Free Republic

Dean: President Bush Is Not Doing His Job On Defense Or Domestically 8/13/2006 12:15:00 PM To: National Desk, Political Reporter Contact: Karen Finney of DNC Press Office, 202-863-8148 WASHINGTON, Aug. 13 /U.S. Newswire/ -- This morning DNC Chairman Howard Dean appeared on NBC's "Meet the Press." The interview covered a wide range of topics from Washington Republicans' failed defense and domestic policies, to the war on the middle class and the need for a new direction in America. Below are excerpts from Governor Dean's appearance: Republicans Have Failed America "...I think President Bush is not doing his job on defense...

Democrats Go on Offense in Latest Terror Case Looking to the past for lessons, they respond fast and sharply, saying Bush 'mismanagement' fed the threat and the GOP is playing politics. By Peter Wallsten, Times Staff Writer August 12, 2006 CRAWFORD, Texas — Two years after President Bush won reelection having painted his opponent as soft on terrorists and weak on national security, Democrats have seized on the latest alleged terrorism plot in hopes of turning the political tables on the White House. Their aggressive stance was evident hours after British authorities announced they had disrupted a plot to blow...

Rice is in way over her head Friday, August 11, 2006 By HELEN THOMAS HEARST NEWSPAPERS WASHINGTON -- Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has flunked her first foreign policy crisis in the Middle East. She went to the turbulent region last month in the early days of the war that began when Hezbollah forces in Lebanon crossed into Israel and kidnapped two Israeli soldiers. Rice had orders from President Bush to oppose any immediate cease-fire, which was hardly the proper policy by the United States if it wanted to end the suffering among Israelis and Lebanese. Rice apparently was dispatched...

Senator Hillary Clinton has denounced Vice President Dick Cheney for saying terrorists would be emboldened by the results of Connecticut's Democratic Primary. REPORTER: That's where an anti-war candidate defeated Senator Joe Lieberman. CLINTON: I don't take anything he says seriously anymore. I think that he has been a very counterproductive even destructive force in our country and I am very disheartened by the failure of leadership from the president and vice president. REPORTER: During a campaign stop in the Bronx yesterday, Clinton accused the administration of shortchanging New York of its homeland security money. A spokeswoman for the vice president...

Washington - US Muslim groups criticised US President George W Bush on Thursday for calling a foiled plot to blow up airplanes part of a "war with Islamic fascists," saying the term could inflame anti-Muslim tensions. US officials have said the plot, thwarted by Britain, to blow up several aircraft over the Atlantic bore many of the hallmarks of al-Qaeda. "We believe this is an ill-advised term and we believe that it is counterproductive to associate Islam or Muslims with fascism," said Nihad Awad, executive director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations advocacy group. Restraint"We ought to take advantage of...

Democratic leaders commended British authorities for their role in successfully foiling a terrorist bomb plot Thursday, while taking jabs at the Bush administration for its handling of the war on terrorism. Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif, agree that the continued threat of terrorism haunts the United States, nearly five years after the 9/11 attacks. "Today's news is an urgent reminder that we must make America safer and the world more stable,” Pelosi said in a prepared statement. "We must implement the strong recommendations of the independent 9/11 Commission to improve airport security...

Dwarfing Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld’s struggle with linguistics in an attempt to cloak the reality of civil war in Iraq, the current monstrous obscenity taking place in Lebanon now raises questions about the use of this word, “terrorist.” We can’t help, also, but to wonder how active, if covert, is U.S. military support by use of satellites and air cover, for Israel’s offensive. Why is Hezbollah called a “terrorist organization,” rather than a military organization engaged in “irregular warfare?” If the term, “terrorist,” has to do with wanton strikes on civilian populations designed to both wreak havoc and to instill...

Former vice presidential candidate John Edwards said today that the United States should begin pulling troops out of Iraq immediately. Edwards, who may run again for the Democratic presidential nomination, was in Moultonboro (New Hampshire), campaigning for state Senator David Gottesman. Edwards says the U.S. should make it clear to the Iraqis that the Americans are leaving and the best way to do that is to begin removing troops. He called for a complete withdrawal within a year to 18 months. Edwards also said Israel had the right to defend itself against the Hezbollah but said there needs to be...

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE August 07, 2006 CONTACT: Brendan Daly/Jennifer Crider 202-226-7616 Pelosi: On First Anniversary of Failed Republican Energy Bill, Americans Struggle With Skyrocketing Gas Prices Washington, D.C. – House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi issued the following statement on skyrocketing gas prices on the eve of the first anniversary of President Bush’s signing of the failed Republican energy bill on August 8, 2005: "One year ago, the top Republican charged with drafting the energy bill, Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Joe Barton, said the Republican energy bill ‘will lower energy prices for consumers, spur our economy, [and] create hundreds of...

A year after her first war protest in President Bush's adopted hometown attracted thousands and reinvigorated the nation's peace movement, Cindy Sheehan resumed her vigil Sunday. Under the blazing Texas sun, Sheehan and more than 50 demonstrators again marched a mile and a half toward Bush's ranch, stopping at a roadblock. As Secret Service agents stood silently, Sheehan held up her California driver's license and said she wanted to meet with the president. "It doesn't say my new address, but I do live here now," said Sheehan, who lives in Berkeley, Calif., and recently bought land in Crawford for war...

"In my opinion, maybe the worst ally Israel has had in Washington has been the George W. Bush administration, which hasn't worked to bring a permanent peace to Israel," Carter told the newspaper.

President Bush has pursued an "erroneous policy" that has fostered violence in the Middle East, said former President Jimmy Carter, who brokered the historic Camp David Accords between Israel and Egypt. "In my opinion, maybe the worst ally Israel has had in Washington has been the George W. Bush administration, which hasn't worked to bring a permanent peace to Israel," Carter said Friday during a stop in West Michigan. Carter and his wife, Rosalynn, were here as part of a fundraiser for their son, Jack Carter, who is seeking a U.S. Senate seat in Nevada. The $500-a-person event, attended by...

On Saturday, Gibson released a statement apologizing: "After drinking alcohol on Thursday night, I did a number of things that were very wrong and for which I am ashamed. I drove a car when I should not have, and was stopped by the L.A. County Sheriffs. The arresting officer was just doing his job and I feel fortunate that I was apprehended before I caused injury to any other person. I acted like a person completely out of control when I was arrested, and said things that I do not believe to be true and which are despicable. I am...

Americans generally approve of President Bush's handling of the current Mideast crisis, according to a CBS News/New York Times poll, but six in 10 say the president is not respected by foreign leaders. The poll finds Americans are pessimistic about the prospects for Mideast peace and do not think the United States should involve itself in the fighting between Israel and Hezbollah. More than 60 percent think the conflict will lead to a larger war in the region, and a similar number doubt Israel and the Arab states will ever be able to live in peace. Most Americans (60 percent)...

As someone who was (unfairly?) zotted oh so many moons ago because as a n00b I didn't understand the point to which some mods didn't understand sarcasm, I would like to put forward the (perhaps heretical) notion that we shouldn't be quite so quick on the zot. Recently, a FReeper put forward the notion of a "probationary period" before being allowed to post. I would argue that as long as the posts are rated "PG" (I understand that this is a family chat board) we should allow ALL viewpoints to be presented here. There are a couple of good reasons:...

Testing lines for 2008, Democrats with presidential ambitions accused President Bush and the Republicans of making a mess of the economy and Iraq while arguing that Democrats offer the best hope for a rising middle class that's preferred the GOP. "They're not taking care of America. They're bankrupting our country and failing to address the problems," Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y., said Monday, citing skyrocketing gas, college and health care costs. Speaking to the Democratic Leadership Council, a centrist think tank, she and three other yet-declared presidential candidates argued that Republicans have ignored the very people who make up much...

the Israel-Lebanon conflict never would've happened. Check out this article: http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060723/UPDATE/607230360

BEIRUT, Lebanon (AP) — The U.N.'s top humanitarian official on Sunday denounced the Israeli airstrikes that have devastated Beirut and southern Lebanon, saying civilians were paying a "disproportionate price" in the attacks targeting Hezbollah strongholds. Jan Egeland inspected the destruction in south Beirut — a predominantly Shiite area that has suffered the brunt of the bombings. Israeli strikes hit the neighborhood hours before Egeland's arrival and six more missiles pounded it later, the first daytime attack there in days. "It's terrible. I see a lot of children wounded, homeless, suffering. This is a war where civilians pay a disproportionate price...

George W. Bush is Becoming More Like Hitler Everyday 1) The republican party and Bush almost mirror the propaganda methods used by Hitler in old nazi germany. The republicans are calling this fight against terrorism a war, this is propaganda. It is not a war, congress has to declare war and they have not done that. It is propaganda to call a fight against terrorism a war. Hitler on Propaganda - From chapter 6 of Mein Kampf: The function of propaganda does not lie in the scientific training of the individual, but in calling the masses' attention to certain facts,...

Democratic chairman speaks at conference By Philip J. LaVelle UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER July 16, 2006 Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean accused President Bush last night of being weak on national defense and absent in the escalating violence between Israel and Hezbollah fighters in Lebanon. In remarks at San Diego State University, Dean urged activists to fan across the nation – including deep into the heart of Republican-rich “red” states – to tell voters that Bush has failed as president – including in national defense, which Republicans tout as their core strength. Advertisement “There are a lot of things we...