Former Vice President Dick Cheney’s eldest daughter Liz will launch a new group aimed at rallying opposition to the “radical” foreign policy of the Obama administration which it says has succeeded only in undermining the nation’s security.
The new group, Keep America Safe, will make the case against President Barack Obama’s moves to wrench America away from Bush era foreign policy on issues from detaining alleged terrorists at Guantanamo Bay to building a missile shield in Eastern Europe.
“The policies being proposed by the Obama administration are so radical across the board,” Cheney said. “Whether you’re a Republican or a Democrat, you want the nation to be strong and so many steps this president is taking are making the nation weaker.” [...]
Keep America Safe will focus on issues like troop levels, missile defense, detainees, and interrogation, according to Liz Cheney, who is heading the group along with Weekly Standard editor William Kristol and Debra Burlingame, the hawkish sister of an American Airlines pilot killed in the September 11 attacks.
These two events speak volumes. While the “Commander-in-Chief” has another night out, taking precious time he apparently doesn’t have to decide on what to do about Afghanistan (now that we know Obama to take weeks to study Afghanistan strategy), heroes are paying the ultimate price for his indifference.
… “Taste cannot be controlled by law,” Thomas Jefferson is said to have said — it says so at the Blue Duck Tavern’s Web-site.
The restaurant at 24th and M specializes in classic American fare, with a wood-burning oven. We have no idea what the first couple ordered, But the seared striped bass goes for $24, the braised wreckfish $26. He wore a dark suit. She wore a black dress.
How nice for them. This same weekend 10 U.S. soldiers will never have another dinner, wear a lovely black dress or snappy black suit, or enjoy an anniversary with the spouses. Ten American families will forver have an empty seat at their tables. They’re dead because the Taliban has grown aggressive and inspired by a confused and pathetic American president.
Ten American troops were killed at the weekend in two surprise attacks that caused alarm in Nato’s US-led coalition.
In one, hundreds of insurgents attacked a pair of isolated outposts in eastern Afghanistan, killing eight US soldiers and several Afghan policemen in the deadliest battle in 15 months. Scores more Afghan policemen were reportedly captured by the Taleban.
In the other an Afghan policeman opened fire on the American soldiers with whom he was working in central Wardak province, killing two and injuring three.
Here’s a Newsflash for Obama: the Taliban aren’t ‘taking weeks’ to decide on their strategy; they’re implementing one which involves murdering our troops. Perhaps it’s time to stop behaving as though you’ve been selected to spend four years at some luxury narcissistic resort and act like you’re the president during a time of war.
…Obama told immigration officials that a legalization program would be part of legislation the White House would propose.
The U.S. government agency in charge of processing naturalization and residency applications is preparing for a surge in its workload if President Barack Obama pushes ahead with federal immigration reform next year granting millions of undocumented workers legal status.
A spokesman for the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services said the agency is gearing up to handle the huge increase in applications expected if immigration reform is passed by the U.S. Congress.
“This agency has been preparing for the advent of any kind of a comprehensive immigration reform, and if that means a surge of applications and operations, we have been working toward that,” USCIS spokesman Bill Wright told Reuters.
Our troops have their lives on the line in Afghanistan and the general in charge says they need support. Obama makes them wait while he thinks about it and thinks about. In the meantime he already has the Immigration bureaucracy preparing for the surge he plans to foist on the American people next year, no doubt stifling any and all debate.
The way Obama has disrespected General McChrystal is appalling. The disparity in loving attention our President gives to illegal immigrants over American soldiers is beyond appalling.
The remains of the first American shot down in the 1991 Persian Gulf War have been uncovered, the U.S. Department of Defense announced Sunday.
U.S. Navy Capt. Michael “Scott” Speicher was shot down in an F/A-18 Hornet on January 17, 1991, the first night of the war.
The announcement early Sunday of the discovery of Speicher’s remains ends more than 18 years of speculation about whether Speicher may have survived the crash and been held captive, or died in captivity in the ensuing years… Speicher’s family thanked the military in a statement Sunday, saying Speicher “was a brave and wonderful father, husband, and naval officer who responded without hesitation when his country needed him. … We thank the active duty men and women whose diligence has made this happen, and hope that this process has prevented another of our service men and women from being left behind.
