Winds of Change

The Iowa Caucuses last night showed that the 2008 U.S. Presidential campaign will break the mold of establishment politics. It is after all the fortieth anniversary of the winds of change that blew the establishment apart in 1968. And this Presidential campaign has all the makings of the grass roots rebellion that saw demonstrators take to the streets and activists support Bobby Kennedy in a Power to the People campaign.

Barack Obama has the Kennedy charisma and has captured the new Power to the People campaign. This showed in Iowa, with a massive increase in registered Democratic voters and their showing up at the caucuses, many for the first time. The Democratic Establishment is shaken to its core, for they back Hillary and she came in third. Even her feminist base could not be counted on, for the vast majority of those new voters were older women who supported Obama.

John Edwards whom I predicted would take Iowa, came in second, far ahead of Clinton. His populist message of bashing Wall Street, corporations and the party establishment echoed grass roots sentiments not only in the Democratic Party but in the Republican grass roots. That is why Huckabee won so overwhelmingly. Which I did predict several months ago.

Huckabee gives Kudlow and Co. on CNBC heartburn, they decry his anti-Wall Street message, ironically so does the Conservative establishment Rush Limbaugh was on Fox denouncing Huckabee, as did members of the Christian Coalition leadership. The reason is they are out of touch with their base. The days of the Moral Majority are gone, the vocal power brokers are either discredited like Ralph Reed who was caught up in scandal, or dead like Moral Majority boss Jerry Falwell.

What both Edwards and Huckabee appeal too is blue collar America, main-street. What the establishment appeals to is Wall Street. Sure the investors and bankers and movers and shakers in the marketplace are making money, but to the average American they are facing rising inflation, loss of their homes, increasing debt, lost jobs, frozen wages, lack of medicare, Huckabee and Edwards appealed to these real issues.

Obama does to, in a very personal way, and his message last night was a variation on the old Rastafarian slogan One Love, his statement was about running to unify One People, One America, this goes beyond the two America's Edwards denounces, in providing a more hopeful message. And Huckabee also uses that same language, talking about an inclusive Presidency, one that will not be bi-partisan perse, but anti-partisan. His is a message of hope as well.

The pundits and hacks are scratching their heads this morning, and the powers that be are cringing in their corners wondering how they can rally support behind the establishment candidates; Clinton and Romney. They are out of touch with their base. They are aloof from blue collar/white collar workers in America. This is a working class revolt in both parties.

Sure Republicans are concerned about abortion and gay marriage, but they are also concerned, as Huckabee tells the party bosses, loss of jobs due to globalization, rising interest rates, lack of health care, eduction. Just like their Democratic counterparts do. One listens to Johnny Cash the other listens to Steve Earle, what happened in Ohio last election, where the working class vote, the union vote was mobilized around values issues, abortion and gay marriage, has given way to mobilization around economic bread and butter issues. Fair Trade instead of Free Trade. This is what scares the bejesuzz out of the establishment. It is Pat Buchanan's message eight years later, but delivered by both Democrat and Republican contenders without the jingoistic nativism and isolationist rhetoric.

The pundits were claiming last night that McCain would rise from the dead but in Iowa he ended up tied with a movie star for third place. Sure McCain is a challenger in New Hampshire, but in this he is the establishments fall back candidate. By far the real challenger is Ron Paul. Yes Ron Paul.

His is the under reported story from last night. Until the caucuses his campaign appeared to be internet driven. For instance in a Myspace poll he won overwhelmingly. His messaging and fund raising has all be done on the net. And he showed, as Howard Dean did last round, that the internet is an authentic alternative to corporate fund raising. Paul did what no other Presidential candidate ever did, raise record funds off the internet in one day. Not just once but three times. This is not a mere footnote folks, this is an authentic challenge to the traditional fund raising that has relied on lobbyists and tit for tat promises that Edwards has complained about and McCain tried to change through legislation.

Ron Paul has not been given the credit he is due by the pundit and media establishment. But by coming in fourth with 10% in Iowa he has translated his internet base to a real political force. Now watch him gain even more support as a viable alternative in New Hampshire. Paul appeals directly to the libertarian base that is the New Hampshire voter. Despite the state going Democrat, there is a strong independent base that Paul can and will appeal to. Expect him to come in third there. His libertarian message is appealing to the left and the right, just as a New Left Alliance arose between anarchists of the left and Republican libertarians forty years ago

Winds of change. Expect the unexpected. And look forward to an amazing set of Presidential conventions where the grass-roots will be out in force as delegates, and they will be challenging the party establishments. Democracy never had it so good in the good old U.S.A.

This is after all the Year of the Rat.


SEE:

Huckabee: Paul is Dead.

Lieberman Endorses McCain

Huckabee A Red Tory

Republican Presidential Paul-itics

Gravel and Paul on PBS

Republican Presidential Paul-itics

Ron Paul

Ron Paul and Barry Goldwater

Liberal Republicans

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Mitt Quits To Win Bush's War

The American Right is obsessed with using the old Nazi "stab in the back" argument to justify being wrong about Iraq. As Mitt Romney did yesterday. Romney tried to cloak his ignoble defeat in the robe of Imperial triumph appearing as the retiring Ceaser not the vanquished Republican Presidential gladiator.

Explaining his decision, he said he believed it was in the best interest of the country's national security -- he told conservatives a Democratic victory would lead to the U.S. withdrawal from Iraq, defeat in the war on terrorism and future domestic terror attacks.

"If I fight on, in my campaign ... I'd forestall the launch of a national campaign and, frankly, I'd make it easier for Senator Clinton or Obama to win," Mr. Romney said.

"Frankly, in this time of war, I simply cannot let my campaign be a part of aiding a surrender to terror."

