Truthout roundup 4/29

Steve Weissman on the public signals that point to an attack on Iran; April death toll reaches 44 for US troops in Iraq; Paul Krugman on McCain's tax plans; insurgency spreading in Afghanistan; government witness testifies that Rezko said Fitzgerald would be fired; Supreme Court decision could lead more states to pass voter ID laws; GI bill falls short for many returning troops; and more ... Browse our continually updating front page at http://www.truthout.org t r u t h o u t 04.29

Steve Weissman Bomb Bomb Iran by Summer's End?
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/042908J.shtml Steve Weissman writes for Truthout: "when Senator John McCain serenaded reporters last April with his 'Bomb Bomb Iran,' I had to wonder. Was this a taste of his aging flyboy humor? Or was he telling us what to expect should he ever become president? We may never find out. If Vice President Dick Cheney has his way, he will beat McCain to the punch, possibly as soon as late May, after President George W. Bush returns from celebrating the 60th anniversary of Israel's creation."

Four US Troops in Baghdad Are Killed by Rocket Fire http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/042908K.shtml Ernesto Londono and Amit R. Paley, of The Washington Post, report: "four US soldiers were killed in two rocket attacks in Baghdad on Monday as clashes between US-backed Iraqi forces and Shiite militiamen intensified, the military said. Three soldiers were killed about 1 pm in eastern Baghdad, where fighters loyal to anti-American Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr have battled US and Iraqi troops. The fourth American soldier was killed at 4:15 p.m. in the western part of the capital, a US military spokesman said."

Paul Krugman Bush Made Permanent
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/042908L.shtml Paul Krugman, of The New York Times, writes: "if truth be told, the McCain tax plan doesn't seem to embody any coherent policy agenda. Instead, it looks like a giant exercise in pandering - an attempt to mollify the GOP's right wing, and never mind if it makes any sense. The impression that Mr. McCain's tax talk is all about pandering is reinforced by his proposal for a summer gas tax holiday - a measure that would, in fact, do little to help consumers, although it would boost oil industry profits."

Afghanistan's Insurgency Spreading North
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/042908M.shtml Anand Gopal, of The Christian Science Monitor, reports: "the attempted assassination of President Hamid Karzai Sunday came as the latest sign of a trend worrying Western officials: that the insurgency is spreading from the Taliban stronghold of the south to the central and northern regions of the country. The militant attack, the biggest in Kabul since mid-March, came during a public ceremony. Despite a massive security presence, militants managed to fire bullets and rockets at the president, killing two nearby lawmakers and a boy."

Witness: Fundraiser Spoke of Plan to Fire US Attorney
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/042908N.shtml Mike Robinson, of The Associated Press, reports: "a government witness testified Monday that a prominent political fundraiser for the governor told him three years ago that Chicago's chief federal prosecutor would be fired and replaced by someone chosen by then-U.S. House Speaker Dennis Hastert. Restaurant owner Elie Maloof testified that Antoin 'Tony' Rezko told him that the person picked to replace Patrick J. Fitzgerald as US attorney in Chicago would end a federal investigation into corruption under Gov. Rod Blagojevich."

Decision Is Likely to Spur Voter ID Laws in More States http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/042908O.shtml Ian Urbina, of The New York Times, reports: "far from settling the debate over voter identification, the Supreme Court ruling on Monday upholding Indiana's voter ID law is likely to lead to more laws and litigation, voting experts said. Lawmakers in at least four states may seek to pass stricter regulations in the next year or so, the experts said. In response, voting rights groups might sue on behalf of individuals or groups in an effort to exempt them."

Some War Veterans Find GI Bill Falls Short
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/042908P.shtml Susan Kinzie, of The Washington Post, reports: "two years after a rocket-propelled grenade hit Nathan Toews during an ambush in southern Afghanistan, sending shrapnel shooting into his skull and spiderwebbing through his brain, he has recovered enough to ask: What now? Like so many leaving the military, after years of taking orders, he's facing an almost infinite number of choices about his future."