White House to Democrats: Piss Off

Today, according to an anonymous source, the White House told Senate Democrats to take a long walk off of a short pier, if they want to see any of Judge John Roberts writings since 1988:

"They will not be released," the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity because the decision has not been made public.

The administration is working on the release of other documents from Roberts' time working for President Reagan in the 1980s, the official said. But it will claim executive privilege for materials from his time as principal deputy solicitor general - the government's second-ranking courtroom lawyer - for former President George H.W. Bush between 1989 and 1993.

Well, that settles it then. Senate Democrats will probably roll over on this one.

You Spin Me Right Round Baby

Plame controversy continues to heat up.

The first rounds of deflection, that she was not covert, didn't mention her name, etc., are all failing miserably.

The Republicans are now getting ready to trot out the next defense of Rove. Should she have been covert at all? Pat Roberts (R-Ks) is going to be holding hearings to review the use of the covert status by the CIA.

The smell of desperation is thick in Washington these days. I can smell it here in Texas.

Teamsters, SEIU to Bolt AFL-CIO

I have been watching the brouhaha kicking up at the AFL-CIO, and when I saw this article, I cannot say I was too surprised:

Organized labor is at war with itself as the Teamsters and a major service employees' union decide to bolt from the AFL-CIO, paving the way for two other groups to sever ties in the labor movement's biggest rift since the 1930s.

The Teamsters and the Service Employees International Union, the largest AFL-CIO affiliate with 1.8 million members, intended to announce Monday that they are leaving the federation after failing to reform the 50-year-old labor giant, according to several labor officials who spoke on condition of anonymity.

I don't really know what impact this will ultimately have on organized labor in this country. I do know that there has been a large dissatisfaction with the AFL-CIO leadership for sometime Alot of it has been over declining membership, and what to do about it.

I don't know that the Teamsters and/or SEIU leadership know what to do, but they do have ideas.

It would be nice if the unions and the AFL-CIO could have worked out their differences (I suppose they still could), but whatever it does, I hope the union membership begins to increase.

Thought for the Day

"Drive-in banks were established so most of the cars today could see their real owners."

--E. Joseph Crossman

Number 7

Congratulations Lance on number 7.

12 Hours To Do What?

What was Andy Card doing in the 12 hour window between the time that Abu Gonzales told him that there was an investigation started into the Plame leak, and the time Gonzales told everyone else in the White House?

Why the delay, and for what purpose?

What is Bush Hiding About Roberts?

Maybe alot:

Citing privacy and precedent, the Bush administration indicated Sunday it does not intend to release all memos and other documents written by Supreme Court nominee John Roberts when he worked for two Republican presidents.

The leading Democrat on the Senate Judiciary Committee, which will conduct hearings on Roberts' nomination, disputed the assertion that privacy was at stake and called such a position a "red herring."

Roberts worked in the Reagan White House counsel's office from 1982-1986. He also was principal deputy solicitor general in the administration of the first President Bush.

Fred D. Thompson, the former Tennessee senator who is guiding Roberts through the nomination process on behalf of the White House, said material that would come under attorney-client privilege would be withheld. He contended that previous administrations, both Republican and Democrat, have followed that principle.

"We hope we don't get into a situation where documents are asked for that folks know will not be forthcoming and we get all hung up on that," Thompson told NBC's "Meet the Press."

Attorney General Alberto Gonzales appeared more open to considering such requests, but he also cited concerns about "very sensitive, very deliberative information" that could be involved.

"Generally, that's not something that the administration or any White House would be inclined to share because it is so sensitive and does, in my judgment, does chill communications between line attorneys and their superiors within the Department of Justice," Gonzales said on "Fox News Sunday."

"That would be something that we'd have to look at very, very carefully," he said. "Rather than prejudge the issue, let's wait for the Judiciary Committee to make its requests, and then we can evaluate the requests and hopefully reach an appropriate accommodation."

The committee has yet to ask for such material. But some Democrats, including Sen. John Kerry of Massachusetts, have urged the White House to release "in their entirety" any documents written by Roberts.

Vermont Sen. Patrick Leahy, the senior Democrat on the Judiciary Committee, said other nominees, including Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist, have provided material they wrote in confidence while working in the Justice Department.

"It's a total red herring to say, 'Oh, we can't show this,'" Leahy told ABC's "This Week." "

"And of course there is no lawyer-client privilege," he said. "Those working in the solicitor general's office are not working for the president. They're working for you and me and all the American people."

Leahy and the Senate's No. 2 Democrat, Dick Durbin of Illinois, said Roberts' elevation to the Supreme Court called for a high standard of evaluation — higher than that when the Senate agreed to out Roberts on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit in May 2003.

The two senators split over Roberts in committee: Leahy voted in favor and Durbin against because of what he considered incomplete responses to questions.

"I want to ask him full and fair questions," Leahy said. "It's a standard I would have for any nominee to the Supreme Court."

Contending that documents could be an important part of the confirmation process when little is known about a nominee, Durbin said, "A lot has to do with whether or not you can fill in the empty vessel with the information that tells you about this person."

Another Judiciary Committee Democrat, Sen. Charles Schumer of New York, said the goal is to learn about Roberts' judicial philosophy and method of legal reasoning.

"This is not a game of 'gotcha,' and document requests and, in general, information requests, are not an end, a goal to prove something," Schumer said. "They're a means to simply determining Justice Roberts' judicial views. That's all we want."

Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., said he thought some documents about work Roberts did in the solicitor general's office probably could be turned over, but not material from his time as a lawyer for the first President Bush.

"If we're going to set a precedent that those communications between someone who works for the president and the president of the United States are some day going to be made public, I think it could have a real chilling effect on the kind of candor in communications that people would have with the president," McCain said.

I thought John Roberts was Mr. All American?

Wouldn't he then have nothing to hide?

Thought for the Day

"He wrapped himself in quotations- as a beggar would enfold himself in the purple of Emperors."

--Rudyard Kipling

Thought for the Day

"If we don't succeed, we run the risk of failure."

--Dan Quayle


Well, duh!

Happy Anniversary DSM!

Today is the third anniversary of the Downing Street Memo. People are holding DSM block parties today.

Confirmed: Bush/Cheney Supports Torture

There is really no other way to explain this move by the White House:

The Bush administration in recent days has been lobbying to block legislation supported by Republican senators that would bar the U.S. military from engaging in "cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment" of detainees, from hiding prisoners from the Red Cross, and from using interrogation methods not authorized by a new Army field manual.

Vice President Cheney met Thursday evening with three senior Republican members of the Senate Armed Services Committee to press the administration's case that legislation on these matters would usurp the president's authority and -- in the words of a White House official -- interfere with his ability "to protect Americans effectively from terrorist attack."

Although it has been demonstrated that torture is an ineffective method of interrogation, the Bush administration is, through its actions, expressing their wanton disregard for humanity by advocating torture.

Disgraceful.





Thanks to The Agonist for the tip.

Texas Senate District 7

So, apparently in response to Democrats wanting to run a candidate in SD7 (which I am not sure where that district is located), consultant Marc Campos of Campos Communications added his 2¢:

Commentary will pass today (will address later) on the issue of fielding candidates in races we won't win, other than to say if you fellas think we ought to have candidates, why don't you fellas file. You don't even have to live in the district. Commentary can tell you first hand that a lot of our party's so called leaders don't give a rats a__ about residency.

Really.

How assinine is this? I don't know where SD7 is, yet if I feel that someone should run as a Democrat, I should run myself? That is a surefire way to win.

This is in response to a poll that apparently showed an unnamed Democrat pulling in 40% of the vote in this district, up from 20% for 2002. The problem, according to Campos, is that the filing fee ($1,250) is so oppressive, that some other Democratic candidate who has a chance will be so short of funds that they just wont be able to compete.

If the Texas Democratic Party is at the point where $1,250 is an excessive burden, then the whole party should pack it in. Their fundraising efforts are truly being wasted.

Thought for the Day

Someday we'll look back on this moment and plow into a parked car.

--Evan Davis

O'Donnell explains Luskin (er, Rove)

Lawrence O'Donnell explains the difference between Karl Rove, and the lawyer representing Karl Rove.

In the 21 days since I broke the story that Karl Rove was Matt Cooper's source, Rove's lawyer, Bob Luskin, has been working the press everyday with a new defense angle that, once committed to print in Newsweek, the Washington Post or the New York Times, gets added to the Republican party's talking points on the scandal. Luskin's first response to my revelation was to say that, well, yes, Rove did talk to Cooper about Joe Wilson's wife but he did not "knowingly" disclose classified information -- knowingly being the essence of Rove's criminal defense

Firefox Update

1.0.6

Includes security updates from 1.0.5, plus some stability issues are fixed.

And I Thought Times Were Good?

Gasoline drive offs on the rise:

As gasoline prices stay well above $2 per gallon, gasoline station owners are increasingly encountering customers who pump but don't pay.

The rising theft rates are yet one more sign of consumer frustration over the relatively high price of topping up their tank. Only five years ago, it cost $24 to fill up a 20-gallon tank. Today, it costs $46. For many low-income people, the increase is more than they can manage.

Even here in Texas, where gasoline is around $2.20, I have noticed that more and more gas stations have signs out that say you must either use a credit card, or pre-pay. some have even stated that the increase in drive-offs are the reason for it.

So much for that Bush Boom.

Of Course They Did

Republicans extend Patriot Act indefinitely.

Republicans in the House decide that they like restricting and spying on Americans, and show off their love for that by voting to extend the Patriot Act indefinitely, execpt for two provisions, which have 10 year sunsets on them. Roving wiretaps, and searches of library records.

"Good oversight is done by congressional leadership, not by sunsets," said Rep. James Sensenbrenner, R-Wis., in justifying the ability to lock people away indefinitely, and generally spy on Americans.

Odd, that the Republican party was the one who was all for restricting the activities of government to monitor and interfere with an individuals privacy just 5 years ago.

Hypocrites, all of them.

Oh. That's Going to Hurt

Think Progress has an article that Bloomberg will be putting up:

a Bloomberg article which is reporting that Karl Rove, senior adviser to the President and deputy chief of staff, and Lewis Libby, chief of staff to Vice President Cheney, are being investigated for having lied to a federal grand jury about how they learned the identity of a covert CIA agent, Valerie Plame

Assuming something does not change between tonight, and tomorrow, things are beginning to look rather grim from Rove and Libby.

