The Common Ills: John Michael McGrath is "angry"

Friday, October 18, 2013

John Michael McGrath is "angry"

Today, Random House publishes (blog) more nonsense from John Michel McGrath and a friend tries to get a link. It'll get a link for the RH friend and for the title "The Iraq War Will Never End." Otherwise, I'm so sick of little liars and little revisionists and I don't give a damn if they're lying for the right, the left or the center.

Are you angry, Johnny? Are you? I'm enraged and I'm enraged by liars like you.

Yes, the Iraq War continues. He got that right. Little else.

He's really using Iraq to slam Republicans for the shutdown.

Excuse me, the US government shutdown.

Why is Mr. Canada so damn obsessed with a country that's not his own? What, he can't find any more drug addicted mayors in Canada to try to make a name for himself with?

What a proud moment for him and for his tabloid journalism.

What pisses me off most about his useless column?

How about if you're noting that the Iraq War won't ever end, you take a moment to note US troops remain in Iraq? Maybe you even link to Tim Arango's (New York Times) September 2012 report:

Iraq and the United States are negotiating an agreement that could result in the return of small units of American soldiers to Iraq on training missions. At the request of the Iraqi government, according to General Caslen, a unit of Army Special Operations soldiers was recently deployed to Iraq to advise on counterterrorism and help with intelligence.

Get it?

If you're claiming "The Iraq War Will Never End," seems like you'd really need to back that claim up. But Johnny just cites the violence. You know what a lot of us made that point in early 2012. So you're basically lazy, stupid and late to the party.

While ignoring that reality, Johnny wants to create a new one:

Lamentably and shamefully, though, Republicans had a lot of ideological support in the centre of the political spectrum for their grand misadventure in the Land of Two Rivers.

That's called revisionary history.

The "Authorization For Use Of Military Force Against Iraq Resolution Of 2002"?

That bill didn't become a law because of Republicans. They didn't have the votes to do it alone. In fact, the House bill sponsored by Dennis Hastert had 136 co-sponsors which included many Democrats:

