I will Not Vote For A Obama-Hillary Ticket

AAPP: I'm with James Clyburn, the House of Representatives majority whip who said: "At some point, she needs to congratulate the man for having won. Those kinds of things are important to us who grew up in the South with these kinds of slights. That speech cannot be seen as anything but a slight."

AAPP: Candidly, both Hillary and Bill Clinton have alienated black voters and other Obama supporters with their continued attacks on his character, race and cultural background. It would be a mistake to have Clinton or her husband to be back in the White House. This Independent swing voter would not vote for a Obama-Hillary Ticket.

Is Rev. Jesse Jackson Hating On Black Bloggers?

AAPP: Check out this recent article written by Howard Witt at the Chicago Tribune tiltled black activists go blogging in challenging the status quo. In the article Witt talks about how older, familiar leaders such as Rev. Jesse Jackson, Rev. Al Sharpton and NAACP Chairman Julian Bond are under challenge by a younger generation of bloggers known by such provocative screen names as Field Negro, The Free Slave, and African American Political Pundit.

More HERE>

It's a great article by the way, but I got to tell you, Rev. Jackson seems to be fearful of black bloggers and the new emerging black leadership. Or he may be just stuck on stupid.

Oh no Rev. Jesse Jackson didn't say, "Internet bloggers can serve the meal better than they can farm."



Jesse Jackson

Yes, Jackson actually told Howard Witt. "Farming requires tilling the soil, removing the debris, planting, being patient, letting it germinate. That's the strength of labor unions and churches and civil rights organizations."

I can see that Rev. Jesse Jackson is still stuck on using an old electric typewriter and listening to his old school 8 track tapes. All right Rev. Jackson, your still stuck back in the day when you lead those civil rights efforts that are now all but dead to most black Americans.

I (somewhat) respect Rev. Jesse Jackson, but Jesse Jackson really needs to lead, follow or just get out the way. Maybe, he needs to write another book on his old electric typewriter, while listening to his old school 8 track tapes. Maybe even reflecting on his many years of fighting the fight as a poverty (pimp).

OK for you people who are politically correct folks, he is an old poverty pimpin' "subject matter expert."

I may buy that book, but I'm not buying his hating on black political and social action bloggers. What has he done lately?

Related links

• RACE IN AMERICA

• A conversation with Rev. Jesse Jackson

• Jack and Jill Politics

• What About Our Daughters

• Blacksmythe

• Eddie Griffin

• The Free Slave

• Field Negro

• Prometheus 6

• Vanessa: Unplugged!

• Dallas South Blog

• African American Political Pundit

Theft By Taking, John McCain "Rips Off" Barack Obama campaign slogans and images as his own

Sam Stein, a Political Reporter at the Huffington Post, who has worked with the investigative journalism group, Center for Public Integrity is finding something interesting about John McCain. I think my readers will find interesting too. He is wondering and I am too:

Is John McCain trying to be the older, whiter, more conservative Barack Obama?

As reported by Sam Stien, On Tuesday, the Senator co-opted the slogan that has come to personify Obama's candidacy, taking the Illinois Democrat's "Change You Can Believe In" and altering it into "A Leader You Can Believe In." The line donned McCain's lime-green backdrop as he addressed supporters in Louisiana. During that speech, moreover, the Arizonan took his Obama-posing a step further, uttering the word "change" more than 30 times. Not that Obama can claim sole ownership of the word or idea, but still... Now there is this. On Wednesday, the McCain campaign put out a new homepage, featuring his new, Obama-like slogan, and an image that seems uncannily similar to Obama's trademark campaign logo - the red and white stripped valley under what appears to be a blue sun (or in McCain's case, blue sun rays). Take a look at the images below:




As Sam Stien points out: McCain's seems to be positioning himself so that he is not caught, like Sen Hillary Clinton, simply ceding the mantle of change to Obama. But when the co-opting of images, logos, and slogans is this blatant, it could prove more embarrassing than advantageous. More HERE

So what do you think folks? You like the McCain Vote for Change logos? Is he a true agent of change. Or is he just another Fox in Sheeps clothing?

AAPP: McCain is famous for going postal on his colleagues. I hope he does not go postal when I call him a thief with no campaign image of his own. But then again maybe he does have a political image of his own, one that he is trying to hide.

Barack Obama Becomes First Black Candidate To Head Major-Party Ticket

AAPP: " Hillary and Bill were playing checkers, while Obama Wins the chess game. "

It was a strategy based on delegates. As noted by the WaPo writers Johnathan Weisman, Shailagh Murray and peter Slevin, Obama minimized Clinton's delegate hauls, while going all out to crush her in states where Dems rarely venture. It was a strategy based on delegates.




