Choice words used to describe President Bush and postwar Iraq planning

(from CNN.com)

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Former Secretary of State Colin Powell's chief of staff says President Bush was "too aloof, too distant from the details" of post-war planning, allowing underlings to exploit Bush's detachment and make bad decisions.

In an Associated Press interview Monday, former Powell chief of staff Lawrence Wilkerson also said that wrongheaded ideas for the handling of foreign detainees after Sept. 11 arose from a coterie of White House and Pentagon aides who argued that "the president of the United States is all-powerful," and that the Geneva Conventions were irrelevant.

Wilkerson blamed Vice President Dick Cheney, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and like-minded aides. Wilkerson said that Cheney must have sincerely believed that Iraq could be a spawning ground for new terror assaults, because "otherwise I have to declare him a moron, an idiot or a nefarious bastard."

Wilkerson suggested his former boss may agree with him that Bush was too hands-off about Iraq.

"What he seems to be saying to me now is the president failed to discipline the process the way he should have and that the president is ultimately responsible for this whole mess," Wilkerson said.

He said Powell now generally believes it was a good idea to remove Saddam Hussein from power, but may not agree with either the timing or execution of the war. Wilkerson said Powell may have had doubts about the extent of the threat posed by Saddam Hussein but was convinced by then-CIA Director George Tenet and others that the intelligence girding the push toward war was sound.

Powell was widely regarded as a dove to Cheney's and Rumsfeld's hawks, but he made a forceful case for war before the United Nations Security Council in February, 2003, a month before the invasion. At one point, he said Saddam possessed mobile labs to make weapons of mass destruction that were never found.
Cheney may have deliberately ignored contrary intelligence

Wilkerson criticized the CIA and other agencies for allowing mishandled and bogus information to underpin that speech and the whole administration case for war.

He said he has almost, but not quite, concluded that Cheney and others in the administration deliberately ignored evidence of bad intelligence and looked only at what supported their case for war.

A newly declassified Defense Intelligence Agency document from February 2002 said that an al Qaeda military instructor was probably misleading his interrogators about training that the terror group's members received from Iraq on chemical, biological and radiological weapons. Ibn al-Shaykh al-Libi reportedly recanted his statements in January 2004.

A presidential intelligence commission also dissected how spy agencies handled an Iraqi refugee who was a German intelligence source. Codenamed Curveball, this man who was a leading source on Iraq's purported mobile biological weapons labs was found to be a fabricator and alcoholic.

On the question of detainees picked up in Afghanistan and other fronts on the war on terror, Wilkerson said Bush heard two sides of an impassioned argument within his administration. Abuse of prisoners, and even the deaths of some who had been interrogated in Afghanistan and elsewhere, have bruised the U.S. image abroad and undermined fragile support for the Iraq war that followed.

Cheney's office, Rumsfeld aides and others argued "that the president of the United States is all-powerful, that as commander in chief the president of the United States can do anything he damn well pleases," Wilkerson said.

On the other side were Powell, others at the State Department and top military brass, and occasionally then-national security adviser Condoleezza Rice, Wilkerson said.

Powell raised frequent and loud objections, his former aide said, once yelling into a telephone at Rumsfeld: "Donald, don't you understand what you are doing to our image?"

Wilkerson also said he did not disclose to Bob Woodward that administration critic Joseph Wilson's wife worked for the CIA, joining the growing list of past and current Bush administration officials who have denied being the Washington Post reporter's source

So I'm being lazy

New Republican Party Logo

More indictments

Washington - Michael Scanlon, former aide to a powerful congressman and onetime partner of a wealthy lobbyist, pleaded guilty today to a federal conspiracy charge as part of a deal in which he agreed to cooperate with an investigation into possible wrongdoing by some lawmakers.

Mr. Scanlon's comedown from a young and wealthy Washington power-player to disgraced felon, formalized before Judge Ellen Segal Huvelle of Federal District Court here, had been expected. But it still may have sent shivers down Capitol corridors.

Mr. Scanlon agreed to pay restitution totaling more than $19 million to the tribes and faces up to five years in prison. He was allowed to remain free on $5 million bond. After pleading guilty, the well-tanned Mr. Scanlon appeared incongruously cheerful. Asked by reporters why he was smiling, he replied, "I'm always smiling."

Mr. Scanlon, 35, was accused of conspiring to defraud Indian tribes out of millions of dollars as part of a lobbying and corruption scheme that involved wining and dining of some lawmakers, treating them to lavish trips and contributing to their campaigns.

