Archive for the 'Current Affairs' Category
Mar 17, 2007 at 2:05 PM by Political Chase
Sen. Chuck Schumer, (D-NY); Rep. Tom Andrews, (D-ME); Tom DeLay, (R-TX) - self-employed and promoting his book; Richard Perle - AEI; Rep. Joe Sestak, (D-PA).
Alberto Gonzales was invited to appear but declined.
The War In Iraq; Walter Reed Scandal; Firing Of U.S. Attorneys
Robert Gates - Secretary of Defense; Sen. Dianne Feinstein, (D-CA) Judiciary Committee
Sen. Patrick Leahy, (D-VT), Chairman of the Judiciary Committee and Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX), Judiciary Committee to discuss purging U.S. attorneys.
Stephen Hadley, National Security Advisor - fourth anniversary of war in Iraq. (Ed. Note: this may be interesting if Stephanopoulos brings up revelation that White House did not investigate the outing of Valerie Plame Wilson.)
Sam Waterston, actor (Law & Order). (Ed. Note: Waterston has been promoting a significant change to the primary process - more nationally oriented.)
Roundtable: Jay Carney, TIME; Donna Brazille, Democratic strategist and ABC News consultant, Claire Shipman, ABC News, George Will, ABC News
Sam Waterston, Actor
Bud Cummins and David Iglesias - two of the U.S. attorneys who were fired; Sen. Arlen Specter, (R-PA) - purging attorneys; Sen. John Kerry, (D-MA) - Iraq war.
Focus on fourth anniversary of Iraq war.
Stephen Hadley - National Security Adviser; Rep. John Murtha - (D-PA); Zbigniew Brzezinski - Former National Security Adviser Gen. George Joulwan (Ret.) - U.S. Army, former NATO Supreme Allied Commander; Michael Gordon - New York Times chief military correspondent; Col. Pat Lang: U.S. Army (Ret.) - former DIA Intelligence analyst; James Carville - CNN political contributor; Candy Crowley - senior political correspondent; Terry Jeffrey - Editor-at-large, human events
Roundtable: Howard Fineman, Newsweek; Katty Kay, BBC; Kathleen Parker, Newsweek; John Heilemann, New York Magazine
Topics:
- Eight for ‘08? Can Rudy Giuliani become president?
- Can Gov Bill Richardson (D-NM), the Democrats last Governor standing, knock off the Senators?
Mar 15, 2007 at 3:11 PM by Political Chase
Some scientists argue that Al Gore misrepresented certain facts in his Oscar winning film, An Inconvenient Truth.
Read the details.
Mar 13, 2007 at 8:12 AM by Political Chase
This is a bit late, but for the record, the Army Surgeon General, Lt. General Kevin C. Kiley, was fired yesterday for his role in the Walter Reed fiasco. Kiley, the top commander at Walter Reed until approximately six months ago, should have been the first to be ousted. KIley, as top Walter Reed Commander for several years, was well aware of the deplorable conditions and overall disregard for wounded soldiers transitioning to outpatient status. Moreover, when the Washington Post’s exposé first came out, Kiley was quite cavalier and said there was really nothing to it - much a do about nothing.
Mar 12, 2007 at 9:04 AM by Political Chase
Halliburton says it will move its headquarters from Houston to Dubai, U.A.E. to take advantage of the extensive business opportunities in the Middle East. I have no doubt that is a significant motivator and I’m sure it has absolutely nothing to do with reducing its U.S. tax liability. Furthermore, there’s no way it could have anything to do with Iraq easing towards an internal oil policy agreement and Halliburton’s existing presence in Iraq.
Also, several Middle Eastern countries and the U.S. have gotten together for the first time to discuss how to deal with Iraq. Perfect timing for Halliburton to insert itself into negotiations with virtually all of the world’s oil producing nations at once.
Moving the headquarters of a company the size of Halliburton is no small task…if they start their transition today, they should have most of the operations transferred and headaches eliminated right about the time Dick Cheney will leave the White House and needs a job. And, new stock options too.
Mar 9, 2007 at 9:26 PM by Political Chase
I reread my last post and this counter-argument occurred to me. As stated in the previous post, one excuse given for not pulling Coulter’s column was, “she didn’t use that language in her column.” That misses the point entirely. While the language may not be acceptable, this goes beyond inappropriate language.
It has everything to do with character, bigotry, slander, values, ethics, and the values and image an organization wants to present to the public and its clients. It’s easy to ward off simple rebuttals before they are even spoken. Negation of possible rebuttals in advance minimizes the opportunity for the organization to say “no”…all part of pleading the case up front.
Think like Patrick Fitzgerald.
Mar 9, 2007 at 9:10 PM by Political Chase
While the rate of news outlets dropping Ann Coulter’s column is not as rapid as the stock market decline last week, some are ceding to pressure and wisdom. That’s good and not-so good news.
Editor and Publisher is reporting that at least seven of approximately 100 media outlets have exorcised the Coultergeist. E&P has contacted some of Coulter’s clients and received lame excuses for continuing to run the column. For example, Michael P. Clark, editorial page editor of The Florida Times-Union in Jacksonville, said, “She didn’t use that language in her column.”
Although the current rate of dropping Coulter may not be breathtaking, seven percent of her client base is much better than none. But, let’s look at this pragmatically. It has only been about a week since Coulter issued her proclamation that John Edwards is a “faggot.” Getting newspapers to remove her column, when the editorial board may have not even thought about it, will take time.
Absent pressure from the public and particularly their subscribers, conservative papers will probably not rid themselves of this creature from hell. Obviously, that means increased and consistent pressure from the grass roots campaign. Pleading a well organized, substantiative case, can make a difference.
Some things to consider:
- I suggest removing as much emotion as possible from any correspondence.
- Proffer facts and capitalize on professional ethics.
- Cite known organizations that have already exorcised the Coultergeist.
- Demonstrate consistent bad-girl behavior patterns by citing specific incidents from a well established Coultergeist history.
- If at all possible, send a real U.S. mail letter rather than email.
- Capitalize on competition to the extent possible (X paper/company in your market has already undergone an exorcism).
- If you know or can obtain demographics that are applicable and helpful, use them.
Mar 9, 2007 at 5:03 PM by Political Chase
Updated March 9, 2007 11:29 PM EST
U.S. Ambassador to Iraq Zalmay Khalilzad on the Baghdad conference between the U.S., Iraq, Iran and Syria. Then, Decision 2008 and the political fallout over Walter Reed & the Libby verdict with Michael Beschloss, Michael Duffy, Ted Koppel & Dana Priest.
Topic - The Iraq War and Treatment of U.S. Veterans
Sen. Charles Schumer, (D-NY) Vice Chair, Democratic Conference
Judiciary Committee; Sen. Arlen Specter, (R-PA) Judiciary Committee; Sen. Claire McCaskill, (D-MO) - Armed Services Committee
(Ed. Note: I have noticed Sen. McCaskill has been getting a lot of visibility lately. This is her first term in a national office and was elected last November by a very narrow margin - took several days to determine actual winner. She’s doing something right with the media.)
Sen. Jim Webb, (D-VA) Armed Services and Foreign Relations Committees; former Sen. Bob Dole (R-KS) new co-chair of Walter Reed-Veterans Administration commission; Loretta Lynn, singer (why does Stephanopoulos do this?).
Roundtable: Torie Clarke, ABC News; David Corn, The Nation; Fareed Zakari, Newsweek; and George Will ABC News
Former Sen. Fred Thompson (R-TN), actor - NBC’s Law and Order
Hoshyar Zebari: Iraqi Foreign Minister; Sen. Joseph Biden, D-Delaware: Judiciary Committee member, Foreign Relations Committee chairman; Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-South Carolina: Armed Services Committee member, Veteran Affairs Committee member; Mike Huckabee: Former Arkansas governor, presidential candidate; Bill Schneider: Senior political analyst; Donna Brazile: Democratic strategist, CNN contributor; David Frum: American Enterprise Institute (AEI) and former Bush speech writer
Roundtable: Howard Fineman, Newsweek; Andrea Mitchell, NBC News; Katty Kay, BBC; David Ignatius, Washington Post
Topics:
- The Libby fallout: Is Cheney hurting Bush and does Bush intend to keep him?
- First Gentleman? If Hillary becomes president, what job does Bill get?
Mar 9, 2007 at 1:24 PM by Political Chase
Former Speaker of the House and architect of the Republican’s “Contract with America” Newt Gingrich (R-GA) had an affair at the same time he led the efforts to impeach former President Clinton. Hypocrisy abounds in oh so many ways.
Gingrich and every other Republican attempted a political coup d’etat decrying Clinton’s moral stance and allegations of perjury. The coup failed, but the rhetoric that came with it could not be withdrawn and it certainly did not stop. Clinton lied about his affair with Monica Lewinski, which was wrong, but Clinton’s misdeed (singular) paled in comparison to the plethora of high crimes and misdemeanors of the Bush administration. How many people were directly or indirectly damaged as a result of Clinton’s misdeed? One, and she received $700,000 - not bad income for a minimum wage earner.
