Politics

There are rumors running around right now about the possibilty that Osama bin Laden might have been captured by Pakistan and US intelligence services somewhere in Pakistan.

Is it true? Who knows — it could be a leak of real information, or it could just be crazy rumormongering. What I’m pretty damn sure of, though, is that whether or not it’s true, there’s no way that it would be officially announced until sometime after Bush has sent the first few missile barrages into Iraq. Bush has done too good of a job of moving the blame of 9/11 from bin Laden to Saddam Hussein, and bringing bin Laden back into the spotlight — especially as a captive — would likely do more harm than good to Bush’s push for war.

In the words of William Greider of the The Nation:

By relentless repetition, Bush and his team accomplished an audacious feat of propaganda — persuading many Americans to redirect the emotional wounds left by 9/11, their hurt and anger, away from the perpetrators to a different adversary. According to a New York Times-CBS News survey, 42 percent now believe Saddam Hussein was personally responsible for the attack on the World Trade Center and Pentagon. In an ABC News poll, 55 percent believe Saddam provides direct support to Al Qaeda. The Iraqi did it, let’s go get him. As a bogus rallying cry, “Remember 9/11” ranks with “Remember the Maine” of 1898 for war with Spain or the Gulf of Tonkin resolution of 1964 for justifying the US escalation in Vietnam.

If bin Laden is still free, well then, no big surprise, he’s been that way for a while now. If he’s been captured, though, you can bet that he’ll be sitting in a deep, dark hole until Bush is certain that bringing him out to parade before the cameras would be sure to do him more good than harm.

(Via Tom Tomorrow)

Meg reminds us that in the midst of all the brouhaha in Iraq and Korea, things are still downright scary here at home.

With legislation that would impose sweeping new restrictions on abortion seemingly headed toward approval by the Senate this week, the assault on women’s reproductive freedom has reached an ominous turning point.

Although billed as a narrow attack on one particular late-term abortion procedure, the measure’s imprecise wording would criminalize the use of the safest and most common pre-viability abortion method used after the first trimester, namely dilation and evacuation. The bill would thereby replicate a key defect that caused the Supreme Court to reject a similarly worded state law in 2000. Moreover, the bill omits an exception in cases where the mother’s health is in jeopardy, ignoring the Supreme Court’s insistence that such an exception is a constitutional requirement for any abortion regulation.

It may be too late to do much about this, but we can hope that it will get struck down if it gets contested and goes to the Supreme Court — though at the moment, it looks like the bill’s backers are counting on a newly conservative Supreme Court to rule in their favor by the time the case makes it that far. Not encouraging, in the least.

I think tonight’s menu will include french fries, french bread, and french dressing — in honor (ahem) of the House of Representatives to serve “Freedom” fries and “Freedom” toast instead of French fries and French toast. This is what our tax dollars pay for?

(Via Jeremy Zawodny — bonus points to anyone who knows where I got that particular menu…)

This is just frightening.

U.S. Department of Justice has threatened to criminally prosecute California’s top firearms official over the state’s continued use of a federal databank to hunt down illegal gun users, The Chronicle has learned.

Federal authorities believe the list of convicted felons, drug dealers, suspected terrorists, spouse beaters, illegal immigrants and others should only be used to help gun dealers determine if someone is allowed to buy a gun, not police investigating other gun-control violations.

(Via MeFi)

The Bush Credibility Gap: The Photographic History of the Bush Administration Putting Its Mouth Where Its Money Isn’t

Very interesting just on its own, but take a moment to note the web address — this is coming from the House of Representatives server, and was created by the Democrats in the Appropriations Committee. In other words, this isn’t just some random Bush-basher airing his griefs. These are very specific Bush-bashers!

Tongue-in-cheek comments aside, it’s nice to see something like this coming from the Democrats on Capitol Hill. Mayhaps we’re starting to see a hint of Democratic backbone again?

(Via Dori Smith)

U.S. Political Counselor John Brady Kiesling, stationed in Athens, Greece, has resigned his position, outlining his reasons for doing so in a letter to Secretary of State Colin L. Powell.

Service as a U.S. diplomat was a dream job. I was paid to understand foreign languages and cultures, to seek out diplomats, politicians, scholars and journalists, and to persuade them that U.S. interests and theirs fundamentally coincided. My faith in my country and its values was the most powerful weapon in my diplomatic arsenal.

…until this Administration it had been possible to believe that by upholding the policies of my president I was also upholding the interests of the American people and the world. I believe it no longer.

The policies we are now asked to advance are incompatible not only with American values but also with American interests. Our fervent pursuit of war with Iraq is driving us to squander the international legitimacy that has been America’s most potent weapon of both offense and defense since the days of Woodrow Wilson. We have begun to dismantle the largest and most effective web of international relationships the world has ever known. Our current course will bring instability and danger, not security.

Mr. Secretary, I have enormous respect for your character and ability. You have preserved more international credibility for us than our policy deserves, and salvaged something positive from the excesses of an ideological and self-serving Administration. But your loyalty to the President goes too far. We are straining beyond its limits an international system we built with such toil and treasure, a web of laws, treaties, organizations, and shared values that sets limits on our foes far more effectively than it ever constrained America’s ability to defend its interests.

I am resigning because I have tried and failed to reconcile my conscience with my ability to represent the current U.S. Administration. I have confidence that our democratic process is ultimately self-correcting, and hope that in a small way I can contribute from outside to shaping policies that better serve the security and prosperity of the American people and the world we share.

On the one hand, it’s heartening to know that there are politicians like this out there. On the other hand, it’s a shame that they feel forced to resign because of the current administrations policies and goals.

(Via MeFi)