Karen Hughes having a tough trip

Karen Hughes is hopping around the middle east, at great cost to the American taxpayer, trying to communicate with Arabs as the new Under Secratary of State for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs.

I called 2 organizations in the US to get their reactions, no word yet. Any ideas of who else I should call for comment? Much appreciated.

Karamah - Muslim Women Lawyers for Human Rights

Muslim Womens League

What is your reaction to Karen Hughes travelling to Egypt, Turkey and Saudi Arabia?

Did anyone from the State Department or the Under Secratary's office call or consult with you before this trip? What did they say?

Who do you think the State Department should have sent with Karen Hughes or instead of the Under Secratary?

This is becoming Messy Politics (muddy) - Delay to step aside

What will be the affect if the President stands with Tom Delay? Will we be entering a new era of mud slinging from both sides? Shouldn't the President distance himself from Delay and did he when Scott McClellan continuously answered questions at the White House briefing saying, "We will let the legal process work"?

From the Right:
Ankle Biting Pundits - bulldogpundit made it clear that some tough days lie ahead and to buckle up:
"Buckle up people, it's going to be a rough ride for a while, and there's going to be more valleys than peaks in the short term. What this will mean long term is unclear pending the outcome of DeLay's case."

NRCC-Chairman Tom Reynolds: “Until Majority Leader Tom DeLay has his day in court, it is vitally important he be afforded the same presumption of innocence afforded to every other American.”

From the Left:
A number of things appear to be going wrong for Republicans:

• White House under investigation for the Valerie Plame, outing of a CIA agent case being looked into including Karl Rove
• Mike Brown testifying yesterday to the House, looking angered and blaming for an abyssmal Federal response to Katrina. I wonder if the good people of Louisiana were watching him. Oh that's right there are still a few hundred thousand without electricity - Heck of a job, Brownie
• The Iraq war is not going very well - Cindy Sheehan and the Anti-War movement are only confirming the waning support for the war. General Casey backed away from his rosey estimate of beginning to draw down troops by the end of next year. Some believe that the October 15th vote will be rejected, which could delay elections an additional year. Thus keeping thousands of soldiers in Iraq indefinitely.
• Bill Frist, Senate Majority leader is being investigated by the SEC for inside trading of control stock in HCA through his Blind Trust, saving himself from a potential 9% drop in stock price 1 month after he sold.
• Government spending is out of control and what seems to be upsetting many Democrats is that the administration wants to Cut critical services for the poor, the ill and the elderly. Deficit Hawk Republicans are also upset about spending and this is creating a rift in the party.
• Gas prices are on the rise at the pump, there has been no visible effort to reduce Crude Oil prices which affect Natural Gas and Oil Heating prices. That means a frigid winter for many without heat. Economists also fear that more money spent on Heating, means less discretionary income being spent on goods in the economy.

DailyKos bloggers are pretty excited by Tom Delays indictment. I love the way Kos starts this one off.

Monica or Katrina

Hurricane Katrina was a terrible storm that is currently causing massive problems and deaths. Much of those deaths should be lying on the White House door steps. I can not believe that we are living in a time when grown people are pointing fingers at each other and not taking responsibility. What are we, in a sand box like 3 year olds?

I guess we are.

I'd take a president who plays a little on the side, than a president who is vacationing while hundreds drowned and is more concered with who is going to get part of the $200 billion being pumped into the Gulf States.

God bless those that have been affected by Katrina and Rita. Hopefully your leaders and our National leaders will learn something.