Sen. Barack Obama and his wife, Michelle, appear before supporters in St. Paul, Minn. (Linda Davidson/Post)

A Strategy Was Based On Winning Delegates, Not Battlegrounds

Almost from the beginning, Hillary Rodham Clinton's superior name recognition and her sway with state party organizations convinced Barack Obama's brain trust that a junior senator from Illinois was not going to be able to challenge the Clinton political machine head-on.

The insurgent strategy they devised instead was to virtually cede the most important battlegrounds of the Democratic nomination fight to Clinton, using precision targeting to minimize her delegate hauls, while going all out to crush her in states where Democratic candidates rarely ventured and causes that were often ignored.

The result may have lacked the glamour of a sweep, but tonight, with the delegates he picked up in Montana and South Dakota and a flood of superdelegate endorsements, Obama sealed one of the biggest upsets in U.S. political history and became the first Democrat since Jimmy Carter to wrest his party's nomination from the candidate of the party establishment. The surprise was how well his strategy held up -- and how little resistance it met. More HERE

The Best And Worst In Me

Big Hat Tip and Shout Out to Baratunde Thurston at Jack and Jill Politics for his most recent article in the The Huffington Post. He writes about the Presidential Primary Campaign and how it has brought out the Best and Worst in him. All I can say is, "brother, you really know how to keep it real." This primary campaign brought out the best and worst of me too.

P.S. Thanks for the shout out!


Baratunde Thurston

Check out This Primary Campaign Has Brought Out The Best And Worst In Me
by Baratunde Thurston

Last week, after talking with several Hillary Clinton supporters, I had an epiphany: that which I most dislike about the darker sides of her and her campaign is just what some people see in me. It's the worst feeling, to end up displaying traits you deplore, and I'd like to explore it a bit as we move to the general election.

I have never been as involved nor as invested in a political campaign as I have been this year. I've traveled to distant states, administered caucuses, knocked on doors, set up mixtapes, installed Internet access, raised and donated funds and rallied my wits and my keyboard in promotion and defense of a candidate I feel represents the best realistic shot at a national wake-up call that's long overdue.

Months of cable news and blog coverage later, I know more about superdelegate math, fundraising limits and John King's stupid interactive maps than I ever, ever wanted.

I've read entire biographies, full position papers and engaged in heated but productive conversations about deep policy matters on health care, energy, prisons, agriculture and Iraq. I got smarter.

Stepping down from the media noise machine has been the greatest gift, and in canvassing for Obama, I learned my most valuable lessons: that people are not as stupid nor as simple as their media portrayals, that it's a lot easier to write off entire blocs of voters from the comfort of my living room and that becoming president of a nation with such diverse people and demands as the USA is just short of impossible.

In all that on-the-ground work, I have and will continue to maintain that I've gotten much more out of this process than Obama has out of my work on his behalf. My level of involvement has allowed me to see the impact and power of citizen-initiated action when paired with technology, inspiration and urgent need. I've met some truly amazing people who've sacrificed even more than I. I've grown as a writer, a citizen and a human being.

At the other end of the spectrum, however, I have felt driven to lash out in ways that expose the limits of my own ability to communicate.

I never set out to hate Hillary Clinton or her supporters. I never thought I'd consider a vote for John McCain. I never thought I'd even jokingly threaten to burn down the city of Denver (sorry yall!). But that's exactly what I felt driven to at many moments during this season. Despite the positive lessons I learned, I have not always been able to take that high road.

At the heart of my own anger lay a sense of betrayal, paranoia and a feeling that I was trapped by a family I once held in high esteem and a media that denied the validity of my experience.

It began in January, shortly after Obama's Iowa victory. Many of us Obama supporters, especially black folks, were euphoric about his win in that state. On CNN I stated, "I felt like I won," after seeing the results come in. With that one victory, the world shook for a moment, and I could actually see new, previously unimaginable possibilities for the future.

Within weeks, however, a troubling pattern began to emerge from the Clinton campaign. It was as if the Iowa loss set off an explosion on a snowy mountain, and a political avalanche was unleashed. Obama was accused of being a potential drug dealer, secret Muslim, "cool black guy" and other derogatory things usually tied to his race.

When many of us black folks began pointing out these incidents, we were told that nothing nefarious was afoot, that we must be imagining it. There was little to no mainstream media coverage of what we were seeing. As any one who has been oppressed knows, the only thing worse than the oppression is the denial of that oppression by others, so we at JJP set up the Clinton Attacks Obama wiki in an effort to convince ourselves we weren't crazy and show the world, in a documented fashion, what distressed us. More HERE>

Hillary Clinton For Vice President?

Join our Tuesday Night Primary Show

African American Political Pundit...

Join African American Political Pundit's - Political Slugfest as we discuss Barack Obama's road to victory. Should Barack ask Hillary to become his running mate? What if she says, YES ?

Would it be a dumb decision for Barack to have her as a running mate. Join the conversation.

Call In # (718) 508-9867

Obama seals nomination!

