City Anti War Resolution Passes 5-0...After Saltzman Shows Up for Meeting. Late. Again.

Portland City Council passes 5-0 resolution to pull troops from Iraq because they don't like the war. Oh, and we need to pull out because there will be peace. Here's a copy of the resolution ghost written for Randy by the anti war folks.
We heard person after person testify that, among other things,
*only the poor serve in the military
*our military members are kinda dumb
*that we're worse than Saddam Hussein's regime
*that we're responsible for the insurgency
*that more people are dead because of us
*that the President 'lied us' into the war
*recruiters lie
*that GW said Iraq was building nuclear weapons (which belies the whole Bush doctrine, but hey, why let facts get in the way of a good talking point?)
Thanks to Matthew for the following photos for the blog. You're awesome.

Kid with a tee shirt on his head testifies that recruiters are liars and he's so glad he wasn't forced to go into the military. He apparently wasn't paying attention to the part about it being a volunteer army.

Read, Discuss

The Washington Post quotes Sen. Chuck Schumer of New York, the brains behind the Democrats' new Senate majority, as saying of Senator [Jim] Webb, "He's not a typical politician. He really has deep convictions." Which perhaps reveals less about Webb than about the other 50 Senate Democrats.
Thanks to James Taranto's Best of the Web for this scrumptious tidbit.

Better Late Than Never? AP Still Refuses to Denounce Phony Report of Live Burnings of Iraqis Outside of Mosque

MSM at long last takes note here.
Michelle Malkin has been all over this for days.

US reporters say they don't want to be embedded with US troops because they're afraid they'll begin to compromise their objectivity. That they're willing to concede their objectivity --such as it is--can be compromised is a laudable admission, but what's sad is instead of being embedded with their countrymen they depend upon stringers with ties to the insurgents to get their "news."

Here's one of more notorious examples when CNN took insurgent tape or a sniper and showed it on TV. This while they stay in their hotel rooms and file "their" reports. In other words, our media have thrown in with the Pallywood, Hezbollywood set. Apparently that does not constitute compromising their objectivity.

Here are my previous posts on this:
http://victoriataftkpam.blogspot.com/2006/08/have-your-bomber-talk-to-my-bomberoh.html
http://victoriataftkpam.blogspot.com/2006/08/update-hezbollywood-art-of-staging.html

ABC Goes to Duh.com for it's Latest "EXCLUSIVE"

EXCLUSIVE: Iranian Weapons Arm Iraqi Militia

Hezbollah Training Also Linked to Iraq Violence

WASHINGTON, Nov. 30, 2006 — - U.S. officials say they have found smoking-gun evidence of Iranian support for terrorists in Iraq: brand-new weapons fresh from Iranian factories. According to a senior defense official, coalition forces have recently seized Iranian-made weapons and munitions that bear manufacturing dates in 2006.

This suggests, say the sources, that the material is going directly from Iranian factories to Shia militias, rather than taking a roundabout path through the black market. "There is no way this could be done without (Iranian) government approval," says a senior official.

Iranian-made munitions found in Iraq include advanced IEDs designed to pierce armor and anti-tank weapons. U.S. intelligence believes the weapons have been supplied to Iraq's growing Shia militias from Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, which is also believed to be training Iraqi militia fighters in Iran.

Evidence is mounting, too, that the most powerful militia in Iraq, Moktada al-Sadr's Mahdi army, is receiving training support from the Iranian-backed terrorists of Hezbollah.

Two senior U.S. defense officials confirmed to ABC News earlier reports that fighters from the Mahdi army have traveled to Lebanon to receive training from Hezbollah.

While the New York Times reported that as many as 2,000 Iraqi militia fighters had received training in Lebanon, one of the senior officials said he believed the number was "closer to 1,000." Officials say a much smaller number of Hezbollah fighters have also traveled through Syria and into Iraq to provide training.

U.S. intelligence officials believe the number of Al-Sadr's Mahdi army now includes 40,000 fighters, making it an especially formidable force.

ANTI WAR RESOLUTION AT PDX CITY HALL. MEET ME AT 1:30PM AT 4TH ST. ENTRANCE

IF YOU JUST WANT TO MAKE A QUIET STAND FOR THE DIGNITY OF THE US TROOPS FIGHTING TERRORISTS IN IRAQ.

