Safe when the President visits, Anbar Province now witness to assasination of ally sheik

Just in from the Associated Press:

Bomb kills sheik working with US

BAGHDAD - The most prominent figure in a U.S.-backed revolt of Sunni sheiks against al-Qaida in Iraq was killed Thursday by a bomb planted near his home in Anbar province, 10 days after he met with President Bush, police and tribal leaders said.

Officials said his assassination would be a huge setback for U.S. efforts in Iraq, because it sends a message to others who are cooperating with coalition forces or thinking about cooperating against al-Qaida.

The Interior Ministry swiftly ordered plans for a monument built to honor Abu Risha as a “martyr,” Khalaf said. It would be build either at the explosion site, or at the center of Ramadi, he said.

And tonight, President Bush will speak to the nation at 9 pm EST (I can only guess it's so late because he didn't want to miss My Name is Earl, which runs at 8), and according to his spokespeople will be touting the progress in Iraq and asking for our patience.

Wait, I think I've heard that one before ....

Exactly who did Bush meet with in Iraq?

As you have no doubt heard by now, President Bush made a scret trip to Iraq over the Labor Day weekend. The question is, who did he meet with in Anbar Province? To quote AmericaBlog:

“Wait. Is George Bush in Anbar meeting with the very militia groups who were killing U.S. soldiers just months ago?”

Read more here.

"I took the 'W' off my car today"

You know things are going really badly when even diehard conservatives like Peggy Noonan publicly question George Bush's abilities, calling him “unnatural” and “weird.” See, it's not just you and me that think so!

From her OpEd in the Wall Street Journal:

I received an email before the news conference from as rock-ribbed a Republican as you can find, a Georgia woman (middle-aged, entrepreneurial) who'd previously supported him. She said she'd had it. "I don't believe a word that comes out of his mouth." I was startled by her vehemence only because she is, as I said, rock-ribbed. Her email reminded me of another, one a friend received some months ago: "I took the W off my car today," it said on the subject line. It sounded like a country western song, like a great lament.

As I watched the news conference, it occurred to me that one of the things that might leave people feeling somewhat disoriented is the president's seemingly effortless high spirits. He's in a good mood. There was the usual teasing, the partly aggressive, partly joshing humor, the certitude. He doesn't seem to be suffering, which is jarring. Presidents in great enterprises that are going badly suffer: Lincoln, LBJ with his head in his hands. Why doesn't Mr. Bush? Every major domestic initiative of his second term has been ill thought through and ended in failure. His Iraq leadership has failed. His standing is lower than any previous president's since polling began. He's in a good mood. Discuss.

...

Americans have always been somewhat romantic about the meaning of our country, and the beacon it can be for the world, and what the Founders did. But they like the president to be the cool-eyed realist, the tough customer who understands harsh realities.

With Mr. Bush it is the people who are forced to be cool-eyed and realistic. He's the one who goes off on the toots. This is extremely irritating, and also unnatural. Actually it's weird.

Read the rest of the piece here.

Apparently, we're making progress in Iraq

In case you don't believe me, watch the following video. You'll feel oh so comforted.

The view from the other side of the pond

From an editorial in the UK Guardian Unlimited:

Support for the surge is draining in Washington by the week. Republican members of Congress who once stood by Mr Bush are defecting. The Senate is in the middle of debating a series of motions aimed at constraining the president's hand as commander in chief. They may come to nothing, as not even the Democrat majority want to go for the jugular by voting to cut funding for Mr Bush's extra troops.

The defections and the motions all serve to isolate a president already in retreat. Mr Bush will do well to make it through on his current course to September, when General Petraeus is due to report back to Congress. Few in Iraq believe the situation can be turned around by then. The president's denial about the reality of Iraq stops any progress being made. It also stops policy makers developing a cogent plan for withdrawal. The president will sit out the unfolding disaster until his term of office expires. Insurgents and militias will sit out the unfolding disaster until the Americans leave. The one benchmark certain to be kept is that Iraqi civilians too poor to flee the country will keep on dying.

