Arkansas Blog

Rumor had it that he'd run for Mayor given Boss Hays' troubles of late & that's why he'd return home early - to follow a timeline that allowed for a campaign.

Some have said that his increased profile with the AGs race led to a concern from Hays who aided his PSC gig. Hard core Dems won't vote for Suskie based upon his pro-coal vote, but that only matters in a statewide race. He's about the only guy who could beat Boss Hays.

I hesitate to criticize someone who has spent so much time serving our country & time away from family & small children, but special favors and their political implications are troubling.

"Hard core Dems won't vote for Suskie based upon his pro-coal vote"

What vote are you referring to?

It's only special treatment if others in his position (JAG) are treated differently.

Another Dawg sensationalized piece. Schlessing and the ADG editor really tried to sex up a common story. Key point they missed, Suskie didn't request leave from Iraq. Hard to criticize a guy who voluntarily joined the National Guard and has served tours of duty in Afghanistan and Iraq. My guess is gubernatorial appointee Suskie could have gotten out of going to Iraq if he were willing to press the issue with Beebe. And no, Suskie will not run against Admiral Hays, he has a bigger job chairing the PSC.

Come, come, children. Situational ethics.

Hard core Dems won't vote for Suskie based upon his pro-coal vote, but that only matters in a statewide race<<

We need to clarify a "pro-coal vote." In Arkansas it's a vote to eat the poisons so Texas gets
cheap electricity. SWEPCO, after getting a virtual free pass on the Hempstead County Coal-fired
generator, applied to build $30 million dollar heavy duty power lines to the Texas border.

Likewise we get the noise, environmental degradation, disruption of neighborhoods and false promises from Chesapeake but none of the fuel energy.

How does it feel to be the easy,ugly girl who gets screwed but never taken to the party?

Thanks Paul. Thanks Mike guv.
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Like Max, I wondered why the DoG was giving front-page treatment to the Suskie story. He strikes me as a decent guy, given that he a politically faithful scion of a pre-Rove Republican family. Neither the relatively good Republicans like the Suskies nor Blue Dog Dems like Lincoln, Prior, and Beebe seem to get it -- the big picture -- when it comes to development versus the environment or empire-building versus patriotism. At least Suskie was willing to pay his dues in response to his Decider-in-Chief's appeal to ersatz patriotism.

AT: I'm really sick of your irresponsible statement that this is 'Bush's war'. Let me remind you that Congress authorized the sending of troops to Iraq and it was Congress that has approved funds to support this war. You own miss hillary voted for this action. So give me a break and also give the truth a break and tell the truth. You know that the President can't do this unless Congress authorizes and appropriates.

I thought Suskie and the Admiral were boys. Seems odd that he would return just to face him.

I read the article preparing to be disappointed in Paul, a person I supported in the AG's race and grew to admire. I ended the article being disappointed in the DoG. What a helplessly biased piece working against Suskie. I don't get it. There was no "there" there. Seems like an odd story.

I sure hope this blows over or something more incriminating appears (acutally hoping against that) to justify the piece and its prominence.

Kidding, right strangelove? If not, you need to back away from the bottle. This is Bush's war. He trumped up the evidence for going to war (WMDs). He wanted to show his daddy he was a man. He knew his buddy Cheney's company Haliburton would reap billions off the war. To blame the war, even on a Republican congress is crazy. Bush is the war monger not Congress. And back to the story, bottom line is military policy is nuts on most every issue.....gays in the military, equipping the troops, Haliburton, tending to the maimed. Amy Schlessing and Dawg editors, the Suskie story was much to say about nothing.

It's not Bush's War mouthin. Like it or not it's OUR war. I wrote 1 Congressman and two U.S. Senators pleading to please not support the war. But put into perspective it's our war for like all wars since WWII this one was unnecessary but as strange points out it is semi-legal. The truth is most reps and senators in Congress could be impeached over it. Senator Byrd, Kennedy and a few others would be exempt plus Ron Paul ,Dennis Kucinich and a few others Reps. No one voted for an Act of War as the Constitution stipulates.

It's our war and we pay for it every time we fill up the old gas tank. It sounded good back in the day.
Get the evil dictator. GIT HIM. Like 14 yr old boys no one thought about the consequences while mounting one more U.S. flag on their car.

Oh, and the Americans who actually started this war---getting filthy rich while you , me and strange pay for it. This war began long before Congress voted upon "authorizations." PNAC comes to mind and Cheney's secret energy meetings too.

