Hockey Moms For Truth

This year's swiftboaters!

Blogtopia* RoundUp, Wednesday April 4, 2007

US Vice President Dick Cheney watches as US President George W. Bush speaks on the "Iraq war supplemental" in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington, DC. Cheney warned Monday the United States faced defeat in Iraq if Democrats succeed in imposing withdrawal.(AFP/Tim Sloan)
President Cheney-Hiding-In-Bushes appoints Swift Boat funder Ambassador to Belgium with a recess appointment, as well as a bunch of other rightwing fruitcakes who are unconfirmable. dailykos

New Hampshire House passes a civil unions bill to give same-sex couples the same rights as married couples. Towleroad

Did Purgegate discriminate against New Mexico US Attorney David Iglesias because of his military reserve obligations? One of the reasons given for his firing was spending too much time away from the office. (Tee hee -- that wasn't even the real reason! He wasn't a loyal Bushie! Karma's a bitch.) A federal watchdog agency is investigating. ThinkProgress

Bloggers have fun with Photoshop: Dependable Renegade, John McCain Visits Portland, Maine, Lower Manhattanite, Charlatan (on Steve Gilliard's News Blog), Art Pottery, Politics and Food, The Vice Petulant in the Bushes

*yes, skippy coined that phrase!


DDP

Tens or thousands of visitors would wear any baby bear out.


More Knut photos at der Spiegel.

Elections Have Consequences

Swift Boat propaganda funder Sam Fox wasn't going to get through the Democratic-controlled Senate for his ambassadorship. Bush has withdrawn his nomination.

WaPo: White House Withdraws Ambassador Nominee

HuffPo: The Truth Wins One Round. White House Withdraws Fox Nomination.

Clueless Dems

Why would anyone ever vote for these pusillanimous posers?

Submitted for your consideration, statements by two of the Democrats vying for the 2008 Presidential nod:

1. Evan Bayh (rhymes with 'sigh')

Quote of the Day
"I'm concerned that we not come across as whiners and that kind of thing, like a bunch of wimps who say mean old Karl Rove is on us again."

-- Sen. Evan Bayh (D-IN), quoted by the AP, about the Democratic party.

(Political Wire, via Suburban Guerrilla)

Ahhh....fighting for self-control, failing miserably.....note to Evan, you're supposed to trash THE OPPOSING PARTY, not YOUR OWN. Moron.

2. John Kerry

And today's "Shut the Fuck Up and Go Away" award goes to

...Senator John Forbes Kerry of Massachusetts, who, having allowed an unpopular president and a bunch of psychotic liars to kick the shit out of him in 2004 and then running home with his tail between his legs before the votes were even counted in Ohio (but not before stuffing his pockets with $14 million in leftover campaign cash), is now talking tough -- when it doesn't matter:

Sen. John Kerry (D-MA) doesn't believe that Hillary Clinton has the inside track on the 2008 Democratic presidential nomination and says he would vigorously defend himself against new attacks by the Swift Boat team, according to an interview with The Examiner.

"I’m prepared to kick their ass from one end of America to the other," said Kerry, in a strong hint that he intends to run for president once again.

Typical of Kerry, too little, too late. If you want to vote for a Democrat who'll fight for your votes in Massachusetts, vote for John Bonifaz for Secretary of State on Tuesday. While John Kerry was running home with his campaign war chest, John Bonifaz bought a plane ticket to Ohio and fought there for a year to have all Kerry's votes counted.

Presstitute of the Day: Howie Kurtz

For relentlessly flogging the Republican effort to Swiftboat Jack Murtha. His Media Notes Online article is front paged on the WaPo website today, giving life to a story that a real journalist would have ignored and let die its own pathetic death. But Howie is a presstitute through and through.

A Swift-Moving Story

Howie whines in response to Murray Waas's criticism of his original article:

I would welcome a deeper examination, as I had three hours to write the story on deadline. But I provided the needed context about Cybercast -- which was formerly called Conservative News Service -- and I'd note that the military, after all, decides when to hand out the medals.

Howie: If you didn't have time to research the story adequately, you shouldn't have submitted it for publication. Why were you in such a rush, anyway? Was Mrs. Kurtz, Sheri Annis, Republican operative, on your case? Maybe I should buy your cell phone records to find out.

