Lets Find You: The Ben and Ink Series (Paperback)

Biography
Jeffrey D. Barbieri resides in NJ and is married to Elizabeth. They have two cats, Oscar and Lilly who they care for.

They are believers in giving back to their community and are part of PaperHouses.org as well as saveagato.org

Jeffrey is a musician and plays the guitar, piano and drums. He enjoys song writing and creating emotions through music.

He has taught Sign Lanugage for the last 13 years and enjoys meeting others who have the same passion.

Let's Find You chronicles Ben's remarkable upbringing in a singularly unique family, one where a new crisis is always just around the corner.
Told in a mix of prose and poetry, the compelling coming-of-age narrative follows Benjamin from a young boy into early adulthood.

He and his brothers routinely fight, and his mother remains an elusive figure in his life, constantly moving the family from place to place.

But there's also plenty to laugh over - from the wacky garbage men tale to the creature he encounters along the way.

Can Benjamin survive his family, and find his true sense of self?

Let's Find You is the ultimate guide into the heart and soul of a teenage boy as he journeys through car crashes, near-death experiences and melted chocolate...

Mariah Carey: Something in Common With Whitney Houston?

Arguably two of the most talented singers in the record books, Mariah Carey and Whitney Houston have made names for themselves as commercially successful pop vocalists.

The careers of the two iconic beauties mirrored each other throughout the 1990s, with many people drawing comparisons between them. Both women were aligned with two of the most influential men in the music business, Tommy Mottola and Clive Davis, respectively, and both have survived controversy only to rise to the top of the charts again and resurrect their careers.

In our latest round of Tale of the Tape, we stack up "Mimi" and "The Voice" to see whether they had more in common than just their cultural impacts.

The Full Story

Man Charged With Raping and Beating His 8-Day-Old Daughter

Reginald Davis, 18, of Arkansas was arrested for allegedly raping and beating his 8-day-old baby daughter. The video below shows the account of the story.

This story, while certainly shocking, opens the door to a few questions:
1) Should laws against child sex offenders be strengthened? Whoopi Goldberg took heat for her defense of Hollywood director Roman Polanski after he was arrested for allegedly raping and drugging a 13-year-old girl in 1978. Does this say that our nation doesn't take crimes against children seriously? Does the child's age make a difference? If so, in what way? Should we see Polanski and Davis in the same light?

2) Obviously Davis is either mentally ill or on drugs (no normal human being would commit such a heinous crime). Should this be taken in to account in his sentencing? If so, in what way?

3) Should child sex offenders be allowed to have children? If so, then how do we protect the children from their parents?

I am not here to provide answers to these questions, for I am not sure what the answers are. I invite readers to chime in with their reactions. The video of the Davis incident is below.



Dr. Boyce Watkins is a professor at Syracuse University, a leading black speaker and author of the forthcoming book 'Black American Money.' To have Dr Boyce's commentary delivered to your e-mail, please click here.

SCLC narrows finalists for new president to 2

The civil rights group co-founded by the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. narrowed the list of finalists for its next president Saturday to his youngest daughter and an Arkansas judge.

The Southern Christian Leadership Conference's board of directors will consider the Rev. Bernice King and Arkansas Court of Appeals Judge Wendell Griffen for the organization's top spot. They will succeed the Rev. Byron Clay, who has served as interim president since February, when Charles Steele resigned after five years in the position.

The SCLC will hold elections to select the next president Oct. 29 at the group's Atlanta headquarters. The two finalists were chosen from a list of five candidates.

Martin Luther King Jr. was the SCLC's first president, serving from 1957 until his death in 1968. His son, Martin Luther King III, was president from 1997 to 2004.

If she is chosen, Bernice King would be the first woman to lead the SCLC. Its longest serving president was the Rev. Joseph Lowery, who served from 1977 to 1997.

Infighting and a lack of permanent leadership have become issues in recent years, but the SCLC has been focused on rebuilding and redefining its agenda in a heightened climate of racial awareness sparked by the election of Barack Obama.

Bernice King, 46, is an internationally known motivational speaker and author. She received her bachelor's from Spelman College and her master's of divinity and law degree from Emory University.

King is a minister at New Birth Missionary Church in Lithonia, Ga.

She was five when her father was assassinated in Memphis, Tenn., in 1968.

King did not immediately return a call seeking comment Saturday.

