Politics Blog

A request, forwarded by a relative of mine serving in Iraq, for a doctor helping Iraqi children:

Hello everyone, I wanted to thank those that have donated to our medical team in Iraq. They and other members of the CAV have a unique opportunity to be partof the reconstruction of the Iraqi infrastructure, specifically the medical community. They have been entering small villages and giving care to residents aswell as help to local nurses and doctors. While the team has basic medications for adults, they do not for children. Childrens’ and infants’ Tylenol, ibuprophen, and vitamins are all needed. The staff has seen a lot of kids with ailments they will have for the rest of their lives,that would be cleared up by a few visits to a provider here in thestates, a luxury we take for granted. They have seen evidence of malnutrition, cases of polio, and rubella (which are standard vaccines for us), birth defects, the list goes on. If we can give a little to ease a fever and make it a little more comfortable, please swing by your local Wal-mart and pick up a few of these off-brand items. The team has noticed other needs. Many children need shoes, and if you have any new and gently used clean shoes it would be appreciated (flipflops or sandals). Also small dollar toys for the kids while they are examined by the staff would help to ease tension. There are many areas in which you can help our friends and family over there make a more personal difference, one that blesses them and the Iraqi people.

You can send your items flat rate (boxes available at any post office) directly to:

CPT David J. Adam
HHT, 4-6 CAV
FOB Sykes
APO AE 09351

Please send what you can.

— W.C. Varones

What will John McCain say at CPAC tomorrow?

The next big hurdle for John McCain isn’t the Feb. 12 primaries. It’s his appearance tomorrow before the Conservative Political Action Conference, or CPAC, whose verdict on the Arizona senator could make or break his presidential aspirations.

The 6,000 Republican Party members expected to attend “are the ground troops that make up the conservative base,” says David Keene, president of the American Conservative Union, which sponsors the yearly meeting. “And he’s pretty much blown his credibility with these people.”

CPAC has been an important stop on conservatives’ calendars since Ronald Reagan showed up in 1973 for the first of 17 appearances. The three-day conference in Washington now draws thousands of people, more than half of them under age 26, who come to listen to the movement’s stars and assess its presidential candidates.

Last year, Sen. McCain was the only declared candidate to turn down an invitation to speak to the group, which returned the snub by consigning him to fifth place in a presidential straw poll, well behind first-place finisher Mitt Romney, the former Massachusetts governor and Sen. McCain’s rival for the Republican nomination.

Sen. McCain this year answered his CPAC invitation only after winning the New Hampshire primary on Jan. 8 and settled on a time only after his South Carolina win on Jan. 26. He will follow both Vice President Dick Cheney and Mr. Romney, plus a panel that ponders the question, “Is the GOP Still Lost?”

Sen. McCain has long been famously at odds with his party’s right wing, which raises the stakes for his CPAC appearance. Some conservative commentators including Rush Limbaugh and national Evangelical Christian leaders have said they won’t endorse Mr. McCain. In a transcript of a radio interview provided by the Romney campaign yesterday, James Dobson of Focus on the Family said Sen. McCain “is not a conservative, and in fact, has gone out of his way to stick his thumb in the eyes of those who are.”

A boffo performance could energize CPAC’s activists, who pay to attend the conference and in return are invited to workshops on such topics as fund-raising appearances and career planning.

“If 6,000 people walk out of that room excited, that’s important; you can’t buy that,” says Grover Norquist, a regular CPAC panelist and president of Americans for Tax Reform, a conservative advocacy group.

But a speech by Sen. McCain that fails to convince the audience that he will champion a conservative agenda if chosen the party’s nominee could feed calls by some commentators to stay home on Election Day.

– PoliPundit

Congressional investigation concludes that a Pentagaon anti-terrorism expert was not forced out of his job because of his strong views on radical Islam:

(CNSNews.com) - A Pentagon anti-terrorism specialist was not ousted because his superiors thought he was too critical of Islam, a congresswoman who investigated the matter said Tuesday.

Stephen Coughlin, an expert on Islamic law for the Department of Defense, was not pushed out of his job because he offended Muslim employees of the Pentagon, as many had suspected, said Rep. Sue Myrick (R-N.C.), co-chair of the bipartisan House Anti-Terrorism Caucus.

Myrick and Rep. Pete Hoekstra (R-Mich.) met with Coughlin when looking into the matter.

