Conservative Cowboys

I have a plan.....

2004-10-09T10:58:00.000-05:00

As the second Presidential debate wound down, the spin-meisters and insta-poll takers went to work calling it a draw almost before the closing statements were complete. Interesting.

Several things stood out in this town-hall style "debate". Senator Kerry attempted to give his standard stump speech rather than offer any substance and the President seemed more confident and aggressive than in the first debate. Both went on the attack early and often. The President did a much better job of explaining his position on the Iraq war, while Kerry continued to exaggerate the numbers of said war.

The most compelling part of this debate, however, was Kerrys continued prefacing of his answers with "I have a plan". Senator Kerry claims to have a plan to solve virtually every problem, real and imagined, this nation faces. Unfortunately, we didn't hear much detail in what those plans entail or how they will be paid for. Sure, Mr. Kerry said he'd roll back the tax cuts on the top two tax brackets to pay for his plans but you don't have to be an economist to realize the numbers simply don't add up.

The big question, how he is going to cut the deficit in half within 4 years, was sidestepped by the Senator with double speak and subject changing on more than one occasion. Kerry blames the tax cuts and the war in Iraq for the deficit but he goes on to tell us how he's going to increase the number of troops in Iraq, step up the training of Iraqi police, put armor on more vehicles, and generally spend more resources than are already committed. The Senator further fails to explain how rolling back approximately one half of the Bush tax cuts while creating new tax cuts for the middle class is going to cut the deficit when we were in deficit spending without the tax cuts. Does Mr. Kerry really mean he's going to cut deficit spending in half? Even that seems impossible when one considers all of the new "plans" Mr. Kerry will have to finance.

Mr. Kerry has a "plan" to reduce the cost of healthcare by having the federal Government take on all catastrophic cases paid for out of a special "fund" to ease the burden on the insurance companies and increase competition, thereby lowering health coverage costs. Mr. Kerry explains that this will take the burden off of you and I, the tax payers, and put it on the federal Government. Has Mr. Kerry been in Washington so long that he can't recall where the Federal Government gets it money from? Does he believe the American public is so gullible they won't catch on to this bait and switch? Does he think we don't realize that the one worse bureaucracy than the insurance industry is the Federal Government?

All of his other promises, or "plans" aside. Mr. Kerry made a promise that has been largely overlooked by the media pundits. One that I believe is the most ridiculous campaign promise in the annals of Presidential campaigns. Mr. Kerry said: "I have a plan for energy independence within 10 years"

Huh?

There isn't an energy expert anywhere who believes this is even a remote possibility. The technology to achieve such a lofty promise not only isn't available now, the experts don't think it will ever be available, certainly not within the next decade. Even if it were possible, the consequences to the global economy would be devastating.

This promise is SO ludicrous, it casts a huge cloud of doubt over Senator Kerrys sincerity concerning all of his "plans". He doesn't even need to hire Enron's accounting firm to help him figure out how to pay for it all, any 3rd grader could tell him his numbers just don't add up.

President Bush may not have "won" this debate, but to any clear thinking person who was paying attention, John Kerry "lost" it.

John Kerry: The Ultimate Monday Morning Quarterback

2004-10-05T01:26:00.000-05:00

For almost twenty years, John Kerry has stood on the floor of the Senate and attacked the plans, proposals and actions of others. He is a master at dissecting things after the fact, using hindsight, saying something different could have/should have been done.

Yet never has he created a single piece of substantive legislation of his own, or led his fellow Senators in pushing through a bill -- nor has he even fulfilled his obligations to serve on those Congressional committees of which he has been a part.

He has shown NO leadership in Congress. That's why he has ignored those twenty years, pointing instead to four months in Vietnam as the supposed mark of what kind of person he is.

All we now hear from Kerry are the criticisms that 20/20 hindsight allows ANY of us to craft. But as far as being a leader, or an innovator, or a decisive, real-time commander-in-chief, forget it.

George Bush has stood on those game-time sidelines, dealing with events as they happen, making the hard calls, using only the information and resources available at the moment. In dealing with this new war on terror, as each new threat arises, he has not had the luxury of hindsight now being exploited by Kerry.

It's easy to criticize. It's hard to lead. And Kerry is not a leader.

Oh Those Rebel Rockers

2004-10-02T10:48:00.000-05:00

Rock ‘n’ Roll! It’s all about rebellion, teen angst, sex, anti-authority and all the things that “the man” hates. You know who “the man” is? The government and you got to stick it to the man.

Last night the “Vote for Change” tour kicked off. This is the tour where rockers like Bruce Springsteen, R.E.M, John Mellencamp, Bonnie Raitt, James Taylor, and the Dixie Chicks, ask you to vote.

Who do they want you to vote for? Well, the candidate that exudes rebellion, teen angst, sex, and anti-authority, John F. Kerry. I know when I think of, rebellion, teen angst, sex, and anti-authority…I think of John Forbes Kerry. Don’t you?

What about the Rockers? Who better to represent rebellion, than James Taylor? With such rebellious lyrics as, “Won’t you look down upon me Jesus/you gotta help me make a stand”, he was the clear cut choice. That just screams rebellion, doesn’t it?

I know when I think of teen angst, the 55 year old Bruce Springsteen, and the 54 year old Bonnie Raitt, immediately come to mind.

What about sex? That chunky girl from the Dixie Chicks just oozes it, doesn’t she? And what woman wouldn’t find the skinny bald headed guy from R.E.M sexy?

Only one of these rockers has actually fought authority, John Mellencamp. Of course, authority always wins.

It’s not easy being a rebel these days. I for one cannot think of a better group of rockers to represent the true values of Rock ‘n’ Roll. Who better to fight the man? I might not support their cause, but I salute these rebel rockers for taking a stand.

Meanwhile I’m stuck listening to more straight-laced artists. Now, where’s my Kid Rock CD?

Bush puts U.S. at risk for being nuked ?

