Bernie Sanders: Obama Should Create A Program To Put Millions Back To Work and Challenge GOP To Support It
August 21, 2011 No Comment
Click here to view this media You tell ‘em, Bernie! Sen. Bernie Sanders spoke to more than 3,000 enthusiastic union leaders from across North America in Las Vegas on Wednesday at the convention of the United Steelworkers of America. Bernie focused on the need to create millions of good-paying jobs and to protect Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid. Earlier in the week, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi addressed the convention. President Barack Obama spoke to the membership via video. At a time when more than 16 percent of American workers — 25 million Americans — are either unemployed or underemployed, Bernie called for a bold effort to create millions of jobs by rebuilding the nation’s crumbling infrastructure, transforming our energy system and rewriting our trade policy so that American products — not jobs — are our number one export. “These are tough times in our country and a pivotal moment in our history. It’s important for us not just to be on the defensive. We have got to be on the offensive,” Bernie said in his speech. “We have got to bring forth a vision that speaks to what America is all about. And that is jobs that pay people a decent wage, jobs that are created in the United States of America, not in China.” Hours after delivering his convention speech, Bernie spoke with Ed Schultz on MSNBC about the jobs crisis facing the country. “I think the American people are beginning to catch on,” Bernie said. “The president cannot keep trying to compromise with people who do not want to compromise. What he needs to do is come out with a bold job-creating program to put millions of people back to work, and challenge the Republicans to support it.”
Continue reading …GOP Taps Nation’s Second Most Unpopular Governor, John Kasich for Weekly Address
August 21, 2011 No Comment
Click here to view this media Ohio’s Gov. John Kasich isn’t quite the most unpopular governor in the United States. He’s number two right behind Florida’s Gov. Rick Scott . So who better to sound off this week about how to get our country back on track in the Republicans’s Weekly Address? This is the same governor who, according to polling back in May, would lose a do-over election with his former opponent Ted Strickland by 26 points . And as TPM reported as well, he’s another one of these Republican governors who for all of their bluster attacking federal spending, were also quietly accepting those dollars at the same time. Now that Kasich’s union busting law is going to be put up to a referendum this November, Kasich suddenly decided that he now wants to make a deal with the state’s public employee unions . To their credit, it appears the unions have said, no thanks — Kasich Opponents: Repeal Your Anti-Union Law — Then We’ll Talk . And what are his “solutions” for getting our economy back on track? The same as we’ve seen from all of these Republicans. More tax cuts, deregulation, privatizing everything, and apparently what he didn’t bother to mention during this weekly response, union busting. Kasich also said Republicans should be willing to compromise with Democrats, but not compromise on their “principles.” Which is generally Republican double-speak for we’ll compromise after you give us everything we want, maybe. Or maybe you give us everything we want and we still obstruct for the sake of obstructing. Which is something they seem to be particularly good at now that we’ve got the scary Kenyan usurper in the White House that they’ll never acknowledge had a right to be there in the first place. Transcript via the LA Times below the fold. Hello, I’m Ohio Governor John Kasich. This week, the president traveled through the Midwest. He didn’t stop in Ohio this time around, but if he had, I’d have told him the same story I’m about to share with you. When I entered office in January, Ohio was facing the largest budget shortfall in our history and an economy suffering from the same uncertainty that’s hurting small businesses across the country. My administration worked with members of the General Assembly to reduce our shortfall to zero, all the while cutting taxes for every Ohioan. How did we do it? Well in the past, our state, like many others, relied heavily on one-time federal ‘stimulus’ dollars to fill the budget gap and used tricks and gimmicks to do the rest. But over time, that approach created a massive shortfall, caused job creators to lose confidence in Ohio, and led to increased unemployment. We looked our problems square in the eye and we didn’t blink. With our budget, we’ve