Neighbors for Peace and Justice

I will restore Honor, Dignity, and Integrity to the White House.
George W Bush




		2005 Terrorist attacks quadruple over previous year » Washington Post 2400 and Counting » Steve Young / Huffington Post ... we shouldn't forget the nearly 18,000 US wounded and the total of soldiers killed is actually already over 2600 if 'coalition' forces are included Iraqi Civilian Killings Soar » NY Times Hundreds of Thousands Fleeing Violence » NY Times Contractor corruption probe to expand » Christian Science Monitor Iraq War Contributing To High Oil Prices » Think Progress Mission Accomplished? » Mission Accomplished Day » Cindy Sheehan Mission Accomplished: By The Numbers » Think Progress A look back at the fawning coverage of Bush's premature declaration » Media Matters



		Pat Tillman Case: How the Press Was Spun » Greg Mitchell / E&P The killing of the former pro football star in Afghanistan is back in the news, as the military probes possible criminal charges. But the military officials who lied for so long to the press, to the public--and, even worse, to Tillman's family--continue to escape penalty. A cover-up as shameful as Tillman's death » Robert Scheer / Los Angeles Times "After it happened, all the people in positions of authority went out of their way to script this," Tillman's father said. "They purposely interfered with the investigation .... I think they thought they could control it, and they realized that their recruiting efforts were going to go to hell in a handbasket if the truth about his death got out." Now, thanks to the reporting of the Post and the fury of Tillman's parents, we know that the military's top commanders were covering up the truth to protect their image, and that of the Bush administration's costly and deadly "nation-building" exercises in Afghanistan and Iraq. The Tillman Scandal » AlterNet In the week after Newsweek's retraction, where is the comparable outrage over the military's cover-up of the 'friendly fire' death of Pat Tillman? And where is a Scott McClellan lecture on ethics and credibility? Tillman's parents are now ripping the Army, saying that the military's investigations into their son's 2004 "friendly fire" death in Afghanistan was a sham based on "lies" and that the Army cover-up made it harder for them to deal with their loss. They are speaking out now because they have finally had a chance to look at the full records of the military probe.



		Spreading Smears Bush Style Why Plame Matters » Ray McGovern The significance of the Plame affair ... is about Iraq, where our sons and daughters – and many others – are daily meeting violent death. And it's about manipulation. ... the relentless White House campaign to vilify the Wilsons (was) aimed primarily at serving notice that a similar fate awaits any whose conscience might prompt them to expose still more of the lies used to "justify" the attack on Iraq. ... we have learned about the "Curveball" deception on Iraqi biological warfare, the misdiagnosed aluminum tubes, and the "unpiloted aerial vehicles" that congresspersons were told could threaten our coastal cities. But it was hard reality and the basic laws of physics that held administration arguments up to ridicule. None of the exposés came from the mouths of people like Joe Wilson, who could not abide crass deception in matters of war and peace. Cheney And Plame » Ray McGovern Who authored the forgery remains a mystery, but one that Congress has avoided trying to solve, even though many have expressed outrage at having been snookered into voting for war. Senate intelligence committee chair Pat Roberts, R-Kan., has demonstrated a curious lack of curiosity. see also: Follow the Documents - Who forged the Niger memos in the first place? » Matthew Yglesias / The American Prospect What the Plame leak is really about » Frank Rich / NY Times To see the main plot, you must sweep away the subplots ... This case is about Iraq, not Niger. The real victims are the American people, not the Wilsons. The real culprit - the big enchilada, to borrow a 1973 John Ehrlichman phrase from the Nixon tapes - is not Mr. Rove but the gang that sent American sons and daughters to war on trumped-up grounds and in so doing diverted finite resources, human and otherwise, from fighting the terrorists who attacked us on 9/11. That's why the stakes are so high: this scandal is about the unmasking of an ill-conceived war, not the unmasking of a C.I.A. operative who posed for Vanity Fair. Leaks and Consequences: on the stunning irresponsibility of the Bush Administration Leaks the following are excerpts from the congressional hearing on 22 July 2005. A streaming video version (click here) is available on the C-SPAN website Defense / Security library. The title of the clip is Hearing on Security Implications of Revealing Covert Agent's Identity - VERY HIGHLY RECCOMENDED Testimony of James Marcinkowski » Former CIA case officer (from The Nation) The exposure of Valerie Plame's cover by the White House is the same as the local chief of police announcing to the media the identity of its undercover drug officers. In both cases, the ability of the officer to operate is destroyed, but there is also an added dimension. An informant in a major sophisticated crime network, or a CIA asset working in a foreign government, if exposed, has a rather good chance of losing more than just their ability to operate. And so the real issues before this Congress and this country today is not partisan politics, not even the loss of secrets. The secrets of Valerie Plame's cover are long gone. What has suffered perhaps irreversible damage is the credibility of our case officers when they try to convince our overseas contact that their safety is of primary importance to us. How are our case officers supposed to build and maintain that confidence when their own government cannot even guarantee the personal protection of the home team? While the loss of secrets in the world of espionage may be damaging, the stealing of the credibility of our CIA officers is unforgivable ... Great damage has been done and that damage has been increasing every single day for more than two years. The problem of the refusal to accept responsibility by senior government officials is ongoing and causing greater damage to our national security and our ability to collect human intelligence. But the problem lies not only with government officials but also with the media, commentators and other apologists who have no clue as to the workings of the intelligence community. Think about what we are doing from the perspective of our overseas human intelligence assets or potential assets. Each time the leader of a political party opens his mouth in public to deflect responsibility, the word overseas is loud and clear--politics in this country does in fact trump national security. Each time a distinguished ambassador is ruthlessly attacked for the information he provided, a foreign asset will contemplate why he should risk his life when his information will not be taken seriously. When this unprecedented act first occurred, the president could have immediately demanded the resignation of all persons even tangentially involved. Or, at a minimum, he could have suspended the security clearances of these persons and placed them on administrative leave. Such methods are routine with police forces throughout the country. That would have at least sent the right message around the globe, that we take the security of those risking their lives on behalf of the United States seriously. Instead, we have flooded the foreign airwaves with two years of inaction, political rhetoric, ignorance, and partisan bickering. That's the wrong message. In doing so we have not lessened, but increased the threat to the security and safety of the people of the United States. Statement by Larry C. Johnson » Former CIA case officer (from Raw Story) Robert Novak’s compromise of Valerie caused even more damage. It subsequently led to scrutiny of her cover company. This not only compromised her “cover” company but potentially every individual overseas who had been in contact with that company or with her. At the end of the day we are left with these facts. We went to war in Iraq on the premise that Saddam was reacquiring weapons of mass destruction. Joe Wilson was sent on a mission to Niger in response to a request initiated by the Vice President. Joe Wilson supplied information to the CIA that supported other reports debunking the claim that Saddam was trying to buy yellow cake uranium from Niger. When Joe went public with his information, which had been corroborated by the CIA in April 2003, the response from the White House was to call him a liar and spread the name of his wife around. Instead of a President concerned first and foremost with protecting this country and the intelligence officers who serve it, we are confronted with a President who is willing to sit by while political operatives savage the reputations of good Americans like Valerie and Joe Wilson. This is wrong. Statement by Rep. Louise Slaughter » Over the course of the last 5 years, transparency of government operations has steadily eroded. Open access to information critical to our democracy has been replaced by closed-door meetings, and “no-comment.” In fact, we can recount any number of incidents for which the Administration has failed to take responsibility or be held accountable by the Republican Controlled Congress… …from the inaccurate intelligence that led to our invasion of Iraq, to the detainee abuses at Guantanamo Bay and Abu Ghraib… …from the revelations contained in the Downing Street memos to the realization that at least 20 federal agencies used tax-payer dollars to produce partisan television segments disguised to look like impartial news reports… Time and time again this Administration has been let off the hook by their allies in Congress Worse yet, those who have dared to demand answers and accountability from the Administration have gone from being celebrated as honored patriots, to being attacked as subversive dissidents. The deepening scandal surrounding the leaked identity of Covert CIA Operative Valerie Plame is perhaps the most poignant example of this to date. -At its worst, treason was committed by high ranking White House officials. -At its best, we have witnessed a startling abuse of the power by this Administration. One which has seriously compromised our National Security… jeopardized the war on terror… and placed the lives of a covert CIA operative and her contacts in danger. …All for what so far appears to be a reprehensible act of political retribution. As a direct result, an entire intelligence network was destroyed, and our ability to thwart another terrorist attack was recklessly compromised.