“Major Coughlin told me that he has had a great working relationship with the Joint Staff and that he did not believe there was a conspiracy to remove him from the position,” Myrick said in a written statement.

But wait, why would such a charge even be made?

Coughlin - who supporters say had one of the most important jobs in analyzing how jihadists think - crossed Hasham Islam, an aide to Deputy Defense Secretary Gordon England, according The Washington Times.

The paper reported that the aide told Coughlin to “soften his view” on radical Islam. When Coughlin refused, Hasham Islam called him a Christian zealot “with a pen,” according to the report.

Has the US been infilitrated by Pro-Radical Islam supporters:

She added that the government must be aware of radical jihadists trying to infiltrate American organizations.

“I know that some people will refuse to admit there is a subversive movement going on here, but let me remind you that we have underestimated the will and capability of our enemy for more than 30 years,” Myrick said. “They are patient and determined to achieve their radical agenda.”

Andrew Bostom, an author and lecturer on Islam, who also said he spoke to Coughlin over the weekend, thinks Congress did investigate the matter as thoroughly as possible.

“You can’t deny that there was a current of dissatisfaction in the Pentagon with what he (Coughlin) was doing,” Bostom told Cybercast News Service. “I find this a puzzling statement.”

That last line deeply troubles me, that there are those in power at the Pentagon that rejected and were against his findings and wanted it changed and less harsh!
If this is true, what does it say when the Pentagon dismisses reports like this and doesn’t take the source of the problem seriously. I mean, if they don’t, who will?

P.S.- Here are someof Major Coughlin’s conclusions:

The thesis says, for instance, “So how does one explain the prevailing assumption that Islam does not stand for such violence undertaken in its name with the fact that its laws and education materials validate the very acts undertaken by ‘extremists’ in Iraq?”

It continues: “The first ‘radicalizing’ lessons Saudi youth receive that motivates them to travel to Iraq and fight coalition forces does not come from ‘extremist’ groups like al Qaeda, but rather is taught as part of Saudi Arabia’s standard secondary school curriculum.”

“He states we have not listened to our enemies - Osama Bin Laden and his ilk - that they are acting in accordance with Islam,” she said. “Our military has not identified and analyzed our enemy’s stated doctrine - that they are acting in accordance with Islamic law.”

– ‘The Commish’ A.J. Sparxx

The Republicans for Choice PAC has endorsed Pro-Life candidate John MCain for President:

(CNSNews.com) - The Republicans for Choice Political Action Committee has endorsed John McCain (R-Ariz.), saying he is the best candidate now that former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani is out of the presidential race.

The Republicans for Choice PAC supports Roe v. Wade, the 1973 Supreme Court decision legalizing abortion, and also wants the Human Life Amendment removed from the plank of the Republican Party.

Republicans for Choice founder and Chairwoman Ann E.W. Stone told Cybercast News Service that McCain’s pro-life position wasn’t an issue.

“(McCain) is (pro-life), but it’s not at the top of his agenda, not like Huckabee or the born-again Romney,” Stone said. “He’s shown his willingness to reach across the party, and we look forward to those discussions.”

Interesting turn of events, but what do Pro-Life groups think about this:

Colleen Parro, executive director of the Republican National Coalition for Life, said the endorsement should make some Republicans uncomfortable.

“My first thought was how embarrassing for the pro-lifers who have signed on for McCain,” Parro said.

If you think this is bad, what about the Pro-Life Democrats, who don’t even have a candidate to consider who is running for President:

Another pro-life group, Democrats for Life of America, said they can’t find a candidate to endorse.

“None of the candidates fit our criteria,” Kristen Day, executive director of DFLA, told Cybercast News Service. “If we were to endorse Obama or Clinton, it would ruin our credibility.

“We are focused on the pro-life Democrats who are running for Congress, the U.S. Senate and in local races across the country.”

What exactly does this group know about John McCain’s true positions that we don’t. Why would a group that supports Roe vs. Wade, and abortion being their one and only issue, support a candidate who is Pro-Life who claims he will appoint Conservative judges, which would result in Roe vs. Wade being overturned.

