sofiaecho: US promises to lobby for more countries to recognise Kosovo - reports

United States has reconfirmed its support for the new state of Kosovo and has promised to lobby for more recognitions, according to a report in Pristina daily Koha Ditore. The newspaper said that Kosovo leaders president Fatmir Sejdiu, prime minister Hashim Thaci and foreign minister Skender Hyseni were given these guarantees in a meeting on February 26 2009 with US secretary of state Hillary Clinton.

[....]

Sejdiu said: [....] “Kosovo has so far been recognised by 55 countries throughout the globe, and we were delighted to get a confirmation from the United States of America that we will continue to get their support in also getting the recognition from other countries[....]” 

sofiaecho.com/2009/02/28/682919_us-promises-to-lobby-for-more-countries-to-recognise-kosovo-reports

jta: Clinton set to name Posner to top rights job

Hillary Clinton is set to nominate a Jewish activist who has led efforts to counter anti-Semitism as her human rights czar.

The secretary of state soon will name Michael Posner, a founder of Human Rights First, as assistant secretary for democracy, human rights and labor, Bloomberg News reported Wednesday. Posner, a lawyer, has broad legal experience in the field of human rights, helping to draft anti-torture legislation in the United States and to set up human rights tribunals in Rwanda and the former Yugoslavia.

By Ron Kampeas · February 26, 2009 

More at jta.org/news/article/2009/02/26/1003329/clinton-set-to-name-posner-to-top-rights-job

NYT/Rich: What We Don’t Know Will Hurt Us

If [Obama] tells the whole story of what might be around the corner, he risks instilling fear itself among Americans who are already panicked. [....]

The reason why the White House has been punting on the new installment of the bank rescue is not that the much-maligned Treasury secretary, Timothy Geithner, is incapable of getting his act together. What’s slowing the works are the huge political questions at stake, many of them with consequences potentially as toxic as the banks’ assets.

Will Obama concede aloud that some of our “too big to fail” banks have, in essence, already failed?

nytimes.com/2009/02/22/opinion/22rich.html?_r=1&adxnnl=1&adxnnlx=1235663782-2t7tUVMmyn7O4IC0YopZOA

NYT: With Spending Set, at Least for Now, the Knives Come Out

In advance of the fiscal responsibility meeting, the president last week shelved a plan to appoint a Social Security task force to recommend ways to ensure the program’s long-term solvency, after protests from Democratic leaders in Congress, especially the House speaker, Nancy Pelosi of California, and from liberal activists who want to head off any reductions of future retirees’ benefits.

From a long article at

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/24/us/politics/24obama.html?_r=1

Jake Tapper - Gibbs Spouts Off Again

Gas taxes have long funded federal highway and bridge construction projects, but as gas mileage improves, transportation experts say a new revenue stream is needed. Policymakers in various states have been moving in the direction of a tax based on miles traveled rather than gallons purchased. [....]

"Has the President weighed in on this?" a reporter asked [ Gibbs, Obama's press secretary ].

"I don't believe the President has," Gibbs said. "I can weigh in on it and say that it is not and will not be the policy of the Obama administration." [....]

In an interview with Congressional Quarterly, Oberstar said that LaHood "had the temerity to think...and what did he get? Slapped down. He's a good man. A decent man. Don't let him get slapped down by know-nothings."

Oberstar then suggested that Gibbs ought to stay out of the conversation on transportation policy.

"I've got news for you," Oberstar said, "transportation policy isn't going to be written in the press room of the White House."

AP - Defeated Politicians Still Unemployed

Out of Congress and still out of work
Some former members of Congress who lost in 2008 have yet to find new full-time jobs
ANDREW MIGA Associated Press Writer
AP

They're out of Congress and still out of work.

A handful of incumbents who lost last fall have yet to land new full-time jobs.

They include former Reps. Christopher Shays of Connecticut, Thelma Drake of Virginia and Nick Lampson of Texas. There's also former New Hampshire Sen. John E. Sununu, whose latest Washington assignment is only part-time.

A former top Bush administration official, too, has had trouble finding work. Former Attorney General Alberto Gonzales resigned under fire in September 2007...

Full Article at:http://www.newsweek.com/id/186258/output/print

Daily Beast: The Real Reason Bank Stocks Are Tanking

As late as Friday, even as their stocks tanked, America’s banking leaders were still in denial. No wonder they have no credibility.

So why are our largest money-center banks—you know, the ones that are supposed to be the survivors of the financial crisis, like JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup, Bank of America, and Wells Fargo—in the process of a further, and possibly fatal, meltdown? Last week alone, Citigroup’s stock fell by one-third, JPMorgan’s fell 13 percent, and the shares of Bank of America and Wells Fargo each fell 25 percent...

by William D. Cohan

Full Article at:http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2009-02-22/the-real-reason-bank-stocks-are-tanking/full/

GPS: [ Hillary says sanctions did not work ]

FAREED ZAKARIA, HOST: This is GPS, the GLOBAL PUBLIC SQUARE. Welcome to all of you in the United States and around the world. I’m Fareed Zakaria. [....]

