Still Fighting

Activism

Activate ActBlue in OH, PA, TX, FL, and MT. ActBlue is a powerful fundraising powerhouse. They're an organization that wants to "enable anyone — individuals, grassroots groups, and millions-strong organizations...to fundraise for the Democratic candidates and causes of their choice." So far, they've been quite successful. If you'd like, you can even get your own account to support the candidates that you want to promote. Previously, ActBlue was only set up to support candidates for national office. But that's changing. They're working to get "activated" in the five states mentioned above. Once that happens, that will mean: "Every Democratic candidate for every state legislative and executive office can immediately accept contributions online." and "Every supporter can immediately fundraise online for the Democratic candidates and party committees of their choice." They've chosen five important states. If you can help them, please do so! This is a fantastic way to combat the GOP money machine.

News

Test Scores Move Little in Math, Reading. For most things, the evidence that Bush screwed up is quite palpable. But the jury's been out for No Child Left Behind for quite a while now. Oh, sure, we've heard from people opposed to it in principle, and we've seen states get exemptions because it truly is an unfunded mandate. But now we have evidence that it's really not working all that well. Of course, the Bush Administration did the only thing it knows how to do in the face of bad news: Spin and distort the information presented: "Bush called the report 'encouraging' and emphasized that the numbers showed a narrowing of the achievement gap between white and minority students." But even NCLB supporters are finally admitting the plan might not be working: " 'No one can be satisfied with these results,' said Ross Wiener, policy director for the Education Trust, an advocacy organization that backed No Child." Well, no one except for President Bush, that is. (By the way, a little bonus coverage - hint of the GOP's attack strategy in '08. Remember that Dean warned in '06 and '08, the strategy would be to attack immigrants? Well, here it is, buried in this article: "...others point to the nation's changing school demographics, which show a doubling of the number of Hispanic students in the last 15 years, some of whom may be struggling with the English language. 'These students create enormous labor costs to the schools because they need additional attention'..."

For a Senate Foe of Pork Barrel Spending, Two Bridges Too Far. The absurdity of this story sheds light on the true agenda of most Senators - get re-elected. How else can you explain the spoken desire to cut spending with the vote to keep the "Bridge to Nowhere?" Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.), a staunch opponent of pork barrel spending, tried to block $453 million for two Alaska bridges that had been tucked into the recent highway bill. Coburn wanted to redirect the money to the Interstate 10 bridge across Lake Pontchartrain, a major thoroughfare that was severely damaged during Hurricane Katrina. We can't fault Coburn here, though we normally do. In this case, however, he's dead on. Passing this amendment would be setting a sort of precedent, especially since the two Alaskan bridges are almost totally useless. Said Senator Ted Stevens (R-AK), "I don't kid people. . .If the Senate decides to discriminate against our state . . . I will resign from this body." The amendment failed, 82-15, and we're nauseated that so many Democrats voted against it. But then, this shows the priorities, and that's a sad, sorry state of affairs.

Colonel Finally Saw Whites of Their Eyes. Look, we'd love to say that we're excited that Colonel Larry Wilkerson (Colin Powell's #2 at the State Department) came out and blasted the administration for their hijacking of the national agenda and subsequent lies to the American public. But isn't it too little too late? It's fantastic that Wilkerson feels that he needs to be loyal to the public, but did he have to wait two and a half years to do it?

Editorials

'Hidden Scandal' in Miller Story, Charges Former CBS Newsman. Frankly, there are enough overt scandals in the Judy Miller story to make our heads spin. But it's important not to get tangled in the web of deceit surrounding the White House's campaign to drag us into war. Every little bit of light that gets shed on these criminals gives us more insight into the depths of their deception, and should heighten our resolve to make sure it never happens again. Former CBS National Security Correspondent Bill Lynch highlights one particular piece of information that may have slipped through the cracks in all the hubbub: "[T]hat is Ms. Miller's revelation that she was granted a DoD security clearance while embedded with the WMD search team in Iraq in 2003." Think about this for a second. Journalists are supposed to report information to the public. But if she obtained information via a clearance, then clearly that information should not have been shared with the public. So why did she get the clearance? What was her motivation in obtaining it? What was the motivation of the people who granted it to her? Concludes Lynch: "In my opinion, Miller also violated her duty to report the truth by accepting a binding obligation to withhold key facts the government deems secret, even when that information might contradict the reportable 'facts.'"

