Gates New Secretary of Defense

Robert Gates has been passed by the Senate Armed Services Committee to be the Next Secretary of Defense. Gates as the Washington Post notes, stated that ' all options are on the table ' when in comes to the War in Iraq. But as Gates stated there is only one President of the United States and that is George W. Bush, and Bush does not need the confirmation of the Democrats for actions, they could pull the money for the War and there are those that want to do that if they had the chance, but that would place the 2008 Presidential Nominee having to run away from his or her own party. Gates views to the Committee are interesting, it seems that he wants to create a broad church when it comes to Foreign Policy, Gates stated the following. ' to see if we can forge that kind of bipartisan approach going forward ' It should be noted that although on the whole the Republicans and Democrats had a common policy when it came to the USSR, it was the wrong policy, Reagan had it right in 1976, " We win they lose" it should be noted that for the most part the Foreign Policy Establishment wanted to work with the USSR, and President Reagan had trouble with the State Department when he wanted to say in West Berlin for the Soviet President to tear down the Berlin Wall. If the Foreing Policy Establishment has been listened to , the Berlin Wall would still be up and the USSR would still be an Evil Empire.

It should be noted and understood that when Bush 41 came in to Power, he placed a lot of Ford people in to his administration, he took six months to review Reagan's policy with the USSR, by the time they got around to getting a policy the Berlin Wall was coming down and Iraq and the New World Order post USSR was forming.

The actual result was 21 - 0

Transcript of Hearing

Sunday Read

Interesting Articles for Sunday: The Bush Second Term

Fred Barnes in the Weekly Standard argues that Bush should hang tough from Iraq to the Courts, as he has nothing to lose.

Douglas Brinkley in the Washington Post argues that Bush has failed and that he can be considered in the same league as Hoover.

A different view also in the Washington Post argues that Bush has time, and points out that Truman was not that popular on leaving Office but is now considered near great President.

As President George W. Bush pointed out, history will be written and rewritten when we here now are dust and wont care!

The New Cold War with an Old Enemy?

The New Cold War is spreading its wings. The Home Secretary, Dr John Reid has stated to the House of Commons that the police are looking at five planes that might have radiation on them, the planes have carried over thirty thousand people since the death of Mr Alexander Litvinenko. Since the statement one of the planes has been cleared, this story will run and run, and it could end up at the Kremlin, but lets not jump the gun, the police have a long trail to follow over the days and months even..

Iraq Study Group

In the New York Times Today, the news that the Iraq Study Group will ' call for a gradual pullback of the 15 American combat brigades now in Iraq but stop short of setting a firm timetable for their withdrawal, according to people familiar with the panels deliberations. ' It should be noted that also looking at Iraq mess is the National Security Council and the Pentagon. They it can be argued will take more of a White House line, no surrender. The NYT article states the following, ' as described by those familiar with the compromise, may give Republicans political cover to back away from parts of the president's current strategy, even if Democrats claim that the report is short on specific deadlines. ' The NYT states that ' If Mr. Bush adopts the recommendations, far more American training teams will be embedded with Iraqi forces, a last-ditch effort to make the Iraqi Army more capable of fighting alone. That is a step already embraced in a memorandum that Stephen J. Hadley, the national security adviser, wrote to the president this month. ' This does remind VIEWS of the Vietnam policy of the 1970's and that failed in the end.

The delayed meeting between President George W. Bush and the Prime Minister of Iraq has finally happened. The President stated the following at a Press Conference on his meeting with the PM, ' I expressed my concern about the security situation; he expressed his concern about the security situation. After all, one of his most important jobs is to provide security for the Iraqi people. Part of the Prime Minister's frustration is, is that he doesn't have the tools necessary to take care of those who break the law. ' Although the Iraq Study Group might want a compromise the President might see this has his chance to place a line in the sand and go his own way, President Ronald Reagan also had his critics and in the end he was right.

Iraq Civil War?

Is Iraq in a civil war?, the former Secretary of State, Colin Powell has call it a Civil War. Powell as mentioned is a former Secretary of State, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, National Security Advisor to President Ronald Reagan. The present President George W. Bush, has a different view, in his mind the conflict in Iraq is part of the War on Terror.

An interesting story in the Washington Times, it seems that the religious groups in Iraq are getting ready for their own war, the Times states the following, ' Rival Shi'ite and Sunni groups are massing their militias in expectation of major confrontations,..' The weakness of the government and its Prime Minister is shown as the Washington Times notes, ' Iraqis in Baghdad note that Mr. al-Maliki was pelted with rocks on Sunday when he went to visit grieving families in Sadr City -- once the base of his support. ' Has it finally come to a tipping point of all out civil war.

The informed judgment of VIEWS is that Iraq is close but not yet, there is still time, the answer is the problem.

Iraq

A planned meeting between President George W. Bush and the Prime Minister of Iraq, Nouri al-Maliki has been delayed due to a press leak from a White House Memo. The Washington Post states the following, ' The last-minute change in plans was announced the same day a classified memo from White House adviser Stephen J. Hadley was leaked to the New York Times in which Hadley questions whether Maliki "is both willing and able to rise above the sectarian agendas being promoted by others. " ' The Washington Post must be annoyed that NYT gets all the good leaks. The Article goes to state the following, ' The leaked memo, written earlier this month by national security adviser Hadley, expressed the administration's private frustration with Maliki's performance and outlined a series of proposed steps for the United States and Iraq to take. '

CNN states the following on the meeting, ' The postponement was announced shortly after Bush arrived here for talks with Jordan's King Abdullah II and al-Maliki. Bush's meeting with the king was to proceed on schedule. '

New York Times, Text of Leak Memo, Memo, in the leak memo, an interesting question is aksed of the Prime Minister, ' is he able to curb those who seek Shia hegemony or the reassertion of Sunni power? The answers to these questions are key in determining whether we have the right strategy in Iraq. '

Hastings Out

Alcee Hastings has been pushed aside as Chairman of the Intel committee by the Speaker Elect, a smart political move by Speaker Pelosi. The Congressman stated he would play an active part in the next session in January.