Lying liars and the lies they tell

Talk about pants on fire! Yesterday President Bush told an outright lie to an invited audience at a town hall meeting in Cleveland. In his brief mention on the Iraq war, Bush said:

“The same people that attacked us on September the 11th is a crowd that is now bombing people, killing innocent men, women and children, many of whom are Muslims.”

How wrong is he? Jonathan Landay at McClatchy Newspapers has debunked Bush's statements thusly:

1) Prior To The War, Al Qaeda Was Not Operating In Iraq.
2) Even Now, Al Qaeda Is Not The Main Source Of Instability.

Think Progress has more, including video of the President's speech.

Soldiers as props

A must read today is an essay over at The Huffington Post by Michael Shaw: Reading The Pictures: Bush's Mannequins. Shaw takes a look at the images coming out of the White House and wonders what they're trying to say, and has some interesting insight into what they really say about our Commander-in-Chief. Just how much does he understand about the lives of the men and women he sends into his misguided war?

... these later bedside portraits — although entirely managed, photographed and edited by the White House before being posted on the White House photo gallery — more often than not depict a perfunctory Commander-in-Chief alongside a soldier either too scared, traumatized or, perhaps, disgusted or disillusioned to make Bush look much good at all.

Group raises money to fly pro-impeachment banner at All-Star Game

This just in from The Raw Story:

Online activists raised enough money in two hours Monday afternoon to fly a banner encouraging the impeachment of President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney over AT&T Park in San Francisco before Tuesday's baseball All Star Game.

Read the rest here.

"Creature Comforts" takes on the Iraq War

I think Rumsfeld's my favorite, but Condie's pretty good, too. Enjoy.

Bush says, "TGIF!" We say, "WTF?"

Oh my! You're so strong!

President Bush will be escaping the rigors of Washington today for a little relaxation at Camp David in the Catoctin Mountains of Maryland. (It's been a very busy week for Georgie.) Bush likes it at Camp David so much, in fact, that he has spent over a years' worth of time (386 days) there since he became president. Only Ronald Reagan has been there more, according to today's Washington Post.

While there, we know he likes to ride his mountain bike on the new trails he had added, although riding a bicycle has been somewhat of a challenge for the former college cheerleader. He has had bicycling accidents both at home, and abroad.

Exercise is important. According to Bush, "Prayer and exercise are what keeps me going." Oh. I thought it was lies and deception.

And because he's such a brainiac, Bush apparently also likes to relax at Camp David by doing jigsaw puzzles. He is very proud of skills. According to the U.K. Telegraph,

"Meanwhile the president's enthusiasm for jigsaws has been seized upon by American satirists. One remarked that he was particularly proud of finishing a puzzle in two weeks — when on the side of the box it said three to five years."

30 months is "excessive," but only for Bush's friends

The Raw Story reports that the Bush Administration filed a "friend of the court" brief last year in a case that closely resembles the case of Scooter Libby. In the other case, Rita v. United States, Victor Rita was tried, convicted, and sentenced to 33 months in prison on charges of ... yes, perjury and obstruction of justice. Just like Scooter.

In his appeal, Mr. Rita argued that his sentence was unfair, although it was within the sentencing guidelines (as was Scooter's) and that it failed to take into account his personal characteristics such as his military service. The brief filed by the Bush Administration argues that personal characteristics don't matter, if sentencing is with in the guidelines:

Petitioner contends that his personal characteristics "clearly support a lesser sentence," ... but that contention is not sufficient to rebut the presumption that a within-Guidelines sentence is reasonable.

Huh? Just this week, Bush announced that he was commuting Libby's sentence because he thought 30 months was "excessive," even though it was within the federal sentencing guidelines. Explaining why Libby's within-guidelines sentence was excessive, President Bush said "Mr. Libby was a first-time offender with years of exceptional public service" and that "The reputation he gained through his years of public service and professional work in the legal community is forever damaged. His wife and young children have also suffered immensely."