Griffen, 57, was the first black attorney to work for a major Arkansas law firm when he joined Wright, Lindsay & Jennings in 1979. He is an Arkansas native who earned his bachelor's degree from the University of Arkansas in 1973 and served in the U.S. Army before attending law school.

He headed the Arkansas Workers' Compensation Commission for two years under then-Gov. Bill Clinton starting in 1985. He joined the Court of Appeals in 1996.

Griffen is an ordained minister and former pastor who serves as coordinator of ministries at Mt. Pleasant Baptist Church in Little Rock. He could not immediately be reached for comment Saturday.

T-Boz Reveals Secret Battle with Brain Tumor

Tionne "T-Boz" Watkins revealed that she has been waging a secret battle against a brain tumor that was diagnosed in 2006.

In the Oct. 12 edition of People magazine, the 39-year-old said that she underwent a seven-hour surgical procedure back in 2006, during which doctors peeled the tumor from her brain stem by making a cut behind her ear.

The divorced single mother of one said she was battling the tumor earlier this year during filming of NBC's "Celebrity Apprentice," but didn't want to make it known to the public.

"I didn't want pity. I was there to help sick children," she told People.

T-Boz, who also suffers from the blood disorder sickle cell anemia, competed on Donald Trump's reality series to raise funds for the Sickle Cell Foundation of Georgia.

She said people are "shocked" when she tells them the news, but added, "I won't let you feel sorry for me."

Former foster child in Chicago now a million-dollar scholar

Scholarships flooded in for an A student with a lost childhood


Quarles in swimming class. His journey to Morehouse, where he is on a full scholarship, is a testament to his determination to prove that he is better than his beginnings. "After so many people put me down, I said, 'I'm gonna show you.' " (Tribune photo by William DeShazer / September 18, 2009)

ATLANTA - -- Derrius Quarles leans back in his seat and methodically debates Aristotle's theory of truth during freshman honors English class at Morehouse College.

He strides across campus in a navy blue tailored suit and a bold red sweater handing out business cards that boast "Student/Entrepreneur/Leader."

But behind the 19-year-old's dauntless appearance is a past that few on campus know.

When Quarles was 5, the state took him away from his mother. He spent his childhood bouncing from home to home before ending up on his own at 17 in an apartment on Chicago's South Side.

His arrival at a prestigious, historically African-American college -- with more than $1 million in scholarship offers -- is a story of inspiration and anguish. And it's a testament to his determination to prove that he is better than his beginnings.

"You can't go around thinking you are inferior just because you didn't have parents," he says. "For me, it's about knowing where you are from and accepting it, but more important, knowing where you are going."

The Full Story

Jesse Jackson, Louis Farrakhan attend Chicago teen's funeral

Derrion Albert, 16, was beaten to death last week in a melee captured on cellphone video. The civil rights leader and the Nation of Islam figure use the occasion to call for an end to violence.

Reporting from Chicago - A Chicago teenager beaten to death on his way home from school was laid to rest Saturday after a three-hour funeral, during which civil rights leader Jesse Jackson and Nation of Islam Minister Louis Farrakhan called for an end to youth violence.

Footage of the brutal attack last month on Derrion Albert, a 16-year-old honor student, was recorded with a cellphone camera, and captured the nation's attention.

President Obama has announced that Atty. Gen. Eric H. Holder and Education Secretary Arne Duncan will go to Chicago this week to look into the incident. And Obama's spokesman has indicated the administration is preparing an initiative to address the national issues of youth crime and violence.

Police have said Albert got caught up in a fight between factions of students as he walked to a bus stop after school; he was struck with wood planks, punched and stomped. Four teens have been jailed and charged in his death.

Several ministers have used the boy's death as a call to action, encouraging parents to reclaim and protect their children.

Farrakhan on Saturday said he was bothered to hear a father say on a TV report that young people were not salvageable. "I believe all of us can be saved," Farrakhan said. "[Derrion's] righteous life served as a redemptive force to make us get up and save our children."

Farrakhan on Saturday said he was bothered to hear a father say on a TV report that young people were not salvageable. "I believe all of us can be saved," Farrakhan said. "[Derrion's] righteous life served as a redemptive force to make us get up and save our children."

And, Jackson said, students have the right to attend the "closest and safest school possible" rather than have to take multiple buses to get home.

"Why send these children into harm's way every day?" Jackson asked. "These are war zones. This wasn't an incident, it's a pattern."

