Bill Hobbs - a denialist, slime shoveling COWARD who runs from the light like a cockroach

Cowardly Bill Hobbs called out on Obama smear, earns reprimand from RNC Chair. Nice spokesman you have there, TN GOP.

On this post - Barack Obama: Naive about al Qaeda in Iraq , Hobbs couldn't handle the truth so he deleted my comment (the post he linked to didn't accept comments - of course):

1) The Bush Administration has vastly overstated the number of foreign fighters in Iraq according to a report from the Washington-based Center for Strategic International Studies (CSIS).

2) The Conservative CATO Inst reports:
"foreign fighters make up a relatively small component of the Sunni insurgency against the U.S. and British occupation forces. It strains credulity to imagine 1,300 fighters (and foreigners at that) dominating a country of 26 million people."

The article goes on to say how al Qaeda is nearly universally hated by Shiites, Kurds, and most Sunnis.

3) In speech after speech, Bush insists that "this is a war in which, if we were to leave before the job is done, the enemy would follow us here."

But is it true?

Military and diplomatic analysts say it isn't. They accuse Bush of exaggerating the threat that enemy forces in Iraq pose to the U.S. mainland.

"The president is using a primitive, inarticulate argument that leaves him open to criticism and caricature," said James Jay Carafano, a homeland security and counterterrorism expert for the Heritage Foundation

This is one of the stupidist lines ever fed by an Administration with a big shovel trying to save face for what the vast majority of Americans see as a total incompetent screw-up. Spending $333 million a day supposedly fighting al Qaeda - a rag tag group of shadowy bomb builders that offer no threat to the US - although the GOP would like you to think so, fear is their controlling mechanism.

Obama has mentioned many time about going after the real stronghold of al Qaeda in Afghanistan and Pakistan, now that it is reported today by the AP that the Afghan government has no control over 70% of the nation.

So, I gave Bill Hobbs a second chance. That didn't work, he closed comments on that post after my submission. He complained that liberals were attacking him and using foul language. You see any foul language in my comment? None, no excuse Bill.

So, I gave Bill a third and final chance on a different post on the similar fear mongering topic: Hey Obama, al Qaeda is not just in Iraq, they're in America too.

Nope, he deleted for a third time, although he did allow a "yes man" comment 12 hrs after I submitted mine. This is how conservatives operate. Authoritarians don't know how to handle facts that refute their position of fear mongering and swiftboating. Amazing, this level of unprofessionalism since he represents the GOP in TN, you wingnuts sure have a problem. Let me add one more word to his description: hypocrite.... and after these deletions, Hobbs has the balls to say:

"The left always finds something to pick at other than to describe the issues; we're not surprised at all."

If you've ever visited this political blog - Loose TN Canon, you'll know that I encourage debate, NEVER delete comments - which is one of the main tenets of my site. I deal with facts. Anyone who has debated with me knows my regard for citing facts and making fact based arguments. But facts don't fit into the world of Bill Hobbs.

Speaking of Hobb's unprofessionalism, he was reprimanded by national GOP party chairman Mike Duncan in a statement sent unsolicited to Politico: “The RNC rejects these kinds of campaign tactics. We believe this election needs to be about the critical issues confronting our nation.”

Yet Hobbs proves he doesn't want debate about critical issues, he doesn't want to talk about facts, just a soapbox from which to shovel his slime about Barack Hussein Obama - including this vile statement:

"Obama has pledged to hold a Muslim Summit to determine Middle East policy with the very leaders that have as their goal to remove Israel from the map, referenced Jews to be “dogs” and “pigs,” among other vile references."

Hobbs has had his "reprimand story" on CNN, MSNBC, and some of the leading political blogs. This is not about Barack's middle name, this is about implying he is a Muslim who would make Israel unsafe, in league with anti-Semites.

The biggest threat to American democratic sovereignty

American Democratic sovereignty is held by the citizenry - "government for and by the people." The biggest threat to American democratic sovereignty comes from within - the eroding of our Constitution, separation of powers, and rule of law.

Question:

How does America find itself in our present position - being ruled in an authoritarian manner by an extremely unpopular president with consistently low approval ratings who has abused power and ignored legislative oversight?

Answer:

By the failure of Congress to impeach Bush/Cheney for their multiple constitutional violations. The danger is that these abuses could be taken as precedent by future presidents.

The careful balance between legislative, executive and the judiciary created by the Framers has been undone, and the executive has triumphed as the paramount power - unchallenged and unchecked in seizing the right to subvert laws through excessive signing statements, ignoring oversight, checks & balances provided by Freedom of Information Act, Presidential Records Act, Congressional subpoenas, etc...

