Another Bush tactic of winning votes

[Noname]

Everytime Bush is falling in the poll numbers, for some odd reason, a new bulletin is being issued about a possible terrorist attack in the US. I find that odd.

Bush and his cronies are probably, or should I say, more than likely are just putting fear into the American people knowing damn well, these so-called latest threats aren't real. I say this, because Bush claims to be doing something about terrorists, yet, never seem to mention how he found word of these threats being made, nor is he hitting those places the threat notes are being sent from, only saying it is from bin Laden's followers, if that. If these notes/letters are coming via email, why can't he track the location of these places it is being sent from and attack that particular place? Reason? It is a fluke. Bush knows this, the majority of the American people don't, and Bush likes this, since he can go around telling the American people "See, I am making America safe.".

If someone is going to attack you and wants it to be successful, they won't warn you about it, they would just do it. Think about it. Look at how the terrorist bombings that have been happening ever since Bush invaded Iraq, no pre-warnings were made to the people (Americans included, since there are US military personnel there), those bombings just happen without warnings first.

[Barefoot In Kailua]

•¤Madonna¤• said:

Everytime Bush is falling in the poll numbers, for some odd reason, a new bulletin is being issued about a possible terrorist attack in the US. I find that odd.

Bush and his cronies are probably, or should I say, more than likely are just putting fear into the American people knowing damn well, these so-called latest threats aren't real. I say this, because Bush claims to be doing something about terrorists, yet, never seem to mention how he found word of these threats being made, nor is he hitting those places the threat notes are being sent from, only saying it is from bin Laden's followers, if that. If these notes/letters are coming via email, why can't he track the location of these places it is being sent from and attack that particular place? Reason? It is a fluke. Bush knows this, the majority of the American people don't, and Bush likes this, since he can go around telling the American people "See, I am making America safe.".

If someone is going to attack you and wants it to be successful, they won't warn you about it, they would just do it. Think about it. Look at how the terrorist bombings that have been happening ever since Bush invaded Iraq, no pre-warnings were made to the people (Americans included, since there are US military personnel there), those bombings just happen without warnings first.

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CNN/USA/Gallup: Bush Got Bounce from Kerry's Convention

The first poll taken in its entirety after the Democratic Convention shows a significant bounce - for the Bush Cheney ticket.

A CNN/USA Today/Gallup poll released Sunday shows that among likely voters, President Bush reaped a five point bounce from the Democratic confab, and he now leads Sen. Kerry, 50 to 47 percent.

The new numbers represent a sharp reversal from a July 19-21 CNN/USA Today/Gallup survey, which had Kerry leading Bush by two points, 49 to 47 percent.
Even among registered voters - a group that typically trends more Democratic than likely voters - Bush picked-up a one-point bounce.

Commenting on the negative bounce for the Kerry Edwards ticket, dejected CNN political analyst Bill Schnieder said Sunday, "The convention rallied voters, but it rallied Republicans more than Democrats."

"All those questioned, were questioned after John Kerry's acceptance speech," lamented CNN's Wolf Blitzer.



Btw, what a ridiculous quote from that air head Madonna.

[Gorf]

I liked the headline ordering I saw today:


"Bush plans August attack on Kerry."


followed by:


"Government considers raising threat level."

[Barefoot In Kailua]

{ said:

>-(Gorf)-<[} link=board=news&thread=1091378315&start=2#0 date=1091387305]I liked the headline ordering I saw today:


"Bush plans August attack on Kerry."


followed by:


"Government considers raising threat level."

How do you like the results of the new gallop poll? ;D

[Gorf]

Barefoot said:

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

CNN/USA/Gallup: Bush Got Bounce from Kerry's Convention

The first poll taken in its entirety after the Democratic Convention shows a significant bounce - for the Bush Cheney ticket.

A CNN/USA Today/Gallup poll released Sunday shows that among likely voters, President Bush reaped a five point bounce from the Democratic confab, and he now leads Sen. Kerry, 50 to 47 percent.

The new numbers represent a sharp reversal from a July 19-21 CNN/USA Today/Gallup survey, which had Kerry leading Bush by two points, 49 to 47 percent.
Even among registered voters - a group that typically trends more Democratic than likely voters - Bush picked-up a one-point bounce.

Commenting on the negative bounce for the Kerry Edwards ticket, dejected CNN political analyst Bill Schnieder said Sunday, "The convention rallied voters, but it rallied Republicans more than Democrats."

"All those questioned, were questioned after John Kerry's acceptance speech," lamented CNN's Wolf Blitzer.

Btw, what a ridiculous quote from that air head Madonna.

There there is the Newsweek report of the Kerry bounce from the convention BiK:
-----------------------------------------------------------

July 31 - Coming out of the Democratic National Convention in Boston, Sen. John Kerry now holds a seven-point lead over President George W. Bush (49 percent to 42 percent) in a three-way race with independent Ralph Nader (3 percent), according to the latest NEWSWEEK poll The poll was taken over two nights, both before and after Kerry's acceptance speech. Respondents who were queried after Kerry's Thursday night speech gave the Democrat a ten-point lead over Bush. Three weeks ago, Kerry’s lead was three points.

Kerry’s four-point “bounce” is the smallest in the history of the NEWSWEEK poll. There are several factors that may have contributed to the limited surge, including the timing of the poll. On Thursday, Kerry had just a two-point lead over Bush (47 percent to 45 percent), suggesting that his Friday night speech had a significant impact. Additionally, Kerry’s decision to announce his vice-presidential choice of John Edwards three weeks before the convention may have blunted the gathering’s impact. And limited coverage by the three major networks also may have hurt Kerry.

Still, Kerry and Edwards have gained ground on several key election issues. For the first time in the NEWSWEEK poll, as many voters strongly back Kerry as strongly back Bush (31 percent to 30 percent). In an election expected to be decided by a small number of unaffiliated voters, independents now lean toward Kerry by a margin of 45 percent to 39 percent, with Nader pulling 7 percent. And voters are becoming more likely to predict a Kerry victory in November: Forty-four percent say Kerry will win vs. 43 percent who predict Bush.

Voters are deadlocked at 46 percent over who they would trust more with handling the situation in Iraq (Bush had enjoyed a 15 point lead in March). They also just barely prefer Bush to Kerry (48 percent to 43 percent) on handling terror and homeland security, issues on which they had preferred the president by 21 points in March. This is significant because the top issues among voters are terrorism (21 percent), the economy (19 percent), Iraq (18 percent) and health care (15 percent).

Kerry gets higher ratings as someone who can be trusted “to make the right decisions during an international crisis” (53 percent Kerry versus 48 percent Bush). Six in 10 voters (58 percent) are dissatisfied with the direction the country is headed and, domestically, more voters believe Bush’s policies have hurt (43 percent) rather than helped (33 percent) the economy. Voters also feel they would far more trust Kerry (55 percent) than Bush (32 percent) with issues pertaining to health care and Medicare.

Meanwhile, Bush’s own approval ratings continue to slip. Forty-five percent say they approve of the job the president is doing vs. 49 percent who disapprove. Three weeks ago, Bush’s approval rating was 48 percent; his high was 82 percent in the week after the September 11 attacks.

The best news the Bush campaign gets out of the NEWSWEEK poll is that Kerry’s stance on the gay marriage issue lies outside of the mainstream. Voters choose Bush’s less permissive stance on gay marriage by a wide margin (46 percent to 33 percent) as the position that best reflects their own views. However, this potential wedge issue may be tempered by the fact that voters vastly prefer Kerry’s progressive stance on stem cell research by a margin of 53 percent to 26 percent.

On the heels of a star-studded week—which featured unequivocal support for Kerry from former president Bill Clinton; Ron Reagan, the son of a beloved Republican president; rising star Barack Obama and Vietnam vet Sen. Max Cleland—the Democratic Party’s nominee now boasts stronger ratings than the president on being “personally likeable” (67 percent agree with that description of Kerry, 62 percent of the president); on being someone who cares about “someone like you” (57 percent feel this describes Kerry, 44 percent Bush); and on having “strong leadership qualities” (31 percent don’t see these in Kerry whereas 38 percent don’t see them in Bush).

