dong

zed!

tres!

Morning, gang:

Just getting to the Lake.

I agree with you Christy, the majority of those who work in Federal law enforcement are decent and committed to the rule of law. That is probably why things are not worse than they already are.

quatro!

coffee’s ready…

Do these posts ever get sent as letters to the editor, or published as articles? The things I read here every day are much better and easier to understand most of what’s in the papers and magazines. I think you should seriously consider starting a column somewhere with these posts. Or better yet, a column, and a book. Seriously.

Good morning Christy, it’s nice to get back into the lake finally.
As for the topic, I can only imagine how many pissed off law enforcement people there are out there.
This is kind of like one bad apple spoils the whole barrel.Abu is certainly an embarrassment to the whole country.

And absolutely, article’s spot on. This is pretty much why I favor impeaching Gonzales first. We may or may not get to the top (timing’s way too bad for that), but we can sure as hell bust his knuckles for this behavior and start a cleanup in the DoJ…

Republicans are royalists. The Bush family is their royal family and determines the laws.

Karen Hanretty Hanratty

OldCoastie @ 6

quatro!

coffee’s ready…

quatro, si…

Portions of the sealed case of Kontogiannis case are to be released. That shows that the system is still working:

http://www.tpmmuckraker.com/archives/003892.php

I stand for the rule of law and integrity. What say you?

Well I say yes. But at times it’s hard to know where to plant one’s heels, for digging-in purposes.

The abuses come so fast and furious, each worse than the last – I got a letter from Bayh responding to my inquiry about Habeas restoration – and frankly, I forgot that I’d even done that. Chase one abomination, and it’s old news very quickly.

I began drinking the chardonnay following the Hanratty/Klein/Matthews debacle.

Hi, Christy. Great post.

Will the next president expose and undo all of the Bush wrongdoings?

Doubt it. Don’t hear any of the Dem candidates speaking to this great national need.

mffarrow at 7 — You know, someone else said something similar to me when I was at YKos. Will have to give that some thought…

Boston1775 @ 15

I began drinking the chardonnay following the Hanratty/Klein/Matthews debacle.

Thank you. I never knew whether it was red or white wine, to be properly served at a debacle.

well, start every defense lawyer worth his money opening his pladoyer with the words, “The DA is a registered Republican, which means this case is political, i just thought you should keep that in mind…”
this should become increasingly interesting considering the “War on drugs”.

Jonathan at 16 — You know, a number of the Presidential candidates who were at YKos did speak about this and the rule of law issues. They just don’t get much media coverage for it. There is so much filtered out of what we see and hear — that if you aren’t there in person, you’d never know.

PoliticsTV has the bulk of the Presidential debate up live in clips on their website. That’s a good place to start to watch it in an unfiltered context. I don’t know how many of the break-out sessions they were able to film and put up, though, and that’s where some of those conversations that i know about occurred as well.

Boston1775 @ 15

I began drinking the chardonnay following the Hanratty/Klein/Matthews debacle.

Your restraint is admirable. Judging from Christy’s description, if I’d seen it I would have gone straight for the vodka.

It’s beginning to look as though Mr. Gonzales is in for the long haul. I am starting to think that the late John Mitchell would be an improvement over our present AG. The damage done generally to the law profession’s reputation will last for decades beyond Gonzales and Bush.

Worse, this sort of thing becomes a bad example that others start following – ‘it’s okay as long as you don’t get caught’ – and the rot spreads. I don’t know where this maladministration got it from, but it should have been stopped years ago, before it got this bad.

(feeling cranky because my train stopped and waited for a couple of people who were very late. One of them was giggling about it after getting on ….)

Spirit at 19 — Absolutely. Not to mention the host of “Libby habeas appeals” that have been filed for perjury sentencing cases in the last few months. Appalling doesn’t even come close…

We need to get rid of all the enablers of this too. There’s no reason to think this Congress will do anything but as primaries and elections roll around we have to make sure we get candidates for the next one on the record – and vote for the ones who run on a platform of rolling it back.

Yesterday I saw a sign in the front window of a thrift shop:

“Some people call it Bush-bashing. In Oregon we call it thinking!”

Great Post Redd!

I hope Bush stays in Texas. What do you think Leahy will do when ignore his last letter? Personally I hope he takes it to court.

And yes, before anyone asks, my hair really is that red. *g*

dipper @ 26

Yesterday I saw a sign in the front window of a thrift shop:

“Some people call it Bush-bashing. In Oregon we call it thinking!”

Bumpersticker of the day:

“Yeehaw is not a foreign policy”

I’m attending a “town meeting” this coming Monday where Arlen Specter is the featured speaker. I have a million questions I’d like to ask, i.e. Brett Tolman, Pete Domineci/Heather Wilson, FISA, but wonder if anyone here could “nail” one for me that is short, to the point, and hard to avoid answering. I’m taking a video camera.

The lack of integrity by Alberto Gonzales and his political ilk at the DOJ, taints the process for everyone else in law enforcement. The President’s disregard of the rule of law taints the entire system for all the rest of us.

This administration’s actions to taint the system have been too consistent to be unintentional. They hold the law in contempt, and they want that sentiment to be widespread before they leave office. I would like to believe that they seek to weaken the rule of law because they fear that it will catch them once they return to civilian life. But I think their contempt is real. They have no regard for the law and see it as a tool that can be used by their friends or by their enemies.

Is Iraq a dry run? Do they believe that they can prevail in a lawless society? I think they do. I think they believe that they can afford to buy protection that will be much more effective and efficient if the law is weakened. This is a small, internationalizing cabal of profiteers who have no plans to live among the people and share the insignificant victories and disasters that mean so much to the rest of us.

Here’s what the plan looks like: The legal system in disarray, with a corrupt judiciary delaying reform. The Treasury empty (with the money turning up in the bank accounts of the extended–but not too far–Bush-Cheney Family). The national infrastructure in collapse (with adequate provision for private transportation and utilities). And little oases of privilege behind walls and bodyguards. I think Octavia Butler got there first.

All I could imagine was my son, who has seen enough of those attitudes while caddying and cleaning their carts and clubs, watching the adults ridicule Ezra Klein for his youth and naivete.

It’s a wonder they all don’t join the dark side.

hate2haggle at 30 — Ooooh, do be certain to send us a report of the meeting. :)

This is interesting re: domestic surveillance:

Military, intelligence agency and police work is (sic) also coming together in numerous “fusion centers” around the country in a joint program run by the Department of Justice and Department of Homeland Security that has received little public attention. At present, there are 43 current and planned fusion centers in the United States where information from intelligence agencies, the FBI, local police, private sector databases and anonymous tipsters is combined and analyzed by counterterrorism analysts. DHS hopes to create a wide network of such centers that would be tied into the agency’s day-to-day activities, according to the Electronic Privacy Information Center. The project, according to EPIC, “inculcates DHS with enormous domestic surveillance powers and evokes comparisons with the publicly condemned domestic surveillance program of COINTELPRO,” the 1960s program by the FBI aimed at destroying groups on the American political left.

It doesn’t take much imagination to see how powerful technologies, when combined with secretive, growing interagency collaboration, could be misused in a domestic context. In recent years many U.S. cities have deployed sophisticated video cameras throughout their downtown areas that track activity 24 hours a day. And U.S. intelligence and law enforcement agencies now have at their disposal facial recognition software that can identify one person among thousands in a large crowd. Combine that with the awesome eavesdropping power of the NSA and the ability of the NGA [National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency] to capture live imagery from satellites and UAVs, and the result could be an ability to track any individual, in real time, as he or she moves around.

Oklahoma kiddo @ 22

It’s beginning to look as though Mr. Gonzales is in for the long haul. I am starting to think that the late John Mitchell would be an improvement over our present AG. The damage done generally to the law profession’s reputation will last for decades beyond Gonzales and Bush.

Nixon would be an improvement over our present President. For that matter, Quayle would be an improvement.

jayt @ 14

I stand for the rule of law and integrity. What say you?

Well I say yes. But at times it’s hard to know where to plant one’s heels, for digging-in purposes.

The abuses come so fast and furious, each worse than the last – I got a letter from Bayh responding to my inquiry about Habeas restoration – and frankly, I forgot that I’d even done that. Chase one abomination, and it’s old news very quickly.

You got a letter from Bayh? I never get a response from his office anymore. I’m more likely to hear back from Lugar.

Christy Hardin Smith @ 17

mffarrow at 7 — You know, someone else said something similar to me when I was at YKos. Will have to give that some thought…

Please give a lot of thought. The MSM badly needs some true balance. In my local paper all I get is centrist BS, rightwing hackery and, rarely, a column by someone like Krugman. As a case in point, this morning there was a piece saying the problem with the FISA law was too much oversight.
Gaah! I have a permanent bruise on my forehead from pounding it on things.

Christy,

You do such a lovely job of hitting on all the things that outrage me about this administration and you say it so much better than I ever could. Thank you!

mffarrow @ 7

Do these posts ever get sent as letters to the editor, or published as articles? The things I read here every day are much better and easier to understand most of what’s in the papers and magazines. I think you should seriously consider starting a column somewhere with these posts. Or better yet, a column, and a book. Seriously.

I’ve told Christy many times to consider reconfiguring her posts into a fine nonfiction book, especially on the relationship between (Beltway) politics and MSM. I’m positive such a book, besides attracting wide readership, will also be required reading in graduate journalism seminars in the US academia.

mffarrow @ 7

Do these posts ever get sent as letters to the editor, or published as articles? The things I read here every day are much better and easier to understand most of what’s in the papers and magazines. I think you should seriously consider starting a column somewhere with these posts. Or better yet, a column, and a book. Seriously.

Ditto, ditto, ditto.

And a Sunday talk show with EW, Jane, Digby, LHP, LitMom, Glenn GW, … These points, the Rule of Law Concerns and timelines… Get it all out there in as many ways as possibly. You are the new media. We The People Need You!

hate2haggle @ 30

I’m attending a “town meeting” this coming Monday where Arlen Specter is the featured speaker. I have a million questions I’d like to ask, i.e. Brett Tolman, Pete Domineci/Heather Wilson, FISA, but wonder if anyone here could “nail” one for me that is short, to the point, and hard to avoid answering. I’m taking a video camera.

I would also ask EW at TNH. She and Christy could nail a few questions.

Christy, what I say is expressed in this letter I am about to send to Senator Kyl regarding his vote on FISA:

The issue for today is the Fourth Amendment to the Constitution:

The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.

Also at issue is how the Fourth Amendment relates to the new changes recently passed to amend the Foreign Surveillance Act of 1978, an Act now cited as the “Protect America Act of 2007.” Oh, heck, Senator, maybe you could explain to me just how this act fits into the whole scheme of checks and balances and shared power, and advise and consent, and Congressional oversight, and all those concepts that we have been taught to hold as ideals.

I need an explanation because I have other concerns. I am concerned that our country is vulnerable because of the openness of our society. However, I am also concerned that the solution this new Act represents is to lessen openness and freedom by spying on one another. Now our own government appears to be telling us that should they ask, we should offer up every transaction, every phone call, every e-mail to the government for their approval, and we should do it happily with the knowledge that we are complying with a government that is doing this for our own good. I am afraid that when we surrender our most basic and sacred rights for nebulous reasons, we will find it a short distance from nebulous to nefarious. I don’t believe that citizens, or their elected representatives, should permit our civil rights to be enjoyed only at the pleasure of the executive branch or submit our affairs to the scrutiny of federal government on demand in direct opposition to the Fourth Amendment. I know that this Act purports to be dealing only with surveillance directed at a person reasonably believed to be located outside of the United States, but it seems there are an almost infinite number of ways that an American citizen within the US can be swept up or otherwise affected by these changes. We have already seen how easily with the abuses of NSA letters by the FBI, for instance.

