Monica Crowley

Same Ol' Problemo, Hillary Heat and Iranian Hostage Crisis '07

We have a big weekend planned for you on the Monica Crowley Show, beginning with Congressman Tom Tancedo, candidate for the Republican nomination for president.  Tancedo will be by to talk about the problem most important to him-- illegal immigration.  This week we saw new raids, new inflow, a new bill, and the same ol' problemo.  I'll ask Congressman Tancedo how he'll fix it.

Then in hour two, Hillary feels the heat and Bill feels her pain.  We'll talk about the latest moves for the woman who wants to be president.

Plus: another Iranian hostage crisis. When will we ever learn?   And more on how we're finally hitting back at terrorists' subversive tactics here at home.  My guest for hour three will be Congressman Peter King (R-NY)

I hope you'll join me this weekend on the radio!   And remember, you can always weigh in here online, by posting your thoughts below.

Thompson Toys, Clinton's Cash & Obama Uncertainty

There are a couple of stories this morning worth keeping an eye on.   

The first deals with Fred Thompson's flirting with a White House run.  The actor and former Republican senator from Tennessee was spotted having lunch yesterday in Washington with former Republican National Committee Chair Ed Gillespie.  Some see that as a clear indication that Thompson is serious.  Mary Ann Akers has more in this morning's Washington Post. LINK   Politico.com also has a story on the Thompson speculation. LINK

The junior Senator from New York is building her campaign warchest.  The Associated Press reports Hillary Clinton raised nearly $3 million in a single event and husband Bill is out pleading for more.  LINK

And the honeymoon may be over for Democratic darling Barack Obama.   There's an AP story out this morning asking, "Is Obama All Style and Little Substance?"   The story goes on to say, "The freshman Illinois senator began his campaign facing the perception that he lacks the experience to be president, especially compared to rivals with decades of work on foreign and domestic policy. So far, he's done little to challenge it. He's delivered no policy speeches and provided few details about how he would lead the country."  LINK

Bloomberg Eyes '08 Run

New York Mayor Mike Bloomberg is toying with a run for President in 2008.   This morning’s Washington Post reports Mayor Mike is taking a wait and see approach—waiting to see who the Democrats and Republicans choose as their nominees.

Before you laugh this one off, remember, Bloomberg has one thing the other candidates don’t—and almost endless supply of money. The self-made millionaire spent $85 million on his last campaign for mayor and has enough cash to blanket the country with television ad for months.

Read more about the Bloomberg speculation in this morning’s Washington Post.   CLICK HERE

This Weekend on the Radio

This weekend, we'll be discussing Hillary, Obama, Edwards, and Richardson: the Horse Race Gets Interesting.  I'll be joined by Frank Luntz, pollster extraordinaire and the author of Words That Work: It's Not What You Say, It's What People Hear.  In his new book, Frank shares his wisdom on how the words we choose can change the course of business, of politics, and of life in this country.  Learn more about Frank's book by visiting the Monicamemo.com Store.

Then, the Liberals' Trifecta:  this week, Democrats surrendered America, unveiled new plans to raise your taxes, and investigated Republicans.  We'll talk about your tax dollars at work!

Also, "It's Not fair!"  Bill goes to bat for Hillary on Iraq, while the rest of the Democrats pull the rug out from under the troops.  I'll talk about it with Myrna Blyth, author of How To Raise An American.  You can also find Myrna's book in the Monicamemo.com Store.

An Idol Outrage!

So let me get this straight:  last night on American Idol, the talented Stephanie gets booted, while the vocally challenged Sanjaya gets to stay?! 

This calls for a national protest movement.  No justice, no peace!

Tell me what you think by posting a comment below... in the meantime, here's a roundup of reaction to last night's shocker, for all of you Idol fans:

The Boston Globe: American Idol Makes a Surprise Cut

Reality TV Magazine: American Idol Viewer Goes On Hunger Strike Over Sanjaya Malakar

MSNBC.com: Exit proves that if you don’t stand out and if you sing early, you go home

Bush Battles Back... At Last!

To quote Etta James, "At last." At last, President Bush has finally stood up to the Democrats who have been relentlessly pounding him for days over the firing of eight US attorneys.

Yesterday, the president finally hit back, saying absolutely nothing improper was done and that he would make available internal White House documents and personnel to Congress. Their testimony would be unsworn, which has put Democrats over the edge. But what the Democrats have done here is attempt to encroach on the executive's power and privilege to hold confidential deliberations with his staff without having to worry that those conversations will someday become public.

The removal of the eight US attorneys--even if for political concerns--was completely allowed as these attorneys serve only at the pleasure of the president. So, the battle lines as they exist now don't have anything to do with the US attorneys.

The battle lines have to do with the Congress overstepping its bounds and intruding on the executive, and the president trying to preserve the executive's privilege and position. It's a classic separation of powers struggle. And at last, the president is showing some backbone and beating back the attempted power play by the power-drunk Congress.

The Nuclear Showdown

Last night, I attended a dinner at which Vice President Cheney spoke.  He was warm and gracious, intelligent and articulate.  After his prepared remarks, he took some questions.  My hand shot up, and he called on me.  "Mr. Vice President," I began.  "Given Iran's continued defiance on their nuclear program, and given their continued support for terror, especially what they are doing in Iraq, is the administration prepared to take more aggressive action with regard to Tehran?"  My question got some applause, and the vice president nodded to me and smiled.  And then he said, "All options are on the table."  He went on to talk about the diplomatic process and holding the military option as the last available one, but he made clear that the president would do what was needed to prevent Iran from becoming a nuclear power.

