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(Newt Gingrich, Time's unctuous Man of the Year for 1995.)
Yesterday, I described Tony Snow's oily, smarm merchant press briefing performance as unctuous. (C&L has a bit on the presser, in case you missed it.) I truly thought Snow would walk away with the BS prize yesterday, but I should never have underestimated Newt — who even out-galled Tom DeLay's idiocy on Hardball yesterday. Read this and try — really, truly try — not to spew your coffee (H/T Elliott):
Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich said in Nashville that the personal lives of White House hopefuls shouldn't become an issue in the 2008 campaign.
Earlier this month Gingrich said he was seeking forgiveness for his own extramarital affair committed while he pursued President Clinton's impeachment in the Monica Lewinsky scandal….
It's ballsy, I'll give him that. Especially with this and this in his past. But, as Digby said earlier this month, it is this very smarm merchant quality that makes Newt the perfect Dobson's Choice — it's his stellar family values coupled with his commitment to truth and honesty in government, I suppose. (And man did that hurt to type, even with my full snark mode.) From Digby:
It's possible that these people will reject Newt Gingrich and Rudy Giuliani for the same "moral" reasons they condemned Clinton. But I very much doubt it. Dobson and Falwell and all these guys are hucksters and the people who follow them either have no moral consistency or they are shallow and insincere. Oh, they'll find some lame rationale, as all Republicans do, but it's long been clear that the only thing that matters to them is that the candidate be a member in good standing of the tribe and that they pay tribute to the High Priests.
I continue to wonder when the Democratic establishment is going to recognize that the Christian Right is run by a bunch of powerful phonies and that this small slice of the American electorate has been the tail that very cleverly wagged the dog of American politics for far too long.
These people will very likely back Newt in my opinion. He's a real member of the right wing tribal leadership. And if they get behind him, he may win the nomination. Newt Gingrich is one of the most unlikeable politicians in America.
Run, Newt, run.
The modern Republican party is built on a foundation of smarm, run by two-bit snake oil salesmen and hucksters who think of nothing more than gathering more power and more opportunities to shovel money into the pockets of their cronies. At what point does America say enough?
Please, for the love of all that is holy, let that day be today.
PS — This morning, it appears that Robert Novak will be playing the part of unctuous Republican concern troll for the day. Nothing like attempting to portray the head of the CIA as a partisan hack because his information disagrees with your world view. Bob, you are entitled to your own, addled interpretation and opinions, but you are not entitled to your own facts. So you, and your aggrieved, untrustworthy political troll pal, Rep. Pete Hoekstra, can crawl back under that rotting neocon bridge from whence you came.
Seems to me that the Waxman hearing hit a few of Bob's remaining nerves. Try to come to terms about why your social pariah status wasn't rescued by the Miss Havisham testimony from Victoria "Goldwater Girl" Toensing, Bob. My favorite bit of the indulgent little tra la through Bob's brain is the whining about the incompetent Rep. Lynn Westmoreland as being blinded by Valerie's beauty and that Rep. Tom Davis was disorganized, and the griping about the other Republicans who didn't bother to show up and do their jobs…because Henry Waxman is just so darn scary. Please. It's called oversight and accountability, Bob, get used to it. And if the Republican party is too lazy to show up to DO their work, we are more than happy to help get some new representatives in their seats in 2008. (You can take that one to the bank.)
PPS — Wishing John and Elizabeth Edwards nothing but the best this morning. Sure hope everything is okay with Elizabeth — her memoir Saving Graces was one of the best reads I had last year. They have called a press conference for noon, so please send out some spare good thoughts for Elizabeth and the Edwards family if you have some.
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Mornin’!
Fitz!
I’ll say it again. Right-wing ethics boils down to: “Good is when I steal from you. Evil is when you steal from me.”
Christy
Jane! Christie! Fitz! Kobe!
Mornin’ Christy! Hope you’re getting some of that real spring weather we’re supposed to get today.
Ha! My first zed…and I even stopped to read the post. Happy spring, everyone. It was sure a fun day at FDL yesterday…hoping for more of same today.
Any good hearings today? Also, yesterday people kept referring to CSPAN3. We only get 1 & 2 on our cable. Can you livestream 3?
Morning all — my daffodils are blooming, coffee is on, and The Peanut just got dropped off at preschool. Let me pour myself a cuppa and we can catch up with the news this morning.
Yes, please run, Newt. and not just ‘cuz you’re a hypocritical philandering scuzzball who seeved your wife divorce papers in the hospital, or because your hackish pseudo-intellectual persona grates like sandpaper, but because we can, forever, show the NY Daily News CRYBABY! graphic from your petulant temper tantrum about the back of the president’s plane every time you do or say something royally dumb.
Should be a daily ceremony.
Christy -
One typo: And
mandidman did that hurt to type…Public service announcement: if FDL is running slowly, there appears to be a server hiccup (as was the case yesterday) involving dg.specificclick.net. Whatever ad it is displaying may be loading very slowly.
i just cross-posted a snippet of a piece i found on a Multiple Sclerosis website in the WaPo’s comments section & at Atrios’ about what Newt did to Wife #1 and Wife #2 when their respective health was in crisis — oh — and Victoria Toensing was acting as Mrs. Ginrich #2’s attorney at that time:
Thinking this morning of Elizabeth and Jane.
Right on, Christy!
Caring thoughts to the Edwardses. We live with the shadow of cancer in our household, and I was telling a friend it’s like walking a bumpy mountain road always knowing there’s a giant boulder teetering above your shoulder. You tread lightly, don’t talk about it often, but it’s always there.
Heard too little of Louise Patterson reminiscing about her husband, Bishop Patterson, with Imus. Without sounding like the cross-media version of a blogwhore, I really appreciate wfan.com with their Instant Replay feature. You can hear the full conversation without the gibber-jabber betweentimes.
Also highly recommend the Bradley conversation, his thoughts on voting, “big ideas” and The New American Story. Lots of food for thought and discussion.
Speaking of bugs, as we have been in recent days……..
