Fitz!

Fitz!

Dang! Missed it by that much.

Coulda had it, decided to read first this time.

Think any of the WH gang of lapdogs will have the cojones to press on this one? Nah…me, neither.

Give ‘em hell, Christy.

It’s time this country had a debate about this man. He has caused enough debate about others, and now it is his turn. I want everyone in this county to know that this “architect” had a previous career as a draft dodger. It is also time to talk about his immoral, and often illegal election engineering. I think when the American people see the soft, pasty, slime-covered underbelly of this man, they will not like what they see.

It’s time for the Dems to ATTACK Rove – they should know by now that he’s going to do it to them.

oh no it can’t be

Sounds like Christy is contemplating a new pet project.
Take on Rove, hell yeah!

Might need one of Ms. Hamsher’s signature assassination pieces to drive the wooden stake all the way through.

I seem to recall a brouhaha or kerfuffle about the evilness of Vice-President Albert Gore having made some fund-raising telephone calls from the White House . . . he was so pilloried !

This issue has just been bugging the crap out of me for a long time — and I haven’t been able to come up with any satisfactory answers on it. And I am absolutely serious about wanting answers…

Isn’t it illegal to use government resources for campaign purposes?

It’s a simple, straightforward question and a simple, straightforward answer will do.

I’ll point out that the spoof website, WhiteHouse.org, received emails “erroneously” from folks about campaign matters. Were they actually intended for addresses at the domain WhiteHouse.gov? Was this a regular habit, to send emails to/from the .gov domain?

The only other straightforward answer to the retention of Karl Rove in any taxpayer-funded position is that he is the Minister of Propaganda and we just haven’t been formally informed of his position.

In which case, I say FIRE the slimey f*cker.

More alarmingly, John Negroponte seems to helping out this time around and everything he does is classified. He’s untouchable.

Don’t forget Karl’s security clearance, something that no good political operative should be without.

A GREAT post Christy….I really think we have to go agressively after Miss Piggy Rover and the way he operates. Part of that is the press DEMANDING an explanation to your question….I am actually going to email Helen Thomas to ask this….if anyof you have the inclination write to Helen, she is good about this and has responded and asked questions before.

Her email;
hthomas@hearstdc.com

Rayne:
You’ve got it! Rove is just the Minister of Propaganda, and we haven’t been told because the existence of the position is a state secret necessary to fight the war on terrorism!

I’m still furious with his operatives here in NH for tying up the phone banks of the Democratic Party and Firefighters’ Union. And I’m not entirely happy with the Judge involved with the case.

Oh no, they brought up the Mt. Soledad cross in San Diego in the WH briefing. Snow didn’t bring his notes. What a tool….

Isn’t that the truth, Christy!

Bush Admin in a nutshell: politics IS policy IS politics.

What a losing loop. And We the People are its losers.

I don’t know election law so don’t have an answer for you, but I sure hope some here do.

Marry shady lobbyists with crooked insider hacks, and this is what you get.

Unfortunately, just about all of this can be justified in the name of “constitutent services.” Oregon farmers have a problem, go to their elected reps, and voila! I don’t like the policy in that case, but it’s hard to regulate or control what elected reps and administrative officials like Rove do in the course of serving their constituents, when there isn’t an outright bribe being made.

There may be some regulatory issues here, but I doubt it. As a political issue, however, I think this has great potential:

Do you want a government that listens only to its cronies?
Do you want a government that listens only to those who have clout?
Do you want a government that listens only to those that have friends in high places?
Do you want a government that listens only to the political calculators?
Do you want a government that campaigns 24/7/365?

Or do you want a government that governs?

Rayne says
June 26th, 2006 at 10:10 am

Isn’t it illegal to use government resources for campaign purposes?
_____

We should all know by now that Bush will simply do as he pleases until stopped. These pukes are all about wielding and perpetuating their power.

It is ABSOLUTELY illegal. At least in Congress. I think TEAM LOSER would argue that the “special” anti-coodie force fields that keeps federal stututes and the Constitution from applying to TEAM LOSER is also effective here. If I were their lawyer, I know I would use the anti-coodie/force field argument.

Great question Christy—it has been “bugging the crap” out of me too, for quite a while.
OT If any fdlers are interested in contributing to the live discussion at Wapo, the topic right now is net neutrality.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/…..00735.html

Since he is also in charge of Katrina rebuilding efforts he has some government responsibilities.

But you are right,we are paying him to run RNC re-elect efforts.

Why do we pay for President Bush to travel the country campaigning for Republicans,it’s not like we are a country at war.

How many full days has President Bush spent at the White House since 2000?

Why is Rove officing in the WH? Because he can…and nobody has dared say anything. Too timid, too coopted, too scared of retaliation? It’s bugged the crap out of a whole lot of us, Christy, that this SOB has collaborated in outing Plame which supposedly was a fireable offense and blatantly runs the Republican party machinery from inside the WH. Yet another example of the Rethugs projection of their own corruption… and Bush using others to acccomplish his self-serving agenda. This is about Bush as much as Rove… Taking a page from Rove’s playbook, attack Bush’s strength…his “Brain”…or maybe, Sphincter.

Certainly, Rove could not solicit campaign funds as a public official. But he certainly could talk to campaign operatives.

Maurice Stans (of Watergate lore) was Secretary of Commerce under Nixon and resigned to head the Finance Committee to Re-elect the president.

I suspect he has a gov job title and is answerable to someone above him.. the pres… who doesn’t care what he does… no job description.. no performance requirement.

Who can actually determine who works in the executive branch and what they are supposed to be doing for their paycheck?

They run the government like a private company which is not even accountable to shareholders.

The Rigas tried that with their cable biz, but that WAS a public corporation and they got busted by the AG and shareholder outrage.

The cheney administration has the rubberstamp congresscritters and the lapdog supremes eating out of their hand… and the DOJ is part of the executive. Who is going to rain on their parade? The adoring WOWED pressers? Nah.. they like being near the power…

The system is way broke… can it ever work again? OH… and they have stolen all the money so when they do leave they leave the next “team” with an ocean of debt.

All perfectly true, of course, but I think that you are attacking the symptom instead of the disease. In the modern conservative paradigm, there can be no distinction between policy and politics or between governance and campaigning. The only reason to win an election is to increase your ability to win future elections and to frame the discussion of issues in ways that decrease honest debate and increase the strength of know-nothing feel-good-isms. The indefensible tax cuts, the deficits, the dismantling of social programs, the war, the cronyism, the incompetence, the demonization of science, and Rove, the propogandist-in-chief, are not mistakes, and are not flaws in the program, they are the program. This is the agenda: a useless government that doesn’t even know what its’ job is. Had enough?

TANK at 23 — it turns out that he was never appointed to be in cahrge of the Katrina rebuilding efforts. That was floated out as a distraction during a period when Rove was appearing in front of the federal grand jury again — but he was never formally vested with the responsibilities, they were given to someone else. So he doesn’t have that as a fall back at all.

None of this [explains] how Karl Rove can work as some sort of pseudo-GOP campaign uber-manager from the West Wing

It’s very simple. To summarize Lapdogs — the one-size-fits-all MSM narrative:

GOP good; Democrats bad.

