Yep.

Elizabeth Cheney Perry:

Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs

Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State For Near Eastern Affairs and Coordinator for Broader Middle East and North Africa Initiatives

Iran Syria Policy and Operations Group (State Dept. Bureau of Near East Affairs)

They state that Ted Kennedy neither wrote nor personally signed the letter that was sent to gov Patrick.

That Ted was brain dead and that even Obamas choice to vacation in Mass was politically motivated. That once the president was there the family had already agreed to pull the plug and the rest is history.

I have no idea how much is fact, but there it is.

On September 1st, 2009 at 11:26 am, rocketman said:

John, if you’re referring to Theodore Roosevelt, Jr., Teddy’s eldest son with his second wife Edith, he did indeed serve in WW1. But he survived that conflict to serve in WW2, where he was the only general to land with the first wave of troops per his own written request that he be allowed to go in with that first wave; prior verbal requests had been denied. The Medal of Honor citation reads:

*ROOSEVELT, THEODORE, JR.

Rank and organization: brigadier general, U.S. Army. Place and date: Normandy invasion, 6 June 1944. Entered service at: Oyster Bay, N.Y. Birth: Oyster Bay, N.Y. G.O. No.: 77, 28 September 1944. Citation: for gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty on 6 June 1944, in France. After 2 verbal requests to accompany the leading assault elements in the Normandy invasion had been denied, Brig. Gen. Roosevelt’s written request for this mission was approved and he landed with the first wave of the forces assaulting the enemy-held beaches. He repeatedly led groups from the beach, over the seawall and established them inland. His valor, courage, and presence in the very front of the attack and his complete unconcern at being under heavy fire inspired the troops to heights of enthusiasm and self-sacrifice. Although the enemy had the beach under constant direct fire, Brig. Gen. Roosevelt moved from one locality to another, rallying men around him, directed and personally led them against the enemy. Under his seasoned, precise, calm, and unfaltering leadership, assault troops reduced beach strong points and rapidly moved inland with minimum casualties. He thus contributed substantially to the successful establishment of the beachhead in France .

About a month after that landing he died as the result of a heart attack; he reportedly had a number of health problems, including arthritis (possibly related to injuries sustained in the first war) and the heart problem that eventually claimed his life.

As a side note, I’ve read that Teddy Sr. and Teddy Jr. are one of two father and son sets to have been awarded the Medal of honor; the other is Arthur and Douglass MacArthur.

As for Jenna, this gig with the Today Show scarcely rises to the level of nepotism that we in the Bog State have endured (many of us un-willingly) – we may get stuck with Joe “Hugo is my good buddy” Kennedy if Debacle Patrick gets his way; yes, there will be a vote in January of 2010, but in the interim Patrick wants the legislature to change the law (again!) to let him appoint someone to hold Teddy’s seat – and no matter what they promise, there is nothing in the state’s constitution that would prohibit that seat-warmer from running. The term Spamalot seems more appropriate than the other title the press loves to use.

She didn’t wake up one day and say, “Hey, I think I want to be on the Today Show. I wonder how I can make that happen…”

They reached out to her. She hadn’t even been thinking about it. Surely it’ll be up to her to do a good job, but she didn’t go begging for the job in the first place.

This may in fact be reverse nepotism, but I don’t think it reflects badly on Ms. Hager.

It’s a shame that these politicians have been entrenched so long they feel they have the right to leave their seat in Congress to an heir apparent. This push to seat Ted Kennedy’s widow is the latest attempt. It would have worked with Caroline too if she hadn’t of been so obviously inept.

I like the idea of voting every one of them out – good and bad and re-electing new members. The rules of seniority and handing out plush committee chairmanships should be abolished too. You become a committee chairman by drawing lots. And then, top it all off with term limits.

Serving in Congress should be more like “community” service rather than a lifetime appointment.

http://www.rasmussenreports.com/publ…ntire_congress

When the Constitution was written, the nation’s founders expected that there would be a 50% turnover in the House of Representatives every election cycle. That was the experience they witnessed in state legislatures at the time (and most of the state legislatures offered just one-year terms). For well over 100 years after the Constitution was adopted, the turnover averaged in the 50% range as expected.
In the 20th century, turnover began to decline. As power and prestige flowed to Washington during the New Deal era, fewer and fewer members of Congress wanted to leave. In 1968, congressional turnover fell to single digits for the first time ever, and it has remained very low ever since.

Private corporations will give some leeway for a name, but will eventually break the contract if their prodigy isn’t producing.

And the wine store two blocks from Heritage is pretty good… And Cafe Berlin nearby is very good. It was a favorite lunch spot a few years back.