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It CAN Happen Here: Joe Conason Speaks
The room filled early last night at Politics and Prose. I had to fight off several elderly people to keep the seat open for Richard, who had decided to drive to meet me via West Virginia. He missed most of the talk.
Joe began by talking about the "carefully calibrated campaign" that the neo-cons have been working on for thirty years. He told us that his publisher and he had been discussing the Bush administration, and the publisher told him to take a new look at Sinclair Lewis' quickly executed book, It Can't Happen Here.
Joe did, and found it "eerie". Lewis wrote the book in four months, while he was drinking heavily, and at the behest of his wife, the journalist Dorothy Thompson, who had just been kicked out of Nazi Germany for championing the defense of a young Jew accused of assassinating a diplomat. The book sold over 200,000 copies and was turned into a play under the auspices of the WPA. Lewis even played the role of the Editor-Hero, Doremus Jessup, a few times. The book was almost made into a movie, but Italy and Germany threatened to ban all US-made films if it was made. Surprisingly, (hahaha) Hollywood folded.
Why did the book resonate with people at the time? Joe said people were concerned about fascism. Lewis also wanted to influence the 1936 elections; he was concerned that Huey Long was the type of character who would diminish democracy in the service of the powerful. Long was assassinated before the election, but readers got the comparison anyway.
In his book, Conason draws the comparisons between recent history and the events in the Lewis book, but it's not a literary treatise. Joe stands in a long tradition of muckrakers.
Joe is not saying that we have become Nazi Germany. We are not there yet. But he reminded us that the Patriot Act, which was drafted in less than ten days, was pushed through by Atty. Gen. Ashcroft in less than a month. Ashcroft told the Congress he wanted it done in three days.
Such indicators should give us all pause. Creeping fascism is not an issue that belongs to any party. The Patriot Act was but the beginning of a slide towards an expanding pool of rights-diminishing acts.
In Lewis' book, President Waldrip sees Congress as an advisory body at best, and the same appears to be true of the current, and real administration. There is a scene in Lewis' book, described by Conason, where a White House confab produces a preemptive strike on Mexico, based on pretexts manufactured in a back room. "There are echoes of this now," Joe pointed out.
{{ECHOES?? I would describe them as clear reverberations, building in intensity and banging on our brains...}
Conason told us that we need a complete record of this administration: "They must be held accountable".
"This Congress must roll back some of the stains they have left on the Constitution," says Joe. "Restore habeus corpus". (Her mentioned that Sen.Chris Dodd is working on the issue).
A questioner asked if we have become the Empire. Joe explained that the neo-cons fantasize about reshaping the world into Pax Americana. He said "they never really liked democracy anyway." James Madison, he pointed out, reminds us that a state of permanent war is the greatest threat to democracy. And that's what these folks would like to see.
Conason is much more concerned about a gradual loss of rights rather than a sudden shift. He also reminded the audience of a chilling moment, in the summer of 2002, when Norman Podhoretz suggested that:
There is no denying that the alternative to these regimes could easily turn out to be worse, even (or especially) if it comes into power through democratic elections. After all, by every measure we possess, very large numbers of people in the Muslim world sympathize with Osama bin Laden and would vote for radical Islamic candidates of his stripe if they were given the chance.
To dismiss this possibility would be the height of naivete. Nevertheless, there is a policy that can head it off, provided that the United States has the will to fight World War IV, the war against militant Islam, to a successful conclusion, and provided, too, that we then have the stomach to impose a new political culture on the defeated parties. This is what we did directly and unapologetically in Germany and Japan after winning World War II; it is what we have indirectly striven with some success to help achieve in the former Communist countries since winning World War III; and it is George W. Bush's ultimate aim in World War IV.
There was a song that became popular in America during World War II: "We did it before, and we can do it again." What I am trying to say to the skeptics and the defeatists of today is that yes indeed we did it before; and yes indeed we can do it again.
Joe described the above statement as a shining example of "the unvarnished id of the neocons". But there is hope: Nineteen Republican Senators are up for re-election in 2008 and many of them are reasonable: Maine and NH are among the states bringing pressure to bear on moderates.
"Elections are to train politicians to behave better", Joe said. It is going to take a lot of time to correct what was lost over four years of a total mess. Right now, he pointed out, the majority party lacks the necessary arrogance to have their way. But we all need to be paying attention. Newt Gingrich has noted that the First Amendment is obsolete in a time of terrorism, or should be, and in the New York Times last week, we learned about HR 1076 (which did not pass in the 109th Congress), in which the President could have declared martial law in a time of public unrest.
It is not a time for fear, however, but action. We have had many wakeup calls. Joe Conasons' book is simple and clear. And in the words of Dorothy Thompson, wife of Sinclair Lewis and a nudge at the breakfast table:
"Only when we are no longer afraid do we begin to live."
Well I'm getting panicked emails from someone who just saw the documentary called America - from Freedom to Fascism. She is alarmed about national ID cards (which I hear are not popular with state officials, being hard to implement) and about the government now wanting to be able to not only get into people's phone calls & email but also to get into people's picture files such as at Flickr.
Thanks for the info! I'll have to look for both of these books.
Always liked Joe.
Rang true that with the sudden shifts in time of fear, we can't come back as quickly, electorally. Not enough people understand the problem, are telling the stories to get awareness and a change in course. The media is complicit.
No one should think it was about George vs John, George vs Al, or about their performances.
The country doesn't understand about Norquist, PNAC, Reagan'shadow govt't and how we got here. Not liking Bush and Cheney does not bury Conservatism, as it's practiced now. Unless we get our collective acts together, we are in as much, or more, danger in 2008.
Karen,
Thanks for the books. I'm thinking about Sam Fox's unethical funding of those SB Liars because he was upset that some little guy in a 527 compared Bush to Hitler. (Online I believe it was. In a contest that had many different ads.)
So, I'm thinking about how Sam Fox and those neocons would say it's fair to fund liars and smear candidates because we 'use' creeping fascism as an argument.
Seems like the biggest attack to the truth is a lie. And most people get bogged down in not knowing who is the liar and who is the truthteller.
I guess Richard got there by way of VA, but my thoughts are still meandering everywhere. It's hard not to be frightened when we have 2 years more and not enough votes to overcome vetos.
The country doesn't understand about Norquist, PNAC, Reagan'shadow govt't and how we got here. Not liking Bush and Cheney does not bury Conservatism, as it's practiced now. Unless we get our collective acts together, we are in as much, or more, danger in 2008.
Posted by: Marjorie G at March 2, 2007 02:07 PM
I completely agree with that assessment.
And thanks to Karen for sharing this. Didn't know about HR1076, which would've really made W the Unitary Executive.
Posted by: not my president at March 2, 2007 01:22 PM
I've just read somewhere that the REAL ID Act will NOT be implemented by the deadline due to so much opposition by state governments. Inadequate funding from the feds is the biggest problem.
AVALANCHE OF SUBPEONAS FROM CONGRESS RE BUSH AD.
Democrats Send Out First Round of Subpoenas
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/030207A.shtml
By Susan Crabtree
The Hill
Thursday 01 March 2007
A House Judiciary subcommittee approved today the first in what is expected to be an avalanche of subpoenas to Bush administration officials. They will likely explore corruption and mismanagement allegations on everything from pre-war Iraq intelligence to the mishandling of the response to Hurricane Katrina.
The first round of subpoenas concern the recent controversial firings by the Bush administration of seven U.S. attorneys, some of whom were pursuing public corruption cases against Republican members of Congress.
The House Judiciary subcommittee on commercial and administrative law, chaired by Rep. Linda Sanchez (D-Calif.), approved subpoenas requiring four former U.S. attorneys to appear at a subcommittee hearing next Tuesday. The former U.S. attorneys include Carol Lam of California, David Iglesias of New Mexico, H.E. Cummins III of Arkansas, and John McKay of Washington state. The subcommittee approved the subpoenas by voice vote; no Republican lawmakers were presen
The Right gets away with comparing various bums of the month to Hitler - like the current President of Iran.
There's a definite double standard being employed here. Either Hitler is off-limits for comparison with modern leaders or he's not. And if he's not, and there are relevant comparisons to be made...if the shoe fits...
{{ECHOES?? I would describe them as clear reverberations, building in intensity and banging on our brains...}
Posted by Karen at March 2, 2007 12:50 PM
We are being beaten over the head daily with big clubs.... Maybe it's the blood running in our eyes that blurs our vision...? Lamestream Media never acknowledges Reality, but blogs are full of the dire warnings of what's happening right under our noses as most sheeple are obsessed with reality TV, shaved heads and celebrities who are famous for big boobs and no talent.
