tagged w/ Bush oil agenda
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WASHINGTON — The State Department is preparing to slap a multi-million dollar fine on private military contractor Blackwater USA for shipping hundreds of automatic weapons to Iraq without the necessary permits.
Some of the weapons are believed to have ended up on the country's black market, department officials told McClatchy, but no criminal charges have been filed in the case.
The expected fine is the result of a long-running federal investigation into whether employees of the firm shipped weapons hidden in shrink-wrapped pallets from its Moyock, N.C. headquarters to Iraq, where Blackwater is the State Department's largest personal security contractor.
Since the arms shipment allegations first became public 14 months ago, Blackwater, which has received $1.2 billion in federal contracts, according to the Web site fedspending.org, has consistently denied involvement in illicit arms trafficking.
However, the State Department found that Blackwater shipped 900 weapons to Iraq without the paperwork required by arms export control regulations, one department official said. Of that number, 119 were "particularly ... erroneous," he said. He and the other officials spoke on the condition of anonymity because the decision hasn't been announced.
Federal laws require obtaining a license before exporting military hardware, including automatic weapons, overseas.WASHINGTON — The State Department is preparing to slap a multi-million dollar... more
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a transcript of the statement provided by the US-based SITE.
"This war, which is the outcome of Bush belligerence and war-mongering mindset, has resulted in failure both in Afghanistan and Iraq," the Taliban said.
Obama, they said, "should respect the rights of the people to independence and observe the norms of human rights.
"In short, he should set out on a policy that will have a message of peace for the war-stricken world which has been victimized by the arrogance and tyranny of USA."
"The overwhelming victory of Barrack Obama ... reveals the collective willingness of American people not to continue the current despicable and anti-human wars in Afghanistan and Iraq."
from an India times newspaper:
NEW YORK: Taliban insurgents battling the US-backed Afghan government urged President-elect Barack Obama to change course in US foreign policy
and withdraw American troops from both Afghanistan and Iraq, an Internet monitoring service said Tuesday.
The message posted on a Web site used by the Taliban claimed Obama's victory "reveals the collective willingness of American people not to continue the current despicable and anti-human wars in Afghanistan and Iraq," SITE Intelligence Group said.
In Washington, the Obama transition team declined to comment. The Taliban message, the authenticity of which couldn't immediately be determined, said if the Democrats continued in the steps of Bush, "then it is clear that the fate of the Democrats will be even more shameful and despicable than the Republicans."
Three days after the election, two Iraqi insurgent groups posted separate Internet messages reported by SITE calling on Obama to withdraw troops from Iraq. Abu Omar al-Baghdadi, self-styled head of the al-Qaida front group Islamic State of Iraq, said "You do not interfere in the affairs of our countries. We, in turn, will not prevent commerce with you, whether it is in oil or otherwise."a transcript of the statement provided by the US-based SITE.
"This war, which... more
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Bush and his war mongering oil companies should be fined (when convicted)and that money giving to the elderly for prescription increases.
The truth is out of the so called "SOFA" Iraqi agreement and why Bush is trying to seal that deal before Obama gets into office.
Elderly and disabled people in Medicare prescription drug plans with the largest enrollments will pay 43% more on average in monthly premiums next year than when the drug program began in 2006, and some enrollees will see increases of as much as 329%, two analyses show.
The rising costs "are wreaking havoc on seniors' wallets and are simply not sustainable in the long run," says Rep. Henry Waxman, D-Calif., who chairs the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.
Overall, the Medicare drug program is costing taxpayers less than originally estimated. The government's drug spending on the program fell by 12% to $44 billion in the fiscal year that ended Sept. 30, largely from the widespread use of low-cost generic drugs. The government pays part of the drugs' costs for seniors and helps subsidize premiums for low-income people.
Still, seniors have seen their actual expenses for premiums and drug co-payments go up each year. Insurers have raised prices for many reasons, including increases to cover higher drug costs and more prescriptions filled.Bush and his war mongering oil companies should be fined (when convicted)and that... more
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How much will we take before he just say NO! NO more killing, wars, occupation of foreign lands. How long will we allow the members of this terrible scheme to remain in office?
Many Iraqis fear that the Bush administration's last-ditch efforts to gain control of their oil will leave their resources in the hands of the US for decades to come.
by: Maya Schenwar, t r u t h o u t | Report
securing US control over Iraqi oil before Bush leaves office, according to experts in the field.
