Friday, April 22, 2005
DeLay Counterattack: Ethics problems alleged: They’ve gone after Ms. Tubbs Jones who joined Barbara Boxer in forcing congressional debate of the 2004 election and now Boxer. From consecutive issues of the Right / Moonie-owned Washington Times:
Stephanie Tubbs Jones, an Ohio Democrat who sits on the House ethics committee, took a 2001 trip to Puerto Rico that was paid for by a registered lobbyist firm -- an apparent violation of the chamber's ethics rules -- according to documents that she filed with the House clerk.
A spokeswoman for Mrs. Jones disputed those records yesterday, saying "human error" led a staffer to list the name of D.C. lobbyist firm Smith, Dawson & Andrews as having paid the $3,366 tab for Mrs. Jones and her husband to travel to the Puerto Rican island of Vieques in the Caribbean.
"Smith Dawson was put on the form in error," Jones spokeswoman Nicole Williams said. "The invitation came from Todo Puerto Rico con Vieques. They hired Smith Dawson to handle logistics for the trip." http://insider.washingtontimes.com/articles/normal.php?StoryID=20050420-124450-3932r
House Republicans yesterday called on Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi to provide documentation to prove that a Washington lobbyist firm did not pay for a trip she and other Democrats took to Puerto Rico in 2001.
"We feel that such lingering questions undermine the integrity of the institution and we hope [the questions] will be cleared up as soon as possible," wrote Republican Reps. Patrick T. McHenry of North Carolina and Lynn Westmoreland of Georgia.
The Washington Times reported earlier this week that Rep. Stephanie Tubbs Jones, Ohio Democrat and member of the House ethics committee, listed a registered lobbyist as the trip's sponsor. House rules prohibit registered lobbyists from paying for travel by members. http://insider.washingtontimes.com/articles/normal.php?StoryID=20050421-115645-8030r
What’s Happening, Iraq: Some media (e.g. NPR) have noted that an escalation back to the pre-January election level, including the first time insurgents have succeeded in bringing down a civilian aircraft.
Some of the larger attacks have been noticed.
A retired Army general just back from a fact-finding trip to Iraq has warned the U.S.-led multinational coalition that insurgents may be planning spectacular large-scale attacks to slow the momentum of recent military and political gains there.
“The insurgency is viable and resilient and has the capacity to achieve significant surprise,” Gen. John Keane told The Hill this week. “We can expect more attacks. They have the capacity to plan a coherent operation for large-scale effect.” http://www.thehill.com/thehill/export/TheHill/News/Frontpage/042105/iraq3.html
Recruiting for Iraq: It’s Going Well…for “them.”
More than 400 young men and women have volunteered to carry out suicide bombing attacks against Americans in Iraq and targets in Israel, a militant group said Wednesday.
The recruiting effort was detailed during a ceremony organized by the Headquarters for Commemorating Martyrs of the Global Islamic Movement, a shadowy group that has been seeking attackers for nearly a year.
The Iranian government has distanced itself from the organization. But the event was attended by Mahdi Rahimian, the head of the Martyr's Foundation and the Imam Khomeini Relief Committee, both quasi-government organizations run by hard-liners loyal to Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/n/a/2005/04/20/international/i164839D98.DTL&type=printable
Large Embassy. …speaks for itself
The U.S. Senate agreed on Wednesday to spend $592 million on a huge new embassy Baghdad, setting up a showdown with the House of Representatives, which rejected funding for the project because of the high cost.
Senators approved the embassy funding 54-45 as part of an $81 billion emergency spending bill to pay for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and help fund tsunami relief. The House of Representatives removed the money for the Baghdad compound, which would be the largest U.S. embassy in the world, when it passed its version of the bill last month. http://www.paktribune.com/news/index.php?id=102447
Missing Nukes: LA Times report on nuke components that were headed for Libya but were diverted to …? Apparently these component parts originated with the Pakistani distributor A.Q.Khan.
Critical components and specialized tools destined for Libya's nuclear weapons program disappeared before arrival in 2003 and international investigators now suspect that they were diverted to another country, according to court records and investigators.
Efforts to find the missing equipment have led to dead ends, raising what investigators said was the strong likelihood that the sophisticated material was sold to an unidentified customer by members of the international smuggling ring that had been supplying nuclear technology and weapons designs to Libya. http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-network22apr22,0,7993491.story?coll=la-home-headlines
DeLay and Ethics: More are backing away from him. The p.r. re his being investigated may not be working. The WaPost agrees with the Democrats’ position.
Ultimately, though, yesterday's offer isn't good enough. The plan presented by the panel chairman, Rep. Doc Hastings (R-Wash.), would leave in place the troubling rules rammed through the House earlier this year in a departure from the traditional method of changing ethics committee rules based on bipartisan agreement. The rules require that an ethics complaint be automatically dismissed if no action is taken within 45 days. Under the previous rules, a majority vote was needed to dismiss a complaint. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A6181-2005Apr20.html
Frist Criticized by Protestants for evangelical embrace
As the Senate battle over judicial confirmations became increasingly entwined with religious themes, officials of several major Protestant denominations on Thursday accused the Senate Republican leader, Bill Frist, of violating the principles of his own Presbyterian church and urged him to drop out of a Sunday telecast that depicts Democrats as "against people of faith." http://www.nytimes.com/2005/04/22/politics/22frist.html?hp&ex=1114228800&en=d7164aea7c3706ed&ei=5094&partner=homepage
Bolton Trashed by Powell. He may have sold the invasion, but, at last, some integrity seems to be seeping out. It’s highly unusual to go public with such reservations.
