Free Republic

.....Kosachyov also said Obama's softer stance on the planned U.S. missile-defense system in Eastern Europe makes him Russia's preferred candidate....

It’s not the economy. Sure – if the economy was better, it would be good for Republicans. Everybody knows that, which is why the McCain campaign could never bet too many chips on the economy as part of a winning formula. Sure, the Democrats – including Barack Obama and Joe Biden – did cause the financial industry meltdown but what does it matter? There is a Republican in the White House and it’s easier to imagine that presidents rule with magic wands than to learn the basics of the American democratic system, let alone learn the modern history of financial...

The troop surge in Iraq has been more successful than anyone could have imagined, Barack Obama conceded Thursday in his first-ever interview on FOX News’ “The O’Reilly Factor.” As recently as July, the Democratic presidential candidate declined to rate the surge a success, but said it had helped reduce violence in the country. On Thursday, Obama acknowledged the 2007 increase in U.S. troops has benefited the Iraqi people. “I think that the surge has succeeded in ways that nobody anticipated,” Obama said while refusing to retract his initial opposition to the surge. “I’ve already said it’s succeeded beyond our wildest...

WASHINGTON – Republican Rep. Terry Everett of Alabama unleashed an unusually harsh attack on a House colleague, calling decorated Vietnam War veteran John Murtha, D-Pa., a cut-and-run idiot.

Senator Barack Obama Delivers the Democratic Radio Address This is Senator Barack Obama. This morning, I’d like to talk to you about why America needs to move in a new direction. In recent days, we’ve seen two stark examples of exactly what’s wrong with Washington, and what’s at stake in this election. First, we learned that the federal budget deficit could reach nearly half a trillion dollars next year. Eight years after we had a record surplus, we’re now faced with record deficits. This mortgaging of our children’s future is a direct result of the Bush Administration’s dangerously failed fiscal...

Freepers and other bloggers should be proud as we the members of the new media were able to get the early skinny on Nancy Pelosi shutting down the House and turning out the lights on a GOP Sponsored Drilling Bill. If not for the efforts of Freerepublic and other new media sites, Democrats would have gotten away with this mockery today. I got a call from Kristinn at 3 pm today and headed for the Hill, I arrived a bit after 3:30 and meet the staffers for 3 GOP Congressional Member, who gave me a quick SITREP. This is what...

NEW SHERIFF IN TOWN? | Gov offers to send state troopers and National Guard copters to fight gang violence Calling violence in Chicago "out of control," Gov. Blagojevich on Wednesday offered to lend state troopers and National Guard helicopters to the city to augment the Chicago Police. The governor is considering forming an "elite tactical team" to help the Chicago Police fight gang problems, a source said, adding that the unit could later be sent across the state to deal with gang problems at any city's request. It's fair to say that violent crime in Chicago is out of control....

Despite the rise of “South Park Conservatives,” it is the Democratic Party’s foreign policy that is guided by The Cartman Doctrine: “Screw you guys, I’m going home.”The media reported a May 2008 report card for the Iraqi government rates that fractious body “satisfactory” on 15 of 18 benchmarks. The Associated Press buried the lede beneath two sentences emphasizing “the most frustrating realities” of Iraq’s “achingly slow” progress, and a quotation from Sen. Carl Levin calling for withdrawal. For a year, the Surge’s success has been undeniable.Except on the Left. Barack Obama’s website asserts: The goal of the surge was...

Rep. Paul Kanjorski (D-PA), who recently gained media attention for his videotaped admission that, due to "temptation to want to win back the Congress," Democrats "stretched the facts" regarding their ability to actually end the war in Iraq, appears to be back for a video encore. This time, the Democratic Congressman appears in a video making two distinct statements regarding the 'Surge' strategy that has been so effective in Iraq. The video is below; below that is a transcript.

House Financial Services Chairman Barney Frank (D-Mass.) told Cybercast News Service on Tuesday he will move to end the Iraq War with an immediate termination of funding if a Democrat becomes president next year. "I will move to cut funding immediately," said Frank. "I have already done that. I voted against the war and voted to cut the funding. I would hope a Democratic President would put in place a plan that would begin a total withdrawal."

A lesson of Vietnam that applies to Iraq is “the deeper you bog down in a morass, the more difficult it is to get out,” Sen. Chuck Hagel said Friday. “The more troops you put in, saying you need another six months or another year, a surge, five more combat brigades.” All of that runs counter to the reality that “we’re going to have to unwind,” Hagel said. “No foreign policy, no war policy can be sustained without the support of the American people,” he said. “Most of them say (Iraq) was a mistake and we want out.” Hagel’s remarks...