Double Super-Secret Background

Fiore

Hilarious



From Pam @Big Brass Blog

Half of America is Just a Special Interest Group

That will be one of the Republican talking points as this poll starts to get reported.

This, along with this memo from Republicans, Democrats should be able to put a coherent front up, and Senate Democrats should be able to craft a proper questioning routine for the hearings.

Where is Bat Boy?

The aliens are after our brains

or

Frank Gaffney thinks that the United Nations is trying to implement a Global Tax, which only the hero John Bolton is powerful enough to stop.

Although the latter seems less plausible, it is in fact the more plausable of the two options.

GOP Doesn't Want Kathrine Harris to run for Senate

The Washington Times:

White House political strategist Karl Rove and the National Republican Senatorial Committee have been trying to talk Florida Rep. Katherine Harris out of running for the Senate next year, but have been unsuccessful thus far.

Mrs. Harris has had several private meetings with Mr. Rove and with NRSC officials, including Chairman Sen. Elizabeth Dole, North Carolina Republican, who have urged her to forgo the Republican Party's high-priority Senate race. Instead, they want her to run for a third House term, pointing to internal polling data that shows she cannot beat freshman Democratic Sen. Bill Nelson in 2006.

I am now hopeful that Cruella de Harris will be out of congress next year.

I Have Been Remiss in My Duties

This is an Online Magazine after all. So let me make up for some lost time here.

Star Magazine:

SANDRA & JESSE: THEIR SECRET TEXAS WEDDING!

OK, that is all I can stand. Back to our regularly scheduled posts.

Thought for the Day

It pays to be obvious, especially if you have a reputation for subtlety.

--Isaac Asimov

Ethical Problems? Redefine Ethics.

Bloomberg:

U.S. House Republicans are considering removing Watergate-era limits on campaign donations even as Majority Leader Tom DeLay and other lawmakers face scrutiny over ethics issues and growing voter disapproval.

DeLay may bring to a floor vote as early as September legislation approved last month by the House Administration Committee. The measure, which the Texan supports, would end limits on political donations that date back to the 1974 campaign-finance law passed after the scandal that led to President Richard Nixon's resignation.

Isn't that just peachy. Tom DeLay doesn't like that the thousands of dollars he received from Abramoff and others is unethical, so rather than change his behavior, he wants to make his behavior ethical.

There's Republicans for you.

Ann Coulter: No Original Thoughts

The Raw Story did some looking into some of Ann Coulter's work, and discovered a trend.

Her writing looks remarkably like other peoples writing. A little too remarkable, the coincidences are. Go read.

London Hit Again

It appears that there have been three incidents in the London Underground, and one on a bus today. The Times Online is calling them copycat attacks.

At this point, I have received mixed information from CNN, and elsewhere. About the only thing I have heard confirmed was one casualty, the extent of the injuries is not known just yet.

According to BBC News the windows on the upper deck of a bus were blown out by some small explosive device.

That is pretty much it at this point.

Hopefully more info will come out as time progresses.

Well, Duh!

Can't control the message? Change the subject:

Bush accelerated his search for a Supreme Court nominee in part because of special prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald's investigation into the leak of a CIA agent's name, according to Republicans familiar with administration strategy.

Bush originally had planned to announce a replacement for retiring Justice Sandra Day O'Connor on July 26 or 27, just before his planned July 28 departure for a month-long vacation at his Crawford, Texas, ranch, said two administration officials, who spoke on the condition they not be named.

The officials said those plans changed because Rove has become a focus of Fitzgerald's interest and of news accounts about the matter.

Fineman Goes Swooning

Continuing my current word of the month, Howard Fineman gets all sycophantic:

George W. Bush keeps surprising the wise guys. They keep thinking that he’s going to be something other than what he is and that he will do something other than what he says he will do. Well, he and Karl Rove built his career on West Texas Bible Belt conservatism, with deep ancestral ties to the Establishment “up East.” And it was that president — half Cambridge, all “Come to Jesus” — who chose John G. Roberts Jr. for the U.S. Supreme Court.

In the words of the old Texas cliché, President Bush is the kind of leader, and person, who “dances with the one that brung him.” He is as loyal as a hunting dog. On a personal level, his inner circles stay inner and stay around him forever. It’s the same with politics. He owes “the base” — religious conservatives, corporate conservatives, Federalist Society libertarian conservatives — and he pays.

Sycophantic:

Adjective

(adj) bootlicking, fawning, obsequious, sycophantic, toadyish (attempting to win favor from influential people by flattery)

(adj) bootlicking, fawning, sycophantic, toadyish (attempting to win favor by flattery)

Rove's Alibi?

Demolished

White House deputy chief of staff Karl Rove did not disclose that he had ever discussed CIA officer Valerie Plame with Time magazine reporter Matthew Cooper during Rove’s first interview with the FBI, according to legal sources with firsthand knowledge of the matter.

The omission by Rove created doubt for federal investigators, almost from the inception of their criminal probe into who leaked Plame's name to columnist Robert Novak, as to whether Rove was withholding crucial information from them, and perhaps even misleading or lying to them, the sources said.

Also leading to the early skepticism of Rove's accounts was the claim that although he first heard that Plame worked for the CIA from a journalist, he said could not recall the name of the journalist. Later, the sources said, Rove wavered even further, saying he was not sure at all where he first heard the information.

Gee, as the lies and misdirections begin to stack up, it gets harder and harder to keep your stories straight.

R.I.P. James Doohan

Bloomberg:

James Doohan, who fielded the request ``Beam me up'' as the starship Enterprise's engineer Scotty in the ``Star Trek'' science-fiction television series and subsequent films, has died. He was 85.

Rest in Peace

Thought for the Day

If absolute power corrupts absolutely, does absolute powerlessness make you pure?

--Harry Shearer

Supreme Court Nominees

Bush has nominated Judge John G Roberts to replace Justice Sandra Day O'Connor on the Supreme Court.

While not alot is known about Judge Roberts, some information is beginning to come to light.

Americablog (among many others) has been doing yeoman's work on gathering information on Roberts and making it available:

Judge for only 2 years:

Employment/background:
2003-present: Judge, US Court of Appeals, DC Circuit;
1993-2003: Partner, Hogan & Hartson LLP;
1989-93: Principal Deputy Solicitor General, US DoJ;
1986-89: Associate, Hogan & Hartson LLP;
1982-86: Associate Counsel to the President, White House Counsel's Office;
1981-82: Special Asst to the AG in the US DoJ;
1980 -81 Supreme Court of the United States, Law Clerk to Hon. Wm. H. Rehnquist

Americablog has a lot more, including statements from NARAL, Howard Dean, PFAW as well as links to articles about his lack of support for the Violence Against Women Act, and other positions on the environment, Roe v Wade, etc.

The most frightening aspect is this statement from Tony Perkins of the Family Research Council:

"The president is a man of his word," said Tony Perkins, the president of the Family Research Council, a conservative Christian group. "He promised to nominate someone along the lines of a Scalia or a Thomas, and that is exactly what he has done."

In my mind the support for Roberts by Perkins is reason enough to disqualify him, but that is just me.

Thought for the Day

"The Constitution gives every American the inalienable right to make a damn fool of himself."

--John Ciardi

The Target Keeps Moving

Yesterday Bush promised to fire anyone involved in leaking the Plame story to the press.

Today Bush promised to fire anyone violating the law in leaking the Plame story to the press.

Tomorrow Bush promises to fire anyone sent to jail for violating the law in leaking the Plame story to the press.

The day after tomorrow Bush promises to fire anyone spending more than a year in jail for violating the law in leaking the Plame story to the press.

...

Next week, Bush promises to fire anyone executed for committing treason.

...

Next month, Bush promises to fire anyone who doesn't rise from the grave after being executed for treason.

Good.

Maybe more cities will follow suit:

The National Rifle Association said Monday it is pulling its 2007 national convention out of Columbus because of the city's ban on assault weapons.

The City Council passed a ban July 12 outlawing the sale or possession of semiautomatic rifles with pistol grips and detachable magazines.

Of course, the winners at CNN continue their tradition of stupidity with Quickvotes:

How would you describe the NRA's decision to move its convention because of the host city's assault weapons ban?

A bullseye

A shot in the foot

I Go Away for a Couple of Days ...

... and a sickness sets in.


First up, Joe Strupp:

As Judith Miller of The New York Times approaches the end of her second week in a Virginia jail, reports from behind bars reveal she is enduring stomach problems from jail food. She is also sharing a cell unit that had originally been designed to house just one person. Because of that, Miller had been forced to sleep on a mattress on the floor for a few days but now has her own bed.

"It has definitely dawned on her that this is really in jail -- it is certainly no summer camp," Times Executive Editor Bill Keller told E&P Monday. "The food has not agreed with her and we have been trying to impress on her that she needs to eat. We have been hammering that in."

Such sycophantic pap.

Then, Rick Santorum lets it all hang out:

"In this case, what we're talking about, basically, is priests who were having sexual relations with post-pubescent men. We're not talking about priests with 3-year-olds, or 5-year-olds. We're talking about a basic homosexual relationship. Which, again, according to the world view sense is a perfectly fine relationship as long as it's consensual between people. If you view the world that way, and you say that's fine, you would assume that you would see more of it."

A Priest molesting a 12, 13 or 14 year old boy is just a bit of horseplay. Consensual sex between two loving men, one in a position of Religous authority, and the other the willing altar boy.

And, Cliff May really goes for the gusto:

[David Corn] adds: “Once Valerie Wilson’s name appeared in Novak’s column, her days as a CIA undercover official were done.”

But why would that be? If the day after Novak’s column came out, Valerie Plame, CIA analyst at CIA HQ in Langley, were to disappear, and Mallory Flame, arms dealer, were to arrive in Istanbul with a passport and contacts and a “legend,” how would anyone make the connection?

Cliff May is so much of a wanker, that I will not even begin to address his idiocy.


And finally, Helaine Olen. She decides that her nanny is living too full a life, as evidenced by the blog that her nanny maintained, so she fired her.

It wasn't so much that the nanny, a young woman living in NYC, was enjoying life. It was that she chose to chronicle the life she was enjoying, anonymously, and share it with her boss, who happens to be a New York Times columnist. Apparently, Olen (the columnist) was so jealous of the life, a young single woman living in NYC, could live, she fired her, and in a fit of pique, decided to write about it.

Assclown, that Olen is.

Rapture Right Sunday v 2

The poor, poor oppressed Christians. They never get what they want.

As a result of this oppression, we have to suffer a Justice Sunday II.

