Do You Think Joe Lieberman Got a Good Price?

Just askin'.

Joe Lieberman Goes Shopping in Baghdad

He bought some sunglasses and is dressed to kill. Think Progress

A New War to Peace in Iraq

It seems to me the US has been largely beating its head against a brick wall when it comes to Iraq. The only solution has been to add troops, step up security. Many have seen the folly and have advocated withdrawals of US troops - either from the front lines, or from Iraq altogether. No proposed solution has seemed satisfactory.

So, how about a cease fire? Seems like a good idea to me.

U.S. military commanders are talking with Iraqi militants about cease- fires and other arrangements to try to stop the violence, the No. 2 American commander said Thursday.

Lt. Gen. Raymond Odierno said he has authorized commanders to reach out to militants, tribes, religious leaders and others in the country that has been gripped by violence from a range of fronts including insurgents, sectarian rivals and common criminals.

"We are talking about cease-fires, and maybe signing some things that say they won't conduct operations against the government of Iraq or against coalition forces.," Odierno told Pentagon reporters in a video conference from Baghdad.

Its a brief article, but surely the US must be offering things in return - like not conducting operations in insurgent strongholds. I'm merely speculating.

However, this does provide the opportunity for some breathing space, an chance for ordinary Iraqis to go about their daily lives. Significantly, it also provides a new opportunity for a national reconciliation.

Will the cease-fire work? Who knows, probably not. But, I'm giving a big thumbs up to giving a try at something new, something that involves less killing.

Is Turkey About to Invade Iraq?

Fears of a regional war could be coming true. I expect BushCo to blame Bill Clinton for this mess.

Turkey has sent large contingents of reinforcement soldiers, tanks and armored personnel carriers to its border with Iraq as debate heated up over whether to stage a cross-border offensive to hit Kurdish rebel bases.

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday urged the United States and Iraq to destroy bases of the Kurdistan Workers Party, or PKK, in northern Iraq as Turkish military deployed more tanks and soldiers on the border.

A New Job for Wolfowitz?

Freedom Fries Congressman suggests Wolfie become the new mayor of Baghdad. I think its a boffo idea.

Note that Walter Jones has recanted his past support for the War on Iraq, and was one of only two Reep congressmen to vote in favor of the Dem proposal to bring home our troops by September 2008.

Bush's Alternate Reality

Dan Froomkin has a great synopsis on Dubya's weird point-of-view on Iraq:

I often wonder why more news stories don't start: "President Bush yesterday again denied reality. . . . "

And then along comes this delightful surprise from Jennifer Loven of the Associated Press: "Confronted with strong opposition to his Iraq policies, President Bush decides to interpret public opinion his own way. Actually, he says, people agree with him.

"Democrats view the November elections that gave them control of Congress as a mandate to bring U.S. troops home from Iraq. ...

"The president says Democrats have it all wrong: the public doesn't want the troops pulled out -- they want to give the military more support in its mission.

"'Last November, the American people said they were frustrated and wanted a change in our strategy in Iraq,' he said April 24, ahead of a veto showdown with congressional Democrats over their desire to legislation a troop withdrawal timeline. 'I listened. Today, General David Petraeus is carrying out a strategy that is dramatically different from our previous course.'

"Increasingly isolated on a war that is going badly, Bush has presented his alternative reality in other ways, too. He expresses understanding for the public's dismay over the unrelenting sectarian violence and American losses that have passed 3,400, but then asserts that the public's solution matches his.

"'A lot of Americans want to know, you know, when?' he said at a Rose Garden news conference Thursday. 'When are you going to win?'

"Also in that session, Bush said: 'I recognize there are a handful there, or some, who just say, "Get out, you know, it's just not worth it. Let's just leave." I strongly disagree with that attitude. Most Americans do as well.'

"In fact, polls show Americans do not disagree, and that leaving -- not winning -- is their main goal. . . .

"Bush aides say poll questions are asked so many ways, and often so imprecisely, that it is impossible to conclude that most Americans really want to get out. Failure, Bush says, is not what the public wants -- they just don't fully understand that that is just what they will get if troops are pulled out before the Iraqi government is capable of keeping the country stable on its own. . . .

"Independent pollster Andrew Kohut said of the White House view: 'I don't see what they're talking about.'"

Cindy Sheehan: You Will Be Missed

Cindy Sheehan is hanging up her peace signs and retiring from the peace movement. I can't even begin to imagine the emotional baggage she carries over losing her son and then becoming the national face of the US peace movement - along with the right-wing smear campaign against her. Cindy is human, and therefore not without fault. However, America - and the world - owes Cindy Sheehan a huge debt of gratitude.

The Bloom is off the Surge

A new U.S. public opinion survey shows a deepening pessimism over the situation in Iraq. I believe this is noteworthy because opinion polls from two months ago showed a significant uptick in optimism over the occupation efforts. That was because the much-ballyhooed Surge + PR campaign made some people think that things were changing for the better in Iraq. Gotcha! Again!

I wonder how many times folks will be fooled again on Iraq. After the first round of elections, then the second, things would get better. Once we offed the dead-enders, things would get better. After the insurgents would finally realize their tactics wouldn't work over the long term, and (my favorite) the situation will really turn around in the next six months.

Its been a steady spiral downwards, with a couple of dead-cat bounces along the way. I believe a major reason why there is such pessimism over Iraq is the gap between the obvious realities in Iraq just don't jive with what BushCo, the NeoCons, Fox News and Pentagon are saying. We are all used to the lies from public officials; its rarer to have those lies be so obviously and outrageously exposed on a weekly and even daily basis.

This brings us to the key September report from Pope, er, General Petraeus. A lot of lefties in the blogosphere see hand-writing in the wall where the Good General reports progress, the conventional wisdom says give us another Freidman, and the cycle of insanity continues. Its a very plausible scenario.

I'm not buying into that - at least not yet. A sunny speech from General Petraeus won't mean anything without some huge initiative on our part or from the Iraqis themselves. I don't see that happening. The Iraqi government is in full-on disarray. I see dissolution of the government as far more likely than any meaningful reconciliation.

On the US front, the Reeps are slowly realizing they could go the way of the Whigs if the status quo continues. The Dems are craven and cowardly for sure, but the Reeps are most certainly walking the plank. There's also another surge, though this time without the PR campaign, going on right now that is stretching the troops even more.

This new surge won't matter, either. The policy has completely failed. The end is near to the status quo; a presidential election is coming up. Change is in the air and enough sensually-challenged Reeps smell it.

Oh yes, some will accuse of wanting the US to lose, that we hate America, and all that. We you know what? Those idiots can take a flying fuck to the moon. These villians don't even need to be responded to in any meaningful way, other than to be slapped in the face. They are thoroughly corrupted and evil. Not standing up to them means more will die, more children suffer. The NeoCons and the liars are on the run. The folly of Iraq should keep them on their heels for a generation - once this has reached its bitter conclusion. Its a bitter-sweet conclusion - the death of NeoConjobism.

Back to the near-term, I believe that when September comes, the US will begin the exit in earnest. That's no reason for optimism as 500 troops will probably die between now end then. That's just the reality of the situation - it won't be politically expedient to get our young soldiers out of harm's way before then.