Revisionist history, endless war is peace, imposing "democracy" on other people (calling the US a democracy when, in fact, the Constitution set up a republic - to have a democracy, we'd have to abolish the Electoral College)....
Good thread header, Karen.... It CAN happen here, and it sounds also like Orwell's 1984, and the Ministries of Truth, Love, etc....
Just in time for the Friday news dump...
Army Secretary Francis J. Harvey has resigned in the wake of the Walter Reed hospital scandal, Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Friday.
Posted by: madame defarge at March 2, 2007 04:14 PM
Beat me to the punch... bowl.
Feds Select Plan for New Nuclear Warhead
WASHINGTON -- The Bush administration selected a design Friday for a new generation of atomic warheads, taking a major step toward building the first new nuclear weapon since the end of the Cold War nearly two decades ago.
--snip--
The decision to move ahead with the warhead, which eventually would replace the existing arsenal of weapons, has been criticized as sending the wrong signal to the world at a time when the United States is assailing attempts at nuclear weapons development in North Korea and Iran and striving to contain them.
But military and Energy Department officials said the new U.S. warhead will not add to the nuclear arsenal, but replace existing warheads with ones that are safer and more reliable.
http://tinyurl.com/2qkrk9 = Chicago Tribune
"Peace is Our Profession..."
Feds Select Plan for New Nuclear Warhead
Will the new warheads have plum-colored curtains?
Jeez, it sounds like they are decorating a new home...........
Another richardbelldc Kos post:
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2007/3/2/16843/84005
Posted by: karen at March 2, 2007 05:40 PM
Thanks for sharing.
There is indeed a paradigm shift in the West that the Dems have every right and responsibility to take advantage of. For example, most of us have a live-and-let-live attitude toward private matters - just like the Dems. The only thing the Republicans have going for them is probably the gun lobby's stranglehold on the sportsmen, particularly in places like Arizona and California.
"I would be better to trust the many than the few, who are infected with the plague of self-interest and selfishness."
Tom Paine, 1737-1809, from "The Rights of Man"
Americans Have Lost Their Country
By Paul Craig Roberts
The Bush-Cheney regime is America’s first neoconservative regime. In a few short years, the regime has destroyed the Bill of Rights, the separation of powers, the Geneva Conventions, and the remains of America’s moral reputation along with the infrastructures of two Muslim countries and countless thousands of Islamic civilians. Plans have been prepared, and forces moved into place, for an attack on a third Islamic country, Iran, and perhaps Syria and Hezbollah in Lebanon as well.
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article17216.htm
The Words None Dare Say: Nuclear War
By George Lakoff
A familiar means of denying a reality is to refuse to use the words that describe that reality. A common form of propaganda is to keep reality from being described.
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article17220.htm
Excerpt:
As Einstein said, "You cannot simultaneously prevent and prepare for war."
Making a superfast swoop through the news I notice that conservatives vying for Republican nomination are courting conservative voters today - should be some interesting rhetoric as they all pretend they're going to do more for social conservatives than Republicans ever actually do once they're in office. This trick works every time and has for many election cycles. They are all trying to be the reawakening of Reagan.
Also heard on radio this AM while driving & notice now that Congress is passing legislation designed to make it easier to form unions. The problem with this is that the Dem-dominated House must move it through the more stalemated Senate, where even if it passed, I imagine it could be vetoed by Bush. He remains at the top of the pyramid of power, & also has at his disposal his abuse/overuse of signing statements.
It occurs to me that the "surge" (overused word of 2007 already) of Democratic power is mostly at the bottom - mayorships, governorships, the House of Representatives. Meanwhile, the expanded Executive Branch fails to be properly balanced because the Legislative Branch still has too many conservatives & the Judicial branch is still too stacked, & now what if Ginsberg ends up needing to be replaced?
There is SO much talk already about the 2008 Presidential election but it seems to me that the most pragmatic thing to do in the incremental steppage back to sanity is to get a nice strong Senate majority. How many votes does it take to override a Presidential veto? Is it 60 or more? 75? Whatever it is (for any Parliamentary experts), we need it & fast.