Rep Ackerman, Gary L. [NY-5] - 10/8/2002
Rep Akin, W. Todd [MO-2] - 10/8/2002
Rep Andrews, Robert E. [NJ-1] - 10/8/2002
Rep Armey, Richard K. [TX-26] - 10/8/2002
Rep Bachus, Spencer [AL-6] - 10/8/2002
Rep Ballenger, Cass [NC-10] - 10/8/2002
Rep Barton, Joe [TX-6] - 10/8/2002
Rep Berman, Howard L. [CA-26] - 10/8/2002
Rep Biggert, Judy [IL-13] - 10/8/2002
Rep Blunt, Roy [MO-7] - 10/8/2002
Rep Boehner, John A. [OH-8] - 10/8/2002
Rep Boozman, John [AR-3] - 10/8/2002
Rep Brady, Kevin [TX-8] - 10/8/2002
Rep Brown, Henry E., Jr. [SC-1] - 10/8/2002
Rep Burton, Dan [IN-6] - 10/8/2002
Rep Buyer, Steve [IN-5] - 10/8/2002
Rep Callahan, Sonny [AL-1] - 10/9/2002
Rep Calvert, Ken [CA-43] - 10/8/2002
Rep Cannon, Chris [UT-3] - 10/8/2002
Rep Cantor, Eric [VA-7] - 10/8/2002
Rep Chambliss, Saxby [GA-8] - 10/8/2002
Rep Collins, Mac [GA-3] - 10/8/2002
Rep Combest, Larry [TX-19] - 10/8/2002
Rep Cox, Christopher [CA-47] - 10/9/2002
Rep Cramer, Robert E. (Bud), Jr. [AL-5] - 10/8/2002
Rep Crenshaw, Ander [FL-4] - 10/8/2002
Rep Cubin, Barbara [WY] - 10/8/2002
Rep Culberson, John Abney [TX-7] - 10/8/2002
Rep Cunningham, Randy (Duke) [CA-51] - 10/8/2002
Rep Davis, Jo Ann [VA-1] - 10/8/2002
Rep Davis, Tom [VA-11] - 10/8/2002
Rep DeLay, Tom [TX-22] - 10/8/2002
Rep DeMint, Jim [SC-4] - 10/8/2002
Rep Deutsch, Peter [FL-20] - 10/8/2002
Rep Dooley, Calvin M. [CA-20] - 10/8/2002
Rep Doolittle, John T. [CA-4] - 10/8/2002
Rep Dreier, David [CA-28] - 10/8/2002
Rep Dunn, Jennifer [WA-8] - 10/8/2002
Rep Edwards, Chet [TX-11] - 10/8/2002
Rep Everett, Terry [AL-2] - 10/8/2002
Rep Faleomavaega, Eni F. H. [AS] - 10/8/2002
Rep Ferguson, Mike [NJ-7] - 10/8/2002
Rep Flake, Jeff [AZ-1] - 10/8/2002
Rep Fletcher, Ernie [KY-6] - 10/8/2002
Rep Ford, Harold E., Jr. [TN-9] - 10/8/2002
Rep Fossella, Vito [NY-13] - 10/9/2002
Rep Frost, Martin [TX-24] - 10/8/2002
Rep Gallegly, Elton [CA-23] - 10/8/2002
Rep Ganske, Greg [IA-4] - 10/8/2002
Rep Gephardt, Richard A. [MO-3] - 10/2/2002
Rep Gibbons, Jim [NV-2] - 10/8/2002
Rep Gilchrest, Wayne T. [MD-1] - 10/8/2002
Rep Gillmor, Paul E. [OH-5] - 10/8/2002
Rep Gilman, Benjamin A. [NY-20] - 10/8/2002
Rep Graham, Lindsey [SC-3] - 10/8/2002
Rep Grucci, Felix J., Jr. [NY-1] - 10/8/2002
Rep Hall, Ralph M. [TX-4] - 10/8/2002
Rep Hansen, James V. [UT-1] - 10/8/2002
Rep Hart, Melissa A. [PA-4] - 10/8/2002
Rep Hayworth, J. D. [AZ-6] - 10/8/2002
Rep Hefley, Joel [CO-5] - 10/8/2002
Rep Hilleary, Van [TN-4] - 10/8/2002
Rep Holden, Tim [PA-6] - 10/8/2002
Rep Horn, Stephen [CA-38] - 10/8/2002
Rep Hyde, Henry J. [IL-6] - 10/8/2002
Rep Israel, Steve [NY-2] - 10/8/2002
Rep Issa, Darrell E. [CA-48] - 10/8/2002
Rep Jenkins, William L. [TN-1] - 10/8/2002
Rep Johnson, Sam [TX-3] - 10/8/2002
Rep Keller, Ric [FL-8] - 10/8/2002
Rep Kerns, Brian D. [IN-7] - 10/8/2002
Rep Kingston, Jack [GA-1] - 10/8/2002
Rep Kirk, Mark Steven [IL-10] - 10/8/2002
Rep Knollenberg, Joe [MI-11] - 10/9/2002
Rep Kolbe, Jim [AZ-5] - 10/8/2002
Rep Lantos, Tom [CA-12] - 10/8/2002
Rep Lewis, Jerry [CA-40] - 10/8/2002
Rep Linder, John [GA-11] - 10/8/2002
Rep Lucas, Ken [KY-4] - 10/8/2002
Rep McCrery, Jim [LA-4] - 10/8/2002
Rep McHugh, John M. [NY-24] - 10/8/2002
Rep McInnis, Scott [CO-3] - 10/8/2002
Rep McKeon, Howard P. "Buck" [CA-25] - 10/8/2002
Rep McNulty, Michael R. [NY-21] - 10/8/2002
Rep Miller, Dan [FL-13] - 10/8/2002
Rep Miller, Gary G. [CA-41] - 10/8/2002
Rep Miller, Jeff [FL-1] - 10/8/2002
Rep Myrick, Sue Wilkins [NC-9] - 10/8/2002
Rep Ney, Robert W. [OH-18] - 10/9/2002
Rep Northup, Anne M. [KY-3] - 10/8/2002
Rep Osborne, Tom [NE-3] - 10/8/2002
Rep Oxley, Michael G. [OH-4] - 10/8/2002
Rep Pence, Mike [IN-2] - 10/8/2002
Rep Peterson, John E. [PA-5] - 10/8/2002
Rep Phelps, David D. [IL-19] - 10/8/2002
Rep Pickering, Charles W. "Chip" [MS-3] - 10/8/2002
Rep Pitts, Joseph R. [PA-16] - 10/8/2002
Rep Platts, Todd Russell [PA-19] - 10/9/2002
Rep Pombo, Richard W. [CA-11] - 10/8/2002
Rep Portman, Rob [OH-2] - 10/8/2002
Rep Pryce, Deborah [OH-15] - 10/8/2002
Rep Putnam, Adam H. [FL-12] - 10/8/2002
Rep Radanovich, George [CA-19] - 10/8/2002
Rep Riley, Bob [AL-3] - 10/8/2002
Rep Roemer, Tim [IN-3] - 10/8/2002
Rep Rohrabacher, Dana [CA-45] - 10/8/2002
Rep Ros-Lehtinen, Ileana [FL-18] - 10/8/2002
Rep Ross, Mike [AR-4] - 10/8/2002
Rep Roukema, Marge [NJ-5] - 10/8/2002
Rep Royce, Edward R. [CA-39] - 10/8/2002
Rep Ryun, Jim [KS-2] - 10/8/2002
Rep Sandlin, Max [TX-1] - 10/8/2002
Rep Saxton, Jim [NJ-3] - 10/8/2002
Rep Schrock, Edward L. [VA-2] - 10/8/2002
Rep Sessions, Pete [TX-5] - 10/8/2002
Rep Shadegg, John B. [AZ-4] - 10/8/2002
Rep Shays, Christopher [CT-4] - 10/8/2002
Rep Shuster, Bill [PA-9] - 10/8/2002
Rep Simpson, Michael K. [ID-2] - 10/8/2002
Rep Skeen, Joe [NM-2] - 10/8/2002
Rep Smith, Christopher H. [NJ-4] - 10/8/2002
Rep Smith, Nick [MI-7] - 10/8/2002
Rep Stenholm, Charles W. [TX-17] - 10/8/2002
Rep Stump, Bob [AZ-3] - 10/8/2002
Rep Sweeney, John E. [NY-22] - 10/8/2002
Rep Tancredo, Thomas G. [CO-6] - 10/8/2002
Rep Thornberry, Mac [TX-13] - 10/8/2002
Rep Thune, John R. [SD] - 10/8/2002
Rep Turner, Jim [TX-2] - 10/8/2002
Rep Vitter, David [LA-1] - 10/8/2002
Rep Watts, J. C., Jr. [OK-4] - 10/8/2002
Rep Weldon, Dave [FL-15] - 10/8/2002
Rep Wicker, Roger F. [MS-1] - 10/8/2002
Rep Wilson, Joe [SC-2] - 10/8/2002
Rep Young, C. W. Bill [FL-10] - 10/8/2002
Rep Young, Don [AK] - 10/8/2002

