Please let us know what Sy Hersh has to say!

MANUEL LOPEZ OBRADOR

Chicks!

Check out the latest Wingnuttia follys! It’s hilarious:

http://echidneofthesnakes.blog.....4394476968

It’s 6:00AM on the West Coast and I am going to subject myself to Timmeh and his “guests.” Perhaps it’s masochism!

The wingnuts are really going after the NY Times, and what I don’t get is– why are we liberals trying to stick up for the NY Times?

We should be helping get this story out to the corporate media because it makes the wingnuts look silly, but why in the hell are we sticking up for Bill Fucking Keller?

Riesz — I think it’s one of those “principle of the thing” sorts of issues. I don’t have a lot of sympathy for the NYTimes — especially in the Judy years. But when they do their job, for once, and get this amount of pushback from the wingnuts, it’s because they and other papers have hit a nerve. And to keep trying to strengthen that press backbone is one of the things we need to promote where we can. We don’t smack someone around for properly doing their jobs — we just don’t.

OK, I’ve calmed down now. Thanks, Christy.

But in the story I linked in 4 the wingnuts are publishing the addresses of the NY Times editors and reporters, and I can’t bring myself to feel any sympathy for them.

Although this is certainly outrageous behavior on the part of the wingnuts.

Way back to the post and comments on single women and how to get them to the polls. Junior or community colleges are places where poor single women can be approached. Many of them use these educational programs to try to lift themselves up another rung of the economic ladder. Just wanted to add this in case someone out there is really trying to put together a voter registration plan for single women.

Riesz:

These people are trying to subjugate the free press completely to government. We have to fight this fight because we’re next, and because it’s the right thing to do.

got epu’d, it was ot, but important;

ot

not enough has been made clear telling what the hamden case was about

we need to inform the democrats and they need to make this an issue because it’s huge

the defendant was being tried, he wasn’t allowed to be present at the trial, his lawyer isn’t allowed to be present at the trial, the charges are unknown, evidence is inknown, hear say evidence is allowed.

the specifics need to be made clear and this was an important case

we need to expose anyone that is opposed to the decision…they need first become educated at our hands and then embarrassed they need to be embarrassed, the president needs to be embarrassed that he would countenance this behavior

I would like one of the authors here at firedoglake to do a post on this with everyday lanuage just what is going on with these “military tribunals”..I will link to it and use it as referance and source as will democrats and pundits

for instance, laws are made up unilaterally and then people are charged with those crimes

we have to stop using terms like “habeous corpus” and use real terms that will raise the eyebrows and embarrass amyone that thinks this ruling was incorrect

Reisz, the key here is “chilling effect”. They want to make the media think twice about reporting on anything inconvenient, for fear of either legal action or personal intimidation.

It’s the same playbook that led to Jeff Goldstein and his creatures’ demented personal attacks on Thersites and NYMary a few weeks ago.

Ah more faux outrage,over the travel section NYT piece.Really,how do the wingies find the time?

I have inlaws in the general area of MD where Cheney and Rummy’s warlord villas are located.It’s more than obvious to them and their neighbors where these criminals live.You can’t miss it,every time they come to town,the whole world has to stop for them.It’s not very neighborly,and it’s not very endearing either.Visitors to those particular compounds aren’t all that considerate of the neighbors either.Besides,as far as I know,home purchases are a matter of public record,aren’t they?I could go to my county government office during business hours and find out who the owner of any piece of land is,it’s just a matter of being directed to the right office.We did it with our property,just to see who all owned it before the last seller,to find out the history of the place as far back as the records go.It wasn’t that difficult.Hell,you can go to several online resources to see what the property all around you is worth,what’s been built on it,etc,all you need is an address.I even found that little “ranch” in Texas on Google Earth last summer and I didn’t have a specific address,just a street name.And I am by no means all that savvy when it comes to stuff like this.

In a way I’m glad to see the NYT get slammed. For too long they seemed to feel an free press was a quaint notion.

Of course the political grandstanding going on is over the top, and I would not support them losing their press credentials. I hope it’s a wake up call. It would go a long way towards righting their wrong if they take the lead in becoming honest, free, and independent.

For those who appreciate the beauty of daylilies, I went to the Daylilly Dazzle yesterday at a 10 acre daylilly farm. Talk about an incredible sight, 10 acres of over 2300 species in full bloom. Daryl Apps, the owner is an amazing man, and he’s a renowed expert in the field. His nursery is
http://www.woodsidenursery.com

He has such a vast selection.If you want to find some some really beautiful and exotic varieties, check it out.

Angry Broad at 13 — that’s absolutely correct. It’s public record in the county clerk’s office here — or whatever the equivalent is from state to state. You can look at terrain maps, purchase records back as far as they were kept. I’ve had to do title work for clients that took the title of the property back to the land grant to George Washington in our area in thanks for his survey work for the Crown. The wingers are trying to make a massive tempest in a teapot full of huge holes — the constant assumption that everyone they are talking to is a moron is insulting — and you’d think that a lot of those folks would get fed up.

Good morning and happy birding.

Some law professor comments that I have been reading about Hamdan:

NSA Domestic Spying

Yale U law prof Jack Balkin on Hamdan and the NSA dispute and the domestic spying: “Hamdan undermines the Administration’s arguments for the NSA’s power to engage in domestic surveillance.” http://balkin.blogspot.com/#115167594725297286 (June 30)

more to follow

The wingers are trying to make a massive tempest in a teapot full of huge holes %u2014 the constant assumption that everyone they are talking to is a moron is insulting %u2014 and you’d think that a lot of those folks would get fed up.

Not just morons; their campaign strategy is entirely based on the assumption that Americans are morons, cowards, and bigots.

It’s disturbing as hell to me that it *works*.

End of Unilateral Presidential Power

U Miami law prof Karl Blanke on how Hamdan strongly moves power back to the Congress: “I’m vastly oversimplifying a complex series of debates, but I think it is safe to say that opponents of a broad, unilateral executive war power received a powerful charge from the majority opinion in Hamdan . . . .” http://www.scotusblog.com/mova....._re_1.html (June 29)

Yale U law prof Jack Balkin on how Hamdan restricts unilateral Presidential power: http://balkin.blogspot.com/200.....ision.html (June 29)

Georgetown U law prof Marty Lederman: “the President’s powers are limited by statute and treaty, and he acts independently at his peril where such statutes and treaties are in the picture. (The Kennedy concurrence, in particular, is really quite devastating with respect to the Administration’s Commander-in-Chief theories.)” http://balkin.blogspot.com/#115166074802113924 (June 30)

Torture, Geneva, International Law

Georgetown U law prof Marty Liederman on the broader implications of Hamdan regarding American compliance with international law: “This ruling has enormous implications for the Administration’s detention and interrogation practices . . . .” http://www.scotusblog.com/mova....._arti.html (June 29)

Georgetown U international law prof Carlos Vzquez on the same theme: “The Court’s holding that Common Article 3 applies to the conflict against al Qaida is of enormous significance for questions not before the Court in Hamdan.” http://gulcfac.typepad.com/geo.....rsity_law/

Fighting Torture Inside the Government

LA Times article on how various people inside the US military fought for the rule of law and against the Rumsfeld/Addington path to torture. http://www.latimes.com/news/na.....-headlines (June 30)

New Yorker Feb. 2006 article on how Navy General Counsel Alberto Mora fought inside the government to end the torture of detainees in Guantanamo because of our international law obligations. http://www.newyorker.com/print.....227fa_fact (and if you haven’t, be sure to read the 22-page memo from Mora from 2004, described in the article - http://www.newyorker.com/images/pdfs/moramemo.pdf)

2006 Election

U Maryland law prof Mark Graber: “Hamdan is only likely to become a landmark case if people are elected who want Hamdan to be a landmark case.” http://balkin.blogspot.com/#115163209898328215 (June 29)

Graber: “Hamdan will mean very little if anything unless the Republican Party’s stranglehold on the national government can be broken.” http://balkin.blogspot.com/#115180191036216773 (July 1)

Angry Old Broad: Besides,as far as I know,home purchases are a matter of public record,aren’t they?

I don’t think we should be arguing the case on it’s merits, I think we should be ridiculing the wingnuts as far and wide as we can on this silliness. Trying to argue with them only plays into their hands– just laugh at them.

And we should try to intimidate the corporate media into covering this, since they’re too flacid to defend themselves.

Eli #17: Amen.

Re land records: I had one job, not actually real-estate-related, where we got the tax assessors’ maps and the records, in summary form, for all of southern CA. (We needed them to put addresses on our maps.) Public records, indeed, like wills, which the wealthier people (like Cheney and Rumsfeld) also don’t want public. The peasants might revolt, after all.

Advice to the maladministration: If you don’t want your property records available to the public, rent rather than buy.

Christy, can you unmoderate my two other sequential posts on law professor comments on Hamdan, please?

Riesz, I desperately want to see the Democrats to call them on it, to say, “You see what the Republicans are doing? You see what they think of you? Are you really going to stand for that? Aren’t we all better than that?”

The day the American people reject the trash the Republicans are selling is the day the present-day Republican party is *over*, and we can start taking the country back, and returning it to sanity.

I just wish I knew when that day was - maybe we’re not evolved enough yet.

I guess that I need to dissect comments further so that no more than 2 links are in any post?

Sometimes Wordpad (is that the software for the blog?) rejects a long comment, so I split it. But then it goes into moderation. So I presume that splitting it PLUS having only 2 links is the key, right?

professor, these are GREAT links for me, but they speak in legaleeze

we need to convert this to base language

like;

the president claimed he would use evidence like ’someone told me that someone told them that this guy was involved’ and that “someone” might just be someone that has a job the other person wants and would like to get rid of him”

instead of “hearsay evidence”

instead of “habeous oorpus” we need to convert it into language like;

“the president wanted to be able to make up any law he wanted with no restricition and then charge someone with that new law even though what he decided was illegal was a something as benign as buying a loaf of bread”

obvioulsy I’m too verbose, but I’m sure you get the idea.

anyway, I LOVE your writing on the matter, thanx for the links

OK, breaking things apart into smaller chunks, in case Christy is busy with Peanut. (Excuse if I am just impatient!)

End of Unilateral Presidential Power

U Miami law prof Karl Blanke on how Hamdan strongly moves power back to the Congress: “I’m vastly oversimplifying a complex series of debates, but I think it is safe to say that opponents of a broad, unilateral executive war power received a powerful charge from the majority opinion in Hamdan . . . .” http://www.scotusblog.com/mova....._re_1.html (June 29)

Yale U law prof Jack Balkin on how Hamdan restricts unilateral Presidential power: http://balkin.blogspot.com/200.....ision.html (June 29)

End of Unilateral Presidential Power

(continued)

Georgetown U law prof Marty Lederman: “the President’s powers are limited by statute and treaty, and he acts independently at his peril where such statutes and treaties are in the picture. (The Kennedy concurrence, in particular, is really quite devastating with respect to the Administration’s Commander-in-Chief theories.)” http://balkin.blogspot.com/#115166074802113924 (June 30)

Fighting Torture Inside the Government

LA Times article on how various people inside the US military fought for the rule of law and against the Rumsfeld/Addington path to torture. http://www.latimes.com/news/na.....-headlines (June 30)

Prof at 22 — they ought to be free…

I hope firedoglake let’s you guest blog on this prof…please read my suggestion up a few posts

Fighting Torture Inside the Government

(continued)

New Yorker Feb. 2006 article on how Navy General Counsel Alberto Mora fought inside the government to end the torture of detainees in Guantanamo because of our international law obligations. http://www.newyorker.com/print.....227fa_fact (and if you haven’t, be sure to read the 22-page memo from Mora from 2004, described in the article - http://www.newyorker.com/images/pdfs/moramemo.pdf)

Sorry!!! I should have showed more patience.

Prof, my expectation is that the Republicans will say that any broader implications of the Hamdan decision are purely theoretical, and that anyone who suggests otherwise is overreaching.

As far as they’re concerned, everything they do is legal until the court very specifically says that it is not.

Again, not saying what is, just saying what the Republicans will say is.

eli @31

As far as they’re concerned, everything they do is legal until the court very specifically says that it is not.,/blockquote>

this is why we have to put what was going on into base language and embarrass anyone that thinks the ruling is incorrect

this is why we have to put what was going on into base language and embarrass anyone that thinks the ruling is incorrect

It’s not that it’s incorrect (although they’re already pointing out that it was a narrow majority in order to diminish its legitimacy); just that it applies *only* to that one specific scenario. Anything else is just us wacky wishful-thinking liberals getting ahead of ourselves.

Why should any of us so much as consider lifting a finger to defend the NYT? The spectacle of BushCo. whipping its lapdogs is delightfully entertaining.

As serious journalists we have better things to do than defend the “rights” of dessicated Mandarins to rule over us all.

Good Morning FireLambs,

having forsworn Sunday Talk several months back, seeing the stellar lineups above only reinforces my choice - heck, if it weren’t for 24/7 Gearhead TV for the husband, I’m pretty sure there wouldn’t be a TV in the house

although goodness, it would be interesting to hear Keller’s response to the latest wingnut hysteria

Prof. - wonderful to see you back on the threads, many have asked after you

David E: Because after that 1st Amendment battle, we’re next.

I’m not arguing any merits,just pointing out that this information isn’t some top secret stuff that no one could find.Since land and homes are subject to property taxes,the sales and ownership of land and homes is public information.It’s insulting to anyone with more than two brain cells that fire simultaneously to imply otherwise.

I think Glenn Greenwald pointed out(sorry if it wasn’t Glenn)that when Bill and Hillary bought their house in NY the press did lots of feature articles on the house,the neighborhood,with plenty of pics and info and no one said boo about it.

cbl, thanks. I have been traveling for a month, in Central America, Eastern and Western Europe, and D.C. However, I really need to ignore your invitation, go away, and bury my head in an academic article, the deadline for which was Friday — and the d*mned thing needs to be translated into Spanish before being submitted!

Angry Old Broad: I think Glenn Greenwald pointed out(sorry if it wasn’t Glenn)that when Bill and Hillary bought their house in NY the press did lots of feature articles on the house,the neighborhood,with plenty of pics and info and no one said boo about it.

Exactly, and I’m saying he shouldn’t have pointed that out because it only gives their silliness an air of legitimacy.

We should just pound away at how whacky they are, and keep ridiculing them!

Sheesh, when are liberals going to learn– trying to reason with these people only makes them thing we’re unsure of ourselves.

The only thing red staters understand is intimidation and grade school-level mocking.

Don’t know if punaise is around, but THIS one’s for him/her(?)

LOL.

“The spectacle of BushCo. whipping its lapdogs is delightfully entertaining.”

I must agree with David E. on this and well said indeed. That bloated chunk of filth, Bill Bennett, is so extremely unpleasant, pompous and overbearing that pretty much anyone in the world with the possible exception of Darth Cheney himself would appear to be an enlightened individual having the opportunity to appear at a “round” table (dis)graced with his presence.

All these people including the chinless wonder from Kentucky who continue to defend the “Urinary Expletive” just don’t get it. They rush to the assumption that everyone at Gitmo and the “secret/black” prisons, where ever they may be is “guilty” as charged by the Chimporer hisself. King George’s (historical or current) approach is only right if the King’s judgement of anybody’s guilt is also “above reproach.” It should be clear to anyone with a few functioning brain cells that the Chimp’s judgement and reasoning abilities are severely limited or non-existent.

Chuck Schumer- MTP
Will support Leiberman up to the primary and would not comment if he would support Leiberman if he lost the primary as an independent!

So how is the NYT going to react to this latest round of lapdog bitch-slapping.

Will it be the Dixie Chicks “Not Ready to Make Nice” approach or the John DeLulio “I’m sorry massa, I didn’t mean a word I said and let me kiss your ass a little harder now” approach.

My guess is the latter and I wait with bated breath for the page one story that brings them back into good little laptog standing…..

Christy, or anyone, my birdfeeder is on a shepherd’s pole. Has anyone tried greasing the pole to keep the squirrels off it? Would grease hurt the squirrels when they lick it off? Would crisco work?

Prof says: “Sometimes Wordpad (is that the software for the blog?) rejects a long comment, so I split it. But then it goes into moderation. So I presume that splitting it PLUS having only 2 links is the key, right?”
July 2nd, 2006 at 6:52 am

WordPress is the software for the blog and, yes, 2 links per post appears to be the maximum allowed to avoid moderation of the post..

Riesz — I tried putting a “baffle” on my pole — basically a piece of plastic that went around it about halfway up that was supposed to stop the little critters from getting to the feeders. They then learned to leap from the hood of my car to the feeder. SIGH I’ve now started throwing down some peanuts in the shell (unsalted, raw) on the ground every morning — and the squirrels and the blue jays get to fight it out, and my feeders get left alone. Also, you can buy those little ears of corn for the ground — squirrels love them. (At least the ones around our house do, especially in the Fall.)

(pause)

Tony Orlando?

jgabriel at 51 - Mia Farrow?

Tony Orlando will bring his well-known expertise on yellow ribbons

of course…the yellow ribbons, America’s symbol of, um, er…something.

I have no idea what the hell Mia Farrow brings

suspect Mia Farrow will speak of issues relating to children, and maybe even so called ‘third world’ children and their needs

really, don’t know how y’all can do it anymore, just hearing Joke Line in the background bloviating on what the Dems should do causes minor agita - put it back on the Gearhead show Dear !

Mia brings her well-known expertise on Woody Allen, America’s symbol of…oh, wait.

Good Morning.

Prof — Thanks very much for the links. I don’t always understand fully, but I do get the gist. If I were a betting woman, you are shoring up the arguments made in your diary over at Kos. With FULL intention of doing a follow up diary to answer the — ah-hem — critics.

I did comment in support in your first diary. That was a VERY interesting ’round the campfire’ discussion. :-)

We’re not “next,” Pach. We have always been in their gunsites.

The First Ammendment, like all of the U.S. Constitution is a delightful fairy tale. It’s all about Power.

There is nothing else. William Gaddis put it best in A Frolic of His Own:

“Justice? — You get justice in the next world, in this world you have the law. . .the rest of it’s opera.”

OMOIGAWD! I’m bAAAAAck! Didjuh see moi video, duh one ya leaduh, Jane Hamshuh put up? Betchew moonbats are burnin’ flags this weekend, when the real Americans are out doing real American things — like shoppin’! You fRRRRReaks! OMIGAWD! Whenareyuh gonna get it through yuh thick heads: we should burn duh Noo Yawk Times to power our SUVs! Yeah, big oil — duh big gargoyle — won’t be happy, but it’d be worth it to piss off the Noo Yawk Times. OMIGAWD! I’m outta Splenda! I hafta get some fuh my skim milk Dunkin’ Donuts Koolattuh! Ya moonbats shoulda seen the party we had heah yestuhday. O.MOI.GAWD. J-Pod’s back hay-uh clogged up duh pool filtuh. Gotta go! seeeeeYA!wouldn’twantabeeeeeyA!

I’m going to take another shot, which is going to be duplicative of a lot of what has already been done and what will be done, on Hamdan. Just bc. *g* I think it is incredibly important as a legal decision - what COngress does with it, that, as has been pointed out by others, is more of a ???? But what it says to the people issuing the orders in the military or following the President’s ordes — and what it says to lawyers who are advising Executive Branch employees that they are exempt from War Crimes act legislation or criminal violations of existing Congressional legislation — Big. IMO.

Did y’all love Dana Priests smackdown of Bennett?
I DID

Prof @ 20

“Hamdan will mean very little if anything unless the Republican Party’s stranglehold on the national government can be broken.”

I will trundle off and read the linked articles now, but whenever BushCo needs to subjugate the Leg, they just send Cheney off to beat down a Senator or fifty-five - they’ve been very sucessful at it.
Now I read…

BBC — http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/5138616.stm

Israel to ‘intensify’ Gaza action
Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has ordered the military to intensify its actions in Gaza to secure the release of a captured Israeli soldier.

Mr Olmert told a weekly cabinet meeting he had instructed Israel’s forces “to do everything” to free 19-year-old Cpl Gilad Shalit, held since last Sunday.

His comments came hours after Israeli helicopters attacked the Gaza HQ of Palestinian PM Ismail Haniya.

A school in Gaza City and Hamas bases in northern Gaza were also hit.

The Sunday news, talking idiot, line-up, has for me, become a major yawn in its predictablity. The only ones for today, who would perhaps be of interest, at least for me would be Barney Frank and Carl Levin. Television Sunday “talk shows” are just an appendage of a vast money grubbing corporate thing. And corporate intersts, whatever their stripe are only worried about maintaining the status quo, because that translates into comfort and the bottom line. In my view. I’ll take my news straight-up, not over the rocks. I don’t want my news bruised with ice. So sorry Bimbo Timbo, I’ll be missing you again today.

OH NO SHE DIN’T!!!

Did Andrea Mitchell just interrupt John Harwood IN MID SENTENCE and say what “Bill Bennett would tell you” and then throw to Bennett who HAD JUST FINISHED MAKING HIS POINT NOT 30 SECONDS BEFORE?

Hint: Oh yeah she did!!!!

Franco @ 62, “Did y’all love Dana Priests smackdown of Bennett?”

Dana saying some would like to see casinos made illegal was fantastic. The look on gamblin’ bill’s face made my day. The fact he sheepishly mouthed ‘pathetic’ was icing.

Because I have nothing better to do — well, actually i do have better things to do, but … — I did a radio station search to find out who has the call letters “WATB”. It’s 1420 on the AM dial in Decatur, GA, but much to my disappointment, it does not appear to be a right-wing Talk Radio station. Fairly generic pop/variety playlist. Sigh. Would have been too good to be true.

Schumer has just shot himself in the foot. I am urging my readers to no longer give to the DSCC until they either replace Schumer or live up to their oath. Instead I am urging them to only give to the individual candidates via Act Blue.

The DSCC should not even be involved in primaries. They should focus solely on the final race and gaining more seats. The simple fact that they are involved in primaries shows that they are not concerned about winning back the Senate. They only want to keep their “good old boys” club going and that is why the Democrats are in the minority now. Why else would they rather spend money on defeating other Democrats?

The DSCC should not even be involved in primaries. They should focus solely on the final race and gaining more seats. The simple fact that they are involved in primaries shows that they are not concerned about winning back the Senate. They only want to keep their “good old boys” club going and that is why the Democrats are in the minority now. Why else would they rather spend money on defeating other Democrats?

I think the rationale is that they want to ensure that us poor ignorant voters only select “viable” candidates. You know, like Bob Casey Jr. Can’t have any loose cannon crazies like Chuck Pennachio or Paul Hackett running around making Democrats look bad, right?

Oh, and if the *D*SCC backs a non-Dem, we need to target Schumer’s sorry ass in 2010 - and prior to that, pressure the Dems to oust him as DSCC chair before the next election.

“Schumer.” Rhymes with “tumor”. And every bit as useful.

Mary- Looking forward to your latest. I still don’t understand the decision well.

the DSCC is properly involved in Primaries to assist in getting electable Democrats. For the DSCC to continue to support a candidate that was rejected in a proper, open primary and who is then continuing to run against the Party’s candidate is really really wrong.

Everytime Schumer & the DSCC start that crap about Leiberman…. email to the DSCC & Schumer saying “NOT ONE THIN DIME” in the subject. When the fund raisers call me, yep, say the same thing.

Franco at 62 — missed it, we are watching Spirited Away here (again!) this morning. (Can you tell what our favorite cartoon of the month is this month?) So tell for those of us who are Dana Priest smackdown deprived…

West Coast version: Schumer sits next to a turd like McConnell, and McConnell looks like the one with guts. Disgusting. Thanks for the leadership, Chuck!

OK- I’ll bite- what’d Schumer do now?

shorter Seymour Hersch: the WH has taken the nuke option off the table. Intel doesnt know where any covert Iranian nuke work is going on. the US Air Force wants to bomb everything, everywhere — others in the DoD think this is too broadbrush.

I think we ought to rate the Sunday shows by biscuits. For instance this morning Andrea Mitchell had a 4 out 5 biscuit morning talking about how divided the democrats were.

Also we should think about sending dog biscuits to the lapdogs like russert so they get it.

Dana Priest destroyed Bennett with that comment. It was must see TV snark but she maintained her poker face throughout and Bennett was livid. That pompous pantload needs to go back to his radio studio and keep preaching to the 29 Americans that listen to his show.

Sorry - Schumer, on MTP, when asked about support for RGJoe, said we’re supporting Joe, we think he’ll win the primary, and refused to answer when asked if Dems (DSCC) would support the primary winner. Asked repeatedly, he declined to answer, and looked ridiculous doing it. McConnel rightly pointed out that Dems are all over the map.

Schumer was asked right out, would he support Leiberman over the Democratic elected primary candidate.

He over and over again said he was supporting Leiberman in the Primary but could not commit beyond the primary.

Of course McConnell said it was the basic problem with the Democratic party, no plan, split and no unified message.

And Schumer would not address it!
DAMN

Morning. So what’s the temp over in Baghdad? Must be close to supper time over there.

Ghostman

Totally OT, but I have just submitted my Malkin rap*, which I will reproduce here for you all if that’s okay. Your thoughts?

*I don’t think I qualify for the contest as a contributor, but I couldn’t resist.

Go TRex, it’s your birthday…

And just jumping in, but I LOVE Spirited Away - what a masterpiece.

It’s a bit rude.

But here goes.

Asian Honky

Everybody, do the Asian Honky.
Everybody, everybody,
Throw your right wing in the air
And wave it like there’s no repercussions,
Having long and pointless discussions,
and cat-fights on the air.
I’m a cello-playing,
talking-point saying,
spelling bee-ing, overachieving,
smug, entitled, right-wing Asian Honky.

Everybody say Ramesh and Adam,
Yoo and Malangang!
I’m on wingnut welfare.
I’m to the right of a Klansman.
I may be brown
but I ain’t no nigga!
I’m highly strung
with a hair-trigger,
Everybody
Do the Asian Honky.
Everybody
Do the Asian Honky.

1st Amendment 80 - great idea - we shouldn’t think about sending dog biscuits, we should do it.

it’s almost 8pm in Baghdad — out at the Airport it’s 106ºF but its got special generators so they have air-conditioning … back in the city itself contractors still haven’t gotten the power going regularly so the chances are there’s no refrigeration …

MTP, cont’d…
I hate it when I agree w/ Safire - “Who elected the Press? The Founding Fathers, that’s who.” Fuck Bill Bennett.

Yeah, Barney Frankk!! we gotta get that transcript - he went too fast for me to blog and every word was right on and very illuminative. We suggest talking points - well, he’s got them. Too bad he had 2 minutes. No wonder he has to talk fast.

Andrea Mitchell is a disgrace to her ?profession?!!

And then there’s Howie.

How can these people, with a straight face, continue basically calling the NYT traitors, & regurgitating repub. talking points without comment?!

Just 2 days ago -, I saw old video of fmr Treas. Secy. Paul O’Neill, while he was still in the administration, proudly announcing how they were using bank records etc. etc. to track down Al Qaida support. News shows should play that video every time some wingnut takes another potshot at the Times for supposedly revealing [secret/old news]. But, no, it’s as if it never happened, tape or no tape. Arrrrrgh!

I just finished listening to Suskind hawking his new book (The 1% Doctrine) on C-Span. Yeah, he’s quite the showman, but more power to him, and us. WHY won’t the MSM goons listen to the plain, unvarnished truth, and report honestly? They’re running so fast to please the whitehouse goonsquad, their jobs are rendered meaningless. They cannot simply admit the truth, with evidence in plain sight all around them, then they should shut up & resign!

Christy. Love the catbirds. ;-> Gotta go weed. Good clean rage helps that project go faster. Maybe papa bluebird’s good company and pretty little chortlings will help my mood. Gonna be a hard sell. These whitehousegoons and their enablers spell doom unless this country wakes up.

Whenever I get feeling like this, more & more often these days, the old tv show ‘HeeHaw’ helps a little. remember?

“Doom & gloom, and agony unbeat.
Deep dark depression, excessive misery.
If it weren’t fer bad luck,
I’d have no luck a’tall.
Doom & gloom & agony unbeat.”

oh sigh. probably even got those lyrics wrong ……

Thanks for being there, firepups. Together I think we can make it through this nightmare, with luck & smarts & lotsa stubborn hard work.

Well, I might change “trigger” to “trigga”, but other than that - perfection.

(still laughing)

… if Barney Frank had eight hours, he’d still talk fast — that’s our Barney!

Gotta give Joe Klein credit. He stood up to Cokie, Thompson and the squirt and defended the SCOTUS and the Constitution.

Cokie knowing she was caught turned to the usual “The republicans are winning the political battle” routine. What issue is she suffering with?

Barner = re flag burning, equates that with shutting down newspapers for cartoons depicting badly Mohammad. there are limits to free speech - the safety of others, and defaming the reputation of others with lies.

Regarding the NYT, the 101st Wanking Keyboardists are simply doing their patriotic duty.

Why next thing you know, the French at the NYT will be publishing
Dear Leader’s Supur Seekrit home address in Washington, D.C.!

Cokie suffers from being a patricienne

Adie @ 92, “And then there’s Howie. How can these people, with a straight face, continue basically calling the NYT traitors, & regurgitating repub. talking points without comment?!”

But, but howie the whore gave his reliable source hewitt the last screeching word. hugh came this close to calling the msm to a zellmillerish duel. What a wanker.

wrt defending the the nyt…. the institution is not a monolith… there are reporters who are trying like heck to do the right thing - fighting against their own editors.

and when the nyt is targeted by the wrong-wingers, let’s be clear that it is the decent truth telling reporters who are undermined even further. they deserve our support.

keller does not.

When you make Mitch McConnell look good, you know it’s time to exit the stage. Schumer was the worst I’ve seen in a long time.

I had to turn off Bennett because he makes my breakfast come back up. So I missed the Dana Priest put down. Maybe C&L will have it up later.

Seeing as prostitution is her profession Andrea Mitchell is scarcely a disgrace.