– ‘The Commish’ A.J. Sparxx

Lisa Fabrizio authored a great piece in the American Spectator that pretty much capturesthe feelings and sentiments of Conservatives on the candidates remaining and the candidates who never were:

Yes, if you’re anything like me you are sick of seeing headlines touting the inevitability of a John McCain nomination and tired of hearing how conservatism is dead and that its adherents had just better realize it and roll over. You’ve had it with pundits, liberal and conservative alike, who pompously quote polls like bad Shakespearian actors in an effort to influence, rather than report so-called popular opinion.

Remember George Allen?

George Allen seemed poised for re-election to the Senate and probably the 2008 presidential nod.

Then came Macaca-gate and the sickening spectacle of a proud conservative bowing in the face of liberal hand-wringing and pressure. Had Allen simply good-naturedly shook off the whole controversy – a la Ronald Reagan’s “the bombing begins in five minutes” gaffe – or refused to apologize as did George W. Bush in the “Clymer” incident, he’d probably be well on his way to the White House right now. Sadly, that is not the case.

Instead, we are left with a depressing scenario; a sort of death-watch, waiting for the horribly self-fulfilling prophesies of the media to manifest themselves. And it seems as if – as they almost did in 2000 when certain networks called Florida for Al Gore in order to depress Panhandle voting there – they are again basically telling conservatives to stay home, that their votes won’t matter.

Excellent point on the Romney who he used to be, but the John McCain that is:

As for me, I’ll support whichever Republican wins the nomination, but Mitt Romney seems to be the one saying all the right things right now. I know he is only a recent convert, yet it is clear that although Romney may be the entity you don’t know, John McCain is certainly the one you do.

The chances of a John McCain nomination are very high now, and will take a big gaffe to stop the train at this point. Conservatives will have to make a decision very soon, McCain or bust. But after McCain-Kennedy, McCain-Feingold, McCain-Lieberman, really, how appealing is a McCain-Huckabee ticket to anyone?

– ‘The Commish’ A.J. Sparxx

Races called:
Clinton: AR, MA, NY, NJ, OK, TN,AZ,CA
Obama: AL, CT, DE, GA, ID, IL, KS, MN, ND,CO,UT, MO,AK

Huckabee: AL, AR, GA, TN
McCain: CT, DE, IL, NJ, NY, OK, AZ,MO,CA
Romney: MA, ND, UT, MT, MN, CO, AK

States remaining: NM(D) - 98% reporting - Clinton 200 votes ahead.

[Updated: 2:15 pm (eastern)]

— KnightHawk

If this is a McCain - Huckabee Republican Party, I want nothing to do with it.

I’m re-registering as an independent tomorrow, and I’ll vote for Hillary or Obama over either one of those guys.

On the plus side, the electoral massacre that’s going to happen in November will probably cause the Republican Party to repent and turn to young, energetic, principled reformers. Pence? Flake? Coburn? DeMint? Sessions? 2012 calls.

— W.C. Varones

Please take these with a grain of salt, but they are the only numbers to go by right now. The following are the first released exit polls from the states participating in today’s primary.

{Update 2: This is why you can’t take exit poll’s serious. Exit poll data from Delaware had Romney up 9%. Unfortunately, McCain WINS Delaware and the 18 delegates.}

{Update: Big news on the latest exit poll data coming out of John McCain’s home state of Arizona. Data has this race 36%-36% McCain - Romney. If this is true and holds out, this is great news for Romney and horrible news for Team McCain.}

McCain is leading in CA by 4%, NY by 11%, NJ by 13%, CT by 18%, AZ by 5%, OK by 2% and IL by 16%

Romney is leading in MO by 2%, UT by 86%, MA by 19%, DE by 9%

Huckabee is leading in GA by 3%, AL by 9%, TN by 5%, AR by 12%

Stay tuned…..

— ‘The Commish’ A.J. Sparxx

“Vote Hillary. She won’t get it done!”

— PoliPundit

CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) - Mike Huckabee won the first contest declared on Super Tuesday, picking up all 18 national delegates awarded at West Virginia’s state GOP convention.

Huckabee bested Mitt Romney, who entered the Mountain State event with the largest bloc of pledged convention-goers. Both men and Ron Paul made in-person appeals to the more than 1,100 convention delegates attending Tuesday’s convention.

But the former Arkansas governor beat his Massachusetts counterpart after delegates for John McCain defected to his side.

As if defecting to Huckabee does anything but help McCain.

— KnightHawk