Free Republic

A Little Animated Bush for the Kiddies Posted Aug 10th 2007 4:35PM by TMZ Staff Filed under: Wacky and Weird Move over Madonna, because First Lady Laura Bush is taking time out of her busy schedule of, er, from, er ... she's taking time out of her schedule to write a children's book with her party girl daughter, Jenna! Drinks to that! The as yet untitled book is due in 2008, and tells the story of "a mischievous little boy who likes to do everything but read." Georgie, porgie -- is that you?! The mother/daughter team is a perfect choice...

Hey, Could We Have a Jerk-Free Presidential Campaign Season Someday? Please? Captain Ed catches a Kerry donor trying to steer those looking for Fred Thompson's web site to the KKK. What I'd like to know is, does this guy, or anybody else who would stoop to a trick like this, really believe that masses of Americans out there would hear the URL for Fred's web site, punch it in correctly, find the Klan web site, and then conclude Fred Thompson backs the Klan? Really? Doesn't this guy need something better to do with his time?

Really, this again points out how very little the Democrats know about our military. This is simply basic stuff, but apparently not something any of Pelosi's staffers could be bothered to check out or most likely would know anyway. Take a look at the pic on Pelosi's website (it's a flash thing, so wait till it comes around but there is a screen cap below) where she touts how "the House is providing the largest increase in veterans’ funding in history". The picture? That of a Canadian officer. Unless written otherwise, all epaulets have "CANADA" in gold lettering on the...

A top inside Hill source e-mailed me a call to arms from inside the Beltway bunker. Read it and act, if you still care: Senate Immigration Update – June 15, 2007 All indication is that Harry Reid has chosen to resume consideration of immigration sometime next week, possibly as early as Wednesday. It is his folly – a curious political choice designed to avoid the "do-nothing" label he so richly deserves. But as much as he should be blamed personally for choosing to bring the bill back, it is the Republican leadership and Republican "grand bargainers" who are deserving of...

For those of you who’ve never heard of Britain’s got Talent; just know it’s yet another Simon Cowell vehicle and I’m sure you can figure out the rest. But there are a few things that make Britain’s got Talent different; it’s being broadcast daily and it’s open to any kind of act, unless of course you’ve seen the movie The Aristocrats. Also differentiating it from Simon Cowell’s stateside day job; some of these contestants can actually sing. Paul Potts, this mild mannered cell phone salesman, comes out of the box dropping Puccini’s “Nessun Dorma” and within two minutes shows more...

A sign that democracy works: Chambliss and Isakson were at the press conference announcing the Senate Grand Compromise, but now they are singing a different tune. Here's the entire release: WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Saxby Chambliss (R-Ga.) and Johnny Isakson (R-Ga.) today sent a letter to President Bush urging him to send an emergency supplemental spending bill to Congress to fund border security. Chambliss and Isakson believe emergency supplemental funds to secure the border will go a long way towards restoring the confidence of the American people in the federal government’s commitment to border security. The text of the letter...

WASHINGTON — The Senate voted Wednesday to slash the number of foreign workers who could come to the U.S. on temporary visas as part of a broad bipartisan immigration bill. A new guest worker program would be capped at 200,000 a year under the proposal, which passed 74-24 over strong opposition by the Bush administration. Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez said the change, proposed by Sen. Jeff Bingaman, D-N.M., would interfere with a "central component" of the White House-backed immigration measure. That plan provided for 400,000 worker visas annually, plus an option to increase that number to 600,000 if market conditions...

A CALIFORNIAN man who tried to kill his girlfriend by leaving her in a car parked across railway lines was himself killed when an oncoming train hurled the car into him as he fled. His girlfriend survived, the Associated Press reported. The man drove the car to the head of a line of traffic stopped at a level crossing in the San Fernando Valley neighbourhood of Sunland on Monday, police spokesman Mike Lopez said. The man, who was seen arguing with the woman, then parked the car on the tracks and jumped out, leaving her behind, Mr Lopez said. A...

A look at the next steps for an immigration overhaul plan worked out by a bipartisan group of senators and the White House: SENATE CONSIDERATION The Senate plans to open debate Monday on the bill and consider amendments throughout next week. Majority Leader Harry Reid (news, bio, voting record), D-Nev., has set a Memorial Day deadline for completing the measure, but it's unlikely the complex plan can be finished that quickly. HOUSE ACTION Democratic leaders are waiting for the Senate to pass a bill before they consider one in the more-polarized House. They plan to act on immigration in July,...

Senate Rejects Iraq Funding Cut Off Bill May 16 11:13 AM US/Eastern By ANNE FLAHERTY Associated Press Writer WASHINGTON (AP) - The Senate on Wednesday rejected legislation that would cut off money for combat operations in Iraq after March 31, 2008. The vote was a loss for Sen. Russell Feingold, D-Wis., and other Democrats who want to end the war. But the effort picked up support from members, including presidential hopefuls previously reluctant to limit war funding—an indication of the war's unpopularity among voters. The proposal lost 29-67 on a procedural vote, falling 41 votes short of the necessary votes...

