Let's fact check the AP's fact checking on Obama's speech

FACT CHECK: Is Iraq combat really over for US?
By CALVIN WOODWARD and ROBERT BURNS (AP)
WASHINGTON — Despite President Barack Obama's declaration Tuesday of an end to the combat mission in Iraq, combat almost certainly lies ahead. And in asserting the U.S. has met its responsibilities in Iraq, the president opened the door wide to a debate about the meaning of success in the muddle that most — but not all — American troops are leaving behind. A look at some of the statements Obama made in his Oval Office speech and how they compare with the facts:

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OBAMA: "Tonight, I am announcing that the American combat mission in Iraq has ended."

A speech for endless war

On the last night of August, the president used an Oval Office speech to boost a policy of perpetual war.
Hours later, the New York Times front page offered a credulous gloss for the end of “the seven-year American combat mission in Iraq.” The first sentence of the coverage described the speech as saying “that it is now time to turn to pressing problems at home.” The story went on to assert that Obama “used the moment to emphasize that he sees his primary job as addressing the weak economy and other domestic issues -- and to make clear that he intends to begin disengaging from the war in Afghanistan next summer.”

But the speech gave no real indication of a shift in priorities from making war to creating jobs. And the oratory “made clear” only the repetition of vague vows to “begin” disengaging from the Afghanistan war next summer. In fact, top administration officials have been signaling that only token military withdrawals are apt to occur in mid-2011, and Obama said nothing to the contrary.

America wants solar energy now

You know -- and I know -- that fossil fuels are on the way out. Not only do they foul our air and warm our planet, but getting oil, coal and gas out of the earth has become more difficult and dangerous than ever before.

But we need to level the playing field so clean, solar energy can take off. Support the Solar Bill of Rights

Fossil fuel companies have received tens of billions of taxpayer dollars in federal subsidies for decades -- making it extremely hard for renewable energy sources to compete. Moreover, red tape and unnecessary paperwork make it hard for solar companies to succeed and for everyday Americans to go solar.

The U.S. has some of the best solar resources in the world, especially in our Southwestern deserts. But colder, cloudier countries like Germany and Spain are outpacing us just because they're more solar-friendly.

It's time to stop giving dirty fuels an unfair advantage, and let people decide which energy sources they want to use. Sign the Solar Bill of Rights to make sure solar energy gets a fair chance to lead our clean energy future

Viktor Bout avoids an immediate boot to America

BANGKOK, Thailand -- American officials hoping to extradite Viktor Bout on Wednesday (August 25) were unable to fly the suspected Russian weapons smuggler to New York, because the U.S. added fresh allegations against him which must be heard or dismissed in a Thai court.

A sleek, white, twin-engine jet from the U.S. reportedly waited in vain on the tarmac at Bangkok's Don Muang air force base on Wednesday (August 25), only to be told that he would not be handed over without going through some additional legal hoops.

"We are not sending Viktor Bout back today. There are still several legal steps to go through," Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva said on Wednesday (August 25).

"Before Bout's extradition can take place, the second case needs to be dropped by the court," Foreign Ministry spokesman Thani Thongpakdi said on Wednesday (August 25).

The unpredictable problem could be quickly sorted out by U.S. officials and a Bangkok judge, allowing Mr. Bout to then immediately be flown to New York, or could meander through Thailand's murky court system resulting in a delay or cancellation of his extradition, permitting him to walk free.

Glenn Beck could happen here

Now that the dust has settled from Glenn Beck's weekend revival at the Lincoln Memorial, two messages need to be delivered loud and clear.

First: the United States of America has NEVER been a Christian nation, but there are those who would make it so, past and future.

And second: do not discount Glenn Beck becoming president of the United States.

I say these things after having sat through nearly all of the 17-part video rendering of Beck's rally this past weekend, and having read as many critiques of it---left and right---as I could find.

This rally was not about intellectual content, and it's a mistake to analyze it that way.

Its organizers kept the verbal content extremely simple: honor the military, "restore America," have faith in your churches, follow their lead, and donate generously.

Much of the real meaning was in who was missing.

