Lowering the Bar

Regarding Lying and the judicial process:

Prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald:

"Mr. Libby's prosecution was based not upon politics but upon his own conduct, as well as upon a principle fundamental to preserving our judicial system's independence from politics: that any witness, whatever his political affiliation, whatever his views on any policy or national issue, whether he works in the White House or drives a truck to earn a living, must tell the truth when he raises his hand and takes an oath in a judicial proceeding, or gives a statement to federal law enforcement officers."

"The judicial system has not corruptly mistreated Mr. Libby; Mr. Libby has been found by a jury of his peers to have corrupted the judicial system."

Supporters of President Bush consistently say that the whole trial was for show and that their was no underlying crime. So the bar is set low enough to include lying about criminal activities by the administration.

In the sentencing phase of this scandal, it's becoming more apparent why President Bush couldn't follow through on his pledge to fire the person responsible for leaking Valerie Plame's name to the media. It was Cheney! Kinda puts a new meaning beside the word "decider."
Dan Froomkin:

"It was established at trial that it was Cheney himself who first told Libby about Plame's identity as a CIA agent,

and

To those of us watching the investigation and trial unfold, Cheney's presence behind the scenes has emerged in glimpses and hints. But I suspect that people looking back on this story will see it with greater clarity: As a blatant -- and thus far successful -- cover-up for the vice president."

Regarding Torture:

Blogger Andrew Sullivan:

"What I am reporting is a simple empirical fact: the interrogation methods approved and defended by this president are not new. Many have been used in the past. The very phrase used by the president to describe torture-that-isn't-somehow-torture - "enhanced interrogation techniques" - is a term originally coined by the Nazis. The techniques are indistinguishable. The methods were clearly understood in 1948 as war-crimes. The punishment for them was death."

The Bush team has learned their lessons well. All of this information about the types and appropriateness of torture was well documented after WWII in the FORTIES! The Bush Administration are NOT Nazi's but they are following the same path with regards to torture... Bring on the GITMO court cases.

Regarding the opinion of the American People:

Jennifer Loven (AP)

"Democrats view the November elections that gave them control of Congress as a mandate to bring U.S. troops home from Iraq. They're backed by evidence; election exit poll surveys by The Associated Press and television networks found 55 percent saying the U.S. should withdraw some or all of its troops from Iraq.

The president says Democrats have it all wrong: the public doesn't want the troops pulled out — they want to give the military more support in its mission."

So, according to the President, it's ok to fix public opinion by simply ignoring it or changing it to fit a perception of reality. sigh....

Regarding Lying once again and finally:

Glen Greenwald:

"'In February of this year, Tony Snow chatted with Bill O'Reilly and said this:

"Very quickly -- very quickly, you've got this Valerie Plame case. Now, it turns out that [special counsel] Peter (sic: Patrick) Fitzgerald doesn't -- can't even identify any harm. She wasn't a covert agent. She wasn't compromised. . . She wasn't covert anymore.'

Are there any consequences at all for the White House Press Secretary to tell outright lies like that? Does that prompt any media scandals? Why can Tony Snow say with impunity that Plame "wasn't a covert agent" when their own CIA confirms that she was? Really, how can that be allowed?"

The most disturbing thing about this lowering of the bar is that such dismal behavior is now tolerated and even accepted as conventional wisdom. There has always been a "down and dirty" side to politics, but this administration has gone too far. Who would have ever thought that extending a political campaign an extra 9 months would be good news? That is exactly the case as the election season has begun with real sense of relief from both Republicans and Democrats that this dark period in US history will soon be over.

Myth Watch; GOP Presidential Candidates; Bible Watch

Concerning Myths:

Myth:

"Fight them there so we don't have to fight them here."

Item:

Today in the New York Times the headline screeches: "Militants Widen Reach as Terror Seeps Out of Iraq." The article documents how terrorists are now being exported from Iraq to neighboring countries to attack "Americans and Jews." Terrorists have been caught in Jordan, Saudi Arabia and Lebanon who came directly from Iraq.

Status of Myth: Debunked!

GOP Presidential Field:

Tim Dickinson of Rolling Stone Magazine writes a blistering critique of the Republican field of presidential candidates. His title, "All Flipper, No Gipper" says it all. The front runners, Giuliani, McCain, and Romney all have huge problems with social conservatives and the Christian Coalition who refer to them as

"a mormon and two pagans."