Representative Bob Ney, an Ohio Republican, who heads the House Appropriations Committee, was alluded to in the indictment (although not by name) as a main beneficiary of largess, in return for helping Mr. Abramoff and Mr. Scanlon with their clients.

Lawyers involved in the case have confirmed that Mr. Ney is the "Representative #1" cited in the indictment. The congressman - who has not been charged - has asserted that he was duped by the two and is cooperating with prosecutors, a spokesman for Mr. Ney says.

Mr. Scanlon's lawyer, Plato Cacheris, was asked whether any other members of Congress had anything to fear. "I have no comment on that," he replied.

Until recently, Mr. Scanlon occupied a powerful - and lucrative - position at the intersection of political power and lobbying influence. For several years, he worked as a top aide to Representative Tom DeLay of Texas, the Republican majority leader. He left Mr. DeLay's office in 2000 to become an associate of Jack Abramoff, a Republican lobbyist.

Mr. Abramoff and Mr. Scanlon earned more than $80 million representing a few wealthy Indian tribes on gambling issues. Those transactions have been under investigation by the Senate Indian Affairs Committee as well as federal prosecutors.

In an e-mail message made public by the committee, Mr. Scanlon seemed to lust for wealth, and seemed to see the Indian tribes as easy targets. "I want all their money!!!" he wrote of one tribe in 2002. Referring to the money available from another tribe, he exclaimed, "Weeez gonna be rich!!!"

Mr. DeLay has been indicted in Texas on charges involving political fund-raising that are not related to the inquiry in which Mr. Scanlon pleaded guilty today. And Mr. Abramoff has been indicted in Florida on unrelated fraud-and-conspiracy charges involving an attempt to buy a fleet of casino boats.

Like Mr. Ney, Mr. DeLay has been named as a beneficiary of Mr. Abramoff's and Mr. Scanlon's generosity. He, too, has denied wrongdoing. Mr. Cacheris, when asked whether Mr. DeLay had reason to worry over Mr. Scanlon's cooperating with prosecutors, said, "You'll have to ask his lawyers."

From the Washington Post

A White House document shows that executives from big oil companies met with Vice President Cheney's energy task force in 2001 -- something long suspected by environmentalists but denied as recently as last week by industry officials testifying before Congress.

The document, obtained this week by The Washington Post, shows that officials from Exxon Mobil Corp., Conoco (before its merger with Phillips), Shell Oil Co. and BP America Inc. met in the White House complex with the Cheney aides who were developing a national energy policy, parts of which became law and parts of which are still being debated.

In a joint hearing last week of the Senate Energy and Commerce committees, the chief executives of Exxon Mobil Corp., Chevron Corp. and ConocoPhillips said their firms did not participate in the 2001 task force. The president of Shell Oil said his company did not participate "to my knowledge," and the chief of BP America Inc. said he did not know.

Chevron was not named in the White House document, but the Government Accountability Office has found that Chevron was one of several companies that "gave detailed energy policy recommendations" to the task force. In addition, Cheney had a separate meeting with John Browne, BP's chief executive, according to a person familiar with the task force's work; that meeting is not noted in the document.

The task force's activities attracted complaints from environmentalists, who said they were shut out of the task force discussions while corporate interests were present. The meetings were held in secret and the White House refused to release a list of participants. The task force was made up primarily of Cabinet-level officials. Judicial Watch and the Sierra Club unsuccessfully sued to obtain the records.

‘May be lying’
Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-N.J.), who posed the question about the task force, said he will ask the Justice Department today to investigate. "The White House went to great lengths to keep these meetings secret, and now oil executives may be lying to Congress about their role in the Cheney task force," Lautenberg said.

Lea Anne McBride, a spokeswoman for Cheney, declined to comment on the document and said that the courts have upheld "the constitutional right of the president and vice president to obtain information in confidentiality."

The executives were not under oath when they testified, so they are not vulnerable to charges of perjury; committee Democrats had protested the decision by Commerce Chairman Ted Stevens (R-Alaska) not to swear in the executives. But a person can be fined or imprisoned for up to five years for making "any materially false, fictitious or fraudulent statement or representation" to Congress.

Alan Huffman, who was a Conoco manager until the 2002 merger with Phillips, confirmed meeting with the task force staff. "We met in the Executive Office Building if I remember correctly," he said. A spokesman for ConocoPhillips said he was looking into the apparent discrepancy between Huffman's statement and the testimony of the company's chief executive.