Former secretary of state Colin L. Powell is emerging as a behind-the-scenes player in the battle over John R. Bolton's nomination as ambassador to the United Nations, privately telling at least two key Republican lawmakers that Bolton is a smart but very problematic government official, according to Republican sources. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A7420-2005Apr21.html
The associates said Mr. Powell, in private telephone conversations, had made clear his concerns about Mr. Bolton on several fronts, including his harsh treatment of subordinates. http://www.nytimes.com/2005/04/22/politics/22bolton.html?hp&ex=1114228800&en=5adf3782efa3813c&ei=5094&partner=homepage
…as the evidence piles up:
But Bolton's fate grew even murkier, as one of the president's own former ambassadors, told CBS News Correspondent Gloria Borger that Bolton had been less than truthful in his recent confirmation hearings.
The episode revolves around a speech Bolton gave in South Korea in the summer of 2003, in which he said, "For many in North Korea, life is a hellish nightmare."
When asked about the hard-line speech, Bolton said Ambassador Thomas Hubbard had approved it.
"I can tell you what our ambassador to South Korea, Tom Hubbard, said after the speech. He said, "Thanks a lot for that speech, John. It'll help us a lot out here.'"
Well, that's not what Hubbard says. In fact, the ambassador told CBS News that he specifically objected to the tone of the speech and actually found it unhelpful in dealing with North Korea. http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2005/04/21/politics/main690018.shtml
Deficits to be controlled…by doing what?
U.S. Treasury Secretary John Snow said on Wednesday the Bush administration was making progress in ratcheting down U.S. budget deficits, but linked it to action on an overhaul of the Social Security system.
"Insisting on the first while ignoring the second would be hypocritical and irresponsible," Snow said in prepared remarks for delivery to the Bond Market Association.
Snow said Treasury expects the budget deficit in fiscal 2005 that ends on Sept. 30 to come in at 3.5 percent of the value of total national economic output, "substantially lower than the 4.5-6 percent experienced at times in the 1980s and 1990s." http://www.reuters.com/financeNewsArticle.jhtml?type=bondsNews&storyID=8240678
Just how will he do this? Cut where? Social Security?
Nuclear Option: Frist may still not have the votes, but the stage is being set.
Moving the Senate closer to a historic confrontation, the Republican-controlled Judiciary Committee yesterday endorsed two of President Bush's most controversial nominees to federal appellate court, and Democrats vowed once again to use the filibuster to block their confirmation.
The committee, voting 10 to 8 along party lines, endorsed Janice Rogers Brown of California for a seat on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, and Priscilla Richman Owen of Texas for a seat on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit. Both were nominated, endorsed by the Judiciary Committee and ultimately blocked by the Democrats in Bush's first term, along with eight other appeals court nominees. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A6621-2005Apr21.html
Terminology: Nuclear option = Fairness Option “Constitutional option” didn’t poll well, nor did “filibuster reform”. So, they’ve settled on “fairness.” Fits with “The judicial war on faith”, the subject of this Sunday’s conference. http://weeklystandard.com/Content/Public/Articles/000/000/005/490oaetg.asp
Democrats Fighting Back: A sign…
Sen. Mark Pryor lashed out Wednesday at the Christian evangelicals who have joined the attack on Democratic filibusters of President Bush’s judicial nominees.
Their tactics threaten "to make the followers of Jesus Christ just another special-interest group," Pryor said in a conference call with Arkansas reporters. "It is presumptuous of them to think that they represent all Christians in America, even to say they represent all evangelical Christians," added Pryor, 42, a first-term Democrat who has considered himself an evangelical Christian for 25 years. http://www.nwanews.com/story_print.php?paper=adg&National=section&storyid=114091
Sen. Ken Salazar, D-Colo., lashed out at Focus on the Family on Thursday, saying the appointments.
Salazar defended Democrats' right to filibuster what they consider objectionable nominees and blasted the Colorado Springs-based evangelical Christian group for recent ads urging him to "STOP the nonsense." http://insidedenver.com/drmn/state/article/0,1299,DRMN_21_3717209,00.html
NASA Lowers its Standards. Scientists- and anyone else who cares- are not happy with the increasing of risk so as to get the shuttle back up. This change was effected “because we cannot meet” the established requirements.
NASA officials have loosened the standards for what constitutes an acceptable risk of damage from the kind of debris that led to the disintegration of the shuttle Columbia as it was returning from space two years ago, internal documents show.
The move has set off a debate within the agency about whether the changes are a reasonable reassessment of the hazards of flight or whether they jettison long-established rules to justify getting back to space quickly. http://www.nytimes.com/2005/04/22/science/22nasa.html?