Another major problem I foresee is that the Act severely limits the courts review process, and instead designates most of the oversight responsibility to the Attorney General and the Director of National Intelligence, both of whom are part of the Executive Branch of government. After watching Alberto Gonzales’ performance in his testimony to the Judiciary Committee, I must say I am not overwhelmed by the level of confidence that his testimony inspires, especially when set against a backdrop of several of your fellow Senators telling the Attorney General to his face that his testimony is not credible. And I hope someone has told him that the smirk on his face didn’t help him much either. And Arlen did not appear to be the only Republican Senator that looked at Attorney General Gonzales with incredulity in his eyes either. But aside from questioning the wisdom of offering more power to someone who appears to be unaware of what’s going on in his own department, who seems to have a memory like swiss cheese, and whose trustworthiness and judgment are disputable, someone who has a reputation for skirting right on the edge of plausible deniability, perhaps beyond the point of being believable. But to my way of thinking, the very act of shifting the balance of responsibility and therefore power from the Judicial branch of government to the Executive branch is dangerous and I’m quite suspicious of the motivation for reducing the authority of the court. At some point, this subtle and insidious cessation of powers from one branch to the other could almost be considered a bloodless coup, after all.

I believe that this new Act of Congress may very well be unconstitutional, because it is in conflict with the Fourth Amendment. Senator, I believe if you and the other members of Congress who voted for this law were being truthful and forthright with the American people, you would tell folks that you mean to repeal the Fourth Amendment to the Constitution. There is a process for doing that. But instead, I think you all are overturning the Bill of Rights, the Writ of Habeas Corpus, and the Geneva Conventions one by one by simply writing new laws over the old ones. Later those new laws are found unconstitutional anyway, much as the law written to create military tribunals was, because they are in conflict with existing laws.

Recently the President has been claiming Executive Privilege on several subjects under dispute with the Congress, claiming that he needs to have frank and candid discussions and advise from his aides. Then he proceeds to deny ever having any discussions about those subjects with the people he is extending the Executive Privilege to. This would seem to be a contradiction, but it is yet another example of how the Executive Branch of government is blatantly attempting to expand their powers, while with each expansion by the Executive Branch, the power held by the Legislative Branch and the Judicial Branch shrinks. At some point, you and the other members of Congress that have been so compliant by voting to give this President his every desire are going to have to recognize that you are already on a slippery slope to changing our very form of government from a democratic republic to a dictatorship or monarchy, regardless of how benign you may think that dictatorship or monarchy is. I do not now, nor will I ever accept the excuse, “Yes, I gave the President my tacit approval when I gave him the authority, but I didn’t expect him to use it!” Someone in your position needs to think ahead not just to what this President will do with the authority that you give him, but what any future Presidents will do with that authority. I believe you also need to consider the checks and balances given to us by our forefathers, and consider Congress’ need to maintain the delicate balance of power among the three branches of government. You need to consider that it is your job to represent my best interests, not those of the President. Of course you need to do what you must do to protect my life, but not at the expense of my liberty or my ability to pursue happiness. You do understand that I think the terrorists win when we willingly surrender our rights and liberties out of fear. If you could, please keep in mind that when the President shows Congress disrespect, he is also disrespecting me. In other words, Senator, at some point you will need to make a choice to put the needs of your country over the needs of your party, and remember, not choosing is also a choice. If things keep going as they have been, the only remaining decision Congress will need to make is to decide how much you are willing to spend for a crown.

Helpless 37 — One thing I’ve done was to cancel my subscription to my local paper and picked up one of the McClatchy papers. It comes from State College, Pa., 190 miles from me, but it’s been worth it.

You got a letter from Bayh? I never get a response from his office anymore. I’m more likely to hear back from Lugar.

With Bayh, you have to insist that your name and address be taken before they hang up on you.

Thanks so much for this, Christy!

I’ll be in touch.

Miranda is the next target on the Republican list. If the GOP is again successful in 2008, there will be more Roberts, Alitos, Thomas’s and Scalia’s. The stage will be set to dissolve Miranda. I hope to see an outcry from various attorney organizations.

Love the fact that I can watch the YKos sessions that I missed because they had 2-4 sessions at the same time that I wanted to attend. Saw the Future Leaders panel last night on Cspan.

Great post Christy, you nailed it.

BTW anyone in Phoenix, Harry Mitchell will be at the Ahwatukee Fire House Wednesday Aug 15 in the morning. I am trying to find the actual time.

P J Evans @ 23

Worse, this sort of thing becomes a bad example that others start following – ‘it’s okay as long as you don’t get caught’ – and the rot spreads. I don’t know where this maladministration got it from, but it should have been stopped years ago, before it got this bad.

(feeling cranky because my train stopped and waited for a couple of people who were very late. One of them was giggling about it after getting on ….)

The idea of the only bad thing is getting caught pretty much began with H2Ogate and was accelerated by Iran/Contra and all the pardons.

So we get the double whammy of the crime AND the get out of jail free card if you know somebody in power.

Are “Executive Orders” “edicts”?

Is the “Unitary Executive” “monarchical power”?

Has there already been a “coup d’etat”?

Do terms like “Executive Orders”, “Unitary Executive”, etc. constitute a Newspeak designed to keep us from reacting as we would to the familiar, equivalent terms from history: tyranny, dictatorship, one-man rule, monarchy, decree, edict, Caesar, etc.?

As to the hiring of firing people based on politics. It was only a few years ago under Bill Clinton when it was considered scandalous that Bill had fired people in the travel office for this very reason.

That was cause for outrage…about the abused workers, the abuse of power.

I don’t excuse it, but good God, now the same quarter is arguing that the same behavior of political hackery is acceptable in the Justice Dept.

Also, the fall out of FISA bill was that it breathed life BACK in to the politically dying Gonzales.

“What do you mean punish Alberto, Congress just increased his portfolio.”

-GSD

The big problem (apparently) will be explaining the rule of law to our Congress people, who violate their oaths without a singele second thought.

This deal with it, business. I know that when “they” say it, they mean STFU. However, for me, (and apparently for a lot of people) “dealing with it,” means pressure, investigation, legal action, prosecutions of the guilty, and removal and at the very least immedate lack of financial support, for people who voted the wrong way. The ACLU has a regular vote breakdown on their site.

If someone voted the wrong way, I think you should just not open the little funding requests sent out by the “wrong way” representitives. Write on the envelope….”Delivery Refused, return to sender.” That way, I believe, the people who sent out the message have to pay the return postage. If a Congresscritter is using their “franking” privilige, I would welcome some research (or if anyone knows for sure), who would pay for the return of one of thoses. The post office also maintains a list that you can put yourself on, where you won’t get mail from anyone you don’t want mail from, except where you have established a “commercial relationship,” i.e. you can’t stop your bills. A little step, but hard ball none the less. They’ll start to get the message.

Ann in AZ,

Great letter but I hope that Kyl has someone who can explain to him what the Constitution says in the first place. Not the sharpest knife in the drawer you know. I wish he would go away.

I say that if the Democrats in Congress do not recognize that EVERYONE in the Bush Admin and, for that matter, every Republican in Congress, is a lying, duplicitious, coward by now then they may as well stay home. I am sick to death of Pelosi and Reid thinking they are dealing with rational human beings. They are not!!! At this point,however, it is too late. The power has already been handed over to the executive branch. All the power. Even to write legislation, sign it, enact it, and interpret it. The real question now is: ‘Why do you think they will sit by idly and let a Democrat be elected president’? Answer: They won’t. Stay tuned.

Christy – you’ve got to know that if Gonzo was pulled over by local law enforcement for suspicion of DUI, and he gave the officer the same kind of smarmy half-answers he gave Congress, the officer would probably cuff him and toss his ass by the belt loops into the back of the cruiser.

hate2haggle @ 43

Helpless 37 — One thing I’ve done was to cancel my subscription to my local paper and picked up one of the McClatchy papers. It comes from State College, Pa., 190 miles from me, but it’s been worth it.

Mine is one of the McClatchy papers. Sigh.

Honestly, though we are all writers, this has to happen on the tube.

Seeing Glenn Greenwald duke it out with ol’ what’s his name on CSPAN the other morning was exciting. I’m sure Christy’s panel is energizing.

I’m not anti-writing or anti-book, some of my best friends are books, but the tube reaches people who stumble upon it. Books are a conscious decision.

hate2haggle @ 30

I’m attending a “town meeting” this coming Monday where Arlen Specter is the featured speaker. I have a million questions I’d like to ask, i.e. Brett Tolman, Pete Domineci/Heather Wilson, FISA, but wonder if anyone here could “nail” one for me that is short, to the point, and hard to avoid answering. I’m taking a video camera.

Mr Senator, you have always talked about your experiences as a prosecutor and respect for the law. Yet it was your staff member who inserted the provisions doing away with Habeas and YOU are the one seemingly most willing to give in to all of the President’s and Attorney General’s disregard for the Rule of Law. Why do you not vote and act according to your statements and why should we give any credence to you until you do so?

jayt @ 18

Boston1775 @ 15

I began drinking the chardonnay following the Hanratty/Klein/Matthews debacle.

Thank you. I never knew whether it was red or white wine, to be properly served at a debacle.

I didn’t have any Jack Daniels on hand.

I am married to a Mexican citizen. When Mexicans talk about their government they assume everyone is on the take, from the President to the local cop. Usually they are right. It is a horrible way to run a government, a country. Of course when you are stopped for a traffic ticket you just pay off the cop. Of course when you car can’t pass the Mexico City smog check you pay off the mechanic, and it goes on and on. When you are getting divorced like my sister-in-law is you have to be petrified that your soon to be X-husband has paid off the judge and you might lose custody of your kids.

My husband moved here at the end of the Clinton administration and he is shocked at how far we have fallen during this administration. Things look eerily familiar to him. I hope you are right Christy that things can be turned around. I don’t want to live in a country where people pay off traffic cops.

Mr Robinson enlightens us!
Vacation Time

Just Another Vacation From Reality

By Eugene Robinson
Friday, August 10, 2007; Page A13

You might have thought that now isn’t the most opportune time for the elected leaders of both the United States and Iraq to pack up and head to the beach, ranch or villa for a nice long vacation. Silly you.

…

dakine at 57 — Actually, it was Specter’s staffer who inserted the provision that gutted advice and consent from the Senate on USAtty appointments. And I would LOVE to see someone ask him directly about his role in that — and what he has done to remediate with his colleagues for having a staffer open that unconstitutional end-run of the Senate.

jayt @ 44

You got a letter from Bayh? I never get a response from his office anymore. I’m more likely to hear back from Lugar.

With Bayh, you have to insist that your name and address be taken before they hang up on you.

I’ll say it again, Evan Bayh is nothing like his old man. Sad, but true. The old man is one of the good ones, his son, not so much.

I’m not anti-writing or anti-book, some of my best friends are books, but the tube reaches people who stumble upon it. Books are a conscious decision.

Books and the toobz (in all platforms): One can do both. They’re not mutually exclusive.

Thanks Dakine. I’ll have it memorized in less than 5 minutes.

Helpless Dancer @ 37

Christy Hardin Smith @ 17

mffarrow at 7 — You know, someone else said something similar to me when I was at YKos. Will have to give that some thought…

Please give a lot of thought. The MSM badly needs some true balance. In my local paper all I get is centrist BS, rightwing hackery and, rarely, a column by someone like Krugman. As a case in point, this morning there was a piece saying the problem with the FISA law was too much oversight.
Gaah! I have a permanent bruise on my forehead from pounding it on things.

A newspaper lives on advertisers. Just like television. From having worked at a newspaper, I know how paranoid they are of things that upset advertisers, and I assure you that letters to the advertisers, CC to the editor, will get attention….very quickly. A personal visit will get even more attention.

