Earning that Nobel Prize every day!

[Dhalgren]

Obama seeks to expand arms exports by trimming approval process

By Maggie Bridgeman | McClatchy Newspapers

WASHINGTON — The United States is currently the world biggest weapons supplier — holding 30 per cent of the market — but the Obama administration has begun modifying export control regulations in hopes of enlarging the U.S. market share, according to U.S. officials.

President Barack Obama already has taken the first steps by tucking new language into the Iran sanctions bill signed in early July. His aides are now compiling the "munitions list," which regulates the sale of military items.
<snip>

Critics say the reforms are being rushed and warn that the expedited procedures could allow weapons technology to fall into the wrong hands.

India, which currently is seeking 126 fighter-jets worth over $10 billion, 10 large transport aircraft worth $6 billion, and other multi-billion dollar defense sales, could be among the possible beneficiaries. Allies seeking advanced U.S. weaponry and equipment, who now often buy elsewhere due to the cumbersome U.S. approval process, would draw immediate benefit from the reforms, U.S. officials said.

Obama first called for the reforms in August 2009, then referred to them in his Jan. 27 State of the Union address as an element toward doubling exports by 2015.

In the House of Representatives, Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Howard Berman, (D-Calif.), is drafting a bill that parallels the president's plan.

- Much more at link...

This is change you can believe in!


http://www.mcclatchydc.com/2010/07/29/98337/obama-seeks-to-expand-arms-exports.html

[SidDithers]

1. Unrec...

McClatchy seems to be the go-to source for anti-Obama spew.

Sid

[Stinky The Clown]

2. Odd. During the bush reign they were the go-to for "truth"

Were you a DUer during the Bush years? I can't recall.

[SidDithers]

3. I've been a DU'er longer than you...

which doesn't mean a damn thing.

Sid

[Stinky The Clown]

4. By gosh you have, Sid. I just never noticed you before

Never knew you were Canadian, either. I have a few friends that are your neighbors.

You wouldn't like them.

[SidDithers]

11. You have friends?...

The world is full of wonders.

Sid

[Stinky The Clown]

14. That's pretty amateur, Sid, even for you.

[SidDithers]

21. "even for you" puts a lie to "never noticed you before"...

You're so cute when you're disingenuous.

Sid

[Stinky The Clown]

22. Okay, ya got me on a technicality.

My intent was to say I never noticed you until the recent left-center wars. "Never" said in the present tense was, indeed, misleading.

Of course, you knew all that but still saw it as your big chance to lay a lick on me.

So I'll give ya that point on a technical.

Ballgames are lost on less.

[OnyxCollie]

9. The unrec crew

has discovered the full potential of the memory hole. It keeps their illusions nice and shiny.

Edit: typo.

[Dhalgren]

16. Yes. I have always thought that McClatchy was one of the only

news organizations in this country that actually went after the "truth". To condemn them now, because of criticism of Obama is pretty shoddy...

[frylock]

19. if by pretty shoddy you mean fucking pathetic..

then, yes. it is pretty shoddy.

[Enrique]

5. this is the kind of story that sets McClatchy apart

k & r

[Catherina]

6. The real shame is that they gave it to him n/t

[katandmoon]

7. K&R for your thread title alone!

Great big raspberry to the oddly bland yet never-ending warmongering president I regret every day that I voted for.

[xiamiam]

15. yep..quite a sentence...nt

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

8. De-regulation you can believe in!

[OnyxCollie]

10. K&R. nt

[xchrom]

12. Imagine if this were all green products - manufactured and sold abroad. Nt

[xiamiam]

13. beyond disgusted with this direction..nt

[JoseGaspar]

17. But, but... I thought they wanted to sell green stuff?

Mike Whitney wrote in Eurasia Review, recently: "Obama intends to double exports within the next decade. Every other nation has the exact same plan. They'd rather weaken their own currencies and starve workers than raise salaries and fund government work programs."

Export what?

Now, we know.

[Starry Messenger]

23. Maybe the munitions are organic. nt

[Enrique]

18. Taliban are using our Stinger missiles against us

the ones we gave them when they were the "Freedom Fighters"

http://news.yahoo.com/s/atlantic/5biggestrevelationsofwikileaksdocuments4453

30 Years Later, Taliban Still Have Stingers During the anti-Soviet Afghan War of the 1980s, the U.S. helped the Afghan insurgents secure stinger missiles. After the Soviet military withdrew and during the civil war of the 1990s, which is when the Taliban first emerged, the U.S. attempted to recover all of the missiles. But the New York Times reports, "The Taliban have used portable heat-seeking missiles against allied aircraft, a fact that has not been publicly disclosed by the military. This type of weapon helped the Afghan mujahedeen defeat the Soviet occupation in the 1980s."

Also, thousands of grenades we gave the Central American "freedom fighters" are still being used today, by the Mexican drug cartels.

I wonder how many decades the weapons we're selling now will still be out there blowing people up, including blowing up Americans in whatever war we're involved in then.

[PattyRussell]

20. No surprises here

Nobel Peace Prize fraud Barack Obama has always been pro-war.
No surprises here.

