Mitch McConnell foolishly says: ‘GOP 2012 slogan should be Obama ‘made it worse’
June 23, 2011 No Comment
Click here to view this media Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) told reporters at the Christian Science Monitor breakfast Wednesday that if Republicans want to take the presidency from Barack Obama in 2012 then their campaign theme should be “he made it worse.” “I’m confident we’re going to nominate someone who is a credible, believable alternative” to Obama, McConnell said. UPDATE: Steve Benen has more on McConnell at the Christian Science Monitor breakfast here — McConnell trips over his own tax rhetoric : Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) spoke to reporters at the Christian Science Monitor breakfast, and talked in some detail about why tax increases won’t be part of any bipartisan deal. Dave Weigel noted one argument, in particular, that stood out. “I, as you recall, negotiated in December an extension of current tax rates. They still had 59 Democrats and a 40-seat majority in the House when the vice president and I negotiated an extension of the current tax rates, and the president went around and said to do otherwise would be bad for the economy. Now, does anybody in this room think the economy is better now than it was in December? I don’t think so. So, look: Taxes aren’t going to be raised.” That sounded to me like an admission that the tax cut deal hadn’t worked — which meant extending Bush rates plus adding sweeteners didn’t work. And that wasn’t what many Republicans were saying in January, when early job numbers pointed to a possible recovery. I asked McConnell to expand on that: If keeping the Bush tax rates wasn’t helping the economy any, why would we expect keeping those rates, or lowering them, would lead to growth? “Well, if borrowing a trillion dollars in spending, largely on government, and over-regulating the economy, is good for the economy, we’d be in a boom time. So my view is: Quit doing what we’ve been doing. You certainly don’t want to raise taxes in the middle of the recession, which the president [agreed with] in December.” If we needed a reminder that Mitch McConnell has no idea what he’s talking about, this ought to do the trick. Read on…
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Neil Langmead convicted of killing estranged wife and her friend in attack in Barnstaple house A “controlling and dominating” husband has been jailed for a minimum of 30 years for the murder of his estranged wife and her friend in a frenzied sex attack. Neil Langmead, a builder aged 41, repeatedly stabbed Deborah Langmead and Donna St John, both 35 and both mothers of two children. The women were found almost side by side in the blood-soaked kitchen of a burning house in Barnstaple, Devon, in August last year. Both had been sexually assaulted and Mrs Langmead had been sexually mutilated by her husband, either as she lay unconscious or after she was dead. A 13-day trial at Exeter crowncourt heard that Langmead, who had a history of bullying behaviour towards his wife, had been unable to accept that she was starting divorce proceedings. He had been issued with a warning by police for harassing her a week before the murders. Mrs Langmead also had extra bolts put on the doors of the house to make her feel safer. The jury of nine women and three men rejected his version of events, in which he claimed that he had consensual sex with his wife, leading to an argument between the two women which became violent. He said he killed Mrs Langmead in self-defence after intervening and that she killed her friend. The jury accepted the prosecution claim that he had repeatedly stabbed the women before setting fire to the house to cover his tracks. Crime Steven Morris guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …Anti-Immigrant Showboating By Politicians Leaves Georgia Crops Rotting In The Fields
June 23, 2011 No Comment
Click here to view this media (h/t Heather) In yet another example of how wingnut politicians act without thinking of the logical consequences, Georgia Republicans passed a law that’s leaving their agricultural industry in sad shape: After enacting House Bill 87, a law designed to drive illegal immigrants out of Georgia, state officials appear shocked to discover that HB 87 is, well, driving a lot of illegal immigrants out of Georgia. It might be funny if it wasn’t so sad. Thanks to the resulting labor shortage, Georgia farmers have been forced to leave millions of dollars’ worth of blueberries, onions, melons and other crops unharvested and rotting in the fields. It has also put state officials into something of a panic at the damage they’ve done to Georgia’s largest industry. Barely a month ago, you might recall, Gov. Nathan Deal welcomed the TV cameras into his office as he proudly signed HB 87 into law. Two weeks later, with farmers howling, a scrambling Deal ordered a hasty investigation into the impact of the law he had just signed, as if all this had come as quite a surprise to him. And you know, here’s where the chickens really come home to roost. Politicians act as if undocumented immigrants contribute nothing to the nation’s economy, when the truth is, they do damned hard and dirty work that Americans consider beneath them: The first batch of probationers started work last week at a farm owned by Dick Minor, president of the Georgia Fruit and Vegetable Growers Association. In the coming days, more farmers could join the program. So far, the experiment at Minor’s farm is yielding mixed results. On the first two days, all the probationers quit by mid-afternoon , said Mendez, one of two crew leaders at Minor’s farm. “Those guys out here weren’t out there 30 minutes and they got the bucket and just threw them in the air and say, `Bonk this, I ain’t with this, I can’t do this,’” said Jermond Powell, a 33-year-old probationer. “They just left, took off across the field walking.” Mendez put the probationers to the test last Wednesday, assigning them to fill one truck and a Latino crew to a second truck. The Latinos picked six truckloads of cucumbers compared to one truckload and four bins for the probationers. “It’s not going to work,” Mendez said. “No way. If I’m going to depend on the probation people, I’m never going to get the crops up.” You’d think that someone would figure out that undocumented laborers working for crap wages are what keeps food prices low enough for the entire nation. But then, you’d be assuming that these showboating politicians are smart enough to think of anything that can’t fit on a bumper sticker.
