4th of July News Round-Up

Happy 4th of July everyone.

On July 4, 1776, the Second Continental Congress unanimously adopted the Declaration of Independence, announcing the colonies’ separation from Great Britain.

How educated are Americans regarding their own history? Here’s the good news- about 74% of people can name the country that America declared independence from in 1776. Here’s the bad news- 74% of people can name the country that America declared independence from in 1776. And so it goes.

~On this July 4, 2010, irrespective of where we each stand on the political spectrum, particularly with respect to the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, perhaps stories like this could remind us of the ongoing battles some people face against tremendous odds. While most of us can turn off our televisions when the images of 19 year-olds fighting in a country we can’t begin to comprehend become too troubling, some Americans will never really be able to turn the war off.

~Joe Biden is spending the 4th with the troops in Baghdad.

~Petraeus takes command of the Afgan War today.

~Here’s a run-down of who will be chattering away on the Sunday talk shows (h/t Firedoglake).

~The court of appeals for the DC Circuit has let the administration know that it better come up with some more convincing evidence that an Algerian detainee held at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, for more than eight years is “part of” al Qaida. And if they can’t show that, then he should be set free.

~Side note- if you want to take a look at some good old fashioned journalism, wander over to McClatchy and check out their in-depth series on the abuse of detainees at Bagram air base in Afghanistan. It’s hard to win “hearts and minds” when this stuff goes on. I wish some of the stenographers over at the NYT and WaPo would take a look at McClatchy reporting. You know, kind of as a refresher course on journalism.

~There’s been a lot of talk about the weird Russian spy arrests which took place last week. But honestly, the more serious threat? Our banker, China.

~As the GOP and some Blue Dogs enjoy their 4th of July today, thousands of unemployed will be wondering where their next rent, electricity or mortgage payment will come from. And why is that? Because the so-called fiscal hawks believe federal spending is wrong don’t ‘cha know! Of course, when it’s the big corporations that are gorging themselves at the public trough, well, that’s ok in fiscal-conservative land! And this refusal to extend the benefits come as new Pew Research study finds that over half of all Americans are jobless or underemployed.

~Republican Mitch McConnell has announced he will be a “no” vote for the Elena Kagan nomination because apparently only conservatives are allowed to be activists both off and on the Court.

~I didn’t know Thurgood Marshall was made a Saint by the Episcopal Church! Of course, I haven’t been to church in quite a while….Anyway, the Episcopal Church isn’t happy that the GOP used Thurgood Marshall as a punching bag during the Kagan hearings. But honestly, that really speaks for itself doesn’t it? With each passing day of the confirmation hearings the GOP just really came across like a bunch of guys who longed for the good ‘ole days of the Antebellum South. Lets be honest, if Thurgood Marshall were nominated for the Supreme Court today, the GOP would never vote for him.

~Avigdor Lieberman, Foreign Minister of Israel, is probably the Israeli equivalent of our very own John Bolton in terms of diplomatic skills and even Bibi Netanyahu seems to be tiring of the endless diplomatic scuffles which Lieberman partakes in.

~And speaking of Israel, Prime Minister Netanyahu will be visiting with the President this coming Tuesday and it has become clear that while some tensions remain (like over Israel’s refusal to sign onto the nonproliferation pact) all signs point to this visit essentially being a political love-fest of sorts. Everything I have read, from White House readouts of conference calls to reports from Laura Rozen, seem to suggest that there will be lots of happy photo ops to reassure nervous nellies that the US and Israel are not in the midst of a divorce.

~Missouri congressman Roy Blunt seems to bucking the conventional Tea Party wisdom which the mainstream media has fallen in love with- despite being Mr. Washington Insider, he seems to be doing well in the polls against both his GOP primary challenger and the Democratic Senate candidate, Robin Carnahan.

~The WaPo has an interesting story about the challenges facing USAID in Afghanistan as part of the “civilian surge.”

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