-R
Stephanie Tubbs Jones, an Ohio Democrat who sits on the House ethics committee, took a 2001 trip to Puerto Rico that was paid for by a registered lobbyist firm -- an apparent violation of the chamber's ethics rules -- according to documents that she filed with the House clerk.
A spokeswoman for Mrs. Jones disputed those records yesterday, saying "human error" led a staffer to list the name of D.C. lobbyist firm Smith, Dawson & Andrews as having paid the $3,366 tab for Mrs. Jones and her husband to travel to the Puerto Rican island of Vieques in the Caribbean.
"Smith Dawson was put on the form in error," Jones spokeswoman Nicole Williams said. "The invitation came from Todo Puerto Rico con Vieques. They hired Smith Dawson to handle logistics for the trip." http://insider.washingtontimes.com/articles/normal.php?StoryID=20050420-124450-3932r
House Republicans yesterday called on Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi to provide documentation to prove that a Washington lobbyist firm did not pay for a trip she and other Democrats took to Puerto Rico in 2001.
"We feel that such lingering questions undermine the integrity of the institution and we hope [the questions] will be cleared up as soon as possible," wrote Republican Reps. Patrick T. McHenry of North Carolina and Lynn Westmoreland of Georgia.
The Washington Times reported earlier this week that Rep. Stephanie Tubbs Jones, Ohio Democrat and member of the House ethics committee, listed a registered lobbyist as the trip's sponsor. House rules prohibit registered lobbyists from paying for travel by members. http://insider.washingtontimes.com/articles/normal.php?StoryID=20050421-115645-8030r
What’s Happening, Iraq: Some media (e.g. NPR) have noted that an escalation back to the pre-January election level, including the first time insurgents have succeeded in bringing down a civilian aircraft.
Some of the larger attacks have been noticed.
A retired Army general just back from a fact-finding trip to Iraq has warned the U.S.-led multinational coalition that insurgents may be planning spectacular large-scale attacks to slow the momentum of recent military and political gains there.
“The insurgency is viable and resilient and has the capacity to achieve significant surprise,” Gen. John Keane told The Hill this week. “We can expect more attacks. They have the capacity to plan a coherent operation for large-scale effect.” http://www.thehill.com/thehill/export/TheHill/News/Frontpage/042105/iraq3.html
Recruiting for Iraq: It’s Going Well…for “them.”
More than 400 young men and women have volunteered to carry out suicide bombing attacks against Americans in Iraq and targets in Israel, a militant group said Wednesday.
The recruiting effort was detailed during a ceremony organized by the Headquarters for Commemorating Martyrs of the Global Islamic Movement, a shadowy group that has been seeking attackers for nearly a year.
The Iranian government has distanced itself from the organization. But the event was attended by Mahdi Rahimian, the head of the Martyr's Foundation and the Imam Khomeini Relief Committee, both quasi-government organizations run by hard-liners loyal to Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/n/a/2005/04/20/international/i164839D98.DTL&type=printable
Large Embassy. …speaks for itself
The U.S. Senate agreed on Wednesday to spend $592 million on a huge new embassy Baghdad, setting up a showdown with the House of Representatives, which rejected funding for the project because of the high cost.
Senators approved the embassy funding 54-45 as part of an $81 billion emergency spending bill to pay for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and help fund tsunami relief. The House of Representatives removed the money for the Baghdad compound, which would be the largest U.S. embassy in the world, when it passed its version of the bill last month. http://www.paktribune.com/news/index.php?id=102447
Missing Nukes: LA Times report on nuke components that were headed for Libya but were diverted to …? Apparently these component parts originated with the Pakistani distributor A.Q.Khan.
Critical components and specialized tools destined for Libya's nuclear weapons program disappeared before arrival in 2003 and international investigators now suspect that they were diverted to another country, according to court records and investigators.
Efforts to find the missing equipment have led to dead ends, raising what investigators said was the strong likelihood that the sophisticated material was sold to an unidentified customer by members of the international smuggling ring that had been supplying nuclear technology and weapons designs to Libya. http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-network22apr22,0,7993491.story?coll=la-home-headlines
DeLay and Ethics: More are backing away from him. The p.r. re his being investigated may not be working. The WaPost agrees with the Democrats’ position.
Ultimately, though, yesterday's offer isn't good enough. The plan presented by the panel chairman, Rep. Doc Hastings (R-Wash.), would leave in place the troubling rules rammed through the House earlier this year in a departure from the traditional method of changing ethics committee rules based on bipartisan agreement. The rules require that an ethics complaint be automatically dismissed if no action is taken within 45 days. Under the previous rules, a majority vote was needed to dismiss a complaint. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A6181-2005Apr20.html
Frist Criticized by Protestants for evangelical embrace
As the Senate battle over judicial confirmations became increasingly entwined with religious themes, officials of several major Protestant denominations on Thursday accused the Senate Republican leader, Bill Frist, of violating the principles of his own Presbyterian church and urged him to drop out of a Sunday telecast that depicts Democrats as "against people of faith." http://www.nytimes.com/2005/04/22/politics/22frist.html?hp&ex=1114228800&en=d7164aea7c3706ed&ei=5094&partner=homepage
Bolton Trashed by Powell. He may have sold the invasion, but, at last, some integrity seems to be seeping out. It’s highly unusual to go public with such reservations.