Those were the co-sponsors. Yes, Democrat Gary Ackerman would become a loud opponent of the illegal war, for example. But in real time, when it mattered, he co-sponsored that amendment as did several other Democrats like Dick Gephart and Harold Ford.

81 Democrats in the House would go on to vote for it (126 against it). It then went to the Senate where 21 Democrats, 1 Republican and 1 Independent voted against it:

NAYs ---23
Akaka (D-HI) Bingaman (D-NM) Boxer (D-CA) Byrd (D-WV) Chafee (R-RI) Conrad (D-ND) Corzine (D-NJ) Dayton (D-MN)	Durbin (D-IL) Feingold (D-WI) Graham (D-FL) Inouye (D-HI) Jeffords (I-VT) Kennedy (D-MA) Leahy (D-VT) Levin (D-MI)	Mikulski (D-MD) Murray (D-WA) Reed (D-RI) Sarbanes (D-MD) Stabenow (D-MI) Wellstone (D-MN) Wyden (D-OR)

See there, Dems were against it!

No, they weren't. Democrats controlled the Senate at the time. It had been 50-50 with Republican Trent Lott as Senate Majority Leader but Jim Jeffords left the Republican Party and called himself an Independent and began caucusing with Dems in June 2001 making Democrat Tom Daschle Senate Majority Leader. That meant Dems had 51 votes (counting Jeffords). Only 22 of the 51 (less than half) voted against the authorization for war. (Republican Lincoln Chafee voted against the authorization, see list above.)

Dashle could have prevented the vote.

That's what Harry Reid did. Remember when Nancy Pelosi, then House Majority Leader, declared that she does her part, she keeps getting bills passed to try to end the war but Reid won't get the votes for them in the Senate.

Democrats controlled the Senate and could have buried the bill there.

They didn't. There's blood on their hands as surely as it's on the hands of Republican members of Congress.

So spare the nonsense, Johnny Canada, about how the Iraq War is the fault of Republicans.

Maybe if Johnny Canada focused on his own country instead of trying to rewrite history to benefit US Democrats or to cover for US President Barack Obama, maybe then Conservative Stephen Harper wouldn't be Prime Minister? He's been that since 2006. When do these Canadian liberals plan to get off their asses, stop running defense for US Democrats and start taking back their own country? Canada likes to pretend its liberal but its allowed conservatives to control the country for seven years now. And it's shamefully allowed Iraq War resisters to be handed over to the US government and thrown behind bars.

Is Johnny Canada angry about the Iraq War?

I can't tell it from his bad Random House blog post which just notes some violence in Iraq while leading with an attack on Republicans over the shutdown of the (US) government.

Maybe Johnny Canada was actually doing the best journalism he could when he was going around covering a mayor's drug habit?

How sad if that garbage can digging was the height of his career. John Michael McGrath, the world's finest dumpster diver.

Rebecca's "the ridiculous mia farrow" went up last night (but isn't showing up on the links) and the following community posts -- plus Jody Watley, Adam Kokesh, Antiwar.com, Pacifica Evening News and Tavis Smiley -- went up last night or this morning: