The True Flip-Flopper: Bush

This is a massive Flip-Flop, courtesy of Political Wire,

Bush Once Demanded an Exit Strategy

Think Progress notes President Bush's evolving views on committing troops to battle.

"Victory means exit strategy, and it'’s important for the president to explain to us what the exit strategy is." -- Bush criticizing President Clinton on not setting a timetable for troops in Kosovo, 4/9/99

"I think it's also important for the president to lay out a timetable as to how long they will be involved and when they will be withdrawn." -- Bush, again criticizing Clinton, 6/5/99

"It doesn'’t make any sense to have a timetable. You know, if you give a timetable, you're -— you'’re conceding too much to the enemy." -- Bush on Iraq, 6/24/05

Update: A Political Wire reader sends this quote from the second Bush-Gore debate in 2000.

"I'm going to be judicious as to how to use the military. It needs to be in our vital interest, the mission needs to be clear, and the exit strategy obvious." -- Bush, in response to a question from Jim Lehrer, 10/12/00.

The sheer inconsistency is baffling, but the consequences of his fatal foresight have been the true measure of his ineptitude. Hopefully the media will pay some attention to this, as these are very easy quotes to digest.

PBS and the GOP

Courtesy of Bill Mitchell.

Luckily, they finally caved in and restored funding.

The 284-140 vote demonstrated the enduring political strength of public broadcasting, whose supporters rallied behind popular programs such as "Sesame Street," "Postcards From Buster" and "The NewsHour With Jim Lehrer."

Although they restored it, it is still quite disheartening to see that so many Representatives voted against it, even after such a public outcry. Although disheartening, its not that surprising, as so many Republicans seem to be convinced that PBS is a propaganda tool for Liberals.

Full Article at CNN.

Frist Lied

From CrooksandLiars about the Schiavo Case,

Frist Lies to Matt Lauer

I was wondering how Frist would handle the news about Terri's autopsy.

Think Progress gave me the heads up: Majority Leader Bill Frist this morning on the Today Show: LAUER: But when you stood on the floor and you said, She does respond, are you at all worried that you led some senators…

Video-WMP

Video-QT

FRIST: I never said, She responded. I said I reviewed the court videotapes – the same ones the other doctors reviewed – and I questioned, Is her diagnosis correct?

Frist on Senate Floor, 3/17/05: I have looked at the video footage. Based on the footage provided to me, which was part of the facts of the case, she does respond.

More from Frist, 3/17/05: She certainly seems to respond to visual stimuli…

It is pretty clear that he just lied about the whole case and how he basically did give a diagnosis. I am not that surprised that he lied, but its just ridiculous that he did it on the Today Show, where there is good visual evidence. Nonetheless, he's got some 'splainin to do; maybe the Right will call the Today Show part of the liberal media... that Communist Matt Lauer!!

About Religion

From Andrew Sullivan,

ANOTHER CHRISTIANITY: Maybe blogs shouldn't link to homilies, but there are so few good ones any more, and so many more available online, that when I'm sent a great one, I can't resist. Here's one about the true spirit of Christianity, of the Gospels' Jesus, that seems to me somewhat lacking in some of our most public disquisitions on Christian faith. Money quote:

"We have to be persons who are there for giving life to others... We are not interested in punishing others. We are not interested in condemning or criticizing others. We may use harsh words to point out something they are doing wrong, and that may not be easy for them to receive. But it's our disposition toward them that is so crucial. If judgment toward our brothers and sisters is condemnation, hatred, loathing or disgust — that isn't Spirit. That is something else. That is the opposite of what Christ came to do. When he said, "You will free people when you are there for giving life," that is the mightiest work of God. God's mighty act is to love every single human being exactly as they are, in this moment, with the hope and the desire that they move in the direction of the truth.
Wanting people to move in the direction of the truth — and taking them for who and where they are — is such a different disposition than condemning and criticizing. It is so different from excluding people. What is so frightening about 'toxic' religion is that it becomes exclusive: 'Get rid of those people who aren't like us.'"