Exxon spokesman Russ Roberts said the company stood by chief executive Lee R. Raymond's statement in the Senate hearing. In a brief telephone interview, former Exxon vice president James Rouse, the official named in the White House document, denied the meeting took place. "That must be inaccurate and I don't have any comment beyond that," said Rouse, now retired.

Ronnie Chappell, a spokesman for BP, declined to comment on the task force meetings. Darci Sinclair, a spokeswoman for Shell, said she did not know whether Shell officials met with the task force, but they often meet members of the administration. Chevron said its executives did not meet with the task force but confirmed that they provided a letter to President Bush outlining the company's recommendations.

Based on Secret Service records
The person familiar with the task force's work, who requested on the condition of anonymity out of concern about retribution, said the document was based on records kept by the Secret Service of people admitted to the White House complex. This person said most meetings were with Andrew Lundquist, the task force's executive director, and Cheney aide Karen Y. Knutson.

According to the White House document, Rouse met with task force staff on Feb. 14, 2001. On March 21, the task force staff met with Archie Dunham, who was chairman of Conoco. On April 12, according to the document, the task force staff met with Conoco official Huffman and two officials from the U.S. Oil and Gas Association, Wayne Gibbens and Alby Modiano.

On April 17, the task force staff met with Royal Dutch/Shell Group's chairman, Sir Mark Moody-Stuart, Shell Oil chairman Steven Miller and two others. On March 22, the task force staff met with BP regional president Bob Malone, chief economist Peter Davies and company employees Graham Barr and Deb Beaubien.

Toward the end of the hearing, Lautenberg asked the five executives: "Did your company or any representatives of your companies participate in Vice President Cheney's energy task force in 2001?" When there was no immediate response, Lautenberg added: "The meeting . . . "

"No," said Raymond.

"No," said Chevron Chairman David J. O'Reilly.

"We did not, no," said ConocoPhillips chairman James Mulva.

"To be honest, I don't know," said BP America chief executive Ross Pillari, who came to the job in August 2001. "I wasn't here then."

"But your company was here," Lautenberg replied.

"Yes," Pillari said.

Shell Oil president John Hofmeister, who has held his job since earlier this year, answered last. "Not to my knowledge," he said.

From Tom Paine

Last week, I attended the screening of Robert Greenwald’s new film, “Wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Price.” It is a great piece of investigative work that gives voice to the people and communities Wal-Mart has destroyed. You have to see it (or buy your own copy here). During the movie, I caught myself thinking: If you want to know why the Democratic Party will continue to be the minority party in the country, look no further than the raft of Democratic operatives and elected representatives who do the bidding of Wal-Mart.

Let’s start by looking at what I call the Wal-Mart 22: The 22 Democrats who, on June 24, voted against an amendment to the 2006 fiscal year labor appropriations bill (offered by Rep. Rosa DeLauro of Connecticut). This bill barred any spending of money by the Department of Labor to implement the part of the deal the department had made with Wal-Mart calling for advance notice of inspections any time the DOL planned to investigate Wal-Mart. This is the deal that was recently heavily criticized by the department’s inspector general.

That point bears repeating—the federal government, the people who are supposed to protect citizens from corporate abuse, essentially said to perhaps the most notorious corporate law breaker in recent years, “when we come looking for wrongdoing in your company, we’re going to tell you ahead of time.”

Anyway, so who were the Wal-Mart 22? Marion Berry, Ark., Sanford Bishop, Ga.; Dan Boren, Okla.; G. K. Butterfield, N.C.; James Clyburn, S.C.; Bud Cramer, Ala.; Henry Cuellar, Texas; Artur Davis, Ala., Diana DeGette, Colo.; Harold Ford, Tenn.; Charles Gonzalez, Texas; Ron Kind, Wis.; Jim Matheson, Utah; Dennis Moore, Kan.; Mike Ross, Ark.; John Salazar, Colo.; Vic Snyder, Ark.; John Tanner, Tenn.; Mike Thompson, Calif.; Bennie Thompson, Miss., Ed Towns, N.Y.; and Al Wynn, Md.

I note a few things about the Wal-Mart 22. A disturbing number of them were members of the Congressional Black Caucus (Bishop, Butterfield, Clyburn, Davis, Ford, Thompson, Town and Wynn). I know Harold Ford is running for the Senate and needs money. But why should any labor union give him a dime if he’s protecting Wal-Mart, a company where not a single worker is a union member because of the company’s virulently anti-union behavior?

And then up pop the names of Dennis Moore, Jim Matheson, Vic Snyder, Ed Towns, John Tanner and Henry Cuellar, six of the 15 Democrats who voted for the Central American Free Trade Agreement . Is there any more evidence needed that these six deserve to be booted from office via a challenge in the Democratic primary or, at least, not receive a dime from organized labor?

Let’s tally up some other Democrats who are on the Wal-Mart dole: Matt Miller, a fellow at the Center for American Progress, is doing consulting work for Wal-Mart. Miller considers himself a Democrat and CAP, I believe, fancies itself as a rapid-response operation in opposition to the Republican idea- and-spin machine. Mia Masten, Wal-Mart’s East Coast rep, is a former Clinton administration staffer (her post was special assistant to the senior adviser to the president for policy development). One of the Chicago Daley brothers, Michael, was hired by Wal-Mart to lobby for the zoning changes to clear the way for two new stores; as a local observer told me, when Daley’s firm is hired, “it is a signal that his position is the one supported by the mayor, a very powerful signal.” I could go on, but you get the point.

This is unconscionable, morally and politically. I think we all get the moral part—I know many people are pretty hip to the way Wal-Mart rampages through our communities (if not, go to www.walmartwatch.com and get religion). But politically, this is dumb: if the Democratic Party can’t be unified in opposition to the number-one economic enemy of the people, to the number-one enemy undermining any hope for a decent standard of living in the future, then, what exactly should people think the Democratic Party stands for? Why exactly should voters believe that Democrats have any more intention to challenge corporate power if the party is feeding at the Wal-Mart trough? And I do believe that, given the choice between Republicans and Republican-lite (the latter includes Democratic supporters of Wal-Mart or so-called “free trade” or both) people will always vote for the real thing.

Labor has to ratchet up the cost of doing business for anyone cozying up to Wal-Mart. Here are my humble suggestions:

* The Change To Win federation and the AFL-CIO should jointly send a letter to Harry Reid, Nancy Pelosi, Charles Schumer (head of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee) and Rahm Emanuel (head of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee) demanding that no work be given to any Democratic operative or consulting firm that shills for Wal-Mart. If the party refuses to turn off the spigot for Wal-Mart shills, then, the two federations should pledge not to send a single dollar to any campaign committee.

* Both federations should also write to every member of Congress declaring that any Democrat receiving Wal-Mart money can kiss any labor donations or labor support good-bye.

* Both federations should, then, send a letter to every alleged Democratic campaign consultant and make it clear: You work for us OR you work for Wal-Mart. You can’t do both.

We all know the political world is oiled by money. So if there’s really a commitment to roll back Wal-Mart, it makes no sense to me to reward people who aid Wal-Mart. Stop the money—and their hearts will follow.

laugh ...... it doesnt cost nothin

Ten reasons why gay marriage is WRONG:

01) Being gay is not natural. Real Americans always reject unnatural things like eyeglasses, polyester, and air conditioning.

02) Gay marriage will encourage people to be gay, in the same way that hanging around tall people will make you tall.

03) Legalizing gay marriage will open the door to all kinds of crazy behavior. People may even wish to marry their pets because a dog has legal standing and can sign a marriage contract.

04) Straight marriage has been around a long time and hasn't changed at all; women are still property, blacks still can't marry whites, and divorce is still illegal.

05) Straight marriage will be less meaningful if gay marriage were allowed; the sanctity of Britney Spears' 55-hour just-for-fun marriage would be destroyed.

06) Straight marriages are valid because they produce children. Gay couples, infertile couples, and old people shouldn't be allowed to marry because our orphanages aren't full yet, and the world needs more children.

07) Obviously gay parents will raise gay children, since straight parents only raise straight children.

08) Gay marriage is not supported by religion. In a theocracy like ours, the values of one religion are imposed on the entire country. That's why we have only one religion in America.

09) Children can never succeed without a male and a female role model at home. That's why we as a society expressly forbid single parents to raise children.

10) Gay marriage will change the foundation of society; we could never adapt to new social norms. Just like we haven't adapted to cars, the service-sector economy, or longer life spans.

Funniest Bushisms

1. "I am here to make an announcement that this Thursday, ticket counters and airplanes will fly out of Ronald Reagan Airport." —Washington, D.C., Oct. 3, 2001

2. "Too many good docs are getting out of the business. Too many OB-GYNs aren't able to practice their love with women all across this country." —Poplar Bluff, Mo., Sept. 6, 2004

3. "Our enemies are innovative and resourceful, and so are we. They never stop thinking about new ways to harm our country and our people, and neither do we." —Washington, D.C., Aug. 5, 2004

4. "There's no doubt in my mind that we should allow the world worst leaders to hold America hostage, to threaten our peace, to threaten our friends and allies with the world's worst weapons." —South Bend, Indiana, Sept. 5, 2002.

