U.S. Senate approves $165 billion in new war money 22 May 2008 Resent-Date: Fri, 23 May 2008 00:19:38 -0500 (CDT) Breaking News and Commentary from Citizens For Legitimate Government 22 May 2008 http://www.legitgov.org/ All items are here: http://www.legitgov.org/#breaking_news Vichy Democrats appease Hitler: U.S. Senate approves $165 billion in new war money 22 May 2008 The U.S. Senate on Thursday approved an additional $165 billion to wage war in Iraq and Afghanistan for another year after lawmakers blocked proposed timetables for withdrawing American troops from Iraq. Iraqi TV station says U.S. troops killed cameraman 22 May 2008 An Iraqi television station accused U.S. troops on Thursday of shooting dead one of its cameramen as he walked to his Baghdad home. The body of a second journalist, Haidar Hashim al-Husseini, a reporter for al-Sharq newspaper, was found dumped in a field with nine other corpses in Diyala province, police and colleagues said. 2 Children Among Dead Following US Strike in Iraq 22 May 2008 Iraqi police say a U.S. military strike killed eight people, including two children, north of Baghdad. The police officials say the helicopter strike targeted at least one vehicle near the town of Baiji Wednesday. US helicopter strike kills eight in Iraq 22 May 2008 US helicopters... attacked two cars near a town northwest of Baghdad and killed eight civilians, including two children, local police said on Thursday. The strafing by two US helicopters occurred near the town of Baiji on Wednesday evening, a police official said, adding that the bodies of six people were mutilated beyond recognition. Petraeus terms military action in Iran "last resort" [i.e., McCain down in the polls as the 'election' approaches] 22 May 2008 The United States should increase diplomatic and economic pressure on Iran to counter its rising influence, while retaining possible military action as a "last resort," a top U.S. military officer [Gen. David Betrayus] said on Thursday. Rice warns of more sanctions on Iran 22 May 2008 The United States will aggressively impose more sanctions on Iran as long as it refuses to give up sensitive nuclear work and uses the world's financial system for "terrorism," U.S. Secretary of State [war criminal] Condoleezza Rice said on Thursday. Medvedev warns over US missile defence plans 22 May 2008 Russia's new president, Dmitry Medvedev, warned on Thursday of "an adequate response" to US missile defence plans in Europe but said Moscow was still ready to negotiate with Washington. U.S. Iraq deserter loses bid to stay --Faces deportation after assessment found no risk of unusual punishment, treatment 22 May 2008 After a 22-month battle to earn a home in Toronto, a former American soldier [Corey Glass] was told yesterday he will become the first Iraq War resister to be deported from Canadian soil after his application to stay in the country was rejected. Pelosi denies Olmert proposed U.S. blockade of Iran 22 May 2008 Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert did not propose a U.S. naval blockade of Iran during talks with U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi, the California Democrat's office said on Thursday. Global Peace Index: Israel hits rock bottom --Economist Intelligence Unit ranks Israel 136th out of 140 countries, alongside Afghanistan, Chad 20 May 2008 Iceland is the world's most peaceful nation while Israel ranked 136th out of 140 nations, according to the "Global Peace Index," compiled by the Economist Intelligence Unit. The study ranked the United States 97th out of 140 countries according to how peaceful they were domestically and how they interacted with the outside world. Investigators to confront Olmert with new evidence --Police team to arrive at prime minister's Jerusalem residence Friday morning for questioning session 23 May 2008 Police investigators are scheduled to arrive at Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's Jerusalem residence at 10 am Friday for yet another question session in connection with the bribery probe against the PM. Investigators are expected to confront the prime minister with new evidence accumulated during the recent interrogations of Olmert's close associate Uri Messer and businessman Moshe (Morris) Talansky. House Clears Military Tax Bill Closing Contractor Loophole 20 May 2008 The House of Representatives Tuesday passed unanimously legislation that would force Pentagon mercenaries to pay Social Security and Medicare taxes for certain of their employees operating in Iraq and elsewhere overseas. The payroll tax loophole has been used by Iraq contractors including KBR, Inc., (KBR) and MPRI, a unit of L-3 Communications (LLL). Every $10 oil rise ups Air Force costs $610 million 22 May 2008 The U.S. Air Force operates the "world's largest airline" and every $10-per-barrel increase in crude oil boosts its annual operating costs by $610 million, Air Force Secretary Michael Wynne said on Thursday. FBI terrorism units badly run, understaffed: agent 21 May 2008 FBI counterterrorism units are dangerously ill-equipped and barely 60 percent of the supervisory positions in the division that tracks al Qaeda [al-CIAduh] were filled as of March, a bureau agent told Congress on Wednesday. Last year the bureau assigned 12 staffers with no counterterrorism experience to work as international terrorism supervisors, agent Bassem Youssef said. Moles Wanted --In preparation for the Republican National Convention, the FBI is soliciting informants to keep tabs on local protest groups 21 May 2008 ..The University of Minnesota sophomore said the FBI agent and police officer were looking for an informant--someone to show up at "vegan potlucks" throughout the Twin Cities and rub shoulders with RNC protestors, schmoozing his way into their inner circles, then reporting back to the FBIs Joint