Blogs of War

I knew there was something fishy about this:

Two Egyptian students at the University of South Florida were indicted Friday for carrying explosive materials across states lines and one of them was charged with teaching the other how to use them for violent reasons.

Ahmed Abdellatif Sherif Mohamed, 24, an engineering graduate student and teaching assistant at the Tampa-based university, faces terrorism charges for teaching and demonstrating how to use the explosives.

He and Youssef Samir Megahed, 21, an engineering student, were stopped for speeding August 4 in Goose Creek, South Carolina, where they have been held on state charges.

The two men were stopped with pipe bombs in their car near a Navy base in South Carolina where enemy combatants have been held. They were held on state charges while the FBI continued to investigate whether there was a terrorism link.

Mohamed was charged with distributing information relating to explosives, destructive devices, and weapons of mass destruction, which is a terrorism-related statute, a Justice Department official said. The crime carries a maximum of 20 years in prison.

20 years sounds like a good start and the U.S. Navy brig in Goose Creek sounds like an ideal spot to house them.

My personal information appears to have been stolen yet again. I’m losing track of these notices:

Recently, malicious software, known as Infostealer.Monstres, was used to gain unauthorized access to the Monster.com resume database to steal the contact information of job seekers. Monster Worldwide is the technology provider for the USAJOBS website and regrettably, some of the contact information captured came from USAJOBS job seekers.

The information captured included name, address, telephone number, and email address. Monster Worldwide has assured the U.S. Office of Personnel Management that Social Security Numbers were NOT compromised because of IT security shields USAJOBS has in place.

At least they didn’t get Social Security Numbers. I guess the other good news is that I haven’t used USAJOBS in years so whatever information they have is probably out of date.

Urban Dictionary:
Pwnt

FOX News has the transcript. I still think he’ll resign before the week ends. The pressure to do so is mounting:

The Nevada senator who leads the Republican effort to reclaim the majority in the Senate in 2008 joined a growing number of leaders suggesting Sen. Larry Craig resign.

Sen. John Ensign told MSNBC today that it would be best if Craig resigns, MSNBC reported at 1 p.m. MDT.

Ensign’s turning away from Craig is especially significant because he is chairman of the Republican Senatorial Campaign Committee, the Senate GOP’s campaign arm that raises money and develops strategy to elect Republican senators. Ensign’s statement suggests that Republicans fear that a prolonged battle by Craig to keep his seat will harm other GOP candidates in 2008.

Craig is among the GOP incumbents who face re-election next year. Craig said on Tuesday that he will announce next month whether he will run for a fourth term.

“I think the pressure will continue to build,” said Sen. John Ensign of Nevada, who chairs the party’s senatorial campaign committee.

Update:
One blogger says he’s made the call:

Sources in Idaho have told From the Left that Sen. Larry Craig will resign from the United States Senate this weekend.

Plans are being made for Idaho governor C.L. Otter to appoint a replacement and the front runner is state Attorney General Lawrence Wasden. Wadsen is a Republican, a social conservative and, a Mormon.

Announcements will be posted here as they become available.

Hoekstra was first:

A conservative House member from Michigan became the first lawmaker to call for Sen. Larry Craig’s resignation on Wednesday, and the White House expressed disappointment in the case of the Idaho senator caught in a men’s room undercover police operation.

GOP Rep. Pete Hoekstra said Craig “represents the Republican party,” and called for his resignation “as his conduct throughout this matter has been inappropriate for a U.S. senator.”

Craig pleaded guilty in August to a charge of disorderly conduct following his arrest in a men’s room at the Minneapolis airport. He has since recanted his guilty plea, and said on Tuesday he did nothing wrong.

Senate Republican leaders have called on the ethics committee to review Craig’s case, and White House spokesman Scott Stanzel said he hoped the panel could do its work quickly.

“That would be in the best interests of the Senate and the people of Idaho,” he said.

McCain, and others, are joining the call:

Two Senate Republican colleagues, including John McCain, called Wednesday for Sen. Larry Craig to resign. The White House, too, expressed disappointment in the case of the Idaho Republican caught in a men’s room undercover police operation.

Arizona Sen. McCain and Sen. Norm Coleman of Minnesota, the state where Craig was arrested, became the first senators to join Rep. Peter Hoekstra, R-Mich., urging Craig’s resignation.

McCain told CNN the decision was Craig’s to make, “but my opinion is that when you plead guilty to a crime, you shouldn’t serve. That’s not a moral stand. That’s not a holier-than-thou. It’s just a factual situation.”

