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Armando over at Daily Kos put this into the best perespective:
I think it is important to remind folks of the big picture again - that the President of the United States Lied to the American People. Phil Singer of the DSCC reminds as well:
BUSH THE COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF SAID HE'D FIRE ANYONE FOR LEAKING, THAT NOBODY WAS INVOLVED...
Asked in June 2004 if he'd stand by his pledge to fire anyone found to have leaked, Bush replied "yes." [Bush Press Conference: Savannah, GA, 6/10/04]
When the White House was asked specifically whether Karl Rove, Elliot Abrams or Lewis Libby told any reporter that Valerie Plame worked for the CIA, White House spokesman Scott McClellan said: "Those individuals -- I talked -- I spoke with those individuals, as I pointed out, and those individuals assured me they were not involved in this. And that's where it stands." [White House Briefing, 10/10/03]
"I don't know of anybody in my administration who leaked classified information. If somebody did leak classified information, I'd like to know it, and we'll take the appropriate action." [Bush Remarks: Chicago, Illinois, 9/30/03]
"The President has set high standards, the highest of standards for people in his administration. He's made it very clear to people in his administration that he expects them to adhere to the highest standards of conduct. If anyone in this administration was involved in it, they would no longer be in this administration." [White House Briefing, 9/29/03]
BUSH THE CANDIDATE PROMISED TO UPHOLD THE HONOR AND INTEGRITY AT THE WHITE HOUSE...
"I will swear to uphold the laws of the land. But I will also swear to uphold the honor and the integrity of the office to which I have been elected, so help me God," said then-Governor George Bush [CNN, "Inside Politics," 8/11/00]
"Americans are tired of investigations and scandal, and the best way to get rid of them is to elect a new president who will bring a new administration, who will restore honor and dignity to the White House." [Then-Governor George Bush on CNN's "Burden of Proof," 9/15/00]
"Americans want to be assured that the next administration will bring honor and dignity to the White House." [Then-Governor George Bush on CNN's "Capital Gang," 8/13/00]
GOP Majority Leader Tom DeLay and two close associates were just
indicted on charges of criminal conspiracy for channeling illegal
corporate money to advance careers of fellow republicans and engineer an
uprecedented power grab of the Texas government.
This is just the latest charge in a string of ethics violations swirling
around DeLay including his abuse of power, money-for-influence machine,
corporate shilling, ethics rebukes, foreign trips with lobbyists, and
huge campaign payouts to family members.
Give now to make make this billboard a reality.
Contribute to the billboard fund, and we'll email you a copy of Tom DeLay's indictment!
It's time to put DeLay and the GOP culture of corruption he has fostered
where it belongs: behind bars.
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) -- A Texas court issued a warrant Wednesday for former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay to appear for booking, where he is likely to face the fingerprinting and photo mug shot he had hoped to avoid.
Bail was initially set at $10,000 as a routine step before his first court appearance on conspiracy and money laundering charges. Travis County court officials said DeLay was ordered to appear at the Fort Bend County jail for booking.
Can anyone say Fitzmas:
And, did you know that we're just hours (all right,maybe a couple days) away from FITZMAS???? Doesn't it feel like the hap-happiest time of the year??
In case you haven't seen the New York Daily News article yet today...
post:
What did Bush know and when did he know it?
by Mike Liddell
Today the New York Daily News
An angry President Bush rebuked chief political guru Karl Rove two years ago for his role in the Valerie Plame affair, sources told the Daily News.
[...]
None of these sources offered additional specifics of what Bush and Rove discussed in conversations beginning shortly after the Justice Department informed the White House in September 2003 that a criminal investigation had been launched into the leak of CIA agent Plame's identity to columnist Robert Novak.
But at the end of that same month, President Bush said:
"I don't know of anybody in my administration who leaked classified information. If somebody did leak classified information, I'd like to know it. And we'll take the appropriate action. And this investigation is a good thing." – President Bush, 9/30/03 <http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2003/09/20030930-9.html>
And that's not the worst part. While the New York Daily News writes that Bush "rebuked" Rove it wasn't because he leaked the information – it was because he didn't cover his tracks well enough:
[T]he President felt Rove and other members of the White House damage-control
team did a clumsy job in their campaign to discredit Plame's husband, Joseph Wilson, the ex-diplomat who criticized Bush's claim that Saddam Hussen tried to buy weapons-grade uranium in Niger.
A second well-placed source said some recently published reports implying Rove had deceived Bush about his involvement in the Wilson counterattack were incorrect and were leaked by White House aides trying to protect the President.
"Bush did not feel misled so much by Karl and others as believing that they handled it in a ham-handed and bush-league way," the source said.
