The Senate confirms Robert Gates as President Bush's new defense secretary

[sabra]

http://www.cnn.com/

Breaking News >> The Senate confirms Robert Gates as President Bush's new defense secretary.

more:

http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/N06313950.htm

Gates backed by Senate for defense chief


WASHINGTON, Dec 6 (Reuters) - The U.S. Senate on Wednesday overwhelmingly confirmed Robert Gates as the next defense secretary, replacing Donald Rumsfeld, an architect of the increasingly unpopular Iraq war.

The Senate voted to approve President George W. Bush's nominee only 24 hours after Gates won the unanimous endorsement of the Armed Services Committee -- and just as a long-awaited bipartisan report arrived, urging more diplomacy and fewer U.S. troops in Iraq.

Senators from both parties praised the ex-CIA chief's candor; Gates had bluntly told them the United States was not winning the war in Iraq.

"Dr. Gates spoke with candor -- a candor that has been sorely missing from the Department of Defense under this administration," said Sen. Edward Kennedy, a Massachusetts Democrat. "He recognized the high price that our troops are paying for the current policy."

[Monkeyman]

1. Now we can sign it bye bye Rummy

[theoldman]

2. We now have to wait and see of he has a pair of balls and can

stand up to Cheney. If things do not change, all of his smooth talk will be just that.

[ryanmuegge]

16. Well, they wouldn't have tapped him if he was going to stand up to them.

[jefferson_dem]

3. Two odball knuckle-draggers opposed: Santorum and Bunning.

n/t

[Demeter]

4. That Took No Time At All

After all, CrooksRUs got him approved in the past, so he has a record....too bad it isn't a criminal one (officially)

[superconnected]

5. 1 week.

Where's that site you go make bets?

[Doctor_J]

6. Sure glad we spent all that time & money electing a Dem Senate

so they could confirm a treasonous Contra-funding Friend of Smirk to SecDef.

Well, I won't be fooled in 2008

[tammywammy]

9. nevermind n/t

[Ragin1]

10. Absolutely!

Things are going to change.

I can feel it.

[Toucano]

11. This isn't the Dem Senate you elected.

I'm not sure if it would have made a difference (because leaving the Sec. of Defense position open could be very bad politically), but Bush rushed this through HIS Senate.

I would have voted NO, of course, but that's just me.

[Doctor_J]

17. He was confirmed 95-2

so I am guessing with the 199th Senate in their seats, the confirmation would have gone through anyway :eyes:

The man is a fucking traitor. If Charles Manson gets his law degree in prison, and Smirk nominates him as AG when he gets out, the Senate will confirm him to avoid the wrath of hate radio.

This blows.

[Toucano]

20. Agreed.

But the OP was incorrect in calling this an act of the newly elected dem Senate.

[Solly Mack]

7. Now if only Casey wasn't dead....

no surprises

[TheMightyFavog]

8. God, look at Santorum on C-SPAN...

He's banging the war drums hardcore.

[humbled_opinion]

12. I reseve judgement based on his actions...n/t

[seafan]

13. So, now we have an unindicted Iran-Contra operative set to run the Department of Defense.

Senate Overwhelmingly Approves Gates

December 6, 2006

With virtually no debate or controversy, the Senate voted 95-2 to confirm Gates to succeed Donald H. Rumsfeld, who announced his resignation the day after the Nov. 7 elections, in which Republicans lost control of Congress.

Voting against Gates were Republican Sens. Rick Santorum (Penn.) and Jim Bunning (Ky.).

http://www.consortiumnews.com/2006/120306.html">Robert Parry: Gates Hearing Has New Urgency, December 3, 2006

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/120506J.shtml">Ray McGovern: A CIA Insider's Take on Gates, Monday 04 December 2006

[0007]

22. The only reason Jim Bunning voted against Gates was that

Gates could hit the holy fuck out of Bunning's fastball.

[Generator]

23. Meet the new boss, same as the old boss

What a country heh? The Democratic majority will/has changed nothing. (I know, I know they aren't even sworn in yet-so it's not their doing-never ever is it those that represent us fault-it's only ever the Republicans fault) Fun times for this site of true believers, though. Just wait until Bush is given a view dozen more passes and nothing changes in Iraq. Then we can debate Hillary for a year. You can't fight evil by giving it a pass. But it is a nice way to keep your day job.

I have faith in Conyers and a few others, but I am under no illusion that the majority (yeah Democrats) will fight him every step of the way in real terms while giving lip service to change and open government.

[fujiyama]

14. The only reason Gates had it so easy

was because they wanted RumsFailed out of there as quickly as possible.

Plus, Gates said what they wanted to hear - which wasn't quite the truth but something almost resembling it, rather than what was a state of delusion.

I'm not expecting anything much from Gates, but it's obvious they just wanted Rummy out...quick!

[AlGore-08.com]

18. Gates has a history of falsifying intel and bullying subordinates to confirm his bogus data

Given that everybody on our team who voted for the war claims it's because they were fed bogus intel from the Smirk Admin... maybe, just maybe, they should have learned from their mistakes and voted AGAINST somebody who has a history of making up his own facts to suit his executive department masters... just maybe...

[TexasLawyer]

15. Are you now, or have you ever been, Donald Rumsfeld?

OK, you've got the job!


(to borrow from last night's Colbert Report)

[AtomicKitten]

19. just like that

back to the future - Iran Contra redux

[nolabels]

21. They had to bring him in for the rematch

The guy who wanted to bomb Nicaragua in the 80's failed to meet his mark

Ortega elected as president of Nicaragua

8:37:03 AM

Sandinista leader Daniel Ortega, a former Marxist revolutionary who fought US-backed insurgents in the 1980s, has won presidential elections in Nicaragua.

His rival Harvard-educated Eduardo Montealegre conceded defeat yesterday following the latest tally from the Sunday polls. Appearing next to Ortega, he said: “Nicaragua needs to move forward. The people have suffered enough.”

Ortega said he would work to eliminate poverty, reassure investors and “create a new political culture” that would ”set aside our differences and put the Nicaraguan people, the poor first".
(snip)
http://archives.tcm.ie/breakingnews/2006/11/08/story284260.asp