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POPSPush for Kennedy Successor Stirs Political Storm
Now, with Mr. Kennedy dying three years before his term was up, some Massachusetts Democrats are reversing course, calling for Democratic Gov. Deval Patrick to appoint an interim replacement to hold office until the special election can be held. They now argue the state shouldn't be without full Senate representation for months, especially with pressing issues such as health care before Congress. The Massachusetts situation is the latest to erupt over filling vacant U.S. Senate seats, following particularly messy appointments in New York and Illinois. Away from the political infighting, mourners lamented Massachusetts's loss of clout in the U.S. Senate. "Whoever goes in will not have remotely close to the influence he had," said Ted Glynn of Boston. "That's a big concern." The question of how to fill Mr. Kennedy's seat is vexing Democrats. In 2004, Mr. Kennedy supported a special election rather than a gubernatorial appointment. Yet more recently, he wrote to Mr. Patrick . .
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POPSBaitullah Mehsud Dead; Hakeemullah New Leader of Pakistani Taliban Two senior Pakistani Taliban leaders thought to have been at odds have confirmed that the former leader of the Movement of the Taliban in Pakistan is dead. The leaders also confirmed that Hakeemullah Mehsud is now the new leader of the Movement of the Taliban in Pakistan, dispelling the rumors of rampant infighting to choose Baitullah’s successors. Hakeemullah and Waliur Rehman Mehsud said that Baitullah died on Sunday night from wounds suffered in the Aug. 5 US Predator strike in South Waziristan. The two Taliban leaders spoke via the phone from the same room to an The Associated Press reporter. "He was wounded. He got the wounds in a drone strike and he was martyred two days ago," Hakeemullah Mehsud told The Associated Press. Waliur repeated the statement to confirm that Baitullah had been killed. Both leaders stated that Hakeemullah is now the leader of the Movement of the Taliban in Pakistan. Waliur would take command of the Taliban in South Waziristan.
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POPSwhat's gone wrong with the US spy agency? Spy agencies in democracies the world over face conflicting pressures. By definition they work in secret, but they must also be publicly accountable. In no democracy is this tension more institutionalised than in the US -- as this latest affair involving the former vice-president underlines. On this occasion, Mr Cheney and the CIA may have broken the law, violating the agency's duty to "inform" Congress about its activities. But sometimes oversight by Congress hurts the agency.
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POPSunicorn chasers, ready for use Feeling down? Been reading too much about politics? Fed up with infighting among community members (whichever community or subculture it may be)? Or maybe you made the mistake of clicking through a link sent by a friend who said "hey, you want to see the worst photo on the Internet?" Here's a list of unicorn chasers for when you need a pick-me-up.
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POPSReport: Iraq Reconstruction '$100 Billion Failure' "Powell's contention was supported by both the former ground troops commander in Iraq, Lt. Gen. Ricardo Sanchez, and L. Paul Bremer, the civilian administrator before the Iraqi government takeover in June 2004," the report tells us. We're also told that "the U.S. government still does not have the policies, technical capacity or organizational structure needed for a project even approaching this one's scale." Partisan politics played a part. "To delay getting our funds would be a political disaster for the President," a lobbyist wrote to the Office of Management and Budget in 2003. "His election will hang for a large part on show of progress in Iraq and without the funding this year, progress will grind to a halt." Remember, if you're a neocon, every problem is a public relations problem. They're solved with PR, propaganda, and Potemkin villages.
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POPSIraqi Parliament Passes U.S. Security Pact November 27, 2008 The pact was backed by the ruling coalition's Shi'ite and Kurdish blocs. Sunni Arab lawmakers gave their approval on the condition that a national referendum on the pact be held by July 30. But a number of deputies remain fiercely opposed to allowing U.S. troops to stay three more years in the country. A bloc of 30 lawmakers loyal to anti-U.S. Shi'ite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr chanted protests and held banners at today's session. Under the deal, all U.S. military bases are to be turned over to Iraq following the U.S. withdrawal. It will also ban the United States, which currently holds some 17,000 detainees in Iraq, to hold prisoners indefinitely without charge. The pact is valid for three years, but either party can terminate it with one year's notice. U.S. President George W. Bush on November 27 congratulated the Iraqi government on passing the pact. Compiled from agency reports Source: http://www.rferl.org/content/Iraq_Parliament_Passes_US_Security_Pact/13537
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POPSCivil War Breaking Out Amongst Pak Taliban Clearly we see the same pattern of violence against fellow Muslims (and fellow Jihadists) at the hands of the uber radical Islamo Fascists creating a backlash. This is very reminiscent of how it began in Iraq. The Pakistan Awakening may be beginning (and it may not ever happen). But one thing is clear in all military situations, a divided enemy is easier to defeat than a united one. So the news civil war is starting to break out amongst the Taliban forces in the Pak Tribal Areas is very good news
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POPSA Day Late but not a Dollar Short HRC responds to campaign contributions to the Clinton campaign by board members. Yes, they gave her money. No, they didn't give Obama or McCain money because they didn't take it. After all, HRC is a corporate lobbyist group, isn't it? They can feed the machine too!
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POPSDNC Chairman Joe Andrew Is Urging Clinton Supporters To Switch May 1, 20 Dear Friends: I have been inspired. Today I am announcing my support for Senator Barack Obama for President of the United States of America. I am changing my support from Senator Clinton to Senator Obama, and calling for my fellow Democrats across my home State of Indiana, and my fellow super delegates across the nation, to heal the rift in our Party and unite behind Barack Obama. The hardest decisions in life are not between good and bad or right and wrong, but between two goods or two rights. That is the decision Democrats face today. We have an embarrassment of riches, but as much as we may love our candidates and revel in the political process that has brought Presidential politics to places that have not seen it in a generation, we cannot let our family affair hurt America by helping John McCain.
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POPSThe Billary Road to Republican Victory Think about the points brought up in this column, if you are serious in getting the Repubs out of the drivers seat as we are heading for the cliff ! I'm not entirely against a Clinton win. I just am a little tired of both names that have been with us for the past two decades. (Bush and Clinton). I'm tired of the old words and the old infighting. I want a real change, and I think there are a lot of people desiring the same!
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POPSThe Last of U.S. Trade Deals for the Next Year? This is a bipartisan triumph, certainly, but don't expect anymore trade deals during the Bush administration. There are now virtually no trade barriers on Peru's exports to the U.S., and this deal mainly benefits U.S. exporters, so it was relatively easy to pass. Much more controversial--stalled trade agreements with Korea, Colombia and Panama--and all of them are likely to be mired in political infighting between now and 2009. --Brian Wingfield
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POPSMedia manipulation or what? I am not so concerned with the fact that the Clinton's engage in this sort of thing as I am that they were successfully able to bury the story. This says more about the media, and their lack of recognition of whom they serve, than it does about the Clintons.
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