With the major networks broadcasting very little of the actual convention in prime time, registered voters did not watch very much of it. Just half the voters (48 percent) said they watched at least some of the convention, with 41 percent of those who did watch walking away with a more favorable view of candidate. About a quarter (24 percent) of all viewers felt less favorable.

[Gorf]

Barefoot said:

How do you like the results of the new gallop poll? ;D

I guess I prefer the results of the Newsweek poll.

[Barefoot In Kailua]

"Kerry’s four-point “bounce” is the smallest in the history of the NEWSWEEK poll."


Lol, Kerry's done!

[Gorf]

Bush was done quite some time ago, and he started half baked anyhow.

[Barefoot In Kailua]

{ said:

>-(Gorf)-<[} link=board=news&thread=1091378315&start=7#0 date=1091387923]Bush was done quite some time ago, and he started half baked anyhow.

CNN/USA/Gallup: Bush Got Bounce from Kerry's Convention

The first poll taken in its entirety after the Democratic Convention shows a significant bounce - for the Bush Cheney ticket.

A CNN/USA Today/Gallup poll released Sunday shows that among likely voters, President Bush reaped a five point bounce from the Democratic confab, and he now leads Sen. Kerry, 50 to 47 percent.

The new numbers represent a sharp reversal from a July 19-21 CNN/USA Today/Gallup survey, which had Kerry leading Bush by two points, 49 to 47 percent.
Even among registered voters - a group that typically trends more Democratic than likely voters - Bush picked-up a one-point bounce.

Commenting on the negative bounce for the Kerry Edwards ticket, dejected CNN political analyst Bill Schnieder said Sunday, "The convention rallied voters, but it rallied Republicans more than Democrats."

"All those questioned, were questioned after John Kerry's acceptance speech," lamented CNN's Wolf Blitzer.

[Gorf]

Barefoot said:

CNN/USA/Gallup: Bush Got Bounce from Kerry's Convention

The first poll taken in its entirety after the Democratic Convention shows a significant bounce - for the Bush Cheney ticket.

A CNN/USA Today/Gallup poll released Sunday shows that among likely voters, President Bush reaped a five point bounce from the Democratic confab, and he now leads Sen. Kerry, 50 to 47 percent.

The new numbers represent a sharp reversal from a July 19-21 CNN/USA Today/Gallup survey, which had Kerry leading Bush by two points, 49 to 47 percent.
Even among registered voters - a group that typically trends more Democratic than likely voters - Bush picked-up a one-point bounce.

Commenting on the negative bounce for the Kerry Edwards ticket, dejected CNN political analyst Bill Schnieder said Sunday, "The convention rallied voters, but it rallied Republicans more than Democrats."

"All those questioned, were questioned after John Kerry's acceptance speech," lamented CNN's Wolf Blitzer.

[/color][/quote]

You do realize that SoBB is going to be flatulent in your homr tonight for your usage of big letters, right?


Newsweek reported Kerry with a 10 point lead after his speech.


I guess we'll eventually see which poll is more accurate.



I find it interesting that Kerry's people don't publicly question GWB's "fight against terrorism" regarding his backing of the appointment of Allawi as the interim leader of Iraq.


From a Time Magazine online article:

"Why do Iraqis have such a poor opinion of Allawi? Sadoun al-Dulame, executive director of the ICRSS, pointed to one reason: "Every newspaper that has reported about his appointment has mentioned his CIA connection." Although Allawi has sniped at the U.S.-led Coalition in recent months, it's his ties to Langley that seem to have registered with Iraqis. (His organization, the Iraqi National Accord, is funded by the CIA.) "He's a CIA man, like [Ahmed] Chalabi," said Raed Abu Hassan, a Baghdad University political science post-grad. "In this country, CIA connections are political poison." It doesn't help that the Shiite Allawi is also a former Baathist, and a returning exile. Many Iraqis are scornful of politicians who left the country during the Saddam era."


Allawi was reportedly involved in terrorist car bomb attacks in Baghdad in the past.


It shows an interesting way of fighting terrorism for GWB to allow a terrorist to become the interim leader in Iraq.