As to your challenge, Christy of “I stand for the rule of law.” So do I. So do most of the people in this country. But occasionally, we have to stand up and fight for it, and if that fight means that I have to go talk to my Congress Critters (though New Jersey is pretty liberal), then that’s what I gotta do. At least I don’t have to put on a uniform and go back to South East Asia…. Wait, a minute, yes, I do have to put on a uniform. Suit and tie, briefcase full of questions instead of an m16…..”John/Jane Q. Citizen, Congressman, your boss!”

And if they won’t see me, that is something that has to be advertised at the first town meeting they hold. They’ll see you quickly enough.
The first cornerstone of the republic I stand on is that “Power obtains from the people!” i.e. “You work for us.”

hate2haggle @ 30

I’m attending a “town meeting” this coming Monday where Arlen Specter is the featured speaker. I have a million questions I’d like to ask, i.e. Brett Tolman, Pete Domineci/Heather Wilson, FISA, but wonder if anyone here could “nail” one for me that is short, to the point, and hard to avoid answering. I’m taking a video camera.

to FISA : “Do republicans really believe that everybody who knows someone outside the US is a terrorist ?”

hate2haggle @ 64

Thanks Dakine. I’ll have it memorized in less than 5 minutes.

See CHS @ 61 before you memorize it.

Today’s Gene Robinson op-ed includes this gem:

“If you listened to Bush at his news conference yesterday, you heard a man who’s not about to let something as petty as objective reality change his mind — and who’s not going to pay attention to what the Iraqi government or even his own government might say or do.”

http://www.washingtonpost.com/…..inionsbox1

behindthefall @ 49

Are “Executive Orders” “edicts”?

Is the “Unitary Executive” “monarchical power”?

Has there already been a “coup d’etat”?

Do terms like “Executive Orders”, “Unitary Executive”, etc. constitute a Newspeak designed to keep us from reacting as we would to the familiar, equivalent terms from history: tyranny, dictatorship, one-man rule, monarchy, decree, edict, Caesar, etc.?

Ceasar is a good one. The Roman Senate was all-too-eager to vote themselves out of power. It’s amazing how history continues to repeat itself.

Interesting the word Czar comes from the word Ceasar, and when did we start appointing “Drug Czars, War Czars, etc.?”

The real translation of “they all do it” is “I don’t care if my side does it.”

In my book, anyone who uses this excuse automatically disqualifies the candidate or party they support.

hate2haggle @ 64

Thanks Dakine. I’ll have it memorized in less than 5 minutes.

See Christy’s correction @ 61 on the staffer insert issue…

Remember the little fella in Oliver Twist who asked for “more.”
Please Christy, can we have some more of these kinds of events, it is time to melt the medias togeher witha blogosphere focus and a video appendage, instead of the other way around, what you people did on Saturday was like a video punctuation mark (exclamation point) on a blogosphere doctoral thesis.

You should all (evertyone on stage, and their supporting blogs) make the DVD available as a fundraising option.

You may not consider so, but that event was historic, especially taken in the context I suggest, as a punctuation mark in a whole thesis.

Only slightly OT, though this might lighten your load today, Christy…

I’ve been promising to take some old songs and change them for fun, and I found this one curiously easy to transpose, lots of the words didn’t need changing…

Cosmic…

You all know the tune, sing it out loud.

Bang Bang, Henry’s Wooden Hammer…

Monica was skeptical ,
She was too respectable
For a real law school
Late nights all alone back Regent.
Oh oh oh oh.

Kyle Sampson, working for old Rovian,
Calls her on the phone.
“Can we get these a-ttorneys fired?’,
Mon- ick- uh?”

But as they put the names on the list,
A knock comes on the door.

Bang! Bang! Henry’s wooden hammer
came down upon the desk…
Bang! Bang! Henry’s wooden hammer
exposed what they had said…

Back in charge again.
Henry deals the cards for them.
Cannon gets annoyed.
Wishing to avoid and unpleasant Sce, e, e, ene,

He tells Henry “shut-up-and-cut-Monica,
A-break because she’s blond,”
Whining when she sobs,
“It must not be So, o, o, o..”

But as she winks at the dirty-old-men,
He lifts the gavel high…

Bang! Bang! Henry’s wooden hammer
Came down upon the desk.
Bang! Bang! Henry’s wooden hammer,
Hey Henry, you’re the best!

P.C. BLOGOSPHERE
said, “We found a secret here.”
Henry stands alone
Painting testimonial pictures.
Oh, oh, oh, oh.

Joe and Valerie, standing in the gallery
Watched old Scoot go free..
The judge does not agree
and he tells them So, o, o, o.

But as the cast walks out of the court,
A noise comes from behind.

Bang! Bang! Henrys wooden hammer
Came down, that tough old slueth.
Bang! Bang! Henry’s wooden hammer
Made sure we knew the truth..

Whoa, oh, oh, oh. Wooden hammer.

Christy Hardin Smith @ 61

dakine at 57 — Actually, it was Specter’s staffer who inserted the provision that gutted advice and consent from the Senate on USAtty appointments. And I would LOVE to see someone ask him directly about his role in that — and what he has done to remediate with his colleagues for having a staffer open that unconstitutional end-run of the Senate.

You’re correct but I thought it was also a Spector staffer who was involved with habeas as well. And got rewarded for both activities by being named a USA…

Integrity? Here’s some from a former U.S. Attorney of NY.

Rudy Giuliani drew outrage and indignation from Sept. 11 first-responders yesterday by saying he spent as much time – or more – exposed to the site’s dangers as workers who dug through the debris for the missing and the dead.

http://www.nydailynews.com/new…..claim.html

I hadn’t seen this yet – could be a good sign.

Lawyers for Guantanamo Bay detainees asked a federal judge Thursday to invalidate a days-old law that lets government agents eavesdrop on suspected terrorists without first getting court-approved warrants.

Why the accelerated exec power grabbing during the run up to an election that they are predicted to loose?

Even if the Dems pickup the WH, 20 more HR seats and 5-6 Senate seats, I don’t see much of this “stuff” getting un-done.

AZ Matt @ 52

Ann in AZ,

Great letter but I hope that Kyl has someone who can explain to him what the Constitution says in the first place. Not the sharpest knife in the drawer you know. I wish he would go away.

Unfortunately, he is at the beginning of his current term, so he’s around for another five and a half years. I did my part to work for his opponent, but to no avail. However, the last time I wrote Kyl, I did at least get a response, and it was on topic enough to seem to be a real response rather than some boilerplate stuff, so it should be interesting to see how he rationalizes his vote.

And there were many good and decent attorneys and judges in Nazi Germany who were marginalized to the point that they were unable to alter the course of events in that country. When the system has been so gamed by one political party the notion of “reforming” that system is naive.

Ann in AZ @ 42

The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.

A lot of Americans have died on beaches, in jungles, in deserts, and on frozen mountainsides believing they needed to fight to ensure these words were never erased.

It’s a national shame how Bush et al have wielded the eraser. They should be hounded for the rest of their lives.

(Re-post)..@ 72..speaking of Henry, this was disappointing…

“Your witnesses aren’t showing up — They’re ignoring your subpoenas,” said Reik, “so it is time for you, Congressman Waxman, to recognize that there is a precedent for members of congress to initiate criminal proceedings.”

Waxman said he was unaware of the “inherent contempt” power. In a follow-up letter after the meeting, Winograd emailed him information on the “inherent contempt” precedent.

http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2007/8/9/13058/42383

As an attorney I have grown more and more offended by the gross, offensive and almost certainly criminal conduct of our A. G. Coupled with the alternately dismissive and petulant attitude, his whine that makes chalk on the blackboard seem mellifluous has me shrieking at each new travesty. The morale in the federal prosecutor corps must be so painfully suffering. Thank goodness for people with voices like yours and thank goodnes for a Senator with the smarts and tenacity of Pat Leahy.

I wanted to share that our whole family (including our children) became subjected to identity theft due to a break-in at our insurance company.

As I have been researching identity theft, (AARP and the New Electronic Frontier Foundation are the biggest lobbiests on reform for consumer protection) I have been thrown by the role the Patriot Act and other surveillance legislation have played in the increase of identity theft. They (acts and legislations) have left all of us so completely vulnerable to identity theft. I was also surprised to find out the largest “buyer” of identities happens to be terrorists, which happened to me. Imagine how surprised we were, despite the promised protections through credit watch services fufilled by the Identity Theft Act, that charges came in from other countries on our accounts.

The point is, that all this legislation has made us more vulnerable as citizens. The horse was put before the cart — lets do the surveillance and think of the individual rights to privacy and information protection tomorrow. If it (individual information protection) will be thought of at all any time soon. When you uphold legislation that has room to violate any citizen’s 4th Amendment rights, you have opened that citizen’s life to more than 4th Amendment rights violations, you violate their whole well being. The Framers knew what they meant by “life, liberty AND the pursuit of happiness.” No happiness with our personal experience.

Christy Hardin Smith @ 28

And yes, before anyone asks, my hair really is that red. *g*

Aaannnnnd, those killer shoes DID make it into video after all!

Good Morning Christy.

Listening to you all on that stage helps so much to lift the spirit! As does the sustained applause to your remarks. Huzzah!

I made the mistake of watching jr’s presser yesterday, & it drove my own spirit straight back down into the dumpster. Thank you for hauling me back out. HOW can that clown SAY in public, with a straight face, “What do you mean, accountability?” And then members of the faux-press sit there and oooh and ahhh and giggle nervously. What is WRONG with those people?! Correction: except for Her Honor Helen Thomas, gawdessblessher!

Thank you for all you do Christy. I promise. I’ll try to keep up.

Christy et al:
My husband and I got to talk to Maurice Hinchey last night at a Democratic bbq in Owego, NY. We talked about impeachment – he understands everyone’s anger. He described the current administration as “the most impeach-worthy I’ve ever experienced.” But he also said that he feels that there is no way to get impeachment through the Senate, which is why he went the censure route. We asked what we can do and he told us to use all the standard tools: talk to the legislators, email, letters, letters to the editor, phone calls, etc. He was adament that we need “a good candidate” to beat Randy Kuhl (no aguments there). He also talked about this:
http://www.house.gov/hinchey/issues/mora.shtml
the Media Ownership Reform Act. He’s getting hammered by editorial boards about this, so we will be writing letters to the editor about it. People do not understand the point – they think that it would prevent Sean Hannity and Bill O’Reilly, when basically what it is doing is re-establishing The Fairness Doctrine, which was trashed by Reagan. Personally, I think the American People need a break from this unending stream of hate-filled, xenophobic, racist garbage that comes out. And, if Fox refuses to balance their offerings and have to take these guys off, well then…tough.
Maurice’s message to everyone there in his speech was to have courage and for everyone to call and write their legislators to NOT BE AFRAID of the current administration’s lies and deceit (he does love his use of “deceit” and “deceitful”). He told us privately that FEAR was what drove that whole thing with FISA last weekend and that they would be doing everything they can to meaningfully deal with it when they got back.

JEP! LOL

EJ Dionne writes about the Cave In:
The Big Crumble

Why The Democrats Caved

By E. J. Dionne Jr.
Friday, August 10, 2007; Page A13

Shortly before noon last Saturday, about 20 House Democrats huddled in Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s office to decide what to do about a surveillance bill that had been dumped on them by the Senate before it left town.

Many of the Democrats were furious. They believed they had negotiated in good faith with Mike McConnell, the director of national intelligence. They sought to give the Bush administration the authority it needed to intercept communications involving foreign nationals in terrorism investigations while preserving some oversight.

But the administration held out for granting McConnell and Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales more power while seriously circumscribing the role of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court. The Senate’s Democratic leadership, lacking the votes to pass a measure more to the House’s liking, gave the administration what it wanted.