The Iraq War Runs through It. As we watch the soap opera that is Plamegate unfold, it's important to remember that while we sit here and chortle with glee over the possible indictments of Rove and Libby, while we sit here and lament Valerie Plame's lost career and Joe Wilson's unconscionable treatment, Sydney H. Schanberg reminds us that this whole thing started with Iraq, and Americans are still dying over there. Schanberg summarizes Plamegate, but he couldn't be more right with his closing lines: "What I find fascinating is that we're about to learn what happens when you bamboozle the public with empty words and false image - instead of trusting them with the truth, or something close to it. So then it becomes a game wrapped in a hoax - and the only goal is to get elected, not do what's good for the country. And with a war, lots of people die. There's got to be some penalty for "leaders" who play that game - perhaps something more than a permanent blot on their record."

Blogger Commentary

What's the Difference Between a Liberal and a Progressive? Now that's a good question, David Sirota! Thanks for asking it, and answering it. We're sure some of you are wondering the same thing. Liberals have been demonized over the past decade or so, although using Sirota's definition, it seems pretty easy to understand how that happened; he sees liberals as people who want to use taxpayer money to better society. And while that's a noble cause, throw enough P.R. money around, and all of a sudden you get "tax-and-spend" liberals. He sees progressives as people who see a bigger picture, and want to use government authority to "make large institutions play by a set of rules." Of course, these groups aren't mutually exclusive - many progressives are liberals as well, but the distinction is interesting. Do you agree with it? It is important to realize that progressive isn't just some term we made up to run away from the "liberal" label. What are you? What does your designation, whatever it is, mean to you?

This Is How Republicans Support Our Troops. Put aside the fact that most Republicans who trumpet the war won't enlist to fight in it, and put aside the fact that at the pro-war rally in DC this month, only 400 people showed up. Instead, you need look no further then then 109th Congress to see exactly how Republicans, who ran in 2004 ona ticket of soldier support, don't give a damn about our troops. Soldiers wounded in the line of duty (and not properly armored by our cash-strapped military) receiving bills while in the hospital recouperating. Senate Republicans voting against body armor, health care and veteran's benefits for soldiers. It's obvious that Republicans love to talk the talk, but they never walk the walk, and it's high time we made them, or kick them out when they don't.

Cold and Flu season is upon us, and not even Still Fighting is immune! Sorry for the delay today, folks.

Activism

Help Us Drive A Stake Into The Ohio GOP. A little while ago we linked to the Reform Ohio Now campaign. Pounder, over at Daily Kos, has a list of 10 more things you can do to help out the campaign. Don't live in Ohio? It doesn't matter! The current GOP-controlled government of Ohio is stunningly corrupt, and it affects the entire country. There's the obvious case of the (likely fraudulent) 2004 election, but there's also redistricting and money laundering issues. Every stronghold of corruption that we can take away from the GOP brings us one step closer to returning true democractic principles to our country. And the amendments being voted on in just about four weeks aren't partisan: "RON's amendments would put the people back into the process by making politicians more accountable to voters. These reforms don't favor one party over another; they simply ensure that neither party can rewrite the rules to stay in power." Sounds reasonable to us.

News

U.S. Probes Afghan Body Desecration Charges. Just because the war in Afghanistan was justified (at least, we still think it was), that doesn't mean our corrupt government can't screw that up as well. The Army's Criminal Investigation Division is looking into reports that "shows U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan burning the bodies of two Taliban fighters, then using the incident to taunt Taliban forces." This is what happens when you have no leadership, and an "anything goes" attitude. And there's no better way to ensure that the world, which supported our efforts in Afghanistan, turns their back on us on that front too. The fact is that not only do our leaders not get how incidents like these incite more terrorism, they just don't really care.

