Politics As Usual

[Shape Shifter]

Originally posted by the Spartan
Middle East expert Laurie Mylroie

LOL!!!

[the Spartan]

Originally posted by Shape Shifter
LOL!!!

Yes. I imagine that was what you and Gattigap had to say after Drudge broke the Monica story. Keep your heads in the sand if you will, because at the least your exposed asses are somewhat safer now that Bush has rid the world of Saddam.

[the Spartan]

Originally posted by Gattigap
it also spends time admiring the work of Ms. Mylorie, who's been the subject of previous skirmishes on our happy board. In the words of Hank's favorite unread author, her theoriy "had been investigated for years and found to be totally untrue." So, might I ask, Hunh?

Yes, I read her bio, and in comparison to the heavyweights of international affairs on this board she is indeed laughable.

Laurie Mylroie is an internationally recognized expert on Iraq and terrorism.

Dr. Mylroie received her Ph.D. in Political Science from Harvard University and her B.A. from Cornell. She was an Assistant Professor in Harvard's Political Science Department, before becoming an Associate Professor in the Strategy Department at the U.S. Naval War College. Subsequently, she was a member of the staff of the Washington Institute for Near East Policy. She also served as advisor on Iraq to the 1992 Clinton presidential campaign and has worked as a consultant on terrorism to the Departments of Defense and Energy; ABC News, the BBC, and Newsweek; as well as several law offices. She is presently an adjunct fellow at the American Enterprise Institute and publisher of Iraq News

[Gattigap]

Today's lesson in jounralism: When the going gets rough, blaming the media is always a handy fallback.

Not a good week for the media. A few days after being labelled "lazy" by the Veep, Wolfowitz has added a couple of punches to the midsection during his trip to Capitol Hill, by declaring that "[f]rankly, part of our problem is a lot of the press are afraid to travel very much, so they sit in Baghdad and they publish rumors."

Nice comment from someone who spends his days walled within the Green Zone. Oh, no -- that's wrong, because --- wait for it -- Wolfie ISN"T EVEN IN IRAQ.

Moreover, even Wolfie's subordinates are disagreeing with this assessment:

... comments from an e-mail I received from former Pentagon spokesman Charles Krohn, a retired Army colonel:

"It's bad enough that Wolfowitz makes such a statement. What's worse is the motive of the person who put the bug in his ear. Having spent three months in the presidential palace in Iraq supporting the infrastructure reconstruction program, I worked closely with the media who worked closely with me. . . .

"But when the insurgency started pushing news south, some of the same voices complained about the media's falling down on the job. This is worse than hypocrisy; it's scandalous. When senior officials express disappointment that schemes to manipulate the media aren't working well, one might say it's a triumph of principle over power. A truly professional public affairs staff could have worked out compromises. Unfortunately, the political dilettantes running the show were unable to rise to this level."

Paul, I gotta tell ya, if your goal is to try and replace Rummy when he gets booted sometime between now and the end of the year, this little tidbit will not work well for you. The press (maybe even FNC) will nurse this grudge like the last beer before closing time, and the confirmation hearings will make Abu Gharif* look like a garden party.**

Gattigap

* Anyone see The Daily Show last night, covering GWB's comments? I've decided that their picking on GWB for adding an "f" to Abu Grahib was patently unfair, and in solidarity with him, I'm gonna use that pronunciation for a while.

(The pause before adding "situation" was nice, though.)

** Of course, Not Me has declared that this is what the "situation" really was anyway, on OTOH maybe you're gonna be OK.

[Sidd Finch]

Originally posted by the Spartan
Plus OKC. Third man=Iraqi, but of course the right wing militia angle was much more politically convenient for the Clinton admin so they went the coverup route.
[WSJ editorial screed omitted]

Wow. I mean, wow. The right wing imagination truly knows no bounds, does it?

Now, what are the chances that two extremist white racists chose to work with Iraqi Muslim extremists? (assuming that's what they were -- don't even think I'm willing to read a whole WSJ crackpot piece).

I guess when the Repubs lost the ability to talk about the economy, fiscal prudence, and the strength of the military, they went to blow jobs and conspiracy theories. Plus announcing that all the people who registered their approval of Clinton (y'know, the guy who was more popular than Reagan at the end of his term) must be stupid. Y'all are starting to look like Berkeleyites after the Reagan reelection.

[Gattigap]

Originally posted by the Spartan
Yes, I read her bio, and in comparison to the heavyweights of international affairs on this board she is indeed laughable.