		Yet another smoking gun New British Memo: Bush Was Set on Path to War » The Nation The five-page memo of a January 31, 2003 Oval Office meeting between Bush, Blair reveals the Bush Administration's fierce determination to invade Iraq even without a second UN resolution, and even if international arms inspectors failed to find unconventional weapons. Indeed, confronted with the possibility of not finding any weapons before the planned invasion, Bush talks of ways to provoke a confrontation with Iraq, including, the Times reports, "a proposal to paint a US surveillance plane in the colors of the United Nations in hopes of drawing fire, or assassinating Mr. Hussein." NY Times article» The paper trail mounts: More documents call march to war into question » Knight Ridder Highly classified documents leaked in Britain appear to provide new evidence that President Bush and his national security team decided to invade Iraq much earlier than they have acknowledged and marched to war without dwelling on the potential perils. Six new British documents detail early plans for invading Iraq » LA Times In March 2002, the Bush administration had just begun to publicly raise the possibility of confronting Iraq. But behind the scenes, officials already were deeply engaged in seeking ways to justify an invasion, newly revealed British memos indicate ... appeared to rule out any action in Iraq short of an invasion British government was told of need for Iraq war 'excuse' » Times of London The warning, in a leaked Cabinet Office briefing paper, said Tony Blair had already agreed to back military action to get rid of Saddam Hussein at a summit at the Texas ranch of President George W Bush three months earlier (April 2002) . The document said the only way the allies could justify military action was to place Saddam Hussein in a position where he ignored or rejected a United Nations ultimatum ordering him to co-operate with the weapons inspectors. But it warned this would be difficult. British Memo Indicates Bush Made Intelligence Fit Iraq Policy » Knight Ridder A highly classified British memo, leaked in the midst of Britain's just-concluded election campaign, indicates that President Bush decided to overthrow Iraqi President Saddam Hussein by summer 2002 and was determined to ensure that U.S. intelligence data supported his policy. Read Congressman John Conyers statement about the Downing Street Memo » learn more: afterdowningstreet.org



