Well, here we go again...time for another Secretary of Veterans Affairs to resign. This time we find that another arm of the George Bush mis-administration has made a dubious legal interpretation, trampled on the rights and benefits of veterans and is denying any wrong-doing.
You have to read the entire New York Times story to believe the depths of this tragic scenario.
This is a bizarre and deplorable action on the part of the mis-administration of the current occupant of the White House. Refusing to facilitate voter registriation is definately not prohibited by the Hatch Act. It's really disappointing that former Senator Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) remains silent on this controversy.
I realized that this is a very positive development. I'm looking for more "lasts" of anything and everything for the coWH. The case against the mis-administration regarding Iran is particularly damaging.
It's clear that since entering office that the coWH has acted against the best interests of the United States on relations and policies towards Iran; the jumbled focus of his European tour sound bite script. Rather than advancing the best interests of the US, the current mis-administration has consistently played to the advantage of Ahmadi-Nejad and the ruling Iranian radicals. Read More »
Heads-up Colorado Springs and Northern Colorado. Beyond the fact that I've been working pretty hard for months to get this off the ground, it's just gonna be great! This issue has been ignored (or at least danced around the edges) for too long.
A Conversation with Rand Beers Tuesday, June 17th, 2008
Keeping Our Promises: Veterans, Soldiers and their Families
Rand Beers, President and Founder of the National Security Network, former senior White House national security staffer and Vietnam-era Marine, will be the featured speaker at two town hall forums on issues facing the military community: repeat deployments for members of the active-duty Armed Forces, Guard and Reserves, the needs of a growing new population of disabled veterans, and the burdens on military families. Beers combines front-line experience (Rifle Company Commander in Vietnam and 10 years in the White House) with years of briefing our nation’s political leaders and, with the National Security Network, trains and advises candidates and advocates on how to address these issues in today’s political environment. A question and answer session will follow.
1:00 – 3:00pm
UCCS: The Upper Lodge
1420 Austin Bluffs Parkway
Colorado Springs, Colorado 80918
6:30 – 8:30pm
Bill Reed Middle School
370 West 4th Street
Loveland, Colorado 80537
RSVP: rkeenan@nsnetwork.org
Read More »
A full explanation of the case of Rep. Vito Fossella (R-N.Y.) is provided by the Hill's Jackie Kucinich in the extended text.
This is more than a corrective swing in the political climate. The radicalization of the GOP has depleted their candidate pipeline of all but the most marginal of fringe characters. Add to this the repeat scandals of GOP incumbents and the result is brand failure.
The retail/consumerism obsessed American populace is arguably on the verge of abandoning the GOP label. Precise issues and programs may not lead the reasons, but a failure in basic values and trust appears to be the key to independents and other voting groups casting their ballots for Democrats in even deeply red districts. Read More »
One of the more gut-wrenching depravations of the Republican Legislature and Republican Governor of 2003 was the agreement to raid the Colorado Veterans Trust Fund to the tune of $2.3 Million. With the benefit of reports from several sources I've pieced together an "oh really?" tale of the day this fund was restored, with interest. This boosted the Trust Fund by a total of $2.9 Million.
The Grand Junction Sentinel provided the best coverage of last Friday's bill signing. With the benefit of January to May hindsight any meddling or opposition to this legislation is questionable.
http://www.gjsentinel.com/news/content/news/stories/2008/05/16/051708_3a_Vets_bill_signed.html
At the center of the drama are GOP representatives Douglas Bruce and Kevin Lundberg. Back on January 14, 2008 Douglas Bruce became an even greater historical curiosity during morning prayers. Two days later, January 16, it was Bruce who weighed-in as a benefactor of the Veterans Trust Fund cause in the House Finance Committee. it was through Bruce's amendment that approximately $600,000 in interest was added. And, Lundberg who failed with an amendment to paint the pay-back as a new general fund appropriation.
In an additional context of Douglas Bruce and John Kefalas acting in agreement on a bill the Fort Collins, Colorado Rocky Mountian Chronicle originally covered the event.
http://www.rmchronicle.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1872
By the end of the committee hearing Rep. Lundberg has flipped back to the supporter and cast a rare vote with the majority to pass the bill. While Bruce and Kefalas were consistent supporters of the bill, Lundberg's move for fiscal re-packaging is yet another dubious entry in his spotty record.
Still, there is soooo much work to be done correcting the damage he has done. America certainly does not deserve Bush McClone as the next President.