The much vaunted Bush War On Terror was lost the day the U.S. left Afghanistan for Baghdad, and since then it has become the Politics of Fear, which Romney stooped to use as a parting shot in his wimp out speech.

No sir he was no quitter he was doing this for the good of the party and the good of the country and the good of the war, he was a good old boy. Seems though that it did little to quell the split in the party or on the right.

For one long, uncomfortable moment, John McCain was silenced by the boos at a meeting of the influential Conservative Political Action Committee.

They erupted from the back of the ballroom at the Omni hotel in Washington, a lusty chorus of catcalls from conservatives not ready to accept they were almost certainly listening to the next Republican presidential nominee.

And what does it say of Ron Paul the Republican Presidential candidate who also opposes the Bush War and who has not dropped out of the race. I guess he too is a defeatist prepared to surrender America to her terrorist enemies. Logic was never Romney's strong suit, opportunism was.

Ron Paul tapped in to a wide array of interests, and his appeal went well beyond the simple "opposition to the war" explanation arrogant journalists favored. But let's just say he could have tapped in a lot deeper and with more lasting results. It's not like we don't need the help right about now. The country is seeing the beginnings of a real leftwing backlash and the Republicans are about to nominate a "national greatness" conservative who is in every respect the anti-Goldwater. (Good luck getting any libertarian leverage from those Paul delegates at the convention.)

After the smoke cleared at the Conservative Political Action Conference – the public withdrawal of Mitt Romney from the Republican presidential race, and the attempt of John McCain to make friends with the party’s staunchest conservatives – a conservative crowd-pleaser stepped forward .

Ron Paul, the Republican representative from Texas.

Paul was playing on the frustrations in this hall, with many voicing worries about McCain, the all-but annointed nominee.

Now the party has an apparent candidate who is a friend of Sen. Russ Feingold – on campaign finance reform – Paul said. And now the party has an apparent candidate who is a friend of Ted Kennedy – on immigration – Paul said.

He raised cheers in the hall – perhaps the first genuine cheers of the day.

“If you think we can lead this country back to conservative principles… you have another thing coming, because it’s not going to happen,’’ Paul said.

“The answer is found in fiscal conservatism – live within our means,’’ he said to cheers in the hall.

“As long as a government can stir up fear, sometimes real and sometimes not real, the people are expected to do one thing, sacrifice their liberty,’’ he said to cheers.

And then there is the war in Iraq, with Paul the only one of several Republican candidates for president this year who took a stance against the war.
.
“McCain says we should stay there for 100 years if necessary – I say there is no need,’’ Paul said to more cheers in the hall.

“We campaigned in 2000 for a humble foreign policy, no policing of the world – and now we are doing the very same thing,’’ Paul said.

But this is where he started to lose his audience: “Iraq had nothing to do with 9/11.’’

The Paulites in the hall were happy, but the rest of the crowd was starting to part ways with a Republican who has sharply parted ways with most of the candidates.

Romney was never the real conservative contender against McCain, Mr. Slick was just another liberal in conservative clothing. The real conservative contender is still in the race; Mike Huckabee. Watch conservative voters swing to him not Ron Paul despite the illusions held by his followers.

However the party establishment and the Conservative Political Establishment won't, most rank and file Republicans will hold their noses and support McCain. While those who remain McCain's critics will remain ineffectual offering no alternative since they backed Romney. And that will put them between a rock and a hard place, as the impact of their denunciations will give the conservative base of the party no alternative but Huckabee.

While the pundits like Chris Matthews, see Romney's quitting as giving McCain his coronation as the Republican Presidential nominee, it ain't over yet. And the divisiveness on the right will not be quelled by Romney's absence. The right and the Republican party is irreparably split.

"I will not vote for John McCain and it is our belief that he will destroy the Republican party," Vincent Chiarello, a retired foreign service officer from Virginia, told Al Jazeera. "I'd rather vote Democrat."

At a Friday campaign stop in Denver, the Texas Republican Congressman spoke to a standing room only crowd of 2,000 supporters-nearly double the number that came out earlier in the day to cheer on ordained front-runner Mitt Romney.

Paul’s speech was greeted with the eagerness of a religious revival. One supporter broke down in tears at the microphone as she described Paul as her “hero.” Sitting next to me in the front row was a 61-year-old lifelong Republican. She said she had never missed an opportunity to vote in her four decades of eligibility. Without Dr. Paul (this is how the obstetrician’s supporters affectionately refer to him) she said she would have sat this election out. She says she is most motivated by his anti-war stance. When greeted by a 20-something activist, they both nod in unison about their frustration with the drug war.

The interaction is a familiar one. This is not your father’s Republican party.

Dred-locked hippies stand united with Christian homeschoolers. Democrats and independents also pepper the crowd, proclaiming our need for renewable energy initiated within the private sector. There are no staged applause lines. On multiple occasions, an impromptu chant begins, “Ron Paul Revolution! Give us back our Constitution!” On stage, Paul is greeted by a drum line dressed as Revolutionary War soldiers.

The Democrats will continue to have the advantage, because even if McCain is now the presumptive candidate, the media will focus increasingly on the horse race that is on between Clinton and Obama. This is an advantage not a disadvantage in particular for Obama who can now make the case that only he can defeat McCain as national polls have shown.






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Ron Paul and Barry Goldwater

Doug Mataconis of the Liberty Papers reports that Ron Paul is the only elected politician that has won his seat three times against the incumbent, without party support. Which is no small feat. Mataconis points out why;

Paul was helped by the fact that he was running in areas of Texas where the prevailing political beliefs are conservative, but a conservatism that is of the Barry Goldwater/Ronald Reagan leave-me-alone type than the interventionist/Christianist conservatism that prevails elsewhere in the country

This makes sense and why Ron Paul has broad based support amongst libertarians. However as I pointed out in Mr. Conservative; Barry Goldwater had no kith nor kin with Reagan, who was responsible for allowing the interventionist/Christian types into the ruling echelons of the party. Goldwater blamed Regan for abandoning the libertarian/conservative traditions of the party.

