New Developments III

[OscarGuy]

He does have a website now, that supposedly debunks a lot of the criticism leveled at the plan, but since it's a white house-sponsored page, the right wingers aren't about to let it stand as any kind of corrective tool.

My problem with these protestors is that they can very easily fix the issue: If you don't have a valid license showing that you are a citizen of the community in which the Town Hall occurs, you can't get in the door. It's that simple. For valid citizens only!

But, although I don't care for my own state after it's support of Neanderthal Bush and his shapeshifting follow up McCain, I did hear that Claire McCaskill's town hall held up state went by without such outbursts, so there's something to be said for restraint...and maybe she should give some tips to her colleagues on how to appropriately stage one of these town halls.

[Sonic Youth]

I don't think anybody can truly answer that, because I don't think anyone truly knows what Obama's health policy is. We have an 1,100 page bill to contend with, and it's not the only bill out there. Because of that, propagandists with their own agendas can put their own interpretations of what's in it, and who's the wiser? I think the town hall disruptions are appalling, but a lot of the blame has to be put on Obama himself. For someone so allegedly in touch with the people, he's done an atrocious job communicating his health care plan.



Edited By Sonic Youth on 1250025175

[cam]

We are following the struggle for universal health care in the US, as we live with it. When you need it, it is there and cheap, or free. I would rather be taxed for health care than anything else.

I would really like to know : how many of you support Obama's policy, and how many are opposed?

[Big Magilla]

Lovely comments from the morons in the peanut gallery:

I wouldnt doubt that the guys a plant by the dems in order to make the protestors look bad.

I'd put nothing past these leftwing serpents.

YES IT IS HIS RIGHT TO CARRY!

woooohoooo way to go guy with the gun!



Edited By Big Magilla on 1250016008

[Greg]

This is almost impossible to believe even after seeing it. A little while before Obama is scheduled to appear at a town hall meeting in New Hampshire, the authorities allow a man with a gun strapped to his leg to remain on church property nearby.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wxI3npnmny0

[Greg]

Paul Krugman comments on the most surreally idiotic opposition to health care reform I have yet read:

And just as an illustration: a number of people have pointed this out, but here’s the latest in the “Obama’s health reform will kill people” news: Investor’s Business Daily — which poses as a reputable source of financial information — opines that

People such as scientist Stephen Hawking wouldn’t have a chance in the U.K., where the National Health Service would say the life of this brilliant man, because of his physical handicaps, is essentially worthless.

That would be Stephen Hawking, British professor, who was born in the UK and has lived there for his whole life.

http://krugman.blogs.nytimes.com/

[Big Magilla]

I am a veteran but I don't use the VA.

Years ago it had a bad rep. It's only recently that things have supposedly improved. Still, from what I hear from friends, most patients see nurse practitioners not doctors which I suppose is fine most of the time.

[Greg]

Howard Dean was filling in for Keith Olbermann last night; and, in a segment on health care he interviewed an author of a book on the Veteran's Administration who claims that the VA provides the nations best health care for the lowest cost per patient. That really surprised me.

Here's the video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nVBrFt5fYW4

Are there any veterans on this site would care to share their thoughts on the VA?

[Greg]

Here's a fascinating video of Obama's former personal physician talking about health care reform:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SQYiEM8Rz4s

[OscarGuy]

The ACU sticks its foot in it and tries to backtrack. So funny.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/politico/20090717/pl_politico/25072

[Greg]

Here's an interesting excerpt of Dennis Kucinich questioning a "health care expert" at a House committee hearing on health care reform.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-jkLVCxEmOY

[Mister Tee]

The single fact that the voters of Alabama and Oklahoma voted to sent these two lunatics to represent them at the Senate, should be reason enough to expel these states from the Union.

Too bad Inhoffe isn't a member of the Judiciary comitee. That would have upped the entertainment value to eleven.

Pretty much the sole nice thing I can say about Senator Shelby is that he's not the complete disgrace his fellow Alabaman is. Oklahoma, though, as you suggest, has double the wingnut pleasure.

[taki15]

The single fact that the voters of Alabama and Oklahoma voted to sent these two lunatics to represent them at the Senate, should be reason enough to expel these states from the Union.

Too bad Inhoffe isn't a member of the Judiciary comitee. That would have upped the entertainment value to eleven.

[Mister Tee]

The Sotomayor hearings are of course a foregone conclusion, but they still have entertainment value as far as watching the GOPers continue along a this-will-destroy-us-with-Hispanics-but-we-can't-help-ourselves path.

Yesterday Jeff Sessions (and what a clever move, having a widely-accused racist lead the party attack!), after pretending multiple times to not understand Sotomayor's benign explication of the "wise Latina" remark, quoted another female judge as having a better philosophy. Sotomayor gently informed him this other judge was her friend and there at the hearing to support her. This moment was instantly and widely analogized to the famous Marshall McLuhan moment in Annie Hall.

Then, today, Sen. Coburn (R-Outer Space) managed to throw in you "You'd have some 'splainin' to do!" in his best Ricky Ricardo voice. Who will be the first to ask the judge if she thinks every Puerto Rican's a lousy chicken?

As Craig Crawford said today, the Pubs are coming off as a bunch of white guys livid that someone not their kind could have any power in this world. This'll surely pay off next Election Day.

[OscarGuy]

Does anyone else think this sounds a bit like the Harding administration where Warren G gave power to his subordinates and took an almost blind, don't ask, don't tell policy regarding sticky matters...




AP sources: Cheney told CIA not to discuss program

By PAMELA HESS, Associated Press Writer Pamela Hess, Associated Press Writer – Sat Jul 11, 9:15 pm ET

WASHINGTON – Former Vice President Dick Cheney directed the CIA eight years ago not to inform Congress about a nascent counterterrorism program that CIA Director Leon Panetta terminated in June, officials with direct knowledge of the matter said Saturday.

Subsequent CIA directors did not inform Congress because the intelligence-gathering effort had not developed to the point that they believed merited a congressional briefing, said a former intelligence official and another government official familiar with Panetta's June 24 briefing to the House and Senate Intelligence committees.

Panetta did not agree.

Upon learning of the program June 23 from within the CIA, Panetta terminated it and the next day called an emergency meeting with the House and Senate Intelligence committees to inform them of the program and that it was canceled.

Cheney played a central role in overseeing the Bush administration's surveillance program that was the subject of an inspectors general report this past week. That report noted that Cheney's chief of staff, David Addington, personally decided who in Bush's inner circle could even know about the secret program.

But revelations about Cheney's role in making decisions for the CIA on whether to notify Congress came as a surprise to some on the committees, said another government official. All spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the program publicly.

An effort to reach Cheney was unsuccessful.

A former intelligence official, who was familiar with former CIA Director Gen. Michael Hayden's tenure at the CIA, said Hayden never communicated with the president or vice president about the now-canceled program and was under no restrictions from Cheney about congressional briefings. The official said Hayden was briefed only two or three times on the program.

Exactly what the counterterrorism program was meant to do remains a mystery. The former intelligence official said it was not related to the CIA's rendition, interrogation and detention program. Nor was it part of a wider classified electronic surveillance program that was the subject of a government report to Congress this past week.

The official characterized it as an embryonic intelligence gathering effort, and only sporadically active. He said it was hoped to yield intelligence that would be used to conduct a secret mission or missions in another country — that is, a covert operation. But it never matured to that point.

The government official with direct knowledge of the Panetta briefing and the former intelligence official said the CIA has numerous efforts ongoing under its existing authorities that have not yet been briefed to Congress. He said they are not yet known to be viable for intelligence gathering.

The Cheney revelation comes as the House of Representatives is preparing to debate a bill that would require the White House to expand the number of members who are told about covert operations. The White House has threatened a veto over concerns that wider congressional notifications could compromise the secrecy of the operations.

That provision, however, would have no effect on programs like this one.

The former intelligence official familiar with Hayden said Congress has a right to contemporaneous information about all CIA activities. But he said there are so many in such early stages that briefing Congress on every one would be too time consuming for both the CIA and the congressional committees.

The New York Times initially reported about Cheney's direction not to tell Congress of the program on its Web site Saturday.