The Pentagon has released videos seized from the Bin Laden raid last week. In the four videos released, Osama Bin Laden is seen sitting on the floor with a remote control in his hand, watching a small television showing images of himself.
The videos were offered as further proof, that the most wanted man in the world was killed last Sunday by United States Navy Seals.
So you think getting Osama Bin Laden was the only thing on President Obama’s plate this past week? Well you’re wrong. An historic week it was, but what else did the President have to deal with, while getting the most wanted man in the world?
This video explains.
We are not surprised. Democrats in the state of Wisconsin saw a need for this, and they are beginning the process of challenging the recall petitions Republicans have started against three Democratic senators, and today in Madison, formal papers were filed.
“The overwhelming evidence clearly shows a pervasive pattern of election fraud committed by the shady out-of-state organization hired by Republicans to collect recall petitions,” said Senate Democratic Leader Mark Miller. “Thousands of Wisconsin citizens fell victim to lies and misinformation spread by the circulators, and the papers submitted by this operation contain a river of omissions and wrong information.”
Miller continued: “We believe that when the facts are reviewed, the GAB will throw out thousands of flawed signatures because they were fraudulent or defective. The vast depth of this misconduct calls into question the legitimacy of every signature collected by these circulators, and shows that the GOP effort failed to gather the valid signatures needed for recall elections.”
According to the paperwork filed by Wisconsin Democrats, some of the reasons given for this challenge are;
Again, no surprise here. We’re talking about the GOP. Fraud is what they do.
The circus rolls into town tonight. On Fox News, the first presidential Republican debate begins, with five misfits. Will any of these performers get the eventual Republican nomination? We’ll have to wait and see.
Let’s meet the fab 5!
Tonight’s event could well be the first time in history that a nationally televised presidential debate lowers the stature of every participant. A total of five candidates are set to take the stage at 9 p.m., when Fox News — which customarily attracts several million viewers in that time slot — goes live. Only one of them, former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty, has a realistic chance of winning the GOP nomination — or even coming close. The other four are strident ideologues with niche appeal, nonexistent victory prospects — and absolutely nothing to lose.
* Herman Cain, the former CEO of Godfather’s Pizza. Cain has run for office before, finishing a distant second (with 27 percent of the vote) to Johnny Isakson in Georgia’s 2004 U.S. Senate primary. This means that, from an electoral standpoint, Cain has a weaker claim to being taken seriously as a candidate than even Alan Keyes; at least Keyes had won the GOP nomination in the two failed Senate bids that preceded his 1996 and 2000 White House forays. To the extent Cain has distinguished himself on the ’12 trail, it’s probably through his pledge to engage in hiring discrimination by barring Muslims from working in his administration.
* Rick Santorum: Santorum was drummed out of the Senate by Pennsylvania voters in 2006, losing his bid for a third term by 17 points to Democrat Bob Casey. Other modern era presidential candidates who lost Senate races before setting out to run for the White House include: Democrats Carol Moseley Braun (2004) and George McGovern (1984), and Republican Keyes. (You could also, I suppose, include Mike Gravel, who lost a Senate reelection campaign in 1980 and sought the 2008 Democratic presidential nomination.) Between them, they won a total of zero primaries and caucuses. Santorum won’t do any better, but he is passionately opposed to abortion, gay rights and President Obama — and he’ll have plenty of time to prove it tonight.
* Gary Johnson: The former New Mexico governor is probably, as Salon noted last year, the most interesting Republican you’ve never heard of — an authentic libertarian who wants to dismantle government but who also supports legal abortion and pot. Obviously, he’ll barely make a dent once the primaries roll around (especially with Ron Paul in the race), but he’ll get an unusual amount of airtime tonight for his unorthodox platform — which will presumably prompt Cain and Santorum to use him as a foil to assert their conservative bona fides, potentially forcing Pawlenty to weigh in on subjects he’d rather sidestep.
* Ron Paul: His presence figures to foster this same dynamic, just as it did in 2007 and 2008 — when no GOP debate was complete without one candidate using Paul as a punching bag in order to look courageous and principled in the eyes of the party base.