This isn't just about the religious right. It's about the entire religious debate right now on public issues such as marriage or the end of life or the origins of the human person. If we are going to get somewhere as Christians, we have to change our tone. That goes for me sometimes, too. And here's an idea: if you hear an inspired sermon or homily, and it's posted somewhere online, why not send it to me? Maybe I could post one each Sunday, to make up for the probably dreadful one you had to sit through yourself.

So We Want To Reform The UN

Yes, I am sure that this will work,

The U.S. House International Relations Committee approved legislation today to withhold half of U.S. dues to the United Nations unless the world body overhauls its bureaucracy, bars dictatorships from human rights posts and installs a tougher internal watchdog.

It would be stupid to say that the UN is a perfectly functioning international body that requires no reform, so I won't go that far. In fact, I would argue that there are a number of changes necessary to restoring some respect for the oft tarnished organization. But overall, I think that the U.S. going at it alone is a pretty silly strategy. We should at least try to force reform from within, rather than having a bunch of our representatives, who tend to have little knowledge of the UN decide the fate of the most important international body in the world. Does anyone else think that we are being a little arrogant here? Yes, that's right. America is being arrogant.

Full Article at Bloomberg.
Actual Bill from the House (PDF).

Conditions For A 3rd Party In Place?

Taken from Political Wire,

Marshall Whitmann says current conditions might help a third party grow in time for the 2008 presidential election.

"As the new Washington Post survey shows, independents are particularly estranged from the Bushies. The overall electorate is annoyed by both parties and the Washington politicians. The deficit is growing and the economy is anemic. The popularity of the Iraq war is plummeting and no end is in sight.

"These are combustible conditions that could very well produce a third force in American politics. It is striking how similar the current situation is to that in 1992 when Perot emerged."

My own opinion is that the conditions necessary are probably never going to be achieved, primarily because of the numerous institutional roadblocks that have entrenched the two party system (first past the post, winner take all, etc). These are the true barriers to a true third party from ever emerging. But also, one must admit that the prospects of uniting people all across the nation, from Washington to Georgia, with a new political party are also more difficult than other constraints - this is not to say that the two party system has done so, but rather that when the two parties have a national consensus. Lastly, there is the issue of money that comes up. Its not just people's anger at the system that will create the change, but rather a combination of factors, including the money to fund candidates, create a national party structure, and make the local party strong as well. This is certainly one huge obstacle as well, as the cost of elections has grown exponentially and the people with money tend to be more partisan than the average Joe.

Chronic Hunger in... California?!

This might not be a surprise to everyone, but to me, the number of people facing trouble acquiring food is staggering,

Hunger and poor nutrition are increasing in California, with nearly 3 million low-income adults reporting that they struggle each day to keep food on the table, according to a study released Tuesday by UCLA researchers.

3 million people?! That is about 10% of our state's population that are finding it difficult obtaining food - an absolutely astounding number, especially since we are the nation's biggest agricultural state as well. So, why is it such a problem in our state?

Harrison said several factors may be at work, including growing housing and healthcare costs, low wages and difficulty in obtaining federal food stamps. The study concluded that the Food Stamp Program has been particularly underutilized in California. Of those adults who were eligible and reported episodes of hunger, fewer than 18% received food stamps.

Luckily, the Legislature is trying to get involved with this problem, although it appears they have sat on their hands for too long. Still, a number of the statistics are quite puzzling.

Food insecurity was the highest in the Central Valley counties of Kern and Tulare — among the most abundant agricultural regions in the world — and lowest in Marin and the far northern counties of Siskiyou, Lassen, Trinity and Modoc.

This is just completely unacceptable and inhumane...

Full Article at LA Times.

Not That Surprising...

Guess Who Got The Key To Detroit?

Saddam Hussein donated hundreds of thousands of dollars to a Detroit church and received a key to the city more than two decades ago, soon after he became president of Iraq.

And,

"He was very kind person, very generous, very cooperative with the West. Lately, what's happened, I don't know," Yasso, 70, said Wednesday. "Money and power changed the person."

Yes, money and power... I am sure that is what changed him.