The four also-rans who at least have a presence in the polls are "deeply flawed" and have little hope of winning anything except spoiler status. Indeed Republican strategists admit that the one candidate who could unify the Republicans in '08 is.... a Democrat! Hillary Clinton, who inspires the same fear from the Republicans that Dick Cheney does with the Dems, will be the only reason that Christians and social conservatives go to the polls. The cross-dressing, thrice-married, abortion-backing, gun-controlling, gay marriage supporting Giuliani simply looks better to them, "warts and all," than another Clinton in the White House. Giuliani himself says

"I can beat Hillary. I have the backbone, the chutzpah and the credentials to beat her - and those other folks don't."

Bible Watch:

A report on NPR this morning announces the opening of the Creationism Museum sponsored by private funding raised by millionaire Ken Ham. Its primary message is to evangelize visitors by proving the truth of the Genesis story. Ham lays out "factual" evidence that the world was created in six days and that Man was created in his present form by the divine hand of God.

In today's society Religionists truly believe that anything the secular world tells them is fraught with danger, falsehood and sin. They can't BELIEVE in anything that scientists say that in any way goes against the Bible and it's inherent inerrancy. The tangled up logic that ensues is truly comical to any "unbeliever." The extent that this troubling trend has permeated the religious community is truly stunning.

The fatal flaw in creationism is the confusion of faith and knowledge. Insisting that matters of knowledge and scientific process are false because of the teachings of faith is dishonest, foolhardy, and ultimately anti-religion. The stupider the claims of creationism become, the more likely this version of Christianity will be rejected. The insistence on only the Bible as the source of wisdom and knowledge is anti-Christian and anti-Gospel.

My question to my fundamentalist friends will always be, would Jesus take back his insistence on rendering unto Caesar and feeding the hungry and going out unto all the nations preaching peace? Or is what Jesus really meant to say is

"kill all the unbelievers, cleanse the world of sin, and prepare for Armageddon?"

If the Bible is inerrant, what part of "Love thy neighbor as thyself" don't they understand?

AMNESTY OR POGROM?

In the absence of reason, clear thinking and in-depth debate, the honkers and squeakers are to stealing the show! All immigration opponents have to do is shout AMNESTY! and they think they've won. Shouts of AMNESTY! should be greeted with equal shouts of POGROM! Eugene Robinson of the Washington Post says,

"It's also accurate to point out, however, that those 12 million or so people are already settled here, that for the most part they are doing jobs our society wants done, and that any serious attempt to drive them out of the country -- even "temporarily," so they could apply to be let back in -- would be indistinguishable from a pogrom.

Would SWAT teams of immigration officers descend on neighborhoods and go door to door? Would they snatch children out of schools? Where would they take these people? To special camps? To the nearest border"

It's impossible to round up 12 million people and send them home! It's another example of hijacking the debate with extremism. We have to address the issues! Employment of illegals, effects of cheap labor on wages, working conditions and job security, border security, immigration quotas, issues of culture and assimilation should all be on the agenda. None of these issues can be served by simple shouts of AMNESTY!

Human Rights and Family Values

Bob Goodlatte is conservative, Christian, loves the Bible, is for "Biblical Truth" and against "secularism." Bob Goodlatte is a loyal Republican and was a willing soldier in the "rubber stamp" Congresses of 2000-2006. He is now a part of the Loyal Minority. Bob Goodlatte is for Family Values and against Human Rights. He's a Theocrat who would seek to make America a truly Christian nation. This blog entry is the first in a series that will continue through this election cycle. It will highlight various issues and how Mr. Goodlatte has represented his district regarding them. Today we discuss Family Values and Human Rights.

Bob Goodlatte was rated 100% by the Family Research Council.

The Family Research Council (FRC) champions marriage and family as the foundation of civilization, the seedbed of virtue, and the wellspring of society. FRC shapes public debate and formulate public policy that values human life and upholds the institutions of marriage and the family. Believing that God is the author of life, liberty, and the family, FRC promotes the Judeo-Christian worldview as the basis for a just, free, and stable society.

