The Talk Show American

THE TALK SHOW AMERICAN: 10/09/2005 - 10/16/2005

Saturday, October 15, 2005

ASSISTANT TO SENIOR AL QAEDA LEADER IN IRAQ APPREHENDED

BAGHDAD, Iraq -- Acting on reliable intelligence and information provided by concerned citizens, Multi-National Forces captured two senior al Qaeda in Iraq terrorists during raids in Baghdad Sept. 24.

Captured were Walid Muhammad Farhan Juwar al Zubaydi (aka Firas), (aka Abu Ziyad), (aka �The Barber�); and Ibrahim Muhammad Subhi Khayri al Rihawi (aka Abu Khalil).

�The Barber�s� duties included altering senior al Qaeda in Iraq member�s appearances by dying hair color, altering hairstyles and changing facial hair in their efforts to evade capture.

Abu Khalil, a close associate of Abu Azzam, served as an executive assistant for the terrorist emir. He also acted as a banker for Azzam and stored the terrorist organizations funds so they would not be confiscated should Abu Azzam be killed or captured.

Abu Azzam, second only to Zarqawi in al Qaeda in Iraq, was killed in a Coalition raid in September.

'Today' show embarrassed by 'video stunt'


Report preceded segment criticizing Bush military event as 'staged'

Just ahead of a report criticizing President Bush's satellite-linked session with soldiers in Iraq as a "staged" event, NBC's "Today" show was caught in a video stunt of its own.

Calling it a "deliciously ironic twist of fate," the conservative weblog NewsBusters noted that shortly before airing a segment "aimed at embarrassing the Bush administration," NBC reporter Michelle Kosinski � filing from flooded Wayne, N.J. � appeared embarrassed when an orchestrated camera shot went awry during the broadcast this morning.

Yesterday, Kosinski donned hip waders, reporting in thigh-deep water for effect. This morning, she appeared in a canoe on a suburban street � obviously attempting to dramatize the severity of the flooding disaster.

A few seconds after she went live, however, a pair of men walked in front of the camera � the flood waters barely covering the tops of their boots.

"Kosinski's canoe was in no more than four to six inches of water," declared Newsbusters.

Video clip of the broadcast.

Bush's Weekly Radio Address

This weekend is a momentous time in the history of the Middle East. After choosing their leaders in free elections in January, the Iraqi people have gone to the polls to vote on a democratic constitution. This constitution is the result of months of debate and compromise by representatives of Iraq's diverse ethnic and religious communities. These leaders came together to produce a document that protects fundamental freedoms and lays the foundation for a lasting democracy. Earlier this week, the Iraqi people embraced changes to the text that have led to its endorsement by some Sunni leaders, as well as Kurdish and Shia leaders. Now the people of Iraq will have the final say.

By casting their ballots, the Iraqi people deal a severe blow to the terrorists and send a clear message to the world: Iraqis will decide the future of their country through peaceful elections, not violent insurgency.

Large Turnout for Iraq Constitution Vote

Sunni Arabs voted in surprisingly high numbers on Iraq's new constitution Saturday, many of them hoping to defeat it in an intense competition with Shiites and Kurds over the shape of the nation's young democracy after decades of dictatorship. With little violence, turnout was more than 66 percent in the three most crucial provinces.

The constitution still seemed likely to pass, as expected. But the higher-than-forecast Sunni turnout made it possible the vote would be close - or even go the other way - and cast doubt on U.S. hopes that the charter would succeed in luring Sunnis away from the insurgency.

Washington hopes the constitution will be approved so Iraqis can form a permanent, representative government and the 150,000 U.S. troops can begin to withdraw.

"The constitution is a sign of civilization," Prime Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari said after casting his ballot. "This constitution has come after heavy sacrifices. It is a new birth."

NY TIMES: REPORTER CAN'T RECALL WHO GAVE HER 'FLAME' NAME

In a notebook belonging to Judith Miller, a reporter for The New York Times, amid notations about Iraq and nuclear weapons, appear two small words: "Valerie Flame."

Ms. Miller should have written Valerie Plame. That name is at the core of a federal grand jury investigation that has reached deep into the White House. At issue is whether Bush administration officials leaked the identity of Ms. Plame, an undercover C.I.A. operative, to reporters as part of an effort to blunt criticism of the president's justification for the war in Iraq.

Ms. Miller spent 85 days in jail for refusing to testify and reveal her confidential source, then relented. On Sept. 30, she told the grand jury that her source was I. Lewis Libby, the vice president's chief of staff. But she said he did not reveal Ms. Plame's name.

And when the prosecutor in the case asked her to explain how "Valerie Flame" appeared in the same notebook she used in interviewing Mr. Libby, Ms. Miller said she "didn't think" she heard it from him. "I said I believed the information came from another source, whom I could not recall," she wrote on Friday, recounting her testimony for an article that appears today.

Whether Ms. Miller's testimony will prove valuable to the prosecution remains unclear, as do its ramifications for press freedom. Yet an examination of Ms. Miller's decision not to testify, and then to do so, offers fresh information about her role in the investigation and how The New York Times turned her case into a cause.

The grand jury investigation centers on whether administration officials leaked the identity of Ms. Plame, whose husband, a former diplomat named Joseph C. Wilson IV, became a public critic of the Iraq war in July 2003. But Ms. Miller said Mr. Libby first raised questions about the diplomat in an interview with her that June, an account suggesting that Mr. Wilson was on the White House's radar before he went public with his criticisms.

Friday, October 14, 2005

Prosecutor to Rove: no decisions yet on charges

Federal prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald on Friday told President George W. Bush's top political adviser, Karl Rove, that he has yet to decide whether he will bring charges over the leak of a covert CIA operative's identity, Rove's lawyer said.

"The special counsel has not advised Mr. Rove that he is a target of the investigation and affirmed that he has made no decision concerning charges," Rove's lawyer, Robert Luskin, said. "The special counsel has indicated that he does not anticipate the need for Mr. Rove's further cooperation."

Talk Show America Host J.R. Interviewed by Fox News

Talk Show America host and author of The Talk Show American Blog, was interviewed this morning by Fox News in his hometown in central Massachusetts.

He was interviewed by Fox News as the Director of Emergency Management in his area, in regards to flooding in the Northeast and the potential for more flooding.