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In one of our first sessions, our marriage counselor Sarita asked me, “What do you see, Amy? When you look in your husband’s eyes, what do you see?” She reached out to my husband’s shoulder to turn him in my direction. On the verge of tears, he looked at me the way I’d seen him do many times before, with an expression I would have labeled a pout: a turned down mouth, tilted eyebrows, quivering chin and those blank eyes. I had always thought his pout was a put-on. To make me feel sorry for him. “I see nothing.” I told Sarita. “Nothing?” she asked, in utter disbelief. “Nothing,” I repeated. I studied his gray-green eyes again, the eyes he always said proved his Scottish heritage, and try as I might to see more, they remained emotionless. “Amy,” Sarita said, concerned, ” There is so much hurt in those eyes, so much longing don’t you see it? Look again.” I searched his eyes… nothing. But she was the professional. The authority on these kinds of things. She saw something I didn’t. My husband had, on many occasions, insinuated I didn’t have empathy. And here it was — confirmation — I was a heartless, insensitive person. I left that session determined to open myself to my husband — to see him clearly. I vowed to change. I’m a doer, I like to fix things. I’m not afraid of hard work. Sarita would be my teacher. And so we plunged into what would become a seven-year therapy odyssey to make this marriage last. Therapy was something I looked forward to, our time together, our talks about everything. Me and Sarita, and my husband. We had a crisis. Not enough sex, Sarita concluded. Without sexual intimacy our relationship would not survive. And I was the problem. I wasn’t sexy enough. “You’re creative, use it,” she said. A challenge that tapped my obliging soul. “Sexual-assertiveness, lies underneath your Polly Anna exterior,” my new guide promised. Passion! She could teach me to raise the heat. These changes, she said, would please my husband. I wanted to please. “You must shop for satin teddies at Victoria Secret, buy push-up bras, sleep in the nude, watch tantric videos, share your sexual fantasies,” she instructed. “What about just being me?” I asked, the Me clad in cotton underwear. No, Sarita admonished. Your husband will leave you. I could do this. I plunged in: I danced for my husband to Joe Cocker’s “You Can Leave Your Hat On”, and I left only my hat on. I studied eccentric Tantric Sex videos when he took his business trips to Alaska hoping to show off my new moves when he returned. “How often did you have sex this week?” Sarita asked in one session. “None,” my husband quickly replied. “He’s been out of town,” I said. “You couldn’t find five minutes to come on to him?” she asked. I wasn’t trying hard enough. No excuses allowed. She seemed miffed, and I didn’t want that. I didn’t want to disappoint her too. I had never had a girlfriend. A real girlfriend I could confide my deepest darkest with. In therapy, with Sarita, I had that. One session we gushed about our shoes. “Don’t mind us,” she said to my husband, “we’re bonding.” Sarita decided it wasn’t enough to be in marriage counseling, she recommended we both do individual therapy as well. With her. My husband agreed it would be a good thing for me. Now I had double-overtime therapy to make this marriage work. My work ethic would show them both how devoted I was. My loyalty to improving myself. I don’t know what went on behind closed doors in my husband’s sessions, but mine were about more sex. Sarita loved talking about sex. “Men are very attracted to me, Amy,” she once told me. “I should have been a sex therapist!” she said another time. And once, she offered “Let’s go dildo shopping.” That’s when I knew we were BFFs, so I was more than disappointed when she called to tell me that she had chosen a dildo for me on her own. I had been looking forward to our girlfriend outing. But Sarita would show me how to participate in the world. With Sarita I investigated every corner of my childhood for clues, and analyzed, explored, gathered the tools to release my sexual