		Law skirting money grubbing hypocritical thieving deceivers Barbara Bush's Katarina donation routed to her son's ridiculously overpriced "educational" software » Houston Chronicle "I've never heard of anything so blatant: Pull at your heart strings with Katrina victims and then make sure your son profits from it." TPM » ... the junk company owned by her ne'er-do-well son Neil Bush ... who goes around the world finding international statesmen, bigwigs and criminals who want to 'invest' in Ignite! as a way to curry favor with the brother in the White House. TPM » So how is it exactly you get away with making a tax subsidized contribution that you stipulate must be used to purchase products from a company in which you are a partial owner? Leaving Children Behind: Exam privatization threatens public schools » Ben Clarke / CorpWatch Business as usual » Joe Conason / Salon.com



		meanwhile, back at the ranch ... Heartfelt congratulations go out to part-time President Bush » ... who on Friday August 19th broke Ronald Reagan's all-time record for most vacation days. The old record was 335 days, though Reagan took his sweet time of eight years to accomplish this feat. President Bush did it in nearly half the time. And with another two weeks of vaction on tap, he's obviously not content with simply breaking the record, he's going to smoke that record right out of the hole. Great going, dubya! We knew you could do it. Hobby: US President Vacationer in Chief: Bush Poised to Set Record » Washington Post Bush is getting the kind of break most Americans can only dream of -- nearly five weeks away from the office, loaded with vacation time. The August getaway is Bush's 49th trip to his cherished ranch since taking office and the 319th day that Bush has spent, entirely or partially, in Crawford – nearly 20 percent of his presidency to date. Bush's foes have noted that he spent a month at the ranch shortly before the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, when critics assert he should have been more attentive to warning signs. According to an Associated Press count, Reagan spent all or part of 335 days in Santa Barbara over his eight-year presidency – a total that Bush will surpass this month in Crawford with 3 1/2 years left in his second term. Bush grants himself leave » Quad City Times For those comparing their own benefit packages, that works out to 71 days per year. During this break, Bush will surpass the 355-day vacation contemporary vacation record set by Ronald Reagan. American soldiers in Iraq are given no more than 15 days of leave during their deployment. The President's Vacation From Reality » John Nichols / The Nation The appeal of Crawford appears to be that it provides the President with an opportunity to put aside all the troubles of the world and to focus on fixing fences and clearing brush. After all, it was during his previous vacation that Bush ignored an August 6, 2001, briefing document titled: "Bin Laden determined to attack inside the U.S." But this summer, the mother of a soldier killed in Iraq named Cindy Sheehan is making it harder for Bush to ignore the truth that his decisions have led to the unnecessary deaths of more than 1,800 Americans, and tens of thousands of Iraqis, while making both the United States and Iraq more vulnerable to violence. George Bush has been listening for too long to Dick Cheney, Donald Rumsfeld and Condi Rice. He should take a real vacation from the neocon fantasy factory of his misguided aides and sit down with someone who can introduce him to the reality of what is going on in Iraq and the world. The President should meet with Cindy Sheehan. And he should listen to this woman, who has sacrificed more than he or anyone in his inner circle ever has for America.

We're all hugging the tar baby »
Ed Naha
It's not fair to accuse Bush of losing the wheels from the cart. We don't even have a cart anymore. On every level of Federal government, things have gone insane.
The administration that won't stop lying »
Paul Craig Roberts
The Bush regime has killed tens of thousands of people in Iraq and Afghanistan, mainly women and children. The deaths are excused as unintended "collateral damage" of the ongoing war, but the deaths are nonetheless important to the tens of thousands of relatives and friends ... The American public has been trained to obediently accept their government's lies fed to them by the U.S. Media. No statement or claim by a Bush regime official is too outlandish to be received with acceptance.
Crisis shortage poses crisis for Bush »
Beth Quinn / Times Herald-Record

Fiscal madness:
Astronomical deficits ... troops still not properly armored ... services crumbling ... obviously what we need is an extra $20
Republicans pass tax cut for the rich »
ABC News
The Tax Policy Center, a Washington think tank, discovered that the top 0.1 percent of taxpayers – the people who make more than $1.8 million – would get back $82,000. Middle-income Americans making between $27,000 and $47,000 would get $20.

You're a Terrorist!
February 6th 2006
Testimony before the Senate Judiciary Cmty. on the Bush administration's surveillance of suspected terrorists without warrants:
Attorney General Alberto Gonzales »
First, only international communications are authorized for interception under this program – that is, communications between a foreign country and this country.
Second, the program is triggered only when a career professional at the NSA has reasonable grounds to believe that one of the parties to a communication is a member or agent of al-Qaida or an affiliated terrorist organization. As the president has said, "If you're talking with al-Qaida, we want to know what you're saying."
Third, to protect the privacy of Americans still further, the NSA employs safeguards to minimize the unnecessary collection and dissemination of information about (them).
bush May 11th 2006
Bush spies on everyone »
USA Today
The NSA program reaches into homes and businesses across the nation by amassing information about the calls of ordinary Americans – most of whom aren't suspected of any crime.
So Much For Privacy – The Telecoms Cave In To Bush's Government »
Daily Kos

A disturbing look behind the incompetent president's good news curtain
I never feel that today is better than yesterday »
Guardian UK
Women in Iraq are living a nightmare that is hidden from the west. Now one has turned film-maker to give us a window on to what they endure ... No one sees what we are going through. All Iraqis are psychologically traumatised by what is happening. ... The film is particularly good at capturing the texture of family life lived in such insecurity.

