AlterNet
by Jeremy Scahill

11/21/05

The bloody scandal of the Iraq occupation has opened a rare and clear window into the truth about this country: there is one party represented in Washington -- one that supports preemptive war and regime change. The reality is that the Democrats could stop this war if the will was there. They could shut down the Senate every day, not just for a few hours one afternoon. They could disrupt business as usual and act as though the truth were true: this war should never have happened and it must end now. The country would be behind them if they did it. But they won't. They will hem and haw and call for more troops and throw out epic lies about the US becoming a stabilizing force in Iraq and blame the Republicans for their own complicity and enthusiasm in the 15 years of bipartisan crimes against Iraq. Why? Because they support war against Iraq. All of this begs for a multiparty system in this country and the emergence of a true opposition...

http://www.alternet.org/waroniraq/28491/


Informant: Thomas L. Knapp

The Monitor

11/20/05

A Republican-led effort in the U.S. House of Representatives seeks to change a constitutional amendment that grants American citizenship to any child born on the nation's soil. ... The 14th Amendment gives citizenship to anybody born within the United States. To change this or any other amendment, there has to be a proposal in Congress or a constitutional convention from two-thirds of the nation's state legislatures. Thirty-eight of 50 states must approve any changes to the constitution. ... Many civil rights organizations say this is just another reactionary effort that eats away at this country's founding principles. ... Rasmussen Reports, a nonpartisan polling firm based in Ocean Grove, N.J., released a survey Nov. 7 saying 49 percent of 1,500 adults polled in the United States said they supported ending birthright citizenship. Forty-one percent of them wanted the practice to remain in tact...

http://tinyurl.com/9u7k3


Informant: Thomas L. Knapp

http://www.tomdispatch.com/index.mhtml?pid=38684

by Judith Coburn, TomDispatch.com

A reporter who covered Watergate says Bush has more power than Nixon's imperial presidency did in the early 1970s.

http://www.tompaine.com/

Ex-DeLay Aide Pleads Guilty; GOP Lawmakers Implicated

Michael Scanlon, former aide to a powerful congressman and onetime partner of a wealthy lobbyist, pleaded guilty yesterday to a federal conspiracy charge as part of a deal in which he agreed to cooperate with an investigation into possible wrongdoing by some lawmakers.

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/112205Z.shtml

MURTHA STARTS SERIOUS DEBATE ON EXITING IRAQ

Urge Congress to End the War in Iraq
http://www.democrats.com/peoplesemailnetwork/76

Last Thursday, Rep. John Murtha dramatically called for a swift end to the war on Iraq and introduced this resolution:

"The deployment of United States forces in Iraq, by direction of Congress, is hereby terminated and the forces involved are to be redeployed at the earliest practicable date. A quick-reaction U.S. force and an over-the-horizon presence of U.S. Marines shall be deployed in the region. The United States of America shall pursue security and stability in Iraq through diplomacy."

More about this bill: http://www.afterdowningstreet.org/murtha

The bill introduced by Republican Congressman Duncan Hunter and immediately voted down by the House on Friday grossly misrepresented Murtha's bill. Here is what happened on Friday:
http://www.afterdowningstreet.org/?q=node/4962

Congressman Charles Rangel released a powerful statement in support of Murtha's bill:
http://www.afterdowningstreet.org/?q=node/4915

Urge your Representatives to cosponsor Murtha's bill and two other excellent bills against the war: H.R. 4232 (Jim McGovern) to cut off funding for an ongoing occupation:
http://www.afterdowningstreet.org/end http://tinyurl.com/8qufm and H.CON.RES. 197 (Barbara Lee) to block permanent military bases in Iraq. http://www.afterdowningstreet.org/?q=node/5011

Urge Congress to End the War in Iraq
http://www.democrats.com/peoplesemailnetwork/76

DEMAND REAL DEBATE IN HOUSE

The Republican Congress has defeated most anti-war bills against in committee, despite defections by a few courageous GOPers. So the Out of Iraq Caucus, chaired by Rep. Maxine Waters, is trying a new approach: a discharge petition. If a majority of House Members sign this petition to force a bill on Iraq onto the floor, with an open rule allowing amendments, those members seeking to end the war will be able to propose amendments and hold a debate as serious as the war itself.

http://www.afterdowningstreet.org/discharge


OUT OF IRAQ EVENTS ON JAN. 7, 2006

After Downing Street and our coalition members are encouraging Representatives to hold Out of Iraq events in their districts. We've selected January 7th as a national day on which to hold as many events as possible, but other days can be chosen to fit the schedules of those involved. Progressive Democrats of America (PDA) is playing a large role in organizing these events and organized three town hall meetings on Iraq with Representatives in Massachusetts in November.