being. These tools would help me stay married and get what I wanted. Guidance I had never received from anyone, not even my mother. And I made Sarita happy with my progress. I started to listen to my gut. She taught me how to say no and mean it. How to speak with authority. “Be angry when you’re angry,” she said, “don’t be afraid to show it. Believe in yourself.” And, the secret to staying married: have sex every single night, no excuses, more often if possible. When she suggested I sign up for a $2000 Sexual Dysfunction Exam at UCLA medical center. I said, no! Oh, I’m all for checking things out. But I knew all my parts functioned properly and a $2000 pee-in-a-cup exam wasn’t going to make my husband happy. Was that a bit of self-assertiveness starting to show? I trusted her like a best friend. And like a good wife, I trusted my husband too. But my antennae went up when out of the blue he wanted to sell the ocean-view house we’d bought less than a year before. “We should trade it in for a fixer upper,” he said, “put the extra money toward another house in Alaska.” What? He had only a six-month contract in Alaska, nothing permanent. And then, when my password protected Quicken accounts were jiggled around with, I got scared. I confided in Sarita. “What do you think is going on?” she asked. Was this a directed question? Had my husband said something in his individual sessions? “An affair,” I answered. “You need to prove it,” Sarita said, and with that she sent me home to search for clues. I found all I needed: A Hallmark card from Alaska — from a Julie — obviously his girlfriend. The card was wrapped in a listing of Anchorage real estate. A smiley face and baloony exclamation marks were drawn next to a 4bdrm oceanfront property. Clearly, those business trips to Alaska were about a lot more than business — I guess that second house in Alaska came with a second wife? “I worked my ass off for you!” I screamed at him, shoving the garbage bag of clothes in his face when he came home. “I danced with just that goddamn fucking hat on.” I spat. “And what did you do?” And there was that pout-and those blank eyes — those blank eyes hiding the deceit — making me take the blame for everything that didn’t work in the marriage. No remorse. No conscience. No guilt. I would later learn there had been several affairs. I would learn the definitions of narcissist, sex addict, and sociopath. He had no intention of leaving me, he was just building a second life in Alaska. I began divorce proceedings. Sarita said she could only see one of us now that we were separated, “and I choose Amy,” she said. Yes! She chose me! She knew the truth, she saw how hard I worked. Now Sarita is my ally. I win! One day during the divorce proceedings, Sarita called me at home, “I think you’re asking for too much money,” she said. I appreciated her advice. I knew she had my best interest at heart. But when I hung up the phone it dawned on me that she had no way of knowing how much I was requesting for my settlement. I certainly hadn’t told her. I had a very bad feeling. In my appointment the next day, I confronted her, “You’re talking to him about our negotiations, aren’t you? Are you meeting with him?” “So what if I am?” was her reply. I was stunned, almost as stunned as I was later, when I learned of the probability she too had slept with my husband. “I trusted you,” I spat out angrily. She clambered up the back of her chair like a cornered animal. “You chose me. You represent me,” I said. I got up off that green velour couch and I left her office for the last time and walked for 20 miles. As I came up over the hill toward my home, out of breath and out of mind, I was sure of one thing: I could trust no one. This double betrayal confirmed that I was right about what I “hadn’t” seen in those eyes. It’s been nine years since those days. I would never wish that experience on anyone, but strange as it may sound, I wouldn’t trade it either. I walked into therapy to save my marriage and in the process learned how to trust myself. Sarita and my husband pushed me to become me. I like who I am, and I can trust that.
Continue reading …MRC Study: Networks Found Twice as Much Intensity for GOP Foley Scandal in 2006 Than Weinergate In 2011
June 23, 2011 No Comment
As much as liberals might complain the Anthony Weiner scandal was some sort of feeding frenzy, the networks did not attack it, especially the evening news. They seemed to agree with just-departed CBS anchor Katie Couric, who asked on Twitter: “I’m curious if anybody thinks this Anthony Weiner Twitter scandal is a legit news story or just fodder for late-night comedians.” That’s not the way the networks acted in the fall of 2006, when the MRC demonstrated a real feeding frenzy in the case of Republican Rep. Mark Foley, who quickly resigned after ABC’s Brian Ross reported he’d sent lewd AOL instant messages to former congressional pages. In the first 12 days of that story, the networks “flooded the zone” with 152 stories (55 evening stories and 97 morning stories or segments). By contrast, Democrat Weiner’s weeks of trying to avoid resignation didn’t draw a similar flood. In the first 12 days of the Weiner scandal (from May 29 through June 9), the networks filed only 56 stories (just 11 in the evening, 45 in the morning). This includes partial stories, like Brian Williams introducing the scandal in a disdainful 20-second brief near the end of the June 3 newscast, in the midst of a news potpourri from politics to actresses who’d died. Williams lamented it was “the kind of thing that used to be people’s own business.” Williams did find what he thought was a real scandal on June 2: Republican Gov. Chris Christie of New Jersey taking a helicopter flight to his son’s soccer game. Before Weiner declared on the afternoon of June 6 that he’d lied in denying the story that he sent lewd Twitter messages to young women, the networks had aired an even smaller sample: one evening news story each (counting NBC’s Williams brief) and 13 morning stories. By the time Weiner resigned on the afternoon of June 16 (after 19 days), the overall number still didn’t quite match our Foley number: 113 (21 evening stories and 92 in the morning.) In fact, MRC analysts found the networks were twice as intense on the Foley story, long after he resigned (152 stories in 12 days is more than 12.6 stories per day) than on the entire Weiner scandal up to the resignation speech (113 stories in 19 days is less than six stories per day). The evening-news producers were noticeably allergic. Four of NBC’s eight updates were the Williams 20-second brief, two occasions on which Lester Holt asked one Weiner question to David Gregory, and a 66-second update from Kelly O’Donnell. CBS only aired five evening stories, and in Scott Pelley’s debut on June 6, he delayed Weiner’s admission of guilt until minute 12. NBC’s Today led the morning shows with 41 segments. CBS aired 29, and ABC lagged in third with 22. The tone of stories in both scandals matched a supportive tone for liberal Democrats. In the Foley case, it was doom from day one. Early on, CBS analyst Gloria Borger told Couric: “One senior House Republican tells CBS News that this scandal could be the congressional equivalent of [Hurricane] Katrina.” But with Weiner, the networks avoided spreading the story to other Democrats, and talked damage control for Weiner. On NBC’s Today June 2, Meredith Vieira insisted Weiner “is a rising star in this state” and wondered “how does he get ahead of this story again or get it behind him?” When Weiner admitted on June 6 that he’d sent the lewd photos on the Internet, CBS reporter Nancy Cordes worried out loud that Weiner was a vital voice tugging at Obama from the left, and “it’s unclear how well he’s really going to be able to perform that role now, a role that even the President has said is very important.” But when the story deepened, with Weiner swapping online messages with a 17-year-old girl and sending semi-nude pictures from the House gym, the Democrats turned. DNC chair Debbie Wasserman-Schultz and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi said Weiner had to go. In sync, the network tone changed. ABC Good Morning America co-host Robin Roberts began on June 13: “New pictures emerge of Anthony Weiner, this time snapped in the congressional locker room. As he begins treatment at a secret location this morning, will he now accept that his career is finished?” That same morning on NBC, Today co-host Matt Lauer began: “Drip, drip, drip. New photos emerge of a shirtless Congressman Anthony Weiner taken in the House gym, as calls for him to resign grow louder. Will these latest pictures be the final straw?” These two congressional non-sex scandals underline how politicians know the media is liberal. Mark Foley resigned immediately, no doubt in part because he knew the national media exposed him and would eventually drive him out. Anthony Weiner tried to negotiate around the media, since the New Media exposed him and he suspected that if Democrats would let him stay, so would reporters.
