REALITY
The one thing we now know as a result of the deliberately (?) 'untimely" announcement by Israel that it intends to continue with building in East Jerusalem during Vice-President Biden's visit, is that the Obama administration does not see Jerusalem as Israel's future capitol.
Clearly, Bibi Netanyahu (or the building administrator who made the announcement)* wanted the world to learn this fact. If indeed, the story of the continued 'legal' building in East Jerusalem was deliberately published at the time of Vice-president Biden's visit, there was a reason, and that was probably it. Assuming Netanyahu was behind it, he or his cohorts played a card gambling on how the Obama administration would respond. Today secretary of State did what Israel thought the U.S. would do. Secretary of State Clinton, conspicuously absent from Israel on Biden's trip, rebuked Netanyahu and the Israeli's for standing in the way of peace negotiations. She used America's commitment to Israel's security in her publicized private rebuke via a 45 minute call to Netanyahu as the reason the Israeli's are being unreasonable.
Of course, the U.S. is absolutely uncommitted to Israel's security. Certainly the U.S. is offering Israel no protection on the issue of Iran, which Obama has refused to do anything about but pay lip service to Israel through the proposal of stupid, ineffectual sanctions that lack world agreement. And whose purpose is to pacify Israel and the Arab states but not stand with them in absolute opposition to the idea of a nuclear Iran. The U.S. wants Israel to give up protective land for peace. And, now, we know that pro-Arab President Obama wants Israel to give up parts of Jerusalem -- the one aspect of all negotiations that has been distinct. Since the beginning of negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians, Israel has insisted that the subject of a split Jerusalem is not on, and will never be on the table.
To those who think that Jerusalem should remain the capitol of Israel, this was a shout out by Netanyahu/East Jerusalem. Now whether you agree with the Israeli's position or not is irrelevant. President Obama is insisting that something be in the mix of negotiations that no other American president has in the past. Israel is certainly entitled to draw the line where she pleases. It is not Israel's job to appease the president of the United States for his political gain.
Further, unless the Obama administration is willing to go to the mat for Israel on the issue of Iran, why ever would Israel do so for the American president on any negotiable issues?
President Obama has been nothing less than hostile to Israel, and
appears to be openly disrespectful to Israel's Prime Minister Netanyahu.
By the way, it is not Obama who is being asked to make difficult
choices; it is Bibi Netanyahu and the Palestinians. One senses that
Obama and Co. aren't arbiters, but personally involved.
____________
*FYI: East Jerusalem is not part of the freeze Netanyahu agreed to. East Jerusalem is Like Washington, DC, controlled by its own council. As Obama can't control the Washington DC City Council, neither does PM Netanyahu have voice over what occurs in East Jerusalem.
UPDATE: Apparently, the O administration has decided to escalate the war of words between Israel and the U.S. in an effort to force Israel to some concession. The damage done to Israel (if, in fact, there is any because of the building announcement) has already been done. Netanyahu would be wise to refuse to concede on any point until the U.S. backs off of Israel.
UPDATE: The ADL is livid. This from Congressman Todd Tiahrt (R-Kan.) calling for censure of Secretary of State Clinton's Israel rebuke.
UPDATE: Prime Minister Netanyahu responds.
UPDATE: ABC ran a package on the Sat. Evening News the dust-up between Israel and the U.S. and paints it wrong, in favor of the U.S. It quotes a paragraph from the ADL piece and makes it sound as if the ADL was apologetic, which clearly, it was not.
Posted: March 12, 2010 5:47 P.M. COMMENT
ON THE LINE
Democrat pollsters Pat Caddell and Doug Schoen are telling Democrats that if they force health care reform down American's throats it's curtains for the Dems come the mid-terms and maybe even 2012.
Which begs the questions: Are Dems so committed to reform that they don't care about the political results? Are Dems stupid? Are Dems convinced that the public will come around once the bill is passed (although it's effects won't be evident for years)? Is Obama more interested in historical legacy than in governing? Is the president so ticked off with the non-compliant Republicans after his outreach, that passing health care legislation has become personal? Well, you get the drill.
To be even more cynical, the president must know that if he doesn't pass reform, his power in Washington will be toast. No one on the Hill likes a president who puts it all on the line and loses.
Here's the bottom line: President Obama has no choice but to pass the legislation. Visualize a president holding his nose and jumping into the drink. That's how President Obama has positioned himself -- not a position any president should find himself in....swimming upstream.
UPDATE: Pelosi says The Public Option will NOT be included in the final bill.
Posted: March 12, 2010 10:04 A.M. COMMENT
TO GET PEACE YOU HAVE TO WANT PEACE
To get peace in the Middle East you have to want peace. You also have to have the right power broker. None of the just cited conditions currently exists in this ongoing absurdity called the "process" between the Israeli's and the Palestinians. There are times when insisting upon negotiations does more harm than good. That is where the situation stands today. It is not hopeless, despite the poorly managed efforts of the hope president himself, Mr. Obama. But currently, the mood is wrong.
While the NY Times said VP Biden's trip to the Middle East was to appease the wrong done by his administration to Israel, that is not the truth. Biden was in Israel to shore up the foes to PM Netanyahu's right wing coalition. So, a little gamesmanship occurred meant more for the American gov't than against the Palestinians (although giving a little needle to the Palestinians woul hurt, darlin'). As Biden was pontificating and falsely celebrating the unyielding bond between the U.S. and Israel, the Israel housing authority approved more building in East Jerusalem. Now, Netanyahu never agreed to stop building in East Jerusalem, so on the face of it, no big deal. But nothing is 'no big deal' in the ME. And of course, the American gov't was insulted, and the Palestinians apoplectic.
