Think Progress

April 2007 Progress Reports

• Ethics: Loyal Wolfie, April 30, 2007
  Wolfowitz has shirked the World Bank's unifying mission in favor of an advancing his private agenda. Today, Wolfowitz "faces a panel of the bank's directors in Washington over his personal intervention to secure pay increases and benefits for his girlfriend."
• Iraq: Turning The Tables, April 27, 2007
  President Bush pledged to veto an Iraq war spending bill, coinciding with the four year anniversary of his infamous "Mission Accomplished" declaration.
• Ethics: Breaking The Culture Of Corruption, April 26, 2007
  The American public backs aggressive congressional oversight. In a recent poll, 72 percent said that they support the investigation into the prosecutor purge.
• Economy: From Poverty To Prosperity, April 25, 2007
  Today, CAP's Task Force on Poverty released its final recommendations in a report -- "From Poverty to Prosperity" -- that calls for "a national goal of cutting poverty in half in the next 10 years and proposes a strategy to reach that goal."
• Environment: Hypersensitive And Still In Denial, April 24, 2007
  While the world celebrated Earth Day, President Bush failed to even mention the words "global warming" in his annual address.
• Iraq: Credibility Lost, April 23, 2007
  It is said that a "gaffe" in Washington, D.C. occurs when someone tells the truth but isn't supposed to. Such was the case last week, when Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) acknowledged what the American people have long known: the U.S. military, already stretched to its breaking point, cannot effectively police an anarchic civil war in a country of 26 million people.
• Ethics: "I Don't Recall", April 20, 2007
  What emerged from Attorney General Alberto Gonzales's testimony to the Senate Judiciary Committee yesterday was a picture of an inept manager who was, at best, unaware of major personnel decisions being made within his department, and at worst, complicit in the Bush administration's plan to politicize the ranks of the U.S. attorneys.
• Women's Rights: New Court Begins Chipping Away , April 19, 2007
  The Supreme Court dealt a damaging blow to women's rights, upholding a law that banned some mid-term abortions without an exception for the health of the mother
• Iraq: Bush's New Bubble, April 18, 2007
  President Bush will meet today with Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) to discuss Congress's Iraq withdrawal legislation. Bush has spent the last several weeks driving home three misleading talking points justifying his intent to veto this bill over the wishes of the American public.
• Economy: Tax Day's Unfairness, April 17, 2007
  Since President Bush entered office, he has made tax policy a focus of his domestic agenda. "These are the basic ideas that guide my tax policy: lower income taxes for all, with the greatest help going for those most in need," said Bush of his "bold and fair tax relief plan." But a majority of Americans will not feel Bush's alleged tax relief today, as his tax schemes have disproportionately aided the wealthy, often at the expense of the poor and middle class.
• Ethics: Questions for Gonzales, April 16, 2007
  Tomorrow, senators will have their first chance to question Attorney General Alberto Gonzales about why the Justice Department fired eight well-respected U.S. attorneys. Gonzales released his opening statement and published an op-ed in the Washington Post yesterday, "denying that any mistakes made by his department amounted to willful misconduct."
• Administration: Presidential Records Evasion, April 13, 2007
  In recent weeks, through the congressional investigation into the firing of eight U.S. attorneys, more evidence has come to light suggesting that senior White House officials have been using political e-mail accounts provided by the Republican National Committee (RNC), apparently in an effort to evade the PRA.
• Iraq: Don't Veto Like It's 1995, April 12, 2007
  The debate over Iraq has narrowed to a basic choice: endorse a blank check for President Bush's war or begin the safe redeployment of U.S. forces.
• Ethics: Avoiding The Axe, April 11, 2007
  The media have given extensive coverage to the eight U.S. attorneys purged by the Bush administration. But only recently have reporters started looking at the remaining prosecutors -- and what it took for some of them to keep their jobs.
• Science: Supporting Lifesaving Research, April 10, 2007
  The Senate has an opportunity to send a strong, clear message that this will be the year that government lifts damaging restrictions on stem cell research,.
• Iraq: Awaiting Liberation, April 9, 2007
  Four years ago today, U.S.-led coalition forces marched into Baghdad and toppled the statue of Saddam Hussein, marking the "liberation" of Iraq. Yet "gone are the euphoric April 9 cheers of 'Good, Good, Bush' praising U.S. President George W. Bush for ousting the regime."
• International Relations: Real Leadership in Action, April 6, 2007
  The bipartisan delegation to Syria this week led by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi reflects a broad view that an aggressive diplomacy is critical to U.S. security.
• Environment: A Green Gavel, April 5, 2007
  "This is the worst environmental White House that we've ever had in American history," stated environmental lawyer and activist Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.
• International Relations: Talking To Syria, April 4, 2007
  According to the Bush administration, it is unacceptable to visit Syria -- especially if you're House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA). Pelosi is currently in Syria as part of a Middle East tour.
• Homeland Security: Sanitizing Toxic Trains, April 3, 2007
  When Iraqi insurgents blew up trucks carrying chlorine, the attacks conjured up frightening images of chemical warfare transported to American shores.
• Administration: Talking Point Self-Defense, April 2, 2007
  President Bush and congressional conservatives are circulating demonstrably false talking points about Congress' legislation on Iraq and taxes.