Reprinted from an admired source (with a few choice edits) with an encouragement to share.
The George W. Bush Museum is being planned at Southern Methodist U. DALLAS Methodists opposed to a George W. Bush Presidential Library, Museum and Policy Institute at Southern Methodist University here are mounting a last-ditch effort to block a nearly completed deal by throwing the decision to a regional church conference in July.
Prominent features of the George W. Bush Library are:
1. The Hurricane Katrina Room, which will be perpetually under construction.
2. The Alberto Gonzales Room, where you can't remember anything and practice the phrases "…yes Mr. President…whatever you want, Mr. President."
3. The Texas Air National Guard Room where you don't even have to show up.
4. The Walter Reed Hospital Room, where they don't let you in.
5. The Guantanamo Bay Room, where they don't let you out.
6. The Weapons of Mass Destruction Room, which no one has been able to find.
7. The Iraq War Room. After you complete your first tour, they make you go back for a second, third, fourth, and sometimes fifth tour.
8. The Dick Cheney Room in the famous undisclosed location, complete with shooting gallery.
9. The Airport Men's Room, where you can meet some of your favorite Republican Senators.
10. Last, but not least, there will be an entire floor devoted to a 7/8 scale model of the President's ego. To highlight the President's accomplishments, the museum will have an electron microscope to help you locate them.
"They see a force stretched dangerously thin and a country ill-prepared for the next fight."
So much for national security and a competent effort to fight the "Global War on Terrorism." Here's the direct link to the story.
http://www.foreignpolicy.com/story/cms.php?story_id=4198&page=0
I find it striking that such a high level of criticism and cycism would come out of this survey population. FP and CNAS turned to the Military Officers Association of America (MOAA) for the survey population and polled a very large number to build the data. MOAA is a moderate to conservative leaning group.
The seniority of the survey population largely makes the conclusions indisputable. So much for the health of the greatest military force on the face of the earth.
*More in the extended text.* Read More »
Every Congressional District nominating assembly/convention must take a closer look at candidates for CU Regent. Removing the GOP Regents currently representing districts of Democratic members of the US Congress should now receive higher priority. The holder of a CU Regent's seat does matter. Read More »
OK, so this is a copy-cat of a great idea that kicked-off in Aurora. The Colorado Confidential story http://www.coloradoconfidential.com/showDiary.do?diaryId=3472 enticed me that this is a "too good to be true" idea that I don't want to see fade off as a one-time shot (pun intended).
Considering the current season, I am familiar with a phenomenal indoor shooting range in Loveland. With sufficient interest I am ready to organize and evening or Saturday Shooting Liberally event in Northern Colorado.
All that I need is just a handful of ProgressNow responses. Then, I'll kick this off and be ready to place announcements in the Loveland newspaper to generate more interest.
Like the original organizers in Aurora I am encouraged that this is a program to demonstrate that Liberals and Progressives do support the Second Amendment to the US Constitution; without bowing to radical NRA proliferation of cheap handguns and automatic weapons. I've got some ideas to roll into the agenda on environmental protection, water quality, safety and private property rights/respect.
This is also a rare opportunity for "Sportsmen for Progress" to have a get-together. An opportunity to whittle-away at the GOP's perceived exclusivity on gun rights is very valuable. I'll even consider inviting Northern Colorado Democratic political candidates to participate.
I'm struck by this piece because it notes deplorable changes in a measurement that started in 1980; that's the year I enlisted. I retired in 2006, and it is becoming an almost daily event to see how badly my former comrades-in-arms are being abused.
Today the issue is suicide. The thought of rising numbers of soldiers taking their own lives after serving in combat because of poor and inadequate medical treatment at home is devastating. A "1-800" line for redeployed soldiers to seek psychological counseling...pathetic.
The knot in my gut is yet more proof the America needs a change. The legacy of the current occupant of the White House must be in the form of an eraser. What he has wrought on the US military by conducting a needless war "on the cheap" cannot continue past November.
The next Democratic President-Elect must lay a clear roadmap for erasing the coWH's endless war and un-ending occupation of Iraq. The remaining GOP Presidential caandidates are delusional in making any comment that says otherwise. Any Congressional candidate hinting at continuing the coWH's policies must be defeated.
Read the full story in the extended text. Then get on-board with any and every Democratic candidate that you can support. Read More »
The Colorado newspapers have done a good job of recounting cases of wounded warriors from Fort Carson being unconscientously deployed to Iraq. The Denver Posy coverage today is another valubale expose.
