Something I love about Egyptian blogs is our tendency to complain. Firstly because we’re Egyptian and its our nature and secondly because we have so much to complain about.
Among our complaints this week: international scandals, intellectual persecution, the Egyptian Legal system (or lack thereof), the question of beauty and as usual, religious persecution rounding out the group, writes D.B. Shobrawy.
War is raging in the island of Basilan, located in the southernmost part of the Philippines. An all-out war was recently declared by the government against the Abu Sayyaf bandit group accused of beheading 14 Marines last month. The military offensives have displaced thousands of families and imperiled the peace negotiations between the government and other Muslim rebel forces.
USA Today: “Like its predecessors, the Bush administration faces a large number of vacancies in its last months, as political appointees explore opportunities in the private sector. Finding replacements won’t be so easy, analysts say, especially given the conflict between the Republican White House and the Democratic Senate that must confirm Bush’s picks.”
Sen. Joe Biden’s recent success with his new book “has given him a new source of esteem,” the Chicago Tribune reports.
“At one point this month, Promises ranked directly behind runaway favorite Freakonomics in the non-fiction category. To be sure, total sales somewhere between 8,000 and 15,000 copies don’t promise an uptick in opinion polls. Prominent friends and longtime colleagues have helped to promote the book by hosting parties, promotion events where local booksellers typically offer copies for purchase. But an appearance at No. 15 on the New York Times best-seller list is a valuable achievement for the marketing of a book — and a candidate — even if it did only last for one week before dropping several slots.”
KTVB-TV obtained the police recording of Sen. Larry Craig’s post-arrest interview.
Police officer Dave Karsnia: “I just, I just, I guess, I guess I’m gonna say I’m just disappointed in you sir. I’m just really am. I expect this from the guy that we get out of the hood. I mean, people vote for you.”
“Before they throw stones, Obama and Edwards may decide to look at their own homes.”
– Former Gore campaign manager Donna Brazile, quoted by the Wall Street Journal, cautioning Sen. Hillary Clinton’s top rivals on criticizing her ties to fundraising scandals.
In the September 4 special election primary for former Rep. Marty Meehan’s (D-MA) House seat in Massachusettss 5th district, Niki Tsongas still leads the Democratic primary by double-digits, but her lead has been halved over the last two weeks, according to a new SurveyUSA poll.
Though she led by 22% two weeks ago, Tsgonas now tops Eileen Donoghue by just 11 points, 40% to 29%. Jamie Eldridge is in third with 15%, while all other candidates are in single digits.
“Given the unpredictability of a never-before Day-After-Labor-Day primary, with momentum for Donoghue and comparatively flat support for Tsongas, the outcome could be closer than anticipated and an upset cannot be ruled out.”
The AP’s Ron Fournier reminds us that the endorsement by the International Association of Fire Fighters turned around Sen. John Kerry’s all-but-dead presidential campaign in the fall of 2003.
Likewise, this week’s IAFF endorsement of Sen. Christopher Dodd could be the spark that he needs to push into the top tier of candidates.
“Firefighters tend to be leaders in their communities who are more respected than business, political, media elite — the type of people who can persuade neighbors and friends to show up at a caucus site on a cold winter night in Iowa.”
In assessing the political damage to Senate Republicans, the Cook Political Report’s Jennifer Duffy notes the only way that Sen. Larry Craigs problems “will have a measurable impact on the 2008 Senate race landscape is if the embattled incumbent decides to run for re-election.”
So it’s no surprise that Sen. John Ensign (R-NV), “who leads the Republican effort to reclaim the majority in the Senate,” joined a growing number of Republicans suggesting Craig resign, according to the Idaho Statesman.
Said Ensign: “I think the pressure will continue to build.”
The American Research Group released new polling results for the 2008 presidential caucus and primary races in Iowa, New Hampshire, and South Carolina.
Sen. Hillary Clinton continues to lead in all three states based on support from women. However, the poll is a bit of an outlier since most others — including a new Time poll — put John Edwards solidly ahead.
On the GOP side, Mitt Romney leads in Iowa and New Hampshire, while Rudy Giuliani is ahead in South Carolina. However, this biggest news is that Mike Huckabee got a bounce from his second place finish in the recent Ames Straw Poll. Huckabee is now at 17% in Iowa, 12% in New Hampshire, and 11% in South Carolina.
