Should McCain Have Been Expelled From the Senate?

MUST READ:

Sahil Mahtani, The New Republic, reports (via t r u t h o u t):

"��Should he have been expelled from the Senate? Exclusive evidence reveals the Keating Five story you've never heard...."

Read all about it here.

Photo credit: In this November 20, 1990 file photo, Senator John McCain, R-Arizona (left) sits with his attorney during a Senate Ethics Committee hearing on the Keating Five Savings and Loan Scandal. Carefully timed leaks during the investigation successfully deflected the blame from McCain to his other Senate colleagues. Evidence continues to surface that points to John McCain as the possible source of those leaks. (Photo: John Duricka / AP)

Technorati tags: John McCain, Keating Five, The New Republic, Ethics, Abuse of Power, Sahil Mahtani

Palin: Hypocrisy in Heels

As the "Pit Bull in Lipstick" continues to hawk her lies, smears, and self-adulation across the the country, the mainstream media continues to give short shrift to Ms. Palin's remarkably ethically-challenged history:

• Palin has checkered history on ethics issues

  "ANCHORAGE, Alaska — Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, whose reformer image took a hit in a report concluding she abused her powers to settle a family score, has skirted state ethics rules before for personal benefit and used her office to help friends and supporters, according to an Associated Press review of records...."

• Secret Service Blocking Reporters At Palin Rallies: Milbank

  "Via Romenesko, the Washington Post's Dana Milbank reveals in an online chat that the Secret Service is stopping people reporters from interviewing people at Palin rallies...." Find out why.

• Palin Used Exxon, Oil Industry-Funded Scientists for Global Warming Study | PEEK | AlterNet:

  "No wonder her science is a little fuzzy."

• Palin Blurs Line Between Church And State As Governor

  "An Associated Press review of the Republican vice presidential candidate's record as mayor and governor reveals her use of elected office to promote religious causes, sometimes at taxpayer expense and in ways that blur the line between church and state...."

• Frank Naif: Todd Palin's Past Political Associations A Likely Security Clearance Disqualifier:

  "Although Sarah Palin smack talks Barack Obama for 'palling around with terrorists,' it turns out that the Palin family has its own history of palling around with Alaska's own unique brand of America-haters. Palin's husband Todd was once an actual member of the secessionist Alaskan Independence Party (AIP). Palin herself was not a member of AIP -- but many AIP luminaries claim her as a kindred spirit and 'one of their own.'
  
  A charitable characterization of AIP might be 'quirky down-home Alaska politics.' However, the security processes that govern access to our defense and national security institutions might not look so kindly on Todd Palin's past political associations. Indeed, if Todd Palin were applying for a job in the US government or at a contractor that required access to sensitive classified information -- a security clearance -- he would very likely be ineligible."

• Campaign AdWatch: Rape Victim Assails Palin On Choice (VIDEO)


• 12 New Stomach-Turning Revelations About Sarah Palin | Election 2008 | AlterNet:

  "Palin has taken to smearing Obama. But it's her own record that continues to yield alarming information, undermining her skills and credibility...."

Technorati tags: Sarah Palin, Religion, Ethics, reporters, media, oil, global warming, church, state, 2008, vice president, election

McCain Ally Moves to Curb Probe of Palin

Michael Isikoff and Mark Hosenball (Newsweek) report:

"Key Alaska allies of John McCain are trying to derail a politically charged investigation into Gov. Sarah Palin's firing of her public safety commissioner in order to prevent a so-called 'October surprise' that would produce embarrassing information about the vice presidential candidate on the eve of the election.

In a move endorsed by the McCain campaign Friday, John Coghill, the GOP chairman of the state House Rules Committee, wrote a letter seeking a meeting of Alaska's bipartisan Legislative Council in order to remove the Democratic state senator in charge of the so-called 'troopergate' investigation.

Coghill charged that the senator, Hollis French, had 'politicized' the probe by making a number of public comments in recent days, including telling ABC News that Palin had a 'credibility problem' and that the investigation into the firing of public safety commissioner Walter Monegan was "likely to be damaging to the administration" and could be an 'October surprise'....""

Technorati tags: Michael Isikoff, Mark Hosenball, Sarah Palin, Republicans, Alaska, Politicians, Investigation, Probe, Troopergate

Alaska Police Union Files Complaint Against Palin

"An ethics complaint obtained by NBC News was filed Wednesday by the police officers union in Alaska, requesting a probe into possible wrongdoing by the governor or her office...."

What's next?

Photo Credit: Sarah Palin. Huffington Post.

read more | digg story

Cheney colleague admits bribery in Halliburton oil deals

The Independent reports:

"A former colleague of the US Vice-President, Dick Cheney, has pleaded guilty to funnelling millions of dollars in bribes to win lucrative contracts in Nigeria for Halliburton, during the period in the Nineties when Mr Cheney ran the giant oil and gas services company.

Albert Stanley, who was appointed by Mr Cheney as chief executive of Halliburton's subsidiary KBR, admitted using a north London lawyer to channel payments to Nigerian officials as part of a bribery scheme that landed some $6bn of work in the country over a decade.