Jackson led those attending the service in a spontaneous offering on behalf of the family. Many who filled the 2,500 sanctuary seats walked to the front of the church and contributed.

Pictures and honor roll certificates that were taped on the wall of Albert's living room last week were turned into a five-minute looping slide show at the funeral. Mourners watched it play on the projection screen while they stood in line to view his body before the service started.

Droves of teenagers were in attendance, many wearing T-shirts with pictures of Albert. Others wore pictures of him around their necks like school badges. Teenagers wiped away tears as they leaned on the shoulders of adults for comfort.

In her first public remarks since the melee, Fenger High School Principal Elizabeth Dozier expressed her sympathy to Albert's family and said the teen had "built peaceful relationships with others" and that those at the school had "cherished his sweet spirit and intellect."

In one of the service's most emotional moments, Greater Mt. Hebron Pastor E.G. Ledbetter Jr. told those gathered at the South Side church that there "is no simple fix for what is wrong in our nation."

Every time someone kills, Ledbetter said, the perpetrator dies too. "A lot of folks died when Derrion died," he said. "The ones who were joking and laughing, and the ones standing in the street who did not help and rescue him."

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's family was Jewish

Damien McElroy and Ahmad Vahdat report in this morning’s The Daily Telegraph (U.K.) that Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s family has Jewsih roots. During the recent Iranian election he held up his identity papers for a photograph. The notations on that document indicate that his family changed their name from Sabourjian to Ahmadinejad after he was born.

The Sabourjians traditionally hail from Aradan, Mr Ahmadinejad’s birthplace, and the name derives from “weaver of the Sabour”, the name for the Jewish Tallit shawl in Persia. The name is even on the list of reserved names for Iranian Jews compiled by Iran’s Ministry of the Interior…

The Iranian leader has not denied his name was changed when his family moved to Tehran in the 1950s. But he has never revealed what it was changed from or directly addressed the reason for the switch.

Link.

Pay Yo Bills: Method Man Arrested for Unpaid Taxes

Remember back in March when we reported on Method Man’s tax troubles?? Well now he’s been arrested:

Already having his fair share of issues with the law, things have taken a turn for the worse for Wu Tang staple, Method Man. Meth was arrested today by New York police for tax evasion. According to WABC New York, the rapper owes the government over $30,000 in taxes. Meth, real name Clifford Smith, is reportedly in police custody waiting for arraignment. He's charged with failure to pay personal income tax and earnings and misdemeanor failure to pay taxes. He faces up to four years behind bars if convicted.

Earlier this year Meth made headlines after a woman accused of him shooting her with a pellet gun. That case is still pending.

He also faced tax issues in 2008 when his Lincoln Navigator was repossessed by the Department of Taxation.

Kandi Burruss "Devastated" by Death of A.J. Jewell

Reality TV is as scripted as any drama on TV.

But, sometimes, real life events truly effect those involved on these ridiculous shows, as Kandi Burruss tragically discovered last week: her former fiance, A.J. Jewell was killed in a strip club brawl.

Now, in a statement to E! News, the Real Housewife of Atlanta is speaking out and expressing her grief:

"I am devastated by the loss of A.J. His death comes on the heels of the death of my beloved Uncle Ralph and with both of them gone, my heart is heavy with grief.

"I had spoken to A.J. two hours before I got the call that he was in the hospital. Never in a thousand years did I think it was going to be the last time I heard his voice. He was taken way too soon. There are so many things that I should have said to him, wanted to say to him, but now it's too late..."

A Grammy-winning songwriter and former member of the group Xtreme, Burruss also thanked fans and friends for their support since Thursday night's tragedy.

"I want to extend my heartfelt thanks to all of my family and friends - and that means my Twitter and Facebook friends as well - for the beautiful words of encouragement, prayers, and the sweet condolences. I make it through these difficult days because of you."

It's not too late to share your thoughts and prayers. Write in and send Kandi a message today.