Law Breaker in Chief
Bush violates over 750 laws »
Boston Globe
Bush has quietly claimed the authority to disobey more than 750 laws enacted since he took office ... The Constitution is clear in assigning to Congress the power to write the laws and to the president the duty ''to take care that the laws be faithfully executed."

our hero MUST SEE TV!
Stephen Colbert makes Bush, conservatives squirm
Visibly miffed Bush and tepid reaction from the mainstream media during a dead-on skewering at the White House Correspondent’s Dinner:
Transcript and (two part) video »
Turns neo-con warmonger Bill Kristol to a stammering wreck with beatifully crafted questions:
Video and transcript »
Colbert is a flipping genius and no one's "Monkey" »
Democratic Underground
ThankYouStephenColbert.org »
message site (growing in leaps and bounds)

The Boss Slams
'President Bystander' »
Washington Post
Decryied what he called "criminal ineptitude" in Hurricane Katrina's wake, Bruce Springsteen jabbed at the political powers he deemed responsible for New Orleans' slow recovery.

ass An Embarrassment ... Impotent ... Doesn’t Seem To Mean What He Says ... Lost Control ...
These and many other fascinating quotes from new Bush press secretary Tony Snow »
Think Progress

dunce The Worst President in History »
Rolling Stone
In 2004, a survey of 415 historians ... found that eighty-one percent considered the Bush administration a "failure." Among those who called Bush a success, many gave the president high marks only for his ability to mobilize public support and get Congress to go along with what one historian called the administration's "pursuit of disastrous policies." In fact, roughly one in ten of those who called Bush a success was being facetious, rating him only as the best president since Bill Clinton – a category in which Bush is the only contestant.
Bush Hears Voices »
Joe Conason / New York Observer
“I hear the voices, and I read the front page, and I know the speculation,” said Bush, sounding as peevish as a toddler banging his silver spoon on the high chair. “But I’m the decider, and I decide what’s best" ... but his defensive outburst only drew attention to the most deserving target of criticism: himself.

ass Bankrupt
Loophole Loving Dick's 2005 Return Shows Katrina Tax Benefits for Non-Katrina Charitable Contributions »
ass TaxProf Blog
Rumsfeld: War Critics Being Manipulated By Zarqawi and Bin Laden’s ‘Media Committees’ »
Think Progress

George ~~Orwell~~ Bush's Newspeak Ecology
You Call This a Wetland? »
Field & Stream
The Bush Administration announced last week that the nation is no longer losing wetlands – as long as you consider golf course water hazards to be wetlands.

36 Bush Disasters »
Edward Jayne/ Dissident Voice
Bush IS a liar »
Robert Parry / Consortium News
End game for the Lizard Brains »
Michael Donnelly / CounterPunch

dope US played for fools
Bush Administration Shelved Evidence Discounting Iraq WMD »
Reuters
... publicly asserted that two trailers captured by U.S. troops in Iraq in May 2003 were mobile "biological laboratories" even after U.S. intelligence officials had evidence that it was not true.

Feeling safer?
Condi pounds the war drum ...
Where have we heard this kind of marketing before ... ?
Iran 'terror's central bank' »
Iran a menace beyond nuclear issue »
Iran a 'troublesome regime' »
on the other hand ...
Analysts Say a Nuclear Iran Is Years Away »
NY Times
Sane Thoughts on Iran »
Analysis and suggestions from AmericaBlog ... lot's of great points.
from the folks who tap your phone here comes security lapse number ...
aw heck, who can keep track anymore?
Afghan Leaks »
LA Times
A computer drive sold openly for $40 at an Afghan bazaar outside a U.S. air base holds what appears to be a trove of potentially sensitive American intelligence data, including the names, photographs and telephone numbers of Afghan spies informing on the Taliban and Al Qaeda.
US Secrets for Sale at Bagram Bazaar »
Independent UK

Out of Control
Beware Bombing Iran »
The Progrssive
Just because a course of action is foolish, irrational, costly, and bloody doesn’t mean the Bush Administration won’t pursue it. And just because U.S. troops are bogged down in Iraq doesn’t mean the Bush Administration has lost its appetite for military adventurism.
The Iran Plans »
Seymour M. Hersh / The New Yorker
The Leaker-in-Chief
By William Rivers Pitt / t r u t h o u t
The reason we classify things is to protect our sources - those who risk their lives to give us secrets. Who knows how many sources were burned by giving Libby this 'license to leak?' If I had leaked the information, I'd be in jail. Why should the President be above the law?
Gangster Government »
Greg Palast
Bush and Cheney withholding material information from the grand jury is a felony. Several felonies, actually: abuse of legal process, fraud, racketeering and, that old standby, obstruction of justice.

It's hard work ...
Bush is trying to get himself impeached »
Cenk Uygur / Huffington Post
He's tired and he just wants to go home, he hasn't been able to take his signature five week vacations. So, he's subconsciously trying to get kicked out of school so he doesn't have to do the homework anymore. Why else would you break so many laws?
The Leaky Leak Hater »
Seattle Post-Intelligencer
Bush insists a president "better mean what he says." Those words could return to haunt him. After long denouncing leaks of all kinds, Bush is confronted with a statement - unchallenged by his aides - that he authorized a leak of classified material to undermine an Iraq war critic.

More Bungles, Incompetence, Backfires ...
Rice, Straw make double super secret unannounced visit to the land of good news »
IHT / AP
Not So Magical Misery Tour »
AFP
Iraqi Says Visit Rice and Straw Backfired »
Ny Times

Wesley Clark »
This administration has taken us on a path to nowhere - replete with hyped intelligence, macho slogans and an incredible failure to see the obvious ... has shown tragic incompetence in everything from nation building in Iraq to disaster relief in Louisiana, We're not going to win the war on terror unless we start making more friends and fewer enemies in the world, and we're not going to be able to protect the American people without a new strategy.