The guilty plea, announced yesterday, came after a four-year investigation by US attorneys and threatens to stir up old controversies just as eyes are trained on the Republican party convention. Mr Cheney, who pulled out of an address to the convention because of Hurricane Gustav earlier this week, led Halliburton from 1995 until returning to government in 2000. He had previously been Defence Secretary under the first President George Bush, and the links with Halliburton have been a constant thorn in the side of the current administration as the company has gone on to win billions of dollars of contracts in Iraq and other US military spheres...."

Eight Members of RNC Activist Group Lodged with Terrorism Charges

Democracy Now!'s Amy Goodman reports:

"Ramsey County prosecutors have formally charged eight members of a prominent activist group with conspiracy to riot in furtherance of terrorism. The eight members of the RNC Welcoming Committee are believed to be the first persons ever charged under the 2002 Minnesota version of the federal PATRIOT Act. The activists face up to seven-and-a-half years in prison. We speak with the father of one of those charged and the president of the Minnesota chapter of the National Lawyers Guild. [includes rush transcript]..."

Amy Goodman Unplugged

The Real News Network: Amy Goodman talks about her illegal arrest at the RNC and what it says about our country.



Amy Goodman is the host and executive producer of Democracy Now!. She is co-author, with her brother David Goodman, of the book Static: Government Liars, Media Cheerleaders and the People Who Fight Back. The pair also co-wrote the national best-seller The Exception to the Rulers: Exposing Oily Politicians, War Profiteers, and the Media That Love Them.

Amy Goodman and Two Democracy Now! Producers Unlawfully Arrested At the RNC

Democracy Now! reports:

ST. PAUL, MN—Democracy Now! host Amy Goodman was unlawfully arrested in downtown St. Paul, Minnesota at approximately 5 p.m. local time. Police violently manhandled Goodman, yanking her arm, as they arrested her. Video of her arrest can be seen here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oYjyvkR0bGQ

Goodman was arrested while attempting to free two Democracy Now! producers who were being unlawfuly detained. They are Sharif Abdel Kouddous and Nicole Salazar. Kouddous and Salazar were arrested while they carried out their journalistic duties in covering street demonstrations at the Republican National Convention. Goodman’s crime appears to have been defending her colleagues and the freedom of the press.

Ramsey County Sherrif Bob Fletcher told Democracy Now! that Kouddous and Salazar were being arrested on suspicion of rioting. They are currently being held at the Ramsey County jail in St. Paul.

Democracy Now! is calling on all journalists and concerned citizens to call the office of Mayor Chris Coleman and the Ramsey County Jail and demand the immediate release of Goodman, Kouddous and Salazar. These calls can be directed to: Chris Rider from Mayor Coleman’s office at 651-266-8535 and the Ramsey County Jail at 651-266-9350 (press extension 0).

Democracy Now! stands by Goodman, Kouddous and Salazar and condemns this action by Twin Cities law enforcement as a clear violation of the freedom of the press and the First Amenmdent rights of these journalists.

During the demonstration in which they were arrested law enforcement officers used pepper spray, rubber bullets, concussion grenades and excessive force. Several dozen others were also arrested during this action.

Amy Goodman is one of the most well-known and well-respected journalists in the United States. She has received journalism’s top honors for her reporting and has a distinguished reputation of bravery and courage. The arrest of Goodman, Kouddous and Salazar is a transparent attempt to intimidate journalists from the nation’s leading independent news outlet.

Democracy Now! is a nationally-syndicated public TV and radio program that airs on over 700 radio and TV stations across the US and the globe.

Video of Amy Goodman’s Arrest: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oYjyvkR0bGQ

Bush quietly seeks to make war powers permanent

John Byrne, The Raw Story, reports:

...Buried in a recent Administration proposal is a sentence that affirms the United States remains in a state of permanent war with al Qaeda and "associated organizations." If passed by Congress, it could give him and future presidents unrestricted power to continue wiretapping, torture, and detain Americans and 'enemy combatants' without charge....

read more | digg story

MUST SEND TO EVERY MEDIA OUTLET IN USA

As usual, the mainstream media have failed to report on a rather important new Bush Executive Order that, according to Truthout Editor Marc Ash, "seeks to circumvent both judicial and Congressional oversight, render[ing] unto the executive branch, and ultimately Mr. Bush, absolute power of law."

Pretty damned scary stuff, people.

ABSOLUTELY MUST READ and POST far and wide!

Truthout Editor's Note: Posted below is the recently dispatched Executive Order: Blocking Property of Certain Persons Who Threaten Stabilization Efforts in Iraq, and notice to Congress of its issuance. It is a remarkably broad assumption of power taken unto the executive branch by George W. Bush.

While there are references to making persons that "... pose a significant risk of committing, an act or acts of violence ..." specific targets of this action, the order also names a far broader spectrum of individuals and actions that may be subject to punitive measures as well. Mr. Bush's order names persons that "have materially assisted, sponsored, or provided financial, material, logistical, or technical support for, or goods or services in support of, such an act or acts of violence or any person whose property and interests in property are blocked pursuant to this order."