Terrorists Win: Schumacher Fur and Outerwear to Move Out of Portland

They shouldn't have had to fight city hall to retain their rights to conduct a legal business, to be free from intimidation, death threats, threats to destroy their business using molotov cocktails (imagine what could have happened to the apartment dwellers above the store), but they did. They had to fight the prevailing mindset of Portland "leaders" that protesters have more rights than the law abiding among us. And they were aided and abetted by an apathetic and distracted citzenry that figured on some level the nutty people outside Schumachers and the factotums at City Hall certainly had the best for Portland at heart so they let them get away with this outrage.
Schumachers spent more than 100 years in the city.
Mazal tov to the Schumachers after molotovs were threatened.
Here's Matt who's with a group called
In Defense of Animals. He's the one who organized the assault on Schumachers.

And who at City Hall allowed this travesty to occur?
Randy Leonard who told the Schumachers, 'hey, why don't you move to Bridgeport?' 503-823-4682
And the rest of them who told the Schumachers to make nice with the protesters and just do what they asked and maybe the nuts would leave them alone.
Mayor Tom Potter 823-4120
Erik Sten 823-3589
Sam Adams 823-4128
Dan Saltzman 823-4151

Portland's Version of 'Crash'? Will There be a Investigation into the Misuse of Gov't Funds in Portland?

Portland's version of Crash?

It's the sense of touch. In any real city, you walk, you know? You brush past people, people bump into you. In L.A., nobody touches you. We're always behind this metal and glass. I think we miss that touch so much, that we crash into each other, just so we can feel something.

The O fails to connect any dots but does bring up a point it has most assiduously ignored for years, how come the same developers get the city gigs? How come programs go wanting but spending on new bells and whistles for Portland continue unabated? Aren't these the same folks who are also in favor of investigating the Bush administration's ties to Halliburton because it gets great government gigs?

"Since 2004, Portland's city center has been abuzz with new landmarks: a Pearl District theater, a renovated 1920s-era building topped by a day spa and the hip Jupiter Hotel. Up next, The Nines luxury hotel in 2008.

One feature connects them: All were made possible by tax breaks Uncle Sam intended to revive America's poor neighborhoods.

"In some instances, this program -- though well-intentioned -- has actually ended up lining developers' pockets for development they were already planning . . . rather than encouraging them to develop in low-income areas," said Steve Ellis of Taxpayers for Common Sense, a nonpartisan budget watchdog group in Washington, D.C."

Here's a piece by Randal O'Toole of the Thoreau Institute , a transportation and planning think-tank in Oregon, on the political and other kinds of bargains the city--and region--makes when doing these kinds of deals. Here are a few of the details (and all of it here).