achieved real savings and made long-overdue reforms to provide better value to Ohioans without raising their taxes; to the contrary, we cut their taxes and eliminated the death tax, which was driving successful entrepreneurs out of Ohio. We’re privatizing economic development in my state by creating JobsOhio – it’s an innovative and new nonprofit organization run by successful business people and entrepreneurs, an entity that can move at the speed of business (not at the speed of statute) and bring businesses and jobs to Ohio, and give the Buckeye State the economic competitive advantage it needs. Of course, we have a long way still to go. These are difficult times for Ohio families, and despite our recent success, Ohio was in a very deep hole and we are digging our way out. We faced an unprecedented $8 billion deficit, and we were among the highest taxed states in the nation. We knew we had to get Ohioans working again, so raising taxes – that was not the answer, as even the president has said before. Because that would have made Ohio even less competitive. Instead, we chose to reform programs that politicians had shied away from touching for decades – programs like Medicaid and prisons – so we wouldn’t have to raise taxes and drive out more jobs. For all the good we’re trying to do here, our success in Ohio and in a number of other states will be thwarted if Washington continues its spending spree and its punitive taxes on success. You know, if we’ve learned anything from the federal ‘stimulus,’ it’s that government can’t tax, spend and regulate its way to prosperity. Government shouldn’t be making promises it can’t keep – especially when it’s more than $14.5 trillion in the hole. Make no mistake, our national debt represents a claim on yourOhio Republican Governor John Kasich 6-11 future hard-earned tax dollars. And if we don’t tackle it – and soon – it will tackle us, and erode our economy and our children’s future. So when I hear the president and his allies in Washington say we need more spending and higher taxes, it is a real cause for concern. As we’ve proven in Ohio, there is a better way. And Americans can learn from Ohio. We need to start thinking about what we can do to help our children have a great future. Reform the behemoth that is the federal government to create the space so that businesses can invest and create jobs. Let’s look at what has worked throughout history: government is not THE answer, but it can be part of the answer. Rather, it’s the ability to provide for a robust private sector where people want to invest and take risks – that’s what’s going to get this country moving again. Republicans in Congress get this, and they have offered these kinds of solutions that deserve the president’s consideration, if not his full support. You know, I’m also encouraged to see that Republicans fought to ensure that both houses of Congress will vote this fall on the Balanced Budget Amendment to the Constitution. As a former chairman of the House Budget Committee, I can tell you there is no better way to control future spending and give our job creators long-term certainty than through a Balanced Budget Amendment. Fifteen years ago, a Balanced Budget Amendment came within one vote of passing Congress and going to the states for ratification. One of the votes to pass it in the House 15 years ago was mine. I can’t help but wonder how different things would be had we succeeded. Both parties should come together this fall to send a balanced budget amendment to us right here in our states. Divided government is no excuse for inaction. Sure, we had our fair share of gridlock back in the 1990s. Our differences may have been stark, but President Clinton and his team worked with us so that we could do what was best for the country. There’s just no substitute for leadership from the President of the United States. Where is it written that Washington can’t do it again? Where is it written that both parties can’t cut through the scar tissue and find consensus? Nowhere. It’s my hope President Obama will listen to the people and partner with Republicans to get our economy back to creating jobs and producing growth. And it’s just as important that Republicans not be stiff-necked about working across the aisle when important work must be done. It’s OK to compromise on policy, as long as you don’t compromise on your principles. The playbook we’re following here in Ohio is simple: To grow more, you have to tax less, spend less, and regulate less. If we can do it here in Ohio, Washington can – and should – do it also. Together, we can get it done. On behalf of all the people of the great state of Ohio, thank you for listening.