Indeed, failure to use impeachment may have its consequences. Such abuse of power is now set as precedent and will be possible for the next administration - likely to be Democrats with majorities in both houses.

Ned Williams: poster boy apologist - denialist of the Bush Administration's Constitutional violations

And he's a lawyer! If you've ever wondered how GW Bush can get away with so many Constitutional violations in this day and age, I present to you a case study: Ned Williams.

You would think a lawyer would have some reverence or respect for leading law experts and those that specialize in areas of Constitutional and International law. But no, the authoritarian streak runs too deep. This is compounded and strengthened by a seriously dogmatic fundamentalist Christian mindset.

What you have a psychological profile that combines:

1. Complete submission to authority
2. Abject denial
3. Suspension of professional logic and ethics where the world is filtered through a political/religious perception where the reality is: "either you're for us or you're against us."
4. A high degree of self righteousness
5. Rationalization and absolution from any and all failings of himself or his leaders gained in part through religious conviction (and his association with Bush to Christianity)
   

There are no shades of gray with such religious authoritarians and you might as well forget about ethics too. Ned could make a case for why Jesus would torture, spy, kill, or violate justice. Yet he's the first one to place his vote based on a Christian agenda of "protecting the zygote" but support his Christian hero president's war that has resulted in destabilizing a region resulting in mass suffering and mass murder. Stay the course because it is paramount to save face at any cost.

Can you imagine anyone in any profession denying, summarily refuting, and tossing off opinions of leading experts in their own field as invalid because they're a "bunch of Liberal(s)" ... with "a serious case of BDS."?

Case study:

I mentioned the irregularities of Bush signing statements that have reserved the right to subvert over 1100 federal laws. (In the previous 20 years before Bush there were only 327 such statements issued).

You would think Ned would have some respect for the American Bar Association - the world's largest association of legal professionals, the body that accredits the very law school that granted him his law degree.

By a unanimous vote of the American Bar Association Board of Governors, a Blue Ribbon Task Force was formed with a cast of legal all-stars from BOTH political parties to investigate the Bush abuse of powers. This ABA task force described the Bush use of signing statements to modify the meaning of duly enacted laws as:

"contrary to the rule of law and our constitutional system of separation of powers".

When confronted with these findings that Bush had used signing statements to subvert laws such as the ban on torturing detainees, oversight provisions in the USA Patriot Act, "whistle-blower" protections for federal employees, and safeguards against political interference in taxpayer-funded research (... to name just a few), and when put in perspective that Bush has attempted to subvert more laws than all previous presidents combined, how does a true-blue right wing religious authoritarian lawyer Ned Williams respond:

"What is the mental disorder that sees an impeachable offense behind every tree?"

and

"...you ought to realize that lining up a bunch of Liberal attorneys on a given legal position doesn't prove much of anything--except perhaps a serious case of BDS. "

Further, I cited the HARVARD INTERNATIONAL LAW JOURNAL on Bush's use of torture and detention:

"There are too many crimes and blunders to choose among. I will focus here on one central disaster, the use made of the Guantanamo Bay Naval Base, and one egregious constitutional violation, the abrogation of habeas corpus."

-- Gerald L. Neuman, J. Sinclair Armstrong Professor of International, Foreign, and Comparative Law at Harvard Law School.

This is just one of many impeachable offenses of the Bush Administration, but none of these expert legal opinions are valid to a true Bushie authoritarian - even to a guy like Ned, smart enough to know.

So, if you ask, how is Bush able to get away with so many violations to law and the Constitution? Now you know the mindset that has made it possible - the type of mindset that remains oblivious to the potential consequences of the erosion of American democratic sovereignty.

Not alot of wisdom or deep thinking among authoritarians. They will either: deny, refuse to admit, blame someone else, or say 'they did it too'. That's about as deep as it goes. But, as we all know, the gig is up.

You've heard about political prisoners in Cuba and China, well the Bush Administration has one in Alabama

60 Minutes exposes another disgusting chapter in the Republican Culture of Corruption

A case that is so replete with good ole boy southern Republican corruption that many Republicans are speaking out against their fellow GOP operatives. 52 former states’ attorneys general from both political parties petitioned Congress to investigate the conviction of former AL Governor Don Siegelman, resulting in hearings held last fall. However, nothing could be accomplished because the Bush administration refused to hand over hundreds of requested documents vital to the investigation and Karl Rove and others refused to show up when subpoenaed. The first indictment against Siegelman was thrown out on the first day. So, when Siegelman decided to run for Governor again, Republicans appaerntly felt they couldn't beat the highly successful Siegelman, so they conspired to convict him on bullshit charges. This level of injustice and typical Republican corruption makes me sick.

(CBS)

"I haven’t seen a case with this many red flags on it that pointed towards a real injustice being done," Grant Woods, the former Republican attorney general of Arizona and one of those who petitioned Congress, tells [60 Minutes] Pelley. "I personally believe that what happened here is that they targeted Don Siegelman because they could not beat him fair and square." Woods says the case should never have gone to trial. “The prosecutor's gotta look at it and say, ‘Hey, is this the sort of thing that we're really talking about when we're talking about bribery?’ Because what the public needs to know here is there is no allegation that Don Siegelman ever put one penny in his pocket."

A Republican operative in Alabama says Karl Rove asked her to try to prove the state’s Democratic governor was unfaithful to his wife in an effort to thwart the highly successful politician’s re-election. After tailing Siegelman relentlessly, she was unsuccessful and couldn't find anything on him.

Rove’s attempt to smear Don Siegelman was part of a Republican campaign to ruin him that finally succeeded in imprisoning him, says the operative, Jill Simpson.

Of course, Rove was too cowardly to speak to 60 Minutes or respond to a Congressional investigation.

This dialog I found especially revealing:

60 Minutes Scott Pelly:

“Help me understand something. You're blaming the Republican administration for this prosecution. You're saying it was a political prosecution. You are a Republican. How do I reconcile that?"

Grant Woods, the former Republican attorney general:

“We're Americans first. And you got to call it as you see it. And you got to stand up for what's right in this country”

Don Siegelman has six years and eight months to go on his sentence.

In case you missed it, watch/read the story.

UPDATE:

60 Minutes story on Siegelman was blacked out in 'Soviet Alabama. ' Roves associates have been trying to swiftboat CBS. Also, interesting to note that during Seigelman's trial, his house was broken into twice as was his attorney's office. These thugs will stop at nothing.

The impossible situation in Afghanistan

An eye opening story from the front lines in Afghanistan in the Sunday Times Magazine from reporter Elizabeth Rubin who spent much of the fall in the Korengal Valley and elsewhere in Kunar province alongside soldiers who were making life-and-death decisions almost every day — decisions that led to the deaths of soldiers and of civilians.

The article speaks about how it has been impossible to wage war against the Taliban without killing civilians. Civilians play to both sides but now are mostly aiding the Taliban:

The insurgents regularly use civilians as shields, children as spotters and women as food suppliers. NATO killing civilians is great propaganda for the Taliban. At the same time, to Afghans with little technological sophistication, the scale and impersonality make the accidents seem intentional. Many are convinced the Americans are deliberately bombing them and even deliberately aiding a Taliban comeback.

The story also comments on US soldiers heavy use of psychiatric prescription medication like Prozac to deal with PTSD and extremely long tours of duty with very little time off, being pushed to their physical and psychological limits:

The soldiers were on a 15-month tour that included just 18 days off. Many of them were “stop-lossed,” meaning their contracts were extended because the army is stretched so thin. You are not allowed to refuse these extensions. ... Capt. Dan Kearney told his dad, “My boys are gonna go crazy out here.” The army sent a shrink...“I’ve got too many geeking out, wanting to go off the deep end and kill people,” he said. One of his lieutenants wanted to shoot every Afghan in the face. Kearney shook his head. He wished he could buy 20 goats and let the boys beat and burn them and let loose their rage. “I’m balancing plates on my goddamn nose is what I’m doing,” he said. “All it’s gonna take is for one of these guys to snap.”

Worst of all, with all the incredible amounts of money being spent, our soldiers still have to scrounge for supplies:

They felt eclipsed by Iraq. As Sgt. Erick Gallardo put it: “We don’t get supplies, assets. We scrounge for everything and live a lot more rugged. But we know the war is here. ”

If only we kept our eye on the ball - Afghanistan, instead of an incredibly draining venture into Iraq, we could have defeated the Taliban. Now, the Taliban is stronger than it has ever been and thanks to the incompetence of the Bush administration, our military is stretched to the breaking point.

McCain’s response to the NYT - Newsweek catches him in a LIE

Newsweek:

A sworn deposition that Sen. John McCain gave in a lawsuit more than five years ago appears to contradict one part of a sweeping denial that his campaign issued this week to rebut a New York Times story about his ties to a Washington lobbyist.

On Wednesday night the Times published a story suggesting that McCain might have done legislative favors for the clients of the lobbyist, Vicki Iseman, who worked for the firm of Alcalde & Fay.

The lie:

The McCain campaign issued a point-by-point response that ... insisted that McCain had never even spoken with anybody from Paxson or Alcalde & Fay about the matter.

The lie confirmed by McCain himself:

"I was contacted by Mr. Paxson on this issue," McCain said in the Sept. 25, 2002, deposition obtained by NEWSWEEK:

Transcript where McCain confirms the lie:

ABRAMS: Do you know were they got the information?

MCCAIN: No, but I would add, I was contacted by Mr. Paxson on this issue. […]

ABRAMS: Did you speak to the company’s lobbyist about these matters?

MCCAIN: I don’t recall if it was Mr. Paxson or the company’s lobbyist or both.

ABRAMS: But you did speak to him?

MCCAIN: I’m sure I spoke with him, yes.

more GAME OVER for the GOP

Another page in the GOP culture of corruption - another Republican Congressman indicted

Rick Renzi (R-AZ) has been indicted for extortion, wire fraud, money laundering and more.

Another page in the thick book of the GOP Culture of Corruption.

Now we know why Arizona attorney Paul Charlton was one of the nine U.S. attorneys fired last year. He lost his job because of his active investigation of Renzi. That's how the Bush administration does business - they protect the criminals when justice is sought. We've seen this over and over... from the ignored subpoenas to the telecom immunity sham.

Renzi is member of Sen. John McCain’s (R-AZ) National Leadership Team as well as a co-chair of his Arizona Leadership Team.

Texas Democratic debate - the line of the night

Hillary Clinton:

"I do think we should be eliminating the policy of the Bush administration, which has been very narrowly defined, and frankly against our interests, because we have failed to reach out to countries, we have alienated our friends, and we have emboldened our enemies.

So I would get back to very vigorous diplomacy, and I would use bipartisan diplomacy. I would ask emissaries from both political parties to represent me and our country, because I want to send a very clear message to the rest of the world that the era of unilateralism, preemption and arrogance of the Bush administration is over..."

This comment was greeted with HUGE applause from this TEXAS audience.

Al Czervic - "The Catskill Commentator" - conservative coward of the week

The Catskill Commentator blog wins this week's "conservative cowardly denialist comment deleter of the week." When I commented on his post, he couldn't handle the truth and deleted my comment. Al explained:

It’s amazing the amount of email this post has generated, and unprintable comments from crazed libs that I then delete for the sake of decorum.

Al gleefully posted on his blog a story highlighting this conservative red meat book, posing as a "study" by a so-called "eminent psychiatrist" - Lyle Rossiter entitled: THE LIBERAL MIND: The Psychological Causes of Political Madness

First, looking at the elderly Dr. Rossiter's resume (pdf), you'll see he finished his medical degree in 1962, about the time lobotomies were being phased out. He completed his residency in psychiatry in the mid 60's. Since then, he reports just two pieces of research, one when he completed his residency in 1966 and one in 1991. This guy is not a researcher and certainly doesn't qualify as "eminent" by a long shot, particularly in the area of psychiatric research (except maybe to wingnuts like Al).

Rossiter's book seems specifically written for authoritarians who crave reinforcement of their ideology. Obviously, the good Dr. wanted a provocative book to sell in order to pad his retirement.

The Catskill Commentator didn't like the information I pointed out, particularly that this book was written as a pathetically weak, non-peer reviewed, unauthoritative response to two studies I cited. (See side bar for links).

One, the $1.2 million study by the US Government's National Science Foundation and the National Institutes of Health has concluded that conservatism can be explained psychologically as: a set of neuroses rooted in "fear and aggression, dogmatism and the intolerance of ambiguity".

The other, A study by NYU and UCLA published in the Journal Nature Neuroscience shows liberals have a greater cognitive ability to problem solve and cope with changing conditions than conservatives who are more "persistent and structured" and are more reliant on "habitual responses." From the study:

"Liberalism was associated with stronger conflict-related anterior cingulate activity, suggesting greater neurocognitive sensitivity to cues for altering a habitual response pattern."

Essentially, conservatives tend to rely on ‘persistence’ in a ‘habitual response pattern,’ despite signals that this response pattern should change...

As I had mentioned in previous posts, denialism is a hallmark of authoritarian conservatism, as reported in Bob Woodward's book: State of Denial.

Here we see the Catskill Commentator illustrating these authoritarian tendencies:

Faulty reasoning: Uncritically accepting insufficient evidence that supports their beliefs. Uncritically trusting people who tell them what they want to hear.

Here's a complete list of such characteristics of authoritarians like Al Czervic, the cowardly comment deleter.

On his blog you'll also find such gems as:
LOW BLOW? HUSSEIN OBAMA SUED FOR THREATENING GAY DRUG USER
SLICK WILLY: WE MUST TRASH OUR ECONOMY –to save planet
COURT RULES SCHOOL CAN CHUCK LESBOS
PEACENIK SLIMEBAGS IN RETREAT-ADMIT DEFEAT

They just LOVE John McCain, their guns, war, and all things military, racist, anti-gay, anti-liberal, anti-education, anti-science, etc.... It goes to show you, dumb-ass bigot rednecks aren't exclusive to the rural south.
UPDATE:
Catskill Commentator posted a response to this post BUT DIDN"T EVEN have the balls to link to this blog. Dumb-ass coward. Note: this is how conservatives operate, when they can not understand or face facts, they employ denialism and surround themselves with 'yes men'. Sounds like Bush, doesn't it?

Bush appoval rating at all time low - 19%

American Research Group

Concerns over Economy Push
George W. Bush's Overall Job Approval to New Low

George W. Bush's overall job approval rating has dropped to a new low in American Research Group polling as 78% of Americans say that the national economy is getting worse according to the latest survey from the American Research Group.

Among all Americans, 19% approve of the way Bush is handling his job as president and 77% disapprove. When it comes to Bush's handling of the economy, 14% approve and 79% disapprove.

Among Americans registered to vote, 18% approve of the way Bush is handling his job as president and 78% disapprove. When it comes to the way Bush is handling the economy, 15% of registered voters approve of the way Bush is handling the economy and 79% disapprove.

If you still support Bush, you are simply unaware of the damage done to America during the last 7 yrs. I suggest you look through the archives of this blog for starters. This is not about "digging up dirt on Bush." This is about competence, job performance and the direction America has taken and this country's overall reputation in the world. America has suffered, except if you happen to be a war profiteer.

Wisconsin primary says GAME OVER for Republicans

Obama wins convincingly in Wisconsin.

Wisconsin is a state that is split down the middle. Kerry won Wisconsin in '04 by the slimmest of margins, 0.38%. Gore won in 2000 by an even closer vote, 0.22%.

Look at the turnout in Wisconsin!!

(With 97% of precincts reporting)

1,080, 298 - Democratic votes
394,074 - Republican votes

Barack Obama, by himself:

- received nearly triple the votes of John McCain (636,049 to 219,838)

- nearly double the votes of ALL Republican candidates COMBINED! (636,049 to 394,074)

These stunning numbers send a clear message:

GAME OVER for the GOP

Bush: The Iraq war helps the economy; the down turn is "because we built too many houses"

Bush blames developers for down turn in economy. Says spending $333 million a day in Iraq helps the US economy.

Ann Curry interviewed GW Bush on the Today's Show and suggested Americans were suffering because of the massive spending in Iraq:

Curry: They say we’re suffering because of this.

Bush: I don’t agree with that.

Curry: You don’t agree with that? It has nothing do with the economy, the war, the spending on the war?

Bush: I don’t think so. I think actually the spending in the war might help with jobs.

Curry: Oh, yeah?

Bush: Yeah, because we’re buying equipment, and people are working. I think this economy is down because we built too many houses and the economy is adjusting.

More intelligent wisdom from our great Commander in Chief.

The US economy is doing so well that US banks have been quietly borrowing massive amounts of money, tens of billions from the Federal Reserve in recent weeks. Without this help, financial institutions in the US would be bankrupt.

Conservative Washington Times article affirms Bush and GOP lied

The Liars who use fear to try to implement an agenda to protect themselves from laws already broken:

• Bush continues to lie: "Because Congress failed to act, it will be harder for our government to keep you safe from terrorist attack."

• White House Press Secretary Dana Perino said the expiration of the Protect America Act "will harm our ability to conduct surveillance to detect new threats to our security, including the locations, intentions and capabilities of terrorists and other foreign intelligence targets abroad."