" On September 17, 2006, developer Homer Williams sat down to dinner at the Bluehour, "the premier modern restaurant in the Pearl District" (see http://tinyurl.com/yzvaxc). From his perch on the Bluehour's patio, Williams could look with satisfaction at the condos, lofts, restaurants, and shops in the Pearl District, Portland's trendy
near-downtown neighborhood. After all, Williams had built most of
them.
Of course, Williams did not develop the Pearl District by himself. He
had a lot of help from his friend Neil Goldschmidt, now disgraced as
a child molester but once the most powerful man in Oregon (see
http://ti.org/vaupdate60.html). Soon after Goldschmidt retired as
Oregon's governor in 1991, he started working as a political
consultant and Williams hired him to help with various developments.
Goldschmidt used his contacts as former Portland mayor, Oregon
governor, and U.S. Secretary of Transportation to funnel millions of
dollars of public subsidies to Williams' developments.
Prodded by Goldschmidt, the city of Portland has given ten years of
property tax waivers to some $100 million of developments in the
downtown area, including many of the developments in the Pearl
District. Other developments receive subsidies through tax-increment
financing, which means that the property taxes they pay go to
directly subsidize the development.
These developments all impose costs on Portland police, fire, and
other services, but since they pay so little taxes someone else has
to pay those costs. As Portland cannot raise taxes without voter
approval, these costs are often covered by cutting the budgets of
other agencies.
As Williams ate his dinner, one thing in his view was not so pleasant. On the sidewalk outside the restaurant, police had a man in custody (see http://tinyurl.com/y988ex). The man was on the ground with his hands and feet restrained, surrounded by police. It struck Williams as strange only because everything was so "casual" (see http://tinyurl.com/y2vbtu).
But it wasn't casual for the 42-year-old man on the ground, Jim
Chasse. Known to his friends as Jim Jim, Chasse was a talented
musician and had been lead singer in a punk-rock band. But then he
mysteriously came down with schizophrenia. As long as he took his
medicines, he was fine, but sometimes he forgot.
On September 15, two days before Williams saw Chasse in custody, an overworked mental health worker named Ela Howard received a report that Chasse was not eating and probably not taking his medicines. Howard works for Project Respond, a Portland non-profit that works with homeless people and relies heavily on private contributions. Accompanied by a police officer, Howard went to Chasse's low-rent apartment a few blocks outside of the Pearl District (see http://tinyurl.com/y5oeu6)...
In 2004, Portland dedicated a new $59-million jail, including
$600,000 for art works in the jail. But the region doesn't have the
funds to open it, so the jail remains empty. Crime rates are
increasing and the county sheriff has had to release inmates early,
at least one of whom murdered someone a few days after being let out (see http://tinyurl.com/ykehso).
Although budgets for police, jails, mental health, and other programs
have all been cut, Portland continues to approve heavy subsidies for
high-density developments like the Pearl District. When he wasn't
distracted by law enforcement or Bluehour's menu, Homer Williams
probably gave some thought to the South Waterfront development, which Williams is currently building with hundreds of millions of dollars of public subsidies (see http://bojack.org/images/sowhatdebtsvc.pdf)...
Mayor Potter says the problem is lack of funding for mental health,
and he wants to spend $500,000 to train police to better deal with
the mentally ill. But Portland law professor Jack Bogdanski (see
http://bojack.org) suggests that the real question is: why does
Portland continue to subsidize Homer Williams' high-density
developments when funding is so short for police, mental health,
fire, and other critical programs?"

Elephant in the Womb

This is an amazing photo of an elephant in utero.
Here's the story here.
One question: Do pro abortion folks consider this an elephant or is it a fetus?

Cindy and Medea Protest for Better Spell Check System

Sadly, this is not a photo shop spoof. See real photos here.

Milton Friedman RIP

Victoria Taft Show listener gave me a head's up on this (Andy). Watch.Learn.Discuss.

The D's Win and Air America is in Bankruptcy. So Al Franken's Job is Done.

Air America was, it appears, created to skirt the campaign finance laws that one of the Democrat's standard bearers, John McCain, oh...and Russ Feingold, imposed on the rest of us. Now after Al Franken helped drive the network (?) into the ground with his 'show' and helped, to some extent anyway, to get his democrats back in power, he's leaving. See story here.

Politically Tone Deaf Oregon State Democrat: Let's Give In State Tuition to Illegal Aliens!

Can I get a wha what? It's in Willamette Week here. After a discussion about this real smart illegal alien kid we come to the Oregon legislative response to his ability to afford college. To which we learn:

"With the help of newly elected state Rep. Ben Cannon, a Democrat who respresents the Franklin High area, the Oregon Students of Color Coalition[say what?] plans to introduce legislation in the next session that, if approved, would grant undocumented immigrants eligibility for enrollment at public universities and in state tuition rates. House Speaker-to-be-Jeff Merkley says, "There's a great case to be made for this legislation because we all benefit if each individual succeeds to their full potential."

Left on the cutting room floor, of course, is the taxpayers' response to such an effort. It is, of course, the tax payers who subsidize the tuition of in state students.
And we should subsidize illegal aliens because????
I love the last line of the story. It's from the kid's mother who states:

"We are responsible for him bing a criminal. Don't care about us, but care about him."

Ask Victoria...

Dear Victoria,
Why didn't we see this during the campaign?
Andy from Beaverton

Dear Gentle Listener,
We did and in fact we played this on my show sometime back. The mainstream media and the democrats simply don't want people to see it. Because they figure they've got so many idiots convinced that Bush lied and if he did they did too. That might look bad.
It certainly doesn't hurt to revisit the video again. It was available on the GOP website.
See it for yourself.
Victoria

Oh, and I like this one too:

Ask Victoria...

