2007 State of the Union Predictions Quiz

Oh yeah, and that "freedom" and "liberty" of a certain kind will be continually hammered on.

What this year?

Or else this is just a headfake.

...Fortunately, if the President issues such a necessary warning, his will no longer be a voice in the wilderness. Indeed, the public is increasingly being treated to televised information about the true, and growing, threat of Islamofascist terror in the West. It takes the form of fictionalized accounts (such as Fox’s wildly popular drama, “24”) and factual documentaries (like programs aired this weekend on Fox News and CNN about, respectively, the operations of the terrorist organization Hezbollah in America and the virulent hatred towards the West being incubated by Islamists in places like the United Kingdom)....

A very easy but short term fix on the one hand and a pork barrel giveaway on the other. About what anyone should expect.

"One official said the moves would be equivalent to taking 26 million vehicles off U.S. roads."

Because we'd never want to try to remove 26 million physical cars off the roads!

“Some in this Chamber are new to the House and Senate – and I congratulate the Democratic majority. Congress has changed, but our responsibilities have not…We are not the first to come here with government divided and uncertainty in the air. Like many before us, we can work through our differences, and achieve big things for the American people.”

“Our citizens don’t much care which side of the aisle we sit on – as long as we are willing to cross that aisle when there is work to be done. Our job is to make life better for our fellow Americans, and help them to build a future of hope and opportunity – and this is the business before us tonight.”

On our growing economy:

“A future of hope and opportunity begins with a growing economy – and that is what we have…Unemployment is low, inflation is low, and wages are rising. This economy is on the move – and our job is to keep it that way, not with more government but with more enterprise.”

On the importance of strengthening and re-authorizing No Child Left Behind this year:

“Five years ago, we rose above partisan differences to pass the No Child Left Behind Act…And because we acted, students are performing better in reading and math, and minority students are closing the achievement gap.”

“Now the task is to build on this success, without watering down standards ... without taking control from local communities ... and without backsliding and calling it reform…And we can make sure our children are prepared for the jobs of the future, and our country is more competitive, by strengthening math and science skills.”

On the President’s new health care initiatives:

“[I]n all we do, we must remember that the best healthcare decisions are made not by government and insurance companies, but by patients and their doctors.”

On comprehensive immigration reform:

“Extending hope and opportunity in our country requires an immigration system worthy of America – with laws that are fair and borders that are secure. When laws and borders are routinely violated, this harms the interests of our country… Yet…we cannot fully secure the border unless we take pressure off the border – and that requires a temporary worker program.”

On strengthening America’s energy security:

“Extending hope and opportunity depends on a stable supply of energy that keeps America’s economy running and America’s environment clean. For too long our Nation has been dependent on foreign oil. And this dependence leaves us more vulnerable to hostile regimes, and to terrorists – who could cause huge disruptions of oil shipments ... raise the price of oil ... and do great harm to our economy. It is in our vital interest to diversify America’s energy supply – and the way forward is through technology.”

On the war on terror:

“For all of us in this room, there is no higher responsibility than to protect the people of this country from danger…[T]o win the war on terror we must take the fight to the enemy. From the start, America and our allies have protected our people by staying on the offense. The enemy knows that the days of comfortable sanctuary, easy movement, steady financing, and free flowing communications are long over. For the terrorists, life since Nine-Eleven has never been the same.”

“[O]ur military commanders and I have carefully weighed the options. We discussed every possible approach. In the end, I chose this course of action because it provides the best chance of success. Many in this chamber understand that America must not fail in Iraq – because you understand that the consequences of failure would be grievous and far reaching.”

“The war on terror we fight today is a generational struggle that will continue long after you and I have turned our duties over to others. That is why it is important to work together so our Nation can see this great effort through.”

“Both parties and both branches should work in close consultation. And this is why I propose to establish a special advisory council on the war on terror, made up of leaders in Congress from both political parties. We will share ideas for how to position America to meet every challenge that confronts us. And we will show our enemies abroad that we are united in the goal of victory.”

