Wednesday, February 1, 2006

After Bush presented what David Corn called his "standard comic-book defense" on Iraq, Time's Baghdad bureau chief, Michael Ware, told CNN: "The 'great lie' of his address is the success of Iraq. In this war, all we have seen is an emboldening of Al Qaeda ... and emboldening of Iran. And the spillover of democracy, we're starting to see that in Palestine..."

'Bush spelled out a clear agenda. Win the midterms,' says Slate's Bruce Reed, who adds that "The president got to step 1 with 'America is addicted to oil,' but didn't have the breath to start scaling the rest of the 12 steps."

Reed notes that "As the Washington Post points out, on renewable energy research, Bush is merely proposing to restore the funding he has cut since he took office." Plus: 'Dead Man Talking' and a 'litany of lies.'

'Spinning Us to Death' In an interview with Guernica, Norman Solomon says that "rampant government lying," while bipartisan, is "more subtle or intricate from Democrats. The Bush administration has been more flagrant ... more jaw dropping."

In describing her arrest, Cindy Sheehan writes that "After I had my personal items inventoried and my fingers printed, a nice Sgt. came in and looked at my shirt and said, '2,245, huh? I just got back from there.'"

Craig Crawford observes that the destruction of New Orleans was barely mentioned in either Bush's SOTU, or by Democrats responding to it, and a Crescent City Republican asks, "Did I miss something?"

A Government Accountability Office report (pdf) is called "a stinging slap to the Homeland Security Department," and to Secretary Michael Chertoff, who "until now ... has largely escaped widespread criticism of the government's sluggish response to Katrina."

Media Matters documents how Fox News has been "slipping the term" terrorist surveillance program "without qualification, into its news reports and commentary," and finds CNN's Paula Zahn claiming: "you've got a lot of people out there saying, if you're Republican, we're going to keep the country safe, if you vote for a Democrat, that basically you want to be bombed."

When U.S. forces inside the Green Zone opened fire on a car carrying four Canadian diplomats, one of the "warning shots" reportedly went "right through the windshield and narrowly missed a passenger."

As 'Some US troops question Woodruff coverage,' a senior military officer tells UPI: "The point that is currently being made (is that) press folks are more important than mere military folks." Plus: 'Army moves soldiers during gay porn probe.'

The Christian Science Monitor reports on a "first-of-its-kind lawsuit" by soldiers of the Massachusetts National Guard, who are seeking to recover "out of pocket expenses" -- amounting to $14,625 in one soldier's case -- incurred while protecting U.S. sites from terrorist attacks.

Opening statements in Enron trial reportedly included a photo collage of Ken Lay titled "American Success Story," and "contrasting excerpts from a meeting Skilling had with employees of Enron Broadband Services and an analyst call eight days later in which Skilling appears to be giving opposite messages." Plus: 'Lay and Skilling in the Dock.'

Read how a Paul Craig Roberts column saved King of Zembla from a sleepless night, spent fretting over "the mere thought of terrorists hijacking our brain."

Sen. Norm Coleman's staff revised his Wikipedia biography, reports the AP, changing a college-era description of the former Democrat from "liberal" to "activist," and deleting a reference to Coleman voting with President Bush 98 percent of the time in 2003.

Coleman's co-chairing of Thursday's National Prayer Breakfast is said to be "the first time in memory that a Jew will be leading the annual religious gathering." Plus: 'A religion that grew from a lot of brew.'

As past of "laying the groundwork ... to prevent a political reaction" to its record profits, Exxon Mobil ran newspaper ads "arguing that profit margins in the industry lagged far behind those of other industries, like pharmaceuticals and banking."

After Bill Clinton "told corporate chieftains and political bigwigs ... that climate change was the world's biggest problem," Alexander Zaitchik asked, "What did we know and when did we know it?"

Jeffrey St. Clair looks back on 'The Good Life of Stew Albert,' Yippie co-founder, anti-war activist and author, who recalled "the good old days when there still was a Constitution."

January 31

Thursday, February 2, 2006

Five more American soldiers are killed in Iraq, and Baghdad Burning's Riverbend writes that her country's election results leave her "filled with this sort of chill that leaves in its wake a feeling of quiet terror."

'Retreating on the Offensive' A Washington Post editorial expresses concern that the president may be "decrying retreat while quietly packing his bags."

"The Bush administration may be scaling down the U.S. force, but Marines and soldiers will be rotating in and out of Iraq for years to come," says former CNN reporter Brian Palmer, embedded with U.S. Marines at Camp Hit, where some are on "their second, third or fourth pump in Iraq."

A Tom Toles cartoon drew an angry protest from "all six members of the Joint Chiefs of Staff," regarding what John Aravosis called "the insidious threat cartoons pose to our troops."

"I don't think they're coming out," a Justice Department official is quoted as saying, as the administration withholds classified legal opinions, thought to reflect "serious concerns within the Justice Department" on Bush's domestic spying program.

"The question now is whether the President could do it all again," writes Thomas Powers, discussing 'The Biggest Secret,' in his review of James Risen's "State of War."

The BBC's Pentagon correspondent, reviewing declassified plans for "information warfare," reported that "the U.S. military seeks the capability to knock out every telephone, every networked computer, every radar system on the planet."

