Those Darn Lefties...

On the day of the big iraq vote, as expected the Presidents supports such as Bill O'Reilly were out in force - claiming this to be a big victory for the President("he looks like a sage") and that left were appolectic and powerless ("the far-left websites have gone silent") - it's not hard to find evidence to the contrary.

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Elections Are Not Democracy : The United States has essentially stopped trying to build a democratic order in Iraq, and is simply trying to gain stability and legitimacy

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Audit: $9 billion unaccounted for in Iraq: WASHINGTON --The U.S. occupation authority in Iraq was unable to keep track of nearly $9 billion it transferred to government ministries, which lacked financial controls, security, communications and adequate staff, an inspector general has found.

The U.S. officials relied on Iraqi audit agencies to account for the funds but those offices were not even functioning when the funds were transferred between October 2003 and June 2004, according to an audit by a special U.S. inspector general.

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Judge Backs Guantanamo Detainee Challenges : WASHINGTON - A federal judge ruled Monday that foreign terror suspects held in Cuba can challenge their confinement in U.S. courts and she criticized the Bush administration for holding hundreds of people without legal rights.

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Halliburton to End Iran Operations : HOUSTON — Halliburton Co. will pull out of Iran after its current contracts there are wound down, its chief executive said Friday.

"The business environment currently in Iran is not conducive to our overall strategy and objectives," Chief Executive Dave Lesar said in a conference call.

The Houston-based company, formerly headed by Vice President Dick Cheney, has been criticized for its work in Iraq, where it is the largest private contractor with revenue totaling more than $10 billion.

The company is under investigation for possible overcharges for fuel and food services connected to its Iraq contracts.

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Election Can't Vindicate a Misguided War: HEADLINE: LEADING ARTICLE: THESE ELECTIONS INSPIRE HOPE FOR DEMOCRACY, BUT CANNOT VINDICATE A MISGUIDED WAR

THERE IS no need to indulge in the soaring rhetoric of freedom so beloved of George Bush to feel heartened by what happened in Iraq yesterday. Whether it turns out that 50, 60 or more than 70 per cent of all registered Iraqis voted, a sufficient number risked the walk to the polling station to make this first attempt at a free election for half a century a credible exercise in democracy.

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Bush says he's 'unfamiliar' with Voting Rights Act : President George W. Bush met with the Congressional Black Caucus Wednesday for the first time as a group in nearly four years, but what CBC members said stood out the most was the president's declaration that he was "unfamiliar" with the Voting Rights Act of 1965, one of the most significant pieces of legislation passed in the history of the United States.

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Vyan