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WASHINGTON — Liberals argue that he caved on the debt ceiling. Unions are upset over his handling of unemployment and labor issues. Hispanics brought the immigration debate directly to his campaign doorstep. President Barack Obama’s summer of discontent has been marked by rumblings within his Democratic political base over his willingness to fight congressional Republicans and his approach to fixing the economy. Liberals disappointed with Obama for compromising with the GOP during the debt-ceiling showdown now are calling on him to hold firm against Republicans this fall. They want him to push a bold jobs agenda while drawing a strong line on taxes and protecting Medicare and Social Security. In recent weeks, the gripes have become so loud that the president himself acknowledged them during his Midwest bus tour this week. “I’ve got a whole bunch of responsibilities, which means I have to make choices sometimes that are unattractive and I know will be bad for me politically and I know will get supporters of mine disappointed,” Obama said in Iowa. He claimed progress on the economy, health care and two wars. And, offering his backers a bit of tough love, he added: “Sometimes you’ve got to make choices in order to do what’s best for the country at that particular moment, and that’s what I’ve tried to do.” The complaints – founded or not – are narrowing the tightrope Obama must walk over the next year to keep his base energized while recapturing the independent voters who helped power his win over John McCain in 2008. Still, for all the complaining, the ultimate impact on Obama’s re-election chances is open to question. The president faces no serious primary opponent, and polls show him faring fairly well within his party. Few liberals are likely to support a Republican for president next year. But angry liberals could refuse to volunteer to knock on doors or make phone calls, a pivotal grass-roots role for a candidate’s base of supporters. Disaffected Democrats could keep their wallets closed, hampering small-dollar fundraising over the Internet. Or they could just stay away from the polls on Election Day. “They want to love him, but he’s given them little evidence and his rhetoric is running out of steam,” said Princeton professor Cornel West, who campaigned for Obama in 2008 but has become a fierce critic. “We find ourselves between a rock and a hard place. He’s going to need high levels of enthusiasm among his base, and it’s going to be hard to do that with speeches and no real serious actions or policies.” The liberal angst has surfaced repeatedly over the past year as Obama has faced the reality of divided government in the aftermath of the 2010 congressional elections in which Republicans won the House. Liberals howled last December when he struck a deal with the GOP to extend Bush-era tax cuts. That reinforced earlier bad feelings from when he dropped the proposed “public option” for a government plan to compete with private insurance as part of the health care overhaul. Lately, the left has complained that Obama gave up too much in spending cuts during the debt-ceiling fight and failed to extract higher taxes on the wealthy in return. Now labor is arguing that a jobs agenda Obama will outline next month is long overdue, and unions are cringing when he talks about trade deals and patent reform. Last week, about a dozen trade unions said they would boycott next year’s Democratic National Convention in Charlotte, N.C., over frustration on the economy and because the event will be held in a right-to-work state. Blacks, who are expected to turn out in huge numbers next year to help re-elect that nation’s first black president, also are complaining about high joblessness. “Our people are hurting. The unemployment level is unconscionable,” Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Calif., said recently at a Congressional Black Caucus meeting in Detroit. And on Tuesday, Latino activists delivered 35,000 petitions to Obama’s Chicago campaign headquarters to protest the record number of deportations on Obama’s watch. They oppose a policy allowing police to submit the fingerprints of criminal suspects to the Department of Homeland Security so they can be cross-checked with deportation orders. “President Obama is doing a smashing job of discouraging, unmotivating and inducing fear among Latino voters,” said Roberto Lovato, co-founder of Presente.org. On the other hand, in a move welcomed by immigration advocates, the Obama administration said Thursday that many illegal immigrants facing deportation despite having no criminal records will be allowed to stay in the country and apply for work permits. And Obama has won plaudits from gays and lesbians for ending the ban on gays serving openly in the armed services and for ordering his administration to stop defending the constitutionality of the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act, which denies federal recognition to married gay couples. Obama campaign spokesman Ben LaBolt dismisses questions about liberal enthusiasm for the president, calling them “nothing more than Washington chatter that is not backed up by the facts on the ground.” And most polls do show Obama faring strongly with Democrats. The president’s overall approval rating has trended slowly downward this summer in Gallup’s daily tracking polls, hitting new lows for his presidency – about 39 percent – last week. But on average he has barely lost ground among his strongest supporters, averaging 83 percent approval among liberal Democrats compared with 86 percent earlier this year. Among moderate Democrats, 74 percent approve, down from the high 70s in the winter and spring. A Fox News poll conducted last week found about eight in 10 Democratic voters said they would probably vote to re-elect the president. “He will have a base problem until the time when an opponent emerges, and then 90 percent of the problem will disappear,” said Democratic pollster Paul Maslin. “People will consider the opponent and then he’ll look awfully good.” ___ Deputy Polling Director Jennifer Agiesta contributed to this report. ___ Ken Thomas can be reached at http://twitter.com/AP_Ken_Thomas
