Politics - 31 August 2007

It was reported in Forbes.

2007-08-31 06:39:26 · 32 answers · asked by adam w 3

It seems like they're all a bunch of closeted folks up on Capitol Hill.

2007-08-31 06:37:44 · 15 answers · asked by Anonymous

Even though I'm not in a crisis?

2007-08-31 06:37:25 · 13 answers · asked by Chi Guy 5

Pearl Harbor is a drink one can get in a Chinese restaraunt.
Stores have Memorial and Veterans Day sales.
Will we ever disrespect 9/11 like we have these other days?
Or I am I overreacting??

2007-08-31 06:36:18 · 12 answers · asked by Supercell 5

2007-08-31 06:30:09 · 11 answers · asked by Chi Guy 5

Bush outlines aid for mortgage holders
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070831/ap_on_go_pr_wh/bush_housing_slump

2007-08-31 06:27:15 · 18 answers · asked by Chi Guy 5

2007-08-31 06:26:48 · 8 answers · asked by Anonymous

Why do you not see the difference?

2007-08-31 06:24:03 · 19 answers · asked by truthisback 3

2007-08-31 06:24:01 · 8 answers · asked by Anonymous

The Resemblance sticks, and their are too many smililarities to be ignored.

1.Like Hitler, Bush was not elected by a majority.
2.Like Hitler, Bush went on to pursue a reckless foreign policy
3.Like Hitler, Bush takes pride of his status as war president
4.Like Hitler, Bush is willing to go to war over the objections of the UN, in Hitlers case the (league of Nations)
5.Like Hitler, Bush depends on a military strategy that features a BlitzKrieg.
6.Like Hitler, Bush warfare on a single front, but than expanded it to a second front
7.Like Hitler, Bush depends on a Propaganda machine to guarentee sympathetic news management.(fox news)
8.Like Hitler, Bush curtails civil liberties in captive nations and depends on concentration camps, such as Guantanamo, Abu Gharib, ans a number of secret interrogation centers
9.Like Hitler, Bush uses the threat of enemies abroad to stir the fearful aliegiance of the US public
10.Like Hitler, Bush began to curtail civil liberties, due to disaster

2007-08-31 06:23:46 · 7 answers · asked by Anonymous

To insist on an independent enquiry surrounding ALL aspects of the supposed Terrorist attack?

With the President sub-poenaed and not accompanied by his boss.

2007-08-31 06:20:38 · 20 answers · asked by Dream Realized 2

2007-08-31 06:20:07 · 14 answers · asked by Anonymous

It wasn't more than 20 years ago that you had probably one of the most liberal people to ever run the House (Tip O'Niell), continually facing off with the man who personified the modern conservative movement (Ronald Reagan) on education, taxes, welfare, military spending and several other topics. Somehow, in spite of the obvious differences in ideology, they found a way to have a civil discussion and in the end, get the American people's business done. Don't think these two had a great love for the other's ideology. It's probably safe to say that each thought the other was full of cr@p. Still Republicans and Democrats could discuss topics and find a solution that was good for all.

My question to you is in two parts:

Part 1: Why have the political dynamics in this country changed so drastically? You might feel that everything is ok. Feel free to explain why you feel that way

Part 2: What can be done to fix it?

I'll pick a winner in a couple of days.

2007-08-31 06:16:07 · 5 answers · asked by Deep Thought 5

2007-08-31 06:11:53 · 38 answers · asked by Anonymous

The Government already gives medicaid and help to those in need. There is a lot of waste and fraud in these programs.
Do we need national helathcare too? Will we lose the freedom to control our own health?

Liberals do not want our Government to listen in on International PHONE CALLS from potential terrorists, but it is OKAY that our HEALTHCARE system is regulated by the Government? Does that make sense - it doesn't to me.

2007-08-31 06:08:14 · 21 answers · asked by Anonymous

2007-08-31 06:05:32 · 8 answers · asked by Anonymous

or has he given up because he knows America is no longer fooled?

2007-08-31 06:05:02 · 7 answers · asked by Dream Realized 2

Do you think more people will resign? If so who is next?

2007-08-31 05:58:29 · 16 answers · asked by Lindsey G 5

Did it hurt Republicans in general, but help the Bush administration?

2007-08-31 05:52:32 · 11 answers · asked by Anonymous

Remember when young Republicans were blond Aryan-types in pastel sweatervests driving Lamborghinis in 80s movies? I saw a kid of Facebook the other day who listed himself as conservative but claimed to love Orwell and Kurt Vonnegut (avowed Socialists). When did this happen? College kids used to be radicals. Damn The Man!

2007-08-31 05:50:34 · 17 answers · asked by amancalledj 4

America has been supporting Pakistan for a damn terrorism issue & Pakistan has been doing nothing. Pakistan is using the same money which US gives them to promote terrorism in India.

Now there is a huge possibility of war between these two traditional enemies. If it occurs, will America continue to supply arms to Pakistan to fight with India or will it take India's side because Pakistan has done nothing for USA OR WILL IT DO NOTHING THEN JUST WATCHING IT LIVE.

2007-08-31 05:47:27 · 7 answers · asked by Sandy Sphea 2

FLY THE FLAG campaign

THE PROGRAM IS THIS:

On Tuesday, September 11th, 2007, an American flag should be displayed outside every home, apartment, office, and store in the United States. Every individual should make it their duty to display an American Flag on this anniversary of our country's worst tragedy.
We do this in honor of those who lost their lives on 9/11, their families, friends and loved ones who continue to endure the pain, and those who today are fighting at home and abroad to preserve our cherished freedoms.
In the days, weeks and months following 9/11, our country was bathed in American flags as citizens mourned the incredible losses and stood shoulder-to-shoulder against terrorism. Sadly, those flags have all but disappeared. Our patriotism pulled us through some tough times and it shouldn't take another attack to galvanize us in solidarity. Our American flag is the fabric of our country and together we can prevail over terrorism of all kinds.

2007-08-31 05:44:18 · 36 answers · asked by xenypoo 7

Republicans say there is a media bias. A poll by msnbc proved this. Journalist 90% to 10% gave to dems in the 2004 election.
We know that scandels involving OUR party will be reported so much more than those on the left, correct?
IF we know this going in, why do we complain when it happens??
Republicans say it is not fair, and then point to liberal wrongdoings.
We all make mistakes, but we know republicans are held to a higher standard.
We claim to be the party of values, should we not prove it??

2007-08-31 05:44:13 · 10 answers · asked by Supercell 5

What exactly are their super powers and, do we presume that the terrorist powers in Iraq are even 'superer' ?!

2007-08-31 05:44:08 · 7 answers · asked by Dr Watson (UK) 5

I'm not criticizing Snow, and this has nothing to do with party, but he said he's leaving because he has to make more money... is his salary that low? Does anyone know how much he makes?

I'm actually a little shocked that someone with such an important job would leave because he has to make more money. I know he has cancer, and the federal medical package is actually pretty amazing, so I'm a little surprised he's giving it up for this reason.

2007-08-31 05:43:01 · 6 answers · asked by Bush Invented the Google 6

Military contractors that set up utilities, prepare food or make bulletproof vests are getting a big boost from the conflict. Here's who's getting the most money.


In a few weeks, Gen. David Petraeus and the Bush administration will report to Congress on the progress of the U.S. military's troop surge in Iraq.

But some of the war's winners are already clear: military contractors who supply everything from bodyguards to bombs, clean socks to ready-to-eat meals. "For the companies involved, this has been a real gravy train," says William Hartung, who tracks defense spending for the New America Foundation.

The White House has proposed military spending of $647 billion in 2008. Adjusted for inflation, that would be the highest level since World War II -- topping even expenditures during Vietnam and the Reagan years, calculates Hartung. The current request for Iraq-related spending for 2008 is $116 billion, which would raise total Iraq war spending to $567 billion.

Who's getting all that money? Sometimes it can be difficult to tell. "There isn't good visibility on where the money goes," says Steven Kosiak of the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments. But you can get a snapshot of who's been getting a good chunk of the Iraq-related spending in two ways.

The first step is to scour a vast database of more than $400 billion in annual government contracts, more than 70% of which are from the Department of Defense. It's called the Federal Procurement Data System. I turned to a private contractor of my own, Eagle Eye, for some (free) expert assistance in navigating the database. Eagle Eye mined the database for all Iraq-related contracts from 2003 through 2006 (the most recent year for which numbers are available). That catches everything from spending on base maintenance and bulletproof vests to ammo and combat boots. We tallied the numbers to find the top 10 companies out of thousands of contractors.

The second step is to look at the Pentagon's own budget to see which companies are building the major weapons systems that support the war in Iraq.

The Top 10
It's no surprise that KBR Inc. (KBR, news, msgs), a division of Halliburton (HAL, news, msgs) during the years we examined, tops the first list, compiled by Eagle Eye, with $17.2 billion in Iraq-related war revenue for 2003-2006. KBR is one of the largest construction and energy field-service companies in the world. It has a long history of collaborating with the U.S. government on war-related construction.

