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History as an Alibi
2007-07-11 07:41:00
By Maureen Dowd The New York TimesOn Friday, Condi Rice played hooky and spent the afternoon at the Tiger Woods golf tournament at Congressional Country Club in suburban Maryland.She had lunch at the clubhouse with Tiger, who had dedicated the contest to American servicemen. She followed Phil Mickelson and Brad Faxon for a bit, after having them over to the White House on the Fourth to watch the fireworks. She gave interviews about her newfound affection for golf, laughing about her errant drives and ?wicked hook.?Like W. going out boating and fishing in Kennebunkport as Britain and its new prime minister, Gordon Brown, reeled from terrorist attacks, Condi acted as if she didn?t have a care in the world. And why on earth should she?The homeland security chief, Michael Chertoff, has a gut feeling that a Qaeda cell might be coming or already be here. ?Summertime seems to be appealing to them,? he said, sounding more like a meteorologist than the man charged with keeping us safe.With 30...
More About: Bush , Iraq , History , Tory

War Drum Beats on The Brain
2007-07-11 06:30:00
Tom Tom Friedman's analysis in his latest Times op ed (scroll down) of how to handle the Iraq fiasco is as full of holes as the aftermath of an insurgent's car bomb explosion in an Iraqi marketplace. Yo--Tom. Absent from your discourse is the fact that the Iraqis -- not the U.S. installed, incompetent puppet government in Iraq -- but the Iraqi people want us out and have said so for years. Bush has said on the record that if the Iraqis want us to go, we'll go. Uh huh. Then why are we still there? We have made Iraq into a literal living hell. Is it any wonder that the people want us to get the hell out of their country? That's point one.Point two: no one is talking about the fact that our tax dollars have built permanent military bases all over Iraq (the Green Zone has been described as the equivalent of a small city) for a reason -- and it has nothing to do with any professed intention to eventually leave Iraq. No one is talking about disbanding these bases. No one is...
More About: Politics , Government , Military , United Nations

SAVE DARFUR: What You Can Do Now
2007-07-11 06:11:00
Watch the Ad and Pass it OnFor the past four years, Sudan's government has broken promise after promise to the international community time while the people of Darfur continue to suffer. Our latest TV ad emphasizes the need to keep the pressure on Sudan to end this cycle of lies that keeps the death toll rising in Darfur.The best way to keep pressure on Sudan to cooperate is by building our movement and demanding action. By passing on the video of our new ad, you can help grow our cause and move world leaders to action.Fill out the forms HERE to send a message to your friends and families asking them watch the new ad and build the pressure.Bloggers, link to this post or grab the code from YouTube , post it and link your post to this page.Technorati tags: Save Darfur, Darfur, Activism , YouTube, video
More About: Video

Wednesday News
2007-07-10 20:17:00
Why Bush Gave Scooter Libby a Pass'Panic Mode' Over GOP Revolt on IraqFred Thompson is Dumb As HellDC Madam Exposes GOP Senator as Hypocritical Whoremonger"While Sen. David Vitter (R-LA) was busy defending the sanctity of marriage against gays and the "Hollywood left" publicly, he was busy denigrating it behind closed doors with prostitutes."62 Immigrants Die in US Jails"Sixty-two immigrants have died in US jails since 2004 for lack of medical care, human rights groups told members of the US Congress Monday. 'Deficient medical care in immigration detention is a systematic problem and needs to be addressed,' said Tom Jawetz, of the American Civil Liberties Union, the largest US group defending civil rights," reports Agence France-Presse.EU Mediterranean States Call for Middle East Peace Conference"Francois Murphy reports for Reuters that the foreign ministers of EU's Mediterranean states - Bulgaria, Cyprus, Spain, France, Greece, Italy, Portugal, Malta, Romania and Slovenia have...
More About: News , Wednesday

