Friday - November 10, 2006

Message

My Fellow Americans,

It is with deep regret that I come to you here today. I have come to apologize for the party I once helped get back on the right track, but now seems to have wandered off course. You did the right thing in sending them a message on Tuesday. It was a hard message and will be painful for them to endure. Perhaps the next two years may remind them of the true conservative roots of the party. If nothing else, it may give them time alone to contemplate where they went wrong. This may be the best thing that could happen to them.

I am ashamed of where Republicans have taken the party over the last decade. Instead of less government, they have given you more government. They have spent wildly, throwing your tax dollars at pork-barrel projects with earmarks and fattening their own wallets. They have become that which you and I fought so hard against in the 1980’s. The punishment you inflicted on them at the polls on November 7 was well deserved. In fact, it may have been overdue.

Now is not the time to step back and withdraw your support. Talk to them, these men and women who formerly represented you in the worst possible way. After all, they only fell victim to the ultimate product of having unfettered power ... hubris. According to the Bible (Proverbs 16:18-19), “Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall. Better it is to be of an humble spirit with the lowly, than to divide the spoil with the proud.” No truer words were ever spoken and I can see no better example of this than what happened to so-called “Conservative Republicans” this week.

So please accept my apology for their shortsighted and arrogant behavior. I’ve always thought that the shortest route to a person’s mind is a swift kick to their posterior region. You have accomplished that with your vote of no-confidence. It is indeed the best thing that could happen. I thank you for that. It is still morning in America and the goals are the same. Always keep a watchful eye on those you send to Washington. After all, they are only human with all the faults that accompany that sad state.

You have a right to be disappointed with them and they had better take heed. The people of this great nation deserve better. The dream of America is still alive and well. The shining city on the hill beckons you all to do the best you can for all Americans. God bless all of you and God bless America.

Posted by Ronald Reagan's Ghost     on 11/10/2006 at 11:04 AM   
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Dead Duck

_{Mike Lester - Rome News-Tribune (GA)}

Posted by The Skipper     on 11/10/2006 at 10:22 AM   
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Another Casualty

Well, they have knifed Donald Rumsfeld and he’s gone. Now it looks like John Bolton will be the next to go in the fallout from the election. President Bush is trying to line up legislation that he wants to enact before the Donks come to town in full force in January and confirming John Bolton is on the list. We all realize that after that date, there will be no chance of anything getting done in Washginton.

Bipartisanship? Cooperation? Don’t make me laugh. The Democrats have already proven in 2000 and 2004 that they are sore losers. Now that they have finally won one, expect to see even more and worse obstructionism. Sore losers always turn out to be vindictive, hateful winners. I wouldn’t be surprised if they go after Dick Cheney next. Anything is possible with this bunch.

For now though, it looks like John Bolton will retire after December. That sucks on a grand scale. Bolton has been a good man to have at the UN and has done an admirable job for the last few years. His only sin is that Lincoln Chafee dislikes him. Which makes the Democrats happy. As for the rest of us, we are indeed screwed without proper oversight and protection of American interests at the snake pit of the UN ....

_{Olle Johansson - Sweden}

---

Bolton May Not Return As U.N. Envoy
_{(WASHINGTON POST) - Friday, November 10, 2006}

Key lawmakers said yesterday they would block the nomination of John R. Bolton as ambassador to the United Nations, all but killing chances for him to remain in the post past December. For nearly 20 months, President Bush has tried, unsuccessfully, to get Bolton confirmed in a job he has held since August 2005. Bolton then received a recess appointment after not getting enough support in the Senate.

Sen. Joseph R. Biden Jr. (Del.), the ranking Democrat on the Foreign Relations Committee and its presumed chairman when the Democrats take control of the Senate in January, said yesterday that Bolton’s nomination is “going nowhere.” “I see no point in considering Mr. Bolton’s nomination again in the Foreign Relations Committee because, regardless of what happens there, he is unlikely to be considered by the full Senate,” Biden said in a statement.

The White House had hoped Sen. Lincoln D. Chafee (R.I.), a moderate Republican who earlier raised questions about Bolton and the administration’s policies in the Middle East, would support Bolton after the election. But Chafee lost his seat Tuesday.