Enjoy this Sherffius cartoon: http://cagle.msnbc.com/politic…..rffius.asp
Note 1: Not a permalink; artist-dated 3-21-07.
Note 2: Is anyone else having another slow load day?
These guys are all unctuous used car salesmen. And Newt is at the top of the list. Personally, I wouldn’t buy an apple from the sonofabitch.
Stephen at 10 — I believe that got cleared up yesterday — so there shouldn’t be a hiccup with it today. (It was from the Sitemeter code, btw, in case anyone was wondering. Here’s hoping we don’t have a problem with it today.)
Seems to be the common theme running amongst the right, conservative, born again, etc.: Sin all you want, as long as you repent and feel sufficiently guilty about it. What a pathology of fools.
Speaking of pathology, I don’t know how many times I’ve wondered how far I would have gotten in life had I spent the first 40 inside a bottle, coddled by Mumsy and Poppy. But it’s all good now, he’s SAVED!!!!111!!!
EPU’d from late night last night, just have to recommend Mr. Marshall on the purge:
The whole post, including his comparison of administration behavior to a banana republic, is worth a look.
rxbusa @ 7
Senate Judiciary Committee Executive Business Meeting
Edwards to hold news conference on wife’s health
Seems to be the common theme running amongst the right, conservative, born again, etc.: Sin all you want, as long as you repent and feel sufficiently guilty about it. What a pathology of fools.
Speaking of pathology, I don’t know how many times I’ve wondered how far I would have gotten in life had I spent the first 40 years of it inside a bottle, coddled by Mumsy and Poppy. But it’s all good now, he’s SAVED!!!!111!!!
Christy, good morning and thank you so much for reading Bob Novak so I don’t have to.
What a service you folks do for those of us who just cannot stomach anymore bool-sheet from these people.
Morning All,
I have so missed being on the threads this past week with so much going on. Schoedenfreud on a platter with a truffle garnish!
And on top of it is this:
Something tells me this is just the tip of the iceberg. The house of cards is starting to fall.
So I’m back off and on for a couple of days. Work has been busy and I’ll be moving this summer and starting a new job in August. I can’t share the details until Sunday morning after the search committee tells the congregation that I’m coming. ‘Till then, let me just say that I’m a happy camper.
And sincere prayers for Elizabeth Edwards. Last Sat. I attended a memorial service for a former parishioner who died of BC at age 48. So so awful!!!!
Seems Gonzales was interfering in the 2005 tobacco case too.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/…..02713.html
Wigwam @ 3
Not quite correct. Good is when I steal from you; evil is when you keep what’s yours.
Heard Bill Bradley’s book The New American Story is out now and might have some good talking points for progressives this coming cycle.
Nasty Bob also wrote a letter to Newsweek, 3/19 issue, ticked off about Isikoff’s 2/26 article on Bob & buddy lobbyist Hohlt.
Hi All,
Did anyone notice that the prosecutor in the Tobacco case is and has said that poilitcal types in the DOJ micromanaged the case. Wapo Eubanks Story
Just thinking, wonder how much was done in the Microsoft antitrust case.
bille
Mandrake @ 22
So true, listening to Bush is worst than nails on a blackboard.
Yesterday the Houston Chronicle ran some excerpts from Delay’s upcoming book. One of them laid the failure of the Republicans’ “leadership” (his word) at Newt’s doorstep. So there’s still some twists to this story to be played out.
morning
I was watching Harry Smith on CBS this morning talking to Tony Snow about the USA’s. They were both very frustrated with each other. Tony said Harry was partisan. Harry quoted something Tony had said about Clinton, which was soooooo great.
Bugboy @ 21
One day my brother and I were driving along a country road and spotted a country Baptist church with a sleazy country bar right next door. I imagined some guy partying all Saturday night and then crawling over to the church Sunday morning with a killer hangover to be washed clean of all he’d done the night before simply by raising his hands and babbling a few words about being saved.
Next weekend, same scenario all over again. I thought it was a pretty good symbolic representation of what many of these people are all about.
There’s a lot of frustration building up (been building up for a while, in fact) on the right wing sites (e.g. Redstate, powerline) along the lines of “Why, oh why won’t they just fight lies with truth! If Bush would only get out there and tell everyone that Wilson is lied or argue that there *were* WMD or that the USAT’s were fired for purely legitmate reasons then all this would go away! Why, oh why won’t he do it?” And this is bleeding over to the Westmorelands and Davis’ of the right — why won’t they just stand and fight against all these lies?
I only see two ways to look at it: Either they (Bush / Republicans) are weak and ineffective or those things are simply indefensible. It’s clearly a mix of both, but even weak / ineffective people can put up some kind of useful defense when truth is on their side.
This has been going on for a long time. I wrote about this a while ago at (my blog).
Morning, all, and good thoughts to the Edwards. Definite reason for concern.
As for Newt & the modern repubs. I’m torn between a) shaking my head that social conservatives are still willing to be pimped by their leaders who use them to get a seat at the Repug power table, and b) believing that even *they* are seeing the abject hypocrisy of their leadership.
Traditional / movement conservatives seem to be peeling off (TRex was delightful last night) — even they can’t stand the stink of their own hypocrisy, now that they realize the Faustian bargain of bedding down with the social conservatives.
But I have serious hopes that the social conservatives are going to wake up to the Fact that their fantasized memory of Reagan-topia was just the beginning of a nightmare in which they — generally a working class group of the faithful — were lured into an Atwater-esque trap to feather the nests of the powerful few.
And when they do, look out. They’ll be mad and they’ll abandon en masse.
I also keep having Harlan Ellison like visions of smoke coming out of the Tick Tock Man’s ears as the outrageous inconsistencies unravel — at this point, on an hourly basis.
i can’t stop thinking about elizabeth edwards.
wonderful person. intelligent, insightful & wise.
i’ve always wished she would run.
sending positive thoughts her way.
Roundup of the Sharon Euston DOJ case
DKos: USAgate bombshell! Sweet tobacco deal cost us BILLIONS!
WaPo: Prosecutor Says Bush Appointees Interfered With Tobacco Case
More re Susan Eubanks from Tobacco on Trial blog. They knew about this in Dec 2005. And more here at Bad Attitudes about Ashcroft murmuring to the WaPo that,, “There is a lack of confidence in some of the people involved.”