All those who say they are never voting for a Democrat again had better think about this.
Did Anne Coulter call John Edwards a faggot?
http://www.dailykos.com/
Lieberman is going to deliver the Democrats' weekly address? Is this so he won't quit? So what if he does, if he votes with Republicans. Of course, if he technically quits, Cheney will be the constant tie-breaker. See what I mean about how we need to focus on retaking the Senate more forcefully? Until we do, we need a coalition of Republicans willing to cross the aisle, rather than vice versa. We need to court their constituents, and also Independents.
Yes, it appears that Eva Braun did refer to John Edwards as a faggot.
Did Anne Coulter call John Edwards a faggot?
http://www.dailykos.com/
Posted by: DiAnne at March 2, 2007 08:50 PM
The pot calling the kettle black, in other words.
Otherwise the Mann wouldn't be so obsessed with the sexual orientations of male politicians s/he doesn't like.
It also appears that Edwards recently called for an end to the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy - which might partly explain Eva's eruption.
There is SO much talk already about the 2008 Presidential election but it seems to me that the most pragmatic thing to do in the incremental steppage back to sanity is to get a nice strong Senate majority. How many votes does it take to override a Presidential veto? Is it 60 or more? 75? Whatever it is (for any Parliamentary experts), we need it & fast.
All those who say they are never voting for a Democrat again had better think about this.
Posted by: DiAnne at March 2, 2007 08:05 PM
Having said that my continued support for the Dems hinges on their ability to express their positions more clearly, I do need to make sure that the Dems people elect in '08 are the types who will be accountable to the people and the nation first.
The Dem victory in '06 gave them more voice and power. They need to use that to earn continued support of the American people.
The Republicans have to defend far more seats in '08, so the Dems have a clear advantage, but nothing is to be taken for granted.
I'm also going to watch both parties' presidential hopefuls carefully. I'm not supporting a particular candidate yet, and probably won't for a while.
Ney has a new number.
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2007/03/02/inmate-no-28882-016/
Wonderful post, Karen. I'll put his book on my list, for sure.
Here's an excerpt from a good piece of his today in Salon:
http://www.salon.com/opinion/conason/2007/03/02/al_gore/index.html
"Historians will someday ask why the United States entered a century of enormous challenges under the stewardship of a man who was so manifestly unsuited to high office -- and why he prevailed over a man whose judgment, experience and courage were so clearly superior. False images and phony stories created by the media will certainly figure in their answers.
"Those historians may also wonder why the better man declined to seek the presidency again -- even after many of his detractors had been forced to confess that the rejection they helped engineer was a mistake of enormous proportions. . . . "The answer may be found, of all places, in the Note, that snarky weblog on the ABC News site, which often betrays the true emotions roiling the minds of mainstream journalists. Said the Note, in explaining the recent spate of positive coverage of the old press nemesis: 'Basically, the political press wants to tempt Al Gore into the race, and then they will destroy him as a flip-flopping, exaggerating, stiff loser. And Gore knows this.'"
Ally
I quite agree that if Mann has taken interest recently in issues like Don't Ask Don't Tell that s/he doth protest too loudly. Social conservatives are terrified by the features of being a human being.
mbk,
That would be TWO good men who have to be thinking "Who needs this s**t?"
BTW, Conason said nice things about both of them last night.
I have a bone to pick about DailyKos. I get these emails about these great diaries and can't vote for them while I'm at work. By the time I get home, they're gone. I search and can't find them. They are fabulous diaries tha should be at the top of the recommended list. At the top of the recommended list I often find some real crap diaries. What gives?
There were at least two diaries about how Mann Coulter was not taken to task enough by MSM (for the usual idiotic remarks). The problem IS that It should be given no press whatsoever, no platform. I should not even be writing about It right now, as It doesn't really need more publicity. It could shave its head or have implants and it wouldn't matter about It, even if it were on the cover of Time magazine again. I have no problem with people like the Rude Pundit taking It on, but It certainly doesn't warrant more bandwidth than that.
From Ned Lamont:
Earlier this week, Sen. Lieberman wrote an op-ed for the Wall Street Journal entitled "The Choice on Iraq" that managed to get it exactly wrong... just like his Wall Street Journal op-ed in November 2005 where he argued that "our troops must stay."