AAPP says: The sweet taste of victory. How sweet it is. Hillary says "I am open to it" regarding the Vice Presidency. I say Oh, Hell No!

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois sealed the Democratic presidential nomination Tuesday, a historic step toward his once-improbable goal of becoming the nation's first black president. A defeated Hillary Rodham Clinton maneuvered for the vice presidential spot on his fall ticket.

Obama's victory set up a five-month campaign with Republican Sen. John McCain of Arizona, a race between a 46-year-old opponent of the Iraq War and a 71-year-old former Vietnam prisoner of war and staunch supporter of the current U.S. military mission.

McCain was plainly eager for the race to begin, and accused his younger rival of voting "to deny funds to the soldiers who have done a brilliant and brave job" in Iraq.

In remarks prepared for delivery in New Orleans, McCain agreed with Obama that the presidential race would focus on change. "But the choice is between the right change and the wrong change, between going forward and going backward," he added.

The newly minted Democratic nominee-in-waiting arranged an evening appearance in St. Paul, Minn., sending McCain an unmistakable message by claiming his victory in the very hall where the Arizonan will accept his party's nomination in early September.

Obama sealed his nomination, according to The Associated Press tally, based on primary elections, state Democratic caucuses and delegates' public declarations as well as support from 19 delegates and "superdelegates" who privately confirmed their intentions t/o the AP. It takes 2,118 delegates to clinch the nomination at the convention in Denver this summer, and Obama had 2,128 by the AP count.

Obama, a first-term senator who was virtually unknown on the national stage four years ago, defeated Clinton, the former first lady and one-time campaign front-runner, in a 17-month marathon for the Democratic nomination.

His victory had been widely assumed for weeks. But Clinton's declaration of interest in becoming his ticketmate was wholly unexpected.

She expressed it in a conference call with her state's congressional delegation after Rep. Nydia Velazquez, predicted Obama would have great difficulty winning the support of Hispanics and other voting blocs unless the former first lady was on the ticket.

"I am open to it" if it would help the party's prospects in November, Clinton replied, according to a participant who spoke on condition of anonymity because the call was private.

UPDATE CNN reports

Source: Clinton raised VP issue

Clinton is reportedly interested in being Obama’s running mate.

(CNN) – Hillary Clinton herself directly raised the issue of serving as Clinton's running mate in a conference call with New York lawmakers earlier Tuesday, a source who was on the call tells CNN's Candy Crowley.

According to the source, Clinton told those on the call that if asked by Sen. Barack Obama, she would be interested in serving as his running mate. That comment was not in response to a particular question.

The Clinton campaign maintains the New York senator merely said she would do whatever is in the party's best interest, and that her comments Tuesday are no different than what she has been saying for weeks.

The source also said all the lawmakers on the call thought that Clinton needed to be on the ticket. Rep. Nydia Velazquez, one of the call's participants, said that Clinton needed to be on the ticket in order for Latino voters to cast ballots for Barack Obama.

Hillary - Put A fork In It!

WaPo reports Rep. James E. Clyburn (D-S.C.), the third-ranking Democrat in Congress, endorsed Barack Obama's presidential bid this morning and said he hoped enough other superdelegates would follow suit today to clinch the nomination for the Illinois senator.

Obama "is elevating the political rhetoric, he's elevating our party," Clyburn, 67, said on NBC's "Today" show. "He is bringing to the process new voters, young voters, elder voters. People who are in thirst of a new vision for our country."

Although precise delegate counts differ, Obama, who would be the first African American nominee from a major party, expects to pick up about 20 pledged delegates during primaries today in Montana and South Dakota. He would need about two dozen more superdelegates to secure the nomination and end his protracted battle against rival Hillary Rodham Clinton.

"Today the [primary] process ends," Clyburn said in the "Today" interview. "And I hope that enough of us will announce our intentions today so that this evening our candidate, our presumptive nominee, can get to 2,118." More HERE

2008 Shining Star Awards

Nominations for the 2008 Shining Star Awards are now open!

Nominations will be accepted in the following categories:


Best Overall Political Blog
Best New Political Blog (started since June 2007)
Best Conservative Blogger
Best Liberal Blogger
Best Blog by a Politician (elected official or candidate)
Best Political Coverage by African-American Newspaper
Best Political Commentator/Pundit - Television
Best Political Commentator/Pundit - Newspaper
Best Political Talk Show - Online/Radio (both satellite & terrestrial)
Best Example of Online Advocacy
The 2008 "You Set Us Back 200 Years" Award (person or event)

Nominations will close on June 17. The three nominees in each category with the highest number of nominations will be named finalists. The finalists will be named on June 20, voting will run from June 20 until July 3. The winners will be named on July 7.

Please visit BlackPoliticsontheWeb.com and nominate your favorites!

The Campaign Is Over Hillary - Stop It!