Senate Votes to Forgo Annual Pay Raise. Holy crap! The Senate did something right, for once! In a 92-6, the Senate voted down their annual pay raise, which was simply going to be a 1.9% Cost of Living Adjustment. Even though it seems that Jon Kyl (R-AZ) stole Russ Feingold's (D-WI) thunder in proposing the amendment, the fact is that this is one of the few cases where our elected officials are actually making sacrifices themselves. Of course, $3,100 per year is just a drop in the bucket, both for the Senators personally, and for the government's massive deficit, but at least it's a start. $2 million down, $300 billion to go! (Out of curiosity, how does $3,100 times 100 Senators equal $2 million?)

Federal Law Blocks Photo ID Law at Polls in Georgia. As John Conyers said, this never should have gotten to this point in the first place. But the reality is that the Republican-led state legislature passed a measure last spring requiring all Georgia citizens who showed up to vote produce a specific ID. Or, rather, the legislation disallowed 12 of the 17 possible forms of ID (as we wrote about last March). Well, a federal judge has blocked that ruling, and we couldn't be more pleased. As Brad writes, if that law were to go into effect on a national level, it would prevent an estimated 10-20 million people from voting. Of course, all they would need to do is get a legalized ID, right? Wrong. because that way leads to what is essentially a poll tax, and that's unacceptable. And it's not like Republicans care, because Caesar knows that the poor and disenfranchised voters won't vote Republican anyway.

Editorials

Gunning for the Poor. Harold Meyerson breaks down Congress's new objective; screw the poor. Aside from the pittance news article above about voting to suspend raises, Congress seems to have it out for the disenfranchised. Katrina victims, Medicaid, student loan programs - Congress has been on a tear cutting funds. Nothing that would affect them personally, but cutting nonetheless. As Meyerson writes, "What we have here is an ideologically driven dereliction of duty. If the Bush White House had been put in charge of the Manhattan Project, Oppenheimer and Teller would still be puttering around in the New Mexico desert today." We couldn't have said it better.

Why Can't the Left Face the Stolen Elections of 2004 & 2008? By all accounts, Bush should never have been elected in 2000 and 2004. We all know the facts. In 2000, hanging chads and a divided Supreme Court handed Bush the election. In 2004, it was "larger-than-expected" voter turnout, bullying of voters and a Secretary of State who didn't give a damn. So why haven't Democrats hammered this point? We're not suggesting Democrats continue to trumpet the idea that they should have won. What they need to do is trumpet the idea that "they shouldn't have lost, and here's why." Bob Fitrakis and Harvey Wasserman have written what amounts to an essay, and you are highly encouraged to check it out.

Blogger Commentary

Bush knew Rove was the leaker in 2003. Lied in 2004 when he said he didn't know who leaked. Obstruction of Justice. Look, we really like this idea of "innocent until proven guilty". It's a really neat idea. The problem is that sometimes it can be horrible naive, when you have people who are willing to abuse our trust. In the case of the Leakgate case, we're supposed to believe that while it's pretty apparent (although not yet proven, we'll admit) that Rove and Libby were involved, Cheney and Bush had nothing to do with this. But we've never really bought that, although the press and even most of the lefties have merrily played along with the charade. But read John at AMERICABlog, quoting from a recent New York Daily News article, which says that Bush was furious with Rove for how he handled the leak. This has many, many implications. For one, Scott McClellan has been lying through his teeth, insisting that Bush is waiting for the outcome of the investigation to find out what happened. Furthermore, if true, it shows that Bush has been lying about his (since weakened) promise to fire anyone involved in the leak. But if this story is true, Bush already knew that Rove was involved when he made the promise!

US Puts Corporate Profits Above Preparedness for Bird Flu. is it cycnical that we saw this title and immediately thought, "Of course they do"? We rant and rave time and time again about how the health industry in this country absolutely sucks, and we need no more proof of that than this commentary. Only this time, it's the WTO and American pharmaceutical companies. This winter, when you've got the Avian Bird Flu, you can thank Karl Rove and Pascal Lamy, and wonder why we don't have universal health care.

Activism

Time's running out. New Jersey's election is in 20 days, and even though Democratic hopeful Jon Corzine utterly destroyed Doug Forrester in their third debate (see Blogger Commentary: NJ-Gov: Liveblogging the Radio Debate), we can't let up. The Republican machine has thrown a lot of money at Forrester's campaign, so it's up to us to fight back. How? Volunteer! Send emails! Make phone calls! Or head out to New Jersey on Saturday, October 22, and take part in the push to get out to the voters. Information can be found here, on Jon Corzine's website. You've got all those weekend minutes and free long distance on your cell phone: Now's the time to put them to use!