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Written statement from defence secretary Liam Fox attributes high cost to advanced nature of weapons used in conflict The government has revealed that the cost of the operation in Libya has run to £260m, confirming the figure was higher than had initially been predicted. In a written ministerial statement, the defence secretary, Liam Fox, said costs for the initial operation would be £120m, while the cost of replenishing spent munitions could eventually reach £140m. The high costs – which the Treasury has agreed to meet – were attributed to the advanced nature of the weapons used in Libya. While the opposition backs the operation, it has pressed for details of expenditure to be revealed amid concern that the cost is escalating. Earlier in the year, the chancellor, George Osborne, said in the Commons that the eventual cost would be “in the order of tens of millions of pounds, not hundreds of millions”. But in his statement, Fox said: “The current estimate of the net additional costs of military operations for six months in support of Operation Ellamy – the United Kingdom’s contribution to coalition operations in support of United Nations security council Resolution 1973 – is in the region of £120m. This excludes costs associated with capital munitions expended. “Based upon current consumption rates, we estimate the cost of replenishing munitions may be up to £140m.” Prior to his announcement, he had said people would “have to take into account that we have used more expensive precision weaponry so that we minimise civilian casualties in Libya”. He added: “If we are going to fight operations in the future based on minimising civilian casualties, there is clearly a financial price to pay. “I think that shows that we are on the moral high ground and that we place a higher value on human life than the Gaddafi regime.” Jim Murphy, the shadow defence secretary, backed calls from service chiefs for contingency plans to be drawn up “to ensure that our armed forces are sufficiently equipped and that the conflict is sustainable beyond September”. He also urged Nato allies to do more to help reduce the British contribution. Murphy said: “Thanks to pressure from the opposition, ministers have now published figures revealing that the costs of the operation in Libya are higher than originally estimated. “We back the Nato-led operation, and continue to offer the government our support wherever possible. “We want the government to be clearer on what stresses and strains operations in Libya are making on the core defence budget, and whether our standing commitments are, or will be, affected by the ongoing conflict. “In particular, we will ensure the government keeps to its guarantees that the mission in Afghanistan will not be affected. That is absolutely vital.” In March, Osborne had told the Commons: “The House will understand that it is too early to give a robust estimate of the costs of the operations in Libya, but I can say that they should be modest compared with some other operations, such as Afghanistan. “The Ministry of Defence’s initial view is that they will be in the order of tens of millions of pounds, not hundreds of millions. I can tell the House today that, whatever they turn out to be, the additional costs of operations in Libya will be fully met from the reserve.” The national transitional council in Libya is also struggling to meet the costs of running an alternative government to that of Muammar Gaddafi. This week, Dr Ali Tarhuni, the minister for finance and oil in the council, wrote an open letter to the UK government, calling for the release of 1.4bn dinars (£700m) of Libyan government money (£700m), printed in the UK, that was impounded in Britain when the fighting began. The transitional council is running out of money and would like the government to release the funds, but the attorney general, Dominic Grieve, has said he is legally unable to do so. Foreign policy Liam Fox Jim Murphy House of Commons Libya Middle East Africa United Nations Nato Allegra Stratton guardian.co.uk
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Man is stabbed to death during suspected house burglary in Greater Manchester A burglar has been stabbed to death while trying to break into a house, police in Manchester revealed. The 26-year-old intruder was attempting to get into a house on Ethel Avenue in Salford, Greater Manchester, shortly before midnight on Wednesday when the householder is believed to have defended his property. The householder, his son and his son’s girlfriend have all been arrested. It is believed four men forced their way into the house and were confronted by the residents. A disturbance broke out inside the property, during which one of the intruders was fatally stabbed. The other three suspected burglars are believed to have dragged his body out of the house as the householder rang 999 for help. Police were called to the scene and discovered the injured man at the base of a tree on nearby Hospital Road. Paramedics arrived and he was taken to hospital but was later pronounced dead. The householder has told police that he disturbed the four men as they tried to break into his home. Police have put up a cordon around the terraced house, which backs on to open scrubland close to a council recycling centre in the Pendlebury area of Salford. Locals said they understood intruders tried to break into the back door of the property, as police received a 999 call from a woman at the house. A Hospital Road resident who asked not to be named told the Manchester Evening News: “I was coming back home with the dog at around half twelve and saw police swarming up the street. The whole road was cordoned off and I saw someone being rushed into an ambulance but I couldn’t get that close because of the barriers. It’s a quiet street so I was shocked when I saw all that.” The main A666 Bolton Road has been closed in both directions causing huge tailbacks while officers carry out their investigation. Greater Manchester police confirmed they were called to Ethel Avenue just before midnight following reports of a burglary. They said a group of men were seen carrying an injured man who later died from stab wounds on to Hospital Road. Manchester Helen Carter guardian.co.uk