Catch the interview at around 3:30 PM EST and throughout the day onFox News

Media Lied, People Died

In the wake of Hurricane Katrina two sports were all the rage in New Orleans. One was the blame game, attributing all local and state incompetence to the feds. The other was inventing and spreading stories of murder and mayhem -- killings, rapes, firing at rescuers, bodies stacked like cordwood.

But the accounts turned out to be grim fairy tales. They were also hardly harmless sensationalism -- if there be such a thing; because of them people suffered and apparently died.

Among the horrors that never happened:

* Editor & Publisher headlined an article, "Mortuary Director Tells Local Paper 40,000 Could Be Lost in Hurricane," while the French paper Liberation ran a detailed report on 1,200 people drowning in a single school.

* CNN claimed snipers were taking potshots at helicopters trying to evacuate patients from hospitals, while separately CNN host Paula Zahn breathlessly spoke of "reports" of "bands of rapists, going block to block."

* To be fair and balanced, we note that Fox News's Geraldo Rivera claimed from the scene that "Yesterday the sun set on a scene of terror, chaos, confusion, anarchy, violence, rapes, murders, dead babies, dead people."

* Oprah Winfrey's special report from New Orleans was wall-to-wall hysteria. Mayor Ray Nagin told her "They have people standing out there, have been in that frickin' Superdome for five days watching dead bodies, watching hooligans killing people, raping people." Police Chief Eddie Compass (since resigned) added that "little babies [are] getting raped."

Winfrey herself, knowing how trusting (or gullible) her audience is, told them that in the Superdome "gangs banded together and had more ammunition, at times, than the police."

If all of this sounds like something from a post-apocalyptic zombie movie, that's pretty much what it was said professional rabble-rouser Randall Robinson. Four days after the storm "thousands of blacks in New Orleans are dying like dogs," he wrote, and "have begun eating corpses to survive." Just four days and already feasting on your friends?

Numerous articles since then have revealed there's no evidence any of the above took place. The death toll for all of Louisiana, which is rather bigger than just New Orleans, appears to be about 1,000.

Yet for all of the talk about violent deaths that never materialized, it appears that the talk itself led to real deaths.

For example, efforts to evacuate by helicopter some of the 200 patients at New Orleans' Charity Hospital were halted for a day because of reports of sniper fire. According to CNN's Dr. Sanjay Gupta, two patients died awaiting evacuation. "The inability to get people out of these hospitals is frightening," he said.

Could he have known false reporting from his own employer had contributed to this nightmare?

The evacuation of the Superdome, where conditions may not have been as bad as described but were bad enough, was also halted because of unconfirmed reports of shooting at military helicopters.

"We have suspended operations until they gain control of the Superdome," said the head of the ambulance service handling the evacuation of sick and injured people from the structure. He added that while the National Guard said it was sending 100 military police officers to gain control of the situation, "That's not enough . . . . We need a thousand."

As to the military (active and Guard), the only heroes to come out of the debacle, the fast-flying rumors forced them to launch combat operations before switching to rescue mode. They also had to wear heavy body armor in terrific heat, which I know from experience slows you down in those conditions. Regardless that they weren't really noshing on their neighbors, the last thing stranded residents needed was hampered rescuers.

Nagin also ordered virtually the entire police force to abandon search-and-rescue efforts in order to stop the non-existent "roving bands." Turns out some of the worst criminals were his own police, but even New Orleans' not-so-finest weren't killing or raping.

Pres. Roosevelt's famous statement that "the only thing we have to fear is fear itself," was certainly an overgeneralization. But those trusted to relay the most accurate information available as opposed to the most grabbing must realize that fear can hurt and fear can kill.


To see more of the extensive coverage of the 2005 Hurricane Season from TCS, click here.

More thoughts on Miers

by David Limbaugh

I hate it when I am sympathetic to arguments on both sides of an issue as it threatens my image as a benevolently close-minded, dogmatic, doctrinaire ideologue. But I do think conservatives are talking past one another on the Miers nomination and that a rift is growing between some conservatives and the White House. So here are a few more observations concerning the ongoing Miers saga.

Conservative critics of the nomination might need to be clearer about the applicability of their objections. There is a difference between criticizing the president's pick and actually advocating Senate rejection of Miers' nomination.

It is perfectly legitimate (and healthy) for conservatives to register their disapproval of the president's selection. They (we) can bellow against it to their heart's content. But they best not advocate that the Senate reject Miers just because they believe she may not be the most qualified for the position. If she is qualified and of good character, the Senate must, as a matter of constitutional law, defer to the president's prerogative and confirm.

Accordingly, conservatives, unless they truly believe Miers to be unqualified, should specify that their objections are directed at the president and not the Senate, lest they run the risk of lending legitimacy to the liberal practice of rejecting nominees for extra-constitutional (including political) reasons.

The Harriet Miers I Know

By MATTHEW SCULLY
Published: October 14, 2005

WHITE House speechwriters first learned the name Harriet Miers in January 2001, when drafts started reappearing full of corrections, instructions and particularly annoying requests for factual substantiation. In the campaign, life had been simpler, the editing and fact-checking a little more casual. Now the old ways wouldn't do anymore because "Harriet said" this or "Harriet said" that. Who was this woman, and could the staff secretary please confine herself to secretarial duties?

We had a few things to learn about the job of the staff secretary - the person who controls all paper passing through the Oval Office - and above all about the caliber of the woman behind the editing. And now that fellow conservatives in Washington are asking variations of the same question about President Bush's nominee to the Supreme Court - Who is this "crony," "cipher," "hack," "functionary" or, as my former speechwriting colleague David Frum has called her, this "petty bureaucrat"? - I think I can help with the answer.

Bush chat with troops rehearsed ?

"So long as I'm the president, we're never going to back down, we're never going to give in, we'll never accept anything less than total victory," ...President Bush 10/13/2005

It was billed as a conversation with U.S. troops, but the questions President Bush asked on a teleconference call Thursday were choreographed to match his goals for the war in Iraq and Saturday's vote on a new Iraqi constitution.

"This is an important time," Allison Barber, deputy assistant defense secretary, said, coaching the soldiers before Bush arrived. "The president is looking forward to having just a conversation with you."

