Raw Material About Bush

post from Connecting.the.Dots on 04 September 2007 08:36:00 PM. © Connecting.the.Dots

What were they expecting when the White House gave Robert Draper access to George W. Bush? A tame Bob Woodward? A Texas sycophant? A good old boy who would be influenced by the fact that the President?s father had been an honorary pallbearer at his grandfather?s funeral?

When Karen Hughes brought Draper in, the working title of his book was reassuringly positive, ?The Consequential President,? not the mordant ?Dead Certain? that has now been published with revelations about Bush?s attempt to blame L. Paul Bremer III for disbanding the Iraqi Army, his hope for progress there so his successor would have to ?stay longer,? the First Lady?s distaste for Karl Rove and other embarrassments.

But in a White House obsessed by loyalty, it may have escaped them that Draper, although proposing to provide ?raw material? for history, was an experienced journalist who might not reward access with flackery.

One sign of the Administration?s current disarray is the failure so far to get into gear to discredit Draper?s book. With Rove gone and Tony Snow on the way out, the passion to spin it all away is not what it used to be.

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Bush Advisors: No End to Escalation in Iraq

post from MyDD on 04 September 2007 08:33:37 PM. © MyDD

Despite a report from the independent Government Accountability Office showing, not surprisingly, that the escalation in Iraq has not yielded acceptable levels of progress within the country, the Bush administration, also not surprisingly, is determined[...]

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Rep. John Doolittle (R) Aides Subpoenaed by Grand
Jury

post from Crooks and Liars on 04 September 2007 08:30:50 PM. © Crooks and Liars

AP:GOP Rep. John Doolittle’s two top aides have been subpoenaed to testify before a federal grand jury investigating ties between Doolittle, his wife and jailed lobbyist Jack Abramoff.The grand jury subpoenas from the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia were issued to Chief of Staff Ron Rogers and Deputy Chief of [...]

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AP, Wash. Post reported Bush claim on
troop withdrawals but not generals'

post from Media Matters for America on 04 September 2007 08:05:24 PM. © Media Matters for America

In September 3 articles on President Bush's trip to Iraq, The Washington Post and the Associated Press uncritically reported Bush's statement that "General [David] Petraeus and Ambassador [Ryan] Crocker tell me if the kind of success we are now seeing continues, it will be possible to maintain the same level of security with fewer American forces." But neither media outlet noted reports -- including by the AP -- that Petraeus and members of the Joint Chiefs of Staff have said that the[...]

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US Could Send Forces to Basra if Brits Quit

post from IraqSlogger.com on 04 September 2007 08:02:15 PM. © IraqSlogger.com

The US has developed plans to send American forces to the southern city of Basra in case of unrest after any British pull-out from Iraq, the number two US commander in Iraq said Tuesday.

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Going After Gore

post from TPMCafe - The Coffee House feed on 04 September 2007 08:00:05 PM. © TPMCafe - The Coffee House feed

Check out the Vanity Fair piece ---http://www.vanityfair.com/politics/features/2007/10/gore200710-- and ask yourself, why do these reporters, having committed this atrocity of coverage, still have...

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Sweet

post from Firedoglake on 04 September 2007 07:53:06 PM. © Firedoglake

After having been the target of the right wing smear machine for outing Larry Craig, the recent adventures of “wide stance Larry” have been vindication for Mike Rogers: Rogers, sitting on a club chair in his Northwest Washington apartment, is[...]

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Magical September -- maybe not so magical

post from Daily Kos on 04 September 2007 07:46:19 PM. © Daily Kos

Seriously, try not to act too shocked.

Republican leaders on Tuesday suggested the GOP may be willing to support keeping troops in the region through spring.

Despite the GAO report detailing the abject failure of the Republican's Iraq strategy, did anyone really think September was going to bring more than the same bullshit? The ~~White House~~ Petraeus report will take all about the Success(!) we're having, and do so by refusing to count all the dead people. Then, all those "moderate" Republicans who have been supposedly antsy about Iraq will declare that they're all still antsy, but willing to wait until the Magical Spring to make things happen.

The Very. Serious. People. in DC will furrow their brows and talk gravely about how all "responsible" people agree that sending other families' kids to die in Iraq is the "right" thing to do since it's the best way to protect their fragile little egos.

Then everyone will have a jolly good time accusing Democrats of hating the troops, at which point Dems can either 1) call bullshit and work to end this thing, or 2) cave, and see their approval ratings sink to low-single digits while sabotaging their electoral chances in 2008.

Either way, the media will buy the "Magical Spring" trope and run with it, not realizing that it would ultimately give way to "Magical Autumn", which would then give way to "Magical Never".

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Republicans are apoplectic over Craig's new plans

post from AMERICAblog: A great nation deserves the truth on 04 September 2007 07:44:00 PM. © AMERICAblog: A great nation deserves the truth

So Larry's thinking about sticking around the Senate. That latest development in the Craig scandal has Republicans freaking out. Sure, Larry is looking for vindication. Let's just say, this also feels like payback. The Minority Leader, Mitch McConnell, publicly chastised Craig last week -- and basically forced his resignation. But, now Larry's fighting back -- and blatantly challenging McConnell and his leadership. What changed, one wonders?

Whatever the reason, Craig's latest move is causing ulcers among the GOP hierarchy tonight:

Just when Republicans thought things could not get much worse for their scandal-stained party, Idaho Sen. Larry Craig leaked word Tuesday night that he is reconsidering his abrupt plan to resign from the Senate in the wake of his arrest in a police sex sting operation.

Top Republican strategists were neither delighted nor amused by the senator's decision to rethink retirement after pleading guilty to disorderly conduct following his arrest in a Minnesota airport men's bathroom.

GOP Senate sources said Tuesday night that Craig's staff was trying to tamp down the story because Craig still intends to resign but wants to retain the option of fighting the charges with a newly assembled, high-powered legal team.

On Saturday, Craig said he would resign at the end of this month.

A senior GOP Senate strategist said Republican leaders want him gone now and will press for him to keep his promise to resign. The strategist warned Craig is "losing any goodwill built up among his colleagues," adding, "He is simply a fish out of water, floundering right now to get his last gasp of political air."

"It simply defies reality," said a Senate GOP aide. "You can't make this up even if you are heavily medicated. The American people heard from Larry Craig that he would resign and using the word 'intent' as a back door doesn't work with them."

We can just sit back and watch this one. The fun isn't over, yet.

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Fred Thompson To Return Campaign Donations

Not only is Grandpa Fred having fundraising difficulties but now it turns out he has to return some of his donations. Thompson, who plans to officially enter the race for the Republican nomination Thursday, is in the process of returning between $20,000[...]

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