Heavy handed political maneuvering? Perhaps. But not as inappropriate as the actions of the American government this last year towards Israel, nothing less than hostile.
Meanwhile, Biden was able to announce that there would be background talks initiated between the two parties, a small triumph for the U.S.
Until this morning, when we are back where we started because Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has backed out of the background talks saying that the Palestinian side is not ready to negotiate under the present circumstances.
I never thought I'd say it, but I agree with Abbas. The situation is just too toxic and everyone needs to step back and take a deep breath, which buys both sides time. Sometimes time does heal some wounds.
UPDATE: Biden opens his mouth and says something stupid. Here's one writer's response.
UPDATE: Hillary to headline AIPAC Conference March 22, 2010.
Posted: March 11, 2010 9:37 A.M. COMMENT
INTERESTING
Lost Jewish tribe found in Zimbabwe.
Posted: March 10, 2010 8:41 A.M. COMMENT
GOOD FOR ISRAEL
The game the Obama administration is playing with Israel is despicable. Today, Israel told the American President what it thought of Obama's latest game...trying to win Israeli's vote by sending Vice-President Biden to sugar coat the administration's bad behavior toward Israel...Screw You! It did so by announcing the approval of more building in East Jerusalem.
Biden's visit comes as poll numbers show that only 3% of Israeli's have anything nice to say about the pro-Palestinian American president. By the way, though that president has made appearances in many Muslim countries, he has yet to visit Israeli. I guess he thinks the Muslim world is more important to America's longtime ally, Israel.
Sending Biden is a slap in the face, since the president hasn't been to Israel. Israel slapped the American President back. It was the Right's right move.
UPDATE: Obama admin so upset about the timing of the new building, Biden and his wife showed up two hours late for dinner with Netanyahu.
Posted: March 09, 2010 12:55 P.M. COMMENT
TURKEY IS BECOMING A REAL PROBLEM
The government of Turkey is dissolving into a real problem for Israel, the U.S. and the Middle East. Here's the latest. This one has been brewing for a long time. How long will the Obama administration ignore the problems with Turkey before the situation explodes into something that's difficult to correct? The Obama administration seems always on the defensive, never quite ahead of the news, but merely responsive. This failing needs to be addressed, as much as the situation in Turkey.
Posted: March 08, 2010 11:12 A.M. COMMENT
A WORD ABOUT THE OSCARS
It's a sad day when Oscar is bigger than the stars he represents.
Posted: March 08, 2010 8:51 A.M. COMMENT
OBAMA'S LOST CAUSE
Flailing for a win anywhere on the foreign policy front, President Obama has placed his focus back on the Middle East. He's sent a litany of diplomats to shore up his cause in Israel. Now it is Joe Biden's turn. One of the best writer's on the subject of Israel is Caroline Glick. This must-read from today's Jerusalem Post sums up Obama and his team's hapless journey into the Israel-Palestinian issue.
Why the United states continues to believe that it has the answers for the Israeli's, if only it can convince the stupid Jewish people, which is apparently how they see the Jews in Israel, is beyond my comprehension.
Despite all odds, Israel thrives in the most hellish place on earth surrounded by unyielding enemies. While our country dissolves into the useless, Israel is becoming a model business culture, its tech sector the model for the world. Its advances in medicine, agriculture, etc. continue to astonish. But yes, Mr. Obama, the Israel's are idiots when it comes to survival in their world (said with utter sarcasm!).
Somewhere in all of this is the absurd theory that our troubles in the Middle East and with al Qaeda stem from our relationship with Israel and its problems with the Palestinians. The truth is the Palestinians' have become the enemies of Israel's excuse to exist.
The oil issue, which leaves us bowing, literally, at the feet of the Arabs, ought to be the focus of Obama., but he's too frightened of the oil and cal lobbies in our country to confront the real enemies who are playing havoc with us right here at home.
Wouldn't it be interesting to see what happened if one American President had the audacity to back off from inserting itself into the Israel-Palestinian issue and took a more hands-off policy in the region?
Not to worry, it won't be President Obama, who appears to have a personal investment in righting his perceived wrongs against Islam.
UPDATE: Using Israel
Posted: March 05, 2010 10:51 A.M. COMMENT
HOLDING OUT
Word is out that President Obama says that once the current health care bill is passed (wishful thinking?), he will pursue the passing of a public option. It seems odd to me that the public option, which polls show have the massive support of the public, wasn't pursued first or in conjunction with the current bill to help push health care reform forward.
Initially, I think it was a miscalculation. Obama and Co. were riding high on his popularity and the team thought getting health care reform legislation passed through wasn't going to turn into the debacle it has. When it did, they pulled back and decided not to add to the fight, larger than they had imagined.
But there is another scenario that I thinking bears looking at. Once the handwriting was on the wall, Obama decided to push for the current legislation as is, get it passed, and let the history books champion him as the president who got reform passed when no one else could. He realized, however that in the short run he and his Democrats were going to take it on the chin in the voting booths for passing unpopular legislation. That the legislation won't be enacted until 2014, the public would still have negative views if not confusion when they entered the voting booth.
Now suppose he moves forward with the popular public option and maybe even the lowering of the age when one can enter Medicare (55) just before the mid-terms...or even 2012. The story would change, wouldn't it?
Who knows if my thesis is correct, but it surely gels with a president whose agenda is always motivated not for the greater good, but his own. The greater good would have been to pass the public option and Medicare changes first and incrementally attack the problem of the runaway power of the insurance companies later. I'm just saying.
UPDATE: Public Option
Posted: March 05, 2010 9:18 A.M. COMMENT
EMANUEL O EMANUEL
And the drama of Rahm Emanuel continues with of all people David Broder inserting himself into the Emanuel Story (SEE: BELOW). If you enjoy a good yarn, this is one you won't want to miss. Anyone willing to guess the ending?
