Wednesday, 27 August, 2008
Here's Kirsty's round up of what's being prepared for tonight's programme...
Dear viewers,
Sorry for the lateness of this e mail. I have been at the Russian Embassy interviewing the Charge d'Affaires about David Miliband's Kiev speech, in which the Foreign Secretary warned the Russian President not to start a Cold War, and made an explicit threat that Europe should reduce its dependency on Russia for its gas supplies.
It seems direct retaliation for President Medvedev's recognition of the two Georgian breakaway provinces but our Diplomatic Editor Mark Urban will be analysing the speech.
Was it a measured strategic response or was it full of sound and fury, signifying nothing?
We'll be hearing direct from the White House, when - in a very rare interview - I'll be speaking live to the US President's senior spokeswoman Dana Perino.
Then we will have the first in a major series of films on illegal immigration from the award-winning investigative journalist Sorious Samura.
Tonight he reveals the often dangerous route by which many illegal immigrants make it into this country. And follows the authorities in their attempts to stem the flow.
Following that, we join Gavin at the Democratic Convention in Denver where the delegates are awaiting the second coming ... by which I mean the arrival of another Clinton.
Last night Hillary urged her supporters to swing in behind Barack Obama. In a carefully crafted, powerful speech she called on Democrats to unite but studiously avoided praising the man who put an end to her White House dreams, this time round at least.
Will Bill Clinton put the final piece of the jigsaw in place, with a tribute to Obama himself? Gavin will be speaking to Tom Daschle, the co-chair of the Obama campaign.
I hope you'll be watching,
Kirsty
Comment number 1.
At 27th Aug 2008, Markonee1 wrote:Someone please get David Microband to step outside his ego and see what a fool he looks threatening Russia... What's he going to do? He's 100 years too late to send a Navy blockade, perhaps he could threaten to boycott gas from the Rusky pipeline. We can then add that to the redundant £1billion pipeline from Milford Haven, to a village near that vast metropolis called Malvern!!!
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Comment number 2.
At 27th Aug 2008, barriesingleton wrote:MILIBAND WATCH (Acnowledging #1)
The Lesser Glottalled Miliband, if observed closely, demonstrates an impatient peremptoriness, only found in the most arrogant of species. Taken under the wing of the Great Turkey Blair, he absorbed the ways of greatness and shed a number of bits of the English language, in homage to Ol' Charisma.
He has, also, a fine grasp of Blair's instinct for right and wrong, their interchangeability and lodestone-like quality; such that right always points his way.
Currently he is again in the wings, not of Turkey Blair, but of his rightful destiny: to be Prime Minister of Great Britain: a post in which he can exercise his influence globally, showing tyrants the error of their ways and glottalling to glory. Hail David - global Goliaths - be afraid!
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Comment number 3.
At 28th Aug 2008, kevseywevsey wrote:Millibands appearence and utterences are really gonna have the ruskies shaking in their boots...with encouragement filled laughter to invade Gt Britian. Jesus!! can't we find anybody who has the appearence not of a child that can do the foreign ministers job with at least a sniff of gravitas...whats Douglas Hurd doing these days? someone give him a bell...quickly..and skip the paperwork.
er i'd like to comment on the immigration report but i am on a anger management course at present so am not gonna go there.
But i will say this: the irony of the film makers past passage to this country and his report was not lost on me or i guess many of your viewers.
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Comment number 4.
At 28th Aug 2008, Spanner7337 wrote:Blair is (was) a lightweight. His legacy will be "I still think I did the right thing" even though cheating your way to war is morally repugnent!
Despite Labours 'expertise' to criminalise trivia with 1,600 new PC laws a year to lock-up as many citizens as possible with petty rules they haven't managed to point the finger at themselves breaking international laws on waging murderous wars and being party to human torture and abusing human rights.
The rot in integrity in Westminster and the 91Èȱ¬ can be tied down to Labour not being brought to book for the lies in the WMD/Iraqi dosier. While criminals Blair and Straw walk around free from prosecution Milliband walks round like a clown with an ego big enough to keep up the circus tent without need for poles and pegs.
This joke of a Foreign Secretary may be amusing but ultimately it's very sad. Labour are now national jokes at by-elections and Milliband is just adding to a feeling of farce and growing panic Labour haven't a clue what they're doing. Someone please call an election and end this clown show asap.
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Comment number 5.
At 28th Aug 2008, Spanner7337 wrote:Yes Kirsty, I actually have some news on Bill Clinton and Jo Bidens' speech which I stayed up to watch unlike the 91Èȱ¬ 'love-in' article at the Democrats Convention which was short on news but big on pandering to the climate change crew.
Clinton fully supported Obamas' campaign. Like his wife he had no choice so it's hardly news. Jo Biden stuttered at excruciating moments through his vacuous apple pie speech and then Obama took the stage to also stutter at cringing times delivering more sugary lines.