Victoria, My neighbor across the street goes to the new Mormon Church up on SE Stark before 235th. I was talking to him about Muslims and out of his mouth came, he likes Muslims better than he likes Christians as he does not want Ecumenical Christians telling him how to live and was not going to vote for President Bush. So I suspect that this is what they were telling them in the Mormon Church and could it be that the Mormon's voted Democratic because of the Ecumenical Christians apparent ties to the Republican Party???

Dear Gentle Listener: You're serious? Unbelieveable. I think he meant Evangelical because a lot the churches that belong to organizations with the word ‘ecumenical’ in them always seem to list left and don't even like the President. I know the so-called 'values voters' stayed home in large amounts. Isn't it ironic that the so called 'values voters' who are by and large Christians should be the ones to help deliver the levers of government to the democrats who will deliver the neck of this country to the sword of the jihadist muslims? Also, he thinks jihadist muslims won't tell him how to live? He's probably right. They'll just kill him.

And what about the story in the newspaper of record (HA!) today about how all those parents don't want their kids to be contacted by recruiters? Interesting, isn't it, that these are probably the same parents who'd let their kids select their vocation, college and religion, can't trust those same kids to determine whether they should defend their country. Worse, the same parents who take advantage of all the freedoms this country offers but don't want their own kids to help keep the freedoms are arrogant.

What Now for Oregon Conservatives?

Salve your wounds. Come to the Executive Club to have a little group therapy. Wednesday, November 15, 2006, Shilo Inn Airport Way at 6pm. Come prepared to offer constructive ideas on what went wrong and where we go from here. This meeting will be different than the usual lecture. Now is the time for all good conservatives to get off their butts, get their brains in gear, and move on for 2008.
2008 is closer than it appears.

The USMC Birthday Today and Veterans Day Saturday. In Oregon Controversy Over the Afghan Iraqi Freedom *War* Memorial

A Proclamation by the President of the United States of America "Through the generations, America's men and women in uniform have defeated tyrants, liberated continents, and set a standard of courage and idealism for the entire world. On Veterans Day, our Nation pays tribute to those who have proudly served in our Armed Forces To protect the Nation they love, our veterans stepped forward when America needed them most. In conflicts around the world, their sacrifice and resolve helped destroy the enemies of freedom and saved millions from oppression. In answering history's call with honor, decency, and resolve, our veterans have shown the power of liberty and earned the respect and admiration of a grateful Nation.

All of America's veterans have placed our Nation's security before their own lives, creating a debt that we can never fully repay. Our veterans represent the best of America, and they deserve the best America can give them.
As we recall the service of our Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines, and Coast Guardsmen, we are reminded that the defense of freedom comes with great loss and sacrifice. This Veterans Day, we give thanks to those who have served freedom's cause; we salute the members of our Armed Forces who are confronting our adversaries abroad; and we honor the men and women who left America's shores but did not live to be thanked as veterans. They will always be remembered by our country.

With respect for and in recognition of the contributions our service men and women have made to the cause of peace and freedom around the world, the Congress has provided (5 U.S.C. 6103(a)) that November 11 of each year shall be set aside as a legal public holiday to honor veterans.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, GEORGE W. BUSH, President of the United States of America, do hereby proclaim November 11, 2006, as Veterans Day and urge all Americans to observe November 5 through November 11, 2006, as National Veterans Awareness Week. I encourage all Americans to recognize the valor and sacrifice of our veterans through ceremonies and prayers. I call upon Federal, State, and local officials to display the flag of the United States and to support and participate in patriotic activities in their communities. I invite civic and fraternal organizations, places of worship, schools, businesses, unions, and the media to support this national observance with commemorative expressions and programs.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this thirty-first day of October, in the year of our Lord two thousand six, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and thirty-first.