The real story on Murtha is on the op-ed pages of the New York Times today, by "James Webb, a secretary of the Navy in the Reagan administration, [] a Marine platoon and company commander in Vietnam."


Purple Heartbreakers

The accusations against Mr. Murtha were very old news, principally coming from defeated political rivals. Aligned against their charges are an official letter from Marine Corps Headquarters written nearly 40 years ago affirming Mr. Murtha's eligibility for his Purple Hearts - "you are entitled to the Purple Heart and a Gold Star in lieu of a second Purple Heart for wounds received in action" - and the strict tradition of the Marine Corps regarding awards. While in other services lower-level commanders have frequently had authority to issue prestigious awards, in the Marines Mr. Murtha's Vietnam Bronze Star would have required the approval of four different awards boards.

Notorious House of Presstitution

This week's Notorious House of Presstitution Award goes to ..... drum roll, please ..... The Washington Post!

The Post triumphs over the rest of the fawning corporate media by having two blatant falsehoods trumpeted in its pages.

Article No. 1: On Saturday, Republican House Organ Howie Kurtz and Shailagh Murray published this little gem:

Web Site Attacks Critic of War
Opponents Question Murtha's Medals

Rep. John P. Murtha (D-Pa.), the former Marine who is an outspoken critic of the war in Iraq, has become the latest Democrat to have his Vietnam War decorations questioned.

In a tactic reminiscent of the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth assault on Sen. John F. Kerry (D-Mass.) during the 2004 presidential campaign, a conservative Web site yesterday quoted Murtha opponents as questioning the circumstances surrounding the awarding of his two Purple Hearts.

David Thibault, editor in chief of the Cybercast News Service, said the issue of Murtha's medals from 1967 is relevant now "because the congressman has really put himself in the forefront of the antiwar movement." Thibault said: "He has been placed by the Democratic Party and antiwar activists as a spokesman against the war above reproach."

Here, Republican operative Sheri Annis' husband "reports" the hysterical allegations of a right-wing propaganda machine whose most prominent client is GOPUSA, the group that owned Talon News and pimped Jeff Gannon/Jimmy Guckert into a coveted seat in the White House pressroom.

Yes, Virginia, in this article the Washington Post cites Cybercast News Service (CNS). A Republican website that works for GOPUSA.

And then the Post runs a quote from Harry Fox from 1996.

The article included a 1996 quote from Harry Fox, who worked for former representative John Saylor (R-Pa.), telling a local newspaper that Murtha was "pretending to be a big war hero." Fox, who lost a 1974 election to Murtha, said the 38-year Marine veteran had asked Saylor for assistance in obtaining the Purple Hearts but was turned down because the office believed he lacked adequate evidence of his wounds.

However, the Post leaves out the very salient fact (which was in the original CNS article) that Mr. Fox is now 81 years old and because of health reasons can no longer communicate whether or not this quote is accurate.

The Post article also leaves out the extremely salient fact that Saylor, who the now incommunicative Fox is trying to quote, has been DEAD since 1973.

Murray Waas deconstructs this steaming pile of horsepucky.

And that's not all, folks, because on Sunday the Washington Post's ombudsperson, Deborah Howell, continued the Post's Republican talking points journey.

Getting the Story on Jack Abramoff

Several stories, including one on June 3 by Jeffrey H. Birnbaum, a Post business reporter, have mentioned that a number of Democrats, including Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (Nev.) and Sen. Byron Dorgan (N.D.), have gotten Abramoff campaign money.

This is a stupid and demonstrably false statement by Howell. No Democrat received money from Jack Abramoff. They did receive money from Abramoff's clients: The Indian tribes who were ripped off by Abramoff. There is no evidence that the tribes were attempting to bribe the Democrats. There is ample evidence that Abramoff was stealing from the Indians to bribe the Republican officials to funnel the money back into the coffers of Republican-owned businesses by passing legislation to do just so. That's why Abramoff just took a plea, you idiot.

Firedoglake did the best send-up of Howell: The Naked Lies of Deborah Howell

So, for these two shining examples of naked presstitution, we give the Washington Post the coveted Notorious House of Presstitution award. For this week, at least.

