From the NBC affiliate in San Diego: "Hundreds of San Diego County-based U.S. Marines and sailors began a seven-month deployment Saturday in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. The personnel, members of the 3rd Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment at Camp Pendleton, bid farewell to family and friends Saturday morning in preparation for their latest tour of duty in Al Anbar Province, USMC authorities said. The activation, which will occur over several days, will be the battalion's third deployment to Iraq since 2003."
Cronyism Continues
President Bush made another appointment during the recess. According to the New York Times, he appointed "...Julie L. Myers, a White House official, as head of the nation's immigration enforcement agency despite concerns on the part of some about her qualifications for the job.
Ms. Myers, a 36-year-old lawyer, will be sworn in on Monday. She currently serves as the president's special assistant for personnel and previously worked as an assistant secretary at the Department of Commerce. She has never managed a large department or dealt extensively with immigration issues.
When Mr. Bush nominated Ms. Myers last year, Democratic and Republican senators raised concerns about her lack of experience, and her Senate confirmation appeared to be in doubt. Some critics said they feared that her political connections, rather than her qualifications, had driven the decision to select her to lead the bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, which has 15,000 employees and a budget of about $4 billion..."
"...Ms. Myers, who has held a variety of federal jobs over the last four years, drew attention because of her ties to the White House and some senior officials. She is a niece of Gen. Richard B. Myers, who recently stepped down as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and the wife of John Wood, Mr. Chertoff's chief of staff..."
Once again, this administration finds another unqualified crony a job.