UPDATE: Emanuel is dead, he just doesn't know it.
Posted: March 04, 2010 1:11 P.M. COMMENT
TIT FOR TAT
Hamas is now saying that Egypt or Jordan were likely behind the Dubai hit that the world was quick to blame The State of Israel for. Israel, of course , was put through the wringer on simple allegations, with Dubai saying it would arrest PM Netanyahu, and Israeli diplomats treated with disdain in a premature, overblown reaction. Tell me, will the same behavior afforded Israel be given either Egypt, Jordan or both? Unlikely, more evidence of the widening uneven hand afforded Israel by the world.
Posted: March 03, 2010 3:38 P.M. COMMENT
SHOULD CONGRESS TAKE A PAY CUT?
YEP! LOL!!!!!
Posted: March 03, 2010 3:07 P.M. COMMENT
ISRAEL
Richard Cohen...so, true, so true!
Posted: March 02, 2010 11:17 A.M. COMMENT
SCAPEGOAT EMANUEL HAS FRIENDS IN HIGH PLACES
This website foretold the obvious some months ago when it became clear the WH was in trouble also forecast). It was forecast here that the first head on Obama's chopping block would be Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel. It was. But not so fast. Mr. Emanuel knows Washington better than anyone in the administration and he is fighting back through the voices of reason in the Democratic Party. The press is helping with pieces such as this one. Washington is an inside town. It's because Emanuel is an inside man that he got the job as Chief of Staff. But the president and his Chicago buddies forgot the reason Emanuel was hired as the president's number one aide. It's not too late to start listening to Emanuel, Mr. President, if your ego can get out of the way to do so. Let's take bets.
UPDATE:MORE RHAM BASHING
Posted: March 02, 2010 11:01 A.M. COMMENT
MR. OBAMA IS AN ASS (With apologies to the esteemed office of the presidency...)
Is there anything that this president is willing to fight for? Does he give a hoot about the people of this country? I am convinced that he doesn't. All he cares about is himself, his control, his re-election capabilities. We have seen it with health care where he bartered away what was right for the people in order to get any bill passed. He is thinking ahead to the history books and what they will say should he get any bill passed: He was the president who did it. And now on the consumer protection agency he is doing the same thing. This man is appalling!
Of all people, Arianna Huffington, who stupidly backed Mr. Obama during the elections, is now his number one nemesis. Well, Mrs. Huffington, will you ever learn that all that glitters is not gold? Probably not. But Mrs. Huffington, at least, has become the champion of the people and good for her. for defending the people against this self-aggrandizing president in volce alta.
Oh, but that the people would defend themselves against this rip-roaring joke of an administration.
Posted: March 02, 2010 9:57 A.M. COMMENT
KERRY SAYS U.S. + ISRAEL ARE ON THE SAME PAGE ON IRAN
If so, we've turned a page on Iran. Interesting.
Posted: March 01, 2010 2:41 P.M. COMMENT
ON IRAN
This is an interesting piece on U.S. policy on Iran, with good links. To bomb or not to bomb that is the question. While I am a proponent of bombing Iran, if for no other reason than to slow their path to nuclear armament until some better idea or situation comes along, there is one good point coming out of the administration and all the naysayers. Not a one has completely taken the prospect off the table. On the other hand, all this talk about not being able to promise results has hurt the prospects...or is a great foil for catching the Iranians off-guard in the near(?) future. Israel, by the way, has started distributing gas masks. For the retaliation of a strike on Iran? Or for a new Intifada threatened by the Palestinians because of increased Israeli designating shrines in the West Bank. Oh, what tangled webs we weave.
Posted: March 01, 2010 12:53 P.M. COMMENT
GAMES PEOPLE PLAY
It is nothing less than an outrage that today 2,000 Federal transportation workers will be furloughed without pay thanks to Republican Sen. Jim Bunning of Kentucky. Republican Sen. Tom Coburn of Oklahoma did something similar. And let's not forget Republican Sen. Richard Shelby's hold on Obama's nominees. There is no doubt that excessive partisanship is behind the actions of these three men. While stark differences divide the parties, it is inexcusable that these differences should prohibit compromise by either party. Similarly, no representative from any state has the right to hold up what is the greater good for its constituency regardless of where you stand on state's rights. After all , what is the state without the country?
E.J. Dionne today writes about partisanship and ends with this odd cynical construction:
"As neatly as anything I have seen, this exchange captured the philosophical and emotional difference between the two parties. Democrats on the whole believe in using government to correct the inequities and inefficiencies the market creates, while Republicans on the whole think market outcomes are almost always better than anything government can produce.
That's not cheap partisanship. It's a fundamental divide. The paradox is that our understanding of politics would be more realistic if we were less cynical and came to see the battle for what it really is."
The fact is opposing ideas are avenues over which we must build bridges in order to connect the divide. Such has been our nations' past. To linger on this new road where we refuse to bridge our differences will prove, and might I add, is proving to be a catastrophe for this country. Writers like Dionne aren't helping to bridge the great divide. And neither are the partisans on either side of the aisle.
Posted: March 01, 2010 10:51 A.M. COMMENT
THE TRUTH ABOUT RECONCILLIATION
This little link tells the true story of what the Dems plan to do concerning health care legislation, brought to you by E.J. Dionne by way of NBC's Chuck Todd. Todd is correct. The health care bill already passed the Senate and House. Here's what could come next.
