After showing his ass before the Iowa and New Hampshire votes were cast President Bill Clinton quietened down for a bit. He has been appearing in public more lately after a brief hiatus. It seems he is becoming visible again in a much more subdued form. The dutiful husband form. The under the thumb form. The FORMER president form.
But the real Bill story is coming from Santa Fe it seems. The democratic front runners are courting the man who dropped from the race January 10. The man who can help them win. The one person who has the right experience in foreign relations. New Mexico’s Governor Bill Richardson.
Bill Richardson’s record on a local, national and international level is tremendous. He worked in the Bill Clinton administration as an Ambassador to the U.N. as well as 14 years as congressman. He was our Secretary of Energy under Clinton. While serving our country he visited many countries around the world promoting good relations with “troublesome” leaders. He did such a good job in the old days with leaders like Saddam Hussein that George W Bush sent him to North Korea last year to deal with Kim Jong il and the nuclear crisis. He came away with success. N. Korea agreed to stop producing weapons and invited the U N to send in inspectors.
In New Mexico he pushed for a medical marijuana law that was shot down 6 times before it passed on the 7th try. Although the Feds are giving growers and patients grief he is pushing for less federal involvement on the laws of our nation. Maybe if he had a position high in the federal government the D.E.A. and other cops would start leaving individuals alone. When asked how the MMJ laws would affect his presidential campaign he said it didn’t matter as “it was the right thing to do”.
He has made law here that gives incentives to homeowners and businesses that go with alternative energy to power their electrical needs. Passed bills requiring the big power companies to use solar or wind for a growing percentage of their output.
He has demanded an end to the US occupation of Iraq. The return of our troops from the face of danger is a high priority in his political opinion. With 3970 American soldiers killed there so far he strongly supports the troops by calling for their rapid return.
President Clinton watched the Super Bowl with the Governor a few weeks ago. Mrs. Clinton stays in close touch with him. Barack Obama calls him often, on the average of every 3 days. They both have told him that they need him. His endorsement would swing so many votes their way and they both know his support would make the candidacy, and the election, theirs.
Richardson has said he is not going to put the offer of possibly being a Vice Presidential running mate or a Secretary of State appointment aside. He is staying in touch with both Obama and Clinton during their campaigns and is remaining friendly and non-controversial. No endorsements yet and thats probably a good thing.
If he were to become the VP nominee for either he would bring a lot to their campaign. Obama’s campaign would benefit from the experience and maturity he would bring. Clinton’s organization would be better off with his diplomatic attitude diverting the publics attention from the silly stuff her husband spews. The nation would be much better off with him as our Vice President what with his “progressive” ideas and policies. As Secretary of State he would be an asset to help heal the broken and bruised image of America the rest of the world has.
So with these thoughts, and others, in mind I am now going to make the Alien Trucker’s endorsement in this presidential race. I am saying, on the record, I am endorsing whoever Bill Richardson endorses. Especially if he is chosen as their running mate.
Does it really matter who I support? I don’t guess so but at least you know how I feel.
One of the reasons given when asked why the Romney 5 aren’t serving in our military was they were helping get their dad elected president. It was said that if he became president the troops would be better off. They would serve their country by working behind the scenes to improve the conflict in Iraq. The weak excuses offered for their lack of military service sickened me.
Now that he is out of the race do you think they will enlist? I doubt it. Their daddy supports the liars in this ongoing occupation but…senators sons usually don’t serve that way.
I believe they will be attending tea partays like this one. Their service is done.
(The video is a commercial thing from Smirnoff. Hope my use of it on this blog doesn’t offend the big corporation)
According to Time magazine 1 in 5 returning Iraq war vets have brain injuries.Most of these aren’t recognized bu the Veterans Administration as war injuries.
Ok, it’s about time. Or maybe it’s just another temporary thing that will have our soldiers returning to face a strengthened attack. Anbar province will be turned over to the Iraqis in March. Yes…that Anbar. The Sunni stronghold. The place that has housed and protected the Iraq branch of al-Qaida. The place where many of Americas troops have been killed or wounded.
We have seen some “progress” there what with so many of our troops occupying the region. We have armed the Sunni soldiers who according to reports have left the US sanctioned group in droves, most taking the US supplied weapons with them. The Iraqi Army is supposed to peacefully resume control of the area and our soldiers will be withdrawn. Not home where they belong, but to another part of Iraq.
I don’t think this will work. I believe that no matter how long the Coalition Of The Willing stays the civil war in Iraq will rage on for years, centuries, melliniums after they leave. Keeping our troops in Iraq is just costing us dearly. Lives are being lost, People are returning with permanent disabilities and our nations pocketbook is drained. All for the rights of the Iraqis to kill each other without the heavy hand of Saddam stopping them.
With 3921 US soldiers killed in Iraq so far and 29thousand injured I say its past time to turn Anbar, and the rest of the country, over to the Iraqis. It is, after all, their country.
Today Bill Richardson is supposed to announce he will drop from the race. His bid for the presidency has not gone well and although he came in fourth in both Iowas caucus and New Hampshires primary it was a distant fourth. I am really bummed from this news.