Christy -
Have read numerous reactions to today’s WaPo article re. Justice & tobacco. I just hate to get my hopes up that this will become another *major* stone in shrub’s boat………..would love to hear if you think it has some real weight in the not too distant future and how the Dems might possibly use it. Or, maybe you already have a post planned?
Good Morning Christy and Firedogs,
Ladies and Gentlemen of the jury – I give you Exhibit A – Mike Huckabee
Gov. Huckabee is a lifelong Solid Gold Christian with all the appropriate bona fides, but completely ignored by Falwell, Dobson, Perkins, and Land
They’ve finally have a gen-u-wine Fundamentalist, a guy living the Values life – with serious national creds and yet they put on their contortionist act to justify Gingrich, Giulianni, or Mitt
might lead someone to think it isn’t about the Righteousness after all . . .:)
I know I keep trolling about this but…
*ONE-ADAM-TWELVE, ONE-ADAM-TWELVE, SEE THE CARRIER FLEETS DOUBLE PARKED IN THE PERSIAN GULF, OVER*
I gagged when I heard Senator Bond worry about the poor little girl who needs two coats to stay warm and how much worse she would be if Vice President Gore’s solution to global warming took effect. The Republicans’ concern for the poor is evident in their funding priorities and legislation yet their hypocrisy goes on.
(In response to a question by Senator Clinton, Gore agreed the little girl would be much better off if one of his solutions were adopted. Good on them!)
I’m hoping the news from the Edwards is nothing but favorable.
And to put a face to the name, here are some photos of Sharon Eubanks. and her team (some of Team Tobacco, too)
(edited to correct link)
blue e @ 31
I just looove the thing about “we want to fully cooperate and give Congress everything it needs but if they serve us with subpoenas, they ain’t gettin’ nothin’ cuz that’d hurt our widdle feelings.”
Why rescind the “generous” offer for this reason if you supposedly have nothing to hide?
Also, watching Olbermann last night, Chuck Schumer was sounding ominous, saying many people in the DoJ were so upset about this that they would be dribbling out info and evidence anyway, regardless of the WH’s position.
I am in no way suggesting this is any substitute for subpoenas, but I would appreciate Christy’s perspective on Schumer’s insinuation.
Christy Hardin Smith @
8
sheesh – yours are blooming! i’m in the hudson vally & all we have are shoots!
Digby got it wrong. The people following Newt and his ilk aren’t insincere or shallow. They’re just stupid.
Shoot, they’re all falling over themselves to get on the “I was a bad boy” confessional train. Delay is the latest. Then it’s move on, that’s old news, while they will make sure Clinton’s bj is brougnt up several times a week.
Waccamaw at 37 — Am already working on something. Should be up in a bit. But need more coffee first…
Having read Elizabeth Edwards book, I feel as though I know that family and Im so sad for them.
John Edwards is a real man in my opinion and Im hoping for the best.
the senate judiciary committee meeting this morning (10am), “Authorization of Subpoenas in Connection with Investigation into Replacement of U.S. Attorneys” was mentioned above… streaming webcast at the meeting announcement webpage, or the room audio feed for Dirksen-226 (click on the room number, on the left).
also of interest today, and on c-span3, is jim webb speaking at the national press club at 1pm.
Novakula’s little hissy fit in the WP is just pathetic. Talk about “death throes”.
Mutant Poodle @
18
The whole post, including his comparison of administration behavior to a banana republic, is worth a look.
I cannot figure out what EPU’d means. But then again, I’m me!
Thursday
3/22/7
still looking for start time
Republican Party Credo:
If we do it, it’s our right and it’s not illegal.
-GSD
cbl,
You hit it on the head. They aren’t religious, they are authoritarian and they are manipulative hucksters. Newt and the bugman are part of the club. Most of the atheists I know have more morals in their little finger than the lot of the Pat Robertsons etc. combined.
Regarding Newt (choking down wave of nausea), I always remember what Molly Ivins wrote about him: that one should always look closely at what he accuses others of because it is usually a reflection of something dastardly he himself is up to. Not sure how to apply this to “oh let’s just stay out of each other’s personal lives”, though.
Sending positive vibes to Jane H and Elizabeth E today as well.
I haven’t read it yet, but there better be a DAMN good reason that Newt Gingrich is on my screen first thing this morning. Cause now I’m going to have to get back in the shower and scrub my eyeballs….grumble.
No wait, ok first cuppa half way drunk. brain in gear. I’ll go read now. Morning firepups!
North Korea has bailed out of the talks. I think they stuck around long enough to get their 25 million released by the US.
Poor Republicans….They thought Bush would never negotiate with “evil”.
Punked again.
-GSD
Knut Wicksell @
25
Hear, hear!
Christy -
Wizard!
Drink lots coffee (priming the pump, so to speak); looking forward to another good rumble. *g*
DOJ & Tobacco: Where there r smokes, there’s $$$$. I posted a comment yesterday wrt that thingy that could be fatal to BushCo. Maybe this is the one. Or, maybe there’s a bigger one tomorrow, or next week, or next month. Pandora lives.
Terry Olson:
EPU’d
:-)
cbl @ 50
That’s for July 22/2006, I think. Per the Oversight website’s schedule, nothing televised til Monday, that’ll be Full Committee hearing on “Safe and Affordable Biotech Drugs – The Need for a Generic Pathway”
Monday, March 26, 2007, 10:00 a.m., in 2154 Rayburn House Office Building
HotFlash @ 41
oops – link didnt show up on my screen originally!
weird
link puleeze
Is Newt is the perfect Dobson’s Choice or Hobson’s Choice?
In regard to Newt, some folks made much news about a poll indicating that 46% of those polled would never vote for Hillary Clinton. They made quite a bit of hay about that high negative.
Seems they glossed over the bigger number. 53% said they’d never vote for Newton Leroy Gingrich.
He’s very unpopular and very unlikeable.
-GSD
Thanks, Dr. Bong.
