At the end of the day

Clinton radio ad -- "The ad properly points out that Obama did not express any criticism of the GOP ideas. That is the problem." Per Armando. The alleged "party of ideas" that has "challenge[d] conventional wisdom of the last 10 or 15 years" has really, um, sucked. I can think of a list longer than what's in Hillary's ad.

FISA telecom immunity disunity -- Senate majority leader Harry Reid (D-NV) will force "Dodd and Feingold to launch a filibuster that ruins their colleagues' nice European vacation." Why doesn't Reid STFU and get out of the way?! For details and what to do, see Yellow Dog.

Up yours to the U.S. Senate -- Bush re-nominated Steven Bradbury to head the DOJ's Office of Legal Counsel. Bradbury wrote "a pair of secret legal opinions that endorsed rough techniques for suspects in the custody of the Central Intelligence Agency." TP

American evangelicals -- What do they want? "The answer, it turns out, is a little more complicated than 'Not Giuliani.' " Response to a Beliefnet questionnaire on favorability ratings of presidential candidates: 55% Huck, 53% McCain, 49% Obama, 27% Hillary, and 25% Mitt. For evangelical "hot-buttons" and how they've changed, read Tim Grieve.

Iraq debate: "The leading Democratic presidential candidates and their allies on Capitol Hill have launched fierce attacks in recent days on a White House plan to forge a new, long-term security agreement with the Iraqi government, complaining that the administration is trying to lock in a lasting U.S. military presence in Iraq before the next president takes office." Thursday's WaPo

Iraq explosions -- In Mosul, at least 15 killed, 132 wounded. In Kirkuk, a car bomb killed 5, wounded 11.

Environmental index: "A new international ranking of environmental performance puts the United States at the bottom of the Group of 8 industrialized nations and 39th among the 149 countries on the list." NYT

About those robo calls -- In comments, Shaun Dakin, CEO and founder of Stop Political Calls wrote, "These calls are an epidemic and are invading the privacy of All American Voters.... ...Our members are taking a stand and saying enough is enough at the National Political Do Not Contact Registry..."

Former SC Democratic Party chair Dick Harpootlian, an Obama supporter, likened Bill Clinton's campaign remarks to Lee Atwater. WTF? When CNN's Jessica Yellin asked Bill about it, Clinton disputed the charge and calmly confronted her and media in general -- despite CNN's hype that he "lashed out" -- for acting like the sensationalizing twits that they are. Later, CNN 's Soledad O'Brien screeched about Bill's response to Yellin. Media lapdogs don't like being called on their B.S. You can go Cheney yourself, CNN. Via Taylor Marsh.

"The rot of the Jack Welch Network" -- "For the record, the Post is a corporate partner of MSNBC—and Clinton is MSNBC’s long-term target. Simple logic took over from there. So did Jack Welch’s vile methods.... ...But in this morning’s New York Times, a certain semi-sane op-ed columnist gets busy trashing Hillary Clinton—due to Obama’s bit of deception." By Bob Somerby. For a fun pic of that certain NYT columnist, see Blue Girl.

Michael Savage gets the boot: Four advertisers pulled their spots "after Brave New Films launched a campaign against [the] hate-radio host." Heh. Heh. Heh. Heh.

UPDATE: Al Gore endorsed gay marriage. Video at Raw Story.

[That's all...no more after the jump.]

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Media Hand Terrorists Major Victories In London and Scotland

Three failed terrorist attacks in England and Scotland have lead to a world wide media outcry: British police arrest five after car bomb attacks; In Depth London Attacks; Islamic group claims London attack; Attack on London; U.K. Police Make 5th Terror Arrest; Fifth Arrest In Britain's Terror Scare and so on, endlessly repeated across the known world.

Folks, it seems some really dumb terrorists tried to start fires in London and Glasgow. They failed in London, but succeeded in Glasgow. No innocent person was hurt. One would be terrorist was killed and another injured in the Glasgow attack.

Somewhere in Pakistan Osama Bin Laden is smiling. For the cost of a handful of home grown religious fanatics, three automobiles, a couple of crappy cellphones, a few bottles of petrol and propane, and with the eager complicity of CNN, MSNBC, BBS, News Corp and damn near every newspaper on the planet, his movement has struck fear in the hearts of people everywhere.

Here in America Rudy Giuliani is also smiling. Cable news has proven once again that it can be stampeded by really dumb terrorists threatening English speaking, white people. His flagging campaign was given a real boost.

In other news KUNA is reporting that today, July 1, 2007, two Iraqi policemen were killed and five others were injured, including four high-ranking officers, in a suicide bomb attack that targeted a security check point in Fallujah.

CNN, MSNBC, Fox News, ABC, CBS, BBC and all the rest of you, please get a grip. What happened in London and Glasgow is a great day in Iraq. At least no innocent bystanders were killed.

