Again, we find ourselves in the strange position of linking to a site that we would otherwise avoid like Peter avoids low fat Whiz on his cheesesteak, but as RedState says, “Regardless of your position on the deal - Rep. [Sue] Myrick’s letter [to Pres. Bush] is a must read”:

Dear Mr. President:

In regards to selling American ports to the United Arab Emirates, not just NO–but HELL NO!

Sincerely,
Sue Myrick
Member of Congress

Scary story out of South Dakota this morning in the New York Times. This highlights the reason that Democrats need to win locally at the community level to stop efforts of this kind.

This also highlights why we must win elections and make certain that more Roberts and Alitos don’t get confirmed to the bench.

From the NYTimes:

PIERRE, S.D., Feb. 21 — Lawmakers here are preparing to vote on a bill that would outlaw nearly all abortions in South Dakota, a measure that could become the most sweeping ban approved by any state in more than a decade, those on both sides of the abortion debate say.

If the bill passes a narrowly divided Senate in a vote expected on Wednesday, and is signed by Gov. Michael Rounds, a Republican who opposes abortion, advocates of abortion rights have pledged to challenge it in court immediately — and that is precisely what the bill’s supporters have in mind.

Optimistic about the recent changes on the United States Supreme Court, some abortion opponents say they have new hope that a court fight over a ban here could lead to the overturning of Roe v. Wade, the 1973 decision that made abortion legal around the country.

“I’m convinced that the timing is right for this,” said State Representative Roger Hunt, a Republican who has sponsored the bill, noting the appointments of Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. and Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. to the court.

Even in South Dakota, we will get local and fight tooth and nail for every possible seat be it U.S. Senate or dog catcher.

Despite his endless lies, excuses, and near criminal bungling of everything at the Defense Department and in Iraq, Donald Rumsfeld has managed to hang on to his job time and time again. Could this be the beginning of the end? Today Rumsfeld said he was not consulted on the sale of US ports to the UAE. Now, via TP:

Donald Rumsfeld, as Secretary of Defense, is a member of Committee on Foreign Investments in the United States. As such, he was one of the people who, according to the Treasury Department, unanimously approved the sale on February 13. How could [he] do that when he didn’t even find out about the sale until last weekend?

Perhaps it’s just wishful thinking. But unless the GOP wants to run this year as the party that outsourced Homeland Security to a nation that supported the Taliban, a nuclear Iran, North Korea and Lybia, and provided a financial conduit to the 9/11 hijackers, they better back this train (or boat) up mighty quickly.