The event was aimed at countering the steady stream of violent images that emerge daily from Iraq as insurgent bloodshed continues and both American and Iraqi security forces hunker down for the referendum this weekend, CBS News correspondent Lara Logan reports.

Barber said the president was interested in three topics: the overall security situation in Iraq, security preparations for the weekend vote and efforts to train Iraqi troops.

As she spoke in Washington, a live shot of 10 soldiers from the Army's 42nd Infantry Division and one Iraqi soldier was beamed into the Eisenhower Executive Office Building from Tikrit � the birthplace of former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein.

"I'm going to ask somebody to grab those two water bottles against the wall and move them out of the camera shot for me," Barber said.

A brief rehearsal ensued.

"OK, so let's just walk through this," Barber said. "Captain Kennedy, you answer the first question and you hand the mike to whom?"

"Captain Smith," Kennedy said.

"Captain. Smith? You take the mike and you hand it to whom?" she asked.

"Captain Kennedy," the soldier replied.

And so it went.

"If the question comes up about partnering � how often do we train with the Iraqi military � who does he go to?" Barber asked.

"That's going to go to Captain Pratt," one of the soldiers said.

"And then if we're going to talk a little bit about the folks in Tikrit � the hometown � and how they're handling the political process, who are we going to give that to?" she asked.

The White House said that the live televised event had to be rehearsed in order to run smoothly and there was no doubt from the soldiers involved, reports Logan.

"The truth is that everything that was said was meant to be said, though it may have sounded scripted in some places," Sergeant David Barry-Smith told Logan.

White House press secretary Scott McClellan said Thursday's event was coordinated with the Defense Department but that the troops were expressing their own thoughts. With satellite feeds, coordination often is needed to overcome technological challenges, such as delays, he said.

"I think all they were doing was talking to the troops and letting them know what to expect," he said, adding that the president wanted to talk with troops on the ground who have firsthand knowledge about the situation.

The soldiers all gave Bush an upbeat view of the situation.

The president also got praise from the Iraqi soldier who was part of the chat.

"Thank you very much for everything," he gushed. "I like you."

On preparations for the vote, 1st Lt. Gregg Murphy of Tennessee said: "Sir, we are prepared to do whatever it takes to make this thing a success. ... Back in January, when we were preparing for that election, we had to lead the way. We set up the coordination, we made the plan. We're really happy to see, during the preparation for this one, sir, they're doing everything."

On the training of Iraqi security forces, Master Sgt. Corine Lombardo from Scotia, N.Y., said to Bush: "I can tell you over the past 10 months, we've seen a tremendous increase in the capabilities and the confidences of our Iraqi security force partners. ... Over the next month, we anticipate seeing at least one-third of those Iraqi forces conducting independent operations."

Lombardo told the president that she was in New York City on Nov. 11, 2001, when Bush attended an event recognizing soldiers for their recovery and rescue efforts at Ground Zero. She said the troops began the fight against terrorism in the wake of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks and were proud to continue it in Iraq.

"I thought you looked familiar," Bush said, and then joked: "I probably look familiar to you, too."

President's 'terrible' rating better than last 7

Worst approval marks from LBJ to Clinton all lower than Bush's

Despite the fact President Bush's job approval ratings have dropped to the lowest point of his presidency, they still remain higher than the low-point ratings of the last seven presidents, including his predecessor Bill Clinton.

Data from six polling organizations in October show an average of 39.5 percent job approval for Bush.
But according to the Gallup Organization, that's a higher mark than the low points for all commanders in chief dating back to Lyndon Johnson in the mid 1960s.

The low points for recent commanders in chief are as follows:


Bill Clinton: 37 percent

George H. W. Bush: 29 percent

Ronald Reagan: 35 percent

Jimmy Carter: 28 percent

Gerald Ford: 37 percent

Richard Nixon: 24 percent

Lyndon Johnson: 35 percent
To find presidents with higher low-point approval ratings than Bush, one has to go back to John Kennedy at 56 percent, and Dwight Eisenhower at 48 percent.

The Power Line blog notes: "The reality is that the Republican base is holding remarkably firm, in the face of a media onslaught against the Bush administration that has no parallel in modern history, and following months of little but bad news: gas prices, hurricanes, and casualties in Iraq (the only news most people hear from that part of the world)."

Thursday, October 13, 2005

U.S. accused of making up al-Qaida letter

A posting on an Islamic Web site Thursday accused the United States of fabricating a letter in which al-Qaida's No. 2 leader asked for money and laid out the terrorist group's plans for expanding the insurgency in the Middle East.

"We in al-Qaida declare that there is no truth to these claims, and they are baseless, except in the imagination of the politicians of the Black (White) House," according to the statement on a Web site known as a clearing house for al-Qaida material.

The statement was signed Abu Maysara, who claims to be spokesman for al-Qaida in Iraq. It could not immediately be authenticated.

"We call on Muslims not to pay attention to this cheap propaganda and to remember that the media will always be the infidels' sole weapon until the end of the battle," the statement said.

U.S. officials said the letter dated July 9 to al-Qaida-linked Jordanian militant Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, first disclosed by the Pentagon on Friday and released in full on Tuesday, was acquired during American operations in Iraq.

In the letter, taking up 13 typed pages in its English translation, al-Qaida deputy leader Ayman al-Zawahri recommends a four-stage expansion of the war in Iraq that would take the fighting to neighboring Muslim countries.

"It has always been my belief that the victory of Islam will never take place until a Muslim state is established ... in the heart of the Islamic world," al-Zawahri wrote.

The letter laid out his long-term plan: the expulsion of American troops from Iraq, the establishment an Islamic authority and the expansion of the war to Iraq's secular neighbors, including Lebanon, Jordan and Syria.

The final stage, al-Zawahri wrote, would be a clash with Israel, which he said was established to challenge "any new Islamic entity."

The letter, translated by the U.S. government, also asked al-Zarqawi to provide financial support and urged him to avoid bombings mosques, slaughtering hostages to avoid alienating the masses.

ZAWAHIRI-ZARQAWI COMMUNIQU�

Key Themes

11 October 2005

We note seven critical themes from the Zawahiri-Zarqawi letter. The first four confirm al-Qaida�s long-term strategy and core beliefs; the latter three reflect new information about how senior al-Qaida leader Zawahiri views developments in Iraq � and elsewhere � turning against them.