Get resources for events, sign up to attend one or to host one:
http://www.afterdowningstreet.org/event


TELL CONGRESS TO PASS ANTI-TORTURE AMENDMENT

From Global Exchange: In the name of the "war on terrorism," the Bush administration has made torture part of the U.S. government’s standard operating procedure. From the Guantanamo Bay detention facility in Cuba to detention centers in Afghanistan and Iraq, reports have surfaced–not only from detainees and human rights organizations, but also from soldiers and members of the FBI—that U.S. officials are practicing torture and other forms of cruel and unusual punishment.

Torture is inhumane and illegal. The United States has signed the U.N. Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman and Degrading Punishment. It reads, "No exceptional circumstances whatsoever, whether a state of war or a threat of war, internal political instability or any other public emergency may be invoked as a justification of torture."

The U.S. Senate recently passed an anti-torture amendment introduced by Senator John McCain. The lopsided vote of 90 to 9 has drawn ire and a rare veto threat from the White House. Bush loyalists are looking to strip critical language from the amendment to the Defense Appropriations Bill (HR 2863), sparing the president from the spectacle of going to the mat to uphold the use of barbaric and universally-condemned practices.

The House-Senate conferees who are negotiating the final language of the amendment need to hear from you. Here is who they are and how to reach them:
http://www.afterdowningstreet.org/?q=node/4820


CAMP CASEY IS BACK

Come to Crawford for Thanksgiving with the Bushes!
SPONSORS: GOLD STAR FAMILIES FOR PEACE, CRAWFORD PEACE HOUSE ENDORSED BY: Iraq Veterans Against the War, Veterans For Peace, Code Pink Date: November 22-November 27, 2005 Place: Crawford, Texas (Camp Casey 2) Events: 11/22: Civil Disobedience
11/23: Organization of Katrina relief/Meal Preparation
11/24: Simple Thanksgiving Meal
11/25: Memorial Dedication
11/26: March/Rally- Possible Interfaith Service
http://www.afterdowningstreet.org/?q=node/4744


WAR HUMOR

Dick Cheney said today, "We operated on the best available intelligence, gathered over a period of years from within a totalitarian society ruled by fear and secret police." Yikes!

TELL CONGRESS TO IMPEACH GEORGE BUSH
http://democrats.com/peoplesemailnetwork/65

TELL CONGRESS TO DEMAND DICK CHENEY'S RESIGNATION
http://democrats.com/peoplesemailnetwork/73

URGE THE SENATE TO REJECT SAM ALITO
http://democrats.com/peoplesemailnetwork/74

FORWARD THIS EMAIL



http://omega.twoday.net/search?q=impeach
http://omega.twoday.net/search?q=Downing+Street+Memo

They're in the White House, already control the Senate, the House of Representatives, and the Supreme Court. Today, the ultras of the extreme religious right also want to stuff their own men into the whole judicial apparatus. The supposed objectivity of the fundamentalists and the ideologues of the right, in fact, covers up a much more sinister ambition, writes Philippe Boulet-Gercourt.

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/112105H.shtml

On a July evening in the Capitol, Vice President Dick Cheney summoned three Republican senators to his ornate office just off the Senate chamber. The Republicans - John W. Warner of Virginia, John McCain of Arizona and Lindsey Graham of South Carolina - were making trouble for the Bush administration, and Mr. Cheney let them know it.

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/112105F.shtml

Scanlon, a former aide to Representative Tom DeLay, is scheduled to appear today in US District Court to present a plea bargain with the Justice Department likely to lead to his cooperation with investigators. His testimony would ratchet up the pressure on Abramoff and aid prosecutors in widening the investigation to members of Congress, such as Republicans DeLay and Representative Robert Ney of Ohio.

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/112105C.shtml

There is little reason for anyone to be confused by the events leading up to the unraveling of America. All one has to do is ignore the rhetoric and simply follow the money to reveal the hidden mechanisms that are operating the American government.

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article11104.htm