U.S. Develops Iran Attack Plan 30 Apr 2008 Resent-Date: Wed, 30 Apr 2008 19:15:27 -0500 (CDT) Breaking News and Commentary from Citizens For Legitimate Government 30 Apr 2008 http://www.legitgov.org/ All items are here: http://www.legitgov.org/#breaking_news U.S. Develops Iran Attack Plan --The Pentagon has ordered military commanders to develop to options for attacking Iran. 29 Apr 2008 A second American aircraft carrier steamed into the Persian Gulf on Tuesday as the Pentagon ordered military commanders to develop new options for attacking Iran. CBS News reports that the planning is being driven by what one officer called the "increasingly hostile role" Iran is playing in Iraq - smuggling weapons into Iraq for use against American troops... U.S. officials are also concerned by Iranian harassment of U.S. ships in the Persian Gulf as well as Iran's still growing nuclear program. Pentagon denies report of new Iran war planning 30 Apr 2008 The United States remains focused on halting [alleged] Iranian meddling inside Iraq, the Pentagon's spokesman said here Wednesday, denying reports of new planning for military options against Iran. "I'm not aware of any ramping up or revision of war plans for Iran," Pentagon spokesman Geoff Morrell told reporters traveling with US Defense Secretary Robert Gates, who is winding up a two day visit here. Warships 'to remind Iran of US power' 01 May 2008 The decision to send a second US aircraft carrier to the Persian Gulf should be a "reminder" to Iran of Washington's military might but was not an escalation of force in the region, US Defence Secretary Robert Gates said yesterday. The arrival of the formidable warship in the Gulf follows a noticeable hardening of US rhetoric against Iran, accusing Tehran of meddling in Iraq and destabilising the region. Iran Ends Oil Transactions In U.S. Dollars --OPEC's Second-Largest Producer Now Pegs Petroleum to Euros and Yen 30 Apr 2008 Iran, OPEC's second-largest producer, has completely stopped conducting oil transactions in U.S. dollars, a top Oil Ministry official said Wednesday, a concerted attempt to reduce reliance on Washington at a time of tension over Tehran's nuclear program and suspected involvement in Iraq. Iraq to see $70 billion windfall as oil prices rise, U.S. military says --Congress has OK'd $47 billion for 'reconstruction' since war began 30 Apr 2008 Iraq's government is expected to reap a $70 billion windfall from soaring oil prices, about double the previous projections, the U.S. military's reconstruction watchdog reported Wednesday. Congress has approved about $47 billion in reconstruction funding since the invasion. Iraq budget cut by $171M after oil-profit windfall --Gates: Remaining $439 million 'reconstruction' project funds should continue 29 Apr 2008 The Pentagon has agreed to cut from its budget $171 million to build police stations in Iraq after demands from Congress that the Iraqi government spend its recent oil windfall on reconstruction projects. The amount is a fraction of the roughly $47 billion Congress has approved to rebuild destroy Iraq since the U.S.-led invasion in 2003. Over a thousand Iraqis killed in April 01 May 2008 Fierce clashes and US-led operations in Iraq have killed at least 1,073 people, including 966 civilians, across the country in April. Sixty-nine policemen and 38 soldiers were also among the fatalities; AFP reported Wednesday based on casualty figures provided by Iraq's interior, health and defense ministries. US troop deaths push monthly toll to 7-month high in Iraq 30 Apr 2008 The killings of three U.S. soldiers in separate attacks in Baghdad pushed the American death toll for April up to 47, making it the deadliest month since September, the military said Wednesday. 37 die in Iraq clashes 30 Apr 2008 More than 37 people were killed in Baghdad's Shi'ite militia bastion of Sadr City yesterday, as gunmen clashed with US soldiers under cover of a severe sandstorm. Several rockets or mortar rounds also struck the Iraqi capital's heavily fortified government compound, as militants took advantage of the absence of US air cover during the storm, witnesses said. Investment Giant Ends Talks With Blackwater --Private Equity Firm Was Pondering $200 million Investment in Controversial Security Firm 30 Apr 2008 After news broke this morning on ABCNews.com of the ongoing talks between the investment giant Cerberus and the mercenary firm Blackwater, the talks have now ceased, and there will be no deal. Late today a spokesperson for Cerberus told ABCNews.com that they have decided not to pursue a transaction with Blackwater. The chairman of Cerberus is former Treasury Secretary John Snow, and former Vice President Dan Quayle is also a prominent figure in the company. Senate panel tries to ban waterboarding 