Articles of Interest 2-11-08
269 Days until Election Day
MORNING UPDATE:
I’ve received a lot of emails this weekend about “uniting our party” and others expressing “frustration” over how the process is developing. My advice…keep the faith.
The process is moving forward, we all work for the candidates we support in the primary…and then work hard to unite behind our nominee. McCain, Huckabee and Paul are still in the race, it’s working itself out…we’ll know more after Tuesday.
Thanks for all of those from Michigan who went to CPAC. A special thanks for those of you who helped us send almost 150 College Republicans to Washington for this conference.
The 36th Annual Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) will be held on February 26 - 28, 2009, at the Omni Shoreham Hotel in Washington, DC.
The American Conservative Union is the key sponsor of CPAC…see info below:
Now Michigan and Florida Democrats are considering holding a second Democrat Caucus to “re-pick” their delegates…nice…thanks for letting the people have a choice!
The Democratic nominee maybe decided by their “backroom political bosses” called “Super Delegates”. The party of the people??? Ha…this is almost too good to be true.
The best the Democrats have to offer….Senators Hillary Clinton or Barack Obama.
Qualified? Experienced? Trustworthy? Ready to be Commander in Chief NOW???
THE REST OF THE STORY:
This weekend many Michigan Republicans spent the weekend at the CPAC conference sponsored by the American Conservative Union. I thought I would share some of their Statement of Principles:
• We believe that the Constitution of the United States is the best political charter yet created by men for governing themselves. It is our belief that the Constitution is designed to guarantee the free exercise of the inherent rights of the individual through strictly limiting the power of government.
We reaffirm our belief in the Declaration of Independence, and in particular the belief that our inherent rights are endowed by the Creator. We further believe that our liberties can remain secure only if government is so limited that it cannot infringe upon those rights.
• We believe that capitalism is the only economic system of our time that is compatible with political liberty. It has not only brought a higher standard of living to a greater number of people than any other economic system in the history of mankind; more important, it has been a decisive instrument in preserving freedom through maintaining private control of economic power and thus limiting the power of government.
• We believe that collectivism and capitalism are incompatible, and that when government competes with capitalism, it jeopardizes the natural economic growth of our society and the well-being and freedom of the citizenry.
• We believe that it is the responsibility of the individual citizen, whenever his inherent rights are threatened from within or without, to join together with other individuals to protect these rights, or, when they have been temporarily lost, to regain them.
• We believe that any responsible conservative organization must conduct itself within the framework of the Constitution; in pursuance of this belief we refuse to countenance any actions which conflict in any way with the traditions of the American political system.
Saul Anuzis
STATE STORIES
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080211/OPINION01/802110314/1007/OPINION
Monday, February 11, 2008
State spending should be leaner as recession looms
New budget may need tougher cuts if national economy softens
Gov. Jennifer Granholm's proposed budget for the fiscal year that begins in October contains some smart program changes -- but the real question is whether the state can continue to sustain its current level of spending.
The governor rightly increases funding across the board in education, adding funds to preschool education, increasing state per-pupil grants for school districts and raising funding for state universities. Her proposal to make successful graduation rates and education in key areas such as science, math, engineering and health professions part of the funding formula is also smart.
So is increasing funding for retraining workers and providing money for training additional state troopers.
http://www.lsj.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080211/NEWS01/802110332/1001/news
Published February 11, 2008
[ From Lansing State Journal ]
Revenue sharing to return for some
Several counties to get funds that were cut in 1990s
Diane Ivey
Capital News Service
State revenue sharing programs are scheduled to return to Ionia, Houghton and St. Joseph counties, but the money may come too late to prevent crucial budget cuts, local officials say.
The revenue sharing program provides counties with a small percentage of state sales tax that adds up over time to produce a substantial county fund, said Tom Hickson of the Michigan Association of Counties. The counties' cut of the sales tax is about a fourth of a cent.
