This was just recently put up and has a few interesting documents and there might be more to come.
http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/iln/osc/index.html
Friday, October 21, 2005
KAREN HUGHES, ANOTHER BUSHIE INCOMPETENT
Hughes, Under Secretary for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs , has been touring Muslim countries to help boost our image. A long-time crony of Bush, she has made two large errors that we know of already.
(1) KAREN HUGHES ON OUR CONSITUTION
UNDER SECRETARY HUGHES: I haven’t really heard a lot of that. I had one person at one lunch raise the issue of the President mentioning God in his speeches. And I asked whether he was aware that previous American presidents have also cited God, and that our Constitution cites "one nation under God."
(2) KAREN HUGHES ON SADDAM
Bush Public Relations Envoy Flubs Iraq Fact
Karen Hughes Insists Saddam Gassed 'Hundreds of Thousands'
By CHRIS BRUMMITT, AP
JAKARTA, Indonesia (Oct. 21) - Karen Hughes, who has faced a rocky road since being named Washington's public relations chief, answered tough questions Friday about the invasion of Iraq, and wrongly stated that Saddam Hussein gassed to death "hundreds of thousands" of his people.
Although the U.S. undersecretary for public diplomacy twice repeated the claim after being challenged by journalists, Gordon Johndroe, a State Department official traveling with Hughes, later called The Associated Press to say she misspoke.
(1) KAREN HUGHES ON OUR CONSITUTION
UNDER SECRETARY HUGHES: I haven’t really heard a lot of that. I had one person at one lunch raise the issue of the President mentioning God in his speeches. And I asked whether he was aware that previous American presidents have also cited God, and that our Constitution cites "one nation under God."
(2) KAREN HUGHES ON SADDAM
Bush Public Relations Envoy Flubs Iraq Fact
Karen Hughes Insists Saddam Gassed 'Hundreds of Thousands'
By CHRIS BRUMMITT, AP
JAKARTA, Indonesia (Oct. 21) - Karen Hughes, who has faced a rocky road since being named Washington's public relations chief, answered tough questions Friday about the invasion of Iraq, and wrongly stated that Saddam Hussein gassed to death "hundreds of thousands" of his people.
Although the U.S. undersecretary for public diplomacy twice repeated the claim after being challenged by journalists, Gordon Johndroe, a State Department official traveling with Hughes, later called The Associated Press to say she misspoke.
"JANE DOE" FUNDIE ON MIERS
This story about how ordinary folk fundies think about Miers on All Thing Considered from Tuesday got my attention, especially this statement:
"I think that she is a wonderful person and I just think that when opposition comes, a lot of the times it's the work of the Devil." - Audrey McKee
"I think that she is a wonderful person and I just think that when opposition comes, a lot of the times it's the work of the Devil." - Audrey McKee
CONS ON MIERS
I'm just browsing through some of the posts and comments about Miers from conservative blogs. They aren't too impressed with her writing:
In short, her muddled writing reflects muddled thinking.
P.S. In a recent comment, Beldar asked me if I had read this 1995 letter from Miers to Bush. Answer: yes, I have — and I think it sucks.
Someone please tell me this is a scanner error (my source is a pdf file from the National Review) or an elaborate practical joke. I don't think we should have a Supreme Court Justice who would have trouble passing the typical 1L course in legal research and writing.
This is agonizing.
In short, her muddled writing reflects muddled thinking.
P.S. In a recent comment, Beldar asked me if I had read this 1995 letter from Miers to Bush. Answer: yes, I have — and I think it sucks.
Someone please tell me this is a scanner error (my source is a pdf file from the National Review) or an elaborate practical joke. I don't think we should have a Supreme Court Justice who would have trouble passing the typical 1L course in legal research and writing.
This is agonizing.
MISERABLE FAILURE
THE FUNDIES AREN'T GOING AWAY ANY TIME SOON
More students are drawn to conservative colleges
Enrollment is up at smaller colleges with Christian values. Some think students hope it will launch political careers.
By Adam Karlin Contributor to The Christian Science Monitor
from the September 21, 2005 edition
In these politically polarized times, a rising number of top conservative students are politicizing their school choices. Instead of going to a Princeton or Stanford, they're opting for less costly home-state universities or smaller schools that see themselves as standard bearers of Christian values and laissez-faire governance. Such choices are perhaps a boon to those who intend to pursue careers in politics, since conservative think tanks increasingly are recruiting from these colleges.
"Schools like Grove City, Brigham Young, and Hillsdale are some of our more popular schools," says Elizabeth Williams, intern coordinator for the conservative Heritage Foundation, in an e-mail. "Their students are usually of very high caliber." Fifteen of this year's Heritage Foundation interns came from schools that provide a values-based, Christian education, triple the number in 2000.
Those students may find that their degrees carry all the weight of an Ivy League diploma if they choose to work with Republican politicians. "With a lot of the red-state government officials you have a near-total abolition of the preexisting strong bias toward Northeast schools," says David French, president of the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education.
Enrollment is up at smaller colleges with Christian values. Some think students hope it will launch political careers.
By Adam Karlin Contributor to The Christian Science Monitor
from the September 21, 2005 edition
In these politically polarized times, a rising number of top conservative students are politicizing their school choices. Instead of going to a Princeton or Stanford, they're opting for less costly home-state universities or smaller schools that see themselves as standard bearers of Christian values and laissez-faire governance. Such choices are perhaps a boon to those who intend to pursue careers in politics, since conservative think tanks increasingly are recruiting from these colleges.
"Schools like Grove City, Brigham Young, and Hillsdale are some of our more popular schools," says Elizabeth Williams, intern coordinator for the conservative Heritage Foundation, in an e-mail. "Their students are usually of very high caliber." Fifteen of this year's Heritage Foundation interns came from schools that provide a values-based, Christian education, triple the number in 2000.
Those students may find that their degrees carry all the weight of an Ivy League diploma if they choose to work with Republican politicians. "With a lot of the red-state government officials you have a near-total abolition of the preexisting strong bias toward Northeast schools," says David French, president of the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education.
Thursday, October 20, 2005
MORE CRUMBLING ON THE RIGHT!
VIA THINKPROGRESS:
Anti-tax activist Grover Norquist has upset cultural conservatives by agreeing to appear as a keynote speaker for the Log Cabin Republicans, a group of gay conservatives. Right-wingers are already lobbing rhetorical bombs:
Anti-tax activist Grover Norquist has upset cultural conservatives by agreeing to appear as a keynote speaker for the Log Cabin Republicans, a group of gay conservatives. Right-wingers are already lobbing rhetorical bombs:
One pro-family leader called Norquist’s appearance “an act of utter betrayal.”
…
Norquist’s presence at the fund-raiser was “traitorous,” [Cathie Adams, president of the conservative Texas Eagle Forum,] added. “If he was a serious economic conservative, Grover Norquist would not have accepted the invitation or the honorarium for speaking at a fund-raiser for a group bent on the destruction of traditional families,” Adams said.
But rhetoric is one thing. Questioning Norquist’s role in the conservative movement is another. And Tony Perkins, president of the influential Family Research Council, has done just that:
Grover has spent years working to assemble a coalition of fiscal and social conservatives and his decision to aid those who are trying to destroy the institution of marriage is truly a disappointment and will no doubt split this important coalition.
SCHADENFREUDE POST
Well, not really but that's what it will look like. I ran across this tidbit at Billmon's place and I couldn't resist but not because I have any ill-will toward the young woman. Instead, I think of how the Bennetts, the Boortzs and many others on the Right claim that giving people basic subsistence (welfare) robs them of their morality. The emphasis is on the morally debilitating effect of getting something you haven't earned.
Case in point:
Wal-Mart heiress in cheat probe returns diploma
Former roommate says she did homework for $20,000
Wednesday, October 19, 2005; Posted: 9:16 p.m. EDT (01:16 GMT)
LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Elizabeth Paige Laurie's name was on a sports arena when a former University of Southern California roommate alleged the Wal-Mart heiress paid her $20,000 to do her homework. Now it isn't even on a USC diploma.
Laurie, the granddaughter of Wal-Mart co-founder Bud Walton, has returned her degree, nearly a year after Elena Martinez told ABC's "20/20" that she had written term papers and done assignments for Laurie for three-and-a-half years.
"Paige Laurie voluntarily has surrendered her degree and returned her diploma to the university. She is not a graduate of USC," the school said in a statement dated September 30 but not widely disseminated until the school newspaper wrote about it late last week. "This concludes the university's review of the allegations concerning Ms. Laurie."
After the homework allegations surfaced last November, the University of Missouri changed the name of what was then Paige Sports Arena. Laurie's billionaire parents, Bill and Nancy Laurie, had received naming rights in exchange for donating $25 million toward the building's construction. Nancy Laurie is Walton's daughter.
I recall a line from a Henry James' novel that talks about the debilitating effect of inherited money but you can be sure our moral pundits will never mention that possibility.
Case in point:
Wal-Mart heiress in cheat probe returns diploma
Former roommate says she did homework for $20,000
Wednesday, October 19, 2005; Posted: 9:16 p.m. EDT (01:16 GMT)
LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Elizabeth Paige Laurie's name was on a sports arena when a former University of Southern California roommate alleged the Wal-Mart heiress paid her $20,000 to do her homework. Now it isn't even on a USC diploma.
Laurie, the granddaughter of Wal-Mart co-founder Bud Walton, has returned her degree, nearly a year after Elena Martinez told ABC's "20/20" that she had written term papers and done assignments for Laurie for three-and-a-half years.
"Paige Laurie voluntarily has surrendered her degree and returned her diploma to the university. She is not a graduate of USC," the school said in a statement dated September 30 but not widely disseminated until the school newspaper wrote about it late last week. "This concludes the university's review of the allegations concerning Ms. Laurie."
After the homework allegations surfaced last November, the University of Missouri changed the name of what was then Paige Sports Arena. Laurie's billionaire parents, Bill and Nancy Laurie, had received naming rights in exchange for donating $25 million toward the building's construction. Nancy Laurie is Walton's daughter.
I recall a line from a Henry James' novel that talks about the debilitating effect of inherited money but you can be sure our moral pundits will never mention that possibility.
Wednesday, October 19, 2005
FAITH AND WAR
PAST:
“But in the midst of doubt, in the collapse of creeds, there is one thing I do not doubt, that no man who lives in the same world with most of us can doubt, and that is that the faith is true and adorable which leads a soldier to throw away his life in obedience to a blindly accepted duty, in a cause which he little understands, in a plan of campaign of which he has little notion, under tactics of which he does not see the use.”
- OLIVER WENDELL HOLMES, “The Soldier’s Faith”, 1895
PRESENT:
[…] it's irrelevant to the liberal misconception that in order to have faith and to follow, you must have tangibility. Ladies and gentlemen, this is why atheism and liberalism, sadly, go hand in hand. This is why atheism and liberalism are mental disorders.
Liberals need tangibility in order to have security. Liberals need tangibility to feel complete. Liberals need tangibility to be able to follow someone.
Conservatives have faith. Conservatives know without seeing. Conservatives know without touching. Conservatives believe with their minds and their hearts, rather than with their heads and their hands.
- From RepublicanVet's blog, thanx to NonnyMouse at Crooks & Liars
“But in the midst of doubt, in the collapse of creeds, there is one thing I do not doubt, that no man who lives in the same world with most of us can doubt, and that is that the faith is true and adorable which leads a soldier to throw away his life in obedience to a blindly accepted duty, in a cause which he little understands, in a plan of campaign of which he has little notion, under tactics of which he does not see the use.”
- OLIVER WENDELL HOLMES, “The Soldier’s Faith”, 1895
PRESENT:
[…] it's irrelevant to the liberal misconception that in order to have faith and to follow, you must have tangibility. Ladies and gentlemen, this is why atheism and liberalism, sadly, go hand in hand. This is why atheism and liberalism are mental disorders.
Liberals need tangibility in order to have security. Liberals need tangibility to feel complete. Liberals need tangibility to be able to follow someone.
Conservatives have faith. Conservatives know without seeing. Conservatives know without touching. Conservatives believe with their minds and their hearts, rather than with their heads and their hands.
- From RepublicanVet's blog, thanx to NonnyMouse at Crooks & Liars
Tuesday, October 18, 2005
INSTEAD OF "HAIL TO THE CHIEF"...
Another one bites the dust
Another one bites the dust
And another one gone and another one gone
Another one bites the dust, eh
- QUEEN
Another one bites the dust
And another one gone and another one gone
Another one bites the dust, eh
- QUEEN
REFINERY ECONOMICS
There isn't a market incentive to build more refineries because supply shortages increase profits. Although there may be some disincentive caused by environmental considerations, the primary reason we don't have more refineries is the profit-motive.
High prices bolster energy cos. profits
By STEVE QUINN Associated Press Writer
Oct 18, 2:27 PM EDT
Although hurricanes Katrina and Rita created compounding headaches for energy companies over the summer, the storms ultimately benefited them because, as supplies tightened, prices for gasoline, diesel and jet-fuel soared.
There is less room for error in the U.S. energy market these days thanks to the reduction of fuel inventories and slow addition of new refining capacity - trends that have helped make refining much more profitable in recent years.
Meanwhile, watch for refiners and independent producers to weigh in with their own stout performances, say analysts.
Refiners such as Valero Energy Corp., Tesoro Corp. and Frontier Oil Corp., are expected to show huge profit gains. Analysts forecast these three companies earned a combined $1.37 billion for the third quarter, a 162 percent jump from last year, according to Thomson Financial.
High prices bolster energy cos. profits
By STEVE QUINN Associated Press Writer
Oct 18, 2:27 PM EDT
Although hurricanes Katrina and Rita created compounding headaches for energy companies over the summer, the storms ultimately benefited them because, as supplies tightened, prices for gasoline, diesel and jet-fuel soared.
There is less room for error in the U.S. energy market these days thanks to the reduction of fuel inventories and slow addition of new refining capacity - trends that have helped make refining much more profitable in recent years.
Meanwhile, watch for refiners and independent producers to weigh in with their own stout performances, say analysts.
Refiners such as Valero Energy Corp., Tesoro Corp. and Frontier Oil Corp., are expected to show huge profit gains. Analysts forecast these three companies earned a combined $1.37 billion for the third quarter, a 162 percent jump from last year, according to Thomson Financial.
ANOTHER "WTF?" MOMENT
This comes from an Atrios commenter:
Posted on Mon, Oct. 17, 2005
Agency charged with spending oversight in Iraq left country in '04
By Seth Borenstein
Knight Ridder Newspapers
WASHINGTON - The chief Pentagon agency in charge of investigating and reporting fraud and waste in Defense Department spending in Iraq quietly pulled out of the war zone a year ago - leaving what experts say are gaps in the oversight of how more than $140 billion is being spent.etc.
----I swear to God I'm not making this stuff up.
-QuentinCompson Homepage 10.18.05 - 1:05 am #
UPDATE:
Fixed article link here and some more excerpts:
The auditors were withdrawn in the fall of 2004 because other agencies were watching spending, too. But experts say those other agencies don't have the expertise, access and broad mandate that the inspector general has - and don't make their reports public.
Much of the criticism of Defense Department spending for military uses has focused on the billing practices of Kellogg Brown & Root, a subsidiary of the engineering giant Halliburton Inc. A Knight Ridder investigation in the spring of 2004 found that KBR charged the department to move convoys of empty trucks across central Iraq.
Posted on Mon, Oct. 17, 2005
Agency charged with spending oversight in Iraq left country in '04
By Seth Borenstein
Knight Ridder Newspapers
WASHINGTON - The chief Pentagon agency in charge of investigating and reporting fraud and waste in Defense Department spending in Iraq quietly pulled out of the war zone a year ago - leaving what experts say are gaps in the oversight of how more than $140 billion is being spent.etc.
----I swear to God I'm not making this stuff up.
-QuentinCompson Homepage 10.18.05 - 1:05 am #
UPDATE:
Fixed article link here and some more excerpts:
The auditors were withdrawn in the fall of 2004 because other agencies were watching spending, too. But experts say those other agencies don't have the expertise, access and broad mandate that the inspector general has - and don't make their reports public.
Much of the criticism of Defense Department spending for military uses has focused on the billing practices of Kellogg Brown & Root, a subsidiary of the engineering giant Halliburton Inc. A Knight Ridder investigation in the spring of 2004 found that KBR charged the department to move convoys of empty trucks across central Iraq.
Monday, October 17, 2005
ANOTHER ONE BITES THE DUST
(Hat-tip to TalkingPointsMemo)
In Sign of Conservative Split, a Commentator Is Dismissed
By RICHARD W. STEVENSON
Published: October 18, 2005
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/10/18/politics/18bartlett.html
WASHINGTON, Oct. 17 - In the latest sign of the deepening split among conservatives over how far to go in challenging President Bush, Bruce Bartlett, a Republican commentator who has been increasingly critical of the White House, was dismissed on Monday as a senior fellow at the National Center for Policy Analysis, a conservative research group based in Dallas.
In a statement, the organization said the decision was made after Mr. Bartlett supplied its president, John C. Goodman, with the manuscript of his forthcoming book, "The Impostor: How George W. Bush Bankrupted America and Betrayed the Reagan Legacy."
The statement from the organization said Mr. Bartlett had negotiated a deal last year to reduce his workload to give him time to write a book about economic policy and taxation for which he had received a six-figure advance. The statement said that the manuscript he showed Mr. Goodman was "an evaluation of the motivations and competencies of politicians rather than an analysis of public policy." The statement said the organization did not want to be associated with that kind of work.
Like many economic conservatives, he has grown increasingly disenchanted with the current administration's fiscal policy, arguing that Mr. Bush has tolerated if not encouraged a federal spending spree, dashing conservative hopes for progress toward a smaller, leaner government. He has also joined social conservatives in attacking Mr. Bush's nomination of Harriet E. Miers to the Supreme Court.
In his next column, to be published on Wednesday, Mr. Bartlett wrote that it is dawning on many conservatives "that George W. Bush is not one of them and never has been," citing the administration's positions on education, campaign finance, immigration, government spending and regulation. The choice "of a patently unqualified crony for a critical position on the Supreme Court was the final straw," he wrote.
In Sign of Conservative Split, a Commentator Is Dismissed
By RICHARD W. STEVENSON
Published: October 18, 2005
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/10/18/politics/18bartlett.html
WASHINGTON, Oct. 17 - In the latest sign of the deepening split among conservatives over how far to go in challenging President Bush, Bruce Bartlett, a Republican commentator who has been increasingly critical of the White House, was dismissed on Monday as a senior fellow at the National Center for Policy Analysis, a conservative research group based in Dallas.
In a statement, the organization said the decision was made after Mr. Bartlett supplied its president, John C. Goodman, with the manuscript of his forthcoming book, "The Impostor: How George W. Bush Bankrupted America and Betrayed the Reagan Legacy."
The statement from the organization said Mr. Bartlett had negotiated a deal last year to reduce his workload to give him time to write a book about economic policy and taxation for which he had received a six-figure advance. The statement said that the manuscript he showed Mr. Goodman was "an evaluation of the motivations and competencies of politicians rather than an analysis of public policy." The statement said the organization did not want to be associated with that kind of work.
Like many economic conservatives, he has grown increasingly disenchanted with the current administration's fiscal policy, arguing that Mr. Bush has tolerated if not encouraged a federal spending spree, dashing conservative hopes for progress toward a smaller, leaner government. He has also joined social conservatives in attacking Mr. Bush's nomination of Harriet E. Miers to the Supreme Court.
In his next column, to be published on Wednesday, Mr. Bartlett wrote that it is dawning on many conservatives "that George W. Bush is not one of them and never has been," citing the administration's positions on education, campaign finance, immigration, government spending and regulation. The choice "of a patently unqualified crony for a critical position on the Supreme Court was the final straw," he wrote.
POPPY BUSH ON TRAITORS
Via Atrios:
We need more human intelligence. That means we need more protection for the methods we use to gather intelligence and more protection for our sources, particularly our human sources, people that are risking their lives for their country. (Applause)
Even though I'm a tranquil guy now at this stage of my life, I have nothing but contempt and anger for those who betray the trust by exposing the name of our sources. They are, in my view, the most insidious, of traitors.
Remarks By George Bush
41st President of the United States,
At the Dedication Ceremony for the George Bush Center for Intelligence
26 April 1999
We need more human intelligence. That means we need more protection for the methods we use to gather intelligence and more protection for our sources, particularly our human sources, people that are risking their lives for their country. (Applause)
Even though I'm a tranquil guy now at this stage of my life, I have nothing but contempt and anger for those who betray the trust by exposing the name of our sources. They are, in my view, the most insidious, of traitors.
Remarks By George Bush
41st President of the United States,
At the Dedication Ceremony for the George Bush Center for Intelligence
26 April 1999
MERRIE SPAETH BACKS AWAY FROM MIERS
As I wrote below, Spaeth is an old friend of Miers and had been supportive of her nomination, until now. I just heard on All Things Considered that she has reconsidered her position because of the furor Miers has aroused in the far-right. She noted that some e-mails have urged her to start a "Swiftboat campaign" against the nomination.
As I have written before, the Rove coalition is falling apart.
As I have written before, the Rove coalition is falling apart.
MIERS WILL VOTE TO OVERTURN ROE v. WADE
(Via Crooks & Liars & Daily Kos) John Fund discloses a conference call we hadn't heard about. This will also be trouble for Dobson because this means he lied about the discussions he had about Miers.
Judgment Call
Did Christian conservatives receive assurances that Miers would oppose Roe v. Wade?
Monday, October 17, 2005 12:01 a.m. EDT
JOHN FUND ON THE TRAIL
(Excerpts)
On Oct. 3, the day the Miers nomination was announced, Mr. Dobson and other religious conservatives held a conference call to discuss the nomination. One of the people on the call took extensive notes, which I have obtained. According to the notes, two of Ms. Miers's close friends--both sitting judges--said during the call that she would vote to overturn Roe.
The call was moderated by the Rev. Donald Wildmon of the American Family Association. Participating were 13 members of the executive committee of the Arlington Group, an umbrella alliance of 60 religious conservative groups, including Gary Bauer of American Values, Richard Land of the Southern Baptist Convention, Tony Perkins of the Family Research Council, Paul Weyrich of the Free Congress Foundation and the Rev. Bill Owens, a black minister. Also on the call were Justice Nathan Hecht of the Texas Supreme Court and Judge Ed Kinkeade, a Dallas-based federal trial judge.
What followed, according to the notes, was a free-wheeling discussion about many topics, including same-sex marriage. Justice Hecht said he had never discussed that issue with Ms. Miers. Then an unidentified voice asked the two men, "Based on your personal knowledge of her, if she had the opportunity, do you believe she would vote to overturn Roe v. Wade?"
"Absolutely," said Judge Kinkeade.
"I agree with that," said Justice Hecht. "I concur."
Judge Kinkeade, through his secretary, declined to discuss the matter. Justice Hecht told me he remembers participating in the call but can't recollect who invited him or many specifics about it. He said he did tell the group that Ms. Miers was "pro-life," a characterization he has repeated in public. But he says that when someone asked him about her stand on overturning Roe v. Wade he answered, "I don't know." He doesn't recall what Judge Kinkeade said. But several people who participated in the call confirm that both jurists stated Ms. Miers would vote to overturn Roe.
Judgment Call
Did Christian conservatives receive assurances that Miers would oppose Roe v. Wade?
Monday, October 17, 2005 12:01 a.m. EDT
JOHN FUND ON THE TRAIL
(Excerpts)
On Oct. 3, the day the Miers nomination was announced, Mr. Dobson and other religious conservatives held a conference call to discuss the nomination. One of the people on the call took extensive notes, which I have obtained. According to the notes, two of Ms. Miers's close friends--both sitting judges--said during the call that she would vote to overturn Roe.
The call was moderated by the Rev. Donald Wildmon of the American Family Association. Participating were 13 members of the executive committee of the Arlington Group, an umbrella alliance of 60 religious conservative groups, including Gary Bauer of American Values, Richard Land of the Southern Baptist Convention, Tony Perkins of the Family Research Council, Paul Weyrich of the Free Congress Foundation and the Rev. Bill Owens, a black minister. Also on the call were Justice Nathan Hecht of the Texas Supreme Court and Judge Ed Kinkeade, a Dallas-based federal trial judge.
What followed, according to the notes, was a free-wheeling discussion about many topics, including same-sex marriage. Justice Hecht said he had never discussed that issue with Ms. Miers. Then an unidentified voice asked the two men, "Based on your personal knowledge of her, if she had the opportunity, do you believe she would vote to overturn Roe v. Wade?"
"Absolutely," said Judge Kinkeade.
"I agree with that," said Justice Hecht. "I concur."
Judge Kinkeade, through his secretary, declined to discuss the matter. Justice Hecht told me he remembers participating in the call but can't recollect who invited him or many specifics about it. He said he did tell the group that Ms. Miers was "pro-life," a characterization he has repeated in public. But he says that when someone asked him about her stand on overturning Roe v. Wade he answered, "I don't know." He doesn't recall what Judge Kinkeade said. But several people who participated in the call confirm that both jurists stated Ms. Miers would vote to overturn Roe.
Sunday, October 16, 2005
SHORTER JUDY MILLER: "I CAN'T RECALL, I DON'T KNOW"
Not what one would expect from an ace reporter of a prestigious paper.
On one page of my interview notes, for example, I wrote the name "Valerie Flame." Yet, as I told Mr. Fitzgerald, I simply could not recall where that came from, when I wrote it or why the name was misspelled.
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/10/16/national/16miller.html?pagewanted=1
Mr. Fitzgerald asked if I could recall discussing the Wilson-Plame connection with other sources. I said I had, though I could not recall any by name or when those conversations occurred.
Mr. Fitzgerald asked me if I knew whether I was cleared to discuss classified information at the time of my meetings with Mr. Libby. I said I did not know.
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/10/16/national/16miller.html?pagewanted=4
On one page of my interview notes, for example, I wrote the name "Valerie Flame." Yet, as I told Mr. Fitzgerald, I simply could not recall where that came from, when I wrote it or why the name was misspelled.
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/10/16/national/16miller.html?pagewanted=1
Mr. Fitzgerald asked if I could recall discussing the Wilson-Plame connection with other sources. I said I had, though I could not recall any by name or when those conversations occurred.
Mr. Fitzgerald asked me if I knew whether I was cleared to discuss classified information at the time of my meetings with Mr. Libby. I said I did not know.
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/10/16/national/16miller.html?pagewanted=4
Saturday, October 15, 2005
GOOD PLAME CATCH
FROM COMMENTER ANTHONY AT ATRIOS
Judith Miller as quoted in Salon, May 27, 2004:
"You know what," she offered angrily. "I was proved fucking right. That's what happened. People who disagreed with me were saying, 'There she goes again.' But I was proved fucking right."
Judith Miller, as quoted in the NY Times, October 16, 2005:
"W.M.D. - I got it totally wrong," she said. "The analysts, the experts and the journalists who covered them - we were all wrong. If your sources are wrong, you are wrong. I did the best job that I could."
Judith Miller as quoted in Salon, May 27, 2004:
"You know what," she offered angrily. "I was proved fucking right. That's what happened. People who disagreed with me were saying, 'There she goes again.' But I was proved fucking right."
Judith Miller, as quoted in the NY Times, October 16, 2005:
"W.M.D. - I got it totally wrong," she said. "The analysts, the experts and the journalists who covered them - we were all wrong. If your sources are wrong, you are wrong. I did the best job that I could."
GREAT ENTRY ON PLAMEGATE
FireDogLake has been doing some terrific work on this and you can read one of the entries here.
WHY DO FUNDIES HATE YOUNG GIRLS?
Wildmon and the AFA are at it again, this time joined by the Pro-Life Action League, an anti-abortion group. Here are the relevant details:
The Mississippi-based American Family Association, in a campaign launched Wednesday, is urging its members to demand that American Girl halt support for Girls Inc., which it called "a pro-abortion, pro-lesbian advocacy group."
The Pro-Life Action League, a Chicago-based anti-abortion group, also is asking supporters to contact American Girl to express dismay. The league's executive director, Ann Scheidler, said her organization might call for a boycott of American Girl's products and organize picketing at its stores in Chicago and New York if the company doesn't sever ties with Girls Inc.
"Parents need to know that this effort to promote self-esteem among girls is not as innocent as it seems," Scheidler said. "While Girls Inc. has some good programs, they also support abortion, oppose abstinence-only education for girls, and condone lesbianism."
Here's what Girls Inc. promotes:
Will Power/Won’t Power®
For Girls Ages 12–14 In this 10-session program girls learn how to say no to sex as they enter the most pressure-sensitive adolescent years. Interactive sessions center on values; relationships; the reproductive system and female health and hygiene; separating sexual myths from reality; assertiveness and communication skills; identifying and resisting sexual pressures from the media and peers; sexual decision-making and avoiding risky situations; the positive aspects of abstinence, and the power of a positive-sister support system.
Taking Care of Business®
For Girls Ages 15–18 Ten interactive sessions focus on recognizing and moving beyond limiting sex-role stereotypes for women; values as a basis for positive decision-making; assertiveness, refusal and relationship skills; avoiding risky behavior, pregnancy, STDs and HIV through abstinence and smart choices; the facts on contraception and protection; and communication and success skills to achieve career goals.
The Mississippi-based American Family Association, in a campaign launched Wednesday, is urging its members to demand that American Girl halt support for Girls Inc., which it called "a pro-abortion, pro-lesbian advocacy group."
