Durbin to appear at Morgenthaler fundraiser

How does Durbin square his past words with a fundraiser for the PAO during the debacle with Abu Garib? This is a bit much for Democrats to expect the public to swallow.

Update: Recall Colonel Morgenthaler on Abu Garbi,

Figen shared with me what it was like to spend 7 months under Iraqi occupation. As she told me the horrors of living in Kuwait under the occupation, I realized that if we had not had the first war, Saddam may have been impossible to stop with the oil under his total control. The men who did terrible things to the Kuwaitis, especially the Kuwaiti women are very similar to the men we are fighting. As people get upset about Abu Ghraib, one thing that should never be forgotten: these are men who have murdered Americans and would continue to murder Americans if given the opportunity.

The truely appalling thing for a PAO is she never wrote in her blog that it was American soldiers who blew the whistle on Abu Ghraib (I've often listed the cite for these heros from the Taguba Report). That an American Army started the investigation on its own troops who abused prisoners regardless that those prisoners may have murdered Americans, and maybe would continue to murder Americans if given the opportunity.

Not many Army's do that, and if ours had managed this episode better, it might not have cost the United States so. This PA disaster was really a bitter defeat (fueled by Durbin's poor choice of words I'll leave you all to google for yourselves) for the United States and the US Army.

(It would be nice if Morgenthaler mentioned the great work going on now with MG Stone and Task Force 134 in Iraq to make sure Abu Ghraibs never happen again.)

The Morgenthaler fundraiser e-mail in full below,

Please join Senator Dick Durbin and IL-6th Congressional District Labor, Democrats and Friends For a Grassroots Fundraiser and Rally In support of Democratic Candidate for US House of Representative Sixth District of Illinois

Labor Hosts
American Federation of Government Employees • Bakery Confectionery Tobacco and Grain Millers Local 1
Heat & Frost Insulators & Asbestos Workers Local 17 • International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers 9
International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers 21 • International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers 134
IL Postal Workers Union • International Union of Bricklayers and Allied Craftworkers District Council #1
International Union of Painters and Allied Trades District Council 30 • National Association of Letter Carriers - Branch 825
Plumbers & Pipefitters 501 • Sheet Metal Workers Local 73 • Sheet Metal Workers Local 265
Transport Workers Union Local 512 • UAW • Western Suburban Teachers Union Local 571 (IFT-AFT)

Democrat & Friend Hosts
DuPage County Democrats • Addison Township Democratic Organization
Bloomingdale Township Democratic Organization • Democratic Women of DuPage County
• Elk Grove Township Democratic Committee •
Hanover Township Democrats and Independents • Maine Township Regular Democratic Organization
Schaumburg Township Democratic Committee • York Township Democratic Organization
Democratic Party of Wayne Township • Winfield Township Democratic Organization
and
Bob Peickert – Chair, DuPage County Democrats

*Host Committee in formation

Friday June 20, 2008
5:15 – 6:00 Host Event
5:30 – 7:00 Grassroots Fundraiser & Rally

Sheet Metal Workers Local 265
205 Alexandra Way
Carol Stream, IL 60188

Host Event Levels
PAC - $1,000, $2,500 $5,000
Individual - $250, $500, $1,000

Grassroots Fundraiser & Rally
$30 Suggested Contribution
$15 suggested for labor members
*Kids Free!


Let us know you are coming! RSVP at RSVP@Jillmorgenthaler.com

For more information or to reserve your spot at the Host Reception please call Stacy at 630-980-1100

xp Bill Baar's West Side

Read more...

Jill Morgenthaler and Daniel Frawley’s Companion Security in Iraq

Morgenthaler's site tells us,

In both Iraq and Afghanistan, I believe Congress must do a better job overseeing how US money is spent. The war in Iraq is costing American taxpayers trillions of dollars. Big money non-compete defense contracts are being consummated behind closed doors for the benefit of wealthy friends of the Bush Administration with little regard to need or budget considerations. At a time of fiscal uncertainty, I will go to Congress committed to ensuring that all taxpayer dollars are spent wisely.

Morgenthaler might want to start by explaining how deeply she was involved in Alsammarae and Frawley's plans for Iraq Reconstruction funds.

Alsammarae, who lives in the Chicago area and was a college classmate of Rezko, is a dual U.S.-Iraqi citizen. He left his post as Iraq's electricity minister in May 2005, about a month after Companion got the contract. Alsammarae was accused of financial corruption by Iraqi authorities and jailed in Iraq last year before escaping and returning here.

