This ain't Hell, but you can see it from here

Category: Barack Obama/Joe Biden

  • Terror back on the front burner

    After months of fighting over the President’s domestic agenda, terror comes to the fore again. The Wall Street Journal offers an interview with Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi, our oldest and dearest state sponsor of terrorism. Gadhafi admits that he “comprehends” our anger over Lockerbie;

    In an hour-long interview, Col. Gadhafi said he hoped to build a new era of relations with U.S. President Barack Obama — whom he called “my son” during the same U.N. address — and said he wanted to place his nation’s decades-long conflict with Washington in the past.

    The Libyan strongman denied his government had purposefully stoked nationalist sentiment surrounding the return home of Abdel Baset al-Megrahi, who was convicted of the 1988 bombing of a Pan Am jet that blew up over Lockerbie, Scotland. Mr. al-Megrahi, who has cancer, was released by Scottish authorities last month on humanitarian grounds.

    “My son” – that shows us how much respect he has for our President after Obama’s latest apology to the world. I’m sure the Obama administration will rebuild the respect we’ve lost over the last several months by firing off a cruise missile in the next few months.

    WSJ also reports that Iran has opened another uranium enrichment facility;

    A U.S. intelligence official said the facility is one the U.S. “has known about for years,” though the government learned more recently that it was being used for uranium enrichment.

    The official said the facility is hidden in an underground tunnel complex 30 kilometers north of Qom, Iran’s Holy City. It is built to hold up to 3,000 centrifuges, though it isn’t clear that they’re fully operational yet. The site is located at an Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps base under the management of the Atomic Energy Association of Iran, though it isn’t clear if many of the people within that organization knew about the enrichment operation.

    So all of this wringing of hands the European community has done over a nuclear Iran has given Tehran time to build a bomb-resistant facility, lessening the effect of an Iraeli strike (which is what most of the world has been secretly hoping would happen to solve the problem for them so they could continue to wring their hands).

    All of this while US law enforcement rolls up three separate terrorist plots, according to Fox News;

    Federal officials said Thursday that the cases are not connected to each other or the major terrorism investigation under way in Colorado and New York.

    Michael C. Finton, 29, who also went under the name Talib Islam, was arrested Wednesday in Springfield, Ill., after federal officials said he attempted to set off explosives in a van outside a federal courthouse in the Illinois capital.

    Hosam Maher Husein Smadi, 19, was arrested Thursday in Dallas after federal officials said he placed what he believed to be a car bomb in a parking garage beneath the 60-story Fountain Place office tower.

    These events have kicked the President’s domestic agenda off of the front page, but they expose the weaknesses in our foreign policy.

  • Honduran stand-off

    The constitutional government of Honduras finds itself more isolated from the rest of the world every day. With ousted president Zelaya sequestered in the Brazillian embassy and the the US State Department screaming in their ear, the de facto government has offered several options to settle the differences between the opposition and their own Constitution. In fact yesterday, the Micheletti government offered up another option;

    Mr. Micheletti offered to hold direct talks with Mr. Zelaya if the ousted president recognized the validity of elections scheduled for Nov. 29. Mr. Zelaya declined the offer, calling it “manipulation.”

    A simple offer, a simple solution to the stand off – but Zelaya knowing he has the backing of the US State Department and the OAS in direct contradiction to the principles of the Honduran Constitution, he sees no need to concede even on iota in any direction. Even the UN has turned against Honduras;

    Adding to pressure on Mr. Micheletti’s government, the U.N. temporarily suspended cooperation with Honduras’s election commission ahead of the November poll, saying conditions weren’t in place for a credible vote.

    Yeah, I remember the concerns that the UN had for elections in Iran and Argentina, too. They almost broke their own necks trying to look the other way during post-election violence in Tehran and when a suitcase load of cash was discovered on it’s way from Chavez’ government to Christine Kirschner’s campaign chest.

    One 65-year-old has been reported killed in Honduras and that death can be laid at the feet of the Zelaya, our own State Department, the Brazilian government, Hugo Chavez, the OAS and the UN – all complicit in violating Honduras own Constitution to force them to accept an illegitmate president.

