Saturday, May 03, 2008

Barack tries to look pretty

BULLY BOY PRESS & CEDRIC'S BIG MIX -- THE KOOL-AID TABLE.
 
"I REALLY THINK I'VE PUT THE JEREMIAH WRIGHT ISSUE BEHIND ME," SENATOR BARACK OBAMA TOLD THESE REPORTERS WHILE PUTTING ON HIS LIPSTICK.
 
JEREMIAH WRIGHT, THE FREAKISH HATE MONGER, IS BEHIND HIM?
 
"YES, HE IS," BARACK SAID BLOTTING HIS LIPS ON A TISSUE.  "THAT'S EXACTLY WHAT I INTEND TO TELL TIM RUSSERT SUNDAY ON 'MEET THE PRESS'."
 
THE CANDIDATE IN DENIAL.
 
HE'S BEEN SAYING THE WRIGHT ISSUE WAS OVER SINCE MARCH.  BUT IT'S NEVER GONE AWAY.  THIS WEEK ALONE, HE CAN'T SHUT UP ABOUT WRIGHT WHILE REPEATEDLY INSISTING THE ISSUE IS OVER.
 
THESE REPORTERS INTENDED TO ASK HIM ABOUT THAT BUT, HEARING MICHELLE HOLLER, "WHERE IS MY LIPSTICK!", HAD US DECIDING TO CALL AN END TO THE INTERVIEW AND GET THE HELL OUT BEFORE THE FIREWORKS REALLY STARTED.
 
 
 
 
Starting with war resistance.  Courage to Resist notes war resister Ryan Jackson is currently at Fort Sill having turned himself at the start of the month after being "absent without leave since December when a local commander vetoed his pending discharge from the 35th Signal Brigade at Fort Gordon, Georgia."  They note that there is a defense fund here, that he can be e-mailed via ryanjackson@couragetoresist.org and that you can find an audio interview they did with him here.
 
US war resisters in Canada who are hoping to be granted safe harbor status.  What's the status on the motion?
 
Community member Dallas passed on the following.  "Citizenship and immigration" issues have taken the forefront and the war resister motion, "it's kind of taken the wayside."  (All quotes from Canada's NDP's spokesperson.) For now, the best thing to do would be continuing utilizing the following e-mails to show your support: Prime Minister Stephen Harper (pm@pm.gc.ca -- that's pm at gc.ca) who is with the Conservative party and these two Liberals, Stephane Dion (Dion.S@parl.gc.ca -- that's Dion.S at parl.gc.ca) who is the leader of the Liberal Party and Maurizio Bevilacqua (Bevilacqua.M@parl.gc.ca -- that's Bevilacqua.M at parl.gc.ca) who is the Liberal Party's Critic for Citizenship and Immigration.  In addition Jack Layton, NDP leader, has a contact form and they would like to hear from people as well. A few more addresses can be found here at War Resisters Support Campaign. For those in the US, Courage to Resist has an online form that's very easy to use.         

There is a growing movement of resistance within the US military which includes Matt Mishler, Josh Randall, Robby Keller, Justiniano Rodrigues, Chuck Wiley, James Stepp, Rodney Watson, Michael Espinal, Matthew Lowell, Derek Hess, Diedra Cobb, Brad McCall, Justin Cliburn, Timothy Richard, Robert Weiss, Phil McDowell, Steve Yoczik, Ross Spears, Peter Brown, Bethany "Skylar" James, Zamesha Dominique, Chrisopther Scott Magaoay, Jared Hood, James Burmeister, Jose Vasquez, Eli Israel, Joshua Key, Ehren Watada, Terri Johnson, Clara Gomez, Luke Kamunen, Leif Kamunen, Leo Kamunen, Camilo Mejia, Kimberly Rivera, Dean Walcott, Linjamin Mull, Agustin Aguayo, Justin Colby, Marc Train, Abdullah Webster, Robert Zabala, Darrell Anderson, Kyle Snyder, Corey Glass, Jeremy Hinzman, Kevin Lee, Mark Wilkerson, Patrick Hart, Ricky Clousing, Ivan Brobeck, Aidan Delgado, Pablo Paredes, Carl Webb, Stephen Funk, Blake LeMoine, Clifton Hicks, David Sanders, Dan Felushko, Brandon Hughey, Logan Laituri, Jason Marek, Clifford Cornell, Joshua Despain, Joshua Casteel, Katherine Jashinski, Dale Bartell, Chris Teske, Matt Lowell, Jimmy Massey, Chris Capps, Tim Richard, Hart Viges, Michael Blake, Christopher Mogwai, Christian Kjar, Kyle Huwer, Wilfredo Torres, Michael Sudbury, Ghanim Khalil, Vincent La Volpa, DeShawn Reed and Kevin Benderman. In total, at least fifty US war resisters in Canada have applied for asylum.

Information on war resistance within the military can be found at The Objector, The G.I. Rights Hotline [(877) 447-4487], Iraq Veterans Against the War and the War Resisters Support Campaign. Courage to Resist offers information on all public war resisters. Tom Joad maintains a list of known war resisters. In addition, VETWOW is an organization that assists those suffering from MST (Military Sexual Trauma).
 
[. . .]
 
In US presidential political news. Senator Barack Obama wants to be president . . . of some of the people.  Apparently not of the people hurting economically over rising gas prices.  He's shot down both Senators Hillary Clinton and John McCain's plans for a gas tax holiday.  But Delilah Boyd (A Scriverner's Lament) points out that "Obama voted for it multiple times in Illinois in 2000 ...  The Obama-based moral of this and all other Obama stories: If it doesn't help Obama, it's not a good thing. Period."  Meanwhile Ralph Nader and his running mate Matt Gonzalez are gearing up for a West Coast Tour next week where they will be working on ballot access in California, Oregon and Washington.
 
Returning to the topic of Barack, he received another endorsement from another loser today.  Paul G. Kirk Jr. who has long been Ted Kennedy's biggest suck-up came out for Barack today.  Kirk Jr.'s 'expertise' and 'wisdom' were probably on 'best' display when he was the head on DNC during . . . Michael Dukakis failed presidential campaign.  We're sure Junior will bring all the 'help' to Barack that he did to Dukakis.  Dan Baltz (Washington Post) points out that Junior actually came out for Barack in February.  Well, when your life means so little, you probably have to grab all the headlines you can. Ask the Loud family.  But whatever you do, don't ask Barack basic geographic questions.  Pagan Power (No Quarter) explains that Barack has a 'plan' for Oregon and it includes "the Great Lakes" which, pay attention, are in the MidWest, not the North West.  Hillary's plan is entitled "Oregon Compact."  Barack apparently rushed his last-minute homework.  Which explains both his errors as well as other portions appearing to be lifted from Hillary's plan.  Maybe he can claim she's his best friend just like Deval and that makes it okay?
 