Laurie Mylroie is an internationally recognized expert on Iraq and terrorism.

Dr. Mylroie received her Ph.D. in Political Science from Harvard University and her B.A. from Cornell. She was an Assistant Professor in Harvard's Political Science Department, before becoming an Associate Professor in the Strategy Department at the U.S. Naval War College. Subsequently, she was a member of the staff of the Washington Institute for Near East Policy. She also served as advisor on Iraq to the 1992 Clinton presidential campaign and has worked as a consultant on terrorism to the Departments of Defense and Energy; ABC News, the BBC, and Newsweek; as well as several law offices. She is presently an adjunct fellow at the American Enterprise Institute and publisher of Iraq News

OK. Her Unified Theory on Terrorism certainly does, I suppose, make her an expert on Iraq. I'm sure that with the apprehension of Saddam, and by extension the end of state-sponsored terrorism, she's been spending the time since smoking a congratulatory cigarette the size of Apollo 11.

(I will also add that her namby-pamby Harvard and Cornell credentials make her a suspected member of the card-carrying "cultural elite" that GWB has little time for, so I wouldn't wave that particular flag too highly.)

[Hank Chinaski]

Originally posted by Gattigap
(I will also add that her namby-pamby Harvard and Cornell credentials make her a suspected member of the card-carrying "cultural elite" that GWB has little time for, so I wouldn't wave that particular flag too highly.)

Are you saying smart girls can't be hot........

[The Larry Davis Experience]

Originally posted by Gattigap
Paul, I gotta tell ya, if your goal is to try and replace Rummy when he gets booted sometime between now and the end of the year, this little tidbit will not work well for you. The press (maybe even FNC) will nurse this grudge like the last beer before closing time, and the confirmation hearings will make Abu Gharif* look like a garden party.**

Could they really seek to replace Rummy with Wolfowitz? It's not only the press, I think Congress is pretty fed up with him and his nonanswers on the budget and troop drawdown issues. But maybe I'm imagining bipartisan displeasure based on a few isolated GOP quotes.

Anyway, his comments are even more funny in light of the FNC article posted yesterday on how great things are in Kabul. I guess stay-in-the-safe-area reporting is still welcome sometimes.

Anyone see The Daily Show last night, covering GWB's comments? I've decided that their picking on GWB for adding an "f" to Abu Grahib was patently unfair, and in solidarity with him, I'm gonna use that pronunciation for a while.

(The pause before adding "situation" was nice, though.)

Yeah, the pronunciation teasing may have been unfair, but that pause was entertaining on its own. The annoyed look on his face as he started to squeeze out what sounded like "scandal" but then morphed into "ssssituation" was priceless. I almost expected him to call an audible and spit out "the abu garef......ssss.....shitburger" instead.

[Gattigap]

Originally posted by The Larry Davis Experience
Could they really seek to replace Rummy with Wolfowitz?

No. The CW seems to be that Congress, on a bipartisan basis, hold Wolfowitz in even lower regard than they do Rumsfeld, if that's possible.

Usually the No. 2 guy at defense is the details man, and the Secretary is the vision guy -- so if the Secretary has to go, promoting No. 2 will ensure competency, at least for an interim period. It's because those roles are reversed here that Rumsfeld has whatever job security exists.

[Hank Chinaski]

Originally posted by Gattigap
No. The CW seems to be that Congress, on a bipartisan basis, hold Wolfowitz in even lower regard than they do Rumsfeld, if that's possible.

Usually the No. 2 guy at defense is the details man, and the Secretary is the vision guy -- so if the Secretary has to go, promoting No. 2 will ensure competency, at least for an interim period. It's because those roles are reversed here that Rumsfeld has whatever job security exists.

Fuck. put Ty there. He's been second guessing equipment and troops in Iraq since day 1. He must be a details guy, or full of shit. Put up or shut up.

[Sidd Finch]

Originally posted by Gattigap
OK. Her Unified Theory on Terrorism certainly does, I suppose, make her an expert on Iraq. I'm sure that with the apprehension of Saddam, and by extension the end of state-sponsored terrorism, she's been spending the time since smoking a congratulatory cigarette the size of Apollo 11.

Enough. Penske has posted the woman's biography. If the biography that she and her staff wrote is positive, then her credentials cannot be disputed.

[the Spartan]

Originally posted by Sidd Finch
Wow. I mean, wow. The right wing imagination truly knows no bounds, does it?

