Intelligence failure = voting for Bush

Once again we find that Bush's assertions that he invaded Iraq on the best intelligence available at the time are shameless, odious lies.

During an interview with the Committee, John Gibson, who served as Director of Speechwriting for Foreign Policy at the National Security Council (NSC), stated that he tried to insert the uranium claim into this speech at the request of Michael Gerson, chief White House speechwriter, and Robert Joseph, the Senior Director for Proliferation Strategy, Counterproliferation, and Homeland Defense at the NSC. According to Mr. Gibson, the CIA rejected the uranium claim because it was "not sufficiently reliable to include it in the speech." Mr. Gibson stated that the CIA "didn't give that blessing," the "CIA was not willing to clear that language," and "[a]t the end of the day, they did not clear it."

...

According to Ms. Miscik, the CIA's reasons for rejecting the uranium claim "had been conveyed to the NSC counterparts" before the call, and Dr. Rice was "getting on the phone call with that information." Ms. Miscik told Dr. Rice personally that the CIA was "recommending that it be taken out." She also said "[i]t turned out to be a relatively short phone call" because "we both knew what the issues were and therefore were able to get to a very easy resolution of it."

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"Woo! Hooray for science!"

The Obama administration might get it:

In a sign that President-elect Barack Obama intends to elevate science to greater prominence, John P. Holdren, a Harvard physicist widely recognized for his leadership on energy policy and climate change, will be appointed White House science adviser this weekend, the Globe confirmed yesterday.

...

The news, coming in the same week as Nobel laureate physicist Steven Chu's appointment as secretary of energy, was heartening for the scientific community.

Many scientists have objected to the Bush administration's policies, from restrictions on embryonic stem cell research to the pace of action on climate change.

"I think they'll be restoring the role of science in the federal establishment," said Alden Meyer, director of strategy and policy for the Union of Concerned Scientists, a Cambridge-based advocacy organization. "We've got a bunch of people across the [new] administration who get it."

In 2004, Holdren joined other prominent scientists to sign a letter accusing the Bush administration of undermining and censoring scientists.

"When scientific knowledge has been found to be in conflict with its political goals, the administration has often manipulated the process through which science enters into its decisions," the letter said.

Holdren, who was an adviser to the Obama campaign and a member of a scientific advisory committee to President Bill Clinton, is a specialist on energy, climate change, and nuclear proliferation.

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Recognizing reality is un-American

I'm pretty sure that's what Dobbs is trying to say:

No matter what the fearmongers tell you, however, we are not -- and I've said it, and I've said it, and I've said it -- we're not going to fall into recession into this -- in this country. We are going to probably go through one of the most painful recessions in our country's modern history, but we are not going to fall in depression, and you and I and all independent thinkers have got to keep our heads up, our eyes clear, avoid the nonsense and the herds, and deal with reality as it comes at us. That's what made this country great. It's what will maintain its greatness, and that is you and I sticking to our nation's founding ideals, and making certain that we are "can do" in our outlook, and not just going along with the crowd and the nonsense.

Ah, yes, the ostrich theory of economics. As long as we blind ourselves to any problems, we can't fail!

Well, you know, we're all concerned. We're all worried. Anyone paying attention is concerned and worried, but are you scared? Are you afraid? No. That's un-American.

Is it now? Somebody ought to tell the Republicans that so they can stop with their fear-mongering.
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Uh, wow

Matt Yglesias highlights a single paragraph of an editorial in the Wall Street Journal:

What Democrats have done, in essence, is to insert an unelected judiciary into the wartime chain of command. As Mr. Kelly notes, this is producing a "lack of accountability" and "the lack of transparency into the inner workings of the FISA process." If some faceless FISA judge denies a surveillance request from Mr. Kelly and New Yorkers die as a result, that judge will answer to no one. Under current FISA rules, we won't even know who that judge is.