Barack keeps claiming Jeremiah Wright is preventing a discussion of the issues.  Apparently, Wright prevented Barack from discussing issues for 20 years?  Reid J. Epstein (Newsday) reports that academics watching polls in North Carolina see the Wright friendship as hurting Barack at the polls.  People do wonder why it took him 20-years and how stupid he thinks Americans are that we're all supposed to believe that Jeremiah Wright transformed/shape-shifted over the weekend into someone Barack had enver seen before?  In the real world, Eloise Harper (ABC News) reports Robert F. Kennedy Jr. declared in Indiani yesterday, ""Part of our family is divided and our Party is divided and the reason we are divided is because we have two extraordinary candidates both running for president both who will make unbelievable presidents of this country. . . . but let me tell you why they're wrong and I'm right, because I know Hillary Clinton better than they know Barack Obama."
Meanwhile, Hillary picked up an important endorsement today.  From The Indianapolis Star's editorial entitled  "Experience makes Clinton better choice in primary:"

As impressive as Obama appears, he is still in his first term in the U.S. Senate, and only four years ago was serving as an Illinois state senator. His inexperience in high office is a liability.       
Clinton, in contrast, is well prepared for the rigors of the White House. She is tough, experienced and realistic about what can and cannot be accomplished on the world stage.           
 
 
Independent journalist, photo-journalist and artist David Bacon examines and explores the issues of immigrant rights frequently.  Last week, Bacon  (Political Affairs Magazine) sounded the alarms over Hayley Barbour, governor of Mississippi, having "signed into law the fartherest-reaching employer sanctions law of any on the books in the U.S.  Employer sanctions is a shorthand name for laws that prohibit employers from hiring immigrants who don't have legal immigration status in the U.S. That provision was part of the Immigration Reform and Control Act, passed by Congress in 1986, which for the first time in U.S. history required employers to verify the immigration status of employees.  The Mississippi bill, SB 2988, requires employers to use an electronic system to verify immigration status, called E-Verify.  That system has only recently been developed by the Department of Homeland Security, and by the department's own admission, is not a complete record."  This week, he writes (Political Affairs Magazine):
 
In the big immigrant marches that swept the country on May Day in 2006 and 2007, one sign said it all: "We are Workers, not Criminals!"  Often it was held in the calloused hands of men and women who looked as though they'd just come from work in a factory, cleaning an office building, or picking grapes.       
The sign stated an obvious truth.  Millions of people have come to this country to work, not to break its laws.  Some have come with visas, and others without them.  But they are all contributors to the society they've found here, not people who mean it harm.  Again this May Day, immigrant workers are filling the streets, making the same point.      
Yet today the Federal government is taking actions that make holding a job a criminal act.  Some states and local communities, seeing a green light from the Department of Homeland Security, are passing measures that go even further.  These actions need a reality check.
 
Tonight (in most markets) NOW on PBS explores the Democratic and Republican presidential campaigns with guests Willie Brown and Dan Schnur.  The campaign will also be part of the topics addressed on PBS' Washington Week (check local listings) and Gwen's guests will include AP's Charles Babington, Wall St. Journal's David Wessel, NBC's Pete Williams and the New York Times' John Harwood.  From TV to radio, Sunday on WBAI (11:00 a.m. EST), The Next Hour is hosted by Reno and, on Monday, Cat Radio Cafe (2:00 p.m. EST):
 
A celebration of the life and art of Michael Goldberg, American painter (1924-2007) who gained first acclaim as a Second Generation Abstract Expressionist of the New York School.  With art critici Jeremy Gilbert-Rolf, curator Klaus Kertess, painter Ellen Phelan, Bomb Magazine editor Betsy Sussler, Goldberg's stepson Luke Matheissen, and his wife sculptor Lynn Umlauf.  Hosted by Janet Coleman and David Dozier.
 
And we'll close with Chelsea Clinton:
One of the most fun things about meeting people who support my mom's campaign is seeing all the creative ways they show their support. I've seen a lot of homemade signs, buttons, and shirts on the campaign trail, and I think we need to harness that great creative energy for our campaign.      
I know you agree with me that my mom is the strongest, most progressive, and most prepared candidate, and that she would be the best president! This is a great way for you to show exactly what her historic campaign means to you.      
Maybe you've got a slogan that you've been dying to share. Or maybe you want to share your design talents. Whatever your ideas are, I can't wait to see them -- and we'll offer the best shirt for sale in the official campaign store, raising money to help my mom win! I'll also make sure to get a picture of me AND my mom wearing the shirt, which we will post on the website.    
So please put on your thinking caps, get those creative juices flowing, and visit our Project T-Shirt website to learn more and submit your design.    
I'm so excited to see all the great ideas you have. Thank you so much for all you're doing to help my mom win!     
Go Hillary!
 
 

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Thursday, May 01, 2008

THIS JUST IN! BAMBI SAYS WRIGHT IS A "DEAD ISSUE"!

BULLY BOY PRESS & CEDRIC'S BIG MIX -- THE KOOL-AID TABLE.
 
SENATOR BAMBI OBAMA MERRILY DECLARED TO THESE REPORTERS TONIGHT, "JEREMIAH WRIGHT IS A DEAD ISSUE."
 
AFTER CAUTIONING HIM AGAINST USING "DEAD ISSUE" BEING THAT HE IS A POLITICIAN FROM CHICAGO, THESE REPORTERS ASKED HIM HOW HE COULD BE SO SURE?
 
"I SPENT ALL DAY ANSWERING QUESTIONS WITH 'HE IS A DEAD ISSUE' SO THAT MAKES HIM A DEAD ISSUE."
 
AS RACHEL ONCE SAID TO JOEY, "YOU'RE SO PRETTY."
 
BEFORE THESE REPORTERS COULD CORRECT BAMBI, HE SPOTTED TWO MEN NOT WEARING SPORTS COATS.
 
"OH LOOK!" HE CRIED.  "GUN CLINGERS! OR MAYBE GOD CLINGERS!  I MUST MINGLE AND INTERFACE WITH THE COMMON FOLK!"
 
 
Starting with war resistance.  Kyle Snyder is an Iraq War resister living in Canada.  He is one of many.  A variation in Snyder's story is that he self-checked out twice, going to Canada both times.  At YouTube, a video is posted of him explaining that (March 17, 2007):
 
 
Kyle Snyder: I just recently traveled back to the United States, on October 31st.  I had to drop my refugee claim.  If any of you have been following my story, I was a refugee claimant in 2005 after deserting the Iraq War.  I believe the Iraq War to be illegal and immoral on many fronts and I'm currently writing a report on that and why I think that is illegal and immoral.  I witnessed what I believe to be war crimes and I witnessed what I believed to be a true occupation for oil resources and not a liberation or a bringing of democracy to the people of Iraq.  And I refused to take part in that war.  So I basically want to tell you my story about that trip to the United States.  Like I said, I dropped my refugee claim meaning I had to go to the Canadian government, CBSA -- Canada Border Services Agency, and sign pieces of paper saying that I was returning to my home country to receive a discharge from the United States military. I worked for two months just west of here in Wetaskiwn, Alberta trying to receive a discharge from a major at Fort Knox, Major Bryan Patterson -- who somehow doesn't exist to the media now.  When I turned myself in, I was very, very scared.  I was very scared because I had dropped my life here in Canada, I had left my job, I had left my family.  I left my friends.  All on the chance that I would be discharged when I turned myself in.  The lieutenant walked in and said "Don't worry, we'll discharge you within three to five days."  That never happened.  They put me in a room with a mirror and a phone that was not connected to any wall.  There was no phone connection.  They denied me access to my lawyer and said they wanted me to -- they ordered me after two years of not serving in their military to return to my unit.  Which is now based in Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri.  My unit wanted to re-integrate me into the military and send me back to Iraq a second time.  The 94th engineers are deploying for a third time to Iraq.  They're one of five units that are deploying to Iraq a third time -- since the surge that Bush ordered while I was in the country.  I did the only thing that made sense to me at that point: I refused to sign the orders.  I have documents saying the soldier refused to sign. And I went AWOL a second time. I did not catch the Greyhound Bus, instead I went out to eat and enjoy Halloween.  And I did the only thing that made sense, again, and I pointed out the atrocities of the Bush administration in New Orleans, where we rebuilt a veterans' home, a Vietnam veteran's home.  And I was almost arrested in New Orleans shortly after rebuilding this home with Iraq Veterans Against the War.  Anyway, I spoke at 20 different high schools in Chicago, primarily African-American and Latino community schools that were going to be shut down by the American government because there was no funding to them.  Recruiters feed off of schools in America like this.  And I did anti-recruitment work in these schools.  Basically pointing out to the government again that if a recruiter can walk onto a campus legally, why is there not a steel worker standing next to him, why is there not a carpenter standing next to them, why is there not any of these? My plan was to receive a discharge, come back to Canada in time to spend Christmas with my family.  I couldn't do that.  Instead, I bought my fiancee a ticket back to Wetaskiwin, Alberta so she could spend Christmas with her family and I stayed in the United States and I didn't know what was going to happen.  I decided to come back to Canada just this January and I can no longer apply for refugee status even though I was only gone for five weeks.  I know people that go on vacation for longer than five weeks and come back to the life that they had.  So now I don't know what I'm going to do other than apply for permanent residence status and I don't know how I'm going to be able to stay in Canada.  And I really, really need you guys' help to support me in my staying in Canada.  And I really want to thank all of you for being here today and calling for the Canadian troops out of Afghanistan especially and calling for the United States out of Iraq.  It means so much to me that you guys are doing that.  I have one more announcement to make.  I'm really pleased to announce that there are enough war resisters in Canada that we can start a chapter of Iraq Veterans Against the War in Canada.  So we'll be doing that very shortly and we'll putting up a website for donations and for anything, just events that Iraq Veterans Against the War will be doing here in Canada in the near future.  So I just wanted to announce that.  Thanks.
 
US war resisters in Canada who are hoping to be granted safe harbor status and the Canadian Parliament will debate a measure this month on that issue. You can make your voice heard. Three e-mails addresses to focus on are: Prime Minister Stephen Harper (pm@pm.gc.ca -- that's pm at gc.ca) who is with the Conservative party and these two Liberals, Stephane Dion (Dion.S@parl.gc.ca -- that's Dion.S at parl.gc.ca) who is the leader of the Liberal Party and Maurizio Bevilacqua (Bevilacqua.M@parl.gc.ca -- that's Bevilacqua.M at parl.gc.ca) who is the Liberal Party's Critic for Citizenship and Immigration. A few more can be found here at War Resisters Support Campaign. For those in the US, Courage to Resist has an online form that's very easy to use.         

There is a growing movement of resistance within the US military which includes Matt Mishler, Josh Randall, Robby Keller, Justiniano Rodrigues, Chuck Wiley, James Stepp, Rodney Watson, Michael Espinal, Matthew Lowell, Derek Hess, Diedra Cobb, Brad McCall, Justin Cliburn, Timothy Richard, Robert Weiss, Phil McDowell, Steve Yoczik, Ross Spears, Peter Brown, Bethany "Skylar" James, Zamesha Dominique, Chrisopther Scott Magaoay, Jared Hood, James Burmeister, Jose Vasquez, Eli Israel, Joshua Key, Ehren Watada, Terri Johnson, Clara Gomez, Luke Kamunen, Leif Kamunen, Leo Kamunen, Camilo Mejia, Kimberly Rivera, Dean Walcott, Linjamin Mull, Agustin Aguayo, Justin Colby, Marc Train, Abdullah Webster, Robert Zabala, Darrell Anderson, Kyle Snyder, Corey Glass, Jeremy Hinzman, Kevin Lee, Mark Wilkerson, Patrick Hart, Ricky Clousing, Ivan Brobeck, Aidan Delgado, Pablo Paredes, Carl Webb, Stephen Funk, Blake LeMoine, Clifton Hicks, David Sanders, Dan Felushko, Brandon Hughey, Logan Laituri, Jason Marek, Clifford Cornell, Joshua Despain, Joshua Casteel, Katherine Jashinski, Dale Bartell, Chris Teske, Matt Lowell, Jimmy Massey, Chris Capps, Tim Richard, Hart Viges, Michael Blake, Christopher Mogwai, Christian Kjar, Kyle Huwer, Wilfredo Torres, Michael Sudbury, Ghanim Khalil, Vincent La Volpa, DeShawn Reed and Kevin Benderman. In total, at least fifty US war resisters in Canada have applied for asylum.

Information on war resistance within the military can be found at The Objector, The G.I. Rights Hotline [(877) 447-4487], Iraq Veterans Against the War and the War Resisters Support Campaign. Courage to Resist offers information on all public war resisters. Tom Joad maintains a list of known war resisters. In addition, VETWOW is an organization that assists those suffering from MST (Military Sexual Trauma).
 
