Stand Down is a new collaboration of bloggers from both the Left and the Right who oppose the Bush Administration's headlong rush to invade Iraq. It's the brainchild of Max Sawicky, whose blog MaxSpeak is outstanding. He's assembled a fine group of participants, so be sure to check it out regularly.
Right-wing talk show hosts like Sean Hannity and Oliver North won't have to get today's White House talking points delivered by fax. They're spending the day with roughly 50 of their cohorts under a heated White House tent celebrating Bush's Radio Day, which features enough White House honcho access to fill the airwaves with disinformation from now to Election Day.
Is the presidency of the United States a part-time job? You might think so, given the hours George W. Bush has been putting in lately.
For the past two weeks he has been careening about the countryside through 13 states, plugging Republicans down to the state senate level (Pennsylvania) and swooping down on states where he isn't even needed (Maine). He is raising millions of dollars for candidates and raising alarms about Saddam Hussein and the awful prospect that the Democrats might prevail in the November elections.
Here is a commander in chief with one war in progress and another in the making. Supposedly grave decisions have to be made -- as they always are on "The West Wing" -- on both fronts. But the president has other fish to fry -- namely, Democrats...
So what's life like aboard Campaign Force One? Elisabeth Bumiller provides a colorful look at President George "Don't Tell Me Anything I Don't Want To Hear" Bush on the campaign trail:
Before President Bush boards Air Force One, his staff makes sure that the jumbo jet's televisions are tuned to ESPN or anything other than the relentless bleat of cable news. Otherwise, Mr. Bush might spot an offending CNN or Fox news crawl and demand, as he has in the past, "Who turned that on?"
While we're on the subject of campaigning, ABC is on the prowl for campaign inaccuracies. So if you run across any, send them on to ABC's Watchdog Project.
When I heard Gingrich babbling about Walter Mondale and Social Security privatization, I figured he must be lying, but I didn't have the facts. Fortunately, Josh Marshall does. (Via BlogLeft: Critical Interventions)
Mark Russell nails it on Iraq:
We know how many chemical weapons the Iraqis have. We have the receipts.
We lost a great man today! I'm sickened and depressed beyond expression by the news of the death in a plane crash of Senator Paul Wellstone and his family, as well as the pilots and Wellstone's staffers.
At the risk of sounding like a paranoid maniac (the sort who still pass around lists of people whose deaths they love to claim were caused by Bill and Hillary Clinton), I can't help but think how suspiciously convenient Wellstone's death is for the GOP.
Google URL (n) A phrase sufficient to bring a desired Web site to the top of the returns list at Google. E.g., "My real address is weird, so I gave him my Google URL: 'Locke die cast'"; "I couldn't remember the dictionary's web address so I used the Google URL 'American Heritage'"
I checked and "madkane" qualifies as my Google URL, bringing my site to the top Google search spot. But here's the funny part -- so does Dubya.
Something tells me the real Dubya wouldn't be pleased.
David Galbraith finds it "depressing that there is an overwhelming bias to the right amongst bloggers." He also decries the lack of left wing humor and says "left wing writing has a tendency to appear whiny..."
Colin Powell and Condoleezza Rice deny that news about the North Korean program was withheld for political reasons. Bush needed time to study the matter, they insist. But he had plenty of time -- and some of that time Congress was engaged in the Iraq debate, playing the role of the oblivious board of directors. Bush is not that slow a learner. In fact, it was he -- remember? -- who included North Korea in his "axis of evil." What did he know then?
I completely agree with Cohen ... except maybe for the not being "that slow a learner" part.
Another fine edition of Carnival of the Vanities is up. Thanks so much to guest Carnival host Laurence Simon for including one of my song parodies and for mentioning me and Weird Al in the same sentence. And be sure to check out his great Vanities selection and the rest of his fun, eclectic blog.
Newsseer.com looks like a handy new news search engine. It appears to use fewer sources than Daypop.com and Google News, but it's a welcome addition nonetheless.
I think Renee Zellweger's a fine actress. But you couldn't pay me to see the upcoming Bridget Jones sequel. I still haven't recovered from the original movie or my attempt to read the book. And yes, I know I'm supposed to like it because it's a "chick flick." Just one problem: I hate "chick flicks!"
If Saddam Hussein stunned the world by allowing unfettered inspections of every square inch of Iraq, would Dubya be disappointed? If you suspect that he would, you might enjoy singing along to my new Rolling Stones song parody. (This midi link opens a second window.)
Bush Don't Want No Arms Inspections To be sung to (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction by the Rolling Stones
By Madeleine Begun Kane
I don't want no arms inspections,
I don't want no arms inspections.
But I lie and I lie and I lie and I lie.
I don't want no, I don't want no.
Cause I'm drivin' towards a war,
Though I say "no" on the radio.
So quit tellin' me more and more
About some fool negotiation
Supposed to fire my imagination.
I don't want no, oh no no no.
Hey hey hey, that's what I say.
I don't want no arms inspections,
I don't want no arms inspections.
But I lie and I lie and I lie and I lie.
I don't want no, I don't want no.
When I'm speakin' on TV
My main plan's to bomb while sellin'
Our fight for liberty.
Cause you can't be a man without goin for broke.
Hussein'll pay his debts, you'll see.
I don't want no, oh no no no.
Hey hey hey, that's what I say.
I don't want no arms inspections,
I don't want no arms inspections.
But I lie and I lie and I lie and I lie.
I don't want no, I don't want no.
When I pose with flags unfurled,
And I'm sayin' this and signin' that,
And I'm tryin' to rule the world,
Don't tell me that I better come back later next week.
Cause you see I'm on a winnin' streak.
I don't want no, oh no no no.
Hey hey hey, that's what I say.
I don't want no, I don't want no,
I don't want no, arms inspections, arms inspections
Arms inspections, arms inspections.