At one point, according to participants in the Pelosi meeting, the passionate discussion veered toward the idea of standing up to the administration — even at the risk of handing President Bush a chance to bash Democrats on “national security,” as is his wont.

Several members from swing districts — including Reps. Heath Shuler of North Carolina and Patrick J. Murphy of Pennsylvania — expressed openness to having Congress stay in town to fight if important constitutional issues were at stake.

But the moment passed. Even some very liberal Democrats worried about the political costs of blocking action before the summer recess. That Saturday night, the House sent the president a bill that, as a disgusted Rep. David Wu (D-Ore.) put it, with just a touch of exaggeration, “makes Alberto Gonzalez the sheriff, the judge and the jury.”

Most Democrats opposed the bill, but 41 (including Shuler) voted yes, allowing it to pass. (Murphy remained passionately opposed.) The one Democratic victory: The legislation expires in six months, meaning the debate will resume this fall. But Rep. John F. Tierney (D-Mass.) warned his colleagues that “when you give up your rights under the Constitution, it is not likely you are going to regain them.”

The episode was the culmination of a shameful era in which serious issues related to national security and civil liberties were debated in a climate of fear and intimidation, saturated by political calculation and the quest for short-term electoral advantage.

Politically, Republicans won this round in two ways. They got the president the bill he wanted and, as a result, they created absolute fury in the Democratic base. Pelosi has received more than 200,000 e-mails of protest, according to an aide, for letting the bill go forward.

…

Christy there is an interesting post over at TPM on Rep. Don Young sneaking in an earmark after a bill has been passed by congress & senate and conference but prior to the Prez signing.
http://talkingpointsmemo.com/archives/016427.php

Anyway, to my question: how common is this? Laura got a quote on this from Keith Ashdown from Taxpayers for Common Sense who said, “I’ve seen little gimmicks and little tricks used to make sure somebody’s friend or contributor is taken care of but this is by far one of the more underhanded, surreptitious examples I’ve seen — ever.”

Is something even similar to this a commonplace occurrence?

So, how common is this — addressed to those of you on the Hill? Is there any question that this never-passed earmark lacks any force of law? And shouldn’t there be some sanction — by the Congress itself if not legally — for his having done it?

WOW…

And we thought Enron, WorldCom, Tyco, Adelphia, Arther Andersen, Global Crossing, etc. were big potatoes. I bet the financial markets would better handle the subprime meltdown if run-of-the-mill investors hadn’t been forced to evaluate the integrity of the system.

The loss of the trust in the justice system has been constant ever since the Supreme Court forced Florida to give up the recount. (So much for the Republican “value” of states rights. Yes the sacrifice of liberty is okay as long as we win.) Now we can’t trust the US prosecutors (except for Fitz who proved himself), or Bush’s judges (in the mold of Harriet Miers).

Bush is not the decider, he is the destroyer.

Politically, Republicans won this round in two ways. They got the president the bill he wanted and, as a result, they created absolute fury in the Democratic base. Pelosi has received more than 200,000 e-mails of protest, according to an aide, for letting the bill go forward.

IMHO, E. J. Dionne, Jr. is dead wrong on that! Any Repubs who think they “won” by giving away their own power to are stark raving idiots!

Steve-AR @ 80

(Re-post)..@ 72..speaking of Henry, this was disappointing…

“Your witnesses aren’t showing up — They’re ignoring your subpoenas,” said Reik, “so it is time for you, Congressman Waxman, to recognize that there is a precedent for members of congress to initiate criminal proceedings.”

Waxman said he was unaware of the “inherent contempt” power. In a follow-up letter after the meeting, Winograd emailed him information on the “inherent contempt” precedent.

http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2007/8/9/13058/42383

Yeah, I saw that too, but I was kind of going the upbeat route.

Though it is always good to consider every angle, I guess I’m more for the positive than the negative at this juncture, in order to encourage our lawmakers to do the right thing.

But, we all take a different tack…

I’ve been blogging (locally in Kansas) that the bluedogs made a big mistake in assuming their support comes from the right, not the center. But that’s enough said, I would hope, to make it clear where my sentiments are, my without disparaging them.

We all agree “The Dems” did not live up to our hopes. But since when has that EVER been the case, in government OR in life.

So if I try a more-subtle version of influence than discouragement, it is just my way.

Not to stir up a southpaw scrap, but I think we need to look at some of the good thinkgs we’ve seen, and Waxman’s work, though flawed like any federal function, is still more oversight than we have seen in a decade.

Surely that counts for something.

The political calculations for the Iraq Authorization of Military Force were the same, one both sides, as the latest FISA bill debacle.

Lucy won, Charlie Brown fell on his ass, America has lost.

-GSD

Progressives believe in the rule of law, Conservatives believe in using the law for their rule.

JEP, you are an incredibly talented set of initials. I’ll be singin it all day:)

Christy Hardin Smith @ 20

Jonathan at 16 — You know, a number of the Presidential candidates who were at YKos did speak about this and the rule of law issues. They just don’t get much media coverage for it. There is so much filtered out of what we see and hear — that if you aren’t there in person, you’d never know.

PoliticsTV has the bulk of the Presidential debate up live in clips on their website. That’s a good place to start to watch it in an unfiltered context. I don’t know how many of the break-out sessions they were able to film and put up, though, and that’s where some of those conversations that i know about occurred as well.

Christy, do you know if transcripts are available for any of these things? I know a good number of people who would be very interested in these but who would not be able to hear what’s going on in these clips…

Heh. This YouTube clip of CSPAN coverage is excellent; the panel was truly one of the highlights of the YKos convention because its topic and coverage was sooo timely, giving voice to the sentiment of the convention attendees.

And I absolutely dig it when Christy gets her mom-voice on as she does in this segment. I feel the same way, cannot understand at all how “other people’s children” were able to pull this fast one on us when we are working so damned hard to play by the rules and recreate a society that does as well.

If Pelosi received 200K letters, she needs a few millions. Send her one and tell her you expect action ASAP to undo this damage. You might also tell her that she and the idiot Blue Dogs just handed the RNC through the White House the means to spy on all Democratic campaigns. When there is no separation between Karl Rove, alleged policy advisor, and Karl Rove, RNC political operative, and no separation between eop.gov email and rnc.gov email, that’s exactly what happened.

Carte blanche to spy on Democrats. Nixon would be so damned proud.

Christy Hardin Smith @ 17

mffarrow at 7 — You know, someone else said something similar to me when I was at YKos. Will have to give that some thought…

i really hope you do. you inspire even cynical me to have hope…

i’m still struggling to understand what are people in congress thinking… don’t they see what has happened to the DOJ? don’t they care enough to try to help fix it? is letting it get worse really a good electoral stategy?

i’m stumped.

PB at 93 — I don’t know — if they are, I haven’t seen them. But that doesn’t mean they aren’t out there somewhere. With the conference and the travel and exhaustion that follows, I’m still catching up online. Has anyone seen transcripts from the debate or any of the breakout sessions? If so, do share links…

Anyone able to confirm a story I heard from an ex-DOJ attorney that local office prosecutors need permission from main DOJ to get transcripts, make copies, etc. — basic functions of conducting prosecutions. Prosecutors are being told that there is not enough money budgeted for those items.

I do not believe that Congress has refused to allocate copying money to DOJ. Sounds more to me like WH way of micro-managing prosecutions.

Christy Hardin Smith @ 61

dakine at 57 — Actually, it was Specter’s staffer who inserted the provision that gutted advice and consent from the Senate on USAtty appointments. And I would LOVE to see someone ask him directly about his role in that — and what he has done to remediate with his colleagues for having a staffer open that unconstitutional end-run of the Senate.

I have asked Specktor in various forms and at various times what the story was there and I have yet to receive a reply to any one of my queries.

My contempt for the power-awed, giggly and sycophantic press-corps is growing by the day.

-GSD

Christy,

Could you imagine delivering this post on youtube? Is that something you could do with the same passion that you write?

albert at 97 — Wasn’t there a question put to AG Gonzales at a hearing last year to that effect? I seem to remember Leahy or maybe Whitehouse asking about that in a much earlier hearing in terms of allocating funds for basics at the DOJ…anyone else remember that as well?

Christy Hardin Smith @ 17

mffarrow at 7 — You know, someone else said something similar to me when I was at YKos. Will have to give that some thought…

I really wish you would. My belief is that citizen activism would increase substantally, if the average (non-news addicted) person could just understand clearly what was happening. It’s not just that people don’t pay attention, although that does play a role. If you only have a train ride into work to read the news, you can’t get good information when your newspaper is printing crap like, “the President says Gonzales is ok, but Democrats in Congress say otherwise, but so far, no lawbreaking has been proven.”

If someone could open up their newspaper and see this post above, they would really understand what the problem is, in about one minute. That is a powerful thing.

Steve-AR @ 76

Happy Birthday

If a terror cell does come to the states, and live a perfectly legal and non-suspicious life, then there is no way for law enforcement or gov’t agency to listen to their communications. Unless they make it obvious enough to warrant suspicion.

For example, there can be cases and situations where a terror cell does not make any sign of suspicion, until the act. Without a universal wiretap system, there would be no way to find the ones who are good enough to stay hidden.

Of course, even with a universal wiretap system, a terror cell could navigate around enough anyway to avoid suspicion. What happens when a terror cell bypasses our new FISA rules?

The way I see it – With the old rules, we were able to catch the dumb terrorists. With the new policy, we will be able to catch the average-minded ones. But the smart ones can still squeak by. What then?

albert fall @ 97

Anyone able to confirm a story I heard from an ex-DOJ attorney that local office prosecutors need permission from main DOJ to get transcripts, make copies, etc. — basic functions of conducting prosecutions. Prosecutors are being told that there is not enough money budgeted for those items.

I do not believe that Congress has refused to allocate copying money to DOJ. Sounds more to me like WH way of micro-managing prosecutions.

Sounds more like micro-management; it’s how they keep tabs on which prosecutions go forward.

Bet you there’s no budget for prosecuting any Repugs…for some reason I recall a complaint about budgeting that I thought emanated from a USA out west who was dismissed. I’ll have to do some legwork.

Can your source share any published links to this kind of commentary?

I told Pelosi to retire after the flag burning vote and to take me off her email distribution. Progressives need to toughen up.
Have we learned nothing from “winners” like
Rove and Bush?
Pelosi needs to retire.

You were great on the panel Christy, I watched it the other night. Everyone was good. Who up thread said “More?”
I agree, more.

Sigh. Great video though!
Christy-re red hair`someone was recomending sesamee oil in the hair before showering to help with frizzy (assuming that is an issue from time to time..)

for what its worth-altho you seem to have yours styled beautifully (was this the am you were having issues? Sure doesn’t look like it!)

cancer_cures @ 105

If a terror cell does come to the states, and live a perfectly legal and non-suspicious life, then there is no way for law enforcement or gov’t agency to listen to their communications. Unless they make it obvious enough to warrant suspicion.

For example, there can be cases and situations where a terror cell does not make any sign of suspicion, until the act. Without a universal wiretap system, there would be no way to find the ones who are good enough to stay hidden.

Of course, even with a universal wiretap system, a terror cell could navigate around enough anyway to avoid suspicion. What happens when a terror cell bypasses our new FISA rules?

The way I see it – With the old rules, we were able to catch the dumb terrorists. With the new policy, we will be able to catch the average-minded ones. But the smart ones can still squeak by. What then?

Why, if we just had all of the hay we’d know exactly where the terrorist needles are. They’re right there, in the hay!

Boston1775 @ 101

Christy,

Could you imagine delivering this post on youtube? Is that something you could do with the same passion that you write?

Yes, great idea!

Is this guy a Republican?