Further, while this order empowers/instructs "... officers and agencies of the United States Government ..." to assist in its enforcement, ultimately judgment is rendered to members of the executive branch, each of whom serves at the pleasure of Mr. Bush. Since the order seeks to circumvent both judicial and Congressional oversight, it renders unto the executive branch, and ultimately Mr. Bush, absolute power of law.

Congress has moved in recent weeks to confront Mr. Bush, his cabinet and staff. At the center of each Congressional action against the White House is what Congressional leaders view as misuse of executive privilege. - ma/TO

Go to Original: "Executive Order: Blocking Property of Certain Persons Who Threaten Stabilization Efforts in Iraq"

Executive Order: Blocking Property of Certain Persons Who Threaten Stabilization Efforts in Iraq

Office of the Press Secretary

Tuesday 17 July 2007

Fact sheet: Message to the Congress of the United States Regarding International Emergency Economic Powers Act

By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, including the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, as amended (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.)(IEEPA), the National Emergencies Act (50 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.)(NEA), and section 301 of title 3, United States Code,

I, GEORGE W. BUSH, President of the United States of America, find that, due to the unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security and foreign policy of the United States posed by acts of violence threatening the peace and stability of Iraq and undermining efforts to promote economic reconstruction and political reform in Iraq and to provide humanitarian assistance to the Iraqi people, it is in the interests of the United States to take additional steps with respect to the national emergency declared in Executive Order 13303 of May 22, 2003, and expanded in Executive Order 13315 of August 28, 2003, and relied upon for additional steps taken in Executive Order 13350 of July 29, 2004, and Executive Order 13364 of November 29, 2004. I hereby order:

Section 1. (a) Except to the extent provided in section 203(b)(1), (3), and (4) of IEEPA (50 U.S.C. 1702(b)(1), (3), and (4)), or in regulations, orders, directives, or licenses that may be issued pursuant to this order, and notwithstanding any contract entered into or any license or permit granted prior to the date of this order, all property and interests in property of the following persons, that are in the United States, that hereafter come within the United States, or that are or hereafter come within the possession or control of United States persons, are blocked and may not be transferred, paid, exported, withdrawn, or otherwise dealt in: any person determined by the Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Secretary of State and the Secretary of Defense,

(i) to have committed, or to pose a significant risk of committing, an act or acts of violence that have the purpose or effect of:

(A) threatening the peace or stability of Iraq or the Government of Iraq; or

(B) undermining efforts to promote economic reconstruction and political reform in Iraq or to provide humanitarian assistance to the Iraqi people;

(ii) to have materially assisted, sponsored, or provided financial, material, logistical, or technical support for, or goods or services in support of, such an act or acts of violence or any person whose property and interests in property are blocked pursuant to this order; or

(iii) to be owned or controlled by, or to have acted or purported to act for or on behalf of, directly or indirectly, any person whose property and interests in property are blocked pursuant to this order.

(b) The prohibitions in subsection (a) of this section include, but are not limited to, (i) the making of any contribution or provision of funds, goods, or services by, to, or for the benefit of any person whose property and interests in property are blocked pursuant to this order, and (ii) the receipt of any contribution or provision of funds, goods, or services from any such person.

Sec. 2. (a) Any transaction by a United States person or within the United States that evades or avoids, has the purpose of evading or avoiding, or attempts to violate any of the prohibitions set forth in this order is prohibited.

(b) Any conspiracy formed to violate any of the prohibitions set forth in this order is prohibited.

Sec. 3. For purposes of this order:

(a) the term "person" means an individual or entity;

(b) the term "entity" means a partnership, association, trust, joint venture, corporation, group, subgroup, or other organization; and

(c) the term "United States person" means any United States citizen, permanent resident alien, entity organized under the laws of the United States or any jurisdiction within the United States (including foreign branches), or any person in the United States.

Sec. 4. I hereby determine that the making of donations of the type specified in section 203(b)(2) of IEEPA (50 U.S.C. 1702(b)(2)) by, to, or for the benefit of, any person whose property and interests in property are blocked pursuant to this order would seriously impair my ability to deal with the national emergency declared in Executive Order 13303 and expanded in Executive Order 13315, and I hereby prohibit such donations as provided by section 1 of this order.

Sec. 5. For those persons whose property and interests in property are blocked pursuant to this order who might have a constitutional presence in the United States, I find that, because of the ability to transfer funds or other assets instantaneously, prior notice to such persons of measures to be taken pursuant to this order would render these measures ineffectual. I therefore determine that for these measures to be effective in addressing the national emergency declared in Executive Order 13303 and expanded in Executive Order 13315, there need be no prior notice of a listing or determination made pursuant to section 1(a) of this order.

Sec. 6. The Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Secretary of State and the Secretary of Defense, is hereby authorized to take such actions, including the promulgation of rules and regulations, and to employ all powers granted to the President by IEEPA as may be necessary to carry out the purposes of this order. The Secretary of the Treasury may redelegate any of these functions to other officers and agencies of the United States Government, consistent with applicable law. All agencies of the United States Government are hereby directed to take all appropriate measures within their authority to carry out the provisions of this order and, where appropriate, to advise the Secretary of the Treasury in a timely manner of the measures taken.