Chrysler Creates RAM Brand in Preparation for Chapter 7

By Robert Farago


As Colonel George Taylor would say, they’ve finally done it. Chrysler, the formerly bankrupt, federally-financed, Italian-owned carmaker has created a fourth automotive brand: Ram. As the company can’t come out and say they’re hiving-off Ram trucks to simplify Chrysler’s inevitable Chapter 7 fire sale, CEO Sergio Marchionne’s birth announcement blamed Dodge for the move (of all things). “This reorganization will allow us to protect and develop the unique nature of the product offerings within the Dodge Brand.” Yeah, ’cause all those Dodge Rams were muddying-up Dodge’s otherwise pristine image, used to such great effect with the Caliber and Avenger. To continue Dodge’s evolution towards filling Pontiac’s performance remit (I shit you not), Sergio’s appointed Ralph Gilles as the old brand’s new head, which will, presumably, no longer be that of a male sheep. As Gilles is the Canadian designer who unleashed the gangsta-riffic Chrysler 300, here’s hoping for an official name change to “The Dodge Boyz.” Meanwhile, The Detroit News [sub] is ROTFL about Sergio’s intentions to take Chrysler upmarket. Apparently, it’s going to be a “tough sell.”


Here, finally, is a Detroit News story that eviscerates of a boneheaded Motown plan. Never mind that they rely entirely on “analysts” for the disemboweling bit. It’s all good. I mean, bad.

- “GM spent $2 billion over 10 years on Cadillac — and it was already upscale,” said Rebecca Lindland, head of industry research for the Americas for IHS Global Insight in Lexington, Mass. . . .

- “At this stage of their rehabilitation, I think that’s real folly,” said analyst Joe Phillippi of AutoTrends Consulting Inc. in Short Hills, N.J.

- “To maintain anywhere near their former healthy volumes, they would be counting heavily on Dodge vehicles to capture current Chrysler buyers, which is in no way a given,” [John Sousanis, director of information content for Ward's Information Products] said.

- “Fiat needs to do a tremendous amount of market research before jumping into this,” [Lindland] said.

- Libby said Chrysler would need a complete makeover of existing vehicles to justify raising prices and would have to radically change its lineup, including the addition of a flagship sedan in the $70,000 range, and its starting point is “not nearly as strong as Cadillac or Lincoln.”

- It would not be an easy shift, said John Casesa, managing partner of Casesa Shapiro Group in New York. “It’s much easier to go downmarket than upmarket.”

- “They’d be faced with the problem of introducing a new luxury brand to a public that already has misgivings about the Chrysler brand name in general,” [Sousanis] said.

- Quality issues have dragged down consumers’ perceptions of the brand, Phillippi said, and people shopping for a luxury car are unlikely to think of Chrysler.

All those in favor say “aye.” Anyone? Bueller?

Could the US Border policy impact future world events?

There was a lot of hope for the Olympics to come to Chicago. The President and Mrs. Obama did everything they could to help promote their home town win the bid to win the bid for the next Summer Olympics. However it was all for naught as the winning bid went to Rio de Janeiro and while some might point to the recent increase in violent crime in the city that doesn’t seem likely considering Rio de Janeiro’s crime problems,

That does seem to have been the big drawback to Chicago winning the bid is the United State’s border policies. As it is international travel to the US has dropped by 10 percent with much of the finger pointing as to why centering on the country’s current border policies,

“It’s clear the United States still has a lot of work to do to restore its place as a premier travel destination,” Roger Dow, U.S. Travel’s president, said in the statement released today. “When IOC members are commenting to our President that foreign visitors find traveling to the United States a ‘pretty harrowing experience,’ we need to take seriously the challenge of reforming our entry process to ensure there is a welcome mat to our friends around the world, even as we ensure a secure system.”

Source: In Transit – Chicago’s Loss: Is Passport Control to Blame?

One has to wonder if this is a problem that will only escalate as time goes by and more restrictions end up being put in place.

Rumor claims Maya Angelou dead, may be some truth in it

Author Maya Angelou is this weekend’s first report of a celebrity death, but unlike our usual fare of fake deaths, this one might have some truth in it.

According to TMZ, Maya Angelou was taken to hospital in Los Angeles Saturday night. She was scheduled to be honored at the BraveHeart Awards in Los Angeles.

At the time of writing there is no news about her current health, although Twitter is buzzing that she may have died.

Normally we’d say at this stage that the rumor isn’t true, but at 81 Maya Angelou is getting on in years, so the statistical odds that she may have been in ill health and has subsequently kicked the bucket are above 0%.

Referred to as “America’s most visible black female autobiographer,” Maya Angelou is best known for her series of six autobiographies. She was nominated for the Pulitzer Prize for her 1971 poetry collection, “Just Give Me a Cool Drink of Water ‘Fore I Diiie.”