Continue reading …With the formation of an exploratory committee, Republican state senator Frank Antenori is the first in his party to officially consider seeking Gabrielle Giffords’ House seat, the Arizona Republic reports. The senator from Tucson, who lost a primary in 2006 for what became Giffords’ seat, says his move is intended…
Continue reading …Please Join Sen. Bernie Sanders on C&L For A Live Chat on Saturday 11 AM/PST-2PM/EST
August 19, 2011 No CommentThis Saturday Bernie will be joining in discussion with the Blue America community for a question and answer session at Crooks and Liars at 2pm (ET). We hope you will be able to join in the discussion. How many Members of Congress pop into your mind when you read the subject line of this email? No one is more prominent, at least not in this decade, than Vermont’s Independent U.S. Senator, Bernie Sanders. The people of Burlington didn’t elect him mayor in 1980 as either a Democrat or a Republican, nor did Vermont voters send him to the House of Representatives in 1990 as a Democrat or a Republican. And when he won a U.S. Senate seat in 2006 (with over 65% of the vote), he had again refused to run as either a Democrat or a Republican. That’s why Bernie Sanders has been the political leader most independent of the Establishment of anyone in our lifetimes. One thing you can safely bet on is that Bernie Sanders is never going to buy into the Conservative Consensus that utterly dominates the Beltway and the American mass media. God bless Vermont’s flinty, independent-minded voters! There is no voice more present– in fact some times it is the only voice present– fighting for the interests of ordinary working families when both Party Establishments are figuring out how to best serve the interests of the corrupt special interests financing their political careers. This Saturday Bernie will be joining in discussion with the Blue America community for a question and answer session at Crooks and Liars at 2pm (ET). We hope you will be able to join in the discussion. One of many reasons to get to know Bernie… when Blue America decides which other candidates to endorse, we rank them on a “Bernie Sanders scale.” The closer they are to him in agenda, attitude and courage, the more likely we are to endorse them. The Rove/Tea Party Machine will come after him Hard in 2012. Can you give something to help Bernie Sanders fight back for reelection? We are all in this together, Digby, John, Howie and the Blue America team.
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NPR's Scott Horsley apparently couldn't find any conservatives for his report on Thursday's All Things Considered, as he played nothing but sound bites from President Obama and former economic advisor Jared Bernstein boost a possible mini-stimulus, including ” help for public works projects .” Horsley played four clips from the President and two from Bernstein during the segment. Host Melissa Block didn't use the “stimulus” term as she introduced the correspondent's report , but stated that ” President Obama has decided to gamble on new government spending to encourage hiring ….the President has promised to outline new proposals to kick-start job growth.” Horsley did acknowledge that “Obama is under mounting pressure to show progress on the jobs front. A report from the Labor Department today showed continued weakness in the job market . And meanwhile, a new Gallup poll finds only about one in four Americans think the President's doing a good job of handling the economy .” However, for the bulk of his report, the NPR journalist let the Democratic chief executive and former underling make the case for their upcoming spending plan, with only a passing remark about the current unpopularity of the past stimulus: OBAMA: And over the course of the next few weeks, I'm going to be putting out more proposals, to put people to work right now and some of them- yes, some of them cost money . HORSLEY: This focus on jobs comes after months in which Washington has been preoccupied with spending less money to control the deficit. This week, Mr. Obama began to make the case more forcefully that the two goals don't have to be mutually exclusive . OBAMA: When folks tell you that we've got a choice between jobs now or dealing with our debt crisis, they're wrong. They're wrong. We can't afford to just do one or the other. We've got to do both. HORSLEY: Former White House economic advisor Jared Bernstein says the key to making this argument is timing. He says the government can encourage job growth with more spending now , and offset the cost with bigger savings later…. Bernstein , who is now with the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, was in the administration when the government crafted its $787 billion stimulus program two-and-a-half years ago . Many economists say that stimulus helped to cushion the economy's fall during the recession. But with unemployment still above nine percent, the stimulus is widely perceived as a failure , and President Obama has been wary about trying anything like it again. BERNSTEIN: The President and his political advisors know that anything that reeks of Keynesian stimulus is unpopular