Bloodless Obama makes some wistful for Bush

Telegraph UK

More serious perhaps was Mr Obama's strange disconnectedness over the Fort Hood massacre of 13 soldiers by an Army major and devout Muslim who opposed the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, had praised suicide bombing and shouted "Allahu Akbar" as he opened fire.

Maybe Mr Obama had been reading the American press, much of which somehow contrived to present the atrocity as a result of combat stress due to soldiers going on repeated war deployments (though Major Nadal Hasan had not been on any) and therefore, no doubt, Mr Bush's fault.

When the television networks cut to the President, viewers listened to him spend more than two surreal minutes talking to a gathering of Native Americans about their "extraordinary" and "extremely productive" conference, pausing to give a cheery "shout out" to a man named Dr Joe Medicine Crow. Only then did he briefly and mechanically address what had happened in Texas.

On Friday, when most of the basic facts were available, Mr Obama tried again. It was scarcely any better. He began by offering "an update on the tragedy that took place" - as if it was an earthquake and not a terrorist attack from an enemy within - and ended with a promise for more "updates in the coming days and weeks". 

Completely missing was the eloquence that Mr Obama employs when talking about himself. Absent too was any sense that the President empathised with the families and comrades of those murdered.

George W. Bush Secretly Visits Fort Hood Victims
The Bushes entered and departed the sprawling military facility in secret, having told the base commander they did not want press coverage of their visit, a source told Fox News.  

So while the president usurper relaxes at Camp David at our expense, former President Bush and his wife spend time giving to soldiers of their time, prayers, and emotional energy. Hmmm, now there's class.

President Bush's Impeachment Hearing

D-OH Rep. Dennis Kucinich has tirelessly brought constitutional matters before the body. He is undeterred by the fact that his colleagues in Congress do not want to listen to him. Kucinich stands for truth, the Constitution, and integrity of the process, and for that reason I consider him a modern-day hero.

"Only one Congressman had the personal courage and the profound respect for our Constitution to stand on the floor of the House of Representatives and exercise his right and his responsibility to bring Articles of Impeachment against President George W. Bush - Ohio Representative Dennis J. Kucinich."

"Now, Americans who cherish our Democracy and the Constitutional principles upon which it was founded can stand up, speak out, and take action by signing the one official petition that carries the full and unqualified support of the one and only original sponsor of the impeachment resolution: Congressman Dennis J. Kucinich."

I watched 5 hours of the impeachment hearings held yesterday in the House's Judiciary Committee room. And it was excellent and thrilling. It was admitted even from staunch Bush supporters that there are impeachable offenses rising to the level of High Crimes and Misdemeanors. Several contended that there have been criminal acts, with existing weight of evidence for prosecution.

In May 2007 Kucinich presented articles of impeachment regarding Vice President Cheney but they were sent to the House Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights, and Civil Liberties and there they languished into oblivion.

Last year, CNN wrote: "Kucinich introduced a resolution to impeach VP Dick Cheney. But in November when Republicans tried to force a debate on the move, the attempt failed. Democrats voted to send the resolution to the House Judiciary Committee, where committee chairman Rep. John Conyers has taken no action on it.

This June 2008, Rep. Kucinich offered Bush impeachment articles from the floor of the House, reading them into the record. From there, the matter languished.

On July 10, Kucinich offered one article, and this time the matter was sent to the House Judiciary Committee for consideration!

The deliberations occurred yesterday and I watched them all on C-SPAN
The Committee heard testimony from its members. They heard testimony from Rep. Kucinich. They heard from expert witnesses in their field. John Dean was supposed to testify but illness kept him home. Instead, he wrote a legal treatise on the subject. Below, find some of the quotes from that five hour discussion.

Libertarian candidate for President, and former member of the Judiciary Committee Bob Barr: "There is a systemic problem. I think history will bear this out, that every Administration takes its power from the previous Administration and considers that a floor, not a ceiling. We must stop this upward trend."

Former Chief Counsel Frederick A.O. Schwartz: "In our zeal to protect ourselves, we have employed the very same tactics employed by our enemy. Regarding torture: We prosecuted Japanese soldiers for waterboarding American soldiers in WWII."

Bob Barr: "Might I enter into the record the disappearing Bill of Rights."

