Free Republic

Thousands of Icelanders took to the street in violent protests in Rekjavik, demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Geir Haarde and central bank governor David Oddsson in the wake of the country's complete financial collapse. REYKJAVIK - Thousands of Icelanders demonstrated in Reykjavik on Saturday demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Geir Haarde and Central Bank Governor David Oddsson for failing to stop a financial meltdown in the country. It was the latest in a series of protests in the capital since the financial meltdown that crippled the island's economy. Hordur Torfason, a well-known troubadour in Iceland and the main...

http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/commentators/dominic-lawson/dominic-lawson-democrat-fingerprints-are-all-over-the-financial-crisis-949653.html

In early June 2008, Americans learned of a VIP loan program provided to influential politicians by Countrywide Mortgage at the direction of its chairman Angelo Mozilo – and that one of the so-called ‘Friends of Angelo” was none other than Jim Johnson, a former CEO at Fannie Mae who had just been tapped to head Barack Obama’s vice presidential vetting committee. Countrywide Friends Got Good Loans Countrywide Financial Corp. makes mortgage loans through a vast network of offices, brokers and call centers. But a few customers have gotten their loans a special way: through Countrywide Chief Executive Angelo Mozilo. These...

Broad, invasive provision touches nearly every aspect of American commerce. ~~~ Hidden deep in Senator Christopher Dodd's 630-page Senate housing legislation is a sweeping provision that affects the privacy and operation of nearly all of America’s small businesses. The provision, which was added by the bill's managers without debate this week, would require the nation's payment systems to track, aggregate, and report information on nearly every electronic transaction to the federal government. *** Call Congress and Tell Them to Oppose The eBay Reporting Provision in the Housing Bill: 1-866-928-3035 *** FreedomWorks Chairman Dick Armey commented: "This is a provision with...

Senate Housing Bill Requires eBay, Amazon, Google, and All Credit Card Companies to Report Transactions to the Government Broad, invasive provision touches nearly every aspect of American commerce. Washington, D.C. - Update: Senate Finance Committee Ranking Member Charles Grassley is pushing the bill. Hidden deep in Senator Christopher Dodd's 630-page Senate housing legislation is a sweeping provision that affects the privacy and operation of nearly all of America's small businesses. The provision, which was added by the bill's managers without debate this week, would require the nation's payment systems to track, aggregate, and report information on nearly every electronic transaction...

A freedom-focused grassroots organization has issued a nationwide alert about a plan in Congress that would require credit card companies, eBay, Amazon, Google and other companies to report what you buy to the federal government. FreedomWorks chairman Dick Armey said the privacy implications are "breathtaking." "This is a provision with astonishing reach, and it was slipped into the bill just this week," he said. "Not only does it affect nearly every credit card transaction in America, such as Visa, MasterCard, Discover and American Express, but the bill specifically targets payment systems like eBay's PayPal, Amazon and Google Checkout," he said....

Will there be a MORTGAGE-GATE controversy in the 2008 election? Judicial Watch has filed a complaint against the sweetheart deal that Senator Obama Barack has received in terms of a mortgage. So has Senator Christopher Dodd, D-CT, who is chair of the Senate Banking Committee. One must ask the question are these two Democrats: are they Dumb, Dishonest, or both -- to have accepted these sweetheart mortgage deals for their personal life? Should the US Justice Department start investigating these politicians and others for such deals to receive favorable treatment in legislation now that the mortgage industry is in serious...

Broad, invasive provision touches nearly every aspect of American commerce. WASHINGTON, DC - Hidden deep in Senator Christopher Dodd's 630-page Senate housing legislation is a sweeping provision that affects the privacy and operation of nearly all of America’s small businesses. The provision, which was added by the bill's managers without debate this week, would require the nation's payment systems to track, aggregate, and report information on nearly every electronic transaction to the federal government. FreedomWorks Chairman Dick Armey commented: "This is a provision with astonishing reach, and it was slipped into the bill just this week. Not only does it...

At the Democrats' presidential debate last week, the candidates were asked to comment on issues pertaining to education. This was Connecticut Sen. Chris Dodd's response: "I've been asked the question over the years, 'What's the single most important issue?' I always say education because it is the answer to every other problem we confront as a people here." Needless to say, no other candidate took issue with Sen. Dodd, and it is likely that most senators, all the Democrats and many Republicans, would agree with the sentiment. But the sentiment is not only wrong, it is destructive. There are, of...

The only "Simpsons" series character whose name was changed for the movie was Austrian-born action star Rainer Wolfcastle, who goes by the name of President Schwarzenegger. This is satire, I think. There are nine Republican contenders for president and many more in the party looking for a rock-star candidate. Is it Rudy Giuliani, a.k.a. the Mayor of Terror Town? Mitt Romney, who bears a spooky resemblance to CBS CEO Leslie Moonves? Tom Tancredo or Tommy Thompson, both of whose names would restore alliteration to the White House for the first time since the Reagan era? I woke up early Sunday...