War: Crime Against Humanity
2007-07-10 04:26:00
Abusing Iraq i CiviliansBy Bob Herbert The New York TimesWith no end yet in sight for the long dark night of the Iraq war, The Nation magazine is coming out this week with an article that goes into great and disturbing detail about the brutal treatment of Iraqi civilians by some U.S. soldiers and marines.The article does not focus on the handful of atrocities that have gotten substantial press coverage, like the massacre in Haditha in November 2005. Instead, based on interviews conducted on the record with dozens of American combat veterans of the war, the authors address what they describe as frequent acts of violence in which U.S. forces have abused or killed Iraqi civilians ? men, women and children ? with impunity.The combination of recklessness, wantonly destructive behavior born of panic and deliberate acts of cold-blooded violence by G.I.?s are believed to have cost the lives of thousands of innocent Iraqis, the article says. The soldiers interviewed said they believed that onl...
More About: Crime , War , Humanity

Wars Costing $12 Billion a Month
2007-07-10 04:13:00
No drop in the bucket, this. Bushie's wars are the kiss of death for education, healthcare, social security -- you name it, you can kiss them all goodbye. Andrew Taylor, MyWay News reports: "The boost in troop levels in Iraq has increased the cost of war there and in Afghanistan to $12 billion a month, and the total for Iraq alone is nearing a half-trillion dollars, congressional analysts say.All told, Congress has appropriated $610 billion in war-related money since the Sept. 11, 2001, terror assaults, roughly the same as the war in Vietnam. Iraq alone has cost $450 billion.The figures come from the nonpartisan Congressional Research Service, which provides research and analysis to lawmakers.For the 2007 budget year, CRS says, the $166 billion appropriated to the Pentagon represents a 40 percent increase over 2006...."Technorati tags: Cost of war, Iraq, Afghanistan, news
More About: Wars , War , Bill

What Does Al Know That We Don't?
2007-07-09 06:39:00
MUST READ.Steven Weber writes:What does Al know that we don't?Why, given the opportunity that's been presented to him on a silver Prius, is this man not going to run for (and win) the presidency of the United States? If ever there was a clarion call to be answered it is this one: heed the will of the majority of the people, take back the yoke Bush and his cracked team of highjackers have used to steer the country into the ground and pull the ship skyward again...."Also See:Brent Budowsky: Draft Al Gore , The True Heir To FDR and JFK - The Huffington PostTechnorati tags: Steven Weber, Al Gore, The Huffington Post, 2008 Presidential Election, Politics, U.S. Government, op ed

(Hopelessly) Spineless on Sudan
2007-07-09 05:57:00
It irritates me that Kristof still holds a slim belief that Bush will somehow, someway, miraculously begin to live up to what he says or has said -- past or present. Perhaps Kristof is trying to appear journalistically neutral. Whatever the reason, it should be more than evident to anyone with a shred of functioning brain tissue that The Shrub never has and never will live up to his word. His words are a political convenience and nothing more; any professed commitment to honor them evaporates into the thin air of their utterance. What is more, Bush-words spin the truth, twist the facts, mislead, and misinform -- he can never be "taken at his word." It is time to insist that this incompetent, dangerous, little tyrannical puppet be removed from our government along with his evil puppeteer, the King of VICE (President) Cheney. Sadly, nothing beneficial will be accomplished in Darfur or anywhere else until that happens.Spineless on Sudan By Nicholas D. KristofThe New York TimesIn M...
More About: Nicholas Kristof , Genocide