All Democrats

6 Iraq veterans seek seats in Congress, question Bush

WASHINGTON (AP) — While fighting in Iraq, a private asked then-Capt. Patrick Murphy why U.S. forces were in the Persian Gulf nation and was told it didn't matter; there was a job to do and just try to return home safely.

"That wasn't the time to question our government," Murphy recalled.

Now, however, Murphy and five other veterans of the war are asking questions about President Bush's policies in Iraq as part of their broader Democratic campaigns to win congressional seats in next year's elections.

Given their experience in Iraq, the six Democrats in Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Maryland and Virginia say they are eminently qualified to pose the tough questions. Their reservations mirror public opinion, with an increasing number of Americans expressing concern about the mission and favoring a timetable for withdrawal of U.S. troops.

Guess Swiftboating will have to ramp up to include attacking the service of men who served in George W. Bush's War of Choice. Won't stop Karl Rove. Maybe Patrick Fitzgerald will have him in jail by then.


In this world of sin and sorrow there is always something to be thankful for; as for me, I rejoice that I am not a Republican.
H. L. Mencken

Disinformation

The 2004 Falsies Awards: Remembering the people and players responsible for polluting our information environment.

Interesting list of media foibles in 2004. But where is the New York Times Ahmed Chalabi-loving Judith Miller? Bob (Traitor) Novak? The media's fawning coverage of the Swift Boat Liars? Bill O'Reilly buying back the tapes of his you-say-loofah I-say-falafel conversations? Actually, Faux News Channel alone could fill an entire Top Ten list.

Inquiring minds want to know.

We Need Spokesmen, Not Statesmen

This guy is exactly right. We need to be running candidates who can talk the talk.

Will Towle: 'We have to evolve or perish'

This one really smarts. At least in 2000 we understood what happened. Ultimately, that was an election decided by good old electoral fraud. We could get our head around that. Maybe Al Gore hadn't put together the best campaign, but millions more voted for Al and Ralph than "W." We may had lost courtesy of a crooked Supreme Court, but it was the type of loss that left you enraged and energized. Just like the Olde Towne Team, you thought "just wait 'til next time."

No such excuses this time. And assuming the whispers about Diebold rigging the election to not come to fruition, this one has left us demoralized and in despair.

Why is this one so hard? As leftists and specifically as Democrats, we believe the country shares our values. More people are registered as Democrats than Republicans. Poll after poll show that people share our values and issues far more than with the Republicans.

Here's his key argument:

We Must Start Running Spokesmen Not Statesmen.

What do Ronald Reagan, George W. Bush and Arnold Schwarzenegger all have in common? They are all successful Republican candidates who came to power despite having no discernable legislative or executive accomplishments. Each had a resume that was either thin (Reagan, Bush) or non-existent (Schwarzenegger). However, each one of them successfully portrayed an image of the values that he hoped to promote. Significantly, two of the three are professional actors. All were personally well received by your "average American" (the important which candidate would you like to have a beer with quotient). Each used this resonance with the voters to portray simplistic themes. Each dodged difficult answers to complex problems. Each became an executive controlled in large part by his handlers. But all achieved electoral success.

To call this a victory of style over substance is to under-estimate what the Republicans are doing. The foray into Iraq is part of a well thought out plan to annex the oil fields of the Middle East and to use the might of the US military to influence the world. Although all of this is explained in detail in the position papers of right wing think tanks, not a word of that analysis is expressed by their candidate to the press. Instead we got "this is the guy who tried to kill my dad" and "he has connections with terrorists." Again, vague statements by a popular spokesman that displayed the essence of the agenda without any of the details.

As Democrats, we adopt the polar opposite approach. We run candidates with long resumes. We explain our reasoning with detailed bullet points. We think facts demonstrate the policies we promote. John Kerry had a twenty year in the US Senate and a decorated combat career. These facts were supposed to project the image of well reasoned domestic and international policy tempered by the personal experience of combat.