The matter of his actual policy and political record has always been avoided by liberals who bowed down to him. If Obama was such (as many "progressives" seem to need to believe) an "antiwar" candidate, why has he offered so much substantive policy support to the criminal occupation and the broader imperial "war on terror." Here are some highlights from a summary of Obama's U.S. Senate voting record:

"1/26/05: Obama voted to confirm Condoleezza Rice for Secretary of State. Rice was largely responsible...for the deaths of hundreds of thousands of innocent victims in unnecessary wars...Roll call 2"

"2/01/05: Obama was part of a unanimous consent agreement not to filibuster the nomination of lawless torturer Alberto Gonzales as chief law enforcement officer of the United States (U.S. Attorney General)."

"2/15/05: Obama voted to confirm Michael Chertoff, a proponent of water-board torture... man behind the round-up of thousands of people of Middle-Eastern descent following 9/11. By Roll call 10."

"4/21/05: Obama voted to make John 'Death Squad' Negroponte the National Intelligence Director. In Central America, John Negroponte was connected to death squads that murdered nuns and children in sizable quantities. He is suspected of instigating death squads while in Iraq, resulting in the current insurgency. Instead of calling for Negroponte's prosecution, Obama rewarded him by making him National Intelligence Director. Roll call 107"

"4/21/05: Obama voted for HR 1268, war appropriations in the amount of approximately $81 billion. Much of this funding went to Blackwater USA and Halliburton and disappeared. Roll call 109 "

"7/01/05: Obama voted for H.R. 2419, termed 'The Nuclear Bill' by environmental and peace groups. It provided billions for nuclear weapons activities, including nuclear bunker buster bombs. It contains full funding for Yucca Mountain, a threat to food and water in California, Nevada, Arizona and states across America. Roll call 172 ."

"9/26/05 & 9/28/05: Obama failed and refused to place a hold on the nomination of John Roberts, a supporter of permanent detention of Americans without trial, and of torture and military tribunals for Guantanamo detainees."

"10/07/05: Obama voted for HR2863, which appropriated $50 billion in new money for war. Roll call 2 ."

"11/15/05: Obama voted for continued war, again. Roll call 326 was the vote on the Defense Authorization Act (S1042) which kept the war and war profiteering alive, restricted the right of habeas corpus and encouraged terrorism. Pursuant to his pattern, Obama voted for this. ."

"12/21/05: Obama confirmed his support for war by voting for the Conference Report on the Defense Appropriations Act (HR 2863), Roll call 366, which provided more funding to Halliburton and Blackwater. "

"5/2/06: Obama voted for money for more war by voting for cloture on HR 4939, the emergency funding to Halliburton, Blackwater and other war profiteers. Roll call 103 ."

"5/4/06: Obama, again, voted to adopt HR4939: emergency funding to war profiteers. Roll call 112 ."

"6/13/06: Obama voted to commend the armed services for a bombing that killed innocent people and children and reportedly resulted in the death of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi... Michael Berg, whose son was reportedly killed by al-Zarqawi, condemned the attack and expressed sorrow over the innocent people and children killed in the bombing that Obama commended. Roll call 168 ."

"6/15/06: Obama voted for the conference report on HR4939, a bill that gave warmongers more money to continue the killing and massacre of innocent people in Iraq and allows profiteers to collect more money for scamming the people of New Orleans. Roll Call 171 ."

"6/15/06: Obama, again, opposed withdrawal of the troops, by voting to table a motion to table a proposed amendment would have required the withdrawal of US. Armed Forces from Iraq and would have urged the convening of an Iraq summit (S Amdt 4269 to S. Amdt 4265 to S2766) Roll Call 174 "

"6/22/06: Obama voted against withdrawing the troops by opposing the Kerry Amendment (S. Amdt 4442 to S 2766) to the National Defense Authorization Act. The amendment, which was rejected, would have brought our troops home. Roll Call 181 "

"6/22/06: Obama voted for cloture (the last effective chance to stop) on the National Defense Authorization Act (S 2766), which provided massive amounts of funding to defense contractors to continue the killing in Iraq. Roll Call 183."

"6/22/06: Obama again voted for continued war by voting to pass the National Defense Authorization Act (S 2766) for continued war funding. Roll Call 186 .

9/7/06: Obama voted to give more money to profiteers for more war (H..R. 5631). Roll Call 239 "

"9/29/06: Obama voted vote for the conference report on more funding for war, HR 5631. Roll Call 261 ."

"11/16/06: Obama voted for nuclear proliferation in voting to pass HR 5682, a bill to exempt the United States-India Nuclear Proliferation Act from requirements of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954. Roll Call 270 ."

"12/06/06: Obama voted to confirm pro-war Robert M. Gates to be Secretary of Defense. Gates is a supporter of Bush's policies of pre-emptive war and conquest of foreign countries. Roll Call 272 "

Keeping with his consistently pro-war imperial rhetoric if you remember Obama used his Nobel Peace Prize acceptance speech to reiterate his threats against Iran.

BTW that's just the short list before he became POTUS.

[earth mom]

24. War IS Peace doncha know?

:puke:

[blindpig]

25. Undoubtably this will make the world a safer place...........

Alfred Nobel weeps.

[Octafish]

26. Recommend.

I must've missed during the campaign when he outlined his plan to increase war exports.

War is good for business: Money trumps peace.

Some things never change.

[grahamhgreen]

27. Another bad decision.

[tex-wyo-dem]

28. America's greatest export...

Shit that kills people.

Fucking wonderful.

And the MIC gravy train just keeps rolling along.

Digusting beyond measure.

[BrklynLiberal]

29. Disappointment hardly begins to describe the feelings this engenders.

:cry: