My Week Began on Tuesday...

red text is the"real" headline buried in the headlines
blue text is my own commentary.
Violet text is the blog quote of the day.

KUCINICH CALLS FOR CHENEY IMPEACHMENT

"Today, I have introduced House Resolution 333, Articles of Impeachment Relating to Vice President Richard B. Cheney. I do so in defense of the rights of the American people to have a government that is honest and peaceful. It became obvious to me that this vice president, who was a driving force for taking the United States into a war against Iraq under false pretenses, is once again rattling the sabers of war against Iran with the same intent to drive America into another war, again based on false pretenses. Let me cite from the articles of impeachment that were introduced this afternoon, Article I, that Richard Cheney had purposely manipulated the intelligence process to deceive the citizens and the Congress of the United States by fabricating a threat of Iraqi weapons of mass destruction to justify the use of the United States armed forces against the nation of Iraq in a manner damaging to our national security ...preceding the March 2003 invasion of Iraq, the vice president was fully informed that no legitimate evidence existed of weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. The vice president pressured the intelligence community to change their findings to enable the deception of the citizens and the Congress of the United States. That in this the vice president subverted the national security interests of the United States by setting the stage for the loss of more than 3,300 United States service members and the loss of 650,000 Iraqi citizens since the United States invasion; the loss of approximately $500 billion in war costs "

YOU GO, DENNIS!!!

IMPEACH CHENEY FIRST!!!!

Cut it right to the core, down to the man behind the man who would be The Man.
The truth,
the whole tuth
and nothing but the truth.

EDWARDS UNVEILS COMPREHENSIVE PLAN FOR U.S. INVOLVEMENT IN AFRICA
To end the humanitarian crises, Edwards called for a combination of U.S. and NATO actions to accelerate the peacekeeping process. Edwards' comprehensive plan includes the following steps:
- President Bush should reverse his decision to delay new American sanctions on 29 companies owned or controlled by the Sudanese government.
(just have to wonder if all 29 are from Texas?)
- American airlift capabilities, logistical support and intelligence operations should be deployed to assist U.N. and African Union peacekeeping efforts in Darfur.
-The U.S. should convene within the next 30 days an emergency meeting of NATO's leadership to act on Darfur.
- NATO countries should support the deployment of U.N. troops with logistical, operational, and financial support.
- NATO should establish a no-fly zone over the region, to cut off supplies to the brutal Janjaweed militias and end Sudanese bombing of civilians in Darfur.
- NATO member countries should impose new multilateral sanctions on the Sudanese government as well as individuals complicit in the genocide.
"With these steps, I believe we can turn the corner in Sudan and put the nation back on the road to peace," said Edwards.
http://iowansforedwards.blogspot.com/2007/04/edwards-demands-action-to-stop.html

TEXAS LEGISLATURE APPROVES BUSH VOTER-FRAUD
Republicans narrowly won a round Monday in what critics call a push by the Bush administration to discourage voting as House members moved to require Texas voters to show a photo identification or other proofs of identity — possibly including a concealed-handgun license or documentation of a sex change — before balloting. Members tentatively approved House Bill 218 by Rep. Betty Brown, R-Athens. In the 76-68 vote, two Republicans joined all Democrats in attendance in voting no.
http://www2.blogger.com/post-edit.g?blogID=352464978493976133&postID=1540950445391560694

ROVE WATCH & DOJ SCANDAL; OFFICE OF SPECIAL COUNSEL WEIGHS IN!
Most of the time, an obscure federal investigative unit known as the Office of Special Counsel confines itself to monitoring the activities of relatively low-level government employees, stepping in with reprimands and other routine administrative actions for such offenses as discriminating against military personnel or engaging in prohibited political activities.But the Office of Special Counsel is preparing to jump into one of the most sensitive and potentially explosive issues in Washington, launching a broad investigation into key elements of the White House political operations that for more than six years have been headed by chief strategist Karl Rove.The new investigation, which will examine the firing of at least one U.S. attorney, missing White House e-mails, and White House efforts to keep presidential appointees attuned to Republican political priorities, could create a substantial new problem for the Bush White House. First, the inquiry comes from inside the administration, not from Democrats in Congress. Second, unlike the splintered inquiries being pressed on Capitol Hill, it is expected to be a unified investigation covering many facets of the political operation in which Rove played a leading part. (no wonder old TBlossom flinched when touched by Ms. Crow!"
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-probe24apr24,0,7212756.story?track=ntothtml

