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Byrd's angry theatrics made for a performance reminiscent of Al Pacino in "Scent of a Woman." And Byrd did Pacino one better: He invited the audience in the room to join him in heckling the witnesses, creating a responsive Greek chorus. Emboldened, two dozen hecklers in the audience from the antiwar group Code Pink continued to shout at the witnesses and wave signs for the better part of an hour. Finally, after Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) challenged Pace on his view that homosexuality is immoral, the hearing collapsed as the hecklers shouted down the nation's top military officer.

WASHINGTON: For anyone still doubting the striking turnabout in U.S.-French relations, it was enough to see the reception Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner got during a speech here before his meetings Friday with top Bush cabinet officials. Kouchner, who made news this week by warning that a failure to resolve mounting tensions with Iran could mean war, had barely begun speaking Thursday in a crowded hotel ballroom when several antiwar protesters jumped up and unfurled pink banners that read: "Bush + Kouchner = Warmongers!" One woman tried to climb onto the stage. Guards escorted the protesters away as they shouted, "No...

For many in Washington, the biggest unanswered question from Army. Gen. David Petraeus’ high-profile, low-satisfaction testimony last week was not about military strategy but about political tactics. Why has the anti-war movement been unable to translate the clear public mandate they claim into any clear change in our government’s Iraq policy? To most war opponents, the blame increasingly lies with the Democratic leadership in Congress, for not taking a hard enough line with President Bush and not fighting to cut off war funding. And their frustration is visibly bubbling over — the provocative group Code Pink, for example, has actually...

The mainstream mediaÂ’s coverage of the antiwar march in Washington, DC did its best to ignore the extreme Left views that were on display at the protest. A split-second image at the very beginning of Saturday eveningÂ’s NBC Nightly News showed some of the extreme views that were on display on signs, which included a call for the impeachment of President Bush for "war crimes," and a sign that cried "9/11 Truth Now!" The full NBC Nightly News report on the march devoted almost a minute to footage of the antiwar marchers, and only 15 seconds to comments from one...

Photoblogging: The Gathering of Eagles at Walter Reed By Michelle Malkin  •  September 14, 2007 11:56 PM  The Eagles joined Free Republic.com members at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center for the weekly Friday “Freep” tonight to show support for the troops. Bryan Preston and I were there to join in, meet fellow Eagles, and film the gathering for a future Hot Air special (see our video report on the first Gathering of Eagles in March here).  If you’ve never been to the Walter Reed Friday gatherings, you should really make the time to attend. Folks traveled from New York, Oregon,...

St. Cindy’s just about out of absolute moral authority so they brought along a father of a soldier killed in action to shield them from the flak they’ll be taking for this latest stunt. The occasion was a Heritage Foundation panel on the war led by Fred Kagan, one of the architects of the surge, and featuring leftist bete noire Michael O’Hanlon. The woman in the first clip in the black dress and glasses is Medea Benjamin, of course; she and the Pinkos have traded their standard gear lately for “civilian” clothing the better to infiltrate events like these. Most...

Committee Participants: the Honorable BillF, the Honorable kristinn, the Honorable tgslTakoma, the Honorable 3D-Joy, the Honorable Tom the Red Hunter, the Honorable Cindy True Supporter, the Honorable [Mr/Mrs] trooprally, the Honorable *Lurker Bill, the Honorable Fraxinus, the Honorable TennesseeNana, the Honorable BufordP, the Honorable PortCall24, the Honorable PrezUSA222, the Honorable VaFlagWaver, the Honorable Albion Wilde, the Honorable *Alicia, the Honorable *George and *Ethel, the Honorable Sensei Ern * lurkers Thank you, Mr Chairman, ranking members, members of the committee. Thank you for the opportunity to provide my assessment of the security situation at the gates of the Walter Reed...

"Capitol Hill police officers remove a protester from the crowd during a joint hearing of the House Armed Services Committee and House Foreign Relations Committee featuring Gen. David Petraeus and US Ambassador to Iraq Ryan Crocker in Washington, DC. What was billed as the most electrifying day of testimony in Congress for many years lurched into farce Monday as Petraeus struggled to be heard and members of the anti-war group Code Pink were dragged kicking from the room."

Is Code Pink to the left what the Westboro Baptist Church is to the right? While the anti-war group and the anti-gay church denomination could not have more different politics, the bizarre tactics that both use seem so self-defeating as to give credence to conspiracy theories that they're not what they seem. The Topeka-based church, of course, is best known for attending the funerals of U.S. soliders with signs asserting that God is incurring His wrath upon America because of the country's tolerance for homosexuality. "God hates Fags" is a perennial favorite among Westboro's subtle sign-wavers. But just as the...