2004-09-27T08:49:00.000-05:00

Kennedy says Bush makes U.S. more vulnerable to nuclear attack:

In a speech prepared for delivery at George Washington University on Monday, Kennedy said that by shifting attention from Osama bin Laden to Iraq, Bush has increased the danger of a ''nuclear 9/11.''

''The war in Iraq has made the mushroom cloud more likely, not less likely,'' he said in the remarks released late Sunday.

Expanding on earlier suggestions that Iraq is Bush's Vietnam, Kennedy said U.S. soldiers are bogged down in a quagmire with no end in sight.

Hey, Ted! Have you lost your ever-loving mind? I thought there were no WMDs in Iraq! I thought OBL was no threat to the United States. Question for Kennedy: Do you really think you're NOT fear-mongering here? How exactly do you plan to work with President Bush in the four years after he wins re-election?

A Big Piece of the RatherGate puzzle appears

2004-09-20T20:20:00.000-05:00

Found via Hugh, this AP story contains evidence of collusion between the Kerry campaign, CBS, and the forged memos putative source, Bill Burkett. The juiciest parts:

"He had some advice on how to deal with the Vietnam issue and the Swift boat" allegations, Lockhart said Monday, referring to GOP-fueled accusations that Kerry exaggerated his Vietnam War record. "He said these guys play tough and we have to put the Vietnam experience into context and have Kerry talk about it more."

Lockhart said he thanked Burkett for his advice after a three to four minute call.

Lockhart said he does not recall talking to Burkett about Bush's Guard records. "It's baseless to say the Kerry campaign had anything to do with this," he said.

Baseless, eh?

From the last paragraph of the article:

Lockhart said Mapes asked him the weekend before the story broke to call Burkett. "She basically said there's a guy who is being helpful on the story who wants to talk to you," Lockhart said, adding that it was common knowledge that CBS was working on a story raising questions about Bush's Guard service. Mapes told him there were some records "that might move the story forward. She didn't tell me what they said."

Mapes, it should be remembered, is the Forged Docs story producer. Tsk, tsk, CBS in bed with the DNC and a purveyor of purged documents.
If the DNC is smart, they'll pull all Dem advertising from anything Viacom owns- the DNC is not getting their money's worth...

Also, CBS took more than a week to wash its hands to this point. I'm betting there's more dirt to come...Ra^therGate indeed.

Update
: Less than an hour later, there's this USA Today article:

CBS arranged for a confidential source to talk with Joe Lockhart, a top aide to Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry, after the source provided the network with the now-disputed documents about President Bush's service in the Texas National Guard.

Lockhart, the former press secretary to President Clinton, said a female producer talked to him about the 60 Minutes program a few days before it aired on Sept. 8. She gave Lockhart a telephone number and asked him to call Bill Burkett, a former Texas National Guard officer who gave CBS the documents. Lockhart couldn't recall the producer's name. But CBS said Monday night that it would examine the role of producer Mary Mapes in passing the name to Lockhart.

Burkett told USA TODAY that he had agreed to turn over the documents to CBS if the network would help arrange a conversation with the Kerry campaign.

The network's effort to place Burkett in contact with a top Democratic official raises ethical questions about CBS' handling of material potentially damaging to the Republican president in the midst of an election. This "poses a real danger to the potential credibility of a news organization," said Aly Colón, a news ethicist at the Poynter Institute for Media Studies.

"At Burkett's request, we gave his (telephone) number to the campaign," said Betsy West, senior CBS News vice president.

CBS would not discuss the propriety of the network serving as a conduit between its partisan source, Burkett, and the Kerry campaign. “It was not part of any deal” with Burkett to obtain the documents, West said, declining to elaborate.

But Burkett said Monday that his contact with Lockhart was indeed part of an "understanding" with CBS. Burkett said his interest in contacting the campaign was to offer advice in responding to Republican criticisms about Kerry's Vietnam service. It had nothing to do with the documents, he said.

And you can trust his word, right, because he's Bill Burkett and would never do anything inappropriate, such as equating the President to Hitler, or anything...

The three-wristed manacles are coming out: one cuff for Burkett, one for CBS, and the last for Lockhart and the DNC. Tie them all together and that spells Bush Blowout.

Explaining Bush's Surge

2004-09-19T08:24:00.000-05:00

Hugh Hewitt is a daily read around these parts because of his perceptive posts. This one is no exception. I'll just give you the opener as a teaser, but read the whole thing:

The Meta-Meme: The Forgery is John Kerry, and John Kerry is the Forgery
John Kerry ought not to have been hurt by the Rathergate scandal. There is thus far no firm evidence that any Kerry operative arranged for the forgeries to surface or helped persuade Rather et al to run with the doctored docs.

Read the rest; you won't be disappointed.

Maybe dead men do tell tales.

2004-09-18T20:23:00.000-05:00

CBS news has been raked over the coals for 10+ days now. And rightfully so. First they run with a story of questionable origin even to the layman. Then they back Rather 100% when he says there should be no investigation into the mysterious documents. When, unbelievably, the story didn't just go away, they were forced to trot out their "document expert" who turns out to be nothing more than a handwriting expert. Even THAT is problematic as this same man has previously written that it's impossible to authenticate a document from a copy. CBS admits they had a copy, not the original.

O.K. enough egg for one week, right? Nope. Not for CBS. They steadfastly maintain the authenticity of the documents in question, refusing to release their source. Hey, afterall, the man who "wrote" them is dead, right? No one around to dis-prove them, right? Surely this will just all go away after those internet geeks tire of debating Microsoft Word, curning, and the abilities of the IBM selectric circa 1972. No way a major network news department can admit to being taken down by a handful of pimple faced kids with keyboards and little else.

Heck, CBS was so desperate they trotted out one of the secretaries who herself says the documents are probably fake, but the content is consistent with what *would* have been written about the future President if only someone had written it. Amazing.

Now comes General Staudt, the man mentioned in the memos as being the force leaning on folks to give Bush preferential treatment a year and a half after his retirement. He can clear this up, right? Well, Gen Staudt says the whole thing is bogus. That he was way too busy painting the house, washing the car, and otherwise working on the honey-do list to worry about what was going on in the guard, post retirement.

