Making The Rounds

So - what's going on?

The Vice-President is asking for an exemption for the CIA from any legislation on torture.

Former Vietnam POW and current Republican Senator John McCain sponsored an anti-torture amendment that passed in the Senate by a vote of 90-9 that grants no exemptions to anyone. This amendment has been vigorously opposed by Cheney, who has personally lobbied senators to vote against it. McCain has not been deterred, vowing to add the amendment to every piece of significant legislation that passes through the Senate.

When asked to clarify what the VP is actually asking for, White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan repeatedly refused to give any coherent answer to the question. Instead, he focused on telling reporters pressing the issue that they were obviously out of step with the American people. The American people understand, apparently, that we are talking about dangerous killers who need to be tortured. McClellan sought to shift the discussion from what the CIA exemption means to talking about specific examples of alleged terrorists. McCain had a great rebuttal to this when asked for comment, asserting that this issue is not about who they are, but rather about who we are - and who we want to be. I'm paraphrasing there, not quoting.

A recent leak about CIA-run secret prisons in Eastern Europe (where who knows what is going on) led Republican Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist to assert that he was more concerned with the leak of the information than the fact that there were actually secret prisons in operation. The prisons, or so-called 'black sites,' are being run in Eastern European nations, at least some of which are democracies.

Okay - this one's just funny.

A recent poll found that 65% of Americans now oppose the war in Iraq. However, 34% believe that Adam and Eve rode dinosaurs to church every Sunday. 1% believe dinosaurs are merely a fabrication of Satan's to test their faith in the Almighty.
---I heard that one from a guy at Dem HQ.

The New Jersey Republican candidate for governor blames Bush's sinking approval rating for his loss.

You should also read this.

The FDA likely focused on politics, not science, in rejecting the OTC sale of Plan B - the 'morning-after pill.'

Alright. I must be going...as the College Dems' VP, I have to attend an "executive board meeting" every Monday at 6pm.