Former secretary of state Colin L. Powell is emerging as a behind-the-scenes player in the battle over John R. Bolton's nomination as ambassador to the United Nations, privately telling at least two key Republican lawmakers that Bolton is a smart but very problematic government official, according to Republican sources. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A7420-2005Apr21.html
The associates said Mr. Powell, in private telephone conversations, had made clear his concerns about Mr. Bolton on several fronts, including his harsh treatment of subordinates. http://www.nytimes.com/2005/04/22/politics/22bolton.html?hp&ex=1114228800&en=5adf3782efa3813c&ei=5094&partner=homepage
…as the evidence piles up:
But Bolton's fate grew even murkier, as one of the president's own former ambassadors, told CBS News Correspondent Gloria Borger that Bolton had been less than truthful in his recent confirmation hearings.
The episode revolves around a speech Bolton gave in South Korea in the summer of 2003, in which he said, "For many in North Korea, life is a hellish nightmare."
When asked about the hard-line speech, Bolton said Ambassador Thomas Hubbard had approved it.
"I can tell you what our ambassador to South Korea, Tom Hubbard, said after the speech. He said, "Thanks a lot for that speech, John. It'll help us a lot out here.'"
Well, that's not what Hubbard says. In fact, the ambassador told CBS News that he specifically objected to the tone of the speech and actually found it unhelpful in dealing with North Korea. http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2005/04/21/politics/main690018.shtml
Deficits to be controlled…by doing what?
U.S. Treasury Secretary John Snow said on Wednesday the Bush administration was making progress in ratcheting down U.S. budget deficits, but linked it to action on an overhaul of the Social Security system.
"Insisting on the first while ignoring the second would be hypocritical and irresponsible," Snow said in prepared remarks for delivery to the Bond Market Association.
Snow said Treasury expects the budget deficit in fiscal 2005 that ends on Sept. 30 to come in at 3.5 percent of the value of total national economic output, "substantially lower than the 4.5-6 percent experienced at times in the 1980s and 1990s." http://www.reuters.com/financeNewsArticle.jhtml?type=bondsNews&storyID=8240678
Just how will he do this? Cut where? Social Security?
Nuclear Option: Frist may still not have the votes, but the stage is being set.
Moving the Senate closer to a historic confrontation, the Republican-controlled Judiciary Committee yesterday endorsed two of President Bush's most controversial nominees to federal appellate court, and Democrats vowed once again to use the filibuster to block their confirmation.
The committee, voting 10 to 8 along party lines, endorsed Janice Rogers Brown of California for a seat on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, and Priscilla Richman Owen of Texas for a seat on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit. Both were nominated, endorsed by the Judiciary Committee and ultimately blocked by the Democrats in Bush's first term, along with eight other appeals court nominees. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A6621-2005Apr21.html
Terminology: Nuclear option = Fairness Option “Constitutional option” didn’t poll well, nor did “filibuster reform”. So, they’ve settled on “fairness.” Fits with “The judicial war on faith”, the subject of this Sunday’s conference. http://weeklystandard.com/Content/Public/Articles/000/000/005/490oaetg.asp
Democrats Fighting Back: A sign…
Sen. Mark Pryor lashed out Wednesday at the Christian evangelicals who have joined the attack on Democratic filibusters of President Bush’s judicial nominees.
Their tactics threaten "to make the followers of Jesus Christ just another special-interest group," Pryor said in a conference call with Arkansas reporters. "It is presumptuous of them to think that they represent all Christians in America, even to say they represent all evangelical Christians," added Pryor, 42, a first-term Democrat who has considered himself an evangelical Christian for 25 years. http://www.nwanews.com/story_print.php?paper=adg&National=section&storyid=114091
Sen. Ken Salazar, D-Colo., lashed out at Focus on the Family on Thursday, saying the appointments.
Salazar defended Democrats' right to filibuster what they consider objectionable nominees and blasted the Colorado Springs-based evangelical Christian group for recent ads urging him to "STOP the nonsense." http://insidedenver.com/drmn/state/article/0,1299,DRMN_21_3717209,00.html
NASA Lowers its Standards. Scientists- and anyone else who cares- are not happy with the increasing of risk so as to get the shuttle back up. This change was effected “because we cannot meet” the established requirements.
NASA officials have loosened the standards for what constitutes an acceptable risk of damage from the kind of debris that led to the disintegration of the shuttle Columbia as it was returning from space two years ago, internal documents show.
The move has set off a debate within the agency about whether the changes are a reasonable reassessment of the hazards of flight or whether they jettison long-established rules to justify getting back to space quickly. http://www.nytimes.com/2005/04/22/science/22nasa.html?
-R
Wednesday, April 20, 2005
New Pope: Ratzinger / Benedict XVI, at least as conservative as John Paul, termed all other faiths “gravely deficient”, he believes that “the best antidote to political totalitarianism is ecclesiastical totalitarianism,” that pro-choice politicians should be denied communion. He is pointedly against the death penalty. But, did they have to pick someone who served in the Hitler Youth (then was in the German army)? [His official biography quotes Ratzinger saying his father was vigorously anti-Nazi.] http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A22028-2005Apr2.html
Bolton nomination: Surprising delay- or better- thanks to George Voinovich, Ohio Republican- “My conscience got me.” Committee chair Lugar was trying to force a vote until Voinovich signaled his reservations. A three week delay could allow more accusations to sway the less bold Republicans- principally Chafee- to scuttle the nomination.
Air Force Academy: Fundamentalism, anti-Semitism
Less than two years after it was plunged into a rape scandal, the Air Force Academy is scrambling to address complaints that evangelical Christians wield so much influence at the school that anti-Semitism and other forms of religious harassment have become pervasive.
There have been 55 complaints of religious discrimination at the academy in the past four years, including cases in which a Jewish cadet was told the Holocaust was revenge for the death of Jesus and another was called a Christ killer by a fellow cadet.
''There were people walking up to someone and basically they would get in a conversation and it would end with, `If you don't believe what I believe you are going to hell,''' Vice Commandant Col. Debra Gray said.
Critics of the academy say the sometimes-public endorsement of Christianity by high-ranking staff has contributed to a climate of fear and violates the constitutional separation of church and state at a taxpayer-supported school whose mission is to produce Air Force leaders. http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/national/AP-Academy-Religion.html?
Domestic Threats: Not from the Right, apparently. Another “non-partisan” take on domestic security.
The Homeland Security Department is focusing on possible terror threats from radical environmental and animal rights activists without also examining risks that might be posed by right-wing extremists, House Democrats said Tuesday.
A recent internal Homeland Security document lists the Animal Liberation Front and the Earth Liberation Front with a few Islamic groups that could potentially support al-Qaida as domestic terror threats.
The document does not address threats posed by white supremacists, violent militiamen, anti-abortion bombers and other extremists that Rep. Bennie G. Thompson, D-Miss,. called "right-wing hate groups." http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=542&ncid=703&e=4&u=/ap/20050420/ap_on_go_ca_st_pe/terror_threats_report
Iraqi Privatization: Follow-up. The Transparency International organization says that the reconstruction of Iraq could be "the biggest corruption scandal in history."
Five Polish peacekeepers are arrested for allegedly taking $90,000 worth of bribes in Iraq. Several Sri Lankan officials are suspended for mishandling tsunami aid. US audits show large financial discrepancies in Iraq. Reports of aid abuse taunt Indonesia.
Two of the world's biggest-ever reconstruction projects - Iraq and post-tsunami Asia - are facing major tests of credibility, as billions of dollars of aid and reconstruction money pour in.
And according to a major report released Wednesday by Transparency International (TI), an international organization that focuses on issues of corruption, the omens are not good.
From Iraq and Afghanistan to Cambodia and Bosnia, from the wrecked coasts of Asia to the kleptocratic carve-up in some African countries, crisis zones are proving to be fertile soil for corruption, the report argues. http://www.csmonitor.com/2005/0317/p06s01-wogi.html
Keeping up with new Social Security framing
Karl Rove [on CNN]
“[Bush] went to South Carolina today where the two United States Senators and the governor are in favor of Social Security modernization…. We do believe the cause of Social Security modernization is well-served by having a forthright debate about the pluses and minuses of any proposals laid out there.”
Bush [in South Carolina]
“By giving younger workers an option to set up a personal savings account, we have an opportunity to modernize and strengthen a great American program…
Forestalling action on global warming. Mother Jones article on ExxonMobil’s funneling big bucks to organizations that downplay the threat of global warming. Right think tanks, energy groups such as the American Enterprise Institute, Competitive Enterprise Institute received a large percentage.
ExxonMobil has pumped more than $8 million into more than 40 think tanks; media outlets; and consumer, religious, and even civil rights groups that preach skepticism about the oncoming climate catastrophe. http://www.motherjones.com/news/featurex/2005/05/exxon_chart.html
-R
Bolton nomination: Surprising delay- or better- thanks to George Voinovich, Ohio Republican- “My conscience got me.” Committee chair Lugar was trying to force a vote until Voinovich signaled his reservations. A three week delay could allow more accusations to sway the less bold Republicans- principally Chafee- to scuttle the nomination.
Air Force Academy: Fundamentalism, anti-Semitism
Less than two years after it was plunged into a rape scandal, the Air Force Academy is scrambling to address complaints that evangelical Christians wield so much influence at the school that anti-Semitism and other forms of religious harassment have become pervasive.
There have been 55 complaints of religious discrimination at the academy in the past four years, including cases in which a Jewish cadet was told the Holocaust was revenge for the death of Jesus and another was called a Christ killer by a fellow cadet.
''There were people walking up to someone and basically they would get in a conversation and it would end with, `If you don't believe what I believe you are going to hell,''' Vice Commandant Col. Debra Gray said.
Critics of the academy say the sometimes-public endorsement of Christianity by high-ranking staff has contributed to a climate of fear and violates the constitutional separation of church and state at a taxpayer-supported school whose mission is to produce Air Force leaders. http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/national/AP-Academy-Religion.html?
