Tag: Dick Cheney

Worst Ever Source of Praise for Newt Gingrich

Michael MatheronLeave a comment

December 13, 2011

Last night, former V.P. Dick Chen*y spoke with CNN’s Erin Burnett about Newt Gingrich:   

. . . former Vice President Dick Cheney said he knew Gingrich well and had positive reviews of his political prowess. . . We hadn’t had the House since the 1940s. And initially, none of us believed it, but he was persistent. And he was tenacious. He kept it up and kept it up and kept it up. And finally by ’94, he’s the newly elected speaker of the House of Representatives with a Republican majority.” Uh huh. . . and how’d that go?

Aside from the fact that Dick Chen*y’s opinion on anything carries with it, shall we say, baggage, reminding the public about Newt’s speakership is not the very best choice if accolade is intended. Recall that in January 1997 (two years into Newt’s speakership) news coverage across the nation resembled this January 22nd Washington Post article:

House Reprimands, Penalizes Speaker

By John E. Yang
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, January 22 1997; Page A01

The House voted overwhelmingly yesterday to reprimand House Speaker Newt Gingrich (R-Ga.) and order him to pay an unprecedented $300,000 penalty, the first time in the House’s 208-year history it has disciplined a speaker for ethical wrongdoing.

The ethics case and its resolution leave Gingrich with little leeway for future personal controversies, House Republicans said. Exactly one month before yesterday’s vote, Gingrich admitted that he brought discredit to the House and broke its rules by failing to ensure that financing for two projects would not violate federal tax law and by giving the House ethics committee false information.

“Newt has done some things that have embarrassed House Republicans and embarrassed the House,” said Rep. Peter Hoekstra (R-Mich.). “If [the voters] see more of that, they will question our judgment.”

House Democrats are likely to continue to press other ethics charges against Gingrich and the Internal Revenue Service is looking into matters related to the case that came to an end yesterday.

The 395 to 28 vote closes a tumultuous chapter that began Sept. 7, 1994, when former representative Ben Jones (D-Ga.), then running against Gingrich, filed an ethics complaint against the then-GOP whip. The complaint took on greater significance when the Republicans took control of the House for the first time in four decades, propelling Gingrich into the speaker’s chair. [For the entire article]

I just love the laugh line: “The ethics case and its resolution leave Gingrich with little leeway for future personal controversies, House Republicans said.”  LOL!

Cheney Love – House Congressloon Paul Ryan’s Worst Endorsement EVER!

Michael MatheronLeave a comment

May 22, 2011

Yesterday, Ex VP Dick Cheney revealed that he “worships the ground that Paul Ryan walks on.” Mr. Ryan (R-WI), Chairman of the House Budget Committee, and champion of the embattled “Kill Medicare” budget provision, had no immediate comment. In fact, Mr. Ryan has made no comment on any topic whatever since Cheney’s endorsement. Or was Cheney intimating not so much a political endorsement as a declaration of romantic interest? 

The Cheney Effect.  At a KPMG Global Energy Institute event at the InterContinental Hotel in Houston, Mr. Cheney expressed his devout admiration for the Chairman of the House Budget Committee, Mr. Ryan, whose budget plan created a hornets nest of ill will among nearly 75% of the country’s citizens. Mr. Cheney, however, and nearly the entire GOP, Libertarians, and Tea Partiers embraced the plan warmly. The former VP under President Bush (“Dubya”) obviously embraced it more thoroughly than others, and was seen by reliable sources drooling and panting slightly as he spoke of Mr. Ryan. Mrs. Cheney later told reporters, “I didn’t see it coming. He can barely pull his pants on in the morning to shoot out the bedroom window at some tiny birds and neighbors. I’m mystified; really, totally stunned.”     

Speculation began immediately whether Congressman Ryan, who occasionally expresses interest in a 2012 presidential run, could survive Cheney’s endorsement. Efforts to reach Mr. Ryan for comment were unsuccessful. His Chief of Staff indicated that Ryan’s doctors were with the disconsolate congressional firebrand, and administering intravenous Lexapro, Haldol, Ambien, Cialis, buffalo relaxant, and an experimental tranquilizer dart designed to safely bring rabid monkeys out of trees. “No success thus far,” according to an anonymous source, his wife, Janna Ryan.

If Your Face Appears on The NCTC 2011 Calendar, Arrest Yourself Immediately!

Michael MatheronLeave a comment

January 22, 2011

Tired of the same old Nuns Having Fun calendar?   Need to know how far to run away from bombs of various sizes?  Is your New Year’s resolution to “get more involved in counterterrorism?  If so, the National Counterterrorism Center (NCTC) has got a calendar for you!

This 2011 weekly planner provides information on “known terrorist groups, and individual terrorists.” Also, you can find out what reward money you may collect if you’re energetic enough (I am) — Osama is still worth $25 Million so he tops my list!

Get technical information on topics like biological and chemical threats, too. All in a handy 160-page download – it’s not available in stores. Moreover, the NCTC website includes an interactive map identifying terrorist influence in the world, and a timeline of terrorist attacks through the years.

Of course, the interpretive portions of the calendar come from government analysts – nothing remiss or surprising there.  Some will question the interpretations – for example, Dick Cheney and Paul Wolfowitz are nowhere mentioned. Yet, for the most part, the calendar, and the extras at the NCTC, like the interactive map and timeline, are excellent sources for researchers no matter what your political stripe.

Below is a downloadable NCTC calendar, visit their website for more:

http://www3.alpa.org/portals/alpa/committees/security/ct_calendar_2011.pdf