Oh, And Libby KNEW Plame Was Covert
Who here was whining about her not being covert? You can shut the fuck up now. One of the reporters at the center of the investigation into the leak of the identity of an undercover CIA officer, says he first learned the agent's name from President Bush's top political advisor, Karl Rove. Time magazine reporter Matt Cooper also said today in an interview with "Good Morning America," that the vice president's chief of staff, I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby, confirmed to him that Ambassador Joseph Wilson's wife, Valerie Plame, was a covert CIA operative. (PS: Did you miss the 60 Minutes report yesterday? Check it out.)
Halloween is Winding Down
...and as the bowl is still more than half full of candy, some teenager that decides to stop by at 9:00 to pick up the dregs will get a friggin' pillowcase full. So I wandered through the various blogs and I'm sure it will shock the fuck out of everyone that this new supreme court nominee is not the kind of fellow I want on the bench. Of course, now that the bitter taste of Harriet Miers has been washed out of their mouths, Republicans are quick to go back to the old "up-or-down" vote crap: GOP lawmakers sounded relieved to be rid of the Miers appointment, which collapsed last week after it became clear she faced an uphill climb in winning confirmation.
"Let's give Judge Alito a fair up-or-down vote, not left or right," said Sen. John Thune, R-S.D. He was one of several Republicans to say so, and there was irony in that. After battering Democrats for years about denying GOP judicial candidates yes-or-no votes, Republicans eagerly acquiesced in Miers' withdrawal without either hearings in the Judiciary Committee or a vote on the Senate floor. What really bothers me about this guy (based only on what I have read about him so far, I'm sure there are plenty of other things I won't be too pleased to find out about) is his dissention in the case of Planned Parenthood v. Casey, where the court struck down a provision requiring a woman notify her husband before obtaining an abortion. In a perfect world, every couple would work together to plan their family at the best time of their lives together. But we all know we do not live in a perfect world. Spousal rape occurs, probably more often than anyone would realize. One statistic I found stated that one in seven married women has been sexually assaulted by a husband or ex-husband. I don't think it would be a stretch to assume that at least a FEW of those marriages are unhappy ones, and it's probably not going out on a limb to think that some of these marriages include regular physical violence. So imagine you're a battered wife. You have to use very specific, yellow-based makeup to best hide the bruises so no one suspects anything. You live in fear of the next thing that sets him off and wonder if one day he'll just go too far and kill you. You make plans to get out of the relationship, but you haven't gotten the strength to do it yet. Then you learn your pregnant. You don't want to bring an innocent baby into this kind of household, but - oh shit! - YOU AREN'T ALLOWED TO GET AN ABORTION UNLESS YOU TELL THAT FUCKER OF A HUSBAND OF YOURS. 'Nuff said. (PS: yep, I was right, the company that runs that pre-school made it a rule that kids shouldn't wear costumes to school because it could hurt someone's feelings or something. Whattotheever.)
HAPPY HALLOWEEN!
The internet's all a-buzz about the new nominee for Supreme Court justice. I haven't had an opportunity to read a lot about this person, but it doesn't look like someone Bush WOULDN'T nominate, which typically means it sucks for Democrats and liberal-thinkers. Unfortunately, I do not have time to do a lot of posting. Kid Bastard and I discovered that our daughter was NOT supposed to wear her little fairy costume to school today. Fuckin' commies. I don't know the reason yet, but it will probably be some dumbass reason like "we have Jehovah Witnesses in the school and we don't want them to feel bad about not having a costume." Like it's my kid's fault. I'll find out and let ya know later. I'm going to go pick her up early and take her to my mom's house to make Halloween treats where she can wear her costume with impunity. Anywho, Kid Bastard went to work as Arthur Dent, although I thought he should have used a smaller, white towel instead of the large green bathtowel, but otherwise he looked just like the recent movie version. Maybe next time I will think ahead and make a Trillian costume. So, Happy Halloween, everyone. I'll check in later, so for now - open thread!
Oil Companies Swimming In Profits
Despite the fact that there is a complete moron in my Deviant Behavior class that thinks that the oil companies took a hit during Katrina, thinks are looking mighty pretty for them. Shell beats forecasts with record profitRoyal Dutch Shell Plc (RDSa.L) reported a record third-quarter profit on Thursday, beating analysts' forecasts as surging oil prices outweighed losses from hurricanes which stalled production in the Gulf of Mexico.
The world's third-largest listed oil firm by market capitalization said its current cost of supply (CCS) net profit, which strips out gains from rises in the value of fuel inventories, rose 68 percent to $7.369 billion. Exxon Mobil profit leaps on oil pricesExxon Mobil Corp. (NYSE:XOM - news) on Thursday posted a quarterly profit of $9.9 billion, its biggest ever and one of the largest in U.S. corporate history, as it raked in a bonanza from soaring oil and gas prices.
While Exxon's quarterly profit was up 75 percent from a year earlier, and revenue rose 32 percent to more than $100 billion, the results fell short of Wall Street forecasts due to production outages caused by the hurricanes and sharply lower profit at the company's chemicals division. Aww, 75% more than last year JUST ISN'T ENOUGH PROFIT! MORE MORE MORE!!! YOU WILL PAY MORE SO FAT CATS GET FATTER!!!