News

SBA Said to be Probed on Katrina Help. This is utterly ridiculous. As of October 12th, the Small Business Administration had received 53,948 loan applications from victims of Katrina. As of October 12th, 1,049 loans had been approved. And, as of October 12th, 58 checks had been mailed. And let's not forget that, up until last week, the SBA demanded tax records for the last three years for all loan requests; most of those drowned in the hurricane. This isn't the only time that the SBA has been under fire, either. A few weeks ago, the SBA came under tremendous scrutiny for allowing the defaulting of several billion dollars in loans from 9/11 (most of which weren't valid in the first place). It seems like we can't have it both ways, but we certainly expect to. At least Hector Barreto, a Bush appointee that now heads the SBA, has the background. Now he just needs to ensure that the job gets done. So far, he's failed.

Harper's Index for September 2005. Ok, we admit it; we're suckers for statistics. They say that numbers don't lie, and they're right, but of course it's really easy to lie with numbers. However, sometimes pure statistics can provide insight into issues that all the commentary in the world can't quite muster. So, for example, when you look at the data and see that the world contributed 23 times as much money to postwar Kosovo than postwar Afghanistan, it's tough to reconcile that with all of the rhetoric about rebuilding Afghanistan. Or, when you see that on average, 79 percent of students in majority-white school districts in New York State graduate in four years, while majority-black or majority-Latino districts only average 40 percent, it kind of bring some perspective to how many children we're really leaving behind. Sure, Harper's cherry-picks statistics to make their points, but it seems to us they're important points that need to be made by someone.

DeLay hustles to replenish his voter pool. You know what we like about Tom DeLay? Ok, you got us: Nothing. But you know what's amazing about Tom DeLay? The guy never stops trying to do evil. Oh, you can knock him for a loop, but he'll come back, more diabolical than ever. We see DeLay, trying to stay below the radar, hustling for votes in the Houston-exurban district that he represents. What's sad is that he still even has a chance to win. Democrat Nick Lampson (one of the victims of DeLay's dastardly redistricting plan) is running against him in 2006, and if he can't remove DeLay from office, then there's something really wrong with the system. But there DeLay is, glad-handing and pretending that he's the victim in all this. Honestly, we shouldn't expect any less from this pathetic excuse for a Congressman, which is exactly why he needs to get the boot.

Editorials

The Liberal Moderates. Everyone's heard the stats before, and here they are again from E.J. Dionne via Paul Waldman: "According to the network exit polls, 21 percent of the voters who cast ballots in 2004 called themselves liberal, 34 percent said they were conservative and 45 percent called themselves moderate." Oooh...scary. Just when Democrats were starting to think they have an edge, this stat is supposed to bring them back to reality, and make them think that our country is shifting right, to give the Republicans a 13-point advantage. The problem is that "liberal" and "conservative" doesn't mean the same to pollsters and pundits that it means to ordinary people. The "average" voter "is pro-choice, wants to increase the minimum wage, favors strong environmental protections, likes gun control, thinks corporations have too much power and that the rich get away with not paying their fair share in taxes, believes the Iraq War was a mistake, wants a foreign policy centered on diplomacy and strong alliances, and favors civil unions for gays and lesbians." Those people consider themselves "moderate" - but it sounds pretty liberal to us. Of course one reason that Joe American doesn't consider themselves liberal is because conservatives have been using it as an epithet for years and years - Maha elaborates on that topic here.

Bush's Growing Credibility Gap. Mark Shields writes about Bush's lagging credibility. For months, we've talked about how Bush refuses to ask the country to sacrifice anything. Shields compares Bush's ridiculous stance with that of FDR. Remember FDR, when he "summoned American civilians to do without leather, rubber, wool, nylon, new shoes and new cars, and to accept the severe rationing of gasoline, fresh meat, butter, cheese and canned goods." Bush has merely asked us to "have resolve." How easy it must be for him, when 1,979 American soldiers have died in Iraq, with an additional 14,755 wounded. Maybe Bush doesn't understand that we would gladly provide, if it meant our troops would be safer. Then again, they couldn't be more safe than if they were back here, eh?