"Every year from here on out, it's our goal to get every county back on revenue sharing," Hickson said. "A couple of years ago, we entered into a unique situation where we had to forgo our revenue sharing from the state to help them during their budget problem."
http://detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080211/OPINION03/802110324/1001/BIZ
Monday, February 11, 2008
Daniel Howes
Education is key to economic growth
Mitt Romney, the once-and-former Republican presidential hopeful, won last month's Michigan primary partly by promising to reverse the evaporation of manufacturing jobs in his native state.
He could never deliver, however much voters wanted to believe he could. Yet another reason why will be unveiled today in Michigan Future Inc.'s annual progress report on the state's transition to a knowledge-based economy.
Manufacturing doesn't drive per-capita income growth or job growth or exclusively define the middle class anymore; jobs requiring higher levels of education do. They account for 75 percent of the job growth nationwide, as well as higher wages and faster per-capita income growth. Even in lackluster Michigan, the education and health care sectors over the past five years created 47,000 jobs -- 40,000 of them in Metro Detroit.
http://www.lsj.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080211/NEWS01/802110341/1001/news
Published February 11, 2008
[ From Lansing State Journal ]
Raising dropout age only first step: Supporters say other measures needed to keep kids in school
Tim Martin
Associated Press
A century-old law lets Michigan students drop out of high school anytime after their 16th birthday.
Now, Gov. Jennifer Granholm and some lawmakers want to change that. Bills in the state Legislature call for students to stay in school until they turn 18 unless they earn their diplomas first, one of several proposals aimed at improving Michigan's high school graduation rate.
Although differences in the ways that schools track dropouts make firm figures hard to get, it's estimated that 75 percent to 90 percent of Michigan high school students graduate each year. The rest either drop out or get lost in a system that doesn't always account for students who transfer schools or move away.
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080211/OPINION01/802110312/1007/OPINION
Monday, February 11, 2008
Block MEA's efforts to gut innovative schools
Gov. Jennifer Granholm has rolled out a viable multipronged strategy to increase Michigan's number of high school and college graduates. As state legislators consider funding, they should beware of false arguments and shadow critics working to undermine it.
We're talking specifically about the Michigan Education Association. Publicly, the leaders of the state's largest teacher union have supported the governor's proposed 21st Century Schools Fund.
Behind the scenes, however, the MEA's tone and language have been more vinegar than honey. Its lack of backroom enthusiasm could -- and often does -- sour state legislators' budget support.
http://detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080211/BIZ/802110325/1001
Monday, February 11, 2008
Stimulus may miss Mich.
Economists predict federal plan to ease potential recession will give little comfort to beleaguered state.
Louis Aguilar / The Detroit News
The federal rebate checks that taxpayers are expected to receive starting in May won't have much of an impact on Michigan's one-state recession, local economists contend.
Congress approved the $168-billion relief bill Thursday and President Bush is expected to sign it into law as early as today. The checks, ranging from $300 to more than $1,200, are a case of too little, too late, the economists contend. Though the extra cash could provide a small surge in consumer spending, the checks are too small to significantly boost auto sales or to have much impact on the growing housing crisis. And the business incentives provided in the stimulus package are too weak to spark significant business expansion.
http://freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080211/NEWS01/802110338
Today, secrets could emerge
Release of more documents hinges on appeals panel
February 11, 2008
BY AMBER HUNT
FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER
An appellate court panel could decide as early as today whether to grant Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick's request to stop the release of documents linked to the text message scandal.
City attorneys filed a request Thursday, hoping to at least temporarily halt Wayne County Circuit Judge Robert Colombo Jr.'s ruling Tuesday to release all documents pertaining to a secret deal to keep private hundreds of text messages. The messages the mayor and his former chief of staff, Christine Beatty, exchanged showed they lied under oath at a trial last summer about having a romantic relationship.
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080211/OPINION03/802110301/1007/OPINION
Monday, February 11, 2008
Amber Arellano
Kilpatrick's posse: Detroit's elites sip bubbly, while their city collapses
Watching the Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick scandal unfold in recent days, I picked up a copy of a recent National Geographic's cover story about how Mayan civilization collapsed as its leaders partied down.
It was painfully familiar to our own Motor City's current mayoral tale.
In Detroit, investigative journalists are outing details of Kilpatrick's secret life and mayoral circle's world. The more we know, the clearer this portrait becomes of the mayor and his posse, sipping bubbly at posh resorts while city neighborhoods dissolve into violence and hopelessness.
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080210/METRO/802100328/1022/POLITICS
Sunday, February 10, 2008
Former DMC executive to run for Wayne County prosecutor
Santiago Esparza / The Detroit News
DETROIT -- Maurice Morton stood before the congregation at Little Rock Baptist Church Sunday and pledged to hit the streets hard as he announced his candidacy to become the next Wayne County prosecutor.
The 38-year-old Detroiter is the former chief of special operations for the prosecutor's office, but left when Kym Worthy became prosecutor in 2004. Since then, he has worked as associate general counsel and director of Community Affairs for the Detroit Medical Center, but has since resigned. Mike Duggan is chief executive officer of the DMC and Morton's boss when Duggan was prosecutor.
"We need a prosecutor who will be vigilant," Morton said. "Not working nine to five, but 24 hours a day."
http://www.lsj.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080211/NEWS01/802110342/1001/news
Published February 11, 2008
[ From Lansing State Journal ]
Overtime, salt, fuel eating up road budgets
Series of storms driving up snow removal costs
Christine Rook
Lansing State Journal
More than 50 inches of snow has fallen on the Lansing area so far this season.
That's almost 40 percent above normal and the prime reason a number of local highway departments are hemorrhaging money.
"Everybody has had enough of winter," said Joe Pulver, director of operations for the Ingham County Road Commission.
The department has spent about $1 million since Jan. 1 on snow removal, and normally spends $1.3 million in an entire season. That figure includes the cost of salt, overtime, and wear and tear on vehicles.
http://www.thetimesherald.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080210/NEWS01/802100302/1002
Big money at work in casino vote
By MIKE CONNELL
Times Herald
The journey has taken more than five years, but legislation that would clear the way for a casino in Port Huron could reach the full House later this week.
“If we can get it reported to the floor of the House, it will be the most significant step taken so far in the development of this project,” said City Manager Karl Tomion, who testified at a congressional hearing on the issue last week.
The 49-member House Natural Resources Committee has scheduled a “markup session” for 11 a.m. Wednesday. The Port Huron bill and a companion measure, which would pave the way for a casino in either Romulus or Flint, are among seven items on the agenda.
http://www.thetimesherald.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080210/OPINION01/802100314/1014/OPINION
City's drinking ban works just fine, thank you
I begin with a fact taught to me by the government during my first days in the U.S. Air Force: Alcohol is a drug. Advertisers have done a great job trying to convince us that it takes a drug to help one socialize, unwind, relax, feel accepted or make friends. If a person really believes this, the problem is not with any law restricting the drug's use.
I appreciate the willingness of our City Council members to serve, the time they each give and the difficulty in making decisions with little information before the TV cameras. In the past few months, however, I have grieved as the council decreased the police force and is now about to reduce the restrictions on public alcohol consumption.
NATIONAL STORIES
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080209/POLITICS01/802090405/1022/POLITICS
Saturday, February 9, 2008
Obama pulls off Saturday sweep; Huckabee hangs on
David Espo / Associated Press
WASHINGTON -- Sen. Barack Obama swept the Louisiana primary and caucuses in Nebraska and Washington state Saturday night, slicing into Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton's slender delegate lead in their historic race for the Democratic presidential nomination.
The Illinois senator also won caucuses in the Virgin Islands, completing his best night of the campaign.