It may already be too late. The Iranians have had a clandestine nuclear program for over 20 years, and it isn't about lighting the houses in Tehran.  I suppose the answer the vice president gave me was the only one he could publicly give: all options ARE on the table.  But if the administration isn't ready to press Iran to the wall yet, then there are other things we should be doing.  Giving the Iranian president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, a visa to come to New York next week so he can thumb his nose at the United Nations AND the United States is not one of them.  He loves to taunt the world's only superpower, threaten to wipe one of our closest allies off the map, and make fun of our unwillingness to do anything about it. We shouldn't be giving him the UN stage on which to continue this burlesque.

If the administration isn't prepared yet to take him on militarily, then the least they should be doing is taking him on personally. It's too late on the visa issue: it's already been granted and he's coming.  But this administration needs to stop the self-flagellation, stop fighting a gentleman's war, stop apologizing for being tough on radical Islam and the regimes that are driven by it, and stop hoping the Iranians (and North Koreans) will see reason and voluntarily drop their nuclear programs.

Unless we open our eyes, the only thing that's going to be dropped is one of their nuclear weapons---on us.

"Hillary 1984"

It could be the most creative campaign attack ad in a long time, and it isn't costing any of the candidates a dime.   Hillary Clinton is the target of the latest sensation on YouTube.

Someone has remixed the classic "1984" commercial by Apple Computer, replacing Big Brother with Big Hillary.

For those of you who don't remember, the original "1984" ad first aired during the Super Bowl, to introduce Apple computers more than 20 years ago.

To see the new video, go to: www.youtube.com/watch?v=6h3G-lMZxjo

Barack Obama's campaign says it had absolutely nothing to do with the new video.

As of Monday morning, YouTube reported the video had been viewed 206,439 times.

Check out the The San Francisco Chronicle's report on the new spot, CLICK HERE.

The Meaning of "300"

The bloody blockbuster '300' is igniting debate over its parallels to current events in the Middle East.   It seems everyone sees some connection between the movie and modern day events.

The movie, which raked in $70 million in its opening weekend, is based on a comic-book fantasy version of the battle of Thermopylae in 480 B.C., in which Spartan leader Leonidas and his band of 300 soldiers fought to the death against Persian king Xerxes.

"Does Bush Resemble Leonidas or Xerxes?," asked a column on ABCNews.com this week.  Some see President Bush as Leonidas, defending America's freedom from the threat of Islamofascists and Iranian leaders.

And then there are the Iranians.  "Hollywood declares war on Iranians," blared a headline in Tuesday's edition of the independent Ayende-No newspaper.

What does the movie mean?  Can it tell us ANYTHING about our battle against the Islamofascists?  I'll talk about it with Walid Phares, author of The War of Ideas: Jihadism Against Democracy.  For more on Walid's book, CLICK HERE.

Also on this weekend's show: Media Bias and Liberal Double Standards. Two big stories---one of which was covered extensively this week, and another not---that show how liberals get protected and conservatives get skewered.  AND-- Hillary on the Iraq War (girlfriend's put out her 105th position on it this week!), Hillary on the "vast, right-wing conspiracy", Hillary on JFK, and Bill's world sex tour (Hide your daughters!)

Iraq's Surge: The Untold Story

Would it kill the New York Times to report the positive news coming out of Iraq these days?  Well, it just might kill them---which is why they aren't doing it.  I don't mean to pick only on the Times (although they are such a rich and tempting target).  Most of the mainstream media have completely ignored THE MAJOR STORY since the troop reinforcement in and around Baghdad began:  that violence there is down 80 percent.  That's EIGHTY PERCENT!  Not 8 or 18 percent.  Eighty percent.  For four years, the media fell over themselves to report surging, wild, indiscriminate violence.  Now that it's been reduced by 80 percent, the media looks the other way.  Relative calm isn't sexy, I guess.

Nor does calm fit their agenda.  Because calm in Baghdad means the surge might be working.  Which means the engagement still might have some life in it.  Which means this thing still might work, if given the proper care and nourishment and time.  Which means their prophecy of a "total collapse and failure" might just be proven false.  And after years of investing their reporters' "credibility" in saying the intervention failed, well, they would have to eat a lot of humble pie to report some successes.

This is not to say that Baghdad is suddenly Eden before the Fall.  There still are violent attacks, carried out by those who want to undermine the troop reinforcement and keep up terrorist morale.  But confidence in calm breeds progress: tips by Iraqi civilians on terrorist activity have spiked sharply; small businesses are opening and in some cases, re-opening; the Prime Minister, Mr. al-Maliki, took an open-air stroll on Haifa Street, once a shooting gallery.  If the Iraqi people feel a relative calm, they will feel empowered enough to take the country back from those who terrorize it.

None of this is going to be easy or short-term.  Which is why the Democrats' plan to offer a "date certain" (next fall) for total withdrawal is so recklessly stupid.  You don't pull the rug out from under a baby just learning to walk.  And you certainly don't do it now that the child has taken a few tentative steps on its own.  This troop surge has foiled the terrorists' plans for an easy and quick takeover of Iraq. The Iraqi government and the new Iraqi commander, Major General Abboud Qanbar, see it too.  For once, there is a bit of light streaming into Iraq.  To extinguish it now would be a crime against freedom.