The Pro-Life Action League, a Chicago-based anti-abortion group, also is asking supporters to contact American Girl to express dismay. The league's executive director, Ann Scheidler, said her organization might call for a boycott of American Girl's products and organize picketing at its stores in Chicago and New York if the company doesn't sever ties with Girls Inc.
"Parents need to know that this effort to promote self-esteem among girls is not as innocent as it seems," Scheidler said. "While Girls Inc. has some good programs, they also support abortion, oppose abstinence-only education for girls, and condone lesbianism."
Here's what Girls Inc. promotes:
Will Power/Won’t Power®
For Girls Ages 12–14 In this 10-session program girls learn how to say no to sex as they enter the most pressure-sensitive adolescent years. Interactive sessions center on values; relationships; the reproductive system and female health and hygiene; separating sexual myths from reality; assertiveness and communication skills; identifying and resisting sexual pressures from the media and peers; sexual decision-making and avoiding risky situations; the positive aspects of abstinence, and the power of a positive-sister support system.
Taking Care of Business®
For Girls Ages 15–18 Ten interactive sessions focus on recognizing and moving beyond limiting sex-role stereotypes for women; values as a basis for positive decision-making; assertiveness, refusal and relationship skills; avoiding risky behavior, pregnancy, STDs and HIV through abstinence and smart choices; the facts on contraception and protection; and communication and success skills to achieve career goals.
Friday, October 14, 2005
ANOTHER FUNDIE WITH A TINY SOUL
But that was not enough for activists like Janet LaRue, chief counsel for Concerned Women for America. "Jimmy Carter claims to be an Evangelical," she says, "and I wouldn't want to have him on the Supreme Court."
FEC, HANNITY, PIRRO UPDATE
I spoke with someone at the FEC this A.M. and she advised me to put all 3 (ABC Radio, Hannity & my local station) on the complaint.
Thursday, October 13, 2005
MILITARY INVOLVED IN PROPAGANDA?
Atrios points out that it seems likely and NITPICKER has more, including a bit about Fats Limbaugh:
In fact, I was also ordered to stay away from Rush Limbaugh when he made his drive-by lying trip to Afghanistan. I was told by a Major that I couldn't disagree with the Commander-in-Chief on air. I said that the regs say nothing of the sort, but, anyway, I was going to disagree with Limbaugh if given the opportunity, not the president. I was told in no uncertain terms that I was to stay away.
In fact, I was also ordered to stay away from Rush Limbaugh when he made his drive-by lying trip to Afghanistan. I was told by a Major that I couldn't disagree with the Commander-in-Chief on air. I said that the regs say nothing of the sort, but, anyway, I was going to disagree with Limbaugh if given the opportunity, not the president. I was told in no uncertain terms that I was to stay away.
MORE ON HANNITY/PIRRO/FEC
MediaMatters, God bless 'em, has the transcript and the audio clip. Here's the transcript:
From the September 20 broadcast of ABC Radio Networks' The Sean Hannity Show:
HANNITY: Now let me ask you a question, OK? How much am I allowed to give to your campaign? Because I want to give the maximum.
PIRRO: Awwww. Thank you, Sean. Well, you know, because there's a possible primary, it's $4,200 a person for the, you know, the whole cycle. And that's this year and next year. And certainly, you know, money is what we need to make sure that we can get our message out. I have been all over this state, Sean, and I am greeted with a great deal of enthusiasm, with energy, with people who say, "You know what? We need someone who's going to listen to us!" I'm an upstate New Yorker, you know? When I was a kid, I worked in a dairy. And I really feel for upstate New York. It's been ignored, and New York is not a doormat. It --
HANNITY: -- Well, so's Long Island.
PIRRO: You don't come to New York and use it as a springboard to the presidency.
HANNITY: Not only that. Just don't be a phony about it. If you're gonna run, say, "Yeah, I'm planning on running. I'm thinking of running." But don't play this cat-and-mouse game and not get away with answering the question. Listen, I'm gonna have to run, but I want people to donate to your campaign. I read [New York Post state editor] Fredric Dicker's column, and you gotta, you know -- I'm gonna give you a check for the maximum that I can give, and I really want other people -- where is, how can people get in touch with you?
PIRRO: It's JeaninePirro.com. It's J-E-A-N-I-N-E -- Pirro -- P-I-R-R-O dot-com, and, Sean, thank you so much.
HANNITY: I'll link that to my website, Hannity.com, because I'm gonna tell you right now, it is such a bunch of -- I need people to get to know you. If they know you as well as I do, everybody'll vote for you.
From the September 20 broadcast of ABC Radio Networks' The Sean Hannity Show:
HANNITY: Now let me ask you a question, OK? How much am I allowed to give to your campaign? Because I want to give the maximum.
PIRRO: Awwww. Thank you, Sean. Well, you know, because there's a possible primary, it's $4,200 a person for the, you know, the whole cycle. And that's this year and next year. And certainly, you know, money is what we need to make sure that we can get our message out. I have been all over this state, Sean, and I am greeted with a great deal of enthusiasm, with energy, with people who say, "You know what? We need someone who's going to listen to us!" I'm an upstate New Yorker, you know? When I was a kid, I worked in a dairy. And I really feel for upstate New York. It's been ignored, and New York is not a doormat. It --
HANNITY: -- Well, so's Long Island.
PIRRO: You don't come to New York and use it as a springboard to the presidency.
HANNITY: Not only that. Just don't be a phony about it. If you're gonna run, say, "Yeah, I'm planning on running. I'm thinking of running." But don't play this cat-and-mouse game and not get away with answering the question. Listen, I'm gonna have to run, but I want people to donate to your campaign. I read [New York Post state editor] Fredric Dicker's column, and you gotta, you know -- I'm gonna give you a check for the maximum that I can give, and I really want other people -- where is, how can people get in touch with you?
PIRRO: It's JeaninePirro.com. It's J-E-A-N-I-N-E -- Pirro -- P-I-R-R-O dot-com, and, Sean, thank you so much.
HANNITY: I'll link that to my website, Hannity.com, because I'm gonna tell you right now, it is such a bunch of -- I need people to get to know you. If they know you as well as I do, everybody'll vote for you.
MORE ON THE BUSH PHOTO-OP
The AP is all over this "townhall" session:
"This is an important time," Allison Barber, deputy assistant defense secretary, said, coaching the soldiers before Bush arrived. "The president is looking forward to having just a conversation with you."
"I'm going to ask somebody to grab those two water bottles against the wall and move them out of the camera shot for me," Barber said.
A brief rehearsal ensued.
"OK, so let's just walk through this," Barber said. "Captain Kennedy, you answer the first question and you hand the mike to whom?"
"Captain Smith," Kennedy said.
"Captain. Smith? You take the mike and you hand it to whom?" she asked.
"Captain Kennedy," the soldier replied.
And so it went.
"This is an important time," Allison Barber, deputy assistant defense secretary, said, coaching the soldiers before Bush arrived. "The president is looking forward to having just a conversation with you."
"I'm going to ask somebody to grab those two water bottles against the wall and move them out of the camera shot for me," Barber said.
A brief rehearsal ensued.
"OK, so let's just walk through this," Barber said. "Captain Kennedy, you answer the first question and you hand the mike to whom?"
"Captain Smith," Kennedy said.
"Captain. Smith? You take the mike and you hand it to whom?" she asked.
"Captain Kennedy," the soldier replied.
And so it went.
HANNITY, PIRRO, RADIO, FEC VIOLATION
Back on Sept. 19th, I heard Hannity on his radio show openly call for donations to Jeanine Pirro, the Republican candidate who is running against Hillary Clinton in NYS. Deborah of FOX NewsHounds also caught it and made a blog entry.
I sent an e-mail to the FEC the next day and I finally got a response:
Dear Mr. J: This is in response to your recent email to the Federal Election Commission (FEC). As you may know, federal law and Commission regulations prohibit a corporation from making any contribution or expenditure in connection with a federal election (see the Federal Election Campaign Act, or "the Act"- 2 U.S.C. 441b(a). This prohibition includes facilitating the making of a contribution or expenditure through the use of corporate resources or facilities (see Commission regulations at 11 CFR 114.2(f)(1). It would seem possible that using the corporate resources of a commercial radio station to urge that contributions be made to a federal candidate could be considered "facilitating." If you have specific knowledge or information that gives you reason to believe a violation of the Act has occurred, you may wish to file a formal complaint with the Commission.
For more information about this process, please consult our brochure entitled "Filing a Complaint," located on our web site at http://www.fec.gov/pages/brochures/complain.shtml Hopefully you will find this information helpful. If you have any additional questions or have trouble accessing the information on our web site, please feel free to contact the Information Division at 800-424-9530.
I looked at the brochure and I think we can go after Hannity, ABC Radio and the local stations.
More later.
I sent an e-mail to the FEC the next day and I finally got a response:
Dear Mr. J: This is in response to your recent email to the Federal Election Commission (FEC). As you may know, federal law and Commission regulations prohibit a corporation from making any contribution or expenditure in connection with a federal election (see the Federal Election Campaign Act, or "the Act"- 2 U.S.C. 441b(a). This prohibition includes facilitating the making of a contribution or expenditure through the use of corporate resources or facilities (see Commission regulations at 11 CFR 114.2(f)(1). It would seem possible that using the corporate resources of a commercial radio station to urge that contributions be made to a federal candidate could be considered "facilitating." If you have specific knowledge or information that gives you reason to believe a violation of the Act has occurred, you may wish to file a formal complaint with the Commission.
For more information about this process, please consult our brochure entitled "Filing a Complaint," located on our web site at http://www.fec.gov/pages/brochures/complain.shtml Hopefully you will find this information helpful. If you have any additional questions or have trouble accessing the information on our web site, please feel free to contact the Information Division at 800-424-9530.
I looked at the brochure and I think we can go after Hannity, ABC Radio and the local stations.
More later.
ANOTHER BUSH PHOTO-OP
The AP pointed it out:
"The exchange was carefully choreographed. Before it began, a Pentagon official coached the troops, telling them the president planned to ask questions on three topics: The overall security in Iraq, how they were preparing for the vote on Saturday and how much progress had been made in the training of Iraqi troops.
Allison Barber, a Pentagon official, said Bush would ask them specifically, "In the last 10 months, what kind of progress have we seen?" She asked who was prepared to answer the question. "Master Sgt. Lombardo," one said. "
http://tinyurl.com/dbhot
"The exchange was carefully choreographed. Before it began, a Pentagon official coached the troops, telling them the president planned to ask questions on three topics: The overall security in Iraq, how they were preparing for the vote on Saturday and how much progress had been made in the training of Iraqi troops.
Allison Barber, a Pentagon official, said Bush would ask them specifically, "In the last 10 months, what kind of progress have we seen?" She asked who was prepared to answer the question. "Master Sgt. Lombardo," one said. "
http://tinyurl.com/dbhot
PAT ROBERTSON: STILL NUTS
That's not exactly groundbreaking but Pat just can't let go of his delusions about Hugo Chavez and Venezuela:
BLITZER: One final question on an unrelated matter, Hugo Chavez.
You caused a big uproar a few weeks ago when you suggested the U.S. should just simply take him out, should simply kill him. You later said you misspoke a little bit. You apologized.
But clarify briefly for our viewers what you meant and where you stand now.
ROBERTSON: Well, I want to say August is a slow news month, Wolf, and they were looking for a big story and I happened to be it.
But the truth is, this man is setting up a Marxist-type dictatorship in Venezuela. He's trying to spread Marxism throughout South America. He is negotiating with the Iranians to get nuclear material. And he also sent $1.2 million in cash to Osama bin Laden right after 9/11.
He is -- I mean, I've written him. I apologized and I said I'm going to be praying for him. But one day we're going to be staring at nuclear weapons and it won't be Katrina facing New Orleans, it's going to be a Venezuelan nuke.
So my suggestion was: Isn't it a lot cheaper sometimes to deal with these problems before you have to have a big war?
BLITZER: Now, we're out of time. But what did you just say? He sent how much money to Osama bin Laden?
ROBERTSON: I'm told it's either $1 million or $1.2 million in cash.
BLITZER: Where do you get that from?
ROBERTSON: Well, sources that came to me. That's what I was told. And I know he sent a warm, congratulatory letter to Carlos the Jackal. He's a friend of Moammar Gadhafi. He's made common cause with these people who are considered terrorists.
BLITZER: One final question on an unrelated matter, Hugo Chavez.
You caused a big uproar a few weeks ago when you suggested the U.S. should just simply take him out, should simply kill him. You later said you misspoke a little bit. You apologized.
But clarify briefly for our viewers what you meant and where you stand now.
ROBERTSON: Well, I want to say August is a slow news month, Wolf, and they were looking for a big story and I happened to be it.
But the truth is, this man is setting up a Marxist-type dictatorship in Venezuela. He's trying to spread Marxism throughout South America. He is negotiating with the Iranians to get nuclear material. And he also sent $1.2 million in cash to Osama bin Laden right after 9/11.
He is -- I mean, I've written him. I apologized and I said I'm going to be praying for him. But one day we're going to be staring at nuclear weapons and it won't be Katrina facing New Orleans, it's going to be a Venezuelan nuke.
So my suggestion was: Isn't it a lot cheaper sometimes to deal with these problems before you have to have a big war?
BLITZER: Now, we're out of time. But what did you just say? He sent how much money to Osama bin Laden?
ROBERTSON: I'm told it's either $1 million or $1.2 million in cash.
BLITZER: Where do you get that from?
ROBERTSON: Well, sources that came to me. That's what I was told. And I know he sent a warm, congratulatory letter to Carlos the Jackal. He's a friend of Moammar Gadhafi. He's made common cause with these people who are considered terrorists.
Wednesday, October 12, 2005
SPONGEDOBSON LIES AGAIN
(Via Crooks & Liars) Liberal Oasis catches the mullah in a lie about confidentiality. Dobson claimed that we was told things on Oct. 3rd about Miers by Karl Rove but he couldn't divulge them. Today, Dobson's been making the wingnut circuit claiming that all he was told, among other things, was that Miers was a evangelical Christian from a conservative church but he couldn't reveal that until he got the OK from Karl.
The problem is Dobson did tell Brit Hume several of these supposedly hush-hush facts about Miers on Oct. 3rd, before he got the OK. Here's an excerpt and you can read more at Liberal Oasis:
HUME: You say she is a conservative Christian. I have heard it said that she is indeed, evangelical Christian, like yourself and like the president. How do you know that?
DOBSON: I know the church that she goes to and I know the people who go to church with her.
HUME: Which church is that? Just for the benefit of the public.
DOBSON: I think that I should let her reveal that.
HUME: I wouldn’t know. I can’t imagine why it would be a secret.
DOBSON: You know, you already quoted Rush Limbaugh and he said that on his show, that she was an evangelical Christian and I know that to be a fact.