In Oregon, the Afghan Iraqi Freedom War Memorial (an early rendering above) is being dedicated Saturday in Salem to honor the Veterans from Oregon who have served in the war; some of whom have given their lives. The word 'war', however, has been removed from the the monument.
Clay and MJ Kesterson, whose son Erik, a helicopter pilot, was killed in Iraq (beginning his military career in the Marines and re-upping in the Army after 9/11) wanted to make sure that all veterans of the war would be honored at the time they served. If the Iraq war dragged on and became more and more unpopular they didn't want Oregon vets to be treated the way Clay had been when he came back from Vietnam--like dirt-- and be forced to wait years for Americans to finally appreciate their sacrifice by erecting a monument.
Thanks to Fallenheroesmemorial.com for this image.

And you now see why they moved fast. The so called newspaper of record (HA!) in Oregon is stirring the pot again with a story today here about the monument with the money 'graph here:

But some Gold Star families, the relatives of soldiers slain in the current wars, object to the monument's design, timing and what they believe is its political message. Some lawmakers who voted for it now regret their decision. Even some supporters believe the memorial's approval process was flawed.

The other day a man emailed me after he'd helped out at the monument and said the Oregonian was preparing a hit piece on the memorial again. He said the paper was purposely incorrectly measuring another monument to make it appear as if the Afghan Iraqi Freedom War Memorial was the largest in scale. He said the Medal of Honor Memorial includes five huge trees which the paper failed to take into consideration. In point of fact, he added, the new memorial is the third largest on the Salem capitol grounds.

Some folks are upset that the monument doesn't have an anti war bent. Sorry, no sale. Some don't like the design. Fair enough. But most are upset that the Kestersons were so dogged in their pursuit of this memorial that they ramrodded it through before the Oregon intelligentsia had an opportunity to pillory it or 'properly' comment in their view.

I just stand in awe that the Kestersons got this through at all.

A note to the 'we know better than you crowd' sometimes God loving, anti-bad guy, types really do know better than you.

MJ and Clay: you just keep on keepin' on. We've got your back.


The following are Oregon and Washington's fallen heroes, some of whom died in combat, others in the theatre of war in accidents, and all of whom were willing to fight for their country and the freedoms it can offer to other countries. Thanks to Fallen Heroes Memorial for the following information.

Army Spc. Joseph M. Blickenstaff, 23, of Corvallis, Oregon.
Marine Cpl. Travis J. Bradachnall, 21, of Multnomah County, Oregon.
Marine Capt. Aaron J. Contreras, 31, of Sherwood, Oregon.
Army Staff Sgt. Kevin D. Davis, 41, of Lebanon, Oregon.
Army Sgt. Justin L. Eyerly, 23, of Salem, Oregon.
Marine Lance Cpl. James B. Huston, Jr., 22, of Hermiston, Oregon.
Army Sgt. Benjamin W. Isenberg, 27, of Sheridan, Oregon.
Army Spc. David W. Johnson, 37, of Portland, Oregon.
Army Spc. Robert L. Jones, 22, of Milwaukie, Oregon.
Marine Lance Cpl. Bryan P. Kelly, 21, of Klamath Falls, Oregon.
Navy Hospitalman Aaron A. Kent, 28, of Portland, Oregon.
Army CWO Erik C. Kesterson, 29, of Independence, Oregon.
Navy Petty Officer 2nd Class Marc A. Lee, 28, of Hood River, Oregon.
Army Pfc. Ken W. Leisten, 20, of Cornelius, Oregon.
Army Spc. Justin W. Linden, 22, of Portland, Oregon.
Army Cpl. Jeremy M. Loveless, 25, of Estacada, Oregon.
Army 1st Lt. Erik. S. McCrae, 25, of Portland, Oregon.
Army Spc. Eric S. McKinley, 24, of Corvallis, Oregon.
Army Sgt. David A. Mitts, 24, of Hammond, Oregon.
Marine Cpl. James L. Moore, 24, of Roseburg, Oregon.
Army Sgt. Travis A. Moothart, 23, of Brownsville, Oregon.
Army Spc. Nathan W. Nakis, 19, of Corvallis, Oregon.
Navy Petty Officer 3rd Class Marcques J. Nettles, 22, of Beaverton, Oregon.
Marine Lance Cpl. Randy L. Newman, 21, of Bend, Oregon.
Army Sgt. John B. Ogburn III, 45, of Fruitland, Oregon.
Army Sgt. Adam J. Plumondore, 22, of Gresham, Oregon.
Army Pfc. William C. Ramirez, 19, of Portland, Oregon.
Marine Lance Cpl. Bob W. Roberts, 30, of Newport, Oregon.
Army Spc. Ricky W. Rockholt, Jr., 28, of Winston, Oregon.
Army Spc. Philip G. Rogers, 23, of Gresham, Oregon.
Army Sgt. Jacob M. Simpson, 24, of Ashland, Oregon.
Army Staff Sgt. Robert A. Stever, 36, of Pendleton, Oregon.
Army Maj. Steven W. Thornton, 46, of Eugene, Oregon.
Army Spc. Brandon S. Tobler, 19, of Portland, Oregon.
Marine Lance Cpl. Tyler J. Troyer, 21, of Tangent, Oregon.
Army Pfc. Thomas L. Tucker, 25, of Madras, Oregon.
Marine Lance Cpl. Gary F. VanLeuven, 20, of Klamath Falls, Oregon.
Army Spc. Ryan D. Walker, 25, of Stayton, Oregon.
Army Sgt. 1st Class Mark C. Warren, 44, of LaGrande, Oregon.
Army Staff Sgt. David J. Weisenburg, 26, of Portland, Oregon.
Army Spc. Christopher J. Rivera Wesley, 26, of Portland, Oregon.
Army Pfc. Kevin S. K. Wessel, 20, of Newport, Oregon.
Army Spc. Chase R. Whitham, 21, of Oregon.
Army Staff Sgt. Michael S. Zyla, 32, of Elgin, Oregon.