Monitoring coverage of Cindy Sheehan's arrest, and providing clips, MediaChannel finds a "female-oriented talk show ... outdoing all network news coverage." Although she "broke no laws or rules of any kind," one GOP congressman "wouldn't be so mad if it were just Sheehan ..."

The president reportedly "didn't mean it literally," when he vowed to cut Middle East oil imports by 75 percent: "This was purely an example," explained Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman, formerly known as 'One of Texas' Top Five Worst Polluters.'

An energy analyst, appearing as part of a PBS "News Hour" panel, proposed "energy taxes or ... higher taxes on industry, or ... just having Americans give up their Bush tax cut." Plus: 'The Hastert Solution."

After Bush sounded a new note on oil imports, Max Blumenthal explained 'Who's Really Addicted to Oil,' and CJR watched 'Seven Newspapers Grapple With Bush's Flip-Flop.'

'Bush's Brezhnev period' Sidney Blumenthal reviews "a speech so stagnant it would have made the Politburo proud," and Tom D'Antoni adds that "what's missing" from coverage of the State of the Union is "the towering irrelevancy of it all ... He said nothing, badly" -- although some heard him calling for "regime change" in Iran.

As the Enron jury hears testimony that the company "fudged its earnings figures with the knowledge of executives Jeffrey Skilling and Kenneth Lay," Robert Scheer fingers "the politicians who benefited from Lay's largesse, and who changed the law enabling Enron's chicanery."

USA Today's Sandy Grady previews Sunday's ''Surreal Bowl,' "staged in the middle of a wintry city plunged into crisis by back-to-the-wall car manufacturers" -- and "want to bet that the NFL's TV announcers will interview jobless Ford or GM workers at halftime?"

As author James Frey releases an apology penned for "all future editions of his now-tainted book," the Wall Street Journal reports that Frey's memoir "continues to sell."

Concerning the casting of "the least-closeted celebrity this side of Elton John" as a Christian missionary, a Baptist seminary president wrote in his blog that "we must not overreact. And it would probably be an overreaction to firebomb these men's houses."

Stan Cox is "ready to argue that most of the standard anti-Mexican-immigration arguments ... can be applied just as well to the small but swelling tide of immigration by U.S. and Canadian citizens" looking for "La Vida Cheapo."

Although President Bush spoke at the National Prayer Breakfast, according to USA Today he was not the headliner -- who was fresh from entertaining "fat cats in the snow."

February 1

Friday, February 3, 2006

A memo reportedly documenting a two-hour pre-Iraq war meeting between President Bush and British Prime Minister Blair, is said to reveal "the president of the United States caught conspiring to create a modern-day version of the sinking of the Maine."

With 53 percent of respondents to a new Gallup poll saying the Bush administration "deliberately misled the American public about whether Iraq has weapons of mass destruction," Eric Alterman writes that "The insider press corps cannot connect Bush's war lies to his unpopularity, because it has so much difficulty acknowledging either one."

The Guardian amplifies Amy Goodman's claim that U.S. media reached an "all-time low" by acting as a "cheerleader" for war. Goodman was in Qatar at a forum organized by Al-Jazeera. More from "Democracy Now!" on the satellite channel's popular debate show and its coverage of Fallujah.

Murray Waas reports that I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby's attempts to discredit Joseph Wilson persisted even after Libby and Vice President Cheney "were personally informed in June 2003" that CIA analysts "no longer believe there is sufficient" credible information to "conclude that Iraq pursued uranium from abroad." And Waas asks: Did Bush receive a PDB regarding Wilson's mission to Niger?

Most major media outlets are found to have 'largely ignored' new revelations concerning 'The Plame Case, Missing Email, and the President's Daily Brief.' Plus: 'Why Rove Will Fall.'

As Rep. Louise Slaughter calls for 'Chris Matthews to come clean on Abramoff,' Ari Berman asks: 'Can Justice Be Trusted?'

After the surprise election of 'The GOP's New, Familiar Face,' said to be "hip-deep in political contributions from an industry he oversees," and a consistent supporter of religious right positions, a New York Times analysis was headlined, 'Republicans repudiate past.'

A federal judge blasted the "conscience-shocking" actions of former Environmental Protection Agency chief Christine Todd Whitman, in "telling thousands of people that it was safe to return" to a toxic dust-filled lower Manhattan" after 9/11.

Whitman, upon becoming a lobbyist for a chemical company, was said to have "talked a good game -- spinning herself as a different kind of Republican."

The Gadflyer notes that "no one questioned" a claim by self-styled "renaissance man" Ben Stein, that oil company executives "make less than Hollywood stars ... and they do a much greater service," because Stein was talking to "the amateur hour of business journalism," CNN's "In The Money."

President Bush's State of the Union assault on "isolationism and protectionism" was "not only non-credible, it borders on the desperate and pathetic," writes Pat Buchanan, given that "these fellows have an alibi. They were nowhere near the scene of the crime."

Paul Krugman finds evidence in Bush's speech that "this administration is all politics and no policy. It knows how to attain power, but has no idea how to govern." And, Bush's call for civility draws a response.

With the Iraq war now reported to be 'costing $100,000 per minute,' the Pentagon assumes a 'greater role in bankrolling foreign militaries,' while 'Foreign companies eye oil reserves in Iraq.'