The Democrats campaign has been systematically tripped up by the Republicans. Firstly over oil then defence. Now they're coming apart at the seems all by themselves having lost a 10 point lead in the polls in barely 2 months.
The socialist 91Èȱ¬, bias and devoid of moral or scientific integrity on climate change have pegged their flag to the Democratic mast.
Despite the majority of the worlds scientists not believing in the climate fraud, and the majority of countries (outside of Europe) for that matter, the 91Èȱ¬ refuses to allow the truth about climate be given airtime on their 'public service' broadcasts!
Let's hope both the Labour Party and Democrats that peddle this junk science climate-con around both go down in flames at election time and the biased 91Èȱ¬ management join them.
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Comment number 6.
At 28th Aug 2008, vanroojdotcom wrote:The dangerous routes taken by immigrants? Would that be flying into Heathrow on a six-month only to stay in this country for years, working illegally, not paying tax, then refusing to go home and claim... aah!!! it's too bloodboiling to go down this route.... I'll bury my head in the sand and pretend the Government's figures are correct: "There's no illegal immigration and every single one of the legal ones have benefited this country by either paying millions in tax or pushing our bland boring history and culture in the right, exiting direction.
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Comment number 7.
At 28th Aug 2008, Bill Bradbury wrote:As I wrote yesterday, Russia will do whatever Russia wants to do and the front page picture of one of its newspapers confirms that view, which, in order I don't upset the moderator, you will have to look it up for yourselves.
Whereas the character assassination of Milliband does not help, what those who are prepared to go down the road of blaming it all on Labour, they fail to realise that we are now a 3rd.World country, broke and with no political or military clout to deter Russia or anyone else for that matter.
Your next Tory Government will soon find that out. Relying on Hurd eh? How desperate have we become?!
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Comment number 8.
At 28th Aug 2008, Crowded Island wrote:The report on illegal immigration made me so very, very angry! It is clear the asylum system is badly broken - when a young Somali man can spend 9 months in France, making 20 attempts to get into the UK and then claim asylum in Blackburn when finally getting here, it just goes to show that the discredited asylum system is no longer fit for purpose and needs to be scrapped or radically altered. The whole population of Somalia could decamp to the UK and we would not be able to deport a single one of them, because of the crazy asylum system. This country is being taken for a ride, we are obviously still a soft touch and it is time our politicians had the guts to do and say what is necessary to protect these overcrowded islands and prevent abuse of our hospitality. We need to reclaim control of our borders - protecting its own citizens is the FIRST duty of Government.
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Comment number 9.
At 28th Aug 2008, barriesingleton wrote:DEATH TO THE EMPEROR'S CHARACTER! ( Ref; #7)
When the perceptive child pointed to the Emperor and said: "He's got no clothes on",
would that have ranked as 'character assassination'. As I have posted continually: it is the very CHARACTER of those who 'arrive' * in political office (by party pre-selection and voter-choice limitation) that, in the extreme case, gives us lie-based war. If my frustration boils over on blogs such as this, it is fuelled by my impotence in the face of 'their' usurped, and incompetently wielded, power. Miliband fits the integrity-free Westminster mould as precisely as his clonal colleagues. They all avoid questions while delivering vacuousness in utter contempt of the general public. This, and much other chicanery, is down to CHARACTER, and its manifestation in high office deserves 'assassination'.
*How redolent of illegal immigration that the circuitous route into Parliament, often a waiting game with several tries at different points of entry, allows these characters into the heart of Britain.
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Comment number 10.
At 28th Aug 2008, grumpy-jon wrote:Re #3 cookieducker.
4 Spanner.
6 HurstVanrooj.
8 crowdedisland.
All bang on IMO.
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Comment number 11.
At 28th Aug 2008, Steve_London wrote:#7
I agree with most of your post, but in fact Labour is the problem of this country being so weak.
Labour not only cut the defense budget in 1998 with their SDR (Strategic Defense Review) but they have totally failed to recognize that we are at war (Afghanistan/Iraq), this has lead to overstretch and even more underfunding.
On the issue of dealing with Russia, I guess reducing our nuclear arsenal has not helped while they have renewed and increased their Nuclear Arsenal.
On the economy, we have no exporting industry left, even our home markets have been taken over by free trade with the EU, in which some EU countries don't play by the rules we seem to have to play by.
Then there is the cost of living in this island , it's one of the most expensive places to live in the world, mostly driven by housing costs.
In all these vital areas Labour have shown themselves to be more than useless over the past 11 years.
They should go for the good of the country !
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Comment number 12.
At 28th Aug 2008, ecolizzy wrote:Immigration to the UK
I watched the programme Who do You Think You Are, last night, followed by Newsnight. I found a great irony in the fact we ONLY excepted the Jewish people if they were sponsored during the pogram against them. AND we only allowed 80,000 in, although more than any other country. What has happened today? Why can we let in millions, yes I mean millions, when a lot are not refugees at all, well only economic ones. We seemed to have the willpower to limit immigration then, when these people were truly desparate, but now all we look to is money, not the health, comfort and wellbeing of the UK people first.