"Today, voters from the West Coast to the Gulf Coast to the heart of America stood up to say 'yes we can'" Obama told a cheering audience of Democrats at a party dinner in Richmond, Va.
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/B/BUSH?SITE=MIDTN&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT
Feb 10, 1:35 PM EST
McCain a 'true conservative,' Bush says
WASHINGTON (AP) -- John McCain is a "true conservative," President Bush says, although the likely Republican presidential nominee may have to work harder to convince other conservatives that he is one of their own.
McCain "is very strong on national defense," Bush said in an interview taped for airing on "Fox News Sunday." "He is tough fiscally. He believes the tax cuts ought to be permanent. He is pro-life. His principles are sound and solid as far as I'm concerned."
But when asked about criticism of McCain by conservative commentators Rush Limbaugh and Ann Coulter, the president said, "I think that if John is the nominee, he has got some convincing to do to convince people that he is a solid conservative and I'll be glad to help him if he is the nominee."
http://www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=24891
McCain Speaks at CPAC
Posted: 02/07/2008
Thank you. Thank you for inviting me. It's been a little while since I've had the honor of addressing you, and I appreciate very much your courtesy to me today. We should do this more often. I hope you will pardon my absence last year, and understand that I intended no personal insult to any of you. I was merely pre-occupied with the business of trying to escape the distinction of pre-season frontrunner for the Republican nomination, which, I'm sure some of you observed, I managed to do in fairly short order. But, now, I again have the privilege of that distinction, and this time I would prefer to hold on to it for a while.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB120268013352957191.html?mod=opinion_journal_political_diary
Getting to 270
Can John McCain win in November?
February 11, 2008
The conventional wisdom is that Republicans start at a serious disadvantage in trying to hold the White House. A still-unpopular war and a softening economy certainly represent challenges. So far, most of the enthusiasm in the primaries has been on the Democratic side, with some 13 million voters casting Democratic ballots and fewer than 9 million picking a GOP one.
But despite these obstacles, John McCain will now begin to assemble his fall election team with surprisingly good poll results. The average of all the recent national polls summarized by RealClearPolitics.com show the Arizona senator leading Hillary Clinton by 47% to 45% and trailing Barack Obama by only 44% to 47%. Both results are within the statistical margin of error for national polls, so it's fair to say Mr. McCain starts out with an even chance of winning.
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080210/POLITICS/802100322/1022/POLITICS
Sunday, February 10, 2008
Huckabee looks to Virginia, Maryland
Kevin Freking / Associated Press
WASHINGTON -- Former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee is hoping his victories in Kansas and Louisiana are a sign of things to come in Tuesday's presidential primaries in Virginia and Maryland.
On Saturday, Huckabee won all 36 delegates at stake in Kansas and narrowly held on to win Louisiana's primary. But he badly trails Arizona Sen. John McCain, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, in the overall race for delegates. Some say he should even step aside as a way to help the GOP maintain resources for the general election. But Huckabee described such talk Sunday as "total nonsense."
"The Democrats haven't settled their nominee either, so for us to suddenly act like we have to all step aside and have a coronation instead of an election, that's the antithesis of everything Republicans are supposed to believe," he said on NBC's "Meet the Press." "We believe competition breeds excellence and the lack of it breeds mediocrity."
http://www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=24920
Pence Challenges McCain at CPAC
by Rep. Mike Pence
Posted: 02/08/2008
Today I come to CPAC 2008 to speak not about conservatism’s past, but its future.
Because, despite the obituary that is being written for conservatism in this election, I believe this movement will define the Republican Party for generations to come.
And, as the theme of this conference attests, the future of freedom and the future of conservatism is forward. We are past the time where we can indulge in woulda, coulda, shoulda. We must look forward.
http://washingtontimes.com/article/20080209/NATION/963183699/1002
Right wants Romney as standard-bearer
By Ralph Z. Hallow
February 9, 2008
Some 50 stalwarts of the political right privately met with Mitt Romney minutes after he dropped out of the Republican nominating race to discuss the former Massachusetts governor becoming the face of conservatism, as Ronald Reagan became en route to his 1980 election win.