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For Dick Lugar, Party Trumps Principle

This is why I put a 24-hour-hold on reporting anything that comes close to looking encouraging if it comes from a party apparatchik Republican. They always backpedal and retract and spin and explain what they really meant to say – probably after a visit from Karl’s boyz, but that’s just speculation…

Yesterday evening, Think Progress posted the following:

In a major speech on the Senate floor, Lugar said that “victory” in Iraq as defined by President Bush is now “almost impossible.” The current course of the war “has lost contact with our vital national security interests in the Middle East and beyond,” he said.

Lugar warned that “persisting indefinitely” with Bush’s escalation strategy “will delay policy adjustments that have a better chance of protecting our vital interests over the long term.” He specifically rejected claims that withdrawing U.S. forces will increase instability. Downsizing the U.S. military presence in Iraq would “strengthen our position in the Middle East, and reduce the prospect of terrorism, regional war, and other calamities,” Lugar said.

And today, MSNBC tells us that I was smart to hold off on praising him, because he intends to take the sniveling cowards way out, and has no intention of backing up his bold rhetoric.

Lugar won't switch vote
However, [Lugar spokesman Andy] Fisher said the speech does not mean Lugar would switch his vote on the war or embrace Democratic measures setting a deadline for troop withdrawals.

In January, Lugar voted against a resolution opposing the troop buildup, contending that the nonbinding measure would have no practical effect. In spring, he voted against a Democratic bill that would have triggered troop withdrawals by Oct. 1 with the goal of completing the pull out in six months.

Next month, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., plans to force votes on several anti-war proposals as amendments to a 2008 defense policy bill. Members will decide whether to cut off money for combat, demand troop withdrawals start in four months, restrict the length of combat tours and rescind Congress' 2002 authorization of Iraqi invasion.

Expected to fall short of the 60 votes needed in the Senate to pass controversial legislation, the proposals are intended to increase pressure on Bush and play up to voters frustrated with the war.

…the proposals are intended to increase pressure on Bush and play up to voters frustrated with the war. Fisher says that like it’s a bad thing! In reality it is the only thing. Change ain’t gonna happen until this president is forced to deal with the reality that is “dealing with” ~30 Americans a week – and the only way he is going to be forced into facing facts is if members of his own party insist that he do so.

Dick Lugar should hang his head in shame. And he should also attend the funeral of every Indianan who falls and explain to the grieving family members why he puts party and politics above the lives of their loved ones.

[Crossposted from Blue Girl, Red State and OOIBC]

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A Little Known White Conservative Male Replaces Imus

After he retired my father, who had been very successful in the production end of the newspaper business, became addicted to Fox News and talk radio. Except for playing golf with his cronies, all he did was listen to cable news and Rush Limbaugh. Each day my mother would flee to her church work or hide in her art studio. All dad could do was rail against liberals and all they stood for. An hour or so of Fox News and his blood pressure would rise. He would become belligerent and he would say the most outrageous things. It became painful for me to visit him. I just couldn't stand the harangues against this group or that policy. His anger would flow over to me and anyone else in the room. Occasionally we were able to turn off the television. After a while he would return to his normal caring self, but when he turned on Fox News, I knew it was time to leave.

I kept trying to tell him that cable news and talk radio were not real. They were just entertainment. I told him he should know better. He had spent a career in the newspaper business. He knew all about the entertainment value of the news. He knew media companies were all about making money.

It didn't matter. He was addicted. He took everything they said as truth. Since they were all just like him they told him and each other exactly what white male conservative Republicans always yearn to hear--white male conservative Republicans rule the world and all the rest are of a lesser species.

That pattern continues to this day. Except for CNN's Solidad O'Brien and a few others, the big players on Cable Television and Talk Radio are all white men. Nearly all of them are conservative Republicans. Nearly every word that is uttered on Fox News and the other Cable Networks and on Talk Radio affirms the ascendancy of white Republican conservative men. What passes for news on those channels is aimed directly at entertaining white Republican conservative men. There aren't that many white Republican conservative men, but the people who make the scheduling decisions on all the cable networks and on talk radio (generally middle aged white conservative Republican men) do so to please members of a powerful demographic--their bosses, who, with a couple of notable exceptions, are all old white conservative Republican men. Men just like my father. Men who like to play golf and rail against liberals, women and minorities.

Recently, Don Imus, an old white conservative Republican male was fired for publicly saying the kind of stuff old white conservative Republican lords of the universe find amusing.

That left MSNBC in a quandary. What to do? What to do? They could market to the 95% of the population who are not old white conservative men, a market currently not being well served by cable news. That might do well in the ratings. It might serve MSNBC well to have a morning counter point to Countdown. The nation is running not walking away from the hard conservatism of Fox News. What to do? What to do? Bold action?

After much deliberation, MSNBC has announced its solution. MSNBC is going to simulcast the radio show of Michael Smerconish, a member of a woefully under represented group on both Cable Television and talk radio-a white conservative Republican male. Bold move.

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NBC Fires Imus!

On NBC Evening News with Brian Williams, they just read a statement that Don Imus will no longer be simulcast on MSNBC - effective immediately.

That's thanks to the advertisers who pulled out and not to genuine outrage at his racism but, at this point, I'll take what I can get.

UPDATE: Don't want to miss that PedMeds Express was a sponsor that also pulled out.

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