Free Republic

The empty chair president

Gingrich reserved the raw razor edge of his criticism for DOLE, calling him "the Walter Mondale of the republican party".Among the conservatives, this is the ultimate insult.

A group of conservative house reps. including Newt Gingrich of Ga. says Rep. Robert Dole has tried to undercut Pres. Reagan's plan not to increase taxes if re-elected

It is the voice of Newt Gingrich of Georgia, the Republican whip, who is described even by his friends as a bomb thrower, a pit bull, a guerrilla. For Mr. Gingrich, the vote to make public the names of hundreds of House members who overdrew their House bank checking accounts was a dramatic personal victory. But it was something more -- the triumph of a militant style of Republican leadership that the house has not seen for decades

Lawmakers wooed this morning by President Bush over coffee and rolls at the White House, returned to Capitol Hill to find Mr. Gingrich's lieutenants trying to win them over with earnest talk about the ''tidal wave of anger'' in the country over new taxes.

From: WBlitzer@CdoubleN.com To: OhMama08@IMD1.net Date: August 24, 2008 Subject: Energy Engineer a spike in gas prices before the election, sir. The Saudis will curtail production if you ask. They’ll want a quid pro quo. Promise you’ll support the construction of a major mosque somewhere in Manhattan. Also, McCain’s getting mileage from that goofy $300 million “better car battery” contest he’s proposing. Trump him: offer $500 million tax-free to whoever discovers how to turn seawater into gasoline. If, g-d forbid, someone actually does it, arrange for a few Chicago boys to fit him with cement shoes before he goes public.

Mr. Doe explained that for each “click” through to the Obama site, someone, somewhere was billed for each and every one of them. Granted, it could be as little as a nickel per click, but John Doe quickly got his point across.

Obama said this about rising above typical partisan differences: "We're all political animals, we've all got political bases," the president is reported to have said. "If we don't get this done we (the Democrats) could lose seats and I could lose re-election. But we can't let people like Rush Limbaugh stall this. That's how things don't get done in this town."

Paul told WND he is releasing a 40-second portion of the tape, covering the end of a July 2000 telephone conversation, to demonstrate the tape's "bona fides." He plans to release the full tape in a few weeks as the focal point of a documentary on Sen. Clinton. "The three branches of government were thwarted, for lack of evidence, in their efforts to hold Hillary accountable," Paul said. "The evidence, albeit belatedly, is now available for the public to be judge and jury."

Federal agents arrested Charles Rust-Tierney, the former president of the Virginia chapter of the ACLU, Friday in Arlington for allegedly possessing child pornography.

Like some second marriages and most Hollywood sequels, it's usually a bad idea for a columnist to revisit the same topic. But last week's discussion of renegade blogger and NBC military analyst Bill Arkin proved some larger points. In case you missed it, Arkin characterized U.S. soldiers as "mercenaries" enjoying "obscene amenities" shipped into the war zone — pampered hirelings who then complain about declining public support for the war effort. .......And so with great reluctance and best wishes to my former colleagues, with this column I am severing my 10-year relationship with NBC News.

Also in consideration is the "Fairness Doctrine," which required broadcasters to present controversial topics in a fair and honest manner. It was enforced until it was eliminated in 1987. Kucinich said in his speech that "We know the media has become the servant of a very narrow corporate agenda" and added "we are now in a position to move a progressive agenda to where it is visible."

Silencing conservatives on the airwaves A final thought for this week is a personal one. I've been the target, as have a number of other conservative talk-radio hosts, of an effort by liberal bloggers to get me fired for engaging in what these far-left activists are calling "hate speech." The move by liberal activists to silence conservative radio hosts comes after the failure of the left-wing Air America radio network. Given that liberalism couldn't compete and win in the marketplace of ideas, liberals now want to silence conservative radio hosts. One anonymous online blogger compiled audio clips edited to make...

"Six Iranians held in a US military raid in northern Iraq were working there with the approval of the authorities, Iraq's foreign minister has said. They were part of an Iranian liaison office which had been operating for many years, Hoshyar Zebari said. He said the office in Irbil did not yet have full consular diplomatic status but that this was under consideration," the BBC reports.

Baker and Fotouh both say their first meeting was initially cordial. Baker readily agreed to remove his cattle from the association's land. He also offered to donate granite fill for the group's new driveway. But Baker says that as their meeting wound up, Fotouh suggested that he move, in order to keep the place of worship separate from the business. Fotouh denies making such a request. "We would not go to a land owner and say 'We're moving in, you move out.' It does not make sense," he said. Baker insists that Fotouh asked him to leave, and has offered...

Businessman charges ex-secretary of state used middleman to 'sell out' Israel for profit RAMAT HASHARON, Israel – The law firm at which former Secretary of State James Baker is a senior partner used an Israeli middleman to bypass U.S. sanctions on Iraq and push through a multimillion-dollar collection effort involving the regime of Saddam Hussein, according to a businessman here who said he mediated the deal.

We're not "not winning." We've lost. So declares Bush critic Frank Rich in Sunday runs of the NEW YORK TIMES. MORE Taking it all the way, this time, Rich writes: "The actual reality is that we have lost in Iraq." "The Iraq-Vietnam parallels at this juncture are striking," Rich explains, in an op-ed he has titled: "THE SUNSHINE BOYS CAN'T SAVE IRAQ." Rich declares: "As bad as things may seem now, they can yet become worse, and not just in Iraq. "The longer we pretend that we have not lost there, the more we risk losing other wars we still...

Congress passes bill already approved by Senate prohibiting transfer of aid, official talks with Hamas government until president declares PA no longer ruled by terror group. Bill will deny Hamas US entry visas, allows humanitarian aid to PA

The IDF has decided to release photos, documents and videos proving Hizbullah's intentional use of civilians to shield its weapons, missile-launchers and surveillance equipment. A selection follows:

Dec. 5. 2006 - In a surprise twist in the debate over Iraq, Rep. Silvestre Reyes, the soon-to-be chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, said he wants to see an increase of 20,000 to 30,000 U.S. troops as part of a stepped up effort to “dismantle the militias.”