• "The consequence is that our intelligence community will lose its ability to affectively and quickly listen to terrorist communications
  -- Roy Blunt(R-MO), House Minority Whip
  

The Truth:

Washington Times:

Analysts say FISA will suffice

By Sean Lengell
February 16, 2008

Many intelligence scholars and analysts outside the government say that today's expiration of certain temporary domestic wiretapping laws will have little effect on national security, despite warnings to the contrary by the White House and Capitol Hill Republican leaders.

Bill Maher Rules

Hilarious "New Rules" segment from Bill Maher.

Listen to what he says about war funding (at 2:00 into the video) that gets the audience screaming. Also, check out Bill's commentary on John McCain's new campaign tactic (at 3:30 into the video).

or watch it here on Youtube

Bush used telecoms to spy illegally - uses FISA to try and protect his ass and the telecoms - far more important than protecting the American people.

AT&T whistleblower Mark Klein personally attached all of AT&T’s circuits — carrying every phone call, every e-mail, every bit of web browsing by millions of Americans into Room Number 641-A at the Folsom Street facility in San Francisco, where it was all copied so the government could look at it, ILLEGALLY. (see post on this illegal spying)

This FISA bill - the "Protect America Act" - should be called: "Protect Bush's Illegal Activities and his Telecom Accomplices Act." It's about one thing: immunity from the law and from the Constitution.

Why? Ask yourself this - why did the Bush Administration refuse to honor a Freedom of Information request to disclose documents revealing its lobbying ties with telecoms? Why did it require a court order to force Bush to reveal this information? Answer: immunity as payback - bought and paid for by Verizon and AT&T. He knows very well he broke the law and is trying to protect his ass and not reveal his motivations for doing so. It has little to with protecting America, it's all about absolving him from a crime, one of many Constitutional violations that warrant immediate impeachment.

Bush’s new Attorney General, Mr. Mukasey has a very personal stake in this. There happens to be a partner in the law firm of Bracewell and Giuliani, named Marc Mukasey. The Attorney General’s son Marc, just happens in the law firm that represents … VERIZON !!! Is the picture beginning to look a little clearer now?

How stupid does Bush think we are? During the State of the Union address, Bush demanded that Congress retroactively clear the telecoms but wouldn’t even confirm what they actually did for which they deserved to be cleared!

Bush demanded an extension of the FISA law, but only an extension that includes retroactive immunity for the telecoms who helped him spy on us. If Congress approves a new FISA act without telecom immunity and sends it to Bush, and he vetoes it — he, by his own terms and definitions, will have sided with the terrorists.

Wingnuts have suggested this desire to sue telecoms is a Democrat conspiracy fueled by lawyer funding. Well then, consider the lead plaintiffs’ counsel in the telecom suits is the Electronic Frontier Foundation, a donor-funded, non-profit organization. If they were motivated by profit, pursuing these extremely time consuming lawsuits would be the last thing they would be doing. As Jeffraham Prestonian pointed out -

"It’s not about suing the telecoms into bankruptcy, either — it’s about having the sword of justice hanging over them so they will reveal how deep the rabbit hole goes — which journalists, legislators, activists, et al, were considered “terrorism suspects” by this crooked-ass, lawbreaking administration.

Christ, I remember when wingers shouted “Rule of Law!” when a guy lied about a blow job."

This is a textbook fascist agenda. Illegally compromise people’s civil rights with an agenda of fear and when they call you on it, question their patriotism and motives. Classic. Of course, authoritarians will either remain blindly ignorant of this issue, or blindly support this abuse of power and these Constitutional violations out of ignorance and fear. Bush uses the same tactic as the terrorists to try and implement an agenda - fear.

Most conservative Bush supporters are just too dumb or ignorant to know what is being taken from them - in this and in many cases.

Bush, GOP leaders lie to America again, play the "fear card"

UPDATE:

The conservative Washington Times on it’s front page verified that Bush and GOP lied to America about FISA, shamelessly using again the terrorist tactic of fear.

"Many intelligence scholars and analysts outside the government say that today’s expiration of certain temporary domestic wiretapping laws will have little effect on national security..."

The LIARS:

"We have space on the calendar today for a politically charged fishing expedition, but no space for a bill that would protect the American people from terrorists who want to kill us"

--Rep. John A. Boehner, R-Ohio, the minority leader, 2/14/08

"There is really no excuse for letting this critical legislation expire. I can assure you that al-Qaida in their planning isn't thinking about politics, they are thinking about hurting the American people again. I guess you got to come to the conclusion that there's a threat to America, or not a threat, I mean, evidently, some people just don't feel that sense of urgency. I do."

-- GW Bush, 2/14/08

The reality:

- as explained by Richard Clarke, former head of counterterrorism at the National Security Council,

"Let me be clear: Our ability to track and monitor terrorists overseas would not cease should the Protect America Act expire. If this were true, the president would not threaten to terminate any temporary extension with his veto pen. All surveillance currently occurring would continue even after legislative provisions lapsed because authorizations issued under the act are in effect up to a full year.

Simply put, it was wrong for the president to suggest that warrants issued in compliance with FISA would suddenly evaporate with congressional inaction. Instead - even though Congress extended the Protect America Act by two weeks - he is using the existence of the sunset provision to cast his political opponents in a negative light."

For this president, fear is an easier political tactic than compromise. With FISA, he is attempting to rattle Congress into hastily expanding his own executive powers at the expense of civil liberties and constitutional protections.

House votes to enforce criminal contempt citations against Bush Administration staffers

Republicans House members use the non-issue of FISA to try and obfuscate vote and avoid accountability. This is a non-issue because Bush has abused FISA and illegally spied on Americans using telecoms without warrants. He doesn't need FISA. Besides, there is still time before FISA expires on Sat. for the House to consider the FISA bill. Republicans, as usual try to use terrorism as a tool to assert an agenda that seeks to avoid accountability and demonize Democrats.

AP:

WASHINGTON (AP) — The House is moving toward a vote to hold two of President Bush's confidants in contempt for failing to cooperate with an inquiry into whether federal prosecutors were ousted for political reasons.

The citations charge Miers with failing to testify and accuse both her and Bolten of refusing Congress' demands for documents in the investigation.

The White House said the Justice Department would not ask the U.S. attorney to pursue the congressional charges. The administration has said the information is off-limits under executive privilege, and argues that Bolten and Miers are immune from prosecution.

Still, the resolution would allow the House to bring its own lawsuit on the matter.

These claims of executive privilege to avoid accountability are an abuse of power. All this is, is a request for documents. If they have done nothing wrong, why stonewall? It's time to force this criminal administration out of hiding and into compliance.

It is time for accountability says the NYT.

Impeachment is not punishment, it is protecting the US Constitution from precedent setting abuse

Article in Harpers Magazine as to why the impeachment of Bush/Cheney is vital for securing the integrity and future of our Constitution.

Impeaching President Bush and Vice President Cheney for their attempts to hijack the Constitution would make a clear statement about abuse of power. It would also serve to put reasonable constraints on the conduct of their successors–who are likely to be Democrats. This is a step which genuine Conservatives and Republicans who adhere to their party’s former understanding of a government with an executive of carefully limited and checked powers should welcome and embrace.

Bush’s abuses cannot be taken as precedent by future presidents. Indeed, failure to use impeachment has its consequences: it means acceptance of Bush’s transformation of the constitutional order. It means that the careful balance between legislature, executive and judiciary created by the Framers has been undone, and the executive has triumphed as the paramount power. Impeachment may be a painful process, of course, but Americans should consider whether their Constitution is worth saving.

Of course, if you're an authoritarian fascist, you won't agree with protecting the US Constitution. Ever notice, many conservatives, especially rural and southern cultural conservatives have very little awareness of the Bush administration's abuse of power. They'd rather not talk about politics as their understanding of these abuses seldom goes beyond what they hear from conservative talk radio or what their parents and friends believe. They've never heard of terms or issues like signing statements, pending contempt of congress citations, US attorney scandal, telecom immunity, etc... all issues that affect the Constitutionally mandated separation of powers. I'd be willing to bet that most conservatives have no idea who Jack Abramoff is and why he is in jail. But they sure know about guns, god, and gays... and the biggest oxymoron of them all - "moral values". Another oxymoron - a strong national defense. Under Bush, the American military has never been more stretched and weakened - making America less safe.

Inspirational message for the day

Some messages transcend politics and are purely inspirational. This is one of them.

"We are not as divided as our politics as suggest. We are one people, we are one nation.
There has never been anything false about hope. It was a creed, written into the founding documents that declared the destiny of a nation: 'yes we can.' Nothing will stand in the way of the power of millions of voices calling for change. "

Can you imagine this guy's finger on the button?

John McCain, who jokes about bombing Iran, is characterized by his fellow Republicans as a "hothead."

