March 7, 2007
Mar 07 10:23 Message to the White Flag Brigade Mar 07 16:59 A Jury of His Peers? Mar 07 18:34 Legislation to Block Credit Cards for Illegal Aliens Introduced Mar 07 21:04 Grab Your Wallets!!!
Prior Years: 2006
Message to the White Flag Brigade
According to this OpinionJournal op-ed, written by Mohammed and Omar Fadhil, states quite emphatically that the Surge is working. Look for Democrats to disparage the report despite the fact that the Fadhils live in Baghdad and can see firsthand the effects the surge is having. Expect such noteworthy 'white flag generals' as Little Chuckie Hagel and Jihad John Murtha to continue their criticism of the Bush administration and the military despite facts proving them wrong.
The government information campaign and the news about thousands of additional troops coming had a positive impact even before the operation started. Commanders and lieutenants of various militant groups abandoned their positions in Baghdad and in some cases fled the country. Diyala province, to the east of Baghdad, was the destination for many Sunni extremists, while Shiite militiamen went to Babil and Diwaniya in the south. Some higher-ranking members of Shiite and Sunni militant groups fled to Iran and Syria respectively. This migration motivated the government to announce supporting security measures in five provinces around Baghdad, to make sure that fleeing bad guys do not regroup in other cities.This information won't be enough to get the 'White Flag Generals' to change their opinions, at least publicly. They'd be devastated politically if they admitted that they're wrong. That would likely end their political careers, with Hagel getting defeated by a strong primary challenger and Murtha getting beat by Diana Irey.
This paragraph shows that the jihadists, by 'voting with their feet', fear getting killed by the surge. It's also encouraging that the Maliki government is now adjusting to the insurgents' change by cutting off sanctuaries in other parts of the country. This essentially means that the insurgents and jihadists can run but they can't hide. The goal is to eliminate them and terminate their influence.
The Iraqi commanders are also trying to give the operation a national stamp by including troops from across the country--even from Kurdistan and far provinces like Basra, where politicians and officers have been long opposed to being involved in Baghdad. Yet another aspect that makes "Imposing Law" unique is its ascending intensity. Unlike other operations that always started from a peak and soon lost momentum, this plan is becoming stricter and gaining momentum by the day as more troops pour into the city, allowing for a better implementation of the "clear and hold" strategy. People here always want the "hold" part to materialize, and feel safe when they go out and find the Army and police maintaining their posts--the bad guys can't intimidate as long as the troops are staying.The fact that the surge's intensification is still ongoing must be unsettling to the insurgents. The disappearance of political protection is likely having an unsettling affect on the insurgents too. Taking away their ability to find sanctuary to regroup forces them to keep fighting without regrouping or resupplying themselves.
The Iraqi people themselves are playing their role in the plan. Recent figures from U.S. officers in Baghdad show that the joint forces have been receiving an average of 250 security tips from civilians since the beginning of the operation, about twice previous figures. With help from a government-appointed committee, people in some Baghdad neighborhoods are returning occupied mosques to their original keepers and worshipers, and holding joint prayers between the two sects in mixed neighborhoods.This paragraph, more than the others I've cited, must be the most unsettling to the insurgents. Their having their cover stripped away by the people exposes them like never before. If this continues, then it's possible that we'll look back in hindsight and point to this as a major corner having been turned. What's most disheartening for insurgents are the "joint prayers between the two sects". That's a sign that they can't play one faction off the other.
What this means is that facts on the ground appear to be changing. A changing set of facts means a shrinking amount of cover for White Flag Generals like Murtha and Hagel. Driving them out of Washington would be almost as satisfying as defeating the jihadists. Almost but not quite.
I strongly encourage you to read the entire op-ed.
Posted Wednesday, March 7, 2007 10:24 AM
No comments.
A Jury of His Peers?
