April 27, 2009

"Why the Defense Department wanted to do a photo-op right around the site of the World Trade Center catastrophe defies imagination."

Mayor Bloomberg raged, after a needless, stupid White House mission caused a panic in NYC:
“People came pouring out of the buildings, the American Express Building, all the buildings in the financial district by the water,” said Edward Acker, a photographer who was at the building, 3 World Financial Center. “And even the construction guys over by 100 North End Avenue area, they all got out of their buildings. Nobody knew about it. Finally some guy showed up with a little megaphone to tell everyone it was a test, but the people were not happy. The people who were here 9/11 were not happy.”

Mr. Acker added: “New York City police were standing right there and they had no knowledge of it. The evacuations were spontaneous. Guys from the floor came out, and one guy I talked to was just shaking.”...

In Jersey City, construction workers were evacuated from a condominium tower under construction at 77 Hudson Street.

The workers, who were on the 32nd floor of the construction site, said the plane circled three times past the Goldman Sachs tower, the tallest building in New Jersey. On the second pass, they said, the jet appeared to be only a few dozen feet from the building — close enough to clip the side of the skyscraper. A fighter followed right behind, mirroring its moves....

Sidney Bordley, a floor director in an office building at 1 Battery Park Place, said, “People were running out of the office, claiming they saw a commercial flight being pursued by F-16’s.” He added, “There was some confusion and a little excitement.”

A group of financial services workers, who were gathered outside the same building but declined to give their names, described their reactions. “I saw the landing gear and I was out of here,” one said. Another said: “There were people in my elevator, sweating and shaking. There were women crying. It was not an experience to be taken lightly.”

101 comments:

KCFleming said...

Whatever it was, it wasn't Obama's fault.

It never is.
Nor will it ever be.

Bob said...

Well, at least President Dumbass wasn't actually in the plane when it went joyriding over Manhattan. Small comfort to the terrified citizens, though.

Way to go, President Dumbass.

Peter V. Bella said...

Now all the lies start. Obama is infuriated, they notified NYC, oh we're so sorry. Lies, lies, and more lies.

BTW, the article did not say Obama fired anyone. I guess he was not that mad.

Palladian said...

Our country is Obama's soundstage.

Hope he got some good pictures.

Steve M. Galbraith said...

Clearly, this was undertaken by the leftover neocons that Cheney seeded into the Pentagon to make Obama look bad.

Next on "Countdown" with Keith Olbermann, Seymour Hersh and the Pentagon neocon conspiracy!!

Unknown said...

So, when push comes to shove (or appears to), people do remember 9/11.

That's the silver lining in this cloud of ineptitude.

NotWhoIUsedtoBe said...

I'd like to do my normal thing and find some rationality in this, but I can't. It was just stupid, and no one told whoever ordered this that it was a bad idea.

David said...

Will we ever find out who authorized this? Doubtful. There will be much falling on swords and diving for cover. Hard to believe that top Obama political types were not in on this stupid idea. Did Obama himself know? One hopes not, for reasons too numerous to list.

Who was on the plane? Enquiring minds want to know.

And just how many taxpayer dollars were expended on this stunt?

We are being governed by insensitive assholes.

Jon said...

I repeat my call for a "If Bush had done this" tag.

Dewb said...

The reaction is understandable. The government has been telling us for years that anyone taking pictures in New York is a terrorist.

Steve M. Galbraith said...

Brings to mind Hanna Arendt's definitions:

"A democracy is rule by the many; an oligarchy is rule by the few; a bureaucracy is rule by no one."

This does make me think of the Bush White House and the harsh interrogations: what they wanted done, what they thought was being done, and what was actually done isn't alway the same.

After all, a war is just a big government program just like any other.

Sofa King said...

Forget the panic. What was the carbon footprint? Jumbo jets burn a lot of fuel, even when they're empty.

rhhardin said...

They should have put on a spontaneous airshow. Nobody wants to watch airplanes just droning around.

A vertical climb and an aileron roll would have been classy.

Sofa King said...