“On Tuesday, the American people sent a clear message of dissatisfaction with the foreign policy approach of the Bush administration,” Chafee said in a statement. “To confirm Mr. Bolton to the position of U.N. ambassador would fly in the face of the clear consensus of the country that a new direction is called for.” Chafee said Bolton lacks the “collaborative approach” needed to make the United States “the strongest country in a peaceful world.” Without Chafee’s support, Republicans on the committee do not have enough votes to recommend Bolton’s confirmation.

Bolton’s recess appointment is set to expire at the end of December, when the current Congress goes out of session. With only a few months remaining, the White House tried again to get Bolton confirmed during the summer. The American Israel Public Affairs Committee came to the administration’s aid, lobbying heavily for Bolton’s nomination. It persuaded several Democrats to support Bolton but the nomination was snagged by Chafee.

Yesterday, a White House official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the administration had explored options for keeping Bolton at the United Nations. A second recess appointment is not possible, but officials considered making Bolton an “acting ambassador.” But the official, who would discuss internal deliberations only on the condition of anonymity, said none of the options is appealing, especially given the strong opposition shown by the Democrats, who are poised to take over Congress.

If there is no confirmation, “we assume he’ll probably resign,” the official said. Several administration officials speculated that Zalmay Khalilzad, the ambassador to Iraq, could be a candidate to replace Bolton.

Posted by The Skipper     on 11/10/2006 at 09:54 AM   
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   Thursday - November 09, 2006

Book Review

Destined for Destiny:
The Unauthorized Autobiography
Of George W. Bush
(AMAZON) - $19.95, Scribner - 192 pages - ISBN: 0743299663

Since you’re all in a Bush-bashing mood this week, I suppose it’s only fair that I give you something to help you along without driving you all the way to Bush Derangement Syndrome (BDS). This book will help you put it all in perspective as you recover from Black Tuesday. After all, as they say, laughter is the best medicine and if you’re going to laugh, you might as well laugh at The Great Decider.

Now before you go getting any silly ideas that this is a “real” autobiography of our 43rd President, let me assure you that there ain’t a word of truth in it. Well, except for a few choice chapters which I will not mention lest the Secret Service come looking for The Skipper and force me to go on a hunting trip with Dick Cheney. In fact, the introduction was “written by” Cheney (notice the quotes around those two words - that is supposed to be a hint).

Now for the real hint about the nature of this book .... it was written by Scott Dikkers, editor-in-chief of The Onion and Peter Hilleren, who is billed as “former producer of some of the nation’s finest public-access cable-television stations.” Now, if you’ve ever visited The Onion’s web site, you know the folks there ain’t playing with a full deck and when you think of public-access cable-television, what’s the first thing that pops into your head? Why ... “Wayne’s World”, of course.

Now supposedly these two literary giants were invited by President Bush to assist in writing his autobiography. This was done because “Dubya” as he is known, was only a “C” student in college and has always had a problem with fancy words like “nukular.” That’s where Dikkers and Hilleren came in. In numerous sesions in the Oval Office over pizza and beer, they managed to get the inside scoop on the life of the former owner of the Texas Rangers baseball team.

I have to admit that I laughed from page to page and laughed so hard I was in tears at certain dramatic “revelations” by our greatest living President. I have to give this book five stars for giving me something to go back and browse through during this week of gloom and doom. Let me give you a few choice tidbits from the book to whet your appetite.

On Al Gore and the 2000 Election:

My ultimate opponent in the election was an adversary who seemed to be more machine than man. In other words, he served not his fellow man, but the mechanized bureaucracy of government, and he promised only to increase its size to the greatest in our nation’s history. This mechanical man could recite facts to promote his machine agenda of “taking care” of the environment, of “educating” young people in the sciences and “making friends” with other countries.

This man was named Al Gore, and he was a sitting Vice President. I did not have a nickname for him because I did not have warm feelings for him. I only felt for him what one might feel for a calculator or other type of inhuman thinking box. When we were in close proximity, I could hear the gears in his mind grind when he spoke, and I could see the circuitry in his eyes. And as I campaigned, I began to understand his agenda. He wanted the machines to take over the world.

On John Kerry and the 2004 Election:

Finally, the Democrats boldly attempted to find a candidate who they felt had the best chance of winning. But they could not find one. Many opponents emerged from their opponentry enclaves. There was a funny black man. A screaming man. A very old man. And a very small man who appeared to be a troll of some kind. They were all eliminated by infighting, and by the good laws on the books that keep such people out of public office.

