Last April, Bush embarked on a tour the press dubbed "Hardware in the Heartland." He went around to factories praising workers for their contributions to the war effort. Of course, many of these factories had seen and would see layoffs. So who really supplies the necessities of war for the Department of Defense? Our federal prisoners.

While the Boeing employees sat listening to Bush's remarks, just 50 miles to the northeast 265 workers in the apparel factory in Greenville, Illinois were far from idle. Averaging more than 1,000 desert-tan camouflage shirts per day, 194,950 of which were bought in 2002 by the Department of Defense and worn by the US infantry in the Middle East, these workers were not allowed many breaks. Equally harried were the 300 workers at the Kevlar helmet factory in Beaumont, Texas, who fill 100 percent of the US military's demand for battlefield headgear. A factory in Marion, Illinois also kept in rapid motion, soldering millions of dollars worth of cables for the Pentagon's TOW and Patriot missiles. Presidential plaudits were not forthcoming for these workers – all of whom are inmates in federal prisons.

Last April, Bush embarked on a tour the press dubbed "Hardware in the Heartland." He went around to factories praising workers for their contributions to the war effort. Of course, many of these factories had seen and would see layoffs. So who really supplies the necessities of war for the Department of Defense? Our federal prisoners.

While the Boeing employees sat listening to Bush's remarks, just 50 miles to the northeast 265 workers in the apparel factory in Greenville, Illinois were far from idle. Averaging more than 1,000 desert-tan camouflage shirts per day, 194,950 of which were bought in 2002 by the Department of Defense and worn by the US infantry in the Middle East, these workers were not allowed many breaks. Equally harried were the 300 workers at the Kevlar helmet factory in Beaumont, Texas, who fill 100 percent of the US military's demand for battlefield headgear. A factory in Marion, Illinois also kept in rapid motion, soldering millions of dollars worth of cables for the Pentagon's TOW and Patriot missiles. Presidential plaudits were not forthcoming for these workers – all of whom are inmates in federal prisons.

Here's most of the transcript of Cher on C-Span: via Atrios]

Peter Slen, C-Span Moderator: Good Morning Miami Beach

caller: Good morning! Thank you for C-span, I watch it every day! Uh, I would like to say i had the occasion the other day to spend the entire day with troops that had come back from iraq & had been wounded and..um...I also visited troops during the vietnam era...but the thing that I was most shocked by...um...as I walked into the hospital the first person i ran into was a boy about 19 or 20 years old who'd lost both of his arms...and when I walked into the hosptial & visited all these boys all day long...uh...everyone had lost either one arm...one limb or two limbs or had lost one limb and there were...there were a lot of legs that seemed to be missing and a couple of the boys told me it was because that their vehicles ...that the rockets pierce the vehicles so much its like being kind of in a tin can...it doesnt have...there isnt...the walls of the humvees are very soft and theres no protection...but three guys in the same vehicle have lost a leg. ...and another thing that I saw was that...um...if they'd lost one leg that... that shrapnel that had hit the other leg had been so devastating that they were having to pull like the thigh...you know...the muscle and the thigh around the bottom of the calf to try to make the leg workable but in some cases these boys had lost one legand the other leg was so damaged that they weren't sure what they were gonna be able to do.

C-Span Moderator: Where did you spend tthe day?

caller: Walter-Reed.

Here's most of the transcript of Cher on C-Span: via Atrios]

Peter Slen, C-Span Moderator: Good Morning Miami Beach

caller: Good morning! Thank you for C-span, I watch it every day! Uh, I would like to say i had the occasion the other day to spend the entire day with troops that had come back from iraq & had been wounded and..um...I also visited troops during the vietnam era...but the thing that I was most shocked by...um...as I walked into the hospital the first person i ran into was a boy about 19 or 20 years old who'd lost both of his arms...and when I walked into the hosptial & visited all these boys all day long...uh...everyone had lost either one arm...one limb or two limbs or had lost one limb and there were...there were a lot of legs that seemed to be missing and a couple of the boys told me it was because that their vehicles ...that the rockets pierce the vehicles so much its like being kind of in a tin can...it doesnt have...there isnt...the walls of the humvees are very soft and theres no protection...but three guys in the same vehicle have lost a leg. ...and another thing that I saw was that...um...if they'd lost one leg that... that shrapnel that had hit the other leg had been so devastating that they were having to pull like the thigh...you know...the muscle and the thigh around the bottom of the calf to try to make the leg workable but in some cases these boys had lost one legand the other leg was so damaged that they weren't sure what they were gonna be able to do.

C-Span Moderator: Where did you spend tthe day?

caller: Walter-Reed.

After an analysis of 1,000 cases, USA Today reports that the Supreme Court is granting fewer stays of execution.

The court continues to resolve disputes over when prisoners can make last-ditch appeals, and some justices have expressed concern about the adequacy of court-appointed lawyers in capital cases. But overall, the nation's court of last resort has made it clear — with unusual unanimity and little public discussion — that it wants lower courts to carry more of the burden in screening death-row appeals, and that it wants a small role in the debate over capital punishment.

"The court simply isn't looking at individual cases as much" as it did until the early 1990s, says Stephen Bright, director of the Southern Center for Human Rights in Atlanta. "The justices want the court of last resort to be state supreme courts and the federal courts of appeals. I think the Rehnquist court ... would like to be out of the business of reviewing capital cases."

After an analysis of 1,000 cases, USA Today reports that the Supreme Court is granting fewer stays of execution.

The court continues to resolve disputes over when prisoners can make last-ditch appeals, and some justices have expressed concern about the adequacy of court-appointed lawyers in capital cases. But overall, the nation's court of last resort has made it clear — with unusual unanimity and little public discussion — that it wants lower courts to carry more of the burden in screening death-row appeals, and that it wants a small role in the debate over capital punishment.

"The court simply isn't looking at individual cases as much" as it did until the early 1990s, says Stephen Bright, director of the Southern Center for Human Rights in Atlanta. "The justices want the court of last resort to be state supreme courts and the federal courts of appeals. I think the Rehnquist court ... would like to be out of the business of reviewing capital cases."

A new USA Today/Gallup poll shows support for President Bush continues to drop. You can view the actual results here.

In a nutshell, 57% of independents disapprove of the way Bush is handling the war in Iraq. Back in April, he had a 73% approval rating from independents. Now that approval is at 39%. In addition,

Independents are less inclined to vote for Bush next year than to vote for a Democrat; 35% of registered independent voters choose Bush and 42% choose an unnamed Democrat. Among all registered voters, Bush leads the unnamed Democrat 46%-43%, which is within the 4-point error margin.

Support for the war also is declining:

Fifty-seven percent say the United States should withdraw some or all of its troops from Iraq. That is up considerably from two months ago, when 46% wanted to withdraw some or all of the troops. Seventy percent of Democrats, 58% of independents and 43% of Republicans want a partial or full withdrawal of troops from Iraq. Democratic support for the war has fallen more sharply than independent support — from 54% in April to 24% now.

A new USA Today/Gallup poll shows support for President Bush continues to drop. You can view the actual results here.

In a nutshell, 57% of independents disapprove of the way Bush is handling the war in Iraq. Back in April, he had a 73% approval rating from independents. Now that approval is at 39%. In addition,

Independents are less inclined to vote for Bush next year than to vote for a Democrat; 35% of registered independent voters choose Bush and 42% choose an unnamed Democrat. Among all registered voters, Bush leads the unnamed Democrat 46%-43%, which is within the 4-point error margin.

Support for the war also is declining:

Fifty-seven percent say the United States should withdraw some or all of its troops from Iraq. That is up considerably from two months ago, when 46% wanted to withdraw some or all of the troops. Seventy percent of Democrats, 58% of independents and 43% of Republicans want a partial or full withdrawal of troops from Iraq. Democratic support for the war has fallen more sharply than independent support — from 54% in April to 24% now.

Los Angeles Police Chief William Bratton was sworn in a year ago. He promised to turn around the escalating crime rate. How has he performed?

Homicides are down 23% over the same period last year, with all violent crime down 4.5%. Arrests are up 12%. Complaints against police also have risen by 12% during Bratton's watch. Compared with crime statistics of other large American cities, only Los Angeles appears headed toward a significant drop in homicides this year.

...In his first report card, the civilian-run police commission that hired him concluded on Oct. 14 that Bratton's overall performance "exceeds all standards." Police Commission President David S. Cunningham, the lone vote last year on the commission to retain former LAPD Chief Bernard C. Parks, said Bratton has changed how he thinks about crime.

....Bratton vowed to pursue "assertive policing" while denouncing the beatings, thefts and evidence-planting that had plagued the Rampart Division's former gang unit. "You will not break the law to enforce the law," he warned repeatedly.

Los Angeles Police Chief William Bratton was sworn in a year ago. He promised to turn around the escalating crime rate. How has he performed?

Homicides are down 23% over the same period last year, with all violent crime down 4.5%. Arrests are up 12%. Complaints against police also have risen by 12% during Bratton's watch. Compared with crime statistics of other large American cities, only Los Angeles appears headed toward a significant drop in homicides this year.

...In his first report card, the civilian-run police commission that hired him concluded on Oct. 14 that Bratton's overall performance "exceeds all standards." Police Commission President David S. Cunningham, the lone vote last year on the commission to retain former LAPD Chief Bernard C. Parks, said Bratton has changed how he thinks about crime.

....Bratton vowed to pursue "assertive policing" while denouncing the beatings, thefts and evidence-planting that had plagued the Rampart Division's former gang unit. "You will not break the law to enforce the law," he warned repeatedly.

Bush is a Miserable Failure. So says Old Fashioned Patriot which encourages you to participate in a little web project. Since we agree with the premise, we're doing our part. So is The Horse, which is where we found it. If you've got a blog, check it out and join the effort.

[Thanks to all who replied, comments are now closed.]

Bush is a Miserable Failure. So says Old Fashioned Patriot which encourages you to participate in a little web project. Since we agree with the premise, we're doing our part. So is The Horse, which is where we found it. If you've got a blog, check it out and join the effort.

[Thanks to all who replied, comments are now closed.]