Most people have never heard of Operation Frequent Wind, which ended on April 30, 1975, 33 years ago. But every American has seen pictures of it: the Marine helicopters evacuating the last U.S. personnel from the embassy in Saigon, hours before communist tanks rolled into the city. Thousands of desperate Vietnamese gathered at the embassy gate and begged to be taken with them. Others committed suicide. Those scenes are a chilling reminder of what happens when a great power decides to cut and run. Two of the three presidential candidates are proposing to do just that in Iraq. We need...

A coalition of 16 Iraq War Veterans have united to support each other for a run at Capitol Hill. In a press conference at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. last week, timed to coincide with the arrival of Gen. David Petreus and Ambassador Ryan Crocker to Capitol Hill, six members of “Iraq Veterans for Congress,” IVC, outlined their frustration over the lack of representation in Congress of the new generation of veterans. (snip) Lt. Col. William Russell, an Airborne Ranger, husband, father and small business owner has a tougher fight on his hands in his congressional race than...

In the latest episdode of Covert Radio, Brett talks to Aaron Klein from World Net Daily, about some of the outreach Syria is attempting in the Mid East. Brett also spoke to Rohan Gunaratna, from Signapore. He is the world's foremost authority on Al Qaeda, Dr. Gunaratna, author of Inside Al Qaeda contends that if the US leaves Iraq, it will be forced to return to fight Al Qaeda in 2-3 years. Finally gets the latest from NY Sun Correspondent Eli Lake, on the latest kookiness at the UN!

Washington, D.C. – Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, and leaders of veterans groups held a stakeout this morning following President Bush’s speech on Iraq. Below are the Speaker’s opening remarks: “I want to join Leader Reid in welcoming our special guests today, our friends from the veterans’ community, Bobby Muller, whom we've all worked with over the years, whether it's eliminating land mines and speaking out for veterans. “Thank you, Bobby, for your leadership. Jon Soltz, who has been very courageous in his statements of shining the light on troops on what is happening in Iraq. We're...

Newly elected Democratic Rep. Jackie Speier of Hillsborough was sworn into Congress this morning and delivered a fiery speech criticizing President Bush's Iraq policy that led some Republicans to boo and walk out of the House chamber. Speier, who won a special election Tuesday to fill the seat of the late Rep. Tom Lantos, was always an outspoken lawmaker in her years as a San Mateo County supervisor, state Assemblywoman and state Senator. She served notice Thursday that she plans be just as aggressive as a member of the House. "The process to bring the troops home must begin immediately,"...

Many in America want the Iraq war to end now and believe if we "leave Iraq to the Iraqis," the Islamic extremists will leave us alone. That position recklessly ignores how America's decade-long refusal to deal more decisively with Islamic terrorism led to 9/11 and all that followed, and how every time America flinches in the face of Islamic aggression, the terrorists see it as a weakness to be exploited. In this environment, Gen. David Petraeus must have expected he would be criticized for recommending the suspension of further U.S. troop withdrawals in the face of the recent flare-up of...

ALIQUIPPA, Pa. -- Hillary Clinton said today she was the only candidate voters could count on to end the war in Iraq and bring troops home. The senator appeared with veterans and retired military officers at an event outside Pittsburgh that focused on military readiness. She said the war in Iraq must be ended and the military rebuilt and used yesterday's Senate hearings on the war's progress to argue presumptive Republican nominee John McCain was not prepared to end the war.

The outcome of the Iraq war may still be in the balance but U.S. President George W. Bush has already won the war about the war in Washington. In November 2006 elections, Bush's Republican Party lost control of both houses of Congress largely due to public anger about Iraq. Democrats pledged to end the war that started in March 2003 and bring the troops home. But testimony to Congress this week by the top commander on the ground, Army Gen. David Petraeus, indicates there will be about the same high level of U.S. troops in Iraq when Americans elect Bush's...

WASHINGTON, (AP) -- Democrats signaled on Friday that they don't see much hope in ending the Iraq war this year so long as President Bush insists U.S. troops remain committed there in large numbers. But party leaders wrote to Bush on Friday anyhow, telling him it's not too late to change course and pleading with him not to leave the war for the next president to handle. "We are deeply concerned that you and the congressional Republican leadership are intent on staying the current course throughout your administration and then handing the Iraq war off to future presidents," the Democrats...