Local School District Can Still Recite Pledge

Right in my backyard a lawsuit seeking to ban the Pledge of Allegiance from the Dresden School District (Hanover, N.H. and Norwich, VT) has been dismissed in N.H. Federal District Court. The Union Leader has the details:

The Does claimed that because teachers continued to lead the pledge in the children’s classes, thus exposing them to the words “under God,” that the school district was violating the right to express their beliefs as atheists and agnostics. They argued that the school and the district had a duty to show equal respect to their beliefs, accusing the teachers who led the pledge of leading students in an affirmation that God exists and creating a social environment that perpetuates prejudice against atheists, according to court documents.

They asked the judge to find that the Does’ rights were violated, that the state law was unconstitutional and that the districts should be forced to stop the recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance in the schools.
Note that students are not required to recite the Pledge. They may remain silent and or seated.

Personally, I think the suit is kind of silly. Are kids really being indoctrinated because they hear the phrase “under God?”

I wonder how the “Does” deal with handling cash . . . .

Lindsey Graham Is Stuck On Repeat

For whatever reason, U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham seems incapable of talking about anything these days other than his visceral hatred for conservative radio host Glenn Beck.

It’s like there’s nothing else important going on in the world, you know?

What’s the deal, Linds?

Anyway, having already popped Beck during some hoity-toity Washington D.C. symposium last week, Graham (surprise) appeared on one of those Sunday political TV shows he loves so much to give the radio host “the business” once again.

“I’m not saying he’s bad for America,” Graham said of Beck on Fox News Sunday.

Moments later, Graham threw out what we can only assume he thought was an insult when he said “(Beck) doesn’t represent the Republican Party.”

Really? And Lindsey does?

More importantly, is “representing the Republican Party” really something to be proud of?

(And no, we’re not talking about that kind of pride, Lindsey).

After all, aren’t “Republicans” the fools whose repeated multi-billion dollar betrayals of the principles they were supposed to stand for ushered in the age of Obama? And wasn’t (isn’t) Lindsey chief among the fiscal conservative turncoats?

Anyway, not unlike fellow blatherer Rush Limbaugh, we’ve never listened to Glenn Beck. We just don’t listen to the radio, people. It’s not our “medium of choice.” We were given one of his books to read as a birthday present, but we’ve been so busy lately we haven’t had a chance to crack it open yet.

All we know about Beck is that he’s a pretty hard core conservative, which fine with us – and a helluva lot more than can be said for Graham.

Look, Lindsey … we get it. You’re a “Republican” and we’re not. Fine by us.

Moving on …

Why Corzine Is Creeping Closer To Christie In the Polls

Jennifer Rubin wonders why Jon Corzine is creeping up on Chris Christie in the polls. There's a real simple reason. Money. The incumbent governor, Democrat Jon Corzine, is spending three times as much money on retaining his job as Republican Chris Christie is spending to win the job.

Corzine is likely going to put up $35 million of his own money to hold the job, and that's not counting the millions that the Democrats are funneling into the state so that this bellweather state can help lead Democrats into 2010. That's because Corzine eschewed public financing.

Christie is accepting public financing, which limits how much money he can spend to $11 million. The various Republican PACs can spend more on his behalf, but it will have to make up a significant gap because Corzine can spend so much personally.

That's why you see so many Corzine attack ads; they're effective even if they're blatantly and fundamentally dishonest because it can smear Christie in a way that Christie can't respond to every attack. Corzine can't use his Wall Street resume to bolster his policy credentials because the state's economy is such a mess and because of his ties to Goldman Sachs.

Corzine was originally elected because voters saw him as a solution to the state's financial woes. The problem is that four years later and the state's budget situation is in even worse shape; the state's economy and business climate is among the worst in the nation, unemployment is at historic highs and the state's tax burden is among the worst in the nation.

Now, with the economy in the crapper, Corzine is busy attacking Christie and Christie can't focus on the one issue that is paramount to voters; the state of the economy. Money may trump policy yet in New Jersey, despite the fact that Corzine's policy has been an unmitigated disaster for New Jersey.

UPDATE:
Will there be a backlash from the fact that so many counties in New Jersey rank prominently among the highest property taxed in the nation? After all, Gov. Corzine claimed that he provided property tax relief in the form of an increase to the state sales and use tax. One year after imposing the sales tax hike, he cut the property tax relief program significantly, all while property taxes continued rising. His original budget proposal in 2009 was to eliminate the property tax relief program altogether, but the outcry over that forced him to reconsider and limit the relief program.

