George

"The United States Ambassador to Honduras, Hugo Llorens, an extremely competent diplomat, tried very hard to keep Honduras's Congress from ousting President Manuel Zelaya. After his arguments and pressures were exhausted, and faced with something that seemed inevitable, he did what he could: he sheltered the president's son at his residence to save him from any violent outcome.

"Fortunately, Zelaya's expulsion from the presidency and from his country was bloodless. It wasn't exactly a military coup: the Army acted on orders from the Supreme Court after Zelaya's continued violations of the law. The ousted president seemed intent on getting reelected, even if it meant violating the Constitution, and on dragging the nation into Hugo Ch�vez's "21st century socialism" camp against the will of the Honduran people.

"Nevertheless, if there is still something worse than the depressing spectacle of a freely elected president forced to leave his country at gunpoint, it is that same leader trying to force his way back in. If Zelaya returns, he will be arrested and charged with an array of crimes. His imprisonment will embarrass any who decide, irresponsibly, to accompany him on such a mad adventure.
"This is most grave. Hugo Ch�vez and Daniel Ortega are already talking about invasions and resorting to force. That could unleash a bloodbath and would certainly destroy the weak political institutions that Honduras labored to achieve three decades ago, when the era of military dictatorships mercifully ended."

"ACORN, which played a starring role in creating the subprime mortgage crisis, plans to add insult to injury by harassing lenders across the nation with protests tomorrow in an effort to coerce them into supporting President Obama's Making Home Affordable foreclosure-avoidance program.

"Austin King, director of ACORN Financial Justice, sent out a press release today advising of the demonstrations that are planned as part of its 'Homewrecker 4' campaign. The four financial companies targeted are Goldman Sachs, HomEq Servicing, American Home Mortgage, and OneWest. Read the whole document here. . . .

"But let's not forget that ACORN helped to cause the mortgage bubble by strongarming banks into making loans they shouldn't have. And cheering them on was ACORN's lawyer, Barack Obama, who contributed to the increasingly hostile environment for banks when he represented plaintiffs in the 1995 class action lawsuit Buycks-Roberson v. Citibank. The suit demanded that Citibank grant mortgages to an equal percentage of minority and non-minority mortgage applicants. The bank settled the case three years later and reportedly agreed to beef up its lending to unqualified applicants."

6/30/09 The Law Triumphs in Honduras

By John Fund, The Wall Street Journal

"Many foreign observers are condemning the ouster of Honduran President Mel Zelaya, a supporter of Hugo Chavez, as a "military coup." But can it be a coup when the Honduran military acted on the orders of the nation's Supreme Court, the step was backed by the nation's attorney general, and the man replacing Mr. Zelaya and elected in emergency session by that nation's Congress is a member of the former president's own political party?

"Mr. Zelaya had sacked General Romeo Vasquez, head of the country's armed forces, after he refused to use his troops to provide logistical support for a referendum designed to let Mr. Zelaya escape the country's one-term limit on presidents. Both the referendum and the firing of the military chief have been declared illegal by the Honduran Supreme Court. Nonetheless, Mr. Zelaya intended yesterday to use ballots printed in Venezuela to conduct the vote anyway."

6/30/09 A 'COUP' TO PROTECT A CONSTITUTION

By Ray Walser, New York Post

HONDURAS OUSTS A ROGUE PRESIDENT

6/30/09 U.S. Cautious on Calling Honduras a "Coup"

Mary Beth Sheridan, Washington Post "President Obama said yesterday that the military ouster of Honduran President Manuel Zelaya was illegal and could set a 'terrible precedent,' but Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said the United States government was holding off on formally branding it a coup, which would trigger a cutoff of millions of dollars in aid to the impoverished Central American country.
"Clinton's statement appeared to reflect the U.S. government's caution amid fast-moving events in Honduras, where Zelaya was detained and expelled by the military on Sunday. The United States has joined other countries throughout the hemisphere in condemning the coup. But leaders face a difficult task in trying to restore Zelaya to office in a nation where the National Congress, military and Supreme Court have accused him of attempting a power grab through a special referendum."

