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President Bush: water boarding “safe,” “legal”

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President Bush gave a disturbing national radio address this morning where he called the various techniques used by the CIA to question suspected terrorists both “safe” and “legal.”

Look, I’m no watchdog. I’m not screaming for CIA reform or complete transparency or whatnot, but the simple fact is that water boarding is a form of torture. It’s internationally recognized as a form of torture. It has killed people in the past.

And our president not only sanctions it, he defends it and calls it necessary and safe and legal.

This is where we’re at now.

Gore wins Nobel Prize!

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Former Vice President and Al Gore has won the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize along with the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change for their work to educate the public on Global Warming.

The award citation partially read: Al Gore “is probably the single individual who has done most to create greater worldwide understanding of the measures that need to be adopted,”

Gore was traveling with his wife and released a statement saying: “We face a true planetary emergency. The climate crisis is not a political issue, it is a moral and spiritual challenge to all of humanity. It is also our greatest opportunity to lift global consciousness to a higher level.”

The question remains. Will Al Gore run for president again?

NEWSWEEK POLL: Iraq troop “surge” a Failure

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The President’s war strategy in Iraq is failing, two thirds of Americans believe.

There is overwhelming support for lowering the numbers of troops in Iraq, but only 20 percent of responders to a recent Newsweek poll favor a complete withdrawal.

Nearly seven in 10 (68 percent) Americans disapprove of the way the president is handling the war in Iraq. Public approval of the president’s handling of Iraq has remained below the 30 percent mark since January, when he announced his plans to increase the number of troops deployed there. (The public’s approval of Bush’s overall handling of the war has been below the 50 percent mark since February of 2004).

64 percent of Americans surveyed deem the recent troop surge to be a failure while only 22 percent say it’s been a success.

In the mean time, the President’s approval rating remains below 30 percent, but rose 3 points from an earlier poll a few weeks ago.

American’s remain cautious that an immediate and complete withdrawal from Iraq will leave the country in chaos and disarray. A phased, eventual withdrawal was what the vast majority of survey respondents favored.

The poll also found that in spite of people’s desire to leave Iraq, less than 30 percent of Americans “are somewhat or very confident that the Iraqi government is equipped to control sectarian violence and provide security to its citizens once troops pull out,” the survey found.

President Bush continues to call the war in Iraq a battle with al Qaeda, saying troop withdrawal would force “mass killings on a horrific scale.”

40 percent of the Newsweek poll blamed the President for the problems in Iraq with 33 percent blaming the Iraqi government.

I’ll show you mine, you show me yours

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“To oppose everything while proposing nothing is irresponsible,” President Bush said as reported by CNN.

And he’s absolutely right in this case.

What are the alternatives? What are the competing ideas? Where are the opposition suggestions? Democrats won in November, and now it’s time for them to earn their keep. Exactly what should we do about Iraq? What is the plan?

Stop screaming that the president’s plan sucks and tell me something.

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