And that’s it. No other candidates (or potential candidates) will participate. Mitt Romney is wisely staying away, as is Mike Huckabee. Even Newt Gingrich and Michele Bachmann are keeping their distance. No-shows were not supposed to be an issue when Fox and the South Carolina GOP originally scheduled the debate a few months ago. Back then, it was assumed — based on recent history — that the GOP field would be fully formed and the campaign in full swing. But that hasn’t happened.
Leave it up to Keith Olbermann to decipher the White House’s reasoning behind the release of the long form birth certificate. If true, it is a brilliant move on behalf of the President.
I know a lot of you will be thinking, why would you let the Republicans know the reasoning behind the President’s decision? I asked myself the very same question while Keith laid it all out on the table. But then I remembered – these are Republicans, you know, they wouldn’t know the truth if it… well, they wouldn’t know the truth!
Judge Napolitano of Fox News should be fired, but don’t hold your breath for that to happen, Fox openly demands that their employees make the kind of remarks Napolitano made yesterday. The Fox News ding-bat accused the President of “illigally killing” Osama Bin Laden. All this, because the President is not a Republican, and possibly because he’s black.
The Fox News Napolitano went on the propaganda machine better known as Fox Network, and basically called the president a murderer, saying, “this business of the president deciding to kill people is very dangerous and very unlawful.” He continued;
“Where will it stop. Who will President Obama kill next? Can the president now send the seals to kill colonel Qhadaffi? President Assad? Prime minister Putin? Fidel Castro? Hugo Chavez or Kim Jon Il? Can he kill whomever is an obstacle to his purposes?
Can he kill Bradley Manning or Juliane Assange? Or Khalid Sheikh Mohammed? Could he kill Glenn Beck or Rush Limbaugh or me? Can the president kill anyone who was once a friend but became our enemy?
Although the Glenn Beck, Rush Limbaugh or “me” question may be a valid one in some circles, Napolitano’s rant, is of course, based purely on capturing some political ground for Republicans lost after Obama gains over the last week. And of course theres the racial element thats always present.
According to his own diatribe, Osama Bin Laden was the most wanted man in the world. He wasn’t wanted because of his pleasant ways and wonderful mannerism at the dinner table, he was wanted because he personally went on a mission to kill as many American citizens as he possibly could. And because of his hate and contempt for Americans, Osama Bin Laden was sought after by multiple administrations including that of Bill Clinton, who the Republicans, including Fox News, blamed for the attacks on September 11th. According to the Republican’s theory, if Bill Clinton had killed Bin Laden when “he had the chance to,” then September 11th, 2001 would not have happen.
George Bush tried to find and kill Bin Laden – a search that lasted about an hour. He sent in troops to drop bombs in known caves in Pakistan and Afghanistan, with the hope of killing Bin Laden. Drone attacks were often used but most of the time resulted in other terrorists being killed. “We want him dead or alive” was the famous Bush line. Judge Napolitano didn’t see the need to question these drone attacks or the other bodies they provided, but he now has issues with President Obama accomplishing what previous administrations couldn’t.
The Fox News employee suggests the only time a President is “legally” allowed to kill someone is, “in self defense, in war on a battlefield or after a verdict by a jury for the death penalty. ” Well it seems to me that two of the three reasons given, were present in the case of Osama Bin Laden.
And keeping with the mindset of Fox News, Mr. Napolitano lied to his sheeple, telling them that there are no pictures, just Obama’s word. Of course we know this to be a lie. There are pictures and a video of the mission. But even if there were none, how does Napolitano explain the survivors who were present in the mansion with Bin Laden? According to all the news reports and Pakistan officials, Bin Laden’s wife was shot in her leg, there were other dead bodies from the mission and there were children on the compound. If you are to believe Napolitano’s “all we have is Obama’s word,” then you will have to believe that Bin Laden’s wife volunteered to be shot in the leg, and the dead bodies are not really dead. You will have to believe that all the children found at the compound were paid off, probably with candy, to perpetrate afraud.
The whole point here is that Fox News and their sicko employees can’t accept the fact that a Democratic President – wait a minute, Bill Clinton was a Democratic President and they wanted him to kill Bin Laden – strike that… They can’t accept the fact that a black Democratic President accomplished what other administrations tried, and failed to do.
No, the official death pictures of Osama Bin Laden are not out yet, but as soon as they come out, we’ll post them here at EzKool. 🙂 In the meantime, enjoy the photos montage leading up to the daring mission that captured and kill Osama Bin Laden.