Sounds like personal characteristics to me. But for Mr. Rita, 33 months for the same charge is "reasonable," and we don't care about your personal life.

BBC Reports: US president managed to master his lawnmower-like steed

I know it's a couple of years old, but it's priceless. Do you think he had a "non-alcoholic" beer before he fell? And what on earth is Barbara Bush wearing? Is that a housecoat?

BBC News reports that:

"The US president managed to master his lawnmower-like steed, developed by BAE Systems in Plymouth, Devon, at the second attempt and cruised around the driveway with his father George Bush Senior following closely on a second Segway.

A safety manual warns the Segway user to wear a helmet and "get a friend to act as your spotter" but Mr Bush was wearing only his tennis clothes and clutching his racket, while the nearest he had to a "spotter" appeared to be the family dog, Spot. "

Not worth impeaching?

From BuzzFlash:

On a Thursday phone call with Bloggers (BuzzFlash was on), Nancy Pelosi reconfirmed that her eyes are on winning the White House for the Dems in 2008 rather than pursuing impeachment.

She sincerely believes that an incremental series of revelations of GOP illegalities will sink the Republicans. The challenge to that viewpoint is that Cheney and Bush still have the power to precipitate an international crisis to get Americans to "rally 'round the flag."

Secondly, if they are not held accountable for their flagrantly illegal behavior, how can you expect anyone charged in our court system to respect the rule of law if the President and Vice President of the United States violate it with such impunity?

It's also hard to maintain control of Congress when you have a 14-21% approval rating, largely because the public perceives the Dems as weak and unable to end the war or rein in the power of a rogue, lawless Executive branch.

Yikes. Are we really stuck in such a political quagmire that even though the Democrats hold a majority in Congress, there is no momentum to bring Bush and Cheney to justice for their many, many illegal acts? He "only" has 2 years left in office? Folks, that's a lot of death and destruction at the hands of these two.

Can't take him anywhere

During the presidential campaign of 2004, a poll was taken that asked the question, "Who would you rather have a beer with?" and Bush won resoundingly over Kerry.

Well I don't know about you, but I'm wondering about this good 'ol boy. Personally, I prefer to have a beer with someone who doesn't get it all over the table cloth. Heh. That's just me. I'm sure the world leaders assembled at this little happy hour didn't notice our country boy's lack of manners. Again.

A Voice of Reason — The Man From Ohio

One of the reasons I got rid of cable was so that I wouldn't be paying for the privilege of listening to people like that assclown over at MSNBC, Tucker Carlson. Congressman (and Presidential candidate) Dennis Kucinich appeared on his show recently and spelled out a very well-thought out plan for getting out of Iraq, which involves getting the support of other countries in the region to provide stability so that our troops can leave.

Carlson, of course, kept trying to set up Kucinich with claims that he didn't hear specifics from "you or any of the other Democratic candidates." Kucinich calmly replied with specifics. Why doesn't Carlson, or any of the other talking heads, ask the White House for specifics? See the interview with Kucinich for yourself.

Kucinich gets tagged in the mainstream media with being a "fringe" candidate, one who's "out there." Come on, people — just how petty are we? Yes, he's short and has big ears. But I think if you watch the interview, you'll be amazed to finally hear an honest candidate who has a real plan to get us out of Iraq now.

What have you done for me lately?

That might be a nice caption for this photo of President Bush and Crown Prince Abdallah of Saudi Arabia. It's also a question we should be asking of President Bush.

Think back to his state of the union address in January 2006, when he made the bold statement, "Here we have a serious problem: America is addicted to oil ...." Then he told us his plan:

"Tonight, I announce the Advanced Energy Initiative -- a 22 percent increase in clean energy research at the Department of Energy, to push for breakthroughs in two vital areas. To change how we power our homes and offices, we will invest more in zero-emission, coal-fired plants; revolutionary solar and wind technologies; and clean, safe nuclear energy.

"We will increase our research in better batteries for hybrid and electric cars, and in pollution-free cars that run on hydrogen. We will also fund additional research in cutting-edge methods of producing ethanol, not just from corn but from wood chips, stalks,or switch grass."

How's that grass thing going, Mr. President? It's a year and a half later, and we're still headed down a dangerous path of relying on foreign oil and polluting the environment. In Maryland, consumers are being hit with a massive rate increase in our utility bills. Gas prices hover around $3 for regular unleaded. And when states such as California try to be proactive and require stricter automobile emissions standards, this administration tries to block them.

Clearly, it's up to us to change the course of this nation. The war in Iraq is based on our voracious appetite for oil. If you doubt that, then please tell me why have we not stepped in to help all of the other nations around the world with tyrannical, demonic leaders? It is simple, dear readers. It's because they don't have anything we want. Guess what? Sudan does have oil! So maybe the U.S. should start getting involved in ending the suffering in Darfur. Guess what? Rwanda doesn't have anything! So we'll let them work things out among themselves.

What can you do to change this situation? Each one of us can, and does, make a difference. Reducing your car trips even slightly does help. Using compact fluorescent light bulbs does help. Writing to your elected officials — both local and national — does help. Tell them to increase funding for renewable and green energy sources. Tell them to stop funding this war for oil. The Bush dynasty and the rest of this administration have their fingers in the oil profits pot. They won't change unless we insist on it.

This planet and all of its citizens are asking, "What have you done for me lately?"

So I heard from Sen. Cardin the other day

I recently wrote to my senators, Ben Cardin and Barbara Mikulski, to let them know how disappointed I was that they voted for the $120 million war spending bill in May. I had hoped that at least one of them would stand up to the president and say "no more!" Refusing funding is the strongest power Congress has to counter this administrations's misguided policies in Iraq. Unfortunately, both of my senators voted to continue funding the war.

In last fall's Democratic primary, I voted for Kweisi Mfume, and I sure do miss him now. I had so hoped Mfume would be a strong voice on issues such as the war. I feared Cardin would not stand firm, would not be vocal. I am so sorry that my suspicions of him were true. From his message, Cardin clearly thinks that over time, the president can be persuaded to change course. I wonder what our soldiers in Iraq, as well as the citizens there, think about future "opportunities" to "push the administration." I'm sure they don't mind waiting.

Thank you for contacting me with regards to U.S. involvement in Iraq .

In 2002, as a member of the House of Representatives, I voted against the Congressional resolution that gave President George Bush the authority to invade Iraq . Since that time, I have been an ardent critic of the war and the manner in which the Administration has conducted it.

The bipartisan Iraq Study Group concluded that the solution to Iraqi unrest is political rather than military. The President should pursue a strategy that will decrease the Iraqi government's reliance on American forces and bring our brave troops home. I encourage increased diplomatic efforts in talking with Iraq 's neighboring countries to help stabilize the region.

Since my election to the U.S. Senate, my top priority has been working with Majority Leader Reid and other colleagues to change direction in Iraq . We have shaped a position calling for a total troop withdrawal beginning October 1, 2007 with a goal of completion by April 1, 2008. I supported such amendments and was disappointed that the provisions were not included in the final version of the Emergency Supplemental Appropriations bill for FY 2007. There will continue to be good opportunities to push the administration on this issue, including the Defense Authorization bill and the FY 2008 Defense Appropriations bill, among others. I have enclosed a copy of my first statement on the Senate floor, in which a large portion was devoted to my Iraq policy and the need for change . Please be assured that as a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, I will be fully engaged in working for a political and diplomatic resolution of the Iraqi conflict, and pushing for a drawdown of American forces.

I appreciate your taking the time to contact me about this important matter. Please do not hesitate to do so again about this or any other issue of importance to you. Email.BeginHide.merge

Sincerely,

Benjamin L. Cardin
United States Senator

Emphasis mine, but, yes, it really had "Email.BeginHide.merge" at the end.

Aha! Now It's All Making Sense!