As a resident of the state he governs as well as an admirer of his past service to our country I hoped his ideas and ideals would take a front seat. He is the first political candidate I have ever felt strongly enough about to contribute money to the campaign. The first big name politician I have really admired. Even when his ideas weren’t popular he stuck with them.
He stuck with the conviction that compassionate medical marijuana should be available even when the state legislators shot down the idea 6 times. Finally he compromised a bit and got the bill passed. The compromise consisted of not allowing farmers grow weed for profit and the state would grow the crops. Or the patient could grow their own. Not a bad compromise considering that MMJ patients would be facing criminal charges under the old law. When asked how he felt his stance on medicine for very sick people would affect his bid for president he answered that he really didn’t care. It was the right thing to do. I like that attitude.
Looking around the state of New Mexico you can see windmills and solar panels every where. With tax breaks and other benefits the state has cleaner sources of power than before and more on the way. This came under his leadership.
His call to bring the troops home from Iraq within a year didn’t fit into the war machines plan to leave them there until at least 2013. All of the front runners on both sides of this two party system are going with the machines plan so they wont really be battled by Bushco as badly.
With his record in foreign policy and the hands on way he approached problematic leaders of the world he would have been the most qualified person for the job. He got stuff done in Korea, Iraq, Iran and many other places. He fought with words and won. Unlike the current policy of shoot, bomb and have no chance of winning.
I am really saddened by the way the frontrunners have been portrayed by the teevee media. Calling some rock stars and others comeback kids they completely ignored the reality based campaign of Richardson. I wish he had gotten the recognition he deserved.
Who knows? Maybe Barack or Hillary will ask him to be their running mate. V.P. would set him up to really help change the direction of our country. Set him up to be the president after next.
I can only hope.
In this war based on lies and deceit we Americans have suffered the biggest loss so far. In 2007 900 of our fellow citizens have died in Iraq. Despite victory being claimed at every turn our government keeps sending our young people to kill and die. Post surge violence in Baghdad is loudly touted as a new victory but the insurgents have just moved. Some north, some south. They had enough sense to move their battle to where US troops aren’t.
With a new battle front on the Turkish border the war rages with a renewed intensity. In a region under battle clouds for the length of history there is no wonder the war is going on in different locations. As this past week has shown us civil wars and unrest isn’t limited to Iraq. Pakistan has their version of internal strife and the battle rages on. Israel and Palestine are warring over a rock they both consider holy. I guess the Bush administration thought they could get somewhere trying to force democracy down another cultures throat.
The high number of losses is just a few short of the 4000 predicted if the surge hadn’t “worked”. Officially the number of US soldiers killed is 3902. That is a number too high. Even without the additional soldiers that would be too many losses. Kids dying for a false patriotism has always been bad in my book but these young people continue to be lied to and continue to swallow the lies. The deaths of our soldiers is horrible. Equally horrible are the permanent injuries to the men and women of our national security forces. 28,711 soldiers have been injured in the Iraq conflict.
Injured soldiers range from quick fixes to multiple amputees and severe brain injuries. A lot of the injured soldiers are ok in hours or days and return to battle. Thousands have returned to their homeland forever disabled though. The military medical system is in poor shape. Probably the poorest since our civil war in the 1860’s. We all remember the Walter Reed Hospital scandal this year. The miserable conditions aren’t just at W.Reed though. The whole system is in shambles.
There is an average wait of 25 months to get classified as disabled by the Veterans Administration. This means soldiers with their limbs blown off, sitting in wheel chairs are being denied medical, disability pay and shelter. Many become homeless or have to return to their parents house until the government they served so well decides to treat their injuries as real. According to the estimates John Edwards quoted in his Christmas ad that ran in Iowa and New Hampshire, 1 in 4 of our nations homeless are military veterans. Those numbers aren’t all Iraq vets but according to the VA the number of homeless who served in Iraq and Afghanistan are growing daily.
Both the Senate and the House overwhelmingly passed a bill just before the holiday break that not only gave the soldiers a 3.5 percent pay raise but also funded revamping the crippled medical system for returning vets. The bill also included some thing about releasing Iraqi funds to settle lawsuits against the Iraqi government for atrocities from the Hussein regime.
Sitting in Crawford TX on yet another vacation, our president is ignoring the bill as a pocket veto. If congress isn’t in session for 10 days and the president doesn’t sign the bill then it is considered a veto. Bush doesn’t want to piss the Iraqi’s off so the bill will remain unsigned. He doesn’t care about the troops. He doesn’t care if those injured come back to nothing. He isn’t concerned about the paychecks of those who are putting their very lives on the line for Bushco. He doesn’t give any thought about the American peoples desires.
George W. Bush cares more for the puppet regime he installed in Iraq than he does Americans. He obviously isn’t a patriot. He is harming the troops to benefit the government of a country we are at war with.
Alien Trucker
February 23rd, 2008 by Rocky 
1 Comment »