Participants said the group was not organizing against the presidential bid of Sen. John McCain, the party"s presumptive nominee, but only seeking to revive core values such as lower taxes, limited government and free speech.
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080211/OPINION03/802110310/1007/OPINION
Monday, February 11, 2008
Paul W. Smith
Romney's candidacy will be missed
I'll miss GOP presidential hopeful Mitt Romney, who has withdrawn from the race. I stepped off the plane from Chicago (broadcasting from the Chicago Regional Auto Show) and was given the word. I was shocked.
I guess I might have been more shocked that it happened now, rather than that it happened. It seemed to be a matter of time, but I thought there was more campaigning left. I still don't understand the apparent disconnect between Republicans and conservatives.
I realize the gap between being a Republican and being a conservative is wider than ever. Not as wide as, say, a river, but more like, oh, maybe a Bush.
• According to an Associated Press-Ipsos poll, President Bush has reached his lowest approval rating with 30 percent of those polled saying they are happy with the job he's doing (overall) as president; he apparently is also at an all-time low in his support among
Republicans.
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080211/OPINION03/802110309/1007/OPINION
Monday, February 11, 2008
Deb Price
Log Cabin Republicans win in Romney's defeat
"No, no, no," Mitt Romney supporters cried out at the Conservative Political Action Conference as he announced he was ending his campaign for the GOP presidential nomination.
A short distance away, a different reaction could be heard at the Washington, D.C., headquarters of the gay Log Cabin Republicans: "We did it!"
Romney had run a hard-right campaign. It was a losing strategy. Despite Romney's attacks on Sen. John McCain, primary voters picked the Goldilocks of the GOP presidential field:
In essence, McCain had said, "This side of my party is too soft. That side of my party is too hard. My own spot is just right."
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/11/opinion/11kristol.html?_r=2&ref=opinion&oref=slogin&oref=slogin
Obama’s Path to Victory
By WILLIAM KRISTOL
Published: February 11, 2008
Last summer, George W. Bush told The Washington Examiner’s Bill Sammon that Hillary Clinton would probably be the 2008 Democratic nominee. “She’s got a national presence and this is becoming a national primary,” he said. “And therefore the person with the national presence who has got the ability to raise enough money to sustain an effort in a multiplicity of sites has got a good chance to be nominated.”
This seemed a reasonable judgment at the time. It may still turn out to be right. But today Barack Obama is neck-and-neck with Clinton in the national polls — and he’s shown a greater ability to raise money. After his strong showing over the weekend, it is Obama who now has the clearer path to his party’s nomination.
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080211/POLITICS01/802110369/1022/POLITICS
Monday, February 11, 2008
Decision 2008
Maine marks perfect weekend for Obama
Sen. Clinton installs new campaign chief as rivals for Democratic nomination continue delegate battle.
Glenn Adams / Associated Press
AUGUSTA, Maine -- Barack Obama defeated Hillary Rodham Clinton in Maine presidential caucuses Sunday, grabbing a majority of delegates as the state's Democrats overlooked the snowy weather and turned out in heavy numbers for municipal gatherings.
Democrats in 420 Maine towns and cities were deciding how the state's 24 delegates will be allotted at the party's national convention in August. Despite the weather, turnout was "incredible," party executive director Arden Manning said.
The voting came a day after Obama and Clinton made personal appeals here, and after Obama picked up wins in Louisiana, Nebraska and Washington.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB120269904120358135.html
Michelle Obama Solidifies
Her Role in the Election
By MONICA LANGLEY
February 11, 2008; Page A1
On a conference call to prepare for a recent debate, Barack Obama brainstormed with his top advisers on the fine points of his positions. Michelle Obama had dialed in to listen, but finally couldn't stay silent any longer.