On American foreign policy:

“American foreign policy is more than a matter of war and diplomacy. Our work in the world is also based on a timeless truth: To whom much is given, much is required. We hear the call to take on the challenges of hunger, poverty, and disease – and that is precisely what America is doing. We must continue to fight HIV/AIDS, especially on the continent of Africa.”

I will also probably get drunk while I watch.

i fucking hate this guy more than ever.

xp DUDE, I KNOW! MINDBLOWING.

http://a185.ac-images.myspacecdn.com/images01/5/l_2def1df8826385f90fd9e77ffc8f26d8.gif

"You don't expect me to shake that, do you?"

he also perpetuated the mutumbo myth

Well done, sir! Well done!

(even had a story credit for a Tommy Lee Jones/Samuel L. Jackson flick)

From a reader:

Jonah -

I understand that to you and many other Cornerites, Webb bombed last
night and sounded bitter. But let me tell you something: he was a huge
hit in my extended lower-middle-class Los Angeles-based family. We
ignore the Jacksonians at our peril. They have turned against the war
something fierce.

A lot of people think the American people turned against the Vietnam War
due to all the student movement and the protests. Nope, not even close.
They—ordinary, middle-class Americans—turned against it when it was
clear that overwhelming force would not be used purely for political
reasons. Not seeing any will to win the only way a war can be won, they
wanted out. Same deal here, same result.

Webb's threat is very real. Forget the "surge". It may happen, but it's
happening in a political vacuum. If the President doesn't get us out of
Iraq by year's end, the electorate will go searching for whoever will.

Which strikes me as a solid enough read.

What's behind W not mentioning Ford? Too non-interventionist?

It's Andrew Jackson. Webb mentioned him in his speech last night.

Teddy Roosevelt.

http://www.cnn.com/2007/POLITICS/01/24/cheney/index.html

Just sayin'.

check out his wikipedia entry.

Sen. Webb's response, by contrast, sounded like that of a divorced woman complaining about her ex-husband's penchant for leaving up the toilet seat. Webb spent a full 400 words, or well over 25 percent of his speech, whining about the genesis of the war in Iraq.

[...]

What, then, makes Webb a "muscular liberal"? His absolute loathing for President Bush. Democrats believe that it takes more courage to obstruct President Bush and Republicans than to fight Islamism. Webb offered nothing but vitriol, and Democrats lapped it up...

and so on and so one for several hundred words.

http://media2.salemwebnetwork.com/Townhall//ColPics/columnistsShapiro.gif

Note that Webb described the Iraq war as "mismanaged." Not criminal, not corrupt, not imperial, but "mismanaged." What if the invasion and occupation had been successful? Of course, that would necessitate bloodletting on a massive scale, and even then "success" would not be guaranteed. But let's suppose that Bush gambled correctly, wiped out all forms of resistance and put a lethal stranglehold on the Iraqis while Halliburton peacefully set up shop and US control over Iraq's oil reserves was secure. Think Webb would object to that? Judging from his speech, I seriously doubt that he would, especially if Bush's poll numbers were in the 70s or higher. Webb is simply articulating what many in the US elite already know and feel -- the Iraq war was a tactical, imperial error which is undermining US power in the region. Or to use Webb's terminology, it has been "mismanaged," and so it must be corrected, if that's even possible at this stage.

... When the cluster bombs begin falling on Iran, don't expect Webb, Pelosi, Hillary, Obama, or any senior Dem, to oppose it -- that is, unless the murder of Iranians is somehow bungled or "mismanaged."

http://redstateson.blogspot.com/2007/01/sticky-webb.html

Is the turn-on part of this meant to be a joke?

ugh - at this point, reading the actual resolution to use force against Iraq is truly sickening and depressing. all of its assumptions, refs to "continuing threat of Iraq" = *vomit*

Anyway upshot is Dubya considers the War Powers Act unconstitutional and expressly said so when signing the resolution. Quel surprise.

ROFLZ