On her trip through Asia, Hillary Clinton acknowledged that our policy of economic sanctions against Burma — Myanmar — has not worked.

The reason I think this is significant is that I’m hoping it is the beginning of a rethinking. There’s a standard U.S. policy toward any regime that we don’t like. There’s not much we can do about it, and we can’t change the regime’s policies. But we decide we can’t just sit there, so we slap sanctions on the country. [....]

So, how much more evidence, in the form of misery for the people and power for the dictators, do we need before we conclude that economic sanctions are a feel-good policy that have had only bad effects on the ground?

Toronto Star: Is Obama a closet conservative?

Obama’s willingness to sign on to [Canadian Prime Minister] Harper’s search (much criticized by Canadian environmentalists) for a miraculous new technology that would allow oil refineries and coal plants to keep polluting and then permanently store the resultant carbon emissions underground. [....]

Obama isn’t backing away from Bush’s decision to define terrorism as war, a crucial label that gives the president constitutional authority to operate with few Congressional constraints. [....]

 [Obama] plans to continue the practice of so-called extraordinary rendition: capturing suspected terrorists anywhere in the world and shipping them off to countries such as Egypt to be tortured.

And Obama is continuing to use national security as an excuse to keep those that have been illegally incarcerated from getting redress in U.S. courts.

By Thomas Walkom

http://www.thestar.com/News/Insight/article/590950

Times of India: India sidesteps US invite re Afganistan/Pakistan

India will officially keep its position of an "interested bystander" watching the unfolding events in this theatre. 

India sought and received an assurance from the US that its decisions and policies in this region would not make India a "target". In other words, India doesn't want to be unpleasantly surprised by a set of events that adversely affects Indian interests in Afghanistan. 

The US right now is furious with Afghanistan president Hamid Karzai for consistently hitting out at America but is equally wary of the Pakistan government particularly after the ill-advised "peace deal" with the Taliban in Swat Valley. 

It's no secret the Obama administration wants Karzai to go. 

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/India-sidesteps-US-invite-for-trilateral-meet-on-Afghanistan-Pak/articleshow/4162963.cms#write

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Indian Express: Dead ends in Pakistan

 The US wants to enlist us in the war in Afghanistan, and side with the Pakistani state in its war against the Taliban.  But [India should not] get sucked into the way Americans define this war. On Pakistan, we frankly don't have many options but to show restraint. This is not a battle we can win militarily, although we have to be prepared for all eventualities.

More at http://www.indianexpress.com/news/dead-ends-in-pakistan/426488/0

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Fox: Rosen/Hillary interview transcript

JAMES ROSEN: Are you more partial to the irrepressible melodies and hand-clapping of the “Please Please Me” era or to the world-weary, drug-fueled existentialism of their later work?

SECRETARY CLINTON: [Laughs] Well, like so many Beatles fans, it depends both on mood and stage of life. I have to confess, since I am older than you, that the hand-clapping mode was what I first was captured by. “I Want to Hold Your Hand” was an anthem, as you might imagine. But then, as I went through my angst period –

JAMES ROSEN: [Laughs]

SECRETARY CLINTON: — and, you know, struggled with the challenges of living in the real world, the more existential message struck home.

JAMES ROSEN: Do you have a favorite Beatles song?

SECRETARY CLINTON: Well, it, it sort of is on the, you know, more existential side. I’ve always loved “Hey Jude.” Now don’t ask me why — because that’s almost Biblical in meaning, as you know.

JAMES ROSEN: I do know.

SECRETARY CLINTON: Yes. And I know that you’re a collector –

JAMES ROSEN: [Laughs]

SECRETARY CLINTON: — of memorabilia. And I always have been sort of moved by the range of emotion in The Beatles. But at the end of the day, I think, you know, Lennon and McCartney were geniuses. And I’m just glad I got to live through that period.

JAMES ROSEN: I suppose it was too much to expect that the American secretary of state, on her first trip overseas, would advocate on behalf of “Revolution.”

SECRETARY CLINTON: No. In fact, you understand the reasons why that might not be appropriate. [Laughs]

JAMES ROSEN: Madame Secretary, thank you.

SECRETARY CLINTON: Thank you, James.

[From  transcript of an interview with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton conducted by James Rosen in Seoul, South Korea on Feb. 20, 2009. ]

foxnews.com/politics/2009/02/20/transcript-fox-news-interview-secretary-state-hillary-clinton-james-rosen/

Financial Times - Banks Likely to be Nationalized

US bank shares near 17-year lows

By Francesco Guerrera and Aline van Duyn in New York and Krishna Guha in Washington

Published: February 20 2009 01:03 |

US bank shares hit a near 17-year low on Thursday on rising fears the government will have to nationalise troubled institutions such as Citigroup and Bank of America, wiping out investors and taking control of a large portion of the financial sector.