Posted: February 26, 2010 5:47 P.M. COMMENT
HEALTH CARE SUMMIT
Thus far there is a bottom-line, and the president was adept enough to state it. For all the Republican squawking, there's very little in the bill that the parties disagree on. How the problems in the American health care system are resolved is where the differences between the two parties remain. But if you listen closely to the dialogue in the summit, there really isn't as vast as difference as it appears on the surface. The one place the Dems have made points is in the area of costs. The Republicans keep talking that the U.S. can't afford the changes to the system that are laid out in the new legislation. But the CBO continuously supports that in the long run, this bill will save America dollars and decrease the deficit. The Republicans need to present a bona fide plan with CBO assessment to prove that they have a more viable approach to reform. Without that for ammunition, they continue to look like the party of 'No.'
Posted: February 25, 2010 1:19 P.M. COMMENT
SELL-OUT
Never saw a president with such bad political instincts. He sells out when he shouldn't and here's a perfect example. In a time when consumers are feeling on the brink, the president sells them out for his political agenda. Read and weep and know how low you fare to Obama's personal political aspirations. A stand-alone Consumer Protection Agency is necessary to thwart the lobbying power of the big guys. Obama and Co. can parse their reasoning any way that they like, but that remains the fact. This is a president who picks the big guy (who will fund his political future) over the little guy (who doesn't) time after time after time. Aren't you tired of being the compromise?
Posted: February 25, 2010 8:31 A.M. COMMENT
MY O MY!
New Missile Defense Agency logo causes stir. Here's y....
Missile Defense Agency - Obama logo- Islamic flag
Posted: February 24, 2010 6:21 P.M. COMMENT
JAY ROCKEFELLER IS A JOKE
More to follow.
Posted: February 22, 2010 8:27 P.M. COMMENT
HEALTH CARE
Here's some information on the president's health care proposal before the Thursday summit. I still think this is a dicey bill, particularly the requirement aspect and the penalties if someone chooses to feed his family rather than pay for a premium he either doesn't want or can't afford. Needless to say, Obama didn't have the balls to include the Public Option as part of his proposal. On the other hand, he's urging oversight of insurers' rate increases.
UPDATE: Boehner reacts.
UPDATE: In key states the public option is more popular than Obama's HCR bill.
Posted: February 22, 2010 10:58 A.M. COMMENT
WAR GAMES
No one ever said life is pretty, particularly in the Middle East. I don't put much credence in hypotheticals and this story is based on just that. Equate it to the glass is half empty half full analysis. Here's the truth: At some point the U.S. and Israel are going to have to stop fooling around with Iran and take definitive steps to stop its nuclear aspirations, one hopes sooner rather than later. Otherwise, on looking back, particularly to the Obama Admin, it will go down in history as the presidency that didn't have the balls to stop the change of the Middle East's balance of power, not a legacy President Obama would want to have.
Posted: February 22, 2010 9:34 A.M. COMMENT
IN DEFENSE OF RAHM
Thank you, Dana Milbank for putting things in perspective. This is a must read. It's maybe the best analysis of the problems in the Obama White House, sadly and accurately pointing out the flaws of the President and his team. Of course, it's always nice to have one's own opinions substantiated by another's.
Posted: February 20, 2010 10:32 A.M. COMMENT
SEBELIUS: DEMS MAY FIGHT FOR PUBLIC OPTION
Do they have the chutzpah? It would certainly shake things up. And if they did pass health care including the public option through reconciliation, they get a good shot at reclaiming the political narrative. The insurance companies are helping them now by raising rates to astronomical levels. Polls show that the public is with the Dems on the public option. I say go for it. It absolutely cannot get any worse for the Dems. The Republicans may be the party of 'no', but the Dems are becoming the 'do-nothing party.' Do something, particularly without the Republicans and they can use the party of 'no' against the Republicans.
UPDATE: Reid throws his hat in support of public option.
UPDATE: Public Option Fake Out?
Posted: February 19, 2010 10:17 A.M. COMMENT
HAVE YOU SEEN THIS? UPDATED
If not, you should. It is extraordinary.
UPDATE: If in fact The Mossad is responsible for this, why is the world so upset? Israel is defending herself against a terrorist organization, Hamas. Would the world be so upset if the United States used the CIA to rid itself of the terrorist organization al Qaeda? Of course, that's exactly what we are doing and I don't hear Britain of the French screaming at us. The double standard applied to Israel must be called what it is: anti-Semitism. But all the anti-Semites out there cannot understand that (no one ever sees their self as an anti-Semite, it's always someone else), and it's looking like there are more and more of them worldwide than anyone could possibly have imagined.
UPDATE: Others agree with my analysis.
Posted: February 18, 2010 6:05 P.M. COMMENT
WHEN SOUNDING THE ALARM IS ENOUGH
Right-wing political activist Andrew Breitbart is a clever man. He's built an empire around his radical conservatism, and is RIGHT up there with the crazies of the conservative movement in power.
Today he writes that The Clinton Machine is mounting a challenge to the Tea-Party Movement. Could be, great. But it doesn't matter if there is validity to Mr. Breitbart's statement. It is enough to rally the forces and help boost their momentum.
Breitbart also seeks to drive a wedge between The Clinton Machine and The Obama Clan, this because there is much talk of former President Clinton and his operatives moving back to the White House to shore up Obama's troubled presidency. Divide and conquer...a house divided...get the picture?
One must be careful about what one accepts or dismisses as silly from the right-wing. They have a style all their own. The American Center time and again falls for their silly rhetoric; progressives tend to ignore -- shrug it off as inane -- repeatedly at their peril.
In fact, Mr. Clinton's troops should have been called upon long before now.
Wake-up, progressives. It's not the roses you need to smell out there, but the stench of some wily conservative operatives, before they do more damage. Or the silly joke will be on you.