Bring in the Clowns

Tierney is a clown.

If ever anyone needed any proof the John Tierney is not making any of his crap up, you only need to read his RNC/White House talking point filled column from today.

Tierney starts out by comparing the scandal to the witch trial from Monty Python and the Holy Grail.

I agree that there are similarities to a Monty Python. The defense of Karl Rove by John Tierney and his ilk are Python-esque in its comedic timing.

New revalation spawns, right on queue, White House talking points regurgitated by Tierney, Brooks, and others appear.

Light Blogging

I have relatives visiting, so light blogging (if any).

Now, how about something completely different:



Or maybe not so different.

Stop. Just Stop.

We know that Karl will say anything to protect his pimply white ass.

We know that Karl's attorney is making shit up, to try and cover for Karl.

Now, we have the Associated Press repeating anything Karl, Luskin, or anyone not opposed to Karl, is saying to help save Karl's pimply white ass:

Chief presidential adviser Karl Rove testified to a grand jury that he talked with two journalists before they divulged the identity of an undercover CIA officer but that he originally learned about the operative from the news media and not government sources, according to a person briefed on the testimony.

The person, who works in the legal profession and spoke only on condition of anonymity because of grand jury secrecy, told The Associated Press that Rove testified last year that he remembers specifically being told by columnist Robert Novak that Valerie Plame, the wife of a harsh Iraq war critic, worked for the CIA.

...

... according to the source.

... the source said.

Gee, and I thought the use of anonymous sources was being questioned.

Firefox Update

If you use Firefox, there is a new version: 1.0.5.
There are a few security updates that this fixes.


If you don't use Firefox, what are you waiting for?

Dick Armey, Hypocrite? Can't Be

But, alas!

He is!

Thought for the Day

A friend is someone who will help you move. A real friend is someone who will help you move a body.

--Unknown

America to Bush: You Suck

Georgie is not very credible these days:

President Bush's personal credibility appears to be eroding at a time when Iraq has become the top public priority and the White House is engulfed in controversy over senior Bush adviser Karl Rove, a poll released on Wednesday suggested.

The NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll showed the percentage of Americans who believe Bush is "honest and straightforward" fell to 41 percent from 50 percent in January, while those who say they doubt his veracity climbed to 45 percent from 36 percent.

If things get much worse for ol' Georgie, the only people who will be left that support him are the dyed-in-the-wool, wake up with a naked boy in bed, supporters.

It sure sucks to be Bush these days.

David Brooks: Make the US a Theocracy

Ever since the NY Times, decided that the denizens of the internets will need to pay to read the tripe spewed by David Brooks, and John Tierney, I have ignored their sycophantic ranting. However, this latest turd from the vapid mind of David Brooks caught my attention, and not in a favorable manner.

The panderer-extrodinaire offers his "learned opinion" that a person like Michael McConnell would be an excellent pick for George Bush to consider as a Supreme Court justice.

However, prior to interjecting himself into the debate, the effluent Mr. Brooks, takes to task, people who have been challenging Bush to offer up a candidate who is not a rabid right-wing ideologue.

Mr. President, they must think you're head of programming at CBS. Some people are telling you to name a Hispanic as your first Supreme Court nominee. Others say, Pick a woman. Harry Reid says, Pick someone who's not too controversial. Arlen Specter says, Look outside the judiciary for a fresh face.

They must think you are picking a TV host to build ratings against Katie Couric and Matt Lauer.

But this is a Supreme Court pick, not a programming choice. Nobody will care about superficial first impressions or identity politics tokenism a few years from now. What will matter in decades to come is whether you picked a philosophical powerhouse. Did you pick someone capable of writing the sort of bold and meaty opinions that will shift the frame of debate and shake up law students for generations?

Then, ignoring his own advice, proceeds to do exactly what his just said people shouldn't be doing. Namely identifying the type of person Bush should nominate.

Without going and researching just who this Michael McConnell is, we can tell from Bobo's gaseous emissions coming from the page, that McConnell is of the mind that the time of the secular government has passed:

McConnell (whom I have never met) is an honest, judicious scholar. When writing about church and state matters, he begins with the frank admission that religion is a problem in a democracy. Religious people feel a loyalty to God and to the state, and sometimes those loyalties conflict.

So he understands why people from Rousseau and Jefferson on down have believed there should be a wall of separation between church and state.

The problem with the Separationist view, he has argued in essays and briefs, is that it's not practical. As government grows and becomes more involved in health, charity, education and culture issues, it begins pushing religion out of those spheres. The Separationist doctrine leads inevitably to discrimination against religion. The state ends up punishing people who are exercising a constitutional right.

The actual problem is the "Christian persecution" ideology that Brook, Tierney and others spew. In Bobo's mind, the past 200 years of American history has been dominated by atheists, and the anti-Religious. I suppose the previous 42 presidents have been closeted Christians?

Governor Goodhair: Totally Unpopular

From Survey USA - 50 State Governor Tracking for July 2005.

Texas Governor Rick "Goodhair" Perry:

Do you approve or disapprove of the job Rick Perry is doing as Governor?

Adios MoFo!

Ben Sargent

Ben Sargent:

NHL Back for Next Season?

Looks like it:

The NHL and the players' union say they have struck a deal in principle that will finally end their labour row.

Good. I missed me some hockey.

Who Says Comedy is Dead?

Jeff Gannon:

An interview I did in October 2003 with Ambassador Joe Wilson was published by Talon News and linked to by other websites. The interview was presented as a transcript in three parts. In the first part, I get to the essential questions which show Wilson to be a liar. First four questions elicited three lies. The rest of the interview is more noxious fumes from the discredited ex-diplomat gasbag .

Hilarious!



From CNet news.com

Bush Did Not Give His Support to Rove

Bush on Rove:

President Bush said Wednesday he will withhold judgment about top aide Karl Rove's involvement in leaking the identity of a CIA operative until a federal criminal investigation is complete. The lack of an endorsement surprised some Bush advisers who expected the president to speak up.

"This is a serious investigation," Bush said at the end of a meeting with his Cabinet, with Rove sitting just behind him. "I will be more than happy to comment on this matter once this investigation is complete.

If we all remember our history correctly, whenever Bush says he supports someone fully, that means he is about to dump him.

Bush said no such thing about Rove, if he sticks to previous patterns, that means Bush has no intention of dumping Rove.

Alterman

Smearing patriots:

There aren’t enough hours in the day to keep up with all the theories and counter-theories, plus the spin and propaganda being thrown out in the hopes of deflecting attention from the actions of the Rove/Novak diabolic duo. One thing worth keeping in mind is the quality of the people they are seeking to smear. Joe Wilson and Valerie Plame were both life-long public servants. Wilson, whom the right is seeking to smear as a partisan-minded Democrat—not that he wouldn’t have the right to be if he chose—contributed to the presidential campaign of George H.W. Bush, and took many hazardous and unpleasant duties on behalf of his country. When the CIA sent him to Niger, he knew that the politically smart—and self-promotional course to take would be to hew to the Cheney/Rumsfeld/Wolfowitz/Perle line without gumming up the system. Instead he told the truth and they came after him.

Testify Brother!

In a Just World ...

... this would not be satire:

Unconfirmed sources report that the U.S. Army has set a new recruiting record in the wake of President Bush's address to the nation last Tuesday. Young Republicans are flocking to Army recruiting centers to join up and volunteer to serve in Iraq. The flood of new recruits has caught the Army off guard and long lines are forming across the nation. If this flood of recruits keeps up the Army estimates it will actually have to close many recruiting centers.

"President Bush has preformed a miracle." Says Michael D. Rochelle, head of recruiting command for the US Army. "We've got young men and women lining up outside recruiting centers waiting their turn to enlist. I've never seen anything like it. In the two days since the President spoke we have made up for all of last year's low recruitment and met our goals for the rest of the current year. If this keeps up we will have to shut down our recruitments centers, we won't be able to train that many more new recruits."

A sampling of the flood of new recruits finds that 95% of them are registered Republicans, many admitting that have been swept up by the Presidents stirring words of the other night.

"After hearing the President speak my heart told me to join up immediately." Says Kevin Whycliff, a senior at George Town University, who had been studying economics before he quit to enlist. "America needs me to fight, and who better to bear the burden of this fight than a guy like me. My family is rich, I've grown up with more privilege and opportunity than most and it's time to pay for it. I'm not going to run away from a fight like some draft dodging rich kid with family connections. No sir, even though there is no draft it is the responsibility of privileged Americans to fight this fight."

CNN Plays on Laura Bush's Popularity

In its continuing defense of Karl Rove, CNN pulls out all the stops, and brings Laura Bush to his defense:

President Bush and first lady Laura Bush are standing by Karl Rove, whose role in the leak of an undercover CIA officer's identity has prompted Democrats to call for dismissal of the president's top political adviser.

...

First lady Laura Bush, talking to reporters while traveling in Africa on Wednesday, called Rove "a very good friend" whom the Bushes have known for many years.

"It would be irresponsible for me to speculate on any of it," she said, "so I think I'll leave the speculation to you all, and I'll leave the investigation" to the prosecutor.

Thought for the Day

Irrationally held truths may be more harmful than reasoned errors.

--Thomas H. Huxley

Fox News: Objectively Anti-American

Oliver Willis points out that earlier today, Tuesday, that Fox News advocated the outing of covert CIA assets for partisan political gain.

That's Fox News for you.

Advocating compromising National Security at every turn.


Video link at Dembloggers.com

CNN Supports Karl Rove

CNN's Kyra Phillips labels the naming of Karl Rove as the person who outed undercover CIA operative Valerie Plame as a "major smear campaign".

So, now we have CNN's position on this.

Karl Rove compromising national security for a political vendetta? OK.
Democrats demanding investigation? Smear.

Money Laundering and DeLay Allies

Austin American-Statesman:

State District Judge Bob Perkins today said he believes two officials with Texans for a Republican Majority should stand trial on felony charges of money laundering.

Wow, the TRMPAC scandal is really starting to get out of Tom DeLay's control.

If his allies in Texas start falling due to money laundering convictions, and other violations of state law, how long before Tom DeLay get hauled in front of a judge to answer for himself?

The Truth Hurts

Republicans are all in a tizzy over Hillary Clinton's comparison of Bush to Alfred E. Neuman:

Republicans took aim at Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton on Monday for a speech comparing President Bush to Mad magazine's freckle-faced, "What, me worry?" kid, Alfred E. Neuman.