[cincopa AwBAGmavO5kM]
In a telephone interview yesterday, Donald Trump broke the news that he will seek the presidency… in his mind that is.
In my mind, I have already decided,” Trump, 64, said in a telephone interview yesterday. “I am going to announce. But I can’t do anything until the show ends.
Trump said he will focus on “making our country rich and respected,” by creating jobs, boosting the economy and stopping China and the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries from taking advantage of the U.S.
Many people have already concluded that The Donald is not running. They call his stunt over these past few weeks, a sad and pathetic attempt to garnish more publicity for his show, Celebrity Apprentice and his many financial endeavors. They point to the fact that The Donald has pulled this stunt before as evidence that he is simply not serious.
But what if he is? What if Trump is intent on proving his detractors wrong and is hellbent on living up to the pompous, egotistical excuse for a man we’ve seen on exhibit in recent weeks and actually try his hand at running for the most powerful position in the world? A position that he has absolutely no competency in ever performing?
The decision to run will be a liberal’s dream. We’re, quite frankly, not sure who will be more entertaining – Palin, Trump or Bachmann?
“If we have actionable intelligence about high-value terrorist targets and President Musharraf won’t act, we will.”
That line was given in a speech by President Obama in 2008 while he was campaigning for office as President of The United States. Since becoming president, Mr. Obama has not only lived up to this promise, but has authorized more drone attacks in Pakistan than the previous administration ever had. It’s been reported that these attacks, although Bin Laden was the ultimate target, resulted in other terrorists being killed.
According to a recent report by The Washington Times, “CIA drone attacks in Pakistan killed at least 581 militants last year [2009], according to independent estimates. The number of those militants noteworthy enough to appear on a U.S. list of most-wanted terrorists: two.” The report goes on to question the wisdom of these increased attacks, stating “despite a major escalation in the number of unmanned Predator strikes being carried out under the Obama administration, data from government and independent sources indicate that the number of high-ranking militants being killed as a result has either slipped or barely increased.”
But it will appear now, that the Administration was acting on “actionable intelligence.” And on Sunday, that intelligence paid off;
“Today, at my direction, the United States launched a targeted operation against that compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan,” Mr. Obama said. “A small team of Americans carried out the operation with extraordinary courage and capability. No Americans were harmed. They took care to avoid civilian casualties. After a firefight, they killed Osama bin Laden and took custody of his body.”
I’ve heard it said that while the rest of the political pundits and talking heads play checkers, the President is actively engaged in a game of chess. Chalk this one up as a checkmate against Osama Bin Laden.
Now that it’s has been reported that Osama Bin Laden has been killed, we must bear in mind that Bin Laden–the individual– represented ‘an ideology‘ to thousands, possibly millions of people in several nations and in the Afghan region in particular. No man is an island, the man represents the state of mind of the people for which he speaks or acts on behalf of.
Over the years of seeing the televised reports on Al-Qaeda, it was easy to see the enthusiasm of the young people shown around Osama Bin Laden. The more idealistic among us are saying that “this is an end to all the violence”. I hasten to remind the naive among us that martyrdom is a serious thing and Osama Bin Laden is now a martyr.
To some, Osama Bin Laden is a monster who is responsible for atrocities across the span of several continents. To others Osama Bin Laden is an inspiring figure who stood against imperialism and outsmarted “the beast” for years. For those of us who are peace loving American citizens, let us remember that peace starts at home.
We must continue to impress upon our fellow citizens that people are people, all worthy of the common decency and respect that we would want for ourselves. Our country is truly great…truly great in terms of the constitutional ideas in which we aspire to. BUT! This country’s hands are not clean, we live in the biggest international war mongering nation in the history of all mankind.
We have long become the ‘military industrial complex’ that President Eisenhower warned we would become, where our war machine has become a disproportionate part of our country’s budget and an unfortunately a significant part of our existence. Covert operations of deposing leaders of other countries and installing puppet regimes have been a common occurence at our hands.