Chief federal judge too drunk to remember night at strip club

Chief federal judge too drunk to remember night at strip club. 9NEWS at 10 p.m. 8/09/07
DENVER – Court documents obtained by 9Wants to Know show Colorado’s top federal judge was too drunk to remember how he spent more than $3,000 at a strip club in two consecutive days.

He also used an Internet dating service while he was married.

Judge Edward Nottingham is the chief federal judge in Colorado and he is held to the highest standards of personal and professional conduct.

Nottingham recently presided over the insider trading trial of ex-Qwest Communications CEO Joseph Nacchio.

http://www.9news.com/news/top-article.aspx?storyid=75200

Rayne @ 106

albert fall @ 97

Anyone able to confirm a story I heard from an ex-DOJ attorney that local office prosecutors need permission from main DOJ to get transcripts, make copies, etc. — basic functions of conducting prosecutions. Prosecutors are being told that there is not enough money budgeted for those items.

I do not believe that Congress has refused to allocate copying money to DOJ. Sounds more to me like WH way of micro-managing prosecutions.

Sounds more like micro-management; it’s how they keep tabs on which prosecutions go forward.

Bet you there’s no budget for prosecuting any Repugs…for some reason I recall a complaint about budgeting that I thought emanated from a USA out west who was dismissed. I’ll have to do some legwork.

Can your source share any published links to this kind of commentary?

That kind of micromanagement would take a lot of time. Say, weekly meetings at the White House dealing with ALL important federal prosecutions, which is what they did, and still do as far as we can tell.

My police officer brother was lamenting how it is sad watching a nation collapse into a tyranny and how helpless it felt.

This nation is literally withering on the vine and the Republicans are willing to embrace Bush as he smothers the baby and the Democrats are hoping that it will unravel so much that they will win the next election.

It is all so sad.

-GSD

I hate to bring this up, but it has to be in the back of the minds of all assistant US attorneys.

Four assistant US attorneys that I know of have been murdered while doing their jobs. Two in Texas died mysteriously. One in Maryland was viciously murdered after leaving his desk at work, and another murdered in Oregon. These are horrible to imagine, but they are a reality. They also have not been solved.

By the way Christy, the way you approach this issue was magnificent. Your method was informative and not argumentative.

When the mainstream media criticizes bloggers for their views, they are criticizing voices who seek to inform the voters. An informed voter is what they are attacking.

That’s really what the blogs are all about – Informing and collecting so much evidence that when presented on a table, even the most ignorant voter on that subject will agree and acknowledge these ideas.

(assuming they aren’t complete kool-aid drinkers, and as long as the presenter doesn’t invoke a conceited voice or partisan generalizations to those they are presenting these ideas to)

“i’m still struggling to understand what are people in congress thinking…”

biggest problem there is the multiplicity of variables.

500 people, representing 300 million others, in assorted constituencies divided up by a fella name Gerry Mander.

Not ony are the geographical boundaries fluid, those 500 opinions are always changing, too.

It is mind-bogglng. Never has that word been so meaningful.

Notice how often that term is coming up lately, I heard it twice yeaterday on the MSM.

Never has history been so mind-boggling.

Making bobble-heads out of all of us.

SInce I’m rambling anyway, we had a great idea for a new bobblehead Bush doll electric pencil sharpener, kind of bent over forward a bit, like he usually is, you put the pencil in the “other end” puch down on the bobbblehead, the little thing makes a “pfftzzztt” noise and your pencil comes out sharp again!

Maybe it could say something stupid every time, like “The suicide bombings have increased, there’s too many of them”
Albuquerque NM, August 15 2001.

So Arer was kidnapped by the CIA and taken to Syria and no one thinks to ask the Preznit a followup:

So YOU don’t torture but what about “rendering” people to countries that do? People like Arer who was paid $12 million by Canada because of their role in it?

And now, under NAFTA, they are re-writing “security” rules to further the cause of tyranny. I heard all this on today’s democracynow.org. This wiretapping stuff is just the tip of the iceberg, if you ask me.

Documents Confirm CIA Role in Maher Arar Rendition
New information released by the Canadian government has confirmed the CIA played a role in the detention and rendition of Maher Arar. Arar is the Canadian citizen who was seized by U.S. officials during a stopover flight in New York in 2002. He was secretly sent to Syria as part of the Bush administration’s extraordinary rendition program. In Syria, Arar was held for almost a year in a grave-like cell. He was repeatedly tortured. He was released without ever being charged with a crime. The newly released information was originally redacted from a major report issued by the Canadian government last year. It also reveals Canadian intelligence officials suspected that the Bush administration would deport Arar to a country where he could be tortured. In October 2002 one Canadian official stated in a memo “I think the U.S. would like to get Arar to Jordan where they can have their way with him.” New information has also revealed that Arar was wrongly implicated based on information obtained through torture.

Bush on CIA Black Sites: “We Don’t Torture”
Meanwhile President Bush was questioned Thursday about the CIA and its secret overseas prisons known as black sites.

Reporter: “The New Yorker reports that the Red Cross has found the interrogation program in the CIA detention facilities use interrogation techniques that were tantamount to torture. I’m wondering if you have read that report and what your reaction to it is?”
President Bush: “I haven’t seen it. We don’t torture.”
According to Jane Mayer of the New Yorker, only a handful of officials in the Bush administration have seen the report. Sources told Mayer that the Red Cross also concluded that the U.S. officials responsible for the abusive treatment may have committed “grave breaches” of the Geneva Conventions, and may have violated the U.S. Torture Act.

http://www.democracynow.org/ar…../10/142227

Judge Edward Nottingham:

Most acknowledge that the Judge, appointed in 1989 by Bush, Sr., leaves his politics out of the courtroom.

The oligarchy is having their Caligula moment in history live-blogged.

-GSD

egregious @ 113

That kind of micromanagement would take a lot of time. Say, weekly meetings at the White House dealing with ALL important federal prosecutions, which is what they did, and still do as far as we can tell.

Oh, you mean the meetings about the judiciary, too? and the meetings with DOJ folks held AT the White House, outlined in MS Exchange meeting notices from emails in the DOJ document dumps, that never, ever included the names of the invitees of the White House, or the names of the White House staff responsible for organizing or calling the meetings?

The several hours a week of meetings?

The meetings that SJC and HJC members have forgotten to ask about during their hearings?

Yeah. I can see where that level of micro-management would be thwarted by the system…

Heh.

Steve-AR @ 80

(Re-post)..@ 72..speaking of Henry, this was disappointing…

“Your witnesses aren’t showing up — They’re ignoring your subpoenas,” said Reik, “so it is time for you, Congressman Waxman, to recognize that there is a precedent for members of congress to initiate criminal proceedings.”

Waxman said he was unaware of the “inherent contempt” power. In a follow-up letter after the meeting, Winograd emailed him information on the “inherent contempt” precedent.

http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2007/8/9/13058/42383

and don’t forget waxman’s punting on sibel edmonds.

i’ve been watching the House Oversight Committee Hearings… and i have to say that i’m disappointed. seems like there is more effort put into getting a sound bite than uncovering the truth. hope the committee work that happens behind the scenes is better than what we see in the hearings.

Yeah, I saw that too, but I was kind of going the upbeat route.

Though it is always good to consider every angle, I guess I’m more for the positive than the negative at this juncture, in order to encourage our lawmakers to do the right thing.

But, we all take a different tack…

I’ve been blogging (locally in Kansas) that the bluedogs made a big mistake in assuming their support comes from the right, not the center. But that’s enough said, I would hope, to make it clear where my sentiments are, my without disparaging them.

We all agree “The Dems” did not live up to our hopes. But since when has that EVER been the case, in government OR in life.

So if I try a more-subtle version of influence than discouragement, it is just my way.

Not to stir up a southpaw scrap, but I think we need to look at some of the good thinkgs we’ve seen, and Waxman’s work, though flawed like any federal function, is still more oversight than we have seen in a decade.

Surely that counts for something.

I agree, nothing pisses me off more than “concern troll-Dem bashing.” I didn’t post that as a hit on Waxman but as more of a general WTF?

Well I’m standing. Looking for a place to march, now.

In my humble opinion I believe the meme from the progressive’s should be:

We are losing the war on terrorism. The whole goal of a terrorist is to attack us because of our freedoms. By sacrificing our freedoms through these invasive warrantless programs, you are conceding defeat to the terrorists.

No if’s and or but’s. Every instance of infringement upon our liberties is another victory for the terrorist.

I refuse to live in fear and refuse to give up my freedom so I can artificially feel safe. Might as well lock myself and my family in a safe and never come out if feeling safe is our primary objective.

TPMMuckraker has an AP article stating that Lawyers for Guantanamo Bay detainees filed challenge to the new FISA law
http://www.tpmmuckraker.com/archives/003899.php

Way to go….

“Two in Texas died mysteriously.”

Were they looking into child sex-abuse accusations at the state run facilities?

just wondering…

Anyone remember Johnny Goetsch?

And the child-porn ring implicating Republican judges in the Dakotas?

Also, Foley’s circle of protection?

Just getting the tin-foil hats tingling, here. No accusations here, huh, just some serious questions that have begged an answer for a long time now.

And rightly so.

If lawlessness ever had a face of sheer profanity, it resides in this biggest of all Republican secrets. This is, more than all others, the name they can not speak.

Rayne,

You’re on a righteous roll today!

That stock market guy, Kramer, said this morning on MSNBC that he believes that there will be not 5 million foreclosures by next year, but that there will be 50 million foreclosures by next year.

Rayne @ 119

The meetings that SJC and HJC members have forgotten to ask about during their hearings?

wtf?

more please. i am completely ignorant of what you are referring to. thx.

IrishJim @ 123

In my humble opinion I believe the meme from the progressive’s should be:

We are losing the war on terrorism. The whole goal of a terrorist is to attack us because of our freedoms. By sacrificing our freedoms through these invasive warrantless programs, you are conceding defeat to the terrorists.

No if’s and or but’s. Every instance of infringement upon our liberties is another victory for the terrorist.

I refuse to live in fear and refuse to give up my freedom so I can artificially feel safe. Might as well lock myself and my family in a safe and never come out if feeling safe is our primary objective.

We have lost our freedoms; thus the war is rendered meaningless.

hate2haggle @ 30

I’m attending a “town meeting” this coming Monday where Arlen Specter is the featured speaker. I have a million questions I’d like to ask, i.e. Brett Tolman, Pete Domineci/Heather Wilson, FISA, but wonder if anyone here could “nail” one for me that is short, to the point, and hard to avoid answering. I’m taking a video camera.

not that it will matter much, but I would ask him “when” questions, rather than “why” questions, like “when are you ever going to hold (fill in name) accountable for his actions?”

Boston1775 @ 114

I hate to bring this up, but it has to be in the back of the minds of all assistant US attorneys.

Four assistant US attorneys that I know of have been murdered while doing their jobs. Two in Texas died mysteriously. One in Maryland was viciously murdered after leaving his desk at work, and another murdered in Oregon. These are horrible to imagine, but they are a reality. They also have not been solved.

I swear to God the GOP is a criminal organization. One of the things that has been bothering me about the FISA vote is the unspecified terrorist threat against Congress. I can’t help thinking along the lines of “nice place you got here, be a shame if something happened to it”. I wonder how many members were thinking of Tom D. and the anthrax letters?

Steve-AR @ 121

I didn’t post that as a hit on Waxman but as more of a general WTF?

it could be that the report is incorrect. not like we haven’t see that happen before.

or, it could also be that waxman is under mucho pressure not let things progress to the point of such a serious confrontation.

so many alternative explanations. my cup of confusion overfloweth.

Helpless Dancer @ 131

Boston1775 @ 114

I hate to bring this up, but it has to be in the back of the minds of all assistant US attorneys.