The special mention of marriage in this statement is an implied reference to the biblical ideal of marriage being between one man and one woman. This would put Mr. Goodlatte in opposition to gays, singles, and single parents, a pretty large segment of our current population. In addition, Mr. Goodlatte was rated 100% by The American Family Association which

"exists to motivate and equip citizens to change the culture to reflect Biblical truth."

This Christian world view is emphasized above all others as the sole ethic for "life, liberty, and the family."

The value on human life is emphasized by the FRC only because of their antipathy to all forms of abortion. Mr Goodlatte's voting record reflects ambivalence to other human life issues. Mr. Goodlatte has supported a war that has taken thousands of American lives, and left thousands more in a health care system that is inadequate. Mr. Goodlatte has supported the destruction of a NATION. The war has had it's most devastating impact on the children of Iraq with the latest surveys showing over 70% of the CHILDREN suffering from mental or physical trauma. Mr. Goodlatte simply doesn't care about ALL human life. For example, his rating from the American Family Voices is 0%.

American Family Voices was founded in 2000 to be a strong voice for middle and low income families on economic, health care and consumer issues.

In addition, Mr. Goodlatte was rated at 0% by The Children's Defense Fund (CDF).

"The CDF provides a strong, effective voice for all the children of America who cannot vote, lobby, or speak for themselves. We pay particular attention to the needs of poor and minority children and those with disabilities. CDF educates the nation about the needs of children and encourages preventive investment before they get sick or into trouble, drop out of school, or suffer family breakdown."

Mr. Goodlatte advocates RELIGION not GOVERNMENT. He advocates CHRISTIAN RIGHTS not HUMAN RIGHTS. His theocratic views simply ARE NOT representative of all his constituents. His voting record indicates that he cares more about SAVING his constituents than HELPING them. His positions on human rights, the war, poverty, and education reflect only conservative Christian Values and not Human Values. Rights and privileges for Christians, persecution and discrimination for everyone else.

The Case for Intelligent Debate

I watched Al Gore on the Today show this morning. His new book "The Assault on Reason" caused quite a stir as Diane Sawyer tried to point the discussion towards the sound bites and Mr. Gore patiently deflected every question and insisted on a deeper analysis. Poor Diane Sawyer! She acknowledged the forced shallowness of her interview (had to break for a commercial) and informed us that we'd get another segment later in the show. One of Mr. Gore's larger points was the fact that the media can only focus on the superficial aspects of the news, the sound bites. Any kind of worthwhile discussion of the issues is beyond the scope of big media news.

Because of this forced shallowness, the media has unwittingly supported the falsehoods, deception, and the assault on reason that we've suffered during the Bush Administration. Remember that most of these guys were burned in the 70's by the Watergate scandal and the Nixon debacle. They've learned their lessons well. They are secretive, scornful of the American people, and very well attuned to the power of The Sound Bite. Policy that can be reduced to simple catch phrases repeated ad infinitum, enable real policy to be hidden. MIdnight meetings, procedural manipulations, and total secrecy supported by LOYALTY to the LEADER, is then sold by media's need for "sellable" headlines.

As Mr. Gore tried to point out to Ms. Sawyer, this is the recipe for the policy disasters that have occurred under the Bush Administration. There really hasn't been any debate, only name calling. The arguments are not about the issues but about Loyalty and Partisanship. If the policies were decided by reason, intelligence, good information, and substantive debate, we can surely could have done better at governance.

We've had our fill of this Mob Rule we've suffered. The case to impeach Bush is clear. Articles of impeachment on Cheney have already been filed. The case to impeach Gonzales is increasingly clear. I call on members of Congress to address these issues and bring on the debate. Let's finally open the window on the White House to expose the ugliness of purely partisan, radical right wing rule. I encourage this only so that we may learn by the process and ensure that it might never happen again.

Its' all about the Votes! Stealing the '08 Election

It's all about the votes. Alleged voter fraud is the cause of it all! The deeper into the DOJ firings we get the closer we get to the WHY! It will be the undoing of the Rove political machine. It's transparent, everyone knows it's going on, everyone know where the buck will stop, and it will swallow Rove and his Party.

Republicans have known for decades that the way to win elections is to reduce the number of voters so that the odds are improved for the conservative and right wing candidates. Purging voter roles, make it hard to register, scare people away from the poles, tamper with voting machines, make sure the folks that make the voting machines are loyal Republicans, make sure all the election officials are loyal Republicans, "Caging," are only a few of the techniques proven to be successful in stealing elections.