The Financial Times reports that the 'End beckons for the "United States of Iraq"' -- "a parallel, virtual country in Iraq that most soldiers and American civilians never have to leave."

'Rumsfeld and Negroponte amp up attacks' on Venezuelan President Chavez, and Pat Robertson renews his call for the assassination of Chavez, who told the World Social Forum that "one day the decay inside U.S. imperialism will end up toppling it, and the great people of Martin Luther King will be set free."

Althought 'Protests intensify over Muhammad drawings,' AFP reports that "there was also a sense of relief after millions of Muslims attended Friday prayers without a major outpouring of street violence."

Astrologers are reported to have persuaded the king of Bhutan that "the stars will not be favourably placed until 2008" for democratic elections.

February 2

Monday, February 6, 2006

Adventus argues that "it's data mining, whether it affected 5000 people, or only 5 people," and firedoglake's ReddHedd asks: "and how many resources and manhours have been devoted to this program that has yielded nothing whatsoever?"

USA Today reports that telecoms, "including AT&T, MCI and Sprint," are allowing the NSA to spy on calls, "on the basis of oral requests from senior government officials"

Tom Engelhardt revisits last week in Bushworld, including "an ethanol-powered globe," a "road to victory" lined with IEDs, and "an unannounced constitutional convention in the White House."

As it's reported that 'Oil Graft Fuels the Insurgency' in Iraq, Lawrence Wilkerson tells "Now" that "I participated in a hoax on the American people, the international community and the United Nations Security Council."

Map illustrating death toll over '31 Days in Iraq' includes a suicide bombing in Ramadi, which, according to a dispatch from a U.S. Marine Capt., resulted in "an increase in violence around the city, consisting mainly of Iraqis hunting down foreign terrorists (the al-Qaida in Iraq guys) and killing them."

As most U.S. papers steer clear of controversial cartoons depicting the prophet Muhammad, Lebanon apologizes to Denmark following 'Rioting with well-planned spontaneity.' Plus: 'Clash over cartoons is a caricature of civilization.'

"This is not a great time to heat up the old Samuel Huntington garbage about a 'clash of civilizations,'" writes Robert Fisk, recalling that "more than a decade ago ... someone set fire to the cinema" showing "The Last Temptation of Christ" in Paris. And, better Agunua than Daramulun.

A Jordanian newspaper editor tells Newsweek's Christopher Dickey that "Democracy has a new enemy in the region, which is the support [for democracy] by the United States of America." And Tony Karon says it's 'Time for the U.S. to Get Real on Hamas,' which has a 'new doctrine: talk to the Jews.'

'Merkel likens Iranian president to Hitler' and 'Chavez says Bush worse than Hitler,' after 'Rumsfeld compares Venezuela's Chavez to Hitler' and 'Likens bin Laden to Hitler.'

With "Lights Out in Tehran," Afghan refugees who returned home are 'queueing up to leave again,' reports an Observer correspondent in Kabul, where "with local unemployment running at 70 per cent there is simply no future for them."

Interpol issues Orange Notice on Yemeni jail break, days after announcing the arrest for criminal impersonation of David Race Bannon, who reportedly "claimed to have been an Interpol agent for 20 years and to have assassinated several hundred people who allegedly participated in human trafficking."

Most state and local health departments reportedly "expect to be unprepared" for a bird flu epidemic "for at least a year," during which time, says one expert, social distancing "is likely to be all we're going to have as a strategy" -- although U.S. Customs is evidently hard at work on another crisis from abroad.

Article citing the "young presidential appointee with no science background" who "came to be supervising Web presentations on cosmology and interview requests to senior NASA scientists," prompts the question: "Has ever a greater scientist had a less worthy oppressor?" Plus: 'The Political Science Test.'

"'It's great having you on, Mr. Secretary,' chirped Matthews. 'You're one of the good guys. We all like you here. You're great... you're a very civil guy and you're bipartisan and everybody likes you and we could use you here in Washington again.'"

"The best CNN could do" in reporting the death of the woman who exposed "the problem that has no name," and who asked, "Is this all?" did not go unnoticed. Plus: "So eager not to frighten middle America ..."

"Shut up or I will kill you!" A bookstore employee offers a first-hand account of her arrest in Cleveland while posting "Bush Step Down" posters.

As 'Sad Reality Sinks In for New Orleans Music Scene,' the Rolling Stones bow to censors in Detroit.

February 3-5

Tuesday, February 7, 2006

'Congress talks tough to Gonzales -- and then turns and runs,' says Slate's Emily Bazelon, deeming Sens. Specter and Graham "not really up for the fight," following a hearing that was "pretty instructive ... on the bizarre embrace into which the legislature and the executive have locked themselves since Sept. 11."

Jonathan Turley accuses the attorney general of invoking "national security for purely political reasons," while Dana Milbank tallies up the number of times Gonzales "recognized the supremacy of congressional authority," and reports a heckle. Plus: 'What's more outrageous? Spying, or invasions?'

Karl Rove is said to have "threatened to blacklist any Republican who votes against the president" in the wiretap hearings, while BuzzFlash advises Democrats to "stop thinking that they are going to win a chess game based on logic."

