What a surreal scene. "Pinned to the outside wall of the hut was a cardboard box depicting biblical scenes such as the Last Supper and the Madonna and child with the English inscription 'God bless our home.'"
Now the Bush administration is faced with a dilemna. Try Hussein with international war crimes judges, eschewing the death penalty and having little legitimacy with Iraqis, or (more likely) create an Iraqi court, that will likely lead to a death penalty, but further sour relations with the rest of the world. As I said, the latter is most likely.
And in a great moment of triumph, Bush must of course continue to obfuscate the reasons for going to war and invoke the attacks on the World Trade Center.
"Q Thank you, Mr. President. The capture of Saddam Hussein is something that has been universally applauded. But there still remain a lot of lingering questions about the postwar phase of Iraq. This administration has stated that it would like to see an interim Iraqi government stood up by next June; the ability to be able to begin to draw down troops if that's possible. Even a political novice would have to say, well, there appears to be some political component to all this, some way of making real progress ahead of the November elections.
"THE PRESIDENT: Yes, well, people can read whatever they want to read into it. My job is to keep America secure. That's my job. I've got a solemn duty to do everything I can to protect the American people. I will never forget the lessons of September the 11th, 2001. Terrorists attacked us. They killed thousands of our fellow citizens. And it could happen again. And, therefore, I will deal with threats -- threats that are emerging and real.
"We gave Saddam Hussein plenty of time to heed the demands of the world, and he chose defiance. He did. He said, forget it, I don't care what the United Nations has said over a decade; I don't care about all the resolutions passed. He chose defiance; we acted. And I acted because I -- I repeat -- I have a duty to protect this country. And I will continue to protect the country, so long as I'm the President of the United States.
"A free and peaceful Iraq is part of protecting America. Because I told you before, and I truly believe this, this will be a transforming event in a part of the world where hatred and violence are bred; a part of a world that breeds resentment."
I hope so.
Meanwhile, our foremost "ally" in the real war on terror has his own problems, it seems, with an assassination attempt in what should have been a safe area for the general.
"The location of the assassination attempt was unusual: Rawalpindi lies near the nerve center of Pakistan's military establishment. It is considered one of the most secure cities in the country.
"The bomb, described by officials as large, exploded 500 yards from the headquarters of the Pakistani Army 11th Corps and only a few miles from the Pakistani Army headquarters, where General Musharraf lives.
"A senior Pakistani intelligence official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said it was unusual that someone outside General Musharraf's close circle of aides would know the exact timing of his movements."
Stay tuned; that mushroom cloud Bush and Rice talked up in the days leading to the invasion of Iraq may still come true. Just not from the direction of Iraq.
And in an event almost as incredible as the capture of Saddam, Dick Cheney is said to be blasting 70 pheasants out of the Pennsylvania sky.
I almost said Cheney was "spotted," but the veil of darkness that engulfs all that he does is not to be lifted, even while he slaughters birds to no good purpose. "Employees reached in the club's dog kennels said they had been ordered not to speak to the news media. The employees added that they did not know what had become of Scott Wakefield, a dog handler at the club who was quoted by The Post-Gazette as saying that 500 birds had been released from nets for the hunt...
"'Something here doesn't add up,' said David Wade, Mr. Kerry's spokesman. 'The Bush administration says the economy is improving, but their millionaire vice president has to hunt for his own food.'"
Free Scott Wakefield! Hopefully, he'll turn up before records from Cheney's energy "task force" do.
"Rush." The AP calls him "Rush." Geez.
Now the Bush administration is faced with a dilemna. Try Hussein with international war crimes judges, eschewing the death penalty and having little legitimacy with Iraqis, or (more likely) create an Iraqi court, that will likely lead to a death penalty, but further sour relations with the rest of the world. As I said, the latter is most likely.
And in a great moment of triumph, Bush must of course continue to obfuscate the reasons for going to war and invoke the attacks on the World Trade Center.
"Q Thank you, Mr. President. The capture of Saddam Hussein is something that has been universally applauded. But there still remain a lot of lingering questions about the postwar phase of Iraq. This administration has stated that it would like to see an interim Iraqi government stood up by next June; the ability to be able to begin to draw down troops if that's possible. Even a political novice would have to say, well, there appears to be some political component to all this, some way of making real progress ahead of the November elections.
"THE PRESIDENT: Yes, well, people can read whatever they want to read into it. My job is to keep America secure. That's my job. I've got a solemn duty to do everything I can to protect the American people. I will never forget the lessons of September the 11th, 2001. Terrorists attacked us. They killed thousands of our fellow citizens. And it could happen again. And, therefore, I will deal with threats -- threats that are emerging and real.
"We gave Saddam Hussein plenty of time to heed the demands of the world, and he chose defiance. He did. He said, forget it, I don't care what the United Nations has said over a decade; I don't care about all the resolutions passed. He chose defiance; we acted. And I acted because I -- I repeat -- I have a duty to protect this country. And I will continue to protect the country, so long as I'm the President of the United States.
"A free and peaceful Iraq is part of protecting America. Because I told you before, and I truly believe this, this will be a transforming event in a part of the world where hatred and violence are bred; a part of a world that breeds resentment."
I hope so.
Meanwhile, our foremost "ally" in the real war on terror has his own problems, it seems, with an assassination attempt in what should have been a safe area for the general.
"The location of the assassination attempt was unusual: Rawalpindi lies near the nerve center of Pakistan's military establishment. It is considered one of the most secure cities in the country.
"The bomb, described by officials as large, exploded 500 yards from the headquarters of the Pakistani Army 11th Corps and only a few miles from the Pakistani Army headquarters, where General Musharraf lives.
"A senior Pakistani intelligence official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said it was unusual that someone outside General Musharraf's close circle of aides would know the exact timing of his movements."
Stay tuned; that mushroom cloud Bush and Rice talked up in the days leading to the invasion of Iraq may still come true. Just not from the direction of Iraq.
And in an event almost as incredible as the capture of Saddam, Dick Cheney is said to be blasting 70 pheasants out of the Pennsylvania sky.
I almost said Cheney was "spotted," but the veil of darkness that engulfs all that he does is not to be lifted, even while he slaughters birds to no good purpose. "Employees reached in the club's dog kennels said they had been ordered not to speak to the news media. The employees added that they did not know what had become of Scott Wakefield, a dog handler at the club who was quoted by The Post-Gazette as saying that 500 birds had been released from nets for the hunt...
"'Something here doesn't add up,' said David Wade, Mr. Kerry's spokesman. 'The Bush administration says the economy is improving, but their millionaire vice president has to hunt for his own food.'"
Free Scott Wakefield! Hopefully, he'll turn up before records from Cheney's energy "task force" do.
"Rush." The AP calls him "Rush." Geez.
posted by John at 7:29 PM
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