"It does appear to be pretty clear that Senator Obama is going to be the nominee," said Tom Vilsack, the former Iowa governor and a national co-chairman of Clinton's campaign. "After Tuesday's contests, she needs to acknowledge that he's going to be the nominee and quickly get behind him."

An appeal may be in the works

MSN: Still, the Clinton team signaled she might consider an appeal of the Michigan decision because the committee awarded the delegates based on a complicated formula devised by the state Democratic Party that did not reflect the votes as they were cast in the disputed Jan. 15 primary.

Clinton's top delegate hunter Harold Ickes, a Rules Committee member, said Sunday the committee had "hijacked" the vote. But he stopped short of saying she would make good on the threat to push the case forward.

"She'll be consulting with people, and she'll be making a decision later on," he said on NBC's "Meet the Press." More Clinton Denial HERE

Lobby Super Delegates To support Barack Obama

Lobby SuperDelegates to Support Barack Obama Lobby those now pledged to Clinton to swich Obama Lobby those now pledged to Obama to keep pledge to Obama Lobby those now Uncommitted to make pledge to Obama --Slect State--AlaskaAlabamaArkansasArizonaCaliforniaColoradoConnecticutDelawareDist. of ColumbiaFloridaGeorgiaHawaiiIowaIdahoIllinoisIndianaKansasKentuckyLouisianaMarylandMaineMassachusettsMissouriMichiganMinnesotaMississippiMontanaNorth CarolinaNorth DakotaNebraskaNew HampshireNew JerseyNew MexicoNevadaNew YorkOhioOklahomaOregonPennsylvaniaRhode IslandSouth CarolinaSouth DakotaTennesseeTexasUtahVirginiaVermontWashingtonWisconsinWest VirginiaWyoming

Hillary and Bill Clinton - A Song Dedicated To You

WaPo columnist Chris Cillizza said it best when he wrote, "Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton claimed an overwhelming win over Sen. Barack Obama (Ill.) in today's Puerto Rico primary, a victory that may well be her last in her fading bid for the Democratic presidential nomination."

Like the Clinton's have told us for so many years, "I feel your pain."

I dedicate this song to both of you.

I feel your pain as your collective hopes of a political dynasty keeps...

check out the lyrics.

Black Woman and Hair Weaves

"I'm Tired of seeing black woman in weaves." Why can't black woman be more natural? OK, now I know there are going be a whole lot of women that are going to say, why can't black men be better fathers, etc, etc. etc. OK but that is not the subject of my post. I'm talking hair folks. Candidly, I'm appreciating Ashley McDonald's take on the hair issue.

Hair Debate Rages On as Natural Styles Take Root

By Ashley McDonald - Black College Wire

Each morning at the start of the day, two women prepare to perform their daily beauty rituals.

One woman reaches in her drawer and pulls out her flat iron to smooth out her chemically-straightened tresses. The smell of oil and burning hair rises to the ceiling. Once done straightening, a cloud of oil sheen surrounds her head. The fog clears and after 30 minutes in the mirror, her hair is finally presentable.

Just down the street, the other woman stares into her bathroom mirror. She does not have a bone straight mane resting on her head. Instead she reaches for her afro pick, detangles her tight coils, applies some natural oils to her kinky mane, ties her headband securely and marvels in the beauty of her natural texture.

When it comes to African-American women, hair can be a touchy subject. Some women cling tightly to the implications that surround having long silky hair, while other women choose to display what nature placed on their heads.

Black women have long tried to "correct" the natural texture of their hair by applying chemicals to permanently straighten their hair. A change in recent style has created a different breed of woman. Whether you call it nappy, kinky or textured, natural hair is on the rise among African Americans.

Celebrities like Jill Scott, Erykah Badu, and India.Arie have helped put natural hair back in the spotlight. More HERE

Are Single Black Females -- Disrespected in America?