As Paul Reynolds (BBC) observes, today's a fifth anniversary, "President Bush did not say "Mission Accomplished" on the deck of the USS Abraham Lincoln off San Diego on 1 May five years ago. But the banner above him did."  CBS and AP remind, "Five years after that speech, after the meaning of the phrase "mission accomplished" and when is a job truly 'done' has been endlessly parsed, and after responsibility for creating and hanging the sign was first denied and later accepted, the White House said Wednesday that President Bush has paid a price for the banner, with its affirmative message becoming a target of mockery and a symbol of U.S. misjudgments and mistakes in the long and costly war -- a war in which major combat operations are still being waged.  While the White House distanced itself from the message soon after the event, Mr. Bush was not averse to repeating it. Speaking to troops in Camp As Sayliyah in Qatar the following month, Mr. Bush said, 'America sent you on a mission to remove a grave threat and to liberate an oppressed people, and that mission has been accomplished'."  Dan Froomkin (Washington Post) breaks it down -- when Bully Boy gave his speech, the US troops death toll was 139 and the number wounded was 542 while today 4,064 are dead and 29,395 are wounded. US Senator and presumed GOP presidential nominee John McCain made the news today with John Whitesides (Reuters) reports that "McCain said the administration mishandled the war's early stages and raised public hopes by calling the remaining insurgents in Iraq 'dead-enders' in their 'last throes'."  Helen Thomas noted the anniversary yesterday in Dana Perino's White House press briefing.
 
Helen Thomas: How does the President intend to commemorate "Mission accomplished" after five years of death and destruction?
 
Dana Pernio: What you're referring to is the banner that ran -- that was aborad the ship five years ago.  President Bush --
 
Helen Thomas: I'm talking about the anniversary tomorrow.
 
Dana Perino: Yes, I get -- no, I understand.  That's the anniversary of when that banner flew on that ship.  President Bush is well aware that the banner should have been much more specific and said "mission accomplished for these sailors who are on this ship on their mission."  And we have certainly paid a price for not being more specific on that banner.  And I recognize that the media is going to play this up again tomorrow, as they do every single year.  I think what's important is what the President would -- how the President would describe the fight today.  It's been a very tough month in Iraq, but we are taking the fight to the enemy.  The President, you heard him say yesterday, believes that fighting terrorists, jihadists, al Qaeda, and the Iranian-backed militias --
 
Helen Thomas: Is every Iraqi a terrorist?
 
Dana Perino: -- and the Iranian-backed militias --
 
Helen Thomas: We're fighting the Iraqis, we're bombing their homes.  What do mean?
 
Dana Perino: Helen, we are going after terrorists and al Qaeda and Iranian-backed Shia militia who are killing not only innocent Iraqis but our soldiers as well, and we're doing so in --
 
Helen Thomas: We're bombing homes with children.
 
Perino would continue spinning and Helen Thomas' final comment would be, "We're going after Iraqis who are fighting for their own country."
 
[. . .]
 
Turning to the US presidential race.  This morning on  NBC's Today Show, Meredith Vieira interviewed Barack and Michelle Obama.  (Click here for audio and video available today and for podcasting available throughout.) Meredith's interview will also air (in extended form) on MSNBC Saturday.  Michelle Obama tried to steer the interview and schill for her husband stating that her husband was "trying to move us as a nation beyond these conversations" -- these conversations?  About the crackpot mentor, pastor, inspiration, friend, et al Jeremiah Wright.  Michelle's part of the co-interview because, clearly, Barack can't handle it alone.  She really took control during the interview (in most instances that was a good thing or the campaign's talking point would never have gotten out -- as defocused and meandering as he is, she's like a laser beam).  However, Michelle Obama is not running to become president and the question is about the nominee's judgement skills.  Equally true, if the country wanted to 'move on,' Michelle and Barack would not be guests on Today's first hour to talk about the subject.  She refused to answer Meredith's question about Wright ("Do you feel that Rev. Wright has betrayed your husband?") even when Meredith repeated it.  Barack lied about his own and Michelle's life and should have just kept his mouth shut because the question was to Michelle and she was the smarter of the two.  "I should have said angry and frustrated instead of bitter . . . I should have said people rely on their religion instead of cling to . . ."  Can he please stop lying?  (No, he can't.  Listen to his I-Can-Big-State lies.  It's embarrassing.  He's either lying or completely stupid.)
 
Transcript is available at Time.  Word substitution does not change what he said.  Key passage: "And it's not surprising then they get bitter, they cling to guns or religion or antipathy to people who aren't like them or anti-immigrant sentiment or anti-trade sentiment as a way to explain their frustrations."  Point, anti-immigrant sentiment and anti-trade sentiment are not seen by Barack as 'good' things so let's all stop pretending that anything changes with a word substitution.  He was spitting on Small Town Americans.  He stated that they cling to God, guns and racism.  That's the reality of the insult. 
 
 
 
 

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Wednesday, April 30, 2008

Want an answer? Give him 20 years

BULLY BOY PRESS & CEDRIC'S BIG MIX -- THE KOOL-AID TABLE.
 
"I'VE BEEN TO THE MANSION," BARACK OBAMA WAS SAYING INTO THE CAMERA, "AND FROM WHERE I SEE IT, THE LAST THING AMERICANS NEED IS A GAS TAX HOLIDAY.  JUST STOP DRIVING.  SHOW SOME DISCIPLINE."
 
 
THESE REPORTERS WERE INVITED TO WATCH THE TAPING OF BARACK OBAMA'S NEXT SERIES OF ADS.  AFTER HE WAS FINISHED, HE SPOKE BRIEFLY.
 
"I PROVED MY SUPERIOR JUDGEMENT YESTERDAY," HE SAID SIPPING BOTTLED WATER OUT OF ONE SIDE OF HIS MOUTH. 
 
WELL, HE PROVED IT TAKES HIM 20-YEARS TO MAKE A DECISION.  THAT IS HOW LONG HE HAS KNOWN JEREMIAH WRIGHT.
 
"TIME DOESN'T MATTER," HE INSISTED.  "I SHOWED I HAVE THE SUPERIOR JUDGEMENT.  I WILL NOT ALLOW PEOPLE LIKE THAT AROUND ME."
 
 
SUDDENLY BARACK HAD TO GO.  HE INSISTED HE NEEDED TO MAKE "WEE WEE" AND WASN'T TRYING TO AVOID US OUR QUESTIONS.
 