In response, Ned Lamont has written an open letter to Sen. Lieberman at the Huffington Post about the real "Choice on Iraq," a choice the American people and our military leaders have already made, but which Sen. Lieberman still refuses to acknowledge.
Read the letter, and forward it to your friends and personal networks here:
http://www.nedlamont.com/realchoiceoniraq
Ned writes,
Dear Senator Lieberman,
Fifteen months ago, in an op-ed in the Wall Street Journal praising the Bush Administration's Iraq policy, you asked the rhetorical question, "does America have a good plan for doing this, a strategy for victory in Iraq?"
"Yes," we did, you answered.
Since the day you wrote those words, over 1,000 more American troops have lost their lives in Iraq and that country is more dangerous than ever.
Senator, you had it exactly wrong then, and this week, in another Wall Street Journal op-ed entitled "The Choice on Iraq," you have managed to get it exactly wrong yet again...
Read the rest of the letter here:
http://www.nedlamont.com/realchoiceoniraq
Posted by: not my president at March 2, 2007 10:59 PM
Going off-topic again, but...
While we are debating on whether a rumored transgender "woman" blabbering a bunch of nonsense is worth our attention, a much kinder transgender woman is about to lose her position as a well-liked city manager of 14 years, simply because of the gender transition.
Steve Stanton (for now, he asks to be called Steve and he, though he will soon be Susan and she) of Largo, FL is the person in question. The city council has already voted shamefully 5-2 to fire Stanton, and a final vote will soon take place.
Get more information at savestanton.com.
Admins: This is not about supporting/endorsing a particular individual, but about making a point that bigotry is wrong.
Bush faces three major Afghanistan stumbling blocks
Amin Saikal
March 3, 2007
AFTER more than five years on the path of post-Taliban reconstruction, Afghanistan still faces a dire situation. Many Afghans have become disillusioned with their Government and its international backers, and the Taliban and their supporters have rebuilt their fighting capacity with more ferocity than ever before. The US and its allies have found it imperative to deploy more troops, pour in more money and put pressure on Pakistan to prevent the Taliban's cross-border raids. The fear is that Afghanistan could slide down the same path as Iraq, with the war on terror reaching a dead end.
The Afghan situation has worsened over the past two years for a number of reasons, but three of them are critical. The first is that the Government of President Hamid Karzai has not been able to build a unified ruling elite and a clean, efficient and effective system of governance. The elite has become increasingly divided and locked in serious infighting, with a focus on promoting individual rather than national interests, and personalising rather than institutionalising politics. The politics of ethnic entrepreneurship, bribery, nepotism, backstabbing and character assassination have become the order of the day.
Cont. .....
http://www.theage.com.au/news/world/bush-faces-three-major-afghanistan-stumbling-blocks/2007/03/02/1172338881447.html
Anyone who thinks that Abu Ghraib is in the past, behind us, think again.
From a Times piece today:
"In their clashes with Al Qaeda, the sheik’s tribal fighters have captured about 80 militants and put them into a “prison” in Ramadi, the sheik said."
"Saudis and Syrians were among them, he said. The Saudis, under interrogation, said they had been recruited in their home country by being shown anti-American propaganda, including images of prisoner abuse at Abu Ghraib, the sheik said. Then they were shipped off to Syria to enter Iraq."
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/03/world/middleeast/03sheik.html
WATCH ME WATCH ME WATCH ME!!
Bill Moyer, the Backbone Campaign, sent this:
Dear friends,
Today, I got the opportunity to watch what I found to be a beautiful and humbling display of courageous action tempered by compassion and humor. The Jan 29, 2007 Backbone Patrol and Matt Power of Liberty News TV all deserve Spine Awards for their actions in DC, so beautifully documented and augmented by Matt and his talented team.
You all have raised the bar. May we all learn from the nuanced work you did. I am honored and deeply proud to be associated with you all and the graceful actions you performed in service of peace, truth, humanity, and the ideals of representative democracy.
Thank you.
Sincerely,
Bill Moyer
Executive Director
Backbone Campaign
PS- If you have not seen the fruits of your actions and the work of Matt and his many friends at Liberty News TV, please do yourself the favor to take the 28 minutes as a personal treat, a reward for a job well done.