Following up on this post: "CNN International's CNN Today program, airing at midnight Eastern, led with the graphic 'Bush Resigns.' Of course, they meant 'Blair Resigns.' Freudian slip on the part of a network accused of anti-Americanism?" ...it did happen. Here's a screen grab from CNN International around midnight ET: This appeared on screen for 12 seconds. (Two seconds before, President Bush had appeared on screen, but the chyron accurately said "Pressure over Iraq.")

While trouble may be brewing for U.S. Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales, a statement to consider comes from the District-based Latino Coalition, which is taking CNN host Jack Cafferty to task for calling Mr. Gonzales "the president's water boy" during a telecast of "The Situation Room" on March 12. "This kind of rhetoric from a journalist is simply unacceptable and racist," said the nonprofit's president, Robert G. Deposada. "We cannot be hypocritical when it comes to racist statements in our national media. If the attorney general was an African American, and Mr. Cafferty would have called him a water boy,...

Summary of Findings The controversy over the firing of eight U.S. attorneys is not attracting strong public interest in spite of intense media coverage of the story. In fact, the story evokes a typical response from the public when compared with news interest in past Washington scandals. Amid calls for Attorney General Alberto Gonzales' resignation, the news media's coverage of the story outstripped public interest. Most Americans remained focused on the Iraq war and the problems facing returning soldiers. Overall, 19% of the public paid very close attention to news about the fired U.S. attorneys and 8% said this was...

Check out this genius from the Floor of the House on the War Debate. Mr. Speaker, it is time to pull our troops out . . . . The longer we stay in . . . the more chance we have of being sucked into another Vietnam in that region. The longer we stay in . . . the less credibility we have with neighbors in the hemisphere that we are a nation of peace, not an invading force. Mr. Speaker, we can argue another day about how our troops got [there], but I do not think anyone wants them...

AUGUSTA, Ga. (FOX5) -- U.S. Rep. Charlie Norwood (R-GA10), 65, passed away Tuesday morning at his Augusta home following an extensive battle with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) and non-small cell lung cancer. Norwood received a single lung transplant in 2004 as treatment for IPF, and developed non-small cell lung cancer in 2005. Norwood represented the Augusta-to-Athens 10th congressional district since 1995, and was re-elected in November 2006 by a landslide margin. A schedule of public services will be announced by the 10th Congressional District office as soon as details are finalized.

The Polar Bear Pic They Won't Show You h/t Instapundit - Ann Althouse calls attention to an image of Polar Bears making the rounds, again - it was allegedly taken by Dan Crosbie in 2004 and is currently number one on Yahoo's photo list. The image I have up at right also involves Dan Crosbie from the same period in 2004 during a scientific trip during which they carried rifles to run off polar bears while planting equipment in the ice - ice that was much thicker than they expected it to be. (pertinent excerpted text at bottom) But...

Landmark Legal Foundation Nominates Rush Limbaugh for 2007 Nobel Peace Prize Limbaugh called 'the foremost advocate for freedom and democracy in the world today' LEESBURG, Va., Feb. 1 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Landmark Legal Foundation today nominated nationally syndicated radio talk show host Rush Limbaugh for the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize. Limbaugh, whose daily radio show is heard by more than 20 million people on more than 600 radio stations in the United States and around the world, was nominated for the prestigious award for his "nearly two decades of tireless efforts to promote liberty, equality and opportunity for all humankind, regardless...

That's the latest scuttlebutt from the Scooter Libby trial: Russert's presumed distaste for Matthews (so difficult not to speculate on its cause! Is it stylistic? Does someone hog the newsroom donuts?) came up in reference to the prosecution presenting notes taken by Libby during a conversation with former vice president aide Mary Matalin. She "has a colorful way of speaking" (something the press corps does know), and in the course of advising Libby on how to deal with the "Wilson issue," and in particular Matthew's attacks on the vice president, she advised Libby to call Russert to complain and she...

I Thought This Was Resolved ...? [Kathryn Jean Lopez] A Senate source complains (expletives of disbelief omitted): the Democrats have offered a substitute amendment (Reid Amendment # 100) to the minimum wage bill. The substitute amendment is basically the Finance Committee bill. But guess what’s not in there: American Samoa. They include the Marianas Islands, but American Samoa, even after Tunagate, is still not in there.

Mike Ditka, one of football’s greatest, gave his opinion of Obama on tonight’s PTI. Dikta was going to run against Obama in the 2004 Senate race, but decided against it because of personal and business matters. This is a great Video: Ditka on Obama, America