Day: May 26, 2015

ISIS: Assigning Blame

Opinion from the bewildered mind of Chuq

It is election time in case you missed the memo……ISIS is in the news so by extension it will be an election talking point……of Iraq will also and there have already been lots of announced candidates that have stepped into that pile of do-do.

Cruz, Bush, Santorum, Rubio et al have said that “mistakes” were made in the run up to the invasion of Iraq but that the Prez is to blame for the creation of ISIS…..that AQM had been destroyed by 2007 and because Obama would not leave a residual force in Iraq ISIS was allowed to rise.

First of all….there is NO one with half a brain that does not know that the 2003 invasion of Iraq was unneeded and just plain wrong.  The more these GOP douches try to put the situation off on someone besides GW………the more pathetic they look.

Okay…..this is a yawner!

The Bush admin set the date of 2011 as time for US forces to leave the country…..Maliki would not guarantee immunity of US forces that remained behind and wanted us gone.  He would not sign a “status of forces” agreement and because he wanted us gone…….we left.

AQM was not destroyed…..if it had been there would have been NO one left to re-name the group ISIS.  That one should be self-evident….but then half a brain would be needed to make such an observation.

Since Obama was president when the group emerged then it is ALL HIS FAULT!  HE CREATED ISIS!  More bullshit disguised as logic!

“It was a mistake to invade Iraq in 2003″….is the new talking points and all the GOP candidates are using that explanation to answer the media’s questions…….but ISIS is Obama’s fault for not leaving troops in 2011…….now spend a little time exercising that tiny brain and think about that for a moment.

I have been hard on Obama for many of his policies and I do not approve of his handling the ISIS situation……but to pretend that everyone is clean because they admit to “some mistakes” being made in 2003 is a cowardly act……..which is expected from politicians especially the GOP.

Cowards will always find a good excuse………

“Your Check Is In The Mail”

Oh boy has there been a pack of crap flying about the Clinton’s and their income from speeches……of course there is the usual attacks that foreign money is making it into Hillary’s campaign…..somehow.

Let’s be honest….the Clinton’s….all the Clinton’s have made a butt load of cash for speaking to groups and such…….

In her last financial disclosure report, Hillary Clinton put her and her husband’s estimated wealth at between $4 million and $20 million. That was 2012, this is now: The couple have in the last 16 months earned more than $25 million in speaking fees tied to more than 100 paid speeches, plus another $5 million in book royalties. NBC News notes this puts them “in the top one-tenth of 1% of all Americans.” The numbers come from a personal financial disclosure report filed with the Federal Election Commission last night; such filings are required of presidential contenders.

How the New York Times frames the news: The disclosure “could create challenges for the former secretary of state as she tries to cast herself as a champion of everyday Americans in an era of income inequality.” (An assertion likely not helped by this: Though Hillary last year memorably said she and Bill aren’t like the “truly well off,” the Times put the Clintons’ post-White House speaking fee revenue at $125 million.) Reaction from the right, from RNC chair Reince Priebus: “The Clintons’ claim that staggering amounts of income from paid speaking fees that raise ethical questions and potential conflicts of interest is simply to ‘pay our bills’ shows how out-of-touch they’ve truly become.”

Yep you read that right….$125 million since leaving the White House……that should pay a bill or two……but wait….there has been another revelation on their income…….

We already knew the Clintons made big money making speeches, but it turns out they made more than has been previously disclosed. The Clinton Foundation has for the first time published a comprehensive list of speech fees brought into the foundation by Bill, Hillary, and Chelsea since 2002, reports the Wall Street Journal. The list shows that the trio made up to $26.4 million in previously undisclosed payments for 97 speeches in that span to “major corporations, universities, foreign sources, and other groups,” reports the Washington Post. The former president did most of them, 72, while Hillary did 16, and Chelsea nine. CNN pulls out some notable details: “Bill Clinton spoke to Thailand’s Ministry of Energy, China Real Estate Development Group, Ltd, and Qatar First Investment Bank; Hillary Clinton spoke to Goldman Sachs, Citibank, and JP Morgan Chase, among others.”

The foundation has been under scrutiny over allegations that it failed to abide by a 2008 ethics agreement to reveal donors, an agreement put in place to make sure no conflicts of interests arose for Hillary Clinton as secretary of state. Foundation officials say the newly disclosed fees had been counted as revenue, not donations, and thus hadn’t been part of previous public listings. Conservatives aren’t sympathetic: “Hey, it happens,” snarks a post at the Hot Air website. “A few coins slip out of the pocket and into the sofa, a check or two gets left on the desk … or a few million reported as revenue turn out to be undeclared foreign and corporate donations.”

I mean it was honest and clear cash, right?

Do you think that this money was paid for access?  A past president, a senator and a former Secretary of State…..that could open a lot of doors for the right price.

How about a sample of their speeches?

Amount: $250,001 to $500,000

Organization
Beijing Huaduo Enterprise Consulting Company Ltd.*
Business for Change Events*
Carlyle Investment Management, LLC+
China Real Estate Development Group, Ltd.*
Citibank, N.A.+
Colgate University+
Fundacion Telmex+
Goldman, Sachs and Co.+
Hamilton College+
JP Morgan Chase Bank, N.A.+
Korea Economic Daily*
Ministry of Energy, Thailand*
Qatar First Investment Bank*
Tanmiah Commercial Group*
UB Foundation Activities, Inc.+
Unica*
University of California Los Angeles+
U.S. Islamic World Conference*
World Celebrity Golf Ltd.*

Just to mention a few (and I do mean a FEW)

Do you think that this would buy influence from a candidate if elected?  Looks like money talks and it will be chatting up Hil if she gets elected……I see a couple that would influence foreign policy….

NOTHING ever changes!

syriatimes.sy – Rest in Peace, Queen Zenobia!

ISIS has taken control of the ancient Syrian city of Palmyra………to most people it means nothing but since I am a history buff and have had the opportunity to visit the site back in the 80’s it is especially interesting for me…

Ifrom time to time like to throw some history in my post to help people understand why some places are important…..Palmyra is one of those sites…….ever hear of Queen Zenobia?

 

syriatimes.sy – Rest in Peace, Queen Zenobia!.