Bad Deeds for 9-27-2007

ABC News Reporter Alexis Debat Faked His Credentials and Entire Interviews – Little attention has been paid to Debat’s bogus “interviews” with Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, and others. With all the complaining about the liberal media, why haven’t you heard about this? Two reasons:

• 1. Debat is not a liberal.
• 2. Debat has ties to neocons
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Before Iraq Invasion, Bush Had Made Up His Mind – In February 2003, the president was insistent that he hoped to find a peaceful solution to his standoff with Saddam Hussein’s Iraq, and would work with and through the United Nations to resolve the conflict. At least, that was what he was saying publicly. According to a new report published today by El Pais, Spain’s largest daily newspaper, Bush told then-Spanish Prime Minister Jose Maria Aznar at the time that he was going to invade Iraq no matter what happened. Spanish speakers can read the transcript of their discussion — I’m a little rusty — but E&P has a report on the revelations.

Bush purportedly said he planned to invade Iraq in March “if there was a United Nations Security Council resolution or not…. We have to get rid of Saddam. We will be in Baghdad at the end of March.” He said the U.S. takeover would happen without widespread destruction.

Bush Threatened Allies to Get Support for Iraq Invasion – Bush threatened nations with retaliation if they did not vote for a UN resolution backing the Iraq war, according to a the transcript. Nations like Mexico, Angola, Chile and Cameroon must know that the security of the United States is at stake, the president tells Aznar. The El Pais reported that Bush threatened to pull financial aid from Angola and warned that a free-trade agreement with Chile might be delayed in the Senate if they did not back another UN resolution. The confidential transcript was prepared by Spain’s ambassador to the United States at the time, Javier Ruperez, the paper said.

Saddam Hussein offered to step down and go into exile one month before the invasion of Iraq – Fearing defeat, Saddam was prepared to go peacefully in return for £500million. The extraordinary offer was revealed yesterday in a transcript of talks in February 2003 between George Bush and the then Spanish Prime Minister Jose Maria Aznar at the President’s Texas ranch. Asked by the Spanish premier whether Saddam – who was executed in December last year – could really leave, the President replied: “Yes, that possibility exists. Or he might even be assassinated.” But he added that whatever happened: “We’ll be in Baghdad by the end of March.” On 9-25-2007, the Bush administration asked Congress for another £100billion to finance the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Bush Spent At Least $2.8 Million Just Talking About Messing With Social Security – After long delays, due in part to the refusal of the White House to cooperate, a GAO report was released assessing the costs to taxpayers of a 2005 White House initiative to support the President’s efforts to privatize Social Security. The initiative included campaign-style events featuring the President and a roster of top Administration officials as well as the creation of a “Social Security Information Center” in the Department of the Treasury. The analysis shows that the White House effort cost more than $2.8 million, including more than $1.6 million for staging the events, more than $800,000 for Air Force One and Air Force Two travel, and more than $200,000 for the creation of the Treasury Department’s privatization war room and website. The $2.8 million estimate is an underestimate of the true costs, as it does not include the cost of staff time, Secret Service protection, and other expenses.

Republicans Don’t Care About Black People (Just Black Votes) – Two recent examples:

• Republicans killed Congressional representation for Washington D.C. residents.
• The major Republican candidates for president refused to participate in a long-scheduled, nationally televised debate focusing on issues important to minorities.

White House Tried To Block California’s Emission Standards – The Bush administration engaged in a broad, multi-agency effort to lobby congressmen and governors to urge them to oppose a California plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, according to a recent investigation. Yeah, Republicans are all about states’ rights…until it hurts their cronies’ stock portfolios.

Bush Doesn’t Learn – As a candidate, George W. Bush once asked, “Is our children learning?” Now he has an answer. “Childrens do learn,” he said Wednesday. The setting was, yes, an education event where the president was taking credit for rising test scores and promoting congressional renewal of his signature education law.

Regards,

Jim