Blogger Commentary

Miers: Don't Believe The Hype. It's tempting to revel in the right's uproar over Miers. But Joseph Hughes at "Hughes for America" cautions us not to buy into the hype. He believes (justifiably) that Miers is really everything that the far right wants, just not quite in the bombastic package they were expecting. As Hughes writes: "They wanted someone with a long, documented history of far-right views. They wanted a fire-breathing, abortion-hating, gay-bashing corporatist who rose to the nomination on the backs of the little people." It's a mistake to "misunderestimate" Bush just because of all of the scandals that have been plaguing him. It's possible that this was all a calculated plan that might be backfiring a little. But let's not assume that Bush wouldn't nominate someone exactly like he described during his campaign: Another Scalia or Thomas. Sure, she may not have a paper-trail, but as Hughes says: "...one thing I do trust him with is picking friends and ideologues for important offices." She's not another O'Connor, but she may be the best we can reasonably hope for. Still, that's nothing to get excited about.

Video Game Politics. "The Final Showdown." The ultimate battle between good and ev-err, Democrats and Republicans. Is that where the GOP is heading? Via Harriet Miers, will we be seeing the last scene of a video game? After all, if Mark Kilmer is to be believed (as quoted by Mark Schmitt), "The Final Showdown" is the next new thing. Of course, the GOP would like to see themselves as the four "Light Warriors," while the Democrats would be portrayed as, simply, "Chaos." However, Miers' nomination arguments won't simply end up as "You Win" or "Game Over." Rather, it might lead to the nuclear option, which points directly to a country even more bitterly divided. Like Schmitt, we'd rather continue the war. All of life, including politics, is a struggle. We'll take Miers' nomination in due course, and hope our elected Democrats do what's right.

(Sorry for the shorter post today - we'll be back in full-on "Still Fighting" mode tomorrow.)

Activism

Tell Washington to Get Serious About Iraq. It's nice to send Washington petitions that tell them what we think. But it's all too easy for them to blow those petitions off, and do whatever the hell they want. So sometimes, we need to up the ante. This is more than a petition; it's a pledge. It says that you will only support candidates that acknowledge that the U.S. was misled into the war in Iraq, advocate for a responsible exit plan with a timeline, and support our troops at home and abroad. Maybe this'll be the kick in the butt that Democrats need to start fighting back. If not, maybe we'll take our votes elsewhere. (Green Party? Independents? Unsung primary challengers?)

News

Senator: Charges possible over Williams contract. We're pretty sure you remember the issue where Armstrong Williams, a supposedly independant commentator, was paid by the Department of Education to tout No Child Left Behind. Unfortunately for Bush, we live in a democracy, where there's actually a ban on "covert propaganda". So, it seems that charges might actually be filed in this case, at least according to Senator Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ). Sometimes, it seems like it might just be a coincidence that all of these scandals are hitting now, but you have to wonder if the timing's actually intentional. Sure, the Bushies probably thought they'd never be caught, but they likely also figured that if they were eventually caught, at least all of their criminal activity would have guaranteed Bush's re-election by that time. These people should pay for their callous contempt for our country's principles and its citizens, and they should be made an example of, so these kinds of abuses never happen again.

Editorials

The Big Squeeze. We often mention how the middle- and lower-class are being screwed by conservative policies, as if it's just a basic fact of life. Well, along comes Paul Krugman with a very specific example of how the middle-class is being squeezed. Delphi, the parts Division of General Motors, is cutting wages. Meanwhile, dividends were payed to investors, while workers' pensions were neglected. And, of course, large severance packages were given to executives. And these changes may not just affect Delphi workers: "If Delphi slashes wages and defaults on its pension obligations, the rest of the auto industry may well be tempted - or forced - to do the same." The middle class, formerly the backbone of America, is now being squeezed out of existence.

