Politico is reporting that President Bush's former homeland security adviser and current intelligence advisory board member Fran Townsend is joining CNN as a contributor.  Joining former White House press secretary Tony Snow as the second Bush sycophant to join the network in the last two weeks, Townsend's addition is apparently designed to help make CNN the "right choice" during its election '08 coverage.

While George W. Bush may be most disliked President in modern American history, his one-time mouthpieces are very popular at CNN indeed.  For a taste of the "fair and balanced" reporting to come, here's a look back at some of the greatest hits of Fran Townsend and Tony Snow.

Imprisoned for six years without being charged or given a trial, Al Jazeera cameraman Sami Al Hajj was finally released from the US Navy prison camp at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. The man, who was "emaciated," as his attorney said, because of his hunger strike which began in January 2007, was taken to a hospital and later arrived home in the Sudanese capital of Khartoum.

"I've been dreaming of this moment for the past seven years," the cameraman said in an interview with Al Jazeera. Saying that "rats are treated with more humanity", Al Hajj also said that the inmates' "human dignity was violated".

Here is the second part of the epic face off between Hillary Clinton and Bill "Culture Warrior" O'Reilly. They have a pretty passionate exchange about torture and foreign policy with regards to Iran, terrorism etc.

In the second part he asks the Senator about water boarding and torture, with O'Reilly bullying Clinton into trying to admit torture is the obvious solution. While I'm not a Hillary Clinton supporter I found myself cheering her on and think she did well. Much of that might have to do with the fact that O'Reilly is a douche.

I wonder if it sets the wrong precedent going on his show, since she chose to be interviewed on O'Reilly while she's yet to appear on a lot of other good shows. FOX News is probably pretty happy with themselves.

The Ministry of Truth announced today that the glorious armed forces of Oceania killed Emmanuel Goldstein when warplanes obliterated his house, located near the central Eastasia town of Dusamareeb.

Goldstein, this time traveling under the rubric Aden Hashi Ayro, had previously been killed or captured several times in Iraq and Afghanistan, where he had each time been identified as "the number-two man in Al Qaeda." As Osama bin Laden, Ayman al-Zawahiri, and Mullah Omar, however, Goldstein remains at large.

While Oceania has not declared war on Somalia, the Ministry of Truth declared that Oceanic warplanes are nonetheless empowered to bomb that nation, under the functionally limitless powers granted Big Brother via the AUMF, approved by the former legislative branch of Oceania on September 18, 2001, with but one dissenting vote. That dissenter, Barbara Lee, also remains at large, Ministry of Truth spokesmouths complained.

About a month after President George W. Bush stood on the deck of the USS Abraham Lincoln before a banner proclaiming, "Mission Accomplished," Fox News' Neil Cavuto asserted to Senator John McCain that, "many argue the conflict isn't over" in Iraq.  McCain  responded, "Well, then why was there a banner that said mission accomplished on the aircraft carrier?"

Five years later, that exchange has come to encapsulate John McCain's unbroken reign of error when it comes to Iraq.  From his predictions of a short war and claims U.S. troops would be greeted as liberators to his casual attitude towards casualties and his ongoing confusion over friend and foe in Iraq, the next would-be Republican president has sounded very much like the man he hopes to replace.

Here, then, is a look back on John McCain's words on the mission accomplished in Iraq:

The fall of the Taliban six years ago heralded new rights for Afghan women: no more beatings, no more repression, and no more mandatory burqas. But did their health and well-being improve?

In the September, 2006 issue of the Atlantic, James Fallows wrote what one is tempted to call a prescient article, entitled "Declaring Victory." It's been trapped, until recently, behind a subscription wall. It deserves wider distribution.

I say "one is tempted" to call it prescient because it's 18 months later, and there have been no attacks. But it wasn't particularly prescient; it was clear to anybody paying attention that the actions taken by then had stifled  the small, weak terrorist organizations. Deprived of access to the resources of a state, al qaeda posed no serious threat to the US.  

Over at Talking Points Memo there is an article detailing the McCain campaign's newest tactic: portray Barack Obama as a terrorist.

Can you believe it? John McCain is insinuating that a sitting United States Senator is a Muslim extremist and terrorist sympathizer. How Should Obama respond to this charge? Easy....

Pakistan's government fails once again to get its man.

Even in the Progressive Movement we tend to forget that everyone in the Middle East (besides Israel) is not a Monolithic Group of  Muslim Arabs who want nothing more than to kill us all and feast on the Children of Middle America. The nuance of conflicts and divisions between Arabs and Persians, and Sunni and Shi'a muslims are lost on the Media and Presidential Hopefuls like John McCain and Hillary Clinton.

Thank goodness Al Qaeda's No. 2 man in charge, Ayman al-Zawahiri, is here to remind us that Al Qaeda too hates Iran. Those footsteps you hear are al-Zawahiri rushing to the stage to join in the chorus of John McCain and Hillary Clinton singing, Bomb Bomb Bomb Bomb Iran.  

In their effort to appear "Fair and Balanced" Fox News continued their proud tradition of asking accusatory, loaded questions for those terrist-luvin democrats. The latest example is beyond transparent and involves former President Jimmy Carter.

FOX News is apparently too stupid to figure out that he isn't "negotiating" with Hamas and Carter has to explain it to them. They go on to ask him if he would meet with Al Qaeda since he loves giving legitimacy to terrorist organizations... anyways, just watch

Ambush In Afghanistan
U.S. Army Special Forces say they were shocked by military tactics used by Taliban fighters who ambushed them near Kandahar, Afghanistan, in their first account of the unreported battle. Lara Logan

60min. Video from last night

In the wake of Charles Gibson and George Stephanopolous' abominable performance in the ABC Democratic debate Wednesday, I created a list of 10 debate questions John McCain will never be asked.  (The Real McCain author Cliff Schecter subsequently featured my Perrspectives list over at The Huffington Post, AmericaBlog and Crooks and Liars.)

Now, as it turns out, this Sunday's guest on ABC's This Week with George Stephanopolous is none other than Arizona Senator and Republican presidential nominee John McCain.

I am trying hard to get over the ABC Debate Debacle. It is difficult....

But Stephanopolous needs our help. He enlisted Hannity for question suggestions but I know we can do better. After all, that is all we do here,: question, with side orders of innuendo and toppings of snark.

I should have had breakfast this morning.

Suggestions below.

While the liberal blogosphere and media critics alike are fuming over the deplorable gotcha-fest that was the ABC Democratic debate Wednesday in Philadelphia, conservative talking heads are positively ecstatic.  In the New York Times, David Brooks called the questions on lapel pins and the Weather Underground "excellent."  The excreable Michelle Malkin snarked, "How dare they explore questions of character, truthfulness, and judgment?" And over at Hot Air, Ed Morrissey offered "kudos to ABC News" while noting "John McCain has to feel grateful not to be included."

NPR is reporting (podcast) that al Zawahiri, the Egyptian strategist from al qaeda has released a new recording, claiming victory in Iraq.  Five years have passed, the recording, still unsubstantiated by US intelligence, says, and the US is still bogged down. He mocks Bush as a failure, remaining in Iraq only because he does not want to be the one who has to withdraw.

Now you may recall that one of the reasons we are given by president, and now John McCain, is that if the US withdraws, it will be tremendous propaganda victory for al qaeda.  It looks like remaining in an indefinite quagmire is also a tremendous propaganda victory for al qaeda.

This is deeply ironic.

For those who didn’t see dday’s excellent diary about the very unimportant Government Accountability Office report out today, well, it is a doozy.

The title itself should bring back memories of the infamous August 2001 PDB titled "bin Laden determined to strike inside the US", as this one is titled The United States Lacks Comprehensive Plan to Destroy the Terrorist Threat and Close the Safe Haven in Pakistan’s Federally Administered Tribal Areas".

The first paragraph lays it all out with the following reiteration of what we have known for quite some time already:

GAO found broad agreement, as documented in the National Intelligence Estimate, State and embassy documents, as well as Defense officials in Pakistan, that al Qaeda had regenerated its ability to attack the United States and had succeeded in establishing a safe haven in Pakistan’s FATA.

Wasn't one of the primary reasons Osama bin Laden gave for attacking the United States on 9/11 that we had bases in Saudi Arabia?  That he thought we were trying to create a permanent base of military operations in and around holy areas?

And doesn't Iraq have more holy sites for Muslims than Saudi Arabia?

Then why the hell does John McCain think that keeping a military presence in Iraq for 100, 1000 or 10,000 years is going to make us safer from radical Muslim terrorism?