AM Feed - June 16: Playing Politics With the War
Hot Topics
- The conservative leadership in both houses of Congress is desperately attempting to turn the Iraq War into a political battle in the hopes that it will distract the American public from the host of issues that have led to Congress’ abysmal approval ratings. In the House, Republicans are pushing for a vote on a resolution to “complete the mission” in Iraq – a naked gambit to try to exploit Democratic divisions over the war. Of course, such measures underscore the real problem with the Iraq War, which is the fact that the Bush team still hasn’t truthfully explained the real mission in Iraq, nor has it adequately offered a plan for reaching that goal. [link]
- The death toll for US military personnel in Iraq crossed the 2,500 threshold, and the monetary cost for the war is ballooning its way toward $320 billion. Yet President Bush and the Republican-controlled Congress are still attempting to hide the true cost of the war by not including it in the regular budget. Yesterday Bush signed a $94.5 billion emergency funding bill to help pay for operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as rebuilding projects related to Hurricane Katrina. There is separate legislation in Congress to allot another $50 billion in funding for the war operations. “I’m frustrated that the administration keeps funding this war off-budget,” said Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA). [link]
- House Speaker Dennis Hastert (R-IL) and two partners turned a tidy $3 million profit on a real estate deal, according to land records and financial reports. Hastert personally received $1.5 million of the profit from the land in question, which is located near a controversial freeway – of which Hastert has been a supporter. Hastert’s office, naturally, was shocked – shocked! – at the implication that the value of the land rose because of the highway project. Hastert had secured over $200 million in federal funds through earmarks for the highway. [link]
Morning Snark
- Someone check the records – with all the federal money flowing into Iraq, is Hastert snapping up property there, too?
Comment
- CORRECT TERMINOLOGY:
We should refer to the Iraq War in the correct terms—it is the U.S. Occupation of Iraq.
As the conservatives play their political games regarding the U.S. Occupation of Iraq, we should remind readers (and all citizens) that George W. Bush, when he attacked Iraq, committed an international war crime.
Aggression is the armed attack of one state on another, an egregious international crime. The definition of aggression as adopted by the UN in 1974 lists actions taken by one state against another that are viewed as acts of aggression. The list includes, among a number of other things, a first-strike armed attack by one state on the territory of another, or an attack on its armed forces.
— micki Jun 16, 12:25 # - Just shows the high regard gwb has for the UN and its resolutions (along with showing his idiocy, of course). I still believe he went into Iraq for two reasons, one to exact revenge for Saddam Hussein’s vow to kill his father, and the other to spur the economy and fit into his grand plan to enrich the oil barrons.
— jen Jun 17, 08:48 #
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