Friday Talking Points [147] -- Democrats Fighting The Good Fight
[ Posted Friday, November 19th, 2010 – 17:24 UTC ]
Well, I don't know about anyone else, but I thought that was a pretty good week for Democrats.
Archive of Articles in the "Military" Category
Signs Of Life From Obama And The Lame Duck
[ Posted Thursday, November 18th, 2010 – 18:00 UTC ]
Democrats seem to be eager to fight a few battles before the sun sets on the 111th Congress. Strong statements have come from the most unlikely people. Votes are being scheduled on some very contentious issues. This push seems coordinated between the White House, the Senate, the House, and even the Pentagon. Meaning that the lame duck session might be a lot more productive than generally assumed, in the end.
Heroes Never Call Themselves Heroes
[ Posted Tuesday, November 16th, 2010 – 18:23 UTC ]
For the first time since the Vietnam War, a Medal of Honor has been awarded to a living serviceman. The Medal of Honor is the highest military award America bestows, and not very many of them are handed out, so this is indeed news. There have been other Medal of Honor recipients since Vietnam, but all of them have been awarded posthumously -- a telling statement on the type of bravery it takes to earn this medal. And, inevitably, the word "hero" is used to describe the recipient.
Rare Earth Optimism
[ Posted Thursday, November 11th, 2010 – 18:53 UTC ]
The town of Mountain Pass, California, is about as close to a ghost town as you can get without actually being empty. The town lies fifteen miles in from the Nevada border, on the interstate highway route from Los Angeles to Las Vegas. It is a mining boom town that went bust -- and not back in the Wild West days, but very recently. But it's not just any mining town out in the desert, it's a very special one.
Obama's Next Steps
[ Posted Wednesday, November 10th, 2010 – 17:28 UTC ]
President Obama conveniently scheduled a trip to Asia immediately after this year's midterm elections. This has worked, so far, as designed -- it removed Obama from the political scene in Washington, while serious jockeying for position takes place among both major American political parties (leadership elections will be one of the first things the lame duck Congress will do when it reconvenes next week). This also has allowed Obama a pause to consider exactly what his next political steps are going to be, now that he faces two years of a politically-divided Congress (with Republicans in charge of the House, and Democrats still nominally in charge of the Senate).
Missile Launch West Of Los Angeles?
[ Posted Tuesday, November 9th, 2010 – 18:49 UTC ]
A missile apparently launched out of the ocean 35 miles west of Los Angeles last night, and the Pentagon has no idea what or whose it was. Now, I realize that we've all gotten a bit blasé over such things since the end of the Cold War, but this should really be front-page news, don't you think? If anyone either in the military or outside of it (a private American contractor who builds missiles, for example) got permission for such a launch, the Pentagon really should know something about it -- which they appear not to. Because if this was merely a matter of missed communications, that's one thing -- but any other plausible reason would be truly alarming. And the lack of knowledge at the Pentagon is disturbing, to say the least, when we're talking missiles being launched that close to one of America's biggest cities.
The Lame Duck Window
[ Posted Monday, November 8th, 2010 – 17:26 UTC ]
Democrats in the 111th Congress may be down, but they are not quite out yet. Due to the quirky nature of our political calendar, the "old" Congress will reconvene in a week or so, and stay in session through December, and then the "new" or incoming Congress will be convened for the first time in January. What, if anything, this "lame duck session" will accomplish is an open question. They certainly won't have any shortage of issues to tackle, and this may well be the last chance Democrats get at moving their agenda forward for the next two years. Whether they will take this window of opportunity to do so or not remains to be seen, though.
Terrifying Hallowe'en Nightmares, Left And Right
[ Posted Friday, October 29th, 2010 – 16:17 UTC ]
It's that time of year again... the time when we pre-empt our usual Friday Talking Points column here and instead gather 'round the virtual campfire and shove a metaphorical flashlight under our chin, and proceed to tell two tales of horror guaranteed to make your blood run like ice water in the veins, no matter which side of the political divide you hail from.
Friday Talking Points [143] -- Don't Ask, Don't Tell, Don't Appeal?
[ Posted Friday, October 15th, 2010 – 17:54 UTC ]
Of course, there was a bold way Obama could have acted on the issue, but looking at his past record, it would have been nothing short of downright astonishing if he had taken it. This would have been to perform what I would call (keeping in mind I am no lawyer, and realizing there already may be a term for this, which is unknown to me): "prosecutorial nullification." In other words, the government agency (in this case, the Attorney General) could have decided: "The judge is right, this is unconstitutional, therefore we will no longer defend this law in the courts, and let the ruling stand."
Two Opportunities For Leadership
[ Posted Tuesday, October 12th, 2010 – 17:26 UTC ]
Democrats, and President Obama in particular, have two opportunities to show some leadership right now, which come conveniently right before an election. The first of these opportunities is on the growing foreclosure crisis. The second is on the recent federal judge's ruling that will end the military's ability to enforce the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" (DADT) policy of excluding openly gay people from serving in the military. Democrats should use both of these opportunities as a chance to show some real leadership, and President Obama should be out in front leading this effort.