The state of "evidence" in 2003 and 2015

"Sixteen Words" controversy in 2003 State of the Union

According to The Washington Post, when occupying troops found no evidence of a current nuclear program, the statement and how it came to be in the speech became a focus for critics in Washington and foreign capitals to press the case that the White House manipulated facts to take the United States to war. The Post reported, "Dozens of interviews with current and former intelligence officials and policymakers in the United States, Britain, France and Italy show that the Bush administration disregarded key information available at the time showing that the Iraq-Niger claim was highly questionable."

Moving along to 2015:  'Clinton Cash' author says no "direct evidence" of wrongdoing

The most significant of the allegations [of quid pro quo] center on a Russian company that was approved by the State Department to purchase a Canadian uranium company, giving Russia [Putin] a sizable stake in the world’s uranium market, after a $2.3 million donation to the Clinton Foundation. But Stephanopoulos pointed out that the State Department was one of nine agencies that signed off on the deal, and that “there’s no evidence at all that Hillary Clinton got directly involved at all in this decision.” (A smiliar argument was made by Clinton surrogate Lanny Davis over on Fox News Sunday.)

“There were nine different agencies who approved it,” Stephanopoulos said. “Doesn’t that suggest that that was because there was no national security concern, not because of some nefarious influence by Hillary Clinton?”

“We don’t have direct evidence,” Schweizer said. “But it warrants further investigation because, again, this is part of the broader pattern. You either have to come to the conclusion that these are all coincidences, or something else is afoot.”

So, if I have this right, the finding of no evidence in 2003, was good enough to convict the Bush administration of manipulation of facts to take the country to war. But in 2015, no "direct evidence" is not good enough to follow the trail of millions of dollars benefiting (putting it charitably) lining the Clinton pockets?

Not to mention the possible damage to our national security... I don't know, maybe I'm missing something.

And another thing... if Dick Chaney could manipulate "different agencies" to include something on a speech, you are telling me Hillary could not manipulate "different agencies" to approve something she wanted, something that could be very lucrative?

"Obama, Bush teams battle over torture report"

"What I keep hearing out there is they portray this as a rogue operation and the agency was way out of bounds and then they lied about it," former vice president Dick Cheney told The New York Times. "I think that's all a bunch of hooey. The program was authorized. The agency did not want to proceed without authorization, and it was also reviewed legally by the Justice Department before they undertook the program."

 

Here is one of the Justice Department lawyers that wrote the so called "torture" memos.

The Cheney's finger Obama via the Wall Street Journal

"On a trip to the Middle East this spring, we heard a constant refrain in capitals from the Persian Gulf to Israel, "Can you please explain what your president is doing?" "Why is he walking away?" "Why is he so blithely sacrificing the hard fought gains you secured in Iraq?" "Why is he abandoning your friends?" "Why is he doing deals with your enemies?"

In one Arab capital, a senior official pulled out a map of Syria and Iraq. Drawing an arc with his finger from Raqqa province in northern Syria to Anbar province in western Iraq, he said, "They will control this territory. Al Qaeda is building safe havens and training camps here. Don't the Americans care?" (link to the rest of the piece)

Don't the Americans care?

 

I'm not particularly animated by that question. My uncommitted guess is, now that I'm 'blogging it' (Chick's fault) is that, it depends on who you ask. Obama was elected on the belief that he would care more than Bush. And re-elected on the belief that he would care more than Romney.

Maybe this is a good time to ask you, what do you care about? What's on your mind?
Lend us your fingers and thumbs.

Source  

'When Cheney Aproached The Light Turned Green For Him'

"Dick Cheney says his current health is "a miracle" in a frank discussion of the heart disease he suffered over his entire political career and especially when he served as the vice president."

"Two years ago, Cheney was gaunt, carried a sallow complexion and needed a cane to walk. Today, he says he's a new man and feels "fantastic." At 72, he says he has no real physical limits. "I fish. I hunt...I don't ski, but that's because of my knees, not my heart. So, it's been a miracle," he tells Gupta."

"Cheney had his first heart attack over 35 years ago and has been the recipient of many modern heart treatments that seemed to come along at just the right time. He even had a pump attached directly to his heart while awaiting a transplant. He knows luck played a big role in his life. He says Dr. Reiner once made an analogy between the course of Cheney's health and treatment and a person who gets up late and drives to work, but he sees all the traffic lights ahead are red. "'Cheney,'" he says the doctor told him, "'when you get to them, they all turn green.' And that's... a pretty good description," says Cheney."

CBS

"Dick Cheney's daughter eyes Senate bid in Wyoming"

"[Liz] Cheney, eldest daughter of former vice president Dick Cheney, told Wyoming Sen. Mike Enzi that "she's looking at" challenging him in a Republican primary next year, according to a New York Times story from this weekend."

Dick Cheney was Wyoming's lone congressman from 1979 to 1989, before becoming Defense secretary for George H.W. Bush and then Bush 43's vice president. The NYT story says Dick Cheney has been more visible in his home state since his daughter moved to Wyoming -- and that he and Enzi are fly-fishing buddies.

This is welcomed news, as a relief valve from the Hillary Inevitability run away train.

ADDED : While Hillary has to dress up like the Iron Lady, Liz Cheney acts like the Iron Lady.

  Soul Asylum - Runaway Train