This AAPP may be a bit clueless regarding many issues impacting black females. I must wonder out loud, is Mary Fields accurate in her recent article in Black College Wire: Single, Black, Female -- Disrespected By Mary Fields -- Black College Wire Black women are protrayed negatively in the media. We're shown to the world as dumb, lazy, obese, weave-scratching, finger-pointing, neck-rolling "Ashinkashays" who are perfectly content with six kids, six baby's fathers, and an unhealthy dependence on that check from the state every month. Mary Fields Those with a balanced view of black women know these things are not true. But what happens when the few men left in our community internalize this negative imagery? They abandon us, their queens, for white women. Today's Hip Hop lyrics prophesize it: "You know we keep that white girl, Christina Aguilera" Young Jeezy proclaims. "And when he get on, he'll leave your ass for a white girl" Kanye West warns today's marriageable black women about the hazards of expecting a black man to become and remain committed to us. The sad thing is that these rappers are not far off. Tyson Beckford, Taye Diggs, James Earl Jones, Quincy Jones, Bryant Gumble (who left his black wife after 26 years for his white mistress) and most notoriously Wesley Snipes are just a few names of successful black men who have chosen to share their lives and successes with white women, and not the women holding their communities together, without their help. In a country where blacks are still socially and economically unequal to whites and women are barely getting through society based on merit and not by sexuality, we're born with a double deficit: being black and being a woman. On top of this, black men are dying in gang-related, drug-related and other senseless violence, and being incarcerated for extended periods of time for felonies at alarming rates. As of 2001, approximately two million black males were or had been incarcerated. It's no surprise then that black women have the least amount of prospects of any other race in terms of marriageable men within the black race. "A lot of times white women carry themselves better in the relationship…" explains Christina Spriggs, a 22-year-old telemarketer who is in her first and only interracial relationship with a black male. She goes on to say, "We know how and when to shut up and act right in public; meaning we know to keep fights and conflict in the home and not handle things in front of people. "So let's really break it down. Why are black men choosing submissive, controllable white women instead of strong black queens -- women like their mothers and all of the other shining examples of black female---no, complete black strength while they were growing up? It is because of an internalized self-hatred and the internalization of the imagery of the black woman as portrayed in mainstream media outlets. Shows such as UPN's "Girlfriends" depict black women as oversexed, bossy, degrading, high-maintenance mouthpieces. And yes, while followers of "Girlfriends" will argue that "Joan", the character played by Traci Ellis Ross (daughter of Diana Ross) is well educated, successful and on a path of positive self growth, she is also one of the lightest characters on the show. "Joan" happens to be weave-free and a beautiful size 8 (at the largest) with exotic eyes and a pointed nose (seemingly taken after her real life white father). More HERE

Latino Voters and Black Voters - the Puerto Rico Democratic Primary

Why is it that many black bloggers don't understand the need to build coalitions with the Latino, Native American, Asian and Anglo American community? Those who want Obama to win will need to build coalitions real soon. hopefully afrosphere members attending the DNC will help build coalitions.

CNN reports Hillary Clinton will win the Puerto Rico Democratic primary by a wide margin, CNN projects. She swept Sen. Barack Obama in every major demographic group, including groups he generally does well in, such as younger voters and higher income voters, exit polls suggest. Read More HERE

CBS News also projects Hillary Rodham Clinton will defeat Barack Obama in the Puerto Rico presidential primary.

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Puerto Rico Results

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Puerto Rico's primary was the final act in a weekend of tumult that brought Obama tantalizingly close to the Democratic presidential nomination.

In a CBS News poll conducted by telephone among likely voters in Puerto Rico, 74 percent of Democrats had a favorable opinion of Clinton, while 53 percent had a favorable opinion of Obama.

Seventy-two percent of those polled in Puerto Rico said that Clinton shares their values, and 54 percent said that Obama does.

Women made up 43 percent of Puerto Rico's likely Democratic voters, and 61 percent of them supported Clinton, while 30 percent backed Obama. Fifty-seven percent of likely voters were men, and they also supported Clinton 61 percent to 35 percent.

"We're going to win big here today," Clinton's campaign chairman Terry McAuliffe predicted as Puerto Ricans cast ballots in a race with 55 delegates at stake.

Obama's aides countered that even so, the 46-year-old Illinois senator would amass the 2,118 delegates needed to claim the nomination within days. "We hope this week, absolutely," said spokesman Robert Gibbs. Montana and South Dakota hold primaries on Tuesday, the last of the primary campaign season.

Gibbs' confidence reflected the outcome of Saturday's meeting of the Democratic Party's rules and bylaws committee. Before an audience that jeered and cheered by turns, the panel voted to seat disputed delegations from Michigan and Florida, but give each delegate only one-half vote rather than the full vote sought by the Clinton campaign.

More HERE

Black Youth Vote

Have you ever wondered about the black youth vote? Is anyone organizing young black voters? Well check out the website: Black Youth Vote! We adults need to continue to connect our young people with positive activities like the black youth vote, NAACP youth councils and other activities with our communities. Each one teach one!

Black Youth Vote is not just a program, it’s a movement! BYV! strives to empower and engage young people, ages 18-35, to build our own political power through full civic participation in the political process. Through trainings in civic education, leadership and campaign development, they identify the issues that effect us and use various tactics to influence public policy.

Their goal is to continue to build power in our communities and force politicians to make our issues their issues, with young black voters.

This year, Black Youth Vote! is focused on supporting voter registration and GOTV efforts in seven states, Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan and Texas, and will be utilizing the 6th Annual Civic Leadership Conference in Atlanta, GA to train and empower young people nation wide in post-election community campaigns. More HERE

The war on Iraq: The terrorists have "never been closer to defeat than they are now." says another Bush Admin Bozo

AAPP: I'm not sure what to make of reports in the Washington Post that so many terrorist leaders have now been captured or killed that U .S. Ambassador Ryan C. Crocker, renowned for his cautious assessments, said that the terrorists have "never been closer to defeat than they are now." OK, so now Crocker is the one announcing essentially, "Mission Accomplished." Now the American people are suppose to believe in another administration bozo?