It didn't. Instead, W pranced around in a military flight suit and projected the image of someone who supported the military during this time of war. The fact that W went AWOL and then deserted from his military unit during the Vietnam war went largely ignored. The fact of John Kerry's lifetime support of the military got lost in the shuffle of his statements on the Iraq war and the Swift Boat for Truth attacks. Arguably, Kerry blew the best visual of his campaign when he appeared with his Swift Boat comrades at the DNC convention looking out of place in his Senatorial blue suit. He should have donned combat fatigues and his old naval hat.

John Kerry's nuanced and thoughtful comments (which we Democrats loved so much) became so much background white noise to the important parts of the electorate that we needed to support us.

As Democrats we need to recognize the Presidency is a position that is more symbolic than substantive. The electorate does not want substantive candidates. They want candidates who demonstrate the imagery and symbolism that gives them comfort. In 2004, Kerry failed to demonstrate a strong image of being strong on defense. Bush, who factually does not support the troops, convinced most Americans that he symbolically embraced the troops. He therefore won this important part of the vote.

Republicans rely on the candidate's handlers to deliver on the substance of the image that candidate has promoted. In large part, even Reagan and Bush supporters admit to this. Did Reagan or does Bush understand the details of the policies he promotes? No, he doesn't. But he can recite the "talking points" and get the sound bite on the nightly news. Karl Rove then does the rest.

Does this mean we need to run Martin Sheen? Maybe it does. The fact that this seems crazy to you means that you, as a Democrat, have not absorbed what Reagan and Schwarzenegger have done. There are many image friendly Democrats who have the intelligence and fortitude to be good candidates. Many are already in politics but some will not be. I will leave that to the media savvy to tell me who projects the image we need. How about the Springsteen/Sheen ticket? Or the Obama/Oprah ticket? Let you imagination run wild here! To everyone who says I am crazy, I say one thing: AHN-ALD! AHN-ALD! A dopey Austrian born body builder turned action hero is governor of California. And you said it would never happen.

Reflections on the Election

I am beginning to recuperate from my post-election malaise. Here are some of the things that have been rolling around in my head:

-- John Kerry has been my senator for years. Including his candidacy for lieutenant governor, I have voted for him 5 times. I've always liked his stands on the issues. But I never felt passionate about him. That's why I supported Howard Dean. He spoke clearly and persuasively about the issues I care about, including his clear stand against the war in Iraq. Once Kerry was the candidate, of course I supported him. But he wasn't my first choice, & I've voted for him 5 times in the past.

-- Why do we let Iowa & New Hampshire pick our Democratic candidates? Both of them are 50/50 states. Why aren't our first primaries in California, New York & Illinois? States filled with Democratic voters.

-- Will Rogers once said, famously, I don't belong to an organized political party. I'm a Democrat. Boy, it felt that way a lot this summer. Waiting for Kerry to respond to the Swift Boat Liars. K/E trotted out all Kerry's boatmates at the convention & weren't prepared to put 'em on TV to counteract all the BS from guys who didn't even know Kerry in Vietnam? Even when they did respond, it wasn't very effective.

-- What was with the duck hunting expedition? First off, one of the late-to-the-party Clintonistas, Lockhart or McCurry, said flat-out to the press, This is a photo-op. Gee, thanks for all the expert help, guys.
Then, there's the ridiculousness of it. I don't own a gun & never have. But I grew up in the mountains where we got the first day of hunting season off every year. A girl in my class shot a deer when she was 12. I watched my neighbor up the street butcher his deer every year. It never bothered me, because in the mountains people hunt for food. That deer fed a family for the winter. I don't mind hunting for food. Hey, I'm a carnivore, I buy my meat in the grocery store, I'm no different from that deer hunter. But was Kerry really going to eat that Canada goose? Was anyone? Hunting for sport, I just don't get. When those pictures of Kerry were on TV my friend's 13-year old asked me, Why is Kerry killing a duck? What did that duck ever do to him? What's that have to do with being President? Good questions.

-- Where was the famous Kerry close? Where were the tough last-minute ads? Remember, Kerry went "dark" in August to save money for his all-out blitz before Election Day. Where was it? Just those boring "Stronger at Home, Respected in the World" ads.

-- And couldn't they come up with a better tag line than that? Where's the power in those words?