with the public. So, if you can just stand back and let the economy take care of itself- of course, you'd rather do so- but reality is such they just can't do that. Later, Horsley highlighted how “Mr. Obama's made the calculation that the risk of doing nothing on jobs is greater than the risk of another round of stimulus. Don't expect the White House to use that word to describe the President's proposal, and it's likely to be a lot smaller than the last big stimulus .” The NPR correspondent only made one reference to the conservative opposition near the end of the segment, but also acknowledged that the President could be making a risky political calculation: HORSLEY: Whatever the President suggests is likely to get a chilly reception from congressional Republicans . In a memo this week, House Majority Leader Eric Cantor called for stopping the discussions of new stimulus spending with money that we simply do not have . Mr. Obama appears ready to wage that battle. If he doesn't succeed in passing a jobs plan, he'll at least have another issue to campaign on next year…. Bashing Congress may not help the President's re-election chances , though, unless Americans see some prospect of the economy getting better. The full transcript of Scott Horsley's report from Thursday's All Things Considered: MELISSA BLOCK: With economic alarm bells ringing, President Obama has decided to gamble on new government spending to encourage hiring. The President met with his economic team this morning to plot strategy, before he set off on a late-summer vacation with his family. When he returns, the President has promised to outline new proposals to kick-start job growth. NPR's Scott Horsley reports on how he plans to make the case. SCOTT HORSLEY: President Obama is under mounting pressure to show progress on the jobs front. A report from the Labor Department today showed continued weakness in the job market. And meanwhile, a new Gallup poll finds only about one in four Americans think the President's doing a good job of handling the economy. During his Midwestern bus tour this week, Mr. Obama said he gets the message. With millions of Americans still out of work, efforts to boost job growth can no longer wait. PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA: And over the course of the next few weeks, I'm going to be putting out more proposals, to put people to work right now and some of them- yes, some of them cost money. HORSLEY: This focus on jobs comes after months in which Washington has been preoccupied with spending less money to control the deficit. This week, Mr. Obama began to make the case more forcefully that the two goals don't have to be mutually exclusive. OBAMA: When folks tell you that we've got a choice between jobs now or dealing with our debt crisis, they're wrong. They're wrong. We can't afford to just do one or the other. We've got to do both. HORSLEY: Former White House economic advisor Jared Bernstein says the key to making this argument is timing. He says the government can encourage job growth with more spending now, and offset the cost with bigger savings later. JARED BERNSTEIN: If you actually attack your jobs program, get some people back to work, get the economy spinning off some more revenues, you actually help your deficit problem. So, getting that sequencing right means jobs now, and focus more on deficit reduction in the outer years. HORSLEY: Bernstein, who is now with the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, was in the administration when the government crafted its $787 billion stimulus program two-and-a-half years ago. Many economists say that stimulus helped to cushion the economy's fall during the recession. But with unemployment still above nine percent, the stimulus is widely perceived as a failure, and President Obama has been wary about trying anything like it again. BERNSTEIN: The President and his political advisors know that anything that reeks of Keynesian stimulus is unpopular with the public. So, if you can just stand back and let the economy take care of itself- of course, you'd rather do so- but reality is such they just can't do that. HORSLEY: The reality is that, instead of gathering momentum and growing on its own, the economy appears to be in more and more danger of stalling out. So, Mr. Obama's made the calculation that the risk of doing nothing on jobs is greater than the risk of another round of stimulus. Don't expect the White House to use that word to describe the President's proposal, and it's likely to be a lot smaller than the last big stimulus. Details are scarce, but Mr. Obama hints one piece might be help for public works projects. OBAMA: We need roads and bridges and schools all across the country that could be rebuilt, and all those folks who got laid off from construction because the economy went south or the housing bubble burst- they're dying for work. HORSLEY: Whatever the President suggests is likely to get a chilly reception from congressional Republicans. In a memo this week, House Majority Leader Eric Cantor called for stopping the discussions of new stimulus spending with money that we simply do not have. Mr. Obama appears ready to wage that battle. If he doesn't succeed in passing a jobs plan, he'll at least have another issue to campaign on next year. OBAMA: And my attitude is, get it done. And if they don't get it done, then we'll be running against a Congress that's not doing anything for the American people, and the choice will be very stark and it will be very clear. HORSLEY: Bashing Congress may not help the President's re-election chances, though, unless Americans see some prospect of the economy getting better. Scott Horsley, NPR News, the White House.