After these initial failures, they did not give up their fight. They turned to dark forces, and created a candidate using perverted science. John Kerry was what they called it. It was a monstrosity put together in a madman’s secret laboratory, a combination of living matter of many different candidates. He had the tall, lanky torso of Abe Lincoln, and the brain of my previous opponent, Al Gore. he also had Michael Dukakis’s hair, Walter Mondale’s charm, and the strong lower jaw of Herman Munster, the great Democratic President of the 1960’s. John Kerry was a scary man, and a scary opponent. His massive block head stared down at you as he lurched at you, as if reaching for your throat. His face was frozen in a grim scowl, the frightful result of the forbidden experiments of his face-builders.

  Go grab a copy now. It’ll cheer you up. 

Posted by The Skipper     on 11/09/2006 at 03:53 PM   
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Comedy Central

I’m feeling kinda blue and down today. I need cheering up. I got it! I just need a good laugh ... and what better way to get my jollies than going to read The Tart Twat Of The Times, Maureen Dowd.

Gracious, that gal’s command of the language is magnificent. Unfortunately, the language she uses isn’t English. No, this raucous redhead speaks in “clichese”. One confusing cliche after another falls from her ruby red lips to splatter our foreheads with the literary equivalent of ... grits.

Then again, that’s an unfair statement. Grits actually do have a little taste. Anyway, while you peruse the putrid prose below, bear in mind that this is one of the educated elite of New York society and a highly paid professional journalist at the NY TIMES. - - - - If you’re waiting for a punchline, don’t worry your pretty little head. It’s the tangled text below. Every verb and noun conjoined in a brilliant exhibition of Ms. Dowd’s liberal arts education.

OK, I’ll quit now. I have to go off somewhere and collapse in side-splitting laughter. I just crack myself up at times. Speaking of “cracks” ...

A Come-to-Daddy Moment
By MAUREEN DOWD

They are dragging W. away from those reckless older guys who have been such a bad influence and getting him some new minders who are a lot more practical.

In a scene that might be called “Murder on the Oval Express,” Rummy turned up dead with so many knives in him that it’s impossible to say who actually finished off the man billed as Washington’s most skilled infighter. (Poppy? Scowcroft? Baker? Laura? Condi? The Silver Fox? Retired generals? Serving generals? Future generals? Troops returning to Iraq for the umpteenth time without a decent strategy? Democrats? Republicans? Joe Lieberman?)

The defense chief got hung out to dry before Saddam got hung. The president and Karl Rove, underestimating the public’s hunger for change or overestimating the loyalty of a fed-up base, did not ice Rummy in time to save the Senate from teetering Democratic.

But once Sonny managed to heedlessly dynamite the Republican majority — as well as the Middle East, the Atlantic alliance and the U.S. Army — then Bush Inc., the family firm that snatched the presidency for W. in 2000, had to step in. Two trusted members of the Bush 41 war council, Mr. Baker and Robert Gates, have been dispatched to discipline the delinquent juvenile and extricate him from the mother of all messes.

Mr. Gates, already on Mr. Baker’s “How Do We Get Sonny Out of Deep Doo Doo in Iraq?” study group, left his job protecting 41’s papers at Texas A&M to return to Washington and pry the fingers of Poppy’s old nemesis, Rummy, off the Pentagon.

“They had to bring in someone from the old gang,” said someone from the old gang. “That has to make Junior uneasy. With Bob, the door is opened again to 41 and Baker and Brent.”

W. had no choice but to make an Oedipal U-turn. He couldn’t let Nancy Pelosi subpoena the cranky Rummy for hearings on Iraq. “He’s not exactly Mr. Charming or Mr. Truthful, and he’d be on TV saying something stupid,” said a Bush 41 official. “Bob can just go up to the Hill and say: ‘I don’t know. I wasn’t there when that happened.’ ”

Bob Gates, his friends say, had been worried about the belligerent, arrogant, ideological style of Rummy & Cheney from the start. He fretted at the way W.’s so-called foreign policy “dream team” — including his old staffer and fellow Soviet expert Condi — made it up as they went along, even though that had been their complaint about the Clinton foreign policy team.

- There’s much, much more of this insane drivel but you have to be a subscriber ...