But, strange is correct. It's OUR war. Like it or not. When the inmates are running the asylum everyone in it is crazy.
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"He trumped up the evidence for going to war (WMDs)." And your proof is what? Either put up or shut up. Speculation is not proof.

Paul Suskie is a good fellow. I like his fair treatment of all parties and balance on the PSC. The average Arkansan will have not problem with his decision to allow a miltibillion investment in Arkansas. We all need electrons to fuel even our discussions on here. The decision as to the public interest of the plant is far bigger than just the fuel used. We have had a coal plant at Redfield for years. The local folks at Fulton welcome the investment in their community. The big complainers are rich outsiders who own a fancy hunting club and lodge. Check with the average man on the street. the plant is heavily supported. Opponents would raise hell if they went without power for only a weekend. I see Suskie reaching a state office some day.

strangelove, where are those WMDs? Bush, Colin Powell or non of the other Bushies seemed to be able to find any. eLwood, remember our friend Vic Snyder voted against the war. Thankfully, I live in his district. Can we vote him in for life?

The lack of WMDs DOES NOT prove that Bush lied or manufactured false intelligence. Where have you proven intent? Where is the evidence that he took steps to manufacture or hide intelligence? Don't make statements that you can't prove. Using DNC talking points is not an original thought nor is it proof.

mouthinfreely, I once felt as you concerning St. Vic. I even wrote him that he would have my vote as long as he asked for it. That was before the FISA immunity vote.

Even St. Vic has lost my vote this year.

What say thee, strange? Click on Cato for truth, justice and the American way.....Bushevik style.

The only answer is to impeach Bush and let him clear his name in a court of law. We'll see if the "Bush didn't do it" troll holds up. I think it will go the way of the "global warming doesn't exist," "you can balance the budget by cutting taxes," and "the earth is 5000 years old" trolls, but maybe not.

He's a liar, and anyone who supports him supports lies. How do you know if a Republican is telling lies? His mouth is moving.

Remember when Vic voted against the war, and the DoG printed a picture of him alongside Castro, and more or less called him a traitor? That's what happened to anyone who had the sense enough to look at the intelligence and oppose the war, even though Bush (as the brits put it) had decided on the war and was simply filling in the "facts" behind it. Character assassination.

Commander Vic loves to rant and rave when he has a camera on him. Posturing for you limo liberals is the only thing he knows how to do. His 'lackiness' can use those words. If words could kill our enemies he would have singlehandedly struck our enemies to death. Unfortunately, commander vick is like so many other limo liberals. The jihadists believe that we are a paper tiger and they have come to the conclusion that our politicans mirror who we are. Which means that they think we are wimps and do not fear us. Thank you, commander vick, for being the feminist 'girlyboy' that you are.

Let's quit reinventing history. Prior to the Iraq War the following western intelligence agencies had come to the conclusion that WMDs were present in Iraq: Germany, Britain, France, Italy and the US. Bubba Clinton spoke in 1998 and said not only did Iraq have WMDs that posed a threat to the west but that the US should eliminate them even if it required military means. So, please, spare me the polemics and at least be man enough to admit the truth.

What is always interesting to me is how quickly threads on this blog get hijacked. I am surprised that the threads on Eat Arkansas can remain on topic without degenerating into partisan name-calling.

strangelove - defending Bush is a losing proposition. The facts are not on your side. The American public finally woke up. So do you think the US should start wars all over the world to prove a point to the jihadists? John Wayne to the rescue! Oh and BTW, Paul Suskie is an honorable man and a patriot as is Vic Snyder.

strangelove - you wrote: "If words could kill our enemies he would have singlehandedly struck our enemies to death. Unfortunately, commander vick is like so many other limo liberals."

I guess you've forgotten the fact that Snyder served in Viet Nam while Bush was a deserting coward and Cheney was simply a coward.

Yes, well what I see on this blog is the converse. Bush hatred is so intense that truth be damned. I don't care what the facts are I'm going to hate Bush. That kind of thinking is anti intellectual and anti truth.

Benedict Arnold served in the Continental Army but you know what else he did.

Man, you cats need to ignore this strange. Dude is off his addiction or maybe its some kind of blood pressure med malfunction. Manic and clueless are a dangerous combination.

All one need do is read the NIE, which every single Senator should have read before voting to send us to war.

Out intel agencies filed us in many ways, but the NIE report they submitted for Senators to read in private before voting AUMF made it clear the Bush administration was lying. Nobody deserves to be forgiven politically or morally for either failing to read that NIE or voting to send us into needless war based on Bush lies.