6/30/09 It Can't Happen in America? By Rush Limbaugh

"[T]here are already a whole lot of things happening in this country the president does not have the authority to do that he's doing. The establishment of czars, 13 or 14 czars that are not subject to confirmation hearings by the United States Senate. He pays them whatever he wants them to be paid. He tells them what to do. They have more power than his cabinet secretaries. 'It can't happen. The president doesn't have the authority.' Nobody is stopping him.

"The president of the United States is firing chief executive officers of automotive companies. 'That can't happen in the United States. That just can't happen. The president doesn't have that kind of authority.' The United States government owns Chrysler and General Motors and bequeathed a majority stake of Chrysler to the United Auto Workers. 'That would never happen in America, Rush, that can't happen. The president doesn't have that kind of authority.'
"People who can't pay their mortgages are being sustained in their homes and it's being called affordable housing. 'That can't happen in America. Can't happen, Rush, president doesn't have that kind of authority.'

"Banks were threatened to buy other banks, banks were threatened. We know this to be true. Banks were threatened. They were called into Henry Paulson's office and they were told they were going to sign the paper accepting TARP money whether they needed it or not. 'That can't happen, Rush, the president doesn't have that kind of authority. Just can't happen.' . . .

"[W]hy is there a 22nd Amendment in the United States limiting to two the number of terms the president of the United States? Her answer is so he doesn't get too much power. Why were people worried that the president might get too much power? Something had to cause it. Have you ever heard of Franklin Delano Roosevelt? By reputation, one of the greatest if not the greatest presidents we've ever had. He wouldn't go away. He was packing the Supreme Court. 'Can't happen in America, Rush, it just can't happen here, president doesn't have that kind of authority.' He was gonna serve for life. He was going to become like an African colonel himself, Colonel Franklin Delano Roosevelt, he wouldn't go away, four terms. We said, hell no! Hello 22nd Amendment. 'Can't happen in America, Rush, why, president doesn't have that kind of authority.'

"How about the cap-and-trade bill passed in the House of Representatives? Do you realize, ladies and gentlemen, that if this bill becomes law, every home in America, every new home will have to meet California's building codes? Immediately upon enactment, this Democrat bill would demand a 30% increase in energy efficiency for new construction. Two years after it's enacted, the Democrat bill would require an additional 50% improvement. 'It can't happen in America, Rush, people don't have this kind of authority.' . . .

"In Europe it's the opposite. Merkel coming out for tax cuts. Hungary coming out for tax cuts. Merkel says we need growth, we need growth in Germany. She's gonna cut taxes. But in our hemisphere the Marxists are rising to power and they are being supported by the president of the United States. 'Yeah, Rush, come on, the president of the United States doesn't have that kind of authority. It can't happen here.'

"There's a lot of stuff that you didn't think could happen here that's happening right before your very eyes and it's not happening according to the Constitution. The President of the United States is threatening and firing CEOs. The president of the United States with a compensation czar. The president of the United States, not the US Congress, the president of the United States wants to determine how much everybody in this country can earn per annum. 'Ah, Rush, presidents don't have that kind of authority, can't happen here.' Folks, getting rid of the 22nd Amendment is chump change compared to what this man's already achieved that nobody thought could happen."

6/30/09 Iraqis cheer -- and fear --U.S. pullout from cities

CNN, by Staff

"BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- Iraqis celebrated in the streets Tuesday, the deadline for U.S. troops to pull out of Iraq's towns and cities -- a long-anticipated date marked by street festivals in Baghdad.

"Celebrations were tempered, however, by fears of renewed violence as insurgents seek to use the date to stage new attacks.

At least 30 people, including women and children, were killed Tuesday in what security sources called a "huge bombing" in the northern Iraqi city of Kirkuk.

"More than 100 also were wounded in the attack on a busy shopping area in a predominantly Kurdish part of Kirkuk, a disputed oil-rich city about 235 miles north of Baghdad. Rescuers are searching the rubble for people who might have been buried, a local police official said."