Videos: Recent news on Halliburton
In Iraq, KBR has been working on base construction and maintenance, oil-field repairs, infrastructure projects and logistics support. KBR got about a fifth of its revenue from the Iraq war in 2006, according to our calculations.

"We are proud to serve the troops," says a KBR spokeswoman. "We are providing the troops with essential services and the comforts of home that allow them to stay focused on the dangerous and important missions they face daily."

But why does a private-equity shop called Veritas Capital Fund take the No. 2 slot? That's easy. It specializes in investing in defense and aerospace companies. So Veritas owns a portfolio of companies -- and has a stake in others -- that pull down big Iraq-related contracts.

DynCorp International (DCP, news, msgs), which Veritas bought in 2005 and spun out last year, offers security services and police training, as well as logistical services. Veritas' McNeil Technologies provides interpreter and translation services to the military and U.S. government agencies in Iraq. Another of its companies, Wornick, supplies military rations.

It's also no big surprise that U.S.-based companies like Washington Group International (WNG, news, msgs), Fluor (FLR, news, msgs), Perini (PCR, news, msgs) and Parsons are on our top 10 list. They've landed many of the contracts to restore, repair and maintain oil fields, power plants, schools, public water systems and military bases. But the award of contracts to build the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad to First Kuwaiti General Trading & Contracting left many analysts scratching their heads.

Environmental Chemical does munitions disposal, while International American Products sets up systems that deliver electricity to military camps. L3 Communications (LLL, news, msgs) offers security screening services, linguists, training and law-enforcement services, and some equipment replacement.
Two companies that have seen their revenue shoot up the most in the ongoing military buildup -- largely because of Iraq-related spending -- are Armor Holdings and Renco, according to Hartung's calculations. They don't make our list because their overall defense-related revenue is too small. But they have done phenomenally well.

Armor Holdings, which sells vehicle and personnel armor, saw defense-related revenue shoot up 2,747% between 2001 and 2006, to $634.9 million. Armor is now a division of BAE Systems (BAESY, news, msgs).

Renco, which makes the extra-wide all-terrain vehicle known as the Humvee, saw Defense Department revenue rise 1,260% over the same period, to $1.9 billion.

Misspent funds
Not all of the Iraq-war money is well spent. "Because of the urgency of the war, a lot of these contracts have been subject to less scrutiny," says Hartung. Another problem is that the war has been funded outside of the regular defense budget process. Instead, it gets funded through "emergency" spending bills called supplementals, which offer much less detail and get less scrutiny on Capitol Hill.

Hartung believes we've only seen the tip of the iceberg in allegations of fraud and corruption related to Iraq war spending. "Congress is starting to look into it, but it has not yet gotten down to specific questions," says Hartung.

While all of these companies have benefited from the Bush administration's defense spending ramp-up since the terror attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, not all are equally exposed to the Iraq war effort, says defense sector analyst Paul Nisbet of JSA Research.

In addition to ships and Gulfstream planes, General Dynamics (GD, news, msgs) makes ground vehicles and ammunition, so it generates a fair amount of revenue directly from Iraq war spending. But Lockheed Martin (LMT, news, msgs), which is working on next-generation military aircraft and also makes military electronics and satellites, has little direct exposure to the war, says Nisbet. Neither does Northrop Grumman (NOC, news, msgs), which makes ships designed to last three decades or more.

Videos: Recent news on Lockheed Martin
Of all the companies on my second list, KBR saw some of the biggest revenue gains from the Iraq war. It was No. 37 on the Defense Department's top-100 list of military contractors in 2002. By 2006, KBR had climbed to No. 6.

2007-08-31 05:42:52 · 7 answers · asked by Anonymous

He will pull ahead of hillary and Rudy in the coming weeks???

http://news.yahoo.com/s/rasmussen/20070831/pl_rasmussen/giuliani47clinton4420070831_1

2007-08-31 05:40:22 · 14 answers · asked by Antiliber 6

2007-08-31 05:40:00 · 18 answers · asked by Anonymous

2007-08-31 05:34:21 · 11 answers · asked by ron j 1

I served 4 years in the military. There people who were not openly gay I served with.

I didn't care what they did when they went home as long as they did their job while they were working.

Military adaps, it did when blacks and whites intergrated..

2007-08-31 05:34:09 · 20 answers · asked by Anonymous