Terrorism Task Force, a partnership between multiple federal agencies and state and local law enforcement. Dangers of mainland DHS disease lab debated at hearing 22 May 2008 One of the nation's oldest farm groups said Thursday a proposed foot-and-mouth disease research laboratory on the U.S. mainland, near livestock, could be an inviting target for terrorists. Commercial livestock representatives and the Bush regime insisted it would be safe to move an island lab to sites near animals. Such work now is confined to the 840-acre Plum Island, N.Y., off the northeastern tip of Long Island. Foot-and-mouth disease has been classified as a national security issue at least since 2003, when the Homeland Security Department took control of the island from the Agriculture Department, which had run it since the mid-1950s. Alaska to sue to block polar bear listing 22 May 2008 The state of Alaska will sue the U.S. government to stop the listing of the polar bear as a threatened species, arguing the designation will slow development in the state, Gov. Sarah Palin said on Wednesday. Palin said the state will file a lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Washington challenging U.S. Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne's decision to grant Endangered Species Act protections to the polar bear. More political meddling found in species decisions in California 21 May 2008 The Bush administration politically tinkered with more endangered species decisions in California than previously admitted, federal investigators revealed Wednesday. Decisions concerning the California tiger salamander, Sacramento splittail and other species exemplified a pattern of interference by former Interior Department official Julie MacDonald, investigators told a House panel. MacDonald invariably moved to restrict species protections. "Her fingerprints have been all over countless decisions," said Rep. Nick Rahall, D-W.Va., the chairman of the House Natural Resources Committee. Former Bush aide Rove again subpoenaed in probe --Rove to again refuse to testiLIE, citing 'executive privilege' 22 May 2008 Karl Rove, who had been one of President [sic] George W. Bush's top aides, was subpoenaed on Thursday for a second time to testiLIE in a congressional probe of the administration's firing of federal prosecutors. The former deputy White House chief of staff quickly indicated through his attorney he would again refuse, citing executive privilege that protects conversations between a president and his staff. RNC Hiring Rove Protege to Dig Oppo Research On Obama By Greg Sargent 22 May 2008 The Republican National Committee is hiring one of the party's toughest oppo-researchers -- former Karl Rove protege Tim Griffin, who was also at the center of the U.S. Attorney scandal -- to dig into Barack Obama's past and unearth info to damage his general election candidacy, a senior Republican operative confirms to me. Clinton may take delegate fight to convention 21 May 2008 Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton has raised the possibility she might carry her fight to the Democratic convention floor. In an interview with The Associated Press, Clinton said she is willing to take her fight to seat Florida and Michigan delegates to the convention if the two states want to go that far. Clinton stronger in swing states, polls say 22 May 2008 For a campaign struggling against the inexorable tide of numbers, some new poll numbers out today could provide a lifeline. Quinnipiac University surveys of key fall swing states shows Hillary Clinton with sizable leads over Republican John McCain in Florida, Ohio, and Pennsylvania, while Barack Obama, who is on the verge of clinching the Democratic nomination, trails McCain in two of the three. Polls: Registered Dems Still Prefer Clinton By Daniel Nichanian 22 May 2008 A lot of presidential polls to digest today, as SUSA, Rasmussen and two other polling groups released new match-ups for a total of 8 states with some surprises and some expected results... In North Carolina, SUSA finds surprising results: Hillary Clinton is leading McCain 49% to 43%, while Obama is trailing 51% to 43%. Reuters/Zogby: Mood of Americans Turns Dour --Survey shows job approval for President [sic] Bush hits all-time low of 23%; Congress slumps back to record-low mark of 11% 21 May 2008 The job approval rating for the President have hit an all-time low, and now stand at just 23%, down from 27% in April and surpassing his previous record-low approval of 25% in October of 2007. Oil pulls back after hitting record above $135 22 May 2008 Oil prices pulled back sharply from a record above $135 a barrel on Thursday as dealers took profits from a dazzling rally and a recovering U.S. dollar dampened commodities markets. U.S. crude settled down $2.36 at $130.81 a barrel after jumping earlier in the session to a record $135.09. Big Oil defends profits before irate senators --Five oil companies earned $36 billion during the first three months of 2008. 21 May 2008 On a day oil prices leaped to unheard-of highs, senators lined up Big Oil's biggest executives and pummeled them with complaints that they're pretending to be "hapless victims" while raking in record profits. Uranium Producer Warns of Lake Ontario Pollution 22 May 2008 Cameco, the worlds largest uranium producer, has told the Canadian nuclear regulator that its refinery might have leaked uranium, arsenic and fluorides into Lake Ontario. The plant at Port Hope, Ontario, across the lake from Rochester and down the shore from Toronto, first refined uranium for the Manhattan Project during World War II. It has been temporarily closed since July to remove contaminated soil. A spokesman for Cameco, Lyle Krahn, said Wednesday that a computer model created for the cleanup, which is several months behind schedule, indicated that the radioactive and toxic materials have been polluting a harbor adjacent to the factory. The harbor leads directly to the lake. Tempe firm to pay $130K for hazardous waste violations 22 May 2008 A Tempe firm [IMC Magnetics] will pay $130,000 for violating Arizona hazardous waste statutes in a settlement announced Thursday by Attorney General Terry Goddard and Arizona Department of Environmental Quality Director Steve Owens. Italy wants to bring back nuclear power 22 May 2008 Italy's industry minister says the new government plans to [insanely] restart the country's nuclear power program. Claudio Scajola told a business lobby group Thursday that the government has scheduled the start of construction of the first new nuclear-powered plant by 2013. AP: Leaky New Orleans levee alarms experts 21 May 2008 Despite more than $22 million in 'repairs,' a levee that broke was exploded with catastrophic effect during Hurricane Katrina is leaking again because of the mushy ground on which New Orleans was built, raising serious questions about the reliability of the city's flood defenses. The Army Corps of Engineers has spent about $4 billion so far of the $14 billion set aside by Congress to repair and upgrade the metropolitan area's hundreds of miles of levees by 2011. Halliburton's KBR unit gets contract to repair Gulf Coast facilities 06 Sep 2005 Halliburton Co.'s Kellogg Brown & Root subsidiary has begun work on a $500 million U.S. Navy contract for emergency repairs at Gulf Coast naval and marine facilities that were damaged by Hurricane Katrina, according to an Associated Press report. Bush bin Laden is giving away US infrastructure so that his corpora-terrorist cronies can build (at taxpayer expense) the Trans-Texas Corridor. Two groups bid for Pa. Turnpike lease: WSJ 11 May 2008 At least two [foreign] groups submitted undisclosed cash offers for the 75-year lease of the Pennsylvania Turnpike, The Wall Street Journal reported on Sunday. One group is led by Spanish toll-road operator Abertis Infraestructuras SA, while the second group includes Spain's Cintra Concesiones de Infraestructura de Transporte SA and Australia's Macquarie Infrastructure Group, the newspaper said in a report on its website. Toll Road Giant Buys Newspapers to Silence Critics --Critics charge that the Macquarie purchase of American Consolidated Media is designed to silence critics of a Texas toll road project. 26 Jan 2007 Australian toll road giant Macquarie agreed Wednesday to purchase forty local newspapers, primarily in Texas and Oklahoma, for $80 million. Macquarie Bank is Australia's largest capital raising firm and has invested billions in purchasing roads in the US, Canada and UK. Most recently the company joined with Cintra Concesiones of Spain in a controversial 75-year lease of the 157-mile Indiana Toll Road. Sal Costello, head of the Texas Toll Party, says the move is directly related to a 4000-mile toll road project known as the Trans-Texas Corridor. Appeals Court Rules Against Texas in Polygamy Case 22 May 2008 A Texas appeals court ruled Thursday that state authorities and a lower court judge abused their authority by illegally seizing up to 468 children from their homes at a polygamist ranch in West Texas last month. Lost parrot tells veterinarian his address 21 May 2008 When Yosuke the parrot flew out of his cage and got lost, he did exactly what he had been taught -- recite his name and address to a stranger willing to help. Police rescued the African grey parrot two weeks ago from a neighbor's roof in the city of Nagareyama, near Tokyo. After spending a night at the station, he was transferred to a nearby veterinary hospital while police searched for clues, local policeman Shinjiro Uemura said. He kept mum with the cops, but began chatting after a few days with the vet. "I'm Mr. Yosuke Nakamura," the bird told the veterinarian, according to Uemura. The parrot also provided his full home address, down to the street number. 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:] Snakes and Superdelegates --The US media is using the election itself as a distraction for war crimes that are being carried out in our name, every day. By Lori Price 21 May 2008 While the US media obsesses on delegates, superdelegates and whether or not Hillary Clinton is using math formulae hallowed by MSNBC, we learn that US interrogators used snakes to torture prisoners (that's right, PentaPost --torture, not 'interrogate' and prisoners, not 'detainees') at Guantanamo Bay - while the FBI watched. Former Clinton Whitehouse aide: We're in for a "cataclysmic" Bush endgame --Sidney Blumenthal says Bush feels "unconstrained." 20 May 2008 Sidney Blumenthal, journalist, former Clinton White House aide and senior advisor to Hillary Clinton, today spoke at Third Way... He said that the US faces a "cataclysmic" final few months of the Bush term, and that Bush is determined to leave a lasting mark on the world regardless of who is elected the next president. "Bush feels unconstrained right now, and a sense of urgency," Blumenthal said, later referring to a Jerusalem Post story that warns Bush plans to attack Iran before his term ends in January. Israel PM calls for naval blockade of Iran 21 May 2008 Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has urged the United States to impose a naval blockade on Iran [an act of war] to pressure it to stop its controversial nuclear programme, the Haaretz daily reported on Wednesday. Rafi Eitan, a member of Olmert's security cabinet, said he also favoured air travel restrictions against Iran. "A blockade of maritime and air routes against Iran is a good possibility," Eitan, the minister in charge of pensioners' affairs, told public radio. "There are voices we hear in Washington that indicate the military option remains open," he added. 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.