Posted by The Skipper     on 11/09/2006 at 12:42 PM   
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The Pogroms Begin

Well, that didn’t take long. I suppose it is only fitting that today is the 68th anniversary of Kristallnacht. If you don’t know what that was, go read the article at Wikipedia ... and while you’re there look up ”pogrom”.

Do any of you still think the lunatics on the Left will let this opportunity get by them? Lock and load, boys and girls. We are now entering what the Chinese call “interesting times” ....

“Donald Rumsfeld’s resignation is a step in the right direction,” said Anthony D. Romero, ACLU Executive Director. “Rumsfeld is responsible for the torture and abuse of detainees in U. S. military custody and must be held accountable for the failures that occurred on his watch. He has placed the blame on junior military members and has been nothing but derelict in his duty. Congress must initiate an immediate and exhaustive investigation into his six-year-long record of unlawful activity, violations of the rule of law and complicity in the executive branch abuse of power.”

-- ACLU: “Rumsfeld Resignation a Step in the Right Direction”

“Donald Rumsfeld may be looking forward to living out his golden years at his vacation home on the Eastern Shore, but lawyers who represent detainees at Guantánamo Bay have other ideas. In a message just sent to reporters, they say they intend to file war crimes charges against Rumsfeld next week in Germany, arguing that his departure from the Department of Defense means that he’s no longer entitled to immunity from prosecution. “

-- SALON: “The War Room”

Posted by The Skipper     on 11/09/2006 at 09:26 AM   
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Smile - It Could Be Worse

_{“Over The Hedge” by Michael Fry and T Lewis}

Posted by The Skipper     on 11/09/2006 at 06:47 AM   
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Reaction From The Middle East

AP is reporting on Arab reaction to Tuesday’s election in ”Arabs React To U.S. Election Results.” It’s pretty much what you’d expect from that region.  Here is a sample ....

Israel:

“Israelis perceive the Iranian threat as imminent,” said Prof. Menahem Blondheim of Hebrew University. “Without political support at home and in his party and among American public, a decisive military or diplomatic move against Iran seems less and less likely.”

Egypt:

“I was really thrilled when I learned that the Democrats won in Congress,” said Mohammed Ali, a Cairo auto parts salesman. “They are far better than the Republicans led by Bush, who destroyed everything everywhere. Look at Iraq, Palestine and Lebanon.”

Syria:

“President Bush is no longer acceptable worldwide,” said Suleiman Hadad, a lawmaker in Syria, whose autocratic government has been shunned by the U.S.

Jordan:

“We are delighted that the American voters have at least disassociated themselves from these dangerous policies,” newspaper editor Nabil al-Sharif said.

Gaza:

“Our experience is whether it is Democrats or Republicans, we don’t see much difference when it comes to dealing with Israel,” said Palestinian chief negotiator Saeb Erekat.

Dubai:

“The problem for Arabs now is, an American withdrawal could be a security disaster for the entire region,” said Mustafa Alani, an Iraqi analyst for the Gulf Research Center in Dubai.

Iran:

Iranian state television said in a commentary that the Republicans suffered losses because of “Bush’s wrong strategy in the Middle East” as well as “financial corruption in the United States.”

Posted by The Skipper     on 11/09/2006 at 06:04 AM   
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Doomed

This is almost a relief, as Rush Limbaugh said yesterday. Why? Because for the next two years, I get to sit here and say “I told you so.” You see, I didn’t vote for any of these Democrats. Not a single one. I am 100% blameless. Even though the Republicans generally sucked, I had enough sense to know that the Democrats sucked even worse.

Did the Republicans need a slap in the face and a wakeup call? You bet. This however, is a little more than a slap in the face. This is tantamount to “throwing the baby out with the bath water”, as the old saying goes.

For those of you who said to yourselves on Wednesday morning, “We need a change. I think I’ll vote for the other party”, you now have your wish. Let’s see how you feel two years from now. I’ll be right here ... and those four words will be on my lips as sure as God made little green apples ....

Dems Complete Election Day Sweep
_{WASHINGTON (AP) - November 8, 2006, 11:14 PM EST}

Democrats completed an improbable double-barreled election sweep of Congress on Wednesday, taking control of the Senate with a victory in Virginia as they padded their day-old majority in the House.