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Ministers to bring forward announcement about cost in attempt to counter Labour over military bill The government is expected to tell MPs on Thursday that the operation in Libya has cost about £200m in an attempt to head off growing concerns that the military bill is spiralling. Ministers will put down a written ministerial statement to the house, bringing forward the announcement from next week. However, some defence economists have warned the cost could reach £1bn if the campaign lasts into the autumn. Details had been expected in a few days, but the government appears to want to close down the issue as an avenue of attack for the opposition. After a grilling from the shadow chancellor, Ed Balls, in the Commons on Tuesday, George Osborne and chief secretary to the Treasury, Danny Alexander, refused to be drawn on the precise amount. At the weekend Alexander said in an interview with Sky News that it could be “hundreds of millions”. Balls pointed out this was markedly different from the line in March that the operation would cost “tens of millions not hundreds of millions”. On Sunday Alexander told Sky News: “The campaign is costing tens of millions, potentially into the hundreds of millions as it goes on, but that money is coming from the reserve that we have set aside, precisely for contingencies such as this.” When the military campaign started, the chancellor said the cost would be “in the order of tens of millions of pounds, not hundreds of millions”. The news came as a minister in Libya’s opposition force, the National Transition Council, wrote an open letter challenging the decision by the UK attorney general, Dominic Grieve, not to release funds to the rebels. Dr Ali Tarhuni, minister for finance and oil in the NTC, said the body would run out of funds in less than a week, according to journalists in Benghazi. Grieve has said Britain cannot release the 1.4bn dinars (approximately £700m) printed by De La Rue – Britain’s banknote printer – which have been impounded in the UK as the revolution has unfolded. Defence policy Libya Middle East Africa Arab and Middle East unrest Allegra Stratton guardian.co.uk
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enlarge Credit: Corbis Gerry takes a shot. Click here to view this media And 35 years ago today June 22, 1976 sounded something like this: The legendary Swine Flu vaccine hit a snag. It seems it may not have been as good for kids as previously believed. All 50,000 state employees of Massachusetts went on strike , leaving the Governor and the Legislature pretty much to fend for themselves. Air Canada decided to pack it in for good. The Canadian Parliament did vote to end Capital Punishment. Italy was smack in the middle of yet another political crisis. President Ford nominated Talcott Seelye to take over the Ambassadorship to Lebanon, following the assassination of Francis Meloy. The Wayne Hays-Liz Ray Scandal was the gift that kept on giving as House Democrats voted to take away fringe benefits to all members of Congress and to make them cough up more details about just who is jumping on the payroll. Republicans said it didn’t go far enough. One imagines branding, tar, feathers and dunce caps were their idea of appropriate reprimands. And speaking of scandals, Capitol Hill got another dose of rolled eyes as testimony over the West Point cheating fracas indicated the wave of miscreants was more widespread than previously believed. Ol’ Blue Eyes and longtime galpal Barbara Marx decided to make it official. The cost of living went into nosebleed territory, not over Frank but because the economy just insisted on being screwed up. And the sewage came back to Long Island . Some 70 miles of beaches closed as the tides and prevailing winds changed, bringing that remembrance of last weeks bad night out back to haunt everyone within gagging distance. And that’s how it went, June 22, 1976 – from ABC Information Network News and CBS Radio. See what you missed?
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enlarge Credit: The Americano NY Times : President Obama plans to announce Wednesday evening that he will order the withdrawal of 10,000 American troops from Afghanistan this year, and another 20,000 troops, the remainder of the 2009 “surge,” by the end of next summer, according to administration officials and diplomats briefed on the decision. These troop reductions are both deeper and faster than the recommendations made by Mr. Obama’s military commanders, and they reflect mounting political and economic pressures at home, as the president faces relentless budget pressures and an increasingly restive Congress and American public. The president is scheduled to speak about the Afghanistan war from the White House at 8 p.m. Eastern time. Open thread on the speech, the war, and the reaction, below.
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