As reported in WaPo THERE'S BEEN a relative lull in news coverage and debate about Iraq in recent weeks -- which is odd, because May could turn out to have been one of the most important months of the war. While Washington's attention has been fixed elsewhere, military analysts have watched with astonishment as the Iraqi government and army have gained control for the first time of the port city of Basra and the sprawling Baghdad neighborhood of Sadr City, routing the Shiite militias that have ruled them for years and sending key militants scurrying to Iran. At the same time, Iraqi and U.S. forces have pushed forward with a long-promised offensive in Mosul, the last urban refuge of al-Qaeda. So many of its leaders have now been captured or killed that U .S. Ambassador Ryan C. Crocker, renowned for his cautious assessments, said that the terrorists have "never been closer to defeat than they are now." More HERE

AAPP: "Mission Accomplished." Now the American people are suppose to believe in another administration bozo? check out how the mission is going so far with real facts. Check out the Iraq War Results & Statistics thus far. 4,079 US Soldiers Killed, 30,004 Seriously Wounded For your quick reading, I've listed key statistics about the Iraq War, taken primarily from data analyzed by various think tanks, including The Brookings Institution's Iraq Index, and from mainstream media sources. Data is presented as of May 14, 2008, except as indicated.

US SPENDING IN IRAQ

Spent & Approved War-Spending - About $600 billion of US taxpayers' funds. President Bush has requested about $200 billion more for 2008, which would bring the cumulative total to close to $800 billion.

U.S. Monthly Spending in Iraq - $12 billion in 2008

U.S. Spending per Second - $5,000 in 2008 (per Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid on May 5, 2008)

Cost of deploying one U.S. soldier for one year in Iraq - $390,000 (Congressional Research Service)

Lost & Unaccounted for in Iraq - $9 billion of US taxpayers' money and $549.7 milion in spare parts shipped in 2004 to US contractors. Also, per ABC News, 190,000 guns, including 110,000 AK-47 rifles.

Missing - $1 billion in tractor trailers, tank recovery vehicles, machine guns, rocket-propelled grenades and other equipment and services provided to the Iraqi security forces. (Per CBS News on Dec 6, 2007.)

Mismanaged & Wasted in Iraq - $10 billion, per Feb 2007 Congressional hearings

Halliburton Overcharges Classified by the Pentagon as Unreasonable and Unsupported - $1.4 billion

Amount paid to KBR, a former Halliburton division, to supply U.S. military in Iraq with food, fuel, housing and other items - $20 billion

Portion of the $20 billion paid to KBR that Pentagon auditors deem "questionable or supportable" - $3.2 billion

Number of major U.S. bases in Iraq - 75 (The Nation/New York Times)

TROOPS IN IRAQ

Iraqi Troops Trained and Able to Function Independent of U.S. Forces - 6,000 as of May 2007 (per NBC's "Meet the Press" on May 20, 2007)

Troops in Iraq - Total 159,907, including 150,000 from the US, 4,000 from the UK, 2,000 from Georgia, 900 from Poland, 650 from South Korea and 2,357 from all other nations

US Troop Casualities - 4,079 US troops; 98% male. 90% non-officers; 80% active duty, 12% National Guard; 74% Caucasian, 10% African-American, 11% Latino. 18% killed by non-hostile causes. 51% of US casualties were under 25 years old. 70% were from the US Army

Non-US Troop Casualties - Total 311, with 176 from the UK

US Troops Wounded - 30,004, 20% of which are serious brain or spinal injuries (total excludes psychological injuries)

US Troops with Serious Mental Health Problems - 30% of US troops develop serious mental health problems within 3 to 4 months of returning home

US Military Helicopters Downed in Iraq - 68 total, at least 36 by enemy fire

IRAQI TROOPS, CIVILIANS & OTHERS IN IRAQ

Private Contractors in Iraq, Working in Support of US Army Troops - More than 180,000 in August 2007, per The Nation/LA Times.

Journalists killed - 127, 84 by murder and 43 by acts of war

Journalists killed by US Forces - 14

Iraqi Police and Soldiers Killed - 8,257

Iraqi Civilians Killed, Estimated - A UN issued report dated Sept 20, 2006 stating that Iraqi civilian casualities have been significantly under-reported. Casualties are reported at 50,000 to over 100,000, but may be much higher. Some informed estimates place Iraqi civilian casualities at over 600,000.

Iraqi Insurgents Killed, Roughly Estimated - 55,000

Non-Iraqi Contractors and Civilian Workers Killed - 552

Non-Iraqi Kidnapped - 305, including 54 killed, 147 released, 4 escaped, 6 rescued and 94 status unknown.

