July 2007 Progress Reports

  • Iraq: Bush's Enablers, July 31, 2007
    In the New York Times yesterday, Brookings Institution analysts Michael O'Hanlon and Kenneth M. Pollack published an op-ed entitled A War We Just Might Win, in which they argue, "We are finally getting somewhere in Iraq, at least in military terms."
  • Ethics: No 'Serious Disagreement' On Gonzales Lies, July 30, 2007
    Last week, Attorney General Alberto Gonzales may have perjured himself by contradicting his own previous statements -- as well as the sworn testimony of former Deputy Attorney General James Comey and current FBI director Robert Mueller -- concerning the National Security Agency's (NSA) domestic spying program.
  • Iraq: Embassy of Oppression, July 27, 2007
    In a hearing before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee yesterday, several former managers and employees of FK reported on the conditions at the U.S. embassy in Iraq, which ranged from "deplorable" living conditions to "kidnapping" of employees.
  • Ethics: The Frontier Of Corruption, July 26, 2007
    Alaska may be the second youngest state in the country, but it's also one of the most corrupt. The state's entire congressional delegation -- Sens. Ted Stevens (R) and Lisa Murkowski (R) and Rep. Don Young (R) -- is now embroiled in a series of scandals and criminal investigations that threaten to topple Alaska's oil industry-friendly political leadership.
  • Ethics: Less Than No Confidence, July 25, 2007
    Attorney General Alberto Gonzales was put on the hot seat yesterday by the Senate Judiciary Committee and forced to resolve discrepancies in his public statements regarding the Bush administration's domestic surveillance program.
  • Economy: Pay Raise for America, July 24, 2007
    It's the first time in a decade that the federal minimum wage has risen, jumping 70 cents to $5.85 an hour.
  • Congress: Unprecedented Obstructionism, July 23, 2007
    Last week in the Senate, conservatives denied the will of the American people by filibustering a measure to end the war in Iraq. Unfortunately, such obstructionism has become a hallmark of this new Congress.
  • Health Care: Bush Vetoes Kids, July 20, 2007
    Bush threatened again this week to veto legislation that will renew and improve the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP), which provides health coverage to low-income, uninsured American children who do not qualify for Medicaid, but who cannot afford private health insurance.
  • Energy: A Cleaner Ride, July 19, 2007
    CAPAF is launching Clean My Ride, a campaign featuring webisodes of actors and activists urging the adoption of provisions "increasing gas mileage requirements and mandating the availability of e85 for flexible-fuel cars that can use either gasoline or ethanol."
  • Media: The Netroots Responds, July 18, 2007
    On Monday night, Fox News host Bill O'Reilly aired a segment full of misleading, inaccurate claims attacking the upcoming YearlyKos blogger convention, its namesake DailyKos, and one of the event's sponsors, JetBlue.
  • Iraq: Stand and Filibuster, July 17, 2007
    Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) announced yesterday that the Senate will stay up all night tonight and force lawmakers to stand and debate a bill that provides a timetable for the withdrawal of American troops.
  • Iraq: Redeployment Debate Begins Anew, July 16, 2007
    The Levin-Reed amendment provides the long-overdue start of a redeployment and real "strategic reset" of our presence in the Middle East.
  • Terrorism: Chertoff's Gastronomy, July 13, 2007
    Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff has a "gut feeling" that the United States is at an "increased risk" of a terrorist attack this summer. But as White House officials admit, there is "no credible, specific intelligence to suggest that there is an imminent threat to the homeland."
  • Iraq: The Toothless Tiger Proposal, July 12, 2007
    Throughout this month, several conservative senators have offered rhetoric suggesting they are ready to break with President Bush's escalation policy in Iraq. But instead of supporting a firm withdrawal, many are embracing weak legislation introduced by Sens. Ken Salazar (D-CO) and Lamar Alexander (R-TN) that would make the recommendations of the Iraq Study Group (ISG) official U.S. policy but without a date for withdrawal.
  • Civil Rights: A Changing Debate, July 11, 2007
    Human Rights Campaign, the nation's largest gay civil rights group, yesterday announced the first-ever televised presidential forum devoted solely to issues concerning lesbian/gay/bisexual/transgender Americans, to be aired on Aug. 9 on the Logo network.
  • Iraq: Moment of Truth, July 10, 2007
    The Congressional Research Service reported on Monday that the "average monthly cost of the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan has been clocked at $12 billion."
  • Administration: Contempt Of Congress, July 9, 2007
    Bush's defiance of the subpoenas may lead Congress "to seek criminal contempt citations against the White House," which would lead to what could be an unprecedented constitutional struggle.
  • Environment: Climate S.O.S., July 6, 2007
    The Bush administration is waging an assault on reason, manipulating the facts and "staying the course" on a policy of environmental destruction.
  • Administration: The Wrong Type of Amnesty, July 5, 2007
    The overwhelming majority of Americans are deeply upset over the President's clemency for a felon who helped launch the country into war.
  • Administration: A Felon Goes Free, July 3, 2007
    President Bush yesterday commuted Libby's 2.5 year prison sentence, hours after an appeals court ruled that Libby could not delay serving his jail time while he appealed his convictions.
  • Iraq: 'Bring Them On' Revisited, July 2, 2007
    The U.S. presence on the ground in Iraq has fomented a deadly civil war, and it is well past time to begin the redeployment of U.S. troops out of Iraq.