“We will miss him, and will never forget. Thank you for your thoughts and prayers.”
An Iraqi civilian told U.S. forces in Iraq in early July about the location of the crash that killed Speicher, according to Navy Secretary Ray Mabus. U.S. Marines in Anbar province went to the site and spoke to another Iraqi who told them he witnessed Bedouins burying Speicher’s remains in the desert after the crash, the statement said.
**I’ll be joining the Troopathon live at about 7:30PT (1015pm ET). Hope to see you then!**
On June 25th, Move America Forward will be holding our 2nd annual “Troopathon†titled “Honor their Service†airing from 1:00 PM (PDT) to 9:00 (PDT)
This cutting edge live webcast event brings together talk radio hosts, megastars of film and television, musical guests, journalists, military and Gold-star families, pro-troop groups and many more.
The goal of this charity fundraiser is to send the largest ever shipment of care packages to our brave men and women of the armed forces serving in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Guantanamo Bay.
Viewers are encouraged to sponsor care packages (donations are tax deductible) for the troops and each one includes a personalized message and items that our troops have requested that make their life a little easier while they are far from home, such as sun-screen, Gatorade, deodorant, coffee, cookies and much more.
On this 65th anniversary of D-Day, when the civilized world pushed back against fascism and genocide, there is no one better than President Reagan to remind us of the importance, bravery and sacrifice of the most remarkable people on Earth–our troops. God bless all of you who serve now, and may God bless those who have faced hell to make sure the American dream, and freedom everywhere, continues on.
Why can’t America fight wars without hurting people?
There’s still a little more America bashing to be wrung out of torture but that’s becoming a worn out excuse for anti-Americanism. Those pictures will really be sensational, but then what? It’s time for a new outrage. Civilian casualties in Afghanistan looks promising. It doesn’t matter that the majority of civilians are killed either directly at the hands of the Taliban or indirectly by using human shields. Sometimes civilians are killed by American bombs and that’s a winner in the anti-America sweepstakes. The lecturing is underway. Here’s a sample from last Sunday. Hamid Karzai says we are not performing up to the proper moral standard. If we aren’t better than the bad guys, we’re going to lose. Bob Woodward admonishes we can’t go around killing Afghans. Katy Kay of the BBC informs us our perceived callousness is fueling world-wide anti-American sentiment.
The Australians in a recent White Paper defense review are considering the possibility of a US decline over the next two decades. While they see a sudden and dramatic shift in the power balance in the Asia-Pacific region currently unlikely, they say they must consider “any diminution in the willingness or capacity of the US to act as a stabilizing force†as a matter of concern.
They forecast a “multipolar†global order evolving as China continues its military modernization and other regional powers develop. The Aussies are determined to be able to look out for themselves although they are optimistic that the US will remain the pre-eminent global power through 2030. They believe a global economic order will require major powers to be pragmatic and cooperative with each other.
Considering the pace at which Obama is incurring debt, destroying the capitalist economy and preferring smiles over a strong defense, 2030 may be overly optimistic. The Aussies point out these assessments may change when the next paper is issued five years from now. I dread what that report will say.
After all, when you very likely have orders not to engage or cause ‘loss of life’ opportunities like this will be missed and the enemy becomes even more emboldened. This story by the Times of London just about says it all.
The US Navy missed a chance to rescue the American captain held by Somali pirates aboard a lifeboat in the Indian Ocean when he made a daring escape bid and jumped into the sea.
Captain Richard Phillips escaped through a back door in the covered lifeboat at around midnight local time and began swimming away in the dark, US officials said. At least one pirate jumped in after him and brought him back aboard the boat, which is drifting without fuel, before a nearby US destroyer, USS Bainbridge, could intervene.
This evening the pirates finally announced that they were demanding $2 million for the release of Captain Phillips.
The unsuccessful escape attempt and the captain’s uncertain fate threatens to embarrass the Obama Administration, which has seen the mighty US Navy thwarted by a rag-tag band of four pirates armed with AK47s.