The problem is Dobson did tell Brit Hume several of these supposedly hush-hush facts about Miers on Oct. 3rd, before he got the OK. Here's an excerpt and you can read more at Liberal Oasis:
HUME: You say she is a conservative Christian. I have heard it said that she is indeed, evangelical Christian, like yourself and like the president. How do you know that?
DOBSON: I know the church that she goes to and I know the people who go to church with her.
HUME: Which church is that? Just for the benefit of the public.
DOBSON: I think that I should let her reveal that.
HUME: I wouldn’t know. I can’t imagine why it would be a secret.
DOBSON: You know, you already quoted Rush Limbaugh and he said that on his show, that she was an evangelical Christian and I know that to be a fact.
CONSEQUENCES
FireDogLake has a good post that deals with an issue almost no one in the mass media has touched on. Below is a brief excerpt and I encourage you to read the whole post.
Imagine that one day you wake up to the incessent ping of your beeper. It is still dark outside your window, and you slide out of bed, pad quietly down the hallway and try not to wake up the wife and kids, as you slip into your home office and place a call on a secure phone. You are told that your cover has been blown, that your family may be at risk. You have to make instant decisions for your own safety, that of your family, and of every asset you have in the field - and to do that, you have to prioritize which assets are more valuable and which you can afford to lose, if necessary. You have to decide then and there which of the people you cultivated, the ones you promised safety in exchange for information and cooperation, which of them may have to die because you may not have time to save them all.
Imagine that one day you wake up to the incessent ping of your beeper. It is still dark outside your window, and you slide out of bed, pad quietly down the hallway and try not to wake up the wife and kids, as you slip into your home office and place a call on a secure phone. You are told that your cover has been blown, that your family may be at risk. You have to make instant decisions for your own safety, that of your family, and of every asset you have in the field - and to do that, you have to prioritize which assets are more valuable and which you can afford to lose, if necessary. You have to decide then and there which of the people you cultivated, the ones you promised safety in exchange for information and cooperation, which of them may have to die because you may not have time to save them all.
Tuesday, October 11, 2005
NEW IMPEACHMENT POLL!!!!
AfterDowningStreet reports the results of a poll it commissioned from Ipsos:
The poll found that 50% agreed with the statement:
"If President Bush did not tell the truth about his reasons for going to war with Iraq, Congress should consider holding him accountable by impeaching him."
44% disagreed, and 6% said they didn't know or declined to answer. The poll has a +/- 3.1% margin of error.
Among those who felt strongly either way, 39% strongly agreed, while 30% strongly disagreed.
This is a significant change from the Zogby poll of June 27-29:
The poll found that 50% agreed with the statement:
"If President Bush did not tell the truth about his reasons for going to war with Iraq, Congress should consider holding him accountable by impeaching him."
44% disagreed, and 6% said they didn't know or declined to answer. The poll has a +/- 3.1% margin of error.
Among those who felt strongly either way, 39% strongly agreed, while 30% strongly disagreed.
This is a significant change from the Zogby poll of June 27-29:
| Ipsos 10/8-9 | Zogby 6/27-29 | Net Change |
| Support Impeachment | 50% | 42% | +8% |
| Oppose Impeachment | 44% | 50% | -6% |
| Impeachment Margin | +6% | -8% | +14% |
WE NEED OUR OWN "NOISE MACHINE"
The GOP has a vast media infrastructure that makes it easy for them to spread their memes and stir up their base. We don't need liars and fools like Limbaugh and Hannity, but we do need a competitive system.
Just look what DeLay can do:
DeLay appeals to court of public opinion
Oct 11, 10:08 AM EDT
Kathleen Jamieson, director of the Annenberg Public Policy Center at the University of Pennsylvania, said DeLay has adopted a standard public relations strategy of proclaiming innocence and shoring up his base.
"If you are Tom DeLay, you don't want your constituency to believe the indictments," Jamieson said. "You are reassuring them that this is bogus and you are innocent and you are being hunted by people with partisan objectives."
She said DeLay is helped in his strategy by the larger presence of conservative talk radio and TV, where listeners are sympathetic. Keeping them from losing faith is critical, she said.
"Historically, when people on your side decide you need to go, you go," Jamieson said. "At that point, you can't argue you are innocent."
Just look what DeLay can do:
DeLay appeals to court of public opinion
Oct 11, 10:08 AM EDT
Kathleen Jamieson, director of the Annenberg Public Policy Center at the University of Pennsylvania, said DeLay has adopted a standard public relations strategy of proclaiming innocence and shoring up his base.
"If you are Tom DeLay, you don't want your constituency to believe the indictments," Jamieson said. "You are reassuring them that this is bogus and you are innocent and you are being hunted by people with partisan objectives."
She said DeLay is helped in his strategy by the larger presence of conservative talk radio and TV, where listeners are sympathetic. Keeping them from losing faith is critical, she said.
"Historically, when people on your side decide you need to go, you go," Jamieson said. "At that point, you can't argue you are innocent."
Monday, October 10, 2005
EMPTY SUIT, EMPTY MIND
"The first time I met Bush 43, I knew he was different..One, he didn't know very much."
Richard Perle,
quoted in "Bush's Brain Trust" by Sam Tanenhaus, Vanity Fair, July 2003.
Bush "is impatient, quick to anger, sometimes glib, even dogmatic; often uncurious and as a result, ill informed; more conventional in his thinking than a leader should be."
David Frum, former Bush speechwriter,
from his book
The Right Man : The Surprise Presidency of George W. Bush
by DAVID FRUM, page 272.
Richard Perle,
quoted in "Bush's Brain Trust" by Sam Tanenhaus, Vanity Fair, July 2003.
Bush "is impatient, quick to anger, sometimes glib, even dogmatic; often uncurious and as a result, ill informed; more conventional in his thinking than a leader should be."
David Frum, former Bush speechwriter,
from his book
The Right Man : The Surprise Presidency of George W. Bush
by DAVID FRUM, page 272.
BUSH THE EMPTY SUIT
There's nothing surprising about this if you have been paying attention but it does come from a real insider, the managing director of Carlyle:
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article3994.htm
Last April 23, Carlyle managing director David Rubenstein spoke quite frankly about the comfy sinecure he provided to George W. Bush more than a decade ago -- and how useless Bush turned out to be. Whether he knew it or not, Rubenstein's remarks to the Los Angeles County Employees Retirement Association were recorded.
Rubenstein said, "We put [Bush] on the board and [he] spent three years. Came to all the meetings. Told a lot of jokes. Not that many clean ones. And after a while I kind of said to him, after about three years - you know, I'm not sure this is really for you. Maybe you should do something else. Because I don't think you're adding that much value to the board. You don't know that much about the company. “
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article3994.htm
Sunday, October 09, 2005
WHO COUNTS, WHO DOESN'T, IN BUSHWORLD
Both James Dobson and Richard Land have publicly acknowledged that there were briefed by Karl Rove about Harriet Miers but neither of them is willing to share any of the details. Why do they count more than the rest of us?
Dobson:
"He also confirmed reports that he received a special briefing from Bush's political adviser, Karl Rove, but still will not discuss the talks in detail.
"When you know some of the things I know - that I probably shouldn't know - that take me in this direction, you'll know why I've said with fear and trepidation (that) I believe Harriet Miers will be a good justice," Dobson said in a broadcast with co-host John Fuller. "
Land:
DR. LAND: No. The--and I don't know what Dr. Dobson's talking about. You'd have to ask him that question. When Karl Rove called me on Monday morning, he just told me who it was and told me the president had absolute confidence in her and gave me some of her background and some of the people that I knew in Dallas that knew her and who would vouch for her.
UPDATE:
Two senators on the Judiciary Committee are also interested in what Dobson was told. (Via Americablog):
Specter to Ask Whether Rove Gave Private Assurances on Miers
Oct. 9 (Bloomberg) -- Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Arlen Specter said he wants to know whether presidential adviser Karl Rove privately assured a conservative activist of how Supreme Court nominee Harriet Miers would rule on the court.
Specter, a Pennsylvania Republican, said he will would look into a statement by James Dobson, president of the Colorado Springs, Colorado-based advocacy group Focus on the Family, that Dobson has had ``conversations'' with Rove about the woman nominated to replace retiring Justice Sandra Day O'Connor and knows things about Miers ``that I probably shouldn't know.''
``The Senate Judiciary Committee is entitled to know whatever the White House knew,'' Specter, a Pennsylvania Republican, said on ABC's ``This Week'' program. ``If Dr. Dobson knows something that he shouldn't know or something that I ought to know, I'm going to find out.''
The senator stopped short of saying he would subpoena Dobson or Rove to appear. Senator Charles Schumer, a New York Democrat and member of the Judiciary panel, said today that Dobson should be called as a witness during hearings on Miers's nomination that are set to begin next month.
Dobson:
"He also confirmed reports that he received a special briefing from Bush's political adviser, Karl Rove, but still will not discuss the talks in detail.
"When you know some of the things I know - that I probably shouldn't know - that take me in this direction, you'll know why I've said with fear and trepidation (that) I believe Harriet Miers will be a good justice," Dobson said in a broadcast with co-host John Fuller. "
Land:
DR. LAND: No. The--and I don't know what Dr. Dobson's talking about. You'd have to ask him that question. When Karl Rove called me on Monday morning, he just told me who it was and told me the president had absolute confidence in her and gave me some of her background and some of the people that I knew in Dallas that knew her and who would vouch for her.
UPDATE:
Two senators on the Judiciary Committee are also interested in what Dobson was told. (Via Americablog):
Specter to Ask Whether Rove Gave Private Assurances on Miers
Oct. 9 (Bloomberg) -- Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Arlen Specter said he wants to know whether presidential adviser Karl Rove privately assured a conservative activist of how Supreme Court nominee Harriet Miers would rule on the court.
Specter, a Pennsylvania Republican, said he will would look into a statement by James Dobson, president of the Colorado Springs, Colorado-based advocacy group Focus on the Family, that Dobson has had ``conversations'' with Rove about the woman nominated to replace retiring Justice Sandra Day O'Connor and knows things about Miers ``that I probably shouldn't know.''
``The Senate Judiciary Committee is entitled to know whatever the White House knew,'' Specter, a Pennsylvania Republican, said on ABC's ``This Week'' program. ``If Dr. Dobson knows something that he shouldn't know or something that I ought to know, I'm going to find out.''
The senator stopped short of saying he would subpoena Dobson or Rove to appear. Senator Charles Schumer, a New York Democrat and member of the Judiciary panel, said today that Dobson should be called as a witness during hearings on Miers's nomination that are set to begin next month.
GANNON & PLAMEGATE
Jeff Gannon, the former WH "reporter" for Talon News who was also a gay prostitute, claimed that he first learned about the State Dept. memo about Valerie Plame from the WSJ. It turns out that he knew BEFORE the WSJ published. Details at Talk Left. (Via Atrios & Americablog)
Saturday, October 08, 2005
RANDI VERSUS JEEBUS WITCH
Crooks & Liars has a clip of Randi Rhodes debating Janet "Liar for Jeebus" Parshall on C-SPAN. At one point, Parshall actually sticks her fingers in her ears so she won't hear Randi.
TROOPS STILL UNDER-EQUIPPED
Despite all the news reports about the lack of equipment for our soldiers in Iraq, the Pentagon is still sending them over there without the protection they need. Parents often pay for what's needed for their sons and daughters.
Can you imagine the wingnut rage if this had occurred under Clinton?
Troops still buying own equipment, body armor
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
9/30/05
WASHINGTON - Nearly a year after Congress demanded action, the Pentagon has still failed to figure out a way to reimburse soldiers for body armor and equipment they purchased to better protect themselves while serving in Iraq.
For Marine Sgt. Todd Bowers, that extra piece of equipment - a high-tech rifle scope bought by his father for $600 and a $100 pair of goggles - turned out to be a life-or-death purchase. And he has never been reimbursed.
Bowers, who is from Arizona but going to school in Washington, D.C., was shot by a sniper during his second tour in Iraq, but the round lodged in his scope, and his goggles protected his eyes from the shrapnel that struck his face.
"We weren't provided those going to Iraq," he said Thursday. "But they literally saved my life."
"Your expectation is that when you are sent to war, that our government does everything they can do to protect the lives of our people, and anything less than that is not good enough," said a former Marine who spent nearly $1,000 two weeks ago to buy lower-body armor for his son, a Marine serving in Fallujah.
Can you imagine the wingnut rage if this had occurred under Clinton?
Troops still buying own equipment, body armor
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
9/30/05
WASHINGTON - Nearly a year after Congress demanded action, the Pentagon has still failed to figure out a way to reimburse soldiers for body armor and equipment they purchased to better protect themselves while serving in Iraq.
For Marine Sgt. Todd Bowers, that extra piece of equipment - a high-tech rifle scope bought by his father for $600 and a $100 pair of goggles - turned out to be a life-or-death purchase. And he has never been reimbursed.
Bowers, who is from Arizona but going to school in Washington, D.C., was shot by a sniper during his second tour in Iraq, but the round lodged in his scope, and his goggles protected his eyes from the shrapnel that struck his face.
"We weren't provided those going to Iraq," he said Thursday. "But they literally saved my life."
"Your expectation is that when you are sent to war, that our government does everything they can do to protect the lives of our people, and anything less than that is not good enough," said a former Marine who spent nearly $1,000 two weeks ago to buy lower-body armor for his son, a Marine serving in Fallujah.
Friday, October 07, 2005
MIERS HOME STATE BOOSTERISM
I found this at Austin Bay's blog:
Ken Rainey is an attorney in Dallas, Texas. My wife has worked with Ken on several legal matters. Ken knows Harriet Miers well and thinks highly of her qualifications. This morning Ken sent an email to two-dozen of his friends (including my wife). My wife suggested I put Ken’s email up on the blog — so you can bet it’s going up. (Yes, Ken gave her his permission.)
Ken Rainey on Harriet Miers:
I imagine that Marshall, Brandeis, Cardozo or Holmes would give her quite a challenge.
Ken Rainey is an attorney in Dallas, Texas. My wife has worked with Ken on several legal matters. Ken knows Harriet Miers well and thinks highly of her qualifications. This morning Ken sent an email to two-dozen of his friends (including my wife). My wife suggested I put Ken’s email up on the blog — so you can bet it’s going up. (Yes, Ken gave her his permission.)
Ken Rainey on Harriet Miers:
Several of you have inquired about my thoughts on Harriet Miers. My answer is simple. Of the 110 or so citizens of this great country who have served on the United States Supreme Court, none have been more decent, God-fearing, dedicated, capable or worthy than she.
I imagine that Marshall, Brandeis, Cardozo or Holmes would give her quite a challenge.
THE CROWD MIERS RUNS WITH
USA Today had a background article on Miers and one name popped out at me: Merrie Spaeth. Here are all the Spaeth mentions:
Despite her high-profile career as a Dallas lawyer and a second career as a counselor to President Bush, the 60-year-old Supreme Court nominee keeps personal details to herself like the "Southern lady she is," says longtime friend Merrie Spaeth.
Miers also underwent a more gradual conversion, from Democrat to Republican. Spaeth, White House director of media relations in President Reagan's first term, arrived in Dallas in 1985 and founded a communications firm. She and Miers became friends and co-founders of what Spaeth's late husband, Tex Lazar, jokingly called the "pushy broads' club" — hard-charging professional women on the rise in male-dominated Dallas.
Miers, Spaeth says, was notable for never indulging in backbiting or humorous putdowns — unless she was the target. "I used to joke, 'Hey, you know all the legal precedents from the last century because that's when your clothes were designed,' " Spaeth says. "That kind of thing, she would laugh at."
Soon, Spaeth noted, Miers began to upgrade her wardrobe with "clothes that commanded respect."
I recalled that Spaeth has something to do with the Shifty Vets' smear campaign against Kerry but according to MediaMatters, she has other ties to the GOP:
Merrie Spaeth, a public relations executive who has "helped coordinate the efforts of Swift Boat Veterans for Truth," was married to the late Tex Lezar, who was Bush's running mate during the 1994 Texas gubernatorial race. (The governor and lieutenant governor are elected separately in Texas; Bush won and Lezar lost.) Spaeth has also said she is close friends with Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-TX), who is one of Rove's top clients. [The New York Times, 8/20/04]
So, Meirs is deeply connected to the Texas GOP and that is one of the main reasons Bush nominated her.
Despite her high-profile career as a Dallas lawyer and a second career as a counselor to President Bush, the 60-year-old Supreme Court nominee keeps personal details to herself like the "Southern lady she is," says longtime friend Merrie Spaeth.
Miers also underwent a more gradual conversion, from Democrat to Republican. Spaeth, White House director of media relations in President Reagan's first term, arrived in Dallas in 1985 and founded a communications firm. She and Miers became friends and co-founders of what Spaeth's late husband, Tex Lazar, jokingly called the "pushy broads' club" — hard-charging professional women on the rise in male-dominated Dallas.
Miers, Spaeth says, was notable for never indulging in backbiting or humorous putdowns — unless she was the target. "I used to joke, 'Hey, you know all the legal precedents from the last century because that's when your clothes were designed,' " Spaeth says. "That kind of thing, she would laugh at."
Soon, Spaeth noted, Miers began to upgrade her wardrobe with "clothes that commanded respect."
I recalled that Spaeth has something to do with the Shifty Vets' smear campaign against Kerry but according to MediaMatters, she has other ties to the GOP:
Merrie Spaeth, a public relations executive who has "helped coordinate the efforts of Swift Boat Veterans for Truth," was married to the late Tex Lezar, who was Bush's running mate during the 1994 Texas gubernatorial race. (The governor and lieutenant governor are elected separately in Texas; Bush won and Lezar lost.) Spaeth has also said she is close friends with Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-TX), who is one of Rove's top clients. [The New York Times, 8/20/04]
So, Meirs is deeply connected to the Texas GOP and that is one of the main reasons Bush nominated her.
MORE SOLDIERS IN IRAQ SPEAK OUT
Tom Lasseter of Knight-Ridder continues his excellent reporting. Here are some excerpts:
MUQDADIYAH, Iraq - Sgt. Antonio Molina sat on a rooftop in the pitch of night, scanning the road before him with a high-powered sniper scope, hoping an insurgent would scramble out of a car to lay a bomb and give him a reason to squeeze the trigger. He and three other 3rd Infantry Division snipers were dropped off this week at a house on the outskirts of Muqdadiyah, in an Iraqi province that military officials frequently claim is largely pacified.
"Some people don't get the gravity of the situation here; people in the Green Zone are always trying to paint a rosy picture," said Molina, a 27-year-old sniper from Clearwater, Fla. He was referring to the fortified compound in Baghdad where U.S. officials work. "These politicians are all about sending people to war but they don't know what it's all about, being over here and getting shot at, walking through s--- swamps, having bombs go off, hearing bullets fly by. They have no idea what that's like." "As soon as we leave this place they're all going to kill each other," Molina said at a meeting in his barracks recently. His sniper team commander, Staff Sgt. Donnie Hendricks, agreed: "It's going to be a f------ civil war."
Sitting in the darkness, near the edge of a palm grove, Molina looked at the street in front of him. "The reason why they're fighting us is not Osama bin Laden. They're fighting us because we're here. ... They don't want us here. They just want us to leave. I guess that would be a victory for them," he said. "As far as I can see there's not going to be any victory for us." Sabin, sitting next to him, nodded.
"In past situations you've had a good guy and a bad guy and the troops were impassioned, but now troops just want to go home," Sabin said. "I don't feel like there's a cause. I don't personally think there's a reason for this."
MUQDADIYAH, Iraq - Sgt. Antonio Molina sat on a rooftop in the pitch of night, scanning the road before him with a high-powered sniper scope, hoping an insurgent would scramble out of a car to lay a bomb and give him a reason to squeeze the trigger. He and three other 3rd Infantry Division snipers were dropped off this week at a house on the outskirts of Muqdadiyah, in an Iraqi province that military officials frequently claim is largely pacified.
"Some people don't get the gravity of the situation here; people in the Green Zone are always trying to paint a rosy picture," said Molina, a 27-year-old sniper from Clearwater, Fla. He was referring to the fortified compound in Baghdad where U.S. officials work. "These politicians are all about sending people to war but they don't know what it's all about, being over here and getting shot at, walking through s--- swamps, having bombs go off, hearing bullets fly by. They have no idea what that's like." "As soon as we leave this place they're all going to kill each other," Molina said at a meeting in his barracks recently. His sniper team commander, Staff Sgt. Donnie Hendricks, agreed: "It's going to be a f------ civil war."
Sitting in the darkness, near the edge of a palm grove, Molina looked at the street in front of him. "The reason why they're fighting us is not Osama bin Laden. They're fighting us because we're here. ... They don't want us here. They just want us to leave. I guess that would be a victory for them," he said. "As far as I can see there's not going to be any victory for us." Sabin, sitting next to him, nodded.
"In past situations you've had a good guy and a bad guy and the troops were impassioned, but now troops just want to go home," Sabin said. "I don't feel like there's a cause. I don't personally think there's a reason for this."
Thursday, October 06, 2005
RADIO TIDBITS
On Bennett’s show, many fundie callers were upset about Miers. They wanted a real “Christocrat” nominated, someone like Janice Rogers Brown, and were seemingly looking forward to a bitter confirmation fight that they were dead sure they would win. One caller from a previous day was also upset that some conservatives questioned Miers’ qualifications and suggested that this was that despicable elitism at work. A Lutheran pastor called and pointed out that Luther wrote that he would rather be ruled by a wise Muslim than a foolish Christian.
On Ingraham’s show, some callers did complain that Miers wasn’t the best qualified, some complained about elitism among Miers’ critics. Ingraham aired a clip of Brit Hume (I think) claiming that the critics were elitist snobs, as demonstrated by the fact that many of them went to Harvard. Ingraham pointedly rejects the charge of elitism.
On both shows, there were a few callers that took the position that if Harry Reid approves of Miers, she must be bad choice.
Rove’s coalition is crumbing a little more. The fundies, the movement intellectuals, the low self-esteem crowd and the hard-core political partisans all disagree over the choice of Miers.
On Ingraham’s show, some callers did complain that Miers wasn’t the best qualified, some complained about elitism among Miers’ critics. Ingraham aired a clip of Brit Hume (I think) claiming that the critics were elitist snobs, as demonstrated by the fact that many of them went to Harvard. Ingraham pointedly rejects the charge of elitism.
On both shows, there were a few callers that took the position that if Harry Reid approves of Miers, she must be bad choice.
Rove’s coalition is crumbing a little more. The fundies, the movement intellectuals, the low self-esteem crowd and the hard-core political partisans all disagree over the choice of Miers.
Wednesday, October 05, 2005
O'REILLY SMEARS THE 82ND AIRBORNE
I first found this on Atrios, who linked to Gilliard, who linked to Crooks & Liars.
Here's the disgrace:
O'Reilly: General! You need to look at the Malmedy massacre in World War Two, and the 82nd Airborne who did it!
Here's the truth:
On December 17, 1944, near the hamlet of Baugnez on the height half-way between the town of Malmedy and Ligneuville in Belgium, elements of Waffen-SS Kampfgruppe Peiper encountered the American 285th Field Artillery Observation Battalion. After a brief battle, the Americans surrendered. About 150 of the prisoners of war were disarmed and sent to stand in a field near the crossroads. Peiper and his leading armoured units then continued their advance. A tank pulled up, and a truck shortly thereafter. A single SS officer pulled out a pistol and shot a medical officer standing in the front row, and then shot the man standing next to the medical officer. Other soldiers joined in with machine guns.
Here's the disgrace:
O'Reilly: General! You need to look at the Malmedy massacre in World War Two, and the 82nd Airborne who did it!
Here's the truth:
On December 17, 1944, near the hamlet of Baugnez on the height half-way between the town of Malmedy and Ligneuville in Belgium, elements of Waffen-SS Kampfgruppe Peiper encountered the American 285th Field Artillery Observation Battalion. After a brief battle, the Americans surrendered. About 150 of the prisoners of war were disarmed and sent to stand in a field near the crossroads. Peiper and his leading armoured units then continued their advance. A tank pulled up, and a truck shortly thereafter. A single SS officer pulled out a pistol and shot a medical officer standing in the front row, and then shot the man standing next to the medical officer. Other soldiers joined in with machine guns.
Tuesday, October 04, 2005
ABORTION & SOCIAL SECURITY
I googled "abortion & social security" and found several wingnut/jeebus sites that claim the shortfall in SS is due to the millions of abortions since 1973.
BIZNETDAILY COMMENTARY
(WorldNet)
Abortion hitting social security hard
Posted: February 16, 2005
1:00 a.m. Eastern
Editor's note: Business Reform Magazine is your exclusive source for real biblical answers to real business problems. www.businessreform.com
By Steve Marr© 2005 Business Reform
Abortion may have set America up to implode.
Consider this: As politicians scramble to posture on Social Security reform, a key element is being ignored: the effect of abortion on the SS shortfall.
Since Roe vs. Wade legalized abortion, creating an abortion industry, we’ve seen 45 million unborn babies aborted in this country.
An estimated 17 million of them would be contributing to the economy today, paying taxes, and paying into Social Security; but they will not be there.
January 17, 2005
National COGIC leader blames abortion for social security problems
LINK
National Church of God in Christ board member Bishop George McKinney said Social Security is in trouble today because of abortion.
"Part of the problem that we're seeing now with Social Security has to do with the fact that 40 to 50 million people who have been killed through abortions have not taken their role as productive citizens."
McKinney said the Democratic Party's support for legal abortion and gay marriage has cost it support in the black community.
Abortion and Social Security
By Dena Leichnitz
(At Defending Truth)
Yet people seem to be missing the obvious. There is less Social Security money because there are less workers and there are less workers because 45 million people have been aborted since 1973.
SAVE SOCIAL SECURITY — STOP LEGAL ABORTION!
Jan. 14, 2005
Republican National Coalition for Life
American Life League has hit the nail on the head with a full-page ad in yesterday's Washington Times. According to ALL's press release, the ad explains that since 1973, more than 50 million babies have been killed in the womb. "Those are the very babies that, today, would be living, working — and paying into Social Security," said ALL president Judie Brown. She pointed out that "The government is largely responsible for the Social Security crisis. They have continued to fund abortion giants such as Planned Parenthood, which aid in the destruction of human life."
BIZNETDAILY COMMENTARY
(WorldNet)
Abortion hitting social security hard
Posted: February 16, 2005
1:00 a.m. Eastern
Editor's note: Business Reform Magazine is your exclusive source for real biblical answers to real business problems. www.businessreform.com
By Steve Marr© 2005 Business Reform
Abortion may have set America up to implode.
Consider this: As politicians scramble to posture on Social Security reform, a key element is being ignored: the effect of abortion on the SS shortfall.
Since Roe vs. Wade legalized abortion, creating an abortion industry, we’ve seen 45 million unborn babies aborted in this country.
An estimated 17 million of them would be contributing to the economy today, paying taxes, and paying into Social Security; but they will not be there.
January 17, 2005
National COGIC leader blames abortion for social security problems
LINK
National Church of God in Christ board member Bishop George McKinney said Social Security is in trouble today because of abortion.
"Part of the problem that we're seeing now with Social Security has to do with the fact that 40 to 50 million people who have been killed through abortions have not taken their role as productive citizens."
McKinney said the Democratic Party's support for legal abortion and gay marriage has cost it support in the black community.
Abortion and Social Security
By Dena Leichnitz
(At Defending Truth)
Yet people seem to be missing the obvious. There is less Social Security money because there are less workers and there are less workers because 45 million people have been aborted since 1973.
SAVE SOCIAL SECURITY — STOP LEGAL ABORTION!
Jan. 14, 2005
Republican National Coalition for Life
American Life League has hit the nail on the head with a full-page ad in yesterday's Washington Times. According to ALL's press release, the ad explains that since 1973, more than 50 million babies have been killed in the womb. "Those are the very babies that, today, would be living, working — and paying into Social Security," said ALL president Judie Brown. She pointed out that "The government is largely responsible for the Social Security crisis. They have continued to fund abortion giants such as Planned Parenthood, which aid in the destruction of human life."
"SLOTS" ON HANNITY & colmes
As I mentioned below, Bennett came on H&C to try to clean up his mess and I'm going to go through some of his statements.
Slots begins by making a false statement:
A caller suggested he was opposed to abortion because he said if there were more babies there would be, eventually, more tax payers and a larger GNP, a smaller deficit.
The caller limited himself to discussing the implications for Social Security and did not mention GNP or smaller deficit. (I have also heard this argument from callers to other wingnut radio shows. I suspect some other wingnut started this meme but I haven't tracked it down.) He claimed on H&C that:
I said you want to be careful with that kind of argument because someone could postulate a situation where child's not likely to be a productive taxpayer.
Bennett did bring up productivity but he disagreed with the caller not because of productivity concerns but because of (1) our ignorance about the economic effects of abortion and (2) an economic analysis could cut both ways and gave the example from Freakonomics:
All right, well, I mean, I just don't know. I would not argue for the pro-life position based on this, because you don't know. I mean, it cuts both -- you know, one of the arguments in this book Freakonomics that they make is that the declining crime rate, you know, they deal with this hypothesis, that one of the reasons crime is down is that abortion is up.
Next, the caller and Bennett agree that they don't believe the Freakonomic thesis: abortion has led to a lower crime rate. Slots then made his egregious statement about aborting all black babies.