“I think he should resign,” McCain said.

Larry Craig is going to have to bail soon. There’s just no hope for the guy’s career. I’ll be surprised if he hangs in until Friday afternoon. Just do the right thing Senator. This is no time to stall.

Update:
CNN reports that “Sen. Larry Craig is stepping down from his committee assignments amid calls for his resignation from the Senate.” The Crypt’s Blog has more:

“Senator Larry Craig has agreed to comply with Leadership’s request that he temporarily step down as the top Republican on the Veteran Affairs Committee, Appropriations Subcommittee on the Interior, and Energy and Natural Resources Subcommittee on Public Lands and Forests,” reads a statement from GOP leadership. “This is not a decision we take lightly but we believe this is in the best interest of the Senate until this situation is resolved by the Ethics Committee.”

He’s toast.

Diabetes, not foul play, is suspected. The state of Georgia recognized Jewell’s life-saving actions before he died:

A year ago this month, Jewell was commended by Gov. Sonny Perdue at an event marking the 10th anniversary of the bombing.

“The bottom line is this: His actions saved lives that day,” said Perdue. “Mr. Jewell, on behalf of Georgia, we want to thank you for keeping Georgians safe and doing your job during the course of those Games.”

Jewell, his voice choked with emotion, responded:

“I never sought to be a hero. I have always viewed myself as just one of the many trained professionals who simply did his or her job that tragic night. I wish I could have done more.”

Last year USA Today took a look back at the mainstream media lynching that nearly destroyed his life.

I think Bush’s speech this afternoon signaled a significant turning point. Things really seem to be heating up:

U.S. soldiers arrested members of an Iranian government delegation Tuesday at a hotel in Baghdad and took them to an unidentified location, Iran’s official IRNA news agency reported.

Associated Press Television caught blindfolded men being escorted from a Baghdad hotel.

The Iranians, who work for Tehran’s power ministry, were in the capital at the invitation of Iraqi government officials to sign an electricity supply contract, the news agency said.

The number of people arrested was not immediately clear, though Associated Press Television showed U.S. soldiers escorting 10 blindfolded people — their hands bound in front of them — from the hotel into military vehicles and driving off.

The Iranian’s aren’t happy but this story will take a while to fully unfold:

A spokesman for the Iranian Embassy says the seven men who were arrested were part of a delegation from the Iranian Electricity Ministry.

He says they were guests of the Iraqi Government and had come to Baghdad to help rebuild power stations.

He says the Iranian embassy will be sending a formal letter of protest to the Iraqi Foreign Affairs Ministry.

The arrest of the Iranians came almost immediately after US President George W Bush said he had told commanders in Iraq to confront Iranians engaged in what he called “murderous activities” in Iraq.

I think we’ll be hearing more about what these men were really up to soon.

Update:
Some details are emerging but I wouldn’t necessarily take these initial reports at face value. This doesn’t tell us much anyway:

American forces said that a group of Iranians was detained after coalition forces searched them and their Iraqi escorts at a checkpoint, found unauthorized weapons in their vehicles and confiscated them.

The American statement did not mention the hotel, but it is near the checkpoint on the east bank of the Tigris where United States forces said the group was stopped and searched.

After the delegation proceeded to the Sheraton Ishtar hotel and was eating dinner in the ground floor restaurant, American solders arrested them, hotel employees said Wednesday. They said that six Iranians were led away blindfolded and handcuffed shortly after 10 p.m. Hotel officials said the delegation checked into the hotel on Monday bearing a letter of invitation from the Electricity Ministry.

I still think there’s more to this story than we’re hearing yet.

Update II:
The Iranians have been released. It looks like, in addition to sending a message, we got what we wanted anyway:

The military said that after initially allowing the Iranians and Iraqis to move on, U.S. forces went to their hotel and confiscated a laptop computer, mobile telephones and Iranian and U.S. currency during a search of their rooms. They then took the group to a military base for questioning. Two of the Iranians had “diplomatic credentials,” the military said.

It will be interesting to see if any of the laptop or cell phone data gathered during all of this resurfaces later.

You have to have seen this video of Lauren Caitlin Upton (and who hasn’t?) to get the joke.