It's Funny What Some People Aren't Getting
First, everyone should watch the press conference Fitz held yesterday afternoon, because it might help some people grasp just how big this is. I'm reading a lot (between here and other sites) that people are trying to make this seems like no big deal, whatever, he's not guilty until a jury says he is, blah blah blah. Fitz used a baseball analogy, I'll use a car accident analogy. A woman has been hit by a car with several people in it. An investigation is launched to find out what the circumstances of the accident were. While trying to get the details, one of the witnesses is not being forthcoming, and what he says does not match the factual evidence. Investigator has had enough of him jerking them around and committing crimes by lying, and charges him with obstruction of justice, perjury, and making fasle statements. That doesn't mean that the investigation into the accident will not continue. It doesn't stop with Libby. Libby was a clown, dancing around beeping his red nose, trying to distract attention from what really happened. Now that he's been charged with his crimes, he's out of the way and the investigation can continue to delve deeper for the facts. Now, logically, if those in the White House had done nothing wrong, and outing Valerie Plame was not their fault, there would have been no reason for Libby to lie to the grand jury (remember, doing what he is accused of doing is a felony). What would have to be at stake for YOU to sit, under oath, in front of a large audience of people in a federal courtroom, and lie? No, seriously, have you ever been in a courtroom and had to testify? A federal courtroom? Just stop and try and imagine being involved in something so big that you went into that courtroom and lied to everyone there. Must be some serious shit. I know even if my very life was in danger, or the lives of my family were in danger, I would have to take some serious acting lessons to go in and lie, because the pressure would be INTENSE. Or it might be that lying just comes naturally, and they don't think twice about it. Either way, it's not good for America.
Where Are The Right-Wingers?
I'd like to know what they REALLY think of the five counts brought against Scooter Libby, the first White House official to be indicted in 130 years? (Not to mention the ongoing investigation into Rove.) I do believe one of you conceded that Patrick Fitzgerald was a really good prosecutor and would acknowledge any action taken by him as being pretty significant...
Real Time Blogging...
12:02pm by my computer: Bush just got off AF1. Wow, that was exciting. 12:04pm: CNN is just kind of yapping while they wait for the papers, but it seems like everyone is waiting with baited breath. 12:07pm: They are just talking about the ramifications of either perjury or making false statements. Both are punishable by fine and/or imprisonment of up to 5 years. 12:12pm: Dammit this is dragging on. Lots of talking heads just speculating. Geez, they just showed 6 people on 6 different cameras waiting to talk to Wolf Blitzer. How many do they need for this? 12:16pm: Wolf finally brought up how this all could ties in to going to war with Iraq. 12:17pm: By the way, did you hear that George Takai is gay? Yeah, we didn't know it either, but we're not really shocked. Gratz for coming out, Sulu! 12:21pm: I hate it when things do not happen as scheduled. I have other things I could be doing right now. Damn, I am really impatient today. COME ON! I want the news here!!! 12:23pm: Bob Franken reports things are moving forward and the documents should be released very shortly. 12:24pm: AmericaBlog reports that the Plame/Wilson lawyer will be conducting a press conference at 3:00pm. 12:29pm: COME ON! Bust out the paperwork, people!!! 12:32pm: Tension is reportedly very high at the White House. Gee, ya think? 12:33pm: Scooter Libby is expected to hand in his resignation if he is indeed indicted. 12:35pm: I'm sorry, by why is that woman using the name "Candy Crowley"? I don't think that was a wise choice. 12:37pm: Bob Franken reports the official "handing up" of the indictments. Magistrate is in the courtroom receiving the indictments from the Grand Jury right now. 12:40pm: Kathleen Koch is reporting that the information was not given publically, and reporters are lined up outside to receive them. 12:42pm: OFFICIAL WORD: LIBBY IS BEING INDICTED - obstruction of justice (1 count), perjury (2 counts) and making false statements (2 counts). Discuss amongst yourselves!
12:00 & 2:00 - the Times To Check In!
Apparently noon is when we will get an announcement by the Justice Department "regarding the status of the special counsel's criminal investigation" and there will be a 2:00pm press conference.
Damn this chair and it's short seat!!!
BREAKING NEWS: Interesting Development in Fitztown!
Aide to Cheney Appears Likely to Be Indicted; Rove Under ScrutinyAssociates of I. Lewis Libby Jr., Vice President Dick Cheney's chief of staff, expected an indictment on Friday charging him with making false statements to the grand jury in the C.I.A. leak inquiry, lawyers in the case said Thursday.
Karl Rove, President Bush's senior adviser and deputy chief of staff, would not be charged on Friday, but would remain under investigation, people briefed officially about the case said. As a result, they said, the special counsel in the case, Patrick J. Fitzgerald, was likely to extend the term of the federal grand jury beyond its scheduled expiration on Friday.
As rumors coursed through the capital, Mr. Fitzgerald gave no public signal of how he intended to proceed, further intensifying the anxiety that has gripped the White House and left partisans on both sides of the political aisle holding their breath. So tomorrow seems like the big reveal - he's either the worlds best showman next to P.T. Barnum, or a whole lotta people on both sides of the aisle will have held their breaths for nothing!
I'm Just Here To Push A Few Buttons...
I know I am going to get SOOOO much shit for posting this, but quite frankly, I feel the need to shake things up a bit. I am such teh evul! Powerful Government Accounting Office report confirms key 2004 stolen election findingsLarge snippet: Among other things, the GAO confirms that:
1. Some electronic voting machines "did not encrypt cast ballots or system audit logs, and it was possible to alter both without being detected." In other words, the GAO now confirms that electronic voting machines provided an open door to flip an entire vote count. More than 800,000 votes were cast in Ohio on electronic voting machines, some seven times Bush's official margin of victory.
2. "It was possible to alter the files that define how a ballot looks and works so that the votes for one candidate could be recorded for a different candidate." Numerous sworn statements and affidavits assert that this did happen in Ohio 2004.
3. "Vendors installed uncertified versions of voting system software at the local level." 3. Falsifying election results without leaving any evidence of such an action by using altered memory cards can easily be done, according to the GAO.