“The days of the do-nothing Congress are over,” declared Democratic Sen. Harry Reid of Nevada, in line to become majority leader. “In Iraq and here at home, Americans have made clear they are tired of the failures of the last six years.”

Jim Webb’s victory over Sen. George Allen in Virginia assured Democrats of 51 seats when the Senate convenes in January. That marked a gain of six in midterm elections in which the war in Iraq and President Bush were major issues. Earlier, State Sen. Jon Tester triumphed over Republican Sen. Conrad Burns in a long, late count in Montana.

With a handful of House races too close to call, Democrats had gained 28 seats, enough to regain the majority after 12 years of Republican rule and place Rep. Nancy Pelosi of California in line to become the first female speaker in history. “It was a thumping,” Bush conceded at the White House. “It’s clear the Democrat Party had a good night.”

Allen’s campaign issued a statement noting that state officials are conducting a canvass of the votes cast in Tuesday’s balloting. “At the conclusion of those efforts, Senator George Allen plans to make a statement regarding the outcome,” it said.

The Senate had teetered at 50 Democrats, 49 Republicans for most of Wednesday, with Virginia hanging in the balance. Webb’s victory ended Republican hopes of eking out a 50-50 split, with Vice President Dick Cheney wielding tie-breaking authority.

The Associated Press contacted election officials in all 134 localities in Virginia where voting occurred, obtaining updated numbers Wednesday. About half the localities said they had completed their postelection canvassing and nearly all had counted outstanding absentees. Most were expected to be finished by Friday.

The new AP count showed Webb with 1,172,538 votes and Allen with 1,165,302, a difference of 7,236. Virginia has had two statewide vote recounts in modern history, but both resulted in vote changes of no more than a few hundred votes.

- More ...

Posted by The Skipper     on 11/09/2006 at 04:11 AM   
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Post-Mortem

I’m way beyond being sick and tired this morning. Posting will be a little light for the next few days while I gather my thoughts and regroup ... something a lot of politicians who will be leaving Washington in January also need to do. I’ll leave you today with this piece from Robert Tracinski of The Intellectual Activist. I look forward to each day’s mailing of TIA Daily because Mr. Tracinski and I have a lot in common, including an admiration of Ayn Rand and her philosophy as well as a shared view of the enemies we face abroad and at home. Read on ....

_{Steve Breen - The San Diego Union-Tribune}

He Who Hesitates Is Lost
-- Robert Tracinski, “TIA Daily” - November 9, 2006

This spring, there was a concerted attempt on the right to provide the arguments and emotional momentum for a military showdown with Iran, a trend we heralded in TIA Daily with the fanfare it deserved. But then President Bush put it all on hold, instead authorizing Condoleezza Rice to appease the Europeans by appeasing Iran.

Bush’s own statements and interviews with current and former members of the administration all indicated that Bush understands that Iran is now our primary enemy—but Bush was waiting until after the election to take action. As I pointed out, that was a foolish strategy, since it meant Bush was asking Americans to support the war, while providing no sign that he was on the offensive or making progress.

He hesitated, and he lost. He lost a friendly Congress, and he may have lost any ability to directly confront Iran, even if he is now willing to do so. He has a window of opportunity to act, if he does so boldly and is willing to face down a defeatist Democratic Congress. But his first press conference after the election, and his decision to replace Secretary of Defense Rumsfeld with a foreign-policy “realist”, do not bode well.

The American people, however, also failed to choose wisely. They were understandably dissatisfied with the progress of the war in Iraq—but they registered a blind dissatisfaction, in support of a party that offered no constructive plan for Iraq. For many of the “swing” voters who decided this election, it was an irresponsible venting of irritation at the war, with little regard for the unpleasant consequences.

Jack Wakeland sent me a message earlier sketching out what those consequences might be.

In addition to losing the majority in the US House and probably the US Senate, the Republican Party lost its majority in many state legislatures. And 28 of the nation’s governors are now Democrats.

The American people’s reaction to the stalemated war in Iraq has been a wave election defeat of the majority party similar in scope—but without a clearly defined ideological purpose—to the “Republican Revolution” of 1994.

While the Democratic majority did not get a clearly defined ideological mandate, they did get a clearly defined policy mandate: to end the war in Iraq even if that means defeat.