Government's Disgrace. Following Krugman's article, here's some more detail from the Washington Post about what's going on with pension legislation. It seems that time and time again, our politicians are either too corrupt (Republicans) or cowardly (Democrats) to tackle important issues that affect all Americans. If you can, read the editorial and follow the tale of actual progressive legislation proposed by the Bush Administration: "It just says that companies making pension promises ought to fund them properly and that they should pay the government a fair insurance premium for guaranteeing benefits." Makes sense, right? So then cringe with disgust about how this sensible legislation got bogged down in partisan maneuvering and interest-group manipulation.

Blogger Commentary

Gephardt on Iraq: "I was wrong". Holy crap! Gephardt admitted he was wrong! He's a flip-flopper! A weakling! It's a good thing he didn't win the Presidential nomination, a man who can admit he was wrong. We don't want anyone like that in the White House. Obviously, we're just kidding. Maybe it's too little, too late, but we prefer to think of it as a nice start. Read the entire post to see how Democrats were fooled (and allowed themselves to be fooled) into supporting the Iraq war. But Gephart utters the magic words that can bring back this country and hopefully the Democratic party from the brink. Of course, Gephart's not in power any more, but maybe those that still hope to have some can learn from him. As Yahoo reports, Pro-War Votes May Haunt Democrats. But we'd like to believe that if they'd just go the Gephart route (are you listening, Hillary?), most, if not all, would be forgiven.

Activism

Oh, California. Where would we be without your intelligence? We're all tired of drug company ads that promote their new products (if we have to see one more Erectile Dysfunction ad...), but California is doing something about it. There are two propositions on the California Special Election ballot (November 8th) that deal with prescription drug costs. Watch the "Don't believe their lies" ad here, and then you'll be directed to a page detailing the differences between proposition 78 (vote no) and proposition 79 (vote yes). More states could take notice of what California is trying to do here; we're sick of the health care system in this country, and it's high time to make some changes.

News

Bush Pushes Canada for Lumber Settlement. There's an interesting story that has been brewing out of Canada for the last few months, and it's not really being talked about. The U.S. had imposed tariffs (totalling $4.1 billion) on the wood imported from Canada. NAFTA has ruled, on several occasions, that the U.S. tariffs are illegal. Canada wants the money repaid. Bush wants to go back to the negotiating table, but Canadian Prime Minister Paul Martin argues that there's no reason to go back to the table, as NAFTA has sided with Canada every step of the way. Martin not only warns that Canada may take the U.S. to court over the tariffs, but Canada is also now looking to trade more with China (at the expense of the U.S.?), and we can't say we really blame them. Bush imposed the tariffs in 2002 "at the urging of the U.S. lumber industry, which contended it was losing thousands of jobs because of unfair subsidies provided to Canadian producers." Is this going to be yet one more example of Bush spurning another ally?

Democratic Radio Address on Iraq. Saturday was fun. We got to listen to Wesley Clark give the weekly Democratic Radio Address. Clark started a message that, we hope, other Democrats will pick up. Namely, Iraq is a sinkhole and we need to change the way we do business. The current plan obviously isn't working, so why are we still trying the same old methods? If a Fortune 500 company lost 29 billion dollars last year, do you think that the CEO would keep the same plans in place for the next year? He'd be sacked by the Board of Governors quicker than you can say "hostile takeover." So why is Iraq any different in this regard? Whereas a Fortune 500 CEO has to answer to the Board of Governors, the president has to answer to the American people. And what better way to tell the president that we want a change than to vote Democratic in 2005 and 2006? The status quo is no longer acceptable, and it's time for a change.

White House Press Secretary Gets Personal. We almost feel bad for White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan. Almost. McClellan has a horrible job; he has to be Bush's spokesman. Job requirements: Trumpet the party lines and stick to the talking points. Basically, lie all the time. But lately, McClellan has been feeling the press's anger. You see, with Bush holding so few press conferences (and refusing to answer questions once he's in them), McClellan is really the only voice of the White House that the press can ask questions of. McClellan speaks with the full authority of the White House, for good and for bad. So when McClellan jumped down the throat of a CBS correspondent, well, the press didn't take too kindly to that. What is normally polite sparring between the press and McClellan has now become far more testy, what with everything the White House is being forced to answer for. If Bush would allow McClellan to simply tell the truth, he might not need to get so defensive. Oh, right...the truth is what Bush wants it to be - nothing more.