I don’t need to list the misdeeds of the Bush administration for justification purposes - they are well known and have been sanctioned for years. Only Scooter Libby has succumbed to justice and that was this week.
Gingrich, a neocon four sure, had this to say about his sordid affair, rule of law, justice and morals. From the AP:
“The president of the United States got in trouble for committing a felony in front of a sitting federal judge,” the former Georgia congressman said of Clinton’s 1998 House impeachment on perjury and obstruction of justice charges. “I drew a line in my mind that said, ‘Even though I run the risk of being deeply embarrassed, and even though at a purely personal level I am not rendering judgment on another human being, as a leader of the government trying to uphold the rule of law, I have no choice except to move forward and say that you cannot accept … perjury in your highest officials.”
For emphasis, let me repeat these eight words, “you cannot accept … perjury in your highest officials.”
Scooter Libby’s verdict had barely been read when Republican leaders, neocons, and neocon publications (e.g. National Review), demanded a presidential pardon for Libby. Give Scooter a pardon today for the crimes he committed and the related devastating wake of his and Cheney’s crimes, but send Bill Clinton straight to hell for his? Yeah, that’s hypocrisy.
Well, at least we can say Gingrich has chutzpah…start an outrage on Clinton’s moral issue, that ultimately leads to impeachment of the President, and he is out equally indulging himself.
Mar 9, 2007 at 2:54 AM by Political Chase
A few days ago I wrote about contacting Ann Coulter’s public business relations (advertisers, speaking engagements, etc.) to express concern about her remarks at CPAC. Since Coulter’s slanderous and bigoted outburst, several major organizations have dropped advertising from her site (e.g., Verizon) as a result of the blogosphere’s influence.
TPC reader MH made a suggestion that I want to pass along.
As of today, HRC.org is spearheading a petition to contact independent newspapers who carry her column. But so far, they’ve only found a handful out of the 100 or so who do carry her.
I found out that Quad City Times carries her column. Its owned by Lee Enterprises in Iowa (www.lee.net).
Lee Enterprises owns 56 independent papers in 23 states. Not sure how many of the 56 print Coulter’s column. I’ve already written hrc.org, but can you please post this as well? The more people see it, the better.
We have to keep up the pressure to stop her brand of hate speech. Certainly, these papers can find another conservative columnist who writes with civility and decency.
Julie Bechtel is the editor for Quad City Times; email is jbechtel at qctimes.com.
Mary Junck is the CEO of Lee Enterprises; email is mary.junkck at lee.net,
Greg Veon is the VP of publishing at Lee; email is greg.veon at lee.net.
We all know the power of strength in numbers. An aggressive campaign targeting Coulter’s syndication could potentially go along way to inoculate the Coultergeist virus.
Mar 6, 2007 at 12:13 AM by Political Chase
Good news from Verizon!
Thank you for expressing your concern regarding Verizon advertising on the Ann Coulter Web site.
Verizon’s traditional business purchases Internet advertising in many ways. One is via a network that places ads automatically in various spheres of influence. Although our online agency has been instructed not to place ads on sites where extreme positions are expressed, this site was erroneously selected via that network. Verizon Wireless has no ads on that site.
We have instructed that the ads be removed from the site in question and expect they will be removed expeditiously.
Mar 5, 2007 at 5:10 PM by Political Chase
TPC reader Angela made a good catch and recommendation:
You might consider changing how you link to the Google ads tool on this site, since this page for me now has many links for Ann Coulter ring tones, how to purchase her book, etc. Just a thought- you can ask Google ads to exempt certain types of links from showing on your blog.
I had not noticed it, nor had I thought about it. Thanks Angela. I will contact Google and have them remove Ann Coulter from this site. In the interim, there may be some that come through until Google makes the change. If Google cannot or will not filter Coulter out, then I will simply remove Google’s ad.
Also, I did not know there was such a thing as an Ann Coulter ring tone. Is it screeching? Bigoted, derogatory sound bites? God forbid.
Mar 4, 2007 at 4:42 PM by Political Chase
Updated March 4, 2007 4:41 PM EST
I have compiled a brief list of organizations Ann Coulter is associated with; most are advertisers on her web site. Also, see the note at the bottom about Verizon. I’m sure this is not comprehensive, but it is a start.