Further confirmation of al-Qaida�s long-term strategy/beliefs:

. Iraq is becoming the central battlefield for al-Qaida senior leaders in Pakistan . Zawahiri views Iraq as the bridgehead for the creation of a new Islamic caliphate � their ultimate objective. The letter makes clear al-Qa'ida intends to wrest control of Iraq from the Iraqi people so they can use the country in pursuit of other goals.

. Quote: �I want to be the first to congratulate you for what God has blessed you with in terms of fighting in the heart of the Islamic world, which was formerly the field for major battles in Islam�s history, and what is now the place for the greatest battle of Islam in this era�.�

� Al-Qaida�s ambitions do not stop at Iraq �s borders. Establishing the political dominance of Sunni militants in Iraq is only a first step�a means to an end�in realizing al-Qaida�s ambitions of imposing its control over the broader Middle East. In fact, al-Qaida�s focus on Iraq has nothing to do with Iraqi nationalism, but is purely instrumental as a beachhead for al-Qaida�s broader agenda. Under al-Qaida, Iraq will serve as a terrorist haven and staging ground for attacks against Iraq �s neighbors and quite possibly Western nations -- all those judged to be ruling in violation of their distorted interpretation of Islamic law � and clearly destabilize the region. According to Zawahiri:

Quote: ��the Jihad in Iraq requires several incremental goals: The first stage: Expel the Americans from Iraq . The second stage: Establish an Islamic authority or amirate, then develop it and support it until it achieves the level of a caliphate over as much territory as you can spread its power in Iraq, i.e., in Sunni areas. . . . The third stage: Extend the jihad wave to the secular countries neighboring Iraq . The fourth stage: �[This is ] the clash with Israel , because Israel was established only to challenge any new Islamic entity. . . . [T]heir ongoing mission is to establish an Islamic state, and defend it, and for every generation to hand over the banner to the one after it until the Hour of Resurrection.�

Quote: �It has always been my belief that the victory of Islam will never take place until a Muslim state is established in the manner of the Prophet in the heart of the Islamic world, specifically, in the Levant, Egypt , and the neighboring states of the Peninsula and Iraq ; however, the center would be in the Levant and Egypt .�

� The letter demonstrates that pulling US forces out of Iraq is the wrong approach � that terrorists will not simply lay down their arms when American forces depart Iraq . Al-Qaida and its terrorist brethren will not go away when the Coalition hands over security control to Iraqi forces; rather, they are committed to overthrowing the elected, democratic Iraqi government and ruling the country according to their interpretation of Islamic law.

Quote: �And it is that the Mujahidin must not have their mission end with the expulsion of the Americans from Iraq , and then lay down their weapons, and silence the fighting zeal. We will return to having the secularists and traitors holding sway over us.�

� Zawahiri believes in religious intolerance and converting, conquering, or killing anyone who does not believe as he does. His only concern is how to deceive the population that this is not the case by urging Zarqawi to reduce attacks on Shia civilians. Zawahiri contends that Shia are heretics. He views Shi�ism as a �religious school based on excess and falsehood,� and as a danger to what he sees as true, Sunni Islam. Zawahiri does not condemn Zarqawi for killing Shia. Indeed, the Shia, along with anyone who does not blindly follow al-Qaida�s twisted interpretation of Islam, will be forced either to adopt al-Qa'ida's extremist ideology or face repression or death if the terrorists establish control. Zawahiri�s concerns are purely tactical; managing the press and gaining the support, or acquiescence, of the people.

Quote: �People of discernment and knowledge among Muslims know the extent of danger to Islam of the 12�er school of Shi�ism. It is a religious school based on excess and falsehood whose function is to accuse the companions of Muhammad of heresy [in] a campaign against Islam, in order to free the way for a group of those who call for a dialogue in the name of the hidden mahdi who is in control of existence and infallible in what he does. Their prior history in cooperating with the enemies of Islam is consistent with their current reality of connivance with the crusaders.�

Quote: �The collision between any state based on the model of prophecy with the Shi�ites is a matter that will happen sooner or later. This is the judgment of history, and these are the fruits to be expected from the rejectionist Shi�a sect and their opinion of the Sunnis. These are clear, well-known matters to anyone with a knowledge of history, the ideologies, and the politics of states.�

Quote: �[M]any of your Muslim admirers amongst the common folk are wondering about your attacks on the Shi�a.�

How al-Qaida views the developments in Iraq � and elsewhere � as turning against them:

� Zawahiri clearly is worried they are losing public support in Iraq, and is attuned to the role of the media in the battle for such support. Zawahiri emphasizes that the struggle is ideological, with each side competing for the popular support and loyalty of the Muslim world. Zarqawi�s methods are backfiring by alienating the Iraqi people with attacks against the Shia.

Quote: ��[W]e will see that the strongest weapon which the Mujahidin enjoy . . . is popular support from the Muslim masses in Iraq , and the surrounding Muslim countries. So, we must maintain this support as best we can, and we should strive to increase it�.�

Quote: �[T]he Jihadist movement must avoid any action that the masses do not understand or approve. . . .�

Quote: �I say to you: that we are in a battle, and that more than half this battle is taking place in the battlefield of the media. And that we are in a media battle in a race for the hearts and minds of our nation.�

� Zawahiri, who previously termed democracy heretical, is willing to exploit the political process unfolding in Iraq to advance the group�s goals. Zawahiri is advocating a modified strategy in an attempt to expand the group�s Sunni support base in Iraq . It is tacit acknowledgement that the political process unfolding in Iraq appeals to average Iraqis. Zarqawi�s recent pronouncements for all-out war against the Shia and recent rhetoric against Sunnis supporting the government and coalition stirred concerns among his advisers and allies and already have prompted Zarqawi to quickly adjust his rhetoric and some tactics.