The only major media stars were Glenn Beck and Sarah Palin. Limbaugh, O'Reilly, Hannity, Levin, Dr. Laura, Ann Coulter---no one else from the firmament of the Right got the mike or---unless I missed them---appeared on camera.

35 years after war, America influences Vietnam

HO CHI MINH CITY, Vietnam -- Cheap facsimiles of $100 bills waft in the tropical breeze, littering sidewalks with Benjamin Franklin's face.

Elsewhere, U.S. President Richard M. Nixon has become a gritty fashion icon, giving politicized street cred to "urban wear" clothes.

Thirty-five years ago, victorious Communist North Vietnam's troops fought their way into South Vietnam's southern port of Saigon and renamed it Ho Chi Minh City, to honor their dead, charismatic, wispy-bearded leader.

Ho's ubiquitous portrait, however, now competes with symbols of America, one of his worst enemies.

Today, on the chaotic streets of Ho Chi Minh City and the northern capital Hanoi, virtually anything linked to the U.S. is prized, including iPhones, Pepsi, and made-in-Vietnam Converse shoes.

The horrors meted out by Americans on this impoverished Southeast Asian nation from 1965 to 1975 are enshrined in museums, which display grim evidence, weaponry, and portraits of devastated Vietnamese from a time when U.S. soldiers called their burnt napalm victims "crispy critters."

Veterans for Peace President Mike Ferner responds to President Obama's rebranded occupation of Iraq

A veteran’s perspective makes it clear that two major points must be made in response to President Obama’s announcement regarding combat troops leaving Iraq.

First, there is no such thing as “non combat troops.” It is a contradiction in terms. It is internally inconsistent. It is illogical. It is simply not true.

Ask any of the millions of men and women who went through basic training and they can tell you that every U.S. troop anywhere in the world was indoctrinated and trained in the basics of combat. While in Iraq, the transition from mechanics or communications back to combat-ready soldier takes but an order. “Non-combat troops” is simply the latest in a long line of military euphemisms meant to obscure painful reality.

The second point can best be made by drafting a section of the President’s remarks for him. If Veterans For Peace were to do that it would read something like this.

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Peace movement pushes for end to war on Iraq

As news stories are leading those still aware of the war on Iraq to believe it's over, it was encouraging to see Busboys and Poets restaurant in Washington, D.C., packed Sunday evening for a four-hour forum on actions needed to actually end that war, make reparations, and deter future wars of aggression. The event was advertised with the following description:

"Is the U.S. military really leaving Iraq or just rebranding? What is the toll of seven years of occupation on Iraqis, U.S. soldiers and our economies? What is the status of Iraqi refugees around the world? Is it still possible to hold accountable those who dragged us into the war or committed crimes such as torture? What role did Congress and the media play in facilitating the invasion/occupation? We'll also look at the role of the peace movement -- its strengths and weaknesses -- and draw key lessons to make our work for peace, including in Afghanistan, more effective."

Brightmoor - Detroit's unnatural disaster and the need to Rebuild America

On Saturday I marched with ten thousand people in downtown Detroit demanding "Good Jobs Now" as part of Rev. Jesse Jackson's "Rebuild America" rally. I then visited my desolate boyhood westside Detroit neighborhood, Brightmoor, to remind myself what happens when an advanced nation foolishly refuses to have an industrial policy. Brightmoor was a thriving community in post-World War II society, when we actually manufactured things at home instead of outsourcing them to oppressive Third World regimes.

Tell Congress: Restore the right to travel to Cuba

Dear friends, On June 30th, HR4645, the Travel Restriction Reform and Export Enhancement Act, passed the Committee by a bi-partisan vote of 25-20.
HR4645 came through committee intact, and combines freedom for US citizens to travel to Cuba with some changes that make it easier for US farmers to trade with Cuba.

The vote on this bill is expected to take place in September, and we know that the forces who want to keep every bit of the US blockade and travel ban in place are working hard to make sure that it won’t pass.

Here is one more step that we can take to make sure that it is clear to the House of Representatives that people in the United States support HR4645. The Latin American Working Group has worked with www.change.org to create a petition that we are asking you to sign and pass on to everyone that you know. Just go to:
Petition
and fill out the form on the right hand side of the page; an e-mail is then automatically sent to your Representative.

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