"The thought of him being president sends a cold chill down my spine. He is erratic. He is hotheaded. He loses his temper and he worries me."
--Sen. Thad Cochran, R-Miss

Look at how he's treated his fellow Republican Senators:

• Defending his Amnesty Bill, Sen. McCain lost his temper and screamed, "Fuck you!" at Texas Sen. John Cornyn, (R-TX)

• Sen. McCain repeatedly called Sen. Pete Domenici (R-NM) An “asshole”, causing a fellow GOP Senator to say, “I didn’t want this guy anywhere near a trigger.” McCain said to Domenici, "Only an asshole would put together a budget like this. ... I wouldn’t call you an asshole unless you really were an asshole."

• Sen. McCain had a heated exchange with Sen. Charles Grassley (R-IA) and called him a “fucking jerk.” Sen. Chuck Grassley inquired, “Are you calling me stupid?" during a debate with McCain. According to a source who was present, "No, I’m calling you a fucking jerk," replied McCain.

From Investors Business Daily:

But it seems McCain goes ballistic on anyone who disagrees with him. And he's not just verbally abusive, but physically threatening. He got in the grille of Sen. Richard Shelby — an inch away from the Alabama Republican's face — after Shelby voted against the 1989 nomination of John Tower as defense secretary. "I was madder than hell when I accosted him," McCain admits, half boasting.

"In his world, it's very difficult to have a simple policy disagreement," said American Conservative Union chairman David Keene. "Everything becomes personal. His position is right, and everyone else's is basically evil."

"I don’t think he has the temperament and leadership ability to move the country in the right direction.” said former Republican Senator Rick Santorum adding that a McCain nomination would be, “very, very dangerous for Republicans.”

If he treats Republicans this way, imagine how he’d treat others across the aisle who disagreed with him?

In case you didn't catch it, McCain today called lawyers "scum sucking bottom feeders," as a joke of course. His mother stood behind him and didn't even crack a smile at the "joke."

More here

$14 million dollars per hour - every day - 24/7

President Bush just introduced the new budget. Bush will cut $200 billion from the social security and Medicare programs that aid older Americans. The budget deficit would balloon to $410 billion this year - more than twice as much as 2007. Domestic programs would be essentially frozen at current levels, with most services being cut after inflation and population growth are factored in.

But... we can afford to spend $333 million dollars a day - EVERY DAY in Iraq, that's $14 million dollars an hour - every day - 24/7. This fact, Bush has attempted to hide.

"Every gun that is made, every warship launched, every rocket fired signifies in the final sense, a theft from those who hunger and are not fed, those who are cold and are not clothed. This world in arms is not spending money alone. It is spending the sweat of its laborers, the genius of its scientists, the hopes of its children. This is not a way of life at all in any true sense."

~Dwight D. Eisenhower, speech, American Society of Newspaper Editors, 16 April 1953

The $515.4 billion in funding for the Department of Defense which, when adjusted for inflation, would be the highest defense budget since World War II, does not include the $70 billion for the war or the $102.5 billion current emergency war funding request that Congress not yet approved.

So what are we getting for our money and what do Americans think of all this? Is it worth it - the cost of saving face?

Wall Street Journal Poll (1/22/08):

"When it comes to the war in Iraq, do you think that removing Saddam Hussein from power was or was not worth the number of U.S. military casualties and the financial cost of the war?"

32% - Worth it

59% - Not Worth It

Other polls are similar. Vote Republican if you want to see this continue:

Can you feel it?

cross posted at TennesseeFree.com

There is a lot of excitement surrounding the Democratic candidates for president. Can you feel it?

Consider the following points:

• The participation of young people in primaries was unprecedented. Overall, Democrats had a much larger turnout (SC, NH)


• Young people 17-29 in America resoundingly favor Democratic candidates for president by a margin of 52% to 32% - according to a NY Times Poll (pdf).


• The CNN Democratic Debate was highest rated debate in television history with 8.3 million viewers, more than double the amount of viewers of the CNN Republican debate (and snoozefest ... ZZzzzz) . You can hear it in the crowd, feel it in the atmosphere. Dem debates were like rock concerts. Repub debates, boring, very little audience enthusiasm (except for Ron Paul's anti-war comments).


• A record 70% of Americans think the country is going in the wrong direction. Change is the word.

The Democratic Party is the future of America. My 14 yr old niece and all her friends have memorized Pink's 'Dear Mr. President' - the poignant protest song of our time. (It's up to 6.2 million views on Youtube).

Who could possibly believe the future of America would be based on a stogy cantankerous old fart like McCain, a purveyor of war - with his jokes about bombing Iran and staying in Iraq for 100 years? You can't really believe, especially after the miserable failure of the Bush presidency, that any GOP candidate represents the future of America.

Forget it. Game over.