I'm not sure I can even count the number of levels on which this is wrong or bone-headed. It's saying that unelected judges are bad in wartime, apparently unaware that the military itself is not elected. The people setting these wiretaps are unelected and faceless, and now so are their victims, since they don't even have to say who they're spying on. None of that seems to bother them.

And the idea that having judicial oversight--any judicial oversight, no matter how watered down now--means a "lack of accountability" is just... it's mind-boggling. Apparently letting unknown and unaccountable people spy on anyone they want for no reason whatsoever leads to more accountability and transparency than having a judge oversee requests to spy on people. How the hell could this possibly make any sense to anyone?
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It was bound to happen

Representative Ros-Lehtinen received a phone call from President-Elect Barack Obama. And hung up on him.

When President-elect Barack Obama called Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen at her South Florida district office Wednesday, she hung up on him.

"I thought: 'Why would Obama want to call a little slug on the planet like me?' " Ros-Lehtinen said.

A short time later, Rahm Emanuel, Obama's designated chief of staff, called. Ros-Lehtinen hung up on him, too.

"I thought it was one of the radio stations in South Florida playing an incredible, elaborate, terrific prank on me," Ros-Lehtinen said. "They got Fidel Castro to go along. They've gotten Hugo Chavez and others to fall for their tricks. I said, 'Oh, no, I won't be punked'."

...

A man, who Ros-Lehtinen said sounded like Obama, got on the line and congratulated her on her reelection and said he was looking forward to working with her as the ranking Republican member of the House Foreign Affairs committee.

The conversation lasted just a minute when Ros-Lehtinen cut Obama off, telling him she wasn't falling for the hoax and that he was a better impersonator than the guy on Saturday Night Live.

Then Emanuel called, and she hung up on him. It finally took Rep. Howard Berman, chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee, to persuade Ros-Lehtinen that the president-elect indeed wanted to talk to her.

"I asked Howard to tell me a private joke we share about colleagues in the House to make sure it really was him," Ros-Lehtinen said. "When he did, I realized it was the real deal."

Ros-Lehtinen said she then told Berman: "I know this sounds very presumptuous, but please tell President-elect Obama he can call me now and I will take his call."

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Dammit New York!

I shouldn't be surprised when a politician decides not to follow up on a campaign promise, but this really irks me:

After a pledge from New York Democratic leaders that their party would legalize same-sex marriage if they won control of the State Senate this year, money from gay rights supporters poured in from across the country, helping cinch a Democratic victory.

But now, party leaders have sent strong signals that they may not take up the issue during the 2009 legislative session. Some of them suggest it may be wise to wait until 2011 before considering it, in hopes that Democrats can pick up more Senate seats and Gov. David A. Paterson, a strong backer of gay rights, would then be safely into a second term.

..

Mr. Smith, speaking about same-sex marriage at a fund-raiser for the Empire State Pride Agenda last year, was emphatic, saying, "We're going to make sure that happens in '08, when we take over the majority." He now avoids questions on the topic and instead gives a standard reply about the need to focus on the economy when asked about it.

Asked about when Mr. Paterson would like to see the Senate vote, the governor's communications director, Risa B. Heller, said, "For now and the immediate future we are focused on the state's fiscal situation."

Some people think it might not be feasible to pass the law now, rather than just be politically unwise to try:

Some Democrats are not even confident they have the 32 votes necessary to pass a same-sex marriage bill in the Senate.

The Democratic-led Assembly passed the measure last year by a sizable margin, but the Republican-controlled Senate declined to bring it to the floor for a vote.

And with a messy fight under way over who should be Senate majority leader — a fight threatening to fracture the thin Democratic Senate majority — even typically outspoken supporters of gay rights have become more measured about the issue.

...

Despite the fact that Democrats will hold 32 of the 62 Senate seats in the next legislative session, three dissident Democrats have not pledged their support for the would-be majority leader, Malcolm A. Smith. One of those senators, Rub&eacut;n D&iacut;az Sr., has specifically said he would not support a majority leader who would allow a same-sex marriage bill to come to the floor.