-- Why did Kerry concede so quickly? After telling us he would fight for every vote, why didn't he? He couldn't just wait until all the votes were counted? Both campaigns encouraged all their voters to vote early or to vote by absentee ballot. As this becomes more common, folks are going to have to get used to the fact that WE WON'T KNOW WHO WON ON ELECTION NIGHT. It's important. It's worth getting it right. Kerry should have hung in there until all the votes were counted.

Another Swift Boat Vet Supports Kerry Account

Today in our local paper, the Metrowest News (Central Massachuetts), we have an article about Swift Boat Vets who "served" with John Kerry (they also were on Swift Boats in Vietnam, though they never saw him personnally -- just like John O'Neill), support the Kerry position.

Some swift boat veterans support Kerry

Since this link will only work for a few days, here's the article:

Home > News & Opinion > Local News Coverage
Photo Gallery
Vietnam veteran Del Sandusky, speaking at a news conference in Pennsylvania, said he personally witnessed the battle action for which Kerry received Silver and Bronze stars and two of his three Purple Hearts. (AP photo)

Some swift boat veterans defend KerryBy Jon Brodkin / News Staff WriterTuesday, August 24, 2004

Michael Alogna says he knows what it's like to serve on a swift boat in Vietnam. And he doesn't think it's possible John Kerry fabricated the events for which he was awarded war medals.
"They're only 51 feet long," Alogna, a Waltham resident, said of the swift boats. "You're totally visible, and everybody can see what's going on....You can't claim you did something (you didn't do)."
Alogna said he was a naval officer in charge on a swift boat during two tours of duty in 1966 and 1967.
He didn't serve with Kerry, but believes attacks on the presidential candidate by the group Swift Boat Veterans for Truth are unwarranted. Alogna said accounts given by those who served with Kerry prove he deserved the medals.
He also compared the Swift Boat Veterans group's claims to previous Republican attacks on Arizona Sen. John McCain and former Sen. Max Cleland of Georgia, a triple amputee Vietnam veteran.
"This is a pattern of not just misbehavior, but low behavior," Alogna said.
Kerry, who was awarded a Silver Star, Bronze Star and three Purple Hearts for his service in Vietnam, has been forced to fight off charges he did not deserve the medals. Veterans who served with Kerry have come to his defense, and the anti-Kerry group has been accused of distorting facts to cast the senator in a bad light.
The New York Times reported Friday the accounts given by group members are "riddled with inconsistencies" and that material they offer as proof of their claims is discredited by their own previous statements and official Navy records.
Still, there's reason to be skeptical of Kerry, believes Bob Harris, a Vietnam veteran who is also Hudson's veterans agent. He noted there is controversy over whether Kerry's account that he spent Christmas Eve 1968 in Cambodia is true, and also said he was offended by Kerry protesting the war upon returning home.
"He's got a lot of explaining to do on the screw-ups in his story," Harris said. "He's given different versions. I have a problem with him throwing his medals away. You can argue medals, ribbons, or what. If anybody was ever awarded a medal, it comes with a ribbon. If you throw one away, you throw them all away."
Harris, who said he fought for the U.S. Army in Vietnam in 1967 and 1968, said he is leaning toward voting for President George Bush, but criticized the president for sending Americans to war when he wasn't willing to serve overseas himself.
"Anybody that joined the National Guard was trying to avoid Vietnam," Harris said.
Bush himself has faced questions about whether he fulfilled his National Guard service requirements during the Vietnam war.
Harris said the accusations against both candidates "tells you a lot about their character."
While polls have shown most military veterans favor Bush over Kerry, not all think the candidates' Vietnam records should be election issues.
"They were different people back then," said Fred Otten, an Ashland man who served in the Air Force in Vietnam in 1968 and 1969. "As far as running a country, I don't think what they did back in those days should have anything to do with the election."

( Jon Brodkin can be reached at 508-626-4424 or jbrodkin@cnc.com. )

I Went To School With Doug Flutie

If I use the logic of John O'Neill, Not-So-Swift Boat Liar.

O'Neill took over Kerry's Swift Boat in 'Nam 2 month after he left it. He never met Kerry while in Vietnam. He never heard of him until the Nixon White House recruited him to go up against Kerry.

I, on the other hand, attended Boston College. Flutie came to Boston College 3 months after I graduated. I never met him. Therefore, I went to school with Doug Flutie.