Domestic Threats: Not from the Right, apparently. Another “non-partisan” take on domestic security.
The Homeland Security Department is focusing on possible terror threats from radical environmental and animal rights activists without also examining risks that might be posed by right-wing extremists, House Democrats said Tuesday.
A recent internal Homeland Security document lists the Animal Liberation Front and the Earth Liberation Front with a few Islamic groups that could potentially support al-Qaida as domestic terror threats.
The document does not address threats posed by white supremacists, violent militiamen, anti-abortion bombers and other extremists that Rep. Bennie G. Thompson, D-Miss,. called "right-wing hate groups." http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=542&ncid=703&e=4&u=/ap/20050420/ap_on_go_ca_st_pe/terror_threats_report
Iraqi Privatization: Follow-up. The Transparency International organization says that the reconstruction of Iraq could be "the biggest corruption scandal in history."
Five Polish peacekeepers are arrested for allegedly taking $90,000 worth of bribes in Iraq. Several Sri Lankan officials are suspended for mishandling tsunami aid. US audits show large financial discrepancies in Iraq. Reports of aid abuse taunt Indonesia.
Two of the world's biggest-ever reconstruction projects - Iraq and post-tsunami Asia - are facing major tests of credibility, as billions of dollars of aid and reconstruction money pour in.
And according to a major report released Wednesday by Transparency International (TI), an international organization that focuses on issues of corruption, the omens are not good.
From Iraq and Afghanistan to Cambodia and Bosnia, from the wrecked coasts of Asia to the kleptocratic carve-up in some African countries, crisis zones are proving to be fertile soil for corruption, the report argues. http://www.csmonitor.com/2005/0317/p06s01-wogi.html
Keeping up with new Social Security framing
Karl Rove [on CNN]
“[Bush] went to South Carolina today where the two United States Senators and the governor are in favor of Social Security modernization…. We do believe the cause of Social Security modernization is well-served by having a forthright debate about the pluses and minuses of any proposals laid out there.”
Bush [in South Carolina]
“By giving younger workers an option to set up a personal savings account, we have an opportunity to modernize and strengthen a great American program…
Forestalling action on global warming. Mother Jones article on ExxonMobil’s funneling big bucks to organizations that downplay the threat of global warming. Right think tanks, energy groups such as the American Enterprise Institute, Competitive Enterprise Institute received a large percentage.
ExxonMobil has pumped more than $8 million into more than 40 think tanks; media outlets; and consumer, religious, and even civil rights groups that preach skepticism about the oncoming climate catastrophe. http://www.motherjones.com/news/featurex/2005/05/exxon_chart.html
-R
Tuesday, April 19, 2005
Naomi Klein, in The Nation chronicles how we’ve moved from “vulgar capitalism” to “sophisticated capitalism.” Ms. Klein is special.
But if the reconstruction industry is stunningly inept at rebuilding, that may be because rebuilding is not its primary purpose. According to Guttal, "It's not reconstruction at all--it's about reshaping everything." If anything, the stories of corruption and incompetence serve to mask this deeper scandal: the rise of a predatory form of disaster capitalism that uses the desperation and fear created by catastrophe to engage in radical social and economic engineering. And on this front, the reconstruction industry works so quickly and efficiently that the privatizations and land grabs are usually locked in before the local population knows what hit them. Kumara, in another e-mail, warns that Sri Lanka is now facing "a second tsunami of corporate globalization and militarization," potentially even more devastating than the first. "We see this as a plan of action amidst the tsunami crisis to hand over the sea and the coast to foreign corporations and tourism, with military assistance from the US Marines."
As Deputy Defense Secretary, Paul Wolfowitz designed and oversaw a strikingly similar project in Iraq: The fires were still burning in Baghdad when US occupation officials rewrote the investment laws and announced that the country's state-owned companies would be privatized. Some have pointed to this track record to argue that Wolfowitz is unfit to lead the World Bank; in fact, nothing could have prepared him better for his new job. In Iraq, Wolfowitz was just doing what the World Bank is already doing in virtually every war-torn and disaster-struck country in the world--albeit with fewer bureaucratic niceties and more ideological bravado.
Essentially, these countries are first ravaged by natural disasters or wars; then, the privatizing ghouls move in.
In January Condoleezza Rice sparked a small controversy by describing the tsunami as "a wonderful opportunity" that "has paid great dividends for us." Many were horrified at the idea of treating a massive human tragedy as a chance to seek advantage. But, if anything, Rice was understating the case. A group calling itself Thailand Tsunami Survivors and Supporters says that for "businessmen-politicians, the tsunami was the answer to their prayers, since it literally wiped these coastal areas clean of the communities which had previously stood in the way of their plans for resorts, hotels, casinos and shrimp farms. To them, all these coastal areas are now open land!" http://www.thenation.com/docprint.mhtml?i=20050502&s=klein
Jim McGovern visits Iraq Same issue of The Nation: He doesn’t like all the lies he’s told, and fears that the Occupation could go on indefinitely, unless…
What worries me almost as much as our misguided policy in Iraq is that so many of my colleagues and so many citizens have become resigned to the fact that the war will go on. Congress is not being inundated with letters and phone calls and faxes and e-mails and street protests demanding an end to our presence in Iraq. President Bush's re-election seems to have taken much of the energy out of the antiwar movement. My recent visit to Iraq only strengthened my belief that this war is wrong. And only renewed, passionate dissent by the American people can end it. http://www.thenation.com/doc.mhtml?i=20050502&s=mcgovern
“War on Terror” Progress? No. First, we had the claim that terrorist incidents were declining; the Bushies had to withdraw that claim as it was a statistical lie. Now, with evidence continuing to show such an increase, they’ve declared their solution: they’ll no longer print the statistics! Classy
The State Department decided to stop publishing an annual report on international terrorism after the government's top terrorism center concluded that there were more terrorist attacks in 2004 than in any year since 1985, the first year the publication covered.