Let us not forget who armed and trained Osama Bin Ladin… if you dont know, look in the mirror. Let us not forget who installed one time “friend” and later named ‘boogie man’, Manuel Noriega, when it was convenient. Let us not forget Saddam Hussein was armed by billions of U.S. taxpayers dollars to fight against Iran in the 80’s, Hussein later named ‘boogie man’, was incarcerated and hung when it was convenient.
Let us not forget that we have a long way to go to live up to our country’s great potential. Let us not forget that no man stands alone. We may have just made 10,000 more Bin Ladins by his reported assassination. His body allegedly was immediately “buried at sea”…sure…whatever.
The minds and emotions of the masses are but a marionette. Believe what you must, but let us love and enjoy an individual and collective peace, and as we digest these current reports we should do so consciously and with a mindset that recognizes the fact that we are under the universal law of ’cause and effect’. Our actions and indeed our thoughts are creative and for better or for worse they are productive. And let us not forget that we are all connected and that ‘no man is an island’. For those that have an ear…let him/her hear.
Son of Man
Moments after President Obama declared in a nationally televised speech on Sunday that the mastermind of September 11th, Osama Bin Laden was killed in Pakistan, George Bush give the following statement;
“Earlier this evening, President Obama called to inform me that American forces killed Osama bin Laden, the leader of the al Qaeda network that attacked America on September 11, 2001. I congratulated him and the men and women of our military and intelligence communities who devoted their lives to this mission. They have our everlasting gratitude.
This momentous achievement marks a victory for America, for people who seek peace around the world, and for all those who lost loved ones on September 11, 2001. The fight against terror goes on, but tonight America has sent an unmistakable message: No matter how long it takes, justice will be done.”
Mr. Bush, in his capacity as President went to “ground zero,” in New York after the World Trade Center was demolished, and promised America and the world that the responsible parties will be brought to justice. And although it didn’t happen under his administration, Americans of all political affiliation – Democrats, Republicans and Independents – should come together and celebrate the fact that the most wanted man in the world is dead.
Like Bush said back then;
I can hear you, the rest of the world can hear you and the people who knocked these buildings down will hear all of us soon.
And although it took 10 years, the people who knocked down those buildings can hear us now. I’m sure!
President Obama makes the announcement that Osama Bin Laden was dead, and American have “custody” of his body. Watch the entire video below.
REMARKS BY THE PRESIDENT
ON OSAMA BIN LADEN
East Room
11:35 P.M. EDT
THE PRESIDENT: Good evening. Tonight, I can report to the American people and to the world that the United States has conducted an operation that killed Osama bin Laden, the leader of al Qaeda, and a terrorist who’s responsible for the murder of thousands of innocent men, women, and children.
It was nearly 10 years ago that a bright September day was darkened by the worst attack on the American people in our history. The images of 9/11 are seared into our national memory — hijacked planes cutting through a cloudless September sky; the Twin Towers collapsing to the ground; black smoke billowing up from the Pentagon; the wreckage of Flight 93 in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, where the actions of heroic citizens saved even more heartbreak and destruction.
And yet we know that the worst images are those that were unseen to the world. The empty seat at the dinner table. Children who were forced to grow up without their mother or their father. Parents who would never know the feeling of their child’s embrace. Nearly 3,000 citizens taken from us, leaving a gaping hole in our hearts.
On September 11, 2001, in our time of grief, the American people came together. We offered our neighbors a hand, and we offered the wounded our blood. We reaffirmed our ties to each other, and our love of community and country. On that day, no matter where we came from, what God we prayed to, or what race or ethnicity we were, we were united as one American family.
We were also united in our resolve to protect our nation and to bring those who committed this vicious attack to justice. We quickly learned that the 9/11 attacks were carried out by al Qaeda — an organization headed by Osama bin Laden, which had openly declared war on the United States and was committed to killing innocents in our country and around the globe. And so we went to war against al Qaeda to protect our citizens, our friends, and our allies.
Over the last 10 years, thanks to the tireless and heroic work of our military and our counterterrorism professionals, we’ve made great strides in that effort. We’ve disrupted terrorist attacks and strengthened our homeland defense. In Afghanistan, we removed the Taliban government, which had given bin Laden and al Qaeda safe haven and support. And around the globe, we worked with our friends and allies to capture or kill scores of al Qaeda terrorists, including several who were a part of the 9/11 plot.