Four assistant US attorneys that I know of have been murdered while doing their jobs. Two in Texas died mysteriously. One in Maryland was viciously murdered after leaving his desk at work, and another murdered in Oregon. These are horrible to imagine, but they are a reality. They also have not been solved.

I swear to God the GOP is a criminal organization. One of the things that has been bothering me about the FISA vote is the unspecified terrorist threat against Congress. I can’t help thinking along the lines of “nice place you got here, be a shame if something happened to it”. I wonder how many members were thinking of Tom D. and the anthrax letters?

Biden thinks they are criminal.

LS @ 128

That stock market guy, Kramer, said this morning on MSNBC that he believes that there will be not 5 million foreclosures by next year, but that there will be 50 million foreclosures by next year.

Larry Kissell said one of his districts in NC had a neighborhood where 1 of every 5 houses was in foreclosure.

In the Ohio town where I grew up sheriff sales of foreclosures are rising steeply, and the school bond levey failed again. It’s happening.

Why. There is a LOT of money to be made during economic dislocations. There is a growing liquidity and credit crunch. Interest rates are going to up, which will hurt people who took out variable rate mortgages. Hey, more poor people to join the army.

jep at 72–
i’m a hard case when it comes to song parodies, but i REALLY liked yours!

favorite line-”Painting testimonial pictures.”

LS @ 128

That stock market guy, Kramer, said this morning on MSNBC that he believes that there will be not 5 million foreclosures by next year, but that there will be 50 million foreclosures by next year.

Dick Cheney said the foreclosures are in their last throes, if you will, so relax.

-GSD

I didn’t think it was possible for my contempt for most of the wh press corps to increase until I heard the giggling at junior’s put up your dukes bit. Unbelievable.

GSD @ 137

LS @ 128

That stock market guy, Kramer, said this morning on MSNBC that he believes that there will be not 5 million foreclosures by next year, but that there will be 50 million foreclosures by next year.

Dick Cheney said the foreclosures are in their last throes, if you will, so relax.

-GSD

hard to relax when they throe you on the street

hate2haggle @ 30

I’m attending a “town meeting” this coming Monday where Arlen Specter is the featured speaker. I have a million questions I’d like to ask, i.e. Brett Tolman, Pete Domineci/Heather Wilson, FISA, but wonder if anyone here could “nail” one for me that is short, to the point, and hard to avoid answering. I’m taking a video camera.

I’m late to this thread and haven’t yet read thru all the comments, but you might want to ask Marcy if she has any suggestions. Knowing her gifts, plus her fondness for Haggis.

LS @ 127

That stock market guy, Kramer, said this morning on MSNBC that he believes that there will be not 5 million foreclosures by next year, but that there will be 50 million foreclosures by next year.

that doesn’t sound right. how many homes & condos are there in the usa? we ony have 300 million people.

TiredFed @ 123

Well I’m standing. Looking for a place to march, now.

I don’t have the resources to make the trip (unless I hitchhike) but this one seems like a very good option, one of the best so far…

I may actually do that hitchhiking thing, myself, if I get the opportunity. I’ll take my video camera along, too. If you pass me on the road, I’m the guy carrying the upside-down American flag…

Helpless Dancer @ 131

Boston1775 @ 114

I hate to bring this up, but it has to be in the back of the minds of all assistant US attorneys.

Four assistant US attorneys that I know of have been murdered while doing their jobs. Two in Texas died mysteriously. One in Maryland was viciously murdered after leaving his desk at work, and another murdered in Oregon. These are horrible to imagine, but they are a reality. They also have not been solved.

I swear to God the GOP is a criminal organization. One of the things that has been bothering me about the FISA vote is the unspecified terrorist threat against Congress. I can’t help thinking along the lines of “nice place you got here, be a shame if something happened to it”. I wonder how many members were thinking of Tom D. and the anthrax letters?

In the film Flight 93, the hijacker pilot taped a pic of the Capitol building to the steering yoke, to help identify his target. Now how did those movie folk know that?

We have lost our freedoms; thus the war is rendered meaningless.

We are losing our homes; for what then do they fight?

We have lost our moral center; and the right wing fundamentalists continue toward Iran.

From WaPo:

“We are in the land of the blood feuds,” said Maj. Rick Williams, a liaison to tribes in the area. “It’s very difficult to tell a tribal fight from a sectarian fight because interests are pretty mixed. You can’t just put up a fence.”

Here, al-Qaeda in Iraq is neither the largest nor the deadliest opponent. U.S. commanders say foreign fighters working with the predominantly Iraqi group are rare in this region. Commanders estimate that there are as few as 50 hard-core al-Qaeda members, whose activities are mostly restricted to financing attacks in the area.

Garrett views extremist elements of the Mahdi Army of Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr as his biggest enemy.

American soldiers guard a Sunni cemetery in Khidr, Iraq, on a mission to find unidentified men spotted burying weapons there. South of Baghdad, in the arid area near the Euphrates River, U.S. soldiers fight not just one insurgency but many groups across a number of zones that mix sects and tribes. Al-Qaeda in Iraq is just one of the competing armed groups.

“They continue to target us, so we continue to target them,” Garrett said.

“We blow AQI and Jaish al-Islami up and make them bigger than they are,” said Lt. Col. Robert Balcavage, commander of the 1st Battalion, 501st Parachute Infantry Regiment of the 25th Infantry Division, using an abbreviation for al-Qaeda in Iraq and the Arabic name for the Islamic Army, the dominant Sunni insurgent group in the region.

egregious @ 126

Rayne,

You’re on a righteous roll today!

Latent effects of a few good nights’ sleep and a lovely FDL breakfast buffet, I suspect. ;-)

selise @ 128

wtf?

more please. i am completely ignorant of what you are referring to. thx.

Senate and House Judiciary Committees have not pressed the issue firmly and effectively as to who 1) called the meetings documented by emailed meeting notices, and 2) who was in attendance regularly at these meetings, and 3) what were the topics of these meetings.

It has bothered me since I read through the DOJ document dumps that DOJ and White House folks regularly attended meetings together at the White House, but White House attendees are never specified. It does not look like recipient/initiator names are redacted, more like a number of the meeting notices might have been sent out to distribution lists.

And yet the distribution lists are never disclosed in any of the emails. I also have a hard time swallowing the notion that these folks never used distribution lists in Exchange-based email systems.

So many unasked, unanswered questions that would have fleshed in the bread crumb trail between the political decisions by the White House to the dismissals of the USA’s. I can only hope that the questions were asked behind closed doors, but I do not put much store in this at all.

LS @ 128

That stock market guy, Kramer, said this morning on MSNBC that he believes that there will be not 5 million foreclosures by next year, but that there will be 50 million foreclosures by next year.

Well thanks to Bush’s and Biden’s bankruptcy law overhaul, at least the Credit Card companies are getting their payments every month.

The thing about the foreclosure issue is that a lot of the banks are renegotiating the mortgages rather than foreclosing — because in a lot of areas the housing markets are so bad that taking the house over would mean them having to take a huge loss. So for shareholder reasons alone, renegotiating a more graduated payment plan makes more business sense over the long haul for a lot of the companies. (We know folks here who have done that already, for example.)

It is impossible at this point to know how things are going to shake out with all of this, but wholesale foreclosures aren’t as likely on a massive scale as the numbers look on paper — renegotiation for a lot of these is more likely because most people are willing to do whatever it takes to keep their home, and banks are, at the moment anyway, not in a financial position to do much else but renegotiate.

That said, it’s incredibly stressful on all sides. And the market is certainly reflecting that volatility which, again, puts a lot of pressure on the banks to work something out — which, if folks who have gotten the loans realize it, puts them in a better position to work out better terms over the long run. But they have to know that going in and, unfortunately, most consumers in the position to have these high-rate loans, do not know this. It’s a huge mess is what it is, and we’ll be digging out from under it for a long while yet.

LS @ 127

That stock market guy, Kramer, said this morning on MSNBC that he believes that there will be not 5 million foreclosures by next year, but that there will be 50 million foreclosures by next year.

Kramer is a blowhard who has a well-known tendency to exaggerate.

Real integrity from public officials includes not only respect for laws, but concern about even appearing to be doing something unethical. That is, you don’t dismiss accusations, you proactively address them and prove your case. I am looking forward to a very different kind of leadership after January ‘09!

The unitary executive theory is not new – just the opposite. But, in our legal tradition it came to an end in 1215.

Fresh thread for everyone…

Biodun @ 148

LS @ 127

That stock market guy, Kramer, said this morning on MSNBC that he believes that there will be not 5 million foreclosures by next year, but that there will be 50 million foreclosures by next year.

Cramer is a blowhard who has a well-known tendency to exaggerate.

But the truth has a well-known liberal bias.

And Cramer is a liberal.

He may be a lot of hot-headed showmanship, but he’s absolutely right about the level of concern we should have. Just check in with bonddad and Krugman.

I am working on my spouse’s retirement investment holdings right now; really too late for the most part, but it took Cramer’s blowhardiness to crack through my spouse’s excessive caution.

Here’s a question for Specter, but pose it carefully.

First, say “Do you agree with Karl Rove’s assessment…” (that should shut everyone else up, then finish with) “that corruption scandals, not the Iraq war, were responsible for the Republicans majority losses in 2006.”

After he flubbers for a moment, follow up with “Do you think the 2006 Republican corruption scandals will have any lingering effect on the 2008 elections.”

As for Rove, methinks he doset protest too much. His excuses are going to come back and bite him in the rump, because now HE is the authority we can reference whenever we want to point out ramapant corruption amidst the R’s.

We can now always say. “Well, according to Rove, corruption is why they lost”.

Boy genius?

NOT!!!

dmac @ 136

jep at 72–
i’m a hard case when it comes to song parodies, but i REALLY liked yours!

favorite line-”Painting testimonial pictures.”

guess what, that line is from the original. That is what I meant by “cosmic”, I didn’t have to change some of the principle images, they fit right in.

Check out the original version, it wasn’t as hard as I thought when I started…

AZ Matt @ 52

Ann in AZ,

Great letter but I hope that Kyl has someone who can explain to him what the Constitution says in the first place. Not the sharpest knife in the drawer you know. I wish he would go away.

and, sorry to say this, but it’s WAY too long.

Kyl ain’t gonna read it. Heck, the staffie that opens it probably won’t read all of it.

I’m sure it felt good to you to express and explain, but your message isn’t going to get where you’d like. Only the fact that you sent in a communication that disagrees with his position, and that you feel strongly about it, will be delivered.

Boston1775 @ 115

I hate to bring this up, but it has to be in the back of the minds of all assistant US attorneys.

Four assistant US attorneys that I know of have been murdered while doing their jobs. Two in Texas died mysteriously. One in Maryland was viciously murdered after leaving his desk at work, and another murdered in Oregon. These are horrible to imagine, but they are a reality. They also have not been solved.

Of course they weren’t solved, investigating them is a firing offense.

Rayne @ 146 -

thank you. that was very helpful.

Chase one abomination, and it’s old news very quickly.

We never should have let them destroy the crime scene at the WTC. That was the first Domino. We really need to take a good look at why most Americans do not believe the official story. What are the implications if the official story is not true? The scandal at the DOJ is small potatoes compared to the crime of the still unknown perpetrators of 9/11. The crime of 9/11 prepared the ground for the attorney scandal.

How are we coping after that PNAC wish came true for a modern pearl harbor? We are being played. Dems have reclaimed just enough power to soon warrant another neo-Coup d’etat act of domestic terror. I will risk sounding silly. Thank you!

There was a reason why 911 did not happen during the Clinton and so early on into the Bush regime. Look at all those new “patriot” laws, and extreme fear punditry. Nixon’s cancer has returned to America stronger and more maligned than before. They studied their mistakes from the 70’s and repositioned themselves accordingly. We are talking about a handful of the same people (Rumsfeld, Cheney) top Nixon enablers/aides.