The question now becomes what did President Bush know, when did he know it, and why was he only upset that Rove botched the cover-up?
By the way:New Mexico Considers Relief Measures for Gas Prices
Morning Edition, October 6, 2005 · Gov. Bill Richardson calls the New Mexico legislature back for a special session intended to ease high oil and gas prices. Richardson is proposing tax rebates and expanded programs that help poor people and the elderly pay their heating bills.
I HEART CRAIGS LIST
The US government has a new
website, http://www.ready.gov/. It's
another attempt at scare mongering in the style of the old "duck and
cover" advice after WWII.
The fun thing is that these pictures are so
ambiguous they could mean anything! Here are a few interpretations.
If you have set yourself on fire, do not
run
If you
spot terrorism, blow your anti-terrorism whistle. If you are Vin Diesel, yell
really loud.
If you
spot a terrorist arrow, pin it against the wall with your shoulder
MORE ON THE FLIP...
Continue reading "Easy panic instructions from the DHS (not the delivery service)" »
With all the devastation that occurred along the Gulf Coast politics is on the back burner for many but Political Wire notes:
The two recent Gulf hurricanes "may result in a significant loss of population for Louisiana, and state officials are now virtually certain that Louisiana will lose a congressional seat after the 2010 census," the New York Times reports.
The storms are also "likely to alter the state's political landscape... reducing the domination of New Orleans over the State Legislature and increasing the influence of suburban and rural areas."
Louisiana Democrats need your help and before I get attacked and accused of being a political opportunist Tim Russert called Louisiana Republicans on it on Sunday,
MR. RUSSERT: All right. I want to ask one last question on Katrina, because this caught my attention. Alphonso Jackson, the secretary of Housing and Urban Development, said this, according to the Washington Times: that "New Orleans would not reach its pre-Katrina population of `500,000 people for a long time,' and `it's not going to be as black as it was for a long time, if ever again.'"
You know Karl Rove and Tom DeLay were instant messaging each other twirling their mustaches and this is why:
The Huffington Post has it that Louisiana State Senator Craig Romero (R) visited Washington earlier this month under the auspices of raising money for Katrina disaster relief, Roll Call reported today. But the trip was also an opportunity for Romero to drum up support for his run for Congress in Louisiana’s 3rd district now held by Democrat Charlie Melancon.
The Huffington Post has acquired pages from a packet of candidate information that Romero handed out to special interest groups: A main selling point of Romero's candidacy is that if Katrina's victims don't move back home, the district will go Republican.
In the 2004 election, 50.2 percent voted for Democrat Charles Melancon and 49.8 percent for Rep. Billy Tauzin (R).
Romero's campaign information includes a pie chart that shows the district's make-up without the residents who were displaced by Katrina. Leaving those residents out, the chart says the district would be have voted 57.1 percent Republican and 42.9 percent Democrat in the 2004 election.
So while Democrats were demanding how FEMA botched the federal government's response to NOLA hurricane victims Craig Romero and Republicans were plotting their electoral strategy AND THEY EVEN HAD A PIE CHART!
Someone far smarter than I noted that this is an important wake up call. Katrina seriously set back fundraising for all of the state party operations, but particularly LA, AL, and MS. The reasons for this are pretty obvious and as after 9-11 fundraising for Democrats will be down but Republicans are already preparing to take this seat back. That's fine, I wonder if Romero will toe the party line and agree with bush's assertion that Brownie, did heck of a job?
What do state parties do, anyway? They're the front line of building a truly national party. Lots of people think we shouldn't bother in places like Mississippi, but the grassroots demanded and Governor Dean campaigned for chair on the premise that if we don't start building in the red states now, they're going to be red states forever.
Since January 15, 2005, Governor Bill Richardson assembled and funded the Democratic Party of New Mexico's field team and the DNC followed suit after Gov. Dean was elected as chairman. Through the field teams efforts they we've conducted grassroots trainings and town halls across the state and served as liaison's for county parties. I've blogged about our efforts here.
For the first time in a very long time, New Mexico Democratic County Chair's and activists had someone who's sole job was to support their efforts for building their county parties.
The hundreds of organizers being hired by the DNC in the various states are on DNC payroll, but they are directed by and folded into state party operations. Having strong, sound state parties is the key to making these
folks effective, and getting this to the point where we have organized volunteers in every single precinct in the country.
Give what you can to the Red Cross and then dig a little deeper and help our Southern Democratic Parties rise again.
The organizers who were hired in Mississippi were in DC in August
for an intense training and briefing -- you can read a couple of blog
posts from them and check out their bios here and here.
Here are donation links for the three state parties:
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