I watched the Democrat debate yesterday evening, not so much to learn something new, but because I have the innate curse of enjoying political speeches, even if those speeches grind against the very pit of my soul in both substance and concept. The majority of the debate uncovered no real surprises, but one particular answer to a question about drug testing sticks in my mind. The answer that Connecticut Senator Christopher Dodd gave to a question about drug testing welfare recipients strikes hard at the very nature of the rampant disability and aggressive disease that infects the modern Democrat party,...

NEW YORK -- Democratic Sen. Christopher Dodd, a veteran lawmaker who entered Congress in the post-Watergate class of 1974, will announce his bid for the presidency, Democratic officials said Wednesday. Dodd, 62, will make the formal announcement in an interview Thursday morning on the "Imus in the Morning" radio show _ a curious bit of timing since he'll be forced to compete with heavy coverage of President Bush's speech on the Iraq war. Dodd will travel late Thursday to Iowa, which will host the first presidential nominating caucus next January. He heads to South Carolina, an early primary state, on...

. Syrian President Bashar Assad, left, meets U.S. Senators John Kerry, right, and Christopher Dodd, second left, in Damascus, Wednesday, Dec. 20, 2006

The Lieberman campaign is feeling both feisty and confident. They can start checking names off their list of Democrats who turned on the three term incumbent after his August primary defeat. The Lieberman people took delight early last week in telling a story of John Kerry’s rebuff by Senate Democratic leaders when he lobbied them to lend some aid to Democrat aristocrat Ned Lamont’s flagging campaign. Lieberman’s campaign is delighted it still has friends in high places. They received added satisfaction when Lieberman got to pile on Kerry mid-week as the haughty Massachusetts neighbor limped off the campaign field. The...

5 out of the top ten US House Recipients of contributions (1989- 2001) from Arthur Andersen are democRats. Their names and the amounts are listed below. And, according to dim logic, they are guilty by association and should have their names shining in the bright lights of Reuters, AP, Drudge, The Washington ComPost, and more. After all, this is a hit piece. Here you go, Klayman, chase this ambulance too! Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) $34,687 Martin Frost (D-Texas) $32,000 Peter Deutsch (D-Fla) $24,200 James P. Moran (D-Va) $21,250 Ken Bentsen (D-Texas) $19,225 Other Rats also receiving Andersen dirty money include: Rick...

I'm once again breaking out the shows into their own separate posts and including the background/info links with the guests' listing in those posts.  I will not be posting an entry for ABC This Week because:ABC This Week (George Stephanopoulos) 'This Week' will not air on Sunday, July 23, due to ABC's coverage of the British Open; we will return with all the latest in politics on Sunday, July 30.ABC This Week comment web page John Bolton does a twofer this week, covering both FNS and CNN.  Coming just after news that Voinovich will now vote for confirmation followed by...

I'm trying yet another format change this week.  I have left the background links on the entry for each guest for each show, like last week, but I've broken the Sunday shows out into separate posts to try to make each one more easy to read and discuss.  The Saturday shows will still be posted as one message, then I'll do the ping.  Please me know if this works.And I've put my (expanded) witty commentary here instead of in the ping...The most interesting guest this week should be Secretary Rice, who is on Fox, CBS and ABC, but she probably...

Weekend Talk Show *Preview* for 7/8 and 7/9/06 (not the live thread)The main message is the Sunday Shows and message 1 will be the Saturday Shows,  then I'll post the ping list.  I've changed the format as a test this week and put the links to articles and background on the guests in with their listing in the shows.  It struck me that it might have been getting less helpful to have to jump back and forth.  Let me know which format works better.ABC This Week (George Stephanopoulos) Meme: Bush is all wrong about (Korea/Iraq/Immigration) and even Republicans think soNo...

Democrats said they will try to filibuster John R. Bolton, the president's nominee to be ambassador to the United Nations, if the Bush administration does not turn over two final sets of documents. "If the administration doesn't give us this information, then I want a 60-vote requirement here so that senators can express their views on this issue of the documentation that we need," said Sen. Christopher J. Dodd, Connecticut Democrat and a member of the Foreign Relations Committee who has been among Mr. Bolton's strongest critics. Republicans say there are enough votes to confirm Mr. Bolton once those objections...

The campaign against John R. Bolton’s nomination to be the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations is about far more than his reputedly abrasive personality – behind the smears lies a pro-Castro agenda. The criticism of Bolton by Democratic Sen. Christopher Dodd and his aide Janice O’Connell is "based on taking issue with his accusations that Castro is building a biological warfare capability," writes columnist Robert D. Novak. And the effectiveness of O’Connell - the veteran Democratic staff expert on Western Hemisphere affairs – in making life difficult for enemies of Fidel Castro is "legendary,” according to Novak. "She was...