------------------------------------------------------ The Hardball Briefing On MSNBC ------------------------------------------------------
Hardball airs tonight at 7p, 11p & 4a ET & 4p, 8p & 1a PT Tonight we go heavy on the latest controversy buzzing around the Beltway: The Iraqi POW torture pix...Senators on the Hill were stampeding in front of the cameras today demanding answers while Rumsfeld called the conduct of the soldiers involved "totally unacceptable and un-American." We lead with the journalist who really started it all, The New Yorker's Sy Hersh http://newyorker.com/fact/content/?040510fa_fact for a couple of blocks We'll get the view from the Hill from Congressman turned Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC), a former Clinton impeachment manager who famously stated during the Senate trial of Clinton: "I don't know 'bout you but where I come from if you're on the phone with someone at two in the morning, you're up to no good." We'll get the military perspective from ret. General Wayne Downing, the intel aspect from fmr. CIA guy Larry Johnson and the military justice aspect from former JAG Brig. Gen. Donald Hansen (counsel for the appeal of Lt. William Calley, the man behind the My Lai massacre in Vietnam, another Hersh story) We round out the show with something a little different...Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, the famous fmr basketball player is here to discuss his new book...No, it's not a tell-all about his years in the NBA...It's called "Brothers in Arms: The Epic Story of the 761st Tank Battalion, WWII's Forgotten Heroes"... Rumsfeld urged to testify on prisoner abuses...Military investigating possibility of abuses at other Iraqi prisons http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/4855930/ I love this Bush quote from his rally in Ohio today: "Just cause somebody has an accent and a nice suit and a good table at a fancy New York restaurant doesn't make them a foreign leader" http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/4899342/ Editor's Pick Having a doll with a bobbing head in your own likeness may be all right for Abraham Lincoln, Al Capone, Hilary Clinton, Jimmy Carter and Jesus. But California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is outraged and wants out, distinguished company or not. (Reuters) http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/nm/20040504/od_nm/politics_california_doll_dc_2 Gore's got a new gig Former Vice President Al Gore and entrepreneur Joel Hyatt launched a cable television network Tuesday by buying Newsworld International from Vivendi Universal Entertainment for an undisclosed sum. (AP) http://apnews.myway.com/article/20040504/D82BSVNG2.html Dominic Bellone wrote, compiled & edited The Hardball Briefing from Washington, DC U.S., Bulgarian troops...Four American soldiers die in vehicle accident (AP) http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/4824213/ L.A.-Dulles flight seen as terror target...Federal officials have pinpointed an airline flight from Los Angeles to Washington as a potential terrorist target in the past two weeks and have begun scrutinizing the flight crew's luggage and using security agents to follow pilots preparing for the flight.(Wash Times) http://washingtontimes.com/national/20040504-121635-1825r.htm Ex-hostage 'feeling well'...Escaped hostage Thomas Hamill, who was shot in the arm when he was abducted, was treated for the wound and regularly received food during his three weeks in captivity in Iraq, a military doctor said Tuesday. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/4884602/ Abuse photos stun guard unit's hometown...Residents in Md. city say actions of a few hurt company's reputation (AP) http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/4898568/ The following are some of the key excerpts from the report prepared by Maj. Gen. Antonio M. Taguba on alleged abuse of prisoners by members of the 800th Military Police Brigade at the Abu Ghraib Prison in Baghdad. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/4894033/ With six U.S. soldiers reprimanded and six others facing criminal charges, Iraq's prisoner-abuse scandal looked far from over Tuesday as more Iraqis came forward to allege maltreatment by U.S. troops. (Reuters) http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml;jsessionid=D1KWX1ORWXP4ACRBAE0CFEY?type=topNews&storyID=5033628§ion=news The U.S. military did a "top-level review" last fall of how its detention centers in Iraq were run, months before commanders first were told about the sexual humiliation and abuse of Iraqis that has created an international uproar, a Pentagon official said. (AP) http://apnews.myway.com/article/20040504/D82BTB0G0.html U.S. sought to boost prison training...Most military police not trained to run prisons (The Washington Post) http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/4894534/ 37,000 more reserve, Guard troops for Iraq...Pentagon concludes it must maintain full 138,000 force level (MSNBC) http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/4899904/ After the deadliest month yet for U.S. troops in Iraq, top Bush administration officials fear the situation will deteriorate in coming weeks as insurgents try to create turmoil amid the June 30 handover of power to Iraqis. (AP) http://apnews.myway.com/article/20040504/D82BP02G0.html Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry pledged Tuesday to push for 1 million more high school graduates within five years and blamed President Bush for failing to provide enough money to help schools raise academic standards. (AP) http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/4899274/ Groups gear up for big RNC protests...From satire to civil disobedience, a variety of tactics likely (MSNBC) http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/4871127/ Vice President Dick Cheney, who a week ago attacked John Kerry on national security, turned to economic issues on Monday with a broadside against the Democratic presidential candidate (Reuters) http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=politicsNews&storyID=5019109 Sixty former U.S. diplomats have signed a letter to President Bush contending that his "unabashed support" for Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon is costing the United States "credibility, prestige and friends." (AP) http://apnews.myway.com/article/20040504/D82BR1F81.html Opinion/Editorial Crawford: Spring's Usual Political Lull Yields to a Food Fight http://www.cq.com/corp/show.do?page=crawford/crawford_current Andrew Sullivan: The Uncelebrity...Pat Tillman, R.I.P. http://www.andrewsullivan.com/main_article.php?artnum=20040502 Unfit for Office...I was on Mr. Kerry's boat in Vietnam. He doesn't deserve to be commander in chief. http://www.opinionjournal.com/editorial/feature.html?id=110005036 Doonesbury http://www.ucomics.com/doonesbury/ ========================================= This email is never sent unsolicited. You have received The Hardball Briefing Newsletter because you subscribed to it or, someone forwarded it to you. To remove yourself from the list (or to add yourself to the list if this message was forwarded to you) simply go to http://www.msnbc.com/tools/newstools/e/emailextra.asp?nfeature=19 <http://www.msnbc.com/tools/newstools/e/emailextra.asp?nfeature=19>