I have a preview of a speech that the President will make in his address to The American Legion National Convention In Reno, Nevada this afternoon. In it he clearly defines Iran’s position in America’s war on terror:

The Second Strain Is Shia Extremism, Supported And Embodied By Iran’s Government. Iran is the world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism, and the United States is working with friends and allies around the world to confront the danger presented by actions of Iran’s government. Iran’s leaders threaten the security of nations everywhere by:

• Actively pursuing technology that could be used to develop nuclear weapons
• Arresting visiting American scholars who have committed no crimes and pose no threat to their regime
• Backing Hezbollah terrorists who are trying to undermine the democratic government of Lebanon
• Funding the terrorist groups Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad, which murder the innocent, target Israel, and destabilize the Palestinian territories
• Sending arms to the Taliban in Afghanistan, which can be used to attack American and NATO troops and Afghan civilians
• Sending arms to extremists in Iraq that are used against Coalition and Iraqi troops, and Iraqi civilians.

He doesn’t stop there. Bush directly links Iran to attacks in Iraq – and the resulting coalition deaths.

Shia Extremists, Backed By Iran, Are Training Iraqis To Carry Out Attacks On Our Forces, The Iraqi Government, And The Iraqi People. Members of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Qods Force are supplying extremist groups with funding and weapons, including sophisticated improvised explosive devices (IEDs). With the assistance of Hezbollah, they have provided training for violent forces active inside Iraq.

• The Attacks On Our Bases And Our Troops Using Iranian-Supplied Munitions Have Increased In The Last Few Months – Despite Pledges By Iran To Help Stabilize The Security Situation In Iraq. Recently, Coalition forces seized 240-millimeter rockets that had been manufactured in Iran this year and provided to Iraqi extremist groups by Iranian agents.
• The Iranian Regime Must Halt These Actions At Once. Some say Iran’s leaders are not aware of what members of their own regime are doing. Others say Iran’s leaders are actively seeking to provoke the West. Either way, Iranian leaders bear the responsibility for aiding attacks against Coalition forces and the murder of innocent Iraqis.

This has the feel of a significant turning point in our relationship with Iran. However, Iran’s rhetoric hasn’t shifted:

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said here Tuesday that any action against the Iranian nation will be given proper response.

“I consider it unlikely if the US takes any such illogical and illegal action because the measure would turn into a joke worldwide.

They continue to work towards establishing an exploitable power vacuum in Iraq:

Speaking to domestic and foreign reporters, the president said the arrogant powers with their blind eyes cannot see the rights of Iraqi nation and their constitution.

“I advise the occupiers to halt their crimes and carnage which only make the current situation more complicated,” he said.

“You cannot bring to knees a nation with over seven thousand years of civilization by making use of four fighter planes and some soldiers, artillery and tanks,” he underlined.

“We advise you to amend your policies because through such harsh policies you will get nowhere,” he said.

“I truly declare that the political power of occupiers is on the decline and the region will witness the emergence of a big power,” underlined the president.

“We are ready to help restore security of the region through collective cooperation with our regional friends and Saudi Arabia,” he pointed out.

A major reality check looms on the horizon. It’s long overdue.

Great news out of South Korea:

South Korea’s presidential office said Tuesday that negotiators from the South Korean government and the Taliban reached an agreement to release all of the 19 South Korean hostages still held in Afghanistan.

“The South Korean government welcomes the agreement on the hostage release,” presidential spokesman Cheon Ho-seon said in a press conference.

CNN has more information on the terms of the agreement:

Under the terms of the agreement, South Korea agreed to stick by its previous decision to withdraw its 200 non-combat troops from Afghanistan, which work mostly in an engineering and medical capacity.

In addition, Seoul will halt all Christian missionary work in Afghanistan.

The spokesman said there was no agreement to pay the captors, nor was there any mention of releasing Taliban prisoners — a major demand of the kidnappers.

Roll Call has the disturbing scoop:

According to the incident report, Sgt. Dave Karsnia was working as a plainclothes officer on June 11 investigating civilian complaints regarding sexual activity in the men’s public restroom in which Craig was arrested.

Airport police previously had made numerous arrests in the men’s restroom of the Northstar Crossing in the Lindbergh Terminal in connection with sexual activity.

Karsnia entered the bathroom at noon that day and about 13 minutes after taking a seat in a stall, he stated he could see “an older white male with grey hair standing outside my stall.”

The man, who lingered in front of the stall for two minutes, was later identified as Craig.

“I could see Craig look through the crack in the door from his position. Craig would look down at his hands, ‘fidget’ with his fingers, and then look through the crack into my stall again. Craig would repeat this cycle for about two minutes,” the report states.

Craig then entered the stall next to Karsnia’s and placed his roller bag against the front of the stall door.