Grumph.
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You wouldn't think this would be constitutional

Oh, Kentucky. What are we to do with you?

Under state law, God is Kentucky's first line of defense against terrorism.

The 2006 law organizing the state Office of Homeland Security lists its initial duty as "stressing the dependence on Almighty God as being vital to the security of the Commonwealth."

Specifically, Homeland Security is ordered to publicize God's benevolent protection in its reports, and it must post a plaque at the entrance to the state Emergency Operations Center with an 88-word statement that begins, "The safety and security of the Commonwealth cannot be achieved apart from reliance upon Almighty God."

State Rep. Tom Riner, a Southern Baptist minister, tucked the God provision into Homeland Security legislation as a floor amendment that lawmakers overwhelmingly approved two years ago.

As amended, Homeland Security's religious duties now come before all else, including its distribution of millions of dollars in federal grants and its analysis of possible threats.

The time and energy spent crediting God are appropriate, said Riner, D-Louisville, in an interview this week.

"This is recognition that government alone cannot guarantee the perfect safety of the people of Kentucky," Riner said. "Government itself, apart from God, cannot close the security gap. The job is too big for government."

So we should hope that God will do it for us? If he wanted to, wouldn't he do it whether or not we passed a law saying he would?

And really, why is protecting our state too big a job for the government? What is included in that duty that is beyond them? Just because you're too incompetent to do your job, and therefore have to leave it to your fairy god father, that doesn't mean that nobody is capable of doing it.

Anywho, I went on to Kentucky's website and did a search for "Almighty God" in the revised statutes, and got these two hits (warning--both PDFs): this appears to be the legislation referred to in the article. Entitled "Kentucky Office of Homeland Security executive director -- Duties -- Delegation of duties -- Notification of disaster or emergency", it states in part that

The executive director shall:

(a) Publicize the findings of the General Assembly stressing the dependence on Almighty God as being vital to the security of the Commonwealth by including the provisions of KRS 39A.285(3) in its agency training and educational materials. The executive director shall also be responsible for prominently displaying a permanent plaque at the entrance to the state's Emergency Operations Center stating the text of KRS 39A.285(3)

This is the first duty listed.

The other hit I got was from 2002, and reads in part:

The General Assembly hereby finds that:

...

(3) The safety and security of the Commonwealth cannot be achieved apart from reliance upon Almighty God as set forth in the public speeches and proclamations of American Presidents, including Abraham Lincoln's historic March 30, 1863, Presidential Proclamation urging Americans to pray and fast during one of the most dangerous hours in American history, and the text of President John F. Kennedy's November 22, 1963, national security speech which concluded: "For as was written long ago: 'Except the Lord keep the city, the watchman waketh but in vain.' "

I think this is just a feel-good declaration rather than a law, but still--why are Kentucky's legislators so incompetent that they can't even protect their state by themselves?

Maybe because you can't take office in Kentucky if you've fought a duel? They don't have any experience in killing people / defending themselves! Quick, get these legislators a gun! We can let Kathy Stein and Tom Riner duke it out.

Via Pharyngula.
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Best birthday present ever

Not only has Ann Coulter pretty much disappeared from view lately, but it turns out she won't be opening that hate-filled mouth for some time:

WE HEAR...THAT although we didn't think it would be possible to silence Ann Coulter, the leggy reactionary broke her jaw and the mouth that roared has been wired shut...

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I feel so left out

Ed Brayton is so lucky... somebody sent him some racism! The KKK mailed some fliers in response to Obama's election, and a blogger scanned their copy. Now you can see that the "Marxist/Communist" includes equality for blacks, women, and gays, and that's why they have to be stopped!

(I wonder which Marxists / Communists they're fighting nowadays, anyway. Cuba? China?)
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It only took them 8 years

But Congress might finally be ready to stop some of Bush's insane policies:

With the Bush administration on the verge of relaxing regulations protecting endangered species, Democratic leaders are looking at ways to overturn any last-minute rule changes.