URGENT UPDATE: Today on the local news cast it was reported that in Page County, US attorneys obtained the voter records for unknown reasons! Evidently, the records are being examined for "accuracy" to root out fraud. Stay tuned!!

Of course it's all in response to tales that Rove himself created and spread through his network of political operatives:

Mindful of public opinion, according to staffers, the campaign spread tales of poll watchers threatened with arrest; probate judges locking themselves in their offices and refusing to admit campaign workers; votes being cast in absentia for comatose nursing-home patients; and Democrats caught in a cemetery writing down the names of the dead in order to put them on absentee ballots.

Remember, it's public opinion only, that is the issue here, not actual voter fraud. An April 12, 2007 report in the New York Times indicates that

"despite a five-year-old crackdown, the Justice Department has turned up “virtually no evidence” that organized fraud exists. The few people who have been convicted of voter fraud, the piece makes clear, are mostly confused felons and immigrants. And yet the White House, again per the Times, was anxious enough about the issue that it obscured the conclusions of a federal panel that found little evidence of fraud—the panel report’s conclusion was changed to allow for the (apparently baseless) possibility that rampant voter fraud is a real problem."

It's whipping up the populace to a frenzy and making bogus court cases to discredit voters and candidates of the opposing party. It's all about accusing the OTHER side of the cheating going on by the DEMOCRATS! From a former campaign staffer:

Rove explained how this was to be done. "Our role was to try to keep people motivated about (the losing candidate's) election," the staffer continued, "and then to undermine the other side's support by casting them as liars, cheaters, stealers, immoral—all of that."

Fast forward to the recent firings of 8 or 9 or 10 federal prosecutors. In this exchange on Democracy Now!, David Iglesias and investigative reporter Greg Palast are weighing in on the issue:

DAVID IGLESIAS: They wanted a political operative who happened to be a US attorney, and when they got somebody who actually took his oath to the Constitution seriously, they were appalled and they wanted me out of there. The two strikes against me was, I was not political, I didn't help them out on their bogus voter fraud prosecutions.

GREG PALAST: Rove personally ordered his removal. As a prosecutor, Iglesias says that if missing emails prove the firing was punishment for failure to bring bogus charges, Mr. Rove himself is in legal trouble.

DAVID IGLESIAS: If his intent was, look what happened with Iglesias, if that was his intent, he’s in big trouble. That is obstruction of justice, one classic example.

GREG PALAST: Iglesias believes the real reasons for the firings are in what are called the missing emails, emails sent by the Rove team using Republican Party campaign computers, which Rove claims can't be retrieved. But not all the missing emails are missing. We have 500 of them. Apparently the Rove team misaddressed their emails, and late one night they all ended up in our inboxes in our offices in New York City.

And as Iglesias predicted, they reveal a story the party would rather keep buried. Voting rights attorney Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., reviewed the evidence in our cache of emails and concluded:

ROBERT F. KENNEDY, JR.: They ought to be in jail for doing this, because they knew it was illegal, and they did it anyway.

GREG PALAST: What is it that was so obviously illegal that law professor Kennedy thought they deserved prison time? The evidence that shook him was attached to fifty of the secret emails, something that GOP party chiefs called caging lists, thousands of names of voters. Notably, the majority were African American. Kennedy explained how caging worked.

ROBERT F. KENNEDY, JR.: Caging is an illegal way of getting rid of black votes. You get a list of all the black voters. Then you send a letter to their homes. And if the person doesn't sign it at the homes, the letter then is returned to the Republican National Committee. They then direct the state attorney general, who is friendly to them, who’s Republican, to remove that voter from the list on the alleged basis that that voter does not live in the address that they designated as their address on the voting application form.

GREG PALAST: In all, the Republican Party challenged nearly three million voters, a mass attack on minority voting rights virtually unreported in the US press.

ROBERT F. KENNEDY, JR.: So they disenfranchised millions of black voters who don't even know that they’ve been disenfranchised.

GREG PALAST: Page after page of voters with this address, Naval Air Station, Jacksonville, hundreds, thousands of soldiers and sailors targeted to lose their vote. Go to Baghdad, lose your vote.