30 Apr 2008 The US Senate Intelligence Committee has voted to limit CIA interrogators, prohibiting them from using waterboarding on the prisoners. Waterboarding is a form of torture used by the CIA that lays a person on their back pouring water over the face and into the breathing passages which forces suffocation and inhalation of water. US Navy re-establishes fleet for Caribbean, Latin America 24 Apr 2008 The US Navy said Thursday it has re-established the US Fourth Fleet to direct an increasing American naval presence in the Caribbean and Latin America. The move comes as popularly elected leftist regimes governments, including that of Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez, pose a growing challenge to US influence terrorism in Latin America. US launches 'mini surge' in Afghanistan 30 Apr 2008 A strike force of US marines punched through Taliban frontlines in southern Helmand yesterday as part of an Afghan "mini surge" intended to weaken the 'insurgents'' grip on the war-ravaged south. The marine force, numbered in the hundreds, exchanged fire with Taliban fighters as they pushed through Garmser, a town abandoned by its inhabitants in recent years and ringed by poppy fields. Seven dead as Afghan forces trade fire with 'terrorists' 30 Apr 2008 Afghan security forces raided the Kabul hideout of militants with suspected links to the weekend attack on President Hamid Karzai, sparking a clash that left at least seven people dead Wednesday, officials said. Afghan forces kill 2 Taliban, woman, child in siege 30 Apr 2008 Afghan security forces surrounded a house in the capital Kabul on Wednesday and traded gunfire with 'Taliban insurgents' before blowing up the building and killing two 'militants' as well as a woman and child inside, officials said. Aust soldier stable after Afghanistan shooting 30 Apr 2008 An Australian soldier is being treated for a gunshot wound to the arm after a battle with 'insurgents' in Afghanistan's Uruzgan Province. The soldier's injuries are not life threatening and the Defence Department says he is in a stable condition in hospital. US report says al-Qaida gaining strength 30 Apr 2008 Al-Qaida [al-CIAduh] has rebuilt some of its pre-Sept. 11 capabilities from remote hiding places in Pakistan, leading to a jump in attacks last year in that country and neighboring Afghanistan, the Bush regime said Wednesday. Attacks in Pakistan doubled between 2006 and 2007 and the number of fatalities quadrupled, the State Department said in its annual terrorism report. [See: Billions in U.S. Aid to Pakistan Wasted, Officials Assert 24 Dec 2007 After the United States has spent more than $5 billion in a largely failed effort to bolster the Pakistani military effort against Al Qaeda and the Taliban, some American officials now acknowledge that there were too few controls over the money. See: US Senate approves Pakistan aid worth $785m 20 Dec 2007 The US Senate has approved a $785 million assistance package for Pakistan for the fiscal year 2008... on Tuesday night. ] Peace protesters deflate NZ spy base dome [Awesome!] 29 Apr 2008 Peace activists attacked and deflated a large inflatable globe housing a satellite dish at a top secret New Zealand spy base [part of a global signals interception network, Echelon] on Wednesday in protest at United States military actions. The group, calling itself ANZAC Ploughshares, said it cut through fences and razor wire and avoided electronic sensors to slash one of two 30-metre (98-ft) white globes with a sickle at the Waihopai base near Blenheim at the top of the South Island. Troops stranded by airline bankruptcy --Some may have to wait a week to get ride home 29 Apr 2008 The abrupt collapse of ATA Airlines has left an untold number of U.S. soldiers, sailors and Marines stuck in Iraqi and Afghan airports while they await a ride home. Some face travel delays of up to a week, military officials acknowledge. "It's hard to believe that when this bankruptcy happened, the Department of Defense didn't have a backup plan," Bret Rumbeck, press secretary for Rep. Jim Costa, D-Calif., said Tuesday. Army widens probe after finding bad conditions at Fort Bragg 29 Apr 2008 Army officials said Tuesday they are inspecting every barracks building worldwide to see whether problems revealed at Fort Bragg, N.C., last week are widespread. Brig. Gen. Dennis Rogers, who is responsible for maintaining barracks throughout the Army, acknowledged the revelations from a video shot by the father of an 82nd Airborne Division soldier showing poor conditions such as mold inside the barracks, peeling interior paint and a bathroom drain plugged with sewage. Police investigated in failed Australian terror inquiry 30 Apr 2008 In Australia, the much awaited judicial inquiry into the failed