Lara Logan (who actually is in Iraq) on the right's blame the media campaign »
Highly recommended video that explores and exposes the flaws of the right's latest attack on the media for underreporting the good news in Iraq ... including a good summary on why the progress so far has been somewhat less than rosy.

(we're running out of ways to say Liar)
Three years on and still they're lying to us »
Independent UK
As global protests mark the day the invasion began, Operation Swarmer is just the latest example of the self-delusion and spin that have characterised the occupation.
Bush Takes On Non-Existent people »
Newshog / AP
... tactics described as "a bizarre kind of double talk" that abuses the rules of legitimate discussion.

Bush on September 1st 2005:
"I don't think anyone anticipated the breach of the levees"
Bush, Chertoff clearly warned of Katrina disaster potential »
AP
... the video and transcripts show federal and local officials discussed threats clearly, reviewed long-made plans and understood Katrina would wreak devastation of historic proportions.

Bush Doublespeak: Opponent of Raising Taxes, Proposes $47 Bln in Fees »
Bloomberg

Fœck-up fatigue
Bids to Give Bush the Boot Bounding »
Toronto Star
"If we stand by and do nothing, we would be complicit in the immoral and illegal activities of the administration. If you do nothing, you are acting illegally and immorally yourself."
Enough with the spineless DC Dems »
By Molly Ivins
This is not a time for a candidate who will offend no one; it is time for a candidate who takes clear stands and kicks ass.

Dangerous incompetent
Road Tripping »
New York Times
The spectacularly misconceived trip may have inflicted serious damage to American goals ... It's just baffling why Mr. Bush traveled halfway around the world to stand right next to one of his most important allies against terrorists – and embarrass him.
George The Unready »
Paul Krugman / New York Times
(... or maybe here »)
Iraqi insurgents, hurricanes and low-income Medicare recipients have three things in common. Each has been at the center of a policy disaster. In each case experts warned about the impending disaster. And in each case - well, let's look at what happened.

Department of Schadenfreude:
Secret Service agents say Cheney was drunk when he shot lawyer »
Capital Hill Blue
Dick Cheney's Delay »
Alan Dershowitz / Huffington Post
A simple cost/benefit analysis suggests that he (or those advising him) must have believed that there was more to be gained than lost by a 14 hour delay that would eventually be made public.

Jobs Cut at Energy Lab Restored Minutes Before Bush Visit »
Reuters

An F'n lot of F's
Who's Counting Bush's Mistakes? »
Stephen Pizzo / AterNet
Given how ambitious and wide-ranging the incompetence of this administration has been, it's high time we started keeping track of its many failures.
Five Years of Failure and Incompetence »
Salt Lake Tribune
An Ideology Running on Fumes »
Pittsburgh Tribune-Review
People who think government can do no good will be no good at running the government.

BOOGA BOOGA!
Bush Details 2002 Plot to Attack L.A. »
Washington Post
Intelligence Officials Play Down Importance of Case, Attribute Remarks to Politics

Nothing but the truth ... or something
White House Knew of Levee's Failure on Night of Storm »
NY Times
Cheney Authorized Libby to Leak Classified Information »
National Journa

Hard Facts About Bush's War On Terror »
Daily KOS
The number of terrorist attacks has steadily increased under Bush's leadership ... the sum of international and domestic terrorist attacks in 2005 was 3991, up 51% from the previous year's figure of 2639. The number of deaths that resulted from those attacks was 6872, which is 36% higher than the 5066 that occurred in 2004.

Laws? Whatever.
Bush's expanding disregard for the law »
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Bush's latest tool for disrespecting the Constitution is the presidential signing statement ... There is no mention of the statement in the Constitution, nor does it have any role in how laws are passed and put into effect. Yet Mr. Bush has taken the presidential signing statement as another means of asserting his will over and above the country's laws ... To the degree that the American system functions, Congress passes laws that put into effect the will of the people ... If Congress can't pass a law and expect the president to respect it, where exactly is this nation left?

Tell us dear leader,
what may we say?
Why does Bush hate America? »
Bob Geiger
He can use subtle code phrases all he likes, but the words coming out of this president's mouth might as well have been spoken by any two-bit dictator in the world.
Bush (of all people) uses the word irresponsible ... »
Karen Kwiatkowski
Who are these honest critics? »
Smirking Chimp
(lots of good comments below the item)
Bullying and Threats
Can't Smokescreen the Truth
Coleen Rowley (ex FBI Agent)

Bush's Con Jobs:
Will the US Need an IMF Bail Out? »
Paul Craig Roberts
Bush has destroyed America's economy along with America's reputation as a truthful, compassionate, peace-loving nation that values civil liberties and human rights ... Americans need to ask themselves if the White House is in competent hands when a $70 billion war becomes a $2 trillion war.

Ol Heckuvajob don't never seem to learn no nuthin ...
Bush Makes Raft Of Controversial Appointments While Senate Is Out »
Washington Post
Bush yesterday made a raft of controversial recess appointments, including (wife of Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff) Julie L. Myers to head the Immigration and Customs Enforcement bureau at the Department of Homeland Security, in a maneuver circumventing the need for approval by the Senate.