Posted: February 18, 2010 9:45 A.M. COMMENT
IT'S ABOUT TIME
Israel had finally figured out that they have a PR problem and is doing something about it, which we suggested they do some time ago. Well, better late than never. Whether the approach they are taking will work is anybody's guess. I was just thinking this morning that they needed to hire Don Draper.
Posted: February 17, 2010 5:36 P.M. COMMENT
GOING TO THE DOGS
Time for a little humor. This is hilarious.
Posted: February 17, 2010 9:43 A.M. COMMENT
REPLACE RHAM?
A few weeks ago I wrote that Rahm Emmanuel's head would be the first on the chopping block and that is proving to be true. Pundits are out for his head. I recently talked about the need for Bill Clinton to "help out" the president. This morning, the esteemed Leslie Gelb, formerly a NY Times columnist makes the same suggestion and names replacements for Obama's current team, mostly Bill Clinton's former staff. The one place I completely disagree with Gelb is suggestion to bring Zbigniew Brzezinski, Jimmy Carter's former national security advisor into the fold. Though Gelb mentions the need to rein in Brzezinski , a raging anti-Semite and Russia hater, I don't think that's possible. There are plenty of tough people in Washington who could do the job Gelb suggests for Brzezinski. And the last thing Obama needs at this time, the president already fighting off the moniker "he's just another Jimmy Carter," is any of Carter's former staff joining his beleaguered team.
Bill Clinton's staff: A change we can believe in!
Posted: February 16, 2010 10:00 A.M. COMMENT
INTERESTING...
The Saudi's seem to siding with Israel on the Iran problem, the Saudi foreign minister on Monday, expressing his doubts over the effectiveness of further sanctions on Iran over its nuclear program. This could prove to interesting for the U.S. caught between China and Russia who are against further sanctions, and the Arab nations and, of course, Israel, who don't think sanctions are enough.
Surely the U.S. can take advantage of this rare agreement in the Middle East and use it to advantage in addressing the Israel-Palestinian problem, as well as adopting its Iran policy to the needs of the players in the Mid East.
Policy can make strange bedfellows.
Posted: February 16, 2010 9:35 A.M. COMMENT
THOUGHTS ON EVAN BAYH
This is a sad day in politics. Most writer's will say it's a bad day for the Democratic Party. It may be that, but it is so much more. Evan Bayh is a mild-mannered politician. He's old school. He believes in the legislative process. Today he shocked everybody including the head of the party, the president of the United States when he announced his retirement. Mr. Mild-Mannered is going out with a bang, telling it like it is in Washington, D.C. these days, a hell-hole of imbeciles more interested in themselves and their parties than in doing the people's business. It was the party he was speaking to but it is the voters who should heed his words. The dysfunctional morons who've created this mess in Washington were voted in by you. Our election process has become the equivalent of Lady Ga Ga concert, all show, no substance, the cutest and the prettiest will win. Yes, this is a sad day in politics. But an even sadder day for America. One of the good ones walked away because he saw the futility of it all.
Political point: What did Obama do to tick Bayh off so much that he didn't give his president a heads up on his retirement?
Posted: February 15, 2010 8:08 P.M. COMMENT
BILL CLINTON'S TURN
Lately WashPost columnist E.J. Dionne, who I talk about in my book, A YEAR IN MY PAJAMAS WITH PRESIDENT OBAMA, The Politics of Strange Bedfellows, has been writing little but liberal policy dribble. Today's column, however, is correct in two senses. The first, Dionne is telling President Obama that he ought to start listening to Bill Clinton who can teach Obama the path out of Obama's current dilemma: the Republican's are making mincemeat out of the neophyte Democratic Party's president. Second, just how deep a hole has Obama got himself into? The fact that Dionne spent an entire column telling the president how great Bill Clinton is gives you clues as to the depth of the hole Obama has dug for himself. For goodness sakes, even his number one champion, Speaker Nancy Pelosi is jumping Obama's ship. That, however, may help Obama more than hurt his presidency.
Bill Clinton tried to tell the Democratic Party that they would be making a huge mistake if they made Obama their nominee. They didn't listen. E.J. Dionne, by the way, didn't listen either. And now, here they are, exactly where Clinton warned them they would be, if Obama became president. (See: Below to punctuate my point). So, will the Democrats listen to Dionne's advice now?
To do so would require a shake-up in the White House and in my mind that doesn't mean ditching Rahm Emmanuel, but rather David Axelrod and Co. Second, Obama would have to seriously move to the center. He's been taking baby steps in that direction, but that's all. Third he would have to give Bill Clinton some of his power. Will Obama's ego allow him to do that? The party is in disarray due to Obama's failure to coalesce his troops. He needs Bill Clinton to do that for him, as Clinton did for himself when he found himself in hot water in the early days of his first term.
The Democrats don't stand a chance of holding their power in the future unless these steps are taken. The noise on the left and the noise on the right has to stop. The liberals and the right of the party have got to meet in the center, and compromise, exactly what they're asking they're Republican enemies to do.
As long as the Democrats are a house divided, they don't stand a chance of maintaining their control. Bill, get on your white horse and gallop into Washington to save the day. And your little, Lady Guinevere Hillary Clinton, too.
Let this be a lesson to the Democratic Party. All that glitters is not gold
UPDATE: PLOUFFE SAVES THE DAY, Axelrod diminished?
Posted: February 15, 2010 11:01 A.M. COMMENT
MRS. CLINTON PROVED RIGHT
One of the key differences between Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton on the campaign trail were their positions on Iran. President Obama advocated talk, as we all know, Hillary Clinton proposed a hard-line approach. Obama won and they did it his way. Tra la la, Ahmadinejad laughed in the new president's face. Today, Mr. Obama officially adopted Hillary Clinton's approach to Iran rolled out in a speech given by the secretary of State announcing the new Iran policy. Let's hope it's not too late. One can just imagine years from now the historian's writing their if onlys.