Frank Rich displaying his customary brilliance in today’s piece, solidifies the case that the Times-bashing is pure political diversion.

http://rozius.blogspot.com/200.....press.html

AirportCat 68

Because I have nothing better to do %u2014 well, actually i do have better things to do, but

A cat after my own heart. Thank you for that research. I’m thinking of changing my nom de thread to WATB Hata…

106 degrees. And, to give you an insight into the soldiers plight, they’re wearing all sorts of protective armor while on patrol…many of them keep it on back at the base.

As to the citizens….probably?…long ago they simply quit using the fridge. If it’s only working 8 or so hours a day, I’m not sure if food would keep over time. So…you eat what’s cooked, and throw out the rest? I wonder what the overall nourishment level is. Thanks wilson.

Ghostman

WSJ and NYT having dueling editorial battles about the printing of the story about govt. spying on financial records.

WSJ claims that the NYT is reckless and wants the terrorists to win. Of course the WSJ ran the story too- which makes it a bit awkward- but this doesn’t even slow down the WSJ editorial page who claims:

1) The govt didn’t come to them to stop the story as they did the Times (which invites the question as to whether the WSJ gave the govt. a prior look at the story as the Times did).

2) The editorial page editors are different people than the general news editors and THEY WOULDN’T have run the story…huh?

3) In any event- the WSJ is morally superior to the Times cause they want Clusterfuck to win the war- so their running of the story is not nearly as bad as the evil times.

Unfuckingbelievable.

“The funny thing is I’m sure the Meet the Press producers/bookers saw absolutely nothing odd about a roundtable featuring Dana Priest, John Harwood, William Safire, and Bill Bennett. Nothing odd about that at all.”

Tim Russert is merely acknowledging the liberal bias of facts; he wouldn’t be doing his job if he allowed the reality-based community to have a forum without input from the Delusional-American community.

As for the Odious Cokie Roberts, she has never gotten over the fact that her dear dear Mama was appointed ambassadress to the Vatican by a man who had icky sex. Real, moral men (like Handsome Stevie Roberts) are content with seven minutes, three times a year: their birthday, their anniversary, and one bonus day after a particularly grueling pick from the Job Jar.

selise I am reminded, as always, of the opening line of The Wild Bunch:

“I know what you meant to do — it’s what you did that I don’t like!”

So Andrea is a good whore? I would never have guessed that.

Barney said he was in a church yesterday at a funeral of a young man killed in Afghanistan - where he voted the Authorization of Use of Military Force - and he “felt the weight of such a decision.”
Now, i’m trying to remember stuff i didn’t have the speed to write down; Yes, freedom of speech means that despicable people can say despicable things.
Funny that a conservative paper under a democratic paper can print the leak about use of cell phone and thats ok, but a liberal people printing something re banking under a republican prez is not ok.
Also, re banking, we have been bragging for a long time that we are following the money; did we think that they don’t realize that means banks? that we crept into their caves and looked into their wallets?

Twenty years ago, Andrea Mitchell was a bulldog reporter. Then she got married, went blonde, and became a celebrity journo pundit. Or maybe the blonde came last. I forget.

She’s a powerful whore. Not at all the same thing.

*ilson46201

Is that french for “Living inside the Beltway WAAAAAAAAAY TOOOOOOOOOO long?

Saw some of This Week, most of MTP and the Bill Keller interview on Face the Nation.

At one point, I thought Andrea Mitchell might throw in an “Arf!” or two…especially in the Schumer/McConnell segment. One of these days I would dearly love to see one of these guests say, “Hey, [fill in name here], you’ve apparently already decided what the talking points are going to be, and I seem to be here solely for the purpose of you being able to make your point. So, do you really want to know what I think, or are you just going to be a dog with a bone trying to “get” me so you can get the “good girl(boy)” from your pals in the White House?”

Schumer might need some ice for his genitals after stomping all over them on the Connecticut primary question. Okay, Chuck, you’re supporting Lieberman in the primary - great. But there is going to be a primary, people are going to vote in it, and the outcome is not certain. After Schumer kept insisting that he was supporting Lieberman and would not say whether he would support the winner, my question would have been, “So, if Lieberman runs in the general as an independent, will you turn your back on the Democratic candidate to support one whom Democrats rejected in the primary?”

Bill Bennett almost had a KAPOW! moment (that’s the sound of a vein popping) - he had the first response in the roundtable, and when Andrea Mitchell turned to one of the other guests, Bennet piped in with, “So, is that it for me?”

Imagine how much fun it was for Dana Priest to have to sit next to the oaf who opined that she should be in jail for her story on the black site prisons. The lady is cool, in an ice-water-in-the-veins kind of way; she may have planned the little riff on why gambling is legal, but she delivered it well; Bennett was probably placing bets before he left the studio, just to relieve his anger.

I thought it was interesting that John Harwood, of the WSJ, made plain that the shots their editorial board took at the NYT was not shared in the WSJ newsroom.

Keller was not particularly impressive, but he managed to make his points.

That was all my blood pressure could stand, and it was only because I was making the cream cheese icing for the carrot cake I made for my nephew’s birthday that I was able to tolerate as much as I did. *g*

Gotta love how slot-machine bennett dropped the ‘I signed an NDA so I know better’ card. He also made sure to get in the last word by telling the rest of the panel that they “aren’t above the law”. Weird comment considering King George (and limbaugh) does it every day.

moeman at 98
I had long since “HAD ENOUGH!” and left before howie got to hughhewitt *blush*
missed somethin’ good, eh? well. . . can stand only so much.. .

Hey, if anyone finds a video- or transcript-link to Barney Frank’s appearance today, could you please share?

He’s one of my heroes out there.

Jay 103 - thanks - Frank R is a national treasure

WHEN are these media ho’s gonna understand that no amount of sucking up to/carrying water for this fascist junta will ever be enough for them, they will turn snarling on you craven ass-kissers too, on a dime if it suits their agenda today, don’t think you’ll wind up in the reeducation camp right next to Cindy Sheehan, do ya? Think again, fools.

jay: thanks for the link to complete Frank Rich piece — very informative and a hard political smackdown on GOP Rep. Pete King !

rwcole :

This is the absolute mind boggling part. The MSM pretending that the Journal (just as widely read as Times) didn’t print the EXACT same story.

