Mullings An American Cyber Column By Rich Galen

US & Int'l Papers

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More "Defeats" for George Bush

Monday December 3, 2007

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As we've discussed before, everything that happens, anywhere in the world is now being described a "a defeat for George Bush."

Two such "defeats for George Bush" came to light this past week - and I'm not even counting West Virginia's loss to Pittsburgh which helped vault LSU and Ohio State into the BCS title game in January.

First came the news that John Murtha (D-Pa) who has been mentor to, and ally of, Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Ca) had changed his mind on Iraq.

For years Murtha has been among the most outspoken critics of the war in Iraq. According to Investor's Business Daily, Murtha said that President Bush's surge strategy was "delusional to say the least."

"I'm absolutely convinced right now the surge isn't working," and "there's no way you're going to have success," he told ABC in June.

According to Politico.com in July, Murtha (who is also Chairman of the House Defense Appropriations Subcommittee) told CNN's Wolf Blitzer

"As I said earlier, and you heard me say it, it's a failed policy wrapped in illusion. Nothing's gotten better."

But, after visiting Iraq last month he said "in a videoconference from his congressional district office, 'I think the surge is working.'"

And what will Speaker Pelosi be swayed by this Murtha revelation? Again, according the Politico

"This could be a real headache for us," said one top House Democratic aide, speaking on the condition of anonymity. "Pelosi is going to be furious."

A senior aide publicly admits that the Speaker of the House is rooting for America to fail in Iraq and it goes virtually unnoticed by the media (or, for that matter, by any of the Candidates for President).

The Murtha Conversion: Obviously, a defeat for George Bush.

The second defeat for the US President came just last night when it was reported by, amongst others, CNN:

"Venezuelan voters narrowly rejected a constitutional referendum that would have bolstered President Hugo Chavez's embrace of socialism and granted an indefinite extension of his eligibility to serve as president."

Venezuelan voters, according to the LA Times,

"defeated a package of constitutional reforms that could have indefinitely extended President Hugo Chavez's grip on power here. It was a shocking electoral loss for the strongman, his first in nine years at the helm."

This is the guy, you remember, who called President Bush "the Devil" during a formal speech at the United Nations and is an avowed Socialist.

According to the LA Times,

Even Venezuelans living below the poverty line -- the bedrock of Chavez's power base -- have grown increasingly skeptical about the reforms and disenchanted with Chavez.

It seems that even with all the oil revenue from Citgo, which the Voice of America calls "the American arm of Venezuela's state-owned oil company," the poorest in places like Caracas are being shortchanged.

Again, from the LAT:

"Ill feeling was being driven by higher prices and scarcities of basic foods, including milk, chicken and beans. Last week, people waited three hours in lines to purchase staples at some government-run grocery stores."

Anyone who visited an Eastern Bloc country before the fall of Communism will tell you the same story of people standing in long lines outside of a shop in Sofia, Bulgaria because a rumor had spread that butter, or milk, or toilet paper was being delivered that day.

Or walking into a pharmacy in Bucharest where there were two shopkeepers but only one item on the shelves. Not 273 copies of the same item � One item. Period.

Socialism is failing in Venezuela in the 21st Century just as it did in Eastern Europe in the 20th.

If this isn't a "defeat for George Bush," I don't know what is.

On the Secret Decoder Ring page today: Links to the IBD, Politico and LAT stories noted above; a Mullfoto showing the speed of our plane Saturday night flying from Los Angeles to Washington; and a Catchy Caption of the Day.

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