Back to H&C, Slots claimed that:
I said make the case of abortion on the basis of life and protecting life.
This is not true, at least based on the transcript provided by MediaMatters and from my own recall. Slots could have made this argument immediately to the caller but he didn't. He first brought up productivity and then moved to Freakonomics. I also listened to his subsequent show and Slots claimed that he had read Freakonomics. If that were true, he either forgot or skimmed the part about abortion not reducing the number of children born. According to Freakonomics, it simply postpones the births and has a neglible effect on total births.
Slots then tells colmes:
There are real things in the real world, and there are people who believe we should take such monstrous steps.
Here he is referring to the forced abortions of black babies. Sadly, I do believe there are some people who have argued for this but I am not aware of any and it certainly hasn't been widely reported on in the media.
Before saying this, Slots gives colmes some of the context for his statements:
But there is a very big literature, as you know, about single parenthood in crime, about race in crime, and about poverty in crime. And we've been talking about all these things lately in the context of New Orleans and other things.
As I wrote below, the intial reports of violence in NO were greatly exaggerated and it seemed to be more important to the wingnuts such as O'Reilly than the incompetence of FEMA and Michael Brown. I also recall a number of threads on the AOL Katrina boards that emphasized the violence. Some of them were flat-out racist.
It seems to me that Slots was also wrapped up in the violent urban black meme and that's why he mentioned aborting all black babies. Bennett says we don't know enough about the general effects of abortion on crime or the economy but HE knows that aborting ALL black babies would reduce the crime rate.
Near the end of the interview, Bennett tells Hannity that on his radio show:
We talk about serious things in a serious way.
This is simply a lie. For example, Bennett never once mentioned the 12/03 Guardian Ad Litem report I sent him that refuted the many hateful lies told about Michael Schiavo.
Slots begins by making a false statement:
A caller suggested he was opposed to abortion because he said if there were more babies there would be, eventually, more tax payers and a larger GNP, a smaller deficit.
The caller limited himself to discussing the implications for Social Security and did not mention GNP or smaller deficit. (I have also heard this argument from callers to other wingnut radio shows. I suspect some other wingnut started this meme but I haven't tracked it down.) He claimed on H&C that:
I said you want to be careful with that kind of argument because someone could postulate a situation where child's not likely to be a productive taxpayer.
Bennett did bring up productivity but he disagreed with the caller not because of productivity concerns but because of (1) our ignorance about the economic effects of abortion and (2) an economic analysis could cut both ways and gave the example from Freakonomics:
All right, well, I mean, I just don't know. I would not argue for the pro-life position based on this, because you don't know. I mean, it cuts both -- you know, one of the arguments in this book Freakonomics that they make is that the declining crime rate, you know, they deal with this hypothesis, that one of the reasons crime is down is that abortion is up.
Next, the caller and Bennett agree that they don't believe the Freakonomic thesis: abortion has led to a lower crime rate. Slots then made his egregious statement about aborting all black babies.
Back to H&C, Slots claimed that:
I said make the case of abortion on the basis of life and protecting life.
This is not true, at least based on the transcript provided by MediaMatters and from my own recall. Slots could have made this argument immediately to the caller but he didn't. He first brought up productivity and then moved to Freakonomics. I also listened to his subsequent show and Slots claimed that he had read Freakonomics. If that were true, he either forgot or skimmed the part about abortion not reducing the number of children born. According to Freakonomics, it simply postpones the births and has a neglible effect on total births.
Slots then tells colmes:
There are real things in the real world, and there are people who believe we should take such monstrous steps.
Here he is referring to the forced abortions of black babies. Sadly, I do believe there are some people who have argued for this but I am not aware of any and it certainly hasn't been widely reported on in the media.
Before saying this, Slots gives colmes some of the context for his statements:
But there is a very big literature, as you know, about single parenthood in crime, about race in crime, and about poverty in crime. And we've been talking about all these things lately in the context of New Orleans and other things.
As I wrote below, the intial reports of violence in NO were greatly exaggerated and it seemed to be more important to the wingnuts such as O'Reilly than the incompetence of FEMA and Michael Brown. I also recall a number of threads on the AOL Katrina boards that emphasized the violence. Some of them were flat-out racist.
It seems to me that Slots was also wrapped up in the violent urban black meme and that's why he mentioned aborting all black babies. Bennett says we don't know enough about the general effects of abortion on crime or the economy but HE knows that aborting ALL black babies would reduce the crime rate.
Near the end of the interview, Bennett tells Hannity that on his radio show:
We talk about serious things in a serious way.
This is simply a lie. For example, Bennett never once mentioned the 12/03 Guardian Ad Litem report I sent him that refuted the many hateful lies told about Michael Schiavo.
WINGNUTS ON MIERS
(Both Via Atrios)
Originally from Air America:
David Frum, former White House speechwriter, has come down hard against Miers. From his blog at the National Review:
She rose to her present position by her absolute devotion to George Bush. I mentioned last week that she told me that the president was the most brilliant man she had ever met. To flatter on such a scale a person must either be an unscrupulous dissembler, which Miers most certainly is not, or a natural follower. And natural followers do not belong on the Supreme Court of the United States.
Also from the National Review:
HARRIET MIERS [John Podhoretz]I am going to assume that this is a classic Bush head-fake gambit. If I'm wrong, I will spend the weekend banging my head against a concrete wall. This is the Supreme Court we're talking about! It's not a job for a political functionary! Posted at 10:40 AM
Originally from Air America:
David Frum, former White House speechwriter, has come down hard against Miers. From his blog at the National Review:
She rose to her present position by her absolute devotion to George Bush. I mentioned last week that she told me that the president was the most brilliant man she had ever met. To flatter on such a scale a person must either be an unscrupulous dissembler, which Miers most certainly is not, or a natural follower. And natural followers do not belong on the Supreme Court of the United States.
Also from the National Review:
HARRIET MIERS [John Podhoretz]I am going to assume that this is a classic Bush head-fake gambit. If I'm wrong, I will spend the weekend banging my head against a concrete wall. This is the Supreme Court we're talking about! It's not a job for a political functionary! Posted at 10:40 AM
Monday, October 03, 2005
"FREAKONOMICS" RESPONDS TO BENNETT
Excerpts:
2) Race is not an important part of the abortion-crime argument that John Donohue and I have made in academic papers and that Dubner and I discuss in Freakonomics. It is true that, on average, crime involvement in the U.S. is higher among blacks than whites. Importantly, however, once you control for income, the likelihood of growing up in a female-headed household, having a teenage mother, and how urban the environment is, the importance of race disappears for all crimes except homicide. (The homicide gap is partly explained by crack markets). In other words, for most crimes a white person and a black person who grow up next door to each other with similar incomes and the same family structure would be predicted to have the same crime involvement. Empirically, what matters is the fact that abortions are disproportionately used on unwanted pregnancies, and disproportionately by teenage women and single women.
4) When a woman gets an abortion, for the most part it is not changing the total number of children she has; rather, it is shifting the timing so those births come later in life. This is an important fact to remember. One in four pregnancies ends in abortion and this has been true for 30 years in the U.S. But the impact of abortion on the overall birth rate has been quite small.
5) In light of point (4) above, it is hard to even know what Bennett means when he says "you could abort every black baby in this country, and your crime rate would go down." Implicit in his comment is the idea that some external force, like a government, is forcing blacks to have abortions. This is obviously a completely different situation than abortion as we know it today, in which a woman chooses whether or not to have an abortion now, and then starts her family later in life, when her situation is more stable and conducive. The distinction between a woman choosing to control her fertility and the government choosing to limit her fertility is fundamental and people often seem to lose sight of that.
7) There is one thing I would take Bennett to task for: first saying that he doesn't believe our abortion-crime hypothesis but then revealing that he does believe it with his comments about black babies. You can't have it both ways.
8) As an aside, the initial caller's statement is completely wrong. If abortion were illegal, our Social Security problems would not be solved. As noted above, most abortions just shift a child from being born today to a child being born to the same mother a few years later.
2) Race is not an important part of the abortion-crime argument that John Donohue and I have made in academic papers and that Dubner and I discuss in Freakonomics. It is true that, on average, crime involvement in the U.S. is higher among blacks than whites. Importantly, however, once you control for income, the likelihood of growing up in a female-headed household, having a teenage mother, and how urban the environment is, the importance of race disappears for all crimes except homicide. (The homicide gap is partly explained by crack markets). In other words, for most crimes a white person and a black person who grow up next door to each other with similar incomes and the same family structure would be predicted to have the same crime involvement. Empirically, what matters is the fact that abortions are disproportionately used on unwanted pregnancies, and disproportionately by teenage women and single women.
4) When a woman gets an abortion, for the most part it is not changing the total number of children she has; rather, it is shifting the timing so those births come later in life. This is an important fact to remember. One in four pregnancies ends in abortion and this has been true for 30 years in the U.S. But the impact of abortion on the overall birth rate has been quite small.
5) In light of point (4) above, it is hard to even know what Bennett means when he says "you could abort every black baby in this country, and your crime rate would go down." Implicit in his comment is the idea that some external force, like a government, is forcing blacks to have abortions. This is obviously a completely different situation than abortion as we know it today, in which a woman chooses whether or not to have an abortion now, and then starts her family later in life, when her situation is more stable and conducive. The distinction between a woman choosing to control her fertility and the government choosing to limit her fertility is fundamental and people often seem to lose sight of that.
7) There is one thing I would take Bennett to task for: first saying that he doesn't believe our abortion-crime hypothesis but then revealing that he does believe it with his comments about black babies. You can't have it both ways.
8) As an aside, the initial caller's statement is completely wrong. If abortion were illegal, our Social Security problems would not be solved. As noted above, most abortions just shift a child from being born today to a child being born to the same mother a few years later.
WHAT "SLOTS" BENNETT SAID
Media Matters has provided the transcript:
From the September 28 broadcast of Salem Radio Network's Bill Bennett's Morning in America:
CALLER: I noticed the national media, you know, they talk a lot about the loss of revenue, or the inability of the government to fund Social Security, and I was curious, and I've read articles in recent months here, that the abortions that have happened since Roe v. Wade, the lost revenue from the people who have been aborted in the last 30-something years, could fund Social Security as we know it today. And the media just doesn't -- never touches this at all.
BENNETT: Assuming they're all productive citizens?
CALLER: Assuming that they are. Even if only a portion of them were, it would be an enormous amount of revenue.
BENNETT: Maybe, maybe, but we don't know what the costs would be, too. I think as -- abortion disproportionately occur among single women? No.
CALLER: I don't know the exact statistics, but quite a bit are, yeah.
BENNETT: All right, well, I mean, I just don't know. I would not argue for the pro-life position based on this, because you don't know. I mean, it cuts both -- you know, one of the arguments in this book Freakonomics that they make is that the declining crime rate, you know, they deal with this hypothesis, that one of the reasons crime is down is that abortion is up. Well --
CALLER: Well, I don't think that statistic is accurate.
BENNETT: Well, I don't think it is either, I don't think it is either, because first of all, there is just too much that you don't know. But I do know that it's true that if you wanted to reduce crime, you could -- if that were your sole purpose, you could abort every black baby in this country, and your crime rate would go down. That would be an impossible, ridiculous, and morally reprehensible thing to do, but your crime rate would go down. So these far-out, these far-reaching, extensive extrapolations are, I think, tricky.
From the September 28 broadcast of Salem Radio Network's Bill Bennett's Morning in America:
CALLER: I noticed the national media, you know, they talk a lot about the loss of revenue, or the inability of the government to fund Social Security, and I was curious, and I've read articles in recent months here, that the abortions that have happened since Roe v. Wade, the lost revenue from the people who have been aborted in the last 30-something years, could fund Social Security as we know it today. And the media just doesn't -- never touches this at all.
BENNETT: Assuming they're all productive citizens?
CALLER: Assuming that they are. Even if only a portion of them were, it would be an enormous amount of revenue.
BENNETT: Maybe, maybe, but we don't know what the costs would be, too. I think as -- abortion disproportionately occur among single women? No.
CALLER: I don't know the exact statistics, but quite a bit are, yeah.
BENNETT: All right, well, I mean, I just don't know. I would not argue for the pro-life position based on this, because you don't know. I mean, it cuts both -- you know, one of the arguments in this book Freakonomics that they make is that the declining crime rate, you know, they deal with this hypothesis, that one of the reasons crime is down is that abortion is up. Well --
CALLER: Well, I don't think that statistic is accurate.
BENNETT: Well, I don't think it is either, I don't think it is either, because first of all, there is just too much that you don't know. But I do know that it's true that if you wanted to reduce crime, you could -- if that were your sole purpose, you could abort every black baby in this country, and your crime rate would go down. That would be an impossible, ridiculous, and morally reprehensible thing to do, but your crime rate would go down. So these far-out, these far-reaching, extensive extrapolations are, I think, tricky.
CULTURE OF CORRUPTION, DOD BRANCH
The torture of prisoners held by U.S. forces has exposed another area where corruption holds sway. Recently, there have been two reports by soldiers about their superiors not following up on allegations of torture.
The first is from a former captain in the 82nd Airborne:
The Captain told Human Rights Watch and Senate staff that he had contacted legislators reluctantly, believing it was the only way he could get the army to take him seriously. He also said that "I knew something was wrong" as he watched Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld on television in 2004 testifying before a Congressional committee that the U.S. was following the Geneva Convention to the letter in Iraq. The Monday morning after Rumsfeld's testimony, he told Human Rights Watch, "I approached my chain of command." Eventually, the captain says, he approached his company commander, battalion commander and representatives of the Judge Advocate Corps (the military justice system), trying in vain to get clarification of rules on prisoner treatment and the application of the Geneva Convention. At one point, the Captain asserts, his Company commander told him, in effect, "Remember the honor of the unit is at stake," and, "Don't expect me to go to bat for you on this issue ..."
The second is from a sargeant in the Utah National Guard:
For Sgt. 1st Class Michael Pratt it would have been far easier to look away. If war is hell, after all, there are going to be some demons. And since hooking up with the Colorado-based 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment in Iraq in early 2003, the Utah National Guard soldier had learned it was simpler to ignore questionable actions than report them. But the guardsman couldn't look past what he had seen in the Al Qiem Detention Facility. Not after the death of an inmate whom he believed had been abused by a senior officer. Not even as the Army announced that the prisoner had died "of natural causes."
"I didn't contact my chain of command because the only chain of command I had was Chief Welshofer," Pratt said. "I had reported this kind of action to the 3rd ACR chain of command before, and the response was that every time I reported something, the chain of command would investigate me . . . "I believe that the chain of command was complicit with the unlawful activities, that is why I didn't report it to them."
