Brit

I haven't had a chance to watch this yet, but apparently Brit Hume is going after us dirty bloggers.

Wanker of the Day

Arlen Specter.

Boo

The lack of a little in-room coffee maker in this hotel is having a seriously detrimental effect on my ability to blog.

Mystery Senator

This, of course, won't happen. The Iraq "strategy," as it is, is to "stay the course" until January '09. Period.

Judges

Rudy and Fred tell us all about it. (I'd forgotten about that Rehnquist quote - I love it when they really speak their minds.)

Signed,
Not Atrios

PS. Atrios attacks!

Dead of Night

RIP, Tommy Makem. Slán a chur le duine.

Late Night Thread

No music. Heh.

Evening Thread

Don't Get It

I'm really not sure why the Dems are even bothering to pretend (or, jeebus, not pretending) to take Bush seriously on this FISA stuff. He's been breaking the law for years.

Just Say No

President Bush is planning to do lots of vetoing in the near future. He has threatened to veto the long-awaited legislation to shore up hurricane protection along the Gulf coast. And he has threatened to veto the Lilly Ledbetter legislation which would extend the time frame for employees to sue a firm on the basis of wage discrimination. And he has also threatened to veto legislation to broaden the State Children's Health Insurance Program so that it would cover the health insurance needs of more children. So it goes.

Not Atrios.

Boobs

MSNBC is on the really important stuff. Like all day. Maybe Dennis Kucinich could streak through Yearly Kos or something, just so we could change the subject. I hear there's a war on?

Arrived

Finally completed my journey. Chicago seems nicer than I remember, something which seems to be true of most major US cities when I visit them. Point being they're getting better.

Afternoon Thread

Dennnnnis!!

--Another Person Who Is Not Atrios

Americans will ride on top of the Mittmobile!

Apparently Mitt thinks Universal Health Care (Hezbollah Style) is a GREAT idea for the rest of the world...on America's dime.

But not for Americans.

It's what New World Jesus Would Do.

-Also Not Atrios

Missing

Somewhat ominous.

Chairman Waxman:

Much of our focus will be on a ‘Personal For’ message, also known as a ‘P4,’ that Major General Stanley McChrystal sent on April 29, 2004. This P4 alerted his superiors that despite press reports that Corporal Tillman died fighting the enemy, it was ‘highly possible that Corporal Tillman was killed by friendly fire.’ Three officers received this P4 report: Lt. General Kensinger, General Abizaid, and General Brown… The Committee did issue a subpoena to General Kensinger earlier this week, but U.S. Marshals have been unable to locate or serve him.

Working!

Someone tell Little Mikey O'Hanlon, age 6, and Little Kenny Pollack, age 9.

BAGHDAD (AFP) - The number of Iraqi civilians killed in the country's brutal civil conflict rose by more than a third in July despite a five-month-old surge in US troop levels, government figures showed Wednesday.


At least 1,652 civilians were killed in Iraq in July, 33 percent more than in the previous month, according to figures compiled by the Iraqi health, defence and interior ministries and made available to AFP.

AFP is lying, however. The surge didn't start for real until June or July, even though a Wank of Kagans told me it was working in March. So, during the start of the "real" surge, violence went up.

Stand Up So I Can See You

Travel day. Off to frolic with the rest of the great orange Satan worshipers.

Light posting for a bit.

Meanwhile

In Michael O'Hanlon's war:

BAGHDAD (AP) -- Iraq's largest Sunni Arab political bloc announced its withdrawal from the government Wednesday, undermining efforts to seek reconciliation among the country's rival factions, and two bombing attacks in Baghdad killed at least 67 people.

In one attack, 50 people were killed and 60 wounded when a suicide attacker exploded a fuel truck near a gas station in western Baghdad. Another 17 died in a separate car bomb attack in central Baghdad.

Rotten to the Core

Indeed. It's been awhile since I've said, but imagine the reaction if this had been the Clinton administration...

Good question

Lambert wants to ask the Democratic candidates, "What is the Democrats' plan to restore Constitutional Government?"

Hm. Maybe we should ask our reps, too.

House
Senate

Update: Look, I'm not saying we should bash the Dems. I'm saying it's a real issue and no one else is going to ask them, so we have to.

Healthcare is an issue, and we should ask them about it. The war is an issue, and we ask them about it. And restoring Constitutional government is an issue we should ask them about.

It's a question about one of the important issues of the day, and they should be able to answer it.

The Democrats are under tremendous pressure from the right-wing spinnners on The Hill and their media handmaidens to ignore these important issues. They're going to ask them about haircuts and cleavage.

So, when we have a chance to get them to talk about important questions, we'd damn well better take it.

We have to push back. That's what democracy is all about: We have to tell them what we want - and when they are running for office, we have to ask them how they plan to give us what we want.

They're only human, you know - if all they hear in the public sphere is right-wing smoke, they will think they'd have to be crazy to go against it. Yearly Kos is a great place to bring these things out into the open.

Signed,
Not Atrios