Once again we face a credibility issue...A woman who was but a pool secretary giving a suspect, unsubstantiated story vs. the General quoted in the documents. Why weren't these folks contacted before the story ran?

The only question remaining is: Will Dan Rather acknowledge his screwup during his soon to come retirement speech?

U.N. to Iran: "Please, or else."

2004-09-18T17:09:00.000-05:00

Once again the U.N. has put it's foot down. Right into a bowl of jello.

A resolution approved by the International Atomic Energy Agency's board of governors said it "considers it necessary" that Iran freeze all programs related to enrichment, a key process that can be used to make nuclear weapons.
The board also said it "strongly urges" Iran to meet all demands by the agency in its investigation of the country's nearly two decades of clandestine nuclear activity, including unrestricted access to sites, information and personnel that can shed light on still unanswered questions on whether Tehran was interested in the atom for nuclear weapons. Suggesting that the Islamic Republic could answer to the U.N. Security Council should it defy the demands, the resolution said the next board meeting in November "will decide whether or not further steps are appropriate" in ensuring Iran complies.

Given the U.N.'s history of wavering, does anyone actually expect Iran to fall all over itself to comply with such ambiguous language? Shall we continue to baby the Iranian government like we did with North Korea? A person convicted of DUI faces stiffer penalties in the U.S. than the U.N. is threatening Iran with. This writer thinks it's time to let the U.N. know there is some nice conference room space available in Paris, and their checkbook is about to get quite a bit smaller.

Another Anti-Kerry 527!

2004-09-16T22:06:00.000-05:00

Football Fans for the Truth
A cross-section of American football fandom have formed a 527 group to urge the defeat of John Kerry:

Two Washington-based lawyers supporting President Bush's re-election have registered an advocacy group, Football Fans for Truth, as a Section 527 organization allowed to accept unlimited political donations. They plan to publicize Kerry's recent sports misstatements such as his reference to home of the Green Bay Packers as "Lambert Field" instead of Lambeau Field.

Other gaffes they hope to bring wider attention to include Kerry's talk of the Buckeyes — the nickname of Ohio State University's team — while campaigning in University of Michigan Wolverine territory.
...
Larroca and Panagopoulos characterized Kerry as a "sports poser" who said his favorite Boston Red Sox player was someone never on the team.

Ouch. Nothing's worse than a sports poser.

The founders of Football Fans for Truth claim they came up with their idea about a week ago — neither could remember the exact day — during a fantasy football league draft when friends were laughing about Kerry's lack of sports knowledge.

"As the chuckles drew roars, somebody said, 'You should start a 527,'" said Larroca, referring to the section of Internal Revenue Service code that allows political advocacy groups to receive tax-exempt donations.

Panagopoulos, a former Texan who is a Dallas Cowboys fan, and Larroca, who grew up in the Washington area as a diehard Redskins fan, agreed Wednesday that Lambeau, for whom Lambeau Field is named, was one of the original Three Stooges.

They were joking, right?

"I'm serious," Larroca said. "I believe Curly Lambeau was one of the Three Stooges, and that's my final answer."

Is Larroca, a good Cowboys fan, expressing his disdain for the Packers? You make the call.

The lighthearted nature of this group, Football Fans for Truth, should not detract from the issue they raise- Kerry is not authentic.

His fake fandom, used for political effect, is easily detected and rubs any true football fan raw.

Confusing Ohio State for Michigan is like mistaking day for night.

Isn't there some sort of election coming up?

2004-09-15T23:11:00.000-05:00

Last week hurricane forge was plastered all over our television screens, newspapers, and computer monitors. CBS fell on their sword to support Dan Rather. Rather fell on his sword, it appears, to cover for John Kerry. It seemed you couldn't watch a Law and Order re-run without breaking news involving forged documents.

Then something truly important happened.

The NFL kicked off it's season.

We all stopped caring about 60 minutes II, Dan Rather, John Kerry, George Bush and everything else political. If only for a couple of days. Instead our attention was focused on Clinton Portis, Peyton Manning, and Randy Moss. The Dallas Cowboys, Green bay Packers, and Chicago Bears. Frankly, it was a welcome respite from what has been a drainingly vitriol campaign on both sides of the aisle.

There are no Democrats or Republicans on game day. Sure, there's plenty of smack talked amongst fans, but it's all in fun. Nobody is going to spend the next four years talking about how one team "stole" the game from another. Nobody is going to claim that if only their team had won, world peace would have broken out, or economic prosperity for all would have resulted.

Aside from the Tennessee-Miami game being moved up a day due to weather, the NFL had a flawless performance in it's 2004 debut. Unlike either Presidential campaign, both of which have experienced several hiccups of their own making.

As our attention turns away from Monday morning quarterbacking, we look up only to find yet the latest in a rapid fire series of Hurricanes, each worse than it's predecessor, heading our way. Ivan is threatening major damage as far inland as Tennessee, at this writing. Threatening much of the southeastern United States. There are no Democrats or Republicans in such a situation. Just American citizens willing to step up and help his neighbor, regardless of political affiliation.

If only the politicians would learn a thing or two from the NFL and Mother Nature on how to unite Americans, we'd all be better for it.

Another Document Scandal?

2004-09-15T10:22:00.000-05:00

Vatican document mis-used by Kerry camp?

In a short "nota bene," Ratzinger answers the question whether a voter may receive communion if he has voted for a pro-abortion politician. He concludes that any vote for a pro-abortion politician is cooperation in "evil." He goes on to say that a person who votes for a pro-abortion politician may receive communion but only if he voted that way for "proportionate" reasons. And this is the phrase that the media and liberal Catholics have used to give permission to vote for the pro-abortion John Kerry. Some are claiming that "proportionate" reasons may be any serious issue that the voter cares about, the war in Iraq, for instance.

Father Stephen Torraco, chairman of the theology department at Assumption College in Worcester, Massachusettes, says this interpretation of "proportionate" is wrong. Taracco says the term "proportionate" has a very specific meaning within Catholic moral theology and that "proportionate reasons" for voting for a pro-abortion candidate would have to be limited to stopping other intrinsically evil acts similar to abortion. Even a candidate's support for capital punishment or war could not be used to justify voting for a pro-abortion candidate, he said, because neither of those things are intrinsically immoral according to Catholic teaching.

Besides Taracco's, a response was issued by the chancellor of the Archdiocese of Detroit, where the story first broke. Presumably writing for the Archbishop of Detroit, Cardinal Adam Maida, Father Robert J. McClory, wrote that the issue was "much more nuanced than was reported in the Free Press article . . ."

While this doesn't rise to the level of Ra^therGate, it is additional evidence of the media twisting a document to benefit John Kerry.

Testing...

2004-09-14T19:33:00.000-05:00

Testing, testing...

Blue State Turning Redder

2004-09-13T21:55:00.000-05:00

From USA Today:

The week before the Republican National Convention in New York City, Bush held a 3-percentage point lead over his challenger Kerry. Now, the poll shows Bush leads by 8 percentage points in the state.

Earlier on Monday, Bush denounced Kerry's health care proposal as a government takeover that would trigger tax increases.

"We have a difference of opinion in this campaign," Bush told supporters in western Michigan. "I'm running against a fellow who has got a massive, complicated blueprint to have our government take over the decision-making in health care.

So Bush has flipped Wisconsin and is working hard on Michigan. That's got to have Kerry on the defensive, right?

"I don't know what you're talking about in terms of the 'Bush bounce,' " Kerry said in an interview with Time magazine released yesterday. "This is a very close race, and I'm not somebody that runs around worried about polls. If I did, I wouldn't have gotten up last December. Polls don't mean anything to me right now."

Kerry added: "If anybody had told me we'd be points apart from the sitting president of the United States, well, would you have believed them? I feel very confident in where we are and confident about the direction of this race. And the American people are beginning to listen and listen carefully."

The issue, senator, is not proximity to the president, but mo'. He's got it, you don't. Take a look at Election Projection or any of the other online poll aggregators. They show the same basic trends- 'pink' Bush states turning red, red Bush states turning crimson, and blue former Gore states wobbling into purple and heading towards red, as in Wisconsin.
The one thing in common between December 2003 and right now is that you would have lost in both instances. If you're not worried, you're not paying attention. And you are paying attention- why else would you vex Bill Clinton in his sick bed if your campaign were hale and hearty? Why else would you shuffle your campaign staff? Why else would you buy a story Al Gore's people blew off in 2000?

I'm sure Sen. Kerry will address these points the next time he's in an on-air interview for the record with a legitimate news outlet. It's only been 6 weeks, after all.

Mutual Delusion Society?

2004-09-11T13:29:00.000-05:00

Mark Steyn is hyper-accurate and hits all the right notes:

The tragedy for Rather, Oliphant, Krugman and Co. is that even if the memos were authentic nobody would care. Their boy Kerry had a crummy August not because he didn't hammer Bush for being AWOL in the Spanish-American War but because the senator's AWOL in the present war. Big Media are trashing their own reputations in service to a man who can never win.

After the 2002 election, I wrote, ''Remind me never to complain about 'liberal media bias' again. Right now, liberal media bias is conspiring to assist the Democrats to sleepwalk over the cliff.''

The media and the Democrats sustain each other's make-believe land. Dan Rather tells his staff, ''Kerry's told me there's nothing to this Swiftvet thing.'' Kerry tells his, ''Rather's assured me this Swiftvet story's going nowhere.''

George W. Bush ought to wake up every morning and thank the Lord the media aren't on his side.

Read the whole thing, as the cool kids say. The Old Media and the Democratic party have created a mutual delusion society. Two years ago, it helped George W. Bush gain in off-year elections, a political feat nearly unheard of. This year, the mutual delusion society is 7 weeks away from handing Bush 4 more years in office. Rage on, McDuffers!

Dan would Rather he didn't get blogged.

2004-09-10T16:34:00.000-05:00

As water cooler talk and televised analysts alike continue to discuss the authenticity of those documents aired by 60 minutes II correspondent Dan Rather, this writer is wondering how in the heck did this happen?

How did some no-budget bloggers all but destroy Rather's story while his words were still fresh in our minds? How did they discredit major newspaper articles in the NY Times before the morning paper was even delivered?

The internet is a magical place. That's how.

It all started when one astute blogger pulled up the link to the documents on CBS's own web site. He immediately noticed some discrepancies that didn't sit well with his own personal knowledge of typewritten documents in the early '70's and posted his opinion that they were probably forged.

Almost immediately, all hell broke loose. Suddenly every blog in the free world had picked up the story. Drudge linked to it. What began as one mans thoughts on the subject quickly had tens of thousands of amateur sleuths, with varying areas of expertise, taking a closer look at those documents.

There were National Guard vets questioning everything from the size of the paper to the format of the date.

There were ex-IBM typewriter repairmen confirming the typewriters of the day weren't capable of such type.

Document experts from everywhere, it seems, confirmed one after another after another that it was highly unlikely, if not completely impossible, that those documents were produced on any typewriter available at the time.

There were professional typesetters of the day verifying it would have taken a professional typesetter, using sophisticated equipment, several hours to produce those memos in the early 70's.

There were multiple experiments done to re-produce the documents using Microsoft Word's standards settings and matching the results with the original. They matched perfectly.

All of this from one man offering his opinion in a blog that the documents were probably forged.

Amazing!

Where this story goes, whether it ends Rathers career or even takes down a Presidential candidate is less interesting to me than the story behind the story. One thing is certain. As a result, the media will have no choice but to be much more careful in verifying their sources and documentation, because little brother the blogger will be watching. Long gone is the day where we just blindly accept that the Dan Rathers of the world are accurately and without bias reporting the news.

A Taste of Their Own Medicine

2004-09-10T13:34:00.000-05:00

Since this country was founded, the media has been proud of their roll in keeping government honest. It started with newspapers, and evolved into radio and television. From the writings of Alexander Hamilton, war, assassinations, to Watergate…media has been there to report to the masses about its government, and keep it in check. As it should be, freedom of speech is a wonderful thing.

But who has kept the media in check? Who has insured that the media, in all their glory, would always report the truth? For over two centuries media has given a voice to the people.

With the recent news of the possibly forged Texas Air National Guard documents, a new form of media has cemented its place in history. This media is different. Where old media gave a voice to the people…This new media is the voice of the people, and you can bet that it scares the hell out of the old media. From here on out, old media will have to be certain that everything they report on is the absolute truth, grounded in facts.

This new media, that we call the internet, is a wonderful thing. It gives us, as in we the people, a way to keep old media honest. Dan Rather figured this out to late. You can bet that he’s kicking himself for it today. You can also bet that reporters across this country are rechecking their facts today, and it’s all because of us. Personally, I’m proud to be a part of it.

TANG Document Forgery Update!

2004-09-09T23:13:00.000-05:00

CBS News has launched an internal investigation into the authenticity of the documents featured by Dan Rather on '60 Minutes II.'

From the Drudge Report:

CBS NEWS executives have launched an internal investigation into whether its premiere news program 60 MINUTES aired fabricated documents relating to Bush's National Guard service, the DRUDGE REPORT has learned. "The reputation and integrity of the entire news division is at stake, if we are in error, it will be corrected," a top CBS source explained late Thursday. The source, who asked not to be named, described CBSNEWS anchor and 60 MINUTES correspondent Dan Rather as being privately "shell-shocked" by the increasingly likelihood that the documents in question were fraudulent. Rather, who anchored the segment presenting new information on the president's military service, will personally correct the record on-air, if need be, the source explained from New York.If the docs indeed are forgeries, the credibility of both CBS and the Dems as a whole is gone. After two days of Democrat partisan venom based on those papers, the American public won't believe any other accusation they or their 527s make between now and November.

Yes, Virginia, there IS a Santa Claus!

Finally, Proof!

2004-09-09T21:06:00.000-05:00

WORLD EXCLUSIVE!

At last, final proof of George W. Bush's whereabouts for late summer / early fall 1972 have been established.

Click here to see the shocking truth!

We hope this answers any questions about Vietnam anyone might have had about either President Bush or Senator Kerry.

Update: Behind the scenes at CBS.

The Blogosphere Smells A Rat

2004-09-09T15:33:00.000-05:00

It's all over the place: More Memos on Bush's guard service, New Scrutiny of Bush's Service, from CBS's 60 Minutes, and the big print article in the Boston Globe, Bid Cited to Boost Bush in Guard (whatever that means). CBS's source is said to be Former Lt. Col Jerry Killian's (who is now deceased) personal files- and the Boston Globe's story notes:Anchorman Dan Rather reported that the White House did not dispute the authenticity of the documents and said the network had used document authorities to verify their authenticity.

OH REALLY?

Charles Johnson, at LGF has managed to duplicate, with precision, one of these documents. How? Microsoft Word. Strangely, for documents manually typed on typewriters in the 1970s, the memos contain proportional spacing. Bill, at InDCJournal has consulted a typographical expert- Dr. Philip Bouffard who created the forensic "dictionary" of typographic (meaning used by typewriters) faces, and found a 90% probability that CBS's documents are forgeries!

More converage at Allah and Outside The Beltway.

Story originally broken by the excellent fellows at Power Line.

Looks like the mainstream media has blown it again!

If CBS and the Boston Globe can be duped by fairly obvious forgeries, it's bad news for media gullibility.

If CBS maintains it consulted document experts who proclaimed them authentic, it's poison for media trustworthiness.

Update: Washington Post story shouts: "Records Say Bush Balked at Order".

Well, not so fast, guys. This may play out the other way and with some serious 'blowback'- the group spearheading this charge is Texans for Truth, a division of MoveOn.org, which is tightly associated (in potentially McCain-Feingold violation 'tightly') with the Kerry campaign. Developing...

Housekeeping

2004-09-08T16:47:00.000-05:00

We've had a few hiccups with the Blogger system- with the loss of only one post, which will be restored soon. Thanks for hanging in there with us...

Swifties owe John Kerry a big "thank you"

2004-09-08T10:44:00.000-05:00

The Swift Boat Veterans for Truth, one of the now infamous 527 groups that has been so involved in this presidential election, is beholden to the very man they have attacked for their immense success.

Kerry wisely ignored the woefully under funded organization for a couple of weeks. The ad in question only aired in 3 states, seen by maybe a few million people. Finally, John became angered by the ad and started attacking it nationally, as well as demanding the President denounce the ad. Big mistake.

President Bush denounced all 527 groups ads, called for them all to stop, and asked Mr. Kerry to join him in that stance. Mr. Kerry certainly couldn't ask moveon.org and the other well funded 527's on his side to stop, so he continued to simply attack the SBVT ad. As a result, all of the major cable news networks aired the ad over and over while reporting the story. The rolling snow ball turned into an avalanche, exposing the ad Kerry wanted pulled to tens of millions of people who weren't intended to see it in the first place. All of the media attention resulted in the SBVT anti-Kerry book to soar up the national best seller charts, adding to their exposure.

People started questioning why Mr. Kerry "waited so long" to go on the offensive against the group, but it was that very offensive that caused the SBVTs to gain millions of dollars worth of free publicity. Additionally it forced Mr. Kerry to concentrate on a single 527 advertisement rather than on his campaign as a whole. Mr. Kerry turned that mole hill into a mountain all by himself.

In the interim, President Bush has steadfastly called for all of the 527 groups to cease their ads, wisely without singling out any of them specifically. By doing so, he has carefully avoided the Kerry mistake of drawing unwanted attention to any one group or any one ad.

The SBVT ad didn't hurt John Kerry near as much as his response to it did. Mr. Kerry couldn't have helped the SBVT cause any more if he had asked his wife to write them a big fat donation check. I suspect they will send Mr. Kerry an autographed copy of the book for Christmas.