Of course the current crop of neo-cons masquerading as Republicans, Lincoln would be ashamed, would rather hearken to the days of Reagan, and his electoral victory, then the days of principle and defeat; the Goldwater era.

Which is why a politician of principles like Ron Paul stands a snowballs chance in hell in the Republican party of today.

h/t to Go Ron Paul!


SEE:

My Favorite Conservative

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Ron Paul Quotes Ayn Rand

Ron Paul quotes Ayn Rand in the Republican Presidential Debate last night on the controversy of Gays and Lesbians in the Military.

Should gays and lesbians be allowed to serve openly in the U.S. military? The audience applauded Texas Rep. Ron Paul’s answer.

“We don’t get our rights because we’re gays or women or minorities. We get our rights from our creator as individuals. So every individual should be treated the same way,” Paul said.

“If there is homosexual behavior in the military that is disruptive, it should be dealt with. But if there’s heterosexual sexual behavior that is disruptive, it should be dealt with.

“So it isn’t the issue of homosexuality. It’s the concept and the understanding of individual rights,” he said.

Individual rights are not subject to a public vote;

a majority has no right to vote away the rights of a

minority; the political function of rights is

precisely to protect minorities from oppression by

majorities (and the smallest minority on earth is

the individual).

- Ayn Rand

Of course discrimination is never against an individual but against a social group the individual belongs to. Bigotry does not recognize the individual or their rights. Prejudice lumps people into categories of; them and us. Which is why it is discrimination.

See:

Ron Paul

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Ron Paul Gets BT Endorsement

Now this is an endorsement indeed. What can you say about the only Republican candidate for President endorsed by both Canadian Progressive Bloggers and Blogging Tories because he ain't a Reagan Republican but a Goldwater Republican. Come back Barry all is forgiven.

However, I still would take the view that Ron Paul is not a conservative in the typical sense, rather a libertarian with an edge closer to anarchism than conservatism. Ron was against the Iraq War, wants to pull out of the UN, NATO, NAFTA and every other international organization under the sun, wants to abolish the IRS, and legalize drugs.

Of course like Dennis Kucinich, Ron Paul has a snowballs chance in hell. So like Kucinich he can run on his principles.


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Ron Paul

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Gravel and Paul on PBS

PBS News Hour has interesting in-depth interviews with 'libertarian' U.S. Presidential Candidates who don't stand a chance of winning but should.

Libertarian in the sense they would put power back in the hands of the people.
And I would call Gravel a libertarian Democrat.

PBS gave them time to explain their ideas and present arguments for minimal government intervention in peoples lives something the debate forums do not do.

October 12, 2007

Paul Envisions Smaller Government, Less Global Intervention

As part of an ongoing series of in-depth interviews with presidential candidates, Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas, explains his vision of limited government, decreased U.S. intervention in conflicts abroad and details his stance as an anti-war Republican. Ron Paul Candidate Profile

October 1, 2007

Gravel Champions Power of the People

In the NewsHour's latest in-depth interview with presidential candidates, former Alaska Sen. Mike Gravel explained that as president, he would put an end to the corruption of U.S. leadership by placing the power of lawmakers into the hands of the people through a direct democracy.

Mike Gravel Profile

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US-Backed Ukrainian Publication Releases New ‘Enemies List’

by Daniel McAdams Posted onJune 10, 2024

The US government-affiliated Ukrainian web publication “Data Journalism Agency” (TEXTY) has just released a report attacking hundreds of prominent American individuals and organizations as enemies for not supporting sending more US money and weapons to Ukraine.

The report, titled “Roller Coaster: From Trumpists to Communists. The forces in the U.S. impeding aid to Ukraine and how they do it,” intends to smear American politicians, journalists, and social media influencers as tools of Russia, writing:

Most of the people in our study do not have direct, proven ties to the Russian government or propagandists. However, the arguments they use to urge authorities to distance themselves from Ukraine echo key messages of Russian propaganda aimed at depriving Ukrainians of the ability to defend themselves with Western weapons and funds. (emphasis added)

Although the “enemies list” purports to correct disinformation about Ukraine spread by those on its list, the report itself is full of crude disinformation. For example this bit:

Even long-debunked myths continue to surface, such as claims of Nazi dominance and American Biolabs in Ukraine and the portrayal of the 2014 Revolution of Dignity as a coup.

The organization’s assertion that these claims are “long-debunked” may be wishful thinking, but back on planet reality even mainstream, pro-Ukraine media sites in the US wring their hands over the disturbing, extremist images coming out of the country. For example, NBC News wrote that, “Ukraine’s Nazi problem is real, even if Putin’s ‘denazification’ claim isn’t.” Newsweek wondered, “Why Have So Many Neo-Nazis Rallied to Ukraine’s Cause?” Even before the current conflict, mainstream pro-Ukraine publications such as Reuters worried in 2918 about “Ukraine’s neo-Nazi problem.”

As to the biolabs, none other than Mother of the Maidan Victoria Nuland admitted in a US Senate hearing that there were biolabs in Ukraine. Ah, but one may counter that these were not “American biolabs.” In fact with the authenticity of Hunter Biden’s infamous laptop now absolutely confirmed during his trial, a report by the New York Post two years ago based on the laptop also must be considered accurate. According to the article, “Russia’s assertion that President Biden’s son Hunter was ‘financing… biological laboratories in Ukraine’ was based in truth, according to e-mails reviewed by The Post.”