terrorism case against Indian doctor Muhammad Haneef has heard fresh calls for coercive powers to investigate the circumstances surrounding his arrest and detention last year. Wright Says U.S. Government Capable of Creating AIDS Virus --Hecklers turn mute as pastor cites documented history of biological warfare against innocent people By Paul Joseph Watson 29 Apr 2008 Barack Obama's outspoken pastor, Rev. Jeremiah Wright Jr., defended his statements accusing the U.S. government of deliberately engineering the AIDS virus as a means of genocide during a National Press Club appearance yesterday by citing the documented history of the U.S. government's involvement in biological warfare operations against innocent people. Asked if he stood behind previous statements about the U.S. government deliberately creating AIDS as a means of genocide against black people, Wright responded, "Have you read Horowitz' book - 'Emerging Viruses - AIDS and Ebola?'" [See also: Flu 'Oddities'.] Big-Oil Profit Seen Surging This Week 28 Apr 2008 Big Oil's profit juggernaut shows few signs of slowing, despite a weakening economy in the world's biggest fossil-fuel guzzler, the U.S. Normally, a slowing economy means less driving and therefore lower prices for gasoline and crude oil. This time around, however, a soft economy may mean bigger profits for Exxon Mobil Corp. and BP PLC which report first-quarter earnings this week. Bush says no 'magic wand' to lower fuel prices [Yeah, and too bad no 'magic wand' to make him 'disappear.'] 29 Apr 2008 U.S. President [sic] George W. Bush said on Tuesday there was no "magic wand" to bring down record-high fuel prices but would consider a proposal to suspend federal gasoline taxes this summer. Judge Orders Bush Administration to Stop Delaying Polar Bear Protection --Finds It Guilty of Violating Endangered Species Act 29 Apr 2008 A federal judge has found the Bush administration guilty of violating the Endangered Species Act and ordered the administration to issue a final listing decision for the polar bear by May 15, 2008. The polar bear, suffering as its Arctic sea ice habitat melts far faster than forecast, is one of the worlds most imperiled animals due to global warming. Bush has 16 days to decide whether polar bears are endangered 29 Apr 2008 The Bush administration has 16 days to decide whether polar bears are now an endangered species because of climate change, a California judge ruled today. The US court handed a victory to three environmental groups that sued to protect polar bears threatened by melting sea ice, rejecting a plea by the government to postpone its decision until June 30. Quick action! Help Protect Polar Bears (Center for Biological Diversity) 30 Apr 2008 Polar bears are in trouble. The melting of the Arctic is killing them. Some are already starving and drowning. The Bush administration has stalled a decision on whether protect the polar bear while it rushes forward with Arctic oil and gas leases. But now a federal judge has ordered the administration to make a final decision by May 15th. Please sign the petition urging the Secretary of Interior to list the polar bear as an endangered species and to protect its habitat. Witness says Hastert linked to alleged plot --House speaker would have picked Fitzgerald's replacement, defendant's ex-associate claims 29 Apr 2008 The name of former U.S. House Speaker Dennis Hastert was added Monday to the roster of political heavyweights linked by witnesses to an alleged plan to dump Chicago's top federal prosecutor and kill a criminal investigation into a top fundraiser for Gov. Rod Blagojevich. A witness at the corruption trial of Blagojevich insider Antoin "Tony" Rezko testified that Rezko told him in February 2005 about an effort under way to fire U.S. Atty. Patrick Fitzgerald and replace him with someone more compliant to be hand-picked by Hastert, then the top Republican in the House. Delegate Update: Obama 3, Clinton 2 30 Apr 2008 The Clinton and Obama campaigns announced one more superdelegate each. Today, Sen. Obama has three superdelegates to Sen. Clinton's two. Superdelegate Total: (280 uncommitted) Clinton 268-Obama 247. Pledged: Obama 1,490-Clinton 1,334 Overall: Obama 1,737-Clinton 1,602. Suspicious Phone Messages Target Black Voters in North Carolina --Watchdog Group Says Calls May Be Linked to Ones in Virginia and Ohio 30 Apr 2008 Misleading automated phone messages that have targeted African American voters in North Carolina have been linked to similar phone calls made in Virginia, say election officials. Obama Strikes Back, Denouncing Wright 29 Apr 2008 Sen. Barack Obama today strongly criticized the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, his former pastor, saying that Wright's comments about the United States