The Bush administration has until Friday to publish new rules in order for them to take effect before President-elect Barack Obama is sworn in. Otherwise, Obama can undo them with the stroke of a pen.

A rule eliminating the mandatory, independent advice of government scientists in decisions about whether dams, highways and other projects are likely to harm species looked likely to meet the deadline, leaving the only chance for a quick reversal to Congress.

Drew Hammill, a spokesman for House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said the House will be looking at ways to overturn the final endangered species rules and other one-minute-to-midnight regulations.

...

The rules eliminate the input of federal wildlife scientists in some endangered species cases, allowing the federal agency in charge of building, authorizing or funding a project to determine for itself whether the project is likely to harm endangered wildlife and plants.

Current regulations require independent wildlife biologists to sign off on these decisions before a project can go forward, at times modifying the design to better protect species.

Yes, let's let the company decide for themselves whether or not to go ahead with their project--obviously they'll have the best interests of the environment and animals at heart. I'm glad that Congress is looking into ways to undo this madness.
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Your liberal media at work

CNN: "Bush has cooties"

Via Bob Harris
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Gobama

When it first released, there was some disappointment that Obama's policy website had very little to say about LGBT issues--nothing much beyond trying to pass the Employment Non-Discrimination Act to prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. Well, it's certainly there now. The proposed policies are:

• Expand Hate Crimes Statutes


• Fight Workplace Discrimination


• Support Full Civil Unions and Federal Rights for LGBT Couples


• Oppose a Constitutional Ban on Same-Sex Marriage


• Repeal Don't Ask-Don't Tell


• Expand Adoption Rights


• Promote AIDS Prevention


• Empower Women to Prevent HIV/AIDS

The third one there proposes to repeal DOMA and institute civil unions federally. It's not perfect, but it would be a damn sight better than what we have now.
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I've heard this stuff a lot; it galls me

Michael Savage says something racist--no-one is shocked:

During the presidential campaign, Savage repeatedly described Obama as an "affirmative action" candidate. For instance, Media Matters for America noted that on his October 27 broadcast, Savage said that Obama "benefited from affirmative action, stepping over more qualified white men, I actually lost as a result of affirmative action, many times in my life. ... [W]e have America's first affirmative action candidate about to become president."

Apparently Savage never heard about the last President we have. Bush was a legacy admission to Yale, gaining admission in part because his father and grandfather had attended, in spite of mediocre grades and SAT scores. He got into the National Guard, avoiding service in Vietnam, because of political favors from family friends, because he was white and rich. And though he of course denies asking for such favors, other accounts recall him boasting about them. His life was a long line of mediocrity and failure, but despite this he managed to climb higher due in large part to family connections. The notion that affirmative action is bad because it will push aside talented white people in favor of lackluster minority candidates is a joke, ignoring that mediocre, inexperienced, and untalented white people are given preferential treatment all the time.

Opposition to affirmative action like that Savage spouts stems mostly from the idea that jobs belong inherently to white people--that it is their birthright. Anything that dismantles such notions of white privilege must be attacked bitterly.

And this isn't even going into the rest of what Savage said, that because of Obama's election "there's gonna be a wholesale firing of competent white men in the United States government up and down the line, in police departments, in fire departments." Which completely ignores the picks Obama has made so far, but reality is anathema to people like Savage.
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Since when could news articles describe people as "crotchety"?

Happy Birthday, Stevens.

Sen. Ted Stevens, the longest serving Republican in Senate history, narrowly lost his re-election bid Tuesday, marking the downfall of a Washington political power and Alaska icon who couldn't survive a conviction on federal corruption charges. His defeat by Anchorage Mayor Mark Begich moves Senate Democrats within two seats of a filibuster-proof 60-vote majority.

Stevens' ouster on his 85th birthday marks an abrupt realignment in Alaska politics and will alter the power structure in the Senate, where he has served since the days of the Johnson administration while holding seats on some of the most influential committees in Congress.