Cheney's Comments

2004-09-07T23:40:00.000-05:00

From CNN:

If we make the wrong choice, then the danger is that we'll get hit again -- that we'll be hit in a way that will be devastating from the standpoint of the United States," Cheney said.

"And then we'll fall back into the pre-9/11 mindset, if you will, that in fact these terrorist attacks are just criminal acts and that we're not really at war. I think that would be a terrible mistake for us."

Edwards told reporters that "Dick Cheney's scare tactics crossed the line."

Cheney could be correct- it's impossible to say how high a priority a Kerry administration would place the War on Terror (something that's Kerry's biggest flaw)- but he cannot say such things, especially not in a stump speech.

Edwards is right; and this is a far bigger blow to the Bush campaign than any of that TANG or cocaine stuff. This points directly to Bush/Cheney's credibility. It is, in my opinion, enough reason for Cheney to step down, even at this late date. If made, the decision would have to be swift and the replacement would have to be John McCain, or perhaps Rudy Giuliani. At least, Mr. President, repudiate the comments of your VP and reclaim your honor.

Update: After re-reading the original CNN page, Cheney's remarks are innocuous. What was said did not refer to Kerry directly, and left open the possibility that a change of heart by Kerry would meet the vice president's criteria. CNN, as media outlets often do, wrote an attention-grabbing headline that changed the meaning of Cheney's remarks- contrast this: "Cheney: Kerry win risks terror attack" with what Cheney actually said above- talking about making the War on Terror into a criminal pursuit.

Compare this dust-up, caused by BigAl not reading carefully enough, with CNN's softball lede, Kerry faults Bush on war, which contains the following rhetoric:

Kerry said the "hard reality" is that Bush's choices have led to "spreading violence, growing extremism, havens for terrorists that weren't there before."

"I call this course a catastrophic choice that has cost us $200 billion because we went it alone, and we've paid an even more unbearable price in young American lives."
...
"$200 billion for Iraq, but they tell us we can't afford after-school programs for our children; $200 billion in Iraq, but they tell us we can't afford health care for our veterans; $200 billion for Iraq, but they tell us we can't afford to keep the 100,000 police officers we put on the street," Kerry said.

So we start with a mild fault in the headline, but go to catastrophe in the actual text.

With Kerry's campaign on the rocks, be vigilant for more of this subtle media bias.

That'll Be 50 Cents for Three Minutes, Puleasz . . .

2004-09-06T09:23:00.000-05:00

From The New York Times:

"Former President Bill Clinton, in a 90-minute telephone conversation from his hospital room, offered John Kerry detailed advice on Saturday night on how to reinvigorate his candidacy, as Mr. Kerry enlisted more Clinton advisers to help shape his strategy and message for the remainder of the campaign . . .

"The telephone conversation, which was described as detailed and expansive, with Mr. Kerry doing more listening than talking, also included Mr. Lockhart, who joined Mr. Kerry's campaign as a senior adviser about two weeks ago. Mr. Lockhart declined to comment on the conversation."

The guy can't even cope with the problems that go with being a candidate? Ya think maybe there's a reason he did next to nothing during his almost two decades in the Senate? Sure makes one wonder just how well sixteen weeks of command in Vietnam translates into an ability to lead the whole nation thirty-five years later.

Why should we believe Kerry can handle the presidency? What happens if he gets elected and has to make the really tough call?

Do you suppose he'd be phoning up Clinton every time terrorists attack the United States?

KERRY: Bill, I just don't know what to do . . . terrorists have seized an elementary school in Chicago and they're threatening to kill everyone if I don't free all our al Qaeda prisoners.

BILL: Don't do anything and see if it goes away. That's what I always did.

KERRY: That's what I was thinking.

(Thanks to TLG)

Gone in 80 Seconds

2004-09-06T08:39:00.000-05:00

Per Allah, the Iranian leader, Ali Khamanei had some choice words for the United States:

"It is the United States that is at war against our Islamic Revolution." However, Khamenei's own newspaper was even more direct. Writing this July, it said, "the White House's 80 years of exclusive rule are likely to become 80 seconds of hell that will burn to ashes. Those who resist Iran will be struck from directions they never expected."

To these facts add that an Arab newspaper published in London and Beirut reported that an Iranian intelligence unit has established a center called "The Brigades of the Shahids of the Global Islamic Awakening," controlled by a Revolutionary Guards intelligence officer, Hassan Abbasi. The newspaper has a tape recording of Abbasi when he spoke of Iran's secret plans, which include "a strategy drawn up for the destruction of Anglo-Saxon civilization."

To bring this about, Abbasi said, "There are 29 sensitive sites in the U.S. and in the West. We have already spied on these sites and we know how we are going to attack them." This Revolutionary Guard officer continued by saying, "Iran's missiles are now ready to strike at Western targets, and as soon as the instructions arrive from Ali Khamenei, we will launch our missiles at their cities and installations."

The credibility of this report is in question. Neither the Pittsburgh Live or Iranian.Ws site identify the reporter.

Still, at this critical juncture in the War On Terror, is Iran a regime that can be mollified- as the Johns think, or is it a nation in need of democracy, as Bush believes. The November elections are about many things, but there is no single more critical issue than Iran and its role in fomenting Islamic terror worldwide. Fire the Mullahs! Free Iran!

What's context got to do...got to do with it?

2004-09-05T23:43:00.000-05:00

The more I read from folks criticizing the GOP's convention, the more I realize these folks didn't actually see it. They just read it. If that.

I keep hearing about Dick Cheney's "hate filled speech". Now, I saw Cheney's speech. Much closer to a comedy routine than hateful rhetoric.

I keep hearing how Zell Miller sold out and abandoned his party. How he is a bitter old man who lost his way. Now, I saw Millers speech. Looked like righteous indignation to me. He had reasons, sound reasons, for opposing John Kerry.

I keep hearing how Guiliani and McCain sold out their principles for personal ambition. I saw Guiliani's speech. John McCain's, too. They came across as very sincere men of principle. I don't think either had to hold their nose to make those speeches.

