McPalin Campaign Playbook: Use the Troops & Lie About Iraq

When McCain took his infamous, "Look How Safe the Bahgdad Markets Are" trip I thought we had scraped bottom. But it seems as if we were not quite there yet. Caribou Barbie called her trip to Iraq and Kuwait life changing-- thing is...

She never went to Iraq. She never crossed the Iraqi Kuwait border.

-from the Obama Campaign;

FACT: Palin Did Not Venture Further Into Iraq Than It's Border With Kuwait

"In The Second Official Revision Of Her Only Trip Outside North America," Palin Aides Concede That Her 2007 Visit To Iraq "Consisted Of A Brief Stop At A Border Crossing."

"Sarah Palin's visit to Iraq in 2007 consisted of a brief stop at a border crossing between Iraq and Kuwait, the vice presidential candidate's campaign said yesterday, in the second official revision of her only trip outside North America. Following her selection last month as John McCain's running mate, aides said Palin had traveled to Ireland, Germany, Kuwait, and Iraq to meet with members of the Alaska National Guard. During that trip she was said to have visited a 'military outpost' inside Iraq.

The campaign has since repeated that Palin's foreign travel included an excursion into the Iraq battle zone. But in response to queries about the details of her trip, campaign aides and National Guard officials in Alaska said by telephone yesterday that she did not venture beyond the Kuwait-Iraq border when she visited Khabari Alawazem Crossing, also known as 'K-Crossing,' on July 25, 2007…It was the second such clarification in as many weeks of the itinerary of what Palin has called 'the trip of a lifetime.' Earlier, the campaign acknowledged that Palin made only a refueling stop in Ireland." [Boston Globe, 9/13/08]

This trip, that she has repeatedly lied about, was her one journey beyond the Americas.

The Double Talk Express is as true as;

No Child Left Behind
WMDs
Yellow Cake
Clean Skies
Healthy Forests
(add your own favorite here)

McPalin are asking the American voters to grant them 4 more years of lies, lies and more lies.

These are not exaggerations, or hyperbole. They are lies. And they think we are stupid enough to believe them.

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Memorial Day

I don't want to politicize Memorial day, but I hear a lot of reasons from the left about why John McCain would be a bad president. I agree with all if it. Especially that he is doing Ambien© all the time. That's pretty bad if you want to run the most powerful nation on earth. However, before his visit to Baghdad in April 2007 the only thing I had against him really was that he was old as shit. I always figured the "Maverick" thing was bullshit, but I didn't dislike the geezer.

No, I actively started disliking the Senator from Arizona when, like Bush does, he draped himself in soldiers. This time with 2 companies and 5 helicopters of the 101st Airborne in order to make a political ad, and to make his point that it was safe in Baghdad. Which or course it really wasn't. I don't think any vet missed the point of that exercise. John McCain was more than happy to put soldiers lives at risk in order to further his political goals.

I honor John McCain's service to his country, and it's time for him to retire.

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Greed Zone: Freedom Village!

The U.S. military is pushing a five-year, $5 billion development plan to dramatically transform Baghdad's Green Zone, the secured enclave where the American Embassy and the Iraqi government is based, The Associated Press has learned. Hotels, a shopping center, condos and a soccer stadium are all envisioned in the plan. -- AP

See! Wasn't it just the other day that I was suggesting that we send the soldiers from the 82nd Airborne, who live in the Piss Barracks, to Baghdad to live in the $800 Billion Dollar Embassy. From my lips to Gods ears. Or in this case Navy wingnut and Freedom Village on The Euphrates (as I call it.) Military Liason, Captain Karnowski.

But the $5 billion plan has the backing of the Pentagon and apparently the interest of some deep pockets in the world of international hotels and development, the lead military liaison for the project told the Associated Press.

For Washington, the driving motivation is to create a "zone of influence" around the new $700 million U.S. Embassy to serve as a kind of high-end buffer for the compound, whose total price tag will reach about $1 billion after all the workers and offices are relocated over the next year.

"When you have $1 billion hanging out there and 1,000 employees lying around, you kind of want to know who your neighbors are. You want to influence what happens in your neighborhood over time," said Navy Capt. Thomas Karnowski, who led the team that created the development plan. --Associate Press

Here is what my neighbors have to do in order to use the facilities in their neighborhood, Captain. The story goes on to outline all the fun that this Captain, and Lt. Col. Monte Harner and other "American Officials" are having getting this "deal" together. It seems clear to me that there are still more than a couple of those idealistic theoconservative morons walking the halls of the green zone bunkers these days.

But here is my question. Just how much TAX PAYER money is being wasted on this bullshit, when decorated combat veterans have to walk through filth in order to use the bathroom?

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82nd Airborne Barracks, Ft. Bragg

Brandon Friedman has an update on those barracks that returning vets from Afghanistan were staying in. He took part in a conference call with the DOD.

BG DENNIS ROGERS: I'll tell you right now before we even start: I assume responsibility for the shortfalls in barracks maintenance which were referenced in the video by Mr. Frawley. We let our soldiers down. And I note that a number of you are veterans, or most of you are veterans, and you served. So you know that there is no excuse for that. We let our soldiers down. --VetVoice.com

Yes, you did General. The important news here was mentioned by CSM Strickland.

The Rear Detachment was documenting what the work orders were to bring that barracks back up to standard. They didn't really, I think, turn their full attention to it until they realized they had a shortfall in time--because they had ownership for several other barracks and they were in worse condition. So they were spending a lot of their energy there.

Whenever they got 72 hours notice, trust me, they hit high speed.

Worse condition? Thats hard to imagine. Let me clue you guys in. I actually lived in those barracks. The story was that there were going to be torn down, possible remodeled and we would move to modern barracks on Smoke Bomb Hill. Of course this was in 1981. My unit was probably responsible for that paint job, 20 years ago. Republican Congressman, Republican Senator, and 3 Republican Presidents later. We see, as usual, the Republicans just want to drape themselves with the troops. They do nothing but screw them over in favor for their corporate buddies.

$800 Million

Spent on incomplete, unlivable, never going to be used in our lifetimes, embassy in Baghdad. Why don't we ship these guys to the middle east and put them up in the U.S. embassy in Baghdad?

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