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Comment number 13.
At 28th Aug 2008, grumpy-jon wrote:Re #12. ecolizzy.
IMO you chronicle perfectly the complete abandonment of any national/democratic control of immigration into this country, under the Tories and both old and new Labour. Madness and disasterous for all concerned and for relations between all races. All the media and the politicians are interested in doing, is suppressing debate of the issues, hoping desperately that the wheels don't fall off the wagon, so that they can get another couple of years, with their noses in the trough, before the solids hit the fan, when someone else will be left to sort the mess out. God save us from the short-termism produced by the first-past-the-post electoral non-system.
The team at 'Newsnight' should look at the sentiments expressed in this thread. All posters/viewers who are interested and well-informed, and not a good word to say for our politicians, with little more respect for the media.
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Comment number 14.
At 28th Aug 2008, ClownsRunTheTowns wrote:So the illegal immigrants think that British food is better than French and Italian food, I hope was watching this. Although, I will concede that they only prefer British food because we give it to them for free, whereas the French and Italians don't.
We have so much to learn from our continental cousins. How much longer do we have to wait for the "British" government to get up to date with the latest continental ways of treating illegal immigrants.
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Comment number 15.
At 28th Aug 2008, barriesingleton wrote:WHEN CALLING A SPADE A SPADE - START DIGGING
I was looking at the local paper just now. People are still getting married. They are still marrying a face that looks a lot like theirs. You would think the pairing would be random wouldn't you? Especially is we 'just don't notice' difference in others - do we? Yes we DO notice difference in others. That's why insults are so often couched IN TERMS OF DIFFERENCE. Then some idiot decided we are not permitted to behave naturally and the term 'STAMP IT OUT' entered the language. So when the police are not harassing their 'different' colleagues, they are required to go and arrest someone for a hate (difference) crime.
Schools have to fall over themselves to live the lie that we are all the same; 'difference studies' are not on the curriculum. Britain is now a gunpowder like mix. You would think Parliament would be wary of gunpowder, but no, they mix it with alcohol round the clock; alcohol being better than a box of matches. What is David Miliband doing igniting foreign gunpowder, with incendiary words, when we need him at home to damp down ours with that personality.
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Comment number 16.
At 29th Aug 2008, JadedJean wrote:thecookieducker (#3) "er i'd like to comment on the immigration report but i am on a anger management course at present so am not gonna go there."
Priceless.
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Comment number 17.
At 29th Aug 2008, grumpy-jon wrote:Re #16. JJ and thecookieducker. Priceless. But also uncannily near the truth. First part of the course-Watch Newsnight avoiding and surpressing issues, until torpor sets in.
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Comment number 18.
At 30th Aug 2008, JadedJean wrote:grumpy-jon (#17) It But
Ironically, it was in fact people like Chomsky who brought about much of the anarchism and cognitivism. For his academic critics, see Quine and Skinner.
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Comment number 19.
At 30th Aug 2008, grumpy-jon wrote:Re #18. Thanx as ever for your refs JJ. How the hell you keep abreast of so much material, I have no idea.
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Comment number 20.
At 30th Aug 2008, JadedJean wrote:SPINNERS AND SCAMMERS
Here's Gorbachev writing in the .
As to political spin (and leaders' rationality), two examples for others those appear to think no further than GCE/GCSE history.
First, ponder the fact that after June 1941 (the USSR invaded Poland in 1939 just as Germany did), Stalinist USSR was a major ally ok Britain, and subsequent to the Tehran Conference in Nov/Dec 1943 the re-incorporation of the Baltic states into the USSR was agreed. The Baltic states didn't exercise their constitutional right to secede until 1990/91 and even then it was just as it must be for S. Osettia and Abkhazia. It's never just a matter of deciding to be 'free', any more than leaving a place of employment entitles one to walk away with company assets (like a car etc).
Secondly, on scamming, say one wishes to take advantage of a gullible/illiterate host nation when colonising. How did it ever come about that European nations found themselves imbibing a magic based group-think (Christianity which proscribed usury) whilst its perpetrators settled amidst them, asserting that as they didn't believe in it themselves, it was legitimate for them to indebt their neigbours at high interest rates (and thus enrich themselves at their hosts' expense) leaving the latter to believe that such behaviour was imoral amongst themselves? Just remember who created Christianity. Something very similar was done by the original (later purged by Stalin in the 1930s) Bolsheviks to the indigenous Russians. Hitler was trying to do recitify this in Germany and beyond in the 1930s and 40s, and of course, This, I suggest is what the real terror is - it's the fear that as the Muslim (anti-usury) population grows (and the 'free' indigenous population shrinks), unbriddled capitalism will stall.
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