Anyone offer insight into the reversal of conviction in Vermont of Tobin? Who is the Federal judge in the appeal who feels the conviction was not based on a “close fit” to the law under which he was prosecuted? And what the hell is a “close fit”?
RevDeb – we’re going to be so sorry to lose you – but whatever state you end up in will be lucky to have you!… and the toobz will keep us all close…
Pectopah @ 63
James Dobson…..fundiegelical preacher and huckster extraordinaire.
-GSD
Newt has a long, long way to go before he could even aspire to ‘unlikeable’. I can’t believe he’s ba-a-a-ack. He is so delusional. He actually believes there will be a groundswell of support insisting that he be President!
RevDeb @ 23
Agreed. I think once people start talking, other, even more vile cans of worms will be opened. And, considering the vindictive nature of this admin., there’s no way to get the complete truth from these people without subpoenas. The Dems must give no quarter on this.
dude @ 66
Uh, I am referring to the Vermont phone jamming case.
Educated Plaintiff @ 61
Sorry, this one’s working for me.
Alicia @ 68
And flowers? and candy?
Mandrake @ 32
Ya’ll are missing a key point; where they condemn others for doing the exact same thing.
RevDeb,
I have prev. commented that Newt’s mea culpa was Kabuki and knew at that moment that Dobson was gonna back his ass
happened to catch Tony Perkins (Family Re$earch Council) and Richard Land (Southern Baptist Convention) debating the merits of the current frontrunners
Land was at least adamant about Giulianni never getting his group’s nod and prolly not Newt either, Perkins otoh was doing backbends over both of them – illuminating as hell
oh the mendacity !
dude @ 71
New Hampshire dude. It was for Sununu to win
Christy (with a ‘y’) – I just looked up “unctuous”; perfect word to describe Newt, Snow and Novak – what a trio.
When I was in college, having had my political awakening, I had this clear insight that “the hall-mark of a conservative is fear.”
It’s still the answer I come up with when I find myself asking how anyone can believe a word these people say.
Prayers and best wishes for Elizabeth Edwards and her family this morning. Seeing this story front-paged at the NYT site this morning was a real gut punch. I’m hopeful that the news will be better than many fear.
There’s something strange, but instructive, to find the Edwards’ situation mentioned in the same post that discusses Gingrich. Newt, that man of character and values who runs away from sick wives, and Edwards, who comes home to be there for his wife.
A reporter worth his/her salt, might have interviewed Eubanks after the verdict when she must have been seething and heard from her then what we are hearing now. It’s called body language, folks.
I see so-called reporters in the pictures linked to above who missed that boat. Not much new in that regard.
voxpopgirl @ 11: So much for “in sickness and in health”
ironranger @ 27
Do you have a link on this?
cbl @ 75
mendacity is much to nice a word. They are crooks, liars and snake oil salesmen. With a bit of digging, I’ll bet there’s lots of tax violations that can be found in their organizations.
Mandrake @ 80
Mandrake:
For Newt, “…in health”?
Not so much.
HotFlash,
thanks, can’t believe I posted that twice now without looking at the date – although I have been a little wound of late :)
CHS: “Victoria ‘Goldwater Girl’ Toensing”
One thing I always find amusing is how Toensing clearly thinks of herself as some sort of fashion icon of the right. E.g., her 20 years out of date red power suit at the Plame hearings.
And I can think of no greater evidence of her up-to-the-minute fashion sense than to point out that she was a ‘Goldwater Girl’ — in 1981.
Hell, even Hillary knew that was out of fashion by ‘65.
Celtic Music @ 78
Amen.
Marcy – bought your book – love your book!
Christy, that’s a terrible thing to do to us first thing in the morning. Newt’s face. Close up. Uggghh. ;)
sam seder is about to go into yesterday’s snowjob after he comes back from commercial. should be fun – i like the way he barbeques.
http://www.airamerica.com/listen/?q=real
Run, Newt, run.
If MSM doesn’t give Newt an equal amount of coverage to Hillary and Obama time-wise , I’ll be very upset, because I am so sure the more the public sees, the more they likey */snark*. Mwahahaha!
I believe Newt Gingrich should be required to watch the Edwards press conference at noon. And repeatedly afterwards. While I am not a political supporter of Edwards this time around, I believe he and Elizabeth have shown us what genuine love and devotion and support look like. Newtie is a pathetic excuse for a human being by every definition.
Thanks a bunch, Christy, forcing me to wake up by showing me a pic of Newt, first thing in the morning. Bleah!
Prayers going up for Elizabeth Edwards, for Jane, and for cancer survivors everywhere.
Purgegate, all by itself, would suffice as this Administration’s Watergate. Obstruction of justice, abuse of power, coverup, executive privilege, the use of the entire DoJ for political ends…a banana Republic, run by banana Republicans.
Tap…tap…
Testing
Best wishes to Elizabeth & John and their family. It doesn’t look like the news will be good and I’m thinking of you all at this time. God bless.
barbara @ 91
Excellent observation, tying those two together!
Pectopah @ 63
I think “Dobson’s Choice” was intentional.
“Edwards may temporarily suspend campaign due to wife’s health”
This is on Raw Story.
I know they will together choose the best path. An inspiration of a marriage.
Please, please, please inform somehow, Victoria Toesning and Robert Novak that the difference between a “covert and non-”covert” officer is that the “covert” carries a “get out of jail free” card for use overseas. Ask Valarie Wilson if she has one.
does it seem like the Bushies are getting more riduculous and silly with each passing day?
coffee’s fresh – hold out your cups…
but then, it wasn’t as bad as “hot tub Tom” yesterday. lol. breaks over. dang.
Sally @ 78
A Tobacco Blog guy talked to her in Aug 2006, and she still seem to be seething many months later.
The right wing “religious” hucksters merely capitalize on 21st Century angst, playing on the fears, frustrations and prejudices of the lower and middle classes in a rapidly changing modern world. Authoritarians at heart, they are master manipulators who are given legitmacy by a MSM that is incapable of recognizing the threat this movement poses to democracy. Only until such time that the left can reframe the debate which reflects viable alternatives that addresses the fears of a large, alienated segment of the population, these hucksters will continue to be a threat to the nation. Rather than appeal to their baser instincts which the hucksters have been so successful at, it’s time to appeal to their higher angels.