Daily Insurgent Attacks, Feb 2004 - 14

Daily Insurgent Attacks, July 2005 - 70

Daily Insurgent Attacks, May 2007 - 163

Estimated Insurgency Strength, Nov 2003 - 15,000

Estimated Insurgency Strength, Oct 2006 - 20,000 - 30,000

Estimated Insurgency Strength, June 2007 - 70,000

QUALITY OF LIFE INDICATORS

Iraqis Displaced Inside Iraq, by Iraq War, as of May 2007 - 2,255,000

Iraqi Refugees in Syria & Jordan - 2.1 million to 2.25 million

Iraqi Unemployment Rate - 27 to 60%, where curfew not in effect

Consumer Price Inflation in 2006 - 50%

Iraqi Children Suffering from Chronic Malnutrition - 28% in June 2007 (Per CNN.com, July 30, 2007)

Percent of professionals who have left Iraq since 2003 - 40%

Iraqi Physicians Before 2003 Invasion - 34,000

Iraqi Physicians Who Have Left Iraq Since 2005 Invasion - 12,000

Iraqi Physicians Murdered Since 2003 Invasion - 2,000

Average Daily Hours Iraqi Homes Have Electricity - 1 to 2 hours, per Ryan Crocker, U.S. Ambassador to Iraq (Per Los Angeles Times, July 27, 2007)

Average Daily Hours Iraqi Homes Have Electricity - 10.9 in May 2007

Average Daily Hours Baghdad Homes Have Electricity - 5.6 in May 2007

Pre-War Daily Hours Baghdad Homes Have Electricity - 16 to 24

Number of Iraqi Homes Connected to Sewer Systems - 37%

Iraqis without access to adequate water supplies - 70% (Per CNN.com, July 30, 2007)

Water Treatment Plants Rehabilitated - 22%

RESULTS OF POLL Taken in Iraq in August 2005 by the British Ministry of Defense (Source: Brookings Institute)

Iraqis "strongly opposed to presence of coalition troops - 82%

Iraqis who believe Coalition forces are responsible for any improvement in security - less than 1%

Iraqis who feel less ecure because of the occupation - 67%

Iraqis who do not have confidence in multi-national forces - 72%

AAPP: Mission Accomplished ? RIGHT!

100 Black Secret Service agents await day in court

Photo ABC News

Here is an interesting story in the The Chicago Tribune on how Black Secret Service agents await their day in court. Secret Service Agents have admitted that some relevant evidence in the case had been put into a burn bag and destroyed. ABC News says the Secret Service " pristine image is being challenged by a lawsuit filed on behalf of more than 100 current and former black agents which alleges they were discriminated against in promotions." More HERE

Black Secret Service agents await day in court reports, Whitney Blair Wyckoff. Secret Service Agent Reginald Moore walked into work at the Eisenhower Executive Office Building one day in June 1999 expecting a coveted promotion. He'd been working temporarily as assistant to the agent running the president's protective detail, and says he'd been promised he would receive the position permanently.

But before he even sat down at his desk, Moore, then 40, received bad news. "I'm sorry," a colleague told him. "You didn't get the position." He was being transferred to Texas instead.

Moore, who is black, immediately suspected racism. His record was impeccable, he said, and everyone else in a similar "acting" position had been promoted. "It was disappointing, but I still had to do my job," Moore said.

The result is a lawsuit, filed in 2000, alleging that the Secret Service uses an overly subjective promotion system resulting in black agents too often being passed over. Moore has been joined by nine other black plaintiffs, all service employees hired from 1980 to 2002. Like Moore, some still work at the agency. More HERE

From all indications and as reported by Julia Malone the Secret Service may face more sanctions in racism case.

A government lawyer urged a federal judge Thursday not to impose a severe sanction on the Secret Service, despite the agency's repeated delays in producing evidence in a lawsuit alleging racial discrimination.

In a case that has gained national attention, Magistrate Judge Deborah A. Robinson of the U.S. District Court must now decide whether the Secret Service should be forbidden to mount a defense when the long-standing case finally goes to trial.

Robinson has already sanctioned the agency three times for missing deadlines and failing to comply with her orders to provide documents for the lawsuit, brought by 10 African-American Secret Service agents and former agents who charge they were subjected to a culture of racism and passed over for promotions. Many of the allegations of discrimination center on the service's Atlanta office.

In pre-trial testimony, agents have admitted that some relevant evidence in the case had been put into a burn bag and destroyed. And two years after the discovery phase began, the government only recently produced 10 racist e-mails, including one with a joke about lynching, which circulated among senior officials. More HERE

AAPP: ABC writes, "They are the stoic men and women of the Secret Service. Guarding presidents and dignitaries, keeping them safe, even if duty calls one of them to do as he or she is trained and step in front of a bullet." Now one has to wonder what is going on? The outcome of this court case should be interesting.

