What's the connection between the two, you ask? Well, for starters, they're both extremely incompetent. Make no mistake about it, Osama bin Laden is an egomaniac with relatively low intelligence when it comes to terrorism (he was NOT the mastermind of the 9/11 attacks. He funded them and gave his "blessing," and little else). To learn more about just how fallible al-Qaeda truly is, I suggest you pick up a copy of The Looming Tower by Lawrence Wright. The book outlines al-Qaeda's history and the history of modern Islamic extremism as well as the tactics that have been used by multiple intelligence agencies in attempting to track it and/or put a stop to it. A great book, to be sure.

But what does this have to do with Secretary of State Condi Rice? Turns out quite a lot. Because when Rice was the national security adviser, it was her job to brief the president on emails like "Bin Laden Determined to Strike  in U.S." According to a new book coming out by New York Times Reporter Philip Shenon, Rice was more interested in playing the role of supportive wife to President Bush rather than actually attempt to do her job in a responsible manner. If this sounds slightly malicious, you're right--when our national security adviser receives DAILY reports of al-Qaeda's attempts to carry out a terrorist strike against U.S. civilian targets, it should at the VERY least be taken moderately seriously.

Here are a few other emails Rice received that were subsequently ignored, according to Shenon. Read through them and ask yourself whether you would take this threat seriously.

“Bin Ladin Public Profile May Presage Attack” (May 3)

“Terrorist Groups Said Co-operating on US Hostage Plot” (May 23)

“Bin Ladin’s Networks’ Plans Advancing” (May 26)

“Bin Ladin Attacks May Be Imminent” (June 23)

“Bin Ladin and Associates Making Near-Term Threats” (June 25)

“Bin Ladin Planning High-Profile Attacks” (June 30)

 Is that enough for you? Click here to read the full article.

The reason I'm posting this is because there are a lot of right-wing fantasies running around regarding Condi Rice and a run for the presidency. Not only was Rice a completely incompetent national security adviser, she is currently an extremely incompetent Secretary of State, incompetent to the point that journalists have absolutely no interest in following her around the world.

Our own diplomats think she's doing an awful job.

David Kay, former weapons inspector in Iraq, says she was the worst national security adviser in U.S. history. 

Now let's get to something related but much more important: the 9/11 Commission. Exactly how incompetent was this Republican-led investigation? Quite incompetent, it turns out. And that shouldn't come as any surprise, given that the Republican Party has argued since Reagan that government just doesn't work, which is why Republicans seem to go so far out of their way to prove it. Not only were Repubilcans defending Rice and others in the Bush administration, there is evidence now that they were attempting to discredit Richard Clarke. From ThinkProgress:

"But 9/11 Commission staff director Philip Zelikow was not interested in pursuing criticisms against Rice. Zelikow — who had worked closely with Rice on the Bush transition team in 2000 and 2001 — “made it clear to the team’s investigators that Clarke should not be believed, that his testimony would be suspect.” "

I think one of the reasons there are so many 9/11 conspiracy theories is primarily because the 9/11 commission simply didn't answer enough questions. There are so, so many questions still unanswered, and as long as our government doesn't pursue the truth, those questions will be answered by the fringe theorists and outrage will continue to grow. But make no mistake: the incompetencies of the Bush administration--especially those of Condi Rice--helped ensure 9/11 happened.

Yours,

Ken Brosky
 

Telecommunications companies do NOT deserve retroactive immunity for breaking the law just because the Bush Administration needed to spy on us illegally. Let me tell you something flat out: Telecom companies have PLATOONS of lawyers whose sole job is to determine what is legal and what is illegal. FISA was set up to provide Telecom Companies with a legal way of cooperating with the government. If the Telecom companies STILL need retroactive immunity even with all of these aspects already implemented, then there is NO DOUBT they broke the law with the help of the Bush Administration.

Click here to contact Gwen Moore.
 

Congratulations, Wisconsin, on choosing Barack Obama. It's good to see that Hillary Clinton's recent populist rhetoric isn't sucking too many people in ...

Don't get me wrong, though. Clinton is definitely not a bad candidate, but her insistence that she's an economic populist is an entirely new thing, and it's beginning to show. No matter who wins, it'll be easy to support either candidate against John McCain. Speaking of which, why don't we take a look at some homework readings for the weekend?

John McCain's lobbyist connections -- In case you haven't noticed, there's a lot of brew-ha-ha regarding McCain's cozy connections with one very pretty lobbyist, as well as others. When even HIS aides are getting nervous, there's definitely some substance to the story. Don't be fooled by Fox News ... McCain's lobbyist connections have existed for a long, long time. Whether more evidence surfaces or not ... we'll see. Keep an open mind.

Rick Renzi (R-AZ) indicted --  Yes, he does have connections to John McCain. Muckraker has more.

"A Trade Transformation" by David Sirota -- Read about Hillary Clinton's history on NAFTA.

 Turkish Troops in Iraq -- Following Kurdish separatist rebels, and of course this is making things a little sketchy in northern Iraq.

Al-Sadr will extend his ceasefire -- Do you still honestly think the "Surge" quelled the violence in Baghdad? Or was it the fact that the leader of the largest militia in the country called for a ceasefire? He's now calling for an extension to the ceasefire, which will make the "Surge" look even more successful. By the way, for those of you who remember Bush saying there was going to be a troop drawdown, that's not happening anymore, either.
 

The Senate has now officially passed a bill for retroactive telecom immunity. Why do the telecommunication companies need immunity? Because they helped the Bush administration break the law. They broke the law by spying on the American people without a warrant. This is an impeachable offense for the president and vice president. For the telecoms, this is a clear example of corporations breaking the law and violating our Constitutional rights to privacy. This immunity was accomplished with the help of the Democratic Party, which is led by a man by the name of Harry Reid who seems to have the backbone of a one-celled organism.

Who fights for us? Apparently, the only two senators in Congress who actually care about our rights are Christ Dodd and Russ Feingold. They're the only ones who have gone out an actually attempted to stop this ridiculous deal for companies that have clearly violated the law. And where does it end? Exactly where are the other members of Congress willing to draw the line? How many laws MUST BE BROKEN BEFORE THIS CONGRESS DOES WHAT IT IS SUPPOSED TO DO? How many laws must be broken by the Bush Administration and its loyalists before something is actually done?

Retroactive immunity is an attempt to prevent President Bush from continuing using fear tactics to scare the American people, plain and simple. The problem is we are quickly becoming immune the very fear tactics that have destroyed this country over the past seven years. Congress is caving to pressure from the Bush administration because the Democrats are being led by a coward who is unable to stand up to fear mongers who are now shoving an authoritarian policy down our throats.

The FCC will not investigate because it's stacked with Bush loyalists. The telecoms refuse to comply because they know they broke the law. This should OUTRAGE you. 

Click here to watch Keith Olbermann's special comment.

Click here to visit CallCongress. Find your member of Congress and call them and tell them this is wrong. Or call Russ Feingold, and tell him to continue fighting on the side of law. 

While you're whittling away the day with your various chores, here's something to think about: How many tax cuts have been passed since the Reagan era?

The answer: None. Because cutting taxes on a budget deficit means the government is simply borrowing money to give back to us. Which means tax cuts are actually tax "Deferments." Every time Congress cuts taxes without balancing the budget, all that money piles onto the national deficit, which will eventually be paid by us at a later date or our children.

The same goes with the Iraq war. We can fight there as long as Bush wants, but the money will eventually come out of our pockets. He is the only president to have ever cut taxes during a time of war, skyrocketing the deficit further in order to deceive the public into believe our current economic system is still "OK." It's not. And when the security bubble pops (i.e. the military industrial complex), things are only going to get worse. And THEN while we're trying to figure out how to pay off our personal debts, the government is going to need help paying off the national debt.

And then what will it do? "Cut" taxes again to increase spending?