Companion's contract called for it to fly 150 Iraqis to the United States for police-type training. Among the subjects: how to shoot AK-47 rifles.

As Frawley sought to revive the contract in spring 2006, Blagojevich's chief of staff, John Harris, directed the state's homeland security adviser, Jill Morgenthaler, to find "a military site for the training of Iraqi police forces,'' Morgenthaler wrote in an April 26, 2006, e-mail. She wrote the letter in June 2006 offering the Savanna site.

Alsammarae knows, Frawely knows, Iraqi Politicians know... it's about time Morgenthaler told the people of Illinois what she knows about all of this.

And then, does she know anything about how Blackwater got their site in Illinois?

xp Bill Baar's West Side

Read more...

Durbin's Morgenthaler endorsement

An email from her campaign,

New Endorsements With just one week to go before Illinois voters head to the polls, United States Senator Dick Durbin has endorsed Jill Morgenthaler for Congress in Illinois ’ 6th District.

Senator Durbin said:

“ Jill Morgenthaler is a mom and a patriot who served her country for 30 years in the armed forces with tours in Iraq, Bosnia, Germany and Korea .

"Over the last few years, running Illinois ’ homeland security department, Jill’s made our state safer with innovation and a can-do attitude.

Jill’s combination of commonsense Illinois values and homeland security experience make her just the right person to represent the 6th district. I lend her my support in the Democratic primary, and I look forward to helping her win in November.”

Jill has also been endorsed by the Pioneer Press, Daily Herald, Sun Times, and the Chicago Tribune.

How Durbin and Morganthaler square their words will be something Roskam should ask.

Colonel Morganthaler,

Figen shared with me what it was like to spend 7 months under Iraqi occupation. As she told me the horrors of living in Kuwait under the occupation, I realized that if we had not had the first war, Saddam may have been impossible to stop with the oil under his total control. The men who did terrible things to the Kuwaitis, especially the Kuwaiti women are very similar to the men we are fighting. As people get upset about Abu Ghraib, one thing that should never be forgotten: these are men who have murdered Americans and would continue to murder Americans if given the opportunity.

Sen Durbin, (PDF file)

When you read some of the graphic descriptions of what has occurred here -- I almost hesitate to put them in the record, and yet they have to be added to this debate. Let me read to you what one FBI agent saw. And I quote from his report:

On a couple of occasions, I entered interview rooms to find a detainee chained hand and foot in a fetal position to the floor, with no chair, food or water. Most times they urinated or defecated on themselves, and had been left there for 18-24 hours or more. On one occasion, the air conditioning had been turned down so far and the temperature was so cold in the room, that the barefooted detainee was shaking with cold....

On another occasion, the [air conditioner] had been turned off, making the temperature in the unventilated room well over 100 degrees. The detainee was almost unconscious on the floor, with a pile of hair next to him. He had apparently been literally pulling his hair out throughout the night. On another occasion, not only was the temperature unbearably hot, but extremely loud rap music was being played in the room, and had been since the day before, with the detainee chained hand and foot in the fetal position on the tile floor.

If I read this to you and did not tell you that it was an FBI agent describing what Americans had done to prisoners in their control, you would most certainly believe this must have been done by Nazis, Soviets in their gulags, or some mad regime -- Pol Pot or others -- that had no concern for human beings. Sadly, that is not the case. This was the action of Americans in the treatment of their prisoners.

I'd like to know if those abused at Abu Garib murdered Americans as Morganther said, if she believes they would continue, and if so, does she think Durbin ought never forget?

Update: Colonel Morgenthaler from today's Trib.

Morgenthaler does not support a pullout of troops and said she believes it is likely the U.S. will have to maintain a presence of 30,000 troops because of its national interests in the region. The surge is working, she said.

“What the surge is not capable of is bringing the political solutions to Iraq. I don’t know if democracy is exportable. I think it has to be homegrown,” she said.

She's a Democrat I could support. If Durbin agrees, he should say so.

Now, I wish she'd express some regret on the those Abu Garib comments and instead quote the Taguba report on the real heros from that sad public-relations defeat,

4. (U) The individual Soldiers and Sailors that we observed and believe should be favorably noted include:

a. (U) Master-at-Arms First Class William J. Kimbro, US Navy Dog Handler, knew his duties and refused to participate in improper interrogations despite significant pressure from the MI personnel at Abu Ghraib.

b. (U) SPC Joseph M. Darby, 372nd MP Company discovered evidence of abuse and turned it over to military law enforcement.

c. (U) 1LT David O. Sutton, 229th MP Company, took immediate action and stopped an abuse, then reported the incident to the chain of command.

I don't think you'll find soldiers like this in any other Army in the world.

Read more...

Col Morganthaler's free ride in the 6th

An email below from Morganthaler's campaign on the Trib's endorsement.

The Trib, and the redeploy-away-from-Iraq-now activists, really should press Morganthaler on this from her Iraq blog,

As she told me the horrors of living in Kuwait under the occupation, I realized that if we had not had the first war, Saddam may have been impossible to stop with the oil under his total control. The men who did terrible things to the Kuwaitis, especially the Kuwaiti women are very similar to the men we are fighting. As people get upset about Abu Ghraib, one thing that should never be forgotten: these are men who have murdered Americans and would continue to murder Americans if given the opportunity.

Does she still stand by it? Where the prisoners abused at Abu Garib really people who murdered Americans, or just common criminals or hapless prisoners in a very badly managed military jail?

Morganthaler and Gen Sanchez commanded our forces at the nadir of the war in Iraq with Abu Garib.

This primary is a free ride for a candidate with much to explain about her participation in it. No questions are asked, and only silence from a candidate trained in Public Relations, charged for Public Relations in Iraq; on a Public Relations debacle that devastated the Army's mission.

For Democrats to unite now around Sanchez without the press or anti-war activists asking any questions --just this bland endorsement from the Trib for a mom- does not serve America well.

The press and the left have a duty and they're failing badly.

Dear Supporter,

I’ve got some very exciting news! Today, the Chicago Tribune endorsed our campaign to take on Peter Roskam and fix the broken system in Washington.

The Tribune wrote:

“Democrat Jill Morgenthaler of Des Plaines is running under the slogan "Army colonel/businesswoman/Des Plaines mom." She served in the Army Reserve for 30 years and was most recently head of homeland security in the Blagojevich administration. She is competent, smart and thoughtful.”

Our campaign is on a roll, but we need your help. In just 3 short weeks, we’ll go to the polls and vote for the person we believe is the best candidate to take on Peter Roskam and represent our values in Washington. Here's how you you can help:

Contribute: Our fundraising deadline is today. Please consider clicking here and making a contribution of $10, $25, $50 or whatever you can afford. Your contribution will go a long way towards helping us be successful.

Volunteer: This Saturday and Sunday Jill will be in the office calling voters to tell them about her campaign and she needs help! Please plan on coming in for two hours and joining Jill. Our office is located at 190 N Swift Road in Addison, at the corner of Swift Road and Army Trail Road. We’ll have enough pizza and drinks to feed an Army but please RSVP by calling (630) 627-0900.

Our office is open seven days a week from 9 AM - 9 PM so please stop by any time you can help. If you have any questions, do not hesitate to give us a call.

The Chicago Tribune endorsement is just the beginning. We’re going all the way thru to November, sending Jill to Washington to stop the bickering, roll up her sleeves and get the things that matter most done. We’ll see you on the trail!

Thanks,

Charles Blumenthal
Campaign Manager
Jill Morgenthaler for Congress
Army Colonel. Businesswoman. Des Plaines Mom.

Read more...

An email from Tammy Duckworth

An email from Duckworth for Morganthaler; the quiet campaign in the 6th CD.

Dear Friend,

As you may have heard, I have decided not to run for Congress in 2008. I love working on behalf of the Veterans of Illinois and believe we are making a lot of progress. It is work I am committed to and I want to see it through.

But I wanted to take a moment to tell you about someone who is running for Congress, who I believe deserves our full support: my friend, Jill Morgenthaler.

Jill just stepped down from her position as Illinois ' homeland security adviser. She spent two years on the job, working with local, state, and federal authorities to keep all of us in Illinois safe. She did a remarkable job.

She's also a retired Colonel, a thirty year army Veteran, who has first hand experience in some of the most complex and dangerous regions of the world. She'll be the leader we need to help get our foreign policy back on track. When making decisions about Iraq and about other complex foreign policy issues facing our nation, Jill will ensure that sound judgment trumps partisan politics.

She's also a wife, a mother, and a 16 year resident of Des Plaines . Both of her kids went to local public schools. Jill knows that we need to take some of the financial pressure off of families in the 6th Congressional District.