Yet Osama bin Laden avoided capture and escaped across the Afghan border into Pakistan. Meanwhile, al Qaeda continued to operate from along that border and operate through its affiliates across the world.
And so shortly after taking office, I directed Leon Panetta, the director of the CIA, to make the killing or capture of bin Laden the top priority of our war against al Qaeda, even as we continued our broader efforts to disrupt, dismantle, and defeat his network.
Then, last August, after years of painstaking work by our intelligence community, I was briefed on a possible lead to bin Laden. It was far from certain, and it took many months to run this thread to ground. I met repeatedly with my national security team as we developed more information about the possibility that we had located bin Laden hiding within a compound deep inside of Pakistan. And finally, last week, I determined that we had enough intelligence to take action, and authorized an operation to get Osama bin Laden and bring him to justice.
Today, at my direction, the United States launched a targeted operation against that compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan. A small team of Americans carried out the operation with extraordinary courage and capability. No Americans were harmed. They took care to avoid civilian casualties. After a firefight, they killed Osama bin Laden and took custody of his body.
For over two decades, bin Laden has been al Qaeda’s leader and symbol, and has continued to plot attacks against our country and our friends and allies. The death of bin Laden marks the most significant achievement to date in our nation’s effort to defeat al Qaeda.
Yet his death does not mark the end of our effort. There’s no doubt that al Qaeda will continue to pursue attacks against us. We must –- and we will — remain vigilant at home and abroad.
As we do, we must also reaffirm that the United States is not –- and never will be -– at war with Islam. I’ve made clear, just as President Bush did shortly after 9/11, that our war is not against Islam. Bin Laden was not a Muslim leader; he was a mass murderer of Muslims. Indeed, al Qaeda has slaughtered scores of Muslims in many countries, including our own. So his demise should be welcomed by all who believe in peace and human dignity.
Over the years, I’ve repeatedly made clear that we would take action within Pakistan if we knew where bin Laden was. That is what we’ve done. But it’s important to note that our counterterrorism cooperation with Pakistan helped lead us to bin Laden and the compound where he was hiding. Indeed, bin Laden had declared war against Pakistan as well, and ordered attacks against the Pakistani people.
Tonight, I called President Zardari, and my team has also spoken with their Pakistani counterparts. They agree that this is a good and historic day for both of our nations. And going forward, it is essential that Pakistan continue to join us in the fight against al Qaeda and its affiliates.
The American people did not choose this fight. It came to our shores, and started with the senseless slaughter of our citizens. After nearly 10 years of service, struggle, and sacrifice, we know well the costs of war. These efforts weigh on me every time I, as Commander-in-Chief, have to sign a letter to a family that has lost a loved one, or look into the eyes of a service member who’s been gravely wounded.
So Americans understand the costs of war. Yet as a country, we will never tolerate our security being threatened, nor stand idly by when our people have been killed. We will be relentless in defense of our citizens and our friends and allies. We will be true to the values that make us who we are. And on nights like this one, we can say to those families who have lost loved ones to al Qaeda’s terror: Justice has been done.
Tonight, we give thanks to the countless intelligence and counterterrorism professionals who’ve worked tirelessly to achieve this outcome. The American people do not see their work, nor know their names. But tonight, they feel the satisfaction of their work and the result of their pursuit of justice.
We give thanks for the men who carried out this operation, for they exemplify the professionalism, patriotism, and unparalleled courage of those who serve our country. And they are part of a generation that has borne the heaviest share of the burden since that September day.
Finally, let me say to the families who lost loved ones on 9/11 that we have never forgotten your loss, nor wavered in our commitment to see that we do whatever it takes to prevent another attack on our shores.
And tonight, let us think back to the sense of unity that prevailed on 9/11. I know that it has, at times, frayed. Yet today’s achievement is a testament to the greatness of our country and the determination of the American people.
The cause of securing our country is not complete. But tonight, we are once again reminded that America can do whatever we set our mind to. That is the story of our history, whether it’s the pursuit of prosperity for our people, or the struggle for equality for all our citizens; our commitment to stand up for our values abroad, and our sacrifices to make the world a safer place.
Let us remember that we can do these things not just because of wealth or power, but because of who we are: one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.
Thank you. May God bless you. And may God bless the United States of America.
END 11:44 P.M. EDT
