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   Dan Savage, the brilliant and foul-mouthed sex columnist, has become one of the most important ethicists in America. Are we screwed?
 The federal government is supposed to issue new rules about debt levels for students in for-profit colleges. In the meantime, the states are working on their own regulations.
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December 30, 2009
THE THREE AMIGOS STRUGGLE TO KEEP UP.... Well, that's embarrassing.
Whether the appeal itself has merit is suspect enough. For Graham, McCain, and Lieberman, the fact that there are terrorists in Yemen necessarily means detainees from Yemen shouldn't return home, regardless of the individual circumstances. That may have a certain child-like logic, but it's not an especially coherent approach to national security. What's more, note that Bush/Cheney released 14 Gitmo detainees to Yemen, and the Graham/McCain/Lieberman trio didn't have much to say about it at the time. But the fact that these three wrote to the president about detainees who have already been sent back suggests the Graham/McCain/Lieberman triumvirate not only don't understand the policy, but aren't even keeping up on current events. Did it not occur to the senators or their aides to, I don't know, check Google or something? In case this wasn't quite embarrassing enough, when confronted with reality, the senators complained that their ignorance was Obama's fault: "A spokeswoman for McCain, Brooke Buchanan ... said the gap in the senators' knowledge raised questions about the administration's communications with Congress." Actually, the gap in the senators' knowledge raises questions about the senators' ability to use a search engine. If you go to the Justice Department's website, there's an entire press release about the transfer of these detainees to Yemen. It took me about five seconds to find it. The collective efforts of three experienced United States senators didn't even check? Remember, as far as the political establishment is concerned, Graham, McCain, and Lieberman are some of the foremost experts on foreign policy and national security on the Hill. I can't help but wonder how much more it will take to disabuse the establishment of this misguided perception. —Steve Benen 4:00 PM Permalink | Trackbacks | Comments (21)
Comments
Three Amigos, or Three Stooges? You make the call, These three are really the three stooges. It doesn't matter that Republicans fight dirty or that they're often ignorant. It only matters that they speak in tones of deep concern and sputtering outrage. Yes, we notice. Comedians like Jon Stewart and Bill Maher notice. But for the vast number of Americans who get their "news" on cable TV and talk radio, what matters is that Republicans are aggressive about something. Democrats, by contrast, appear passive and weak. The message is unmistakeable: Republicans strong, Democrats weak. And if some Democrat gets up and starts punching back, he's demonized. I'm sure Alan Grayson could write a book about this process. Posted by: walt on December 30, 2009 at 4:09 PM | PERMALINKI'm no fan of the Three Amigos, but you're missing the story here--which I guarantee you the conservative media won't: Gitmo detainees sent home free to Yemen, where they'll attack us again. You can bet that the talking points are already being drafted on that one. Posted by: Robert on December 30, 2009 at 4:10 PM | PERMALINKWell, let's be fair. Those three are probably still expecting to get their news from a crier ringing a bell in the town square. Something I have been trying to figure out. On December 18, according to press accounts published that day, the U.S. was involved in a strike by the Yemeni government on a suspected Al Qaeda site which may have hit some militants but which resulted in mostly civilian casualties. Did Lieberman know, when he said this on Dec. 27, about the Dec. 18 action? Like, did he have any idea at all? Does Lieberman read *any* news except for U.S. politics articles about himself? Posted by: mcc on December 30, 2009 at 4:11 PM | PERMALINKLet's share this link with the Graham/McCain/Lieberman trio: http://lmgtfy.com/?q=bush+yemen+guantanamo+detainees Posted by: roy on December 30, 2009 at 4:23 PM | PERMALINKSteve, just a note of thanks. Your blog is a must read, and I have tremendous admiration for your ability to maintain "proper" discourse standards in the face of such unrelenting, hair-raising hypocrisy, stupidity