  • Frank: ACORN is Bush’s fault

    Reversing the statement that was put out by his office yesterday, Barney Frank has suddenly decided that what ACORN did was bad in regards to helping hookers and pimps set up houses of ill-repute in low income neighborhoods and staffing those houses with underage immigrants. However, he’s not ready to accept responsibility that he and his party are responsible for ACORN’s behavior nor funding. In fact, Frank, of course, blames the Bush Administration (Washington Examiner link);

    I very much disagree with the partisanship that has entered into this. ACORN was the recipient of funding throughout the Bush administration, with $14.2 million going from the Bush administration to ACORN through HUD. And I can attest that this was an entirely Executive Branch decision: No congressional action in any way, shape or form required that any of these funds go to ACORN as opposed to other organization. And I do not remember during the period from 2001 to 2006 when the Republicans controlled the White House, HUD, the House and the Senate, and ACORN was receiving millions of dollars, any Republican objection to this.

    Yes, I remember clearly that Republicans have always pushed for ACORN to receive federal funding. I also remember ACORN advancing Republican candidates in inner cities in exchange for Republican patronage. In fact, I can’t count the number of times I’ve seen ACORN representatives in Republican neighborhoods trying to convince the scotch and soda crowd to register to vote.

    How dumb does Barney Frank think we are?

  • (Armchair) General Clinton disputes McCrystal’s assessment

    Based on her eight years experience as a Senator, eight months as Secretary of State and eight years as First Lady, Hillary Clinton has decided that she has a better grasp of the situation in Afghanistan than General McChrystal (AFP Link);

    In the interview, Clinton expressed “respect” for McChrystal’s assessment that the United States would likely lose the war in Afghanistan within a year without more US forces.

    “But I can only tell you there are other assessments from very expert military analysts who have worked in counter-insurgencies that are the exact opposite,” she said.

    Clinton’s remarks were the latest sign of resistance by the administration of President Barack Obama to a major escalation in the US commitment in Afghanistan without a lengthy internal review and debate.

    Of course, this is how our new President tests the water – he throws out one of his cabinet to take the heat for (supposedly) their comments while he waffles in public trying to appear thoughtful. This is the Administration’s response to the leaked report that COB6 wrote about last night and McChrystal’s threat to resign if he doesn’t get the resources he needs to fight the war in Afghanistan.

    From here, it looks like a case of dueling headlines. But this isn’t the first time Hillary hasn’t believed the generals is it?

    Thanks to Bouhammer for the link.

  • Zelaya returns to Honduras

    The Washington Times reports that Manuel Zelaya has returned to Honduras despite the fact that he could be imprisoned. Hiding out in the Brazilian Embassy, Zelaya called for his supporters to peacefully protest in the capital and for the army to refrain from pounding on them;

    Mr. Zelaya told the Associated Press that he was trying to establish contact with the interim government to start negotiations on a solution to the standoff that started when soldiers who flew him out of the country June 28.

    “As of now, we are beginning to seek dialogue,” he said by telephone, though he gave few details. Talks moderated by Costa Rican President Oscar Arias have been stalled for weeks over the interim government’s refusal to accept Mr. Zelaya’s reinstatement.

    He also summoned his countrymen to come to the capital for peaceful protests and urged the army to avoid attacking his supporters. “It is the moment of reconciliation,” he said.

    Roberto Micheletti, the interim president of the de facto government pleads his case in the Washington Post;

    The international community has wrongfully condemned the events of June 28 and mistakenly labeled our country as undemocratic. I must respectfully disagree. As the true story slowly emerges, there is a growing sense that what happened in Honduras that day was not without merit. On June 28, the Honduran Supreme Court issued an arrest warrant for Zelaya for his blatant violations of our constitution, which marked the end of his presidency. To this day, an overwhelming majority of Hondurans support the actions that ensured the respect of the rule of law in our country.

    Underlying all the rhetoric about a military overthrow are facts. Simply put, coups do not leave civilians in control over the armed forces, as is the case in Honduras today. Neither do they allow the independent functioning of democratic institutions — the courts, the attorney general’s office, the electoral tribunal. Nor do they maintain a respect for the separation of powers. In Honduras, the judicial, legislative and executive branches are all fully functioning and led by civilian authorities.

