The Weekly Rewind

Good day sports fans. As a Chicago fan when someone is in the playoffs you’ve gotta root for them. This year it’s the Cubs. They are down 2 games in the best of 5 playoffs and tonight they either live to play another day or go down swinging… we will see what happens.

While we are waiting let’s kick back and enjoy what we like to call The Weekly Rewind.

Applaud: 70 percent: Americans who want funding for the war to be reduced. Bush’s approval rating stands at 33 percent. Just 29 percent approve of the job Congress is doing, although the public rates congressional Republicans (29 percent) lower than congressional Democrats (38 percent). Once again we yell and wave our arms, but no one in Washington seems to care.

Heckle: The Anti-Defamation League is calling on Senator McCain to “reconsider and withdraw” his comment over the weekend that the Constitution established America as a “Christian nation.” I’m sorry, I may not agree with the Senator, but I do believe that while not expressly written, that the founding fathers did have in mind a Christian nation at our founding.

Applaud: Congress is pushing legislation to give Inspectors General “greater budgetary independence.” The measure would also make it harder for the administration to fire the the watchdogs. The White House is threatening to veto the bill. Of course they are, why would they want to be held accountable for their actions this late in the game?

Heckle: The State Department launched its own blog last week, called “Dipnote.” People have already complained “that the white print on a black background makes it hard to read” Finally, “unbiased news directly from the federal government, a news source long noted for truthful, unbiased reporting,” the Washington Post’s Al Kamen mockingly writes. Nicely done Al, I couldn’t have said it better.

A sad state of affairs: There were 317,000 applications for unemployment benefits last week, an increase of 16,000 from the previous week, and the biggest jump in four months. Analysts believe the increase could be a further sign that the labor market is slowing under the impact of the worst slump in housing in 16 years. A Heckle to the administration for continually trying to tell us that the economy is great. Any working American can tell you that they are not better off then they were 6 ½ years ago.

Applaud: Bush’s veto of SCHIP has divided conservatives. Sen. Charles Grassley (R-IA) said yesterday, “We’ve got to do what we can to try to override” the veto. “If we’re truly compassionate, it seems to me, we’d want to endorse this program,” added Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-UT). A big thank you to the Senators for seeing what is painfully obvious to most Americans. Let's spread some of that to you fellow 'compassionate'conservatives.

Heckle: Over and over, President Bush confidently promised to ‘solve problems, not pass them on to future presidents and future generations.’ As the clock runs out on his eight-year presidency, a tall stack of troubles remain and Bush’s words ring hollow. And we were not going to be an ‘occupying army’ in Iraq. Anyone remember that??

Applaud: With bipartisan support, the House is expected today to take up legislation that would make it clear that U.S. laws apply to all armed private contractors hired for overseas missions.” The Bush administration opposes the bill, warning it would have ‘unintended and intolerable consequences’ for national security. Why is it that every time something goes against the administration it will always be bad for National Security? It’s gotten to the point of Chicken Little….

Applaud: Final score: Boxer 3, Inhofe 0. Sen. James Inhofe (R-OK) has repeatedly challenged Sen. Barbara Boxer’s (D-CA) authority over the Senate environmental committee. During one hearing, she had to inform him, “You don’t make the rules anymore.” Yesterday, Boxer slammed down Inhofe’s assertion that she couldn’t invite sitting senators to the hearings, pointing out that in Sept. 2006, he invited Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-TN). “I don’t mind if we have disagreements, but…let’s get the facts right,” she admonished him. You get ‘em Senator!

Applaud: Some business leaders are drifting away from conservatives “because of the war in Iraq, the growing federal debt and a conservative social agenda they don’t share.” Some business people want bolder action on global warming as well, leaving the “core business vote” up for grabs. It’s about time!

And finally, This weeks “Tool of the Week” is the Department of Defense. Why? Well, besides being tool of the Bush Administration they are also busy thinking of ways to screw our troops. How, well consider the 2,600 members of the Minnesota National Guard, who when they came home from Iraq, had been deployed longer than any other ground combat unit. The tour lasted 22 months and had been extended as part of President Bush's surge.1st Lt. Jon Anderson said he never expected to come home to this: A government refusing to pay education benefits he says he should have earned under the GI bill. "It's pretty much a slap in the face," Anderson said. "I think it was a scheme to save money, personally. I think it was a leadership failure by the senior Washington leadership... once again failing the soldiers." Anderson's orders, and the orders of 1,161 other Minnesota guard members, were written for 729 days. Had they been written for 730 days, just one day more, the soldiers would receive those benefits to pay for school. "Which would be allowing the soldiers an extra $500 to $800 a month," Anderson said.