The crotchety octogenarian built like a birch sapling likes to encourage comparisons with the Incredible Hulk, but he occupies an outsized place in Alaska history. His involvement in politics dates to the days before Alaska statehood, and he is esteemed for his ability to secure billions of dollars in federal aid for transportation and military projects. The Anchorage airport bears his name; in Alaska, it's simply "Uncle Ted."

Tuesday's tally of just over 24,000 absentee and other ballots gave Begich 150,728, or 47.76 percent, to 147,004, or 46.58 percent, for Stevens. There are about 2,500 overseas ballots yet to be counted.

A recount is possible. If the vote differential between the two candidates is more than 0.5 percent, either side can seek a recount if it posts a bond of about $15,000 to pay for a new tally.

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It's a sad day when I'm speaking out against cynicism

I don't really feel like starting this blog up again, but I didn't feel I had anywhere else to post this, and I really wanted to share it somehow.

Indiana went for Barack Obama--the first time it's gone for a Democratic president in 40 years--by a margin of around 26,000 votes (1,367,264 - 1,341,101).

As of writing this, North Carolina was still undecided because Barack Obama was leading by only 12,000 votes (2,110,322 - 2,098,452).

Missouri went for John McCain by fewer than 6,000 votes (1,442,613 - 1,436,745).

Ted Stevens is currently holding on to his Alaska Senate seat by fewer than 3,500 votes (106,351 - 102,998).

Norm Coleman is eking out Al Franken for Minnesota's Senate seat by fewer than 500 votes (1,211,629 - 1,211,167).

Gordon Smith may hold onto Oregon's Senate seat as he's currently beating Jeff Merkley by almost 12,000 votes (623,882 - 612,003).

And among the Representatives elected to Congress last night, or still struggling...

• Bobby Bright of Alabama's 2nd district beat Jay Love by fewer than 1,800 votes (143,997 - 142,231)


• California's 4th district is still undecided, with Tom McClintock beating Charlie Brown (no, really) by only 450 votes (155,771 - 155,320)


• Walt Minnick became the Representative for Idaho's 1st district, beating Bill Sali (and thank the non-Christian god that Bill Sali so dreaded) by a little over 4000 votes (175,567 - 171,324)


• Maryland's 1st district is still undecided, with Frank Kratovil edging out Andy Harris by 900 votes (160,915 - 160,000)


• Eric Massa beat Randy Kuhl to become the Representative of district 29 for New York by around 4000 votes (131,646 - 127,232)


• Virginia's 5th district is still undecided, with Virgil Goode ahead of Tom Perriello by 350 votes (158,466 - 158,103)


• Washington's 8th district is also undecided, as Dave Reichert's lead over Darcy Burner is not even 1,500 votes (70,935 - 69,489)

Colorado's Amendment 46, which would forbid state government discrimination based on race, sex, color, ethnicity, or national origin, is still undecided with a margin of a little over 14,000 votes (990,156 - 975,898).

In 2004, Christine Gregoire beat Dino Rossi to become Washington's Governor by only 133 votes.

One vote would not have tipped the election in any of these cases, it is true. But how many people do you think didn't vote in these elections because they believed that their "one vote wouldn't make a difference"? Tens of thousands? Thousands? Only a few hundred? That still would've been enough to turn some of these elections

The only vote that doesn't matter is the one that isn't cast.
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Woo-hoo!

By a 5-4 vote, the Supreme Court ruled that denying Guantanamo inmates the right of habeas corpus is unconstitutional.

The Supreme Court on Thursday rejected for the third time President Bush's policy of holding foreign prisoners under exclusive control of the military at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, ruling that the men have a right to seek their freedom before a federal judge.

The justices, in a 5-4 vote, said the U.S. Constitution enshrined the "privilege of habeas corpus" — or the right to go before a judge — as a safeguard of liberty. And that right extends even to foreigners who are captured in the war on terrorism, the court said, particularly when they have been held up to six years without charges.