Bank of America shares slid 14 per cent to $3.93, their lowest point since 1984. Shares in Citi were down 13.8 per cent, closing at $2.51, their lowest since 1991. The KBW banks index fell to its lowest level since 1992. In the debt markets, Citi’s bonds were trading at distressed levels...

Full Article at: http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/d75e8598-fee6-11dd-b19a-000077b07658.html?nclick_check=1

Powerlineblog -- Who's The Coward?

Attorney General Holder has called America "a nation of cowards" when it comes to "things racial." According to Holder, "average Americans" are afraid to "talk enough with each other about race."

By using the word "cowards," Holder has gotten himself some attention, at least for today. That's ironic because his long-winded speech is 99 percent content free.

To add to the irony, in the one place where Holder introduces a little content, he demonstrates that he has no interest in genuine dialogue, and reveals himself to be a "coward" on "things racial."

Here is Holder on the crucial issue of "affirmative action" (a coward's name for race-based preferences):

There can, for instance, be very legitimate debate about the question of affirmative action. This debate can, and should, be nuanced, principled and spirited. But the conversation that we now engage in as a nation on this and other racial subjects is too often simplistic and left to those on the extremes who are not hesitant to use these issues to advance nothing more than their own, narrow self interest.

So in one breath, Holder calls for a frank discussion of race, rather than the normal polite talk that evades tough issues; in the next breath, he attempts to rule out of the debate positions that he finds "extreme" while demonizing those who hold them. In the one instance where Holder is willing to be specific, we learn that his real complaint is not the absence of candid discussion, but rather the articulation of positions he doesn't like.

We have plenty of problems as a nation. I doubt that insufficient discussion of race is one of them. But if it is, Holder's mindset is part of the problem, not part of the solution.

German paper long transcription: Bill Clinton talks to Larry King

[ Long interview with Bill Clinton on many subjects ]

KING: Do you resent it when the Bush people say that this problem started with you, it started in your administration?

CLINTON: Well, they don't have much evidence for that. I always answer, does anyone seriously believe if the team I had in place had been in place for the last eight years that this would have happened?

And the answer to that is no. We had a much more vigorous regulatory environment with the Securities and Exchange Commission. We were watching these derivatives. I do think we should have done more on derivatives.

But the suggestion they have that because we required banks, for the first time, to live up to the requirements of the Community Reinvestment Law, which says you're supposed to loan money back to the people who deposit money in your bank, contributed to this, I just think is factually wrong.

If you look all over America, the community banks -- the ones that reinvested in their communities -- were not the people that caused this problem. They did well.

Much more at:

http://www.welt.de/english-news/article3227431/Bill-Clinton-talks-to-Larry-King.html

Kelly: Obama is Big on Symbolism

With so many of [Obama's] nominees having to withdraw because of ethical problems, it was refreshing to have [Gregg] withdraw because he had ethics. [....]

President Obama is very big on symbolism. He is signing the bill in Denver, the city where he was nominated for president, on Tuesday (in violation of his pledge to have at least five days elapse between passage of a law and his signing of it to allow time for public comment), because Tuesday is four weeks precisely since his inauguration.

Symbolism is important. But presidents ultimately are judged on substance.

By Jack Kelly

Latest posts from Midstream News

NYT - Bailout Robbing Banks?

[This is an op-ed piece but contains useful info]

The Bailout Is Robbing the Banks

By JOHN C. COATES and DAVID S. SCHARFSTEIN
Published: February 17, 2009

MANY Americans are angry at banks for taking bailout money while still cutting back on lending. But the government is also to blame. For reasons that remain unclear, the Troubled Asset Relief Program has channeled aid to bank holding companies rather than banks. The Obama administration’s new Financial Stability Plan will have more influence on bank lending if it actually directs its support to banks.

Full article at: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/18/opinion/18scharfstein.html?_r=1&th&emc=th

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 17, 2009

Bloomberg - Stock Market Woes

U.S. Stocks Slide to 3-Month Low on Recession Concern; GM Sinks
By Elizabeth Stanton

Feb. 17 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. stocks tumbled to a three-month low, extending a global slump, as a record contraction in New York manufacturing spurred concern the government’s stimulus package won’t be enough to curb the deepening recession.

Bank of America Corp., Citigroup Inc. and JPMorgan Chase & Co. each lost 12 percent. Exxon Mobil Corp. was the biggest drag on the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index as oil slid almost 7 percent. General Motors Corp., the largest U.S. carmaker, sank 13 percent as it took its case for more government support to the Treasury Department. Banks led declines in Europe and Asia on concern they may face ratings downgrades and more losses.

Full Article at: http://bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=a3VqcI4keryE&refer=home

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