Monday’s Mini-Report

February 26, 2007

Today’s edition of quick hits.

* The United Nations has heard the Bush administration’s evidence against a Middle Eastern foe, and finds it unpersuasive. If this sounds familiar, it’s because it’s happened twice — now and four years ago.

* TP: “When Senate leaders first announced their intention to revoke the 2002 Iraq war authorization, they said they planned to attach their legislation to a homeland security bill being debated this week. Thanks to Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-CT), who is the chairman of the homeland security committee, that apparently won’t be happening.”

* Strom Thurmond’s family owned Al Sharpton’s family. “I couldn’t describe the emotions that I’ve had over the last two or three days thinking about this,” Sharpton said at a news conference. “Everything from anger and outrage to reflection, and to some pride and glory.”

* The White House press operation apparently doesn’t remember 2002, so it has no idea that the U.N. did not authorize the Bush administration to invade Iraq. How sad.

* Gen. Peter Schoomaker, the Army chief of staff, on Osama bin Laden: “I don’t know whether we’ll find him. I don’t know that it’s all that important, frankly…. So we get him, and then what? There’s a temporary feeling of goodness, but in the long run, we may make him bigger than he is today.” No wonder Schoomaker enjoys such strong support from the president.

* Senate Dems picked up seven GOP votes on anti-escalation resolution two weeks ago, but some — including Chuck Hagel — won’t back a Dem effort to revisit the 2002 war authorization resolution.

* To hear Fox News’ John Gibson tell it, reporters who believe the war in Iraq deserves more media attention than Anna Nicole Smith are “snobs.” I don’t think he was kidding.

* Iraqi President Jalal Talabani fell ill on Sunday and was flown to Jordan for medical attention. If Iraq is doing so well, why did its president have to leave the country to receive care?

* John Solomon continues his misleading ways.

* Mockery of Falwell and Robertson is always good. Mockery of Falwell and Robertson on Family Guy is even better.

* Greatest Headline Ever: “Librarian Censorship of Scrotum is Just Nuts.”

* Follow this one: the WaPo slammed Murtha’s “readiness strategy,” then polled on it, then found that most Americans support it, and then neglected to mention the poll results. Got it.

* On Fox News, pollster Pat Caddell, a critic of Democrats, declared, “If [Sen.] Barack Obama [D-IL] was out there saying, ‘Vote for me because I’m black,’ or … [Gov.] Bill Richardson [D-NM] said, ‘Vote for me because I’m a Hispanic,’ people would hang them high.” Note to Fox News guests: talk of racial minorities and “hangings” don’t mix.

* And in case Dick Morris hadn’t humiliated himself enough already, it turns out the state of Connecticut has found that Morris owes over $280,000 in back taxes and has been on the state’s list of tax delinquents for years. A class act, all the way.

If none of these items are of interest, consider this an end-of-the-day open thread.

“I don’t know whether we’ll find him. I don’t know that it’s all that important, frankly…. ”

I can think of 3,000 reasons why it’s important bin Laden be brought to justice.

  • ***Darth Lieberman***

    Wouldn’t it be awful if some Republican Senator—one from a state with a Democratic governor—just keeled over and died one day? Joe would suddenly find himself sitting in a “spayed-and-neutered” committee chair. Reid could ram home all the attachments his heart desires, and the DINO from Connecticut couldn’t do a thing about it….

  • “A class act, all the way.” D’ya suppose Morris did it to distract us from his well-publicized fondness for sucking the toes of prostitutes.

  • “A class act, all the way.” D’ya suppose Morris did it to distract us from his well-publicized fondness for sucking the toes of prostitutes.
    Comment by Ed Stephan

    🙂 Toes might be the cleanest part of a protitute. I wonder if old class-act holds out a pinky when he suckles. I woder ifthis is what McCain means when he says, what’s wrong with sucking up to everyone. I bet Rep politicians have more self-hate per person than prostitutes do.

  • Wrt the Thurmond/Sharpton story, it’s a bizarrely amusing coincidence, but only that. Perhaps even ironic, in an Alanis Morrisette kinda way. But “the most shocking” news of Sharpton’s life?

    Now, if Strom’s predilection for diddling the help was a long-standing family tradition & Sharpton was related to Thurmond, that would be a story! (& ironic in a non-Alanis Morrisette kinda way)

  • Guili’s favorite movie.

    Former Mayor Rudy Giuliani, R-New York: “The Godfather” (1972) — “The aging patriarch of an organized crime dynasty transfers control of his clandestine empire to his reluctant son.”

    Hey Raff I’m sure they share some of the same blood and genes.Slavers weren’t exactly into women’s rights. Strom was almost old enough to have gotten in on some of that multiple wife action in 1897.

  • I wonder if the “scholars” and religionist who claim that Cameron did NOT find Jesus’ tomb, would be so sure if it had been empty.

  • the news that al sharpton’s great-great-great whatever was once owned by strom thurmond’s grandfather is about as relevant as the fact that mitt romney’s family tree contains polygamists, i.e., not at all.

  • * Iraqi President Jalal Talabani fell ill on Sunday and was flown to Jordan for medical attention. If Iraq is doing so well, why did its president have to leave the country to receive care? — CB

    Because he’s a Sunni and wouldn’t dare enter a Shia-run hospital?

  • Aaarrrggghhhh, you beat me to it, mellowjohn. I guess all that’s left is to cancel Easter.

    🙂

  • People at the White House have been telling that myth about the UN approving the attack on Iraq for so long they probably believe it by now.

  • Off Topic Question:

    Is it just me, or does anybody else think the set of CNN’s “Situation Room” is really horrible, that it has a seasickness-inducing movement, and gives the impression (with all the red) of being like that old Raquel Welch movie where a group is miniaturized and injected into a human body? Or like Wolf is in an abattoir?

  • My favorite headline came from WVU’s student newspaper back in the early 70’s: “Joint Committee to Consider Decriminalizing Marijuana.”

  • At the risk of stating the obvious, this ‘getting bin Laden doesn’t matter’ line is nothing but a transparent rationalization for our failure to get him.

    Getting Zarqawi mattered. Getting Saddam mattered. Executing Saddam mattered. Getting Uday and Qusay Hussein mattered. Loading up Gitmo with questionable suspects matters. Data mining and torture and extraordinary renditions matter.

    Bin Laden? Not important enough to close the net when they had him cornered. WTF?

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