Attempts by the Democratic party leadership in the House and the Senate to produce this defeat—in whole or in part—will have malevolent effects on America’s strategic position in the world. Among the malevolent effects, Iran will be encouraged in its bid to knock over the government of Lebanon, the Sunni Salafists of Pakistan will be encouraged to try to unseat—or murder—General Musharraf, and the Taliban will gain more support.

If the Democratic majority in Congress is decisive in its influence—which is not a forgone conclusion—the US will precipitously withdraw from Iraq. That will lead to a smaller version of the post-Vietnam syndrome and malaise the US suffered in the 1970s, including:

1. The collapse of Iraq into civil war organized and perpetuated by Iran on the Lebanese model.

2. The exploitation of civil war in Iraq to create large scale (100,000-man) Islamist militias and new networks of terrorist cells on the Lebanese model of Hezbollah and the PLO.

3. The use of Islamic terror assets in Iraq against Israel and other nations.

4. An armed standoff between Shiite Iran and Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and the other oil emirates.

5. The extension of armed Islamic chaos across the Saudi and Kuwaiti borders.

6. Ethnic cleansing that kills 100,000s and drives internal and crossborder refugee movements of millions of Iraqis.

7. A general military and civilian demoralization of the United States.

8. A broad reduction in the American military presence and the American political influence throughout the Middle East and Central Asia.

9. The partial return, in the American mind, of a pathological fear of any military engagement of any kind.

10. A reduction in volunteers for the US military.

11. A broad reduction in America’s military capabilities and a broad reduction of America’s influence throughout the world.

The malevolent effects of a Democratic majority do not stop with the potential that they might cause defeat in Iraq.

The Democratic majority in Congress and in the state governments will produce new welfare state initiatives on the old discredited socialist model and new regulations on the environmentalist model….

With the exception of a few areas—e.g., Iraq and the Middle East—and a few individuals who get caught in the jaws of the left’s program, these things will not lead to a general disaster and dissolution. The American Republic will survive intact. But the left is the primary destroyer in America. Handing the levers of government over to them will enable the left to wreck more things—attacking and injuring the good for being the good.

The fact that the Democratic Party victory drew in more centrists in order to win will mitigate their malevolent purposes. And the fact that the Republican minority will be more conservative, less religious, and more ideological will help things, too. However, these counterbalancing trends cannot convert the left’s victory into something good.

Nothing good can come of giving the Democratic Party a broad electoral victory. And nothing good will come of this election.

I agree, but I want to stress again that the full negative consequences of this election are not inevitable. Nothing good will come of this election, but something good can come from any attempt to oppose or reverse its consequences.

“Post Mortem,” Fred Barnes, Weekly Standard, November 8

This one is pretty easy to explain. Republicans lost the House and probably the Senate because of Iraq, corruption, and a record of taking up big issues and then doing nothing on them. Of these, the war was by far the biggest factor. Unpopular wars trump good economies and everything else. President Truman learned this in 1952, as did President Johnson in 1968. Now, it was President Bush’s turn, and since his name wasn’t on the ballot, his party took the hit.

The defeat for Republicans was short of devastating—but only a little short. The House seats the party lost in New York and Connecticut and Pennsylvania will be hard to win back. Just as Republicans have locked in their gains in the South over the past two decades, Democrats should be able to solidify their hold on seats in the Northeast, as the nation continues to split sharply along North-South lines….

Already the wails of the immigration restrictionists are rising, insisting Republicans lost because they weren’t tough on keeping illegal border-crossers out. Not true. The test was in Arizona, where two of the noisiest border hawks, Representatives J.D. Hayworth and Randy Graf, lost House seats. Graf lost in a seat along the Mexican border, where illegal immigrants flock….

[Y]ou have to give Rahm Emanuel, the House Democratic campaign chief, credit for recruiting an impressive group of candidates, including a few non-liberals like Brad Ellsworth in Indiana and Heath Shuler in North Carolina. The media, however, is exaggerating the number of these unconventional Democrats. They are a handful, and the pattern of moderate and conservative Democrats when they get to Washington is to pipe down.

Or, as losing Republican Congressman Chris Chocola said of his victorious opponent Joe Donnelly, they become “Nancy Pelosi.”

_{Copyright © 2006 by Tracinski Publishing Company
PO Box 8086, Charlottesville, VA 22906}

For more of Mr. Tracinski’s commentary, subscribe to TIA Daily.