America: SICKO Society
2007-07-09 05:24:00
Another Krugman MUST READ op ed follows. By the way, if you haven't yet seen Michael Moore's "SICKO" yet, do. If you see only one film this year -- see "SICKO." It ought to be required viewing for every citizen in this country. The film will move you. It will surprise you. It will make you think. It will make you angry. Most important, it hopefully will make you DO SOMETHING: lobby your representatives loudly and ceaselessly for Universal Health Care. Health Care TerrorBy Paul Krugman The New York TimesThese days terrorism is the first refuge of scoundrels. So when British authorities announced that a ring of Muslim doctors working for the National Health Service was behind the recent failed bomb plot, we should have known what was coming.?National healthcare: Breeding ground for terror?? read the on-screen headline, as the Fox News host Neil Cavuto and the commentator Jerry Bowyer solemnly discussed how universal health care promotes terrorism.While this was crass even by...
More About: Society , America , Sicko

In Case You Missed It....
2007-07-09 05:07:00
White House Will Deny New Request In Attorneys Probe - WAPOVallejo Times Herald - D.C. madam vows to release records: "Once injunction is lifted, 46 pounds of phone registers will be available to media..."DC Madam no longer blocked from releasing phone records info (.pdf).MUST WATCH VIDEO: A Message From The Iraq Resistance From the Islamic Jihad Army - A message in English: "We are simple people who chose principles over fear." Propaganda or disinformation? You decide.When Will We Wake Up? Aspen Daily News | Aspen, ColoradoLibby a Long-Time Mossad AgentSecrecy Shrouds Accident at Nuclear Plant - New York TimesHouse Balks at Bush Order for New Powers - The Huffington Post: "President Bush this month is giving an obscure White House office new powers over regulations affecting health, worker safety and the environment. Calling it a power grab, Democrats running Congress are intent on stopping him.The House voted last week to prohibit the Office of Information and Regulatory Affair...
More About: Case

Live Bad, Go Green
2007-07-08 08:15:00
By Thomas L. FriedmanThe New York TimesOver dinner with friends in London the other night, the conversation drifted to global warming and whether anything was really being done to reverse it. One guest, Sameh El-Shahat, a furniture designer, heaped particular scorn on programs that enable people to offset their excessive carbon emissions by funding green projects elsewhere. ?Who really checks that it?s being done?? he asked. And how much difference does it really make?But then he hit on an ingenious idea: If people really want to generate money to plant trees or finance green power, why not have them offset their real sins, not just their carbon excesses? We started to play with his idea: Imagine if you could offset the whole Ten Commandments.No, really, think about it. Imagine if there were a Web site ? I?d call it Green Sinai.com ? where every time you thought you had violated one of the Ten Commandments, or you wanted to violate one of them but did not want to feel guilty about it...
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A Hair Beyond John Edwards' Hair
2007-07-08 08:01:00
MoDo adds to her series of "fluff" op eds and her obsession with everything you never wanted to know and could care less about about asking John Edwards . C'mon, Mo. Raise the bar. Phantom at the OperaBy Maureen Dowd The New York TimesHere are five things you might not know about John Edwards:¶He never saw a single episode of ?The Sopranos.?¶He doesn?t like the opera, but his favorite musical is ?Phantom of the Opera.?¶His first date with Elizabeth was dancing at the Holiday Inn in Durham or Chapel Hill ? he can?t remember which ? sometime after which she made an ironclad rule that politicians should never dance.¶He became a lawyer because as a kid he loved watching ?Perry Mason,? ?The Defenders? and ?The Fugitive.? (Richard Kimble really needed a lawyer.)¶His top sex symbol is a fellow North Carolinian, Andie MacDowell.John Edwards has not written soulful poetry, like his old running mate John Kerry or his current rivals Barack Obama and Dennis Kucinich. And he says that ?if I ha...
More About: Hair