Obama and Clinton In Tight Race To The Finish

The Numbers tell the story. This is a close one folks. Hillary has dragged this one to the end rallying her supporters to tear the Democratic party in half. The DNC has reached a deal on Fla., Mich. primaries which has now limited Hillary's nomination changes even more. Barack is 66 delegate votes away from the nomination.

Chart source: The Washington Post

AAPP: Its time to bring this color aroused and bitter Democratic nomination battle between Sen. Barack Obama (Ill.) and Clinton (N.Y.) to an end. Hillary and her husband have thrown every Republican tactic on Obama and nothing has stuck.

The Washington Post reports "The net result was a gain of 87 delegate votes for Clinton and 63 for Obama. Until yesterday's action, the magic number for winning the nomination was 2,026 delegates. Now the winner will need 2,118. According to a count by the Associated Press, as of last night, Obama controlled 2,052 delegates to Clinton's 1,877.

Obama campaign officials said they will redouble efforts to win over enough superdelegates to put their candidate over the top as quickly as possible, but Clinton hopes to emerge with more popular votes and continues to press the case that she would be a stronger general-election candidate than Obama.

"We're extremely gratified that the commission agreed on a fair solution that will allow Michigan and Florida to participate in the Convention. We appreciate their efforts, and those of the party leadership of both states, to bring this resolution about," said Obama campaign manager David Plouffe.

The Florida agreement included a provision calling for the delegates to be allocated on the basis of the state's Jan. 29 primary, a decision that would net Clinton 19 more delegates than Obama. Clinton's campaign had pushed for a proposal to seat the full delegation with full voting power, but when that failed, her supporters on the committee relented, and the compromise was approved without a dissenting vote, 27 to 0." More HERE

Are Black Voters Taking It Easy on Obama Because He is Black?

Are Black Voters Taking It Easy on Obama Because He is Black? Is Barack Obama getting a pass by black voters? Should black folks be asking Obama about crime, the wars, international issues? gentrification and other important issues and how he plans to address them? Should Obama be asked to commit to issues that are important to black communities and all of America or should we just allow him to make the same points as the other Democratic and Republican candidates? Is Glen Ford (and others) on point when they address issues regarding Barack , Glen Fordvs Black Self-Determination? Or is a brother like Glen Ford just another brother with a sharp mind attacking Obama?

Check out the article by Glen Ford (below) on Barack Obama vs Black Self-Determination.

Source: Dissident Voice.org

by Glen Ford / May 31st, 2008

Obama-ism — a thoroughly corporate political concoction soaked with banalities and wrapped in fraudulent brown packaging — presents a clear and present danger to perhaps the greatest legacy of the Black Freedom Movement: African Americans’ embrace of their right to self-determination. Although African American yearnings for self-determination are evident in all previous eras, the general and dramatic emergence of this fundamental understanding among Blacks of their distinct “peoplehood” and inherent right to shape their own collective destiny, free of veto by or need for validation from dominant whites, marks the Sixties as a transformational period in African American history.

Barack Obama, whose disdain for what he calls the “excesses of the 1960s and 1970s” is palpable, seeks to eradicate all vestiges of Black self-determination, root and branch. The Senator has never made a secret of his intentions, dating from his 2004 Democratic National Convention declaration that “there is no Black America,” to his categorical rejection of the Black counter-narrative of American history, as preached by Rev. Jeremiah Wright and understood by most African Americans.

Obama has revealed himself as a rabid nationalist of the standard, white America variety. “I categorically denounce any statement that disparages our great country,” says Obama — which pretty much says it all. The candidate has repeatedly telegraphed his contempt for any worldview that fails to glorify the U.S. rise to global dominance — a ritual that collides instantly with truth as it actually exists, with history as Black people have known it, and with Black aspirations to make their own way in the world unencumbered by the burden of white lies. Obama promises that he will oppose, with all the powers of his office, those who, like Rev. Wright, “use incendiary language to express views that have the potential not only to widen the racial divide, but views that denigrate both the greatness and the goodness of our nation; that rightly offend white and black alike.” (Philadelphia “Race” speech, March 18.)

If Obama were already president, dissidents would have cause to shop for a safehouse or foreign getaway.

Victims as Perpetrators

Clearly, if the United States is inherently good, then Black people and Native Americans must have done something catastrophically wrong to bring down upon themselves such suffering at the hands of the U.S. government - not to mention the sins committed by Vietnamese, Nicaraguans, Angolans and all the other peoples that have gotten in the way of white American Manifest Destiny.

President Obama will wage war against the heresies of deviant worldviews that dare to question America’s moral superiority - as exemplified by Rev. Wright’s “profoundly distorted view of this country — a view that sees white racism as endemic, and that elevates what is wrong with America above all that we know is right with America.”

So, are Black Voters Taking It Easy on Obama Because He is Black? Is brother Glen Ford on point? Or is he just hating on Obama? Read more of his interesting article HERE.