President Bush said his confidence in Alberto R. Gonzales has grown as a result of the attorney general's testimony last week before the Senate Judiciary Committee, as the administration moved to end speculation that Gonzales would step down after a performance criticized by senators in both parties. "The attorney general went up and gave a very candid assessment and answered every question he could possibly answer, (according to Karl's plan) in a way that increased my confidence in his ability to do the job," (and that heckuva job is to take the fall, but make it long and slow, to stall for more no-bid profiteering time for Bush's bubbas) Bush told reporters in the Oval Office yesterday. "Some senators didn't like his explanation, but he answered as honestly as he could." (according to Karl's plan)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/04/23/AR2007042301765.html?referrer=email

THE FORGOTTEN WAR AGAINST THE AMERICAN PEOPLE
PROPOSITION 36, the voter initiative that mandated treatment instead of jail for drug users, is under funding pressure from Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and under fire from critics who say the program is failing. A Times study showed that nearly half of those sentenced never complete their treatment regimen and that more than a quarter fail to even show up for rehab. A recently released UCLA study showed that even more drug users are rearrested now than was the case before voters adopted the experiment in 2000. There's not much point running a rehab program if no one shows up for treatment. Schwarzenegger, to his credit, says he wants to increase participation. But he also wants to slash funding and return a dose of jail to treatment protocol. That's the wrong way to go.
http://email.latimes.com/cgi-bin1/DM/y/hBNnk0RvPwf0G2B0IWuK0Eq

THE BUSH WARS
A suicide bomber rammed an explosives-rigged truck into a U.S. military outpost near Baqubah on Monday, killing nine soldiers and wounding 20 in one of the deadliest single ground attacks on U.S. forces since the start of the war in Iraq, military officials said early Tuesday. Suicide attackers rarely penetrate defenses that surround American troops, but a 10-week-old U.S. counterinsurgency strategy has placed them in outposts and police stations that some soldiers say have made them more vulnerable. (...so much for how "the surge" really works.)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/04/23/AR2007042301704.html?referrer=email

Democrats said they won't back down and pointed to Petraeus' past remarks that security in Iraq requires a political solution. "Here is the bottom line," Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., said in a speech in which he quoted a retired Army general who opposes Bush's policy. "Americans must come to grips with the fact that our military alone cannot establish a democracy." Reid likened Bush to President Lyndon Johnson, saying Johnson ordered troop escalations in Vietnam in an attempt "to save his political legacy" only to watch U.S. casualties climb steadily. "The time for patience is long past," said Reid, who last week said the war in Iraq was "lost."
http://www.statesman.com/news/content/shared-gen/ap/US_Congress/US_Iraq.html

BLOG QUOTE OF THE DAY (From Steve at Crooks and Liars)
Bush believes “politicians in Washington” should listen to the generals, just so long as a) he’s not included among the “politicians”; and b) he gets to fire the generals who don’t agree with him.
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2007/04/24/bush-must-have-meant-other-%e2%80%98politicians%e2%80%99/

WOLFOWITZ WORLD-BANK PATRONAGE SCANDAL GROWS WINGS
Paul D. Wolfowitz, signaling anew that he will fight for his job as World Bank president, has enlisted a prominent lawyer who defended President Bill Clinton against accusations of sexual misconduct to help convince the bank’s board that Mr. Wolfowitz has done nothing to justify being ousted. Robert S. Bennett, the lawyer selected by Mr. Wolfowitz, said in an interview that before the bank’s board acted on charges of ethical lapses, he and Mr. Wolfowitz wanted more time to prepare a case showing that the bank president had acted properly (they are already crying "Duke!") on all matters that the board is investigating.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/04/24/washington/24wolfowitz.html?th&emc=th

The board has not set a timetable for deliberations, although finance ministers from donor nations urged a speedy resolution, warning of low staff morale and damage to the institution's reputation. Several ministers have indicated that they think Wolfowitz should resign, although President Bush has voiced his full backing. More than three dozen former senior bank officials, including a number who served with Wolfowitz, signed a letter published yesterday in the Financial Times urging that he resign so the bank can "speak with the moral authority necessary to move the poverty agenda forward."
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/04/23/AR2007042301744.html?referrer=email

The issues of transparency and accountability loom large in this controversy. With Wolfowitz rightly making the corrosive impact of corruption on development the central focus of the bank, the question is to what extent does this controversy jeopardize this important principle. If he insists on a higher standard for bank clients, then there can't be another standard for him. Double standards don't work. How then should the bank board parse its way through this dilemma? Is more than a mea culpa required? Is his resignation (or firing) the only remedy? (no, we could take him to court..)
http://www.boston.com/news/globe/editorial_opinion/oped/articles/2007/04/24/needs_outweigh_scandal/