And by whom are we being outdone? The French.
That pressure will only increase with the rescue of four hostages by French commandos yesterday, the third such action ordered by President Sarkozy. Another hostage was killed in the action, however, also illustrating the risks of a special forces operation.
Good for them for taking decisive action. But my goodness, this has become pathetic.
Somali pirates hijacked a U.S.-flagged cargo ship with 20 American crew members onboard. The 17,000-ton Maersk Alabama was carrying emergency relief to Mombasa, Kenya, when it was hijacked.
The U.S. and the navies of other countries are patrolling the Gulf of Aden. The pirates adapted by moving to less protected waters. In a February ABC News article, Capt. Mark Genung, the commanding officer of the USS Vella Gulf, the flagship of the Navy’s Combined Task Force 151, spoke about a “Pirate Code”. According to the Pirate Code it is in the pirates’ best interest not to harm hostages as it would hurt business. The U.K. Telegraph calls the seizure an embarrassment to the U.S. and a challenge to President Obama.
The brazen attack took place despite the presence of a multi-national naval task force patrolling the waters off Somalia to deter pirates.
The incident is likely to be hugely embarrassing for the United States, which has warships involved in the patrols, and may spur the piracy problem to a whole new level of confrontation.
“A US-flagged and Danish owned container vessel reported that it had been boarded by pirates at 730am local time today,” said Lt Stephanie Murdock, spokesman for the US Navy’s Fifth Fleet, based in Bahrain.
“The closest US Navy vessel which could have assisted was more than 300 nautical miles away. I cannot yet confirm the nationalities of the crew.”
Leslie Edwards, a British-based security specialist who has advised on a number Indian Ocean ship hijacks, said: “As far as we know, this is the first time that US citizens have been taken in this fashion, and certainly in anything like these numbers.
“It may dramatically change the dynamic of the whole piracy problem and how to deal with it. The big question is whether the US will stand by and allow a crew of US citizens to be held for two or three months in the full glare of the world media. That would be a difficult test for President Barack Obama.â€
Andrew Mwangura of the Seafarers’ Assistance Programme in the Kenyan port city of Mombasa said, “We have been told the crew are Americans and that they are safe”.
The raid was the sixth successful hijacking in four days by pirates operating in the lawless waters off Somalia.
Hardly two weeks after Clinton’s visit to Russia seeking a fresh start, Medvedev, using rhetoric reminiscent of the worst of the Cold War, announces the biggest military overhaul in nearly 100 years, with special emphasis on nuclear weapons.
Please notice Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov’s pointing finger.
The Russians have been talking about a military presence in Latin America. The Pentagon thinks it is not cause for serious concern.
“That would be quite a long way for those old planes to fly,” Geoff Morrell, Pentagon press secretary, told AFP.
Top US military officer Admiral Mike Mullen “is not overly concerned about other nations trying to forge bilateral relations with other partners and friends,” said a defense official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
Obama tells us we have to break the bank and do everything all at once for the good of the country. Just today speaking about education reform, he had this to say about the Obama multi-tasking agenda:
I know there are some who believe we can only handle one challenge at a time. They forget that Lincoln helped lay down the transcontinental railroad, passed the Homestead Act, and created the National Academy of Sciences in the midst of Civil War. Likewise, President Roosevelt didn’t have the luxury of choosing between ending a depression and fighting a war. President Kennedy didn’t have the luxury of choosing between civil rights and sending us to the moon. And we don’t have the luxury of choosing between getting our economy moving now and rebuilding it over the long term.
Apparently Obama believes he has the luxury to choose against defense spending while the Chinese are increasing theirs 14.9%, Russia by 25% and every lunatic who managed to get himself in charge of a country is working on a nuke. Maybe Obama is confident he and Hillary can sweet talk the thugs and maniacs of the world (Hillary sweet talk!), but I want some more bombers thank you. While the overall increase in the 2010 budget is expected to be 6.7%, the Defense budget will increase by 4%. It’s only the beginning of reductions in defense spending relative to the economy and other government spending. The Pentagon will have to drop or delay expenditures in weapons programs.
