Why no you did not. US Citizens and legal resident alliens have not lost anything. They are still entitled to file Habeas claims. Nothing has changed.

For uniformed soldiers of foreign armies again nothing has changed.

What has changed is illegal combatants; that is non uniformed terrorists captured on the field of battle have been given defined rights they never had before.

The government has defined a procedure to try and convict them just as the US. Supreme court has requested.

By the way these detainees are entitled to file claims regarding their treatment or detention they just have to do it through the military. If you don’t believe me read the bills. H.R.6166 S.3930

The relevant sections are 950 F, 950 G Subchapter VII and sections 6 - 8.

Of course Glenn Greenwald is up in arms.

This guy is about as true to the left as it gets yet it’s not enough for the hyper partisans when he calls out the lackluster Democratic hack Phil Angelides for what he is. A dead man walking.

The modern Democratic Party is an electoral death cult with no historical memory beyond November 2000. Today it lionizes a scheming ex-President who took pride in  “triangulating” his Democratic base into oblivion, shredding the federal safety net, signing a draconian pre-cursor to the Patriot Act in 1996 that extended the death penalty and limited habeus corpus, booting a once-in-a-liftetime possibility for national health care, imposing some of the most retrograde immigration and deportation policies of the last three decades, selling out American workers and undermining their trade unions with egregiously pro-corporate free trade pacts and, I don’t mind mentioning, putting at risk and ultimately sacrificing the hopes and confidence of 50 million who voted for him by dallying with a ditzy intern at the precise moment when his opposition was running on family vaules. Ah, but let us forget such trivialities because, because, because, alas, George W. Bush is worse, worser, the worstest.

I was one of those 50 million Marc. Unlike Phil Angelides transparent desperate bid for the anti-war vote, Cooper means what he says and says what he means.  Angelides and Clinton deserve every bit of scorn that cooper heaps on them and cooper deserves better from his own.

Honestly I don’t know very much about Matt Stoller or his site MYDD. I have read it on a few occasions and usually find their points to come from somewhere out in left field let alone the left.

Today is no exception. I don’t know a whole lot about Roger L. Simon either but I have had the pleasure of meeting the man and discussing a bit of politics in light conversation. He is far from a right winger, and while Pajamas Media has several bloggers who could be fairly characterized as “Right Wing”, they have more than a few who would certainly be fairly characterized as “Left Wing” including Marc Cooper, and David Corn.

If you ever actually talked to Mr. Simon Matt I am certain you would find you have more than a few political views in common.

Riehl World View has some advice for the netroots.

[tags] Right Wing, Left Wing, Pajamas Media [/tags]

and it doesn’t look good for the Bush Administration. from Roll Call:

Hundreds of contacts between top White House officials and former lobbyist Jack Abramoff and his associates “raise serious questions about the legality and actions” of those officials, according to a draft bipartisan report prepared by the House Government Reform Committee.

The 95-page report, which White House officials reviewed Wednesday evening but has yet to be formally approved by the panel, singled out two of President Bush’s top lieutenants, Karl Rove and Ken Mehlman, as having been offered expensive meals and exclusive tickets to premier sporting events and concerts by Abramoff and his associates.

This is something that would be hard for even the incompetent Dems to fumble.

Mr. Ajami has spoken elequently in defense of the Iraq war many many times, and even written a book about the virtue of George Bush’s goal to spread democracy throughout the middle east.

Ajami’s article today at the Opinion Journal is a lesson in the American left’s ignorance of Arab and muslim thinking. He touches on several points including how the left’s claim that Saddam was a purely secular leader is demonstrably false, how the secular and the religious in the Arab world are sometimes one in the same, that that claims of Iranian influence in Iraq are overblown, and reiterates what the US mission in Iraq always was, and still is today.

Reading this article won’t teach you everything there is to know about Iraq but it will give you at least some basis of understanding; which is far more than most people have today.

Here is a brief excerpt but I beg you to read the whole thing.

Strictly speaking, the National Intelligence Estimate–another “canonical” document–is not a finding: It is an assessment of Islamic terrorism and its perceived links to Iraq. (It is odd, and ironic, that the intelligence agencies that had been mocked by liberal opinion for their reporting on Iraq before the war have now acquired an aura of infallibility.) Islamic terror did not wait on the Iraq war. The assertion that Islamic terrorism has “metastasized and spread across the globe” because of Iraq takes at face value what the jihadists themselves proclaim. It would stand to reason that their Web sites, and the audiotapes of their leaders, would trumpet their attachment to the cause of Iraq. It is inevitable that American analysts glued to jihadist cyberspace, and lacking intimate knowledge of Arab ways, would take the jihadists at their word. But Islamic radicals have not lacked for grievances.

