Recent Poll: Support for War Continues to Fall
When asked how the Iraq war is going, 74% of all participants say badly and 25% say well. Even among Republicans, 50% say the war is going badly and 49% say it's going well. Overall, 61% of the participants say war-funding should be tied to a timetable for troop withdrawal. (CBS/NYT)
Seventh and Final Harry Potter Book Released
See BNPolitics' review of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (written by Damozel, spoilers included).
WaPo Editorial Blamed Reid for Polarizing Congress re: Iraq?
And here I thought Congress (and most Americans) were polarized over the Iraq war long before Harry Reid became Senate Majority Leader earlier this year (Washington Post and BNPolitics). Go figure.
Senate Republicans Blocked Vote on Troop Withdrawal
Majority Leader Harry Reid staged an all-night debate over withdrawal of troops from Iraq, a political maneuver intended to force Republican colleagues to go on record as either supporting or opposing the current strategy in Iraq (Truthout). Even the four senior Republicans who publicly criticized bush's stay-the-course strategy over the last few weeks voted against letting the bill come to a vote. See roll call vote.
President Protects Insurance Companies at Childrens' Expense
Oddly, President Bush was actually candid about his motives. (BNPolitics)
Pentagon Aide Dodged Questions & Flipped-Off Senator
Responding to a letter from Senator Hillary Clinton to his boss asking about the Pentagon's plans for (one day) withdrawing troops from Iraq, Under-Secretary of Defense Eric Edelman failed to answer the questions and implied that Clinton's mere asking them was aiding our enemies. Later, Defense Secretary Robert Gates tried to smooth things over. Maybe Gates should have responded to Clinton's letter in the first place, instead of delegating to a tactless underling. (BNPolitics and WaPo)
Bush Exercises Executive Privilege & Middle Finger
The White House's legal team is trying a new argument re: Congress's talk of filing contempt charges over Bush's refusal to comply with subpoenas for info re: the fired U.S. Attorney scandal. The argument is basically this: the Justice Department can't pursue contempt of Congress charges after the president claims executive privilige. (Wapo and BNPolitics) Borrowed from Justice Departments past, the argument has not yet been ruled on by a court. If a court makes that argument a precedent, then Bush and future presidents may be able to avoid accountability to Congress and the public simply by claiming executive privilege. Damozel has a great round up of blogger opinions on this.
Court Dismissed Plame's Case Against Cheney (et. al.)
A court found that because Plame's husband publicly accused Bush of twisting pre-war intelligence, it was a normal part of White House staffers' job to refute Plames husband -- which they did by blowing Plames cover as a secret CIA agent (BNPolitics). I didn't grasp the logic either.
Underground Steam Pipe Exploded in Midtown Manhattan
Near Grand Central Station, the explosion came up from under the road, ripping pavement and creating a crater about 35 feet in diameter. (NYT) People in the gym of a hotel just a block away reported that the explosion shook the building enough that they feared the building would fall.
Comments