THE FLASHLIGHT, May 5-11, 2007
THE FLASHLIGHT, May 5-11, 2007
[This week’s news suggests that we are at the beginning of the end game in Iraq. The Shiites are collecting arms from Iran. The Sunnis anticipate help from Egyptian and Saudi troops. There is no sign of significant reduction in violence since the number of US troops increased in Iraq. The Maliki government is planning to decamp to Europe for the summer. Both a majority of Iraqis and Americans want US troops to be withdrawn from Iraq. The Army and Marine Corps are almost out of new recruits. M. Matossian, ed.]
The Iraq War
5-4. NY Times. Senators Hillary Clinton and Robert Byrd introduced a bill to reverse the 2002 Congressional authorization for the use of force in Iraq, as of next Oct. 11. Sen. Obama supports them.
5-6. NYTimes. A well-organized anti-war coalition in the US, which includes MoveOn.org and some elements of organized labor, is fine-turned to wrestle members of Congress into place one by one. It approached Democratic Congressional leaders with the message that if they waver and pass a war funding bill that contains no measures to end the war, then the party unity which they have so expertly built will “immediately disappear.” Tom Mazzie, leader of this coalition, said, “The central strategy is to create a toxic environment for people who want to continue this debacle.”
5-6 NBC. Only 27% of Americans approve Bush policy in Iraq. Both Republicans and Democrats now speak of September as a deadline for the Iraqi government to complete its tasks: dissolve the militias, and amend the constitution to allow former Baath Party leaders [mostly Sunni] to participate in politics.
5-9. Az-Zaman, Baghdad. The Iraqi press reports a secret visit of Vice President Cheney to Baghdad, during which he told the leaders of the government that the patience of Pres. Bush and the Republican and Democratic leaders is running out with the Iraqi government, which has failed to dissolve sectarian militias and reconcile with the Baathists. He condemned the decision of the government to take a two-month recess this summer. Cheney told them to cancel the vacation.
5-10. NBC. Eleven Republican Congressmen had a meeting with Pres. Bush, Sec. Gates, Sec. Rice, Karl Rove et al. in the White House, where they berated the President for his Iraq position They told the White House that it has no more credibility left and that Gen. Petraeus was the only one to whom people would listen.
5-11. W Post. The US House passed a bill to fund the Iraq War only until mid-July, with less than half the money requested by the President. Bush again threatened a veto. The Democratic leaders said that they will not renew funding after mid-July unless there are clear signs of progress on the ground.
5-10 W. Post. Tony Blair resigned as Prime Minister of England as of June 27.after ten years of service,
France
5-7. NY Times. Nicholas Sarkozy of the Centrist Gaullist Party run the election for President of France by a margin of 53-47. Sarkozy is the grandson of Sephardic Jew of Hungary who converted to Roman Catholicism. His father was a minor Hungarian aristocrat who left the family with Nicholas was five. His mother was a lawyer of Greek descent. He was trained as a lawyer and at the age of 28 was elected as mayor of a town. As Interior Minister in 2002 he was a severe law and order man. The Times described him as a polarizing, “whirling dervish of ideas” and a risk taker. He plans to deal with unemployment and stagnant wages by shaking up the French economy much as Margaret Thatcher did to the British economy and increasing participation in world trade.
Quotable Quips
Comedy Central, on the disclosure of a high-class prostitution ring in Washington, “The Beltway has become unbuckled.”
Jane Fonda, appearing on the Steven Colbert Show, The President appears to be afraid of a premature evacuation.”
[This week’s news suggests that we are at the beginning of the end game in Iraq. The Shiites are collecting arms from Iran. The Sunnis anticipate help from Egyptian and Saudi troops. There is no sign of significant reduction in violence since the number of US troops increased in Iraq. The Maliki government is planning to decamp to Europe for the summer. Both a majority of Iraqis and Americans want US troops to be withdrawn from Iraq. The Army and Marine Corps are almost out of new recruits. M. Matossian, ed.]
The Iraq War
5-4. NY Times. Senators Hillary Clinton and Robert Byrd introduced a bill to reverse the 2002 Congressional authorization for the use of force in Iraq, as of next Oct. 11. Sen. Obama supports them.
5-6. NYTimes. A well-organized anti-war coalition in the US, which includes MoveOn.org and some elements of organized labor, is fine-turned to wrestle members of Congress into place one by one. It approached Democratic Congressional leaders with the message that if they waver and pass a war funding bill that contains no measures to end the war, then the party unity which they have so expertly built will “immediately disappear.” Tom Mazzie, leader of this coalition, said, “The central strategy is to create a toxic environment for people who want to continue this debacle.”
5-6 NBC. Only 27% of Americans approve Bush policy in Iraq. Both Republicans and Democrats now speak of September as a deadline for the Iraqi government to complete its tasks: dissolve the militias, and amend the constitution to allow former Baath Party leaders [mostly Sunni] to participate in politics.
5-9. Az-Zaman, Baghdad. The Iraqi press reports a secret visit of Vice President Cheney to Baghdad, during which he told the leaders of the government that the patience of Pres. Bush and the Republican and Democratic leaders is running out with the Iraqi government, which has failed to dissolve sectarian militias and reconcile with the Baathists. He condemned the decision of the government to take a two-month recess this summer. Cheney told them to cancel the vacation.
5-10. NBC. Eleven Republican Congressmen had a meeting with Pres. Bush, Sec. Gates, Sec. Rice, Karl Rove et al. in the White House, where they berated the President for his Iraq position They told the White House that it has no more credibility left and that Gen. Petraeus was the only one to whom people would listen.
5-11. W Post. The US House passed a bill to fund the Iraq War only until mid-July, with less than half the money requested by the President. Bush again threatened a veto. The Democratic leaders said that they will not renew funding after mid-July unless there are clear signs of progress on the ground.
5-10 W. Post. Tony Blair resigned as Prime Minister of England as of June 27.after ten years of service,
France
5-7. NY Times. Nicholas Sarkozy of the Centrist Gaullist Party run the election for President of France by a margin of 53-47. Sarkozy is the grandson of Sephardic Jew of Hungary who converted to Roman Catholicism. His father was a minor Hungarian aristocrat who left the family with Nicholas was five. His mother was a lawyer of Greek descent. He was trained as a lawyer and at the age of 28 was elected as mayor of a town. As Interior Minister in 2002 he was a severe law and order man. The Times described him as a polarizing, “whirling dervish of ideas” and a risk taker. He plans to deal with unemployment and stagnant wages by shaking up the French economy much as Margaret Thatcher did to the British economy and increasing participation in world trade.
Quotable Quips
Comedy Central, on the disclosure of a high-class prostitution ring in Washington, “The Beltway has become unbuckled.”
Jane Fonda, appearing on the Steven Colbert Show, The President appears to be afraid of a premature evacuation.”
posted by THE FLASHLIGHT at 6:04 PM
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