The Senators who did read the NIE (From Feingold to Byrd, among others) begged other senators (on the floor of the Senate on CSPAN too) to do so before voting. Hillary and many many others failed to do so.

That same NIE now says Bushco is lying about Iran and nukes.

Lt. Calley served in Vietnam as well. A lot of guys served and they are all over the spectrum in terms of their view of the war and other political philosophies. I look at him based on his voting record and what he says today.

Yes, hillary was on the foreign relations committee and SAID that she read it at the time. I thought she was some kind of political genius. How could a so called political genius be fooled by a guys you call a dummy? Please explain.

strange, I would like to see a reliable source/ quote/ link where Hilary admits to having read the NIE before voting on the AUMF?????

She was on the foreign relations committee who received the report. She voted on the authorization. What PROOF do you need? If you really doubt it do a nexus search.

No way Paul would run against the Admiral. Forget that.

And let's see...Suskie's 1.5 tours in Iraq versus all the tours by Hussman and his kin, Greenberg and his kin, Kane and his Kin...that would be 1.5 tours to zero. Add in tours by Sanford, it's still 1.5 tours to zero. Clearly a case of Hussman and Greenberg being assholes, which is not news. They must be taking a short vacation from character assassination of Judge Buddy.

It's not I who need prove of your lies.. it's you who should be able to back up your claims.

She never claimed to have read the NIE. In fact quite the opposite. And senators and congressmen couldn't read the full NIE in committee.. it was only available in a secret closed room.

troll

So are you saying that she voted and supported our entry into this war without knowing what she was doing? Hardly the actions of a political genius.

No I am calling you a liar and a troll and you refuse to do anything to suggest otherwise. You bring no facts, no links to support your statements, even when someone asks you. When someone provides direct facts to demonstrate your endless lies (such as I did in re your repeated lies about what Obama said on fuel efficiency).. you just move to another one. Your intent here is to do nothing other than spread lies and disrupt any attempt by folks to carry on any semblance of honest communication.

In other words you have no answer to my statements to rebut them. Your frustration is obvious. Your name calling is an excuse for nothing to say.

This story was a waste of space and a non-issue. Suskie is a good fellow and the story made him out to be a person that received special attention because of his connections. When in fact it's common for doctors, lawyers, and other enlisted professionals to receive shorter tours of duty. Must have been a slow news day for the Demazette.

I read the article in the paper and all the comments here. Two questions: (1) Is the reporter right about the Army policy?; and (2) Name all of the JAGS from Arkansas that had their duty cut short since we have had all of the deployments since 2001. I will withhold my comments about this story until those questions can be answered.

As for everything else, I agree this war did not have to be.

Eureka,

"When someone provides direct facts to demonstrate your endless lies (such as I did in re your repeated lies about what Obama said on fuel efficiency).. you just move to another one. Your intent here is to do nothing other than spread lies and disrupt any attempt by folks to carry on any semblance of honest communication."

That would make strange a neo-conservative, wouldn't it?

The chants of, "But you can't prove he lied!" got old about 2005, strange. It's over: I saw a poll of historians in which, when asked, 67 or so percent of them said he would go down as the worst ever. Many qualified their judgments as being uncharacteristic of their normal protocol of not judgi ng actions or terms less than a decade expired. HE'S JUST THAT FREAKING HORRIBLE!

Strange, you have brought absolutely nothing. If you can honestly say that you believe that Bush has even done a fair-to-meddling job, I think you'd be the perfect person to form a unique, albeit lonely, new third party - cause it's for goddamn sure that most Republicans ain't happy with him. Bush blew their cover for at least a generation.

>>Bush blew their cover for at least a generation.<<<

Nay, I thought the same thing after Richard Nixon. Americans have short memories and Republicans have lots of TV money and TV executives. Best re invention artists to walk the Earth. It took Nixon being outed from office 5 short years and here came Raygun. Slick-talked his way into the Oval Office he did. Began paying American companies to outsource production, meaning moving their jobs to Third World nations. Southern blue-collars loved it till it got real and hit them personally. Some of them still vote R no matter. Preachers tell them to, they
do it. Bella Vista is full of pissed-off conservative ex-workers who were forced into early retirement due to raider groups stealing their companies blind or their jobs getting moved overseas.