in recent days have been "destructive" and "outrageous." Clinton Carpools in Indiana 30 Apr 2008 (South Bend) Like any hardworking, environmentally conscious American, Hillary Clinton carpooled to work this morning in South Bend, stopping by a gas station on the way to purchase some gas at $3.65 a gallon... At the Marathon gas station, Clinton stood beside Jason Allen Wilfing as he filled the tank of the borrowed car, while she spoke softly about her plans to reduce gas prices as more than a dozen reporters watched. (The total for the gas was $63.37 for a little under a half a tank; Clinton paid for it with campaign funds.) CLG needs your support. http://www.legitgov.org/#contribute Or, please mail a check or money order to the CLG: Citizens for Legitimate Government (CLG) P.O. Box 1142 Bristol, CT 06011-1142 Contributions to CLG are not tax deductible. [Previous lead stories:] Cheney lawyer claims Congress has no authority over vice-president --Cheney's conduct 'not within congressional committee's power of inquiry' 29 Apr 2008 The lawyer for US vice-president [sic] Dick Cheney claimed today that the Congress lacks any authority to examine his behaviour on the job. The exception claimed by Cheney's counsel came in response to requests from congressional Democrats that David Addington, the vice-president's chief of staff, testify about his involvement in the approval of interrogation tactics used at Guantanamo Bay. Ruling out voluntary cooperation by Addington, Cheney lawyer Kathryn Wheelbarger said Cheney's conduct is "not within the [congressional] committee's power of inquiry". Ex-Prosecutor Told By Pentagon 'There Could Be No Acquittals' of Detainees --Pentagon official insisted prosecutors use evidence derived from torture 29 Apr 2008 (Guantanamo Bay, Cuba) The former chief prosecutor here took the witness stand on Monday on behalf of a detainee and testified that top Pentagon officials had pressured him in deciding which cases to prosecute and what evidence to use. The prosecutor, Col. Morris D. Davis of the Air Force, testified that Pentagon officials had interfered with his work for political reasons and told him that charges against well-known prisoners "could have real strategic political value" and that there could be no acquittals. Testifying about his assertions for the first time, Colonel Davis said a senior Pentagon official who oversaw the military commissions, Brig. Gen. Thomas W. Hartmann of the Air Force Reserve, reversed a decision he had made and insisted that prosecutors proceed with evidence derived through waterboarding of prisoners and other aggressive interrogation methods that critics call torture. Mahathir calls for war crimes tribunal for US, UK leaders 27 Apr 2008 Former Malaysian prime minister Mahathir Mohamad called on Friday for an international tribunal to try Western leaders for war crimes over the war in Iraq, a spokesman for the organizers said. In a speech at Imperial College, Mahathir called for a tribunal to try US President [sic] George W. Bush and former prime ministers Tony Blair of Britain and John Howard of Australia for their part in the conflict, said a spokesman for the Muslim group the Ramadhan Foundation, which organized the event. [Yeah! And, feel free to 'proceed with evidence derived through waterboarding of prisoners and other aggressive interrogation methods that critics call torture.' --LRP] U.S. Importing 6,700 Tons of Radioactive Sand From Kuwait --Sand contaminated with DU and lead from U.S. Army base in Kuwait to be shipped to Idaho 28 Apr 2008 Longshoremen should finish unloading 6,700 tons of sand contaminated with depleted uranium and lead Tuesday afternoon, said Chad Hyslop, spokesman for the disposal company American Ecology. The BBC Alabama arrived at the Port of Longview (WA) Saturday afternoon with the 306 containers carrying the contaminated sand from Camp Doha, a U.S. Army base in Kuwait. Half of the containers will be loaded onto 76 rail cars and transported to the company's disposal site in Idaho. The other half will remain at the port until the trains return to haul them to Idaho. State Department of Health personnel are at the port to test radiation levels and to ensure none of the sand spills [!], Hyslop said. Please forward this newsletter to anyone you think might be interested. Those who'd like to be added to the list can go here: http://www.legitgov.org/#subscribe_clg and add your name. Those who wish to be removed from the list can access the same link and click 'unsubscribe.' Please write to: signup@legitgov.org for inquiries/issues/concerns with your subscription. CLG Newsletter editor: Lori Price, Manager. Copyright ) 2008, Citizens For Legitimate Government . All rights reserved. CLG Founder and Chair is Michael Rectenwald, Ph.D.