Patience, everybody, please.

I'm sure the usual sycophants will be along to defend the indefensible any moment now.

The Dude said...

Empty plane for an empty suit.

A suit with short pants.

And a smoking jacket.

Smoking crack.

Peter V. Bella said...

Let's do some waterboarding and get to the bottom of this.

Jon said...

Could there be any more literal demonstration of the fact that the Obama administration has a Sept 10 mindset?

Eli Blake said...

Peter V. Bella:

the article did not say Obama fired anyone. I guess he was not that mad.So if you run an organization with over two million employees (say, the Federal Government) and someone makes a stupid decision then you immediately know who it was and who to fire (no report or investigation necessary?)

fool.

NotWhoIUsedtoBe said...

I wouldn't read much into this as far as the President goes. I doubt he had any idea it was happening. I wouldn't read any deeper meaning into it at all. It was just stupidity, of which there is a surplus in government bureaucracy.

Steve M. Galbraith said...

If you think this was bad, wait'll you see what they do to Pearl Harbor next month.

And that summer excursion to Gettysburg? I'd drop those plans.

[As a boy, my parents would take us to Gettysburg every summer since my father's parents lived nearby. I always felt weird playing there; like I was talking too loud in a church.]

Sofa King said...

I wouldn't read much into this as far as the President goes. I doubt he had any idea it was happening.

The buck stops...hell, it never stops!

The Drill SGT said...

David said...
Will we ever find out who authorized this? Doubtful.
a guy who should know better. Bill Clinton's former Secretary of the Army, who is now Obama's head of the WH Military Office:

Louis Caldera, director of the White House Military Office, subsequently said in a statement that he approved the mission last week.

"I take responsibility for that decision," Caldera said. "While federal authorities took the proper steps to notify state and local authorities in New York and New Jersey, it's clear that the mission created confusion and disruption. I apologize and take responsibility for any distress that flight caused."
dumb, dumber, dumbest...

Arturius said...

(I wouldn't read much into this as far as the President goes. I doubt he had any idea it was happening. )

Can I assume this will be the standard response for all future bureaucratic fuckups that occur in this administration?

Unknown said...

Wow...

A show of hands, please: Who here remembers the "BDS" pandemic that hit a few years back? I think it's surfacing again...

Seriously, folks, if you work yourself into a lather of outrage for what is clearly and quite simply bureaucratic ineptitude you won't have any juice left in the tank when something that actually matters comes along (see, e.g., liberals, Bush and torture).

Peter V. Bella said...

"(no report or investigation necessary?)"

Um, political appointees have no rights. They serve at the pleasure of the President. I would of fired who ever signed off on this as a lesson to others. That is called leadership.

Life is tough. It's tougher if you are stupid.

NotWhoIUsedtoBe said...

It's just not that big a deal. I got really tired of every little thing that went wrong being pinned on the last President, and the same thing is happening again.

No one died, and it's just the normal stupidity of government. Putting it on the same level as something important (like an actual attack) shows a lack of perspective.

People who want to paint the President as incompetent will use anything to prove it. They see what they want to see, just like people did for the last President. When we find out what actually happened, it will most likely be some low level deputy trying to impress someone. Stupidity is banal.

The President cannot make every decision in the government, or even in the executive branch. He is responsible for the mistakes of others, of course, but only because he's the President. I'm confused as to how people think that Obama is somehow in charge of organizing low level decisions like photo ops. Do you think Bush was? I doubt it.

And it just doesn't matter that much. This will turn into a partisan scandal that no one else cares about. Who knew what when about a photo op...

Penny said...

" So, when push comes to shove (or appears to), people do remember 9/11. That's the silver lining..."

True words there, Marcia, at least for the folks who live or work in NYC. As luck would have it, we have a few journ-o-lists there too. Let's see what they make of this?

I would suspect something like, "Damn that fool Defense Department!"

Me? I always preferred the unannounced fire drills in grade school.

Cedarford said...

A senior administration official said that an F.A.A. official notified Mayor Bloomberg’s office last week about the flyover. She said that Marc Mugnos, the director of operations in the office of citywide event coordination and management, was the official notified about the Air Force operation. NJ and NY State, Port Authority authorities, the FAA, both state police agencies were also notified..


So it wan't just the AF. A multiplicity of gevernment agencies knew and didn't see fit to notify media or the public.

And there is something funny about people in the ideological heart of the ACLU, that seek to end interrogation of "terrorists with rights" and prosecute CIA and Bush people exploding out of their buildings in blind panic. Many still wearing their "O" buttons.

Jon said...
Could there be any more literal demonstration of the fact that the Obama administration has a Sept 10 mindset?
.


With the passage of almost 8 years, the country cannot pretend any longer, as Bush did - that a minor military attack with light casualties as 1st enemy attacks go "Changed Everything!!!" (Russia lost 3 million in the 1st month of WWII) Or, like Bush, pretend that all other duties and challenges facing the Fed GOv't can be ignored in order to:

1. Go 24/7 that nothing matters but facing the Evildoers.
2. Bring democracy to freedom-hungry, noble Muslims.
3. Do what Our Special Friend thinks we need to do.

Sofa King said...

No one died, and it's just the normal stupidity of government.
So, what, we're not to criticize government stupidity now? Give us a break. This just happened, it's news, it's fair game for comment and finger-pointing.

Let's make a deal - if conservatives are bringing this issue up months or years from now, then we'll agree that the reaction is an overreaction. But unless you think it should just pass without comment, you're being unreasonable at this point.

Ron said...

Upset that Ashton Kucher got to a million Twitter followers before he, the POTUS decides to "punk" NYC...

KLDAVIS said...

Heck of a job, Barry.

Arturius said...

It's just not that big a deal. .

Evidently quite a few folks in NYC
might disagree.

Palladian said...

"So, what, we're not to criticize government stupidity now?"

Of course not! Chill out man! Sit back, smoke a doob. Repeat to yourself "yes we can!" No big deal, man! Shit happens! Why blame us?

Chennaul said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Palladian said...

Is it just me or is Cedarford becoming more and more incoherent? It's like the Three Faces of Eve or something. He has somehow managed to write comments that simultaneously support and condemn every side of an issue.

traditionalguy said...

Am I missing something? How is this Pres. Obama's fault? Did he say "you can see F-16 do shootdowns from here", and then have to go prove it? Was it done to show off to the Al Queada cells in Canada that Homeland Security has Airforce friends?

Chennaul said...

John Lynch-

You might have a point but then take a look at the video at this link-

Link

Hector Owen said...

We don't know yet that no one died. Injury reports will not come in until later. People will have fallen down stairs, possibly had heart attacks, who knows?

I want to know what was the point of the memo from the FAA that "specifically directed local agencies not to tell the public about the photo shoot."

Eli Blake said...

Meanwhile, FOX Network announced that they are refusing to carry the President's press conference (though CBS, ABC and NBC will still carry it) so they can broadcast their regularly scheduled episode of "Lie to Me."

Fr Martin Fox said...

Drudge links an AP story on Yahoo, in which an "administration official" said it was to get a photo of Air Force One flying near the Statue of Liberty.

This official said the White House Military Office told the Federal Aviation Administration that it periodically updates file photos of Air Force One near national landmarks, like the statute in New York harbor and the Grand Canyon.If this is true, this is outrageous. How much $$$ does it cost to fly that plane over by the Statue of Liberty? Then there's the "carbon footprint" for those who get excited about that. What, they never heard of Photoshop?

Chennaul said...

You know for seven years nothing like this happened.

Of course the Obama Administration must be having a hard time because the Blame Bush Reflex isn't going to work out too well here.

"Hey! this is the mess I was left with!"

Only time they haven't used some version of that line thus far was-

"Hey look at these crack Navy SEALS Bush left me with, and some cool Navy stuff too-damn him!"

Quit defending idiots that can't take 1/10th of the shat they dished.