The Bush Legacy
2007-07-08 07:11:00
The sooner Bush is impeached, the sooner his legacy will be irrefutable to even the most diehard Bushie loyalist. Frank Rich sums up The Shrub's legacy in the title of today's Times op ed: "A Profile in Cowardice." As always, Rich's op ed is a "must read."A Profile in CowardiceBy Frank RichThe New York TimesTHERE was never any question that President Bush would grant amnesty to Scooter Libby, the man who knows too much about the lies told to sell the war in Iraq. The only questions were when, and how, Mr. Bush would buy Mr. Libby’s silence. Now we have the answers, and they’re at least as incriminating as the act itself. They reveal the continued ferocity of a White House cover-up and expose the true character of a commander in chief whose tough-guy shtick can no longer camouflage his fundamental cowardice. The timing of the president’s Libby intervention was a surprise. Many assumed he would mimic the sleazy 11th-hour examples of most recent vintage: his father’s pardon of six...
More About: The Bush , Legacy , The Bus

Impeach Dick Cheney
2007-07-07 08:05:00
SIGN THE PETITION.That's right, we said the "I" word. And you should be saying it too -- to your family, your friends, your neighbors, your pets and the hearty 26% of Americans who somehow still believe the Bush/Cheney team more worthy of sitting in the Oval Office than an undisclosed location stripped of all authority to further damage the country we love.You'll want to say it even more after watching our video [below] with the evidence for impeachment right there.Dick Cheney has been a malevolent force on the checks and balances of American government for over six years. He has subverted government processes to lead us into this tragedy in Iraq, and is now seeking to do the same with Iran. Two countries, mind you, he did business with while CEO of Halliburton.We are at an important moment in American history. For if we don't take action in light of the High Crimes and Misdemeanors committed by one Richard Cheney, we might as well throw the word away. Because there will never b...
More About: Video , Activism , Impeachment

ACLU Slams Appeals Court Decision in NSA Surveillance Case
2007-07-07 03:58:00
Court Allows Bush Administration to Continue Illegal Wiretapping:CINCINNATI - In a 2-1 decision, the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals today dismissed a legal challenge to the Bush administration ?s warrantless surveillance program. The challenge was brought by the American Civil Liberties Union on behalf of prominent journalists, scholars, attorneys and national nonprofit organizations who say that the unchecked surveillance program is disrupting their ability to communicate effectively with sources and clients.Even though the plaintiffs alleged a well-founded fear that their communications were subject to illegal surveillance, the court dismissed the case because plaintiffs could not state with certainty that they had been wiretapped by the National Security Agency. The following quote can be attributed to ACLU Legal Director Steven R. Shapiro:?We are deeply disappointed by today?s decision that insulates the Bush administration?s warrantless surveillance activities from judicial revi...
More About: Surveillance , Domestic Spying , Decision , Case

Sacrifice Is for Suckers
2007-07-06 05:39:00
Again, people, impeachment is the only answer....Sacrifice Is for Suckers By Paul KrugmanThe New York TimesOn this Fourth of July, President Bush compared the Iraq war to the Revolutionary War, and called for ?more patience, more courage and more sacrifice.? Unfortunately, it seems that nobody asked the obvious question: ?What sacrifices have you and your friends made, Mr. President??On second thought, there would be no point in asking that question. In Mr. Bush?s world, only the little people make sacrifices.You see, the Iraq war, although Mr. Bush insists that it?s part of a Global War on Terror?, a fight to the death between good and evil, isn?t like America?s other great wars ? wars in which the wealthy shared the financial burden through higher taxes and many members of the elite fought for their country.This time around, Mr. Bush celebrated Mission Accomplished by cutting tax rates on dividends and capital gains, while handing out huge no-bid contracts to politically connected ...

A National Gut-Check: Who Lives Better?
2007-07-06 04:44:00
By Timothy EganGuest ColumnistThe New York Times"One of the memorable scenes in 'Sicko,' Michael Moore ?s latest cinematic provocation, comes from France , where he shows doctors in their little white cars making house calls ? for free.But it?s not just France. When we lived in Italy some time ago, a doctor came to our farmhouse rental on Easter Sunday morning to diagnose a stomach ailment. He charged nothing.Let?s stipulate that Moore is a one-sided pamphleteer, with a bit of Mark Twain and Pat Robertson in his schtick. But like all propagandists, his job is not to find some objective truth, but to anger, challenge, ask hard questions.With Independence Day just passed, a good nationalist shouldn?t be afraid to answer those questions. So, who lives better, us or them?In Italy, this was a regular parlor game when friends came to visit. Inevitably, after a few days of taking in our new world ? a village public school for the kids, neighbors who opened the doors of their ancient homes ...
More About: United States , National