Several U.S. officials defended the abrupt decision, saying the methodology the National Counterterrorism Center used to generate statistics for the report may have been faulty, such as the inclusion of incidents that may not have been terrorism.
Last year, the number of incidents in 2003 was undercounted, forcing a revision of the report, "Patterns of Global Terrorism."
But other current and former officials charged that Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice's office ordered "Patterns of Global Terrorism" eliminated several weeks ago because the 2004 statistics raised disturbing questions about the Bush's administration's frequent claims of progress in the war against terrorism. http://www.realcities.com/mld/krwashington/11407689.htm
“Nuclear Option” (Filibuster)
Frist apparently needs 4 of 7 undecided Republicans to join his Faithful so as to eliminate judicial filibusters. Senators Susan Collins (Maine), Chuck Hagel (Neb.), Dick Lugar (Ind.), Lisa Murkowski (Alaska), Olympia Snowe (Maine), Arlen Specter (Pa.), and John Warner (Va.) are thought to be the swing votes. Collins and Snowe are thought to be leaning to the Democratic position; Lugar and Murkowski are believed to be leaning the other way; Warner, Specter and Hagel’s leanings are unknown / unclear.
North Korea: Reports speculate that Pyongyang is shutting down its nuclear reactor so they can ‘harvest’ the fuel for bombs. The Wall Street Journal notes that South Korea and China continue to expand their connections to North Korea while U.S. policy remains unclear. This seems awfully similar to 3 years ago.
Let them speak:
(1) (Re) Bush:
“The president cares the most about this $10-an-hour person. And what he gets most irritated by is when it is suggested, 'Oh the $10-an-hour person isn't sophisticated enough to deal with a personal retirement account.' "- Allan Hubbard, director of the White House National Economic Council
Now, that’s believable…
(2) The late Daniel Moynihan (1990) observation published in his 1990 book, On the Law of Nations: "A great many people seem to think of law as a kind of self-imposed restraint on America's ability to act decisively or with force in world affairs. This misstates what law is, and obscures the fact that international law can actually enhance the national security of the United States."
Not exactly the Bushies modus operandi
(3) Barney Frank, re House Ethics probes which found he had “behaved inappropriately”, comparing himself to The Hammer:
"I changed my behavior," said Frank. "Tom DeLay changed the ethics committee."
(4) Re: WMD, Deputy AG James Comey expands the definition of WMD, commenting on whether suspects were accused of conspiring to use biological, chemical or nuclear weapons,
"We have not alleged that. But . . . a weapon of mass destruction in our world goes beyond that and includes improvised explosive devices."
Improvised explosive devises = WMD? So, I guess there are WMD in Iraq.
The Familiar: Energy Bill:
The House this week will consider $8 billion in tax breaks targeted to the energy industry at a time when some of those companies are enjoying soaring profits from high consumer prices.
The vast majority of the tax breaks would benefit companies that produce and supply traditional forms of energy, with a large portion going to the oil and natural gas sector. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A63958-2005Apr18.html
The Familiar: Candidates for 2008
Hillary, Kerry, John Edwards and now Wes Clark are thought to be likely candidates, along with Mark Warner and Phil Bredesen (Tennessee gov.)
-R
But if the reconstruction industry is stunningly inept at rebuilding, that may be because rebuilding is not its primary purpose. According to Guttal, "It's not reconstruction at all--it's about reshaping everything." If anything, the stories of corruption and incompetence serve to mask this deeper scandal: the rise of a predatory form of disaster capitalism that uses the desperation and fear created by catastrophe to engage in radical social and economic engineering. And on this front, the reconstruction industry works so quickly and efficiently that the privatizations and land grabs are usually locked in before the local population knows what hit them. Kumara, in another e-mail, warns that Sri Lanka is now facing "a second tsunami of corporate globalization and militarization," potentially even more devastating than the first. "We see this as a plan of action amidst the tsunami crisis to hand over the sea and the coast to foreign corporations and tourism, with military assistance from the US Marines."
As Deputy Defense Secretary, Paul Wolfowitz designed and oversaw a strikingly similar project in Iraq: The fires were still burning in Baghdad when US occupation officials rewrote the investment laws and announced that the country's state-owned companies would be privatized. Some have pointed to this track record to argue that Wolfowitz is unfit to lead the World Bank; in fact, nothing could have prepared him better for his new job. In Iraq, Wolfowitz was just doing what the World Bank is already doing in virtually every war-torn and disaster-struck country in the world--albeit with fewer bureaucratic niceties and more ideological bravado.