Their capable of defending themselves-it's the Big Leagues now.

Time to take off the training wheels honestly.

Let them grow up for the love of Mike.

Chennaul said...

Heck I could be speaking too soon.

give them time-this will be Bush's fault or some full bird will have to take the wrap.

The Drill SGT said...

Sounds like The O, wasn't pleased with Caldera.

a Jake Tapper quote:

When President Obama was told about the incident, he was "furious," a White House official says.

Caldera was called into a meeting with White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel and deputy chief of staff Jim Messina.

"It didn't sound like a fun meeting," the White House official

Anonymous said...

Wow, for a democratic town they sure are a bunch nervous nellies. Don't they know what an F-16 looks like? Surely they saw enough paper mache mockups during their war protests to know the difference.

Peter V. Bella said...

It was probably a practice bombing run. BO thinks OBL and AQ are in NYC and wants to root them out or eliminate them.

Makes as much sense as the rest of the excuses.

Ignorance is Bliss said...

Louis Caldera, director of the White House Military Office, subsequently said in a statement that he approved the mission last week.

Okay, so he approved it. But who requested it? Who's bright idea was it?

Jason said...

It was just a false alarm.

Sofa King said...

Meanwhile, FOX Network announced that they are refusing to carry the President's press conference (though CBS, ABC and NBC will still carry it) so they can broadcast their regularly scheduled episode of "Lie to Me."

So?

Chennaul said...

daredevil-66

Ya where is their faith in the One and his new terrorist outreach program-

Happy Talk and Unicorns for Everyone!

Christy said...

Adult Supervision has left the Capitol.

NotWhoIUsedtoBe said...

Yeah, mass panic caused by this is a harm, and even if no one died someone very well could have.

So, it is a bigger deal than I said earlier. Sorry, I shouldn't have downplayed it so much.

Automatic_Wing said...

Just another routine gov't fuck-up...miscommunication between different layers of our vast Federal/State/Local bureaucracy.

In other words, business as usual.

Chip Ahoy said...

‹troll chain rattle›

Can you hang on please until Fox News covers this so I'll know what I'm supposed to think? Thank you.

‹/troll chain rattle›

jayne_cobb said...

"Sounds like The O, wasn't pleased with Caldera."


Well, of course he wasn't pleased as this not only makes him look foolish but more importantly it completely overshadows the concerted effort to tie Republicans to the swine flu.

Despite all that effort, all the water cooler talk tomorrow is going to be about how Obama just scared the shit out of New York.

WV.Hillbilly said...

I find it amusing that the flight was to update an existing picture, but not one media outlet shows the old one or links to it.

Automatic_Wing said...

POH - They were trying to make a picture like this.

Palladian said...

"POH - They were trying to make a picture like this."

George Washington doesn't look afraid.

The Drill SGT said...

Maguro said...
POH - They were trying to make a picture like this.
now I am sort of pissed. TheO is supposed to believe in AGW and checking every line item to save money, except of course when they are trying to stimulate. This must have been Stimulus Monday, and The Goracle must have given them a carbon offset to allow them to spend 15 tons of fuel on PR photos.

WV.Hillbilly said...

Yeah, I've seen that one. It looks nothing like the Statue of Liberty.

What I've never seen is a picture of AF1 flying past any other landmarks except that one.
Google images doesn't come up with one at the statue in over 500 images.

What's next? Getting Chuck Yeager to fly it under the Golden Gate Bridge?

Unknown said...

I know it may seem odd but I'm giving Obama a pass on this one, especially if he fires the nutjob who ordered it. I find myself in agreement with Chuckie Schumer, Mayor Bloomberg, and Barack Obama all at once, and damnit, I'm going to savor the moment.

Bob said...

As for the press conference, it's only the Fox network channels that won't be covering it; the presser will be covered in full at Fox News and Fox Business channels, so it's not as if it's a complete snub, as some of the other networks did when Bush was President.

Franco said...

This is a huge screw-up. And it won't be reported much by the drive-bys. If it were Bush however... Anyway it is unconscionable! The insensitivity is mind-boggling!