 
Starting with war resistance.  Iraq War resister Ehren Watada will be the topic Friday at Carleton College (1 North College Street, Northfield, MN).  Esther Pak (Carleton News) reports:
 
Dr. Vijay Prashad will present a convocation entitled "Watada's Election: Asian Americans and These Asian Wars" on Friday, May 2 at 10:50 a.m. in the Skinner Memorial Chapel. Prashad's presentation will examine Asian Americans, the Iraq War, and the upcoming election, with reference to Hawaii-born First Lieutenant Ehren Watada, who was the first commissioned officer to publicly refuse deployment to the Iraq War and occupation. Following the convocation, Prashad will sign copies of his books, which will also be available for purchase at the event at a 15% discount. Prashad's appearance is free and open to the public.
 
The presentation is scheduled to last one hour.  In February 2007, Watada was court-martialed and Judge Toilet (aka John Head) ruled a mistrial over defense objection as the defense was about to present their side (Watada was taking the stand and suddenly Head felt a stipulation both the defense and the prosecution had agreed to, one Head has not only signed off on but explained to the jury, was 'prolbematic,' Watada was prepared to testify, Head stopped the trial).  Due to Judge Toilet's ruling, the Constitution's provision against double-jeopardy should have kicked in.  Judge Toilet immediately announced a new court-martial would take place in March (2007) but, of course, it didn't.  A civilian court found (in November) the double-jeopardy argument compelling and Watada's legal status is currently in limbo.  He continues to report for duty on base despite the fact that his service contract expired in December 2006.  It's long past time for the military to stop their persecution of Watada and discharge him.
 
While he waits, so do US war resisters in Canada who are hoping to be granted safe harbor status and the Canadian Parliament will debate a measure this month on that issue. You can make your voice heard. Three e-mails addresses to focus on are: Prime Minister Stephen Harper (pm@pm.gc.ca -- that's pm at gc.ca) who is with the Conservative party and these two Liberals, Stephane Dion (Dion.S@parl.gc.ca -- that's Dion.S at parl.gc.ca) who is the leader of the Liberal Party and Maurizio Bevilacqua (Bevilacqua.M@parl.gc.ca -- that's Bevilacqua.M at parl.gc.ca) who is the Liberal Party's Critic for Citizenship and Immigration. A few more can be found here at War Resisters Support Campaign. For those in the US, Courage to Resist has an online form that's very easy to use.         

There is a growing movement of resistance within the US military which includes Matt Mishler, Josh Randall, Robby Keller, Justiniano Rodrigues, Chuck Wiley, James Stepp, Rodney Watson, Michael Espinal, Matthew Lowell, Derek Hess, Diedra Cobb, Brad McCall, Justin Cliburn, Timothy Richard, Robert Weiss, Phil McDowell, Steve Yoczik, Ross Spears, Peter Brown, Bethany "Skylar" James, Zamesha Dominique, Chrisopther Scott Magaoay, Jared Hood, James Burmeister, Jose Vasquez, Eli Israel, Joshua Key, Ehren Watada, Terri Johnson, Clara Gomez, Luke Kamunen, Leif Kamunen, Leo Kamunen, Camilo Mejia, Kimberly Rivera, Dean Walcott, Linjamin Mull, Agustin Aguayo, Justin Colby, Marc Train, Abdullah Webster, Robert Zabala, Darrell Anderson, Kyle Snyder, Corey Glass, Jeremy Hinzman, Kevin Lee, Mark Wilkerson, Patrick Hart, Ricky Clousing, Ivan Brobeck, Aidan Delgado, Pablo Paredes, Carl Webb, Stephen Funk, Blake LeMoine, Clifton Hicks, David Sanders, Dan Felushko, Brandon Hughey, Logan Laituri, Jason Marek, Clifford Cornell, Joshua Despain, Joshua Casteel, Katherine Jashinski, Dale Bartell, Chris Teske, Matt Lowell, Jimmy Massey, Chris Capps, Tim Richard, Hart Viges, Michael Blake, Christopher Mogwai, Christian Kjar, Kyle Huwer, Wilfredo Torres, Michael Sudbury, Ghanim Khalil, Vincent La Volpa, DeShawn Reed and Kevin Benderman. In total, at least fifty US war resisters in Canada have applied for asylum.

Information on war resistance within the military can be found at The Objector, The G.I. Rights Hotline [(877) 447-4487], Iraq Veterans Against the War and the War Resisters Support Campaign. Courage to Resist offers information on all public war resisters. Tom Joad maintains a list of known war resisters. In addition, VETWOW is an organization that assists those suffering from MST (Military Sexual Trauma).
 
[. . .]
 
Turning to the US presidential race, this morning on NBC's Today Show, Andrea Mitchell reported  on Barack Obama's speech and remarks yesterday on his mentor, friend, and pastor of 20 years Jeremiah Wright.  Mitchell noted the changes in tone throughout Obama's remarks on Wright since Barack declared his intent to run for the Democratic presidential nomination and noted, "Critis say he should known better" regarding Wright.  On CBS' The Early Show, Bob Schieffer explained, "The question now is will people him?" Him is Barack. Schieffer listed the questions people would be asking such as, "Why didn't he know about all this before? Why didn't he stop going to the church?"; and wondered, "Will this be enough?" Meanwhile Carol Marin (Chicago Sun-Times) noted of Barack, "And he still had nothing new to say, just what he'd said before, that some of Wright's comments 'offended me, and I understand why they have offended the American people'."  Marin observed:

This isn't the first time the campaign has waited out a problem, declining to take a controversy by the horns.  
It took a relentless chorus of Chicago media almost a year to finally get Obama and his people to deliver long-asked-for documents and answer what were, at best, incompletely answered questions about his former friend and now-indicted fund-raiser, Tony Rezko. He finally did so in March.  
There are judgment questions, fair ones, to be asked about Obama's past dealings with controversial people.  

Barack spoke out against Wright only because he was tanking in the polls over Wright and because he was offended by what Wright said of him:
 
What I had heard was that he had given a performance. And I thought at the time that it would be sufficient simply to reiterate what I had said in Philadelphia. Upon watching it, what became clear to me was that it was more than just a -- it was more than just him defending himself. What became clear to me was that he was presenting a world view that -- that -- that contradicts who I am and what I stand for. And what I think particularly angered me was his suggestion somehow that my previous denunciation of his remarks were somehow political posturing. Anybody who knows me and anybody who knows what I'm about knows that -- that I am about trying to bridge gaps and that I see the -- the commonality in all people.
 
Desperado (Houston Chronicle) notes that unanswered questions and the "many different versions of answer" that Barack has provided, before declaring: "A focal point is Wright being "uninvited" to the announcement of Obama's presidential candidacy. In an interview with the New York Times, Wright had this recollection of the disinvitation, from RealClearPolitics:
'Mr. Wright said that in the phone conversation in which Mr. Obama disinvited him from a role in the announcement, Mr. Obama cited an article in Rolling Stone, "The Radical Roots of Barack Obama."  According to the pastor, Mr. Obama then told him, 'You can get kind of rough in the sermons, so what we've decided is that it's best for you not to be out there in public'." The Rolling Stone article was from the February 22. 2007 issue and was entitled 'The Radical Roots of Barack Obama', a title later changed to 'Destiny's Child'".  Dan Balz (Washington Post, link has text and video) notes that US Senator Evan Bayh (Hillary supporter) has warned that the Republicans would try to make an issue of Wright in the general election.  Of course they will.  Last week North Carolina's GOP began running ads on Wright.  John McCain, the presumed GOP nominee, may or may not call for the ads to cease but North Carolina ignored him (as is their right) and others will as well.  The damage isn't just to the top of the ticket if Obama is the Democratic nominee.  The North Carolina GOP targeted Obama supporters.  That will take place across the country in a general election should Obama be the nominee.  The people he has brought in from outside the Democratic Party have proven repeatedly that at least 30% of them are unwilling to vote in other Democratic races -- they show up, vote for him and leave the rest of the ballot blank. That's bad news for every Democratic race in November 2008.  That's before others are smeared for Barack's lack of proper judgement.  (To put it mildly.)  He is a drag on the entire ticket, he runs off the base and his nomination risks the Democratic control of Congress and Democratic state and local offices across the country.  A new CBS News - New York Times poll finds Obama's negatives on the rise and Hillary faring better in a match-up against John McCain.  In 2004, Dems just knew they'd reclaim the White House.  They didn't.  Having reclaimed control of both houses of Congress in 2006, they party needs to smarten up and realize what a drag on the ticket Barack will be.  Wright is not going away, not during the Democratic primary and not, were Barack the nominee, during the primary.  The only way to put the matter to rest is to back the candidate Democrats are overwhelming backing, Hillary Clinton.  CBS and AP report (text and video):
 
Clinton also reiterated her previous remarks about Wright that she would not have stayed in the church after hearing the comments. She said it was up to voters to decide how the controversy over Wright impacts the campaign.  
O'Reilly asked Clinton to describe how she felt "when you hear a fellow American citizen say that kind of stuff about America."  
"Well, I take offense," Clinton said. "I think it's offensive and outrageous. I'm going to express my opinion, others can express theirs. It is part of just, you know, an atmosphere we're in today."  
Meanwhile, Obama was scrambling on Wednesday to put his presidential bid back on track a day after a public denouncing of Wright and both Democratic candidates pushed onward in a nomination struggle that appears to be dividing the party.
 

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Tuesday, April 29, 2008

THIS JUST IN! WRIGHT RESPONDS!

BULLY BOY PRESS & CEDRIC'S BIG MIX -- THE KOOL-AID TABLE.
 
 
JEREMIAH WRIGHT SUMMONED THESE REPORTERS TO A FACE TO FACE MEETING.
 
HE WAIVED AWAY QUESTIONS, CLEARED HIS THROAT AND DECLARED, "I AM OUTRAGED BY THE COMMENTS THAT WERE MADE AND SADDENED OVER THE SPECTACLE THAT WE SAW TODAY.  I HAVE SPENT MY ENTIRE LIFE -- MY ENTIRE LIFE -- TRYING TO BRIDGE THE GAP BETWEEN DIFFERENT KINDS OF PEOPLE.  IT'S WHY I BECAME A PASTOR."
 
"WHAT WE SAW TODAY OUT OF BARACK OBAMA," WRIGHT SAID, "WAS AN EXPLOITATION OF DIVISIONS. WHATEVER HIS INTENTIONS, THAT WAS THE RESULT. AND THAT HAS BEEN THE METHOD OF HIS ENTIRE CAMPAIGN.  IT IS NOT WHAT I THINK AMERICA STANDS FOR."
 
WRIGHT THEN THREW A MAGAZINE AT US, THE NEW REPUBLIC. 
 
"READ SEAN WILENTZ'S 'RACE MAN' AND THEN TELL ME WHO HAS BEEN DIVISIVE! TELL ME WHO HAS BUILT HIS ENTIRE CAMPAIGN ON RACE BAITING!  HE DOES NOT SPEAK FOR ME!"
 
WITH THAT WRIGHT STORMED OUT OF THE ROOM.
 
 

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Monday, April 28, 2008

Wright's blather

BULLY BOY PRESS & CEDRIC'S BIG MIX -- THE KOOL-AID TABLE.
 
THE ROLLOUT BEGAN WITH JEREMIAH WRIGHT BEING SOFT-PATTED BY BILL MOYERS IN A NATIONAL BROADCAST ON FRIDAY.  MOYERS WENT OUT OF HIS WAY TO IGNORE CERTAIN TOPICS, TO GRACE OVER OTHERS AND TO MAKE WRIGHT SEEM NORMAL.  IT WAS JOURNALISTIC PROSTITUTION.
 
AND JOHNS HAVE NO LOYALTY.  AFTER THAT 'UP CLOSE AND PERSONAL' GIBBERISH, JEREMIAH WRIGHT WENT TO TOWN.
 
 
ABOUT THE ONLY THING HE DIDN'T DO WAS WEAR HIS CUTE LITTLE DRESS.
 
WE CAUGHT UP WITH WRIGHT AFTER THE SPEECH AND QUESTION AND ANSWER SESSION.  HE SAID HE WASN'T TOO KEEN ON BEING INTERVIEWED BY ONE OF US ("WHITEY GIVES ME BAD VIBES") BUT AGREED TO TAKE QUESTIONS FROM THE OTHER.
 
DID HE KNOW NATALEE HOLLAWAY?  THE MISSING WOMAN HE SMEARED?  WRIGHT REPEATED AN UNPRINTABLE 'JOKE' ABOUT WHO KNEW MS. HOLLAWAY.  WHEN INFORMED THAT HIS 'JOKE' WAS TASTELESS AND HARDLY SOMETHING ONE EXPECTS FROM A MAN OF THE CLOTH, WRIGHT BEGAN RAGING AND CURSING.
 
TO CALM HIM DOWN, WE ASKED HIM ABOUT HIS DRESS.
 