I also saw John Kerry's rhetoric filled hate speech following the convention.

This Presidential election has too many glass houses for this writer to keep track.

Has Kerry Jumped the Shark?

2004-09-05T10:09:00.000-05:00

We’ve all heard the phrase, “Jump the Shark”, used to signify when a television show has peaked, and is now on a downward spiral into Nick at Night hell. We remember the day when Fonzie, leather jacket and all, took the leap from television superstar, to pop-culture parody.

The Fonz would never recover. Soon a young man named Chachie would overtake him in the coolness category. The Fonz would never reach the zenith of coolness again; he was doomed to take a backseat to a guy with bellbottoms, and a bandana around his thigh. He would later buy a restaurant named Arnolds. The Fonzie name now had so little star power, that he kept the name Arnolds. How the mighty had fallen.

In July, John Kerry stood before thousands of people and proudly proclaimed, “I’m John Kerry, and I’m reporting for duty”…Was it the beginning of the end? Do we have a shark sighting? Is President Bush playing Chachie, to John Kerry’s Fonz?

The weeks following that dramatic announcement have not been kind to Mr. Kerry. The big poll bounce he was supposed to receive never came. In fact, he began to slide backwards. Oh sure, the slide started slow. Now however, it seems to be tumbling out of control faster than the, Agony of Defeat guy from ABC’s Wide World of Sports.

It’s not too late for Kerry. Chachie himself would eventually Jump the Shark, with Joanie Loves Chachie. At this point that might be the best hope for Kerry. It seems unlikely though. If all else fails, I hear Arnolds needs a new ketchup supplier…

The Sabotaging of a Campaign . . .?

2004-09-05T02:02:00.000-05:00

Could the Kerry campaign be planned or handled any worse, if it were on purpose?

A few blunders, off the top of my head:

First, Kerry makes Vietnam the centerpiece of his campaign. Bad idea. He had to know there were thousands (if not hundreds of thousands) of Vietnam vets out there who still held intense grudges against him for his deeds and words of 1970-71. What, did he think they'd all either died or forgiven him in the interim? Jane Fonda finally apologized to those brave and abused soldiers in the late 1980s, and found a measure of forgiveness -- yet Kerry, haughty man he is, saw no need to do the same.

Well, John, I bet you're rethinking that one now.

Second, he pulls one boneheaded move after another -- such as stiffing a waiting Don Imus as Kerry's campaign passed through the Imus ranch, where dozens of cancer-stricken children had gathered near the tracks, hoping to meet a real live candidate for president. The train didn't even slow down.

Third, not responding to the Swift Boat vets for more than a week, allowing the accusations to gain a life of their own. But, of course, it doesn't matter what the vets are saying -- it only matters that a man who supported the Republican party also donated to Swiftvets.com. Well, duh -- as if a Democrat would help them get their message out.

Fourth, glossing over almost twenty years in the Senate during his campaign speech, allotting the lengthy Washington stint a whole twenty-six seconds in his acceptance speech. That's 1.3 seconds per year -- approximately the same amount of time Kerry spent in Senate meetings.

Fifth, he goes out windsurfing every chance he gets, and insists on taking the press with him. Ah, windsurfing -- that great American pastime, the favorite of farmers, assembly-line workers, and working mothers everywhere. What better way to bond with the good folks of the heartland of America?

No, not Hollywood -- I meant the other heartland of America.

Sixth, that ill-advised midnight rally in Ohio, held the very hour the Republican convention ended. Never has a politician looked so small, so petty, so desperate, as Kerry looked at that podium. The president had just completed a great speech, an emotional declaration of the boldness and nobility of America as we go forward into this new century -- and Kerry immediately afterward whines about attacks on his patriotism, attacks which were never even made, and says (paraphrasing) "I will not have my patriotism questioned by men who did not serve, who sought deferments blah blah blah."

Um, John -- you sought one, too. Remember? You wanted to go to France for school. But they turned your deferment down, and since your number was coming up you enlisted. Remember?

Man.

And as Michael Barone said, "A line like 'I will not have my patriotism questioned' is the kind of thing you say to your butler, not to the people of America."

Well, if it walks like a pompous duck . . .

Why do I keep picturing the vast, walnut-lined library of a mansion in New York, late at night, with a blaze crackling on the grate -- and a lone figure sitting there in a Queen Anne chair, sipping champagne in the firelight and laughing maniacally because all is going according to her plan?

Lost Weekend

2004-09-05T01:39:00.000-05:00

This November, once the election is past, we may look back on this weekend as the moment the election was decided.

A thirteen-point bounce. Amazing. No Republican dared hope for numbers that high. All week, in interviews with the major cable news channels, Democrats and Republican officials alike made estimates of a convention bounce of two, four and, on the rare occasion, as much as six points. The Republicans chose low, so as to keep expectations from diminishing whatever results ultimately emerged. The Dems chose low, hoping their guy's dismal negative bounce would be echoed by their opponents -- after all, they told us, such results are to be expected with both candidates since there are so few undecideds out there to be influenced.

Thirteen points.

Which makes Kerry's minus-one bounce even more revealing. Sorry, Dems -- the country isn't nearly as left-leaning as you desperately want us to believe.

If these numbers (found by both Time and Newsweek polling) prove solid, it may all be over but the elephant trumpeting. Historically, such a lead on Labor Day weekend guarantees victory.

But 2004 is no ordinary election year.

Hurricane Frances, taking its own sweet time in transiting Florida on its way into the Gulf of Mexico -- where it may well regain full strength -- is sucking the rain-soaked proverbial oxygen from newsrooms everywhere. Kerry can't gain any immediate reactive traction, allowing the shadow of the GOP convention to loom longer than anyone could have anticipated. His midnight panic-fest in Ohio, an unprecedented and extremely unwise strategic move, made no difference and, if anything, may even have harmed him in many eyes.

And with poll numbers like these, at least at this point, all the president has to do is sit in the Oval Office and attend to business and look, well, presidential.

This may well prove to be the weekend -- the politics-deprived weekend -- that first showed us who the next president ultimately would be.