"I thought that when I debated Professor Turner this morning, I had confronted the most extreme end of the pro-Bush fantacism," writes Glenn Greenwald. "But I was mistaken. [Tuesday] at 2:10 p.m. EST, I'll be on NPR's "To the Point" to discuss the NSA hearings with Powerline's -- Pajamaline? -- John Hinderaker."

While a 'Handful of races may tip control of Congress,' Arianna Huffington argues that 'Spying and Lying' is "a perfect wedge issue for Democrats, a chance to split off conservatives and independents disgusted with the White House's contemptuous disregard for the rule of law and for the truth."

As reporters are offered a $1,000 reward, Helen Thomas tells White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan, "You know what happened to Nixon when he broke the law."

President Bush's proposals to cut 141 domestic programs, in his "deficit reducing" federal budget are compared to "a man who leases three fully loaded Hummers ... and decides his family has to start buying cheaper peanut butter."

A preliminary analysis by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities finds that the Bush budget "fails the tests of fiscal responsibility, fairness and balance, and transparency."

"We are on the verge of an exciting time," says "the nation's top nuclear weapons executive," describing "head-to-head competition" to design new thermonuclear weapons and win contracts worth "tens, perhaps hundreds of million of dollars."

'U.S. defense industry frets about high Iraq spending,' with one industry analyst quoted as complaining that "no one was told that there was a choice between Iraq and recapitalizing the nation's military."

A survey of Iraqi children is said to find that "the only things they have on their minds are guns, bullets, death and a fear of the U.S. occupation," while Iraq's Labor Ministry now says that two million Iraq families now earn less than one U.S. dollar per day, with children paying "the silent cost."

'Iraq fights new war against bird flu,' and 'braces for sectarian attacks as major Shiite feast approaches.'

With 'Vets' ills mounting fast,' the WSWS finds that, "for political reasons, the scope of the tragedy is barely being reported."

As two Afghans protesting the Muhammad cartoons are reportedly killed after torching a police checkpost at the entrance to Bagram Air Base, Iran's largest-selling newspaper announces a contest on cartoons of the Holocaust, and the Electronic Intifada's Ali Abunimah squares off with Fouad Ajami on the "NewsHour."

New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof asks readers to contribute to a fund to send Bill O'Reilly to Darfur, as the Washington Times follows Fox News in joining the program. Plus: "What do you watch on TV these days?"

Fires burn four more Alabama churches, after Chris Matthews speculated to a "Hardball" guest that "maybe a more liberal person, who's gay for example," might be responsible for a recent wave of church burnings.

"Jerome Bettis and Saddam Hussein have something in common. Both have received the key to the city of Detroit," Saddam for his "major charitable contributions to Detroit-area churches."

After the silent treatment in D.C., "shortcomings in aid from the U.S. government are making New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin look to other nations for help," reports Reuters, quoting Nagin as saying, "France can take Treme. The king of Jordan can take the Lower Ninth Ward."

February 6

Wednesday, February 8, 2006

Knight Ridder's Warren Strobel chronicles an 'exodus of weapons experts' from the State Department, sidelined by Bush-appointed officials and replaced with "less experienced political operatives who share the White House and Pentagon's distrust of international negotiations and treaties."

The Hill reports that the stage will be set for Rep. Tom DeLay to 'ride a rocket' to re-election, after today's expected GOP appointment of the former Majority Leader to a subcommittee that oversees NASA funding.

As a young presidential appointee is shown the door at NASA, a lobbyist's wife describes the new House majority leader "as an 'excellent tenant' who pays his rent on time."

Although the first source cited in a Wall Street Journal article on why the 'White House Can't Sweep Aside Abramoff' is Judicial Watch president Tom Fitton, the article fails to note that Fitton previously blamed the scandal on Clinton.

Didn't Know Jack In e-mails obtained by Think Progress, "Abramoff describes meeting Bush 'in almost a dozen settings,' and details how he was personally invited to President Bush's private ranch in Crawford, Texas, for a gathering of Bush fundraisers in 2003."

Republican Rep. Heather Wilson, whose subcommittee oversees the NSA, has called for a full Congressional inquiry into the Bush administration's domestic eavesdropping program. Earlier: Wilson and Sen. Joseph Lieberman among 15 lawmakers said 'Addicted to Porn.'

As a Newsday op-ed calls on Democrats to 'Put Up Your Dukes' on wiretaps and war, the founder of the Baltimore Group says that "It's a Democratic failure that this is America's current attitude towards the 4th Amendment."

The Progressive's Ruth Coniff noticed that during Monday's NSA hearing, which received "the appearance of coverage" on cable news, Sen. Lindsey Graham declared that "I stand behind this President being commander-in-chief, to pursue fifth column movements."

Asked during a "NewsHour" interview why "we" didn't anticipate the Iraqi insurgency, Vice President Cheney said, "Well, you can't anticipate everything." And declining to second the notion that the U.S. is "addicted" to oil, Cheney only conceded that "we clearly depend very heavily on it."

As Louisiana's governor declares that "It's time to play hardball" over oil and gas royalties from offshore drilling, "as I believe that's the only game Washington understands," Russ Baker's RealNews launches with an investigation into the 'Unholy Trinity: Katrina, Allbaugh and Brown.'

"The looting of Iraq's oil wealth is unprecedented in the history of corporate crime," according to criminologist Dave Whyte, but Ahmad Chalabi says that 'democracy must come before oil.'