“My experience has shown that individuals engaging in lewd conduct use their bags to block the view from the front of their stall,” Karsnia stated in his report. “From my seated position, I could observe the shoes and ankles of Craig seated to the left of me.”

Craig was wearing dress pants with black dress shoes.

“At 1216 hours, Craig tapped his right foot. I recognized this as a signal used by persons wishing to engage in lewd conduct. Craig tapped his toes several times and moves his foot closer to my foot. I moved my foot up and down slowly. While this was occurring, the male in the stall to my right was still present. I could hear several unknown persons in the restroom that appeared to use the restroom for its intended use. The presence of others did not seem to deter Craig as he moved his right foot so that it touched the side of my left foot which was within my stall area,” the report states.

Craig then proceeded to swipe his hand under the stall divider several times, and Karsnia noted in his report that “I could … see Craig had a gold ring on his ring finger as his hand was on my side of the stall divider.”

Karsnia then held his police identification down by the floor so that Craig could see it.

“With my left hand near the floor, I pointed towards the exit. Craig responded, ‘No!’ I again pointed towards the exit. Craig exited the stall with his roller bags without flushing the toilet. … Craig said he would not go. I told Craig that he was under arrest, he had to go, and that I didn’t want to make a scene. Craig then left the restroom.”

My first reaction – Ew. After that initial queasiness passed, which took about 15 minutes for me, the only real observation was that the Democrats were going to go nuts with this one but who cares? Let them distract themselves with something salacious. They’ll make fools of themselves in the frenzy. They always do.

Update:
FOX News has the Senator’s side of the story:

“At the time of this incident, I complained to the police that they were misconstruing my actions. I was not involved in any inappropriate conduct,” Craig said in a statement. “I should have had the advice of counsel in resolving this matter. In hindsight, I should not have pled guilty. I was trying to handle this matter myself quickly and expeditiously.”

Not – Buying – It. Hugh Hewitt isn’t fooled either:

I don’t believe him. Read the statement by the arresting officer. He must think the people of Idaho are idiots.

But even if I did believe him, this would make his judgment too flawed to be in the United States Senate in a time of war. He has to go.

Update II:
Jonathan Martin points to a disturbing video flashback – all the way back to 1982 – which involves young Congressional pages, cocaine, and Larry Craig:

Larry, can you just resign like yesterday please?

Also Blogging:

The Corner
This Larry Craig bathroom thing is really disgusting. My first thought is how rotten a job that plainclothes officer has. The second is that we may have another vacant Senate seat in a few days.

Say Anything
Second, as for the whole gay thing, I’m not sure where Craig himself comes down on it but I could care less about him wanting to have sex with other men. Cheating on his wife, of course, is another matter. Though the fact that he’s adopted all of his children may be telling in terms of his sexuality.

Postman on Politics
Last year the website blogactive.com claimed Craig was a closeted homosexual.

The Carpetbagger Report
One thing’s for sure — the GOP didn’t need another sex scandal right now.

Balloon Juice
Why is everyone soliciting sex in bathrooms, for chrissakes? Is there some underground bathroom/gay sex culture out there? And if you have ever been to a public bathroom in WV (especially the ones in out of the way gas stations), sex is the last damned thing on your mind. A hot shower with bleach is what I am thinking about when I use a public bathrom- not hot gay sex.

First State Politics
After Foley, Vitter and now this, maybe the GOP needs to get off the social agenda for a while. All it seems to do is turn people into hypocrites.

Captain’s Quarters
The Republicans already have a 21-12 disadvantage in next year’s Senate contests. His was one of the seats the GOP hoped to hold, and his party had been pushing to keep him from retiring. I suspect they’re looking for Plan B at the moment.

Hot Air
If you’re wondering which party he belongs to, let me put it this way: the media will be sure to specify it in its reporting on this story.

A Blog for All
The sooner the scumbags can be purged from Congress, the better for everyone. It doesn’t matter the party, but you know that the media will be sure to provide that detail prominently depending on which party is involved. And be assured that there are other sleazy characters on both sides of the aisle who are engaging in illicit behaviors or are taking advantage of their powerful positions to enrich themselves and their friends.

Right Side of the Rainbow
No, Matt, I’m sure foot tapping isn’t a crime in Minnesota. But people should be able to relieve themselves in a public facility without having someone else’s extremities all up in their toileting space. (By the way, WaPo reports that Craig pleaded guilty to a charge of disorderly conduct, not lewd conduct.)