When will enough be enough and the Repugs all abandon Bush
Thanks, Mandrake. I actually feel more sad than snarky about this, which is a pretty radical departure for me.
Bluetoe @ 102
Although it does look like the right are doing a good job of self-destructing all on their own. e.g. Tom Delay.
Elizabeth and John are in my prayers this morning.
I hope Newt does run. I can imagine all of the wonderful youtube videos we will see on his hypocrisy, wife-cheating and wife-dumping morals!
snowbird42 @ 102
75% approval is pretty high. it may never completly fade. maybe if he re-indroduces the draft, or raises taxes….. yeah – thats the ticket to abandonment!
if i’m not wrong, it looks like the house will vote on their supplemental funding the iraq war/occupation bill on friday.
i know we haven’t discussed it much around here… but howie has a great post up on it at downwithtyranny, “DEMOCRATIC PARTY DRAMA QUEENS MAKE A BIG FUSS ABOUT THEIR SUPPLEMENTAL FUNDING HEROICS“
i strongly recommend reading the whole thing…
it ends with:
and then this update:
i have been so disappointed with this whole process (in and out of congress – see this analysis by norman solomon)…. and after years of support, i’ve cancelled my membership with moveon for their “push poll” and support of continued funding the occupation.
whatever happened to holding feet to the fire – we’ve got more than a year and a half before the next election… now is not the time to be partisans first.
my heart is with the people who are suffering and will suffer more than i can imagine due to this CF.
dianne feinstein on cnn now…
WaPo story on Tobacco Settlement -
Jane linked a letter from Democracy 21 – a non partisan congressional watchdog group to Abu – expressing their concerns about political interference at DOJ in the various Abramoff investigations -
the letter is worth a read just to see the Accountability Shell Game DOJ plays with this group
Democracy 21 Letter to Abu (pdf)
DiFi on CNN
Josh Marshall points to Paul Kiel’s post at the Muck…
Today’s Must Read: the case of U.S. Attorney for San Francisco Kevin Ryan, a “loyal Bushie” who would have escaped the purge if his incompetence hadn’t threatened to become a PR liability for the Justice Department.
Sometime circa 1991, I recall Kevin Phillips quipping — only half-unseriously — that the minute Neil Bush is called to testify about Silverado, that’s when GHWB starts bombing Iraq.
When the courts affirm the legitimacy of Leahy’s and Conyers’s subpoenas, that’s when Rove and Miers will need to stock up on benzodiazepines…and the citizens of Teheran on iodine pills.
I just knew there was a story around the Margolis email re: the Fed Judge.
http://www.tpmmuckraker.com/archives/002841.php
RevDeb @ 23
It is the tip of the iceberg
I still think DiFi explains this better than anyone (Leahy is awful good too)
Terry Olson @ 24
Keep looking. Turnover ALL the rocks
Selise, Larry Johnson and the VIPS ex-intelligence folks say that Barbara Lee’s plan is the best. Their analysis is here.
Click my name for Elizabeth’s candle page. Gotta run–hope someone can repost the link in new threads.
snowbird42 @ 103
The true believers (deadenders) over identify with a bogus ideology and lack any imagination. They can’t let go for psychological reasons. I’ve been reading on the rise of the 3rd Reich and one salient point was how followers psychologically surrendered their own individuality and reason to become a part of something larger, more important than themselves. Their “Leader” was able to tap into their insecurities, fears and prejudices by publicly exposing his own thereby making it acceptable to the masses. True believers couldn’t let go even at the bitter end when it became painfully apparent that all was lost. Kind of like the “Borg” in Star Trek.
Just as the 29% deadenders can’t let go of their leader so to can’t many in the MSM. They have invested too much (psychologically and professionally) in the leader and to now question the leader is to question their own professional judgement and integrity. They are incapable of such a leap. For this reason I think that most MSM “journalists” and pundits will be on the wrong side of the looming battle between the Executive and Congressional branches.
looseheadprop @ 115
Ashcroft. Further?
Joshua fought the battle of Jericho, Jericho, Jericho
Joshua fought the battle of Jericho and the wall came a’ tumblin’ down!
why does that song keep playing in my head?
selise– John Lewis spoke eloquently on the House floor on March 19th– full text at the link.
(bold mine)
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/WO0703/S00420.htm
GSD @ 68
I was trying to be snarky.
But perhaps Dobson’s Choice belongs in the political lexicon. Definitions?
we can only hope that if the news on elizabeth edwards is bad (as we fear), that there is somehow time for john to return to the mix for ‘08.
but you know what? he’s not going to let his political ambitions overwhelm his sense of what he needs to do for his wife and family.
which is why the right wing mocks him. see, the breck girl isn’t tough enough, doesn’t want it bad enough.
in their twisted world, only nihilists, egotists and sociopaths need apply for the top spots.
((((((Elizabeth & John))))))) ((((((Jane)))))))
HotFlash @ 101, thank you for the link. It’s an amazing read.
and please, let’s not forget his time at Rummy’s Clubhouse with these kidz
Defense Policy Board
the breck girl isn’t tough enough
They prefer a guy in tight lycra shorts. Many a war has been won in biking pants.
busted margins from the link at 120
Folks, please shorten up those links, so the margins stay where they belong. When using the “link” button, the first popup window is where you paste the URL, but in the second window you can attach the link to whatever text you want. Either shorten up the link itself, or (better still) put the link under some text.
Thanks!
dude @ 66
Jeralyn had a post up on it and evidently the Gov’t’s jury proposed jury instructions (which the judge agreed to read) overstated the law.
Hmm. If DOJ was writing the closing argument inthe Tobacco case, am I paranoid to wonder if they wrote the overblown jury instruction in the phine jamming case? And just why was that case delayed for so long?
Inquiring minds want to…. well, you know.
cbl @ 75
They are of the House of Aaron..the golden calf is all.