GOP strong; Democrats weak.

Bush up; Democrats down.

Bush straight shooter; Democrats equivocate.

No matter what the news, these all purpose filters will put starch in the GOoPer sails, and leave the Democrats limp.

If really bad news for Bush arrives on the MSM doorstep like a flaming bag of shit, there is always the Clenis and Hillary’s lemon yellow pantsuit to extinguish the flames.

The good news — with Bush at 35% JAR, the MSM has as much credibility as their man crush hero.

Since the Guckert/Gannon debacle broke, I have been sorely tempted to FOIA any and all emails sent to WhiteHouse.gov domain or any other OVP or XO domain that were sent from and to domains like RNC.com or GOP.com or BushCheney04.com or you name it. I tripped on those emails to WhiteHouse.org during research into Guckert/Gannon’s sordid background.

Unless there was an autoresponder that said, “Please send all campaign-related emails to a different domain”, to all incoming RNC/GOP/other Republican committee/campaign emails, these emails are proof positive the administration was using taxpayer-funded resources for the purposes of campaigning.

And that’s just for starters. Want to bet these same emails weren’t archived properly, like the 200 that Fitz received rather late in the Plame-CIA Leak investigation?

OT, but disgusting. howie kurtz is a pig.

via: http://www.boomantribune.com

Howie Kurtz Outs Murray Waas

by Steven D
Mon Jun 26th, 2006 at 12:21:40 PM EST
This is beyond absurd.

Today, Howie Kurtz, the Washington Post’s media critic, has decided to out Murray Waas of the National Journal. What sort of dirt does Mr. Kurtz have on Mr. Waas? What deep dark secret does Kurtz feel compelled to expose? Why, that Murray Waas is a cancer survivor, that’s what:

For a reporter whose specialty is digging out secrets, Murray Waas has been keeping one about himself for a long time.

He was once diagnosed with an advanced form of cancer and told he had little chance of survival. More recently, he had to fight off a recurrence and his subsequent bankruptcy from medical bills. […]

…Did Waas’s near-death experience, and subsequent complications, affect his journalism? How could such a searing experience not change your outlook on work and life?

Waas, who works for the National Journal and has drawn attention lately for several scoops in the CIA leak investigation, sued George Washington University Medical Center for failing to diagnose his cancer, winning a $650,000 judgment. But over the years he has persuaded other reporters to steer clear of his medical history on grounds that it was private — an interesting stance for a journalist who asks probing questions for a living.

Oh my Gawd! Murray Waas had CANCER!!! Shout it to the roof tops! And he went bankrupt because of it. And he sued his doctors for failing to diagnose his cancer. And won $650,000! And he has discouraged other journalists from writing about his private medical history!

My Gawd, what a slime ball this Mr. Waas is, to want to keep his private life private. Why, we just know that it had to have some major impact on his reporting! It explains everything about why Mr. Waas has been such a diligent reporter of the CIA leak case involving the outing of Valerie Wilson! To borrow a phrase, “Not Exactly.”

(cont.)

To be blunt, this is ludicrous. Waas’ past medical condition has nothing to do with his reporting. And it’s no crime to be a cancer survivor, nor to sue your doctor for malpractice.

Waas pursued his reporting of the CIA leak case because he is a good reporter, period. He thoroughly investigated a story which no one else in the media bothered to pursue with half as much professionalism, partly because so many of our big time elite media organizations and their reporters were hopelessly compromised because they were part of the story. TIME magazine, the New York Times, NBC, the Washington Post: all had reporters who were involved in the leaks by Rove, Libby and Cheney.

Thank God we had Murray Waas around. He actually took the outing of a covert CIA operative by the Bush administration, and the resulting cover-up by those same Bush officials, seriously. And this is his reward from his peers at the elite news organization: to have his personal business spread across the pages of the Washington Post, as if he were some low life criminal. To have Howard Kurtz, hypocrite extraordinaire, opine about how all this “messy personal history” involving cancer and ” his near death experience” may have effected his journalism? Mr. Kurtz, this is frankly despicable.

I doubt it will do any good, but let’s bombard Mr. Kurtz and the Post’s ombudsman, Deborah Howell, with emails, and WaPo with letters to the editor suggesting he give us the lowdown on his personal life and asking him to speculate on how that may have affected his journalism. Certainly it hasn’t done so for the better.

Washington Post writers and editors can be contacted by regular mail at:

Managing Editor and Howard Kurtz
The Washington Post
1150 15th Street, NW
Washington, D.C. 20071

Email Kurtz here: LINK.

Email for Deborah Howell, Wapo ombudsman:
ombudsman@washpost.com or call her at 202-334-7582.

The e-mail address for letters to the editor is letters@washpost.com.

Bush cannot function with his brain across town, so Rove needs to be across the hall, all the talk about “moving into a windowless office” when Bolten downgraded Miss Piggy notwithstanding. There always politics on any WH staff, it goes with the territory, but the analogy to the Gore fundraising calls is apt. If Rover’s portfolio is ENTIRELY political, can he work in the WH?

This sounds like a question for intrepid girl reporter Helen Thomas, since none of the lapdogs seems to want to hurt their new best friend T-Sno’s feelings.

So Helen, what’s up with Rover’s paycheck and office? Can a purely political portfolio — which is how Bolten has described Rover’s duties now — be funded by the taxpayers? Can he use the WH phones (bet he doesn’t do email anymore!!) ?

Perpetuators of Rove machine don’t think twice about attacking any of their opponents. They must never expect to pay consequences.

No time has been lost in attacking Murray Waas. See NextHurrah’s emptywheel,”Speaking from cancer,” who slams Howie Kurtz for smearing Waas. Top of the fold at TNH today.

The key to this system – and to defeating it – is light. RoveCo politics are like a mushroom farm. They depend on staying in the shadows to protect them from the harsh daylight, and they grow in manure.

And where does the light come from? Congress. Congressional hearings. Congressional oversight. One branch looking over the shoulder of the other. How do you prod congress? The Press – mainstream and not-so-mainstream alike. Constituent anger and frustration can get the attention of even Joe Lieberman – though it may have been a tad slow in getting the message.

Checks and balances, anyone? They worked for 200 years – let’s give them a try again.

You’re missing the point. Politics trumps every other concern. It’s their first priority.

There’s always been a political player in the White House–Bobby Kennedy, John Mitchell, Hamilton Jordan. What is unprecedented (channelling Glenn Greenwald)is the determined flouting of the law by regulatory agencies like the EPA, the FTC and the FDA for purely political purposes. I know, personally, of cases at the EPA where the local agency was told by a political appointee, “Yes, it may be true that they’re breaking the law, but take no action.”

Every press release is vetted by a political operative. This is way wider and way deeper than Rove. What can we do about it? Win back at least on House in 06.

It’s easier to separate church and state than campaigning and governing.

Patrick Lane at 34 – Believe me, I’m not missing the point at all. Their priority is not even politics, it is maintaining their own level of power — politics is simply the means to an end. But that doesn’t mean that these questions don’t need to be asked, explored and answered.