(For anyone interested, I've made a number of references without citations - too little time for that right now. Drop a comment on any comment and I will gladly provide a reference in a day or so.)

Who is in the Axis of Evil Club?

Dubya's Axis of Evil: Iraq, Iran, North Korea

Sadr's Evil Trio: US, Britain, Israel

Mitt Romney Can't Keep Track of Right Wing Zealots

Its tough to run for Prez, you have to remember all sorts of folks, but this was pretty embarrassing. From AJC:

At the fund-raiser for Mitt Romney at the posh 1818 Club on Friday, the candidate was making the introductions to the room.

Romney gestured to Ralph Reed and said, “Why it’s good to see Gary Bauer here.” (For the detached, Bauer is a former presidential candidate with ties, like Reed, to the Religious Right.)

Romney then caught himself. “Oh, I’m a little mixed up here,” he said. But Romney still couldn’t place Reed’s face — and had to move on.

D'oh! So, let's give the Mittster a helping hand.

Reed, the former head of the Christian Coalition (Pat Roberston's group), vote rigger, high-school plagiarizer, and chairman of the Georgia Republican Party. He had a meteoric rise in the Republican Party as a champion of the religious right, and even ran for Lt. Governor of Georgia. His future looked bright, until his dealings with Jack Abramoff came to light.

Reed was named in the scandal arising from lobbying work performed by Jack Abramoff on behalf of Indian gambling tribes. Emails released by federal investigators in June 2005 suggest that Reed secretly accepted payments from Abramoff to lobby against Indian casino gambling and oppose an Alabama education lottery while Abramoff was being paid to promote Indian casino gambling. Additional emails released in November 2005 show that Reed also worked for another Abramoff client seeking to block a congressional ban on Internet gambling. These cases are being investigated by multiple federal and state grand juries and by the U.S. Senate Committee on Indian Affairs. Abramoff pled guilty to three felony counts in federal court.

He lost the election and is just another disgraced ex-pol. At least he didn't stick his dick where it didn't belong, so who knows? Could a resurrection be in the cards for Ralph Reed?

Gary Bauer is another right wing religious zealot, probably best known for falling of the stage trying to catch pancakes while running for the presidency. (Does chutzpah know no bounds?) Gary, as expected, is anti-woman's choice, but is pro-death penalty. He had some bizarre run-ins with Dan (Santorum, ITMFA) Savage. Bauer has joined the ranks of right wing ranters by hosting a radio talk show program.

More Political Gridlock in Iraq

On the angle that no-news is still news, nothing's happening on the political front. This is axiomatic to the continued security and military troubles (which are growing worse, not better). From Iraqslogger:

Aljazeera.net reported that Kirkuk may become a “region” –- unaffiliated with Kurdistan or the rest of Iraq -– for the next half-decade until a decision is made on its final status ... Kirkuk is one of the main issues preventing the Iraqi legislature from reaching an agreement over a proposed bundle of constitutional revisions.

On a related front, al-Hayat reported that the Iraqi parliament remains unable to move forward on the proposed constitutional amendments. Many consider the amendments to be the last chance to salvage the “political process” in Iraq. Broadly speaking, the potential revisions to the constitution seek to widen political representation and resolve some of the issues that have been paralyzing the Iraqi political scene for the last years.

Oil, de-ba'thification, the identity of Iraq, and Kirkuk are some of the more heated topics that are being currently negotiated by the political elite. The political pressure on Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, al-Hayat said, is two-fold: on the one hand, Iraqi parties remain uncompromising over the vital issues under discussion, and negotiations are at a stalemate; at the same time, the US is heavily pressuring the Maliki government to hasten the passage of the amendments, the newspaper said.

Al-Mada and Az-Zaman reported over the last few days that [former Prime Minister Iyad] 'Allawi’s plan is to announce the creation of a new major alliance in the Iraqi parliament (seeking to topple al-Maliki’s cabinet) in parallel with his coalition’s withdrawal from al-Maliki’s government.

Al-Mada claimed that a plan by Iyad 'Allawi to withdraw his bloc’s ministers from the government was botched when he learned that the ministers in question will refuse to leave their cabinet seats.

Even the new "major alliance" is plagued by incompetence. The situation is damn close to hopeless.

The Latest In Iraq - Food Shortages at US Embassy, Elsewhere

Another sign that we've lost - we can't even properly feed the fat-cats. Mr. Ambassador, your MRE is served.

From IraqSlogger

The Pope is a Dope

And with apologies to David Peel, he might be smoking dope, too.

In a speech to Latin American and Caribbean bishops at the end of a visit to ... Brazil, the Pope said the Church had not imposed itself on the indigenous peoples of the Americas.

Dear Pope, put down that crack pipe. I suggest tying out Richard Mann's highly readable 1491 to get a clearer view of just what the Spanish conquistadors did when they visited and, uh, conquered, the new world.

The pope was really trying to bring a message that the gap between the rich and poor is wrong, and he also just had to stick his nose in Hugo Chavez's grill. Now Chavez may deserved the criticism - or at least some of it. However, the dopey Pope's remarks put Chavez squarely on the side of the native Latin Americans. So much for the Pope making inroads in public sentiments.

This dust-up is oddly similar to the bloviatings of BushCo in their attempts to isolate and even overthrow Chavez. Some of the reasons might be correct (NOT counting the coup attempts), but the actions have pushed Chavez ever more into a dictatorial role. How's that for a sel-fulfilling prophesy? Plus, as sky-high gas prices benefiting the oil barons, Chavez also reaps the windfall.

So the next time the Pope - or BushCo - wants to take on Chavez, they ought to make damned sure they are keeping their own asses clean. And read up on local history.

Baghdad - Less Violence?

From Iraq the Model, a blogger in Iraq, on Monday:

There hasn’t been any major security incidents in Baghdad since the attacks on three bridges in both its northern and southern suburbs on Friday May 11, more than a week ago. This doesn’t mean Baghdad is essentially calm: there are episodes -albeit minor and limited- still happening from time to time.

From Iraq Today, security incidents in Baghdad on Tuesday:

Baghdad:
#1: A parked car bomb ripped through a crowded outdoor market in southwestern Baghdad on Tuesday, killing 25 people despite a 3-month-old security crackdown meant to reduce violence in the capital. At least 60 people were wounded in the 10 a.m. blast in the Shiite-dominated neighborhood of Amil. Nearby buildings were badly damaged and set ablaze, while others were reduced to rubble.

#2: gunmen in two cars drove through the nearby Khadra neighborhood and ambushed a civilian car carrying three plainclothes police officers from the major crimes unit, killing two and wounding the third, police said.

#3: Another police officer was killed when a roadside bomb exploded next to a police patrol driving through an eastern Baghdad neighborhood about 9 a.m., police said. Three other officers were wounded in the attack.

#4: Later Tuesday, two mortar shells slammed into a teacher's college affiliated with Baghdad University, killing three students and injuring seven, police said.

#5: In the Baghdad neighborhood of Dora, a sniper shot two civilians, killing one and wounding the other, police said.

#6: In central Baghdad, around seven people were killed and tens were wounded when an explosives-laden car was detonated.

#7: five Iraqis were wounded in a separate incident in al-Mansour district, western Baghdad, where a similar explosive charge was used.

#8: Separately, the cousin of the speaker of the Iraqi parliament was freed from his captors, also on Tuesday, the Iraqi military said while denying reports that he had been killed.

#9: In Zaytouna, eastern Baghdad, an explosive device blew up, killing a civilian and wounding three others.

#10: At least four college students were killed and 25 wounded in a mortar attack at Ibn al-Haitham college in Adhamiya district in northern Baghdad, police said.

#11: Iraqi security forces killed four gunmen, arrested 30 people and detained nine others in several areas of Baghdad during the past 24 hours as part of the security crackdown launched by the Iraqi government in mid-February 2007, the Baghdad operations command said on Tuesday.

#12: Iraqi forces also managed to defuse a bomb car in al-Rasheed district in southern Baghdad, in addition to eight explosive devices in several areas in Baghdad, the statement added. Explaining the losses to Iraqi security forces over the past 24 hours, the statement indicated that five Iraqi soldiers were killed and four others were wounded in a combat operation.

Monday incidents in Baghdad:

#1: Meanwhile, a roadside bomb detonated near a group of Iraqi soldiers patrolling the Sunni-dominated Adil neighborhood in western Baghdad, killing three of the soldiers and injuring two others.

#2: the Iraqi newspaper Azzaman reported Monday that one of its reporters, Ali Khalil, 22, was kidnapped while leaving a relative's house in the increasingly volatile Baiyaa neighborhood of Baghdad and found dead several hours later. Khalil was survived by his wife and 1-week-old baby, the newspaper said.

#3: A mortar shell struck the roof of Iraq's parliament inside Baghdad's heavily protected Green Zone Monday, shaking the building but causing no casualties. Sheikh Sabah Saadi, an MP from the Shiite Fadhila Party, said the rocket landed on the roof of the parliament right above the speaker's office. "There are no casualties but there is slight damage to the office," he told France's AFP news agency.

#4: Four Iraqi policemen were wounded when a roadside bomb exploded near their patrol in Wazirya district in central Baghdad, police said.

#5: The office of Adnan al-Dulaimi, the head of the biggest Sunni group in parliament, said that the Iraqi army had opened fire on his motorcade in Adil district in western Baghdad. There were no casualties

#6: The Iraqi army killed two insurgents and detained 69 others in Baghdad during the past 24 hours, the Defence Ministry said. Another 26 insurgents were detained in other parts of Iraq

#7: (yesterdays update) 24 dead bodies were found all over Baghdad : 19 bodies were in the west bank (Kharkh) -- 5 in Bayaa, 4 in Amel, 2 in Mansour, 2 in Doura, 2 in Jihad, 2 in Saidiya, 1 in I'laam and 1 in Hurriya. 5 bodies were found in the east bank (Rusafa) -- 2 in Kasra Watash, 2 in Kahira (Cairo neighborhood) and 1 in Sadr City.

#8: At least three people were wounded when two mortar rounds hit central Baghdad, police said.

#9: A roadside bomb exploded near a U.S patrol, wounding seven people in eastern Baghdad, police said

#10: Around 5:30 p.m. Two mortar shells landed in central Baghdad in Kahramana square. The shelling caused injuries to 3 civilians, damaged 2 cars and near by shops.

#11: Around 6:00 p.m. a mortar shell landed in Shurta Rabiaa neighborhood, 2 residents were killed and 12 were injured.

#12: Around 8:15 p.m. a parked car bomb exploded in Al Iskan neighborhood near the pediatric hospital Al Tifl Al Markazi. 5 civilians were injured.

#13: Police found 24 dead bodies in Baghdad. the following is the number of corpses found in neighborhoods of Baghdad: 6 in Bayaa, 5 in Amil, 2 in Ghazaliyah, 2 in Sileikh, 1 Adhamiya, 1 Husseiniya, 2 Karrada, 2 New Baghdad, 2 Sadr, 1 Waziriyah.

I guess this is what passes for improvement in Iraq these days.

Al Gore: You Da Man!

From Al's new book:

Gore stops short of flatly calling for the impeachment of Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney, he certainly gives the impression that in his view such a move would be well deserved. He calls the president a lawbreaker, a liar and a man with the blood of thousands of innocent lives on his hands.

Most of Gore's ire stems from, not surprisingly, the war in Iraq, a war that Gore opposed from the beginning. Bush, he writes, "has exposed Americans abroad and Americans in every U.S. town and city to a greater danger of attack because of his arrogance and willfulness."

"History will surely judge America's decision to invade and occupy (Iraq)…as a decision that was not only tragic but absurd," Gore writes.

Al goes on to make the argument about the Iraq War that I've been making for years. BushCo is either lied about the reasons for war or is genuinely incompetent. In either case, at least IMO, BushCo deserves nothing short of impeachment and hard time in the slammer.

Can Someone Make Jerry Falwell Seem Sympathetic?

Amazingly, the answer is yes - in the form of Fred Phelps and the Westboro Baptist Church. These are the idiots who go around protesting at soldiers' funerals, saying our tolerance of gays is the reason they got ripped apart by IEDs.

Well, this doesn't really make Falwell sympathetic; However, one soldier's family was spared the WPC treatment because of Falwell's death.

Information on the funeral of [Anthony] Bradshaw, a 21-year-old Army specialist killed by a roadside bomb in Baqouba, Iraq, was recently posted on the [Westboro Baptist Church's] Web site.

But the protesters were a no-show in New Braunfels on Wednesday because they chose to travel to Virginia in preparation for demonstrating at Falwell's funeral, said member Shirley Phelps-Roper, who is also an attorney for the church.

"There are dead soldiers everywhere," Phelps-Roper said. "You don't have a very high-profile, cowardly, lying false prophet like Falwell dying every day."

One useful thing from this is Falwell supporters are getting back some of what they've dished out over the years. The Fred Phelps gang's protest is a bit of karmic revenge for the support of segregation and South Africa's Apartheid Regime, and all the other sad spectacles perpetrated by Falwell under the name of baby Jesus.

So, I'll bet you're wondering why WBC hates Falwell. The easy thing to say is they hate on everyone. But for Falwell they have a special emnity:

WBC will preach at the memorial service of the corpulent false prophet Jerry Falwell, who spent his entire life prophesying lies and false doctrines like "God loves everyone".

There is little doubt that Falwell split Hell wide open the instant he died. The evidence is compelling, overwhelming, and irrefragable. To wit:

1. Falwell was a true Calvinistic Baptist when he was a young preacher in Springfield, Missouri, and sold his soul to Free-Willism (Arminianism) for lucre.

2. Falwell bitterly and viciously attacked WBC because of WBC's faithful Bible preaching -- thereby committing the unpardonable sin -- otherwise known as the sin against the Holy Ghost.

3. Falwell warmly praised Christ-rejecting Jews, pedophile-condoning Catholics, money-grubbing compromisers, practicing fags like Mel White, and backsliders like Billy Graham and Robert Schuler, etc. All for lucre -- making him guilty of their sins.

