The Weekly Rewind

It’s that time again… no pomp… no circumstance… no ado, just…

The.

Weekly.

Rewind.

Applaud: to the Senate. They approved a $124 billion Iraq war spending bill earlier this week that would force troop withdrawals to begin as early as July 1. While this forces a showdown with the White House, it does show some strength and balls for the Democrats… keep it up.

Heckle: to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. This past week she said that she will not comply with a subponae since she has “already answered the questions she has been subpoenaed to answer.” She added; “I am more than happy to answer them again in a letter.” (This is how this administration works… they don’t dare speak under oath because they know they’re lying and that they will be caught in the lie. And besides, I’m no attorney, but doesn’t one have to comply with a subponea??)

Applaud: to the lowest numbers of his presidency. “President” Bush’s job approval rating, according to a Harris survey, is at 28% and is approaching Nixonian levels. As we mentioned earlier this week, sometimes the snark just writes itself…

Heckle: to WaPo columnist David Broder baseless claim that there’s a “long list of senators of both parties” who are ready for Sen. Harry Reid (D-XX) to step down as majority leaderdue to his views on Iraq. (Apparently Mr. Broder doesn’t read his own paper let alone any other paper as Mr. Reid’s sentiments of the war are shared by a plurality of Americans. What is it I say about people like Broder? Oh right; Mo. Ron.)

Applaud: to the 50 members of Senator Harry Reid’s caucus, who wrote a letter to the publisher of WaPo fr that praises him for his “extraordinary leadership” and directlty contradicts the baffoonish act described above.

Heckle: to news that economic growth is at a four-year low and is raising concerns that troubles in the housing market are gonna spread and throw the country into a recession before the year is out. (Naturally, the Bush(whacked) Administration doesn’t see anything wrong and maintains the economy is strong… and that pigs will dance on pinheads and angels will fly… wait…)

Applaud: to Sen. Sam Brownback (R-KS)… I know, I know, but hear me out. Earlier this week, Sen. Brownback stated that “the Bush administration and Republicans are not doing enough politically in Iraq” and that while they have a strategy (Which I disagree with – I don’t think they do) it’s “dominated by military and Maliki.” (I love it when a republican says something against this administration’s doctrine… no matter how much of a wingnutjob they are…)

Heckle: to Scott Bloch, the chief of the Office of Special Counsel. While I applauded his actions earlier this week (though now, after more reading about it, I’m not so sure his investigation will do a damn thing), it was learned this past week that he himself is “under investigation” by the inspector general of the Office of Personnel Management because of accusations that he politicized his agency and is using this new investigation into Karl Rove to “divert attention from his own problems.” (This shouldn’t surprise me, since it is a member of Bush’s administration – but it does. I had high hopes for an investigation into Rove, but now it all looks like a sham… just like the rest of Bush’s presidency.)

Applaud: to a handful of retired generals that endorsed Congress’ Iraq withdrawal legislation earlier this week. Maj. Gen. John Batiste called it “important legislation [that] sets a new direction in Iraq,” while Lt. Gen. William Odom said it will “re-orient US strategy to achieve regional stability, and win help from many other countries - the only way peace will eventually be achieved.” (Once again, members, or former members, of the military are expressing their distrust of this administration... keep it going everyone…)

Heckle: to Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, who returned to Capitol Hill earlier his week and… meh, they’re still not buying it. Time to go bye-bye Alberto…

Applaud: to saying it like it is. Britain’s top counterterrorism officer, Peter Clarke, stated that Al Qaeda and its supporters have established “an inexorable trend towards more ambitious and more destructive attack planning… (and) … the only sensible assumption is that we shall be attacked again.” (Rather than spin the truth and make it a political issue like we do over here – if the Dems get elected we’ll be attacked again – Clarke is speaking the truth and ignoring the politics. Wish someone over on this side of the pond would follow suit…)

Heckle: to putting responsibility in the wrong hands. An expose by the New York Times revealed how the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA for you acronym-lovers out there) has killed dozens of existing and proposed regulations and delayed adopting others under “President” Bush and has also placed safety “in the hands of industry.” Essentially meaning that the companies are now monitoring themselves when it comes to worker safety… (Wow! That sounds like a good idea that doesn’t have any negative repurcussions, doesn’t it? –Yes, that was sarcasm. This is just another example of how little this administration cares about the worker and how much they care about companies…)

Applaud: to Rep. Henry Waxman (D-CA). He’s widening the scope of his investigation into potentially illegal partisan activities and has requested 27 federal departments to turn over information related to White House briefings about elections or political candidates. (And the blitz just keeps on coming. Don’t let up guys…)

Heckle: to Rudy Giuliani. In a turn of events that is not at all surprising and is a stark “departure from his previously stated position on civil unions” he came out this past week “in opposition” to the civil union law recently passed in New Hampshire… (Let the flip-flopping begin in five, four, three, two…)

Applaud: to U.S. Attorney Carol Lam for being named outstanding attorney of the year by the San Diego County Bar Association… good job Ms. Lam… oh, did I mention that she was one of the eight former U.S. attorneys across the country who were dismissed because of “poor performance.” Give me a break, with his ever-dropping approval numbers “President” Bush would kill to have this kind of “poor performance.”

Heckle: to the Pentagon for spinning people’s lives to either save face or create a hero. This past week, former Army private Jessica Lynch accused the Pentagon of creating something out of nothing when they made her rescue look like something from a Hollywood movie. At the same time they were taken to task by the brother and mother of former NFL star and Army Ranger Pat Tillman for their mis-handling of his friendly-fire death…. Sad… and pathetic the Pentagon’s handling was.

Half-Hearted Applaud: to the former director of the CIA George Tenet. He has a new book out that lays-into Vice President Dick “Dick” Cheney as well as other Bush(whacked) administration officials. In the book, he says they pushed the country to war in Iraq without ever conducting a “serious debate" about whether Saddam Hussein posed an imminent threat to the United States. (Why is this a half-hearted applaud? Four words; too little, too late. If Tenet had said something about this lack of debate before the war started instead of falling in line with all the other BushCronies, think of how many lives could have been saved. Instead, he waits until he can seemingly make money off of it in a book. You, Mr. Tenet, are both sad and pathetic.)

Applaud: to the Democratic candidates for president. All of them, yes – ALL of them, participated in the first of a series of televised debates Thursday night. Biden, Clinton, Dodd, Edwards, Gravel, Kucinich, Obama, & Richardson were all on their best behavior as they tried to assail themselves to the American people. There were no miscues, no screw-ups and no clear winner. Let’s hope they can all keep things this civil as the campaign wears on…

This week’s Wingnut Tool of the Week is… Rudy Giuliani. During a campaign stop at New England College in Henniker, New Hampshire this past week, Giuliani suggested (he didn’t expressly say it – but it was very much implied) that if the Democrats get into the White House there will be another terrorist attack and that; “If any Republican is elected president — and I think obviously I would be the best at this — we will remain on offense and will anticipate what [the terrorists] will do and try to stop them before they do it.” Wow, nothing like politicizing 9/11 for your own gain… I think it might be possible that he might mention 9/11 more often than Bush, and because of the inanity and narrow-mindedness of this comment, he’s our; Tool of the Week.

The 2008 Presidential Campaign Weekly Rewind. Before we begin with that, next week, keep an eye out for a new feature here at TBWA. With the 2008 already heating up and one debate already out of the way, we’ve decided to break-off the Presidential Campaign Rewind unto it’s own post… keep a look out…

First, the Democrats. Richardson gave AG Gonzales a chance to defend himself but he “didn’t do well”… Clinton didn’t quite pick up an endorsement from NY Gov. Eliot Spitzer but got raves… Obama rebuked Giuliani’s assertions that a Dem in the White Houe would bring another terror attack & had to defend his history of charitable donations… Dodd is frustrated by the lack of media attention his campaign is getting… Kucinich introduced articles of impeachment for Cheney… Edwards had a relatively quiet week… ditto for Biden… and in the words of my esteemed colleague Scott, Gravel came off a lot like Admiral Stockdale in the debate.

And now, the republicans… McCain officially announced his candidacy while drawing a very small crowd & missed another Senate vote due to his campaigning … Romney purchased $2M more of campaign ad airtime… Huckabee’s son was arrested with a gun & he called Gonzales a distraction… the two Thompsons made little noise this week, and former Gov. Gilmore tossed his hat into the already crowded ring

And one final thought… is it hypocrisy or irony when Rudy Giuliani claims to be a protector of the sanctity of marriage? I’m just askin’…