"Barack," she interjected, "Feel -- don't think!" Telling her husband his "over-thinking" during past debates had tripped him up with rival Hillary Clinton, she said: "Don't get caught in the weeds. Be visceral. Use your heart -- and your head."
http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D8UNNN0G0&show_article=1
Obama Ties Clinton to Past
Feb 10 05:29 PM US/Eastern
By CHARLES BABINGTON
Associated Press Writer
ALEXANDRIA, Va. (AP) - Democrat Barack Obama said Sunday it is difficult for Hillary Rodham Clinton "to break out of the politics of the past," when the country was badly divided and Democrats lost control of Congress while her husband was president.
Responding to two Virginia voters who asked why they should choose him over Clinton, Obama at first praised her as "a capable person" and a "vast improvement" over President Bush. But he quickly pivoted to a forceful argument against the New York senator, saying the public sees her as part of a divisive political era when the government was gridlocked and Republicans prospered.
"I think it's very hard for Senator Clinton to break out of the politics of the past 15 years," Obama said.
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080210/POLITICS/802100337/1022/POLITICS
Sunday, February 10, 2008
Clinton campaign manager Patti Solis Doyle is out
Beth Fouhy / Associated Press
WASHINGTON -- Democrat Hillary Rodham Clinton has replaced campaign manager Patti Solis Doyle, naming longtime aide Maggie Williams to the top job.
Solis Doyle announced the shift in an e-mail to the staff on Sunday.
"I have been proud to manage this campaign and prouder still to call Hillary my friend for more than 16 years," Solis Doyle wrote. "Maggie is a remarkable person and I am confident that she will do a fabulous job."
http://www.nysun.com/article/71044
Clinton Is Bracing for a Last Stand
Falls Behind in Delegates, Replaces Aide
By JOSH GERSTEIN
Staff Reporter of the Sun
February 11, 2008
With Senator Clinton racking up a string of recent defeats in the Democratic presidential contest, her campaign manager is departing and being replaced by an aide who served as Mrs. Clinton's chief of staff during her years as first lady in the White House.
The installation of the campaign's new chief, Margaret Williams, and the departure of the former head, Patti Solis Doyle, came as Mrs. Clinton's rival for the nomination, Senator Obama of Illinois, yesterday swept caucuses in the state of Maine. Mr. Obama won 59% of the delegates to the state convention that will select national delegates, while Mrs. Clinton had 41%, with 91% of the precincts reporting. On Saturday, Mr. Obama also prevailed by healthy margins at caucuses in Nebraska, Louisiana, Washington, and the Virgin Islands.
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0208/8428.html
Clinton badly needs Virginia victory
By: Kenneth P. Vogel and Jonathan Martin and Lisa Lerer
Feb 11, 2008 06:19 AM EST
Tuesday’s Chesapeake primary seems likely to continue propelling Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) and Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) in opposite directions.
Obama has hearty leads and distinct demographic advantages in each of the three contests: Washington, D.C., Maryland and Virginia.
With a sweep, he could start to pull away from Clinton in the battle for delegates needed to secure the Democratic presidential nomination.
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,330248,00.html
Susan Estrich: Race and the Democratic Party
Sunday, February 10, 2008
By Susan Estrich
LOS ANGELES — A funny thing keeps happening to Barack Obama on his way to victory against Hillary Clinton.
It happened in New Hampshire. It happened again in Nevada. It happened last week in California, Massachusetts, New Jersey and even in New York.
It’s not easy to figure out, but it deserves to be addressed.
In the days leading up to the voting, all anyone talks about is the wave of support for Obama, the momentum flooding in his direction, the crowds like they’ve never seen, the power of the unexpected endorsements — whether from the Culinary Workers’ Union in Nevada or the Kennedys (as in Ted, Caroline, and Maria Shriver) in California and Massachusetts.
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/R/RECESSION_VIBES?SITE=MIDTN&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT
Feb 10, 5:50 PM EST
Many believe US already in a recession
By JEANNINE AVERSA
AP Economics Writer
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Empty homes and for-sale signs clutter neighborhoods. You've lost your job or know someone who has. Your paycheck and nest egg are taking a hit.