She'll do it by working together with anyone—Democrat or Republican—who understands that we need to reign in runaway federal spending to lower taxes, make health care more affordable, end our dependence on foreign oil, secure our borders and keep our families safe.

I really believe in Jill and I can personally attest to what a great leader she is.

Please join me in continuing the fight we proudly waged in 2006 by giving Jill Morgenthaler the same friendship and support that you shared with me.

A contribution today of $50, $75 or $100 would go a long way toward helping Jill meet her fund raising goals for the February 5th primary and toward helping her retire Peter Roskam in 2008.

You can make your contribution securely online or mail it to Jill Morgenthaler for Congress 190 N. Swift Road Addison, IL 60101. It will really make a difference.

Thank you and God Bless,

Tammy Duckworth

Read more...

Il-6th CD: Jagla v Morganthaler

Jagla on Iraq (I guess he's still on the ballot):

“No appropriations bill will reach the floor,

until the president agrees to end the war.”

And Colonel Morganthaler,

Our troops in Iraq are patriots and heroes. I know because I served with them. They deserve a responsible game plan to get out of Iraq and the benefits they earned when they get home. Endless tours of duty? Waiting lines at the VA? That's a slap in their face. They deserve better and I will fight to make sure they get it.

Save a few posts by Bridget and Hiram, the silence on this race deafening (Check Prairie State Blue).

Morganthaler takes on Roskam and starts triangulating on Iraq (seems to me as she already has. How is she different from Kirk or Lipinski above?), then Progressives have no one to blame but themselves because they've ditched the clear anti-war guy in the 6th.

They should layoff Lipinski and Kirk and just call it quits on Foreign Affairs.

Read more...

Throwing Laesch under the bus

A comment by Carl Nyberg over at Prairie State Blue on Planned Parenthood's endorsement of Foster in the primary.

A significant number of key people have decided they can't back Laesch. In fact, some of them have decided they will oppose Laesch no matter what.

I feel like these judgments have been rendered unfairly in most cases.

I also think that the attacks on Laesch are unfair enough that it will create a real problem for Foster.

Foster probably should do something to de-escalate the nastiness, especially the unfair attacks on Laesch.

If Laesch is denied the nomination by b/c people perceived that key players won't work with Laesch, Laesch's supporters have a certain incentive to jam Foster on that very point.

Laesch not my kind of Democrat. He's the now pervasive kind of Democrat who's taken over, and made it impossible for Lieberman style Liberals to find a home there.

But Laesch has been a tireless campaigner for Progressivism in Il-14 --as Progressivisms now become-- and it seems he deserves a little better.

He's your party Democrats, with a program more consistent with where the party's been the past six years, than the candidate those key people want to field in Il-6.

Maybe the Lieberman Dem's don't belong in the party, and Lieberman Liberals should leave it to the Laeschites, but those muddling key people, who's principles sway with the winds of polls, seem the least appealing of all. I hope Laesch supporters do, as Carl wrote, jam Foster on that point.

xp Bill Baar's West Side

Read more...

Col. Jill Morgenthaler on immigration

Everyone is tough on the illegals now in the West Burbs. And the Colonel wants the Feds to pay!

From the Morgenthalers's site. (HT Stan Jagla )

Two years ago candidate Roskam promised to secure our borders. He didn't get it done, and every day another two thousand people cross the border into our country illegally. Look, I've been Illinois' Homeland Security director: I know the risks and I know what we've got to do. We need a comprehensive strategy to secure our borders with no amnesty for those who break our laws. And Washington should reimburse Illinois taxpayers for the cost of illegal aliens who get into our state. We've got to get it done.

Footnote: Gutierrez in today's WSJ,

Democrats "are pretty jumpy on the issue," says Rep. Luis Gutierrez, an Illinois Democrat who pushed for immigration overhaul in the House. "They would prefer to allow the Republicans to shepherd the Hispanic votes into the Democratic column without having to scare away a single other voter themselves," he says.

Read more...

Bridget's G I Jill Roundup

Well, I wish Bridget would have posted it here too. I'm curious what the Colonel will say too.

Bridget does a round up of blogger's posts and I think it's fair to say the netrooters are left perplexed. There hasn't been much coverage and Bridget gets just about all of it linked.

I'm not too surprized. It think it's going to be General Clark for VP too.

Read more...