And on whether the Maidan events of 2014 were a “Revolution of Dignity” or a coup, we again only need turn to Victoria Nuland’s infamous phone call with US Ambassador to Kiev, Geoffrey Pyatt, for all the evidence needed that the US was micromanaging the removal of an elected leader and replacing him with hand-picked US puppets.

The report also includes such prominent American politicians and journalists as Sen. JD Vance, Sen. Rand Paul, Rep. Matt Gaetz, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, Rep. Jim Jordan, and Col. Douglas Macgregor.

Even our friends at Antiwar.com… and your own correspondent (!) find ourselves appearing on the Ukrainian “enemies list”:

As the report states:

There are 391 individuals and 76 organizations in our list. These include politicians, political movements and groups, media and journalists, experts, and think tanks (some individuals appear in multiple categories).

Perhaps what is most shocking about this attack on American citizens is the fact that the Data Journalism Agency (TEXTY) has a long affiliation with the US Government itself! In fact, the founder of the publication Anatoly Bondarenko appears prominently on a US Government website as a participant in the US State Department’s “TechCamp” project.

The Data Journalism Agency (TEXTY) is listed as an “Implementing Partner” of the US Agency for International Development’s Transparency and Accountability in Public Administration and Services/ TAPAS Project.

The Ukrainians seemingly love to make lists of their “enemies.” One of their most notorious of these is the infamous “kill list” put out by the Mirotvorets Center in Kiev. From that list several have already been murdered by Ukraine, including prominent Russian journalist Daria Dugina.

One wonders how, for example, former US President Donald Trump and dozens of members of the US Congress will react when they hear that US tax dollars are being sent to Ukraine for US-backed Ukrainian organizations to make “hate lists” and “kill lists” of patriotic Americans like themselves.

Daniel McAdams is Executive Director of the Ron Paul Institute for Peace and Prosperity and co-Producer/co-Host, Ron Paul Liberty Report. Daniel served as the foreign affairs, civil liberties, and defense/intel policy advisor to U.S. Congressman Ron Paul, MD (R-Texas) from 2001 until Dr. Paul’s retirement at the end of 2012. From 1993-1999 he worked as a journalist based in Budapest, Hungary, and traveled through the former communist bloc as a human rights monitor and election observer. Reprinted from The Ron Paul Institute for Peace & Prosperity.

How the US is Scrambling to Stop Ukraine Peace Plan by China & Brazil w/ Vijay Prashad

By Vijay Prashad, Eugene Puryear , Rania Khalek 

June 5, 2024

Source: BreakThrough News

While world leaders prepare to convene in Switzerland for a “peace summit” ostensibly called to advance peace in Ukraine despite excluding Russia from the meeting, Brazil and China have proposed an alternative. Both countries released a joint statement calling for an international peace conference with equal participation from both Russia and Ukraine. Vijay Prashad, the Executive Director of the Tricontinental Institute, calls the Switzerland summit a “facade” and explains how the US and NATO are thwarting any real chances for peace.ussia and Ukraine. Vijay Prashad, the Executive Director of the Tricontinental Institute, calls the Switzerland summit a “facade” and explains how the US and NATO are thwarting any real chances for peace.

Zelensky’s Peace Summit Is Just an Echo Chamber

The Ukrainian President will use his platform in Switzerland to hector his supporters to send more weapons and money to Kyiv

by Ian Proud Posted onJune 10, 2024

In one of his more bizarre outbursts, Volodymir Zelensky, red of face, jabbing his finger, recently accused China of being “an instrument in the hands of Putin”. He said this at the recent Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore as part of a world tour, in which he is encouraging participation at what Ukraine calls the Global Peace Summit.  This will take place in Switzerland from 15-16 June, and China has said it will not attend. Zelensky was treading a now well-worn path in which he and other senior Ukrainian figures insult countries that don’t bend to Ukraine’s demands for support in the war with Russia.

He believes that China has been discouraging countries from attending the Summit but provided no evidence of this.  Some reports suggest that up to 107 States may attend.  Although, in addition to Xi Jinping, there’s a chance Joe Biden may also not attend because of a fund-raiser in Texas.  Those who do send country delegations will undoubtedly enjoy the comforts of the Bürgenstock Resort on the shores of Lake Lucerne.  Though I suspect many will be confused about the purpose of the event.

For, despite its billing, this won’t be a Global Summit. If it was, it would undoubtedly look at the appalling situation in Israel and Gaza, and no doubt other conflict hotspots across the world too. It might consider more broadly how to strengthen the adherence of states to their obligations under the UN Charter or review progress in strengthening international peacebuilding architecture. But it won’t do those things.

Indeed, the Swiss Government, which is hosting, refers to it as the Summit on Peace in Ukraine.  Although it isn’t clear that Switzerland is in charge, as most of the press reporting about invitations appears to issue from Zelensky’s office. So this raises a diplomatic question as to the precise scope of the event itself?  Summits are normally hosted by the countries in which they take place; those countries shape the agenda and try to steer a communique that represents the best outcome of what can be agreed among the parties. In this case, there appears to be a diplomatic tug of love between the Swiss and the Ukrainians about who is running the show.

For Ukraine, the Summit is explicitly an opportunity to push Zelensky’s so-called ten-point peace formula, which is essentially the points he made in a speech at UNGA.  The formula does contain some helpful lines on nuclear safety, food and energy security and environmental protection.  But it also contains three points that are probably unachievable.  Namely, the full restoration of Ukraine’s territorial integrity, by which it means Ukraine’s border pre-2014.  This, according to Zelensky, ‘is not up to negotiations’. Secondly, the full withdrawal of Russia’s military and, third, the establishment of a tribunal to investigate alleged Russian war crimes.

However, Ukraine’s pre-2014 border won’t be restored because the west tacitly gave up on Crimea in 2014 and focussed its energy instead on attempts to mediate a peace in the Donbass. These attempts notably included the Franco-German orchestrated Normandy format, which failed in the teeth of US and UK interference; namely, the locking in of sanctions against Russia under an unattainable notion of full Minsk II implementation. European leaders won’t commit to a plan where retaking Crimea is a key element, indeed, western war aims in Ukraine are now completely unclear, beyond helping Ukraine to hold on from further territorial losses.

Even though hardline and now sidelined figures like Boris Johnson and Liz Truss have long supported the aspiration to re-take Crimea, Ukraine does not now and will never have the military capabilities to do so.  So the second and related aspiration of the full withdrawal of Russian troops is also unrealistic, however the map is drawn. Using western weapons to strike targets in the west of Russia won’t change the balance of power on the battlefield in Ukraine which favours Russia. It also won’t decisively shift Russian public opinion away from support for Putin in this war. Rather, it will ramp up the risk of escalation by Russia, which has still not committed its forces to the fight in Ukraine, in any numbers.

While there is clearly a need to investigate allegations of war crimes committed by Russian forces during the war, the west will struggle to deliver this, not least because of the inevitable pressure to consider allegations of war crimes committed by Ukrainian forces.  And as neither Ukraine nor Russia are signatories to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, neither country would recognise the legitimacy of any investigation should it materialise.  That would render the endeavour toothless in the absence of more coercive measures to hold either country to account under international law.

So, Zelensky’s plan is nothing more than Ukraine’s maximalist position that will inevitably be bargained down in any future peace negotiations that take place with Russia.

But, and here’s the rub, Russia hasn’t been invited to the Swiss Summit.  The Swiss Government believes that Russia should be invited. The Swiss MFA website says “Switzerland is convinced that Russia must be involved in this (peace) process. A peace process without Russia is unthinkable.” But Zelensky clearly doesn’t agree. It has been an explicit aim of Ukrainian foreign policy to exclude Russia from any dialogue on a settlement of the conflict.

Indeed, this mirrors long-standing UK policy of talking about Russia and not to Russia. Rather, and in a recent visit to Madrid, Zelensky encouraged western partners to force Russia to make peace.  By that, he meant specifically to continue to provide Ukraine with offensive weapons that it can use it strike directly into Russia. Or force Russia into peace by continuing to make war, even though there is no evidence that NATO plans to join the fight in any decisive way.

And just to be clear, on the summitry itself, Zelensky’s so-called Peace Formula isn’t a communique as the Swiss are (or should be) holding the pen. The Swiss are shooting for peace. But, whenever Zelensky talks about peace, what he really means is ‘keep funding the war’.  So this creates a recipe for diplomats finessing any public statements at the end of a Summit that will, most likely, achieve nothing.

Since his unhelpful comments about China, Zelensky has also suggested that Donald Trump is a loser. The event in Switzerland is shaping up to be another echo chamber for an increasingly boorish Zelensky to publicly hector countries that don’t agree with his deluded and completely unsupportable position.  It’s time for real peace talks with Russia to begin.

Ian Proud is a former British diplomat and was the Economic Counsellor at the British Embassy in Moscow from July 2014 to 2019.  While in Russia, Ian advised UK Ministers on Russia’s political economy, and that of neighbouring former Soviet states, including Ukraine. He recently published his memoir, a Misfit in Moscow: how British diplomacy in Russia failed, 2014-2019.

BECAUSE OF COURSE HE DID

Trump-Backed Republican Bragged About Committing Voter Fraud: Report

BY NICK MORDOWANEC ON 8/25/22 

A Donald Trump-backed Republican candidate for Arizona attorney general allegedly advocated for voter fraud and supported former President Barack Obama in the past.

New reporting by the Phoenix New Times alleges that in 2007 Abraham Hamadeh admitted on online forums that he illegally voted at age 16 for then-Senator Barack Obama for president—in response to "Obama getting all of this crap simply cause hes black, he has an Arab name, hes the only senator who is black in the Senate, he is successful, and he is a Harvard Law graduate," one post read.

"No I cannot vote, I just submitted my mothers absentee ballot, she votes who I vote for, she voted for Ron Paul, and I'm saddened that I had to vote for Barack Obama, but it was the right thing I had to do," another post read.

It was one of reportedly 4,163 posts from Hamadeh on a message board called Ron Paul Forums, which focused on former congressman and three-time presidential candidate Ron Paul.

Hamadeh served 14 months in the U.S. Army Reserve and worked as prosecutor in the Maricopa County Attorney's Office. He is running on the issue of what he calls "election protection," to "rebuild the confidence of our elections by prosecuting election fraud to the fullest extent of the law."

The voter fraud allegations from Hamadeh's youth came after former President Trump endorsed Hamadeh partly due to his stance on elections fraud.

"Abraham Hamadeh is a fantastic candidate running for Arizona Attorney General," Trump said in his endorsement. "He is a veteran, a former prosecutor and, most importantly, he's tough and he's smart. Abe Hamadeh knows what happened in the 2020 Election, and will enforce voting laws so that our Elections are Free and Fair again."

Above, a voter places a ballot in a drop box outside of the Maricopa County Elections Department on August 2 in Phoenix. Arizona Republican attorney general candidate Abe Hamadeh allegedly committed voter fraud when he was a teen and has run as a Trump-endorsed candidate who has called out the results of the 2020 election.

JUSTIN SULLIVAN/GETTY IMAGES

Hamadeh has also been endorsed by other prominent Republicans, including Ron Paul's son, Senator Rand Paul; Richard Grenell, Trump's former acting director of national intelligence; Robert O'Brien, Trump's former national security adviser; and Kash Patel, former Department of Defense chief of staff under Trump.

Aside from calling former Republican presidential candidate and longtime Arizona political mainstay John McCain a "radical fascist," Hamadeh's posts also delved into antisemitism, according to the Phoenix New Times.

"If you think Jews arent big in america (2%) how come 56% of them are CEO'S ... Jews are influential and for the most part rich," one post reportedly said. "its good were targetting Arabs now, next will target Jews."

Erica Knight, a spokesperson for the Hamadeh campaign, did not provide a full-fledged denial regarding the posts in question but told the Phoenix New Times that Hamadeh's comments came at a time in his life when he aspired to be a professional wrestler.

"We are entering a new era of political opposition where candidates who have lived through their adolescent years on the internet are being judged and criticized based on comments they made well before their minds were even fully developed," Knight said.

 "It is now our responsibility to be careful where we draw the line."

Hamadeh tweeted on August 24 that "the media hates minority Republicans." Newsweek reached out to the Hamadeh campaign for comment.

Kris Mayes, Hamadeh's Democratic opponent this November, told Newsweek via phone on Thursday that Arizona "has among the best-run elections in this country" yet her opponent has continually attacked election officials and discussed decertifying the results of the 2020 election, which she said is indicative of a candidate "wildly out of step with the people of Arizona and frankly dangerous to democracy."

Hamadeh's website features interview clips in which he makes reference to the film 2,000 Mules, saying that it revealed "real criminal and fraudulent activity surrounding the 2020 election."

"It is incredibly hypocritical for Abe Hamadeh to have spent the last year undermining trust in our elections when it would appear that he himself engaged in voter fraud at one time," Mayes said. "This is just conduct unbecoming of a top law enforcement officer in the state of Arizona. We cannot have an attorney general who not only espoused antisemitic beliefs but also may have committed voter fraud.

"I think the voters of Arizona are going to reject someone who has these antisemitic views, and also appears to be a complete hypocrite on the issue of voter fraud," Mayes added.

Another Arizona election denier backed by Trump, Mark Finchem, won his secretary of state primary.

Sen. Kyrsten Sinema calls Rand Paul's behavior prior to receiving coronavirus results 'irresponsible'

Catherine Garcia, The Week•March 22, 2020

Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.) on Sunday tweeted that she has "never commented about a fellow senator's choices/actions," but Sen. Rand Paul's (R-Ky.) recent behavior has forced her to speak out.

On Sunday, Paul's office announced that he tested positive for the novel coronavirus. Not long after, CNN's Seung Min Kim reported that two people briefed on the matter told her that during the Senate Republican lunch on Sunday, Sen. Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) shared with colleagues "that Rand was at the gym this morning ... and that he was swimming in the pool."

Paul's office tweeted in response that "Paul left the Senate IMMEDIATELY upon learning of his diagnosis. He had zero contact with anyone and went into quarantine." His office did not address Paul visiting the Senate gym and pool before receiving the results of his test, which is what outraged Sinema. "This, America, is absolutely irresponsible," she said. "You cannot be near other people while waiting for coronavirus test results. It endangers others and likely increases the spread of the virus."

Sen. Rand Paul, Who Opposed Coronavirus Relief Bill, Tests Positive
Emma Tucker,The Daily Beast•March 22, 2020

Sarah Silbiger/Getty

Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY), who was the only senator to oppose a coronavirus relief package last month, announced Sunday that he has tested positive for the virus.

“He is feeling fine and is in quarantine,” an announcement on his Twitter said. “He is asymptomatic and was tested out of an abundance of caution due to his extensive travel and events.”

It added, “He expects to be back in the Senate after his quarantine period ends and will continue to work for the people of Kentucky at this difficult time.”

In addition to being the only senator to vote against an $8.3 billion emergency coronavirus package, Paul also was one of the eight senators who voted against paid sick leave in a stimulus bill that passed with an overwhelming 90-8 vote last week.

“I think that the paid sick leave is an incentive for businesses to actually let go employees and will make unemployment worse,” Paul, a physician who has a Kentucky-issued medical license, explained to Newsweek.

CNN reported that Paul closed his Capitol Hill offices over a week ago and urged employees to work from home due to concerns over the coronavirus outbreak. Two people who attended the annual Speed Art Museum ball in Kentucky with the senator on March 7 later tested positive for the virus, according to the Courier-Journal.

But despite reportedly being tested roughly a week ago, Paul continued to interact with colleagues and even worked out at the Senate gym—and was swimming in the pool—on Sunday morning, shortly before he received his positive test results, Politico reported.

Paul is the first senator to test positive for the novel coronavirus. Two other members of Congress, Reps. Mario Diaz-Balart (R-FL) and Ben McAdams (D-UT), have also gone public with positive test results.

According to the World Health Organization, COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, is particularly dangerous for people with lung problems. In August 2019, Paul had part of his lung removed after an altercation with his neighbor Rene Boucher. The two had a long-running dispute over lawn care.

Second Member of Congress Tests Positive for COVID-19

On March 2, Paul appeared on Fox News and downplayed the global threat of the coronavirus.
“While it is worldwide, I think there is room for optimism that this thing may plateau out in a few weeks and not be as bad it as it may have been portrayed,” he said to host Neil Cavuto. “We’ve seen pockets of this around the world and even in Italy and Iran where we have it, but none of it is approaching what started in China.”

When asked about institutions taking larger measures to limit the spread of the virus, Paul was resistant to the idea. “I think closing down the Smithsonians would be way too premature and I wouldn’t advise something like that.”

