Allawi trailing Shiite ticket in Iraq

[TexasLawyer]

Feb 5, 1:24 AM EST
Allawi trailing Shiite ticket in Iraq

By MARIAM FAM
Associated Press Writer

BAGHDAD, Iraq (AP) -- U.S.-backed Prime Minister Ayad Allawi was trailing a Shiite ticket with ties to Iran in Iraq's historic election, according to partial returns released Friday. Three U.S. soldiers were killed and 12 wounded in the north, and gunmen seized an Italian journalist in Baghdad.

The United Iraqi Alliance, endorsed by Iraq's top Shiite clerics, captured more than two-thirds of the 3.3 million votes counted so far, the election commission said. The ticket headed by Allawi, a secular Shiite, had about 18 percent - or more than 579,700 votes.

Those latest partial figures from Sunday's contest for 275 National Assembly seats came from 10 of Iraq's 18 provinces, said Hamdiyah al-Husseini, an election commission official. All 10 provinces have heavy Shiite populations, and the Alliance had been expected to do well there. So far, 45 percent of the vote has been counted in Baghdad, with varying percentages tallied in the other nine provinces.

Nevertheless, the huge lead that the Shiites were rolling up among their core constituency in the Shiite heartland of southern Iraq pointed to the likelihood of a tremendous victory. An Alliance win would seal the Shiite majority's bid to claim power after centuries of domination by Sunni Arabs, including years of oppression by Saddam Hussein's Sunni-led regime.

<snip>

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/I/IRAQ?SITE=NCAGW&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT

[merwin]

1. Allawi can't like that very much

[nadinbrzezinski]

2. hmm so when is the fix kicking in?

[babylonsister]

3. I'll say perhaps. But totally wouldn't

surprise me.

[TexasLawyer]

4. Right! Karl Rove needs to make a phone call or two

[opihimoimoi]

5. Rove should send busloads to stop the counting

[Pachamama]

13. Maybe the "fix" is that Allawi loses & the other party "wins"..It wouldn't

surprise me in the least that this is exactly what the Bush Administration wants and that if the resulting possible alliance with Iranian ties to the community, that they could somehow create instability that would allow the US the "excuse" to have to go into Iran?

Just wondering.... :eyes:

[Stinky The Clown]

6. This is SO delicious!

Al Sistani, while a Grand Ayatollah, has been a voice of reason (or a very smart political operator). He was the one who pushed Feckless Uberfuhrer Chimpus Khan (F.U.C.K.) into the elections earlier than than the US junta wanted them.

I hope they get in power and kick our sorry asses out. Can this be the start of more BFFU (Bush Family Fuck Ups)? Please let it be.

[eleny]

7. wait till we hear that...

...there were more votes cast than purple fingers. ay-yi-yi. how i hope you're right. but this sounds so much like kerry/bush.

[Hatalles]

9. Totally agree with you.

Sistani's group is the best direction for the Iraqi people. They turned up at the polls in such large numbers and snubbed Bush's puppet.

... and all the spin came tumbling down.

[mom cat]

14. "Feckless Uberfuhrer Chimpus Khan" (F.U.C.K.) is the best euphonism

yet for the dimwitted democracy thief. Are you the originator? If so may I use it? Also. this deserves a place in the DU archives of abbreviations. :dem::smoke::bounce::bounce::yourock::bounce::bounce::smoke::kick:

[Stinky The Clown]

16. Hahahaha ... yeah, its mine!

Actually, I've been doing the Chimpus Khan thing for a few months. And King Khan. Sparkly and I came up with the F.U.C.K thing yesterday while out shopping. This was its first outing.

Feel free to use it anywhere any time. It ain't patented! :hi:

[JDPriestly]

8. Next time,

Bush'll make sure the votes are properly counted -- by Diebold computers -- if there is a next time.

By the way, does this mean our boys get to come home? I'm praying it does.

[ultraist]

10. What is going to happen if >:

>Allawi wins
>Iraq and Iran unite
Iran blasts Rice's speech
http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/1AAA240D-1310-4BAB-B0D8-723ABB418DFC.htm

>Tens of thousands demand a US pullout

http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/D693FE03-4608-4C4E-929F-43399EB31BF1.htm
Al-Shadr (has tens of thousands of followers)demands date for US pullout
Worshippers at Friday prayers listen to al-Sadr's message
Iraqi Shia leader Muqtada al-Sadr has called on his community's senior religious leaders to insist on a timeline for a US troop withdrawal.

THEY ARE GETTING REALLY PISSED:
http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/59686409-F4B3-4D6E-A520-A4A76FE49F1D.htm
Reconstruction pledges remain just that
By Christian Henderson
Monday 31 January 2005, 21:44 Makka Time, 18:44 GMT
Little of US reconstruction money is going into Iraqi pockets.
Both George Bush and Tony Blair have said the new Iraq is going to be a prosperous country with an improved standard of living for all.

But judging by the pace of reconstruction and standard of living in Iraq since the fall of Saddam Hussein in April 2003, their predictions have yet to be realised.

A series of reports over the last six months indicate that Washington's reconstruction plan for Iraq has been ineffectual and the sum spent on projects amounts to much less than what US officials claim.

And there are many accusations of corruption. A handful of US corporations swallowed up huge sums of Iraqi funds that had been set aside for reconstruction projects. NGOs say Iraq's oil revenues, the mainstay of the country's economy, have been mismanaged and sometimes misused.

'Numbers games'

US officials say that some con't

[msmcghee]

11. So, this means . .

. . we dropped the ball on al Queda, spent $400B and counting plus 1400 some odd American lives - to trade in Sadam for a Muslim fundamentalist with close ties to that other axis of evil, Iran.

We've just given Muslim religious fanatics control of the world's largest oil reserves.

Has the liberal media or any Democrats on the hill noticed this yet?

[ultraist]

12. Better buy a hybrid! Gas prices are going to go through the roof

[Mark E. Smith]

15. Expect Allawi To Apply For Political Refugee Status Soon

Under the Bush admin's 'Quisling Protection Program' Allawi should be eligible for a house in Oklahoma, a monthly stipend out of Rummy's DOD Intelligence budget, and a new name.