Hillary Warns Pakistan, Mohsen Rezai Throws His Turban Into the Ring

Robert Scheer
Robert Mackey
David Broder
Ali Soufan

"What has happened so far is no more than the overture to the first act of this opera." - David Broder

"It was the right decision to release these memos, as we need the truth to come out." - Ali Soufan

“I haven’t made no money yet.” - Levi Johnston

Just to show how worried US officials are over the state of Pakistan, here is Hillary Clinton being pretty blunt and honest to the House Foreign Affairs Committee, from the NY Times:"Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton sharply rebuked the government of Pakistan on Wednesday, accusing the country’s leaders of surrendering large tracts of territory to the Taliban and saying that the country’s instability is a “mortal threat” to world peace.

“I think that the Pakistani government is basically abdicating to the Taliban and to the extremists,” The secretary’s words were striking, aimed as they were at a nation that Washington has described as a key ally in the international campaign against terrorism. Her remarks may have been aimed not just at Pakistan’s rulers but at American lawmakers reluctant to provide more money for a region that has been a trouble spot.

“If you talk to people in Pakistan, especially in the ungoverned territories, which are increasing in number, they don’t believe the state has a judiciary system that works,” she said. “It’s corrupt, it doesn’t extend its power into the countryside. So the government of Pakistan, however it is constituted, which is of course their business, not ours, must begin to deliver government services.”

Otherwise Ms. Clinton warned, “they are going to lose out to those who show up and claim that they can solve people’s problems, and then they will impose this harsh form of oppression on women and others.” The questions we should be asking are what plans do we have to extract Pakistan's nuclear arsenal if it does fall to the Taliban? Those plans should be in place right not, ready to be enacted within the next few months...

Many people within Iran see Mahmoud Ahmadinejad as an embarrassment to Iranian interests, especially after the walkout on his speech at the racism summit. Another hardline conservative has announced that he would run against Ahmadinejad for President, as reported by the NY Times: "Mohsen Rezai, announced Wednesday that he would enter the presidential race, indicating additional splintering among the country’s conservatives.

Mr. Rezai, who oversaw the Revolutionary Guards from 1981 to 1997, had been seeking to unite conservative politicians behind another candidate to compete against President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Mr. Rezai, who has accused Mr. Ahmadinejad of mismanaging the economy, will run as an independent candidate, the ISNA news agency reported.

His candidacy underscores the political fragmenting of a conservative faction known as the Principlists, which threw its support behind Mr. Ahmadinejad when he ran for president in 2004. Some leading figures who supported Mr. Ahmadinejad then have not publicly backed him this time. Mr. Rezai is not necessarily considered a strong candidate, but because of his association with the Revolutionary Guards, he will probably attract conservative voters who might otherwise vote for Mr. Ahmadinejad. The president is expected to have strong support from the poor and the Revolutionary Guards, among others.


Politicians who favor more political and social openness, along with closer ties to the West, have also been unable to coalesce around a single candidate. They are divided between a former prime minister, Mir Hossein Mousavi, and a former speaker of Parliament, Mehdi Karroubi.

Opponents have accused Mr. Ahmadinejad of economic mismanagement and of using government money to attract support for a second term. His government has come under attack in the past month for distributing about 400,000 tons of potatoes around the country and giving bonuses, including gold coins, to civil servants, Iranian newspapers have reported.

In another development, Iran announced Wednesday that it welcomed nuclear talks and said it was ready to offer a proposal to resolve the dispute over its uranium enrichment activities, the state-run IRNA news agency reported. Mr. Ahmadinejad said last week that Iran would take part in talks, and Wednesday’s statement appeared to be an official response to an April 8 invitation by six major powers for a meeting."

And on the home front,Politico reports on dumb-as-a-box-of-rocks Levi Johnston, who: "said during an interview on CNN's "Larry King Live" that he has hired an attorney in hopes of compelling former fiancée Bristol Palin to honor his visitation rights.

Johnston last saw his 4-month-old son "a couple weeks ago," he said, adding that going over to the Palin household to see Tripp is "an uncomfortable thing."

Despite his threat of legal action, Johnston insists that he does not "want to stir anything up." But Levi, how can you not stir things up when you hire a snake? Of course the Palin family is mad at you, you knocked up their daughter and now you have walked away. Try getting a job and making child support...

And to warm you up for the late night jokes, TPM is reporting that a movie is going to be made about Bernie Madoff, called Scumdog Millionaire...

Late night jokes:

"What was it, 101 today? Man, it was hot. People were sweating like Miss California at the gay pride parade." --Jay Leno

"Well, here's no surprise, Exxon has earned the top spot in the new 2009 Fortune 500 list. Last year, Exxon took in -- this is an unbelievable number -- $443 billion in revenue, and made a profit of $45 billion. You know, here's my question: why not have Exxon bail out the car companies? I mean, one can't live without the other, right?" --Jay Leno

"They are now holding national elections in India. You know, voting over there lasts a month. They have a month of voting, which seems long for an election. Unless you're from Minnesota. Then it's like nothing." --Jay Leno

"So many newspapers all across the country are going out of business. It's pretty scary, so congratulations to The New York Times this week, which this week won five Pulitzer Prizes. I read about it online on Google News." --Jay Leno

"And as the economy lags, the Army is getting more and more selective now. The Army announced this week they will no longer accept drug addicts and felons. But the good news is there's always Congress, the NFL, and show business." --Jay Leno

"A journalist from Playboy magazine attempted to withstand 15 seconds of waterboarding. And he's going to write all about it in an article that no one will ever read." --Craig Ferguson

"Bill Clinton and George W. Bush will appear together on stage in Toronto for a two-hour, friendly debate. Each side gets to pick a topic, so the first hour will be centered on the international banking crisis. The second hour will be dedicated to Nascar trivia." --Jimmy Fallon

David Letterman's Top Ten Thoughts Going Through the Somali Pirate's Mind While in New York City

10. This city is more dangerous than downtown Mogadishu.
9. It's like my own episode of "Gossip Girl."
8. Maybe Madonna will adopt me.
7. If I don't get a corned beef on rye soon, I'm gonna plotz!
6. How can I meet Zac Efron?
5. Go Niners!
4. Any chance of getting "Jersey Boys" tickets?
3. This would be a pretty sweet trip if it weren't for the handcuffs and jail.
2. Why the hell are these people lining up to see Letterman?
1. You charge $40 for parking, and I'm the pirate?