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Capital faces onslaught from south, east and west as rebel commanders say they are within grasp of taking control Muammar Gaddafi’s 41-year grip on power in Libya looked to be loosening on Friday night, with the capital facing rebel advances from three sides after opposition forces from the once-besieged town of Misrata dramatically broke out to seize Zlitan in the east. With fresh operations launched to clear the last pro-Gaddafi troops out of the town of Zawiyah, 30 miles west of Tripoli, rebels now have the main coastal road under pressure on both sides of Tripoli and it is also under threat from the Nafusa mountains. As the stranglehold on the capital grows, plans are being made to evacuate the last remaining foreign workers by sea. It was a day of heavy street fighting in Zlitan, where rebels came up against tanks and troops from the 32nd brigade commanded by Khamis Gaddafi. Thirty-five rebel troops were killed and scores more injured. By Friday night, however, opposition leaders claimed to have taken control of the city 100 miles east of Tripoli, although this could not be independently verified. They said their column had reached the outskirts of Al Khums another 30 miles along the coast. Al Khums commands the last significant road junction before the capital. Rebel spokesmen in Misrata said their forces were now in a valley not far from the town. “Zlitan is now under thwar [revolutionary] control,” said Ali Gliwan, spokesman for Misrata’s military council. “Misrata thwar linked with the Zlitan thwar. They are now establishing control of the town.” At Misrata’s Mujamma Aledad hospital, bloodied bodies of the wounded and dead rebel fighters filled the corridors. “It’s a big rush, many martyrs,” said Dr Jamal Mustafa, sitting exhausted on a gurney. “Some of the faces, three of them we cannot recognise.” He said wounded fighters had told him government troops had hidden rocket launchers inside buildings to ambush fighters as they pushed into the town. “The bloody bastards, they hid in the houses, they know we [rebels] will not shoot at the houses for fear of killing civilians.” A large crowd of relatives and blood donors gathered at the hospital. One elderly woman in black was guided through the crowd, wailing and shrieking that her son was wounded. “I wish for God to take Gaddafi,” she shouted. “I wish for God to take him.” The latest rebel advance came amid reports that the Tripoli compound of Gaddafi’s brother-in-law and intelligence chief, Abdullah Senussi, had been destroyed by a Nato airstrike according to neighbours at his house which was hit overnight. There was no word on whether the intelligence chief was inside. In Zawiyah, 30 miles west of Tripoli, regime forces launched a fierce onslaught after the rebels captured the crucial oil refinery on Wednesday. Fighting was focused on two main streets – Omar Mokhtar and Gamal Abdel-Nasser roads – with the rebel commander in the city, Rida Shaeb, reporting that Gaddafi’s forces were still holding the hospital, as well as a hotel and a bank on the main square. After recent rebel advances on the capital from the south and west – and now the east – an international sea evacuation is being considered for thousands of Egyptians and other foreigners trapped in Tripoli. A spokeswoman for the International Organisation for Migration, Jemini Pandya, said the operation would begin within days. “We are looking at all options available, but it will probably have to be by sea,” she told a Geneva news conference. There were estimated to be 1.5 million to 2.5 million foreigners, mostly Asian and African migrant workers, in Libya but more than 600,000 have fled the country during the six months of fighting. However, many thousands remained in Tripoli which, until this week, was far from the fighting and is a two-hour drive from the Tunisian border. Earlier in the war the IOM evacuated thousands of foreigners trapped by fighting in Misrata, though it is unclear how many eligible evacuees are in Tripoli, or whether the authorities would cooperate with any evacuation by allowing ships to dock. Libya Middle East Africa Chris Stephen Peter Beaumont guardian.co.uk