Bush to USA, FU!
Wannabe Emperor to do whatever the hell he feels like doing »
Boston Globe
When Bush recently signed the bill outlawing the torture of detainees, he quietly reserved the right to bypass the law under his powers as commander in chief ... This means Bush believes he can waive the restrictions, the White House and legal specialists said.
Have Americans lost the guts for democracy? »
Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
Every time Bush gets caught in a tight spot, he does the same thing: He plays the 9/11 fear card, wraps himself in the flag, emits jawdropping falsehoods and all but accuses his critics of treason. So it is with the stunning revelation that the White House has ordered the illegal, warrantless wiretapping of American citizens in brazen defiance of federal law and the U. S. Constitution. If allowed to stand, Bush's actions will have taken the United States a long way down the road to military dictatorship.

Bush's war on everything
Bush Presses Editors on Security »
Washington Post
Bush has been summoning newspaper editors lately in an effort to prevent publication of stories he considers damaging to national security.
The only thing missing is 'Sieg Heil' »
Dennis Rahkonen
Our dirty president »
Peter Fredson / Bellaciao
I am forced to the conclusion that he is a dirty President. I don't mean anything connected with soap and water, but with morals, ethics, "clean" politics, upstanding behavior, model citizenship, fair play, upholding the laws and respecting the Constitution.
The Imperial President's Paradoxes »
Steve Chapman / Chicago Tribune
The theory boils down to a consistent and self-serving formula: What's good for George W. Bush is good for America, and anything that weakens his power weakens the nation. To call this an imperial presidency is unfair to emperors ... What we have now is not a robust executive but a reckless one.

The Extra-Legal Executive »
The Progressive
Bush wants to spread democracy abroad – and dismantle it at home.
Spying and Lying »
The Nation
Congress Explicitly Said War Resolution Did Not Expand Executive Power »
Think Progress
Now I hear Big Brother loud, clear »
Denver Post

9/11 Panel Issues Dismal Grades to the Bush Administration and Congress for Terror Preparedness »
NY Times

Perhaps it's because he's made such a dangerous mess of the place
Bush Blames Media for
Ignoring "Progress" in Iraq »
Think Progress
Rajiv Chandrasekaran, former Washington Post Baghdad bureau chief, explains: ... as a bureau chief there, I wasn’t going to risk putting my people’s lives on the line to go down for a photo op. As nice as it might have been, it’s simply too unsafe to get around and tell a lot of these stories.

Heros ...
Casualties of the Bush Administration »
... and Zeros
Bush's Wall of Shame »
Tom Dispatch

The Piss Poor Plans
of a Piss Poor Administration
Empire of Lies »
Jonathan Schell / The Nation
The fictional world created by the Bush Administration over the past five years is falling to pieces: the blood-soaked folly in Iraq, policies that promote environmental ruin, official lies, corruption and a basic failure to govern ... Many have noted that the Administration had no plan for running Iraq. But it took the federal response, or lack of one, to Hurricane Katrina to show that the same might be true of the Administration's approach to the United States ... despite growing public awareness of his dishonesty, the faith-based President continues to fashion lies, and believe them.
Planning Ain't Doing »
Stephen Pizzo / AlterNet
Bush's record of handling actual crises hardly inspires confidence, which is why his big plan to fight avian flu is just one more cause for worry. What of his many "plans?" Billions upon billions of dollars went into planning how to react if another 9/11-like catastrophic event occurred on American soil ... he couldn't even get bottles of plain water to thirsty victims in New Orleans.
The Implosion of a Presidency »
Editor & Publisher
Carl Bernstein, " What the Plame leak investigation has unveiled is what the press should have been focusing on long before and without let up – how we went to war, the dishonesty involved in that process in terms of what the president and vice-president told the American people and the Congress, and the routine smearing by members of the Bush administration of people who questioned their actions and motives."

Scathing assessment
Ladies and Gentlemen:
The Real George W. Bush »
Stephen Pizzo / Alter Net
Ninety percent of Americans believe the Bush administration is guilty of illegal or unethical behavior in the CIA leak case. Where does that leave our president? There really are only two explanations, and neither reflect well on him.

Yet another criminal act
Cheney, Libby Blocked Papers To Senate Intelligence Panel »
National Journal
Cheney and "Scooter" Libby, withheld crucial documents from the 2004 Senate Intelligence Committee investigating the use of pre-war intelligence that erroneously concluded Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction.

The Myth of the Renegade Aide »
Consortium News
One of the common myths of official Washington is that most political scandals result from overly aggressive aides operating out of control – the Watergate “third-rate burglary” or Iran-Contra’s “men of zeal” – with top officials getting in trouble only later by trying to cover the mess up.

But the reality – which is relevant again amid the probe into the outing of a CIA officer – is that a principal official is almost always lurking somewhere in the background of the original crime, sending signals or pulling strings with the expectation that, if caught, a subordinate will take the fall.

AlterNet: The Fitzgerald Investigation Reader - a compendium of facts about the Plame investigation – including the truth behind the rumors.
Dahr Jamail: 'Mr. 'Bring 'em on'' - Yesterday while speaking to a group of military wives in Washington, Mr. Bush said, "This war will require more sacrifice, more time and more resolve." I wonder how many of those military wives recall what Mr. Bush said 1,794 dead US soldiers ago when he proudly announced, "Bring 'em on" back on July 2, 2003?
W. Christopher Epler: 10 lessons from the toilet presidency of George W. Bush

The White House Cabal »
Lawrence B. Wilkerson – chief of staff to Secretary of State Powell from 2002 to 2005
Some of the most important decisions about U.S. national security – including vital decisions about postwar Iraq – were made by a secretive cabal made up of a very small group of people led by Vice President Dick Cheney and Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld ... that produced a series of disastrous decisions and virtually ensured that the agencies charged with implementing them would not or could not execute them well.