The first is from a former captain in the 82nd Airborne:
The Captain told Human Rights Watch and Senate staff that he had contacted legislators reluctantly, believing it was the only way he could get the army to take him seriously. He also said that "I knew something was wrong" as he watched Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld on television in 2004 testifying before a Congressional committee that the U.S. was following the Geneva Convention to the letter in Iraq. The Monday morning after Rumsfeld's testimony, he told Human Rights Watch, "I approached my chain of command." Eventually, the captain says, he approached his company commander, battalion commander and representatives of the Judge Advocate Corps (the military justice system), trying in vain to get clarification of rules on prisoner treatment and the application of the Geneva Convention. At one point, the Captain asserts, his Company commander told him, in effect, "Remember the honor of the unit is at stake," and, "Don't expect me to go to bat for you on this issue ..."
The second is from a sargeant in the Utah National Guard:
For Sgt. 1st Class Michael Pratt it would have been far easier to look away. If war is hell, after all, there are going to be some demons. And since hooking up with the Colorado-based 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment in Iraq in early 2003, the Utah National Guard soldier had learned it was simpler to ignore questionable actions than report them. But the guardsman couldn't look past what he had seen in the Al Qiem Detention Facility. Not after the death of an inmate whom he believed had been abused by a senior officer. Not even as the Army announced that the prisoner had died "of natural causes."
"I didn't contact my chain of command because the only chain of command I had was Chief Welshofer," Pratt said. "I had reported this kind of action to the 3rd ACR chain of command before, and the response was that every time I reported something, the chain of command would investigate me . . . "I believe that the chain of command was complicit with the unlawful activities, that is why I didn't report it to them."
Sunday, October 02, 2005
A LITTLE MORE TRUTH LEAKS OUT
General backs off on US troop cuts in Iraq
Warns of strife as bombs kill 60
By Bryan Bender, Globe Staff September 30, 2005
Casey and Abizaid told lawmakers that training Iraqis to take over for US and allied troops remains a struggle.
''We fully recognize that Iraqi armed forces will not have an independent capability for some time, because they don't have the institutional base to support them," Casey said.
He also said the new Iraqi government was recently unable to pay some of the 67,000 Iraqi police because of a breakdown in Iraqi government operations in some areas, such as Fallujah, where the insurgent presence is heavy.
There are ''continuing reports that the Iraqi police and security forces we're training are substantially infiltrated by insurgents," Senator Edward M. Kennedy, Democrat of Massachusetts, said in questioning Rumsfeld.
Rumsfeld responded, ''It's a problem that's faced by police forces in every major city in our country, that criminals infiltrate and sign up to join the police force."
[ANOTHER CANDIDATE FOR QUOTE OF THE YEAR]
However, the top US intelligence official said yesterday that the make-up and organization of the increasingly violent Iraq insurgency remains a puzzle to US officials 2 1/2 years after the US-led invasion toppled Saddam Hussein. John Negroponte, director of national intelligence, acknowledged yesterday that no one knows for sure, saying there is a ''feeling that much more could be still done in terms of finding out now what the nature of that insurgency is."
Warns of strife as bombs kill 60
By Bryan Bender, Globe Staff September 30, 2005
Casey and Abizaid told lawmakers that training Iraqis to take over for US and allied troops remains a struggle.
''We fully recognize that Iraqi armed forces will not have an independent capability for some time, because they don't have the institutional base to support them," Casey said.
He also said the new Iraqi government was recently unable to pay some of the 67,000 Iraqi police because of a breakdown in Iraqi government operations in some areas, such as Fallujah, where the insurgent presence is heavy.
There are ''continuing reports that the Iraqi police and security forces we're training are substantially infiltrated by insurgents," Senator Edward M. Kennedy, Democrat of Massachusetts, said in questioning Rumsfeld.
Rumsfeld responded, ''It's a problem that's faced by police forces in every major city in our country, that criminals infiltrate and sign up to join the police force."
[ANOTHER CANDIDATE FOR QUOTE OF THE YEAR]
However, the top US intelligence official said yesterday that the make-up and organization of the increasingly violent Iraq insurgency remains a puzzle to US officials 2 1/2 years after the US-led invasion toppled Saddam Hussein. John Negroponte, director of national intelligence, acknowledged yesterday that no one knows for sure, saying there is a ''feeling that much more could be still done in terms of finding out now what the nature of that insurgency is."
Saturday, October 01, 2005
"SLOTS" RECOVERY APPEARANCE
"Slots" Bennett must really be in trouble. He made an emergency "wipe your butt" appearance on Hannity & Colmes.
Here's just one "Slots" highlight:
FLIP: But the problem, I think, on the liberal side, the democratic side is they attitudinize, they condemn but they don't have a program.
FLOP:We don't put liberals down.
Here's just one "Slots" highlight:
FLIP: But the problem, I think, on the liberal side, the democratic side is they attitudinize, they condemn but they don't have a program.
FLOP:We don't put liberals down.
Friday, September 30, 2005
BEST "SLOTS" BENNETT LINE SO FAR
From AmericaBlog:
"Hell even when I was in vegas I always bet on BLACK......." B. Bennettt
simeon wolf 09.30.05 - 5:06 pm #
"Hell even when I was in vegas I always bet on BLACK......." B. Bennettt
simeon wolf 09.30.05 - 5:06 pm #
RADIO TIDBITS
Bill Bennett is trying to defend himself against charges of (at least) racial insensitivity. You can find the transcript of his offensive remarks at MediaMatters but the point of the critics is that race was not part of the issue, abortion was. Bennett brought race into the issue.
As I have noted previously on this blog, conservatives have a very poor track record on race relations. And the Chairman of the RNC can't even get simple facts correct:
MEHLMAN: "The NAACP unfortunately in the 2000 campaign likened the president to James Byrd, who was a racist killer in east Texas, who the president brought to justice."
http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0507/17/le.01.html
James Byrd was the victim, not one of the killers!
As I have noted previously on this blog, conservatives have a very poor track record on race relations. And the Chairman of the RNC can't even get simple facts correct:
MEHLMAN: "The NAACP unfortunately in the 2000 campaign likened the president to James Byrd, who was a racist killer in east Texas, who the president brought to justice."
http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0507/17/le.01.html
James Byrd was the victim, not one of the killers!
MORE BAD SIGNS ABOUT IRAQ
Gen. Casey, the top commander in Iraq, said that the number of Iraqi battalions that could fight on their own was only ONE. In June we were told that there were THREE. What happened? The AP story doesn't say but it does note that the generals running the war confirmed the widely held view that many Iraqis view us as occupiers:
Both Abizaid and Casey said they did not want a large increase of U.S. forces in Iraq, in part because that would fuel the insurgency by reinforcing the perception among Iraqis of the Americans as occupiers.
A report from the United Arab Emirates claims that Al-Queda will be spreading to those states. The report states that Iraq war is the source of the problem:
Many of those who went to fight the Soviets (in Afghanistan) had left with their countries' blessing, and that didn't prevent them from turning against their countries. Which begs the question: What will it be like for those who ... are going to Iraq without their countries' approval and are accusing their nations of cooperating with the enemy?" it said.
Both Abizaid and Casey said they did not want a large increase of U.S. forces in Iraq, in part because that would fuel the insurgency by reinforcing the perception among Iraqis of the Americans as occupiers.
A report from the United Arab Emirates claims that Al-Queda will be spreading to those states. The report states that Iraq war is the source of the problem:
Many of those who went to fight the Soviets (in Afghanistan) had left with their countries' blessing, and that didn't prevent them from turning against their countries. Which begs the question: What will it be like for those who ... are going to Iraq without their countries' approval and are accusing their nations of cooperating with the enemy?" it said.
Thursday, September 29, 2005
DOVER CREATIONISTS
William Buckingham is on the Dover Area School Board and was one of the promoters of ID in biology classes.
A local paper noted what he and his wife said at a board meeting:
At Monday evening’s Dover Area School Board meeting, William Buckingham apologized to anyone he may have offended with the comments he made at last week’s board meeting during discussions over a new biology book for the high school.
But then the school board member reiterated one of his statements to the roughly 90 in attendance that the separation of church and state is a myth.
“Nowhere in the Constitution does it call for a separation of church and state,” he said.
Buckingham said while growing up, his generation prayed and read from the Bible during school. Then he said liberals in “black robes” were taking away the rights of Christians.
“Two thousand years ago, someone died on a cross,” he said. “Can’t someone take a stand for him?”
But in reference to its teaching of Darwinism, he said, “I challenge you (the audience) to trace your roots to the monkey you came from.”
Also during public comments, Buckingham’s wife, Charlotte Buckingham, argued that evolution teaches nothing but lies. After quoting several verses from the book of Genesis in the Bible, she asked, “How can we allow anything else to be taught in our schools?”
During her time, she repeated gospel verses telling people how to become born-again Christians and said evolution was in direct violation of the teachings of the Bible.
A local paper noted what he and his wife said at a board meeting:
At Monday evening’s Dover Area School Board meeting, William Buckingham apologized to anyone he may have offended with the comments he made at last week’s board meeting during discussions over a new biology book for the high school.
But then the school board member reiterated one of his statements to the roughly 90 in attendance that the separation of church and state is a myth.
“Nowhere in the Constitution does it call for a separation of church and state,” he said.
Buckingham said while growing up, his generation prayed and read from the Bible during school. Then he said liberals in “black robes” were taking away the rights of Christians.
“Two thousand years ago, someone died on a cross,” he said. “Can’t someone take a stand for him?”
But in reference to its teaching of Darwinism, he said, “I challenge you (the audience) to trace your roots to the monkey you came from.”
Also during public comments, Buckingham’s wife, Charlotte Buckingham, argued that evolution teaches nothing but lies. After quoting several verses from the book of Genesis in the Bible, she asked, “How can we allow anything else to be taught in our schools?”
During her time, she repeated gospel verses telling people how to become born-again Christians and said evolution was in direct violation of the teachings of the Bible.
EARLY SIGNS OF THE END OF THE "BUSH BOOM"
I thought something was odd when I got my first Xmas catalogue about 10 days ago.
Consumer confidence, new-home sales plunge
By Mike Hughlett
CHICAGO TRIBUNE
Consumer confidence plunged in September, hitting a low not seen in two years, according to a monthly report released Tuesday by the Conference Board, a research group. It was also the biggest single-month drop in confidence in 15 years.
The Consumer Confidence Index, compiled from a survey of U.S. households, dropped 18.9 points to 86.6 from a revised reading of 105.5 in August. That marked the biggest slide since October 1990, when the index fell 23 points to 62.6 amid the onset of a recession, the buildup to the first Persian Gulf War and a spike in gasoline prices. The September reading was also the lowest level since October 2003, when it registered 81.7.
Overdue credit card bills hit record high
By JEANNINE AVERSA AP Economics Writer
Sep 28, 5:12 PM EDT
The American Bankers Association reported Wednesday that the percentage of credit card accounts 30 or more days past due climbed to an all-time high of 4.81 percent in the April-to-June period. It could grow in the months ahead, experts said.
The previous high of 4.76 percent came during the first three months of the year, in keeping with a generally steady rise over the past several years.
"The last two quarters have not been pretty," said Jim Chessen, the association's chief economist.
Chessen and other analysts mostly blamed high prices for gasoline and other energy products, but said that low savings and higher borrowing costs also played a role.
"The rise in gas prices is really stretching budgets to the breaking point for some people," Chessen said. "Gas prices are taking huge chunks out of wallets, leaving some individuals with little left to meet their financial obligations."
Consumer confidence, new-home sales plunge
By Mike Hughlett
CHICAGO TRIBUNE
Consumer confidence plunged in September, hitting a low not seen in two years, according to a monthly report released Tuesday by the Conference Board, a research group. It was also the biggest single-month drop in confidence in 15 years.
The Consumer Confidence Index, compiled from a survey of U.S. households, dropped 18.9 points to 86.6 from a revised reading of 105.5 in August. That marked the biggest slide since October 1990, when the index fell 23 points to 62.6 amid the onset of a recession, the buildup to the first Persian Gulf War and a spike in gasoline prices. The September reading was also the lowest level since October 2003, when it registered 81.7.
Overdue credit card bills hit record high
By JEANNINE AVERSA AP Economics Writer
Sep 28, 5:12 PM EDT
The American Bankers Association reported Wednesday that the percentage of credit card accounts 30 or more days past due climbed to an all-time high of 4.81 percent in the April-to-June period. It could grow in the months ahead, experts said.
The previous high of 4.76 percent came during the first three months of the year, in keeping with a generally steady rise over the past several years.
"The last two quarters have not been pretty," said Jim Chessen, the association's chief economist.
Chessen and other analysts mostly blamed high prices for gasoline and other energy products, but said that low savings and higher borrowing costs also played a role.
"The rise in gas prices is really stretching budgets to the breaking point for some people," Chessen said. "Gas prices are taking huge chunks out of wallets, leaving some individuals with little left to meet their financial obligations."
Wednesday, September 28, 2005
WINGNUTS ON TOM DELAY'S INDICTMENT
HANNITY'S FORUM
http://hannity.com/forum/member.php?u=47642:
lets get out and smear this partisan hack job, earl
http://hannity.com/forum/member.php?u=15789:
The indictment doesn't even give a fair presentation about what it's about.
Nothing happened. Nothing happened.
Corporations are allowed to give money to pacs.
POLIPUNDIT
http://polipundit.com/index.php?p=10190:
In summary then, a rabid Democrat in a solid-blue county*, with no legal basis but more than the normal amount of Leftist paranoia, has mounted a smear campaign which he knows will fail any sane scrutiny.
POWERLINE
http://powerlineblog.com/archives/011810.php:
You can read the indictment here. It is pathetic. The only time it mentions DeLay's name is when it alleges that he agreed to toll the statute of limitations! The indictment contains no suggestion of what he supposedly did that was illegal. [HOW DID ASSROCKET PASS THE BAR?]
http://hannity.com/forum/member.php?u=47642:
lets get out and smear this partisan hack job, earl
http://hannity.com/forum/member.php?u=15789:
The indictment doesn't even give a fair presentation about what it's about.
Nothing happened. Nothing happened.
Corporations are allowed to give money to pacs.
POLIPUNDIT
http://polipundit.com/index.php?p=10190:
In summary then, a rabid Democrat in a solid-blue county*, with no legal basis but more than the normal amount of Leftist paranoia, has mounted a smear campaign which he knows will fail any sane scrutiny.
POWERLINE
http://powerlineblog.com/archives/011810.php:
You can read the indictment here. It is pathetic. The only time it mentions DeLay's name is when it alleges that he agreed to toll the statute of limitations! The indictment contains no suggestion of what he supposedly did that was illegal. [HOW DID ASSROCKET PASS THE BAR?]
HANDFUL = WEHRMACHT + IMPERIAL ARMY & NAVY?
Gen. Myers gave interview to a few journalists and claimed that the Iraq war was more important than WW II. Think about that: The German and Japanese combined military might was not as big a threat as a "handful" of extremists.
"This is a handful of folks who are willing to do despicable acts in the name of extremism," Myers said.
