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Politics : Politics for Pros- moderated -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Lane3 who wrote (20159)	12/16/2003 8:24:29 PM
From: Sully-	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 793575

"Another example of outrageous bias, I guess..." All the major networks have chosen at various times to NOT even cover President Bush giving a speech. Howard Dean is campaigning to be President. Media outlets cutting away after several minutes of Dean's foreign policy speech is NOT exactly uncommon for a candidate for political office. That is factually accurate. Is your example evidence of "outrageous bias"? Factually, no. Perhaps it could be an example of real bias if it was part of a pattern of real bias against democrats or liberal politics. There exists a real pattern of liberal bias in most major media outlets. That is a fact. I look forward to reading more examples of real conservative bias being exhibited by all the major media outlets if/when they occur. <BTW, I don't make a habit of calling liberal media outlets bias "outrageous"> This too is a fact.

To: Lane3 who wrote (20159)	12/16/2003 8:26:51 PM
From: LindyBill	Respond to of 793575

France and Germany Agree to Substantial Cuts in Iraq Debt By CRAIG S. SMITH - New York Times PARIS, Dec. 16 — France and Germany agreed to work toward a "substantial reduction" of Iraq's towering foreign debt next year, marking a significant step forward in the United States' effort to rebuild the devastated country as well as progress in mending ties with the two countries most opposed to the American-led war there. "Debt reduction is critical if the Iraqi people are to have a chance to build a free and prosperous Iraq," said the statement released by French President Jacques Chirac's office following language agreed upon by the three countries. "Therefore, France, Germany and the United States agree that there should be substantial debt reduction for Iraq in the Paris Club in 2004, and will work closely with each other to achieve this objective." The Paris Club is a group of 19 industrialized countries that have jointly worked to alleviate the financial obligations of over-indebted countries since 1956. The statement, echoed in Washington and Berlin, said that the exact percentage of debt reduction remains subject to future negotiations. But American officials said the three countries had agreed to begin work before the establishment of sovereignty in Iraq, a previous pre-condition to debt reduction talks. "We agreed to reduce the Iraqi debt burden within the mechanism of the Paris Club if possible in 2004," Mr. Baker told reporters in the courtyard of the Élysée Palace before leaving by car after meeting with Mr. Chirac. After Mr. Baker's meeting with Chancellor Gerhard Schröder later in the day in Berlin, the White House spokesman, Scott McClellan, said the three countries had agreed "that there should be substantial debt reduction for Iraq in the Paris Club in 2004," and that France, Germany and the United States would work closely to achieve that objective. In Berlin, a government spokesman, Bela Anda, said, "Germany and the United States agree that a solution to the debt question is essential for the reconstruction of Iraq." Reducing Iraq's debt is critical to rebuilding Iraq's devastated economy. Without clearing the country's books of some of the estimated $120 billion in outstanding loans, governments and companies will be reluctant to invest the amount of money needed to get the Iraqi oil industry back on its feet. In addition, much of any oil revenue the country generates will have to go toward interest payments. Earlier this month President Bush named Mr. Baker as his special envoy to address the debt problem. Mr. Baker is perhaps the perfect person for the job, having negotiated the restructuring of Latin America's mountain of debt in the 1980's. His current trip is only the opening phase of what will most certainly be a marathon effort to pare the Iraqi debt. The Bush administration would like to see Paris Club countries cancel as much as 90 percent of the Iraqi debt due them, treatment that in the past has been reserved for heavily indebted poor countries, mostly aid-dependent nations in Africa. With the world's second-largest proven oil reserves, Iraq is unlikely to fit that description. The best deal the Paris Club has ever cut with a developing country was a 66 percent debt reduction for the former Yugoslavia after the ouster of President Slobodan Milosevic. But the Paris Club holds less than half of Iraq's outstanding debt and without substantial write-offs by the country's other creditors, even that deal would leave Iraq with a hobbling burden of old loans. French officials said there had been no effort to tie a more aggressive debt reduction to lucrative reconstruction contracts in Iraq, from which French companies have been excluded because of past opposition by Paris to the American-led war. Chancellor Schröder, however, is expected to push Mr. Baker for a reversal of the American decision to exclude German companies from reconstruction contracts in return for cooperation on more aggressive debt relief. The German leader said last month that he favors forgiving some of Iraq's debt to help the country's economic recovery. Gernot Erler, deputy leader in Parliament of the Social Democratic Party, told German radio today that the chancellor "will have to ask Mr. Baker questions" about the reconstruction contracts. "This will certainly be a topic of these discussions," Mr. Erler said. nytimes.com

To: Lane3 who wrote (20159)	12/17/2003 1:18:21 AM
From: Nadine Carroll	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 793575

So much for the idea that the Democratic presidential front-runner should get equal time with George Bush, whose 45-minute news conference was carried in full Where did you get that idea? Candidates, esp. primary candidates, never get as much coverage as sitting Presidents. Only events considered "pure campaign" events need to be balanced, and only after the nomination, when it's one-on-one. This always gives the incumbent a big advantage.