Censure? Not Good Enough.
2007-07-06 03:57:00
Larry Lipman reports in "Wexler: Censure Bush Over Libby":"Rep. Robert Wexler says President Bush's commutation of Scooter Libby's prison sentence "is nothing short of (a) political quid pro quo, and Congress must go on record in strong opposition.Wexler has drafted a resolution to censure Bush and plans to introduce it when Congress returns next Tuesday. A censure is a rare public reprimand but does not carry any other penalty...." Sorry, Representative Wexler. Censure is not enough. It has become abundantly clear that his administration doesn't respond to criticism from anyone and has done its best to stonewall Congressional investigations, subpoenas, inquiries and oversight. Do you really think that they give a hoot whether or not Congress censures Bush's decision to commute Libby's sentence? The only thing that will stop the gross abuses of power, the corruption, and the lies propagated by this administration is impeachment. Polls show that the majority of the American ...
More About: Good , Sure

How To Create Real 4th of July Fireworks:
2007-07-04 18:39:00
Demand Bush /Cheney Resign !Also See:Scooter Scoots | The ProgressiveRethinking patriotism this Fourth of July | The ProgressiveAlterNet: Cheney Wants Libby to Get Medal of HonorAlterNet: No Independence Day: America wakes up in bondage todayAlterNet: Take Two Impeach ments and Call Me in the MorningAlterNet: Will George W. Bush Ever Pay for His Crimes?AlterNet: Thanks George, You Just Handed Us the 2008 ElectionJohn Cory | Once Upon AmericaMy Way News - Attorneys See Irony in Libby CaseTheHill.com - Republican Senators May Back Contempt ChargeTechnorati tags: Bush, Cheney, Resign, Activism
More About: Real

Bush And Cheney: Resign Now
2007-07-04 05:56:00
Thanks to Crooks and Liars for posting tonight's Special Comment by Keith Olbermann: "You Ceased to be the President of the United States." Tonight's comment is not only one of Olbermann's most powerful and timely; it is literally the only thing that kept me from chartering a plane to anywhere but the USA after watching Snow-Job's press conference and Bush 's "statement" about his commutation of Scooter Libby's sentence. (I don't know about the rest of you, but It was blatantly obvious to me that there was a voice (Karl Rove?) in Bushie's ear feeding him every carefully-selected-to-protect-him-legally -and-politically-word; it was as maddening as it was pitiful. Then along comes Olbermann, and immediately I am reassured that I am not the only person on earth that realizes that we are allowing criminals to reside in OUR WHITE HOUSE. Watch Keith for yourself. There is also a transcript available at the same link.Then please, act. Demonstrate, protest, demand Bush/Chen ey resi...
More About: Resign

2008: Time For A Change?
2007-07-04 05:14:00
Maureen Dowd's satirical take on Bill and Hillary in today's Time s op ed begs the question, "Do we really want another term with the Clintons in the White House? The time was never more right for new blood, folks -- no more Bushies and no more Clintons, been there, done that. The question is will anyone emerge with the credentials and ability to execute a bold, positive vision for the country? Or will be faced in 2008 with yet more lesser-of-two-evil politico choices? Sure looks as though that's the way we're headed, doesn't it? One House, Two Presidents, a Million MelodramasBy Maureen DowdThe New York TimesHillary looks over at her husband.He?s in a pretty good mood. He just finished a grilled chicken sandwich from the Dairy Queen near Grinnell, and as a reward for eating healthy, she gave him a bite of her Snickers Blizzard. Crowds all over Iowa have been clamoring for him. Here in the privacy of their black S.U.V., driving through flat Iowa farmland with the press bus t...
More About: Hillary Clinton , Bill Clinton , Change , Maureen Dowd

Website That Predicted London Bombs an Intelligence Agency Front
2007-07-03 21:17:00
Paul Joseph Watson (informationliberation) reports:Fellow jihadist forums claim Al Hesbah infiltrated and controlled by ISI, CIAAn Islamic website that carried a doomsday message that "London shall be bombed" before the discovery of two crude car bombs in London last week was notorious for having long been infiltrated and controlled by intelligence agencies and spooks who were trying to entrap suspected terrorists.Hours before London explosives technicians dismantled a large car bomb in the heart of the British capital's tourist-rich theater district, a message appeared on one of the most widely used jihadist Internet forums, saying: "Today I say: Rejoice, by Allah, London shall be bombed," reported CBS News on Friday.The website in question, Al Hesbah, has been attacked by other similar jihadist Internet forums for being a tool of intelligence agencies to monitor and entrap Islamic extremists. The Al-Tajdeed website launched a campaign in March of last year in an attempt to expose...
More About: Terrorism , Website , Intelligence , Agency

Arrested Development
2007-07-03 07:05:00
This is America. This is American freedom. This is Bush World:Harassed in the ClassroomBy Bob Herbert The New York TimesMichael Soguero was a first-rate principal at Bronx Guild High School. He loved his job, and he loved teaching in New York. He has not blamed the New York City Police Department for his departure to a school in Estes Park, Colo. Nevertheless, the facts are the facts.Back on Feb. 3, 2005, a student came running into Mr. Soguero?s office at Bronx Guild to say that a police officer was in a classroom. ?I jumped up and ran to the classroom,? Mr. Soguero told me in an interview last week. ?I found this officer, Gonzalez, exchanging words with a female student.?Everyone is sitting down except for the teacher and these two. The girl was saying, ?What did I do? What are you talking to me about?? ?What was about to unfold was another episode of bizarrely excessive police activity inside a New York City public school.The girl, who was 16, had apparently uttered a curse word...
More About: Education , Arrested , Development

This July 4th: Put away the flags
2007-07-03 06:27:00
By Howard ZinnThe ProgressiveOn this July 4, we would do well to renounce nationalism and all its symbols: its flags, its pledges of allegiance, its anthems, its insistence in song that God must single out America to be blessed.Is not nationalism -- that devotion to a flag, an anthem, a boundary so fierce it engenders mass murder -- one of the great evils of our time, along with racism, along with religious hatred?These ways of thinking -- cultivated, nurtured, indoctrinated from childhood on -- have been useful to those in power, and deadly for those out of power.National spirit can be benign in a country that is small and lacking both in military power and a hunger for expansion (Switzerland, Norway, Costa Rica and many more). But in a nation like ours -- huge, possessing thousands of weapons of mass destruction -- what might have been harmless pride becomes an arrogant nationalism dangerous to others and to ourselves.Our citizenry has been brought up to see our nation as differen...
More About: Foreign Policy , International Relations , July 4th

Should YOU Be President?
2007-07-03 06:11:00
From positivepress.com: "Who should you really support? Here at Attitude Media we don't believe the American President ial election should be decided by personality, or gender, or who has the best sound bites. If you agree with us that issues matter, then take the following objectively designed short survey to see which of the leading candidates most agree with your position on a wide variety of issues - and also who least agrees with those positions - you may be surprised! We also rank you, as if you were running for president, and see how your positions rank according to the votes of other survey takers...."Here are my test results:Your Presidential Candidate RankingsBelow are the presidential candidates listed with the "best matching" candidates first. The candidate at the top is the one that would provide the closest answers to the ones you provided in the survey.Dennis Kucinich John Edwards Barack Obama Hillary Clinton Bill RichardsonRon Paul John McCain Mike HuckabeeMitt Romne...
More About: Politics , Resident

White House Misrepresents Cheney's Classification Authority
2007-07-03 04:23:00
Steve Aftergood of Secrecy News reports: "The White House press office and some Bush Administration critics are insisting that the 2003 executive order on classification policy endowed the Vice President with a unique status and classification powers identical to those of the President himself.But that's not what the executive order says."Technorati tags: Secrecy News, Steve Aftergood, Cheney, Bush, Executive Order, news
More About: White House , Authority

New NSA Whistleblower Speaks
2007-07-03 04:19:00
David Swanson | Truthout: "A former member of US military intelligence has decided to reveal what she knows about warrantless spying on Americans and about the fixing of intelligence in the leadup to the invasion of Iraq ...."Technorati tags: David Swanson, Truthout, Warrantless Eavesdropping, Whistleblower, Iraq, Intelligence, news
More About: Domestic Spying , Lowe , Peak

BREAKING: Bush Commutes Sentence of Libby From Prison
2007-07-03 00:20:00
This is disgusting and unacceptable. Yet one more reason Bush /Cheney should be impeached. Click on the link to the right and send a letter to your representative telling him/her so."Bush Spares Libby From Prison :President Bush commuted the sentence of former aide I. Lewis Libby Jr., sparing him from a 30-month prison term. Mr. Libby was convicted of lying to authorities and obstructing the investigation in the C.I.A. leak case...."Watch Bush in the following clip address his staff on ethics in January of 2001 and see how well he lives up to his own words:Then take Joe Biden's advice:"...Last week Vice President Cheney asserted that he was beyond the reach of the law. Today, President Bush demonstrated the lengths he would go to, ensuring that even aides to Dick Cheney are beyond the judgment of the law.It is time for the American people to be heard.I call for all Americans to flood the White House with phone calls tomorrow expressing their outrage over this blatant disregard for ...
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When the Vice President Does It, That Means It's Not Illegal
2007-07-01 05:50:00
By Frank RichThe New York TimesWHO knew that mocking the Constitution could be nearly as funny as shooting a hunting buddy in the face? Among other comic dividends, Dick Cheney's legal theory that the vice president is not part of the executive branch yielded a priceless weeklong series on "The Daily Show" and an online "Doonesbury Poll," conducted at Slate, to name Mr. Cheney's indeterminate branch of government. The ridicule was so widespread that finally even this White House had to blink. By midweek, it had abandoned that particularly ludicrous argument, if not its spurious larger claim that Mr. Cheney gets a free pass to ignore rules regulating federal officials' handling of government secrets. That retreat might allow us to mark the end of this installment of the Bush-Cheney Follies but for one nagging problem: Not for the first time in the history of this administration — or the hundredth — has the real story been lost amid the Washington kerfuffle. Once the laughter sub...
More About: Politics , Government , Iraq , Military , President

Tears on My Pillow
2007-07-01 05:43:00
By Maureen DowdThe New York Times?I miss Albania!? W. wails. ?They know how to treat a president there. Women were kissing me and men rubbed my hair. The crowd kept yelling, ?Bush ie!,? and they almost grabbed the watch right off my wrist trying to get at me.?The concerned group huddling outside the president?s closed-bedroom door in Kennebunkport can barely hear him. His voice is muffled because he has his face buried in his feather pillow, which the Secret Service has carefully transported from Washington to Maine for the weekend, knowing that it would be needed. They guard it so conscientiously that they have even given it a code name. Since the president?s Secret Service name is Tumbler, his agents christened his beloved pillow Slumber.?Son, I know how you feel,? Poppy calls in to him, trying to sound positive. ?Riding high in 2002, shot down in 2007. That?s life, as Sinatra says. You were a puppet and a pawn to King Dick and it screwed up your presidency and our party and the Mi...
More About: Politics , Government , International Relations , Pillow