Sec. 7. Nothing in this order is intended to affect the continued effectiveness of any rules, regulations, orders, licenses, or other forms of administrative action issued, taken, or continued in effect heretofore or hereafter under 31 C.F.R. chapter V, except as expressly terminated, modified, or suspended by or pursuant to this order.

Sec. 8. This order is not intended to, and does not, create any right, benefit, or privilege, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law or in equity by any party against the United States, its departments, agencies, instrumentalities, or entities, its officers or employees, or any other person.

GEORGE W. BUSH

THE WHITE HOUSE,

July 17, 2007.

Related:

• The Barstool Chronicles: HOW COME NOBODY'S TALKING ABOUT THIS?


• UNDERNEWS: THE COUP IN WAITING PEEKS OUT AGAIN


• White House revises post-disaster protocol - The Boston Globe


• The president's real goal in Iraq By Jay Bookman:

  "The official story on Iraq has never made sense. The connection that the Bush administration has tried to draw between Iraq and al-Qaida has always seemed contrived and artificial. In fact, it was hard to believe that smart people in the Bush administration would start a major war based on such flimsy evidence. The pieces just didn't fit. Something else had to be going on; something was missing...."

• Dick Cheney's Song of America:

  "The Plan is for the United States to rule the world. The overt theme is unilateralism, but it is ultimately a story of domination. It calls for the United States to maintain its overwhelming military superiority and prevent new rivals from rising up to challenge it on the world stage. It calls for dominion over friends and enemies alike. It says not that the United States must be more powerful, or most powerful, but that it must be absolutely powerful...."

• US lawmakers unite to demonize Iran:

  "The "threat of Iran" and the need to confront the regime has become a mainstream view in the US legislature, attracting support from Republican and Democratic lawmakers alike...."

• Let's Not Forget: Bush Planned Iraq 'Regime Change' Before Becoming President:

  "A SECRET blueprint for US global domination reveals that President Bush and his cabinet were planning a premeditated attack on Iraq to secure 'regime change' even before he took power in January 2001...."

Technorati tags: Bush, Executive Order, Absolute Power, Iraq, US Government, news

Invisible Cheney

A Vice President Without Borders, Bordering on Lunacy
By Maureen Dowd
The New York Times

It’s hard to imagine how Dick Cheney could get more dastardly, unless J. K. Rowling has him knock off Harry Potter next month.

Harry’s cloak of invisibility would be no match for Vice’s culture of invisibility.

I’ve always thought Cheney was way out there — the most Voldemort-like official I’ve run across. But even in my harshest musings about the vice president, I never imagined that he would declare himself not only above the law, not only above the president, but actually his own dark planet — a separate entity from the White House.

I guess a man who can wait 14 hours before he lets it dribble out that he shot his friend in the face has no limit on what he thinks he can keep secret. Still, it’s quite a leap to go from hiding in a secure, undisclosed location in the capital to hiding in a secure, undisclosed location in the Constitution.

Dr. No used to just blow off the public and Congress as he cooked up his shady schemes. Now, in a breathtaking act of arrant arrogance, he’s blowing off his own administration.

Henry Waxman, the California congressman who looks like an accountant and bites like a pit bull, is making the most of Congress’s ability, at long last, to scrutinize Cheney’s chicanery.

On Thursday, Mr. Waxman revealed that after four years of refusing to cooperate with the government unit that oversees classified documents, the vice president tried to shut down the unit rather than comply with the law ensuring that sensitive data is protected. The National Archives appealed to the Justice Department, but who knows how much justice there is at Justice, now that the White House has so blatantly politicized it?

Cheney’s office denied doing anything wrong, but Cheney’s office is also denying it’s an office. Tricky Dick Deuce declared himself exempt from a rule that applies to everyone else in the executive branch, instructing the National Archives that the Office of the Vice President is not an “entity within the executive branch” and therefore is not subject to presidential executive orders.

“It’s absurd, reflecting his view from the first day he got into office that laws don’t apply to him,” Representative Waxman told me. “The irony is, he’s taking the position that he’s not part of the executive branch.”

Ah, if only that were true. Then maybe W. would be able to close Gitmo, which Vice has insisted he not do. And Condi wouldn’t have to worry every night that she’ll wake up to find crazy Dick bombing Iran, whispering to W. that they have to do it before that weak sister Hillary takes over.

“Your decision to exempt your office from the president’s order is problematic because it could place national security secrets at risk,” Mr. Waxman, the chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, wrote to Cheney.

Of course, it’s doubtful, now that Vice has done so much to put our national security at risk, that he’ll suddenly listen to reason.

Cheney and Cheney’s Cheney, David Addington, his equally belligerent, ideological and shadowy lawyer and chief of staff, have no shame. After claiming executive privilege to withhold the energy task force names and protect Scooter Libby, they now act outraged that Vice should be seen as part of the executive branch.