'Rumsfeld's Enforcer' In an excerpt from his new book, "Grand Theft Pentagon," Jeffrey St. Clair probes 'The Secret World of Stephen Cambone.'

The Washington Note's Steve Clemons finds "more Rumsfeldian disdain for the press," and brings word of a 2006 Nobel Peace Prize nominee.

Introducing a thorough debunking of administration claims about Guantanamo, Stuart Taylor cites Bush's pledge that detainees are treated "humanely" and his implication that to a man, they're "bad people," and concludes: "If the president believes either of these assertions, he is a fool. If he does not, choose your own word for him."

After Bush received a "rare, in-person rebuke" at Coretta Scott King's funeral, Left Coaster sat back to 'Watch the Mighty Wurlitzer Start,' disputing the notion that "the six-hour service ... seemed to strive mightily to project a theme of inclusion, and the setting aside of political differences."

Among the ads cited in a lawsuit accusing Craigslist of publishing discriminatory housing advertisements, as reported by the Chicago Tribune: "Non-women of Color NEED NOT APPLY" and "Requirements: Clean Godly Christian Male." Plus: 'Racial Suicide' in Europe.

Bill O'Reilly calls Nicholas Kristof's column announcing a "pledge drive" to collect money to send O'Reilly to Darfur, "simply a gimmick, a ploy, to bring my name to his passion."

Advice for Cindy Sheehan, regarding a Senate race in California, is coming from both within and without the Democratic Party.

February 7

Thursday, February 9, 2006

A new Pew Research poll finds that although President Bush got "no bounce" from his State of the Union address, he "appears to be making headway with his defense of the government's authority to conduct warrantless wiretaps of suspected terrorists," thanks to a shift in support from "moderate and liberal Republicans."

A sidebar to a Christian Science Monitor report on a 'massive data sweep' planned by the U.S. government points out that "Some antiterror efforts die -- others just change names," while increased surveillance is said to be "touching off a scramble among third parties to meet the demand for assistance."

As a GOP House committee chairman accuses the Congressional Research Service of 'bias' on spy program, a CRS researcher 'Claims he was muzzled for faulting Bush.'

Sidney Blumenthal recounts the personal history of 'The president, the stripper and ...' "the sole witness called to explain Bush's warrantless domestic spying."

Murray Waas reports that Vice President 'Cheney "Authorized" Libby to Leak Classified Information,' including "portions of a then-still highly classified National Intelligence Estimate regarding Saddam Hussein's purported efforts to develop nuclear weapons" -- according to Libby's testimony to a federal grand jury.

'Thank God We're Winning the War on Terror,' says King of Zembla, "because you wouldn't want to see the numbers if we weren't." Plus: 'Report says number of attacks by insurgents in Iraq increases.'

As 'Israel plans to build "museum of tolerance" on Muslim graves,' the head of Shin Bet warns that Israel 'may rue Saddam overthrow,' reportedly arguing that "a strong dictatorship would be preferable" to "chaos" in Iraq.

Carpetbagger connects a report that 'VOA is DOA in Bush budget,' with results of a BBC World Service poll showing that 'U.S. continues to get low marks' in global opinion.

As a new report finds that only eight percent of Guantanamo detainees are al-Qaedaites, the number of hunger strikers has dropped to four, according to a military spokesman, quoted as saying that while "a restraint system to aid detainee feeding" was being used, the force-feeding was carried out "in a humane and compassionate manner."

One lawyer says he was told by a client that many hunger strikers had "abandoned their protest after being strapped in restraint chairs and having their feeding tubes inserted and removed so violently that some bled or fainted." And another says that "Because of the actions in Congress, the military feels emboldened to take more extreme measures..."

In addition to being "rewarded by party leaders Wednesday with a seat on the Appropriations Committee," Rep. Tom DeLay "was also given a seat on the subcommittee overseeing the Justice Department, which is investigating an influence-peddling scandal involving the disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff and his dealings with lawmakers."

'Rich Guys Over Here' editorializes the New York Times, after Homeland Security approved the diversion of 16 airport screeners to meet the needs of "selective" passengers at the first "federalized" heliport.

While "the American Left has adopted largely a laissez-faire attitude toward media infrastructure, writes Robert Parry, "the Right's subsidizing of media may be the most under-reported money-in-politics story in modern American history."

After the Rev. Joseph Lowery defended his remarks at the funeral of Coretta Scott King, MSNBC host Tucker Carlson found it "unbelievable that people get to sermonize about politics in church," while another guest maintained that "not everyone stood up and applauded."

A Washington Post analysis of a 5-year budget printout reveals 'Years of Deep Cuts' ahead, even for some programs "slated for increases" in the near term -- and "once inflation is taken into account, the cuts look far deeper."

Speak Speak finds an AP story characterizing $36 billion in Medicare cuts as "savings," and "farmers, teachers [and] doctors" as "groups with special interests."

As the Grammys draw the "J.D. Salinger of funk" out of seclusion, tribute is paid to a 'Once and Future' icon, and a Black Commentator contributor wonders, "What in the hell is going on with our music?"

February 8

Friday, February 10, 2006

"So either Cheney or Bush (or both) ordered the release of classified information, which according to Bush is a crime," writes Mark Kleiman. "And anyone who commits a crime has to leave the administration." Plus: Was Bush's foiled terror plot story timed to obscure?

CIA and State Department officials tell Jason Leopold that on March 9, 2003, following a CNN appearance by Joseph Wilson, "they attended a meeting at the Vice President's office chaired by Cheney, and it was there that a decision was made to discredit Wilson." And Al Franken asks a former Time reporter, "Why can't you just say they're big liars?"

The Washington Post reports on an article in Foreign Affairs by a former CIA official who coordinated U.S. intelligence on the Middle East. "Official intelligence on Iraqi weapons programs was flawed, but even with its flaws, it was not what led to the war," writes Paul Pillar, charging that "intelligence was misused publicly to justify decisions already made..."

Pillar, who managed the writing of the National Intelligence Estimates on Iran from 2000 to 2005, tells IPS that "Iranian perceptions of threat, especially from the United States and Israel, were not the only factor, but were in our judgment part of what drove whatever effort they were making to build nuclear weapons."

Although the New York Times headlines 'White House knew of levee's failure on night of storm,' other documents reveal that "The first internal White House communication about levee failures came at 11:13 a.m...." One Congressman told the Times that the only government agency that performed well was the National Weather Service.

Testifying before Congress, former FEMA Director Michael Brown "said he spoke by phone to a top White House official ... on at least two occasions on that day to inform him of what was going on," reports AP. "I think I told him that we were realizing our worst nightmare," recalled Brown. Plus: 'Heckuva Job, Norm.'

A Washingtonian editor says that he did not intend for his e-mails from Jack Abramoff to be made public. See how 'Top Democrat Reid' ended up having 'aided Abramoff clients.'

About the claim that a provision in a Defense appropriations bill offering pharmaceutical companies vaccine liability protection, was added "after the conference had concluded" and "at the specific direction of the speaker of the House and the majority leader of the Senate," Marty Kaplan asks: 'What -- No Up-or-Down Vote, Dr. Frist?'

While President Bush's budget calls for 141 programs to be cut or killed, Newsweek's Allan Sloan discovered that "with no fanfare whatsoever, Bush stuck a big Social Security privatization plan in the federal budget proposal." Plus: Senate Finance Committee chairman accuses the administration of seeking to end "a pittance for widows and widowers."

Although Bush delivered a speech Thursday at the National Guard Building in D.C., he was virtually speechless at what the National Guard delivered.

A nurse working for the Veterans Administration in New Mexico is under investigation for sedition, after writing a letter said to be critical of the war in Iraq, the federal response to Katrina, and "the government which employs you."

"I'm here. I'm fine," said Jill Carroll in a video broadcast on Kuwaiti TV. "Give them whatever they want as quickly as possible. There is very short time. Please do it fast. That's all."

'Enemies of the State' A report from Tokyo chronicles the arrest and conviction of a small group of antiwar activists, for handing out fliers protesting "Japan's first dispatch of troops to a war zone since the Second World War."

As 'Malaysia bans possession of Prophet cartoons,' the Danish editor who commissioned the originals is sent on leave, and the head of Hezbollah tells a six-figure crowd in Beirut, "Let Condoleezza Rice and Bush and all the tyrants shut up."

Hamas joins call for calm in cartoon row,' as Russian President Putin says that "we are willing in the near future to invite the authorities of Hamas to Moscow to carry out talks," prompting Israel's foreign minister to warn of a "slippery slope." Plus: 'Israel and US on back foot over Hamas.'

Calling for 'A New Black Power' in an excerpt from his new book, "Life Out Of Context," Walter Mosely argues that a Black Voting Bloc could help "democratize America by taking power away from the two-party system and ... the centrist attendants of the rich."

As the 'Climate-Change Fight' gets a referee, Michael Klare argues that the only way out of the 'Permanent Energy Crisis' will prove "costly and disruptive."

Two Greenpeace photographers have won World Press Photo awards for images depicting the climate change on the Amazon and two Chernobyl children.

As the South Dakota House overwhelmingly passes a bill "that would ban nearly all abortions in the state," an Iowa legislator offers up a new drug war strategy: ban rock concerts and football games.

February 9

Monday, February 13, 2006

'More questions raised about delay in reporting Cheney misfire,' including a Chicago Tribune reporter asking: "How is it that Vice President Cheney can shoot a man, albeit accidentally, on Saturday during a hunting trip and the American public not be informed of it until today?"

"When the shooting was finally reported, it was told as a joke," notes Rigorous Intuition, adding, "Remember, this is a man who attended the Auschwitz memorial ceremony dressed for a duck hunt." Plus: "Was the VEEP, like so many tough-guy hunters, juiced for this hunt?"

Both Barrels Democratic and Republican senators call for an investigation into the possible leaking of classified information by Vice President Cheney and others, and John Dean says that "Cheney has stirred up an old fight in Washington. He sent a rookie, however, to make his case publicly. It did not work."

A criminal investigation into the circumstances surrounding the New York Times article that reinstigated the fight is "rapidly expanding," reports the Times, which cites a Commentary magazine article suggesting that "the newspaper might be prosecuted for violations of the Espionage Act."

Raw Story, citing U.S. intelligence sources, reports that Valerie Plame's outing "was more serious than has previously been reported," and that "Iran was the focal point of Plame's work."