"I DESIGN THOSE MYSELF!" HE DECLARED, CLEARLY EXCITED BY THE TOPIC.  "I ALWAYS LOVED MU-MUS AND THOUGHT, WHEN MIDDLE AGE SPREAD COMES, THERE'S NOTHING ELSE I WANTED TO WEAR.  THEY'RE BREEZY, FASHIONABLE AND, IF I DO SAY SO MYSELF, VERY SEXY.  MY ASS LOOKS SO GOOD IN THEM.  I CALL THEM MY 'BUTT DRESSES'." 
 
BEFORE WE COULD ASK ANOTHER QUESTION, WRIGHT DECLARED THE INTERVIEW WAS OVER SAYING HE HAD MORE HATE TO SPREAD.
 
 
 
Starting with war resisters.  On Friday Leif Kamunen was arrested.  Who?  The Kamunen brothers first show in the June 4th 2007 snapshot.  Randy Furst (Minneapolis Star Tribune) reported on Luke Kamunen who "began to wonder if he'd made a mistake the moment he arrived for basic training" as did his brother Leif and "Jan. 2, the twins, age 21, and their brother Leo, 20, went AWOL from the Army.  All three failed to return to basic training after Christmas break in northern Minnesota."  Luke had been arrested, "jailed in Carlton Country for a week and then flown to Fort Knox, KY., where he was given an 'other than honorable discharge'."  Joel Bleifuss (In These Times) observed then, "For the Kamunens, blood is thicker than oil.  And they are not alone in knowing that living at home beats dying in Iraq." From the June 13th snapshot:
 
Kim Johnson, Duluth's WDIO, reports on Luke Kamunen who, like his two twin brothers Leo and Leif, self-checked out of the US military on the Christmas break and notes, "The brothers' story is not an isolated one.  In fact, the Department of Defense reports desertions have risen 35 percent in the past two years -- from more than 2,400 in 2004 to about 3,300 in 2006" and notes that Luke Kamunen "was surprised" to encounter many others who had done the same "when he was detained by the military".
 
Now you may be noting MSM outlets plus Joel Bleifuss and that's correct.  Dropping back to the November 9, 2007 snapshot:
 
It's also worth noting that many other resisters went public in the wake of Watada: Darrell Anderson, Agustin Augyo, Kyle Snyder, Mark Wilcox, Ricky Clousing and . . . stop there.  Stop there and don't continue because that's how All Things Media Big and Small, with every few exceptions, have treated 2007's crop of war resisters.  Despite the fact that 2007 is set to be a record year -- according to the military's own official numbers -- for war resistance, emerging war resisters fell off the media map.  James Burmeister was the strongest example.  Either you followed Canadian media or you caught NOW with David Brancaccio  or you didn't have a clue.  Too bad for everyone because the last week of September "kill teams" (US service members setting out equpiment as traps to shoot Iraqis) would become a huge story but Burmeister was telling the story when he went public in June of 2007.  Eli Israel would remain "Eli Who?" to All Things Media Big and Small despite the fact that he became the first war resister resisting publicly while stationed in Iraq.  The Kamunen brothers?  In These Times could find them when no one else in independent media could or would.  The mainstream media showed some interest because three brothers -- Leo, Leif and Luke -- all electing to self-checkout over the same Christmas 2006 holiday was news . . . to some.
 
That was true then and it's true now.  War resisters going public in 2007 (Class of 2007) were completely ignored by Panhandle Media and that hasn't changed a bit -- not even when they try to sell a really bad 'book' (just out this month, and already stinking up shelves) that claims how much they care about "standing up" and covering war resisters.  Yeah, we're talking Amy Goodman and today's program continues her long, long silence on the Kamunen brothers.  Will the silence be unbroken, Amy, will the silence be unbroken?  It takes a lot of nerve to hype your cut and paste 'book' on the backs of war resisters when you refused to cover anyone emerging in months.  (It starts with Ivan Brobeck -- see "The Full Brobeck" -- who turned himself in on election day 2006 and Goody had no time for her.  She would later interview Kyle Snyder -- on the run at the time -- but Snyder had already been discussed on the program, by an attorney, before The Full Brobeck.)  Since November 2006, Amy Goodman has not introduced any new war resister to her audience (and, let's be clear, that's not due to the fact that she's been chatting non-stop with Ehren Watada -- she's not been.  In fact, she 'covered' Watada's Feb. 2007 court-martial by broadcasting a video report made by Truthout and posted at Truthout.  Goody's had other things to do.  So she misses Eli Israel (the first service member to publicly resist while stationed in Iraq), James Burmeister (who remember has turned himself in), Skylar James, Ross Spears, Brad McCall . . .  It's a long, long list.  War resistance didn't stop -- only the coverage did.
 
Over the weekend (Friday, 11:29 p.m.), Randy Furst (Minnesota Star Tribune) reported that
 Leif was arrested "when he and his girlfriend pulled out of the Cartlon driveway on Friday morning in her grandfather's red Tacoma pickup truck.  His girlfriend, Angela Martini, said that Leif, 22, had gotten wind the military was after him and was planning to turn himself in to an Army office in Duluth after being AWOL for nearly 16 months." AP notes: "Leif Kamunen's girlfriend, Angela Martini, told the Star Tribune of Minneapolis on Friday that Leif had assumed that the Army would not have him arrested. She said he had spoken with someone in the Army last year who told him there was nothing in the Army computer about him and he should just go about living his life."
 
Meanwhile, in Canada, many US war resisters are currently hoping to be granted safe harbor status and the Canadian Parliament will debate a measure this month on that issue. You can make your voice heard. Three e-mails addresses to focus on are: Prime Minister Stephen Harper (pm@pm.gc.ca -- that's pm at gc.ca) who is with the Conservative party and these two Liberals, Stephane Dion (Dion.S@parl.gc.ca -- that's Dion.S at parl.gc.ca) who is the leader of the Liberal Party and Maurizio Bevilacqua (Bevilacqua.M@parl.gc.ca -- that's Bevilacqua.M at parl.gc.ca) who is the Liberal Party's Critic for Citizenship and Immigration. A few more can be found here at War Resisters Support Campaign. For those in the US, Courage to Resist has an online form that's very easy to use.         