and, well, yes, insanity. Have a wonderful new year. And please don't quit your job!!! John O Posted by: John O on December 30, 2009 at 4:24 PM | PERMALINKThe site ltr said Congress was given 15 days notice as required. Guess those days flew by. They are just old and uninformed like most of Congress. Posted by: cat on December 30, 2009 at 4:29 PM | PERMALINKThree amigos? More like three brainfarts lost in a single patch of self-generated fog. Posted by: exlibra on December 30, 2009 at 4:41 PM | PERMALINKIt's not "The Three Amigo's." "The Three Stooges," is closer. So some Guantanamo detainees were released and returned home to Yemen by GW et al and have now become involved in terrorist activities. I'm sure they couldn't possibly have been radicalized by their experiences while in incarceration, could they? Posted by: gelfling545 on December 30, 2009 at 4:54 PM | PERMALINKOne thing I love about reading this blog is whenever there's anything about any of these three jokers you get great readers' comments. The sarcasm and descriptive buffoonery of these three are always good for a couple of great laughs. It brings out the best of the comments. Posted by: franker41 on December 30, 2009 at 6:15 PM | PERMALINKWell, it was confirmed on the Ed show tonight that Cheney was the one who had the two prisoners from Gitmo released to Saudi Arabia for Art Therapy, this tells me that the reason for his attacks today on Obama were to deflect attention from his part in this attempted bombing. Posted by: JS on December 30, 2009 at 7:16 PM | PERMALINKAfter this attack, which was plotted by two repatriated detainees: If even ONE more American is attacked by even ONE more repatriated detainee on Obama's watch from now on, we conservatives are going to call for Obama's impeachment on that basis. And we'll campaign in 2010 and 2012 on that basis. So you liberals--those few of you who actually believe in God--ought to start praying that Obama gets it right. Unlike Bush after 9-11, he can't use as an excuse that he was taken by surprise. Not after this attack. You've been warned. If even ONE more American is attacked by even ONE more repatriated detainee on Obama's watch from now on, we conservatives are going to call for Obama's impeachment on that basis. And we'll campaign in 2010 and 2012 on that basis. Great. We'll call for the war crimes trials that have been called for by Gen. Anthony Taguba, who investigated Abu Ghraib and found that Bush and Cheney were behind the massive regime of torture there. Also: three thousand lives lost on 9/11 and no impeachment? Bbut a failed bombing attempt like multiple failed bombing attempts that took place during the Bush administration and Obama is responsible? Do you think if you'd ever managed to get laid your thinking might be a little clearer? I suppose there's no way for you to know. The majority of Guantanamo detainees were repatriated during the Bush administration, something like 600 individuals. You can add that to the war crimes charges against the former president if you wish. Posted by: trex on December 30, 2009 at 9:17 PM | PERMALINK trex, be fair now; I doubt that Faux News has ever mentioned any of what you posted, so how's the poor shmuck supposed to KNOW what BUSH/Cheeny did? well, has McCain figured out how to work his computer yet? Posted by: Jamie on December 31, 2009 at 12:14 AM | PERMALINKIt should be noted that it was reported today that the suspect was trained BY TERRORISTS who were released from GITMO, over the OBJECTIONS of intelligence officials. By who? DICK FREAKIN CHENEY! No wonder his ancient ass is so loud these days. Trying to cover up the past mistakes with a bullhorn only makes them louder. Posted by: AgentX on December 31, 2009 at 2:26 AM | PERMALINKAnyone want to bet that one of these three will get asked about this gaffe the next time they appear on a Sunday talking head show? Nah, me neither. Instead, I'm sure we'll here all sorts of bellicose and "serious" statements, and all the reporters will carefully avoid pointing out that the Senators are irrelevant and aren't even bothering to pay attention anymore. Posted by: biggerbox on December 31, 2009 at 11:19 AM | PERMALINKSteve, you used a search engine and had the results in five seconds. The Three Stooges are still trying to learn how to turn the computer on. Make allowances for the intellectually challenged. Posted by: Texas Aggie on December 31, 2009 at 1:04 PM | PERMALINK
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