Army 1st Lt. Michael R. Adams, 24, of Seattle, Washington.

Army Spc. Robert T. Benson, 20, of Spokane, Washington.

Marine Staff Sgt. Marvin Best, 33, of Prosser, Washington.

Marine Cpl. Joseph P. Bier, 22, of Centralia, Washington.

Marine Lance Cpl. Cedric E. Bruns, 22, of Vancouver, Washington.

Army Staff Sgt. Christopher Bunda, 29, of Washington.

Army Staff Sgt. Michael L. Burbank, 34, of Bremerton, Washington.

Marine Pfc. Cody S. Calavan, 19, of Lake Stevens, Washington.

Army 1st Lt. Jaime L. Campbell, 25, of Ephrata, Washington.

Marine Lance Cpl. Daniel Chavez, 20, of Seattle, Washington.

Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Regina R. Clark, 43, of Centralia, Washington.

Army 2nd Lt. Benjamin J. Colgan, 30, of Kent, Washington.

Marine Sgt. Jason Cook, 25, of Okanogan, Washington.

Air Force Staff Sgt. Casey Crate, 26, of Spanaway, Washington.

Army Sgt. Jacob H. Demand, 29, of Palouse, Washington.

Army Spc. Christopher W. Dickison, 26, of Seattle, Washington.

Army Spc. Blain M. Ebert, 22, of Washtucna, Washington.

Army Sgt. Damien T. Ficek, 26, of Pullman, Washington.

Marine Lance Cpl. Kane M. Funke, 20, of Vancouver, Washington.

Army Pfc. Devon J. Gibbons, 19, of Port Orchard, Washington.

Marine Pfc. Jason Hanson, 21, of Forks, Washington.

Army Spc. Justin W. Hebert, 20, of Arlington, Washington.

Army Spc. Jacob R. Herring, 21, of Kirkland, Washington.

Army Sgt. Curt E. Jordan, Jr., 25, of Green Acres, Washington.

Army Spc. Eric D. King, 29, of Vancouver, Washington.

Army Sgt. 1st Class Steven M. Langmack, 33, of Seattle, Washington.

Army Pfc. Duane E. Longstreth, 19, of Tacoma, Washington.

Army Sgt. Charles E. Matheny IV, 23, of Stanwood, Washington.

Army Staff Sgt. Tracy L. Melvin, 31, of Seattle, Washington.

Army Sgt. 1st Class Lawrence E. Morrison, 45, of Yakima, Washington.