Cheney, they argue, is the president of the Senate, so he’s also part of the legislative branch. Vice is casting himself as a constitutional chimera, an extralegal creature with the body of a snake and the head of a sea monster. It’s a new level of gall, to avoid accountability by saying you’re part of a legislative branch that you’ve spent six years trying to weaken.

But gall is the specialty of Addington, who has done his best to give his boss the powers of a king. He was the main author of the White House memo justifying torture of terrorism suspects, and he helped stonewall the 9/11 commission. He led the fights supporting holding terrorism suspects without access to courts and against giving Congress and environmentalists access to information about the energy industry big shots who secretly advised Cheney on energy policy.

Dana Perino, a White House press spokeswoman, had to go out on Friday and defend Cheney’s bizarre contention that he is his own government. “This is an interesting constitutional question that legal scholars can debate,” she said.

I love that Cheney was able to bully Colin Powell, Pentagon generals and George Tenet when drumming up his fake case for war, but when he tried to push around the little guys, the National Archive data collectors — I’m visualizing dedicated “We the People” wonky types with glasses and pocket protectors — they pushed back.

Archivists are the new macho heroes of Washington.

Photo Credit: Maureen Dowd. (Fred R. Conrad/The New York Times)

Technorati tags: Maureen Dowd, New York Times, Dick Cheney, National Archives and Records Administration, Vice Presidency, Politics, U.S. Government, Abuse of Power, Corruption, news, commentary, op ed

BushCo Imperial Partisanship

Special Counsel Probe Into Rove's Politicization Of Government Advances:

"...The White House has admitted that roughly 20 agencies have received a PowerPoint briefing created by Karl Rove's office 'that included slides listing Democratic and Republican seats the White House viewed as vulnerable in 2008, a map of contested Senate seats and other information on 2008 election strategy.'

Politicization of the federal government has been illegal for decades. The 1939 Hatch Act specifically prohibits partisan campaign or electoral activities on federal government property, including federal agencies. But in 2005, Ken Mehlman, formerly one of Bush's top political advisers, outlined the White House's strategy of utilizing government resources for partisan gain..."

Photo Credit: Karl Rove. (ThinkProgress.org)

Technorati tags: Think Progress, Karl Rove, Office of Special Council, Abuse of Power, Bush, Bush Administration, Politics, Partisanship, news

The General's Report

MUST READ

By Seymour M. Hersh
The New Yorker

"How Antonio Taguba, who investigated the Abu Ghraib scandal, became one of its casualties."

The New Yorker's Seymour Hersh reports that a general who investigated US troops sexually humiliating Iraqi prisoners at the notorious Abu Ghraib prison told Pentagon officials, including former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, about the incidents before the scandal became public, but Rumsfeld, and other officials, who told Congress they were unaware about the extent of the abuse, "are lying to protect themselves."

Photo: Antonio Taguba knew his report would make him unpopular: "If I lie, I lose. And, if I tell the truth, I lose." (Photo Credit: Mary Ellen Mark / The New Yorker)

Technorati tags: The New Yorker, Seymour Hersh, Abu Ghraib, Donald Rumsfeld, Bush, Bush Administration, Antonio Taguba, Congress, news

Michael Moore Responds

Open Letter from Michael Moore to U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson

Secretary Henry Paulson
Department of the Treasury
1500 Pennsylvania Ave.
Washington, DC 20220

May 11, 2007

Secretary Paulson,

I am contacting you in light of the document sent to me dated May 2, 2007, which was received May 7, 2007 indicating that an investigation has been opened up with regards to a trip I took to Cuba with a group of Americans that included some 9/11 heroes in March 2007 related to the filming of my next documentary, on the American Healthcare system. SiCKO, which will be seen in theaters this summer, will expose the health care industry’s greed and control over America’s political processes.

I believe that the decision to conduct this investigation represents the latest example of the Bush Administration abusing the federal government for raw, crass, political purposes. Over the last seven years of the Bush Presidency, we have seen the abuse of government to promote a political agenda designed to benefit the conservative base of the Republican Party, special interests and major financial contributors. From holding secret meetings for the energy industry to re-writing science findings to cooking the books on intelligence to the firing of U.S. Attorneys, this Administration has shown time and time again that it will abuse its power and authority.

There are a number of specific facts that have led me to conclude that politics could very well be driving this Bush Administration investigation of me and my film.

First, the Bush Administration has been aware of this matter for months (since October 2006) and never took any action until less than two weeks before SiCKO is set to premiere at the Cannes Film Festival and a little more than a month before it is scheduled to open in the United States.

Second, the health care and insurance industry, which is exposed in the movie and has expressed concerns about the impact of the movie on their industries, is a major corporate underwriter of President George W. Bush and the Republican Party, having contributed over $13 million to the Bush presidential campaign in 2004 and more than $180 million to Republican candidates over the last two campaign cycles. It is well documented that the industry is very concerned about the impact of SiCKO. They have threatened their employees if they talk to me. They have set up special internal crises lines should I show up at their headquarters. Employees have been warned about the consequences of participating in SiCKO. Despite this, some employees, at great risk to themselves, have gone on camera to tell the American people the truth about the health care industry. I can understand why that industry's main recipient of its contributions -- President Bush -- would want to harass, intimidate and potentially prevent this film from having its widest possible audience.

And, third, this investigation is being opened in the wake of misleading attacks on the purpose of the Cuba trip from a possible leading Republican candidate for president, Fred Thompson, a major conservative newspaper, The New York Post, and various right wing blogs.

For five and a half years, the Bush administration has ignored and neglected the heroes of the 9/11 community. These heroic first responders have been left to fend for themselves, without coverage and without care. I understand why the Bush administration is coming after me -- I have tried to help the very people they refuse to help, but until George W. Bush outlaws helping your fellow man, I have broken no laws and I have nothing to hide.

I demand that the Bush Administration immediately end this investigation and spend its time and resources trying to support some of the real heroes of 9/11.

Sincerely,

Michael Moore

Photo Credit: Michael Moore SICKO Poster (Chud.com)

Technorati tags: Michael Moore, Investigation, Documentaries, SICKO, Abuse of Power, Politics

Beyond Imus: Drowned-Out News

Administration Seeks to Expand Surveillance Law:

"The Bush administration yesterday asked Congress to make more non-citizens subject to intelligence surveillance and to authorize the interception of foreign communications routed through the United States...."

NIH Drops Contractor For Conflict of Interest:

"The federal government yesterday fired a contractor it had hired to review the safety of chemicals after discovering the company has been simultaneously working for the chemical industry...."

Rare Protests at Brigham Young Over a Planned Cheney Appearance:

"The invitation extended to Vice President Dick Cheney to be the commencement speaker at Brigham Young University has set off a rare, continuing protest at the Mormon university, one of the nation's most conservative.

Some of the faculty and the 28,000 undergraduate and graduate students, who are overwhelmingly Republican, have expressed concern about the Bush administration's support for the war in Iraq and other policies, but most of the current protest has focused on Mr. Cheney's integrity, character and behavior. Several students said, for example, that they were appalled at Mr. Cheney's use of an expletive on the Senate floor in a June 2004 exchange with Senator Patrick J. Leahy, Democrat of Vermont...."

Dollar Slide Accelerates:

"The dollar's slide against most of the world's currencies gained pace today as dealers worried over the outlook for the US economy...."

Pelosi: "The president is not king:"

"NP: The president is not king, the president is the president of the United States.� America is a democracy.� We have to make decisions based on our judgment.� Thus far, the president's judgment hasn't been good, in terms of say for example the war on Iraq.� So with all due respect to the president and the role he has, we want respect for the role we have.� And members of Congress have gone on fact finding trips since our country began.� We're not going to stop because the president wants to avoid the facts and doesn't want to engage in dialogue.� We had a bipartisan trip, interesting that the administration chose to ignore the trips of the Republicans who had been there in the week that we were there.�..."

A Bad Choice, a Quick Exit:

"The story of Eric Keroack's brief stint as director of family planning programs at the Department of Health and Human Services brings together three familiar Bush administration themes: a disdain for women's reproductive health and rights, the sacrifice of science to ideology and incompetence...."

Dodd Challenges All Presidential Candidates To Lead On Ending War:

"Senator Chris Dodd (D-CT), a candidate for the 2008 Democratic presidential nomination, gave an amazing speech last night in Iowa that discussed America's place in the world, the need to rebuild United States prestige in the wake of the George W. Bush presidency and the imperative to exit the Iraq civil war far sooner than later.'Our policy is not only failing to make Iraq more secure. By sapping our military of its strength and America of its leadership in the world, the Bush/McCain policy has made America less secure,' said Dodd of the ill-advised troop surge that has shown no results. 'The hour is late. It is time to begin putting our country on a more secure path. The moment has arrived for leadership that stands up and announces without equivocation that prolonging this war will not make us more secure -- ending it will....'"

A Hollow Army - How the Bush Regime Broke America's Military:

"Richard Blair: Four years and one surge into the occupation of Iraq, the Bush regime has broken America's standing Army...."

Kurdistan's Covert Back-Channels:

"How an ex-Mossad chief, a German uberspy, and a gaggle of top-dollar GOP lobbyists helped Kurdistan snag 15 tons of $100 bills...."

Najaf Estimates Split along Liberal/Conservative Reliable/Unreliable Divide:

"In the war of numbers, it's the Pentagon and the far right blogs against everyone else....

Rove and Co. Broke Federal Law With Email Scam:

"Not only were those emails were meant to be lost, but the whole deal was illegal....

Presidential Candidate: U.S. In Danger of Dictatorship:

"Presidential candidate Ron Paul has warned that the US is now at a crisis point because the people have been so neglectful of protecting their liberties and big government has been so effective in eroding them. He warned that the elite are prepared to concoct events to scare the American people and asserted that the 2008 Presidential election is a contest between the people who care about their freedoms and those who are willing to succumb to the temptations of dictatorship...."