Add to that this morning's NPR story of an anonymous DoD "Tiger Team" coercing VA officials at Fort Drum, NY to NOT help soldiers get their just due medical benefits, and the road to yet another deeply embarassing sacndal is becoming clear. The current mis-adminstration is obsessed with padding the bank accounts of GOP donors, and completely comfortable with doing it to the detriment of dead and maimed soldiers.
The Denver Post:
http://www.denverpost.com/newsheadlines/ci_8104393
NPR:
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=18492376
Democrat presidential candidates and the Reid/Pelosi-run-Congress have promised to repeal the Bush tax cuts, retreat from teh War on Terror and increase the size of government through their one-size-fits-all health care plan.
Plan your counter-agruments (AKA, the truth) accordingly. OBTW - I decided to support the USPS by stuffing the entire contents of my latest Val-Pack mailing into their postage paid return envelope (2 1/4 oz).
************ Original Post *********************
It's hard to tell what going on at the Republican National Committee (RNC) on December 5, 2007. While Robert M. "Mike" Duncan (RNC Chairman) was hoping to create a profitable fundraising campaign, it appears that he missed the mark and has provided dedicated Democrats and Progressives with a good laugh.
Holiday parties around the country are likely producing the same experience as a recent gathering of mostly Democrats in Larimer County. We went around the room comparing who did, and did not, get Mike Duncan's plea for donations.
Be it amazing, perplexing or even pathetic, a large number of us had that letter at home, or had even brought it to the party as a conversation piece. There was an abundance of humor and criticism available after many eyes picked through this correspondence. Read More »
Once again the international press provides the stories that the American corporate media ignores. From Friday's Financial Times, US congress hears war costs could hit $2,400bn over the next decade.
The US House (committee not identified) got this report from Congressional Budget Office (CBO) Director Peter Orszag. This horrendous number was based on leading comments by the generals in Iraq that troops on the ground will reduce to 75,000 by 2013, and STAY the same for the following four years.
Two key points are that this is being financed by deficit spending, and he had to project the costs of US troops staying in Iraq through 2017. Maybe that's not as permanent as Mount Rushmore, but it's too much of an occupation for me to accept.
The signs are all there folks...this is turning into a long-term, on-the-ground presence in Iraq that will rival South Korea and Cold-War Europe. The Congressional Democrats must use these new spending figures to bring this diabolical occupation plan to halt. There can be no more detrimental US policy than to force our troops to endure the hate and mis-trust any additional day than absolutely necessary on Iraqi soil.
The National Debt Interest on the Iraq/Afghanistan Supplementals ALONE will reach $700 Billion by 2017 (this looks like he was doing a standard 10-year forecast report). So the Children's and Grandchildren's tax continues to grow. While the robber-baron sponsors of the current occupant of the White House are getting rich, our heirs are facing the burdens of growing debt.
So it continues to perplex me when I see piles of "User from, ????" as the name on so many member profiles and blog comments. All of the Groups seem to be over-run with legions of people named "User from, ????" (Oh, and Bobby and Michael and Alan and John K are always there too.) Can it really be that hard to create a pen-name - nickname - logon name, etc?
Consider that I'm so non-creative that I just use my real first name and last initial. I'm not even fun enough to be neon, or something colorful like that.
Point is folks, put a little effort and fun into this. I know your parents and grandparents didn't want to you to be known as "User from."
Pathways to Leadership appears to have gained Angie's undivided attention. I can't fault her for her decision, because it looks like my dream job also. But, it is yet to be seen if either Betsy or Eric can rise to Angie's level of voter support and volunteer dedication and enthusiasm. Read More »
Take a look - http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/09/01/AR2007090100592.html?hpid=topnews
It makes good Sunday reading to see that GOP operatives are going annonymous/confidential in order to talk candidly about the 2008 Senate races. It's just too bad that we don't have a veto-proof and impeachment possible majority starting this week.
- 1,585/486
The unilateral, go it alone policies of the current occupant of the White House are visibly crumbling. First, there was an out-of-the box opinion by Nebraska Senator Chuck Hagel to get the US away from negotiating with the Iraqi factions, and now we learn that the “decider” is passing the buck back to the UN.
Senator Hagel’s piece was published in the Financial Times – “A less American face for mediation in Iraq” FT.com site, Jul 02, 2007 (My home delivery subscription doesn’t include online access to the archive. I saved it the old-fashioned way, paper - scissors.)