6/30/09 North Korean Ship Turning Around CBS

News Report: Under Threat Of U.N. Resolution, Changes Course

"The North Korean ship Kang Nam has turned around and is heading back toward the south coast of China, reports CBS News national security correspondent David Martin.
"The ship, which left a North Korean port on June 17, is the first vessel monitored under U.N. sanctions that ban the regime from selling arms and weapons-related material.
"It is currently in the vicinity of the Parcel Islands 100 miles off Vietnam, Martin reports, adding that there is no specified reason as of now for why it has changed course.
"'With still no long range missiles on the launch pads and no time to get them ready for a July 4 launch, it would appear the temperature is being lowered,' Martin said of North Korea's threats to launch missiles at Hawaii on the U.S.'s Independence Day.
"'If the ship is on its way back, it would mean that Resolution 1874 is taking effect and causing the North to retreat,' Kim Tae-woo, vice president of the Korea Institute for Defense Analyses, told the Korea Herald."

6/30/09 New US Commander Takes Over at Key Moment

By Al Pessin, Voice of America

"A new commander has taken charge of U.S. forces in Europe, and will take command of all NATO forces on Thursday, as the alliance makes a new push to bring stability to Afghanistan. . . .

"The relationships are important because responsibility for the war in Afghanistan is split between General Petraeus, who is responsible for all U.S. military activity in the Middle East and Central Asia, and Admiral Stavridis, who, as NATO commander, will have ultimate responsibility for the majority of U.S. and international troops in Afghanistan."

6/30/09 Russian corruption reporter dies from head injury

Taiwan News, Associated PRess

"Police in southern Russia say a local corruption reporter has died of head injuries sustained in a drunken fall _ but colleagues are sure he was attacked. . . .

"Russia is considered one of the world's most dangerous countries for reporters. They are frequently harassed, threatened and killed for exposing facts that embarrass authorities."

6/30/09 Suppressed EPA scientist breaks silence, speaks on Fox News By: Mark Tapscott, The Washington Examiner
"Alan Carlin, the senior EPA research analyst who authored a study critical of global warming that was suppressed by agency officials, has broken his silence and spoken on Fox News about his situation. Carlin told 'Fox & Friends' Steve Ducy and Gretchen Carlson that his most important conclusion in the study was that the U.S. should not rely upon recommendations of the UN in making policy decisions regarding global warming.

"'The most important conclusion, in my view, was that EPA needed to look at the science behind global warming and not depend upon reports issued by the United Nations, which is what they were thinking of doing and in fact have done,' Carlin said.

"Asked what happened to his study once it was completed, Carlin said "my supervisors decided not to forward it to the group within EPA who had the responsibility for preparing an overall report which would guide EPA on whether to find that the emission of global warming gases would be something that EPA should regulate."

You can watch entire interview with Carlin here.

"Carlin has been at EPA for 38 years and until the Fox interview was telling reporters seeking interviews that he was instructed by EPA officials not to speak with them. He almost certainly risks retalitation by EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson and other Obama appointees within the agency.

"There are federal laws designed to protect whistle blowers like Carlin from political retaliation. It will be fascinating to watch how an administration of the Left deals with a whistleblower who for whatever reason opposes their political agenda. Will they persecute him or protect him?"

6/30/09 Same 'sins' produce condemnation for Bush, absolution for Obama By Kevin O'Brien, Cleveland Plain Dealer

Senate aides said the penalties, estimated to raise around $36 billion over 10 years, would be modeled on the approach taken by Massachusetts, which now imposes a fine of about $1,000 a year on individuals who refuse to get coverage.

A new offensive in the Helmand province is the first test of a new counterinsurgency strategy

HONDURAS OUSTS A ROGUE PRESIDENT

"Source: CRA International Study Prepared for National Black Chamber of Commerce [Items not published in strict order tonight, so to cover all after 10:30 p.m., read to the end of 6/25/09 items] . . .

Tensions continue to mount between Pyongyang and Washington

6/24/09 Iranian regime regains the streets by force

6/23/09 Brain drain takes toll at Citi and BofA

By David Ellis, CNNMoney.com

Many top traders and bankers have left the financial giants for rivals. The trend may continue as long as Citi and BofA remain under the government's thumb.

6/22/09 Kill bill restricting handgun ownership

"Author and foreign policy expert Michael Ledeen has published a letter reportedly from the office of Mir Hossein Mousavi, in which the Iranian opposition leader criticizes President Barack Obama for saying Mousavi and Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadenijad are 'two of a kind.'

The Army is preparing for a new offensive in South Waziristan. A US drone strike Thursday killed at least nine in the area.

Thousands defy ban as Mousavi reportedly urges strike if he's arrested