A Republican National Committee official said the former first lady was "part of today's angry and adrift Democrat Party," while a spokesman for one of her potential 2006 Senate rivals said she was guilty of "insulting the president."

It seems that Republicans don't like it when the truth about Bush is pointed out.

White House on Rove: No Comment

For a second day in a row Bush and McClellan refused to comment on Rove:

President Bush, at an Oval Office photo opportunity Tuesday, was asked directly whether he would fire Rove - in keeping with a pledge in June, 2004, to dismiss any leakers in the case. The president did not respond.

For the second day, White House press secretary Scott McClellan refused to answer questions about Rove.

Now, Democrats are beginning to get some balls, and respond:

Democrats pressed Bush to act.

"The White House promised if anyone was involved in the Valerie Plame affair, they would no longer be in this administration," said Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev. "I trust they will follow through on this pledge. If these allegations are true, this rises above politics and is about our national security."

Democratic consultant Paul Begala, appearing on ABC's "Good Morning America" Tuesday, said Rove has both a legal problem and a political problem.

Let's keep it up, eh?

Negative Coverage on Rove

John @ AMERICAblog has been keeping up with the coverage in todays papers about Scottie and the White House's sudden refusal to comment on Rove and his outing of undercover CIA operative Valerie Plame.

Let's just say, it is not a good day to be a member of the Bush administration:

NYT (via SF Chronicle):

Nearly two years after stating that any administration official found to have been involved in leaking the name of an undercover CIA officer would be fired, and assuring that Karl Rove and other senior aides to President Bush had nothing to do with the disclosure, the White House refused on Monday to answer any questions about new evidence of Rove's role in the matter.

Detroit Free Press:

The White House refused Monday to repeat earlier assertions that any administration official who leaked classified information would be fired. The refusal comes days after Karl Rove, one of President George W. Bush's top aides, was revealed as the source of a news leak that exposed a CIA undercover officer in 2003.

Houston Chronicle:

The White House scrambled Monday to reconcile President Bush's vow to fire anyone who leaked information about an undercover CIA operative with revelations that top political aide Karl Rove spoke to a reporter about the agent.

AP:

The White House is suddenly facing damaging evidence that it misled the public by insisting for two years that presidential adviser Karl Rove wasn't involved in leaking the identity of a female
CIA officer.

SF Chronicle editorial:

THE OFFICIAL silence from the White House on Monday was quite disturbing.

Not so good first paragraphs, but other articles/columns of note today:

- Robert Scheer (I haven't even read this yet and I know it's gonna be good, love this man).

- LA Times.

- Washington Post, lead story.

- NY Newsday.

Bush White House, and Accountability

There is much conversation on left side of the on-line magazine/blog world. There are really two points in contention.

Number one, is that one of the promises that Bush made during his campaign in 2000 was that he would bring "honor and accountability back to the Oval Office"

Number two, and this is the most important, is that when the Plame affair first reared its Novakula like head, Scottie McClellan, and Bush both reiterated (repeatedly) that the person who revealed this information would be fired immediately.

Well, since it has been revealed who passed this information on to the media (Rove), two notable things have come to light. First, with Rove's name being mentioned, suddenly the Bush administration has "no comment", despite their prediliction towards commenting in late 2003, early 2004. Second, the person who revealed Plame's identity still has his job.

This last point is the most salient. We have an individual who did the one thing that Bush indicated would get a member of his staff fired, and an individual who put political considerations above national security.

Where is the honor revealing national security related secrets to the media in retaliation for speaking out against Bush?

Where is the accountability in not firing Rove, for doing something that Bush promised he would get fired for doing?

I wonder if honor and accountability are not anything that any member of the Bush administration holds dear?

Texans Can be an Ignorant Lot

From Melanie @ Just a Bump in the Beltway we are pointed to this LA Times editorial:

Here it is, the new definition of gender, coming to you oh-so-straight from Texas: Real boys don't sing soprano.

Boys cannot audition for soprano or alto roles in that state's All-State Choir. Girls cannot audition for tenor or bass. No matter where their talents lie.

As a result, 17-year-old Mikhael Rawls, who already has won awards for his countertenor — the male parallel to soprano — can't try out in the part where he excels.

This kid has a singing voice that is naturally high, and seeing as he has won awards, he must be pretty good at it.

The Texas Music Educators Association claims that they are concerned about kids straining their vocal cords by singing out of their range, however, if his range includes the high notes, why can he not sing in that role in the choir?

My guess is that they feel it is not manly.

You can contact the TMEA here and let them know how assinine they are.

Operation Yellow Elephant

In the spirit of Emeril Lagasse, Gen. JC Christian, Patriot, takes Operation Yellow Elephant up a notch with the Operation Yellow Elephant Blog.

One of the General's readers pointed out that there isn't a good, one stop place to learn everything you need to know about OPERATION YELLOW ELEPHANT. Hopefully, this post will serve that purpose. Check back often for updates.

The objective of OPERATION YELLOW ELEPHANT is to recruit College Republicans and Young Republicans to serve as infantry. They demanded this war and now viciously support it. It's only right that they also experience it.

But Will It Reduce the Deficit

I received an email today from a Mr. Douglas Morris (which I shouldn't tell you about, because confidentiality is required). What caught my eye is towards the end, in which Mr. Morris proposes to help my country out:

Hello,

I am contacting you to partner with me in respect of transfer of
certain funds, which is being held in a floating account in my organization,
Fountain Securities , in Madrid Spain. I am privileged to have full knowledge of
the availability of this fund due to my function and position in the
organization at present. I have to contact you because it is imperative for me have
the cooperation of a foreigner to be able to transfer the fund out of my
country. This fund, was deposited by Mr. George Martins, who died in 1994
without leaving any information of any next of kin to inherit the fund. The
account therefore has not been operated since his death.

The total amount involved is Fifteen Million American Dollars. My name
is Douglas Morris. I would give the details of the transfer process if I
receive your response and am convinced that you are willing and dependable to
carry out the transaction with me in absolute confidentiality. We have to
establish mutual trust such that it will be glaring to both parties that we could
work with open mind. On transfer of the fund into your account, your share
would be 35% of the total sum while the rest part would be for me and I
intend to invest the major part of my share in your country with your assistance.

I would appreciate if you could respond to me on my more private email:dougmorris@k.ro. Kindly state your telephone number so that I could call you too.

I await your response.

Sincerely.
Douglas Morris.
Reply to:dougmorris@k.ro

Now this is a very promising plan. Perhaps I should forward this on to someone in the White House. I am sure that in the interest of getting assistance to pay down our debts, this would go a long way towards helping.

Thought for the Day

"Not only is the universe stranger than we imagine, it is stranger than we can imagine."

--Sir Arthur Eddington

You Did Discuss it While it Was an Ongoing Investigation

The White House has suddenly decided to not comment on ongoing investigations:

McClellan: This is -- no, I appreciate the question. This is an ongoing investigation at this point. The President directed the White House to cooperate fully with the investigation, and as part of cooperating fully with the investigation, that means we're not going to be commenting on it while it is ongoing.

Of course we know that the White House, and Scottie specifically was commenting on this "ongoing investigation" when it first broke:

Question: It's not an answer. And you were perfectly willing to comment from that podium while the investigation was going on, and try to clear Karl Rove. Why the double standard? Why were you willing to say Karl Rove was not involved when -- and talk at length about it, when the investigation was going on, and now that he's been caught red-handed, all of a sudden you've got a new line?

McClellan: No, I don't think it is the way you characterize it, as new, because I have said for quite some time that this is an ongoing investigation, and we're not going to get into discussing it while it's an ongoing investigation. I've really said all I'm going to say on it.

Question: But you did -- you did discuss it while it was an ongoing investigation. You stood there and told the American people Karl Rove wasn't involved.

McClellan: I've said all I'm going to say on it. Go ahead, April.

This exchange was from the gaggle this morning. Apparently the regular press briefing was even better:

QUESTION: I actually wasn’t talking about any investigation.

But in June of 2004, the president said that he would fire anybody who was involved in this leak to the press about information. I just wanted to know: Is that still his position?

MCCLELLAN: Yes, but this question is coming up in the context of this ongoing investigation, and that’s why I said that our policy continues to be that we’re not going to get into commenting on an ongoing criminal investigation from this podium.

The prosecutors overseeing the investigation had expressed a preference to us that one way to help the investigation is not to be commenting on it from this podium.

Some more exchange:

QUESTION: I actually wasn’t talking about any investigation.

But in June of 2004, the president said that he would fire anybody who was involved in this leak to the press about information. I just wanted to know: Is that still his position?

MCCLELLAN: Yes, but this question is coming up in the context of this ongoing investigation, and that’s why I said that our policy continues to be that we’re not going to get into commenting on an ongoing criminal investigation from this podium.

The prosecutors overseeing the investigation had expressed a preference to us that one way to help the investigation is not to be commenting on it from this podium.

Just from reading the rest of the transcript, the remainder of the press briefing became even more exasperating for members of the media who, I suppose smelling blood in the water, have decided to stand up to the Administration. Scottie continued his maddening habit of speaking alot without actually saying a damned thing. The White House position, on commenting about Rove's participation in the outing of Plame, is that although they commented in the past, due to a request from someone in the Special Prosecutors Office, they wont even comment on past comments.

Something big is going to happen. No one is just quite sure of what it may be.

Cheney, Health and Pravda Style Reporting

In a style reminiscent of Soviet style "medical updates", Dick Cheney received a "good report" on the status of his pacemaker:

Vice President Dick Cheney got good news Friday during his annual heart checkup, with a pacemaker detecting no irregular heartbeat, his office said.

Lest we not forget, there was this rumor from a few weeks ago, about Cheney's visit to the hospital in Aspen, Colorado:

Vice President Dick Cheney was taken to the cardiac unit of the Vail Valley Medical Center Friday. Contrary to Associated Press reports that he went to see orthopedic surgeon, Dr. Steadman, at the Steadman Hawkins clinic for a knee injury, Vice President Cheney passed through the Steadman Hawkins clinic and the Colorado Mountain Medical Center to get to the cardiac unit to see Dr. Jack Eck and his team. The Vice President checked into the hospital under the name of Dr. Hoffman.

The White House steadfastly maintains that Cheney was there to check out an old football injury to his knee.

So, we have a report that his pacemaker is reporting no arrhythmias detected, yet we have a mysterious visit to a cardiologist by Cheney under an assumed name.

That smell, is someone's pants burning.