Technorati tags: Domestic Spying, Bush, NIH, Dick Cheney, U.S. Economy, Nancy Pelosi, Chris Dodd, Military, Pentagon, Kurdistan, Ron Paul, Karl Rove, Abuse of Power

Gonzales Chief-of-Staff Trapped in More Misrepresentations; Suspicions Mount About Milwaukee U.S. Attorney Biskupic

By Scott Horton

Newly released emails directly contradicted the claims of Kyle Sampson, former chief of staff for Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, that he had not prepared the names of replacement candidates for the eight terminated U.S. attorneys. This raises the possibility that senior Justice Department figures consciously misled Congress about the matter. Making false statements to Congress is a crime under federal law.

The McClatchy Newspapers report:

Kyle Sampson, then chief of staff to Gonzales, listed the names of possible replacements in a January 2006 e-mail he sent to then-White House Counsel Harriet Miers.

The disclosure offers more evidence that Justice Department officials may have misled Congress about attempting to transform the ranks of the nation's top federal prosecutors by firing some—perhaps for refusing to follow political direction, some evidence suggests—and replacing them with conservative loyalists from the Bush administration's inner circle.

Other emails underscored the fact that the entire project was viewed as a highly sensitive political exercise, and that it was important to disguise the reality of what was being done in the face of the media. Karl Rove is viewed as the author of an original plan to fire all 93 U.S. attorneys as a cover for the smaller number to be terminated in key “election battleground” states. The plan was ultimately dismissed as impracticable.

Senate investigators also announced that they had examined internal Department of Justice documents which made clear that Wisconsin U.S. attorney Steven Biskupic had originally been slated for the ax. The disclosure will fuel speculation that Biskupic retrieved himself by concocting a politically charged prosecution, of a state civil servant named Georgia Thompson, to redeem himself in the eyes of Karl Rove. This suspicion has already been articulated in three Wisconsin newspapers. Writes McClatchy:

Nevertheless, the disclosure aroused investigators' suspicion that Biskupic might have been retained in his job because he agreed to prosecute Democrats, though the evidence was slight. Such politicization of the administration of justice is at the heart of congressional Democrats' concerns over the Bush Administration's firings of the U.S. attorneys.

Republicans had cited the June 2006 conviction as evidence that Democratic Gov. Jim Doyle's administration was rife with corruption as he ran for re-election last year. He won anyway—the first Democratic governor of the state to win re-election in 32 years.

All of these matters are expected to figure heavily in Alberto Gonzales's examination by the Senate Judiciary Committee on Tuesday.

TUC NOTE: Al B., thanks for passing this on.

Photo Credit: BuckFush.com via Independent Media Center

Also See:

• The Fantasy Behind the Scandal - New York Times

  "The more we learn about the White House's purge of United States attorneys, the more a single thread runs through it: the Bush administration's campaign to transform the minor problem of voter fraud into a supposed national scourge...."

• NYT Editorial: A Woman Wrongly Convicted and a U.S. Attorney Who Kept His Job:

  "pponents of Gov. Jim Doyle of Wisconsin spent $4 million on ads last year trying to link the Democratic incumbent to a state employee who was sent to jail on corruption charges. The effort failed, and Mr. Doyle was re-elected — and now the state employee has been found to have been wrongly convicted. The entire affair is raising serious questions about why a United States attorney put an innocent woman in jail...."

Technorati tags: Attorney Generals, Alberto Gonzales, Kyle Sampson, Biskupic, Karl Rove, Justice Department, news

Bush's Brain On Life Support

White House, Senators to Confer on E-Mail Expert

"The White House said yesterday that it has accepted the Senate Judiciary Committee's proposal on how to choose an outside consultant to help recover lost e-mails involving official presidential business.

[...]

The White House acknowledged last week that aides to President Bush improperly used e-mail accounts created by the Republican Party to conduct official White House business, and that an undetermined number of those e-mails have been lost...."

Fitzgerald Cited Missing Emails During Plame Probe:

"In late January 2004, Special Prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald was suspicious that White House political adviser Karl Rove had hidden or destroyed an important document tying him to the leak and to the effort to discredit Plame's husband, former Ambassador Joseph Wilson. The document was an email Rove sent to Stephen Hadley, then deputy national security adviser, in early July 2003...."

Fitzgerald Urged to Reopen Plamegate, Rove's Involvement

"On Friday, a watchdog group called on Patrick J. Fitzgerald, the special prosecutor, to reopen his investigation into whether Mr. Rove was involved in leaking the name of a C.I.A. agent. Mr. Rove had been cleared in the inquiry, but the group, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, said this week's revelations about missing e-mail raised questions about whether he might have destroyed or hidden documents...."

Attorney-gate, Democracy & Closed Doors:

"As the blossoming scandal over the U.S. Attorney firings upstages Washington's annual Cherry Blossom Festival, it is important to view the scandal in its proper context. Attorney-gate, whose genesis can be traced to the administration's first weeks, is a microcosm of all the tensions and contradictions that define the Bush presidency. Ultimately what is truly at issue in Attorney-gate is not the merits of firing any single U.S. Attorney, but rather three key questions that go to the core of the Bush presidency - (i) whether the Bush administration is accountable to anyone (today or decades from now); (ii) does the public or its representatives have a right to truthful information from their government; and (iii) what does the administration have to hide? ..."