"I pray that our chair is not used for torture," says an Iowa man, as a draft U.N. report concludes that the treatment of Guantanamo detainees "must be assessed as amounting to torture," and Ann Louise Bardach details how 'For one Marine, torture came home.'

The CIA's top counter-terrorism official is 'sacked for opposing torture,' and Nick Turse honors the "unlikely rebels" of the "Fallen Legion" waging 'Guerrilla Warfare in Washington.' Plus: 'The Trust Gap.'

In a new TV spot from the folks who blanketed the airwaves with "Ashley's Story," a Marine reservist says: "You'd never know it from the news reports. But our enemy in Iraq is al-Qaida, the same terrorists who killed 3,000 Americans on 9-11..." Or, as one columnist wrote, "Fellow Americans, the Swift Boating of Iraq has begun."

As a News & Observer report details how the 'Pentagon's messy books defy auditors,' the special inspector general for Iraq reconstruction tells "60 Minutes" that $8.8 billion is "not accounted for" and says that oversight early on with the Coalition Provisional Authority "was relatively non-existent."

"60 Minutes" also obtained a memo in which the Baghdad airport's security director wrote that contractor "Custer Battles has shown themselves to be unresponsive, uncooperative, incompetent, deceitful, manipulative and war profiteers. Other than that, they are swell fellows." Plus: 'Baghdad Embassy Bonanza'

After witnessing a 5:00 am scene that found her aunt's house suddenly "filled with strange men, yelling out orders and stomping into rooms," Baghdad Burning's Riverbend asks: "Who do you call to protect you from the New Iraq's security forces?"

19 killed in Iraq, as 'Shiites select Al-Jaafari as prime minister,' reportedly reflecting "the growing power of anti-American fundamentalists within the new Parliament," Knight Ridder reports that a "more moderate and progressive" candidate "lost by one vote."

A video of "42 brainless blows" reportedly shows beatings of Iraqi youths by British troops, eliciting the argument that 'the video is not the problem,' as Lila Rajiva welcomes the U.K. to the 'Axis of Child Abusers.'

As Slate's William Saletan probes 'The temptation of remote-controlled killing,' weapons expert David Hambling reviews Air Force efforts to "hack directly into your nervous system," with new technology said to "remotely create physical sensations."

The first photo published of President Bush and Jack Abramoff together, is said to show that Abramoff "was able to gain access to the White House -- and score a presidential meeting -- for a man Abramoff sought as a client."

Although attending the funeral of Coretta Scott King may have felt like "eating sawdust without butter," Craig Crawford and Cynthia Tucker counsel the president to "find more venues" to "take your lumps in public."

"This half-decade tsunami of scandals has had the intended effect," writes Peter Daou, "overload the senses, short circuit the outrage, dizzy the opposition," adding that a glance at coverage "would lead you to believe that the most important piece of news today is that a British man accused of killing his wife and child will return to the U.S. to face trial."

More than half of last Thursday's "Anderson Cooper 360" newscast -- hours one and two -- was devoted to the murder, with CNN even dispatching its Capitol Hill correspondent to "investigate." Is Cooper next?

TV Newser notes that NBC News anchor Brian Williams informed viewers watching coverage of the Winter Olympics' opening ceremonies, that "Italy is the third largest contributor of troops to the coalition forces in Iraq."

As it's reported that "the born-again Christian who chairs media giant News Corporation, has been secretly building a stable of wholly-owned pornographic channels for his BSkyB subsidiary," the seller of Nevada's Chicken Ranch says the new owner's "a good guy... He's been around the brothel industry for a long time."

February 10-12

Tuesday, February 14, 2006

With the Afghanistan death toll besting Iraq's, four U.S. troops were killed when a bomb hit their armored vehicle, and two Pakistani nomad women reportedly died when a U.S. rocket landed on their tent in North Waziristan, where the Taliban have declared the establishment of an "Islamic state."

Unnamed U.S. and Israeli officials float a plan "to destabilize the Palestinian government so that newly elected Hamas officials will fail and elections will be called again," while Israel is said to have "effectively annexed" the Jordan Valley, prohibiting West Bank Palestinians from entering the area.

A Los Angeles Times op-ed argues that the U.S. has not "stood up to Khartoum," or taken the lead in protecting civilians, out of deference to 'Our friend, an architect of the genocide in Darfur.'

Anti-American action film -- "Valley of The Wolves Iraq" -- does boffo box office in Turkey, where "public opinion of America has been steadily declining since the invasion of Iraq," reports the New York Times, citing an Istanbul sociology professor who "believes that the perceived U.S. support for the Kurds is at the heart of this decline."

The Baltimore Sun reports that 1 in 6 Army recruits with "background problems" were given waivers last year, despite medical problems or "a history of criminal conduct or drug and alcohol problems." But, 'The Air Force Flies Right.'

An American Bar Association resolution calls on President Bush "to either stop domestic eavesdropping without a warrant or get the law changed to make it legal," after an ABA poll finds "77 percent of Americans" expressing "deep reservations about the president's secret surveillance program."

As the Los Angeles Times joins a few other U.S. newspapers in reporting the charges made in "Lawless World," Robert Parry maintains that "politicization of intelligence has been a goal of neoconservative operatives for three decades," and says that former CIA official Paul Pillar, "in effect, corroborates" the "Downing Street Memo."