So there you have it.

Republican Debate Part Deux

Here's what others are saying:

Political Realm declares McCain the big winner of last night's debate. PR also gives a thumbs up to Giuliani, but questions Romney's performance. Of the lesser candidates, Tancredo and Huckabee had strong performances.

Blog For Brains gives the nod to Ron Paul. Paul had the temerity to say that US meddling the Middle East created blow-back that helped cause 9-11. B4B went on to lament the lockstep "consistent conservatism" espoused by the other candidates.

All Spin Zone hits on one hypothetical question asked of the candidates - namely, what they would do under a hypothetical where three terrorists bombings had already occurred, and how far they would go to avoid a fourth. On that question, ASZ gives it to McCain for taking a principled stand, while ripping Rudy's response.

TomCat tallies how many of the questions were answered and how many were ducked. The results:

Candidate Answered/Ducked

Brownback 3/2
Gilmore 3/3
Giuliani 4/3
Huckabee 6/0
McCain 4/4
Paul 4/1
Romney 3/4
Tancredo 2/3
Thompson 2/2

TomCat's take is similar to Blog4Brains - Paul stood out and the other candidates all stood together.

Taegan Goddard declares the debate feisty, noting in particular exchanges between Paul and Giuliani and between McCain and Romney. He offers some quotes from the State and NYT.

RCP gives the right wing view of the world.

Rich Lowry blogging on NRO's The Corner gives it to Rudy. Of course, Rich just loved, loved, loved the red-meat Hillary-bashing.

Funky Town Fighter calls the candidates a bunch of candy-assed hypocrites. Okay, she didn't actually write that, but I really hope she does one of the rants that only FTF can do on the debate.

Drudge and HuffPost have nothing - at least not that I could easily find.

Edit: I found an additional post on the debate, and taking nothing from the above the blogs, Monkey Muck has THE best take. I won't spoil it, just give the link a click and enjoy!

Edit Part Deux: Chuq gives to Paul and Romney. Of the top runners, he had Giuliani and McCain even.

Jerry Falwell is Dead, Dead, Dead

I don't normally go out my way to criticize dead people, but Jerry Fallwell is an exception.

Christians, like slaves and soldiers, ask no questions.

AIDS is not just God's punishment for homosexuals; it is God's punishment for the society that tolerates homosexuals.

The idea that religion and politics don't mix was invented by the Devil to keep Christians from running their own country.

One People's Project has a bio on JF:

Growing up in the South, Falwell says there were certain negative traits that he carried with him. "Well, as a Southerner, I grew up as a segregationalist[.]" ...

[Falwell's] autobiography states that in 1964 he was still a staunch segregationalist, and some sources even say he spoke at segregationalist rallies. In the fifties, Falwell used the Bible to claim the 1954 Supreme Court integration decision in Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka was a satanic plot and this went on until 1967 when he started a racially segregated "Christian" school to avoid public school desegregation...

Falwell ... was also one of the supporters of the apartheid government of South Africa. When the late, unlamented Prime Minister P.W. Botha was inaugurated in 1984, he said that the white-minority rule of that country was "part of God's great design." That got Falwell's attention. In the Summer of 1985, Falwell visited the country, and in an effort to get Americans to support that regime urged Christians to purchase Krugerrands, South African gold coins. The visit backfired on him. He even went so far as to attack Nobel Peace Prize winner Bishop Desmond Tutu. The Los Angeles Times reported that Falwell capped off his visit to South Africa by saying, "If Bishop Tutu maintains that he speaks for the black people of South Africa, he is a phony."

Finally, Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson on 9-11:

JERRY FALWELL: And I agree totally with you that the Lord has protected us so wonderfully these 225 years. And since 1812, this is the first time that we've been attacked on our soil and by far the worst results. And I fear, as Donald Rumsfeld, the Secretary of Defense, said yesterday, that this is only the beginning. And with biological warfare available to these monsters -- the Husseins, the Bin Ladens, the Arafats -- what we saw on Tuesday, as terrible as it is, could be miniscule if, in fact -- if, in fact -- God continues to lift the curtain and allow the enemies of America to give us probably what we deserve.

PAT ROBERTSON: Jerry, that's my feeling. I think we've just seen the antechamber to terror. We haven't even begun to see what they can do to the major population.

JERRY FALWELL: The ACLU's got to take a lot of blame for this.

PAT ROBERTSON: Well yes.

If Hell does exist, I expect he is being eternally buggered by the Devil himself. Pat, you're on deck!

George Bush: A Really Bad Week

Alas, poor George. Life it tough, the bubble got burst, and the news of the week is worse. There are the typical stories of the week; these will be covered. But the more important part is the subtext of an ever-increasing view this is a failed presidency, the legacy is lost, and the Republican Party is doomed for a decade or more.

The Week's News

Retired Generals who served in Dubya's War are now airing commercials opposing the war in contested congressional districts - aimed at getting some wishy-washy reeps to shit or get off the pot on Iraq. The ads are hard-hitting, and mark the first time that generals who served in the war are going after BushCo and Neocons.

Meanwhile, the commander of U.S. forces in northern Iraq is not a happy camper. The problem is the Baghdad surge has pushed insurgents and mini-Saddams into neighboring provinces. Operation Whack-a-Mode continues unabated.

Army Maj. Gen. Benjamin R. "Randy" Mixon also said that the Iraqi government had failed to help the situation in the restive [Diyala] province and that it has been a hindrance at times by failing to support local army and police forces. Diyala borders Baghdad on the east, and violence in the province has grown as U.S. troop levels have been bolstered in the capital. ... The local government is "nonfunctional" and the central government is "ineffective," he said.

...

It is rare for an officer of Mixon's rank to publicly call for more troops. When Donald H. Rumsfeld was secretary of Defense, there was intense pressure on officers to not make such requests, even privately, according to officers who served in Iraq.

Mixon was withering in his criticism of the Iraqi government, saying it was hamstrung by bureaucracy and compromised by corruption and sectarian discord, making it unable to assist U.S. forces in Diyala.

Its easy to see why Mixon is pissed. While he was talking about local and provincial pols, the Iraqi Parliament is resisting BushCo's energy plan, went against BushCo on the security wall intended to separate Sunnis and Shias, is about to go on a two-month break, and had one session cut short this week when two Sunni lawmakers started throwing haymakers at each. Call it dysfunction junction.

On top of this, an active duty Lt. Colonel publicly criticized the brass in the running of the war. (That criticism didn't occur this week - his article was published three weeks ago - but these incidents only add to the fact that Dubya isn't listening to his generals. If Dubya was listening to his generals, he might actually feel some level of confusion and nuance about how to proceed with the war. No, Dubya is resting happy inside his little bubble.


Back in the capitol, a remarkable meeting occurred Tuesday.

The [Tuesday][T]he meeting between 11 House Republicans, Bush, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates, White House political adviser Karl Rove and presidential press secretary Tony Snow was perhaps the clearest sign yet that patience in the party is running out. The meeting, organized by Rep. Charlie Dent (Pa.), one of the co-chairs of the moderate "Tuesday Group," included Reps. Thomas M. Davis III (Va.), Michael N. Castle (Del.), Todd R. Platts (Pa.), Jim Ramstad (Minn.) and Jo Ann Emerson (Mo.).