The declassified portions of the NIE are not particularly profound in the reading of Islamism. Their sociologese is of a piece with a big body of writing on Islamist movements–that the resentments of these movements arise out of “anger, humiliation and a sense of powerlessness” in the face of the West. I dare guess that were Ayman al-Zawahiri to make his way through this report, he would marvel at the naïveté of those who set out to read him and his fellow warriors of the faith. Ayoob al-Masri (Zarqawi’s successor in Iraq) would not find himself and his phobias and his will to power in this “infidel document.” These warriors have a utopia–an Islamic world ruled by their own merciless brand of the faith. With or without Iraq, the work of “cleansing” Islam’s world would continue to rage on.

and feeling about as relaxed as possible. A big thank you to Gaius from Blue Crab Boulevard, and George from GM’s Corner for filling in for me while I was gone.

Great job guys.

A portion of the National Intelligence Estimate has been released. I’m looking at the Associated Press and Reuters stories side-by-side. Reuters has a better representation of the document while the AP article is an editorial that stresses the same negative tripe we’ve heard since this whole ruckus started. In other words, there is active suppression of the news here.

AP: WASHINGTON - A declassified government intelligence report says the war in Iraq has become a “cause celebre” for Islamic extremists, breeding deep resentment of the U.S. that is likely to get worse before it gets better.

In the bleak report, released Tuesday on President Bush’s orders, the nation’s most veteran analysts conclude that despite serious damage to the leadership of al-Qaida, the threat from Islamic extremists has spread both in numbers and in geographic reach.

“If this trend continues, threats to U.S. interests at home and abroad will become more diverse, leading to increasing attacks worldwide,” the document says. “The confluence of shared purpose and dispersed actors will make it harder to find and undermine jihadist groups.”

Reuters: WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The war in Iraq has bred deep resentment in the Muslim world and provided Islamist militants with a “cause celebre” that allowed the global movement to cultivate supporters, according to excerpts of a secret intelligence report released on Tuesday.

….

“We assess that the Iraq jihad is shaping a new generation of terrorist leaders and operatives,” said the declassified segment of the report, titled “Trends in Global Terrorism: Implications for the United States.”

“The Iraq conflict has become the ’cause celebre’ for jihadists, breeding a deep resentment of U.S. involvement in the Muslim world and cultivating supporters for the global jihadist movement,” it added.

“Should jihadists leaving Iraq perceive themselves, and be perceived, to have failed, we judge fewer fighters will be inspired to carry on the fight.”

Democrats, hoping to take control of Congress in the November elections, have seized on media leaks about the report as evidence that Bush’s Iraq policy has worsened the global terrorism threat.

But the declassified section, which contained 10 judgments about global terrorism including one on Iraq, reached no sweeping conclusion about the war’s ultimate effect on global terrorism.

The AP is stressing one section out of 10 that were released. Reuters is much more even handed here. I need to get my hands on the full text. I do not trust any of the media to give a fully accurate account of this document at this point. That’s pretty sad when you think about it.

UPDATE: Thanks to Bill for the link. An absolutely key part of the bit that AP quoted was left out - it completely negates their spin - which, I’m sure, is why it was left out. Note also the four factors quoted as reasons for spread of Jihad.

We assess that the Iraq jihad is shaping a new generation of terrorist leaders and
operatives; perceived jihadist success there would inspire more fighters to continue the
struggle elsewhere.

• The Iraq conflict has become the cause celebre for jihadists, breeding a deep
resentment of US involvement in the Muslim world and cultivating supporters for
the global jihadist movement. Should jihadists leaving Iraq perceive themselves,
and be perceived, to have failed, we judge fewer fighters will be inspired to carry
on the fight.We assess that the underlying factors fueling the spread of the movement outweigh its
vulnerabilities and are likely to do so for the duration of the timeframe of this Estimate.

• Four underlying factors are fueling the spread of the jihadist movement: (1)
Entrenched grievances, such as corruption, injustice, and fear of Western
domination, leading to anger, humiliation, and a sense of powerlessness; (2) the
Iraq jihad; (3) the slow pace of real and sustained economic, social, and
political reforms in many Muslim majority nations; and (4) pervasive anti-US
sentiment among most Muslims all of which jihadists exploit.

Then section of the NIE that the White House released today can be found here.

Cross post from Blue Crab Boulevard.

The words of Afghan President Karzai responding to a reporters question. AllahPundit has the video. He is articulate, forceful and undeniably correct. He smacked this reporter down so hard that the video is a joy to watch.

Cross post from Blue Crab Boulevard.

Well, the Democrats are pretty open about what some of them are going to try to do to force the US to cut and run out of Iraq. Cut off funds for the war. If they win control of the house, some members of the Congress fully intend to try to make the war impossible to fight by cutting off money. In the worst example of double-speak yet, they say they won’t cut off funds for the troops. Just for the war. You try and figure that one out.

Rep. Charles Rangel (D-N.Y.) will chair the powerful Ways and Means Committee if Democrats win control of the House next year, but his main goal in 2007 does not fall within his panel’s jurisdiction. “I can’t stop this war,” a frustrated Rangel said in a recent interview, reiterating his vow to retire from Congress if Democrats fall short of a majority in the House.

But when pressed on how he could stop the war even if Democrats control the House during the last years of President Bush’s second term, Rangel paused before saying, “You’ve got to be able to pay for the war, don’t you?”

Rangel’s views on funding the war are shared by many of his colleagues – especially within the 73-member Out of Iraq Caucus.

Some Democratic legislators want to halt funding for the war immediately, while others say they would allocate money for activities such as reconstruction, setting up international security forces, and the ultimate withdrawal of U.S. troops.

“Personally, I wouldn’t spend another dime [on the war,]” said Rep. Lynn Woolsey (D-Calif.).

Woolsey is among the Democrats in Congress who are hoping to control the power of the purse in 2007 to force an end to the war. Woolsey and some of her colleagues note that Congress helped force the end of Vietnam War by refusing to pay for it.

They care not one whit how deadly a precipitous pullout will be for the entire United States. Some of them cannot figure out why the nation keeps considering them weak on security. The complete lack of logic here is astonishing.

Battling the White House on the war would be challenging, Democrats say, but they would be emboldened by the election results and Bush’s standing as a lame-duck president with low approval ratings.

Abercrombie stressed that Democrats are not going to sever funding for the troops. Cutting off funding is “easy to say and another thing to do,” according to Abercrombie.

What’s more like likely, he said, is to fund the conflict in a way that will end the war by reallocating money to new initiatives.

“We’re going to continue to give the troops everything they need,” said Jim Manley, spokesman for Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.).

A House Democratic leadership aide said, “The bottom line is that should Democrats regain the House, Democrats will leave no soldier left behind in Iraq. As long as there’s soldiers in the battlefield, funding will continue.”

Yeah. Great idea. I’m sure my son and his fellow soldiers are highly comforted by words like this. We’re going to cut off funds, but magically the soldiers won’t be affected by that. This is shameful and shows the worst America has to offer.

They care not one whit how deadly a precipitous pullout will be for the entire United States. Some of them cannot figure out why the nation keeps considering them weak on security. The complete lack of logic here is astonishing.

Battling the White House on the war would be challenging, Democrats say, but they would be emboldened by the election results and Bush’s standing as a lame-duck president with low approval ratings.

Abercrombie stressed that Democrats are not going to sever funding for the troops. Cutting off funding is “easy to say and another thing to do,” according to Abercrombie.

What’s more like likely, he said, is to fund the conflict in a way that will end the war by reallocating money to new initiatives.

“We’re going to continue to give the troops everything they need,” said Jim Manley, spokesman for Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.).

A House Democratic leadership aide said, “The bottom line is that should Democrats regain the House, Democrats will leave no soldier left behind in Iraq. As long as there’s soldiers in the battlefield, funding will continue.”

Yeah. Great idea. I’m sure my son and his fellow soldiers are highly comforted by words like this. We’re going to cut off funds, but magically the soldiers won’t be affected by that. This is shameful and shows the worst America has to offer.

Iran wants the Russians to finish building the Bushehr reactor project right now. Or they say they will finish it themselves. This does not bode well for the negotiations underway with the EU, I suspect.

“In the event that the Russian contractor proves incapable of completing the Bushehr project, Iran is ready to finish it itself,” the head of Iran’s nuclear energy organization Gholamreza Aghazadeh told Iranian journalists after Moscow talks.

“From our point of view, we can complete the power station within six months,” Aghazadeh told the semi-official Mehr news agency, denying reports of an agreement with Russia for a November 2007 completion date.

The Iranian envoy launched a strong attack on the competence of Russian contractor Atomstroyexport which is building the power plant but said Iran would continue to work with it for the time being.

Before the Moscow talks began, Iranian officials said that the meetings were aimed at finalizing plans for the delivery of nuclear fuel and the startup of the Bushehr plant.

“We are going to discuss ways to remove existing obstacles by quickly completing the Bushehr atomic plant and also we are going to agree the time of inauguration and sending the fuel,” Aghazadeh’s deputy, Mohammad Saeedi, told Iran’s official IRNA news agency.

Saeedi complained that Russia had not followed through on commitments made last year on schedules for delivery of nuclear fuel, fuel that must be shipped and installed around six months before the plant can go on stream.

Although Russia had a longstanding contract worth an estimated one billion dollars to build the Bushehr reactor, it has been under heavy US-led pressure to suspend or slow its cooperation with the Islamic republic, which Washington accuses of trying to develop a nuclear weapons capability.

Even if the reactor is built, there is the problem of fueling the unit. I have no idea if Iran has the infrastructure to perform fuel fabrication. It requires a lot of know-how and industrial capability to actually make the fuel assemblies. It is not beyond the realm of possibility, however, given the advanced enrichment program.

Cross post from Blue Crab Boulevard.