"This is a handful of folks who are willing to do despicable acts in the name of extremism," Myers said.
"DECADES"
Once again the wingnuts are downplaying Abu Ghraib and the killing and torture of captives. They all seem to forget what Karl Rove had to say about this:
Iraq scandal leaves White House reeling
Rove says it may take decades to undo the damage done already
Sunday, May 09, 2004
By Ann McFeatters, Post-Gazette National Bureau
The White House itself is so gloomy about the repercussions that senior adviser Karl Rove suggested it will take decades for the United States to recover.
U.S. Faces Lasting Damage Abroad
Moral High Ground Lost, Experts Say
By Robin Wright
Washington Post Staff WriterFriday, May 7, 2004; Page A26
The White House is so gloomy about the repercussions that senior adviser Karl Rove suggested this week that the consequences of the graphic photographs documenting the U.S. abuse of Iraqi detainees are so enormous that it will take decades for the United States to recover, according to a Bush adviser.
Iraq scandal leaves White House reeling
Rove says it may take decades to undo the damage done already
Sunday, May 09, 2004
By Ann McFeatters, Post-Gazette National Bureau
The White House itself is so gloomy about the repercussions that senior adviser Karl Rove suggested it will take decades for the United States to recover.
U.S. Faces Lasting Damage Abroad
Moral High Ground Lost, Experts Say
By Robin Wright
Washington Post Staff WriterFriday, May 7, 2004; Page A26
The White House is so gloomy about the repercussions that senior adviser Karl Rove suggested this week that the consequences of the graphic photographs documenting the U.S. abuse of Iraqi detainees are so enormous that it will take decades for the United States to recover, according to a Bush adviser.
Tuesday, September 27, 2005
WHAT THE ID FOLKS REALLY WANT
Just in case you thought this was purely a free speech or scientific issue:
GOALS
Governing Goals
* To defeat scientific materialism and its destructive moral, cultural and political legacies.
* To replace materialistic explanations with the theistic understanding that nature and hurnan beings are created by God.
Five Year Goals
* To see intelligent design theory as an accepted alternative in the sciences and scientific research being done from the perspective of design theory.
* To see the beginning of the influence of design theory in spheres other than natural science.
* To see major new debates in education, life issues, legal and personal responsibility pushed to the front of the national agenda.
Twenty Year Goals
* To see intelligent design theory as the dominant perspective in science.
* To see design theory application in specific fields, including molecular biology, biochemistry, paleontology, physics and cosmology in the natural sciences, psychology, ethics, politics, theology and philosophy in the humanities; to see its innuence in the fine arts.
* To see design theory permeate our religious, cultural, moral and political life.
GOALS
Governing Goals
* To defeat scientific materialism and its destructive moral, cultural and political legacies.
* To replace materialistic explanations with the theistic understanding that nature and hurnan beings are created by God.
Five Year Goals
* To see intelligent design theory as an accepted alternative in the sciences and scientific research being done from the perspective of design theory.
* To see the beginning of the influence of design theory in spheres other than natural science.
* To see major new debates in education, life issues, legal and personal responsibility pushed to the front of the national agenda.
Twenty Year Goals
* To see intelligent design theory as the dominant perspective in science.
* To see design theory application in specific fields, including molecular biology, biochemistry, paleontology, physics and cosmology in the natural sciences, psychology, ethics, politics, theology and philosophy in the humanities; to see its innuence in the fine arts.
* To see design theory permeate our religious, cultural, moral and political life.
ANOTHER SCRIPT BITES THE DUST
Reports of anarchy at Superdome overstated
By BRIAN THEVENOT and GORDON RUSSELL
Newhouse News Service
Monday, September 26, 2005 - Page updated at 12:00 AM
NEW ORLEANS — After five days managing near riots, medical horrors and unspeakable living conditions inside the Superdome, Louisiana National Guard Col. Thomas Beron prepared to hand over the dead to representatives of the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
Following days of internationally reported murders, rapes and gang violence inside the stadium, the doctor from FEMA — Beron doesn't remember his name — came prepared for a grisly scene: He brought a refrigerated 18-wheeler and three doctors to process bodies.
"I've got a report of 200 bodies in the Dome," Beron recalled the doctor saying.
The real total?
Six, Beron said.
Of those, four died of natural causes, one overdosed and another jumped to his death in an apparent suicide, said Beron, who personally oversaw the handoff of bodies from a Dome freezer, where they lay atop melting bags of ice.
State health department officials in charge of body recovery put the official death count at the Dome at 10, but Beron said the other four bodies were found in the street near the Dome, not inside it. Both sources said no one had been murdered inside the stadium.
At the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center, just four bodies have been recovered, despite reports of heaps of dead piled inside the building. Only one of the dead appeared to have been murdered, said health and law-enforcement officials.
By BRIAN THEVENOT and GORDON RUSSELL
Newhouse News Service
Monday, September 26, 2005 - Page updated at 12:00 AM
NEW ORLEANS — After five days managing near riots, medical horrors and unspeakable living conditions inside the Superdome, Louisiana National Guard Col. Thomas Beron prepared to hand over the dead to representatives of the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
Following days of internationally reported murders, rapes and gang violence inside the stadium, the doctor from FEMA — Beron doesn't remember his name — came prepared for a grisly scene: He brought a refrigerated 18-wheeler and three doctors to process bodies.
"I've got a report of 200 bodies in the Dome," Beron recalled the doctor saying.
The real total?
Six, Beron said.
Of those, four died of natural causes, one overdosed and another jumped to his death in an apparent suicide, said Beron, who personally oversaw the handoff of bodies from a Dome freezer, where they lay atop melting bags of ice.
State health department officials in charge of body recovery put the official death count at the Dome at 10, but Beron said the other four bodies were found in the street near the Dome, not inside it. Both sources said no one had been murdered inside the stadium.
At the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center, just four bodies have been recovered, despite reports of heaps of dead piled inside the building. Only one of the dead appeared to have been murdered, said health and law-enforcement officials.
Monday, September 26, 2005
SADDAM, OSAMA & THE 9-11 REPORT
On the AOL news boards, I've read a few wingnut posts that claim we are in Iraq because Saddam was involved with 9-11. Of course, this flies in the face of what Bush, Rumsfeld and Powell have said:
1/31/03
Question: Do you believe that there is a link between Saddam Hussein, a direct link, and the men who attacked on September the 11th?
THE PRESIDENT: I can't make that claim.
MATTHEWS: You believe there's still a possibility that the Iraqi government had something to do with planning the attack on us, 9/11?
RUMSFELD: Not to my knowledge. HARDBALL, 4/29/04
Secretary of State Colin L. Powell, appearing on NBC's "Meet the Press," said he had "seen nothing that makes a direct connection between Saddam Hussein and that awful regime and what happened on 9/11." LINK
One of the wingnuts even claimed that the 9-11 Report found a connection. I have the PDF version of the report and here are all the relevant mentions of Saddam and Osama:
Moreover, Bin Ladin had in fact been sponsoring anti-Saddam Islamists in Iraqi Kurdistan, and sought to attract them into his Islamic army.[53] page 66
There is also evidence that around this time Bin Ladin sent out a number of feelers to the Iraqi regime, offering some cooperation. None are reported to have received a significant response. According to one report, Saddam Hussein’s efforts at this time to rebuild relations with the Saudis and other Middle Eastern regimes led him to stay clear of Bin Ladin.[74 ] page 66
Arguing that the case for links between Iraq and al Qaeda was weak, the memo pointed out that Bin Ladin resented the secularism of Saddam Hussein’s regime. Finally, the memo said, there was no confirmed reporting on Saddam cooperating with Bin Ladin on unconventional weapons.[62] page 334
Salman Pak is another wingnut meme that's still around. Supposedly, Al-Queda trained there with Saddam's permission. Once again, there is no evidence to back this up:
Doubts cast on efforts to link Saddam, al-Qaida
By Warren P. Strobel, Jonathan S. Landay and John Walcott
Posted on Tue, Mar. 02, 2004
- Iraqi defectors alleged that Saddam's regime was helping to train Iraqi and non-Iraqi Arab terrorists at a site called Salman Pak, south of Baghdad. The allegation made it into a September 2002 white paper that the White House issued.
The U.S. military has found no evidence of such a facility.
1/31/03
Question: Do you believe that there is a link between Saddam Hussein, a direct link, and the men who attacked on September the 11th?
THE PRESIDENT: I can't make that claim.
MATTHEWS: You believe there's still a possibility that the Iraqi government had something to do with planning the attack on us, 9/11?
RUMSFELD: Not to my knowledge. HARDBALL, 4/29/04
Secretary of State Colin L. Powell, appearing on NBC's "Meet the Press," said he had "seen nothing that makes a direct connection between Saddam Hussein and that awful regime and what happened on 9/11." LINK
One of the wingnuts even claimed that the 9-11 Report found a connection. I have the PDF version of the report and here are all the relevant mentions of Saddam and Osama:
Moreover, Bin Ladin had in fact been sponsoring anti-Saddam Islamists in Iraqi Kurdistan, and sought to attract them into his Islamic army.[53] page 66
There is also evidence that around this time Bin Ladin sent out a number of feelers to the Iraqi regime, offering some cooperation. None are reported to have received a significant response. According to one report, Saddam Hussein’s efforts at this time to rebuild relations with the Saudis and other Middle Eastern regimes led him to stay clear of Bin Ladin.[74 ] page 66
Arguing that the case for links between Iraq and al Qaeda was weak, the memo pointed out that Bin Ladin resented the secularism of Saddam Hussein’s regime. Finally, the memo said, there was no confirmed reporting on Saddam cooperating with Bin Ladin on unconventional weapons.[62] page 334
Salman Pak is another wingnut meme that's still around. Supposedly, Al-Queda trained there with Saddam's permission. Once again, there is no evidence to back this up:
Doubts cast on efforts to link Saddam, al-Qaida
By Warren P. Strobel, Jonathan S. Landay and John Walcott
Posted on Tue, Mar. 02, 2004
- Iraqi defectors alleged that Saddam's regime was helping to train Iraqi and non-Iraqi Arab terrorists at a site called Salman Pak, south of Baghdad. The allegation made it into a September 2002 white paper that the White House issued.
The U.S. military has found no evidence of such a facility.
Sunday, September 25, 2005
SEN. JEFF SESSIONS (R - HATE, SMEARS & LIES)
Hundreds rally in D.C. for U.S. troops
Sep 25, 5:20 PM EDT
By ELISABETH GOODRIDGE
Associated Press Writer
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Support for U.S. troops fighting abroad mixed with anger toward anti-war demonstrators at home as hundreds of people, far fewer than organizers had expected, rallied Sunday on the National Mall just a day after tens of thousands protested against the war in Iraq.
About 400 people gathered near a stage on an eastern segment of the mall, a large patchwork American flag serving as a backdrop. Amid banners and signs proclaiming support for U.S. troops, several speakers hailed the effort to bring democracy to Iraq and Afghanistan and denounced those who protest it.
"The group who spoke here the other day did not represent the American ideals of freedom, liberty and spreading that around the world," Sen. Jeff Sessions, an Alabama Republican, told the crowd. "I frankly don't know what they represent, other than to blame America first."
Sep 25, 5:20 PM EDT
By ELISABETH GOODRIDGE
Associated Press Writer
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Support for U.S. troops fighting abroad mixed with anger toward anti-war demonstrators at home as hundreds of people, far fewer than organizers had expected, rallied Sunday on the National Mall just a day after tens of thousands protested against the war in Iraq.
About 400 people gathered near a stage on an eastern segment of the mall, a large patchwork American flag serving as a backdrop. Amid banners and signs proclaiming support for U.S. troops, several speakers hailed the effort to bring democracy to Iraq and Afghanistan and denounced those who protest it.
"The group who spoke here the other day did not represent the American ideals of freedom, liberty and spreading that around the world," Sen. Jeff Sessions, an Alabama Republican, told the crowd. "I frankly don't know what they represent, other than to blame America first."
IS A TAX RESTORATION POSSIBLE?
Perhaps the GAO is trying to tell Bush something:
GAO Says Tax Cuts Aren't Economically Viable
By David Lawder, Reuters
WASHINGTON (Sept. 22) - Tax breaks such as deductions for home mortgage interest and state and local taxes cost the federal government $728 billion last year and need to be reexamined, the Government Accountability Office said in a new report on Friday.
Comptroller General David Walker, who heads the agency, said the government must look at ways to rein in the growth of so-called tax expenditures if it is to avoid huge fiscal deficit problems in future years.
"We're on an imprudent, unsustainable fiscal path," Walker told a news conference. "The status quo is not an option and we're not going to grow our way out of this problem and the sooner we get started the better."
Earlier this year, the Center for Budget and Policy Priorities chimed in:
The new CBO data show that changes in law enacted since January 2001 increased the deficit by $504 billion in 2005. In the absence of such legislation, the nation would have a surplus this year. Tax cuts account for practically half - 49 percent - of this $504 billion in increased costs. Increases in program spending make up the other 51 percent and have been primarily concentrated in defense, homeland security, and international affairs.
A growing number of studies from highly respected institutions and economists have concluded that the negative effect on long-term growth of the increased deficits that the tax cuts are generating is likely to cancel out - and quite possibly to outweigh - any positive effects on long-term growth from reductions in marginal tax rates and other tax incentives in the 2001 and 2003 tax-cut packages. Stated simply, the tax cuts are more likely to reduce long-term growth than to increase it.
GAO Says Tax Cuts Aren't Economically Viable
By David Lawder, Reuters
WASHINGTON (Sept. 22) - Tax breaks such as deductions for home mortgage interest and state and local taxes cost the federal government $728 billion last year and need to be reexamined, the Government Accountability Office said in a new report on Friday.
Comptroller General David Walker, who heads the agency, said the government must look at ways to rein in the growth of so-called tax expenditures if it is to avoid huge fiscal deficit problems in future years.
"We're on an imprudent, unsustainable fiscal path," Walker told a news conference. "The status quo is not an option and we're not going to grow our way out of this problem and the sooner we get started the better."
Earlier this year, the Center for Budget and Policy Priorities chimed in:
The new CBO data show that changes in law enacted since January 2001 increased the deficit by $504 billion in 2005. In the absence of such legislation, the nation would have a surplus this year. Tax cuts account for practically half - 49 percent - of this $504 billion in increased costs. Increases in program spending make up the other 51 percent and have been primarily concentrated in defense, homeland security, and international affairs.
A growing number of studies from highly respected institutions and economists have concluded that the negative effect on long-term growth of the increased deficits that the tax cuts are generating is likely to cancel out - and quite possibly to outweigh - any positive effects on long-term growth from reductions in marginal tax rates and other tax incentives in the 2001 and 2003 tax-cut packages. Stated simply, the tax cuts are more likely to reduce long-term growth than to increase it.
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