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Thursday, November 17, 2005
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Bill Clinton Rewriting History & Lying Again.
The Democrats are lying about pre-war intelligence for political gain. They should not be allowed to get away with such treason. It is the foulest and most heinous slander in Washington in a generation. Look at video of Bill Clinton in 1998, when he ordered an attack on Iraq.
Earlier today, I ordered America's armed forces to strike military and security targets in Iraq. They are joined by British forces. Their mission is to attack Iraq's nuclear, chemical and biological weapons programs and its military capacity to threaten its neighbors.
Their purpose is to protect the national interest of the United States, and indeed the interests of people throughout the Middle East and around the world.
Saddam Hussein must not be allowed to threaten his neighbors or the world with nuclear arms, poison gas or biological weapons.
I want to explain why I have decided, with the unanimous recommendation of my national security team, to use force in Iraq; why we have acted now; and what we aim to accomplish.
Six weeks ago, Saddam Hussein announced that he would no longer cooperate with the United Nations weapons inspectors called UNSCOM. They are highly professional experts from dozens of countries. Their job is to oversee the elimination of Iraq's capability to retain, create and use weapons of mass destruction, and to verify that Iraq does not attempt to rebuild that capability. The inspectors undertook this mission first 7 1/2 years ago at the end of the Gulf War when Iraq agreed to declare and destroy its arsenal as a condition of the ceasefire.
The international community had good reason to set this requirement. Other countries possess weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missiles. With Saddam, there is one big difference: He has used them. Not once, but repeatedly. Unleashing chemical weapons against Iranian troops during a decade-long war. Not only against soldiers, but against civilians, firing Scud missiles at the citizens of Israel, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Iran. And not only against a foreign enemy, but even against his own people, gassing Kurdish civilians in Northern Iraq.
The international community had little doubt then, and I have no doubt today, that left unchecked, Saddam Hussein will use these terrible weapons again. Of course, now he sings a different tune. There used to be a tradition of former Presidents keeping a dignified and respectful silence about their successors. Clinton and Jimmy Carter have eviscerated that tradition, and Democrats spit in the faces of our servicemen for short-term political gain.
[GOP Bloggers]
4:54:18 PM 
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Project 21: High Home Heating Bills Disproportionately Harm Minority Households
Project 21 members are speaking out on the topic of oil drilling and energy independence:
Black Activists Support Increased Domestic Oil Exploration
High Home Heating Bills Disproportionately Harm Minority Households
Citing the need for America to achieve energy independence as well as aid poor and minority households already suffering from rising heating bills, activists with the black leadership network Project 21 are speaking out in favor of oil and natural gas exploration efforts under consideration for the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) and the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS).
The U.S. Senate approved legislation on November 9 to allow oil drilling on approximately 2,000 acres - or 0.01 percent - of ANWR's 19.6 million acres. The House of Representatives is expected to consider similar legislation as early as this week. Drilling on this small and desolate portion of ANWR is expected to generate $2.5 billion in government revenue, create a significant number of new jobs nationwide and recover between 4.3-11.8 billion barrels of oil. OCS-related legislation in the House would allow states to "opt out" of federal moratoriums that currently prohibit offshore oil and gas production.
A small group of Republican congressmen are attempting to block any provision that would allow oil and natural gas exploration in both ANWR and the OCS.
"Home heating bills are expected to be higher than usual this winter. People can choose not to drive their car when fuel prices are high, but they shouldn't have to choose not to turn on the heat to keep their family warm," said Project 21 member Deneen Moore. "Low-income households unable to afford rising heating bills might resort to unsafe alternatives. Drilling in ANWR, for example, would be essential to helping alleviate the high cost of energy in the U.S., create jobs and help America become less dependent on foreign oil."
If new sources of energy are not found and utilized, minority households will be forced to spend a greater percentage of their budgets to keep their homes warm. The U.S. Department of Energy recently projected that heating costs will soar this winter. The cost of heating a home with natural gas is expected to increase by 32 percent increase; with heating oil, 26 percent.
Based on 2004 median income figures from the U.S. Census Bureau, the average black household using natural gas for heat can expect to pay one percent more of their income (from 3.2 percent to 4.2 percent) and Hispanics 0.9 percent more (2.8 to 3.7 percent) for home heating while their white counterparts will only be paying 0.6 percent more (two percent to 2.6 percent). Heating oil users will experience almost exactly the same percentage change but will pay a larger portion of their incomes (4.2 to 5.3 percent for blacks, 3.7 to 4.6 for Hispanics and 2.6 to 3.2 for whites) to stay warm.
This inequity further depresses minority prospects for investing, paying for higher education and contributing to retirement savings plans and further hinders socio-economic advancement.
"The prospect of keeping warm this winter costing so much more than the rate of inflation should offend every American family, but its impact on this country's working poor borders the criminal," said Project 21's John Meredith, who is active in several community-based non-profit groups. "How can a nation so rich and powerful justify forcing families to choose between staying warm and eating? We can't. Opening ANWR to exploration is the only humane thing to do." The full press release can be found here .
4:44:15 PM
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© Copyright 2005 Ross Calloway.
Last update: 12/1/2005; 1:29:59 PM.
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