Liberal Repercussion

http://slate.msn.com/id/2101829/

"It is seldom observed that Saddam's gassing of the Kurds, which George W. Bush rightly denounced prior to the Iraq war, occurred on Reagan's watch. In 1984, when the Reagan administration got its first inkling that Iraq was engaged in chemical warfare, it chose not to make a fuss.


The most ambitious foreign intervention during the Reagan administration--the funnelling of aid to the Nicaraguan contras--was done illegally...



Reagan can probably claim some credit for ending the Cold War, but his principal weapon, characteristically, was spending—the Soviets bankrupted themselves trying to keep up with the Pentagon's weapons-buying binge through the 1980s. Reagan's greatest achievement in foreign affairs was therefore linked to his greatest achievement in domestic affairs.

He taught Republicans that they could be even less responsible than Democrats.

Government spending is not (at least in my view) inherently irresponsible. What is irresponsible is spending money you don't have."

posted by Rei Toei @ 9:21 p.m.

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-cheney2jun02,1,5207562.story?coll=la-headlines-nation
THE CONFLICT IN IRAQ
Democrats See Smoking Gun in E-Mail on Halliburton
By T. Christian Miller
Times Staff Writer

June 2, 2004

WASHINGTON — Democrats on Tuesday called for a full investigation of one of the most politicized issues in the reconstruction of Iraq: whether Vice President Dick Cheney was involved in a decision to award Halliburton Corp. a multibillion-dollar contract to rebuild the country's oil infrastructure.

Democrats charged that a recently released U.S. Army e-mail showed that Cheney, president of Halliburton between 1995 and 2000, had coordinated action relating to the contract, awarded without bidding and worth up to $7 billion.

The nonprofit Judicial Watch obtained the one-page e-mail earlier this year as part of a Freedom of Information Act request to the Army Corps of Engineers, which awarded the contract in March 2003.

"Every single aspect of this is so out of the ordinary," said Sen. Patrick J. Leahy (D-Vt.) at a teleconference organized by the Kerry campaign. "It raises the real question: Can the American people trust their government to do the right thing?"

Halliburton has repeatedly been questioned on its work in Iraq, with investigations into billing on fuel contracts.

The e-mail, apparently between two Army Corp officials, refers to a decision to publicize the awarding of the contract to Halliburton, which was negotiated in secret for months. The message says that Douglas J. Feith, undersecretary of Defense for policy and a Cheney ally, had approved the decision to declassify the news "contingent on informing WH [White House] tomorrow."

Democrats said it was highly unusual to have high-ranking officials review such a contract.

Cheney's office, however, repeated the vice president's earlier assertions that he had nothing to do with the decision to award the contract.

Pentagon officials said

posted by Rei Toei @ 8:50 p.m.

Moore Documentary Gets U.S. Distributor

59 minutes ago
By GARY GENTILE, AP Business Writer

LOS ANGELES - Michael Moore (news)'s award-winning documentary "Fahrenheit 9/11" has picked up a U.S. distributor and will hit theaters June 25.

The film will be released by a partnership of Lions Gate Films, IFC Films and the Fellowship Adventure Group, which was formed by Harvey and Bob Weinstein specifically to market Moore's film.

Moore's film, which recently won the top prize at the Cannes Film Festival (news - web sites), criticizes President Bush (news - web sites)'s response to the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks and connects the Bush family with Osama bin Laden (news - web sites)'s.

The Weinsteins, who run Miramax Films, bought the rights to the movie from The Walt Disney Co., which owns Miramax and refused to distribute "Fahrenheit 9/11."

The Weinstein brothers will personally finance and control distribution and marketing, they said Tuesday.

"I am grateful to them now that everyone who wants to see it will now have the chance to do so," Moore said in a statement.

"On behalf of my stellar cast — GW, Dick, Rummy, Condi and Wolfie — we thank this incredible coalition of the willing for bringing 'Fahrenheit 9/11' to the people."

posted by Rei Toei @ 9:05 p.m.

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2004/06/01/eveningnews/main620626.shtml

The tapes, from Enron's West Coast trading desk, also confirm what CBS reported years ago: that in secret deals with power producers, traders deliberately drove up prices by ordering power plants shut down.

"If you took down the steamer, how long would it take to get it back up?" an Enron worker is heard saying.

"Oh, it's not something you want to just be turning on and off every hour. Let's put it that way," another says.

"Well, why don't you just go ahead and shut her down."

Officials with the Snohomish Public Utility District near Seattle received the tapes from the Justice Department.

A spokesman for the utility said "This is the evidence we've all been waiting for. This proves they manipulated the market."

That utility, like many others, is trying to get its money back from Enron.

"They're f------g taking all the money back from you guys?" complains an Enron employee on the tapes. "All the money you guys stole from those poor grandmothers in California?"

"Yeah, grandma Millie, man"

"Yeah, now she wants her f------g money back for all the power you've charged right up, jammed right up her a------ for f------g $250 a megawatt hour."

And the tapes appear to link top Enron officials Ken Lay and Jeffrey Skilling to schemes that fueled the crisis.

"Government Affairs has to prove how valuable it is to Ken Lay and Jeff Skilling," says one trader.

"Ok."

"Do you know when you started over-scheduling load and making buckets of money on that?

Before the 2000 election, Enron employees pondered the possibilities of a Bush win.

"It'd be great. I'd love to see Ken Lay Secretary of Energy," says one Enron worker.

That didn't happen, but they were sure President Bush would fight any limits on sky-high energy prices.

"When this election comes Bush will f------g whack this s--t, man. He won't play this price-cap b------t."

Crude, but true.

SNIP

posted by Rei Toei @ 9:02 p.m.