Submitted by meg on Tue, 08/19/2008 - 2:51pm.Analysis
A BUZZFLASH NEWS ANALYSIS by Meg White
One of the favorite adages of journalists was once, "If your mother tells you she loves you, check it out." Now it seems that we've shifted to "I read it in a best-selling non-fiction book; it must be true... oh, it's not? Well, who cares."
Jerome Corsi's new, widely discredited book The Obama Nation: Leftist Politics and the Cult of Personality sustained its number one spot on The New York Times bestseller list yet again this week. And for some reason, I find myself thinking of the waves of untruths that have passed through the hands of editors of late.
Submitted by BuzzFlash on Thu, 08/14/2008 - 8:27am.Analysis
A BUZZFLASH NEWS ANALYSIS by Christine Bowman
Mukasey strikes out instead of asserting independence -- sticking with Bush and Gonzales on torture, Plamegate, and politicization of the Justice Department. Schumer, Feinstein, Bayh, and Landrieu, who helped confirm Mukasey, say little now.
U.S. Attorney General Michael Mukasey announced Tuesday that he will not prosecute any Justice Department staffers who engaged in "active wrong-doing" in the U.S. Attorneys scandal case. Instead, Mukasey said he is satisfied that "The officials most directly implicated in the misconduct left the Department to the accompaniment of substantial negative publicity."
In other words, bad publicity, in Mukasey's view, is sufficient punishment. Case closed. Time to move on. Attorneys currently working under Mukasey who were improperly hired by the Bush Administration and rewarded for their partisanship, will stay in place.
Submitted by meg on Fri, 08/15/2008 - 2:23pm.Analysis
A BUZZFLASH NEWS ANALYSIS by Meg White
When Sen. Barack Obama's foreign policy adviser Susan Rice and others spoke repeatedly of a "theme of unity" at a press conference unveiling this year's Democratic Party platform Friday, they were talking about more than just the platform. The entire press conference was centered around the idea of an undivided party. But it was clear not everyone was feeling it.
With the need for change so well established that the Republican Party is starting to adopt the idea, "unity" took the top buzzword status by a long shot, uttered more than a dozen times in the less than 2-hour long event. Though the event took place in Washington D.C., it was also streaming live on several affiliated Web sites.
Rice, a former assistant secretary of state on leave from the Brookings Institute to work on the international portion of Obama's campaign, was first to speak at the event. She said that in crafting the 16-page foreign policy segment of the platform that, "there was no element of dissent or contention" among writers and policy molders.
Submitted by BuzzFlash on Tue, 08/12/2008 - 3:15pm.Analysis
A BUZZFLASH NEWS ANALYSIS by Christine Bowman
We can't begin to tell you "Where in the world has Condoleezza Rice been?" Published reports indicated only that Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice was on vacation while Russian bombs rained down on nearby Georgia and tanks rolled in, resulting, apparently, in thousands of civilian deaths.
The State Department did issue assurances that Rice had been working the phones, however. MSNBC's Chuck Todd, among others, duly noted that Rice had made 50 calls over the weekend -- later updated by State to indicate 90 calls placed. As of Tuesday afternoon, the impact of those calls remains unclear.
Submitted by AmyW on Tue, 08/12/2008 - 2:11pm.Analysis
A BUZZFLASH NEWS ANALYSIS by Amy Weiss
Having been a part-owner owner of the Texas Rangers for 9 years, President George W. Bush may actually be more knowledgeable about sports than say, governing. At the Beijing Olympics, his role as Head of State and Superfan collided. While American athletes were breaking world records and clinching medals, the president had a few medal-winning performances of his own in the "Diplomat Decathlon."
First up for the president was the flag events. He was off to a great start at the Opening Ceremony in "Bored Mini-Flag Tapping." His musicality was seemingly unmatched by the other dignitaries and the unprecedented "watch check" move was simply stellar. This, however, was not a solo event. First Lady Laura Bush was a strong addition to the team. She also checked her watch and waved a fan in sync with the mini-flag to create a stunning display of boredom and to significantly reduce the flag's importance. 10.0
Submitted by AmyW on Mon, 08/11/2008 - 3:52pm.Analysis
A BUZZFLASH NEWS ANALYSIS by Amy Weiss
In 2006, President Bush established 140,000 square miles of Hawaiian island and surrounding ocean as a national monument, citing the need to protect the extensive reef and the 7,000 rare species living there. Two years later, officials say the clean-up efforts were better before Bush's designation.
The provisions of the proclamation prohibit commercial fishing, place strict restrictions on ship passage and use of natural resources, and pledge to work with federal agencies to maintain and protect the sanctuary. In his 2006 speech at the signing of the proclamation Bush said:
As a marine national monument, the waters of the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands will receive our nation's highest form of marine environmental protection. We will protect a precious natural resource. We will show our respect for the cultural and historical importance of this area. And we will create an important place for research and learning about how we can be good stewards of our oceans and our environment.
The archipelago, now known as Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument, is plagued by huge amounts of debris that wash up on the islands' shores. In 2005, before its designation as a national monument, the area received a $2.1 million cleanup budget. Through 2008, the Bush administration requested only $400,000 per year and though Congress has added to that, dozens of tons of debris remain.
Marine conservation experts have expressed disappointment with the effort. Elliott Norse, president of the Marine Conservation Biology Institute, said:
Submitted by meg on Mon, 08/11/2008 - 2:00pm.Analysis
A BUZZFLASH NEWS ANALYSIS by Meg White
The collective eye-roll over Sen. John McCain's religious campaign ad attacking Obama's supposedly grand ego truly misses the point. While many are able to find a laugh in the idea that Obama was sent to the Earth by the devil, there are frightening numbers of people who may be buying into the idea.
Submitted by Chad on Mon, 08/11/2008 - 9:20am.Analysis
A BUZZFLASH NEWS ANALYSIS by Chad Rubel
"Obama supporters Bernie Mac, Morgan Freeman hospitalized"
I hope the Los Angeles Times headline writer who wrote this headline feels a little bad over the weekend after finding out that Bernie Mac passed away from complications from pneumonia at the age of 50.
After all, what did the fact that Mac and Freeman happened to be Obama supporters have to do with the fact that they were hospitalized? Despite the horrible tackiness of the situation, we don't expect, and won't get, an apology from anyone in the MSM.
But we did get an apology on Friday from former presidential candidate John Edwards, who admitted to an affair after much speculation from, of all places, the National Enquirer.
Submitted by meg on Fri, 08/08/2008 - 11:26am.Analysis
A BUZZFLASH NEWS ANALYSIS by Meg White
Philip Giraldi wrote on the blog for The American Conservative yesterday that he has an unnamed source who says that Ron Suskind's assertion about the forged WMD document came from Pentagon official Doug Feith and not the CIA. It sort of makes sense when you consider the logic Giraldi uses to back his anonymous source up:
Submitted by AmyW on Thu, 08/07/2008 - 3:11pm.Analysis
A BUZZFLASH NEWS ANALYSIS by Amy Weiss
The latest McCain ad, "Praising McCain" features clips of prominent Democrats saying nice things about him. Many of these clips are years old, some are not given in full context, but it proves a point that yes, some Democrats have said nice things about John McCain.
What's silly about this ad is its assertion that a few kind words mean McCain is the most bipartisan politician ever. The ad uses the word "maverick" twice in the 60-second spot as if saying it enough makes it true.
DNC Chairman Howard Dean, who was one of the Democrats featured in "Praising McCain," was quick to point out this statement in response to the ad:
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