Could the country be in recession?
Sixty-one percent of the public believes the economy is now suffering through its first recession since 2001, according to an Associated Press-Ipsos poll.
The fallout from a depressed housing market and a credit crunch nearly caused the economy to stall in the final three months of last year. Some experts, like the majority of people questioned in the poll, say the economy actually may be shrinking now. The worry is that consumers and businesses will hunker down further and pull back spending, sending the economy into a tailspin.
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/B/BUSH_LINCOLN?SITE=MIDTN&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT
Feb 10, 10:30 PM EST
Bush honors Lincoln's memory
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Heading toward the bicentennial of Abraham Lincoln's birthday, President Bush on Sunday celebrated the nation's 16th president as a man of steadfast convictions and honorable ideals.
"It's fitting that we honor Abe Lincoln," Bush said in the ornate East Room of the White House. "Of all the successors to George Washington, none had a bigger impact on the presidency and the country."
Bush spoke in early tribute to the 199th anniversary of Lincoln's birthday. Lincoln was born Feb 12, 1809. On Tuesday, first lady Laura Bush will speak at Lincoln's birthplace of Hodgenville, Ky., as part of the opening ceremony of a bicentennial celebration for Lincoln.
Toledo mayor defends decision to send Michigan Marines away
2/10/2008, 6:42 p.m. EST
The Associated Press
TOLEDO, Ohio (AP) — Mayor Carty Finkbeiner said Sunday that he stands by his decision to stop a Michigan-based Marine battalion from holding an urban warfare training session downtown.
About 200 Marine reservists had prepared to conduct the exercise at a vacant building Friday when city officials put a stop to it. Residents had complained about previous exercises, city officials said.
Finkbeiner said in a statement that more than 10,000 people would have been leaving their downtown offices as Friday's exercise unfolded.
http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D8UNOD3G0&show_article=1
Chavez Threatens US Oil Cutoff
Feb 10 06:17 PM US/Eastern
By SANDRA SIERRA
Associated Press Writer
CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) - President Hugo Chavez on Sunday threatened to cut off oil sales to the United States in an "economic war" if Exxon Mobil Corp. wins court judgments to seize billions of dollars in Venezuelan assets.
Exxon Mobil has gone after the assets of state oil company Petroleos de Venezuela SA in U.S., British and Dutch courts as it challenges the nationalization of a multibillion dollar oil project by Chavez's government.
A British court has issued an injunction "freezing" as much as $12 billion in assets.
http://www.wtopnews.com/?sid=1342138&nid=251
Chertoff Worries About 'Earth-Shattering' Events
February 11, 2008 - 5:13am
J.J. Green, WTOP Radio
WASHINGTON - Homeland Security Chief Michael Chertoff's eyes narrow and his voice develops a stern, urgent tone as he reveals America's biggest vulnerability to terrorism.
"The great weapon they have is persistence and patience, and the one weakness that we have is the tendency to lose patience and become complacent," Chertoff tells WTOP.
"It strikes me as hard to accept that anybody would believe the threat is over. There is nothing these terrorists are doing or saying that could lead a reasonable person to believe that they have somehow lost interest. Our biggest challenge is making sure we do not drop our guard because time passes."
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/feb/11/usa.theairlineindustry
Bush orders clampdown on flights to USEU officials furious as Washington says it wants extra data on all air passengers
The US administration is pressing the 27 governments of the European Union to sign up for a range of new security measures for transatlantic travel, including allowing armed guards on all flights from Europe to America by US airlines.