"It was a very remarkable, candid conversation," Davis said. "People are always saying President Bush is in a bubble. Well, this was our chance, and we took it."

That's really quite amazing, a reep congressman talking to the Washington Post about the "Bush Bubble." And it really appears that bubble was burst - at least for a time. After all, Cheney was in Baghadad - he couldn't protect poor, poor sensitive Dubya.

A number of reeps are now talking about reassessing the Iraq situation in September. That's when General Petraeus gives an assessment. Moderate reeps and other reeps scared shitless about the 2008 elections could start jumping off BushCo's ship. That's less than a Friedman from now.

As for the democrats, they are heaping on the pressure. The odds of Dubya getting a "clean" war spending bill appear dimmer by the day. Senator Clinton is taking a run at de-authorizing congressional approval for the war. The dems likely won't win any specific battle since BushCo does wield the veto pen. However, the dems can skillfully makes the reeps pay a price with a painful series of votes on the war. As the war continues to go down the toilet, the votes will be harder and harder and harder.

As for other news in the capitol, there really isn't any. The Iraq War has completely sucked the oxygen out of any domestic initiatives. The only domestic activity I can see is the continued drip, drip, drip of Republican corruption in Congress and the White House.


Bush's poodle - Tony Blair - is just about history. This can't mean good things for Britain's continued involvement in the war, held together almost completely by the force of Blair's will alone.

Finally, BushCo got a kick in the balls today when the big Central Asian natural gas pipeline will go through Russia - and through Central Asia as BushCo had fervently hoped. This is yet another example where BushCo's ham-handed attempts to increase influence and power drive others away - running.

Maybe this week will be better for BushCo, but I wouldn't put any money on it. Its probably safe to say that BushCo hasn't won a single week politically since the week Dubya put the plan to privatize Social Security on the table.

Did John Doolittle Really Get Sold Down the River by Abu Gonzales?

Doolittle thinks so, but then he's got the FBI hanging out inside his colon. Under these circumstances, I might go a little batty myself.

Doolittle has served as US congressman, representing California's Gold Country (East of Sacramento) since 1990. Doolittle is a staunchly conservative Republican in one of California's most conservative districts. No, check that; Doolittle is an outright loon.

Here are some Doolittle quotes:

A liberal front is underway to find God and all things pertaining to him unconstitutional.

He's honest, ... And he is a member's member

--Talking about Tom DeLay.

I do not subscribe to the theory of global warming. Liberals like to use pseudo-science.

You get the idea. But its not Doolittle's lunacy that got him in trouble. No, Doolittle has a bigger problem. He's a crook. Although the FBI didn't find bundles of cash in his freezer, Doolittle was elected under a taint in much the same way that William Jefferson was reelected. Both ran on similar platforms - playing the victim card.

Doolittle's house was raided by the FBI three weeks ago. So, what did Doolittle do? He blamed Abu Gonzalez for his problems, accusing Gonzales of having Doolittle get raided by the FBI to deflect attention from Gonzales' own considerable problems.

If true, then Gonzales is even more pathetic than I can even imagine. After all, Doolittle has been one of the most fiercely loyal BushCo sycophants in all of congress. Even though I think BushCo would flush one of their own down the toilet in a heartbeat just to save their own skin, I don't think Gonzo is behind this.

No, plain and simple Doolittle is a crook. Consider this article from the Washington Post:

The Justice Department's wide-ranging investigation of former lobbyist Jack Abramoff has entered a highly active phase as prosecutors are beginning to move on evidence pointing to possible corruption in Congress and executive branch agencies, lawyers involved in the case said.

Doolittle's wife, Julie, owned a consulting firm that was hired by Abramoff and his firm, Greenberg Traurig, to do fundraising for a charity he founded.

Julie Doolittle's attorney, William L. Stauffer Jr., said Sierra Dominion Financial was hired by Greenberg Traurig to provide "event planning, marketing and related services, as requested by Mr. Abramoff" for Abramoff's Capital Athletic Foundation and his Signatures restaurant.

Abramoff frequently used the athletic foundation as a pass-through organization to run lobbying efforts and to pay for expenses, records show. Julie Doolittle was hired to put on a fundraiser for the foundation at the International Spy Museum, but the event was canceled because it had been scheduled to take place just at the Iraq war was commencing, Stauffer said.

"Sierra Dominion primarily performed public relations and other event planning services for the Spy Museum event," Stauffer said in an e-mail reply to questions. "This included responding to all individuals calling the Capital Athletic Foundation concerning the Spy Museum event, identifying (and contacting) possible attendees for the event, and assisting in fund raising strategy and letters."

That article dates back to 2005. Doolittle is a crook and he's going down. I'm only angry with the FBI for not throwing him in jail well before the November 2006 elections. Its taken a lot longer than expected to put this guy away. But no matter; it will be all the sweeter when he does go.

Along the way, he's throwing an anchor to Abu Gonzales. How sweet is that?

Iraq Parliament to US: Go Home

Here I've been carping on the lazy, stupid Iraq Parliament, and they go off and do something really significant (AlterNet):

On Tuesday, without note in the U.S. media, more than half of the members of Iraq's parliament rejected the continuing occupation of their country. 144 lawmakers signed onto a legislative petition calling on the United States to set a timetable for withdrawal, according to Nassar Al-Rubaie, a spokesman for the Al Sadr movement, the nationalist Shia group that sponsored the petition.

It's a hugely significant development. Lawmakers demanding an end to the occupation now have the upper hand in the Iraqi legislature for the first time; previous attempts at a similar resolution fell just short of the 138 votes needed to pass (there are 275 members of the Iraqi parliament, but many have fled the country's civil conflict, and at times it's been difficult to arrive at a quorum).

Way to go! Most Americans want us to go home, The Iraqi Parliament wants us out. Where's the problem?

A huge shout-out to The "Bush"-Whacked Administration for spotting this.

I just Googled the News Link for "Iraq Parliament". Apparently the Parliament doesn't like Al Jazeera any more than BushCo does (AJ dissed Al Sistani, a big no-no) ... Lots of bitching about the two-month holiday ... power blackout keeps Parliament from doing nothing ... My favorite headline (CBS) has Cheney Iraq and reconciliation in the same title - I'm still laughing. ...

There is just the one single AlterNet article. Amazing and pathetic.

And Another Example of Why We Are Not Winning in Iraq

Remember, this is happening while the surge is surging (WaPo):

A sharp increase in mortar attacks on the Green Zone _ the one-time oasis of security in Iraq's turbulent capital _ has prompted the U.S. Embassy to issue a strict new order telling all employees to wear flak vests and helmets while in unprotected buildings or whenever they are outside.

Credit to: Editorials from Hell's Daily Leading Newspaper.

Pelosi Threatens Bush Administation on Signing Statements

Well, here's some clarity from the dems on signing statements (The Hill):

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) is threatening to take President Bush to court if he issues a signing statement as a way of sidestepping a carefully crafted compromise Iraq war spending bill.