Constitutional Law Attorney Bruce Fein: "This Administration is extra-monarchical because this Administration claims more powers than King George III ever did."

Rep. Dennis Kucinich: "Iraq is the main contributing factor to the destruction of the US economy."

D-Minn Rep. Keith Ellison: "Powers abused are powers lost. We could end up with an Imperial Presidency."

D-NC Rep. Brad Miller: "Excessive control of information is incompatible with a democracy."

President of High Roads for Human Rights Ross Anderson: "It's not about waiting for the goodwill of the next president to restrain himself. It's our duty to act."

It IS our duty to act, because the government rests with We the People. Click over to Rep. Kucinich's site and sign the petition. Find your Congressman here and call or write to state your opinion. The MainStreamNews did not cover these important discussions yesterday, and the few that mentioned them briefly distorted the issue. This alternative news article closely matches what I saw. Having attempted to depict this issue as the venting of a few disgruntleds, the news failed to mention that the Committee Judiciary room was packed, and there was not one but two overflow rooms, with hundreds making the trip to Congress to listen in person. And countless more watching live on C-SPAN, which covered the discussion in its entirety and then repeated the deliberations in their entirety later that evening. The blogs and forums are alive with the sound of passion for truth. Yet, if relying on traditional news outlets, one would never know this groundswell is occurring.

The Constitution gives us the right to petition the Government for a redress of grievances. It's up to us.

Compare and contrast

As the US and the world economy teeters on thin ice, the effects are not only felt but are seen. In California, foreclosures are up 327% over 2007. Where do all those people go? Tent City.

ONTARIO, Calif. -- Each day at an Ontario homeless encampment, hundreds of people line up for meals or whatever food local churches and volunteers may bring. "They're in a survival mode," said volunteer Paul Varner." During the last six months, more than 400 homeless people have pitched tents near Ontario Airport, creating a "tent city" that sprawls across vacant lots and side streets.

While Americans are giving up luxuries like homes and food and going into 'survival mode', George W. Bush unveils the hardships he has been through during his tenure saying that he had to give up email .

For the ninth straight week, gas has smashed the previous week's record prices and is now at $127 per barrel. While Americans at home suffer economic woes and soldiers abroad arrive in caskets, President Bush in solidarity with American soldiers at war,

made his own sacrifice: giving up golf.







I'm sure these guys appreciate the gesture.

You know you've done a horrible job when...

...they want to rename a sewage plant after you.

"A group called the Presidential Memorial Commission of San Francisco has launched a ballot initiative that would rename a city sewage treatment plant the 'George W. Bush Sewage Plant.'"

The mayor thinks the idea stinks.

The story goes on--"Virginia-born activist and ordained minister John Rinaldi, a co-sponsor of the petition who ran unsuccessfully for mayor last year under his nickname "Chicken John," said the initiative would turn "every toilet in San Francisco into basically a shrine for George W. Bush and all his great achievements in his eight years as our commander in chief."

The petition organizers sure are are flush with pride. I think the whole thing is too punny for words.

A spoofalist video for your Bushisms speechafying enjoyment

On Bush, Carter, and Fratto's retort

I read an article from the Associated Press this morning “White House Hits Back at Carter Remarks.” This was a response to former President Jimmy Carter’s stated opinion of current President Bush’s foreign policy administration as “the worst in history.” No matter what one thinks of President Bush, no matter what one thinks of President Carter, no matter what one thinks of what Carter said about Bush, I was disappointed to hear the retort made by White House spokesman Tony Fratto. Fratto said, "And I think he [Carter] is proving to be increasingly irrelevant with these kinds of comments."

It was a not so subtle dig at Carter’s age. Unfortunately, 'irrelevant’ is how many people in America view older people. What a shame that the man who speaks for the leader of the free world characterizes 83-year old vital, Nobel Peace prize winning humanitarian-statesman-author Jimmy Carter as “irrelevant,” and during Older Americans Month no less. This is the best that Bush's people could come up with? Here is a sample response which Mr. Fratto can feel free to use:

"While we respect President's Carter's contributions on the world stage, we are saddened to hear of his opinion of this Administration's work on behalf of the American people."

Or:

"We have no comment to make about any one particular opinion but we respect the individual's right to speak their opinions freely here in America even as we remember that those same rights are denied to others in foreign lands."

Is that so hard?