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Monday, June 25, 2007
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Center for American Progress: "With the Iraq war well into its fifth year, the Bush administration still lacks a realistic plan for the Middle East and Iraq. The United States must reclaim control of its core national security interests by taking active steps to stabilize the entire Middle East and abandon the delusions at the heart of President Bush's policies. Otherwise, U.S. security will continue to suffer by weakening the U.S. military and draining resources away from destroying terrorist networks such as Al Qaeda."
Thanks to Oliver Willis for the link.
"2008 pres"
6:48:20 PM 
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Captain's Quarters: "As backers of the compromise immigration bill move to resuscitate it on the Senate floor, the American voter remains overwhelmingly opposed to it. In the latest Rasmussen poll conducted this weekend, only 22% of likely voters supported the bill, and a majority outright opposed it."
"2008 pres"
6:09:45 PM
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Andrew Sullivan: "Marriage In California: The state Supreme Court just asked the two parties in the marriage equality case some new and intriguing questions."
Politcal Wire: "Elizabeth Edwards 'came out in support of legalized same-sex marriage Sunday -- taking a position that she acknowledged is at odds with her husband, presidential candidate John Edwards,' the San Francisco Chronicle reports."
"2008 pres"
6:08:49 PM
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Pollster.com: "A new Cook Political/RT Strategies national survey 844 registered voters (conducted 6/21 through 6/23) finds: Among 378 Democrats, Sen. Hillary Clinton (at 32%) leads Sen. Barack Obama (22%) in a national primary, former V.P. Al Gore trails at 12%, former Sen. John Edwards at 11%. When Gore is excluded, Clinton leads Obama 35% to 24%. Among 347 Republicans, former Mayor Rudy Giuliani and Sen. John McCain both run at 20%, former Sen. Fred Thompson runs at 14%, former Gov. Mitt Romney at 10%."
Political Wire: "New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg 'could have a serious impact on the 2008 presidential race, rivaling billionaire Ross Perot's influence in 1992,' a new CNN/Opinion Research poll suggests."
Larry Sabato: "Suppose Mrs. Clinton wins in November 2008. Democrats would have to live with the consequences. There is simply no question that Senator Clinton would be the third deeply polarizing President in a row, following her husband's divisive and partially wasted tenure and George W. Bush's deeply disappointing turn at bat. We bet that she would have a short honeymoon and would be unable to convince her millions of critics and detractors that she had changed--or was different than they long ago concluded she was."
Thanks to Andrew Sullivan for the link.
Josh Marshall: "Thompson beating Rudy in coveted ex-wife endorsements."
Pollster.com: "A new CNN/Opinion Research Corporation national survey of 907 registered voters (conducted 6/22 through 6/24) finds: Among 383 Republicans, former Mayor Rudy Giuliani (at 30%) leads former Sen. Fred Thompson (19%) and Sen. John McCain (18%) in a national primary, former Gov. Mitt Romney trails at 9%, former Speaker Newt Gingrich at 8%. Among 450 Democrats, Sen. Hillary Clinton (at 35%) leads Sen. Barack Obama (23%) in a national primary, former V.P. Al Gore trails at 16%, former Sen. John Edwards at 13%. When Gore is excluded, Clinton leads Obama 43% to 25%."
Political Wire: "A new Siena Research Institute survey in New York finds Sen. Hillary Clinton leading the presidential race in her home state with 43%, trailed by Al Gore at 19%, Sen. Barack Obama at 11%, and John Edwards at 9%. Among Republicans, Rudy Giuliani is also way ahead in his home state with 48%, followed by Sen. John McCain at 13%, Fred Thompson at 11%, and Mitt Romney at 6%."
Political Wire:
A new San Jose State University poll in California finds Sen. Hillary Clinton leading her Democratic rivals with 37%, followed by John Edwards and Sen. Barack Obama tied at 15% each.