Pelosi recently told a group of liberal bloggers, “We can take the president to court” if he issues a signing statement, according to Kid Oakland, a blogger who covered Pelosi’s remarks for the liberal website dailykos.com.

Also answered is my question on why individual members of congress haven't already sued BushCo on this:

Bruce Fein, who was a Justice Department official under President Reagan, said Democrats seeking to challenge a signing statement would have to try to give themselves standing before filing a lawsuit.

“You’d need an authorizing resolution in the House and Senate … to seek a declaratory judgment from the federal district court that the president, by issuing a signing statement, is denying Congress’s obligation to [hold a veto override vote],” Fein said.

Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Pa.) introduced legislation to that end last year, but the idea of a lawsuit has yet to gain traction in Congress.

I really hope that the dem leaders can convince their members to sue BushCo on this. I find the signing statement concept outrageous (and none more outrageous than Dubya's SS on the anti-torture bill) - even if Bubba did issue a few himself. Signing statements are not permitted in the constitution - if I understand this correctly.

This Just In: Obama Still Black

The Washington Post has a rather lengthy article on Obama and race and the race for the presidency.

In separate interviews, 10 white supporters who attended the Tampa fundraising rally talked about their perceptions of the dicey realm of race and its impact on Obama's electability. Though they admire his character, achievements, charisma and political philosophy, many expressed fear that racial prejudice might stymie his campaign.

Okay, that's an interesting topic. The article goes on with this finding that makes me somewhat optimistic on race relations in this country:

Once, polls in races between a white and black candidate were wildly unreliable. White voters have had a history of telling pollsters they will vote along their party lines when faced with a black candidate; then, in the privacy of the booth, they cross party lines to vote for the white candidate.

...

[T]he phenomenon seems to be fading, according to a Pew Research Center paper, "Can You Trust What Polls Say About Obama's Electoral Prospects?"

In 2006, when white Republican Bob Corker beat black Democrat Harold Ford Jr. to represent Tennessee in the Senate, Corker's lead was overstated in the polls. Whites voted for Ford in largely the numbers they had told pollsters they would.

Mystery Pollster picks up a recent survey conducted by Quinnipiac University:

[B]elieve it or not, not all Americans know that Obama is black. Here is the result released just last Friday from a national sample of adults surveyed by Quinnipiac University (Q33):

What race do you consider Barack Obama?

2% White
45% Black
0% Asian
7% Mixed/other
9% Mixed Black and White
37% Don't know

Aside from the mixed up mixed race responses (the question was open-ended), the news is in. Barack Obama is sill Black.

Quinnipiac Poll here

In other news, Generalissimo Francisco Franco is still dead.

Another Example of Not Winning In Iraq

Christians are being purged from Baghdad:

An exodus of Christians is under way in the southern district of Dora after groups affiliated to al-Qa'eda issued a threat of "convert or be killed".

Most have fled to Kurdish northern Iraq, where the village of Ankawa has grown into an overcrowded "city of Christ", while others leave for Syria or Jordan.

Priests claim that half Baghdad's pre-2003 Christian population - estimated in the hundreds of thousands - has fled or been killed. They also claim that the Iraqi government is failing to protect them.

And even the surge can't save them.

Republican Debate: Who Won?

I missed the dang debate because I had to work late. No problems though, as the Blogosphere is out in force with insights and analysis.

Starting with Justin L at Blog4Brains:

Most of the candidates were for militarism/aggressive foreign policy, and definitely very afraid of being too harsh on Bush... I was very surprised and a little worried about how they tip-toed around the Bush administration, even going as far as hesitating about Karl Rove, as if they didn’t want to speak out against another fellow Republican even though they need to separate themselves from the current administration.

Politcal Realm also analyzes the debate. PR leads with:

Much like the Democratic debate last week, the candidates preferred to make safe statements and avoid confrontation, leaving no clear victor. As we suggested, Ronald Reagan's name was invoked early and often--at least nineteen times directly--typically in broad fashion. Chris Matthews did a better job than Brian Williams did to follow questions and keep the candidates on topic, though his Bill Clinton question at the end was out of place.

TomCat at Politics Plus riffs:

If there was a winner, I would say that Mitt Romney appeared most Presidential in his bearing. If there was a loser, I would say that Rudy Giuliani appeared indecisive and weak. John McCain presented himself well but I think by hitching his star to Bush's war for oil and conquest, he defeated himself before he began.

From Reconstitution:

So I watched the Republican debate last night and was, of course, sadly disappointed by the bunch on stage. Apparently, I was not alone. According to the MSNBC interactive, this is how they did:

With 18,518 voting:

Brownback 49% negative, 41% neutral, 10% positive.
Gilmore 45% negative, 47% neutral, 8% positive.
Giuliani 46% negative, 33% neutral, 21% positive.
Huckabee 39% negative, 45% neutral, 16% positive.
Hunter 46% negative, 45% neutral, 9% positive.
McCain 47% negative, 35% neutral, 18% positive.
Paul 27% negative, 32% neutral, 41% positive.
Romney 37% negative, 31% neutral, 32% positive.
Tancredo 48% negative, 41% neutral, 11% positive.
Thompson 48% negative, 42% neutral, 10% positive.

Wow, that's downright fugly. I'm starting to think I'm glad I missed it.

Riddle Me This

Why didn't BushCo simply order Dubya to sign the Iraq spending bill - and the issue a signing statement? Its happened before. Dubya issued a signing statement on the anti-torture bill, and on over 750 other bills.

Republican Debate Night

Tonight's the night for the reeps. Is it me, or has this debate gotten far less publicity than the recent dem debate? I went to Drudge, and he's more keyed up that Time took Dubya off its list of the 100 most influential Americans.

Over at NRO's the Corner, the talk is more of Romney's hair than the debate.

Romney said, as he has before, that he pays $50 for a hair cut including the tip. Then he quipped: "You know I think John Edwards was right. There are two Americas. There is the America where people pay $400 for a haircut and then there is everybody else."

The closest Glenn Reynolds comes to tonight's debate is this:

NOT RUNNING LOOKS LIKE A GOOD STRATEGY, as Fred Thompson moves up in the polls. His support seems to be coming out of Rudy Giuliani's hide.

The only big blog I found that covers the debate is HuffPost - and all they do is link to a NYT article. (Upshot: The candidates don't know what do with Dubya. My suggestion: Sell.)

Political Realm has lots of excellent coverage of the candidates. PR has a profile of Tom Tancredo up today.

The latest NBC/WSJ poll has Guiliani out in front (33%), McCain (22%), Fred Thompson (17%), Romney (12%), Huckabee (2%), and others at 1% or less.

Pew has mostly similar results, except Newt is included at 9%, ahead of Romney but behind Fred Thompson. Polling Report has the details.

Finally, today's debate in Los Angeles doesn't even rate front web page coverage on the LA Times. There are articles on how the reeps are nervously shifting their stance on Iraq (we support benchmarks!), and on Fred Thompson presumably jumping into the fray.

Oh well. I look forward to the post-debate analysis.