Posted by The Skipper     on 11/09/2006 at 03:30 AM   
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   Wednesday - November 08, 2006

Blowback

_{Daryl Cagle - MSNBC.com}

Republican Disaster

The apparent Democratic takeover of both houses of Congress left Republicans stunned and divided, unable to comprehend that the nation’s political realignment creating a GOP majority had crested and reversed.

The confidence that relied entirely on a generously funded Election Day organization now looks like arrogance. The party’s cocksure political mechanics simply could not believe the outcome as the results poured in.

Democrats capitalized on a mood that was not so much pro-Democrat as anti-Republican. Republican leaders are still in denial in the wake of their crushing defeat. They blame individual losing candidates for failing to prepare themselves for the election, but the real fault lies with the GOP’s Washington establishment, which played its hand at Republican governance so disastrously that by Election Day Republicans could hardly get a cab ride anywhere in middle America.

In contrast, the private reaction by Republicans was anger at President Bush and his political team. That includes a rising GOP undercurrent against the current Iraq policy.

From a legislative perspective, loss of the Senate is less devastating than the loss of the House, because the Senate was not able to produce or pass most Republican legislation anyway. Filibuster rules in the Senate allow just 41 members to block almost anything, whereas in the House a majority is nearly always sufficient.

On the flip side, the loss of the Senate is devastating for any plans Bush had to install conservative judges. It could strongly interfere with any attempt to replace a Supreme Court justice, should one retire in the coming months. Rumors circulating in Washington about the health of Justice John Paul Stevens should not necessarily be believed, but it is not out of the question that one of the justices will retire in the next two years.

-- Robert D. Novak, Human Events Online, November 8, 2006

Posted by The Skipper     on 11/08/2006 at 05:46 PM   
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What It All Means

Beginning The Fourth Quarter
-- by Allan Kelly (Skipper)

If this were a football game, the Conservative Reds would be down 31-10 at the end of the third quarter. Is the other team better than us or smarter than us? Heck no. We’ve shot ourselves in the foot with interceptions, missed field goals, fumbles at the goal line and an offensive coordinator who has been asleep the entire game so far. Hell, even the water boy has bailed on us.

Can anybody really blame them for deserting us? Yesterday, I voted a straight Republican ticket but I will have to admit I did it through clenched teeth. It was easy to vote for Jim Talent because he has been a decent Senator - unfortunately, Claire McCaskill’s team from the DNC stole enough votes (about 40,000) to win. Elsewhere across the country, the result was the same. What went wrong?

I’ll tell you what went wrong. For six years, we have been playing defense. We scored a touchdown in Afghanistan and got America ready and willing to back us in the fight. We scored a field goal when we just barely managed to get more balance on the Supreme Court with two new conservative judges. Other than that, we haven’t had the ball once when we didn’t cough it up on downs or fumble our chance away.

On the other side of the ball, the Liberal Blues have provided plenty of entertainment. They have played like madmen, throwing in confusing plays and never doing what you’d expect of rational players. Their whole game plan has been to keep our team off balance and unable to get in rhythm. Our front line defense, the “Blog Squad” has been beat up pretty badly by the well-financed offensive line of the Liberals. Yet we have continued to battle it out in the pits with unswerving defiance.

The problem has been in our defensive backfield. Our linebackers in the House have been pretty much asleep at the switch. They failed to blitz the opposing team’s quarterback on several good opportunities, content to spend their time buying snazzier uniforms for themselves and ignoring assistant coach Rove. The safetys in the Senate have let one receiver after another get by them and have allowed the enemy’s quarterback to score touchdown after touchdown. All we here on the defensive line could do is watch our teammates let us down time after time.

Penalties? The referees in the media have ignored the countless infractions by the Liberals, preferring to let them slide on numerous unsportsmanlike conduct, holding, off-side calls and now too many men on the field. No, the referees have concentrated on the numerous blunders in our defensive backfield - and there have been plenty. The illegal use of lobbyist steroids by Tom DeLay started the avalanche that ended with Mark Foley being penalized and ejected from the game for fondling a male cheerleader. Rah-rah-rah ... phooey!

Well, we’re finally in the fourth quarter and our team has the ball and a chance to finally get our offense in gear. The Liberals outnumber us now, thanks to numerous ejections of key players. Assistant coach Rumsfeld has bailed. Our backs are against the wall. The Liberals are digging in. Fortunately, we have a chance to hang onto the ball for the remainder of this game if we have what it takes.

