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The Hardball Briefing On MSNBC
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**6:30-8 pm et**
Chris Matthews will anchor coverage tonight on MSNBC from 6:30-8 pm eastern time...I
apologize for you West Coasters who've been writing in...Set you VCRs, it's worth
it...You'll get the latest from our NBC correpondents around the world as well as The
White House, The Pentagon and CentCom with Hardball's own David Shuster who is
stationed in Doha, Qatar...
Other reasons to tune in: Pat will join us, Buchanan, not Caddell...He, of course,
co-host's MSNBC's "Buchanan and Press" which is temporarily on hold due to our
continuous coverage of Operation: Iraqi Freedom...We'll let you know when it comes
back...Luntz is back from his world tour and informs us he has his finger on the pulse
of international opinion...He'll share it with us tonight...
Senator Joe Biden will do a live hit with Chris today around 2:15 pm et on MSNBC,
we'll replay it tonight....
Also, Howard and Gergen will do the buzz type segment with the inside skinny on the
Rummy/Shinseki fight detailed in the New York Times below...Bush has come out today in
defense of The Donald...We'll get the latest...Plus, The Washington Post reports our
old buddy James Woolsey may be in line for a big job in post war Iraq but there's a
split between The Pentagon & State over who gets to appoint whom....That story below
as well...Also, Powell announced today that he is going to Turkey for a "kiss and make
up" tour...Obviously my description, not Colin's....
Pls join us tonight at 6:30 pm eastern...
Dominic Bellone wrote, compiled and edited The Briefing from Washington, DC
The first and last issue concerning this war is the young American men and women
fighting it....We at MSNBC salute these heroes everyday with our "America's Bravest"
wall which you've seen many times...If you would like to honor them as well, here's a
couple of links for you...
Looking for a way to support the troops?...Far away from home, close to our hearts
http://www.msnbc.com/news/892128.asp
America's Bravest http://www.msnbc.com/news/785157.asp
http://iraq.msnbc.com
Kurdish officials say bombing raids in northern Iraq had increased over the past 24
hours, a sign the U.S. military was intensifying its campaign along the northern
front. On Tuesday afternoon, U.S. warplanes attacked targets close to the northern oil
city of Kirkuk, a Reuters correspondent said from a hilltop vantage point in
Kurdish-held territory nearby. (MSNBC) http://www.msnbc.com/news/886517.asp
Iran next on W's list...Nukes program will get U.S. attention after Iraq war (The NY
Daily News) http://www.nydailynews.com/news/story/71782p-66580c.html
U.S. forces snuff out Iraqi defenders...Packing overwhelming firepower, U.S. forces
snuffed out Iraqi fighters in several towns and cities south of Baghdad, consolidating
their steady advance Tuesday toward the Iraqi capital
http://www.msnbc.com/modules/exports/ct_infobeat.asp?/news/870749.asp
American soldiers on the road to Baghdad fought bloody street-to-street battles with
militants loyal to Saddam Hussein while tense troops in southern Iraq shot and killed
seven women and children when the driver of a van failed to stop at a checkpoint. (AP)
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story2&cid=540&e=1&u=/ap/20030401/ap_on_re_mi_ea/war_rdp
U.S. forces resumed their northward advance toward Baghdad on Tuesday after a pause of
several days, Reuters reporters traveling with the troops said.
http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=topNews&storyID=2487641
President Saddam Hussein said in a message to the Iraqi people Tuesday that jihad
(holy war) was a religious duty and he urged them to fight invading U.S. and British
troops wherever they found them. (Reuters)
http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=topNews&storyID=2487957
Pentagon, State Spar On Team to Run Iraq...Rumsfeld Rejects State Dept. Choices (The
Washington Post)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A63223-2003Mar31.html
Long-simmering tensions between Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld and Army
commanders have erupted in a series of complaints from officers on the Iraqi
battlefield that the Pentagon has not sent enough troops to wage the war as they want
to fight it. (The New York Times)
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story2&cid=68&ncid=68&e=1&u=/nyt/20030401/ts_nyt/rumsfeld_s_design_for_war_criticized_on_the_battlefield
President Bush has complete faith in Donald Rumsfeld, a senior U.S. official said on
Tuesday, dismissing new criticism of the defense secretary's handling of the Iraq war
as second-guessing by one of "1,000 colonels" at the Pentagon.
http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=politicsNews&storyID=2487656
Two fatal shootings at U.S. roadblocks...U.S. troops shot and killed at least eight
Iraqi civilians, including some children, in two separate incidents involving vehicles
speeding toward checkpoints in southern Iraq.
http://www.msnbc.com/modules/exports/ct_infobeat.asp?/news/893527.asp
Separating militia, civilians in Iraq...U.S. troops instructed to employ tougher
tactics (The Washington Post) http://www.msnbc.com/news/893662.asp
Civilian shooting toll may climb...Washington Post: 10 died at Army checkpoint near
Karbala http://www.msnbc.com/news/893527.asp
A Gruesome Scene on Highway 9...10 Dead After Vehicle Shelled at Checkpoint (The
Washington Post) http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A61229-2003Mar31.html
U.S. scours for Saddam-al-Qaida link...U.S. special forces are scouring northeastern
Iraq for evidence to link Saddam Hussein's regime with the al-Qaida terrorist network.