OldCoastie @ 122
Anybody got a trumpet?
This pisses me off.
The disingenuous title of Jake Tapper’s article is Anti-Clinton Ad Linked to Obama Campaign Tech.
It then states that, “Phil de Vellis, until Wednesday an employee of the company that handles Obama’s Web site…”
Now how in the hell does abc news get from “an employee of the company that handles Obama’s Web site” to “Obama Campaign Tech”?
Motherscratchers…
I imagine we will get a whole host of trumpets here soon.
dude @
66
Activist judge. Bushie appointie?
Maybe it would be good to examine the results of ALL major federal cases for 2000-2007 to look for strange outcomes. I bet they tried to tamper with every major case not going their way, whether in the original case or on appeal.
Hope that’s sufficient reading between the lines. Maybe throw in some NSA eavesdropping, personal blackmail resulting from same, and threatening to make up stuff if that didn’t work.
Then on to how they eavesdropped on and intimidated journalists followed by members of Congress.
emptywheel @
81
Here you go:
Poor Bob. Imagine, that mean Michael Isikoff insinuating things about him . . .
From Josh at TPM this morning:
It’s not a gap in the emails, says DOJ spokesman Brian Roehrkasse. It’s a “lull.”
– Josh Marshall
Lull-a-bye, I hope.
Sally @ 124
I am sure there are hundreds of stories like that out there. I think it’s important b/c it drew trolls in LateNight. Also, there was one troll? embittered reporter? who wondered why we denigrated the MSM and considered the DOJ victims. I am trying to look at the MSM as victims, not having much luck. Reporters, maybe, MSM, not so much.
From Raw Story:
“After questioning a Republican Congressmember’s “decency” for seeking to restrict housing reconstruction funds for Hurricane Katrina and Rita victims, a Democratic Representative was banned Wednesday from the U.S. House…..Taylor was barred from speaking on the House floor around noon on Wednesday while criticizing an amendment offered by Rep. Tom Price (R-GA).”
So when Repubs call Dems terrorist sympathizers and traitors that’s OK. But when a Dem has a gall to question the “decency” of a single Repub, he gets his speaking privileges taken away. That sounds eerily like “fair and balanced” treatment to me.
Anyone listen to NPR from 5am this morning demonstrating it is now a branch of Fox? They even quoted Fox —— we got unexpurgated, completely uncritical Snow of yesterday commented upon with glutinous approval.
HotFlash @ 118
thank you for the excellent link – i hadn’t seen it. here’s the conclusion:
if they don’t have the votes to fund withdrawal today, then why not continue funding for 3 or 4 months (instead of 18!) and continue to revisit and discuss – keep the issue on the table until the votes are there to fund withdrawal. the current proposal seems to be playing political/electoral politics (funding the occupation until 2 months before the 2008 elections).
From the NYT ( link ):
Brian Roehrkasse, a spokesman for the Justice Department, said, “The department has provided or made available to Congress all the documents responsive to Congress’s requests over the time period in question.” He added, “To the extent there was a lull in communications concerning the U.S. attorney issues, it reflects the fact that we have found no responsive documents from that time period, which included the Thanksgiving holiday.”
I don’t know how they can say these things with a straight face.
I wonder if looking at jury instructions in major cases back to 2000 would turn up anything interesting.
We know from the Libby trial that attempts are made to confuse the jury.
egregious @ 134
I feel a wiki coming on…
Terry @
98
Novak revealng more operative secrets of spycraft? Just how much is this traitor allowed to reveal? And Icky-Vicky Traitor should share his cell, since she obviously shares his shameless Me over Country values.
Ok children, gather round…
Once upon a time there was a teacher who let some children get away without doing any schoolwork or any homework. They were “teacher’s pets.” She let them have recess and all sorts of extra privileges.
Other children, who worked hard, complained that this just was not fair. These same children had “ideas” about fairness. They thought the teacher’s pet kind of children should have to work hard like everybody else and not hit other children on the playground.
But the children who wanted “fairness” were punished, while the teacher’s pets got to have recess all day.
And that is the kind of story we need to be telling here. Making these outrages so simple that even kids would get it!
My first post here – but maybe not the last!
looseheadprop @ 130
lhp, just because you’re paranoid doesn’t mean…
I’m with egregious on checking this all out going back to 2000. I’ve considered myself pretty darn cynical, believed there’s little this crew wouldn’t stoop to. But in the words I’ve heard somewhere (ahem), who would have imagined they’d go this far?!
Welcome TheraP!!
Hope to hear from you often.
Great screen name by the way.
looking at the momentous events of this past week, I can’t help but feel optimistic from half way across the world – things are unravelling fast almost everywhere…….. even john howard has stopped cribbing wh talking points as his poll ratings enter freefall (at long last) and this in an election year! boy george’s texan swagger re unassailable executive privilege is actually hastening a long overdue process and tony snow’s uriah heep impersonation was the next best thing to monty python i have watched in a long time with toensing as the runner up…….another impression remains, that the WH press corps is getting bolder and starting to ask questions……..barbara boxer was awesome……..do we wait with baited breath for ksm’s supplementary admission to a conspiracy to murder superman? all i can say interesting times lie ahead
Welcome to the Lake, TheraP!
Nice analogy, my school-aged kids would grok it, no problems.
Peterr @ 130 – the CA judge who it appears was going to go after Ryan is the one I was asking about vis a vis the Margolis email
now we know
LA Times story
It was an odd, sore thumb, vague email and it seemed like there had to be a reason it ended up in the first dump.
My thoughts on the 18 day gap in the e-mails:
I think that they clearly show that the attorney purge was political and that Bush was involved in the whole thing. But I don’t think that’s the key reason they’re being suppressed. Remember, the gap starts right after the election. I think that President Pissypants was throwing a HUGE tantrum at the time, and the e-mails probably reflect this. I would guess that those e-mails say a lot of unflattering things about how Bush was acting and how frustrated his own people were at having to deal with him. His underlings probably treat him like a petulant five-year-old, and I’ll bet it was abundantly clear in those e-mails.
angie @ 122 -
wow, thank you, that john lewis link was inspiring…
I had no idea Newt was freelancing for the Onion. Pretty funny stuff there, Newtly.