Now, what are the chances that two extremist white racists chose to work with Iraqi Muslim extremists?

Good point, because of course Nichols was such an extreme white racist that he chose, just for the fun of it, to vacation in the ever popular (hotbed of radical Islamic extremists) Phillipines. Very popular tourist locale for redneck midwesterners, no offence Hank.

Originally posted by Sidd Finch
don't even think I'm willing to read a whole WSJ crackpot piece).

Well said. Stick with a paper with journalistic integrity. Like the NYTimes. Speaking of which, did you read Jayson Blair's piece today? Kudos. Indeed.

Originally posted by Sidd Finch I guess when the Repubs lost the ability to talk about the economy, fiscal prudence, and the strength of the military, they went to blow jobs and conspiracy theories. Plus announcing that all the people who registered their approval of Clinton (y'know, the guy who was more popular than Reagan at the end of his term) must be stupid. Y'all are starting to look like Berkeleyites after the Reagan reelection.

The economy of the 90s was built on the foundation of economic health that Reagan created after the Great Society almost destroyed us.

Fiscal prudence was at least in part due to the Republican congress. If Clinton had his way National Healthcare would have been the Great Society of its generation.

Strength of military was at least in part thanks to Reagan was rebuilding of the military in the 80s. The damage that Clinton did our intelligence capabilities due to his disdain for the CIA was far more damaging than anything he did for the military.

As for popularity, I would look to a more academic measure like a recent polling of 78 scholars in history, political science, and law rating the Presidents where an ideologically balanced ranking was sought by choosing scholars from both liberal and conservative ideological camps and asked them to rate each president on a one to five point scale.

In that study-Reagan was ranked 8th; Clinton 24th.

These rankings are part of the new bestseller, Presidential Leadership: Rating the Best and the Worst in the White House", which also includes some interesting commentary on the Presidents.

Here a couple of excerpts:

Harvey Mansfield on Ronald Reagan: "In everything he was optimistic and radiated optimism: 'America's best days are ahead of her.' He was averse to gloom, malaise (in contrast to President Carter), and sacrifice, yet he demanded greatness from his country. He gave the impression that from the industry and generosity of Americans and from the spontaneous freedom of human nature, greatness would come easy."

Paul Johnson on Bill Clinton: "Most of Clinton's time and energy as president were spent not on policy or executive activity but in defending himself against accusations....This had one outstanding virtue. It turned the Clinton years into one of the longest periods of laissez-faire in U.S. history. If Clinton had been a continent man, and so with time to be an activist president, the consequences would almost certainly have been disastrous for the American economy. As it was, with the president busy elsewhere, the nation thrived mightily, as always when the White House does nothing."

Indeed.

[Atticus Grinch]

Originally posted by the Spartan
The additional hypocrisy here is when Sidd and the rest of the Clintonista apologists characterize the monica thing as consensual sex. Hmmmm, yes in the workplace, a CEO in the office during work hours schtupping a 21 yo intern.
Yes, most employers look at that, say yep consensual, no sexual harassment claim potential there, way to go CEO.

The fact that there is a difference between consensual sex and rape, and a separate difference between consensual sex and consensual sex within a coercive work environment, does not magically make consensual sex within a coercive work environment the same as rape.

Saying otherwise is kind of like saying that because chocolate and peanut butter go so well together, and chocolate and mint do too, that peanut butter and mint must also be a delicious combination.

[Sidd Finch]

Originally posted by the Spartan
The economy of the 90s was built on the foundation of economic health that Reagan created after the Great Society almost destroyed us.

Yes, yes, we know -- Reagan invented the Internet. Reagan balanced the budget. Reagan would personally have leapt tall buildings in a single bound and knocked down the planes on 9/11.


That whole recession in the first few years of Reagan's first term and the recession that followed his first term, those weren't his fault. There's a fifteen year delay rule. Except the boom in the 80s was because of Reagan, and the Bush recession was because of Hillary Clinton.

[Sidd Finch]

Originally posted by the Spartan
The additional hypocrisy here is when Sidd and the rest of the Clintonista apologists characterize the monica thing as consensual sex. Hmmmm, yes in the workplace, a CEO in the office during work hours schtupping a 21 yo intern.
Yes, most employers look at that, say yep consensual, no sexual harassment claim potential there, way to go CEO.

So you think that when someone sleeps with an employee, he should be prosecuted for rape and sent to prison for 20 years? Interesting view. I assume it applies only to Democrats, of course.