And when Cavuto asked Paul about making personal adjustments to avoid infection, the Senator was particularly defiant. “I mean, I fly all the time and I’m not cutting back on my flying... I was on a plane today,” he said. “I could be wrong and this could be really bad in two or three weeks or a month, but I’m hoping it’s not going to be. I’m not ready to buy all the toilet paper at Target.”

The senator’s father, Dr. Ron Paul, a physician and a former Republican congressman from Texas, published an essay called “The Coronavirus Hoax” last week for the New River Valley News, a local outlet based in Virginia.

“People should ask themselves whether this coronavirus ‘pandemic’ could be a big hoax, with the actual danger of the disease massively exaggerated by those who seek to profit—financially or politically—from the ensuing panic,” the elder Paul wrote.
As of Sunday afternoon, there are 30,000 COVID-19 cases in the U.S., and nearly 400 people have died.

Rand Paul's coronavirus infection sends shockwaves through Senate during major stimulus debate

William Cummings,USA TODAY•March 22, 2020


Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., tested positive for the COVID-19 coronavirus and is being quarantined, his office announced Sunday.

The diagnosis comes as the Senate prepares to move forward on a massive coronavirus stimulus aid package aimed at alleviating the economic impact of the outbreak. Several Republican lawmakers announced on Sunday they would self-quarantine as a result of Paul's diagnosis.

Sergio Gor, Paul's deputy chief of staff, said the senator "decided to get tested after attending an event where two individuals subsequently tested positive for COVID-19, even though he wasn't aware of any direct contact with either one of them."

Gor said Paul is in a higher risk category after having part of his lung removed last year after it was damaged in a 2017 assault by his neighbor.

Paul's diagnosis also raised questions about his behavior after he continued to attend events and use shared facilities as he awaited the test results.

Several news outlets reported, for example, that Paul was using the Senategym and pool as recently as Sunday morning, the same day he announced he had tested positive. Several lawmakers also reported having lunch recently with Paul.

Those actions drew sharp criticism from at least one fellow senator.

More: New ad from conservative group targets Trump on coronavirus messaging

More: Trump uses China as a foil when talking coronavirus, distancing himself from criticism

"This, America, is absolutely irresponsible," tweeted Sen. Kristen Synema, D-Ariz. "You cannot be near other people while waiting for coronavirus test results. It endangers others & likely increases the spread of the virus."

The news of Paul's diagnosis came as Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., moved forward with the stimulus package, which is expected to approach $2 trillion. Earlier Sunday, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi declared she would not support the bill as written, and vowed House Democrats would move forward with their own legislation.

But McConnell said he would still hold a cloture vote on Sunday. If approved, that vote would limit debate on the measure to 30 hours ahead of a final vote, which McConnell hopes will take place Monday.

In response to Paul's diagnosis, Republican Sens. Mike Lee and Mitt Romney of Utah announced they would undergo self-quarantines. The loss of their votes – in addition to those of Republicans Sens. Rick Scott and Cory Garner, who were already under self-quarantine – could threaten the measure's passage.

Paul was not the first member of Congress to test positive for the virus. Last week, Reps. Mario Diaz-Balart, R-Fla., and Ben McAdams, D-Utah, announced they had tested positive.

Paul was on Capitol Hill several days last week. The statement from his office did not say when Paul tested positive, nor when he might have contracted the illness.

Sen. John Thune, R-S.D., said Sunday that lawmakers are speaking with a doctor to determine what steps they should take after Paul's diagnosis.

"We just learned our colleague, Rand Paul, has tested positive for the coronavirus. Our thoughts and prayers are with him for a speedy recovery," Thune said on the Senate floor. "We will consult with the attending physician here at the Capitol about appropriate measures for those of us who have been in contact with the senator."

Thune said Paul's infection "is the kind of situation that Americans across the country are dealing with right now. And it underscores the importance of acting immediately to deliver more relief for the American people."

More: Coronavirus relief deal agreed by Pelosi, Trump overwhelmingly passes House as president declares national emergency

Romney, R-Utah., confirmed he and other lawmakers attended a lunch with Paul on Friday and that they were consulting with doctors before he announced later Sunday that he would self-quarantine.

"He's compromised given health conditions he's had in the past, and so we'll be praying for him and thinking about him," Romney told reporters regarding Paul's positive test result. "Of course, all the senators are going to seek medical advice as to what action we should take to make sure that we don't in any way spread this virus ourselves."

Soon after Romney announced his decision to isolate himself.

"Since Senator Romney sat next to Senator Paul for extended periods in recent days and consistent with CDC guidance, the attending physician has ordered him to immediately self-quarantine and not to vote on the Senate floor," Romney's office said in a statement.

It said that Romney would undergo a test himself, although he currently has no symptoms.

Lee went into self-quarantine soon after Paul’s disclosure, on the advice of Congress’ attending physician. Lee reportedly also had lunch with Paul on Friday.

Lee said he has no symptoms and the physician said he did not need to be tested.

"However, given the timing, proximity, and duration of my exposure to Sen. Paul, he directed me to self-quarantine for 14 days," Lee said in a statement Sunday. "That means no traveling or voting."

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: COVID-19: Rand Paul's diagnosis sends shockwaves through Senate

 

Tin Soldiers and Nixon Coming…

by Daniel McAdams Posted onApril 29, 2024

Student action on university campuses against US involvement in Israel’s slaughter of Gaza has exploded across the country. Suddenly there is the distinct feel in the air of the anti-Vietnam war protests once they finally caught on in 1968 and soon thereafter changed the course of US history.