A protestor is removed by Capitol Hill Police on Capitol Hill in Washington, Monday, Sept. 10, 2007, as Gen. David Petraeus and U.S. Ambassador to Iraq Ryan Crocker, not shown, testify on the future course of the war in Iraq before a joint hearing of the House Armed Services Committee and House Foreign Relations Committee. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)

Gen. Petraeus' report to Congress

The Network of Spiritual Progressives Strategizing with leaders of the Anti-War Movement Posted Friday, September 07 2007 Rabbi Michael Lerner This is a slightly edited version of a phone conference call convened by the NSP with the goal of establishing more contact and cooperation between various segments of the anti-war movement, and encouraging long-term strategic thinking. On the call were Tim Carpenter of Progressive Democrats of America, Medea Benjamin of Code Pink, Rick Ufford chase of the Christian Peace Wtiness for Iraq, Leslie Cagan of UFPJ, Dot Maver of Ept. of Peace, Rabbi Michael Lerner and Nichola Torbett of NSP,...

“Feminists are never as militant as they are when promoting peace,” said historian Sondra S. Herman. Code Pink is a prime example. Their name mocks Homeland Security alerts which inform law enforcement and citizens of increased terrorist threats. Their website states, “While Bush’s color-coded alerts are based on fear, the Code Pink alert is based on compassion and is a feisty call for women and men to ‘wage peace.’” The tactics employed in their “compassion” and “feistiness” while “waging peace” are more than even Rep. Nancy Pelosi can stomach. Code Pink women activists are vehemently anti-war and claim to...

Last Friday, I inadvertently found myself in the midst of the opening salvo of a battle to turn the Twin Cities upside down next year. I was driving home at rush hour from downtown Minneapolis, when several hundred bicyclists blocked the street leading to Interstate 394. My fellow motorists and I sat obligingly for several minutes, missing green light after green light. Finally, folks began angrily honking their horns. If two police cars hadn't moved the riders along, people might have leaped from their cars to take on the bicyclists themselves. Later, the protest ride turned ugly. Two officers tried...

BARABOO -- Anti-war activist and noted Bush administration critic Cindy Sheehan will speak Saturday at the sixth Fighting Bob Fest political rally at the Sauk County Fairgrounds. The festival is from 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Sheehan is scheduled to speak at 3:40 p.m. Others on the agenda include political commentator Jim Hightower, speaking at 2:30 p.m., and Congresswoman Tammy Baldwin, D-Madison, whose district includes Columbia County. She will speak at 9 a.m. Entertainment will include the Raging Grannies, singer-songwriter Chuck Mitchell and poetry by Daniel Kunene. More than 70 activist organizations have booths at the event, ranging from Amnesty...

The event at Hammons Field in Springfield Missouri had been planned for months. The Silver Star Families of America, an organization founded to remember, honor and assist the wounded of our Armed Forces from all wars, planned to say “Thank You” to as many wounded, veterans and active duty service members as it could.

... Meanwhile, a motley crew of antiwar groups, including Iraq Veterans Against The War, CODEPINK, ANSWER, and MoveOn.org, are organizing a week of demonstrations in Washington beginning September 15. The "mobilization" will be kicked off with a "Die-In," sponsored primarily by ANSWER and Iraq Veterans Against the War (IVAW). As they explain, "IVAW is asking that participants in the Die-In/Funeral select the name of one of the almost 4,000 soldiers who have been killed in Iraq. You can select a family member, friend or someone from your city, town or state. Please bring a photograph of that person and a...

There's no better way to start an AAR than with a good photo of of our MOAB, with flags flying gloriously in the background. Honor Roll for FReep 124Tom the Redhunter, PrezUSA222, 3DJoy, tgslTakoma, Kristinn, Mr & Mrs Trooprally, Olney-Keith, Cindy-True-Supporter, Albion Wilde, VAFlagWaver, Jimmy Valentine's Brother, Lurker Bill, Yak and Yak's Girl, Bruce and Kristy, Chief, T.J., Plea Deal, Taco Mama, DaNang68, and Sensi Ern. Gathering of EaglesProudly holding her flag is Air Force veteran T.J. She served 20+ years in Strategic Air Command and is now with Gathering of Eagles (besides her day job). As I suppose most...

Is there no point at which decent people on the left draw the line against the extremists in their ranks? As noted below and in today's Web Briefing, our friends at The Weekly Standard have posted two brief pieces that suggest not. Bill Kristol writes about the grotesque and offensive “die-in” being led by such far left groups as ANSWER and appropriating the names of American soldiers and Marines killed in action. It’s here. Meanwhile, Hollywood is going to war – against American troops. Eight new movies are coming out over the next few months. Perhaps the most offensive of...

Surely most critics of the war still have a sense of decency.On August 19, the New York Times published an op-ed by seven enlisted soldiers critical of the Iraq war. At midnight on August 24, THE WEEKLY STANDARD posted on our website a response by seven Iraq vets. The Times had rejected the vets' response. The piece carried the straightforward headline "Iraq Vets Respond . . . to the New York Times seven." It was a sober rejoinder to the arguments in the Times op-ed. It suggested the antiwar soldiers' analysis was incomplete and "misguided." The vets emphasized, "We understand...