'It's open season on Dick Cheney,' who "overruled the advice of several members of the White House staff and insisted on sticking to a plan for releasing information about his hunting accident," reports Time, as Editor & Publisher finds that several newspapers carried "wildly different accounts" of what transpired after Cheney shot 'a Texas Liberal.'

Although the type of birdshot Cheney was using is said to be "unknown," a Texas Parks and Wildlife Department report reveals that he was firing an Italian-made Perazzi, the same brand that Sen. John Kerry was ridiculed for toting during the presidential campaign.

Before Harry Whittington suffered a heart attack, the White House had reportedly "decided that the best way to deal with Vice President Dick Cheney's shooting accident is to joke about it."

'Editorials Hit Cheney,' and a New York Times article headlined 'No end to questions on Cheney hunting incident,' raises yet another question.

The Times article notes that ranch owner Katharine Armstrong is in business with Karen Johnson, who reportedly has a "close friendship" with a man who Jack Abramoff is 'said to claim close ties to.'

Former GOP fundraiser Tom Noe was charged with 53 felony counts by a grand jury in Ohio, where the Bush Pioneer was a 2004 re-election campaign chairman, while his wife was reported to have done "some election reform of her own."

Left Out Media Matters' research finds that during President Bush's first term, Republicans or conservatives accounted for 58 percent of the guests on Sunday political talk shows, 10 points higher than Democrats or progressives represented during Bill Clinton's second term.

Coverage of Bush's announcement that a terrorist plot against a Los Angeles building had been foiled is found to have reflected a "lack of skepticism."

'Bush Spent $1.6 Billion on "Spin"' and 'Prepackaged News' -- in what MediaCitizen calls "a scheme to make U.S. taxpayers pay for their own deception" -- and Mike Whitney details the Pentagon's "comprehensive strategy for taking over the internet."

U.S. oil companies are reportedly poised to collect a $7 billion windfall in royalty relief, despite high prices, with the amount of royalty-free gas and oil "expected to double over the next five years."

As an Abu Dhabi court sentences more than 20 men to five years in prison for being gay, a Gonzaga booster group urges fans of the university's basketball team to stop yelling "Brokeback Mountain" at opposing players.

In an article discussing Cindy Sheehan's decision not to challenge Sen. Diane Feinstein, Don Santina distinguishes "People Democrats" from the "Royal Democrats," who "are not that much far removed from the old Jim Crow Democrats who became Republicans when the Democratic Party embraced civil rights legislation."

Santina earlier called for 'Reparations for the Blues.' Scroll down to read "What's happened to the Rhythm and Blues Foundation."

February 13

Wednesday, February 15, 2006

Vice President Cheney to Fox News: "I'm the guy who pulled the trigger."

"I would be inclined to leave Cheney to the mercy of Jon Stewart and Jay Leno if it weren't for other signs that this administration has jumped the tracks," writes David Ignatius. "What worries me most is the administration's misuse of intelligence information to advance its political agenda. For a country at war, this is truly dangerous."

'National security whistle-blowers allege retaliation' in testimony before "spellbound lawmakers," with former NSA employee Russell Tice "expressing concerns about a 'special access' electronic surveillance program that he characterized as far more wide-ranging" than the warrentless wiretapping program.

The number of names on the National Counterterrorism Center's list of international terrorism suspects or people who allegedly aid them, has reportedly quadrupled to 325,000 since the fall of 2003.

As 21 percent of respondents to a CNN/USA Today/Gallup poll say it's "very likely or somewhat likely" that their conversations had been wiretapped, the Commentary editor who argues that the New York Times should be prosecuted, debates Alan Dershowitz.

Newsweek just reported that "The Senate intelligence committee is likely to vote to open an investigation into the NSA's wiretapping program," but the Washington Post says a 'Congressional probe of NSA spying is in doubt,' following an "all-out White House lobbying campaign."

Although "the NSA scandal is at a crossroad," Glenn Greenwald finds that, despite public opinion polls, "many Democrats are slowly slouching towards the path they almost always end up taking."

'The photos America doesn't want seen' are shown on Australian TV, while Abu Ghraib prison is now being called "a graduate-level training ground for the insurgency," aka Jihad University.

Ari Fleischer joins Marlin Fitzwater in criticizing Vice President Cheney's handling of the shooting incident, and an 'Orange morning gives way to a darker afternoon.'

An NBC story was scrubbed of the ranch owner's comment that "There may be a beer or two in there, but remember not everyone in the party was shooting," and CNN's Bruce Morton said that while Bush "likes to hunt quail with family and friends" and Cheney "loves to hunt," Kerry "spent time posing with guns."

A "senior Bush adviser" is quoted as saying that if Cheney "just apologizes and tells the press to stop making a mountain out of a molehill ... the thing is done" -- but Editor & Publisher's Greg Mitchell and TNR's Ryan Lizza raise some 'Troubling Questions About Cheney's Boss.'

Sen. Norm Coleman wants everyone to "take a step back from the politics," telling Wolf Blitzer that "my prayers are with the vice president ... and with the gentleman who is now in a hospital." Coleman also talks of how he "kind of went after" former FEMA head Michael Brown.

As senators questioned Homeland Security chief Michael Chertoff over a report which found that "