O.k. I understand that it's "non-alcoholic" beer (supposedly Buckler Beer from Germany.) (Thanks to Shakesville for the keen eye above.) But all non-alcoholic beer does actually contain some alcohol, about .5%. So, despite all of the stories of salvation, and quitting drinking after his 40th birthday, I do wonder if he's off the self-imposed wagon. Could it explain the forgetfulness mentioned in the previous story? And the "stomach ailment"? Well, he recovered awfully quickly for the stomach flu. But actually right on schedule for a little bender. I bet if you drank enough non-alcoholic beer to get a buzz, you would indeed have a "stomach ailment."

Some background from Wikipedia:

Bush has said he gave up drinking after waking up with a hangover after his 40th birthday celebration: "I quit drinking in 1986 and haven't had a drop since then." He ascribed the change in part to a 1985 meeting with Reverend Billy Graham, after which he began serious Bible study, as well as to gentle but firm pressure from his wife, Laura. Friends recall that Bush said nothing of his decision, even to Laura, until many weeks later when they realized that he had not had so much as a single beer in the interim. Despite his claims of having no alcohol since 1986, video of Bush at a wedding in 1992 has surfaced in which the president appears intoxicated, slurring his speech and saying odd things. A photo was also taken on June 7, 2007 of Bush drinking what appears to be a beer at the G8 Summit in Heiligendamm, Germany.

There's an awful lot of chatter in the blogosphere about whether Bush is hitting the sauce again. On the one hand this seems like gossip that fits perfectly with our society's current obsession with celebrity partyers (see, Paris Hilton, Lindsey Lohan, et al.).

However, on the other hand, could drinking explain some of the more bizarre stories we've been hearing about Bush's behavior. For instance, there was the story recently reported in the Dallas news about private rantings and ravings about how misunderstood he is, thumping his chest and repeating several times, "I am the president!" Even the Drudge Report, normally no friend of mine, has reported on the bizarre nature of this event.

Then there was the dancing Bush. At an event marking Malaria Awareness Day, the president's behavior was anything but presidential, first dancing some sort of variation of the funky chicken, then banging on one of the drums himself. Don't believe me? Watch the video, and you'll see how painful it was for all involved.

And what about when he was in Jamestown, and decided that he wanted to live out his life-long dream of conducting an orchestra. Hmmmm. That's real dignified.

Beyond the pure titillating gossip angle of Bush binging, we do need to take these rumors seriously. Never forget that this is the man with his finger on the button. And if he's incapacitated (call it a "stomach ailment" if you must), you know who is standing by, ready to take charge. That's right, the Prince of Darkness. So maybe it's just gossip. But I think we should keep an eye on him.

I'm just sayin'

Headline of the Day: Albania Welcomes Bush with Enthusiasm, Affection

You've got to admit, it's kind of sad that Bush has to go all the way to Albania to get some lovin'. Unfortunately, even there, he seemed to have trouble keeping his story straight. One day he says there needs to be a deadline for Kosovo independence, the next day he can't remember what he said. From today's Washington Post:

Responding to a reporter's question in Rome on Saturday, Bush had said a deadline should be set for a U.N. resolution on Kosovo's independence. "In terms of the deadline, there needs to be one," he said. "This needs to come -- this needs to happen."

Asked Sunday about when he would like that deadline set, Bush seemed flummoxed. "I don't think I called for a deadline," he said. Told that he had, Bush responded: "I did? What exactly did I say? I said, 'Deadline'? Okay, yes, then I meant what I said."

Emphasis mine, but ... Sigh.

Wait ... there's much much more over at Pam's House Blend, including a fun sort of "travelogue" of his visits. How can we ever forget his molestation of German Chancell0r Merkel:

Or his wonderful table manners Prime Minister Blair:

Sigh and sigh, again.

Bush Clings to Last Known Friend in Washington

Dog looks into camera and pleads "Please! Somebody hep me!"

Meanwhile, the First Lady tries to explain to the President his current approval rating.