4. The GAO also confirms that access to the voting network was easily compromised because not all digital recording electronic voting systems (DREs) had supervisory functions password-protected, so access to one machine provided access to the whole network. This critical finding confirms that rigging the 2004 vote did not require a "widespread conspiracy" but rather the cooperation of a very small number of operatives with the power to tap into the networked machines and thus change large numbers of votes at will. With 800,000 votes cast on electronic machines in Ohio, flipping the number needed to give Bush 118,775 could be easily done by just one programmer.
5. Access to the voting network was also compromised by repeated use of the same user IDs combined with easily guessed passwords. So even relatively amateur hackers could have gained access to and altered the Ohio vote tallies.
6. The locks protecting access to the system were easily picked and keys were simple to copy, meaning, again, getting into the system was an easy matter.
7. One DRE model was shown to have been networked in such a rudimentary fashion that a power failure on one machine would cause the entire network to fail, re-emphasizing the fragility of the system on which the Presidency of the United States was decided.
8. GAO identified further problems with the security protocols and background screening practices for vendor personnel, confirming still more easy access to the system.
In essence, the GAO study makes it clear that no bank, grocery store or mom & pop chop shop would dare operate its business on a computer system as flimsy, fragile and easily manipulated as the one on which the 2004 election turned. Thx Stonecleft!
Rove's Mistress Leaves Him For Dude Name 'Rhett Hard'
Tom Noe's Been Indicted in Bush Money Laundering Case
Yeah, these are good, ethical, upstanding citizens. Can we vote for them all again? PLEASE???
A federal grand jury has indicted Tom Noe, the former Maumee coin dealer suspected of laundering money into President Bush’s reelection campaign, Mr. Noe’s attorney told The Blade today.
Jon Richardson said he was called this afternoon and informed of the indictment. The details of the indictment are being withheld until a press conference at 4:30 p.m.
Mr. Richardson said there were no negotiations between Mr. Noe and prosecutors.
Thursday Early PM Update
I'm sure you all know by now that Harriet's withdrawn herself from being a candidate for the Supreme Court. Why Bush chose her and made himself look even more weak than he is, I won't pretend to know... Also, news on the street is that Fitz won't be announcing anything today (there's talk of tomorrow), but that's okay, I am a patient girl. I get the funny feeling that Fitz is creating the most airtighht case possible, and might even be extending this as long as possible to make those involved nervous as hell. Of course, the biggest news of the day is that pot is not a major cancer risk. Okay, maybe it's not the biggest news. Perhaps even no news at all to those who've taken the time to learn about marijuana. But it's still news :P That's about all for now - back later!
Time For Spider
I was going to post something, but Wednesdays are long days for me and I'm tired, so I am just going to curl up in my wonderfully comfy bed (put the down comforter back in the duvet, so my bed is just luscious now!) and read some more Transmetropolitan. What? I haven't extolled the virtues of Transmet enough? Well, here's a glimpse:  And here's Wikipedia's summation, which is pretty spot on: Transmetropolitan is a postcyberpunk comic book series written by Warren Ellis with art by Darick Robertson. It concerned the battles of Spider Jerusalem, infamous renegade gonzo journalist of the future. Jerusalem dedicates himself to fighting the corruption and abuse of power of two successive United States presidents; he and his assistants strive to keep their world from turning more dystopian than it already is...
...In addition, a campaign poster for the Smiler [the president in Spider's world] has the heading "there ought to be limits to freedom", a direct quote from George W. Bush. Bush made the remark during the 2000 presidential race, in response to a website parodying his campaign.
Spider is my hero and Warren Ellis is a GOD. So if you enjoy a good president-bashing and would like to transfer your feelings about the Bush administration into a really well-written comic book, do yourself the IMMENSE favor of purchasing Volume One. I see Amazon currently has plenty of copies for under $10 (I see "Like New" copies for $4.86!). Chances are you will thank me for the recommendation and end up with the entire collection. Mine are actually starting to wear out... (Disclaimer: Transmet contains foul words, MASSIVE amounts of drug references, and comic book boobies so it is probably not for children.) Later!
This Guy ROCKS.
I'm reading this guy very day. I don't care if he never writes anything good again. We live in a world full of insane people. Sanity is an island battered in an ocean of frothing delusion. The people who believe in science are the minority. The people who believe in bloody fairytales are the overwhelming majority. George W. Bush is the most powerful man alive. He is a class A imbecile. He is far less intelligent than the average Christian. But like most of the others, he believes Jesus died for his sins. That idea is so perverse and devoid of logic it should shock the conscience. Instead, it gets him elected, and earns him the reverence of a great percentage of America. America! The most advanced country in the world -- run by a bunch of villagers who still believe Santa Claus is going to save them. There is no damn Easter Bunny. There is no Jesus waiting to return. Moses never even existed. These were all convenient lies from the men of those times to gain power. Their actions were rational -- they wanted to deceive their brethren so that they could amass power. I get their motivations. But I cannot, for the life of me, understand our motivations, thousands of years later, still following the conmen of yesteryear into our gory, bloody, violent end...
As Expected, Things Moving Along
No new news here, but Fitz reconvened with the Grand Jury to finalize the process today... Special Counsel Patrick Fitzgerald met Wednesday with the grand jury investigating the leak of a CIA officer's identity, putting the finishing touches on a two-year criminal probe that has ensnared two senior White House aides.
Fitzgerald and the grand jurors entered the courthouse around 9 a.m. EDT, with just three days left before the jury's term is set to expire. Away from the jury, FBI agents conducted a handful of last-minute interviews to check facts key to the case...
A Justice Department official, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the secrecy of the grand jury probe, said no announcement was expected Wednesday by Fitzgerald. And the White House is on edge. So are we! (I think I hear the drum roll off in the distance...)
Heads Up! Fitzmas is Upon Us!
Settle in for the newest liberal porn! Washington Note scoops: An uber-insider source has just reported the following to TWN (since confirmed by another independent source): 1. 1-5 indictments are being issued. The source feels that it will be towards the higher end. 2. The targets of indictment have already received their letters. 3. The indictments will be sealed indictments and "filed" tomorrow. 4. A press conference is being scheduled for Thursday.
US Troop Death Toll Hits 2K
Yep, 2,000 dead since March 2003. Why are we there again? WMDs? Nope. Quashing terrorists? Oh yeah, that's been in it's last throes since March. Bringing freedom? Well, based on the " oddities" of the latest election, that doesn't seem to be working out so well either. I won't say anything all tear-jerky or heart-wrenching 'cuz it's not really my style, but if you feel like paying some respects, check this out.
The Onion Gets Crap From Bush Staffers
My god this is asinine. You might have thought that the White House had enough on its plate late last month, what with its search for a new Supreme Court nominee, the continuing war in Iraq and the C.I.A. leak investigation. But it found time to add another item to its agenda - stopping The Onion, the satirical newspaper, from using the presidential seal. The newspaper regularly produces a parody of President Bush's weekly radio address on its Web site, where it has a picture of President Bush and the official insignia. "It has come to my attention that The Onion is using the presidential seal on its Web site," Grant M. Dixton, associate counsel to the president, wrote to The Onion on Sept. 28. (At the time, Mr. Dixton's office was also helping Mr. Bush find a Supreme Court nominee; days later his boss, Harriet E. Miers, was nominated.)...
O.K. But just between us, Mr. Duffy, how did they find out about it? "Despite the seriousness of the Bush White House, more than one Bush staffer reads The Onion and enjoys it thoroughly," he said. "We do have a sense of humor, believe it or not."
No you don't, you fucking dork, or you wouldn't be making any big deal out of this. You know it's satire and yet you want to be an asshole about it? No, sorry, you have no sense of humor.
Cheney Told Aide About Plame, Who Got It From TENET
Well, well, well. Interesting how there's been such disparity among what's been told to reporters, what's been told to Patrick Fitzgerald, and what the real truth is. Every day we scratch a little further into the mucky buildup that's currently covering the great White House and learn just a little more about the slimeballs that occupy it. I. Lewis Libby Jr., Vice President Dick Cheney’s chief of staff, first learned about the C.I.A. officer at the heart of the leak investigation in a conversation with Mr. Cheney weeks before her identity became public in 2003, lawyers involved in the case said Monday.
Notes of the previously undisclosed conversation between Mr. Libby and Mr. Cheney on June 12, 2003, appear to differ from Mr. Libby’s testimony to a federal grand jury that he initially learned about the C.I.A. officer, Valerie Wilson, from journalists, the lawyers said. The notes, taken by Mr. Libby during the conversation, for the first time place Mr. Cheney in the middle of an effort by the White House to learn about Ms. Wilson’s husband, Joseph C. Wilson IV, who was questioning the administration’s handling of intelligence about Iraq’s nuclear program to justify the war. Lawyers said the notes show that Mr. Cheney knew that Ms. Wilson worked at the C.I.A. more than a month before her identity was made public and her undercover status was disclosed in a syndicated column by Robert D. Novak on July 14, 2003. Mr. Libby’s notes indicate that Mr. Cheney had gotten his information about Ms. Wilson from George J. Tenet, the director of central intelligence, in response to questions from the vice president about Mr. Wilson...
Quick and Dirty Monday AM Update
I've got my new program starting this morning, so this will be fast... It's beginning to look a lot like Fitzmas! The blogosphere is a-flutter with antici...PATION (go ahead and source that reference) as Patrick Fitzgerald gears up to bring the smackdown to White House staff. Apparently it's never been discussed as fact before, but Robert TheHack DID actually flip early on: A critical early success for Fitzgerald was winning the cooperation of Robert D. Novak, the Chicago Sun-Times columnist who named Plame in a July 2003 story and attributed key information to "two senior administration officials." Legal sources said Novak avoided a fight and quietly helped the special counsel's inquiry, although neither the columnist nor his attorney have said so publicly. All signs point to Fitzgerald opening his can of whoop-ass this week: After a 22-month inquiry, the special counsel in the C.I.A. leak case, Patrick J. Fitzgerald, is expected to announce this week whether he will seek indictments against White House officials, a decision that is likely to be a defining moment of President Bush's second term.
Karl Rove, the senior White House adviser, and I. Lewis Libby Jr., who is Vice President Dick Cheney's chief of staff, have been advised that they are in serious legal jeopardy in a case that began as a minor irritant for the president's aides but has grown into a raging conflagration for the White House. Of course, you'll always have your band of staunch fucktar... I mean, supporters, who are either bucking for some serious favors or are wearing Jackie-O sized rose-colored glasses. First there's FOX News, who thinks they are actually a news network, but are simply a group of faux-celebrities, pushing the "criminalization of politics" talking point (from Think Progress, vid clips available through link): In other words, they say, the outing of a covert CIA agent in a time of war to punish a whistleblower is just everyday “politics” — nothing out of the ordinary, certainly nothing criminal. In fact, according to conservatives (as articulated by the National Review), the “criminalizing of politics” is actually “the most dangerous fire of this ordeal.”
To spread this talking point across the nation, the right has received a major assist from Fox News. According to a database search, every single television reference to the CIA leak scandal as the “criminalization of politics” in the last 30 days has been on Fox. Even more stunning: on every occassion, the phrase was introduced into the segment by a Fox News anchor or correspondent, never by a guest. Again, if there's anyone out there that actually goes to FOX for their news, they should throw themselves down a flight of stairs. Lastly, there's Kay Bailey Hutchinson, R-TX, who is spinning the latest talking point about the impending leak issues. According to this New York Times article, Republicans are testing several ways to spin this to help ease the public into the knowledge that they'd MAJORLY FUCKED THE COUNTRY BY VOTING FOR THESE BASTARDS LAST YEAR (insert a firm slap to the back of the head if you were one of the sheeple who did it). Ms. Hutchison said she hoped "that if there is going to be an indictment that says something happened, that it is an indictment on a crime and not some perjury technicality where they couldn't indict on the crime and so they go to something just to show that their two years of investigation was not a waste of time and taxpayer dollars." President Bush said several weeks ago that Mr. Fitzgerald had handled the case in "a very dignified way," making it more difficult for Republicans to portray him negatively. But allies of the White House have quietly been circulating talking points in recent days among Republicans sympathetic to the administration, seeking to help them make the case that bringing charges like perjury mean the prosecutor does not have a strong case, one Republican with close ties to the White House said Sunday. Other people sympathetic to Mr. Rove and Mr. Libby have said that indicting them would amount to criminalizing politics and that Mr. Fitzgerald did not understand how Washington works. (BTW, Kay, perjury charges can lead to 5 years in prison, which is a fuckload more than anyone got for the $50 million dress Ken Starr paid for, you little twit.) Okay, I am off to class - discuss amongst yourselves, and I'll check in later!
Texas Overpaid Miers for Small Bit of Land
By ten times the worth of the land. Must be nice to have friends in high places.
Texas officials paid Supreme Court nominee Harriet Miers' family more than $100,000 for a small piece of land in 2000 — 10 times the land's worth — despite the state's objections to the way the price was determined, Knight Ridder Newspapers reported Saturday.
The three-member committee that determined the price included Peggy Lundy, a friend of Miers, and property-rights activist Cathie Adams, Knight Ridder reported. They were appointed to the panel by state District Judge David Evans, who had received at least $5,000 in campaign contributions from Miers' law firm.
Bush Tweaks Parents of Kindergarteners
NJ Has Homes For Gulf Victims - And FEMA is STILL Screwing It Up!
Perth Amboy, New Jersey has 100 homes available - rent free for a year - to people who were displaced due to the storms in the gulf, yet only 15 are occupied. Vas, a Democrat, says FEMA has ignored the city’s offer. He says they’ve been aggressively trying to get in touch with FEMA on a daily basis, since mid-September. He says many residents want to help, because this is a working-class town of 50,000, with many immigrants receiving assistance themselves...
Today, FEMA officials told NBC News they’re aware of Perth Amboy’s housing, but said they're only being offered to evacuees already in New Jersey, not families in other states. In a follow up e-mail, FEMA told us they’ll discuss this next week at a meeting on “cross-border housing opportunities.” “I think the problem here is that there’s a management breakdown,” says Vas. Homes just sitting available for homeless people. FEMA, you fucking rot.
Judy Miller: Just Another Shill
I've been avoiding posting too much about Judy Miller, since things seem to change daily, but I thought I'd throw this out there to give you a little update on Miss $1.2 Million Bookdeal (via AmericaBlog): NYT editor: Judy misled us
She's toast.The New York Times' Judith Miller belatedly gave prosecutors her notes of a key meeting in the CIA leak probe only after being shown White House records of it, and her boss declared Friday she appeared to have misled the newspaper about her role.
In a dramatic e-mail, Executive Editor Bill Keller wrote Times' employees he wished he'd more carefully interviewed Miller and had "missed what should have been significant alarm bells" that she had been the recipient of leaked information about the CIA officer at the heart of the case.
"Judy seems to have misled (Times Washington bureau chief) Phil Taubman about the extent of her involvement," Keller wrote in what he described as a lessons-learned e-mail. "This alone should have been enough to make me probe deeper."
Keller said he might have been more willing to compromise with Special Counsel Patrick Fitzgerald "if I had known the details of Judy's entanglement" with Vice President Dick Cheney's chief of staff, I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby. Oh I can't wait for Fitz to do his thing. You KNOW people aren't going to get away with all this now.
Someone Slap These Two Little Idiots
I saw some news show trying to hook me in about these two sometime last ngiht, but I didn't bite. Then I surfed over to Smirking Cynic and clicked through Nicho's links.  These have got to be the DUMBEST two girls I've ever heard of. The first thing you need to know about them is that they are being considered the new MaryKate and Ashley. The twist is that they are singers and they sing about white supremacy. Second, their names are LAMB and LYNX. 'Nuff said there. Third, this is a quote from the article: "We're proud of being white, we want to keep being white," said Lynx. "We want our people to stay white … we don't want to just be, you know, a big muddle. We just want to preserve our race." Hey, dumbasses! Would you like to explain how you would suddenly NOT be white anymore? Do people suddenly wake up more tan than the day before? Preserve your race? Oh grow the fuck up. Oh, and this was real special: Songs like "Sacrifice" — a tribute to Nazi Rudolf Hess, Hitler's deputy Fuhrer — clearly show the effect of the girls' upbringing. The lyrics praise Hess as a "man of peace who wouldn't give up." You dumb idiots. Go write your stupid songs and be beloved by ignorant hate-mongers. I wonder if someday a little lightbulb will go over one of their heads and they realize just how much utter crap they've contributed to society.
Brownie Ignored Pleas For Help
BECAUSE HE WAS AN INCOMPETANT CRONY WHO ACCEPTED THE RESPONSIBILITY THAT COMES WITH AN IMPORTANT JOB AND FUCKED IT UP LIKE NOBODY'S BUSINESS. And the guy who should have yanked him out of that position and made sure things got taken care of? Yeah, that would be Bush. But we all know he's just as big a boob as Brownie is, so those poor people in New Orleans were just fucked either way. FEMA official in New Orleans blasts agency's response
Regional director said top officials ignored his pleas for help
In the midst of the chaos that followed Hurricane Katrina, a Federal Emergency Management Agency official in New Orleans sent a dire e-mail to Director Michael Brown saying victims had no food and were dying.
No response came from Brown.
Instead, less than three hours later, an aide to Brown sent an e-mail saying her boss wanted to go on a television program that night -- after needing at least an hour to eat dinner at a Baton Rouge, Louisiana, restaurant. Jackass.
Saddam Attorney Kidnapped and US Tries to Quiet Down Taliban Body Burning
Quick update before I go eat. Man I am HUNGRY! Sat in front of the computer all day and forgot to have some food. No wonder I was getting cranky... Anyway, one of Saddam Hussein's attorneys has been kidnapped: A lawyer for one of Saddam Hussein's co-defendants was kidnapped on Thursday, a day after his client sat in the dock next to the former president on the opening day of their trial for crimes against humanity. Saadoun Janabi is defense counsel for former judge Jawad al-Bander, a senior legal source involved in the trial said. "(He) was kidnapped this evening around 8:30 p.m. (1730 GMT) from his office, which is also his home, in the Shaab district by eight armed men," the source said. Police and Interior Ministry sources confirmed the kidnapping. There was no immediate claim of responsibility.
Also, The US is trying to keep this one under wraps:
The United States on Thursday tried to limit damage from television images appearing to show U.S. soldiers burning the corpses of two Taliban fighters in Afghanistan and using the incident for propaganda.
U.S. embassies around the world were told to explain that what people saw in the tape shown on an Australian television report did not reflect the actions of most of the U.S. military or of U.S. values overall, the State Department said.
"I saw the news reports and the video myself. These are very difficult images to see," said State Department spokesman Sean McCormack, but he insisted they should be seen as isolated incidents.
Muslim-American groups feared the incident could worsen anti-American sentiments in Muslim countries where many people perceive the United States as being culturally insensitive.
The television report said U.S. soldiers said they burned the bodies for hygienic reasons - an act which could be expected to deeply upset Muslims, whose faith prohibits cremation and demands respect for the dead...
After the burning, according to the TV report, a U.S. psychological operations unit broadcast a propaganda message on loudspeakers to a nearby village thought to harbor Taliban fighters, taunting them to retrieve their dead and fight.
The U.S. military has said Army criminal investigators were looking into the incident and that if wrongdoing was identified, the perpetrators would be prosecuted under U.S. military law. Oh yes, I am very certain they will come down on the scapego...I mean offenders.
Sorry About The Slow Day
I know everyone's looking for updates, and I apologize - been working on my term paper all day. I promise to get news up a little later, so keep checkin back :)
Delay's Mug Shot
Brought to us by none other than the Smoking Gun. Look, he's a happy camper!
Republicans Keeping The Little Guy Down
Ahh capitalism! Keep labor costs down so I can reap the rewards of a higher profit margin. Fuck the middle class, they're on their way out anyway. - Overheard from nearly every Republican bastard. Yellow Dog brings us this latest example of Republican love: Just as they did earlier this year, Senate Republicans today shot down another attempt by Democrats to raise the federal minimum wage. Senator Ted Kennedy (D-MA) once again sponsored the measure that would have raised the minimum allowable wage rate to $6.25 over an 18-month period. The minimum wage has been at $5.15 per hour since 1997.
Kennedy's amendment, which was attached to an appropriations bill, failed by a vote of 51-47, with all Democrats on the Senate floor voting for the increase and all but four Republicans voting against it.
Kennedy had tried to push through the bill (S.AMDT.2063) as a compromise to another wage hike that Republicans defeated earlier this year.
"This is a modification of our amendment which was to raise the minimum wage to $7.25," said Kennedy when arguing for his amendment on Tuesday. "It seemed to me that in an attempt to try to find some common ground with our friends on the other side, we would modify this amendment to reflect what had been the position of the Republican side the last time we had the debate on the increase in the minimum wage and that was $1.10."
More at the Dog's House.
Delay's Arrest Warrant Online
Like you thought that would take long? Here it is, via AmericaBlog. You know Smoking Gun will have the mugshot. I'll just troll until they have it ;p
I Heart Keith Olbermann!
I thought Jon Stewart had lost his friggin' mind having Bill O'Reilly on the Daily Show last night. What a pompous mutherfucker O'Reilly is. I would have preferred actual fisticuffs, but Jon did okay ... at one point laughing at him for continuing the ASININE "boycott" of the French. Short aside: how do you actually "boycott" France? Refuse to visit? Refuse to buy anything that has "French" in the name, like French Fries and French dressing? Refuse to French kiss? Stop buying art by dead French artists? Stop buying wine made in France? How about O'Reilly stop being a fucking moron, because boycotting France is fucking MORONIC. But I digress. Keith Olbermann, long NOT a fan of O'Reilly, actually sang "Happy Happy Joy Joy!" and danced around his studio desk tossing papers like confetti after reporting that Newsday (in addition to mentioning it to Jon Stewart) reported his desire to retire after his contract runs out in 2 years. Have you ever seen a grown man dance around singing the "Happy Happy Joy Joy!" song? Oh Keith, I love you so!
$15K Bonus to Re-Listers Gone Bye-Bye
So I have this buddy - a National Guard - who's in Iraq. For some insane reason, he decided to re-up (presumably because his tail is a bit farther from the frontlines than many, or he really is insane). And now I read this: When a bonus isn’t a bonus
The Pentagon has reneged on its offer to pay a $15,000 bonus to members of the National Guard and Army Reserve who agree to extend their enlistments by six years, according to Sen. Patty Murray (D-Seattle).
The bonuses were offered in January to Active Guard and Reserve and military technician soldiers who were serving overseas. In April, the Office of the Secretary of Defense for Reserve Affairs ordered the bonuses stopped, Murray said.
“This is outrageous,” the senator said in a telephone interview. “It makes me angry that this administration has broken another promise to our troops.”
A Pentagon spokeswoman, Lt. Col. Ellen Krenke, confirmed the bonuses had been canceled, saying they violated Pentagon policies because they duplicated other programs. She said Guard and Reserve members would be eligible for other bonuses.
Krenke said some soldiers had been paid the re-enlistment bonuses, but she was unsure how many or whether the money would have to be repaid. Murray’s office said that as far as it knew, no active Guard or Reserve members had received the bonuses. I emailed him to see if this affected him. If we're lucky, maybe he'll weigh in.
Cheney Aide Said to Flip as Rumors of Cheney Resignation Fly
RAW STORY reports that John Hannah, an aide to Dick Cheney on loan from the from the offices of then-Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security Affairs, John Bolton, has apparently flipped like a pancake. They say he was told in recent weeks that he could face imminent indictment for his role in leaking Plame-Wilson’s name to reporters unless he cooperated with the investigation. Others close to the probe say that if Hannah is cooperating with the special prosecutor then he was likely going to be charged as a co-conspirator and may have cut a deal. Oddly enough, rumors started flying that Dick Cheney would resign and the next person in line in good ol' Shoe Shoppin' Condi. Sparked by today's Washington Post story that suggests Vice President Cheney's office is involved in the Plame-CIA spy link investigation, government officials and advisers passed around rumors that the vice president might step aside and that President Bush would elevate Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.
"It's certainly an interesting but I still think highly doubtful scenario," said a Bush insider. "And if that should happen," added the official, "there will undoubtedly be those who believe the whole thing was orchestrated – another brilliant Machiavellian move by the VP." Said another Bush associate of the rumor, "Yes. This is not good." The rumor spread so fast that some Republicans by late morning were already drawing up reasons why Rice couldn't get the job or run for president in 2008. Well, I can certainly see someone more peripheral from the core players turning on the foul core members. Someone probably reminded him that he was a small fish in a big pond and he'd be really cute as a prison bride. As for the rumors about Dick, well, it wouldn't be a big shock if he DID resign. It's pretty obvious his body is collapsing due to the weight of the black heart residing in his chest.
Was the Tularemia Incident a Botched Terrorist Attack?
Ya know, it's odd how some things happen. Today, some "anonymous" dimwit left a comment on my original post about the tuleremia that was found in 6 biosensors the days that protesters were in Washington. Since the "stories" from Sans and others have been forgotten it is obvious that they were false. It is very dangerous to make up stories like this. (Remember, having a discussion is dangerous! DON'T TALK!) Funny how this person left this message the same day that Salon.com has a THREE PAGE ARTICLE about THIS EXACT SUBJECT. For those of you without a Salon subscription, I really do recommend it. Until you get it, here's a few excerpts: Unknown to the crowd, biological-weapons sensors, scattered for miles across Washington by the Department of Homeland Security, were quietly doing their work. The machines are designed to detect killer pathogens. Sometime between 10 a.m. on Sept. 24 and 10 a.m. on Sept. 25, six of those machines sucked in trace amounts of deadly bacteria called Francisella tularensis. The government fears it is one of six biological weapons most likely to be used against the United States. It was an alarming reading. The biological-weapons detection system in Washington had never set off any alarms before. There are more than 150 sensors spread across 30 of the most populated cities in America. But this was the first time that six sensors in any one place had detected a toxin at the same time. The sensors are also located miles from one another, suggesting that the pathogen was airborne and probably not limited to a local environmental source. William Stanhope, associate director for special projects at the St. Louis University School of Public Health's Institute for Biosecurity, has been closely following scattered government and news reports about the incident. He's convinced it was a botched terrorist attack. "I think we were lucky and the terrorists were not good," he says. "I am stunned that this has not been more of a story."
...
"One sensor, I'd say maybe," says biosecurity expert Stanhope of the dust theory. "Two sensors is a stretch. Six sensors? I'm sorry, you don't have enough money to buy enough martinis to make me believe that it is naturally occurring at six different sites. I don't think you could get me that drunk to believe that." Sans Culottes, who first brought this to my attention, hasn't been around recently - Sans, please comment here or email me directly, just want to check in - became very, very ill after his trip to DC (see original post for details). Many more people left comments about their experiences, and I am certain that many more we haven't heard from have also gotten ill after the protest. Luckily, the natural reaction to feeling so ill is to try antibiotics, which is very effective in treating cases of tuleremia. So am I still a crazy conspiracy theorist for posting about such a strange occurance?
AFA "Threatens" Boycott of American Girl
Because American Girl hooked up with a female friendly organization that promotes self-esteem and freedoms! Why does the AFA hate freedom? (Thanks AmericaBlog, for that useful, snarky line.)While I can't afford to buy an American Girl doll to help support them, I will DEFINITELY buy a bracelet or two. They are giving Girls, Inc. $.70 out of the buck the bracelet costs, as well as a $50,000 lump sum. Already sent them an email of support. Perhaps you'd like to do the same?
Awesome Graphic
Goes well with the article. Click the pic for article goodness. 
MSM FINALLY Catches Up
MegaProps to Raw Story for having this information on October 12th - while the MSM waits... Crooks and Liars has it all.
"Unusually High"
That sounds pretty high. I wish I was that high. Bet you do too. No? Fine, square, move along. Anywho. Here's what I'm ACTUALLY referring to: Iraqis Probe 'Unusually High' Yes Tally
Iraq's election commission announced Monday that officials were investigating "unusually high" numbers of "yes" votes in about a dozen provinces during Iraq's landmark referendum on a new constitution, raising questions about irregularities in the balloting.
Word of the review came as Sunni Arab leaders repeated accusations of fraud after initial reports from the provinces suggested the constitution had passed. Among the Sunni allegations are that police took ballot boxes from heavily "no" districts, and that some "yes" areas had more votes than registered voters.
The Electoral Commission made no mention of fraud, and an official with knowledge of the election process cautioned that it was too early to say whether the unusual numbers were incorrect or if they would affect the outcome.
Monday AM News Roundup
I quit my job so I can go to school full time for the next 6 months. I'm not looking forward to the massive debt that will take (*choke*) years to pay off, but it should pay off in the end. Anyone have any money-saving tips? We'll see how my new schedule affects blogging abilities - I have two days until classes begin. In any event, here's a couple of tidbits I knew you'd like to peruse. Don't forget to scroll down and see what you may have missed over the weekend, including a link to a site that tells you how to turn blue to red! Fun fun fun! NEWS MORSEL #1: Patrick Fitzgerald appears to be gearing up for any indictments he'll be handing down, perhaps as soon as this week. In the midst of this, Cheney may be deeply entrenched in this bruhaha (not like anyone should be surprised or anything). Fitzgerald has questioned Cheney's communications adviser Catherine Martin and former spokeswoman Jennifer Millerwise and ex-White House aide Jim Wilkinson about the vice president's knowledge of the anti-Wilson campaign and his dealings on it with Libby, his chief of staff, the people said. The information came from multiple sources, who requested anonymity because of the secrecy and political sensitivity of the investigation... Fitzgerald has told lawyers involved in the case that he hopes to conclude soon -- the grand jury's term expires Oct. 28, although it could be extended -- and there is a growing sense among knowledgeable observers that the outcome will involve serious criminal charges. ``Fitzgerald is putting together a big case,'' Washington attorney Robert Bennett, who represents Miller, said on the ABC-TV program ``This Week'' yesterday.
NEWS MORSEL #2: Did Judy Miller get some sort of secret clearance, or did she just make it up to look more important than she is? E&P has more about that: Barton Gellman of the Washington Post spent one day on the scene with Miller, accompanying a nuclear survey team at the Tuwaitha site at the beginning of May. Some of the soldiers asked whether Gellman had a "secret" clearance, "as Judy did."
"I said I had no such clearance, but did have the commander's permission to be there," Gellman told me. "The team leader, Navy Cdr. Beckett, did talk to me" but Gellman was asked to step away from a conversation about a classified matter. "I heard Judy tell him, 'I'm cleared for that, but he isn't.'"
Oh, and if you missed it in the article, the people she dealt with didn't seem to like her very much:
When I interviewed military officials and journalists located in Iraq regarding the conduct of Miller during her latest quest for WMD, they did not mince words: "Nobody could stand her." She had an "imperious manner." "She's lucky we didn't shoot her." "She wore a uniform." "She had an exclusive deal with the Pentagon" -- which undoubtedly caused resentment all around.
I'm going to guess she's not going to get Christmas cards from these guys this year.
NEWS MORSEL #3: Roger Simon believes that Judy Miller NEVER would have gone to jail for 85 days for a paltry $1.2 million book deal. Now, I am sure that for people so esteemed as Mr. Simon, money from a book deal and/or speaking engagements may perhaps just be pocket change - maybe what he finds under the sofa cushions in the morning?
But - and correct me if I'm wrong - it seems to me that journalists make a good deal of money off of books they write. Isn't there a cliche about journalists taking sabbaticals to go write their books? Maybe I'm mistaken.
But here's Judy, looking at quite a tangled web of involvement in what could be the biggest political scandal since Watergate (yes, it could actually be MORE scandalous than Bill Clinton's blow job), and wondering how she can get a book deal out of it. Don't tell me that was the last thing on her mind. EVERYONE wants a book deal. Criminals, victims and bystanders - they all want book deals. Maybe even a movie-of-the-week. But the cherry is the book deal.
So Roger thinks she wouldn't go to jail for a little less than 3 months for $1.2 million? Hell, who WOULDN'T?
Rice Tells The Truth
Yeah we COULD have gone after Bin Laden, or Al Qaeda, but let's say fuck it all and GO BIG! Think Progress has it all: Rice: After 9-11 “We Could Decide the Proximate Cause Was Al Qaeda” This morning on NBC’s Meet the Press, Condoleezza Rice explains why we invaded Iraq: The fact of the matter is that when we were attacked on September 11, we had a choice to make. We could decide that the proximate cause was al Qaeda and the people who flew those planes into buildings and, therefore, we would go after al Qaeda…or we could take a bolder approach.
This may be news to the Secretary of State but the proximate cause of 9-11 was al-Qaeda. Nevertheless, the administration decided to invade Iraq instead of focusing our efforts on destroying al-Qaeda and capturing Bin Laden. Today, bin Laden remains at large, international terrorism is on the rise and the invasion has become “a potent recruiting tool for al Qaeda and other terrorist groups.” UPDATE: Crooks and Liars has the video.
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