Editorials

It's Bush-Cheney, Not Rove-Libby. Truthout has the latest Frank Rich column, and it's a bit of a wake-up call. Although we'd be pleased as punch to see Rove and Libby indicted (Hannukah come early!), we need to remember that this was all sanctioned by Rove's boss, Bush, and Libby's boss, Cheney. Since Plamegate bisects the Iraq war, things stand to get very messy for the White House. But Rove and Libby will be the fall guys. Nothing much will change, though. Bush will simply have to call Rove to get advice, or send an intermediary, instead of having him in the Oval Office. Rich also focuses on WHIG - the White House Iraq Group. Started by Chief of Staff Andrew Card, WHIG was created in August 2002 with no fanfare and one purpose - market a war in Iraq. All in all, indictments would be nice, and certainly a black eye on the GOP, but we can't forget that the real culprit is our Commander-in-Chief, who, well after Scooter and Rove pack their bags, will still be sitting at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.

Torture on the Hill. We read a novel recently that had the following quote: "A war criminal commits his crimes to further his war aims. He murders and tortures in order to help win the war." It's the best definition that we've heard so far, and it certainly applies to this White House. We talked last week about Senator John McCain's torture prohibition amendment (Editorials - Who Isn't Against Torture?). As this editorial points out, McCain is certainly honest in his feelings, but he's also trying to "extricate the government from direct complicity in crimes of war." So what does it mean that Bush is threatening to veto it? We could argue that the Senate is contributing too little too late, but we know McCain has been pushing this for months. So why is Bush so against this amendment? It seems to us that he wants to "win" the war, at all costs. That would make him a War Criminal, in our book.

Blogger Commentary

The Normalization of Treason, the Republicans' Gift to America. This is just a fantastic commentary by John, over at AMERICABlog. Republicans have become the party of treason, and somehow that's OK. Karl Rove outs an undercover CIA agent, and the worst that happens is that he might lose his job? We ignore the Geneva Convention when it suits us, and that's acceptable? "The Republican party...[is] trying to convince Americans that betraying our country during wartime for personal gain is no more serious than running a stop sign or going 60 in a 55 zone." Read this article, and then give us one good reason to vote Republican in 2006 (one that doesn't begin with "John McCain," that is - we're sick of hearing that one, and it's pretty much no longer applicable).

Pushing Our Buttons, Redux. Remember the little boy who cried wolf? We've seen this story played out so often since the Department of Homeland Security was created. From blue to yellow to orange, vague half-threats and rising levels have left Americans feelink skeptical about them all. But Republicans have used our fear against us, partially to look like they are continuing to do something, and partially to get re-elected. As David Neiwert writes, look at what happened in New York recently. Baseless, groundless fears led to many New Yorkers being inconvenienced. And really, had there actually been a threat, there would be no argument. But there was no threat. So now Americans are even less trusting of the Republican-led administration. You can only cry wolf for so long before people ignore you. It's human nature. It's been argued several times by several people that the changes in the terror alert level and/or specific alerts have immediately preceeded or been subsequent to Republican screw-ups. Most recently, with New York's subway, the announcement came on the same day that the story broke of Karl Rove's possible indictment. Keith Olberman (quoted in the column) notes that this has happened 13 times so far - "a political downturn for the administration, followed by a "terror event" -- a change in alert status, an arrest, a warning." There is something to be said for coincidence, but there is also something to be said for 13 times!

Activism

Act Now. Sometimes, we ask you to donate money to a campaign. Sometimes, we ask you to call your Representative and/or Senator. Sometimes we ask you to write a letter to the editor. And sometimes, we ask you to get off your butts and join a march or protest. Today, we're also asking you to join a march, but this time it's a march for lazy people: An online march! Act Now is hosting an online march to tell Congress to get their priorities straight, and start putting American families first. Sign your name and join the march. Oh yeah, when they remind you on October 18th to call your representative, you probably should do that too - this is no time to be lazy!

News

For Iraq’s Sunnis, a day of raw emotion. As you probably know by now, Iraq's constitution is likely to pass. Unfortunately, while the Constitution might be a token step forward, it also might cripple the country permanently. The Sunni minority feels disaffected and unempowered, which is a significant reason that the violence there will continue. In fact, without a real effort to unify the factions, there's no reason to believe that things will get better, and they may, in fact, get worse. Read the article and listen to the voices of the people quoted. They're angry at America, frustrated and disenfranchised, and sometimes even longing for Saddam to return. This is progress?