UPDATE: Clinton Warns of Nuclear Arms Race
Posted: February 15, 2010 8:29 A.M. COMMENT
LET'S GIVE A HAND TO FRANK RICH
Read a GREAT column on the stupidity of the Democratic Party and the sleight of hand of the devilishly clever Sarah Palin in today's New York Times. The Dems are so dumb they are practically handing over the White House to the Republicans on a silver platter. But ya gotta hand it to the Republicans who were dealt a lousy hand after 2008, but handily got on top of things, partially by a handout from the Democratic Party's President Obama whose political naiveté know no bounds.
Posted: February 14, 2010 4:10 P.M. COMMENT
GIVE!
Posted: February 14, 2010 10:10 A.M. COMMENT
POLITICALLY INCORRECT REPORTING
The Time's Online headline reads: Israel Accused of Waging Covert War Across the Middle East. Then goes on to chastise the Jewish State for efforts to control rogue nations (Iran) and terrorist organizations (Hamas and Hezbollah) from coordinating efforts against itself.
Chastise you might ask? "Accuse, Waging, Covert, War" -- evocative words from the Times.
Can you imagine the reaction of the headline read: United States Accused of Waging Covert War Across the Middle East?" It's a headline you likely will never see.
Posted: February 13, 2010 9:39 A.M. COMMENT
SARAH PALIN AND ISRAEL
When it's politically incorrect to admit love for Israel, who has the chutzpah to say that she does out loud? Sarah Palin. Like many Evangelical Christians she embraces her Jewish roots and there you have it. Of course, there are those who say that Evangelical's only connection to Israel is through the path to rapture. But why quibble over motivation when Israel is facing such global hatred? In these difficult times for the Jewish state, every friend counts.
Posted: February 12, 2010 9:01 A.M. COMMENT
THE ANTI-SEMITISM WAR
Now the charges from one blogger to another over anti-Semitism, this battle over who is using it to what political gain, who is and who is not an anti-Semite, and the state of anti-Semitism in our culture. The argument in and of itself is dangerous to the real threat of anti-Semitism and symptomatic of how predatory our politics have become, if not our opinions.
But all of this is testament to the fact that some Jews may be suffering from the Patty Hearst syndrome (aligning with the enemy), others are paranoid, and still others are rational enough to understand the evil shape-shifts of anti-Semitism, one at work now.
Posted: February 11, 2010 10:15 A.M. COMMENT
FIXING D.C. GRIDLOCK
Normally, I'd post this piece on the news page, but I think it's too important to miss. So have a read. We'd like to know what you think. It's clear maintaining the status quo is no longer advantageous to the welfare of the country.
Posted: February 9, 2010 1:52 P.M. COMMENT
IRAN'S TWO EDGED BOMB
I ask that you all read an editorial in the NY TIMES in which the writer offers all the 'good' reasons why it is all right for the U.S. to allow Iran to build a nuclear bomb. On the surface, his ideas sound great. He applauds a new balance of power, financial gain for the U.S., an end to the oil cartels as we know them. He sees Iran's becoming a nuclear poweras a solution to the Israeli-Palestinian issue. At the end, the writer compares a nuclear Iran to a nuclear Russia and the ensuing Cold War and ends with saying the a nuclear weapon is a deterrent to war in and of itself.
Sounds reasonable except the writer forgot to add the one ingredient in the Middle East that makes it different from other regions of the world: Religion and individual belief. Religious ideologues are not interested in balance of power, financial gain or any of the other hooey the writer talks about. They are interested in they're beliefs and will defend at any cost any threats to their doctrine. They show little respect for life on earth...their salvation is in heaven.
Get the picture?
Posted: February 9, 2010 9:43 A.M. COMMENT
OBAMA CALLS THE GOP'S BLUFF
Finally, President Obama has done something that showed that he has at least some balls. He called the GOP's bluff by inviting them to a public health care summit. The televised forum will offer the American public a chance to see democracy in INaction.
In the last year, The Party of No has offered little in the way of ideas to the American people in the discourse on health care, terrorism or anything else. They have offered platitudes and tired solutions to America's problems: It's the deficit is too large problem, smaller government, yada, yada, yada. They voted against the stimulus bill but there are photos of Republican Congress members standing with their constituents basking in the glory of all that money that is saving local businesses and governments.
The Republican Party is a sham that lacks ideas and innovation. That's why all we get from them is "No."
Now comes another "NO!" from the stubborn ones. For fear of being found out under the glare of the camera and Klieg lights, the Republican leadership are floating the notion that they may not attend the summit UNLESS the White House agrees to scrap the current reform bills and start over.
America should be enraged, for if ever there was a question that the GOP's concerns were purely political gain, there should now be no doubt as to their paltry motivation.
Our government has become completely dysfunctional, but I don't blame the politicians. They will get away with what the public allows. And the public has been allowing them to get away with disgraceful, unpatriotic behavior for too long. It is no longer, "We the People" but is now "We the Parties."
So slap, slap to all of you out there who sit back and watch the bad movie taking place in Washington, D.C. and do nothing to stand up to the bozos leading the devastation of the country we love for their personal and political gain. Slap, slap to those who would allow the Republican Party to get away with this latest ploy against the opposition party and stand in the way of discussion to solve the problem that effects us all, the rising cost of health care.
America is sick, Washington D.C. the symptom of its disease.
Posted: February 9, 2010 9:29 A.M. COMMENT
SNEAK PEEK
Enjoy!
Posted: February 8, 2010 5:19 P.M. COMMENT
KERRY IN THE PINK
Published today, proof that Sen. John Kerry, Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee officially endorsed a Pro-Terrorism March. Long a proponent of recognizing the terrorist organization Hamas, last February Sen. Kerry broke ranks with U.S. protocol and visited Gaza, now under Hamas control.