MSNBC.com's Preston Mendenhall reports.
http://www.msnbc.com/modules/exports/ct_infobeat.asp?/news/893489.asp
Fight Taken to Najaf's Street....Army's in urban combat it hoped to avoid; militiamen
hole up in holy site. (The Washington Post)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A61314-2003Mar31.html
Psyops unit attacks Iraqis' minds...Secrets and lies become weapons in standoff at
Basra (The Washington Post) http://msnbc.com/news/893721.asp?0cv=CB10
"We misjudged their tenacity," a senior U.S. intelligence official says of Iraq's
leaders. "These guys are driven by a hatred (of the United States) that we may have
underestimated." A three-month U.S. effort to persuade Iraq's generals and Baath Party
leaders to surrender and oust Saddam Hussein is being scaled back after it failed to
produce any significant defections, U.S. intelligence and military officials say. (USA
Today) http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/iraq/2003-03-30-iraq-resistance_x.htm
Reports of coalition forces killing dozens of Iraqi civilians stoked growing
international unease already high after seven women and children were shot dead in a
truck at a US checkpoint in Central Iraq. (AFP)
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story2&cid=1504&ncid=1504&e=1&u=/afp/20030401/ts_afp/iraq_worldwrap
Despite American warnings, in the last few days Damascus has expedited the passage of
volunteers wishing to join the Iraqis in their war against the Americans. Thousands of
volunteers, most of them Syrians, are thronging to the Mosul and Kirkuk regions in
north Iraq. (Ha'aretz)
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/pages/ShArt.jhtml?itemNo=278982&contrassID=2&subContrassID=1&sbSubContrassID=0&listSrc=Y
Moran Analysis: In Iraq for the long haul...With a longer war looming, a look at the
implications http://www.msnbc.com/news/893320.asp
Turkey said Tuesday a visit by Secretary of State Colin Powell could help dispel
doubts hanging over relations between the two NATO allies, whose falling out over Iraq
has complicated the U.S.-led war there. (Reuters)
http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=politicsNews&storyID=2487510
A Columbia University professor who wants to see U.S. troops suffer "a million
Mogadishus" in Iraq defended his stand yesterday - and dug his hole a little deeper
(NY Post) http://www.nypost.com/news/regionalnews/72431.htm
Government monitoring group Judicial Watch has asked for a probe into whether military
adviser Richard Perle violated ethics guidelines when he agreed to help win U.S.
approval for the sale of a bankrupt telecommunications company. (Reuters)
http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=politicsNews&storyID=2480538
Some European restaurants are halting sales of Coca-Cola, Marlboro cigarettes and
other U.S. brands in boycotts spurred by anti-war sentiment. (AP)
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20030401/ap_wo_en_ge/eu_gen_europe_iraq_us_boycott_1
Israeli military intelligence suspects Saddam Hussein has hidden chemical and
biological weapons in neighboring Syria, a top officer said yesterday. (NY Post)
http://www.nypost.com/news/worldnews/72425.htm
Begging, Borrowing for Security...In Philadelphia, President Bush touted his quest for
homeland security, but mayors and governors are resorting to begging and borrowing to
pull it off. (The Washington Post)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A62682-2003Mar31.html
U.S. Marines were sent to rescue wounded members of the 507th Maintenance Company on
March 23, the day the Fort Bliss unit was attacked in Iraq, but nine of the Marines
who took part in the rescue effort were killed and eight others are missing, Pentagon
officials said Sunday. (El Paso Times)
http://www.borderlandnews.com/war/stories/20030331-94562.shtml
Buyer won't go to war after all...Congressman says Army officials thought his
deployment would jeopardize him, others. (The Indianapolis Star)
http://www.indystar.com/print/articles/6/033033-7066-009.html
During his two day New Hampshire visit last week, former Colorado Sen. Gary Hart met
privately with several supporters of past presidential bids seeking their advice on
whether he should run a third time in 2004...Hart is finding that many of these people
have already signed up with other candidates and are skeptical about his return to
politics after 15 years. (Politics NH)
http://www.politicsnh.com/archives/pindell/2003/april/4_1.shtml
Opinion/Editorial
A firing offense...Baghdad correspondent Peter Arnett deserved to be fired, but not
for the reasons NBC gave, writes Slate's Jack Shafer. http://slate.msn.com/id/2080947/
The Wall Street Journal: Rumsfeld's Second Front...No war plan survives its first
meeting with the Beltway.
http://www.opinionjournal.com/editorial/feature.html?id=110003279
Arnett: This war is not working: I am still in shock and awe at being fired. There is
enormous sensitivity within the US government to reports coming out from Baghdad.
http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/allnews/page.cfm?objectid=12795678&method=full&siteid=50143
McCaffrey: A Time to Fight...Despite some setbacks, the war plan is proceeding well.
http://www.opinionjournal.com/extra/?id=110003277
Caputo: The Smell of War...It is said that our most evocative sense is the sense of
smell, and after the names of the villages and the numbers and the dates have grown
dim in your memory, the thing you can never forget about a battlefield is the smell.
http://www.latimes.com/la-war-opcaputo30mar30,0,4924131.story
Miniter: Die Free or Leave...Why this should be Virginia's new motto
http://www.opinionjournal.com/columnists/bminiter/?id=110003276
Doonesbury http://www.ucomics.com/doonesbury/
Mallard Fillmore http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/fun/mallard.asp
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