Quote: �We don�t want to repeat the mistake of the Taliban, who restricted participation in governance to the students and the people of Kandahar alone. They did not have any representation for the Afghan people in their ruling regime, so the result was that the Afghan people disengaged themselves from them.�

Quote: �I stress again to you and to all your brothers the need to direct the political action equally with the military action, by the alliance, cooperation and gathering of all leaders of opinion and influence in the Iraqi arena. . . . [Y]ou and your brothers must strive to have around you circles of support, assistance, and cooperation, and through them, to advance until you become a consensus, entity, organization, or association that represents all the honorable people and the loyal folks in Iraq .�

� Zawahiri�s letter to Zarqawi reveals continued points of weakness in Pakistan-based al-Qaida senior leaders and what they need to operate and survive:

Financial shortages: Zawahiri asks for a payment of approximately 100,000 of an unspecified currency until �new lines� � likely with donors � are opened. Moreover, he makes this request in the context of Abu Faraj al-Libi, intimating that his capture adversely affected al-Qaida�s ability to transfer funds.

� Quote: �The brothers informed me that you suggested to them sending some assistance. Our situation since Abu-al-Faraj is good by the grace of God, but many of the lines have been cut off. Because of this, we need a payment while new lines are being opened. So, if you�re capable of sending a payment of approximately 100,000 [units of currency] we�ll be very grateful to you.�

The CT efforts of our partners: Furthermore, Zawahiri notes that while they may have limited the consequences of Abu Faraj�s capture, al-Qaida is wary of the Pakistani army�s presence in the tribal areas where its leaders have found sanctuary. This highlights the importance of continued Pakistani efforts in the War on Terror. As partnerships and partnership capacity expands, so shrinks the space in which terrorists can operate.

� Quote: �[T]he real danger comes from the agent Pakistani army which is carrying out operations in the tribal areas looking for Mujahidin.�

Isolation of senior leadership. Zawahiri appeals to Zarqawi for information about the situation and activities in Iraq .

� Quote: �Likewise I would like you to inform us about the Iraqi situation in general and the situation of the Mujahidin in particular in [sufficient] detail. . . . At the least, we should know as much as the enemy knows.�

Wednesday, October 12, 2005

100,000 back bill to curb ACLU

Petition urges Congress to act on legislation

A grass-roots group is mobilizing more than 100,000 Americans to urge Congress to pass a bill that would curb the ACLU by denying plaintiff attorneys the right to collect attorneys fees in lawsuits targeting religion in the public square.

The petition by the Center for Reclaiming America calls for "a stand against the ACLU's radical agenda, which undermines our nation's moral and religious heritage."

The group says it already has 100,000 signatures and hopes to garner another 30,000.

The petition reads:


As a concerned citizen, I am taking a stand against the ACLU's radical agenda, which undermines our nation's moral and religious heritage. I join with citizens across the nation in protest of ACLU policies and actions to strip faith in God from the public square while promoting anti-family and pro-homosexual initiatives. I am calling on leaders in government and media to tell the truth about the ACLU's radical agenda. Furthermore, I demand lawmakers take the necessary steps to eliminate the monetary motives behind the ACLU's campaign to remove all mention of God from the public square. The ACLU does not represent me nor the vast majority of American citizens.

The legislation by Rep. John Hostettler, R-Ind., would amend the Civil Rights Attorney's Fees Act of 1976 to prohibit prevailing parties from being awarded attorneys fee in religious establishment cases but not in other civil rights filings.

In August, another advocacy group asked Congress to probe the ACLU for "widespread use of frivolous lawsuits following its legal action against New York City for allegedly violating citizens' rights by random searches on subways.

JUDGES SAID 'NO' TO BUSH FOR HIGH COURT

Rove Told Dobson Other Candidates Refused Consideration
Wed Oct 12 2005 00:54:39 ET

Before President Bush nominated White House counsel Harriet E. Miers to the Supreme Court, his deputy chief of staff, Karl Rove, called influential Christian leader James Dobson to assure him that Miers was a conservative evangelical Christian, Dobson said in remarks scheduled for broadcast Wednesday on his national radio show.

The LA TIMES reports: In that conversation, which has been the subject of feverish speculation, Rove also told Dobson that one reason the president was passing over better-known conservatives was that many on the White House short list had asked not to be considered, Dobson said, according to an advance transcript of the broadcast provided by his organization, Focus on the Family.

Dobson said that the White House had decided to nominate a woman, which reduced the size of the list, and that several women on it had then bowed out.

``What Karl told me is that some of those individuals took themselves off that list and they would not allow their names to be considered, because the process has become so vicious and so vitriolic and so bitter that they didn't want to subject themselves or the members of their families to it,'' Dobson said, according to the transcript.

Developing...

Vietnam Vets File Lawsuit Against John Kerry

The former presidential candidate who, during his election campaign, proudly contrasted his military service during the Vietnam War with that of President Bush's National Guard service - and who once led an organization of Vietnam veterans protesting the war in Vietnam - is being sued by some Vietnam veterans.

The Vietnam Veterans Legacy Foundation is a plaintiff along with Red, White, and Blue Productions, and Vietnam veteran turned journalist Carlton Sherwood, in a defamation action against current Massachusetts Senator John Kerry and Tony Podesta, who was Kerry's Pennsylvania campaign manager.

The lawsuit, filed in Philadelphia, claims that Kerry and Podesta libeled, slandered, and caused financial harm to the plaintiffs as they sought to prevent the presentation of Sherwood's documentary movie Stolen Honor: Wounds That Never Heal before the 2004 presidential election.

The lawsuit states:

Sherwood established plaintiff Red, White, and Blue productions an independent film company which produced the documentary Stolen Honor: Wounds That Never Heal....This documentary tells the story of Kerry's involvement with the VVAW (Vietnam Veterans Against the War) and his participation in the so-called "Winter Soldier" investigation...Stolen Honor also reports that...Kerry testified before the United States Senate that during the Winter Soldier investigation Vietnam veterans testified to war crimes...not isolated incidents but crimes committed on a day to day basis with full awareness of officers at all levels of command...in fact the stories told by participants in the Winter Solider investigation were outrageous and slanderous falsehoods against Vietnam veterans...Stolen Honor accurately reported that Kerry's statements.. were lies concocted by antiwar activists...Kerry knew this testimony was false...Vietnam veterans including former POW's had been falsely tarred...Sherwood produced Stolen Honor to bring this otherwise ignored history to light ...and to explain the public sense of betrayal felt by many Vietnam veterans- particularly among former POW's - against Kerry and others who built their reputations slandering America's Vietnam veterans.