Newt Gingrich faking Morality FTW!
looseheadprop @ 131
Do you mean Vermont or New Hampshire? The phone jamming was in NH. BTW in the 2000 election ABC news had VT and NH reversed on their map of the US.
HotFlash wiki—do it.
Need to look at anomalies, unexpected outcomes, people saying things that are off-center, moderates sprouting the winger phrase of the week etc.
maunga @ 142
No, I’m glad I missed that. Way to go, NPR. The only thing remotely liberal about NPR are their little personal feel-good stories about unconventional people. Big woop.
Newt. Feh. Not human.
Bluetoe @
120
I agree with your take. Recall the polling during the Gorbachev years, I believe it was, that 50% of the Russians wanted their authoritarian “Leader” controlled society back.
And look at North Korea.
And you’re right about the media. CNN/Heidi interview of Feinstein this morning could’ve been pulled right off the RNC blast-fax. Obvious slant in the question wording.
And have we mentioned Tweety yet?
Ok, check this Colbert link via atrios. Colbert uses the P word, which my wife doesn’t like (also, not work friendly). But it sums things up nicely.
Frank Probst @
154
Perhaps there really is a legitimate reason for a gap in USDOJ documents provided — because there was a blizzard of email directives sent out one-way, from the White House during that period of time to the USDOJ, and not from the other direction…
Perhaps directives from non-EOP email addresses, too?
Tangled web and all…
I think maybe we need to ask the Judiciary Committees to not only subpoena the staffers in the White House, but to subpoena all emails and other written documentation regarding the USDOJ, including those sent from non-EOP addresses received at any *.gov address within EOP and DOJ.
I am sorry I am little late on this thread but I would like to add a moment of thought for John and Elizabeth Edwards. My wife and Elizabeth got to know each other well during John’s campaigns through the issue of Domestic Violence (my wife works in NH on that issue) and we were very much hoping that this campaign would be full of Elizabeth’s joy in the world.
I hope and pray that she is winning this damn battle, she is one tough fighter.
On another subject, I do not know if this country is yet ready for a man as decent as John Edwards though I do hope I am wrong.
My thoughts are with Jane as well.
Mandrake @ 159
i thought it had been long established that NPR stood for Nice Polite republicans.
Christy Hardin Smith @ 8
Daffodils – sheez. All we have is snow and ice. Ed*ard do you see any daffodils up your way?
well, it’s 10am and neither of the senate judiciary committee buisness meeting links are working. anyone with an update or suggestion? i’d like to listen in… and know who says what about getting rove – i mean issuing subpoenas…
selise @ 165
msnbc reports that they are getting ready to vote in the committee
Arlen up on CNN now re: subpoenas
I think Frank nailed it. W was probably lashing out at anyone in sight, including Rove, because he really didn’t think the Dems could possibly win. W reminds me of a two-year-old holding a walleyed fit when crossed.
So let’s see we have John Edwards being a stand up man and stopping his campaign to be with his wife, and Newt who asked his wife to sign divorce papers while in a hospital bed.
Pretty much sums it all up for me.
CNN carrying Judiciary live now
is Spector crying?
Specter actually acknowledging that Tony Snow made any kind of compromise difficult, saying that not accepting the WH offer takes it off the table.
One point about the USA firings and The Gap (one made by Margaret Chiara). The gaps starts, I believe, when it becomes crystal clear that Webb won VA, and the DEms won the Senate. THere’s likely a whole discussion about how and whether to use the PATRIOT provision to replace these people–and what they’re going to do without Senate approval. They had already faced this with Griffin, so they were probably strategizing that during the gap.
oooh a blast from my Bay Area past – I don’t always agree with Her Honor, but no one makes the wingers heads explode more with their rulings – “actvist judge”, “Rose Bird, Jr. “, pure kryptonite to those folks
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marilyn_Hall_Patel
OldCoastie @ 172
Probably because old Scottish Law might finally have to make a principled decision in his life.
twolf1 @ 168
thank you! it’s up on cnn pipeline, i forgot to check there (signed up for the 2 week free registration).
twolf1 @ 168
Ick. Please keep us posted. I can’t look at him sober.
emptywheel @ 175
So you don’t think they all took 18 days off for Thanksgiving?
Pectopah @ 156
The phone jamming case is in New Hampshire
Ahgoo @ 166
Ours here in Atlanta are already gone.
Mandrake @ 179
He’ll probably talk about how important the subpeonas are, then vote against them.
blue e @
31
Ya know it’s funny, if you call a repuke on their lies, you’re being “partisan.” Whe nthey went after Clinton, they were “trying to get to the truth.”
I’ve long held, and have yet to have anything demonstrate differently, if a republican’s lips are moving, they’re lying. Republicans fear the truth like a cockroach fears the light.
The WaPo editorial this morning is getting hammered in the comments section. From sublime — Someone ought to fire the person who wrote this editorial…and then well wait and see if the b@stard calls his lawyer. By playa_brotha | Mar 22, 2007 2:11:21 AM, to the obvious — I agree with previous posts. It is obvious that the editior does not read or has someone read to him his own newspaper. One month these 8 lawyers are golden and the next, because they put law above their political party, they are taken out and shot. It seems the Post doesnt mind that the government interfered in the tobacco case. In a perfect world, this editor would find himself in front of a federal prosecutor, wondering if he would get a fair trial or if his case would be decided by partisan politics. What have the others done to keep their job? Did they have to choose between supporting the law or kissing Alberto?
By waterbirds | Mar 22, 2007 6:30:36 AM
Yes, once again Fred Hiatt is brilliant.
LINK
Don’t know if this link will work, but even David Brooks is disgusted with them (not that he refrained from slamming Dems or anything)
http://select.nytimes.com/2007…..p;emc=eta1
dmg @ 164
They also seem to enjoy talking about meat and slaughtering farm animals in cheerful tones which I find a bit disturbing but very Republican-like.
Get a load of this:
Why did DoJ try so hard to protect Kevin Ryan?