Notes pollster Phil Trounstine: "Clinton is being swept along by her support among women. If Edwards, Obama or any other candidate can peel women away from Clinton, the Democrats could have a competitive race in California. But if Clinton keeps her grasp on women, it's not going to be much of a contest here."
In the Republican race, Rudy Giuliani leads with 25%, followed by Fred Thompson at 16%, Sen. John McCain at 14% and Mitt Romney at just 5%.
Rocky Mountain News:
Richardson is trying to move in a different direction: up - as in up from fourth place in most of the Democratic polls. Richardson is trying to do that by taking the toughest stand for withdrawing troops from Iraq, by pitching his international résumé, by touting his environmental record and by running humorous ads. "I'm moving up," he tells reporters as he leaves an event in Des Moines on Friday. "You'll hear about it. I'm moving up."
The Moderate Voice: "Good news for Hillary Clinton and Fred Thompson (who has yet to officially announce his candidacy): the two of them lead the polls in Nevada."
"2008 pres"
5:54:23 PM
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Here's Part II of the Washington Post's look at Vice President Dick Cheney. They write:
Shortly after the first accused terrorists reached the U.S. naval prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, on Jan. 11, 2002, a delegation from CIA headquarters arrived in the Situation Room. The agency presented a delicate problem to White House counsel Alberto R. Gonzales, a man with next to no experience on the subject. Vice President Cheney's lawyer, who had a great deal of experience, sat nearby. The meeting marked "the first time that the issue of interrogations comes up" among top-ranking White House officials, recalled John C. Yoo, who represented the Justice Department. "The CIA guys said, 'We're going to have some real difficulties getting actionable intelligence from detainees'" if interrogators confined themselves to humane techniques allowed by the Geneva Conventions.
From that moment, well before previous accounts have suggested, Cheney turned his attention to the practical business of crushing a captive's will to resist. The vice president's office played a central role in shattering limits on coercion in U.S. custody, commissioning and defending legal opinions that the Bush administration has since portrayed as the initiatives, months later, of lower-ranking officials.
Cheney and his allies, according to more than two dozen current and former officials, pioneered a novel distinction between forbidden "torture" and permitted use of "cruel, inhuman or degrading" methods of questioning. They did not originate every idea to rewrite or reinterpret the law, but fresh accounts from participants show that they translated muscular theories, from Yoo and others, into the operational language of government.
Please remember to read the whole article.
"2008 pres"
6:55:46 AM
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The Daily Kos makes the Progressive case against the current immigration bill. They write:
In fact, this immigration bill is an historically bad bill, one that will undermine wage markets and which will permanently cripple skills training in vital sectors of the economy. And -- contrary to Lou Dobbs and the nativists -- the critical problem with the bill has nothing to do with the path to citizenship provided therein. Hell, everyone this side of the Minutemen agrees that there needs to be a humane path to citizenship for those undocumented workers who are living, working, and contributing in the United States. The fact that this bill provides a version of that path is about the only positive aspect of the legislation. No, the fatal flaw in this bill isn't "amnesty" -- it's the euphemistically termed "temporary worker program."
The temporary worker program has nothing to do with immigration policy. To the contrary -- it is a guaranteed cheap labor program grafted on to an immigration bill. When most people think of "immigration" to the US, they think of people coming to America to build a new life for themselves and their families, just as their ancestors did. But the temporary worker program has nothing to do with building American families and American dreams. Under the program, 400,000-600,000 guest workers would enter the country every year on two-year visas. Although the visas can be renewed twice, recipients would be denied any path to permanent residency or citizenship. In fact, the guest workers would be precluded from even applying for permanent residency while here on temporary visas.
In short, the "temporary workers" will be just that -- "temporary," and "workers." Not "immigrants." And they can never be "Americans." Instead, we will have created a permanent caste of non-citizens with no hope of ever becoming citizens. A class of over half-a-million workers without a voice in the political process, here at the sole sufferance of their employers.
"2008 pres"
6:46:13 AM
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© Copyright 2009 John Orr.
Last update: 3/15/09; 1:04:50 PM.
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