The lawsuit continues by saying that the movie received its initial funding entirely from Pennsylvania veterans. It asserts that Stolen Honor points out Kerry's false allegations were used by the North Vietnamese to threaten and demoralize the approximately 700 POW's in North Vietnam. Stolen Honor told this history through interviews with some POW's including a Medal of Honor recipient and one who recounted how his interrogator went through Kerry's statements and told him that Kerry admitted he was a war criminal and deserved punishment.

The lawsuit states that the plaintiffs had a contract with Sinclair Broadcasting to air the documentary and a contract with the Baederwood Theater of Abington, Pa., to show the movie. It further claims there was a coordinated conspiracy by, "defendants Kerry, Podesta and others acting in concert with and on behalf of Kerry, to discredit and silence Sherwood and Stolen Honor, through a campaign of knowing, deliberate, and malicious falsehoods about Sherwood and Stolen Honor and of illegitimate and malicious threats directed at Sinclair and Baederwood." The suit states these actions by Kerry et. al. caused Sinclair to show only portions of the movie and Baederwood to refuse to show it.

This may be the first time in American history that a presidential candidate was sued for actions taken by him and his campaign during an election. It may also be the first time that an antiwar activist was sued, if only tangentially, for allegations made about American military personnel.

Tuesday, October 11, 2005

Susan Estrich: Hillary Will Never Be President

Democratic strategist Susan Estrich says that Dick Morris is afraid to debate her about who has the best chance to become America's first female president - Hillary Clinton or Condoleezza Rice.

But before she debates Morris, whose new book "Hillary vs. Condi" debuted yesterday - perhaps she ought to debate herself.

Estrich's own book, "The Case for Hillary Clinton," lauds the former first lady as "America's once-in-a-lifetime chance to break the world's most prominent glass ceiling and elect a female president of the United States."

But only two years ago Estrich was warning: "Hillary Clinton is never going to be president of the United States."

"There is no more divisive figure in the Democratic Party, much less the country, than the former first lady," the California-based law professor complained in her nationally syndicated column.

"I like her," proclaimed Estrich. "But many women don't. Even Democratic women. Even working women. Not to mention non-working, independent, non-political women.

"The more people talk about her as a future president, the more money Republicans raise," Estrich lamented.

In fact, the Carol Channing sound-alike was so worried Hillary and her supporters were hogging the spotlight that she barked: "Could someone please tell these people to shut up?"

So which is it? Hillary, the Dems' last, best White House hope? Or Hillary, the political hellion who'll take her party over the cliff?

Only Prof. Estrich knows for sure.

IRAQI, U.S. FORCES SURPRISE TERRORISTS, DETAIN 57

BAGHDAD, Iraq � More than 600 Iraqi and U.S. forces responded to reports of terrorists operating in south Baghdad and conducted multiple cordon and searches in the early-morning hours of Oct. 11.

Troops detained 57 terror suspects and killed two others.

U.S. Soldiers from 3rd Squadron, 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment linked up with Iraqi Special Police Commandos to take the terrorists by surprise. AH-64 Apache helicopters soon arrived on site to engage in the firefight.

Iraqi and U.S. forces focused on three objectives and began searching houses in the area looking for anti-Iraqi forces. These operations were mainly driven by Iraqi intelligence.

The forces acted on a report that two men were on a roof overseeing a group of terrorists emplacing improvised explosive devices.

SOLDIERS DISCOVER WEAPONS CACHE IN IRAQ

CAMP BLUE DIAMOND, AR RAMADI, Iraq � For the third time in as many weeks, Soldiers from 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Marine Division discovered a significant weapons cache in Ramadi, Al Anbar�s provincial capital.

The unit was conducting a cordon and search operation, which began early morning on Oct. 9, in order to uncover suspected weapons caches at several garages and vacant buildings. Six suspected terrorists were detained.

The find included Soviet-made rockets and surface to air missiles, more than one hundred 120 mm mortar rounds, dozens of 81 mm and 60 mm mortar rounds, hand grenades, AK-47s and bomb-making materials. The contents of the cache will be destroyed.

Two additional caches were discovered in the Ramadi area within the past several weeks. One was located at a public soccer stadium and the other at an elementary school in the Malaab district.

Yesterday�s operation is intended to help establish a more secure environment for the Oct. 15 Referendum.

Al-Qaida No. 2: Get Set to Fill Iraq Void

In a letter to his top deputy in Iraq, al-Qaida's No. 2 leader says the U.S. "ran and left" in Vietnam and the jihadists must have a plan ready to fill the void if the Americans suddenly leave Iraq.

"Things may develop faster than we imagine," Ayman al-Zawahri wrote in a letter to his top deputy in Iraq, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi. "The aftermath of the collapse of American power in Vietnam - and how they ran and left their agents - is noteworthy. ... We must be ready starting now."

In a wide-ranging letter spanning over 12 typed pages in the English translation, al-Zawahri also recommends a four-stage expansion of the war that would take the fighting to neighboring Muslim countries.

"It has always been my belief that the victory of Islam will never take place until a Muslim state is established ... in the heart of the Islamic world," al-Zawahri writes.

The letter lays out his long-term plan: expel the Americans from Iraq, establish an Islamic authority and take the war to Iraq's secular neighbors, including Lebanon, Jordan and Syria.

The final stage, al-Zawahri writes, would be a clash with Israel, which he says was established to challenge "any new Islamic entity."

The letter, obtained by The Associated Press, is dated July 9, and was acquired during U.S. operations in Iraq. It was written in Arabic and translated by the U.S. government.

Iraqis Reach Deal on the Constitution

Iraqi negotiators reached a breakthrough deal on the constitution Tuesday and at least one Sunni Arab party said it would now urge its followers to approve the charter in this weekend's referendum.


Under the deal, the two sides agreed that a commission would be set up to consider amendments to the charter that would then be put to a vote in parliament and then submitted to a new referendum next year.


The agreement would allow the Sunnis to try to amend the constitution to reduce the autonomous powers that Shiites and Kurds would have under the federal system created by the charter, negotiators said.


It boosts the chances for a constitution that Shiite and Kurdish leaders support and the United States has been eager to see approved in Saturday's vote to avert months more of political turmoil, delaying plans to start a withdrawal of U.S. forces.

Report: Informant Admits Subway Threat Was Hoax

The informant who sparked last week's New York City subway threat alert has admitted it was a hoax, CNN reported Tuesday.