Love to all the in the Lake.

ls at 128 says-”That stock market guy, Kramer, said this morning on MSNBC that he believes that there will be not 5 million foreclosures by next year, but that there will be 50 million foreclosures by next year.”

and credit card use is up, due the the culling of applicants for second mortgages and equity loans-no more equity loans, for the common fold, etc…..not for now……also due to market values of houses dropping…….i forget the percentage of the raise in credit card use, but it was huge……that’s a whole ‘nuther monster……adding to high interest debt…….more financial trouble for people that can lead to loss of their home, if they have something extra happen and can’t cover it…..

Christy Hardin Smith @ 148

The thing about the foreclosure issue is that a lot of the banks are renegotiating the mortgages rather than foreclosing — because in a lot of areas the housing markets are so bad that taking the house over would mean them having to take a huge loss. So for shareholder reasons alone, renegotiating a more graduated payment plan makes more business sense over the long haul for a lot of the companies. (We know folks here who have done that already, for example.)

It is impossible at this point to know how things are going to shake out with all of this, but wholesale foreclosures aren’t as likely on a massive scale as the numbers look on paper — renegotiation for a lot of these is more likely because most people are willing to do whatever it takes to keep their home, and banks are, at the moment anyway, not in a financial position to do much else but renegotiate.

That said, it’s incredibly stressful on all sides. And the market is certainly reflecting that volatility which, again, puts a lot of pressure on the banks to work something out — which, if folks who have gotten the loans realize it, puts them in a better position to work out better terms over the long run. But they have to know that going in and, unfortunately, most consumers in the position to have these high-rate loans, do not know this. It’s a huge mess is what it is, and we’ll be digging out from under it for a long while yet.

One of the key issues in this is that because the Iraq war (and military, armaments & private contractors), is eating up billions of dollars (all by the way OFF budget, so it doesn’t show up in the congressional record) there is increasingly little money available to loan. In addition to the problem with China on this, there could be a devastating impact on both individual home owners and business with the inherent lack of capital fluidity. One of the things that we should hold the Democrats (and Republicans) accountable for is to make sure the true costs of the Iraq war are in the budget so they have to be addressed in relationshp to other pressing budget items.

Christy Hardin Smith @ 148

The thing about the foreclosure issue is that a lot of the banks are renegotiating the mortgages rather than foreclosing — because in a lot of areas the housing markets are so bad that taking the house over would mean them having to take a huge loss. So for shareholder reasons alone, renegotiating a more graduated payment plan makes more business sense over the long haul for a lot of the companies. (We know folks here who have done that already, for example.)

It is impossible at this point to know how things are going to shake out with all of this, but wholesale foreclosures aren’t as likely on a massive scale as the numbers look on paper — renegotiation for a lot of these is more likely because most people are willing to do whatever it takes to keep their home, and banks are, at the moment anyway, not in a financial position to do much else but renegotiate.

That said, it’s incredibly stressful on all sides. And the market is certainly reflecting that volatility which, again, puts a lot of pressure on the banks to work something out — which, if folks who have gotten the loans realize it, puts them in a better position to work out better terms over the long run. But they have to know that going in and, unfortunately, most consumers in the position to have these high-rate loans, do not know this. It’s a huge mess is what it is, and we’ll be digging out from under it for a long while yet.

don’t know how common this is, but i’ve been reading that with so many mortgage brokers, and mortgages going through several changes of lender – bank to investment banks that package the loans and then sell them to investors like pension funds. that it becomes increasingly difficult for consumers to renegotiate – who do they renegotiate with?

on the other hand. i just don’t believe 50 million. 5 million would be a disaster of unimaginable proportions. would like to see more numbers from reliable sources…

IrishJim @ 147

LS @ 128

That stock market guy, Kramer, said this morning on MSNBC that he believes that there will be not 5 million foreclosures by next year, but that there will be 50 million foreclosures by next year.

Well thanks to Bush’s and Biden’s bankruptcy law overhaul, at least the Credit Card companies are getting their payments every month.

not from me!

-GSD :)

ah its too bad you didnt get a chance to mention that, you’re peraching to the converted here really and we’ll just end up patting each other on the back for our similar views, minus any trolling.

jep at 155 says-”guess what, that line is from the original. That is what I meant by “cosmic”, I didn’t have to change some of the principle images, they fit right in.

Check out the original version, it wasn’t as hard as I thought when I started…”

i know, i should have been more specific in my commet….i meant favorite line of the song…….and you said you reused lines…….

my best friend’s daughter and i used to sing it and run around the house chasing each other playing ‘maxwell tag’…..not really an appropriate song for a youngster, but fun……

dmac @160,

Credit card debt? This shouldn’t be an issue. People should be saving, not spending money they don’t have. What can I say, but people have to take some more personal responsibility. There are still plenty of places in this country where people can get furniture and deals on clothing and cars without having to continuously BUY NEW SHIT. People are fucking insane over consumerism, to the point where the average american has 9,000.00 in credit card debt. How is this possible? This should have never been a problem, and ya can’t blame any political party on this..This is a societal flaw.

(the only case I see where it can be politically fixed are those unfortunate enough to have to put their medical bills on credit cards. This should have -never- had to happen)

50 million foreclousres?

Kramer was expressing his Onomatopoeia addiction, not his economics credentials here.

He means “way more than anyone imagines”, not “50 million” but “50 million” had a nice ring laid against “5 million.”

His exagggeration does illustrate the impending nature of this event, though.

It is worse thatn they are saying.

But in the same light, “they” can only let it get so bad.

Christy’s “right on the money” (I love it when archaic old phrazes actually mean exactly what they say), again, thanks for such a clarifying opinion.

I won’t repost it, but Selise pulled out the heart of it and posted it shortly ago, and therein lies one more sane overview of an increasingly insane world.

dmac @ 165

jep at 155 says-”guess what, that line is from the original. That is what I meant by “cosmic”, I didn’t have to change some of the principle images, they fit right in.

Check out the original version, it wasn’t as hard as I thought when I started…”

i know, i should have been more specific in my commet….i meant favorite line of the song…….and you said you reused lines…….

my best friend’s daughter and i used to sing it and run around the house chasing each other playing ‘maxwell tag’…..not really an appropriate song for a youngster, but fun……

well, this version can be sung by ANY age!!!

OT – new mine accident in Princeton, Indiana. 3 fatalities thus far.

Since you know the lyrics, you know what I mean, as I started playing with the words, names like Valerie, and lines like the one you referenced, made the parody much easier to write.

And I’m still scratching my head over it, I’m one of those Christians who read Ram Dass’ “no coincidences” logic and still think it has some serious validity.

Christy Hardin Smith @ 148

The thing about the foreclosure issue is that a lot of the banks are renegotiating the mortgages rather than foreclosing — because in a lot of areas the housing markets are so bad that taking the house over would mean them having to take a huge loss. So for shareholder reasons alone, renegotiating a more graduated payment plan makes more business sense over the long haul for a lot of the companies. (We know folks here who have done that already, for example.)

It is impossible at this point to know how things are going to shake out with all of this, but wholesale foreclosures aren’t as likely on a massive scale as the numbers look on paper — renegotiation for a lot of these is more likely because most people are willing to do whatever it takes to keep their home, and banks are, at the moment anyway, not in a financial position to do much else but renegotiate.

That said, it’s incredibly stressful on all sides. And the market is certainly reflecting that volatility which, again, puts a lot of pressure on the banks to work something out — which, if folks who have gotten the loans realize it, puts them in a better position to work out better terms over the long run. But they have to know that going in and, unfortunately, most consumers in the position to have these high-rate loans, do not know this. It’s a huge mess is what it is, and we’ll be digging out from under it for a long while yet.

Deeply EPU’ed. Hometown banks holding mortgages in their local township a la “It’s a wonderful life” is a delightful and antiquated notion. Most of the subprime mortgages as well as many others were sold off immediately by banks to hedge funds and other investors far, far away. It’s why a French bank freezing some of the activities of its hedge funds had such a big impact on the markets yesterday.

Subprimes represent one aspect of a speculative bubble. It all goes along as long as there is a greater fool out there willing to buy into a bad deal. When a greater fool can’t be found the bubble pops, the house of cards collapses. My gripe is that this was all eminently predictable from the beginning but analysts are surprised, surprised I tell you that there was gambling going on. Even now they continue to downplay its significance or worse say that this kind of shakeout is actually good for the markets, and hence investors.

Many people aren’t aware that the 1965 military coup in Indonesia, backed by the US with CIA operatives running all over the place, disintegrated into pointing out your neighbor or relative as a communist. More people were executed on a rumor than any fact.

People on an island in the Indonesian Archipelago are no different than the people down the street we call our neighbors. If they have a personal grievance or felt slighted some time in the past, they can call in and put your name on the “suspect list”. Jealousy was a primary reason Indonesians were put on the list. Yes, those on the list were execute. Usually their heads lopped off. If someone was too successful this was a way to destroy them.

The same will be true here in the good old US of A. It happened during WWII. A fellow worker can put your name on a list. The grocer, likewise. One day there is a knock on your door and you are swept away given no reason.

cancer_cures @ 166

dmac @160,

Credit card debt? This shouldn’t be an issue. People should be saving, not spending money they don’t have. What can I say, but people have to take some more personal responsibility. There are still plenty of places in this country where people can get furniture and deals on clothing and cars without having to continuously BUY NEW SHIT. People are fucking insane over consumerism, to the point where the average american has 9,000.00 in credit card debt. How is this possible? This should have never been a problem, and ya can’t blame any political party on this..This is a societal flaw.

(the only case I see where it can be politically fixed are those unfortunate enough to have to put their medical bills on credit cards. This should have -never- had to happen)

Cut up your credit cards and keep one for medical emergency only. You never know when some fool is going to cross over the highway, hit your car head-on causing a multi-vehicle accident and there you are in the emergency room. Otherwise, there is not one product any of us needs if we can’t afford it. Window shop if you must. Try free samples. End your day with a few selected pieces of dark chocolate or a bag of popcorn and voila. Life is good. Or, visit your local book store and find a corner to read ending your afternoon with a cup of java. With enough of us refusing to use credit cards, the financial industry will have to find some other way to fool people into what they need.

Do any of you know that throughout the 70’s and part of the 80’s women could not get a credit card without a man’s signature – father, husband, brother?

QuakerGirl @ 173

cancer_cures @ 166

dmac @160,

Credit card debt? This shouldn’t be an issue. People should be saving, not spending money they don’t have. What can I say, but people have to take some more personal responsibility. There are still plenty of places in this country where people can get furniture and deals on clothing and cars without having to continuously BUY NEW SHIT. People are fucking insane over consumerism, to the point where the average american has 9,000.00 in credit card debt. How is this possible? This should have never been a problem, and ya can’t blame any political party on this..This is a societal flaw.

(the only case I see where it can be politically fixed are those unfortunate enough to have to put their medical bills on credit cards. This should have -never- had to happen)

Cut up your credit cards and keep one for medical emergency only. You never know when some fool is going to cross over the highway, hit your car head-on causing a multi-vehicle accident and there you are in the emergency room. Otherwise, there is not one product any of us needs if we can’t afford it. Window shop if you must. Try free samples. End your day with a few selected pieces of dark chocolate or a bag of popcorn and voila. Life is good. Or, visit your local book store and find a corner to read ending your afternoon with a cup of java. With enough of us refusing to use credit cards, the financial industry will have to find some other way to fool people into what they need.

Do any of you know that throughout the 70’s and part of the 80’s women could not get a credit card without a man’s signature – father, husband, brother?