This past December the loonies of Code Pink, led an anti-Israel, pro-Hamas Gaza Freedom March. Big Government is reporting that they did so, with an official endorsement of their efforts by the former Democratic Party Presidential Candidate.
This isn't pretty, even in pink.
Posted: February 5, 2010 1:20 P.M. COMMENT
MICHELLE O CHANNELS DIANA ROSS
Seriously!
Posted: February 4, 2010 6:07 P.M. COMMENT
MORE THAN WE WANT TO KNOW?
This is the season of the salacious political book where we get to learn about wives reactions to their husband's infidelities, and the husband's infidelity, and the sex tape and , well, you get the drift.
Today's story is that of Jenny Sanford who refused to stand by her man, Gov. Mark Sanford of South Carolina as Hillary Clinton did and Eliot Spitzer's wife too.
Why these women tell their tale to the public is beyond me. I can think of no reason other than to make a buck and/or feed their own egos through revealing the negative aspects of their lives, which in the celebrity-crazed climate in which we live, gives them for better or for worse, their 15 minutes of fame.
Posted: February 3, 2010 6:32 P.M. COMMENT
INSIDE THE HOPPER: EVENING ROUND UP
Speaker Pelosi today, declared the Public Option dead. She has done that before. I guess tonight she wants to absolutely kill it and health care reform, too...Interesting, Gov. Rick Perry is up by 15 over Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison in the Texas Gov. race, even with Daddy Bush and Co. coming out for Sen. Hutchison...Dems say job agenda won't get bogged down like health care. LOL!....Polls show that Dems are in trouble whether they pass health care or not. So Dems, might as well go for it...POTUS is offering another go around with the Republicans, and will do a Q & A with the Democratic caucus. Apparently, he liked the poll numbers following his Q & A with the Republicans...Jon Stewart and Bill O'Reilly to face off. O'Reilly will do anything to stay in front of Glenn Beck's Bad Boy...This just in: AIG planning another round of bonuses....Sarah Palin wants vulnerable CoS Rahm Emanuel fired, which is the very reason why he shouldn't be, for describing Senate liberals as "Fucking retarded," an unfortunate comment for which Emanuel has since apologized...And there you have it, kids, from the inside out.
Posted: February 2, 2010 6:29 P.M. COMMENT
I'M JUST SAYING...
Among the criticisms of the Obama Administration has been it's having taken on too many of America's problems at once. On the whole, that seems like a ridiculous criticism. We all multi-task, therefore why shouldn't the White House? Still, there is that argument that when we multi-task we don't perform as well as we might if we were to focus on a single task.
All that being said, what is real is that the American public seems incapable of absorbing too much information at once. It would serve this administration to better define the information it gives to the people and how that information is disseminated.
But politics takes precedence over all else these days and so, to add to the multitude of issues the Obama Admin is tackling these days we now are adding the issue of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," the president's nod to the left wing of his party who feel thwarted by the man who they feel they got elected to the already crowded mix.
Frankly, this is a terrible time to take on this issue, which will prove to be a distraction for the White House and the media when both should be focused on more pressing issues. And with the military up to its you know what in wars, an unwarranted distraction for the military high command.
Should this issue in February 2010 be the headline issue in our national media? I think not.
I know that the 2.8 % of gays in the military would disagree with me. They have been waiting for equality in all aspects of their lives for a long time. Still, I believe that at this time the national dialogue should be focused on more immediate problems, problems that effect our national security the future of America.
Unless Congress can simplify the discussion, which it can't, and can chunk down the verbiage of the legislation into a paragraph or two, which it can't, the issue should be put on hold.
If it's not, here we go on another uncomfortable foray into the political minefield of sex legislation once more at a sincerely bad moment in American history. Ugh!
UPDATE: A Reasonable Compromise
Posted: February 2, 2010 10:48 A.M. COMMENT
CALIFORNIA GOV RACE GETS UGLY
This is too much. Welcome to politics 2010, a portend of things to come. Who would have thought the political climate could get any worse.
Posted: February 1, 2010 6:31 P.M. COMMENT
ISRAEL UNDER SEIGE
Israel has confirmed that it reprimanded two senior officers for the firing of artillery shells that hit a United Nations compound during the Gaza War last winter. The NY Times ran a piece on Israel's report that is so clearly biased against Israel it is beyond the pale. Little mention of Hamas and its shenanigans during the incursion, of course, the Gaza controlling terrorist organization now considered a victim of Israel by the left-leaning press. A piece in the Washington Post reporting the findings was more fairly written, by the way. It's always interesting to read multiple versions if you're interested in the truth. Nuance is everything.
But all this Israel bashing is going to have to take a turn in the coming days as the administration takes on Iran (See: http://www.thecjpoliticalreport.com/inside_the_news.htm )
Posted: February 1, 2010 6:20 P.M. COMMENT
MUST SEE TV
If you haven't seen this, the Q &A with President Obama and Republicans, it is must see TV. There should be more public events like this between the President and the Republicans. Maybe then the politicos will be forced to do business with each other, or face public shame and humiliation.
Posted: February 1, 2010 11:16 A.M. COMMENT
WHORES AND THEIR PIMPS
Here's where 12 of your your Democratic Senators were this weekend, and with whom. Thank you Justice Robert's Supreme Folly of a Court for aiding and abetting this behavior. Heck, if the corporations can't buy the Senators, unlikely, they can buy the ads to buy you.
By the way, former Cosmo Centerfold (he learned early the game of pimp and whore) now Republican Senator Scott Brown was bought and paid for as well, lest anyway think the problem is strictly one party's problem.