A leaked version of the US-Iraq status-of-forces agreement (SOFA), supplied and translated for Truthout by American Friends Service Committee Iraq consultant Raed Jarrar, states that the US will indefinitely "continue to protect Iraq's natural resources of gas and oil and protect Iraq's foreign financial and economic assets."
According to Jarrar, the Bush administration and the government of Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki are in basic agreement on the SOFA, probably because an American presence in Iraq would keep Maliki in power. However, the overwhelming majority of the Iraqi Parliament and the Iraqi people oppose the pact and reject US control over Iraq's resources.
In October, just as the Bush and Maliki administrations were attempting to finalize the SOFA's terms - under the wary gaze of Parliament - the Iraqi cabinet dropped another big one in Parliament's lap: the Iraq oil law. The law would set the rules for foreign investment in Iraq's oil industry, and determine how oil revenues are shared within Iraq. Many in Parliament say both the SOFA and the oil law would prolong the US occupation, allowing American control over both its people and its resources. Parliament will debate the oil law this week.
"US and British oil companies and the Bush administration have been circling their wagons in Iraq over the last few months to bring both the SOFA and the Iraq oil law to a conclusion before Bush's term in office officially comes to a close," Juhasz told Truthout. "The Bush administration, US oil companies and the al-Maliki government are all on the same timeline for trying to lock in the continued presence of the US military in Iraq, which is the al-Maliki government's only hope of holding on to power - and US oil corporations' only hope of securing their long-sought control over Iraqi oil."
In addition to pushing the international SOFA and Iraq's oil law, the Bush administration is attempting to unilaterally carve a place in US law for a takeover of Iraqi oil, according to Jim Fine, legislative secretary for foreign policy for the Friends Committee on National Legislation. In a signing statement tacked on to the 2009 Defense Authorization Bill, Bush excused himself from a provision intended to rein in US power of Iraq's oil.
The statement - if one accepts it as authoritative - would allow Bush to use defense funds "to exercise United States control of the oil resources of Iraq." Bush wrote that prohibiting such a use of funds "purport(s) to impose requirements that could inhibit the president's ability to carry out his constitutional obligations."
Experts view this latest expansion of Bush's powers in Iraq as a kind of rush to the finish line: an attempt to accomplish as many of the administration's oil-control goals before it steps down and the Obama administration - which may well have different ideas - steps up. Bush's signing statement could forebode a weighty US push for Iraq's oil in the next two months, whether or not the SOFA passes, according to Fine.
Leaver told Truthout. "The language calling for the protection of Iraq's oil resources in the long term agreement between Iraq and the US is another strong indication of what the US intent is inside of Iraq - gaining long-term access to Iraq's oil.How much will we take before he just say NO! NO more killing, wars, occupation of... more
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The reason for the election of Obama was to replace the elected officials that fail to do their jobs.Now, there is no room for past lapse of judgements of officials to remain in congress. She should have listened to the people in the impeachment processes of Bush. Oil controls the top politicians, including Pelosi. She needs to go, step aside now.
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President-elect Barack Obama wants a high-profile point person to oversee reforms in the ailing auto industry, according to members of Obama’s transition team.
Specifics about the proposal remain unclear. But the transition team says Obama suggested to President Bush on Monday that aid to the auto industry could be coupled with the appointment of “someone in charge of the auto issue who would have the authority” to push for reforms. The details came from a more extended readout of the White House meeting provided Tuesday.
The person would assist in efforts to create an “economically viable auto industry,” a transition aide said – a move that could alleviate concerns about protecting taxpayer interests if more money is directed to assist automakers.
http://www.politico.com/blogs/thecrypt/
Pelosi, Reid call for auto-industry rescue legislation
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) called on Congress Tuesday to move quickly to pass legislation to prevent the collapse of the American auto industry. She suggested any help would have strings attached, similar to those stuck to the financial bailout.
But she added that Congress should work directly with the industry to guide its transformation. "In order to prevent the failure of one or more of the major American automobile manufacturers, which would have a devastating impact on our economy, particularly on the men and women who work in that industry, Congress and the Bush Administration must take immediate action," she said.
"I have asked Chairman Barney Frank of the House Financial Services Committee to work with House and Senate leaders, and with the Bush Administration, to craft legislation to provide emergency and limited financial assistance to the automobile industry under the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act (EESA)."The reason for the election of Obama was to replace the elected officials that fail to... more
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