The demand to put armed air marshals on to the flights is part of a travel clampdown by the Bush administration that officials in Brussels described as "blackmail" and "troublesome", and could see west Europeans and Britons required to have US visas if their governments balk at Washington's requirements.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/iraq/article3346386.ece
February 11, 2008
Al-Qaeda leaders admit: 'We are in crisis. There is panic and fear'
Al-Qaeda in Iraq faces an “extraordinary crisis”. Last year's mass defection of ordinary Sunnis from al-Qaeda to the US military “created panic, fear and the unwillingness to fight”. The terrorist group's security structure suffered “total collapse”.
These are the words not of al-Qaeda's enemies but of one of its own leaders in Anbar province — once the group's stronghold. They were set down last summer in a 39-page letter seized during a US raid on an al-Qaeda base near Samarra in November.
The US military released extracts from that letter yesterday along with a second seized in another November raid that is almost as startling.
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0208/8422.html
Pelosi calls Iraq a 'failure'
By: Mike Allen
Feb 10, 2008 12:57 PM EST
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said twice Sunday that Iraq “is a failure,” adding that President Bush’s troop surge has “not produced the desired effect.”
“The purpose of the surge was to create a secure time for the government of Iraq to make the political change to bring reconciliation to Iraq,” Pelosi said on CNN’s “Late Edition.” “They have not done that.”
The speaker hastened to add: “The troops have succeeded, God bless them.”
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/02/10/AR2008021001972.html
Two Myths About Afghanistan
By Ann Marlowe
Monday, February 11, 2008; Page A13
As Western leaders and Congress debate NATO's responsibilities in Afghanistan, it's time to dissolve two great American illusions about Afghanistan.
The first is that Hamid Karzai is a good president who looks after American interests. The second is that the situation in Afghanistan is going from bad to worse. Both of these unchallenged "facts" are dangerous errors.
http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/la-oe-bacevich11feb11,0,4434687.story
NATO at twilight
The alliance's faltering military campaign in Afghanistan shows how far its capabilities have declined.
By Andrew J. Bacevich
February 11, 2008
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization was once a force to reckon with. During the Cold War, it possessed formidable capabilities and real cohesion. No more. As a serious military enterprise, the alliance has all but ceased to exist. The "other" NATO -- the National Assn. of Theatre Owners -- probably wields more clout.
Founded in 1949 with 12 members, NATO had one overarching aim: to defend Western Europe and prevent World War III. Keeping the Americans in, the Germans down and the Russians out offered a formula for achieving that aim. Over the course of four decades, the formula worked brilliantly.
Once the Soviet threat disappeared, the European nations making up the core of the alliance wasted no time claiming their peace dividend. They cut defense budgets and shed military capacity. For example, the German army, which had 12 divisions in 1989, today maintains the equivalent of three.
http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=080211114616.z25xjjg2&show_article=1
Iran plans to launch two more rockets into space
Feb 11 06:46 AM US/Eastern
Iran is to launch two more rockets into space in the next few months, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad announced on Monday, after a firing of a rocket earlier this month sparked international concern.
"Two other rockets will be launched so that we can then send a satellite into space," Ahmadinejad said at a rally in Tehran broadcast live on state television.
"We home that Iran's first home-produced satellite will be launched in the summer," he added, reiterating a prediction made by other Iranian officials who said the satellite would be launched in May.
On February 4, Iran fired a rocket into space to mark the opening of its first space centre, triggering swift condemnation from the United States amid continued tensions over the Iranian nuclear drive.
http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1202657414830&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull
Feb 10, 2008 21:12 | Updated Feb 11, 2008 10:20
'Post' report on J'lem talks sparks fury
By GIL HOFFMAN, KHALED ABU TOAMEH AND TALIA DEKEL
Politicians on the Right called upon Shas to leave the government immediately on Sunday after The Jerusalem Post revealed that secret talks were taking place with the Palestinians in which Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni had made concessions on Jerusalem.
As reported in Sunday's Post, a senior Palestinian Authority official in Ramallah said that the Palestinian negotiating team headed by former PA prime minister Ahmed Qurei had been holding "secret talks" with Livni and other government officials over the past few weeks.