Rush just mentioned on his show that one of the jurors in the Libby trial is a member of MoveOn.org, something that tells me that Scooter Libby wasn't tried before a jury of his peers. This Washington Post article provides more information that Libby didn't stand a chance in this trial:
The 11 jurors who convicted Libby on all but one count were, in several respects, atypical of the District's population. In a city that is heavily Democratic and where attention to politics runs high, the jurors were a largely apolitical group. Under careful questioning during jury selection, Libby's attorneys weeded out members of the large initial jury panel who said they held strong negative views of the Bush administration, and even ones who said they followed news and politics closely.The statement that says that this was "a largely apolitical group" is pure Barbra Streisand. This jury was philosophically opposed to Scooter Libby before they were ever seated. In fact, Rush said that he had an instant message conversation with someone that said this MoveOn.org person was seated because the defense had used its allotment of preemptory challenges by that point.
This Washington Post article is further proof of the fight that conservatives face. The Agenda Media's agents don't care about the truth. If they did, they could find it. Their entire purpose is to help the left accumulate as much institutional power by whatever means necessary. Some of this accumulated institutional power sits in the CIA. The CIA knew that Scooter Libby didn't violate the IIPA or the Espionage Act. They still chose to send a referral to the Justice Department. If they knew that the IIPA didn't apply, why did they send the referral?
Another bastion of liberalism is the judicial system. This judge is a perfect example of liberalism run amok. Here's what Clarice Feldman said in her brilliant article about the trial:
Shall I blame the judge who let the prosecution get away with introducing into evidence prejudicial news accounts of limited relevance or probative value while denying the defense an opportunity to fully make its case? Who allowed the prosecutor to make scandalous charges in his rebuttal, the last thing the jury would hear, with no evidence on the record for them?Based on this transgression, I'd say that Reggie Walton isn't worthy of his position of power. Frankly, if tilting things this far in the prosecution's case is normal, then it's safe to say that the Judiciary isn't about justice. It's about helping liberals win victories they couldn't otherwise win.
Here's another telling section of the Washington Post's article:
"We're not saying that we didn't think Mr. Libby was guilty of the things we found him guilty of," said the juror, Denis Collins. "But it seemed like he was...the fall guy." Collins, an author and ex-Washington Post reporter, was the only one of the seven women and four men on the jury to provide an inside glimpse into the method and thought process that the panel used to find Cheney's former top aide guilty of four felony counts.This is Fitzgerald's idea of a trial of Libby's peers? Please. Collins is a close friend of both Bob Woodward and Tim Russert, two of the key prosecution witnesses. If that's Fitzgerald's idea of justice, then he needs to be run from the legal profession.
Let's also affix blame to others for their role in this miscarriage of justice. Colin Powell and Richard Armitage should be publicly humiliated for their roles in this injustice. Will the Agenda Media excoriate them? I'll believe that the day I spot pigs flying in V formation over my home. It's obvious to anyone with a brain that the Libby trial was Powell's and Armitage's revenge on the Bush administration for going to war with Iraq.
Let's also excoriate Tim Russert. Today, Russert said that he didn't take pleasure in Libby's conviction. Yet he's on record as saying that Libby's indictment was like Christmas come early. Mr. Russert, you're a liar. You're typical of the vermin that inhabit the Agenda Media. Conservatives everywhere should boycott the sponsors of Meet the Press until Mr. Russert is forced off the air.
It's time that conservatives got off their backsides and got busy with the business of cleaning out the cesspool we call Washington. The Libby trial is a perfect illustration of the filth contained inside the nation's capitol. It's time we told elected Republicans that they'd better stop caring what the filth peddlers inside the Beltway thought about them. It's time we told them that they'd better make it their life's mission to securing justice.
Only then will the phrase "a jury of his peers" mean anything.
Posted Wednesday, March 7, 2007 5:00 PM
No comments.
Legislation to Block Credit Cards for Illegal Aliens Introduced
According to this article, Rep. Marsha Blackburn has introduced a bill that would make it illegal for financial institutions to issue credit cards to illegal immigrants:
U.S. Rep. Marsha Blackburn, (R-TN), introduced legislation Monday that would prevent illegal immigrants from receiving credit cards from American financial institutions.This legislation wouldn't have been proposed if Bank of America hadn't announced that it would start issuing credit cards to illegal aliens a couple weeks ago. I haven't confirmed which committee this legislation will be assigned to but I'm guessing that it'll be the House Banking Committee, which Barney Frank chairs. Rep. Blackburn sits on that committee, as does my representative, Michele Bachmann, and CAIR's congressman, Keith Ellison.