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Capital faces onslaught from south, east and west as rebel commanders say they are within grasp of taking control Muammar Gaddafi’s 41-year grip on power in Libya looked to be loosening on Friday night, with the capital facing rebel advances from three sides after opposition forces from the once-besieged town of Misrata dramatically broke out to seize Zlitan in the east. With fresh operations launched to clear the last pro-Gaddafi troops out of the town of Zawiyah, 30 miles west of Tripoli, rebels now have the main coastal road under pressure on both sides of Tripoli and it is also under threat from the Nafusa mountains. As the stranglehold on the capital grows, plans are being made to evacuate the last remaining foreign workers by sea. It was a day of heavy street fighting in Zlitan, where rebels came up against tanks and troops from the 32nd brigade commanded by Khamis Gaddafi. Thirty-five rebel troops were killed and scores more injured. By Friday night, however, opposition leaders claimed to have taken control of the city 100 miles east of Tripoli, although this could not be independently verified. They said their column had reached the outskirts of Al Khums another 30 miles along the coast. Al Khums commands the last significant road junction before the capital. Rebel spokesmen in Misrata said their forces were now in a valley not far from the town. “Zlitan is now under thwar [revolutionary] control,” said Ali Gliwan, spokesman for Misrata’s military council. “Misrata thwar linked with the Zlitan thwar. They are now establishing control of the town.” At Misrata’s Mujamma Aledad hospital, bloodied bodies of the wounded and dead rebel fighters filled the corridors. “It’s a big rush, many martyrs,” said Dr Jamal Mustafa, sitting exhausted on a gurney. “Some of the faces, three of them we cannot recognise.” He said wounded fighters had told him government troops had hidden rocket launchers inside buildings to ambush fighters as they pushed into the town. “The bloody bastards, they hid in the houses, they know we [rebels] will not shoot at the houses for fear of killing civilians.” A large crowd of relatives and blood donors gathered at the hospital. One elderly woman in black was guided through the crowd, wailing and shrieking that her son was wounded. “I wish for God to take Gaddafi,” she shouted. “I wish for God to take him.” The latest rebel advance came amid reports that the Tripoli compound of Gaddafi’s brother-in-law and intelligence chief, Abdullah Senussi, had been destroyed by a Nato airstrike according to neighbours at his house which was hit overnight. There was no word on whether the intelligence chief was inside. In Zawiyah, 30 miles west of Tripoli, regime forces launched a fierce onslaught after the rebels captured the crucial oil refinery on Wednesday. Fighting was focused on two main streets – Omar Mokhtar and Gamal Abdel-Nasser roads – with the rebel commander in the city, Rida Shaeb, reporting that Gaddafi’s forces were still holding the hospital, as well as a hotel and a bank on the main square. After recent rebel advances on the capital from the south and west – and now the east – an international sea evacuation is being considered for thousands of Egyptians and other foreigners trapped in Tripoli. A spokeswoman for the International Organisation for Migration, Jemini Pandya, said the operation would begin within days. “We are looking at all options available, but it will probably have to be by sea,” she told a Geneva news conference. There were estimated to be 1.5 million to 2.5 million foreigners, mostly Asian and African migrant workers, in Libya but more than 600,000 have fled the country during the six months of fighting. However, many thousands remained in Tripoli which, until this week, was far from the fighting and is a two-hour drive from the Tunisian border. Earlier in the war the IOM evacuated thousands of foreigners trapped by fighting in Misrata, though it is unclear how many eligible evacuees are in Tripoli, or whether the authorities would cooperate with any evacuation by allowing ships to dock. Libya Middle East Africa Chris Stephen Peter Beaumont guardian.co.uk
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Recep Tayyip Erdogan describes the crisis as a ‘litmus test’ for humanity as he visits a refugee camp in Mogadishu with his wife The Turkish prime minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, has visited Somalia to draw international attention to the famine sweeping across the Horn of Africa. Erdogan, who was accompanied in Mogadishu by his family and five cabinet ministers, has appealed for more food aid for the drought-hit country and lashed out at wealthy western countries for not doing more. Somalia’s president, Sheikh Sharif Ahmed, welcomed Erdogan at the airport with a warm embrace. Erdogan, dressed in a sharp suit, and his wife, Emine, who wore haute-couture Islamic dress, then drove through the city’s rubbish-strewn streets. At one dusty, windswept refugee settlement, Erdogan crouched inside the tent of Bashir and Fatima, a young couple mourning the loss of two of their four children who died after walking 55 miles to Mogadishu. Emine Erdogan handed out chocolates and sweets. On Wednesday, Organisation of Islamic Co-operation (OIC) countries pledged $350m (£121m) in aid to fight the famine, which has left 3.7 million Somalis at risk of dying of hunger. Erdogan has said he hopes the OIC’s efforts will jolt the consciences of those ignoring the unravelling humanitarian emergency. A pious Muslim, he has called the disaster a “litmus test” for humanity. The withdrawal of most Islamists from their Mogadishu bases earlier in the month has in effect handed full control of the capital to the government for the first time since civil war broke out in 1991. Somali troops and African peacekeepers are still meeting pockets of rebel resistance in the city, highlighting the view of regional observers that the al-Qaida-linked al-Shabaab insurgents are far from defeated. Security forces flooded Mogadishu’s main streets, where Turkish flags fluttered in the coastal breeze and posters adorned the walls of mortar-blasted buildings. “Prime minister Erdogan’s visit tells us the Turkish people are closer to us than any other Muslim nation on earth,” said one resident, Abdirashid Ali Omar. “The Turkish people are here to share with us in our time of need. It is momentous.” Muslim Turkey, a rising political and economic power that straddles east and west, is far behind other emerging powers such as China, Brazil or India in the race for new markets in Africa. But under Erdogan’s ruling AK party, Turkey has expanded commercial ties in Africa, as well as in the Middle East and Asia, and opened several new embassies in Africa. The UN’s World Food Programme said on Friday it was still unable to reach 2.2 million hungry people living in areas of southern Somalia controlled by al-Shabaab, whose bloody campaign to topple the government has cost more than 20,000 lives. Aid agencies say that while droughts are a natural phenomenon, this famine is largely down to conflict and bad governance. “Droughts will happen. They always will, but they don’t have to be disasters. They can be managed,” Oxfam’s Philippa Crosland-Taylor said in neighbouring Kenya. Somalia Turkey Famine Aid Africa Middle East Europe guardian.co.uk
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Ursula Nevin slept through riots in Manchester but was jailed after accepting a pair of shorts looted by a friend A mother of two who slept through the riots but was jailed for handling a stolen pair of shorts that had been looted by a friend has been freed from prison on appeal. It is thought to be the first successful appeal against a sentence in relation to the disorder in England. Ursula Nevin, 24 was jailed for five months by a district judge at Manchester magistrates court earlier this week. The severity of the sentence caused concern as she had not actually been involving in rioting or looting. She had admitted accepting a pair of shorts that had been looted from a city centre shop by a friend. Judge Andrew Gilbart QC said he was setting aside the prison sentence because Nevin had not actually taken part in the riots. He ruled that the original decision was “wrong in principle” and instead he ordered Nevin to perform 75 hours of unpaid work for the community. Nevin was in bed at the time of the widespread disorder in Manchester city centre where her lodger, Gemma Corbett, helped herself to clothing and footwear from the Vans store and then took them back to the house they shared in Stretford, Greater Manchester. Nevin cried in the dock last Friday as District Judge Khalid Qureshi told her she was supposed to be a role model to her two young sons and criticised her for not speaking up and ordering the stolen haul to be moved out of the house. Judge Gilbart said on Friday that he had indicated in previous sentencing remarks on looters that a distinction could be made for people receiving stolen goods who had not been physically present during the disorder throughout Manchester and Salford last Tuesday. “Ursula Nevin did not go into Manchester city centre,” he said. “We regard it as wrong in principle that she was subject to a custodial sentence. “She must pay some sentence because she knew where the goods had come from. “Seventy-five hours of unpaid work appears to be the appropriate figure bearing in mind the guilty plea.” Addressing Nevin, who had no previous convictions, he said: “You must have found yourself, in the circumstances of the last week, trapped in a circle of hell. “The way you never get into that situation again is to show the courage to say ‘no’. “I am sure the courts will not be troubled by you again. Leave now and look after your children.” The defendant cried as the sentence was reduced, as did family members in the public gallery, including her mother. UK riots Sentencing Crime UK criminal justice Helen Carter guardian.co.uk
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