[Deleted]

I am not criticizing the Bush Administration for this latest threat elevation (although I think it stinks how they use these things for political purposes), but rather I am sincerely asking: Is it a good idea to go public with these things?

If they have specific intelligence, should they be broadcasting it to the world (and the terrorists)? Don't they want to catch these guys and find out where it all leads?

I know the argument can be made that they want people to be vigilant, but, really, what good is that going to do for the general public?

I don't pretend to get this. It just seems like they are covering their butts to me, but I admit my opinion on such things doesn't matter one iota.

[sonofbarcelonabob]

{ said:

>-(Gorf)-<[} link=board=news&thread=1091378315&start=9#0 date=1091388357]

You do realize that SoBB is going to be flatulent in your homr tonight for your usage of big letters, right?

I can feel the methane building up as I speak. LOL.

[sonofbarcelonabob]

•¤Madonna¤• said:

Everytime Bush is falling in the poll numbers, for some odd reason, a new bulletin is being issued about a possible terrorist attack in the US. I find that odd.

Bush and his cronies are probably, or should I say, more than likely are just putting fear into the American people knowing damn well, these so-called latest threats aren't real. I say this, because Bush claims to be doing something about terrorists, yet, never seem to mention how he found word of these threats being made, nor is he hitting those places the threat notes are being sent from, only saying it is from bin Laden's followers, if that. If these notes/letters are coming via email, why can't he track the location of these places it is being sent from and attack that particular place? Reason? It is a fluke. Bush knows this, the majority of the American people don't, and Bush likes this, since he can go around telling the American people "See, I am making America safe.".

Wow, ya know. That is odd. That's about as odd as Slick Willy ordering that air strike on the very same day that his impeachment hearings were starting.

Weird, no?

[midwestfan]

Damned if you do and damned if you don't! There is just no making you people happy!

[midwestfan]

Captured Qaeda Figure Led Way to Information Behind Warning

By DOUGLAS JEHL and DAVID ROHDE

WASHINGTON, Aug. 1 - The unannounced capture of a figure from Al Qaeda in Pakistan several weeks ago led the Central Intelligence Agency to the rich lode of information that prompted the terror alert on Sunday, according to senior American officials.

The figure, Muhammad Naeem Noor Khan, was described by a Pakistani intelligence official as a 25-year-old computer engineer, arrested July 13, who had used and helped to operate a secret Qaeda communications system where information was transferred via coded messages.

A senior United States official would not confirm or deny that Mr. Khan had been the Qaeda figure whose capture led to the information. But the official said "documentary evidence" found after the capture had demonstrated in extraordinary detail that Qaeda members had for years conducted sophisticated and extensive reconnaissance of the financial institutions cited in the warnings on Sunday.

One senior American intelligence official said the information was more detailed and precise than any he had seen during his 24-year career in intelligence work. A second senior American official said it had provided a new window into the methods, content and distribution of Qaeda communications.

"This, for us, is a potential treasure trove," said a third senior American official, an intelligence expert, at a briefing for reporters on Sunday afternoon.

The documentary evidence, whose contents were reported urgently to Washington on Friday afternoon, immediately elevated the significance of other intelligence information gathered in recent weeks that had already been regarded as highly troubling, senior American intelligence officials said. Much of that information had come from Qaeda detainees in Afghanistan and Saudi Arabia as well as Pakistan, and some had also pointed to a possible attack on financial institutions, senior American intelligence officials said.

The American officials said the new evidence had been obtained only after the capture of the Qaeda figure. Among other things, they said, it demonstrated that Qaeda plotters had begun casing the buildings in New York, Newark and Washington even before the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.

Among the questions the plotters sought to answer, senior American intelligence officials said, were how best to gain access to the targeted buildings; how many people might be at the sites at different hours and on different days of the week; whether a hijacked oil tanker truck could serve as an effective weapon; and how large an explosive device might be required to bring the buildings down.

The American officials would say only that the Qaeda figure whose capture had led to the discovery of the documentary evidence had been captured with the help of the C.I.A. Though Pakistan announced the arrest last week of a Qaeda member, Ahmed Khalfan Ghailani, a Tanzanian wanted in connection with the bombings of American embassies in East Africa in 1998, the American officials suggested that he had not been the source of the new threat information.