Thomas Sowell: You Old Coot!

Someone forgot his Geritol:

When I see the worsening degeneracy in our politicians, our media, our educators, and our intelligentsia, I can’t help wondering if the day may yet come when the only thing that can save this country is a military coup.

I post this as a reminder of just how deranged American conservatism has become. Notice its the media, educators, etc., not the president who led us in a quagmire of a war based on lies. The saving grace is the curmudgeons are dying off at a rapid rate.

Success in Iraq: Move Those Goalposts in Some More

Dubya and Tony Snow know what success looks like (less violence), but can't define it. How's that for lowering the expectations? We've spend $500bn, lost 3,500 American lives, hundreds of thousands of Iraqis have died, 2 million are displaced, we destroyed the economy, a religious-based civil war is underway, the threat of a regional war has significantly increased, and we've created an environment in which terrorism is thriving and growing.

So, what we can now expect is "Sectarian violence down. Success is not, no violence." That's the new definition of success, biatch.

Thanks, BushCo, for the gift that may never stop giving.

Iraq: Oil and Gas Bill

Further sinking of possible political reconciliation. Now, the Kurds are opposed to the proposed oil law (Iraqslogger).

Kurdish MPs have reversed their position on the US-backed draft legislation that would regulate Iraq’s oil and gas industries, Reuters reports.

On Monday, Kurdish spokesman Khalid Saleh said that Kurdish lawmakers would oppose the bill on the basis of a provision added since February, when the Kurdish bloc said it would support the draft legislation.

This plain sucks. The oil law is one of the key pieces of legislation the Iraqi Parliament needs to pass. Iraq remains FUBAR within an enigma.

Update: Fox News

A mea culpa on my recent post on Fox News (here). I referenced a World Public Opinion report about how Fox News viewers had more misperceptions about the Iraq War than did consumers of other news sources. What I didn't realize then that I know now is that report was prepared in 2003 - not 2007 as I had originally posted.

This fact doesn't change the substance of my post, except for the assertion that the World Public Opinion analysis and Pew Poll were published in the same week.

Thanks to A Big Fat Slob for spotting the error.

What's Happening In Iraq

On the anniversary of 'Mission Accomplished," let's look at the major factors that will determine how Iraq is faring - economy, politics and security.

The Economy

The U.S. Inspector General for Iraq issued a report that evaluated a sampling of U.S. reconstruction efforts. From Yahoo News:

If these projects are typical of the quality and effectiveness of operations and maintenance performance on transitioned projects, the value of the U.S. investment in Iraq reconstruction will be at risk,'' Inspector General Stuart Bowen said in the report.

The audit also said that Iraqi officials continued to report to the inspector general that ``significant amounts'' of Iraqi funds ``have been subject to improper diversion.'' The country's Commission on Public Integrity estimated Iraqis have lost about $5 billion to corruption each year, a figure that Bowen said is ``difficult to confirm.''

From Global Policy Forum:

Iraq’s broad economy has virtually collapsed and many factories and warehouses have been sacked and gutted. In the absence of security, neither Iraqis nor foreigners are interested in investing, while the no-bid Pentagon reconstruction contracts have achieved remarkably little. Faced with resistance threats, many foreign contracting firms have left and international development NGOs have withdrawn from Iraq as well. Little foreign aid has arrived, as skeptical donor governments keep their distance.

From the Brookings Institute :

Iraq's economy remains mediocre at best. ... [F]ederal coffers are in good shape. But even if there is money to spend, it is not being spent, and certainly not being spent well. A combination of violence, corruption, and federal interference in the efficient flow of some funds straight to provincial governments is impeding progress. ... Schools are not functioning well and health infrastructure is in even worse shape. Unemployment remains mired in the 30+ percent range. None of this is surprising in light of the security picture, but it is disheartening nonetheless.

Political Stability

Again, from Brookings:

Iraqi political compromise remains very limited. ... While the hydrocarbon law that would ensure fair sharing of oil revenues among all Iraqis has made some progress in its journey through parliament, little has happened over the last month, and the bill is still far from becoming law. Other areas where reconciliation and compromise are needed, such as reforming the de-Baathification process to allow lower-level Baathists to rejoin public life and compete again for jobs, are not showing much progress.

From a recent wire report:

U.S. House Armed Service Committee Chairman Ike Skelton Monday urged the Iraqi parliament to cancel its planned summer recess.

Skelton, D-Mo., said he is concerned the recess "will show the world that their determination is not as strong as those who are fighting and dying to support their efforts." Skelton noted a number of key legislative items have yet to be addressed in Iraq.

And, finally from BBC News, via Raw Story:

Democracy is failing in Iraq, a new BBC News video report surmises.

"Four years after President Bush declared an end to major combat operations in Iraq, the country's parliamentary democracy is barely functioning," says the BBC's George Alagiah. "Members of the 275-member Iraqi parliament face constant threats; no substantive legislation has been passed."

I didn't even bother posting on the renegade Sadr MPs or Sunni MPs who are threatening to quit the government.

Security/Military

War News Today provides the grim recountings of recent (like in the past 48 hours) Iraqi security incidents.

Baghdad:

A Multi-National Division – Baghdad Soldiers Soldier was killed when a combat patrol was attacked with small arms fire in an eastern section of Baghdad April 28.

The roadside bomb killed three Multi-National Division-Baghdad soldiers and wounded another while they were on a combat patrol Sunday in eastern Baghdad, the military said. An Iraqi interpreter also was killed in the attack.

In violence Monday, a suicide car bomber apparently targeting an Interior Ministry convoy struck an Iraqi checkpoint near a busy square in the predominantly Sunni area of Harthiyah in western Baghdad, killing four people and wounding 10, police said. The bomber detonated his payload, causing part of the road to buckle, as he emerged from an underpass and was heading toward the checkpoint being manned by Interior Ministry commandos. Those killed included two commandos and two civilians.

Three roadside bombs went off in and south of the capital on Monday morning, killing a civilian and wounding four others, a well-informed police source said. A roadside bomb detonated at about 8:00 a.m. (0400 GMT) in the commercial street of Bayaa neighborhood in southern Baghdad, killing a civilian and injuring two more, the source told Xinhua on condition of anonymity.

In separate incident, a roadside bomb went off in the Abu al- Tayyara Street in Baghdad's southern district of Doura, wounding two civilians, the source added.

Gunmen killed three street cleaners on Sunday in the Adhamiya district of northern Baghdad, police said.

Eight gunmen were killed in a U.S.-Iraqi operation in Baghdad on Sunday, the U.S. military said, in what some witnesses described as a clash with the Mehdi Army militia loyal to Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr. The U.S. military said in a statement one Iraqi soldier was killed in the incident in the Shi'ite Kadhimiya district.

At least two people were killed and 15 wounded when a bus bomb exploded in a tunnel targeting a police check point, police said. The explosion badly damaged the tunnel, which is on a main artery in western Baghdad.

In Baghdad, a suicide bomber blew up a vehicle outside a police headquarters in a western district, killing five people and wounding 12, a security official said.

Elsewhere in the capital, a former brigadier general in Saddam Hussein's army was shot dead in the volatile Dura neighborhood

The bodies of another three people killed in a gunfight in the capital were brought to Al-Yarmuk hospital in west Baghdad, the hospital said

A series of explosions rocked central Baghdad Monday night and witnesses reported seeing smoke rising from the heavily fortified Green Zone. The U.S. military said it had no immediate information on the blasts. About a dozen blasts began about 10 p.m. and lasted about five minutes. Iraqi police said several mortar shells landed in the Green Zone[.]

A roadside bomb killed a person and wounded six others in eastern Baghdad, police said.

A car bomb killed one person and wounded six others when it exploded on a main street in southern Baghdad's Bayaa district, police said.

Mortar rounds killed one civilian and wounded six when they landed on a residential area of northern Baghdad's mainly Shi'ite district, police said.

Around 11 am, a roadside bomb exploded when an American convoy passed by in Yusifiya neighborhood ( south of Baghdad ) without knowing the casualties.

Around 3.30 p.m. A suicide car exploded in Hay Al-Ja'mia neighborhood near Mula Huaish mosque injuring 4 civilians.

Around 4:50 p.m. A parked car bomb exploded in Al Baia neighborhood (street 13) killing 2 civilians and injured 8.

Around 5 p.m. A mortar shell landed in Al Husseiniya neighborhood killing 2 residents.

Around 5 p.m. A mortar shell landed in Albu Etha area killing one and injuring 1.

Around 6 p.m. Gunmen killed [an] interior ministry officer LC Alaa Mahmoud Mohamed in Al Ghadeer neighborhood.

Around 7 p.m. A mortar shell landed in Abu Disheer neighborhood. 2 residents were killed and 5 were injured.

Around 9 p.m. A mortar shell landed in Al Baia neighborhood damaging one house at least and started a fire in the house.

Police found 27 corpses throughout Baghdad in the following neighborhoods: 2 in New Baghdad, 2 in Sileikh, 1 in Shaab, 2 in Binouk, 2 in Qahira, 2 in Sadr, 1 in Shalchia, 5 in Abu Ghreib, 2 in Doura, 2 in Amel, 2 in Jihad, 2 in Baia, 2 in Shuala (one of the two corpses belongs to an Egyptian citizen his name is Hamoudi Hashim)

Mortar bombs killed six people and wounded eight in the northern Shi'ite Baghdad neighbourhood of Hussainiya, police said

Diyala Prv:

A suicide bomber wearing an explosive belt blew himself up inside a funeral tent in a Shiite enclave in a volatile province north of Baghdad, killing at least 20 people and wounding 30, officials said. The attack occurred at 6:30 p.m. as a Shiite family was holding a funeral in Khalis, a flashpoint Shiite city in Diyala province, where U.S.-Iraqi forces have seen fierce fighting with Sunni and Shiite militants.

A suicide bomber wearing a vest packed with explosives killed 32 people when he blew himself up among mourners at a Shi'ite funeral in the town of Khalis, north of Baghdad. The attack took place inside a crowded mourning tent. More than 52 people had been wounded, police said.

Around 1.45 pm, two female students were killed in a car which was supposed to take them home coming from Diyala university to Al-Sadda neighborhood near Bald Rouz ( 45 km east of Baquba) when gunmen opened their fire against them.

Around 1.45 pm, two female students were killed in a car which was supposed to take them home coming from Diyala university to Al-Sadda neighborhood near Bald Rouz ( 45 km east of Baquba) when gunmen opened their fire against them.

Today morning a road side bomb exploded in central Baqouba injuring 7 civilians including 3 children.

Police found 2 corpses in Al Khalis city carries multiple shots.

Chairman of Diala provincial council on Monday survived unharmed an attempt on his life when a bomb exploded near his motorcade in central Baaquba, capital city of Diala province, 57 km northeast of Baghdad, a security source said.

Kut:

Authorities found six corpses, two of them decapitated, in an area north of the southern city of Kut.

Yousifiyah:

He, meanwhile, reported a third roadside bombing targeting a U. S. patrol in the Yousifiyah town, some 25 km south of the capital, but failed to give the U.S. casualties as they immediately cordoned off the area. The U.S. military did not confirm the information from the town yet.

Gunmen killed two people, including an Iraqi contractor, when they carried out a drive-by shooting in the town of Yusufiya, just south of Baghdad, police said.

Suwayra:

The bodies of six people were retrieved from two rivers in Suwayra, 40 km (25 miles) south of Baghdad, police said.

Basra:

In the southern city of Basra, some five people were killed in an explosion Sunday. Iraqi police initially reported that it was a car bomb, but the British military said it appeared that the blast accidentally occurred while explosives and weapons were being moved.

Two British bases in Basra came under shelling attacks on Sunday night and Monday morning but no casualties were reported, a military spokeswoman said. "The British bases in the former presidential palaces and Basra International Airport came under attacks but these caused no casualties," Capt. Katie Brown, the spokeswoman for the Multi-National Force in southern Iraq, said in a statement received by the independent news agency Voices of Iraq

1 gunman was killed and other 4 gunmen were injured and one passing by civilian as they were attacking a military aircraft (according to eye witnesses) and the aircraft responded. The attack occurred in Al Hussein area western Basra.

Senior official of Sadr’s office captured in Basra by US army. Basra provincial council condemned the arrest.


Baiji:

An Iraqi police brigadier was kidnapped while returning home from work in the district of Baiji, said a source from the Sunni Salah al-Din province police.

Early this morning, a roadside bomb exploded when an American convoy passed near the check point of Biji refinery damaging one Humvee vehicle without knowing casualties.

Mosul:

In northern Iraq, a parked car bomb struck a police patrol in the Raas al-Jada, a mainly Sunni Arab area in the northern city of Mosul, killing one policeman and wounding two others, police Brig. Gen. Mohammed Idan al-Jubouri said. The attack occurred at 8 a.m.
About four hours after some 50 gunmen attacked a police station in the same area, prompting a firefight and clashes as police chased the gunmen through the narrow streets. Four of the gunmen were killed and two others detained, while one policeman was wounded, police said.

Police also cordoned off the area and blocked five bridges after four mortar rounds landed on the police command headquarters elsewhere in Mosul, causing no damages, said Brig. Saeed Ahmed al-Jubouri, the media director for the provincial police.

Two members of Iraqi Kurdistan Region President Massoud Barazani's Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) were killed by gunmen in two separate incidents in the city of Mosul, KDP sources said.

Al Anbar Prv:

One Marine assigned to Multi National Force-West was killed April 29 while conducting combat operations in Al Anbar Province.

A tanker laden with chlorine gas exploded near a restaurant west of the Iraqi city of Ramadi, killing up to six people and wounding 10, police and hospital sources said

A U.S. base on Monday came under a mortar attack in the western Iraqi city of Falluja, a police source said.

Four Years Ago Today: Mission Accomplished

Indeed. Dubya has been told by his pupeeteers to veto the Iraq/Afghanistan (plus pork) spending bill because it contains a voluntary timeline for withdrawl from Iraq. The veto will be issued four years to the day after Dubya declared major combat operations in Iraq had ended. Nice work, BushCo.