Quiz time

Go take the Karl Rove Are Liberals are Just Traitors or are they Treasonous Liars quiz. It's fun, easy, and will tell you once and for all which side Karl Rove is on and which side you are on.

I'm guessing you might already know. ;-)

Note to Senator Salazar

Dear Sir,

When are we going to hit back at Rove?

Not with indignation, but with righteousness.

Not by begging him to apologize, but forcing him to repudiate his lies.

Not by offering a different philosophy, but by making him acknowledge the facts and failures of his policies.

I am sick of this. You guys - our leaders - are still playing patty cake. When are you going to understand the viciousness with which they operate? It's obvious to everyone outside the beltway.

We don't have to sink to their level, but we have to fight just as hard. We're still not doing it.

I didn't vote to send a pansy to Washington, I voted to send a fighter. Show me what you're made of.

Sincerely,

Chickenhawks

I love the smell of chickenhawks in the morning. All the oh-so-brave conservatives support George Bush's every proclamation and say He can do no wrong. Yet they won't sign up to fight his war. Recruiting is off, recruiters are under unbearable pressure, and there are not enough troops in the field.

Yet the Bush Administration repeats the lie that we are doing just fine in Iraq. The Young Republicans are having their convention in Sin City, and reporters are asking if they will back their words with actions (besides stapling flyers to poles). But to the surprise of no one, there are no takers:

"Lee said she supports the war but would volunteer only if the United States faced a dire troop shortage or "if there's another Sept. 11." (my emphasis - Z)

It's only three months away, kid. You better start going to the gym. Patriotboy's team is doing recon at the convention.

Rove Right about One Thing

Rove is right: there are differences

White House spokesman Scott McClellan says that Karl Rove just meant that Democrats and Republicans had "different philosophies" when it comes to their reactions following 9/11. We agree. Our philosophies couldn't be more different when it comes to fighting international terrorism. Let's compare:

Democrats: Believe capturing the person primarily responsible for the attack should be a top priority.

Republicans: It's been four years, and Osama bin Laden is still free, even though Bush's CIA chief says he knows where he is.

Democrats: Investigate the intelligence failures that led to 9/11.

Republicans: Do everything in their power to block the 9/11 Commission from doing its work.

Democrats: Propose creating the Department of Homeland Security.

Republicans: Push tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans.

More at Democratic Underground, which is where I stole this wholesale.

Republican Newsletter? Very funny.

I come in my office today and open my email, and what do I see? Someone out there has nicely signed me up for the GOP El Paso County Party Newsletter. Ha, Ha. At first I was racing to the delete button, better yet I was considering adding it to my spam filter, but then I actually read it.

While browsing the pointless info I noticed a couple things.

First, their newsletter sucks. I even clicked the link to see their site, it sucks too!

Second, I think they are watching us. They had a nice section on upcoming events, and this is what it said:

El Paso County Republicans are sponsoring a booth at the Juneteenth Celebration on June 18th at Colorado College. Volunteers are needed for this event. Please call Lynda Ryan at 591-6346 or 684-4860. This will be a fun day and everyone is invited to participate. Let's show those Democrats who is in charge.

Let's show those Democrats who is in charge? What does that mean? Is the El Paso County Democrats threatening the poor majority Republicans so much that they feel they have to show us who is in charge? Is this the only reason they participated in the Juneteenth Celebration? Do they even know what Juneteenth is about? Just in case they are reading this blog here is what Juneteenth is all about:

Juneteenth is the oldest nationally celebrated commemoration of the ending of slavery in the United States.

From its Galveston, Texas origin in 1865, the observance of June 19th as the African American Emancipation Day has spread across the United States and beyond.

Today Juneteenth commemorates African American freedom and emphasizes education and achievement. It is a day, a week, and in some areas a month marked with celebrations, guest speakers, picnics and family gatherings. It is a time for reflection and rejoicing. It is a time for assessment, self-improvement and for planning the future. Its growing popularity signifies a level of maturity and dignity in America long over due. In cities across the country, people of all races, nationalities and religions are joining hands to truthfully acknowledge a period in our history that shaped and continues to influence our society today. Sensitized to the conditions and experiences of others, only then can we make significant and lasting improvements in our society.

For more information please visit www.juneteenth.com

Now in closing, no where in the description of what Juneteenth is about does it say a political party should only participate to show who is in charge. I know that we had a lot of volunteers working the event to participate in a community that shares in the celebration of freedom and diversity. I hope we always remember the history of suffering so we will NEVER allow it to happen again, in this country and all over the world!

The World According to Rove

Of course Karl Rove is a smart political operative. He managed to get George Bush elected twice once (and one more with an assist from the Supremes). He knows how to play partisan games. But the fact that the Republicans and Bush use 9/11 and the war in Iraq to continue to try to divide the country and make liberals out to be traitors is beyond despicable.

Rove's latest: "Let me just put this in fairly simple terms: Al Jazeera now broadcasts the words of Senator Durbin to the Mideast, certainly putting our troops in greater danger. No more needs to be said about the motives of liberals." (my emphasis - Z.)

Let me add that up - Rove says Durbin has put our troops in danger and this exposes our motive as follows: to get troops killed. Of course, Rove is a liar and Rove has no interest in the greater good of our country besides building a permanent Republican majority for his client(s). It is in fact Bush - who signed the orders sending our troops to war - and Rumsfeld and Cheney who have endangered our troops and put politics ahead of our nation's security.

Edit: Let's not forget what Bush and Co. did when they received a CIA briefing titled "Bin Laden Determined to Strike Inside U.S." - NOTHING.

Does Rove speak for the President? You can call Karl Rove directly to find out. Or maybe ask Hefley and Allard whether they think he's right.

Our liberal soldiers, liberal firefighters, liberal cops, liberal teachers, liberal bus drivers, and all citizens liberal or conservative, deserve an answer. We also deserve more serious people running our government.

One Step Forward - Two Steps Back

Why Durbin should not have apologized - by Daily Howler

oy.

More from Political Animal, Atrios, Buzzflash, and Kos. When will that spinal implant from Dean finally take hold?

Support for Troops STILL Lacking

They've lied about it time and again: "We will support the troops with whatever equipment and supplies they need." It's all lies lies lies.

Bush, Cheney, Rummy, Myers.....billions of dollars budgeted.....accusing Us of not supporting the troops because we criticize the lack of equipment.....but it's like Groundhog Day - even with the same situation coming up day after day in the same sequence of events, our Commander in Chief can't figure out how to get our ass out of this sling. He is INCOMPETENT.

Boston Globe: "Marine Units Found Lacking Equipment"
Arizona Republic: "Dad Picks Up Tab for Marine Son"
Knight-Ridder: "Lack of Leadership in HUMVEE Armor Delay"

Republicans: please feel free to defend the incompetence of the Bush and Pentagon leadership. We know you think Bush is doing a swell job and all these troops and parents and reporters are probably lying and hate America. Meanwhile our sons and daughters are dying.

Well if Bush is God's own choice to run our Christian Nation (as per you-know-who), will God please give George W. Bush a frickin' clue!

Flip Flopper

Unlike Lyndon Johnson, history books will never be written about the political savvy and muscle of Bill Frist. He's made one bad move after another. He lies almost as much as Bush. And in another sign of his incompetence, he just now flipped the flop of losing the cloture vote on John Bolton, one of the worst nominees President Bush has made in the 5 years of his reign.

Thank God for Trent Lott's big racist mouth and the irresistable draw of the presidency for those who have no business applying for the job. Frist's cynical pandering to the right wing religio-fascists is public domain, his desire to be president in 2008 is DOA.

Political Expedience

Political expedience - it's the driving force behind George Bush's "career" and explains the raging hypocrisy at work within his administration. His many references to faith, religion, and God are all a "schtick" used to lure in the social conservatives. (Things that make you go hmmm: when does a "west Texas" boy start using the word schtick?) Does anyone think the Religious Right would tolerate this or this from a Democratic White House? Robertson and Dobson would have coronaries. (whoa, I just had a brilliant idea - Z.)

His tax cuts at any cost, even to the point where our soldiers die for lack of equipment, tells Big Business this: you can count on the George H. W. Bush family to take care of You. The lack of vision in his energy policy, elimination of environmental regulations, fealty to drug companies, and rewriting of important scientific reports are all of the same piece -- it's the old "what's good for GM is good for America" fallacy.

So those are the two constituencies: big business + social conservatives. The first signs of friction in this unholy alliance are just now being exposed, but they are still a strong force in society. And more importantly they form the votes + money necessary to keep the GOP in prominence at the national level - for now.

Those two components come together in a strange yet dangerous combination with the Reverend Sun Myung Moon, the founder of the Unification Church and owner of the Washington Times - conservatives' answer to the "liberal" moderate Washington Post. This dangerous mix of ideology (the Washington Times pushes many conservatives' favorite causes and publishes the vile rumors that no other news organizations dare touch) and business ("Moon remains a Washington political powerhouse in his own right, a generous friend of the Bush family") is laid out very well in this excellent article by John Gorenfeld - a smart and tireless muckraker of the fatal formula that creates the toxic atmosphere of today's politics.

Does George Bush really care about spreading democracy and fighting terrorism, or does he do the politically expedient thing at each and every juncture in his administration? I think the answer is obvious, and more Americans are coming to realize it daily.

(updated: various edits - Z.)

Help for Victims of Sexual Assault - New York Times

Help for Victims of Sexual Assault - New York Times: "Looking to cut through the inertia and ideology, a bipartisan group of lawmakers last week introduced legislation that would mandate that all hospitals receiving federal funds offer rape victims emergency contraception as a matter of basic care. The measure, sponsored by Senators Hillary Rodham Clinton and Jon Corzine, both Democrats, and Olympia Snowe, a Republican, also includes provisions to ensure that women receive the necessary treatment for sexually transmitted diseases."

Well, I talked about the veto on the state level of a bill that would require all hospitals that treat rape victims to inform their patients of emergency contraception. Thankfully, on the federal level there is more action on this urgent issue. Limited to hospitals receiving federal funding (because otherwise it would be unconstitutional) this bipartisan moderate bill should pass in order to provide better health service to those who have just been so brutally victimized. However, I seriously doubt its ability to pass in the House and certainly it wouldn't have veto-proof majorities so Bush would seem the type to veto it as well. Still...Democrats benefit from continuing to push reasonable legislation that the majority of Americans (or Coloradans) support and making the Republicans who aren't moderates to show themselves as radical by voting no or vetoing. On the heels of the stem cell bill this is the type of legislative agenda that the Democrats need heading into the vital 2006 mid-term elections.