Essentially, these countries are first ravaged by natural disasters or wars; then, the privatizing ghouls move in.
In January Condoleezza Rice sparked a small controversy by describing the tsunami as "a wonderful opportunity" that "has paid great dividends for us." Many were horrified at the idea of treating a massive human tragedy as a chance to seek advantage. But, if anything, Rice was understating the case. A group calling itself Thailand Tsunami Survivors and Supporters says that for "businessmen-politicians, the tsunami was the answer to their prayers, since it literally wiped these coastal areas clean of the communities which had previously stood in the way of their plans for resorts, hotels, casinos and shrimp farms. To them, all these coastal areas are now open land!" http://www.thenation.com/docprint.mhtml?i=20050502&s=klein
Jim McGovern visits Iraq Same issue of The Nation: He doesn’t like all the lies he’s told, and fears that the Occupation could go on indefinitely, unless…
What worries me almost as much as our misguided policy in Iraq is that so many of my colleagues and so many citizens have become resigned to the fact that the war will go on. Congress is not being inundated with letters and phone calls and faxes and e-mails and street protests demanding an end to our presence in Iraq. President Bush's re-election seems to have taken much of the energy out of the antiwar movement. My recent visit to Iraq only strengthened my belief that this war is wrong. And only renewed, passionate dissent by the American people can end it. http://www.thenation.com/doc.mhtml?i=20050502&s=mcgovern
“War on Terror” Progress? No. First, we had the claim that terrorist incidents were declining; the Bushies had to withdraw that claim as it was a statistical lie. Now, with evidence continuing to show such an increase, they’ve declared their solution: they’ll no longer print the statistics! Classy
The State Department decided to stop publishing an annual report on international terrorism after the government's top terrorism center concluded that there were more terrorist attacks in 2004 than in any year since 1985, the first year the publication covered.
Several U.S. officials defended the abrupt decision, saying the methodology the National Counterterrorism Center used to generate statistics for the report may have been faulty, such as the inclusion of incidents that may not have been terrorism.
Last year, the number of incidents in 2003 was undercounted, forcing a revision of the report, "Patterns of Global Terrorism."
But other current and former officials charged that Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice's office ordered "Patterns of Global Terrorism" eliminated several weeks ago because the 2004 statistics raised disturbing questions about the Bush's administration's frequent claims of progress in the war against terrorism. http://www.realcities.com/mld/krwashington/11407689.htm
“Nuclear Option” (Filibuster)
Frist apparently needs 4 of 7 undecided Republicans to join his Faithful so as to eliminate judicial filibusters. Senators Susan Collins (Maine), Chuck Hagel (Neb.), Dick Lugar (Ind.), Lisa Murkowski (Alaska), Olympia Snowe (Maine), Arlen Specter (Pa.), and John Warner (Va.) are thought to be the swing votes. Collins and Snowe are thought to be leaning to the Democratic position; Lugar and Murkowski are believed to be leaning the other way; Warner, Specter and Hagel’s leanings are unknown / unclear.
North Korea: Reports speculate that Pyongyang is shutting down its nuclear reactor so they can ‘harvest’ the fuel for bombs. The Wall Street Journal notes that South Korea and China continue to expand their connections to North Korea while U.S. policy remains unclear. This seems awfully similar to 3 years ago.
Let them speak:
(1) (Re) Bush:
“The president cares the most about this $10-an-hour person. And what he gets most irritated by is when it is suggested, 'Oh the $10-an-hour person isn't sophisticated enough to deal with a personal retirement account.' "- Allan Hubbard, director of the White House National Economic Council
Now, that’s believable…
(2) The late Daniel Moynihan (1990) observation published in his 1990 book, On the Law of Nations: "A great many people seem to think of law as a kind of self-imposed restraint on America's ability to act decisively or with force in world affairs. This misstates what law is, and obscures the fact that international law can actually enhance the national security of the United States."
Not exactly the Bushies modus operandi
(3) Barney Frank, re House Ethics probes which found he had “behaved inappropriately”, comparing himself to The Hammer:
"I changed my behavior," said Frank. "Tom DeLay changed the ethics committee."
(4) Re: WMD, Deputy AG James Comey expands the definition of WMD, commenting on whether suspects were accused of conspiring to use biological, chemical or nuclear weapons,
"We have not alleged that. But . . . a weapon of mass destruction in our world goes beyond that and includes improvised explosive devices."
Improvised explosive devises = WMD? So, I guess there are WMD in Iraq.
The Familiar: Energy Bill:
The House this week will consider $8 billion in tax breaks targeted to the energy industry at a time when some of those companies are enjoying soaring profits from high consumer prices.
The vast majority of the tax breaks would benefit companies that produce and supply traditional forms of energy, with a large portion going to the oil and natural gas sector. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A63958-2005Apr18.html
The Familiar: Candidates for 2008
Hillary, Kerry, John Edwards and now Wes Clark are thought to be likely candidates, along with Mark Warner and Phil Bredesen (Tennessee gov.)
-R