And what does this have to do with the prosecutor firings? Take a look at the name at the top of the secret missing email: Tim Griffin. This is the man in charge of the allegedly illegal caging operation. He is research director for the Republican National Committee, special assistant to Karl Rove, and as of December 7 Karl Rove's personal pick for US attorney for the state of Arkansas. Is this a case of the perpetrator becomes the prosecutor?

Stay tuned friends and neighbors. The process of stealing the 2008 election is underway. Page County? Soon Rockingham County?

GOP Debate II

Candidate Mike Huckabee thinks he's still running against the 1993 Democratic Congress who

"spends money like John Edwards at a beauty shop."

Or is he really running against his own party that controlled Congress the last 12 years? And of course, isn't he glad that the "beauty shop" grads who did the make-up for the candidates did such a good job? God bless democracy.

Respect Giuliani for following his true beliefs on liberal social issues but watch out for his views on Executive Power. He's trying to inherit the Bush mantle of Executive Supremacy. He wants to be King. Competence be damned!

McCain is forlorn, unsure, and not much of a straight shooter anymore. He voted against the tax cuts and now he's for them. He was a critic of the war before he was for it, he was skeptical of the Religious Right before he reluctantly embraced them. How do you spell Pander?

Romney is a pretty face. America loves pretty faces. He says anything that will get him elected to what ever office he's running for. (Thanks to John McCain, who remarkably is still at least aiming straight, for pointing this out!) As Tony Blankely says,

"He needs to learn to stutter, so he won't sound so slick and polished."

Slick Willie II?

Gilmore? Car Tax! 'Nuff said.

Tancredo,? Fanatic, one issue candidate.

Paul? The only independent, libertarian in the group but badly missed the mark with his remark about the bombing of Iraq and 9/11. Hint - it was the Saudis! May have had a good intent, but should have expected the rousing response by our macho "commander" wannabees.

All the candidates are still huffing and puffing about who's the strongest, the most macho, and the most conservative. Conservative blue suits on aging Caucasian males, posturing and puffing conservative rhetoric. The new (same old) face of the Republican Party. Politicians gone wild! Watch the video for yourself!

Special Report: Newt wants to get in the race to show all of them that he's

"big and they're not!"

Only in America....

The GOP Candidates Debate

Macho, strutting, angry, white men, who all have to pause and think about whether or not they believe in evolution. Natty, blue suited, haired and hairless posturers who declare their fealty to Nancy Reagan's husband but fail to support her pet cause, stem-cell research. Fantasists who dream of overturning Roe v. Wade to promote "human freedom" but not women's right to choose. (Women aren't human??) Smiling, smart-aleck, playground trashers responding to unforgivable softballs like this, "Would it be a good thing for the country to have Bill Clinton back in the White House?" Watching the candidates tee off on that did not increase my respect or admiration for any of them.

Note: This wasn't any more fun for me that watching all the Dems trash Reagan. Of course Bush has trashed himself and the Repubs don't care about him anymore, but that's another blog for another day.

The whole show was for the benefit of the right-wing radical "base." Pandering to the extremist elements of the GOP base is the campaign strategy of choice. Sadly all the useless arguing, righteous anger, and macho posturing only shown that none of them were willing to even address any issues of real importance regarding actually governing our country. Pandering to creationists, pro-life groups, right-wing war mongers, and partisan hacks makes these guy look very un-presidential, and just plain DUMB. Full-speed ahead! Damn the torpedos! Every Republican is a hero! and a MAN! Watch us strut! We'll protect you with our big....

Candidates! Shut up and listen! Quit talking aimlessly, picking on each other, and calling names! Sit down and be quiet. Here are your questions of the day. Answers to these should now become the most important issues in your campaign. The answers you give will actually determine your ability to be a competent administrator and public servant worthy of the title President of the United States.

- How do you propose to make and keep America solvent financially?

- How do you propose to care for the citizens of the United States with regards to health care and education?

- What will you do to increase the quality of the transportation, communication, and energy infrastructure? Do you feel that these essential local, state, and federal services are vital to America's national security and way of life?

- Do you agree that America is a bipartisan nation and that we are all loyal citizens in love with our country and willing to fight to keep it free?

- Do you believe that the immigrant work force is an important resource to the American economy?

