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12 Nov 2010 16:03

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Politics: HuffPo: Bush ganked “Decision Points” passages from other books

  • Not to pick on George W. Bush today, what with our whole death penalty thing in the previous post, but The Huffington Post is making some pretty crazy claims that George W. Bush has ripped off quotes and passages from other memoirs from Bush staffers, along with the books Bob Woodward wrote about the Bush presidency. Who knows if that’s true or not, or even if it’s a big deal (we think it’s hard to remember exact quotes with that many years of separation), but some of the quotes are awful close, to the point where it’d be weird for them to be remembered exactly the same way by multiple people. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

12 Nov 2010 15:45

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U.S.: Did George W. Bush allow the execution of an innocent man?

  • I have no doubt that if President Bush had known about the request to do a DNA test of the hair he would have issued a 30-day stay in this case and Jones would not have been executed.
  • Innocence Project founder Barry Scheck • Arguing that George W. Bush, while still governor of Texas, let death row inmate Claude Jones face execution in 2000, despite the existence of DNA evidence which proved he was innocent. The Innocence Project revealed today that Jones’ DNA was not found at the crime scene of the liquor store where the 1989 murder of Allen Hilzendager. While hair at the crime scene was initially linked to Jones after the crime took place, it wasn’t actually his, and even though Jones asked for DNA testing on the strand of hair, it wasn’t enough to force a stay of execution. No other physical evidence linked Jones to the scene.  source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

10 Nov 2010 21:06

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Culture: George W. Bush’s “Decision Points” does boffo book sales

  • 170,000 number of hardcover copies of “Decision Points” sold on Tuesday, its first day on shelves
  • 50,000 number of electronic copies the book sold; and most of the early sales weren’t pre-orders, either source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

08 Nov 2010 16:31

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Politics: Great: George W. Bush has disgusting life anecdote to share

  • Sometimes there are stories that just leave us without words. Sometimes we see something and think of all the ramifications and just can’t fathom the right words to say. Sometimes, we’re just so disturbed by the ramifications of the letters (in this case, “She said to her teenage kid, ‘Here’s the fetus.'”) that we don’t feel like posting anything about a topic and just leaving it alone for the rest of eternity. Then we keep in mind who said them (George W. Bush) and remind ourselves of the heft that those words carry because of the person who said them, and submit them to you. George W. Bush’s mom (you know, former first lady Barbara Bush) showed her son her miscarried fetus. We can’t imagine what ways that screwed him up, even if he says it didn’t. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

06 Nov 2010 13:00

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Politics: George W. Bush on waterboarding: “Damn right.” Damn right.

  • I thought about my meeting with Danny Pearl’s widow, who was pregnant with his son when he was murdered. I thought about the 2,971 people stolen from their families by al Qaeda on 9/11. And I thought about my duty to protect my country from another act of terror. ‘Damn right,’ I said.
  • George W. Bush • Explaining in his coming memoir, “Decision Points,” why he allowed the CIA to waterboard suspects being interrogated, specifically Khalid Sheikh Mohammed. While it’s clear from the quote that he thought the decision through, the off-the-cuffness of his response strikes us as a little, you know, stark. We appreciate Bush caring so much about the lives of Americans that he’s willing to waterboard a 9/11 suspect, but waterboarding is about half a step away from torture. In fact, depending on who you ask, lots of people consider it torture. Also in the book, Bush (who claims to be through with politics) compliments Obama’s political skills while criticizing those of John McCain. He is also keeping his nose out of the whole 2012 race out of respect for Obama. This is impressive restraint that he at times didn’t show in office, by the way. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

19 Oct 2010 17:22

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Politics, U.S.: Clinton holds more sway over Dems than Obama

  • 48% of Democrats like a candidate more if Barack Obama endorses them
  • 53% of Democrats are persuaded by a Bill Clinton endorsement source
  • » They don’t call him the Big Dog for nothing. He’s been out of office twelve years, yet Democratic voters trust his judgment more than that of their official party leader. Clinton’s been in high demand this cycle, and luckly for Democrats, he’s been more than happy to rise to the occasion. The 42nd President has been campaigning for Democrats left and right, and many believe it was his endorsement of Blanche Lincoln that enabled her to defeat Bill Halter in the Arkansas Senate primary. Curiously, there hasn’t been a corresponding demand for George W. Bush on the Republican side.
Posted by Seth Millstein • 0 Comments • Permalink

27 Sep 2010 20:27

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Politics: Politics are weird: Democrat Earl Pomeroy big-ups Bush-era support

  • Here’s how weird the 2010 elections are. Despite George W. Bush’s unpopularity after his time in office, Democrat Earl Pomeroy of North Dakota is big-upping his Bush-era credentials. Elections are tough. We understand, man. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 

20 Sep 2010 18:38

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U.S.: People don’t like it when you prevent a second depression

  • TARP is probably the most effective large-scale government program that the public has vehemently decided was a bad idea.
  • Douglas Elliot of the Brookings Institute • Lamenting the public and political hatred for the Troubled Assets Relief Program (58% say it was unneeded). Economists estimate that without the bailout, GDP would have fallen 11% in the last two years, resulting in “a 1930’s-like depression.”  source
Posted by Seth Millstein • 0 Comments • Permalink

07 Sep 2010 21:11

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Politics: Does Obama want to give the wealthy Bush-era tax cuts?

  • NO but that may not matter ’cause he’s dipping in the polls source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

01 Sep 2010 11:01

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Politics: Tony Blair has a massive mancrush on George W Bush

  • I was asked recently which of the political leaders I had met had most integrity. I listed George near the top. He had genuine integrity and as much political courage as any leader I ever met.
  • Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair • Geeking out about George W. Bush in his new memoir, “I Love George” “A Journey.” In the book, he claims that, while the former president was very smart, he had “immense simplicity in how he saw the world.” He says that while they got on a little awkwardly at first (due to their differing  politics), the relationship improved over the years. He also had kind things to say about Bill Clinton, too, saying he was a “political soulmate” and defending him over the Monica Lewinsky affair. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 
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