Alas you can’t rent a car without a card, or get a hotel rooms in most cases, or order books from Amazon. A big problem is the unscrutable issuers of these cards who (unlike in the past) will give them to anyone regardless of credit record (shades of the mortgage scandal) and find all kinds of ways to pile on immense fees and exhorbitant indeed userous rates. This was never allowed before and needs to be stopped. And, don’t get me started on banks, esp Bank of America, which insists on a “bank” of TVs when one is withdrawing funds all SCREAMING right wing CNN spew about missing white girls, and terrorism dangers.

Boston1775 wrote:

I hate to bring this up, but it has to be in the back of the minds of all assistant US attorneys.

Four assistant US attorneys that I know of have been murdered while doing their jobs. Two in Texas died mysteriously. One in Maryland was viciously murdered after leaving his desk at work, and another murdered in Oregon. These are horrible to imagine, but they are a reality. They also have not been solved.

Is one of these you are referring to Tom Wales? He was Asst USA for Western Washington, and was assassinated in his basement office of his Seattle home, and supposedly pushing the investigation was one reason for John McKay’s firing. The person of interest in the case is an ex-airline pilot who was prosecuted for fraud or some other shady business dealings by Wales.

I’m just wondering of there was another one in Oregon, or just some confusion? I honestly didn’t know about the ones in Texas, I’ll have to go read up on those.

We are all somehow complicit in this.
Our young soldiers and the entire nation of Iraq hit pork chop hill over five years ago and we WATCH while our inalienable rights are wrenched away to serve the demonic agenda of humanists like Dick Cheney.

dakine01 @ 57

hate2haggle @ 30

I’m attending a “town meeting” this coming Monday where Arlen Specter is the featured speaker. I have a million questions I’d like to ask, i.e. Brett Tolman, Pete Domineci/Heather Wilson, FISA, but wonder if anyone here could “nail” one for me that is short, to the point, and hard to avoid answering. I’m taking a video camera.

Mr Senator, you have always talked about your experiences as a prosecutor and respect for the law. Yet it was your staff member who inserted the provisions doing away with Habeas and YOU are the one seemingly most willing to give in to all of the President’s and Attorney General’s disregard for the Rule of Law. Why do you not vote and act according to your statements and why should we give any credence to you until you do so?

This outa be the script for all our reps.

Christy,
Thanks so much for this post. I wish I knew how I could get my Representative to see this the way you do.

Bob in HI

Steve-AR @ 112

Is this guy a Republican?

Chief federal judge too drunk to remember night at strip club

Chief federal judge too drunk to remember night at strip club. 9NEWS at 10 p.m. 8/09/07
DENVER – Court documents obtained by 9Wants to Know show Colorado’s top federal judge was too drunk to remember how he spent more than $3,000 at a strip club in two consecutive days.

He also used an Internet dating service while he was married.

Judge Edward Nottingham is the chief federal judge in Colorado and he is held to the highest standards of personal and professional conduct.

Nottingham recently presided over the insider trading trial of ex-Qwest Communications CEO Joseph Nacchio.

http://www.9news.com/news/top-article.aspx?storyid=75200

I posted this earlier today. Google search indicated he was appointed by bush the elder in 1989. Probably answers your question. *g*

cancer cures at 166 says-”(the only case I see where it can be politically fixed are those unfortunate enough to have to put their medical bills on credit cards. This should have -never- had to happen)”

that’s the type of debt i was talking about…….

“…the single most important weapon in any law enforcement officer or legal practitioner’s arsenal is their reputation for integrity and even-handed application of the law. Without that, you have an enormous up-hill battle with witnesses, judges, and opposing counsel and, worse, you are virtually guaranteed a start from a postition of doubt and difficulty with jury pools once you throw that away.”

Well, gee, it’s those pesky “jury pools” that are the problem then.

Once BushCo gets rid of them, BushCo and the “Left Behind” religious fundamentalist zealot leaders will be able to rule from on high unfettered, passing judgment on everyone else, based on their “infallible” religious text, with no “ordinary” American citizens being allowed to question or challenge their rulings.

Once BushCo and these “superior” religious fundamentalist leaders, of course, scrap the U.S. Constitution, the Bill of Rights and the “rule of law”…and voila, no more “jury pools” are necessary.

What a grand vision these righteous folks have for our America (the country formerly known as a liberal, freedom-loving democracy).

And all we have to do is roll-over and let them get away with the greatest theft in world history.

(Or bring charges against them, and have “jury pools” and our judicial system take care of the rest. There is plenty of evidence by now that proves that they are engaged in a criminal conspiracy against our country, our Constitution, our Bill of Rights, our “rule of law,” secular “law”)

Spiritcatcher @ 19

well, start every defense lawyer worth his money opening his pladoyer with the words, “The DA is a registered Republican, which means this case is political, i just thought you should keep that in mind…”
this should become increasingly interesting considering the “War on drugs”.

It also pervades Republican thinking on immigration and on giving the presidential vote to citizens of Washington, D.C. They don’t want the composition of the body politik to change.

hate2haggle @ 30

I’m attending a “town meeting” this coming Monday where Arlen Specter is the featured speaker. I have a million questions I’d like to ask, i.e. Brett Tolman, Pete Domineci/Heather Wilson, FISA, but wonder if anyone here could “nail” one for me that is short, to the point, and hard to avoid answering. I’m taking a video camera.

Q: “As a moderate Republican you might have an insight on this: (in light of the disastrous Bush administration) which Democratic presidential candidate will the moderate Republican citizens of Pennsylvania be voting for?”

hate2haggle @ 30

I’m attending a “town meeting” this coming Monday where Arlen Specter is the featured speaker. I have a million questions I’d like to ask, i.e. Brett Tolman, Pete Domineci/Heather Wilson, FISA, but wonder if anyone here could “nail” one for me that is short, to the point, and hard to avoid answering. I’m taking a video camera.

Senator, you have said repeatedly that you won’t suggest to the President that he fire AG Gonzales. But your public statements and your approach during hearings are anything but supportive of the AG.

It’s hard to reconcile the two views – You want the President to have his favored man in that job, but the DOJ is an important department that demands a person of integrity at the helm. Can you explain?

behindthefall @ 49

Are “Executive Orders” “edicts”?

Each is supposed to express the Executive’s way of executing a particular law or state of emergency. So, yes, within the Executive branch they are essentially edicts.

They only become edicts for the nation during a national state of emergency. The practice began with Woodrow Wilson and the Alien & Sedition act which gave the Executive certain powers during WW I. The extent was expanded at the start of the FDR administration due to the agriculture (remember the dust bowl) emergency. It gave the president a lot of room to solve problems using rather drastic measures. If you’ll notice, we’ve had many states of emergency ever since and each president has used the power to his own taste. Nixon once remarked, “I haven’t even begun to use the power yet.” and left it open to opinion whether he was referring to ’state of emergency’ powers or just plain old abuse of Executive branch departments such as we’re seeing nowadays.

BTW, Gerald Ford cancelled something like 30-40 national emergencies to shorten the list. But, he didn’t do away with ALL of them.

Is the “Unitary Executive” “monarchical power”?

No, it’s a concept where the president asserts that none of the agency or department heads has ANY authority — it all resides in the president. So, within the Executive branch he has more or less monarchical powers. This is in stark contradiction to past practice where many departments and agencies (CIA, DoJ, IRS, etc.) were given a great deal of independence to keep politics out.

Republicans, in particular, chaffed at career bureaucrats whom they claimed were Liberals who perpetually ran government despite Republican administrations.

Has there already been a “coup d’etat”?

Creeping fascism yes, a coup, no. We don’t have a king and our leaders include Congress and the Supreme Court and they’re elected or duly appointed and vetted. Only the presidential “appointment” or stolen elections call into question the validity of one part of our government (the Executive branch).

Do terms like “Executive Orders”, “Unitary Executive”, etc. constitute a Newspeak designed to keep us from reacting as we would to the familiar, equivalent terms from history: tyranny, dictatorship, one-man rule, monarchy, decree, edict, Caesar, etc.?

Perhaps, but there is some real meaning to each of those words & phrases. Stay informed and when it’s b.s. or Orwellian Newspeak, someone on a blog will say so.

Boston1775 @ 115

I hate to bring this up, but it has to be in the back of the minds of all assistant US attorneys.

Four assistant US attorneys that I know of have been murdered while doing their jobs. Two in Texas died mysteriously. One in Maryland was viciously murdered after leaving his desk at work, and another murdered in Oregon. These are horrible to imagine, but they are a reality. They also have not been solved.

I seem to recall the one in Maryland wasn’t even investigated! Can you imagine it? Gonzales has to go.

JEP @ 126

“Two in Texas died mysteriously.”

Were they looking into child sex-abuse accusations at the state run facilities?

…

If lawlessness ever had a face of sheer profanity, it resides in this biggest of all Republican secrets. This is, more than all others, the name they can not speak.

I read recently there were about 2000 allegations of abuse in the Texas jail system and the DoJ REFUSED to investigate or prosecute them.

Gonazales HAS to go.

MarkH @ 186

Boston1775 @ 115

I hate to bring this up, but it has to be in the back of the minds of all assistant US attorneys.

Four assistant US attorneys that I know of have been murdered while doing their jobs. Two in Texas died mysteriously. One in Maryland was viciously murdered after leaving his desk at work, and another murdered in Oregon. These are horrible to imagine, but they are a reality. They also have not been solved.

I seem to recall the one in Maryland wasn’t even investigated! Can you imagine it? Gonzales has to go.

Add one more, from McKay’s district in WA, Tom Wales.

LS @ 128

That stock market guy, Kramer, said this morning on MSNBC that he believes that there will be not 5 million foreclosures by next year, but that there will be 50 million foreclosures by next year.

And when our heroic underdog Oliver asks the government for help with “Please sir, may I have some help.” the response will be, “No, you don’t deserve it.”

Elliott @ 139

GSD @ 137

Dick Cheney said the foreclosures are in their last throes, if you will, so relax.

-GSD

hard to relax when they throe you on the street

“It’s hard to be free when you’re bought and sold in the marketplace every day.” — a Jack Nicholson line from Five Easy Pieces

[ Note: I don’t know the movie, but I DO like that line. ]

CHS @ 148

You suggest that lenders are going to renegotiate subprime loans. This may be more than you want to know, but here goes.

Renegotiation is very unlikely. Please take a look at this from Calculated Risk.

Essentially it says that 1) that the securitization of mortgages creates direct incentives to move people into subprime mortgages even when they qualify for better rates; 2) securitized mortgages cannot be renegotiated, for accounting reasons as well as for contractural reasons. I don’t really understand the accounting reasons well, but the contract issue is that the loans are arranged in tranches of increasing risk and increasing interest payments. The holders of the safest tranche would lose coverage if the loan is renegotiated in any way. That is especially a problem when the effect of renegotiation is to preserve the position of the lower tranches. The documents of these transactions contain restrictions on renegotiation for this reason.

The best solution I know is one proposed by Elizabeth Warren (a well-known bankruptcy expert at Harvard)in her blog at TPMCafe. My friend, who I won’t name here, a national figure in Chapter 13 circles, told me about it before I saw it on that site. He has made a couple of presentations on the issue in the right places, and has been asked to present it to some congresspeople soon.

The idea in a nutshell is amend Chapter 13 to permit the debtor to modify the interest rates and other aspects of the note and mortgage in the bankruptcy court, so that it can be paid. This totally bypasses the problems described above and any other issues I know about. It doesn’t require any consent of the holder of the security.

IrishJim @ 147

LS @ 128

That stock market guy, Kramer, said this morning on MSNBC that he believes that there will be not 5 million foreclosures by next year, but that there will be 50 million foreclosures by next year.

Well thanks to Bush’s and Biden’s bankruptcy law overhaul, at least the Credit Card companies are getting their payments every month.

Seems like Congress ought to reexamine that law right away.