The network reported that the informant admitted providing false information.

The informant had claimed that al-Qaida operatives in Iraq were plotting to attack the city's subways using baby strollers packed with remote-controlled explosives. The reported threat said the attacks could occur as early as last Friday.

Authorities said earlier the interrogation of three suspects arrested by U.S. forces in Iraq has so far produced no information to corroborate a possible threat.

New York City's heightened subway security will slowly scale back to what it was before officials announced the supposed subway bombing threat last week.

New York City Police Commissioner Ray Kelly stressed that police will continue random bag searches in the subways that began in response to the bombings on the London transit system.

A look at a law being used against DeLay

The conspiracy charge is based on a 2003 law meant to fight voter fraud at nursing homes

Tired of absentee ballot fraud in his races for the Texas House and in his wife's first race for Dallas mayor, then-Rep. Steve Wolens pushed a bill in 2003 making it a crime to mark a mail ballot without a voter's consent.

That bill, which made conspiracy to violate state election laws a felony, was made law Sept. 1, 2003. It has become a key point of contention in an indictment of Congressman Tom DeLay, accusing him of conspiring to violate a century-old ban on corporate contributions to political candidates.

Lawyers for DeLay said that before Wolens' conspiracy bill became law, the alleged crime did not exist, and the charge should be dismissed.

Donna Goode, head of the Public Integrity Unit of the Harris County District Attorney's Office, said she doesn't think conspiracy to violate election laws was a crime before Sept. 1, 2003.

"Before that, I don't believe we had any kind of statutory authority that would allow you to apply the Penal Code, Title 4 (conspiracy), to the Election Code," she said.

Earle has said little about the dispute over the original indictment.

How much blame does Gov. Blanco deserve?

Critics say she was slow to respond as Katrina came ashore

It was Gov. Blanco's first big disaster � and less than 48 hours before Katrina hit, she reassured the state.

"I believe we are prepared," she said in Jefferson Parish on Aug. 27. "That's the one thing that I've always been able to brag about."

Though experts had warned it would take 48 hours to evacuate New Orleans, Blanco did not order a mandatory evacuation that Saturday.

"We're going to pray that the impact will soften," she said.

Blanco and the mayor waited until Sunday, Aug. 28 � only 20 hours before Katrina came ashore � to order a mandatory evacuation, the first of what disaster experts and Louisiana insiders say were serious mistakes by the governor.

"It certainly appeared that there was a lot of indecisiveness exhibited by the governor in the early stages of the disaster," says Louisiana State Democratic Senator Donald Cravins.

A key criticism: the governor's slowness in requesting federal troops. She told the president she needed help, but it wasn't until Wednesday, Aug. 31 that she specifically asked for 40,000 troops.

That day, in a whispered conversation with her staff caught on camera, the governor appears to second-guess herself.

"I really need to call for the military," Blanco tells an aide.

"Yes you do, yes you do," is the reply.

"And I should have started that in the first call," Blanco adds.

Another key mistake, experts say, was Blanco's lateness in getting the Louisiana National Guard, which she commands, on the streets to try to establish security.

"It would have been better if it had happened sooner," says Jane Bullock, a former FEMA official during the Clinton administration.

And remember the chaos at the Convention Center? We now know there were at least 250 guardsmen deployed in another part of that building. But they were engineers, not police, so they were not ordered to help restore order or even to share their food and water.

"I think we would have hurt a lot of people if we'd tried to take that on," says Dough Mouton, commander of the Louisiana National Guard's 225th Engineering Group.

The governor would not say whether she made the decision not to use those troops and tells NBC News her state's response to Katrina was "very well planned and executed with great precision and effectiveness."

"How can any governor argue that they have done what they can do when people were left on an interstate without food and water for a week?" asks Roy Fletcher, a Louisiana political consultant.

The governor has said she takes responsibility for what went wrong, but insists her biggest mistake was believing FEMA officials who told her help was on the way.

DeLay lawyers subpoena district attorney

Lawyers for indicted Rep. Tom DeLay on Tuesday subpoenaed the prosecuting Texas district attorney in an effort to show he acted improperly with grand jurors.

The subpoena for Travis County District Attorney Ronnie Earle, filed in Austin, asked that the prosecutor and two of his assistants appear in court to explain their conduct.

The lawyers previously had filed a motion asking for dismissal of the conspiracy and money-laundering charges against DeLay, who stepped aside as House majority leader because of the indictment.

Dick DeGuerin, DeLay's attorney, also asked that grand jurors be released from their secrecy oath so they could answer questions about the prosecutor's conduct.

Earle had no immediate comment on the subpoena.

DeGuerin wants Earle to answer 12 questions about conversations he had with grand jurors, including whether the prosecutor became angry when a grand jury decided against an indictment of DeLay and why the decision was not publicly released.

He also wants to know the details of Earle's conversation with William Gibson, foreman of a grand jury that indicted DeLay on conspiracy charges and whose term has since ended.

"If you did nothing improper, you should not be concerned about answering these questions," DeGuerin said in his letter to Earle.

Sunday, October 09, 2005

US 'intercepts al-Qaeda letter'

An intercepted letter from al-Qaeda's number two to its leader in Iraq warns insurgents' tactics may alienate the wider Muslim population, the US says.
The letter appeared to be from Osama bin Laden's deputy Ayman al-Zawahiri to Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, said Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman.

He did not show the letter or say how or where it was obtained, but said it was considered authentic and recent.

The missive warned that the network faced crises in many areas, he said.

"Zawahiri says that they've lost many of their key leaders and that they've virtually resigned themselves to defeat in Afghanistan, that their lines of communication and funding have been severely disrupted," Mr Whitman told reporters on Thursday.

'Must include masses'

The letter, said to be written in Arabic, was made public after the government learned of leaks to the media, US media quote officials as saying.

In the missive, Zawahiri apparently warns tactics such as the killing of hostages and bombings of mosques may alienate the "Muslim masses," Mr Whitman said.

"In this letter, he talks about believing that the eventual governance of Iraq must include the Muslim masses, and that they are at risk of alienating those," he told reporters.

The letter was also said to detail the strategy of Muslim extremists to create an Islamic state centred on Iraq that could expand into neighbouring countries.