Publisher
Universal Press Syndicate 4520 Main Street, Kansas City, MO 64111
Sponsors
Mar 4, 2007 at 6:56 AM by Political Chase
There is absolutely no excuse for Ann Coulter’s remarks about John Edwards Friday. Unfortunately, Coulter is not subject to punitive action such as being fired from a corporate job or impeached from an elected office; however actions can and should be taken to demonstrate there are substantial consequences for irresponsibility.
Ann Coulter can be held accountable indirectly for her actions - simply remove her source of public income. Corporations can be persuaded to not provide sponsorship, organizations can refuse to give her speaking engagements, and the public can refuse to purchase her publications or visit her Web site. For example, I know Verizon was a sponsor on her web site, but their ads have been removed.
I have sent emails to various organizations advising them I would terminate any business relationship with them if they are associated with Coulter in any manner. I hope you will join me and demonstrate just how disgusting her remarks were to John Edwards and millions of other people. A strong message needs to be sent to Coulter, and every other “public” figure, that incendiary remarks or actions are wrong and will not be tolerated.
Following is a copy of an email I sent Verizon. If you don’t have time to write your email or letter to an organization, feel free to copy the email below and simply replace Verizon with whatever companies or organizations you will communicate with.
Ann Coulter made slanderous, derogatory comments about former Sen. John Edwards Friday at an annual national conservative conference. I understand Verizon advertised on her Web site before this incident, but acted responsibly and withdrew advertisements after her despicable comments. I want to thank Verizon for its prompt, appropriate action related to this matter.
I also implore you to never advertise on her Web site or any other entity associated with Ms. Coulter in any manner. I am confident Verizon will continue to be a leader in responsible corporate citizenship and will continue to promote a corporate image that is indicative of high ethics and values. That notwithstanding, I want to make my position as your customer very clear on this issue. It is my policy to not do business with any organization that has a relationship that will provide Ms. Coulter income or recognition of any kind. I am very pleased with the service I receive from Verizon, but will terminate any and all services immediately in the event Verizon decides to sponsor Ms. Coulter by any means or form.
Again, I am pleased to see Verizon recognized the gravity of Ms Coulter actions and immediately put leadership in action.
Late Update: Many people may feel motivated to visit her site and make comments, creating a flood of traffic. Just bear in mind, traffic and links to her site will only boost rankings, which in turn can potentially generate more income.
Later Update: There appears to be some confusion on Verizon. As of 7:00 AM EST Verizon was running an ad on anncoulter.com.
Mar 2, 2007 at 6:07 PM by Political Chase
Rep. John Murtha (D-PA), Chairman, Defense Appropriations Subcommittee; Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Armed Services Committee; John Harwood, CNBC Chief Washington Correspondent, Wall Street Journal; Eugene Robinson, Columnist, Washington Post
Topic - The Iraq War and Treatment of U.S. Veterans
Sen. Carl Levin (D-MI), Chairman, Armed Services Committee; Sen. Joseph Lieberman (I-CT) Armed Services Committee; Anne Hull, The Washington Post
Sens.Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and Trent Lott (R-MS) - Iraq funding, the Walter Reed controversy, Iran and the 2008 presidential election; Henry Paulson, Secretary of the Treasury - stock market and the economy;
Roundtable: Martha Raddatz, ABC News; E. J. Dionne, Washington Post; George Will, ABC News
Wynton Marsalis, Grammy award-winner, discuss his new political album.
Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) and Rep. Pete Hoekstra (R-MI) - Global war on terror.
Rep. Charlie Rangel (D-NY) - Economy and Democratic plan for average taxpayer.
U.S. Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad - Violence in Baghdad.
Senators Christopher Dodd (D-CT) and Jon Kyl (R-AZ); Lt. Gen. Raymond Odierno: Multi-national Corps in Iraq; Rep. Tom Tancredo: (R-CO); Ron Brownstein: Los Angeles Times; Jill Zuckman: Chicago Tribune; John Fund: Wall Street Journal
Topics: (1) As black voters move to Barack Obama, can Hillary Clinton win the nomination without their support, and (2) John McCain will be 72 in 2008 - will voters say he’s too old to be president?
Roundtable: David Gregory - NBC News; Elisabeth Bumiller - New York Times; Clarence Page - Chicago Tribune; Kathleen Parker - Washington Post Writers Group
Mar 1, 2007 at 2:49 PM by Political Chase
Major General George Weightman, the top commander at Walter Reed Medical Center, has been relieved of command by Secretary of the Army Francis Harver.
It’s about time somebody at the top was toppled instead of trampling over low-ranking soldiers.