Parallel universe in 5,4,3,2….

Not sure what was funnier on ABC, the squirt buffing bicycling baby boomer bush boy’s birthday (and polishing the ‘how fit little boots heart rate is’ meme) or the time filler funnies.

Worst part is that when the radio and TV wurlitzer cranks up the rhetoric on an issue (it’s the media’s fault, par example), it quickly takes hold among the uninformed masses and we all know folks that fall into that category. They’re not stupid, but they believe that the M$M is telling them the truth, never noticing that there’s a concerted, across-the-board effort to propagate talking points that sway public opinion. Ah well, maybe they are stupid.

Anne 113 - mmmm, carrot cake

Ghostman that is the unreported story

Many Firepups remember my whining about my AC being out x 5 days in Phoenix…. 105-112 degrees outside and temps up to 101 inside. I live in a house with insulated windows, ceilings fans and additional fans in every room. Nighttime temps would be in the low 80’s so the house would cool down to 85 at night with windows open & fans pulling air in.

Everyday the internal temp would go up so that eventually it would be around 90-100 each day. I had the luxury of a pool, movie theaters, malls and shopping centers to escape to.

Iraqi’s who have only a few hours of electricity, they only use necessary appliances, this scenario demands that Iraqi’s go out shopping daily for food and supplies. I do not know if it is customary in Iraq but it was in Greece that the neighborhood bakerys would be the neighborhood ovens for families cooking large dinners.

So not only are they without the normal amenities that they had before the US invasion, they are daily at risk having to go out to buy food, try to get petrol for cooking and their cars. When activities of daily living are such a struggle, it reverts to Maslow’s Hiearchy of Needs.

That is the ReThug theory for us all. We are TOO busy trying to survive to worry about what they are doing and having the energy to stop them.

It’s like the Republicans are playing Arlen Says:

This is what our government has been reduced to. A giant fucking game of Simon, or in this case Bush Says. Doesn’t matter what the actual action is, be it “take three baby steps toward revoking the Rule of Law” or “jump on one foot off the edge of this cliff into complete one-man rule.” Bush can do any goddamn thing he wants and all the majesty of Congress, described in Article One of the Constitution of the United States because Congress is the governing body of our Republic, can do in their righeous rage at being stomped into the dirt by the Unitary Executive is to whine “But he didn’t ASK us first!” Feh.

Next time Dana should mention the dominatrix whose services Bill Bennett pays for.

I. History
I’m going to try to do this more organized and less verbiage - but I don’t see how you look at this case in a vacumn, without context.

A. September 14, 2001 AUMF Congress authorizes President to use military force to go after those “nations, organizations, or persons” who “planned, authorized, committed, or aided” the 9/11 attacks. There is no declaration of war, but some war powers of the President are arguably implicated by the authorization.

B. November 13, 2001 Order President issues an Order which allows him to unilaterally set up “commissions” (not court-martial) to “try” certain persons. If the President determines (**the lack of Presidential determinations is probably one reason that there have been so few persons charged so far - I think Sec of Def can do this too now, from a subsequent order, Altenberg, but still- one of them has to sign off). The commissions are exempted from following the rules of the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ). People designated by the President can be tried for “any and all offenses triable by military commission.”

C. Geneva Conventions Dispensed with via several DOJ memos, Executive Orders, some miitary memoranda etc. Alberto Mora, then legal counsel for the Navy, is IMO a hero on this and there is a very good New Yorker article on him and his efforts to fight this.

D. Rasul v. Bush. Various lawyers began to seek review for how detainees were being treated, and for how long they could be detained, at Guantanamo without any review or charges. The old English writ of Habeas Corpus, referenced in our Constitution, the “produce the body” writ, is a legal process that can be used when someone disappears into a sovereign’s custody and no one knows why or what is going to happen to them. It is a way to tell the Sovereign that it must either charge someone or let them go (with some other possible aspects). Laywers used habeas - Gov said “habeas doesn’t work bc the detainees are not Americans, and are not being held on American soil (and some other stuff). In addition to the general common habeas, America has some statutes that Congress passed and give habeas rights. The Sup. Ct held that under one of those statutes, US COurts DID have power to issue habeas for Guantanamo detainees.

E. Hamdi Hamdi is different, bc it dealt with a US Citizen who was taken Afghanistan, but brought back to the US. It was a mess that used, for the plurality (which included O’Connor and Rhenquist) the AUMF to authorize the Gov’s actions to date, which were otherwise clearly illegal (even per Justice Scalia - who reasons very differently, about what happens with citizens on US soil than non-citizens, not in the US). Hamdi is mainly cite by the right for saying the AUMF authorizes the President to override Cong. statutes - and on the left for the “President does not have a blank check” language.

F. Combatant Status Review Tribunals (CSRTs) By another Executive Order the President sets up CSRTs at Guantanamo. These “tribunals” were supposedly to address the Article 5 concerns of the Geneva Conventions. That Article requires a trial/proceeding for anyone for whom there might be a question under the Conventions as to their “status” so that someone who is wrongly taken or wrongly classified has a venue to raise those concerns. Many ?? as to whether the President was trying to claim the CSRTs met Article 5 requirements or just did them to say we were doing something “similar”. The tribunals have less protections than the Nov. 13 Order commissions, including no counsel for detainees and requirments to sign away certain rights to even participate in the CSRTs.

G. Detainee Treatment Act of 2005 (DTA) In Dec. of 2005 Congress passes the DTA which does many things (torture, possible interrogation amnesty, etc. but we’ll deal with Sec 1005(e) and (h).

In e-2, Congress says, for the CSRTs, appeals can be taken to the Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit only. (DCCir) The DCCir is authorized to rule in only two areas. First whether the conclusion on status is consistent with the “standards and procedures specified” (via the Exec Orders and Sec Def)for the tribunals. Second, the extent to which the “Constitution and laws of the United States are applicable” and if they are applicable, then whether the “standards and procedures” being used for the tribunals are “consistent with the Constitution and laws of the United States.”

