The secretary of defense said the secretary of state displayed a “lack of understanding ... of what warfare is about” in saying last week that the U.S. had probably made thousands of “tactical errors” in Iraq. “I don’t know what she was talking about, to be perfectly honest,” Rumsfeld continued. (Hat tip: Huff Po)
The San Francisco Chronicle profiles the man behind DailyKos, the Internet’s most popular liberal blog. He says the blog has earned him $80,000 a year--plus a book contract.
The “Daily Show’s” “fake news” interview exposed Sen. John McCain’s far-right hypocrisies better than most interviewers in the traditional media. (video)
Even the AP asks whether McCain has gone hard right.
Money that Bush earmarked for programs to build up Iraqi political parties, media outlets and human rights groups is now going toward security. Another example of how the reality of democracy-building is so much messier than the fantasy.
Think Progress presents a then-and-now credit roll of the major architects of the Iraq war.
Stunning part: Most of the people responsible for the debacle have been promoted or given medals.
The Louisiana senator says she will hold Bush’s executive-branch nominees hostage until he agrees to more funding for the Katrina-ravaged state.
(This was the woman whom Anderson Cooper famously chewed out, saying she was out of touch in the wake of the hurricane. Guess she toughened up since then.)
Sen. Joe Lieberman, the most conservative Democrat in the Senate, shushed an unhappy crowd so many times at a recent appearance that it reminded a blogger of a certain infamous “shusher.” (video)
In the N.Y. Times, the former presidential candidate calls for two deadlines: May 15 for the Iraqis to form a unity government, and a date later in the year for the U.S. to pull out.
Watershed moment: A credible presidential hopeful stakes out the high moral ground--and the progressive left political ground--on homosexual marriage. He calls a pending Wisconsin amendment against same-sex marriages “a mean-spirited attempt” to single out gay men and lesbians for discrimination.
Countries with AIDS epidemics actually have to cut the money they spend on treatment in order to conform to Bush’s requirements for spending on abstinence programs, reports the government watchdog. But it’s all good, because this way, God isn’t being offended by people having sex before marriage.
Homeland Security Dept.’s deputy press secretary allegedly tried to seduce a Florida sheriff’s detective who he thought was a 14-year-old girl.
Troubling for two reasons: (a) This shows the moral fiber of the people entrusted to spy on Americans; (b) this shows the incompetence and foolishness of the people entrusted to secure our borders—this kind of sting is the oldest trick in the book. UPDATE: More details on the official’s alleged criminal actions.
The Florida governor calls the anti-immigration “chest pounding” of politicians hurtful to him and his Mexican-born wife, Columba. Hats off to Jeb for breaking ranks on this one.
Funny how it can take personal, familial experience for right-wingers to show some compassion on social issues. (See: Dick Cheney, father of a lesbian, breaking ranks with Bush on gay marriage.)
In what would amount to the country’s first universal coverage plan, the Massachusetts Legislature approved a bill that will require all its residents to buy health insurace or face legal penalties.
How did they finally eke out a winning strategy for such a long-sought goal? The program is modeled on the state’s policy on auto insurance.
The Iraqi tribunal charged Hussein on Tuesday with new criminal charges—steming from the late 1980s gassing that allegedy left 5,000 civilians dead. (more)
The Congress hears from police agencies that envision using unmanned military drones for surveillance—in one troubling example, high above American cities.
A sobering report commissioned by Rumsfeld details how U.S. military planners want to take control of the Earth’s electromagnetic spectrum, allowing America to dominate telcommunications for propaganda and psy-ops purposes.
The Arizona senator tries (and fails) to explain why he’s voting for tax cuts for the wealthy that he once opposed. He also lamely tries to explain his newfound embrace of Jerry Falwell, the man he once called “an agent of intolerance.” (video)
When Sen. Bill Frist calls it “workable” to deport 11 million illegal immigrants, Stewart replies, “It’s absolutely workable! Just think about Elian Gonzalez. How easy that was!” (video)
The American Journalism Review chronicles the perilous conditions under which NPR reporter Deborah Amos and others like her work to get the hardest stories in Iraq--those found outside the Green Zone.
Chevron in the White House