Zawahiri included a plea for financial support, Reuters news agency quoted Mr Whitman as saying.

The New York Times quoted a senior official as saying that the 6,000-word letter was dated early in July, and was obtained by US forces involved in counterterrorism operations in Iraq.

In January 2004, the US authorities said they had intercepted a letter which confirmed that Zarqawi was working with al-Qaeda to drive the US out of Iraq. The authenticity of the letter was never confirmed beyond doubt.

Zarqawi's group has claimed responsibility for a series of killings, hostage beheadings and major suicide bombings in Iraq.

Zawahiri was number two - behind only Bin Laden - in the 22 Most Wanted Terrorists List announced by the US government in 2001. He has a $25m bounty on his head.

Star wars armed and accurate

The US missile defence program, initially written off by sceptics as a waste of money and effort, can already intercept and destroy a North Korean ballistic missile aimed at the US mainland.

The program now has bipartisan support in the US, and increasing numbers of militaries around the world, such as the Germans and the Dutch, are pursuing their own missile defence. Lieutenant-General Obering said although there were still technical issues to overcome, the basic utility of missile defence had been well established.

Al-Qaida nuke reactor threat

Order to strike U.S. plants posted at Islamic forum

An Internet posting at an Islamic forum relayed what purports to be a command to the al-Qaida organization in America to strike nuclear power plants inside the country.

U.S. Central Command, which translated the original message, says it is skeptical of the authenticity of the message, calling it a "fantasy threat" that would "go unfulfilled."

However, Centcom's statement also threatened to destroy the terrorist network should al-Qaida carry out a successful nuclear attack on U.S. soil.

The message from "Ayef," who claims to be working under the direction of an al-Qaida leader named "Abu-Jandal," was directed to "Abu-Azzam al-Amriki," � Abu Azzam, the American � and other al-Qaida members in the U.S., Europe and the Middle East.

"Azzam al-Armiki" is the nickname of Adam Gadahn, the Orange County, Calif., native who appeared in an al-Qaida propaganda film last year.

Ayef claims to be an aide to Iraq's al-Qaida leader, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi.

The statement also claimed al-Qaida has not been in communication with "Ja'far al-Tayyar," who had been previously assigned the task of blowing up a nuclear reactor in the U.S.

Ja'far al-Tayyar is the pseudonym of Adnan El-Shukrijumah, a naturalized U.S. citizen who set off alarms last year when the FBI announced he was the leader of a suspected plot to detonate a dirty bomb in the U.S.

Magnitude-7 earthquake kills 30,000 in Asia

43,000 injured; Musharraf pleads for aid to Pakistan; Bush offers assistance

BALAKOT, Pakistan - Villagers desperate to find survivors dug with bare hands Sunday through the debris of a collapsed school where children had been heard crying beneath the rubble after a massive earthquake killed more than 20,000.

Pakistani officials said the toll could go higher, and a provincial official in Kashmir said more than 30,000 died in that province alone.

President Gen. Pervez Musharraf called Saturday�s magnitude-7.7 earthquake the country�s worst on record and appealed for urgent help, particularly cargo helicopters to reach remote areas cut off by landslides. Rival India, which reported more than 600 dead, offered assistance.

President Bush said Sunday the United States is sending cash and eight helicopters in response to Pakistan�s plea for international assistance with earthquake recovery.

�Thousands of people have died, thousands are wounded, and the United States of America wants to help,� Bush said from the Oval Office.

Quake Hits Near bin Laden Hideout

No evidence suggests that the deadly earthquake that rocked Pakistan on Saturday injured or killed the world's top terror leader, Osama bin Laden.

The quake shook the border region of Afghanistan and Pakistan, where bin Laden is believed to be hiding. However, authorities at this point have no information indicating he's been injured or killed, said a U.S. official who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the information's sensitivity.

Schaffer: Fear aside, no reason to doubt president's faith in his nominee

The firestorm of public debate since Miers' nomination Monday has been exhilarating to say the least. One thing is clear; the media hate it when Bush knows more about something than they do.

Fear of the unknown can drive people to all manner of premature conclusions. President George Bush's nomination of Harriet Miers to replace retiring Justice Sandra Day O'Connor is a case in point.

The firestorm of public debate since Miers' nomination Monday has been exhilarating to say the least. One thing is clear; the media hate it when Bush knows more about something than they do.

Obvious to all is that our president is most comfortable, confident and content about his high court nominees. Impending confirmation hearings will shed more light on his latest pick. But until then, Bush deserves the benefit of any doubt regarding Miers.

Throughout his two presidential campaigns, Bush made crystal clear his intention to advance only strict constructionists to judicial posts. He promised appointees who will not legislate from the bench and who will rely exclusively on solid constitutional principles to answer legal disputes. Those are the values upon which the president was twice elected.

This is why Americans devote so much of themselves to electing presidents. Bush warrants Miers fulfills his campaign promise and no one has offered substantive or credible evidence to the contrary. Fear of the unknown is the only common retort. Yet, it's hard to imagine a quality more crucial to the republic than Bush's constitutional standard.

One of the brightest jurists of the 20th century said, "The court is most vulnerable and comes nearest to illegitimacy when it deals with judge-made constitutional law having little or no cognizable roots in the language or design of the Constitution." That observation was made by Justice Byron White, perhaps Colorado's greatest son.

Miers has much in common with White. An Internet word search linking both names generates more than 12,000 fresh articles in which the two are compared. Most mention one similarity: Neither had judicial experience prior to serving on the Supreme Court. That could be said of about a third of past Supreme Court justices, too.

But the similarities go deeper. Briefly, White was a Fort Collins-born, standout athlete at the University of Colorado. He was a Navy intelligence officer during World War II. He played pro football, earned his law degree and practiced private law. In 1960, White worked on John F. Kennedy's presidential campaign heading the candidate's efforts in Colorado.

Immediately, President Kennedy picked White as a deputy attorney general and a year later nominated him to the Supreme Court. Unlike Miers, White's close personal acquaintance with the president, his political activism, his corporate law experience and his White House insider status were not considered demerits.

In fact, they were positive assurances White would reflect Kennedy's values on the court. White's Senate confirmation hearing lasted 15 minutes. He responded to eight questions from senators then aced a perfunctory full-Senate vote.