The nation posted another 85,000 lost jobs this morning – keeping the jobless rate at 10%. The numbers were worse than the 8,000 lost jobs analysts had expected. The bad jobs numbers demonstrate, yet again, that the massive stimulus pack is failing to create jobs.
As “alleged” terrorist Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab heads to court today in Detroit, experts agree there isn’t much “alleged” about it. It’s fairly cut and dry when six foot flames shoot from your underwear.
Experts say that with so much evidence stacked against Abdulmutallab, his defense team is left with few options as the case moves forward.
Attorneys outside the case say the 23-year-old’s lawyers can challenge incriminating statements to the FBI, seek a mental-health exam for Abdulmutallab — and seriously consider a plea deal.
“This is not a case of mistaken identity or a whodunit. For the defense, it’s damage control,” said Joseph Niskar, a defense lawyer who was involved in a 2001 terrorism case in Detroit that fell apart for the government.
At the same time, Michael Rulle highlights the folly in using the term “alleged” in a post titled, “Japanese ‘Allegedly’ Bomb Pearl Harbor.”
What really gets Obama and his administration passionate is not terrorism, but the opportunity to control people’s lives. Real passion is expressed at the thought of restricting energy usage, based on fake science; and controlling how Americans consume health care, based on fake economics. But the occasional missed Muslim terrorist, like Fort Hood’s Hasan or Nigeria/England’s Abdullmutalab can hardly muster a coherent response. Instead we are instructed to not jump to conclusions over these “alleged” man-made causers of disaster. After all, the system works.
The President did take a few moments out his his busy schedule of tearing apart our health care system to finally acknowledge the administration had missed unmistakable signs of the impending attack. At the same time, he announced an initiative to rework our intelligence system so such mistakes don’t blow up an airliner in the future.
President Barack Obama ordered his top intelligence chiefs Thursday to patch gaps in the way terrorism intelligence is distributed, analyzed and checked against watch lists used to identify potential attackers bound for the U.S.It was his strongest and most detailed response to the Christmas Day attempt to blow up an airliner bound for Detroit. “We are at war,” the president said. “We are at war with al Qaeda.”
It was, however, a pleasant surprise to hear the President acknowledge what most of us have known for 8 1/2 years – that this is a war, not a series of criminal acts.
Finally, Roll Call (subscription required) indicates that Obama is pushing for House and Senate conferees to get him a bill he can sign as quickly as possible.
President Barack Obama met with key Senate health care negotiators Thursday, pressing them to move as swiftly as possible to reconcile their bill with the House package and get him something he can sign into law, according to sources familiar with the meeting.
He has spent a good deal of time focused on Union complaints that their insurance benefits would likely be taxed under the “Cadillac Tax”. However, the Senate bill barely passed through the Chamber, and it’s not clear if it can pass in any other form.