Windows Media
http://www.libertynewstv.com/RAW%20CLIPS%20and%20STILLS/MAR07CLIPS/LNTVmar07link.wvx
Real Media
http://www.libertynewstv.com/RAW%20CLIPS%20and%20STILLS/MAR07CLIPS/LNTVmar07reallink.ram
Lieberman Sing along
http://www.libertynewstv.com/RAW%20CLIPS%20and%20STILLS/MAR07CLIPS/LNTVlieblink.wvx
Especially do not miss the last eight minutes of the video Matt Power made...
Just sayin'
Thanks Karen!
I'll be at Bill Moyers' event tomorrow commemorating the Constitution. It will be We The People II.
--It's good to see all the articles and action about Walter Reed lately. It's good to see talk about upcoming subpoenas in Congress (esp. work of Henry Waxman). It's good to see people like Libby coming to trial at all. There is a certain degree of exposure of the corruption and malignancy that has been operating out of/emanating from Washington DC. There needs to be more. It's good to think of all the people behind the scenes - anyone with courage in the activist, media or political arenas who is working for peace, truth and justice.
Forgot this:
White House OK'd Mass Firings
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/030307Z.shtml
The White House approved the firings of seven US attorneys late last year after senior Justice Department officials identified the prosecutors they believed were not doing enough to carry out President Bush's policies on immigration, firearms and other issues, White House and Justice Department officials said
yesterday.
More exposure.
I wish the media would report the real news story of the Bush administration:
DICK CHENEY, DE FACTO, IS PRESIDENT etc...
Cheney has been giving a series of major foreign policy speeches as he travels around the globe. Speeches so important THAT GEORGE BUSH SHOULD BE GIVING THEM. It seems that Cheney DOES NOT CLEAR his speeches with anyone - not with the State Department, not with the CIA and not with the George Bush...
Cheney is the Decider...
Posted by: Ralpheh at March 1, 2007 06:56 PM
@@@@@@@@@
Just when I start complaining, NPR starts listening!!! On Friday's All Things Considered NPR did a retrospective on the Powerful VEEP:
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=7692208
BTW:
How many American citizens are on the No Fly list?? I have encountered two people - American citizens that have nothing to do with Al Qaeda - that are on a "watch" or no fly list.
From Wikipedia on the No Fly List:
t is known that the size of the FBI/FAA list on September 11, 2001 was 16 names. By December 2001, the list had grown to 594 names, and a year later (December 2002), there were over 1,000 names. CBS reported on the 8 October 2006 edition of 60 Minutes that they had obtained a copy of the list dated March 2006 that contains 44,000 names.[2] According to the TSA, as of November 2005, 30,000 people in 2005 alone had complained their names were matched to a name on the list via the name matching software used by airlines.[3] One thing that is not known is that the list while very long also includes very many duplicates some are common misspellings and some are different dates of birth.
There are two lists kept by the TSA apparently:
1) a no-fly list - meaning the person cannot board an airplane at all. One would presume that these are real terrorists and would be arrested immediately if they showed up at an airport?!?!?
2 a "selectee" or "watch" list which means that the person goes through additional checks at the airport that other passengers do not have to go through. They are allowed to fly but only after a long search at the airport..
I now go to the airport wearing only underwear and flip flops.
Listening to NPR talking about Kissinger & Nixon going to China. Cheney must have been inspired by them as a young intern, as they made secret trips without the knowledge of the Pentagon, State Department or Press. Greed for power.
Yes now Cheney travels to Asia, Pakistan, Afghanistan while Bush travels tornado country like a lowly Governor, talking about how America is a "prayerful" country.
The source of problems at Walter Reed is largely privatization. The link below leads to a dailykos diary that summarizes the problem. It also links to several other sources, including an Army Times article.
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2007/3/2/235256/3348
This link has the chronology of events surrounding the privatization of veterans' care:
http://www.unbossed.net/index.php?itemid=1354
__._,_.___
He can run, but he can't hide...
~~~~~~~~~
Woes will trail Bush to Latin America
Yahoo/AP: http://tinyurl.com/332cd7
a snip:
Bush is unpopular throughout the globe, even in this country's backyard, and will find it hard to escape the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan no matter where he goes.
Voter turnout among the young still lags
Yahoo/AP: http://tinyurl.com/2p7g2k