John McCain's Neverending War
h/t Jed Lewiston
Iraqi Spokesman reiterates support for Obama's withdrawal plans
h/t Joe Sudbay at AmericaBlog
Maliki Endorses Obama Iraq Withdrawal Plan
BERLIN - Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki says U.S. troops should leave Iraq "as soon as possible," according to a magazine report, and he called presidential candidate Barack Obama's suggestion of 16 months "the right timeframe for a withdrawal."
In an interview with Germany's Der Spiegel magazine released Saturday, al-Maliki said he was not seeking to endorse Obama. The Illinois senator and likely Democratic nominee has pledged to withdraw combat troops from Iraq within 16 months if he is elected.
"That, we think, would be the right timeframe for a withdrawal, with the possibility of slight changes," al-Maliki was quoted as saying. "Those who operate on the premise of short time periods in Iraq today are being more realistic. Artificially prolonging the tenure of U.S. troops in Iraq would cause problems."
This poses a problem for Bush and John McCain, who can't seem to agree on how, when, or whether to withdraw from Iraq. Bush's recent policy reversal calls for establishing a "time horizon" for withdrawal while McCain has changed his position so many times its impossible to say what his current stance is.
McCain and the "Broken Social Security" Meme
"...They are paying into a system that they won’t receive benefits from on the present track that it’s on – that’s the point. I don’t think that’s right. I don’t think it’s fair and I think it’s terrible to ask people to pay into a system that they won’t receive benefits from and that’s why we have to fix it."
This is the mantra of the privatizers; Bush cited this over and over when he was trying to destroy the most successful New Deal program.
In point of fact even the most conservative estimates show social security having no issues until 2042, and they only address cash flow (current income - current obligations), where the income is the payroll tax. This completely ignores the fact that SS has been putting its surplus into Treasuries since the last reforms, in the mid 80's, and should the income prove insufficient the obligations will be paid from the accumulated surplus and interest.
If this were not enough, simply raising the income cap on the current FICA tax to collect on higher incomes will increase the current income and guarantee solvency into the far future.
Paul Krugman had a good op-ed on the subject earlier this year.
...and now for something completely different!
McCain Campaign Manager: another Terrorist Attack "would be a big advantage" to McCain
Is there no depth to which Charlie Black will not sink? Apparently not.
In an interview with Fortune Magazine:
Black has since stated he "regrets" making the statement. That he said it at all is outrageous; naturally the traditional media will give both Black and John McCain a pass on this.
h/t Joe Sudbay at AmericaBlog
John McCain: Bringing Troops home "not that important"
No-one can argue that reducing casualties isn't important, but the most reliable way to reduce American casualties is to get our soldiers out of Iraq. John McCain's repeated statements show he has no intention of leaving Iraq, now or in the future. Continuing to pour billions and billions of dollars and thousands of lives, American and Iraqi, into this black hole is hardly responsible behavior, but its what McCain promises to deliver.
John McCain needs to fire Charlie Black
h/t moveon.org