Lost: Our Keys, The TV Remote, 190,000 Weapons In Iraq

PLUS: Darfur moves forward (we hope)...Running the gamut of state immigration laws...The only thing standing between you and death are those silicone implants...We heart hackers...and finally, the Hello Kitties of shame. Today is August 7th, and this is Mic Check.

Celebration Excuse

Purple Hearts, the War Department and revolving doors. As Yogi Berra would say, it’s déjà vu all over again. Newman!

1782

George Washington creates The Purple Heart to be awarded to soldiers wounded in combat

1789

Congress establishes the War Department

1888

A guy in Philly named Theophilus Van Kannel receives a patent for his new invention, the revolving door.

1934

The U.S. Court of Appeals rules the U.S. government cannot ban one of the greatest works of literature, Ulysses by James Joyce.

1964

Congress approves the Gulf of Tonkin resolution, giving LBJ the power to wage war against VietNam.

1972

Yogi Berra and Sandy Koufax are inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame

1990

President George HW Bush orders Operation Desert Shield to organize. (Troops will be sent to Iraq in January 1991.)

Eat More Cake

1876: German spy Mata Hari

1903: Anthropologist Louis Leakey, famed for his theory that Africa is the cradle of mankind

1955: NEWMAN! Seinfeld actor Wayne Knight

1960: The truth is out there, Mulder – you’re getting old. X-Files actor David Duchovney.

1963: Lost’s long-suffering father Michael, actor Harold Perrineau

1975: Shape-shifting actress/model Charlize Theron

Daybook

POTUS

12:00 pm

The President has lunch with the Secretary of Defense, Defense Policy and Programs Team and the Secretary of State and Foreign Policy Team at Camp David.

PEOPLE

Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff participates in a media availability and demonstration of the Employment Eligibility Verification Program at the NationalAdvocacyCenter of the University of South Carolina.

Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson participates in a tour of Mark Rite Lines (MRL) Equipment Co. and delivers remarks, MRL Equipment, Billings, Mont.

Education Secretary Margaret Spellings participates in a visit and tour of HumesMiddle School in Memphis, Tenn.

STUMPIN’

The A.F.L.-C.I.O. sponsors a Democratic candidate forum in Chicago. MSNBC and XM Satellite Radio broadcast the event at 7 p.m.

Senator Joe Biden speaks at the Congressional Black Caucus Political Education and Leadership Institute in Tunica, Miss.

Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton delivers a “major policy address” at an elementary school in Derry, N.H.

Rudolph Giuliani holds press conferences in Davenport and Clinton, town halls in Bettendorf amd Dubuque and meets with locals in Maquoketa, Iowa.

Senator John McCain raises funds in Highland and Detroit, Michigan.

Rep. Ron Paul holds meetings in Lawton and Denison, Iowa.

Tom Tancredo holds town hall meetings in Sioux City, Sheldon, and Sioux Center, Iowa.

ON THE HILL

Yeah, right. Congress is on vacay.

TV TIME

Tune in at work

The View: (Repeat) Joan Rivers,
Regis and Kelly: Drew Carey, Tori Spelling
Ellen DeGeneres: (Repeat) Kate Walsh, Kanye West and his mother Donda

Stay up late

Daily Show: Andy Samberg
Colbert Report: Ian Bogost
Kimmel: Jackie Chan, Chris Tucker, Fred Savage
Letterman: (Repeat) Michelle Pfeiffer, Jonah Hill
Leno: Cuba Gooding Jr., Zac Efron, John McLaughlin
Late Late Show: Ben Stein
Conan: Glenn Close, Michael Cera, Modest Mouse
Last Call: Emma Stone, Avril Lavigne

 

Eavesdrop

STEAL THIS AUDIO: BUSH AND KARZAI

Who: President Bush and Afghan President Karzai hold a joint press conference at Camp David, MD after meeting to discuss drugs, terrorism, and the overall condition of Afghanistan. [USA Today]

When: Yesterday. Over the past weekend, the two leaders met at Camp David. See Mic Check’s run-down of the meeting here.

Why You Should Care: We’ve got some major spin control. While Bush and Karzai are working overtime to laud successes in Afghanistan, fact is the place is a mess. Within the past few weeks, tensions in Afghanistan have skyrocketed, thanks to the much-publicized hostage situation in which Taliban forces kidnapped 23 South Korean hostages, two of whom have since been killed. The Taliban’s forces are gaining strength. And then there’s opium: The crop has grown to record levels since the overthrow of the Taliban, which had banned it in 2000. The drug trade has become economically intertwined with the revived insurgency.

THE AUDIO

  • President Bush discusses the need for an open and honest government in Afghanistan. Do we smell hypocrisy, or did we just forget deodorant today?
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  • President Karzai: This is your country on drugs.
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  • President Bush is faithful that with “actionable intelligence” al Qaeda will be brought to justice.
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Masthead

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Mic Check is produced every weekday by Christy Harvey, Sara Langhinrichs and Nicole Murphy, and is a project of the Center for American Progress Action Fund. Read more about Mic Check.

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