Do we adopt the Liberals’ game plan and go crazy, fighting them with everything we can throw into their way or do we finally decide to get some real offense going and go for the long bomb, try a flea-flicker or come up with some other wild, unexpected play? It’s all up to us, the “Blog Squad”. We’re now playing offense, team. No more trying to hold the enemy out of our backfield. The defensive backfield is off the field and most of them are out of the game.

We have a pretty good quarterback in Dubya but a slim, under-manned corps of running backs and receivers. We’re all there is, babe. We can go out there and fight or we can lay down and let the Liberals roll over us and go on to victory in 2008. It’s gut-check time. I challenge every conservative blogger and all of you readers out there to listen to the greatest football coach of all time ....

Posted by The Skipper     on 11/08/2006 at 03:19 PM   
Filed Under: • Editorials •  
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Most Ridiculous Headline Of The Day (so far)

Le Menu d’Rapprochement: Spinach salad, Spinach Souffle, Baked Tuna au Spinach, Greek Spinach Pie.

Seriously, does Dubya thank for even one second that sucking up to the Donks will gain him anything at all? If so, he really is dumb as a rock. If you think the venom and bile from the Angry Left has been bad so far, you ain’t seen nothing yet. Supreme Court judges? NYET! Roll back tax cuts? DA! Cut funding for war in Iraq? MOST ASSUREDLY, COMRADE! Impeach BushCheneyHaliburtonCo? THE PROLETARIAT DEMAND IT! --- LEFTISTS OF THE WORLD UNITE! WE HAVE NOTHING TO LOSE BUT OUR MINDS! (giggle-snort-BARK!-BARK!)

Bush Invites Democrats To Lunch
_{WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Wed Nov 8, 2006 1:29pm ET163}

After voters delivered a sharp rebuke of his leadership, President George W. Bush made conciliatory gestures toward top Democrats on Wednesday, pledging to work with them and inviting them to lunch.

He invited Nancy Pelosi, the California Democrat who will become speaker of the House and Democratic Whip Steny Hoyer of Maryland to lunch at the White House.

Bush also plans to meet on Friday with Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid of Nevada and Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois, the No. 2 Democrat in the Senate.

Bush telephoned Pelosi and Hoyer, who hopes to become the House majority leader, early on Wednesday to congratulate them on their wins. Perino characterized the call with Pelosi as “very friendly” and said Bush also spoke to Hoyer, Reid, Durbin and the two heads of the Democratic congressional campaigns—Illinois Rep. Rahm Emanuel and New York Sen. Charles Schumer.

“In all of those calls I would say there was a strong spirit of goodwill and the president said that Congress has changed but issues don’t,” she said.

Posted by The Skipper     on 11/08/2006 at 01:56 PM   
Filed Under: • Politics •  
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Post-Election Fallout, Part I

GOP officials: Rumsfeld Stepping Down
_{WASHINGTON (CNN) - 1:12 p.m. EST, November 8, 2006}

Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld, architect of an unpopular war in Iraq, intends to resign after six stormy years at the Pentagon, Republican officials said Wednesday. Officials said Robert Gates, former head of the CIA, would replace Rumsfeld.

The development occurred one day after congressional elections that cost Republicans control of the House of Representatives, and possibly the Senate as well. Surveys of voters at polling places said opposition to the war was a significant contributor to the Democratic Party’s victory.

President George W. Bush was expected to announce Rumsfeld’s departure and Gates’ nomination at a news conference. Administration officials notified congressional officials in advance.

Posted by The Skipper     on 11/08/2006 at 01:12 PM   
Filed Under: • Military • Politics •  
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Not that very many people ever read this far down, but this blog was the creation of Allan Kelly and his friend Vilmar. Vilmar moved on to his own blog some time ago, and Allan ran this place alone until his sudden and unexpected death partway through 2006. We all miss him. A lot. Even though he is gone this site will always still be more than a little bit his. We who are left to carry on the BMEWS tradition owe him a great debt of gratitude, and we hope to be able to pay that back by following his last advice to us all:

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It's been a long strange trip without you Skipper, but thanks for pointing us in the right direction and giving us a swift kick in the behind to get us going. Keep lookin' down on us, will ya? Thanks.

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