Because the Religious Right Hate Tolerance

United Church of Christ Congregation In Virginia Set On Fire; Vandals Leave Anti-Gay Hate Messages:

A small fire was set in St. John’s Reformed United Church of Christ this morning and anti-gay graffiti was painted on the side of the building.

This is what it comes down to. Those who preach tolerance, and respect for all become the targets of violence by the Religious Right.

The specter of violence has been growing, as the rhetoric against those on the Left, those who are tolerant of homosexuals, Muslims, or other non-Christians increases. Increasingly there are calls from the Right to segregate themselves (someone said everyone move to South Carolina, then seceede) from those who do not believe as they do. As this Christian Fundamentalist movement grows, they are becoming more like the Islamic Fundamentalists they so despise. Advocating intolerance for homosexuals, non-Christians, etc. eventually leads to where people begin burning down churches that do not hold the correct belief structure.

David Neiwert over at Orcinus has been writing about the increasing level of "eliminationist rhetoric" from the far right. Well, that rhetoric is migrating from the fringe, to the mainstream. Today is it more talk than action, but as this church burning indicates, it is beginning to translate into action. Those who would perpetrate this activity, come from Bush's base. Those who unquestioningly support him and his policies. This incident provides a real opportunity for Bush. Will he ignore this situation, and through his silence give it his tacit support, or will he speak out against this hate, and demonstrate that religious tolerance, and freedom to practice religion is one of the things that has made America strong?

Will Rove Frog March?

If David Corn is to believed, yes. Rove will be doing the Frog March.

However, if WaPo is to be belived, then no he wont, due to plausible deniability.

So, what this whole thing has begun to boil down to, is the Rove is guilty of revealing Valerie Plame as a CIA operative, however, the question is, did he reveal her name?

If by identifying her as "Joe Wilson's Wife" will that be sufficient for the perp walk?

Of course, the Fox legal analysts will parse every word. Just like they so hated Clinton for doing so over the meaning of "Sexual Relations".

Most of the public wont buy the level of parsing required to absolve Rove as identifying her as "Joe Wilson's Wife", but certainly the true believers will, and ultimately that is all Rove wants.

Durn dem Cana, canad, northerners

Living in Texas, we are usually thankful for states like Alabama, and Mississippi. To read the story of why Ontario, Canada over Alabama or Mississippi it only reinforces our view.

Toyota decided that, due to the lack of education, and rampant illiteracy that is prevalent in the Southeast, to open their new North American plant in Woodstock, Ontario, Canada.

He said Nissan and Honda have encountered difficulties getting new plants up to full production in recent years in Mississippi and Alabama due to an untrained - and often illiterate - workforce. In Alabama, trainers had to use "pictorials" to teach some illiterate workers how to use high-tech plant equipment.

"The educational level and the skill level of the people down there is so much lower than it is in Ontario," Fedchun said.

So, despite the lower taxes, and lower wages due to non-unionization, the cost of educating Alabamans, and Mississippians negates all the cost savings.

Additionally, according to Toyota, the Canadian health-system, the savings are extended another $4 to $5 per hour per employee.

Funny that.

Judith Miller == MLK?

This is the comparison that Bob Schieffer just made on Face the Nation. His opinion being that Judith Miller is not protecting criminal activitiy, as revealing the name of a covert CIA agent is, but she is upholding journalistic traditions in the same spirit of the civil rights protestors of MLK's era.

While it may be noble that Judy is willing to suffer jail time to protect her source, it is who her source is, and what that person did which does not merit the glorification that she is receiving.

British Grand Prix

Today was the British Grand Prix at Silverstone race circuit near Brackley, England.

Remembering back to 9/11, sporting event after sporting event was cancelled for a couple of weeks afterward. When the first event was scheduled to happen, the big debate was whether or not "we waited long enough". Then there was story after story about inadequate security, and what was being done to increase it. People were afraid to go, because no doubt the stadium was going to be bombed by the thousands of "ay-rab terrists" in the US just waiting to kill us all.

By contrast, there were huge crowds at the race today. There were no over the top tributes. No gnashing and wailing of teeth over the events of Thursday. Now I didn't see the local news in England, but what I saw of ITV and BBC news broadcasts, it was not the same terror filled broadcasts that came to typify US broadcasts in the days after 9/11.

Paula Jones, Your 15 Minutes are Over

Now Go Away!

Paula Jones plans to make her first visit to the Bill Clinton presidential library a profitable one - she plans to wear a T-shirt emblazoned with a sponsor's name.

Bush Read My Pet Goat, British Go About Their Lives

Bush praises British for not crapping their pants. Or something like that.

Atrios writes about CNN and their inane need to have people crapping their pants. However, as has been noted elsewhere, the rest of the world has had to deal with terrorist attacks. From the IRA, to ETA, to PLO and others, there have been many instances of terror groups setting off a bomb in a public place before. However, only in the US do we feel the need to do story after story about people being scared. CNN has to search all over London to find someone who is scared. They have to go places in the US and get people afraid that a terror attack is going to happen on the street in front of their house, and then get their reaction.

Faux News has to talk about how happy they are that the attacks are "happening there, rather than here" to keep the fear up.

The reality is that one is more likely to be killed in their car, or even be bitten by a shark than be killed in a terrorist attack in the US, yet our news media has to get people into a frightened frenzy.

Even President Bush is relieved that the bombing happened in London:

In noting the global war being waged against terrorism, the president promised to stay on the offense, "fighting the terrorists abroad so we do not have to face them at home."

The reality is that the "flypaper strategy", which was supposed to keep large numbers of Americans in Iraq to draw terrorists to them, is not working. And, no one has bothered to question the humanity of putting a large group of Americans purposefully into harms way, when there are other methods of dealing with this threat.

It is long past time for the American people, and the media to start calling Bush's plans to deal with terrorism for what they are. Smoke and Mirrors. Bullshit Artistry. Not Working.

Wake up people. Reality is knocking on your door. It is time to stop looking at Bush's fantasy world as real.

Friday Dog Blogging

I am travelling today. I will be back tomorrow late afternoon. No posts until then.


For now, have a Bulldog Picture:

Thought for the Day

"Discovery consists of seeing what everybody has seen and thinking what nobody has thought."

--Albert von Szent-Gyorgyi

Red Rover, Red Rover, Let the Special Prosecutor Come Over

WaPo:

Now, a fast-moving series of decisions over the past week involving Time magazine reporter Matthew Cooper have brought a renewed public focus on what role White House Deputy Chief of Staff Karl Rove may have played in disclosing the name of CIA operative Valerie Plame.

A White House spokesman long ago asserted that Rove was "not involved" in disclosing Plame's identity. Rove, who has testified before a grand jury investigating the case, likewise has maintained that he did not break the law, saying in a television interview, "I didn't know her name, and I didn't leak her name."

But Fitzgerald still appears to want more answers about Rove's role. The prosecutor is apparently focused on Rove's conversations with Cooper.

It is clear the Rove is involved. How, is not quite clear, but he is involved. You really cannot explain why Judith Miller is willing to rot in jail over this, unless it is Rove. She has to be banking on the White House, Bush specifically, at Rove's request, to bail her out of any legal hot water she may get in, in the form of a Pardon.

I am sure that Rove was almost giddy with the London bombing yesterday, as it gave the press something else to focus on. However, it doesn't change the underlying fact, that someone in the White House put personal ideology over national security.

Jobs

146,000.

Seeing as it takes 140,000 new jobs to keep pace with new workers entering the job market, that really equates to 6,000 new jobs.

I wonder if Dick Cheney thinks our bad jobs situation is in it "last throes" yet.

Fox ♥ Bombing

For one single day, couldn't Fox News correspondents shut their yaps?:

KILMEADE: And he [British Prime Minister Tony Blair] made the statement, clearly shaken, but clearly determined. This is his second address in the last hour. First to the people of London, and now at the G8 summit, where their topic Number 1 --believe it or not-- was global warming, the second was African aid. And that was the first time since 9-11 when they should know, and they do know now, that terrorism should be Number 1. But it's important for them all to be together. I think that works to our advantage, in the Western world's advantage, for people to experience something like this together, just 500 miles from where the attacks have happened.

VARNEY: It puts the Number 1 issue right back on the front burner right at the point where all these world leaders are meeting. It takes global warming off the front burner. It takes African aid off the front burner. It sticks terrorism and the fight on the war on terror, right up front all over again.

KILMEADE: Yeah.

Fox News: Taking joy in other's suffering.

Republicans Want More Executions Faster

Kind of like in Texas:

Republicans in Congress have launched a new effort to speed up executions in the United States by limiting the ability of those sentenced to death to appeal to federal courts.

Apparently Jon Kyl (R-Electric Chair) doesn't like that those given the death penalty have the ability to appeal that sentence.

Hindsight is 20/20

MTV Stung by Live 8 Criticism:

MTV's handling of the concerts — staged in London, Philadelphia and eight other cities — was faulted for frequent cutaways from key musical moments to go to commercials, offstage banter or less compelling performances elsewhere.

"Knowing what I know now, I probably would have made the decision to go commercial-free," Toffler said.

Now they want a do-over.



Thanks to Suburban Geurrilla for the link.

More DeLay Ethics Questions

Westar Energy admits to paying for access to Tom DeLay.

A Kansas energy company said it donated $25,000 so that it could attend a golf outing with U.S. House Majority Leader Tom DeLay to try to influence pending energy legislation.

The admission from Topeka, Kan.-based Westar Energy marks the first time a company has publicly admitted to donating to DeLay's political action committee in exchange for a meeting and possible legislative help.

Judy in Jail

Journal and Courier Online:

Will the jailing of New York Times reporter Judy Miller scare people off from risking careers to tell reporters about government misdeeds? Or will Miller's willingness to sit behind bars rather than name a confidential source embolden such whistleblowers?

Of course this AP writer is ignoring one overriding concern. A criminal act is being covered up by Judith Miller.

Whistleblowers are already protected, for the most part. Criminal activity is not.

Thought for the Day

"Honesty is the best image."

--Tom Wilson

Tragedy in London

London rocked by terror attacks:

At least two people have been killed and scores injured after three blasts on the Underground network and another on a double-decker bus in London.

UK Prime Minister Tony Blair said it was "reasonably clear" there had been a series of terrorist attacks.

How horrible.

Republican Pledge of Allegiance

Billmon has a Republican Pledge of Allegiance.
To whit:

I pledge allegiance to the flag shares
Of the United States Corporations of America
And to the Republic Empire on which it stands
One nation company under God Mammon
With liberty capital gains and justice dividends for all<insert> shareholders.

I thought this was rather funny, until I saw this Wired article:

Equifax's chief executive says he opposes federal legislation that lets consumers obtain a free copy of their credit report to help them monitor financial accounts for fraudulent activity.

CEO Thomas Chapman called the legislation unconstitutional and un-American because it cuts into profits that Equifax and two rival credit reporting agencies -- Experian and TransUnion -- earn from selling credit reports and monitoring services. Equifax maintains credit data on 220 million Americans. The company earned $1.27 billion in revenue last year.

Corporate profits are now Constitutionally protected?

What a world we live in.

Thought for the Day

"If we don't change direction soon, we'll end up where we're going."

--Professor Irwin Corey

Battling Wal-Mart

UFCW ramps up campaign against Wal-Mart:

A union crusade against America's largest retailer, Wal-Mart, has the potential to not only hurt the company’s balance sheet and alter Americans’ shopping habits, but also to change the course of the 2006 and 2008 campaigns.

...

Now the union has recruited strategists from the 2004 Howard Dean and Wesley Clark campaigns, and they are mounting a crusade that goes beyond the usual union tactics, such as the boycott or shareholder resolution expressing disapproval of a company’s policies.

Paul Blank, who served as political director for the Dean campaign, is running the "Wake-Up Wal-Mart” campaign, and Chris Kofinis, a strategist for the Clark campaign, is the effort's communications adviser.

Blank and Kofinis are deploying election campaign-tested tactics to assail Wal-Mart: running petition drives and holding house parties, canvassing at farmers’ markets, stockpiling an e-mail list and conducting conference calls to marshal the efforts of local anti-Wal-Mart activists.

It is long past time for Americans to stand up to what Wal-Mart is doing. Through their actions (and the actions of others as well, but Wal-Mart is the largest), Wal-Mart is working to kill labor unions, and everything they have acheived over the past 50 or so years. Wal-Mart claims that they help American workers by offering health insurance, and 401k retirement benefits. However, the pay scale of Wal-Mart makes it nearly impossible for many of their workers to afford to participate in these programs.

Ted Kennedy is trying to push a bill through congress that would require employers to track and report how many of its employees are receiving federal welfare assistance, if the company has 50 or more employees.

This should really expose what Wal-Mart is doing, as a significant number of its employees cannot afford Wal-Mart's health care offerings, and despite providing automatic matching into employee's 401k accounts, more than 550,000 employees are inelegible to participate.

The United Food and Commercial Workers union is running their "Wake Up Wal-Mart" campaign to highlight these issues, and to bring pressure to bear on Wal-Mart to change their practices. I personally will not shop at Wal-Mart and encourage others to do the same regularly.

That Liberal Media

WaPo continues, in the true tradition of the liberal media, to flog Republican bias.

Democrats' hopes of blocking a staunchly conservative Supreme Court nominee on ideological grounds could be seriously undermined by the six-week-old bipartisan deal on judicial nominees, key senators said yesterday.

This is just pushing the Republicans line in order to get Democrats to rubber stamp whatever whackjob Bush puts forward.

Not to mention the attacks from the right on Abu Gonzales.

For What It's Worth

Gay Couple Won Yanked ABC Series:

IN the end, the neighbors on ABC's controvercial reality show, "Welcome to the Neighborhood" rolled out the welcome mat for a white, gay couple and their young, adopted black son, say industry sources.

The heavily promoted show was canceled this week - just days before it was slated to debut - after civil rights groups complained that the series' violated federal fair housing laws.

On "Neighborhood," seven diverse families compete to win a 3,300-square-foot home located on a cul-de-sac outside of Austin, Texas. To take the big prize, they try to woo the three families already living there through a series of interviews and competitions.

At the beginning, the residents already on the cul-de-sac say they are looking for a new family to be their neighbor who will fit in with the community's mostly Christian and Republican values.

That the gay couple might have won is something of a surprise.

In an early episode to discuss the wannabe neighbors, a heated argument erupts between the cul-de-sac adults and kids, who ripped their parents for being close-minded about gay people, according to sources.

ABC officials have declined to say who won the grand prize, citing the possibility of airing "Neighborhood" sometime down the road.

Wanna Do Republican Women?

Weekly World News shows us how.

THE RESULTS of an exciting new survey reveal the 10 best opening lines most effective in convincing a Republican woman to offer a man a night of bed-pounding, backscratching, hot monkey love!

The survey appears in Political Psychology Today magazine, and was led by Dr. Jedediah Leland. "In addition to the opening lines, we discovered a number of surprising insights," reveals Dr. Leland. "For instance, three times as many Democrat men as Republicans want to sleep with Republican women.

"When we asked them why, the Democrats responded that they had a strong urge to do to these women what the Republican party is doing to the country."

So, what are these 10 sure fire pickup lines?

1. You know, in this light you look like you could be Laura Bush's younger, more desirable sister.


2. Sorry if I seem aggravated -- I'm still upset about that world-class jerk, Michael Moore.


3. Allow me to buy you a drink. After all, thanks to our beloved President, the economy has never been better!


4. I'd love to hang out with you, but I can't make it a late night -- I'm shipping out to Falluja in the morning.


5. The tattoo on my manhood spells "RAN." But when I get excited, it spells "REPUBLICAN."


6. To see you naked, I would turn in my own mother to the Department of Homeland Security.


7. If I had to choose between having a Republican President in the White House for the rest of this century, or never being able to see your cleavage again, I'd be stumped.


8. I'm all for No Child Left Behind. I'm even more for your child-like behind.


9. Just as the Republican Party boldly confronts big challenges, nothing would please me more than you confronting the big challenge rapidly growing right now in my pants.


10. Because of President Bush's leadership, we are strong; because of his vision, we will be even stronger; and because I can't stop thinking about your ass, I haven't been able to stand up for the last half hour.

So, get out and try these lines?

Let us know how it works.

Thanks to The Agonist for the link.

The Right is Tearing Itself Apart

Courtesy of Joe @ AMERICAblog we learn that the White House and Senate Republicans are locking horns with cultural Conservatives who are demanding that the White House not nominate Attorney General Alberto Gonzales for the Supreme Court, because his is not conservative enough for people like Gary Bauer and his American Values organization.

They are demanding that Bush nominate someone who share thier values on religious expression, abortion, gay rights, contraception, etc. However, many Senate Republicans do not share those values, and certainly do not relish a big fight with Democrats let alone having any confrontation coming from the Right. So the "moderate" right, and the Rapture Right are opposed on the type of nominee, and Bush wants to give the ultimate payoff to his buddy, who helped write the justification for torture.

Sit back, relax, pop some popcorn, and watch the sparks fly.

Live8 and AOL

All but a small amount of my viewing of the Live8 concerts was done on AOL. I tried to watch the MTV coverage, and was so fed up, I almost didn't watch any of it, until I found AOL's stream. Throughout the recent history of the web, there have been many attempts to broadcast content. From the disaster that was Victoria's Secret lingerie show, to C-Span.org, NASA-TV, and now AOL, the web as a true multimedia entertainment destination is finally being realized.

AOL says they are planning on increasing their streaming video offerings, probably with an eye towards trying to stem their loss of subscribers. If the Live8 concerts were any indication of what AOL is capable of, then they will be leading the way.

My next purchase will have to be a Media Center PC so that I can have this content available on my television with sound fed through my stereo.

The point of this is not so much to praise AOL, but to highlight just how out of touch the traditional media outlets have become. MTV's horrible performance really only brings to an uncomfortable fore, the need of television networks to sell advertising at the expense of content, where the AOL feed, and other multimedia content available on the web, can provide advertising along side of the content.

Thought for the Day

"There is nothing worse than aggressive stupidity."

--Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

UCC and SSM

Church of Christ Committee Passes Same-Sex Marriage Resolution:

A committee of United Church of Christ representatives approved a resolution Sunday that moves the church one step closer to becoming the largest Christian denomination to endorse same-sex marriage.

The resolution supported by the UCC's president, John H. Thomas, drew overwhelming support and was recommended for approval when the General Synod votes on it Monday.

It would specify that bisexual and transgender persons merit the same support and protections as gays and lesbians. The wording was revised Sunday, however, to included the "recognition that this resolution may not reflect the views or current understanding of all bodies within the gathered church."

I suspect that there will be a significant amount of defections from the UCC over this. However, this is a good thing.

Other Christian denominations will finally have to confront this. Many of their positions are well known, so it is not like there will be a huge debate at that level. However, I do see where cases of more progressive religious leaders confronting their churches stances on this, and will point to the UCC position for support.

But Will They Listen?

And I don't mean the teenagers.

Pediatricians Decry Abstinence-Only Ed:

A leading group of pediatricians says teenagers need access to birth control and emergency contraception, not the abstinence-only approach to sex education favored by religious groups and President Bush.

The recommendations are part of the American Academy of Pediatrics' updated teen pregnancy policy.

"Even though there is great enthusiasm in some circles for abstinence-only interventions, the evidence does not support abstinence-only interventions as the best way to keep young people from unintended pregnancy," said Dr. Jonathan Klein, chairman of the academy committee that wrote the new recommendations.

Teaching abstinence but not birth control makes it more likely that once teenagers initiate sexual activity they will have unsafe sex and contract sexually transmitted diseases, said Dr. S. Paige Hertweck, a pediatric obstetrician-gynecologist at the University of Louisville who provided advice for the report.

Of course this is a no brainer to most people.

Imagine if This Was You

Or if this was your license plate



and you were suing your city over 10 commandments displays, with the ACLU working to protect your identity while the suit was pending.


If you lived in Nebraska, the Omaha World-Herald would be working diligently to uncover your identity so that members of the Rapture Right could hunt you down.

Despite warnings of death threats, and firebombings, the Omaha World-Herald felt it was their duty to clearly identify the target of these threats so that people would have no trouble finding him. In fact they identified everything about this person, including a description of his house. At least they didn't give out his address, so someone would have to go look it up. But as the picture above shows, they revealed his license plate, as well as name, make/model/year of his car, city of residence, and home description.

The Editors of this newspaper have the audacity to defend the use and protection of anonymous sources(reg. required)

However, when it comes to freedom of religion issues, their "journalistic standards" include placing people in danger.

Remember what Independence Day stands for. Remember that the Rapture Right don't believe in it.

At Least Bolton has a Grasp on Geography

Bush has appointed a new ambassador to Canada. Boy howdy, is he ever a winner:

AIH: Have you ever been to Canada before?

Wilkins: Ah, many years ago when I was in the Army stationed in Indiana my wife and I visited Canada.

AIH: Oh yes, where did you go?

Wilkins: Eh, it was, uh, around the uh, the falls area, Niagara Falls, back up in there round uh that area as well as uh going I guess back toward, back West toward , toward Indiana, well obviously above Indiana but I'd have to get out a map to tell you all, it's been thirty-something years now since we were there but we enjoyed our visit and we cannot wait to get back.

AIH: OK. Well, you know that your predecessor here, Mr Cellucci, wasn't exactly the most loved US ambassador, he had a very blunt style and I'm sure it comes as no surprise to you that uh, for some Canadians that was a bit of a problem. Ehm, do you intend to do things differently?

Wilkins: Well I, I appreciate your question but ah again, until I get through the Senate confirmation I, I just don't think I can get into substance issues or even issues of style, I just tell you I'm excited and I'm thrilled and I'm honoured that I'm going to be able to represent my country in your country and I'm going to do the very best I'm capable of doing.

AIH: Yup, and you must have some idea what you'd like to do, what are your goals?

Wilkins: Just, again, and with all great deference and respect to you I just am not allowed to go into all that before I go through the Senate confirmation hearings.

AIH: OK, fair enough. You seem like a fun kinda guy can I ask you a couple of questions about your knowledge of Canada?

Wilkins: I just, I just don't really, I want to have this conversation with you I just need to have it after I get through the Senate confirmation.

AIH: Uhm, can I just ask you, things like, do you know where maple syrup comes from?

Wilkins: I look forward to answering that as soon as I get through the Senate confirmation.

AIH: Can you hum a few bars of "Oh Canada?"

Wilkins: I look forward to doing that for you at some point.

AIH: OK, thanks very much.

Wilkins: Thank you.

This was from a radio interview with CBC's As It Happens.

You may wonder what David Wilkins qualifications to be ambassador are? He was a "Ranger" with the Bush/Cheney campaign, having brought in over $200,000 in donations.

Now, we all know that big donors get big favors, but this guy appears to be such an idiot, that he deserves no favor.

He certainly will be doing America no favors in Canada.

Operation Yellow Elephant News

Baltimore Sun(reg. req.):

THE ARMY can't find enough recruits. Could there be a clearer expression of Americans' disenchantment with the war in Iraq?

This is democracy where it matters. No one should doubt that young Americans would willingly go to war if they believed in it. But this is a war of choice that began with fabrications and has been marked by blunders at the highest level -- blunders that have resulted in many lives lost. Over two years, the aims of this war have shifted like dunes in the desert. President Bush, moreover, has told Americans they need not make any sacrifices; to the contrary, he has pursued tax cuts. This is not inspiring. This is deceptive and dishonorable. Yet the Army expects young idealists to sign up anyway, for hazardous duty in a treacherous country, where the violence shows no signs of letting up and the generals show no signs of knowing what to do about it.

It's no surprise that the idealists are staying away. Certainly, the sons and daughters of the unimpeachably idealistic neoconservatives who prayed for the war and brayed for what they stupidly supposed was victory back in 2003 are staying as far away from it as they possibly can. So now the Army's recruiters, who reached their goal in June for the first time in five months, but still expect to fall short for the year, have another plan.

It is clear that The Baltimore Sun is aware of, and supports



Atrios has provided us a statement (warning, link to Young Republicans) from Nathan Taylor, Chairman of the Young Republicans:

Most of our members either serve, have served, or plan to serve in the United States Armed Forces, or have participated in events or projects supporting the United States Armed Forces. We will not be intimidated.

In other words, they have cheered from the sidelines.

Talk about supporting the troops.

And to those who "plan to serve": What are you waiting for.

Feel free to contact Mr. Taylor @ nathan@yrnc2005.com and ask him in what manner he is serving our country.

Deep Impact Mission a Success!

I just finished watching the Deep Impact mission conclusion. Wow, it went off like clockwork. Everything was lined up, and ready for these images confirming impact:



and

Yes, MTV does suck.

Attytood:

For a city long tarred -- unfairly, for the most part -- as dirty, rude and disorderly, the images that were beamed around the world today may prove priceless over time. They're won't be much immediate impact (except for Milton Street, maybe) but over time, that image will help convince some folks that Philadelphia is a place they want to work. or live, or at least visit on a vacation.

Unfortunately, who knows how many were driven away by the God-awful TV coverage? As we watched the train wreck on MTV unfold, we started to get a sense of deja vu, and we realized why: It was exactly the same things that ruined the Olympics on TV.

Thank Jebus AOL streamed all of the performances. MTV's coverage was absolutely atrocious. Cutting to commercial in the middle of songs. Inane prattle from dingy veejays about poverty in Africa. Pumping up the Pink Floyd reunion, only to cut away to commercial before Comfortably Numb was over.

It is pretty sad that a channel called Music Television, would rather play commercials, than say, music.

O'Donnell Says there is Another Source

Lawrence O'Donnell:

Since I revealed the big scoop, I have had it reconfirmed by yet another highly authoritative source. Too many people know this. It should break wide open this week. I know Newsweek is working on an 'It's Rove!' story and will probably break it tomorrow.

Atrios is wondering if this is a ratfucking by Rove.

I guess anything is possible. We shall see.

Talk Left on Rove

TalkLeft

Special Prosecutor Fitzgerald has stated in court pleadings that he already knows the identity of Judith Miller and Matthew Cooper's sources regarding the senior white house official who leaked the identity of CIA operative Valerie Plame to Robert Novak.

Right now, one of the questions is, did Rove perjure himself in front of the Grand Jury.

I am willing to bet yes, but a perjury conviction generally needs two witnesses to the statement. This would explain why DOJ is still going after Miller and Cooper (my personal feelings about them aside).

Did Karl Rove Out Valerie Plame?

E&P:

NEW YORK Now that Time Inc. has turned over documents to federal court, presumably revealing who its reporter, Matt Cooper, identified as his source in the Valerie Plame/CIA case, speculation runs rampant on the name of that source, and what might happen to him or her. Tonight, on the syndicated McLaughlin Group political talk show, Lawrence O'Donnell, senior MSNBC political analyst, claimed to know that name--and it is, according to him, top White House mastermind Karl Rove.

Here is the transcript of O'Donnell's remarks:

"What we're going to go to now in the next stage, when Matt Cooper's e-mails, within Time Magazine, are handed over to the grand jury, the ultimate revelation, probably within the week of who his source is.

"And I know I'm going to get pulled into the grand jury for saying this but the source of...for Matt Cooper was Karl Rove, and that will be revealed in this document dump that Time magazine's going to do with the grand jury."

The question remaining, did Rove call Novak?
Did Rove call Cooper, and the other journalists before or after Novak published his article?
Will Rove be frog marched out of the White House?

(I certainly hope the last one comes true)

The Supreme Irony of Life Blog is No More

Due to the new scrutiny by the FEC of Blogs, Greg @ The Talent Show poses the following question:

Why is somebody who prints up and mails out weekly vanity newsletter entitled to the media exemption but not me?

Why is Michael Savage entitled to the media exemption but not me?

Why is Salon.com entitled to the media exemption but not me?

As of today, Saturday 02 July 2005, 09:00 CDT, "The Supreme Irony of Life ... Blog" has been officially shutdown.

"The Supreme Irony of Life ... Magazine" is now open for business.

I will remain in my role as writer. Until such time as my new life as a writer takes off, and I get recruited for one of the dead tree magazines, or merge with another online magazine, the technology used to publish this magazine will remain as is. I will be having article specific message boards available with each article, for readers to post comments/complaints/praise/etc.

As a member of the new media, I will be occasionally including coverage of shark attacks, missing white women, fad diets, and of course celebrity trials. In the spirit of Nancy Grace, I will be pronouncing whether I believe the celebrity to be guilty or innocent immediatly upon hearing about the case. I cannot be troubled to review the evidence, or hear any of the details before using my Magic 8-ball, my dog, and my superior guessing skills to decided.

In between this coverage I will be offering commentary, editorial, and some news coverage. Article topics will be of a varying length, with a decidedly liberal tone, and heavy with snark, as appropriate.

I hope you readers, will continue to support me in my new endeavor as a writer in new media world of online magazines. I feel that this will be rewarding experience for all.


Now, with out further ado, I present:

The Supreme Irony of Life ...
The Online Magazine of Commentary, News, and Opinion

Harsh

Steve Bell: George Bush's Fort Bragg address

Bush Worried about Dignity, Now?

In a single statement, Scottie makes it clear that the Bush White House is full of total asshats:

McClellan said the White House would consult with Senate Majority Leader Frist and Minority Leader Harry Reid and ranking members of the Judiciary Committee and expressed hope that Democrats would not block a vote on the president's pick.

"I can't imagine that the Democrats would want to engage in controversial tactics when it comes to a nominee for the Supreme Court," he said.

This is a White house that engages in dishonesty, and underhanded tactics, and they have the gall to insinuate that Democrats woud act "controversial"?


This is the first signal that if Democrats intend to filibuster, Frist will be ordered to excersize the nuclear option.

Supreme Court Nominees

We can expect Bush to push his Supreme Court Nominee quickly. What can we expect.

There is lots of speculation from the left side of the blog online magazine world that Bush will put forth a true disciple of the Rapture Right. Well, as a Lame Duck President, that is all the more likely. The theory being that he will put someone truly atrocious up, in order to score political points against the "obstructionist Democrats", leading up to the 2006 elections. Then there will be a last minute withdraw, and he will then sleaze in someone only slightly less atrocious, which will cause the Democrats to capitulate.

Or, he may keep the same nominee, and Rove will then force Frist to pull the trigger on the nuclear option.

The real question is whether or not the "moderate" Republicans in the Senate will stage a revolt, of sorts, and corner Bush into a more acceptable choice.

Odds are against that occurring, but it cannot be totally dismissed out of hand.

Anyone paying attention should already know that the media will not report this in a truthful manner. They will be all too happy and willing to follow the "Democrats are being obstructionist" line, which will cause the weak-kneed Democrats (Lieberman, et al) to cave quickly.

Whatever happens, Harry Reid had better be holding some pow-wows next week to get Democrats in line.

It should be interesting, to say the least.

For those of you who live in a state represented by these weak Democrats (we all know who they are), it is time to break out the Bic, and start writing. Not only will we need all the intestinal fortitude we can get, to watch this from the outside, but those on the inside will need some too.

