Message #162899

[Harconen]

On July 3, North Korea test fires two additional missiles. [3730]

 

Bashar al-Assad, president of Syria, invites Obama to Damascus. Al-Assad states, “We would like to welcome him in Syria, definitely. I am very clear about this.” Since 1979, Syria has been classified by the United States a state sponsor of terrorism; considering Obama’s eagerness to meet with any leader without pre-conditions, financing terrorist activities will likely not prevent him from meeting with Al-Assad. (The headquarters of Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad are in Damascus. Weapons from Iran pass through Syria on their way to Hizbullah terrorists. Some speculate that Saddam Hussein’s weapons of mass destruction were shipped to Syria as the U.S. Armed Forces assembled for the 2003 invasion.) [3733, 3734]

 

As many as 2,000 TEA (Taxed Enough Already?) party tax protests are held on July 4 in over 1,200 cities across America. Organizers are also planning a National Taxpayer Protest for September 1- through 12; thousands are expected to attend in the nation’s capital. [3702, 3703, 3759, 3760]

 

As Americans celebrate their Independence Day and Obama heads to Russia, Iran hangs 20 people “convicted of drug trafficking.” Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam, with the Iranian Human Rights organization, states, “34 people have been executed in Iran in the past four days, and 26 of the executions have taken place in Tehran. There is no doubt that these executions are meant to spread fear among the people and suppress further the pro-democracy movement in Iran. Several thousand people have been arrested following the last three week’s demonstrations in Iran. Many of them are in danger of torture, forced confession and execution. The world community, UN, EU and all countries with diplomatic ties with Iran must do whatever they can in order to stop the bloodshed started by the Iranian regime. The world must act now, before it is too late. We also ask the world community to support the legitimate demands of the Iranian people and not to recognize results of the recent Iranian election.” [3746]

 

CBSNews.com files a story about the tea party protests, going out of its way to give the story an anti-Republican slant. The article emphasizes, “While many of the signs at the protests blame President Barack Obama for government overspending, the people CBS News talked to were just as upset with Republicans.” The article eagerly states that conservative Republicans “desperately need” a “united front,” and quotes Politico’s Andy Barr: “You talk to a number of Republican strategists in Washington and they are all looking for ways to kind of grab that energy and put it into campaigns. So far they haven't done it.” A story allegedly about thousands of Americans protesting high taxes, massive deficit spending, and trillions added to the national debt is transformed by CBS into a criticism of conservative Republicans. In general, mainstream media coverage of the tax protests was minimal. (At the same time, ratings for CBS, NBC, and ABC have been less than stellar, and the networks find themselves having to fight harder for advertising revenue.) [3739, 3764]

 

It is reported that the Obama administration is opposed to financial sanctions to be discussed at the upcoming G8 summit, which other nations are supporting in response to the Iranian government’s brutal treatment of demonstrators. (Obama would apparently rather do nothing in response to the killing of protestors than risk upsetting Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and the ayatollahs.) [3732]

 

By July 5, the clip of White House correspondents Chip Reid and Helen Thomas attacking press secretary Robert Gibbs on the issue of Obama being fed pre-selected questions at his “town hall meeting” on health care is missing from the press briefing play list on YouTube.com. The index includes June 26 and July 2 but omits the embarrassing July 1 exchange (which the “most transparent administration” apparently believes no Americans need to view). [3694, 3695, 3752, 3753]

 

On July 5, a White House official says the Obama administration might implement a new U.S.-Russian nuclear arms treaty without Senate approval—even though Senate ratification of all treaties is required by the U.S. Constitution. The existing Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START) expires December 5. One issue of concern to Russia is the planned U.S. missile defense system installation for Poland and the Czech Republic. As columnist Caroline Glick points out, “…while in Moscow Obama plans to abandon U.S. allies Ukraine and Georgia and agree to deep cuts in U.S. missile defense programs. In exchange, Moscow is expected to consider joining Washington in cutting back on its nuclear arsenal just as the likes of Iran and North Korea build up theirs. Of course, even if Russia doesn't agree to scale back its nuclear arsenal, Obama has already ensured that the US will slash the size of its own by refusing to fund its modernization. Of course, even if Russia doesn’t agree to scale back its nuclear arsenal, Obama has already ensured that the U.S. will slash the size of its own by refusing to fund its modernization.” [3754, 3770]