amendment:

No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.

Anyone within the territorial jurisdiction of the United States has constitutional rights. In fact, if you read the article, you find the following:

"What you assert is the power of the military to seize a person in the United States, including an American citizen, on suspicion of being an enemy combatant?" Judge William B. Traxler asked.

"Yes, your honor," Justice Department lawyer Gregory Garre replied.

The fact that "US Person = US Citizen" is canon in our legal system. So much so that even the crazy-assed Bush Administration doesn't try to argue the point. Case closed.

McCain's Cancer

Whoa!

McCain's most recent exams show a range of health issues common in aging: He frequently has precancerous skin lesions removed, and in February had an early stage squamous cell carcinoma, an easily cured skin cancer, removed. He had benign colon growths called polyps taken out during a routine colonoscopy in March.

So, while he was running for the GOP nomination, he went off and had cancer surgery without telling anyone. Wow. You think his party might have appreciated being let in on the secret?

Straight Talk, indeed!

McCain's Health

Senator McCain has finally released his health records, after over a year of delays. And when does he choose to release them? The Friday before Memorial Day Weekend! In the Bush Administration, this is called a document dump. Of course, I'm sure he has nothing to hide, which is why:

• only a small, select group of reporters will have access to the records in a secure room in Phoenix, AZ
• access is limited to only three hours, between 7 and 10 AM on Friday
• no copying of the records is permitted

Actually, I'm sure there aren't any surprises in his record. I mean, everyone knows he had cancer in 2000, right? Right? After all, it was only Type 2 malignant melanoma, which has a 60% ten year survival rate. I'm sure he'll be just fine.

Bush is a Record-Setting President

Hehe.

Bush's approval rating fell 4 percentage points to 23 percent, a record low for pollster John Zogby...

The number of Americans who believe the country is on the right track fell from 23 percent to an abysmal 16 percent, another record for pessimism, as uncertainty about the economy and rising gas prices fuelled growing doubts about the future.

I'm glad so many Americans finally agree with me. If only they could see through time too, huh?

Respect for the Opinions of Mankind

Another example of why the Bush Administration members shouldn't be taking any European vacations:

The U.S. government has injected hundreds of foreigners it has deported with dangerous psychotropic drugs against their will to keep them sedated during the trip back to their home country, according to medical records, internal documents and interviews with people who have been drugged.

...

Such episodes are among more than 250 cases The Washington Post has identified in which the government has, without medical reason, given drugs meant to treat serious psychiatric disorders to people it has shipped out of the United States since 2003 -- the year the Bush administration handed the job of deportation to the Department of Homeland Security's new Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency, known as ICE.

Involuntary chemical restraint of detainees, unless there is a medical justification, is a violation of some international human rights codes. The practice is banned by several countries where, confidential documents make clear, U.S. escorts have been unable to inject deportees with extra doses of drugs during layovers en route to faraway places.

These guys really reach for the stars.