Supreme Court Vacancy

It appears the Sandra Day O'Connor will be the first to retire.

Right now CNN.com has it on their breaking news banner.

No further details at this point.

Update:
MSNBC.com now has a story about her retirement.

As does Faux News


CNN still only has it on their breaking news banner at this time. CNN: Last at everything


CNN gets their story up last

Oww. That Has Got to Hurt

FactCheck.org:

Standing before a crowd of uniformed soldiers, President Bush addressed the nation on June 27 to reaffirm America's commitment to the global war on terrorism. But throughout the speech Bush continually stated his opinions and conclusions as though they were facts, and he offered little specific evidence to support his assertions.

Here we provide some additional context, both facts that support Bush's case that "we have made significant progress" in Iraq, as well as some of the negative evidence he omitted.

There are no punches pulled here.

State by State Bush Approval Rating

Survey USA .

Texas:

05 May:

Approve: 52%
Disapprove: 43%

05 June:

Approve: 50%
Disapprove: 47%

Change:

Approve: -2%
Disapprove: +4%

Ladies and Gentlemen. This is Texas. He is losing his home state.

How does your state rank?

Supporting our Troops, Republican Style

In a stunning show of callousness, Senate Republicans voted against a bill that would allow an Iraq war veteran to travel to Cuba to visit his sick son.

Sen. Byron Dorgan, a North Dakota Democrat, proposed the legislation, attached to an unrelated spending bill, to help Sgt. Carlos Lazo travel to Havana to visit his 16-year-old son. It would also have helped others in Lazo's situation.

Dorgan said it was unforgivable that an Iraq war veteran was being barred from visiting his sick son.

Sen. John Ensign, R-Nevada, countered that it was "a good thing" that hundreds of millions of U.S. dollars were not flowing into Cuba because of travel restrictions.

From gainsville.com:

Among his supporters in Congress is Rep. Jim McDermott, D-Wash., who has urged the Office of Foreign Assets Control in the Treasury Department to find a way to grant Lazo a travel license.

"The government has in place a policy which denies the basic liberties of an American hero, and we have not lifted one finger in this House to help Carlos Lazo," he said in a recent floor speech.

Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, R-Fla., a Cuban-American and staunch supporter of anti-Castro sanctions, said Lazo was a "great patriot" and she would be happy to help bring his boys to the United States. But she stressed that it's a two-way street, with the Castro government also preventing reunions. "Anyone who leaves their children in Cuba understands the difficulties" of reuniting, she said.

In all honesty, there are a number of Republicans who do support allowing Sgt Lazo to travel to visit his son, however, it is a bunch of anti-Castro Republicans who are saying there is no exception, even for a Bronze Medal recipient in Bush's Great Iraqi Adventure.

These are the true "pro-family" Republicans we read about daily.

It's All (im)Peachey Here

Zogby:

President Bush’s televised address to the nation produced no noticeable bounce in his approval numbers, with his job approval rating slipping a point from a week ago, to 43%, in the latest Zogby International poll. And, in a sign of continuing polarization, more than two-in-five voters (42%) say they would favor impeachment proceedings if it is found the President misled the nation about his reasons for going to war with Iraq.

Ben Sargent

Ben Sargent:

Supporting our Troops, Republican Style

Now that the election season is beginning to ramp up, Republicans decide to provide adequate funding for the VA.

Reid apologized for overlooking Nicholson's military service, but said he wouldn't be "lectured about civility" by a senator who had voted repeatedly against Democratic efforts to boost spending on veterans.

"Now, with an election cycle upon us, he supports, under pressure, voting for veterans," Reid said. "Talk about crass politics."

The good thing, is that this new funding for the VA does not include the provision the White House wants; to make Veterans pay an enrollment fee, and an increase in prescription drug co-pay.

Gee, Ya Think People Were Offended?

Needless to say, ABC Pulls 'Neighborhood' Reality Series.

Really, I didn't see that coming. Afterall, what's not to love about a show which pits closeminded, judgemental, pseudo-racist, homophobes against the very people that creep them out, in a lame attempt to choose one of them to be their neighbor.

That's entertainment.

Bush Approves Domestic Spying

In a reorganization of the nations intelligence agencies, we are presented with this little gem:

The White House ordered the creation of a National Security Service inside the FBI.

We now have an agency, within the FBI, whose job it is to spy on people in America.

I wonder who their first target will be?

Blair uses the Cheney Defense on DSM

I suspect that there was a big pow wow between the Bush administration and the Blair administration about how to counter the Downing Street Memo. It appears that Poodle Blair has done his masters bidding, and used the Cheney Defense.

He has said that because Bush and Blair went to the UN to seek approval from the security council, they hadn't already decided to invaded. Except that in the DSM it is mentioned that:

The NSC had no patience with the UN route…

The Prime Minister said that it would make a big difference politically and legally if Saddam refused to allow in the UN inspectors…

The Foreign Secretary would send the Prime Minister the background on the UN inspectors, and discreetly work up the ultimatum to Saddam.

This makes Blair, at best disingenuous. The truth is that the UN performance by Powell and others was a show. Nothing more, nothing less. The decision had already been made to go to war, long before anyone from either the US or Britian is willing to admit (more like afraid to admit).

Right now, our ever compliant media, is only reporting things that can be used to discredit the DSM, while conveniently ignoring everything else, which overwhelmingly supports it.

Eminent Domain

HoustonChronicle.com - Freeport moves to seize 3 properties

With the Supreme Court decision which stated that eminent domain issues were the province of the locality in which the the property is located, some areas are going to start seizing land.

Case in point. Freeport, Texas. The city is now preparing the paper work to seize 3 pieces of waterfront property for a private marina.

While I understand the rationale for the SC decision, I do not agree with it. How can a private marina be for the public benefit?

This is a time just to be a man.

Dallas Morning News takes on John "Man on Turtle" Cornyn.

John Cornyn, it's time – past time – to do the right thing.

Do what our other Texas senator, Kay Bailey Hutchison, did – join the overwhelming majority of senators co-sponsoring an apology for Congress' failure to outlaw lynching decades ago.

Sure, it may be just a symbolic gesture at this point, but it's the back-straightening political symbolism we need to help heal a nation that has long suffered from racial animosity.

Of course, it appears that Senator Cornyn is afraid to offend the racists in Texas who don't feel any remorse for the lynchings, and the inaction by congress.

I don't know if he supports lynchings. He said he would have supported it, if he had to cast a vote. Since he didn't, he is unwilling to attach his name to it.

Shorting Political Capital

Well, if Bush had any political capital to spend after the election, not only has it been spent, but speculators are probably beginning to take short positions on what is left.
Senator Charles Grassley:

The Republican chairman of the Senate committee charged with producing a Social Security bill said Thursday his colleagues "all want it to go away," but he will not drop the issue even though his own committee is in a logjam.

"Nobody really talks too much about Social Security," Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, said of President Bush's top domestic priority. "They all want it to go away. I'm not going to let it go away."

...

"Little more than just talk," said Sen. Gordon Smith, R-Ore., when asked about the status of Social Security legislation. "I think that people are talking, but nothing's moving."

Can you say quack?

Dances with Bush

Well, I missed the propaganda event last night. From all accounts I didn't miss much.

From the poll taken, I don't think it had the impact Rove was hoping for.

CNN:

-- A CNN/USA Today/Gallup poll of Americans who watched President Bush's Iraq speech Tuesday night showed that 46 percent had a "very positive" reaction to what they heard.

The poll was taken immediately after the speech, and the 323 adults interviewed were 50 percent Republican, 23 percent Democratic and 27 percent independent. The margin of error was plus or minus 6 percentage points.

50% of the poll, were Republicans, yet he could only muster 46% "very positive"?

There was another 28% "somewhat positive", which I suppose since there were only 4 categories, means that this group was more or less neutral. Not a particularly strong result.

I hope that the 101st Fighting Keyboarders will take Bush's admonition to heart:

And to those watching tonight who are considering a military career, there is no higher calling than service in our Armed Forces. We live in freedom because every generation has produced patriots willing to serve a cause greater than themselves. Those who serve today are taking their rightful place among the greatest generations that have worn our nation's uniform.

Your country is waiting

Finally

For the time being, I have things fixed.

My CSS skills have taken a large jump today, for better or for worse.

So, what has happened today?

Blog issues.

I don't know what is going on with my blog. I didn't make any changes before everything went pear-shaped last week. I am halfway to getting it back to what it is supposed to look like. I will be trying to straighten things out today. So light posting.


Besides, I am still in awe at the idiocy that is the Republican party.

I mean really, punishing MLB over the fact that George Soros has expressed an interest in owning the Washington Nationals?

Certainly it is not lost on those boneheads that partisan Republicans are also trying to... (no what am I saying, it is not lost on them).

More than ever, this cabal of Republicans need to be kicked back to the curb.

How Fucking Sad

Republicans really have done themselves proud with this one.

They are willing to kill Major League Baseball if George Soros becomes a part owner of the Washington Nationals.

They are truly a sad group of people.

Frist, and Presidential Ambitions

So, last week Frist recognized that John Bolton, probably was not the best choice for U.N. Ambassador (though he wouldn't say so), and when the cloture vote failed, he seemed resigned to yet another loss in the Senate.

Once ole Karl caught wind of Frist's antics, no doubt he pulled out the whips and chains, and began to beat Frist about the head and shoulders with them. Frist emerged, battered and bruised, and calling for another vote on Bolton.

It seems that since losing the nuclear option debate over judicial nominees, Frist and the White House may try again over Bolton. Setting aside how short sighted, and idiotic this move will be, and be portrayed (I mean really, over the UN nominee?), we are now getting a view of what Frist is really like.

He is weak.

Frist has his convictions, can't fault him for that. Frist, clearly is willing to use his medical degree to advance some Rapture Right agenda. Again, I can't really fault him for being true to his base, such as it is.

But, now we know that Frist is easily bullied.

Frist is willing to stand up to Democrats, because he has his benefactors (including the White House) standing behind him. It is kind of like the bear cub that thinks he scared away the mountain lion. Only the mountain lion saw the mother bear standing up behind the cub.

Frist is the bear cub. The White House is the mother bear, and the Democrats have been acting like the mountain lion.

In the case of Bolton, the White House stood back to see what would happen, and Frist collapsed without Bush and Rove back there egging him on. Once it became clear to the White House the Frist was going to cave to the Democrats, they stepped right in, and said no way.

This is the type of person who thinks he is Presidential material.