The Photo Identification Security Act would require banks to use what Blackburn calls "secure forms of identification" to obtain credit. In a statement put out by her office, she says that Bank of America "has come under fire in response to reports that it allows illegal immigrants access to credit cards without proper documentation."
I can't imagine this bill getting much of a fair shake in that committee. Frank is a hyperpartisan who'll do anything to limit Republicans' accomplishments.
"The American people deserve to know that the integrity and security of our financial institutions will remain intact," Blackburn said in a statement Monday. "This bill closes a critical loophole that banking institutions have used to circumvent the letter of the law they have used to target illegal aliens as a new source of revenue. It says to banks and illegal immigrants alike, 'You can't get a Visa, without a visa.'"I hope that Frank doesn't give this legislation a hearing. If this legislation doesn't get a fair hearing, the NRCC can use that as a sledgehammer against Democrats in the 2008 elections. The NRCC can use it as a sledgehammer if the bill is defeated in committee, too.
Republicans should use Democrats' illegal immigrant position against them next year. They should make this a national security matter. I think they'd win if they cast this issue in that light.
Posted Wednesday, March 7, 2007 6:35 PM
No comments.
Grab Your Wallets!!!
I just got off the phone with Steve Gottwalt, who had some shocking news from the Capitol. Today, at a committee hearing, Cy Thao told Steve "When you guys win, you get to keep your money. When we win, we take your money." This was Thao's explanation as to how the DFL plans on paying for all the spending increases they promised their special interest friends.
You'd better hear this loud & clear, people. It's blatantly obvious that the Minnesota DFL has declared war on our pocketbooks with their proposed tax increases & their promise of increasing spending dramatically. Let's remember that Mindy Greiling said so publicly at a news conference this week:
Greiling outlined her plan at a Capitol news conference, where DFL lawmakers including four first-term representatives gave their support. They said they campaigned to raise more money for schools, and Greiling said neither Gov. Tim Pawlenty's budget proposal nor the state's projected $2.16 billion budget surplus will do the job.Mindy Greiling's saying that a $2.16 billion surplus isn't enough to satisfy their spending needs, combined with Thao's declaration that "When you guys win, you get to keep your money. When we win, we take your money" should be proof positive that the Democrats' agenda is based on their belief that there's never enough money to satisfy their spending habits.
I told Steve that this isn't a surprise, that King predicted on the Final Word way back in January that we'd see another government shutdown this year because Democrats would overstep their mandate by proposing major tax & spending increases. I don't know if we'll have a shutdown but I can't picture there not being a special session.
I've written alot about Steve thus far because I think Steve deserves a major pat on the back for fighting the good fight & for not backing down from a battle that's uphill at best. It's time we all rallied behind Steve & the other brave GOP legislators who've fought the DFL's fiscal insanity with everything they've got. What they've done thus far is worthy of our total support.
Earlier today, I heard from a friend at the Capitol that a Pi-Press reporter can't believe how little work has been done on the major spending bills that get done every other year. I can't say that I'm shocked, especially considering the amount of utterly frivolous legislation has been proposed by the DFL. In fact, it's amazing that anyone can call what the DFL majorities are doing governance.
Minnesotans of all political stripes should be worried now that the DFL has declared war on our wallets. It's time that we pushed back. It's time that we told them that they'd better back off or expect a major backlash at the voting booth in November, 2008.
Finally, it's time that we told them that they work for us, not vice versa.
Posted Wednesday, March 7, 2007 9:04 PM
Comment 1 by Paulina Hunter at 30-Mar-07 06:07 PM
Wow, we TAKE YOUR MONEY. That pretty much sums up their existence.
We'd better sleep with our hands on our wallets and purses