Michael Jackson, Again?

2004-09-04T14:45:00.000-05:00

Well what do you know, Michael Jackson's in the news again. Fresh allegations of a decade-old abuse of a then-12 year old boy have surfaced, and I have to wonder if a parent has to hear any more to err on the side of caution when it comes to Mr. Jackson. "Innocent until proven guilty" is a noble concept but it doesn't apply here. Even when there's not so much smoke, a parent must be prudent in the decisions he/she/they make for their child. There's so much smoke around Mr. Jackson now... any parent that allows a child to spend any time at all with Mr. Jackson should sign a molestation waiver, because at this point, as a parent, I think you have to expect it to happen. Parents of any child that allow said child to spend even a moment with Mr. Jackson should be investigated for child endangerment if that child comes back with wicked stories of molestation and there should be no statute of limitations on this. The time has come to cut Jackson's access to the children of others completely off, either through legal means or by common sense.

Terror affects Russia, again.

2004-09-03T13:49:00.000-05:00

The standoff between Chechnyan terrorists and Russian military forces appears to be about over. Special forces were forced into a gunfight while helping several children who escaped their captors out of the building. The terrorists reportedly opened fire on the escapees and were quickly overwhelmed by return fire from the Russians who then stormed the building. With more than 100 reported dead, many of them children, one wonders what effect this and other recent terror attacks in the country will have on the political atmosphere in Russia.

Recent history would suggest a countries tolerance level for terrorism drops to almost zero when their populace is personally affected. Will this latest tragedy be the last straw for the leaders of Russia? Will they now join forces with the UK, USA, and others in a full fledged war against terror? Will the UN finally realize that the only way to fight terror is with terror?

This horrific event in Russia is almost over, but will it answer as many questions as it creates?

How The Zell Did He Do It?

2004-09-02T17:17:00.000-05:00

If only Nixon could go to China, it seems only Zell Miller, lifelong Democrat, could make the national security case for George W. Bush. Late Final notes this MSNBC transcript, of key swing state Ohio voters:

LUNTZ: Last question. Show of hands very quickly. How many of you are now more likely than when you walked in here to vote for Bush-Cheney because of what you saw tonight? Raise your hands. Three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, 10, 11 out of 17.

Bottom line, Zell Miller brought impact and gravitas to his endorsement of Bush.

This all could easily backfire or turn into a negative for the president, though.

Should Bush fail to echo Miller on the need to defend the country, Schwarzenegger on the promise of America, Guiliani and McCain on strength and duty, and Laura Bush's eloquent exposition of Bush's basic decency, the effectiveness of the president's presenters may be dimmed.

Tonight, Bush delivers the second biggest speech of his life.

Cone of Uncertainty

2004-09-02T10:30:00.000-05:00

Anybody watching cable news the last two days has heard the term, “cone of uncertainty” to describe hurricane Frances.

Wouldn’t that term also apply to John Kerry’s bid for the White House, and those following it? I’ve been listening to John Kerry since he won his parties nomination. I’ve watched him on television, and have read as much info as I could find. Still though, I’m uncertain.

I’m uncertain if he is for the war in Iraq. I really am. If I had to guess, I’d guess he is for it. That could change by this afternoon though.

I’m uncertain if he really is a war hero. I mean, I know he served in Vietnam, and that’s admirable. But I don’t know if he really was in Cambodia, or if he really dodged a hail of bullets to save a comrade.

I’m uncertain if he really is pro military. I see him speak at the American Legion, and he sounds like it. Then I read the stories of what he did upon his return from Vietnam, and I’m stumped. I see where he voted against every new major weapons system, and against the $87 billion needed for our troops.

I am certain about one thing though. John Kerry and hurricane Frances, have a lot in common. Everyone keeps watching them, but we still don’t know which way they will blow. We just know that they will.

Free Bird

2004-09-02T02:51:00.000-05:00

Kobe Bryant finally dodged the bullet that would have cost him more than his NBA career.

Kobe's accuser asked the District Attorney to drop the charges against the NBA star. Apparently as part of the agreement to drop charges, Kobe issued the following statement:

"Although I truly believe this encounter between us was consensual, I recognize now that she did not and does not view this incident the same way I did,"

"I now understand how she feels that she did not consent to this encounter.''

Uh, Kobe, did she or didn't she? It does matter to us little people out here. You know. Your fans.

WOW!

2004-09-02T01:46:00.000-05:00

That's the best word I can come up with to describe Zell Millers speech.

WOW!

The Democratic senator from Georgia presented what was easily the most biting speech of the Republican national convention.

The Democrats thought they hauled in a big fish when they managed to get Ronald Reagans liberal son, Ron jr. to deliver a boring speech about stem cell research. Turns out, they barely caught a minnow.

Miller was the shark at this convention for the Republicans. He shredded his party candidate and his party in general. The man was relentless. Every campaign needs an attack dog, but who would have thought a Democrat would play that role for the Republicans?

The worst part for the Democrats, of course, is that Zell is one of their own. The very same man gave the key note speech for Bill Clinton 12 years ago. I'm not making this up. Never in history has a member of one party delivered the key note speech for an opposing party.

For the next few days the Dems will be forced to feed on their own, taking their attention away from shark tamer, George W. Bush.

Maybe GWB's not so dumb, after all.

Steele snubbed by CNN

2004-09-01T09:56:00.000-05:00

Didja catch the speech of Maryland Lt. Governor, Michael Steele last night? Not if you were watching CNN you didn't.

A month ago the DNC trotted out African American wonkerkind, Barak Obama, who gave a stirring speech to a captive audience. The RNC countered with their own rising star in Steele. Unfortunately, after airing the first couple of minutes of Mr. Steeles speech, CNN decided to cut to talking heads commenting that "about half the delegates aren't paying attention" and wondering aloud how many watching at home weren't paying attention to the Lt. Governor. Are you kidding me?

Howdy World!

2004-08-31T19:31:00.000-05:00

Howdy, World! We're the Conservative Cowboys and you'll be hearing a lot more from us soon!