An account provided by a Pakistani intelligence official made clear that the crucial capture in recent weeks had been that of Mr. Khan, who is also known as Abu Talha. The intelligence official provided information describing Mr. Khan as having assisted in evaluating potential American and Western targets for terrorist attacks, and as being representative of a "new Al Qaeda."

The Pakistani official described Mr. Khan as a fluent English speaker who had told investigators that he had visited the United States, Britain, Germany and other countries. Mr. Khan was one of thousands of Pakistani militants who trained in Afghanistan under the Taliban in the 1990's, the Pakistani official said.

If indeed Mr. Khan was the man whose arrest led the C.I.A. to new evidence, his role as a kind of clearinghouse of Qaeda communications, as described by the Pakistani intelligence official, could have made him a vital source of information. Since his arrest, Mr. Khan has described an elaborate communications system that involves the use of high and low technology, the Pakistani official said.

The question of how much to rely on information obtained from captured foes has always weighed on the intelligence business. In recent weeks, even as they cited accounts from some captured Qaeda members as the basis for new concerns about terrorism, American intelligence officials have acknowledged that another captured Qaeda figure, Ibn al-Shaykh al-Libi, had recanted claims that Iraq had provided training in illicit weapons to Qaeda members.

Mr. Libi's earlier claims had been the primary basis for assertions by President Bush and his top advisers that Iraq had provided training in "poisons and gases" to Qaeda members.

In explaining the decision to call a new terror alert, American officials would say only that the evidence obtained by the C.I.A. after the arrest of the Qaeda figure in Pakistan had provided a richer, more credible source of intelligence than could have been provided by any single individual. They declined to say whether the "documentary evidence" included physical documents or might also include electronic information stored on computers, like copies of e-mail communications.

The Qaeda communications system that Mr. Khan used and helped operate relied on Web sites and e-mail addresses in Turkey, Nigeria and the northwestern tribal areas of Pakistan, according to the information provided by a Pakistani intelligence official.

The official said Mr. Khan had told investigators that couriers carried handwritten messages or computer disks from senior Qaeda leaders hiding in isolated border areas to hard-line religious schools in Pakistan's Northwest Frontier Province.

Other couriers then ferried them to Mr. Khan on the other side of the country in the eastern city of Lahore, and the computer expert then posted the messages in code on Web sites or relayed them electronically, the Pakistani official said.

Mr. Khan had told investigators that most of Al Qaeda's communications were now done through the Internet, the official said. After a message was sent and read by the recipient, the entire communication and related files were deleted to maintain secrecy, he said. Mr. Khan had told investigators that e-mail addresses were generally not used more than a few times.

The young computer engineer, who received a bachelor's degree from a university in Karachi, is the unemployed son of an employee of Pakistan's state airline and a college botany professor, the official said. Heavily built and 6 feet 2 inches tall, he speaks English with a British accent, and was arrested carrying a fake Pakistani identification card.

The Pakistani official said Mr. Khan told investigators that he had received 25 days of training at a militant camp in Afghanistan in June 1998. By the time Mr. Khan had risen to his current position, the official said, Qaeda figures had arranged his marriage and were paying him $170 a month for rent for his house in Lahore and $90 for expenses.

Mr. Khan was in contact with the brother of the Indonesian Qaeda leader Hambali, who was studying in a religious school in Karachi, and who was deported in December 2003. Mr. Khan has told interrogators that his Qaeda handler was a Pakistani he knew as Adil or Imran, who assigned him tasks related to computer work, Web design and managing the handler's messages. His correspondents included a Saudi-based Yemeni, Egyptian and Palestinian nationals and Arabs in unknown locations, and someone described as the "in-charge" in the city of Khost in eastern Afghanistan.

Asked about the whereabouts of Osama bin Laden and his deputy, Ayman al-Zawahiri, Mr. Khan has told interrogators that even the top Qaeda commanders do not know, the Pakistani intelligence official said.


Douglas Jehl reported from Washington for this article, and David Rohde from Karachi, Pakistan.
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