Because he’s a loyal Bush zampolit, as the LAT article cited by TPM makes clear.
looseheadprop @
186
wow! the link DID work!!
looks like Brooks is assisting in tossing Gonzo overboard.
Because this needs emphasizing:
emptywheel @ 175
New thRedd — Lucky Strike?.
Rayne @163 – I think it is much simpler. The plan was already all spelled out by the 15th. The only thing DOJ is required to produce are emails relating to the plan and those fired, not ALL dept emails.
So on the 15th, the biggie issue comes up – required Presidential authorization. Sampson commits a HUGE HUGE HUGE mistake, phrasing that question in an email, specifically mentioning the President.
I’d bet dollars to donuts that there was a phone call or face to face from someone blistering him and admonishing everyone involved that no one mentions the President in writing.
I’d also say that Rove became more active in the loop then. Rove also isn’t “doing” emails, particularly after he got burned by the Cooper email and after he saw what happened with Abramoff emails.
So during that time frame, the only real issue seemed authorization and the only discussions that people had were probably done under strict guidelines of nothing in writing.
It’s really the heart of things, isn’t it?
Remember the President saying that there would be an investigation re: Plame, he’d go after the leakers, etc. – lies. Now, what about the President and spokespersons saying he knew nothing about any of this?
Lies and cover up or Kyle/Alberto/Karl run amok, usurping to themselves the Presidential power to remove?
Those are the ONLY two choices.
Tha
HotFlash @
41
Gee, Ted Wells gets around. Doesn’t he?
I’m gonna have to leave for work soon but I have two DOJ items vexing me -
1.
during the latter phase of the Moussaui (sp?) trial, one of the Prosec. got caught doing something that was helpful to the airlines in their defense of a civil suit in NY. Believe the DOJ lead in that case is now head of Public Integrity or Office of Prof. Responsibility -
connected ???
2.
the other goes back to the Revised Patriot Act language that bypassed Senate Confirmation -
The revised Act was passed on 3/3/6,
yet on 7/21/6 the Senate confirmed (by voice vote) the current Utah USA Brett Tolman
now maybe this was ceremonial in nature – but
were the Senators unaware as late as 7/21 of the new provisions ?
and did Senators Hatch and Specter put on this little dog n pony show for their colleagues to keep the revisions on the low-low ?
I’ll take my answer on the air
Phoenix Woman @ 189
i so totally trust Marcy’s instincts. this makes absolute sense.
once again, this isn’t about the justice dept. this is about the white house.
hey !!!! upstairs isn’t loading on my screen
Fresh thread on the USA news of the day, up and ready for the reading.
Frank Probst @ 144
This might, in a sense, be true, if all of the action were taking place in the white house, and he was referring exclusively to correspondence involving DOJ. That is, this is the period of time when the issue was taken out of the hands of DOJ,
emptywheel @ 175
Right on the money! The White House actually believed that they would hold onto the Senate. Consequently they now had to get their ducks in a row, behind closed doors of course.
no load here either and now a very strange looking screen.
I’m only getting the banner and the ads with no content loading.
Political hucksters like Gingrich and Delay see religion as a means to an end. It’s how they get their “troops” fired up to crucify the Clinton’s while claiming “repentance and restoration” for their own “sins.” I heard Delay on NPR snarking about how, during his “leadership,” the chairman for Veterans Affairs was removed because he had asked for too much money in support of our vets. THAT’S really “Christian” of him, isn’t it? These hypocrites truly make me sick to my stomach! “Unctuous” does not even begin to describe them!
Hmmmm..weird. It’s loading just fine for me here.
ok – I’m in now… that was weird!
Frank Probst @
144
I just love that. Isn’t Thanksgiving a 4-day weekend? So now we are down to just 2 missing weeks.
OT – Yesterday when the servers went sloooow, I went over to Authur Seibert’s powerofnarrative.blogspot.com to see receint postings there, (I like the essay format of presenting arguement) and found the last posting on last Friday 16th where his sister had passed on. Might drop by and at least give the place some numbers since posting comments isn’t available. Authur has a very kind style to his writings. All the best……
nice skewer for newt, christy.
i almost did spew the coffee.
but i gotta tell ya, reading stuff such, even stuff such as vanity fair, about newt kills me. i know it is negative but i just cant do it.
the smarm of the guy to be “not” running for president because I only want to do it if the country turns to me, needs me.
hoc tooey
OldCoastie @ 188
i barely tolerate brooks on newshour – but i have to give him an h/t for the way he ended:
“As often happens when you have a government unencumbered by adult supervision, this affair is now spiraling down to the partisan depths. It will take on a life of its own and muddy everyone who touches it. But it all could have been prevented with a few distinctions about the proper role of politics, and a little sense of honor.”
“will take on a life of its own” – you got that right dude
egregious @
133
No, but ET has a trombone. Will that do?
Isn’t unctuous some kind of toenail infection?
egregious @ 155
Cujo, can we add this to Gonzopedia?
It might work well off Related Scandals.
Mary4 @ 192
this is how the WH always operates. put nothing in writing. do it face-to-face. no memos. but you can bet there are TONS of internal emails! Congress needs to get THOSE!
dmg @ 195
and remember, this is all about politics. that’s the ROVIAN connection.
Stephen Parrish, CPA @ 10
I am having the same problem! Its driving me crazy. I get it here, though not so much today. I also get it at Eschaton, Americablog, and The Huffington Post.
I’m sure dealing with a dial up connection doesn’t help. The sites will load, give me just enough time to start reading, then it kicks me into a google search mode. I thought it might have been spyware or a virus. It would be much appreciated if someone could fix it.
If Gingrich wants forgiveness for the same actions he persecuted Bill Clinton with, shouldn’t he first apologize to Bill?
Novak is deranged. Poor old neocons. They don’t have too many rocks left to hide under, with the sun of truth beginning to shine on them.
I guess it comes as no suprise, but the Post has shut down the comments section on Novak’s piece.
As of 5PM, it was 25 pages of “fuck you, Bob”. I imagine the Douchbag of Liberty probably called the Post and yelled at someone to shut it down…bastard.