Here's a political fundraising report card.
Posted: February 1, 2010 10:37 A.M. COMMENT
WHEN YOU WISH UPON A STAR
Photographed in a Gaza field, this 60-meter Jewish symbol. Trying to make hay out of its existence, of course, the U.N. and the Palestinians.
Posted: February 1, 2010 9:52 A.M. COMMENT
INSIDE THE HOPPER, TODAY'S ROUNDUP
John Edwards is fighting back against the scurrilous allegations in the new book about John Edwards, The Politician. He says the author, one-time Edwards groupie, Andrew Young is out for money, and no one should believe everything Young writes. This, the same day that recent Edwards mistress Rielle Hunter had her legal people try to suppress the distribution of a sex-tape of she and Edwards...President Obama sparred with Republicans in a meeting in Baltimore today. It was said to be lively. What else would it be with Republicans and a Democrat in the same room?...Young Luke Russert reports that the Republicans are upset for allowing the exchange to be televised. Obama's rebuttals were too good...Libs going after Rahm Emanuel today who said that health care was being put on the back burner after other more important legislation is dealt with. No one knows if Emanuel was speaking for the president, but that doesn't matter. We said it here, first, folks. The Dems are going to put Emanuel's head on the chopping block, since they can't behead a president...On the other hand, Harry Reid says he spoke with Nancy Pelosi and they will be moving forward on health care. Point: Someone is lying!...Now that Mayor Bloomberg has objected, it looks like the terrorist trial slated for NY City won't be in NY City, which doesn't look good for AG Eric Holder, who wanted it in NY City...George Stephanopoulos and Hillary Clinton cousins? That's what DNA testing has revealed...Speaking of Ms. Hillary, she left her silver slipper on the steps of Elysee Palace. Prince Charming, President Sarkozy, leant her a hand, but nothing else, as far as we know, including Sarkozy's commitment to join in on sanctions against Iran...
Posted: January 29, 2010 7:35 P.M. COMMENT
SCOTT BROWN WARNS GOP HE WON'T ALWAY VOTE WITH THEM
Scott brown has apparently warned the GOP not to expect to him to vote with them on every issue. Were that to prove true, Scott Brown could become a hero to Independents and become the leader of a movement to start a third Centrist Party.
The American public is poised to adopt as their hero anyone who truly does stand up to politics as usual on The Hill. Since they gave Obama the chance, and he failed them, it is unlikely that America's hero will come from either the Democrat or Republican Party. The mood is swiftly becoming, if it hasn't already become, a pox on both your houses.
Of course, little is known about Brown other than he knows how to run a good campaign, he knows how to play the populist game, what with his GMC truck and all. He also has baggage, but then again, who doesn't. Still, think about what could be done with his wife's sexy video and his Cosmopolitan centerfold in a real political campaign.
That being said, who knows what Americans will tolerate these days from their leaders.
Posted: January 28, 2010 6:14 P.M. COMMENT
THE MORNING AFTER
There is more talk this morning of the President's going after the Supreme Court and its recent decision on campaign finance in his State of the Union address than about anything else. There are those who are taking issue with the president attacking the Court in a State of the Union Address. Then there are those who say that the president was wrong in his interpretation of the decision.
But what the pundits are missing was the answer to why the president took on the Court. I think it has far more to do with the 5-4 ruling, the right vs. the left thinking, the politics that has infected the Supreme Court as much as Congress.
Since Bush vs. Gore this has been profoundly evident. While the Supreme Court has always been held to a higher authority than other co-equal branches of the government, perhaps it is time, and Obama is right, to attack the Court and its political decision-making.
Of course, the left is no better than the right, though one senses that the right is far more politically dogmatic in thought than the namby-pamby left.
Frankly, the recent decision was a travesty and did leave open the possibility of foreign corporations (including American corporations with their own agendas operating businesses overseas) influencing our elections.
And despite Vice-President Joe Biden's insistence that the president wasn't questioning the integrity of the Court, he very much was. And, he was right to do so.
UPDATE: The White House PART II
UPDATE: Leahy Lambast Alito on Senate Floor
UPDATE: Streisand Weighs In
Posted: January 28, 2010 11:22 A.M. COMMENT
THE STATE OF THE UNION
President Obama gave the typical SOTU Address, with all the buzz words and setting the appropriate goals - jobs - for his second year.
The man is one hell of a speaker, and has a winning smile that could charm the the pants off of the most avaricious Republican, and probably does in private.
But the height of the speech was when POTUS took on the idiots on the Supreme Court and their recent ruling that puts the votes of business and special interests above the votes of the American people. CJ John Roberts looked absolutely apoplectic. Justice Sam Alito shook his head and mouthed "not true" perhaps forgetting that he might be on camera. It was a rare moment for the public to witness, POTUS going up against the Supreme Court.... a moment long overdue.
He had a second controversial moment when he promised to repeal "Don't ask, Don't tell" his promise received by a stoic Joint Chiefs, clearly not supportive of the repeal. (John McCain immediately issued a statement saying he would oppose the repeal).
Sadly, the president's attempts to bring unity to our government fell on deaf ears. Watching the Republicans sit like the statues they are, completely devoid of emotion, which they are, was a sad moment.
Someone needs to bring in a mediator to teach these people how to work with one another. Or, as the old saying goes, it's time to throw the bums out.
As to the Republican response: Probably the only African-American in Virginia, and a woman, was placed behind Virginia pretty boy Governor Bob McDonnell as he gave his response, the same old litany of the Republicans: small gov't, small gov't, small gov't, and, of course, a Twitter mention, a personal story, and an allegation that the Democrats are short on terrorism defense. YAWN with a Southern accent.
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