There is a growing movement of resistance within the US military which includes Matt Mishler, Josh Randall, Robby Keller, Justiniano Rodrigues, Chuck Wiley, James Stepp, Rodney Watson, Michael Espinal, Matthew Lowell, Derek Hess, Diedra Cobb, Brad McCall, Justin Cliburn, Timothy Richard, Robert Weiss, Phil McDowell, Steve Yoczik, Ross Spears, Peter Brown, Bethany "Skylar" James, Zamesha Dominique, Chrisopther Scott Magaoay, Jared Hood, James Burmeister, Jose Vasquez, Eli Israel, Joshua Key, Ehren Watada, Terri Johnson, Clara Gomez, Luke Kamunen, Leif Kamunen, Leo Kamunen, Camilo Mejia, Kimberly Rivera, Dean Walcott, Linjamin Mull, Agustin Aguayo, Justin Colby, Marc Train, Abdullah Webster, Robert Zabala, Darrell Anderson, Kyle Snyder, Corey Glass, Jeremy Hinzman, Kevin Lee, Mark Wilkerson, Patrick Hart, Ricky Clousing, Ivan Brobeck, Aidan Delgado, Pablo Paredes, Carl Webb, Stephen Funk, Blake LeMoine, Clifton Hicks, David Sanders, Dan Felushko, Brandon Hughey, Logan Laituri, Jason Marek, Clifford Cornell, Joshua Despain, Joshua Casteel, Katherine Jashinski, Dale Bartell, Chris Teske, Matt Lowell, Jimmy Massey, Chris Capps, Tim Richard, Hart Viges, Michael Blake, Christopher Mogwai, Christian Kjar, Kyle Huwer, Wilfredo Torres, Michael Sudbury, Ghanim Khalil, Vincent La Volpa, DeShawn Reed and Kevin Benderman. In total, at least fifty US war resisters in Canada have applied for asylum.

Information on war resistance within the military can be found at The Objector, The G.I. Rights Hotline [(877) 447-4487], Iraq Veterans Against the War and the War Resisters Support Campaign. Courage to Resist offers information on all public war resisters. Tom Joad maintains a list of known war resisters. In addition, VETWOW is an organization that assists those suffering from MST (Military Sexual Trauma).
 
[. . .]
 
Turning to an idiot.  Natalee Holloway (not the idiot) is a young woman who disappeared in Aruba and has never been found.  Her parents are hopeful that she'll be found.  Keep that in mind while you read this: "One 18-year-old white girl from Alabama gets drunk on a graduation trip to Aruba, goess off and 'gives it up' while in a foreign country, and that stays in the news for months! Maybe I am missing something!" The brains to butt the hell out of a tragedy instead of using it for your own cheap gain, instead of talking smutty and thinking you're cute.  That trash being quoted?  Jeremiah Wright.  He is trash and he owes the Holloway family a public apology.  And Barack Obama needs to condemn very loudly this nonsense.  But he won't.  He never does.  It's why he keeps being asked about Wright.  Bill Moyers was happy to gloss over facts while sitting down with Wright last week.  As Ava and I noted, Natalee's name wasn't once raised by Bill Moyers. "Garlic noses" wasn't raised by Bill either. Nor did Moyers explore Wright's claim that AIDS was a government plot to destroy African-Americans.  We did get to find out that Wright and Moyers are both idiots who believe the Jewish faith includes the New Testament.  We did get to hear Wright express disgust of sodomy.  We got to hear the allegedly 'educated' man reject a slogan that doesn't exist ("My government right or wrong" -- he meant "My country right or wrong"), It was all a lot of nonsense.  Joan Walsh (Salon) addresses the damning of America here as well as Wright's comparing the attacks on 9-11 to a slave rebellion.  On the program and in the near constant press since, Wright's described himself as lynched, crucified, and just about everything you can think of.  To buy any of that, you'd have to believe the greatest victim of Wright's trashy and hateful mouth is Jeremiah Wright.  William Branigin (Washington Post) reports that Wright appears to now be questioning Dick Cheney's patriotism.  While the president of vice is greedy, questioning his patriotism hardly seems the way to win people over to your side.  Dana Milbank (Washington Post) evaluates today's performance at the National Press Club, "It seemed as if Wright, jokingly offering himself as Obama's vice president, was actually trying to doom Obama; a member of the head table, American Urban Radio's April Ryan, confirmed that Wright's security was provided by bodyguards from Farrakhan's Nation of Islam" and Milbank picks that performance as the one people may point back to "months from now" if Obama's campaign tanks. Milbank also notes that Wright "renewed his belief that the government created AIDS as a means of genocide against people of color".  Larry Johnson (No Quarter) weighs in on Wright here.  Obama has his other problems including stabbing every supporter in the back on Fox "News" yesterday.  The best take on that is also the funniest, VastLeft (Corrente) has transcribed the conversation with editorial comments.
 
Former President Bill Clinton is on the campaign trail of Senator Hillary Clinton.  Scott Zumwalt (HillaryClinton.com) notes Bill Clinton's trip to Oregon resulted in over 10,000 Oregonians turning out.  Toby Harnden (Telegraph of London) quotes Bill Clinton on why Barack Obama refuses to debate her, "I think I know the answer to the question why only one candidate wants to debate, because I saw the debate in Pennsylvania.  And afterwards, 41 per cent of the voters watched it, and by 52 per cent to 22 per cent they said Hillary won." Lexi Cribbs has a photo essay of Hillary campaigning in Jacksonville, North Carolina.  We'll close with this from Howard Wolfson's "MEMO: Economic Leadership = Jobs, Jobs, Jobs:"
 
Hillary Clinton's economic leadership has been key to her victories in Ohio and Pennsylvania and will be the focus of her campaign in the run-up to the Indiana and North Carolina primaries.
As today's New York Times reports, Senator Clinton is demonstrating her leadership on core economic issues by laying out the boldest and most specific plan to help create jobs of any candidate in this race -- and she is the only candidate with comprehensive proposals to reduce our dependence on foreign fuels in the long run and provide relief for consumers in the short term.
Today, she will unveil a plan to suspend the gas tax paid for out of oil company profits in order to give drivers price relief during the upcoming peak driving months of summer.  Unlike Senator McCain, Senator Clinton's plan is paid for and will not raid the highway trust fund. Senator Clinton also has the most detailed, comprehensive trade agenda to ensure that trade is not a race to the bottom and has a bold housing agenda that would freeze foreclosures and create a moratorium on subprime resets.  And she would take away $55 billion in special interest tax breaks and put that money back in the pockets of middle class Americans.
While Senator Obama retools his stump speech to reach middle and working class voters, Senator Clinton is going to continue doing what she has successfully done in Ohio and Pennsylvania -- reach out to those Americans who work hard for a living and need a champion in the White House to help them in this difficult economy.
 
Actually, one more thing.  NOW on PBS has won the 3008 Edward R. Murrow Award for Best TV Documentary for their investigative report "Child Brides: Stolen Lives" which was reported by Senior Correspondent Maria Hinojosa.  The episode can be viewed online here.  So congratulations to NOW on PBS, Hinojosa and everyone else working on the half-hour program which airs on Friday nights on most PBS stations (check local listings).

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