Even John Mitchell had the integrity to resign as Nixon’s AG and take the reins of the Nixon’s reelection campaign as the head of CREEP.

Per everyone else, great question Christy.
Also per Hugh at 10:11, I sure would like to know why Rover needs security clearity clearance for duties which are 100% political.

Murray Waas has an eloquent entry today on Huffpost.

He seems to think, though, Howie Kurtz is a friend, “And if the media critics are right–people like Dan Froomkin, Howard Kurtz, Jay Rosen, and Jane Hamsher–I am doing just fine in covering the story.”

IMO — Murray Waas represents the best contemporary journalism has to offer.

–

Whatever happened when Al Gore was making his VP phone calls that had the pundits panties in a twist before his presidential run?

Great post … and good question!

OT:

On CSPAN3 they are showing the Senate Democratic Policy Hearing on Prewar intelligence.

Christy:

Thanks so much for asking this question.

It’s one I ask myself, Mr. LittleDog, and the television almost every day.

What they heck? Weren’t Gore of Clinton fined for making political phone calls from a White House office?

And Sen. Dorgan just mentioned the FRONTLINE program.

Damn, I don’t get CSPAN-3 on this cable line up.

Seems to me this is an excellent question to continue to put in front of the chattering class. I’m going focus on just this during WaPoO chats this week. When a Post Politics reporter answers with the phrase, “Lots of questions on this topic this morning….” that means we’ve successfully flooded the zone. Or the other side has.

So, let’s narrow Christy’s question: “Why is Karl Rove on the White House payroll if he’s ONLY working on GOP success in the mid-terms? Shouldn’t his paycheck come from the RNC and not the taxpayers?”

Is that about right?

Oh, and PS:

========
Had Enough?
========

AMEN, CHS.

I’m sure they can drag out some WH lawyer to say that, since politcs is policy for this administration, then its a legitimate use of taxpayer money.

I guess the hair Byron York is calling in a few favors to get back at Waas for YKos. For anyone who cares to let Howie know how we feel, you can post it at
Howard Kurtz will be online Tuesday, June 27, at 1 p.m. ET to discuss the press and his latest columns
Washington Post Columnist
Tuesday, June 27, 2006; 1:00 PM

You know, I read the Kurtz column as being surprisingly sympathetic, to be honest.

It occurred to me recently that the word courtesan would a better term to describe the fawning sycophants who make up the washington establishment these days, media shills, congress, and Demo collaborators. There is an ill-suited air of elegance to the term, but also one of willful acts of ritualized self-deprecation, moral compromise and quiet desperation.

Maybe its not crude enough to describe the moral bankruptcy of these people, but it does create a sense of context in which they operate. Were they merely ‘whores’, they would be available for any ‘john’, but no, these people are courtesans, playing the fawning suitor to the ‘court of the dauphin’, the boy-blunder himself, with all his sinister neo-con regents and handlers.

I admit its a petulant distinction, but when considering the lengths that RoveCo goes to ‘frame context’ for the purpose of controlling dialogue, it would help to perhaps find a set of contextual descriptions that ‘wrap around’ the framework Rove is painting. The term courtesan has the added advantage of being politely derogatory enough to make it into mainstream parlance.

whyte, btw, thanks for the link to Howie.

Seems to me it falls under one of those “frowned upon but legal” practices that is entirely acceptable to this administration and largely to the media who just thinks it’s political hardball rather than corruption.

Personally, I don’t think anyone in the administration should be allowed to campaign or work for campaigns except the VP since he oversees congress and retains a sense of party. Everyone else is no longer working for their party but for the country as a whole.

beard 5 at 46

We don’t get C-Span 3 on cable either, but can access it through the C-Span site on the net.

If you’ve got broadband, you might give it a try.

Remember this from 2002?

“On Monday we learned that in a forthcoming Esquire story John DiIulio, former Bush director of the White House Office Of Faith-based and Community Initiatives, says that politics, not policy run the Bush White House, that speeches come first and policy is hastily and sketchily constructed later, that Bush is kept on the short leash of far right preconceptions of the world that often don’t jibe with reality, and that fear of Karl Rove prevents staffers from providing him with news from the real world that might contradict his extreme, conservative vision.

In DiIulio’s words, “there is no precedent in any modern White House for what is going on in this one: complete lack of a policy apparatus. Besides the tax cut, which was cut and dried during the campaign, and the education bill, which was really a Ted Kennedy bill, the administration has not done much, either in absolute terms or in comparison to previous administrations at this stage, on domestic policy. What you’ve got is everything, and I mean everything, being run by the political arm. It’s the reign of the Mayberry Machiavellis. [They] consistently talked and acted as if the height of political sophistication consisted in reducing every issue to its simplest black-and-white terms for public consumption, then steering legislative initiatives or policy proposals as far right as possible.” The former White House director confides, “I heard many, many staff discussions but not three meaningful, substantive policy discussions. There were no actual policy white papers on domestic issues. There were, truth be told, only a couple of people in the West Wing who worried at all about policy substance and analysis … Every modern presidency moves on the fly, but on social policy and related issues, the lack of even basic policy knowledge, and the only casual interest in knowing more, was somewhat breathtaking: discussions by fairly senior people who meant Medicaid but were talking Medicare; near-instant shifts from discussing any actual policy pros and cons to discussing political communications, media strategy, et cetera .” DiIulio goes on to tell us that “the remarkably slapdash character of the Office of Homeland Security, with the nine months of arguing that no department was needed, with the sudden, politically timed reversal in June …”

After reading all of Matt O.’s pieces and then adding this, I’m ready for a tax revolt. They’re pissing it all away.

Atwater had a mea culpa on his deathbed-Kove will be evil, I fear for eternity.

Redd,

Perhaps Murray agrees with your reading?

I’m no fan of Kurtz and when I read Waas’ HuffPost entry I flashed back to “Which one of these is not like the other”. The names Kurtz and Hamsher in the same line of praise is, for me I confess, somewhat disturbing.

–

Christy, I’ll defer to you 100%.
I have no wish to dislike Kurtz even more than I already do. It’s not like there is a shortage of pseudo journalists in Washington.

Froomkin’s Monday column is up, and right on topic for this thread. Headline on today’s column: “Access for Sale”

http://www.washingtonpost.com/…..00879.html

Abramoff and Safavian are the top two items. He links to a Frank Rich column behind the TimesWall, and also quotes a little tidbit where Rich offers a great piece of snark that fits in here:

In this favor-driven world of fat contracts awarded to the well-connected, Mr. Safavian was only an aspiring consigliere. He was not powerful enough or in government long enough to do much beyond petty reconnaissance for Mr. Abramoff and his lobbying clients. But the Bush brand of competitive sourcing, with its get-rich-quick schemes and do-little jobs for administration pals, spread like a cancer throughout the executive branch.

Emphasis added.

mommybrain 55 -

This is what we get when we allow people who unabashedly admit to HATING government gain control of it.