- Do you believe that the Bill of Rights can be suspended by the Executive Branch in times of national crisis or in wartime?

- How will you handle the conclusion of the Iraq war?

I'm not going to hold my breath on these issues folks. I am certain that I won't hear much debate or discussion about them in the coming campaigns. I do know that I'll hear liberals endlessly talking about water-boarding and torture, politicization, one-party rule, Pro-Choice, and nobody likes America anymore. From the conservatives I will hear lots about abortion, stem-cell research, anti-gun control, victory, John Edwards haircuts and tax relief. Just for once I'd like either party to get serious for just a little while and tell us how they will pragmatically and systematically begin to solve the issues that affect the quality and security of our lives every day!

More Myths and Random Thoughts

Tony Snow didn't waste a bit of time denying that President Bush never really meant to say that there was a connection between al Qaeda and Saddam Hussein. There he was on the Today Show lying like a puppy dog! (more about puppys later). We all know he never really said that! Ahem. Bill Moyers only identified more than 50 instances where the President or his spokesmen made that connection in the days leading up to and after the War. Ahem. Dick Cheney STILL insists that al Qaeda was in Iraq and in cahoots with Saddam. Never mind that al Qaeda and Saddam were mortal enemies... Way to go Tony! I don't believe anything you say even more!

Richard Clarke is my hero today. He's been able to effectively kill the myth of terrorists following us home. It's hilarious! He calls it the "puppy dog terror theory." In the New York Daily News on April 25 he lays to rest this Republican talking point/myth. Of course the terrorists will only follow us home if we "lose."

"The puppy dog theory is the corollary to earlier sloganeering that proved the President had never studied logic: "We are fighting terrorists in Iraq so that we will not have to face them and fight them in the streets of our own cities."

Clarke points out the absurdity of the logic that there is only one killing ground and simply points out that NOTHING we are doing in Iraq is keeping the terrorists at bay. As is so often pointed out, the reverse is true. Terrorism has increased, al Qaeda is stronger, the likelihood for a terrorist attack is just as great or greater now, as it was in the past, and as it will be in the future.

U.S. military raids in Iraq have uncovered evidence that Iraqis are planning attacks in America, perhaps to be carried out by terrorists with European Union passports that require no U.S. visas. But such attacks here over the next several years are likely now no matter what happens next in Iraq - and that is because of what Bush has already done, not because of any future course we choose in Iraq.

But we can be sure that when the next attacks come in the U.S., if Bush is down on the ranch cutting trees, he and whatever few followers he retains by then will blame his successor. You can almost hear them now: If only his successor had left enough U.S. troops in the Iraqi shooting gallery to satisfy the blood lust of the enemy, as Bush did, then they wouldn't have come here.

Next time you hear anyone say "the terrorists will follow us home" just tell them to explain that "puppy dog theory of terrorism" again. Just how is that supposed to work?

"Oh my goodness" Department.

The scandal of the week is (gasp) a SEX scandal! The first victim is Randall Tobias a good conservative and foreign aid dispenser. ABC is playing it for all its worth, teasing us all week to hype ratings for some news show at the end of the week.

"Randall Tobias isn't the last John likely to be outed by ABC, says the D.C. Madam -- after all, she's looking for possible defense witnesses for her trial.

Meanwhile, ABC teases some of the forthcoming revelations."

Quote of the Day

"Sen. Webb (D-VA) on the president's veto: "We won this war four years ago. The question is when we end the occupation." Thanks Josh Marshall!

From the And Yet Another Department

Another Bush appointee has resigned rather than face an oversight hearing.

(Julie) "MacDonald resigned a week before a House congressional oversight committee was to hold a hearing on accusations that she violated the Endangered Species Act, censored science and mistreated staff of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service."

The depth and breadth of the politicization of the government is breath taking! In only 4 months the oversight committees of Congress have uncovered scandal after scandal and only make us think that it is just the tip of the iceberg!

And finally this from a Baltimore Sun editorial via Dan Froomkin this morning:

"In the four years since President Bush put on that Navy flight suit and headed out on his mission before the cameras, his administration has accomplished almost nothing in Iraq, and now argues that that is the very reason U.S. soldiers and Marines must stay there and keep fighting and dying. . . .

"Enough is enough."