] The federal government reached its $7.4 trillion debt
] ceiling yesterday, forcing Treasury Secretary John W.
] Snow to delay contributing to one of the federal
] employees' pension systems to avoid running out of cash
] and possibly defaulting on government debt.

And to think just a few years ago we had space under that ceiling and it was GROWING! Reason #1 Clinton was better than either Bushie - a balanced budget.

Yahoo! News - U.S. Hits Debt Limit After Senators Put Off Raising Ceiling

] Nevada election officials have launched an investigation
] into allegations that a Republican-led voter registration
] drive improperly disposed of forms it collected from
] potential Democratic voters.

As far as I'm concerned, this is right there with Watergate. The next step up is shooting people who try to vote.

CNN.com - Nevada investigates voter registration - Oct 14, 2004

] Employees of a private voter registration company allege
] that hundreds, perhaps thousands of voters who may think
] they are registered will be rudely surprised on election
] day. The company claims hundreds of registration forms
] were thrown in the trash.
]
]
] Anyone who has recently registered or re-registered to
] vote outside a mall or grocery store or even government
] building may be affected.
]
]
] The I-Team has obtained information about an alleged
] widespread pattern of potential registration fraud aimed
] at Democrats. The focus of the story is a private
] registration company called Voters Outreach of America,
] AKA America Votes

I suppose I should be shocked and appalled by this. I am appalled, but just when I thought the right wing couldn't stoop any lower, they do.

Voter Registrations Possibly Trashed

] Equipment and materials that could be used to make
] nuclear weapons are disappearing from Iraq (news - web
] sites) but neither Baghdad nor Washington appears to have
] noticed, the U.N. nuclear watchdog agency reported on
] Monday.

So we invaded to keep nuclear materials out of the hands of possible terrorists, but paid so little attention to what was going on that we may have handed over exactly that? Something about "sowing the wind" is jumping into my head and I really don't like it.

Yahoo! News - UN: Iraqi Nuclear-Related Materials Have Vanished

] "Here I am in the state of New Mexico. George Bush is
] still in the state of denial," Kerry told the supportive
] crowd Sunday. "New Mexico has five electoral votes. The
] state of denial has none. I like my chances."

Well it's a nice turn of a phrase, but doesn't mean he gets the votes...

Yahoo! News - Kerry Says Gas Prices Help Bush's Friends

Nothing really to this one, I just thought it was funny.

vpdebate.jpg (JPEG Image, 280x210 pixels)

"Mom, when I turn 15, I'm going to Menendez you for doing this to me!"

Yahoo! News - AFP Top Photos

] In remarks published Tuesday, the official, L. Paul
] Bremer, said he arrived in Iraq on May 6, 2003 to find
] "horrid" looting and a very unstable situation %u2014
] throwing new fuel onto the presidential campaign issue of
] whether the United States had sufficiently planned for
] the post-war situation in Iraq.
]
]
] "We paid a big price for not stopping it because it
] established an atmosphere of lawlessness," Bremer said
] during an address to an insurance group in White Sulphur
] Springs, W.Va. The group released a summary of his
] remarks in Washington.
]
]
] "We never had enough troops on the ground," Bremer said,
] while insisting that he was "more convinced than ever
] that regime change was the right thing to do."

Now I'm no fan of Saddam, but let's be real, if what you're looking at as a replacement is worse, you don't take that course of action. If we weren't there right now as someone for the various factions to rally against, Iraq would likely be in the midst of a full blown civil war. As it is, it's a police action that's getting uglier daily. If we'd gone in with more guys, it may have been better. If we'd found a way to eliminate him without invasion, it may have been better. This is likely the worst of all worlds.

And since it's in the same acrticle...

"There are clearly ties between Saddam Hussein's regime and al-Qaida," McClellan said. "There (were) clearly some disturbing similarities that existed as well."

"We know there were senior-level contacts between the regime and al-Qaida — the 9/11 commission documented that," McClellan said.

In fact, the 9/11 report said that while there were "friendly contacts" between Iraq and al-Qaida and a common hatred of the United States, none of these contacts "ever developed into a collaborative relationship."

By the rationale the White House is giving us, they could make the same argument that Time Magazine, which has managed to get an Al-Qaida interview here and there is also linked.

Please go out and vote next month and help see that these dolts aren't running the country.

Yahoo! News - White House Silent on Bremer Troop Request

] Eisenhower, a former U.S. ambassador to Belgium and
] author, was a registered Republican for 50 years -
] until the Bush administration's decision to invade Iraq
] "as a maverick," he wrote.
]
]
] "Recent developments indicate that the current Republican
] Party leadership has confused confident leadership with
] hubris and arrogance," he wrote.

Go Eisenhower!

Yahoo! News - Son of GOP President Supports Kerry

] In a decision that could affect Americans abroad who are
] not yet registered to vote in the Nov. 2 presidential
] election, the Pentagon has begun restricting
] international access to the official Web site intended to
] help overseas absentee voters cast ballots.

Overseas and want to vote? Too bad.

IHT: Pentagon blocks site for voters outside U.S.