"Within the Constitution's separation of powers structures, few exercises of judicial power are as legitimate or as necessary as the responsibility to hear challenges to the authority of the Executive to imprison a person," Justice Anthony M. Kennedy said for the court. "The detainees in these cases are entitled to a prompt habeas corpus hearing."

You'd think that habeas corpus wouldn't be a "just by one" vote, but apparently Roberts, Alito, Scalia, and Thomas think that habeas corpus isn't all that important. Scalia even thinks that it'll kill people: "It will almost certainly cause more Americans to be killed," he said. How fair trials and due process will kill Americans is anyone's guess.

Sen. Barack Obama, the presumptive Democratic candidate for president, praised the ruling. "This is an important step toward re-establishing our credibility as a nation committed to the rule of law and rejecting a false choice between fighting terrorism and respecting habeas corpus." He said the court had rejected Bush's "attempt to create a legal black hole at Guantanamo."

Sen. John McCain, the presumptive Republican candidate, said he had not had a chance to read the opinion but questioned its reasoning. "These are unlawful combatants. They are not American citizens," he said. He added, however, that he favored closing the prison at Guantanamo.

The justices said the detainees are entitled to a lawyer to represent them, and they will get a chance to rebut the evidence against them. But the court stopped short of deciding the law on whether militants can be held for as long as the government believes is necessary.

"It bears repeating that our opinion does not address the content of the law that governs (their) detention," Kennedy said of the prisoners. "That is a matter yet to be determined."

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Kucinich to Congress: Impeach Bush!

About damn time.

Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-Ohio) introduced 35 articles of impeachment against President Bush on Monday night, reading the resolution into the Congressional Record.

...

Kucinich and other liberal Democrats, including Rep. Robert Wexler (D-Fla.), have sought the removal of the current administration, arguing that Bush and Cheney have lied to Congress and the American public about the reasons for invading Iraq in 2003 and abused their offices in order to conduct the "War on Terror" following the 9/11 attacks.

Well, it's an acknowledged fact--or at least, it ought to be acknowledged, but tragically isn't by most of our media--that the Bush administration lied everyone into an unnecessary war. But the charges don't stop there!

Interestingly, those articles (63-page PDF via Coral CDN) include not just complaints about signing statements and the war in Iraq, but also charges that the President "Sp[ied] on American Citizens, Without a Court-Ordered Warrant, in Violation of the Law and the Fourth Amendment,' 'Direct[ed] Telecommunications Companies to Create an Illegal and Unconstitutional Database of the Private Telephone Numbers and Emails of American Citizens,' and 'Tamper[ed] with Free and Fair Elections.'

You can see the full list on Kucinich's website, here (not in PDF format!). Some other articles of impeachment include "Illegal Detention: Detaining Indefinitely And Without Charge Persons Both U.S. Citizens and Foreign Captives", "Torture: Secretly Authorizing, and Encouraging the Use of Torture Against Captives in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Other Places, as a Matter of Official Policy", and "Rendition: Kidnapping People and Taking Them Against Their Will to 'Black Sites' Located in Other Nations, Including Nations Known to Practice Torture."

Of course, this will go nowhere, since the rest of Congress--including the Democratic leadership--have no interest in holding the Bush administration accountable for its actions and lawlessness. Harrumph.
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Just when you thought it was safe to ignore this blog... I post!

Christmas is the one time of year when people of all religions come together to worship Jesus Christ.

--Bart Simpson, and possibly George W. Bush, too

Today is Jesus Day! So happy Jesus Day, everybody!

What, don't believe me? See for yourself:

Four months ago in Texas, Gov. George W. Bush signed a proclamation declaring June 10 to be Jesus Day, and urging all Texans to "follow Christ's example by performing good works in their communities and neighborhoods."

Yeah, that article is back from 2000, so it's not exactly recent. But we shouldn't forget about it. And it really should have given people an idea of what a Bush administration's feelings towards separation of church and state would be.