In e-3, Congress does pretty much the same thing with ‘final orders’ (a term that has a detailed legal meaning, but pretty much it means the absolute final disposition of the case by that body) of the Nov13 Order ‘commssions’. Those final order can be appealed to the DCCir (but not all of them, only the ones involving sentences of more than 10 years, lesser sentences the DCCir has the option to hear or not hear, as it chooses). Once before the DCCir, it is limited to determining, like with the CSRTs, whether the final order is consistent with standards and procedures (but here, of the “commissions” not “tribunals”) and secondly, whether the Constituions and laws of the United States apply to the commission proceedings and if so, whether those commission proceedings are “consistent with” the Constitution and laws of the United States.

Then, in Sec. 1005(h), Congress says that the effective date of the legislation shall be Dec 2005 (when it was enacted) and that for e-2 and e-3, CSRTs and commission final orders, it shall apply to cases “pending on or after the date of the enactment of this Act.”

So, what does that mean for HABEAS cases (which are not CSRT determinations or commission final order determinatinons?) Well, Sens Graham and Kyl have a “floor exchange” that never occured put in the record to make it seem as if habeas cases pending are supposed to be tolled by the act. But other Senators, like Levin - a cosponsor - seemed surprised to hear that. The DTA deals with the “statutory habeas” cases in e-1.

In e-1, the statute that the Court relied upon in Rasul v. Bush, 28 USC 2241, gets an amendment. They don’t try to limit the court’s interpretation in general as to its rights under the statute to issue habeas where people are in the Executive’s control, offshore (HEADS UP RENDITION SITES), but instead carves out Guantanamo itself as a special exception. The DTA says for ALIENS that DOD has at GITMO, under 28 USC 2241, no “court, justice or judge” can hear a habeas petition.

Couple of things to keep in mind. First, we are still talking only about the statutory habeas in 2241- not the old common law habeas. Ok, that is actually a point very few are going to care about. But Second is bigger - 1005(h) that said e-2 and 2-3 appeals and procedures, for CSRT and Final Commission orders, apply to PENDING cases - doesn’t mention 1005 e-1, the habeas cases section.

Now, with that setup, what is going to happen to HamdAN whose habeas case was pending already when the DTA was passed? Could Congress wrest jurisdiction from the court once it had attached, and was Congress even rying to do that with the DTA? And how does the specific authorization under the Constitution given to Congress for setting up tribunals and disciplining the military interplay with the specific authorizations given to the courts to have jurisdiction over a multitude of proceedings?

Speaking of talking fast, that’s something I love about Murtha. His looks are so white-haired, older-dude avuncular, but he’s all quick & agile athlete when he opens his mouth, smacking the hell out of cheney/rove war bullshit memes with total economy and precision.

David at 123 — Oh man, I could have gone all day and not had that image in my head. Blergh. *G*

Mary 124, you’re so fine, you’re so fine you blow my mind hey Mary 124

new thread

http://www.firedoglake.com/200.....the-times/

AOB 41 - This is indeed a tempest in a teapot. Wingnutia thinks that everyone is as provincial and uninformed as they are.

REvDeb 44 - whoohoo, that was fun. Punaise will love it (and it’s him - he posted pictures shortly after YKos).

TRex, just as I suspected, your Malkin rap is fantastic. Moi, je vote that you should be a contenduh!

My poor Western orioles! Last week a freak wind storm blew their hanging nest to smithereens. No eggs yet that I can tell. So Papa O is out there now weaving a new one on the leaf next door. I do so love nature.

Ok scuse me while I fully read Mary

Jay thanks for the Frank Rich link

This paragraph jumped out:

Far from Swift-boating the Swift reportage, he[Tony Snow] offered tentative praise. “It’s interesting,” he said, “because I think there’s a fair amount of balance in the story in that you do have concrete benefits and you do have the kind of abstract harms that were mentioned in there.” He noted that there had been “no allegation of illegality” in the Times article.

The story came out June 23, Snow doesn’t see a problem. 3 days later, the president gets upset but not at the WSJ for publishing the same story?

I have to run before reading the comments; I am sorry if this was mentioned already. The promo for the evening news that ran on ABC after Stephanopolous was too funny to bear. The voice over said something like ” for nearly two decades he was in a coma, bearly consious. The doctors thought that he would never recover but then he came back to life. See his remarkable story tonight on the ABC Evening News (only an approxmate quote from memory). And then the screen flashes a picture of their new anchor fresh from Good Morning America, Charles Gibson! I hope C&L puts it on. Laugh or cry; or both.

Jay @103, thanks for the link to the Frank Rich piece … I just have one little quibble with it, his reference in the last paragraph “during our own wartime”. If he’s talking about Iraq, that’s not a war, it’s an occupation (one which reminds me of that wonderful line from Steinbeck’s The Moon Is Down “the flies have conquered the flypaper”). If he’s talking about the “GWOT”, that’s not a war either, no more than the “War on Drugs” was … and why is it that all these ersatz GOoPer “wars” are really more wars on civil liberties than anything else?

Mary — thanks for that timeline. I’m culling your comments from FDL on Hamdan, will try to use what you’ve posted so far for my missive to Levin.

Didn’t catch him this morning on CBS; wonder if he said anything about DTA and Hamdan?

another Barney point - the AUMF was not permission to set up a Monarchy.

On MTP Bill Bennett was verbally thrashed by William Safire. Bill, jacket bursting at the seams, looked like he was heading for cardiac arrest.

After all the years of hearing Bill Bennett sit in judgement of all of us, this morning’s MTP will go down as a “classic”! Dana Priest was magnificent! ” Some people would like to make Casino gambling illegal”, was brilliant! I nominate Dana Priest for an Emmy to sit next to her Pulitzer! Dana’s remark certainly made Bill Bennett squirm!

Hate to say it, but I must have fallen asleep or found something else to do this morning. I can’t remember anything the twits said.

What I am curious about is the actual viewership of the sabbath gasbags. My son worked for awhile trying to sell TV ad time. The demographics for Sunday morning talk shows were dreadful out in the boondocks. Anybody with real knowledge of this have a clue about how many people actually watch what usually fascinates a lot of us bloggers?