Here’s the Washington Post coverage of the upcoming plea for rescue from the UN - http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/08/07/AR2007080701076.html?wpisrc=newsletter
The nation is in dire straights on the world stage. The US military colleges teach young officers that one of the measures/means of national power is Diplomacy. The early arrogance of the current occupant has arguably been replaced by silent despiration.
Ban Ki-Moon has paid a high price for US acceptance of his taking the office of UN Secretaty-General. He now faces the task of rescuing the current occupant form his debacle in Iraq. Too bad that means the current mis-administration is likley to borrow the $130-million to extend the “Green-Zone” to the UN Mission in Baghdad. The Federal Deficit “Children’s Tax” debt to the People’s Republic of China continues to grow.
The next Democratic President of the United States of America has a huge and daunting task ahead of him/her. It starts in 511 days.
Surprise, surpise…After taking a call-in opportunity to a Faux Noise (Fox News) radio show to reassure the Right WingNuts that all is well in Iraq, General David Petraeus is taking a beating in the Washington Post. The text of his radio comments were reported in detail and those knowledgeable of military realities have “taken-off the gloves.”
Read the article -
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/08/07/AR2007080701726.html
Then read how thousands are b****-slapping a 4-star -
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/08/07/AR2007080701726_Comments.html
The weapons fiasco is a serious blow to the credibility of the entire military mission. It comes on the heals of the “…take yer guns home boys…” disbanding of the Iraqi Army, the failure to secure Saddam’s conventional weapons stockpiles, and the dumb-founded do-nothing policies during the rise of the insurgency.
It was just 1,560 days ago that the current occupant of the White House joyfully declared the end of combat in Iraq under the glowing “Mission Accomplished” banner. The war was won, but it is becoming more and more evident that the peace is descending rapidly into catastrophe.
There is no truthful “clerical error” that could have allowed 190,000 weapons to flow unchecked into Iraq. It was definitely a loss of accountability, a compromise of integrity, and an abandoning of professionalism on the part of General Patraeus.
The offenses and failures of the mis-administration just continue to grow. Today's Washington Post story, "Weapons Given to Iraq Are Missing: GAO Estimates 30% of Arms Are Unaccounted For" is yet more damning evidence of how badly the current occupant of the White House has bungled his adventure in Iraq.
Here's the story - http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/08/05/AR2007080501299.html?wpisrc=newsletter
The GAO Report - http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d07711.pdf
Read More »
The risk to the nation is extreme. We're facing the decline of one of the few remaining hometown, pre-Revolutionary War institutions. For many this is the core reality of the Second Amendment to the US Constitution. For others it is a vital family and community fixture that embraces generations. The evidence provides facts that much of the mis-administration lacks the same sense of tradition and importance in the National Guard.
Simply put, this yet another charge against the current occupant that must be added to our list of offenses. The US Congress has long been the champion of the National Guard against the threats of the active duty military and the White House. This is no exception. Every member of Congress should act to counter this threat, and Governors should join the fray.
Read the source materials, and then consider my analysis in the extended text.
Presentation: http://www.douglasdemocrats.org/media/generalclark.ppt
Analysis: http://www.democracyinprogress.org/
Background: http://www.ngaus.org/ngaus/files/ccLibraryFiles/Filename/000000000457/primer%20fin.pdf
Mis-administration Policy: http://www.ngaus.org/ngaus/files/ccLibraryFiles/Filename/000000002633/chair06072.pdf Read More »
Posts
If you have any kind of insite on my case Please CONTACT ME!!!!
Posted Jul 05, 2008 10:34pm
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Sincerest success
Posted Jul 05, 2008 2:54pm
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Schaffer wasn't the only one profiteering in Kurdistan
Posted Jul 03, 2008 6:31pm
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Fighting on two fronts- with the vote coming up July 8th
Posted Jul 03, 2008 1:53am
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Why not concealed hand guns at the airport?
Posted Jul 02, 2008 8:17am
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The reason we need new rules
Posted Jul 01, 2008 9:34am
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The Gundamentalists THINK They Won, but…
Posted Jun 30, 2008 12:56pm
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Stop sitting on your keyboard- Act NOW- to remind Obama
Posted Jun 30, 2008 9:49am
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Lovely little war
Posted Jun 30, 2008 9:47am
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Martin Luther King Jr
Posted Jun 29, 2008 5:31pm
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