Spending that kind of taxpayer money at this time in history for updating a photo says it all.

Joe said...

Beyond the utter dumbness of the stunt, what happened to saving money? Add up the fuel costs and all the bureaucracy back and forth and pretty soon you're talking real money, even in Washington.

Franco said...

Good for Fox for not covering the press conference. Lie To Me will be on all four networks at once.

The Drill SGT said...

POH said...What's next? Getting Chuck Yeager to fly it under the Golden Gate Bridge?

Yeager got beat by a peer: Tex...


Tex Johnston is best known for barrel rolling the Boeing model 367-80 (better known as the Dash-80, the prototype of the KC-135 Stratotanker, which was the basis for the very first US transport jet B-707) in a demonstration flight over Lake Washington outside of Seattle, in front of 500,000 people on August 7, 1955.[4] The maneuver was caught on film and is frequently shown on the Discovery Wings cable channel in a three-minute short as part of the Touched by History series. Called before Boeing president Bill Allen, Johnston was asked what he meant in rolling the airplane. "Selling your airplane" was his response. Johnston kept his position as a test pilot, and got in no legal troubles for his actions.Must see video :)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ra_khhzuFlE

Joe said...

I've never understood why all the networks needed to carry the damn presidential press conferences. They all show the same damn thing; why not have PBS or CSPAN carry them and all those who give a shit can tune in.

(My annoyance of televised press conferences dates back to the 70s, when I was a teenager. I've since learned that I detest listening to most presidents and politicians speak. It's double speak and phony.

Lem the artificially intelligent said...

I'm too pissed to comment on this.

MadisonMan said...

I guess I can understand, maybe, why the secrecy was needed. It reads like people were notified of the event but told not to tell anyone. Which is unfortunate because if they had, they would have learned what a very bad idea it was.

So the bureaucrat who okayed this takes responsibility, which in FedSpeak means diddly squat. He should have already resigned.

veni vidi vici said...

"I take responsibility for that decision," Caldera said. "While federal authorities took the proper steps to notify state and local authorities in New York and New Jersey, it's clear that the mission created confusion and disruption. I apologize and take responsibility for any distress that flight caused."

The "tell" in the above quote (and how it is instantly recognizable as an Obama administration statement) is how the guy claims to take full responsibility... after having just finished blaming the state and local authorities for not communicating effectively.

These guys are fast becoming something of a joke. The administration has one or two of these Peter & the Wolf fingerpointing moments left before no reasonable person will have faith in their "I told so and so but they didn't do this or that, but being noble, I accept responsibility" dissembling. No one will believe they actually told anyone, and they'll own the ineptitude wholesale.

This is some of the purest ineptitude I've ever witnessed in elected officials anywhere. For Democrats, these guys even suck as actors!

veni vidi vici said...

"He has somehow managed to write comments that simultaneously support and condemn every side of an issue."

We are witnesses to jadedness taken to the level of an artform.

Anonymous said...

Why do you need this sort of photograph??

You need it to SELL. Gotta sell the big government to the masses with patriotic images and patriotic airplanes and patriotic landmarks.

In fact, the idiots who arranged this debacle found selling to be so important that the reaction of the people of the NYC area just, uh, slipped their mind.

This mindlessness is what happens hen the folks in Washington eat, drink, and breath big government.

Revenant said...

Meanwhile, FOX Network announced that they are refusing to carry the President's press conference (though CBS, ABC and NBC will still carry it) so they can broadcast their regularly scheduled episode of "Lie to Me."

Sounds like a smart business decision, given the relative ratings of Presidential addresses and "Lie to Me".

Peter V. Bella said...

Man, just to think, the deranged libturds were all upset about the non-existent swine flu pandemic and casting blame.

But, BO scares the shit out of NYC for a stpid photo for his legacy; hey, just another day at the office.

garage mahal said...

FOX & Lie to Me in the same sentence is only fitting.

SteveR said...

Since it involved a plane that would be recognized as being the president's it is perhaps obvious that some stupid skit, tieing Obama with the Statue of Liberty, Manhatten, the military (represented by the F-16) was being staged. The only stupider explanations are every other one.

Automatic_Wing said...

But, BO scares the shit out of NYC for a stpid photo for his legacy; hey, just another day at the office.My guess is that the Air Force wanted to take the pictures and Obama knew nothing about it. Caldera, as head of WHMO, was probably the senior ranking civilian with knowledge of the mission. I'm sure all the gory details will emerge in due course.

rhhardin said...

The administration has one or two of these Peter & the Wolf fingerpointing moments left...

Ask not for whom the duck quacks.

dick said...

Be interesting to see what high paying position Caldera ends up with. Look at what happened to Jamie Gorelick and Rahm Emanuel and Holder and Geithner. They screwed up under Clinton and got very high paying jobs right away and when Obama got elected there they are again right back in office. Bet this happens with Caldera as well. Maybe he paid his taxes so he can't get a cabinet office but there must be something they can use him for. Any openings in Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae? That's always good for a few shekels.

Ignorance is Bliss said...

It's almost enough to make you feel sorry for New York. First, they get swept by the Red Sox, including Jacoby Ellsbury stealing home. And now this.

JAL said...

I'm sure all the gory details will emerge in due course.

8:51 PM
Why are you so sure?

I'm not.

richard said...

"..... Brooks imagined a new era of government in which its chief stewards do not come from the insular coterie of lifelong aides who depend upon (the president) for their well-being, but are putatively the best and brightest America has to offer and have the Ivy League pedigrees to prove it.(chris lacairia harvard crimson)

long on brains short on common sense

JAL said...

What's with this formatting glitch which forgets the line break after a quote and runs them together?

Ignorance is Bliss said...

JAL

I'm not sure what's with it, but if you include the return before you end the italics it works okay.

Unknown said...

Cedarford --

"...that a minor military attack with light casualties as 1st enemy attacks go..."

Pearl Harbor - 2117 deaths.

The Drill SGT said...

JAL,

alternately you perhaps you can do this?

it looks like:

<>alternately you perhaps you can do this<>?

and a return now

CarmelaMotto said...

I received a message at work from security saying, "the low flying plane is government owned, please cease evacuation," of the downtown office.

For all the dimwits who will make (and have) fun of scared New Yorkers, we learned something that day: Don't wait for "officials" to tell you what's going on. The blackout in 2003? People who were in and around the towers that day were gone in seconds. They didn't wait.

And to the moron above who thinks the "lefties" are scared of F15s, we had them circling NYC moments and days after 9/11. We are familiar, and unless it was the fleet week roll in, it would make me think (if I saw it) something bad is happening or about to happen. If I saw what people downtown saw today, I would think that F15 was trying to track or force down the jumbo jet.

Methadras said...

President Pussy strikes again with another incompetent, moronic act.

David said...

Drill Sgt:

Louis Caldera is taking the blame. The person taking the blame is often not the person responsible. Especially in DC.

Unknown said...

This is really the dumbest thing I have seen in these 100 days. I guess they really don't believe there's a war going on. Otherwise, why would they classify this flight--did they think no one would see it? Are all those people screaming in the videos because they hate Obama and want to make him look bad? This really is, like someone said, high school student council running the country.

Tomorrow we will hear,
"I'm glad no one blamed me because I was just eating my waffles."

Peter V. Bella said...

"Louis Caldera is taking the blame. The person taking the blame is often not the person responsible. Especially in DC.Someone who actually knows what he is talking about. You left out one important point; the responsible person usually owns the bus company.

KCFleming said...

Obama: Mission Accomplished!

Kirk Parker said...

Palladian,

"Is it just me..."

No, indeed not. You may recall I've advanced the theory that C4 is actually a leftist plant. Well, I'm guessing that the downturn in the economy has put the squeeze on whoever is paying him to do this, and he's in arrears to C4, and this is C4's way of threatening him to pay up or else.

"they get swept by the Red Sox..."