Panel Asks Rove for Information on '08 Election Presentation:

"The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee sought more information yesterday about a presentation by a White House aide given to political appointees at the General Services Administration that discussed targeting 20 Democratic congressional candidates in the next election.

In a letter to White House political affairs director Karl Rove, the committee chairman, Rep. Henry A. Waxman (D-Calif.), asked about the Jan. 26 videoconference by Rove deputy J. Scott Jennings, which was directed to the chief of the GSA and as many as 40 agency officials stationed around the country.

Jennings's 28-page presentation included 2006 election results and listed the names of Democratic candidates considered beatable and Republican lawmakers thought to need help. At a hearing Wednesday about the GSA, Waxman said the presentation and follow-up remarks allegedly made by agency chief Lurita Alexis Doan may have violated the Hatch Act, a law that restricts federal agencies and employees from using their positions for political purposes...."

Rove E-Mail Sought by Congress May Be Missing:

"A lawyer for the Republican National Committee told congressional staff members ... that the RNC is missing at least four years' worth of e-mail from White House senior adviser Karl Rove that is being sought as part of investigations into the Bush administration, according to the chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee.

GOP officials took issue with Rep. Henry Waxman's account of the briefing and said they still hope to find the e-mail as they conduct forensic work on their computer equipment. But they acknowledged that they took action to prevent Rove -- and Rove alone among the two dozen or so White House officials with RNC accounts -- from deleting his e-mails from the RNC server. Waxman (D-Calif.) said he was told the RNC made that move in 2005.

In a letter to Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales, Waxman said the RNC lawyer, Rob Kelner, also raised the possibility that Rove had personally deleted the missing e-mails, all dating back to before 2005...."

Deleting embarrassing e-mails isn't easy, experts say:

"If Karl Rove or other White House staffers tried to delete sensitive e-mails from their computers, experts said, investigators usually could recover all or most of them.

The House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform is investigating whether the White House or the Republican National Committee erased "a large volume of e-mails" that may be related to the firings of eight U.S. attorneys...."

E-Mail Identified G.O.P. Candidates for Justice Jobs:

"Emails Contradict Testimony, Show Gonzales Picked Replacements Before Attorneys Were Fired... Political Allegiance Was Weighed In Choosing Replacements...."

Leahy: 'I Do Not Believe the White House' (VIDEO):

"President Bush's aides are lying about White House e-mails sent on a Republican account that might have been lost, Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy suggested Thursday, vowing to subpoena those documents if the administration fails to cough them up...."

Millions of White House Emails Missing:

"A report Thursday details steps taken by the Bush administration to intentionally subvert the mandatory archiving of official email.

The report, issued by the watch-dog group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW), entitled 'WITHOUT A TRACE: The Missing White House Emails and Violations of the Presidential Records Act,' states that, 'The White House has willfully ignored evidence of a systematic problem with its internal email archiving system,' resulting in the loss of approximately five million emails. The report also states that, 'Top Bush administration officials have deliberately used outside email accounts to avoid creating a record of their actions,' a charge that is being investigated by Congress.

The Presidential Records Act requires presidents to preserve all records that relate to the 'activities, deliberations, decisions and policies that reflect the performance of [the president's] constitutional, statutory, or other official or ceremonial duties....'

The report indicates that the Bush administration willfully dismantled the email archiving system put in place by the Clinton administration and did not replace it with an adequate method to keep track of administration email, resulting in the loss of millions of messages. A detailed plan to recover the lost messages was presented to then-White House Counsel Harriet Meiers, but was never acted upon. This, along with the use of outside email addresses for official business, could be criminal behavior in violation of the Presidential Records Act.

Melanie Sloan, executive director of CREW said, 'It's clear that the White House has been willfully violating the law - the only question now is to what extent?'"

The Dog Ate Our E-Mail

"...the White House has admitted: 1. Using a shadow email system set up through the Republican National Committee. 2. Allowing 22 White House officials to maintain email addresses on this system. 3. Possibly some staffers "used the political account to communicate about official White House business." 4. Possibly those email accounts were used to discuss the prosecutor purge. 5. Possibly some of the emails from those external accounts, possibly including the possible emails about the prosecutor purge, were "lost."

Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Senator Patrick Leahy (D-VT) is neither impressed nor fooled: "This sounds like the administration's version of the dog ate my homework. I am deeply disturbed that just when this Administration is finally subjected to meaningful oversight, it cannot produce the necessary information."

You and me both, Patty.

What remains to be seen is whether ...

... whatever incarnation of the I-don't-recall-I-can't-remember-Not-to-my-recollection-It-was-just-an-oversight-It's-not-what-it-looks-like-Oops-we-broke-the-law-but-we-didn't-really-mean-it-we-swear-Can't-produce-the-requested-info-because-it's-lost-Unintentional-Inadvertent-Accidental-Whoopsy-Daisy bullshit excuse is invoked by the administration this time will yet again allow them to weasel their way out of any real consequences...."

Cartoon Credit: zencomix.blogspot.com

Technorati tags: White House, Karl Rove, Abuse of Power, White House emails, Plamegate, Patrick Fitzgerald, Impeachment, news