It won't matter who wins the Oval Office. Few are gonna approve of the necessary clean-up actions
that the next president must take. No Choice. Cheney-Bush spent us into near bankruptcy. Tough medicine to take. It ain't gonna be nice and lots of fingers pointing in both directions.
No working person will be left behind. Only the billionaires won't be bothered much because they can borrow and pay back with inflated profits/interest.

Let's call a spade a spade, and in doing so, call this story what it is: bullshit...from start to finish. Anyone that knows Suskie will attest to the fact that not only is he one of the most decent fellas out there, but that he has a sense of duty with regard to his military service like no other.

This is what irritates me: I've known politicians and I've watched as front-page stories come out about them making them look like assholes. Much of the time it's true. Unfortunately, however, this reporter is attempting to lump Paul into the same group as the rest...when that is simply not the case. Paul is a different type of politician, in that he's a public servant. That is precisely why I voted for him in the AG primary. Additionally, that's why I've lamented that loss ever since.

I hope this reporter gets the pushback she deserves from the Governor, from the public, from whomever. She would deserve every bit of it for writing a slanted, uninformed story. I can tell you, however, there won't be any reprisal or bad-mouthing from Suskie, who is more prone to taking the high road and turning the other cheek. Unfortunately, I am not as charitable as Mr. Suskie, so I'll just say it again...this story is utter bullshit...

StrangLove,

Man wake up! You have some wierd "strange love" for Herr Bush. Were you one of the bushbackers who paid $10,000 to buy a photo so that you could tell your kids that this was the Prez who put 500 years of debt on their back and put a knife in the back of ol' man Democracy.
Strange Bushwacking love you have, indeed!

WTF? Why is the Arkansas DoG, and Schessling, making this an issue, and more specifically, why is she targeting Suskie? A man who VOLUNTEERED for duty in Iraq. Why doesn't she go do an article on the guys who find ways to skip out of their obligations?

Being a former service man and reservist, the practice of rotating Professional Offier's, such as Doctor's, Lawyers, Nurses, etc, is fairly common. I can see why the Arkansas Army NG does this, 'cause they would have trouble getting folks to volunteer. Keep in mind, these are Professional Offiers, not Private Soldiers, who are taking a signficant pay cut to VOLUNTEER to go to Iraq. Most of the regular soliders probably make more money being on active duty in the Army then they do in the regular jobs.

I think this is an interesting issue, but not front page material, and certainly should not have been aimed as Suskie. If you look closer at his orders, it says he may be released early or extended, or something of the sort. Plus I believe her citation that she says, "Can't Be Replaced" may come from a old operations manual or regulation, but certainly not from the law. I wish she would have clarified her issue and done her home work before she took a pot shot at someone who VOLUNTEEREED to go to Iraq. Writing this kind of crap about our soldiers is just plain dispicable.

By the way, Schelessing looks about as credible, and attractive, as a Mud Duck. I mean, is she really doing anything worthwhile for the people of Arkansas by being embedded in the 39th? I have been reading her articles, and she really doesn't do much for me.

I am stunned (NOT) that somehow we went from is this a legitimate issue with Paul Suskie to who do we blame for being in Iraq. Get over it. We are there. Stop whining. Lets figure out now how to win and get out.

That said, Paul might be a nice guy and everything, but so are the thousands of others over there serving out their full term (and most in more dangerous conditions than a JAG officer - no offense).

I am stunned (NOT) that somehow we went from is this a legitimate issue with Paul Suskie to who do we blame for being in Iraq. Get over it. We are there. Stop whining. Lets figure out now how to win and get out.

That said, Paul might be a nice guy and everything, but so are the thousands of others over there serving out their full term (and most in more dangerous conditions than a JAG officer - no offense).

Didn't Suskie have a Buddy Holly moment on his first tour?
Seems like he was supposed to be on a helicopter, he let someone else take the seat and then the chopper crashed in a sand storm.
As far as the story goes, it seems like the D*G made a big deal out of something that is a common practice.
If the guard unit is activated, that makes them regular army and if the army's practice is to rotate JAGs, then what's the big deal?
Makes for an interesting story that he's back, but it didn't deserve the 2,000 plus words it got.

So pollyana, is your point Suskie is less of a soldier because he is JAG and because he has served fewer days in Afghanistan and Iraq than others? I can tell you one thing, with his political connections Suskie could have avoided going to Iraq in the first place but no he didn't try to pull a Bush move. He didn't ask Gov. Beebe to intercede. And remember, Amy Schlessing never wrote that Suskie asked to be rotated home. Suskie deserves our thanks and gratitude not a whacking by a reporter who obviously has a hatchet in her hand.