Bully Bush »
NY Daily News
According to top level officials, Bush is not handling the White House meltdown to well. Fitzgerald is about to indict Karl Rove and Scooter Libby, Tom Delay is in court, Bill Frist is under investigation, Harriet Miers isn't qualififed to manage a Burger King and the war in Iraq is a quagmire of epic proportions. Bush usually reserves his celebrated temper for senior aides, but lately, some junior staffers have also faced the boss' wrath.
Bully C.I.A. »
NY Times
White House dispatches Cheney and C.I.A. director Goss to turn the screws on ex-POW Senator, insisting that the Central Intelligence Agency be exempted from a proposed ban on abusive treatment of suspected Qaeda militants and other terrorists.

It's Bush-Cheney, Not Rove-Libby »
Frank Rich / NY Times
It is surely a joke of history that even as the White House sells this weekend's constitutional referendum as yet another "victory" for democracy in Iraq, we still don't know the whole story of how our own democracy was hijacked on the way to war.

Great article, very revealing:
When I interviewed Bush,
I wanted to slap him »
Carole Coleman
Bush was so upset by Carole Coleman’s White House interview that an official complaint was lodged with the Irish embassy. The RTE journalist explains why the president made her blood boil.

White House master plan to contol bad news? ... Reduce Reporter Access »
Editor & Publisher

Washington Post: this much could be seen watching Bush's 14-minute interview ... (he) was a blur of blinks, taps, jiggles, pivots and shifts ... he had the body language of a man wishing urgently to be elsewhere.

The Progressive: Rick Santorum’s America
Clinton: On Bush Tax Cuts: “I Don't Think It Makes Any Sense. I Think It's Wrong."
TIME: Shameless Senators fishing for wealthy Katrina casualty to support estate tax cut
Bush: Requests help from God (hopefully his God doesn't work for FEMA)

How many places will be in shambles by the time the Bush crew leaves office? »
Maureen Dowd / NY Times
Given that the Bush team has dealt with both gulf crises, Iraq and Katrina, with the same deadly mixture of arrogance and incompetence, and a refusal to face reality, it's frightening to think how it will handle the most demanding act of government domestic investment since the New Deal.

Even though we know W. likes to be in his bubble with his feather pillow, the stories this week are breathtaking about the lengths the White House staff had to go to in order to capture Incurious George's attention.

How Bush Blew It »
Newsweek
Bureaucratic timidity, bad phone lines and a failure of imagination. Why the government was so slow to respond to catastrophe.
AmericaBlog: What we learn in the Newsweek story

Welcome to no-fault government »
Eric Margolis
The Bush administration has now presided over three national debacles: 9/11; the $6.5-billion-monthly, unwinnable wars in Iraq and Afghanistan; and now, strike three, New Orleans.

Boo Hoo Hoo
Iraq war abettor Colin Powell to the families of the thousands of American and allied soldiers, and those of the over hundred thousand Iraqis who have died as result of his lies to the world:
That little ol UN speech has put a "blot" on my precious record »

(not so) Fun Fact:
Barbara Bush has 17 grandchildren,
none of them are in the military

Progress Report
After over two years and more than $300 Billion Bush delivers 3 Iraqi Battalions (only 104 more to go), 40% unemployment, longer power blackouts, generally bungled reconstruction efforts ... and there's billions of dollars simply missing. But at least there are more terrorist attacks now than ever.

... and now he's lost an entire American city!

Bush's legacy:
A Bankrupt, Bombed-Out World »
Ed Naha
Every decision the Bush White House had made has been based on ideology, a warped fantasy world existing in the minds of a few that demeans and ignores an entire nation of people who are struggling just to get by.



		Just making it up ... like, for example, a liar would. The Daily Show posted two clips (click here ») showing Bush trying to stir the pot and say Iran is supplying parts for IED's, while Pace and Rumsfeld can't verify his words. March 13th Bush: Some of the most powerful IED's that we are seeing in Iraq today includes components that came from Iran. March 14th Reporter: Do you have proof that they are indeed behind this, the government of Iran? Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman General Peter Pace: I do not sir. Bush L-IED Again » John Brown / CommonDreams ... the Bush IED propaganda campaign is based, like WMD falsifications before it, on complete cynicism about the mental capacities of the American people. It assumes, wrongly, that the public will buy yet another feeble justification for a war that has never been adequately explained. Propaganda, Lies, and Truthiness Bush Bombs in Cleveland » Robert Scheer Slipping, Spinning, Iraq and Wiretaps » David Corn / The Nation Condi's European Adventure Condoleezza fails to sell torture » The Progressive Rice is taking several approaches in an attempt to save the Bush Administration’s reputation (or what’s left of it) ... simultaneously saying that interrogation of these individuals is helping “save European lives” while denying that any torture is taking place and refusing to confirm that the detention centers even exist. Does Anyone Believe Condoleezza Rice? » Der Spiegel US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice may have left Berlin, but her visit has left all sorts of bad tastes in the mouths of Germans. Nobody seems terribly convinced by her claim that America doesn't torture. Enough Already: The Incredible Inaccuracies of an Incredibly Crass Veterans Day Speech Bush Takes The Low Road » The Progressive In his Veterans Day speech, Bush tried to gag critics. Responding to critics who charge him with manipulating intelligence and hoodwinking the American people into war, Bush said: “It is deeply irresponsible to rewrite the history of how the war began.” And then he set about rewriting it. Asterisks Dot Bush's Iraq Argument » Washington Post Bush Resurrects False Claims » Think Progress Senate Intel Committeedid find that the Bush admin manipulated case for war » Think Progress The World Did Not See the Iraqi Threat as Bush Did » Think Progress Bush lies again about his previous lies about Iraq » Village Voice Bush Rewrites History To Criticize Anti-war Critics » David Corn / The Nation The Progressive: It was obscene enough that Bush put on such a staged event. Turns out now that one of the soldiers he called on was actually a Pentagon PR person, whom he refused to identify as such. But even more obscene was Bush’s immature and foolish boasting about how cool it was that the soldiers were in Tikrit, Saddam’s hometown. US Minister of Propaganda Karen Hughes: A Failed Public Diplomat » TomPaine.com If Karen Hughes cannot even convince the American media of her spin, why should the rest of the world buy it? Bush government fishing to blame New Orleans flood on environmental groups » Clarion Ledger The Strggle over War Marketing Bushspeak Flip-Flops » NY Times ... In a speech here, Mr. Bush used the phrase "war on terror" no less than five times. Not once did he refer to the "global struggle against violent extremism," the wording consciously adopted by Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld and other officials in recent weeks after internal deliberations about the best way to communicate how the United States views the challenge it is facing. Prime Time Vapor No bounce: Bush job approval unchanged by war speech – 42% now favor impeaching Bush if he lied about the Iraq war » Zogby International No solution and no apology as president runs out of ideas » The Guardian Like a recidivist incapable of going straight, Mr Bush plunged back into the scaremongering rhetoric of last autumn's election campaign and once again deliberately conflated the Iraq war with the 9/11 terror attacks. As before, he offered no way back and no joint, consensual path forward. Instead he ignored his critics, rewrapped himself in the flag, and gloried, from a safe distance, in the sacrifice of America's soldiers. Bush's no-news speech » David Corn / The Nation Resolved: Iraq is a mess » P M Carpenter US:0 - BS:1744 and rising » Ed Naha A Speech About Nothing » Common Dreams Bush's Speech About Iraq » ... we had hoped he would resist the temptation to raise the bloody flag of 9/11 over and over again to justify a war in a country that had nothing whatsoever to do with the terrorist attacks. NY Times The Big Lie » Capitol Hill Blue The Texas Soufflé » Phil Rockstroh / Dissident Voice Rove off the record ... off his rocker » Huffington Post Does this sound familiar? Cheney: Iraq insurgency in 'last throes' » CNN According to Bush administration spekesmen, these dead enders - currently renamed / remarketed as insurgents - seem to have been on the verge of defeat since the start of this war.



		Big Oil Environmentalism Specialists say Interior excised warnings on the effects on wildlife and water » LA Times The Bush administration altered critical portions of a scientific analysis of the environmental impact of cattle grazing on public lands before announcing Thursday that it would relax regulations limiting grazing on those lands, according to scientists involved in the study. A government biologist and a hydrologist, who both retired this year from the Bureau of Land Management, said their conclusions that the proposed new rules might adversely affect water quality and wildlife, including endangered species, were excised and replaced with language justifying less stringent regulations favored by cattle ranchers. Bush Administration Softened Greenhouse Gas Links to Global Warming » NY Times A White House official who once led the oil industry's fight against limits on greenhouse gases has repeatedly edited government climate reports in ways that play down links between such emissions and global warming, according to internal documents. In handwritten notes on drafts of several reports issued in 2002 and 2003, the official, Philip A. Cooney, removed or adjusted descriptions of climate research that government scientists and their supervisors, including some senior Bush administration officials, had already approved. In many cases, the changes appeared in the final report see also: Global warmin' is fer idjuts » White House sought advice from Exxon on Kyoto stance » Official Quits Over Climate Documents Flap »



		OK, so we save the economy ... now we just have to find some other planet to put it on » AP US President George W. Bush has said in a Danish TV interview that adhering to the Kyoto treaty on climate change would have "wrecked" the US economy. Dutch kids pick on Prez Faced with tough questions from kids in Holland, Bush boots press from youth roundtable » LA Times Based on the questions asked in the first half-hour, before reporters were ushered from the room, this group of students might not have passed muster at a typical White House event. Lacking American style script guarantee, Bush cancels town hall style meeting with Germans » Der Spiegel During his trip to Germany (in February), the main highlight of George W. Bush's trip was meant to be a "town hall"-style meeting with average Germans. But with the German government unwilling to permit a scripted event with questions approved in advance, the White House has quietly put the event on ice. Was Bush afraid the event might focus on prickly questions about Iraq and Iran rather than the rosy future he's been touting in Europe this week?



		AlterNet Common Dreams Daily Kos Eschaton - Atrios MyDD The Smirking Chimp Talking points Memo ... and many many more

Go F*ck Yourself
Mr. Cheney!
A Very, Very Good Idea »
Capitol Hill Blue

Ben Marble, a Gulfport resident who says he’s a doctor, had the guts to wade into Vice President Dick Cheney’s carefully-staged photo op Thursday and say what many residents of the Gulf Coast wanted to say to the politicians who sat on their butts while the people of Mississippi and Louisiana lay dead and dying ... Republicans, of course, jumped in with carefully-crafted indignation over Marble’s “inappropriate remarks” to Cheney, forgetting the Vice President used the same words to tell off a Senator just last year.

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