Corzine did nothing to reduce the property tax burden; he simply attempted to shift the tax burden and resulted in higher taxes all around without any measurable effect. Taxpayers pay more, and get less in return. Throw in the governor's statements calling on municipalities to reduce pension payments in fulfillment of their obligations, and you've got a ticking time bomb that is waiting to go off.

The only way to get the situation under control is to seriously cut state spending, not just around the fringes. That means making serious cuts to programs that are cash cows for the entrenched interests. But only then will the state be put on a fiscally responsible path.

Why Corzine Is Creeping Closer To Christie In the Polls

Jennifer Rubin wonders why Jon Corzine is creeping up on Chris Christie in the polls. There's a real simple reason. Money. The incumbent governor, Democrat Jon Corzine, is spending three times as much money on retaining his job as Republican Chris Christie is spending to win the job.

Corzine is likely going to put up $35 million of his own money to hold the job, and that's not counting the millions that the Democrats are funneling into the state so that this bellweather state can help lead Democrats into 2010. That's because Corzine eschewed public financing.

Christie is accepting public financing, which limits how much money he can spend to $11 million. The various Republican PACs can spend more on his behalf, but it will have to make up a significant gap because Corzine can spend so much personally.

That's why you see so many Corzine attack ads; they're effective even if they're blatantly and fundamentally dishonest because it can smear Christie in a way that Christie can't respond to every attack. Corzine can't use his Wall Street resume to bolster his policy credentials because the state's economy is such a mess and because of his ties to Goldman Sachs.

Corzine was originally elected because voters saw him as a solution to the state's financial woes. The problem is that four years later and the state's budget situation is in even worse shape; the state's economy and business climate is among the worst in the nation, unemployment is at historic highs and the state's tax burden is among the worst in the nation.

Now, with the economy in the crapper, Corzine is busy attacking Christie and Christie can't focus on the one issue that is paramount to voters; the state of the economy. Money may trump policy yet in New Jersey, despite the fact that Corzine's policy has been an unmitigated disaster for New Jersey.

UPDATE:
Will there be a backlash from the fact that so many counties in New Jersey rank prominently among the highest property taxed in the nation? After all, Gov. Corzine claimed that he provided property tax relief in the form of an increase to the state sales and use tax. One year after imposing the sales tax hike, he cut the property tax relief program significantly, all while property taxes continued rising. His original budget proposal in 2009 was to eliminate the property tax relief program altogether, but the outcry over that forced him to reconsider and limit the relief program.

Corzine did nothing to reduce the property tax burden; he simply attempted to shift the tax burden and resulted in higher taxes all around without any measurable effect. Taxpayers pay more, and get less in return. Throw in the governor's statements calling on municipalities to reduce pension payments in fulfillment of their obligations, and you've got a ticking time bomb that is waiting to go off.

The only way to get the situation under control is to seriously cut state spending, not just around the fringes. That means making serious cuts to programs that are cash cows for the entrenched interests. But only then will the state be put on a fiscally responsible path.

Making Health Care a Civil Rights Issue

The country’s largest African-American and Latino organizations are joining forces with other major national civil rights and grassroots organizations to mobilize the nation’s 100 million people of color for a final push in support of universal health care reform. Leaders of the organizations are coming together to make certain that the voices of people of color are heard — and heeded — as the health care reform debate enters its final, critical days. The groups will release television and print ads in English and Spanish that will run in four states with sizable African-American and Latino populations, part of a grassroots effort to ensure that members of Congress appreciate the importance of reform to the people of color they represent.

Here’s the video (apparently the one running in Arkansas, given the reference to Sen. Lincoln):

Media Pushes ‘Rift’ Between McChrystal and Obama

General's Remarks Took on Controversial Life After NY Times Pieces, Cable News Coverage

In a London address on Thursday, Gen. Stanley McChrystal, the commander of U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan, repeatedly defended President Obama’s review of Afghan strategy; encouraged open debate on the controversial question of what to do about the bleak-looking war; recapitulated his argument that a counterinsurgency approach holds the best chance of success; and declined to answer any questions about increasing troop levels before Obama reaches a decision. Yet since then, McChrystal has been portrayed in the press as disloyal to Obama for saying anything at all, and all sides are trying to put an end to the controversy.