Army Sgt. Justin D. Norton, 21, of Rainier, Washington.

Marine Lance Cpl. Caleb J. Powers, 21, of Mansfield, Washington.

Marine Capt. Gregory A Ratzlaff, 36, of Olympia, Washington.

Marine Sgt. Yadir G. Reynoso, 27, of Wapato, Washington.

Marine Staff Sgt. David G. Ries, 29, of Clark, Washington.

Marine Cpl. Steven A. Rintamaki, 21, of Lynnwood, Washington.

Army Spc. Jonathan J. Santos, 22, of Whatcom, Washington.

Army Spc. Jeremiah W. Schmunk, 21, of Richland, Washington.

Army Pfc. Kerry D. Scott, 21, of Mount Vernon, Washington.

Army Sgt. Jeffrey R. Shaver, 26, of Maple Valley, Washington.

Marine Lance Cpl. Dustin L. Sides, 22, of Yakima, Washington.

Marine Cpl. Jeffrey B. Starr, 22, of Snohomish, Washington.

Marine Lance Cpl. Shane C. Swanberg, 24, of Kirkland, Washington.

Marine Staff Sgt. Abraham G. Twitchell, 28, of Yelm, Washington.

Army Staff Sgt. Christopher J. Vanderhorn, 37, of Pierce, Washington.

Army Pfc. Andrew M. Ward, 25, of Kirkland, Washington.

Marine Lance Cpl. Nathan R. Wood, 19, of Kirkland, Washington.

Army Pfc. Curtis L. Wooten III, 20, of Spanaway, Washington.

Why Did it Happen? And What Happens in Iraq Now?

What happens now? What happens in Iraq? Do we 'cut and run'? Do we cut slowly and the scramble? We're talking about it on the show tonight.

Why did this happen?

Hugh Hewitt:

Hewitt on the House:

Congressional leadership time and time again took the easy way out and declared truces with Democrats over issues, which ought not to have been compromised. The easy way led to Tuesday's result.
The criminal activities of Duke Cunningham, Bob Ney and Mark Foley were anchors around every Republican neck, and the damaged leadership could not figure out that the only way to slip that weight was by staying in town and working around the clock on issue after issue. The long recesses and the unwillingness to confront the issues head on --remember the House's inexplicable refusal to condemn the New York Times by name in a resolution over the SWIFT program leak?-- conveyed a smugness about the majority which was rooted in redistricting's false assurance of invulnerability.

Hewitt weighs in on the Senate:
On April 15, 2005 --less than three months after President Bush had begun a second term won in part because of his pledge to fight for sound judges-- Senator McCain appeared on Hardball and announced he would not support the "constitutional option" to end Democratic filibusters.

A few months later there came a debate in the Senate over the Democrats' demand for a timetable for withdrawal for Iraq led to another half-measure: A Frist-Warner alternative that demanded quarterly reports on the war's progress, a move widely and correctly interpreted as a blow to the Administration’s Iraq policy. Fourteen Republicans voted against the Frist-Warner proposal --including Senator McCain-- and the press immediately understood that the half-measure was an early indicator of erosion in support for a policy of victory.

Nor did the Senate get around to confirming the president's authority to conduct warrantless surveillance of al Qaeda contacting its operatives in the United States. Weeks were taken up jamming the incoherent McCain-Kennedy immigration bill through the Judiciary Committee only to see it repudiated by the majority of Republicans...

The rest is here.
The inescapable conclusion is: THE REPUBLICANS FAILED TO BE CONSERVATIVE.

Maybe DEMOCRAT Charlie Rangel's Military Draft proposal will get a hearing. Do you think the MSM will NOW properly cite just whose idea this was, is, and always has been? Naw. I don't either.
Speaking of the opponents of the war. Read this piece in the Weekly Standard about watching election returns with Cindy Sheehan. Good piece.

Why Did the R's Lose?

Discuss.
Look, I'd start it off but I'm depressed. I'll opine more later but I'm pretty ticked at the moderates--let's just put it that way. Why did folks stay home?
Hey Diebold, we won, so...fraud? Nevermind. Here's Malkin.

Thanks to CafePress for this right on the money photoshop. They have shirts with logo for sale here.

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