The proclamation, which Ms. Edwards said was written by the governor's staff, begins: "Throughout the world, people of all religions recognize Jesus Christ as an example of love, compassion, sacrifice and service. Reaching out to the poor, the suffering and the marginalized, he provided moral leadership that continues to inspire countless men, women and children today.

"To honor his life and teachings, Christians of all races and denominations have joined together to designate June 10 as Jesus Day," it reads. "Jesus Day challenges people to follow Christ's example by performing good works in their communities and neighborhoods."

Yes, people of all religions love Jesus. Like the Jews, who killed him--I mean, you always hurt the ones you love, right?

The phrase in the proclamation signed by Governor Bush that "people of all religions recognize Jesus" was proposed by the March for Jesus, said Mr. Pelton, particularly to avoid offense. But it is this assertion that seemed to most outrage observers.

"With the exception of Islam," said Bruce Lincoln, the Caroline E. Haskell Professor of History of Religions at the University of Chicago Divinity School, "all the major religions emerged before Christianity, so there is no place for Jesus in their original foundations and scriptures.

"They carefully worded this thing to make it look like they've just got a good guy here, and so the state of Texas can have a party for him without running into church-state problems," Mr. Lincoln said. "It's patently fraudulent."

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"Republicans Vote Against Moms; No Word Yet on Puppies, Kittens"

That's an actual headline from the Washington Post:

It was already shaping up to be a difficult year for congressional Republicans. Now, on the cusp of Mother's Day, comes this: A majority of the House GOP has voted against motherhood.

On Wednesday afternoon, the House had just voted, 412 to 0, to pass H. Res. 1113, "Celebrating the role of mothers in the United States and supporting the goals and ideals of Mother's Day," when Rep. Todd Tiahrt (R-Kan.), rose in protest.

"Mr. Speaker, I move to reconsider the vote," he announced.

Rep. Kathy Castor (D-Fla.), who has two young daughters, moved to table Tiahrt's request, setting up a revote. This time, 178 Republicans cast their votes against mothers.

It has long been the custom to compare a popular piece of legislation to motherhood and apple pie. Evidently, that is no longer the standard. Worse, Republicans are now confronted with a John Kerry-esque predicament: They actually voted for motherhood before they voted against it.

Republicans, unhappy with the Democratic majority, have been using such procedural tactics as this all week to bring the House to a standstill, but the assault on mothers may have gone too far. House Minority Leader John Boehner, asked yesterday to explain why he and 177 of his colleagues switched their votes, answered: "Oh, we just wanted to make sure that everyone was on record in support of Mother's Day."

By voting against it?

Via LG&M.
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Santorum says Christians hate freedom!

Rick 'man on dog' Santorum doesn't like Muslims. Figures:

Our government in this memo is teaching us a politically correct version of the truth. For example, it tells us that democracy and Islam are compatible. But Islam is less compatible with democracy than is Christianity.

I choose to read that as Santorum admitting that Christianity is incompatible with democracy, but saying that Islam is even less so.

He also apparently wants to "abandon the word terror and replace it with Islamic fascism." Because we know that all terrorists are Muslims.

[Edit] Also, Santorum brays "From Islam's inception there has been one realm. Islamic law (sharia) is the law of the government." (And we should trust him because he's an expert on Islam, its history, and its political influences, right? Right)

But what do actual Muslims think about that?

Experts in Islamic law and religion who are based in the U.S. said they agreed with the court's ruling. Abdullahi An-Na'im, a Muslim scholar and law professor at Emory University in Atlanta, said "there can only be one law of the land."

An-Na'im, who wrote Islam and the Secular State: Negotiating the Future of Shari'a, said that "if Muslims wish to influence what the law of the state says, they must do so through the normal political process and in accordance with civic discourse that is equally open for debate by all citizens, and not on the basis of religious beliefs."

Why, it's almost as if they abide by democratic rule after all! How can that possibly be??
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