    The country’s elections are still scheduled for November, and Micheletti promises to turn over the reins of his goverment in keeping with the Honduran Constitution;

    The winner of the November election will take office as president of Honduras in January 2010. At that moment my transitional administration will cease, and the newly sworn-in president will hold all the authority vested to him by our country’s constitution.

    So with just a few months left in his term, why would Zelaya even bother to risk the lives of common Hondurans, except for the sake of his own ego? Mary Anastacia O’Grady wrote in yesterday’s Wall Street Journal that Obama has left the matter for Secretary of State Clinton to settle and she’s been doing a piss-poor job of it. This is a problem that the Hondurans need to settle on their own – like the Obama Administration is handling unrest in Iran.

  • BDS rages in 2010 elections

    At this point in his first term, George W. Bush was being blamed for the attack on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon and he was taking blame for the economy tanking after the attack. This President and his party, however, are still blaming his predecessor for his ills, according to Joseph Curl of the Washington Times;

    Facing the increasing likelihood of losses in the 2010 midterm congressional and gubernatorial elections, President Obama and his fellow Democrats are returning to a tried-and-true campaign strategy — run against former President George W. Bush.

    In speech after speech since taking office, Mr. Obama has pointed back to the problems he inherited from the Bush administration when he took office. And earlier this month, Democratic National Committee Chairman Tim Kaine catalogued a slew of perceived Bush failures to the delight of supporters.

    Why don’t they just run against Nixon and Hoover, too?

    Unemployment is double that of Bush’s first year which was lower than the months preceding his taking office. This year, unemployment continues to explode towards double digits, and beyond in some states. But for some unknown reason, we can’t seem to hold this President and his ineffective “stimulus” program accountable.

    The Times article quotes Karl Rove;

    “It will be a failed strategy,” said Karl Rove, former senior political adviser to Mr. Bush. “They have been doing that very intentionally in New Jersey and Virginia thus far, and both their candidates are behind.”

    Shush, Karl, they know what they’re doing.

  • Dropping all of the balls

    While the Obama Administration focuses on what it considers important, namely the take over of health care, balls are dropping every where else. They’ve proved themselves to be a Carter-esque paper tiger with Russia when they disappointed Eastern Europe by capitulating to Putin’s pressure to stop building the missile shield to protect our allies.

    Putting pressure on New York’s accidental governor to withdraw from next year’s race has only made David Paterson dig in for a tough battle against his own party.

    The Obama Administration has allowed Hillary Clinton to fight their battles in Honduras, according to Wall Street Journal’s Mary O’Grady, and fighting against the Constitutional law of Honduras has proved to be a fool’s errand.

    General Stanley McChrystal has asked for more troops in Afghanistan which has opened an opportunity for cash-starved anti-war groups who are planning an assault on the Obama war policy next week.

    Andrew Breitbart is promising that even more videos are coming from the O’Keefe/Giles team against the Obama allies in ACORN.

    Obviously, actual leadership is harder than campaigning, but focusing on taking over the economy isn’t so important as letting shallow reasoning govern the nation isn’t working. It seems that Obama’s foreign policy seems to be “do the opposite of Bush” and it doesn’t seem to be us any good.

  • Obama urges Paterson to stop run

    The New York Times wrote yesterday that President Obama is urging David Paterson, the accidental governor of New York, to end his run at the governor’s office next year;

    President Obama has sent a request to Gov. David A. Paterson that he withdraw from the New York governor’s race, fearing that Mr. Paterson cannot recover from his dismal political standing, according to two senior administration officials and a New York Democratic operative with direct knowledge of the situation.

    The decision to ask Mr. Paterson to step aside was proposed by political advisers to Mr. Obama, but approved by the president himself, one of the administration officials said.

    So the Chicago Machine is dipping it’s fingers into New York politics. I mean New York politics isn’t squeaky clean either, but this can’t be good for my home state.

    Coincidentally, a story that that was near this one in my news reader was one about a New York woman who had been kidnapped and faced with certain violent rape, she threw herself from a moving car.

    That reminded me of my situation ten years ago, when after New York elected Chuckie Schumer as their Senator, they began to talk about electing Hillary Clinton as their other Senator in 2000. Faced with imminent violent rape, I threw myself from the moving car.