Both protest movements were fully demonized by the same forces of the mainstream Left/Right regime and what libertarian writer Jacob Hornberger rightly calls the “National Security State.” I would add the mainstream media from Fox to MSNBC. But these days there is relatively more freedom of expression available to Americans via some of the social media outlets. The US government war on one of these outlets – TikTok – may also be fueling protests, as this outlet is particularly popular among younger Americans and has become the platform for them to hear more objective and independent views on what is happening in Gaza. It should not be considered a coincidence that not long after Anti-Defamation League’s Jonathan Greenblat was caught on tape panicking over the shift in opinion away from fealty to Israel among the younger generation, a big PR operation about “Chinese infiltration” of the platform emerged as did calls to ban the popular application.

“We have a major, major, major generational (TikTok) problem,” Greenblat said. This past week both Houses of Congress voted to ban TikTok. Problem solved? Not exactly.

So back to the protests.

Tens of thousands of students from New York’s Columbia University to the University of Southern California have risen up to demand an end to US support for Israel’s 200 day – and counting – total demolition of Gaza in retribution for the October 7th Hamas bloody incursion into Israeli territory.

To date, more than 35,000 Palestinian civilians in Gaza have been killed including an estimated 15,000 children. Hamas, by contrast, is reportedly not significantly degraded and its massive tunnel system remains intact. Former Israeli Defense Forces General Yitzhak Brick told Israeli newspaper Maariv that Israel has already lost the war against Hamas and must admit it.

The wild disproportionality of the Israeli response has animated and ignited the sense of repulsion and demand for justice among the nation’s youth. Most recently the grisly details of Israel’s apparent mass slaughter of hundreds of patients at the Nasser Hospital in Gaza – many discovered with their hands and feet bound – may have been the last straw that led to mass student action across the country.

When the wave of student protests settled in the Lone Star State on Wednesday, Texas Governor Gregg Abbott wasted no time at all calling in the Texas State Troopers to smash the protest at the University of Texas. Heavily-armed Troopers – some on horseback – marched onto campus attempting to force the crowd of protesters to disburse. As might be expected, the situation very quickly got out of hand, with Troopers assaulting and arresting those participating in what began as a peaceful protest.

Shortly after siccing the heavily armed state militia on student protestors, Abbot released this Tweet:

Abbott’s blanket accusation that these protests are prima facie anti-Semitic is belied by the fact that Jews across the country are participating in the mass action, including on university campuses.

There is clearly a major attempt being made to conflate legitimate concern over tens of thousands of Palestinian civilians being slaughtered – and hundreds of thousands facing starvation – with blanket hatred of Jewish people. But the youth are not buying it. So it’s time to send in the militarized police to shut down peaceful protest and the First Amendment.

In the case of Texas, one cheeky conservative Twitter/X user pointed out that, “Abbott sent more troops to shutdown peaceful protests at UT than he did to secure the border.”

Ouch – but revealing.

Other observers have similarly pointed out the hypocrisy of the massive deployment of militarized police to quell a peaceful political protest, commenting on a video montage of police beating and arresting American university students that, “imagine if this video was out of Tehran University in Iran, our politicians & media would have endless calls for regime change.”

Throughout the country, many “influencers” on the professional political Right are acting like the “woke snowflakes” they have derided, demanding that our fundamental liberty to freely assemble and speak our minds be amended in this particular instance due to the subject matter.

Many “professional right-wingers” have done their best to try and convince us that these protesters are identical to the BLM protesters of several years ago. Matt Walsh at the Daily Wire put out a podcast today claiming that, “The ‘Free Palestine’ Movement Is Just BLM Repackaged.”

The problem in his and the rest of their calculus is that the state and local authorities would not lift a finger to stop the BLM riots, yet they are cracking heads robustly among the Palestine protests.

Walsh even seemed to sense the inconsistency in his logic, questioning Governor Abbott’s move against the protesters by Tweeting, “Did Abbott ever arrest BLM protesters for antiwhiteism? Is antisemitism the only hateful ideology not permitted in Texas? Are you legally allowed to hate some groups but not others?”

He added, in a criticism of Abbot’s suggestion that the protesters were being arrested for “antisemitism,” that, “If you’re arresting them for an illegal encampment or for making threats then say that. But arresting people for ‘antisemitism’ is obviously a clear violation of the First Amendment. I can’t stand these protesters but you can’t arrest people simply for having ‘hateful’ views.”

He deserves credit for this observation.

As is often the case, action by state actors against this protest movement will only strengthen the movement. We have not even seen the beginning of what is in store.

Polls clearly show that a considerable majority in America believes Israel has gone way too far in its reaction to October 7th. America for the first time in my lifetime is in the majority opposed to Israel, and that shift is more than anything else a generational shift. Hence Greenblat’s panic.

This movement is picking up steam and threatens to turn Biden’s big Democratic Convention coronation ceremony into the disastrous 1968 Democratic Convention in Chicago, where the Lyndon Johnson campaign went to die. Ironically the Democratic Party convention this year is to be held in… Chicago!

May 4th will be the 54th anniversary of Nixon’s National Guard killing four students at Ohio’s Kent state University for protesting our killing squads in Vietnam (My Lai massacre). Will soldiers in the US start cutting protesters down again?

Daniel McAdams is Executive Director of the Ron Paul Institute for Peace and Prosperity and co-Producer/co-Host, Ron Paul Liberty Report. Daniel served as the foreign affairs, civil liberties, and defense/intel policy advisor to U.S. Congressman Ron Paul, MD (R-Texas) from 2001 until Dr. Paul’s retirement at the end of 2012. From 1993-1999 he worked as a journalist based in Budapest, Hungary, and traveled through the former communist bloc as a human rights monitor and election observer. Reprinted from The Ron Paul Institute for Peace & Prosperity.