Contingency Plan. So, Karl Rove and Scooter Libby will likely resign if indicted. And it seems they even realize it can't be like Tom DeLay's "stepping down", in which he's still calling the shots as Majority Leader. No, we're sure that Rove and Libby will step back so they can play hardball - certainly attacking Prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald's character as part of that. It's also telling that it seems Bush hasn't asked for this to happen, but rather that Rove and Libby have decided this on their own. We have to wonder if he'll let them resign - if he didn't accept Rumsfeld's resignation (twice), then do Rove and Libby's treasonous acts really compare? Fortunately, Fitzgerald seems to be keeping quiet, giving them no way to prepare for the possible outcome. Hopefully, he's surface soon and blow them out of the water.

Magazine ad "unleashes hell" for Boeing and Bell. The government these days is usually so good at staying on message, but apparently that doesn't extend to its contractors. Last month, Boeing and Bell Helicopter released an ad that depicted U.S. Forces rappelling onto the roof of a mosque. The text reads, in part, "It descends from the heavens. Ironically it unleashes hell." Boeing and Bell have tried to explain away the ad, stating that it was a computer-generated image, and was never intended to be published. But it was published, and only serves to once again reinforce our Muslim-hating-image abroad.

Editorials

My Four Hours Testifying in the Federal Grand Jury Room. Judy Miller writes a personal account for the New York Times, outlining what happened during her Grand Jury Testimony. If you're not familiar with "Leakgate", then you definitely should read this, although it's most certainly not the entire story. All evidence points to Judy Miller being an Administration shill, and there are still many questions circulations around her involvement in this case. It's pretty sad that Miller's still not being forthright with the country, especially given that she's supposed to be a reputable journalist. She and the New York Times should be ashamed.

That Was a Short War on Poverty. E.J. Dionne talks about the Administration's shallow efforts to fight poverty. Sure, Katrina raised the public consciousness regarding the number of Americans living in poverty, and the effect it has on their lives. But, we are a nation with a frighteningly short attention span. Now that the images are off the television, the Administration can drop its pretense of caring. The agenda quickly changed from trying to help people in need to trying to exploit this tragedy to further line the pockets of large corporations and push a conservative agenda. We're tired of hearing increases in the GDP quoted as proof that Bush is helping the economy. Here are the numbers that really matter: Clinton "cut the number of poor people by 7.7 million between 1993 and 2000. Between 2001 and 2004, on the other hand, the number of those in poverty rose by 4.1 million." While conservatives may be to blame for exacerbating the situation, it's time that liberals stepped up and kept this problem in the public's focus. As Dionne says: "You can lay a lot of the blame for this indifference on conservatives. But it will be a default on the part of liberals if the poor disappear again from public view without a fight."

Blogger Commentary

Rice: After 9-11 “We Could Decide the Proximate Cause Was Al Qaeda”. Boy, having Karl Rove on the ropes must really be screwing up the Bush messaging machine. Rice slipped (although she probably thinks that she was just speaking the truth) on Sunday morning, claiming that after 9-11, we could either go after al Qaeda, or "take a bolder approach". Well, let alone the "bolder approach" for now, but guess what, Condi? You don't get to decide what caused 9-11. Al Qaeda did cause 9-11. That's it. End of story. This must be that whole "reality-based community" thing we keep hearing about.

Liar: The Judy Miller Story. Frankly, there are so many facets of the Judy Miller tale that we can't do it justice. But fortunately, we've found a trio of bloggers who can. Steve Gilliard dissects her article (from Editorial #1), as well as the actions of the New York Times in response to Miller. Then, James Wolcott excoriates Bill Keller and Pinch Sulzberger, Executive Editor and Owner of the New York Times, respectively. Finally, Digby chimes in, discussing the real issue with this whole leak, namely the effort made by the Administration to distort the intelligence regarding WMDs in Iraq. It's a sordid, complicated tale, but it's worth your effort to understand the depth of the corruption, and the lengths to which these criminals went in order to manipulate this country.