Ah, so that's why Trooper has been so quiet!

I'm Full of Soup said...

Nary a peep on this thread from DTL, Headhouse & Jeremy! I am shocked :)

Cedarford said...

Oligonicella said...
Cedarford --
"...that a minor military attack with light casualties as 1st enemy attacks go..."
Pearl Harbor - 2117 deaths.
With millions already dying in WWII, Pearl Harbor - at least as far as the "Victim Families" went, got pretty short shrift. The attack was remembered as a symbol of Jap treachery.

Within 3 months, the skies above Hawaii were alive with arriving planes. But there were no panicked Wall Street bankers or ACLU types boiling out of buildings. And claiming that they were so traumatized that all air formations planned above Hawaii airspace should be announced.

They had pretty good confidence that all the planes were OURS, and that all the Japs in America or on American territory were completely under control. Though the people on Hawaii knew that half the Japs were loyal, a 1/3rd were neutral or leaned to cheering the Emperor's victories over the Chinese and slightly over 10% were completely disloyal as still committed subjects of Hirohito. Enemy alien Japs and a good number of Kebai (Jap-Americans sent back to Japan for schooling and assimilation into the Mother Country).

But Hawaii was under martial law. So no enemy Japs or disloyal J-As really had the means to get guns, high explosives, hijack planes and threaten the war effort, even if they wanted to.

Almost 8 years have passed. Plenty of time to do all things needed to ensure another 9/11 didn;t happen again. Just as Americans in Hawaii felt they had nothing to fear of any 2nd strike after a few months because of war measures taken. But NYC has led the way in litigation in not ensuring the nation was safe from terror on flights, but that Muslims opposed to America do not have their rights "trammeled" by the nation...as they are just civilian criminals no different than bank robbers and best dealt with by "dedicated lawyers in the adversial process".

No wonder they ran like "victimized-yet-again!" rats.

Patm said...

Obama has been working overtime to make the country get back into a 9/10 mindset.

This incredible stupidity today just set him back a ways. A good ways. As a New Yorker, I can't tell you how much this has pissed me off.

AllenS said...

Louis Caldera, like Barack Obama is an affirmative action hire.

Bissage said...

DIRTY FAT PERSON SITS ON PRESIDENT'S FACE

The Dude said...

9/11 is ancient history. Maybe it never occurred. If it did occur, Bush did it. He is out of office. Shame on those who panicked for not recognizing hope and change when it flies right over their head.

Pussies...

Trooper York said...

Hey Kirk I have not been so quiet. Just busy. The Red Sox won fair and square and are rubbing the Yankees nose in it just like Barry and the Dems are doing to the Republicans and conservatives. But they both won fair and square. I ain't Melissa Rivers. I give credit where credit is due. Although as Vince Lombardi used to say when you score a touchdown you should look like you had been in the end zone before.

What they don't realize is that the worm does turn you know. It's a long season and it has just started. You don't win the World Series in April. Or your first hundred days. When we put Joba back in the pen and put some of the Sox on their asses with a few purpose pitches, things will look a lot different. Events have a way of catching up with you. Needless showboating, arrogance, hubris and stupid unforced errors have a way of piling up to destroy you one way or another. People get tired of your act. Just give it time.

amba said...

For a New Yorker who was there on 9/11, that would have been a terrifying flashback. I'm glad I wasn't there for it.

kentuckyliz said...

What's truly stupid is that Obama is trying to gin up support for prosecuting people for giving legal opinions about interrogation techniques.

This little stunt puts everyone right back to where they were in 2001 and 2002 and they remember why they supported extreme interrogation techniques in the first place.

It reminds us that there wasn't another successful terrorist attack for the next 8 years under McBushChimpyHilterCheney.

Maybe it will jog Nancy Pelosi's memory, why she was clamoring for harsh interrogation techniques.

Well done, Big O.

Nice to know the buck doesn't stop with him.

It's getting crowded under the bus.

Big O will blame Bush somehow. It's a problem he inherited. Yeah right.