Sophist says:

“It occurred to me recently that the word courtesan would a better term to describe the fawning sycophants who make up the washington establishment these days, media shills, congress, and Demo collaborators. There is an ill-suited air of elegance to the term, but also one of willful acts of ritualized self-deprecation, moral compromise and quiet desperation.”

Courtesan can be a deprecating term, but is often associated with court life in fairly advanced stages of court civilization, like Tokugawa Japan or the Versailles of Louis XIV. In the context of DC today, “whore” is probably more accurate, which is why so many have used “whore” to describe these folks.

Christy,

It is a great question and a great graphic.

I’ve sent my email to Helen Thomas and will post one at the WaPoO.

We have to control the narrative and iasking these questions and DEMANDING answers will help.

ATTACK ! ATTACK! ATTAAAAACK ! (in italics)

Christy – let’s start with the Hatch Act of 1939: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hatch_Act_of_1939

Do any comparable Federal laws regulate political activity of those at the policymaking level in the executive branch of the Federal government?

ayetolla 6 – it is way past “time for the Dems to ATTACK Rove” but we shouldn’t hold our breath for the party leadership to attack…nor MSM…this is a job for the netroots to step up the attack 24/7 like swarming summertime fireants, err firedoglake pups. Google may prove a ready tool to track his schedule for some effective rapid response team tagging, here, there and everywhere. Count me in!

Operation Create Chimpy’s Legacy is in full swing.

This is the second time in two weeks that I have read Herr Rover refer to Bush as “progressive”.

http://www.time.com/time/magaz…..-1,00.html

-GSD

Pillar is steaming ahead! Hey, Pat Roberts, are you watching??????????

Calling cocktail weenie journalists courtesans will make them think they are on the legal beat.

Nope, nothing to see here — move along everyone. Now, where is that buffet?

Actually, courtesan is a good way to describe them — but it’s kind of high falutin’, and the GOP MSM acolytes are impervious to anything short of flamethrowers and hand grenades.

Sad, but true. Look at the amount of vitriol Jane threw at the WaPoo for lil’ Debbie’s errors — they responded, but mostly they hunkered down.

Yes, but what does Kos say we should think about Kurtz’ spotlight on Waas’s cancer survivorhood?

Did Tony Snow’s cancer experience affect his job performance at Fox & now the WH? No, he’s still an idiot.

Stephen Parrish – I was just trying to link to the Hatch Act and lost the whole post. It has been revised a fair amount since 1939 givin more leeway.

However, I’ve gone back and forth as to why Rove should be covered and that much of what does shouldn’t be allowed.

Also, I don’t know if Rove is in the Executive Senior Service which has different stritures on political activty.

Anne

ok, I’m confused – how can Howie “out” Murray on a story which Murray himself published?

is the suggestion that Murray only published because he expected Howie’s piece or are we jumping a touch too fast here?

just checking

Here’s the link for emptywheel’s passionate piece on Murray Waas and cancer. Several surprises.

BobbyG,

Listened to some of the MP3s at your site last night – until we had a five-hour power outage.

Awesome band. I LOVED “Come Together,” man. Is the backup brass part of your core group or do you hire locals for that when you travel.

Christy,

No word back from Stevens or the Commerce Committee on what they’re trying to compromise on. Not surprised at the no callback. I haven’t sent Stevens money in almost 20 years.

Rove is SO key here as 2006 comes up. He scares the bejeesus out of the press. If lefty blogs could have a role in taking down or even seriously attenuating Rove, the Washington press atmosphere WOULD change, and quickly.

Have been swamped at work today, and dying to comment on all of these topics (more than the snark that’s been all I’ve had time for).

Like many have already said, this is an excellent question, but then, I think the growing list of questions we have for this administration are all excellent. What we never get are any answers beyond (1) no, we aren’t, )2) well, we are, but only a little, (3) well, it’s a lot, but it’s okay because it’s wartime and (4) yeah, we are but I’m the president and that makes it okay. For some reason, that pretty much ends the conversation, except for the moments when Arlen forgets he’s a lapdog and inadvertently starts acting like he gives a crap.

I mean, isn’t that about the size of it?

One of the reasons we are in the mess we’re in is because this is an administration that seems to think that what they are administering is the ongoing power of the Republican party and not the country itself. They do not govern – they campaign. They do not lead the people out of problems that arise – they determine how the problems can best be used to help them and their cronies make money and they kick the people to the curb. They do not obey the law – they defy the law. They do not uphold the Constitution – they wipe their feet on it.

November, people – that’s the key. If we cannot take a majority in November, it will be seen and spun as total victory for the GOP, and further license to gut what’s left of any principles or rights or laws that were supposed to hold them in check.

Teddy Sanfran,

That quote reminds me of my favorite trip to Redstate after the Bush nomination of Harriet Miers.

The inquiring Redstater chimed in. “Let’s wait until to tomorrow to see what Rush has to say before making a judgement on Miers.”

So, have there been any missives from The Kingpin that need action from the Kos zombies?

-GSD

…the White House of George W. Bush has mastered the art of mixing politics and policy…

Oh, that’s simply not true. They are all politics and no policy.

Let’s swiftboat Karl!!

Ed*ard Teller 73 -

The band is self-contained, all local cats, most of whom play in the major casino shows here. They play on Mondays only, for the pure fun of it. They’d like to go full-time, but the financial challenges are considerable.

I can’t imagine how great they’d be were they able to go at it as their main gig.

We’re working on a plan. Link to info about tonight, and the blog…

http://lasvegas.craigslist.org/muc/175530332.html

GSD at 65, I think I threw up a little reading that. Good lord, comparing this obnoxious wart to Teddy Roosevelt….I have no words to satisfactorily express my disgust.

i am no fan of howard kurtz but this is the sixth paragraph in his piece:

“I kept it a huge secret,” says Waas, who decided to go public after receiving an inquiry from Washington City Paper and concluding that such questions would continue to dog him.

not sure this qualifies as an outing.

siun at 71, Kurtz was in the print version today, so written before 11pm last night and perhaps posted ?this morning. Waas posted at huffpo today. I’m gonna go with responding.

Christy is spot on with her concern over the merging of governance and politics as symptomized by Rove continuing to draw a GS-32 salary (or whatever his pay grade is) of $161,000 while doing strictly political work. And this does not include a whole lot of perks. I used the word “symptom” advisedly because this is not the disease, but only a symptom of the disease. The disease is that Bush and company have pretty much totally erased the dividing line between governing and politics, and they are now one and the same.

This is not new, and has been going on for ages. What is new is that there is no longer any pretense of propriety. This is just the way it is done.

Remember when Common Cause was a noble effort to keep governing this nation even half-way ethical? Nobody hears of Common Cause anymore, though they are still around, a voice in the wilderness.

Whatcan we do? Keep making it an issuse, just the way the wingnuts kept making Monica’s blue dress and issue. Forget about your Congress critters saying or doing anything. Most of them, Pubs and Dems, are up to their ears in pork and nepotism too. The media dare not bring it up. So it is up to the squadrons of rabid lambs spewing venom to keep on bleating. It may never to any good but we can have fun in the meantime.

Rove is next working on a piece that compares Ann Coulter to Mother Theresa.

Also, look at Fox News. Getting all grumpy and desperate and full of threats now.

Ha…ha..ha….

Losing more ratings points than..gasp…CNN.

http://www.rawstory.com/showar…..=CA6346894

-GSD

Christy, I started searching and found a site that appears to be administered by UVA.

http://www.americanpresident.o…..istration/

I submitted two questions for them. I asked if it was legal for cabinet members to work on political campaigns and I asked where we might find the laws and rules that govern White House employees and Cabinet members.

Remember, John Conyers has an open ethics investigation for this reason…he allegedly “required” his staffers to work on campaigns back home. I think at least one time was for his wife’s campaign for office.

Wayne White(former State Principal Iraq analyst 2003-05) indicts the warmongers– they had no knowledge or experience of the region or Iraq. They pushed evidence aside and in one instance did not even read it. Mentions Bolton’s harassment of at least one person at State.

Bombshell: We were stretched too thin. Centcom was planning on relying on NGO’s for the treatment of Iraqi military and civilian wounded. White reminded them of the 4th Geneva Convention and international law– officers were desperately casting about for alternative resources to provide for their responsibilities.

Iraqis are tough and proud people. The first Gulf war was a rollover– the Iraqis knew they could not win against the huge coalition. Iraqis are very capable as evidenced in the Iraq/ Iran war– they won.
They have a renewable resource– POIs aka Pissed off Iraqis. They will fight.

Afternoon. Let’s see here…..yesssss…..an article about: Karl! Karl The Coward Rove! Draft dodging Karl The Coward Rove. Well, well….how are you today, you little COWARD?????

Sitting around on your fat YELLOW ass on the taxpayers dole? Yes, you are little draft dodger. And the troops are coming.

As for me, I’m on my own track with Karl The Coward. Tell me, draft dodging Karl The Coward Rove…what do you do each year….on Mothers Day??

Bye for now, draft dodging Karl The Coward Rove.

Ghostman

*ilson @ 9, guess who started the kerfluffle about gore’s fundraising calls….none other than boob Woodward…bob?

From Kurtz’ column, it looks like Murray talked with Howie about his (Murray’s)decision to write about his cancer. Given Murray’s style, I suspect that if he felt “outed” he would have said so in his piece. Instead, it looks like Murray chose to give Howie a heads up about his planned column – I may be wrong here and I am no Howie fan but I don’t want to jump him if Murray chose to give him the heads up and I worry that in our very righteous disgust with msm, we can occasionally jump too fast. We need to be careful or our legitimate critique gets discredited.

christy, thanks for raising the subject of Rove on the taxpayer’s dime. it really hit a nerve with me. especially lately, as he’s come out from under his legal rock and is doing more public appearances.

for Rove, a paid White House official, to be giving speeches defaming Democratic liberals, or the cut and run crap he’s spewing is just infuriating. why are my tax dollars paying for someone to lie about me and call me names? how can this be legal?

giving it some air time is good. perhaps there’s something here to work with.

Bush and Rove play by different rules than you and I. I say this because I’m assuming most or us are not engaged in a criminal enterprise.

angie – have a link for that? I’d like to read if you do

bomb blasts in Hillal and Bakuba – multiple casualties in both being reported

siun– it’s testimony on prewar intelligence showing on cspan 3 right now.

This particular committee is pretty good at getting the transcripts up.

I know that this is OT, but no place else to put it right now. Be sure to check the Daily Howler today. Somerby has a section from yesterday’s FDL book discussion. Sorry if someone else has already noted this.

OfT (unless you Rover’s government salary pays to help Rape Gurney Joe):
Joe’s gone real nasty and negative in his mailers to registered Dems this weekend:

http://www.newhavenindependent…..n_lies.php

… unless you agree ….

There was no penetration. I repeat, there was no penetration.

Thank you.

-”Soul Kiss Joe” Liberman

orangejumpsuit @ 82

Common Cause is still fighting the good fight. They are working effectively to protect voters rights, for public campaign financing, net neutrality, to reestablish ethics and accountability in Congress, amoung many other issues.

Chellie Pingree, who narrowly missed defeating Susan Collins in 2002, is now president and CEO. That was a painful loss and was within a few percentage points.

I suggest that another way of taking back the narrative, and putting these kinds of questions that we are asking today front and center, is by making a donation to them today.

can someone tell me why my links never show up?

I do not agree with the Wickapedia interpretation of the Hatch Act. I will admit that back in the days when I was a HAtch Act covered employee it was administered in a much more strick way tha it is now.

When Al Gore got in trouble for the fundraising phone calls it was because of the Hatch Act and federal campaign finance law because he was making the calls ON GOVERNMENT PROPERTY.

Regardless of what level of government you are, you are not allowed to perform campaign work on government proeperty or using government equipment.

So, Pat, YO FITZ! , if you are lurking, and in case you haven’t done so already, take a stroll through the campaign finance laws (possibly even a few state clean elections statutes), before you definatively rule out all possibility of indicting Rover.

Why would this activity fall under the ambit of your investigation? Because the counterattack and smear of Joe Wilson and the object lesson of the outing of Valerie Plame were acts of plain old fashioned dirty campaigning designed to both kill off the faked intelligence/Niger Yellowcake problem that was a danger to the re-election, it was also meant to intimidate both whistleblowers and media outlets to keep their mouths shut before the re-election.

The New York Times held up the printing of how many stories due to pressure from the Administration?? Don’t you think publication of these stories pre- re-election would have changed the result, ya know with the final tallies being so very close and all?

Any man who managed to use a Civil War sedition staute as a modern tool against terrorist mullahs, should have no trouble at all using modern campaign and election law, not to mention federal clean government rules to prosecute such flagerent violations of both the letter and the spirit.

You know, there is more than one kind of election fraud. Not just ballot stuffing. Not just voter supression. Not just uncounted votes. There is also the kind of election fraud that comes from diverting resources that the campaign is not entitled to, to the benefit of the campaign.

Pat, honey, it’s no different than some mobbed up contractor stealing construction materials off a job site, or double billing for the single dump truck load.

You can do this. It’s really quite simple. Well within your skill set.

isis2 at 80 — I think that is exactly right. Good catch!

lhp I left you 2 comments yesterday in earlier threads about your fevers. Toward the end, in the same thread.

lhp, Face the Snark 79 and 85.

I think sonate at 15 had it.

Besides, don’t you realize if the President does it, it’s legal. We pay for lots of lawyer at DOJ to keep reminding us of that truism. They are all-truism-istic about that public service thing.

Howard Beale from way below Re: public integrity chain with Hillman gone:

General Gonzales, then

Paul J. McNulty
Acting Deputy Attorney General

Alice S. Fisher
Assistant Attorney General, Criminal Division

Andrew Lourie
Acting Chief, Public Integrity Section
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

I think Lourie’s is the name you were trying to find.

Add on:
Glenn A. Fine
Inspector General
(who did a lovely hatchett piece on Colleen Rowley, while managing to make sure that no whistleblower got any support or back up in the earlier hearings with Kucinich’s subcommittee and who seems to find a abundance of lack of jurisdication — kind of like finding squadrons of rabid venomous lambs — for anything anyone in DOJ does to assist with illegal programs and activities in the White House)

H. Marshall Jarrett
Counsel, Office of Professional Responsibility
(Psssssst – these are the guys who are all so bad they don’t qualify for security clearances – don’t eat your lunch with THEM)

Oh, and on a related vein.

I was really shocked during the re-election campaign when Condi went out stumping. I cannot recall cabinet members ever doing so in such a blatent way.

Like Redd i was disturbed by this at the time. I rember thinking that it crossed a huge line and completed changed forever the divide between the campaign and the government.

Condi doing it disturbed me more than Rove b/c Condi was SUPPOSED to be a policy person, a substance person.

egregious

Thanks will go look

LHP – I hate to say it, but I don’t think the Spec. Prosecutor’s mandate, as expressed by Walton at least, will let him go that far.

:(

It sure must be nice too listening in on the Dems campaign strategies…a couple of times Dems announced a press conference and the Bush Baritones would have breaking news and it would never air.

How do we know he still has security clearance? If asked, Tony Snow couldn’t say don’t worry about it–he has no clearance because everyone would know that Fitz nailed him. They could also say they don’t pay him anymore.

We are going to win this election. The only thing to prevent a takeover is Diebold. During a time of war, the press aren’t going to come out with the real poll numbers. 37% my ass.

There are big Diebold stories going on but the MSM Mutants never air that noise. What can we do? Not one Republican complains about rigged elections. What does this tell us?

We are red white and screwed.

susan at 98, if you don’t mind the blind leading the blind here:

It’s easy to mess up a link near the end, at least that’s my newbie experience.

[a href=”reallinkhere”]Title You Want Underlined[/a]
but substitute left and right carats over the comma/period for [ and ].

It helps to preview, the link should show up there. I get messed up by forgetting the closing carat after the quotation mark.

Apparently Lou Dobbs has been moonlighting as a sign message poster at Casa D’Ice.

http://www.casadice.com/signs/…..ign030.htm

-GSD

Yes, that’s a good question. Someone should challenge it on constitutional grounds. Another good question is, what’s really going on with the Rove Indictment fiasco? Was Leopold and T.O. bulling us about that “sealed v. sealed” business, and they haven’t even really settled the mud. BTW, who really announced the supposed relinquishment of Rove, and what does the language really mean?

PS – there is a pretended (?) website put out by Patrick Fitzgerald himself, at
Is this for real?

Rep. Pete King is fired up after The New York Times and several other newspapers printed stories Friday about a program the Bush administration uses to monitor thousands of foreign financial transactions in hopes of tracking terrorists.

No one elected The New York Times to do anything,” King said. “They’re breaking the law to satisfy their own arrogant, liberal agenda.”

snip

Does Mr. King mean that they elect newspapers to publish stories…I mean really! Is the NYT liberal? What fired King up?

On behalf of mothers and suicidal people everywhere, I would like Rove’s mother to be left out of it, please.

Apparently the US government needs a “permission slip” from Iraq to reduce forces.

I thought George W. Bush would never submit US troops to conditions where they needed a “permission slip” from a foreign government?

(Snip)

WASHINGTON – President Bush on Monday brushed aside reports that the United States is planning sharp troop withdrawals from Iraq, beginning in September. Such a decision will be made by the new Iraqi government and based upon recommendations from the top U.S. general there, Bush said.

Link:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/200…..MlJVRPUCUl

-GSD

Orcinus has a good read today.CHS might want to take a gander.
http://dneiwert.blogspot.com/

howl, it’s a satire site.

I agree with egregious at 12:00.

GRREAT!!!! you go girlfriend! This should be pounded at incessantly by dems and those who support them.

Hatch Act, per Wikipedia–

Active Federal employees may not: Raise money for a partisan political campaign

Wasn’t Rove the keynote at a campaign fundraiser for a Republican candidate within the last two months?? Was that the race in CA-50??

Walter Jones asking questions of the panel, now. Wow– a republican congressman at the Dem hearing.

I second egregious at 112. He is a troll posting non-offensive stuff for the most part so he can slip in under the radar to deposit offensive zingers every now and then.

thanks egregious your 108

CQPolitics.com, 22-JUN-06: “Iowa 1: White House political adviser Karl Rove to campaign for Mike Whalen on Monday, the Des Moines Register says.”

NewHampshire Independent Media Center, 12-JUN-06: “Rove to hold fundraiser for NH Republicans on phonejamming case” — were funds ONLY for defense, or were they “flexible” use?

There’s so many examples of this blatant screwing of the taxpayers that I could spend all day documenting Rove’s bullsh*t on this on issue alone.

FIRE THE F*CKER NOW, BUSH. FOR ONCE IN YOUR LIMP LITTLE CEO-MANAGER LIFE DO THE RIGHT THING.

Peter King meet John Peter Zenger

Now go and sit right back down little man

How did the 4-5 Neocons at DoD get to rewrite the intelligence? How did they get so much power?

How come nobody in the Intelligence professional community spoke up?

Wilkerson: I am proud to see a fellow republican here– it’s a shame not more are. Let me answer your question with 3 words.

THE VICE PRESIDENT.

Feinstein– oh my (audible)

omg!

I pontificated in a previous post, perhaps on another blog, that it was time to declare war on Turdblossum. Lest one misunderstand my term war, I’m not refering to fragging Rove as Coulter suggested be done to Murtha, but simply an advanced look up his ass.

For example, FDLer’s need be equiped at all times with some sort of recording device so that every word this MoFo speaks is forever immortalized(don’t like that word), so if need be we can stick his words up his ass.

Also, it has forever been rumoured that Turdblossum has a cocubine. Nothing would be finer than potographs, or even better digital video of Rover with his paramour. Remember this smug bastard believes that life’s rules don’t apply to a person of his stature.

I’d also love to see a thorough researching of public records on any and all of Shitheads business dealings both in Texas and D.C., I might have forgotten about Florida, to determine if all of the Brain’s dealings have been above board and legal.

As I peviously stated, if Rover had been under surveillance by the blogoshere, we would have known of the long meeting at Luskin’s office alluded to by Leopold.

My proposal in no way suggests the breaking of any laws, as all surveillance would be perfomed in public and on public thoroughfares. I can attest however that it will not take long for Rover to come unglued by the fact that people are monitoring his every word and movement. People like Rove like to operate in the dark and in secret.

For turdblossom it will be like the old song by Buffalo Springfield “Paranoia strikes deep, into your life it will creep. It starts when your always afraid, step out of line and The Man comes and takes you away.”

those were W. Jones’ questions in my 124.

I just found out you can’t just go visit the White House anymore on one of those daily tours they used to do.You have to call a Congresscritter who represents you 6 months in advance,and then maybe,if you’re lucky you can get a tour of the place.

WTF?Doesn’t the White House actually belong to The People of the United States?I don’t want to see the “visitor’s center” either.We’re planning a family trip to DC,my kid wants to see the White House,and really,shouldn’t he be able to?

As far as Rove is concerned,if what he’s doing isn’t illegal,it damned sure oughta be.

Go get ‘em Wilkerson! I hope he works the Magna Carta in again. *g* I’m relying on you for updates angie!

When even nature specifically directs its wrath at the WH front steps

http://tinyurl.com/gu8wr

it’s time for Dems to pay attention. ;)

Christy:

From a wing-nut website circa 2000:

http://crm114.com/algore/scandals.html#1

“Political fund-raising on government property is unlawful. Former federal judge Abner Mikva circulated a memo in 1995 while White House counsel that said: “Campaign activities of any kind are prohibited in or from government buildings. … also no fund-raising phone calls or mail may emanate from the White House.” Furthermore, back in October 1993 while signing the Hatch Act Reform Amendments, Clinton claimed that, “The Federal workplace, where the business of our Nation is done will still be strictly off limits to partisan political activity.” (sources: The Associated Press, 3/2/97; ABC’s “This Week,” 3/2/97; Bill Clinton, Public Papers of the Presidents, 10/6/93)”

Pillar: The group was not formed because of a problem with the intelligence community, it was formed because they did not like the answers we were giving them.

Jones: The Rendon Group has been paid millions of dollars from 2001– 2003 or 4. Does the Group ring a bell with you?

Ford: I did not know about them.

Wilkerson: They outsourced things that could not be left in DoD. We have laws against propaganda. The Rendon and Lincoln group have been complicit.

When it comes to this Administration, the concept of legal/illegal no longer exists. Bush and Rove can do as they please thanks to signing statements. Rove remains on the payroll as a political hack and no one can do anything about it.

Republicans may regret it one day because of the precedent being set. Who will listen without laughing when they howl about some future President?

Wilkerson is a blue dress. Better have 24 hr. protection.

Rove will pull anything to keep this quiet.

RESPONSIBILITY FOR ISSUING REVISED HATCH ACT
REGULATIONS

The Office of Personnel Management, rather than the Office of Special Counsel, has the authority to promulgate regulations delimiting the scope and nature of permissible activities under the Hatch Act Reform Amendments of 1993.

February 2, 1994

MEMORANDUM FOR JAMES A. KAHL
DEPUTY SPECIAL COUNSEL
OFFICE OF SPECIAL COUNSEL

I. The Need for Revised Hatch Act Regulations

For more than 50 years, the Hatch Act prohibited federal workers from participating in a broad range of political activities. See United Public Workers v. Mitchell, 330 U.S. 75, 78-79 (1947); see also United States Civil Serv. Comm’n v. National Ass’n of Letter Carriers, AFL-CIO, 413 U.S. 548 (1973) (upholding Hatch Act provision forbidding federal employees to take an active part in political management or political campaigns). In 1993, however, Congress eliminated many of the restrictions that had previously cabined the political activities of federal employees. See Hatch Act Amendments, Pub. L. No. 103-94, 107 Stat. 1001. Despite the steps taken by Congress to liberalize the rules governing the political conduct of federal workers, some political activities remain generally impermissible for all federal employees, see, e.g., id. § 2(a), 107 Stat. 1002 (prohibiting federal employees from soliciting, accepting, or receiving political contributions), and some federal employees must continue to observe stringent limitations upon involvement in the political process. See, e.g., id. § 2(a), 107 Stat. 1003 (”No employee of the Criminal Division of the Department of Justice . . . may take an active part in political management or political campaigns.”). If a federal employee violates any of these provisions, which will take effect on February 3, 1994, the employee “shall be removed from his position.” Id.§ 2(a), 107 Stat. 1004. Accordingly, federal employees who wish to participate in political activities need immediate guidance in the form of regulations distinguishing permissible political conduct from impermissible activities.(3)

more:
http://www.usdoj.gov/olc/hatch.htm

Would this be a good question for someone like Jonathan Turley?
Anyone here know him well enough to make contact?
Yes, turd blossom needs to be de-throned.

new thread — same ole Jane!

I’d like to see Rove actually get on some news shows and answer questions (putting aside whether people like Russert would find tough questions to push), if Democrats critical of the WH/Rove have to defend their positions I think Rove should as well.

Turley has his own website, you can contact him there he rsponds.

Here’s the umpteenth person this story bugs–he should be paid by the RNC and not on our nickle. Good news about the Bush Propaganda Network, also spelled FOX. They’ve lost 22% of the market of 25- to 54-year-olds. Where are they going? Over to the blogs I hope. This may be on the last thread, but I read that Lamont has an ad that says if it sounds like Bush, and it works like Bush, then it’s not a Connecticut Democrat. Finally, I agree with previous commentators on the Murray Waas personal story in HuffPo. It shows why he is one of the few reporters we trust.

Hello, gentlepups, I’m reporting back from the Kerry speech. I took notes but the whole thing is beautifully transcribed over at DKos. Afterwards, i met up with gmoke and i introduced him to our staffer friend Jon whom we have been meeting with, and gmoke introduced me to his staffer friend Tyke Crowley who also does energy and health. There were no standing Os during the speech but many lines greeted with applause. The biggest applause came when Kerry said, “Had Al Gore not only been elected, but also inaugurated,…” or words to that effect. Big applause for Inconvenient Truth. Laughs when Kerry said, describing the present admin’s lack of policy, “Now that’s a bridge to nowhere.” Good speech, calling for mandatory fuel efficiency standards, as the time for voluntary efforts has passed. (PS, gmoke and i made sure our remote-control chips were functioning, all these words have been approved from on high.)

from Ralph Nader (of all places):

Remember the day after the election last November, a triumphant newly elected (for the first time) President George W. Bush introduced to a national television audience a beaming Karl Rove as “The Architect” of his winning campaign. Did you know that you, the taxpayers, paid for his salary and benefits while he was running George W. Bush’s political campaign day after day inside the White House?

Isn’t this illegal, you may properly ask? It would be if it were a staff member of a Senator or Representative in the Congress. Any such staffers would have to take an unpaid leave of absence, leave their office and set up shop somewhere else to work on their boss’s re-election campaign. To do this on the Congressional payroll would be illegal.

So what about Rove? Well, back in 1993, the two Parties got together and assured the passage of amendments to the Hatch Act (5 U.S.C. 7521 et seq.) to decriminalize such behavior for Presidential appointees who work outside normal business hours.

[snip]

Neither Party bothered to ask the taxpayers for their opinion. But the politics had to concede one obligation imposed on this political freeloading. People like Karl Rove can only do politics while on the job in a government building or in a government vehicle “if the costs associated with that political activity are not paid for by money derived from the Treasury of the United States.” Sec. 7324(b)(1).

Some official has to be able to show that Karl Rove allocated costs between his political activity and his non-political activity and that these expenses were not paid for by the government (i.e. you, the taxpayer).

It is not clear in the statute or the regulations who the official who is supposed to get Mr. Rove’s accounting. Calls and letters to the White House resulted only in a response citing those vague regulations. The office of Special Counsel which implements the Hatch Act does not collect this accounting as a matter of course.

There is one pertinent prohibition in the regulations. Cutting through the verbiage, it is apparent that Karl Rove cannot engage in campaign fund-raising unless he quits his government job. Imagine someone in a public or news-gathering capacity accessing all those thousands of phone calls and e-mails made by Karl Rove and whomever assisted him in the White House.

The White House is not subject to the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). Therefore a citizen or reporter cannot file a request for documents or reports under that important law.

So what can be done? A reporter could ask the question at a White House press briefing. For whatever it is worth, a complaint can be filed with the Office of Special Counsel. A request can be made of the Counsel to the President, Harriet Miers, for an allocation separating his expenditures in time and resources on political activity from the time spent as a staff assistant to President Bush. We made such a written request two weeks ago.

Or members of Congress can ask the Government Accountability Office to investigate and report back to them.

[snip]

For the complete article:
http://www.commondreams.org/cg…..730-27.htm

Slate’s explainer answered the question

http://www.slate.com/id/2140418/

re: egregious #72

with due respect for christy, i agree with booman and emptywheel. howard kurtz is an asshole and his story is snide and passive-aggressive. i stopped reading wapo minths ago after the lil debbie shitstorm and kurtz’s dual employment ith wapo and caBAL news network isn’t exactly a resume that breeds face-value trust. (we’ll leave his wife out of the equasion). fuck kurtz and the horse he rode in on.

Thank you so much for asking this question. I asked the same question here about a month ago regarding the inappropriate appearance of Rove working out his legal-political problems on the taxpayer’s dime.

Every president has a staffer or two who are entirely political, yet paid with tax money. But on what conceivable basis can such a person get, much less keep, a security clearance?

Nell — although I agree with the point you make about the security clearance, please cite examples from previous administrations of “entirely political” staffers. Thanks.

There’s the nagging why-why-why of the security clearance…why would an operative need one, regardless of the source of their pay?

Access to governmentally-acquired data on any opponent, perhaps?

Wasn’t Al Gore chastised at some point for using a Federal building (the White House)for making fund-raising phonecalls?

So how can Rove essentially control the GOP from that same White House?

This is a question for a lawyer — anyone???

Fe,140

Good find.

What public duties??? He does NOTHING for John Q. Public!

Does Nader still think there’s no difference between Democrats and Republicans? I am suspicious of Nader since he comes from CT, a place with deep Bush roots. The Bush family may own Nader, which would account for his political actions, all of which seemed to benefit Bush.

Hey angie,

Or anyone else who would know. Where would I find the transcripts from the hearing today that you were watching on cspan3?

Badwater at 150:

I think, even though we may doubt Nader as the bearer of the news, its worth researching the details of the Hatch Act and its reform (instigated by the Clinton Administration) that may have allowed Rove to “slip through the loopholes”.

This issue has just been bugging the crap out of me for a long time %u2014 and I haven’t been able to come up with any satisfactory answers on it. And I am absolutely serious about wanting answers%u2026

Ok. We’re with you, but what’s the plan? What do you want us to doo doo? Excuse me, I mean do? Gosh, I guess I got confused.

Very thoughtful, Christy.

I wonder what legal tools there might be that are applicable here? Has the common practice pre-Rove of somewhat separating politics from policy been just that; common pratice? Or are there any laws or precedents that might apply? How to find this out?

Can someone refer me to information on what amd how Lee Atwater masterminded the redidtricting and how it was pulled off.

Gee, and I was just steamed about the cost of Bush’s trips to all his “Town Hall Meetings” as he tries to sell Americans on his bull shit programs. Not to mention the cost of his fund-raising stops that he piggybacks onto these trips.

Rove’s doings, of course, are even more egregious – and symptomatic, as someone else said – of the whole administration.

Having worked for both the federal and state goverments, I am especially outraged when I become more and more aware of this tearing down of order. The regs were always followed to the letter, no matter where I worked, no matter whether you were sending out for bids or writing a senator.

I remember a scandal years ago when some congressman was sending campaign literature out under his official frank. Today, that would only be worth mentioning in the news if he were a Democrat. Otherwise, it’s SOP.

I’l late to this discussion, per usual, but can anyone tell me if this is true about Karl…
http://jeffrey-feldman.typepad…..leaks.html

So, President Bush’s right-hand man was being investigated by the Watergate prosecutor’s office long before he was hired by George W. Bush. And now George W. Bush’s right hand man is again being investigated by a special prosecutor.

Watergate, meet Leakgate. Same players, different scandal. And it all spells disaster for America.

It is time for George W. Bush to address the nation and explain why he keeps a Watergate trickster at his beck and call. And, for goodness sake, why would President Bush–in order to win an election–give top secret security clearance to a man with a known record for breaking the law?

http://jeffrey-feldman.typepad…..bush_.html
more:

Here is a quote from a 2003 essay by Robert Reich (the entire article is here):

It’s no accident that Karl Rove was one of Richard Nixon’s moles. Using techniques developed by his first mentor, dirty-tricks strategist Donald Segretti, Rove infiltrated Democratic organizations on behalf of Nixon’s infamous 1972 campaign. Rove’s formidable talents came to the attention of George Bush Senior, then incoming Republican National Committee chairman, and the rest is history.

The Republicans in the Bush mis-administration don’t give a damn about the U.S. Constitution and the Bill of Rights.

The Fascist Republicans are only concerned about power, power, power.

And to think, some of them actually claim to be Christian, especially the evangelical-type Christians who expect the return of Jesus Christ at any momemt.

Yeah, and Jesus will be so pissed he’ll kick some evangelical, Bush mis-administration butt. For some reason Jesus didn’t, and still doesn’t, like liars. Or totalitarian, monopolistic dickheads.

Yep, that’s what I get from reading the Bible. The Bush mis-administration in the White House has now assumed the role of the temple and the moneychangers, corrupted by the presence of Abramoff, Safarian, Reed, Rove, Bush, Cheney, Rumsfeld, Franks, and company, who are like the moneychangers of yore, whose butts Jesus will kick once he gets back. Unless “We The People” take care of business this November and beat Jesus to it.

Hell, I’d be willing to fork out some money for Pay-Per-View to see Jesus kicking out the Republican moneychangers both in the White House and Congress, who have despoiled our democracy with their anti-American greed and outright corruption.

weeder they should be posted here when available.

http://democrats.senate.gov/dpc/

I too have been mulling over this same question for a number of months. Why are we, the American public paying the salary for this dirtball to run congressional campaigns?????

Take a look at this google news story. It’s clear that Rove is doing work for the party and NOT the country!

Date: Mon, 26 Jun 2006 20:36:09 -0700 (PDT)
From: Google Alerts
Subject: Google Alert – Karl Rove

Google Alert for: Karl Rove

Karl Rove speaks at Mike Whalen fundraiser in Waterloo

http://www.wcfcourier.com/arti…..869960.txt

Waterloo Cedar Falls Courier – Waterloo,IA,USA
WATERLOO — While Karl Rove was enroute to talk at a campaign fundraiser for Republican congressional candidate Mike Whalen at the members-only Sunnyside …
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Fantastic question. I’ve often wondered about exactly that.

Thanks angie, for the link!