The New York Times portrayed McChrystal’s brief defense of the virtues of stabilizing Afghanistan as a public rebuke of Vice President Biden, who contends that restricting the mission to hunting terrorists and emphasizing Pakistan is the wiser course of action. In an op-ed in The Washington Post on Saturday, Yale law professor Bruce Ackerman said McChrystal had “no business making such public pronouncements” and was in “plain violation of the principle of civilian control” of the military. On CNN Sunday, ret. Gen. Jim Jones, Obama’s national security adviser, curtly replied that “better for military advice to come up through the chain of command” than in public pronouncements. Speaking Monday morning to the U.S. Army’s annual conference in Washington, Defense Secretary Robert Gates said, “It is imperative that all of us taking part in these deliberations – civilian and military alike – provide our best advice to the president candidly but privately.”


Illustration by: Matt Mahurin
Shortly after Gates’ remarks, a spokesman for McChrystal, Air Force Lt. Col. Tadd Sholtis, signaled that McChrystal wished to end the controversy. “General McChrystal concurs with the secretary and shares his perspective that the president’s military and civilian policy advisers need to provide candid but private advice,” Sholtis told TWI. Sholtis added that McChrystal does not have any additional public appearances planned.

The Full Story

Senate Health bill one step closer

Written by Edward Lee Pitts

The Senate Finance Committee is expected to vote this week on their version of healthcare reform. If you’ve got nothing better to do today then feel free to read the bill’s full text: here. The cliff notes version is that most conservatives won’t like what it has to offer. After a week that saw senators blow through 564 amendments, lawmakers made few changes on the bill that pleased Republicans. Lawmakers did tweak the bill in cosmetic ways: exempting about 2 million people from having to obey the insurance mandate, reducing the top penalty for failure to buy insurance to $1,900 and defeating an official government-run public insurance plan.

But for social conservatives the news was the same: like in other congressional healthcare bills, senators defeated amendments that would have barred taxpayer dollars from being used to fund abortions and that would have prohibited the government from forcing health providers, such as hospitals and physicians, to provide abortions.

“The American people do not want, and should not be expected, to foot the bill for abortions,” said Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah), who sponsored the amendments. “I will fight tooth and nail to make sure once this bill gets to the floor it is clear in the language that taxpayers’ dollars will not be used to fund abortions.”

The bill is expected to pass the committee this week and go before the full Senate this month where it will be merged with an even more liberal version from the main Senate committee on health. But before this week’s vote the Congressional Budget Office is expected to release its estimate of how much this bill will cost. Republicans hope a high estimate will slow down the healthcare reform train.

GOP Hill leaders in smack-down with RNC Chair Steele

In GOP world, there's a battle underway between RNC Chair Michael Steele and the brain trust on Capitol Hill. Sounds like House and Senate Republican leaders ganged up on Steele last week because he's doing too much "policy" and that's their turf:

The congressional leaders were particularly miffed that Steele had in late August unveiled a seniors’ “health care bill of rights” without consulting with them. The statement of health care principles, outlined in a Washington Post op-ed, began with a robust defense of Medicare that puzzled some in a party not known for its attachment to entitlements.

Elected Republicans urged Steele to focus on the governors’ races in New Jersey and Virginia and other political matters, such as fundraising, rather than on attempting to establish party policy.

Steele was taken aback by the comments from Boehner, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), Senate Minority Whip Jon Kyl (R-Ariz.), Senate GOP conference Chairman Lamar Alexander of Tennessee and Senate GOP policy Chairman John Thune of South Dakota and grew defensive during the 10-minute discussion, according to two people in the room.

The RNC, according to one source, was planning to roll out more policy initiatives.
If you're Michael Steele, you must be looking around that room thinking, "You're the clowns that led us to the point where Democrats have the presidency, a filibuster-proof majority in the Senate and a wide margin in the House." It sure sounds like this meeting was the culmination of a lot of bad feelings:
Since Steele took over the party earlier this year, congressional leaders and their staff have often cringed at the voluble chairman’s gaffes and rolled their eyes at his unambiguous view that he alone leads the party.

“He’s on a short leash here,” said one top House GOP leadership aide.

At the same time, Steele and his backers can be annoyed at what they see as the know-it-all arrogance and even jealousy of some in their party’s congressional wing.
I'm pulling for the GOP's congressional wing here. They do have a "know-it-all-arrogance," which is completely out-of-touch with real Americans.