5. "There's an old...saying in Tennessee...I know it's in Texas, probably in Tennessee that says Fool me once...(3 second pause)... Shame on...(4 second pause)...Shame on you....(6 second pause)...Fool me...Can't get fooled again." —Nashville, Tennessee, Sept. 17, 2002.

6. "See, free nations are peaceful nations. Free nations don't attack each other. Free nations don't develop weapons of mass destruction." —Milwaukee, Wis., Oct. 3, 2003

7. "The ambassador and the general were briefing me on the -- the vast majority of Iraqis want to live in a peaceful, free world. And we will find these people and we will bring them to justice." —Washington, D.C., Oct. 27, 2003.

8 "I'm looking forward to a good night's sleep on the soil of a friend." —on visiting Denmark, Washington D.C., June 29, 2005

9. "Wow! Brazil is big." after being shown a map of Brazil by Brazilian president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, Brasilia, Brazil, Nov. 6, 2005

10. A TIE BETWEEN:
"Rarely is the question asked, 'Is our children learning'?"
—Florence, S.C. Jan 11 2000
"The illiteracy level of our children are appalling." —Washington, D.C., Jan. 23, 20004

I want

I want to know how it'll end.
I want to be sure of what it'll cost.
I want to strangle the stars for all they promised me.
I want you to call me on your drug phone.
I want to keep you alive so there is always the possibility of murder later.
I want to be there when you learn the cost of desire.
I want you to understand that my malevolence is just a way to win
I want the name of the ruiner.
I want matches in case I have to suddenly burn.
I want you to know that being kind is overrated.
I want to write my secret across your sky.
I want to watch you lose control.
I want to watch you lose.
I want to know exactly what it's going to take.
I want to see you insert yourself into glory.
I want your touches to scar me so I'll know where you've been.
I want you to watch when I go down in flames.
I want a list of atrocities done in your name.
I want to reach my hand into the dark and feel what reaches back.
I want to remember when my nightmares were clearer.
I want to be there when your hot black rage rips wide open.
I want to taste my own kind.
I want to be wrapped in cold wet sheets to see if it's different on this side.
I want you to come on strong.
I want to leave you out in the cold.
I want the exact same thing... but different.
I want some soft drugs.. some soft, soft drugs.
I want to throw you.
I want you to know I know.
I want to know if you read me.
I want to swing with my eyes shut and see what I hit.
I want to know just how much you hate me so I can predict what you'll do.
I want you to know the wounds are self-inflicted.
I want a controlling interest.
I want to be somewhere beautiful when I die.
I want to be your secret hater.
I want to stop destroying you but I can't.
And I want and I

judge for yourself

Powerful new evidence emerged yesterday that the United States dropped massive quantities of white phosphorus on the Iraqi city of Fallujah during the attack on the city in November 2004, killing insurgents and civilians with the appalling burns that are the signature of this weapon.

Ever since the assault, which went unreported by any Western journalists, rumours have swirled that the Americans used chemical weapons on the city.

On 10 November last year, the Islam Online website wrote: "US troops are reportedly using chemical weapons and poisonous gas in its large-scale offensive on the Iraqi resistance bastion of Fallujah, a grim reminder of Saddam Hussein's alleged gassing of the Kurds in 1988."

The website quoted insurgent sources as saying: "The US occupation troops are gassing resistance fighters and confronting them with internationally banned chemical weapons."

In December the US government formally denied the reports, describing them as "widespread myths". "Some news accounts have claimed that US forces have used 'outlawed' phosphorus shells in Fallujah," the USinfo website said. "Phosphorus shells are not outlawed. US forces have used them very sparingly in Fallujah, for illumination purposes.

"They were fired into the air to illuminate enemy positions at night, not at enemy fighters."

But now new information has surfaced, including hideous photographs and videos and interviews with American soldiers who took part in the Fallujah attack, which provides graphic proof that phosphorus shells were widely deployed in the city as a weapon.

In a documentary to be broadcast by RAI, the Italian state broadcaster, this morning, a former American soldier who fought at Fallujah says: "I heard the order to pay attention because they were going to use white phosphorus on Fallujah. In military jargon it's known as Willy Pete.
"Phosphorus burns bodies, in fact it melts the flesh all the way down to the bone ... I saw the burned bodies of women and children. Phosphorus explodes and forms a cloud. Anyone within a radius of 150 metres is done for."

Photographs on the website of RaiTG24, the broadcaster's 24-hours news channel, www.rainews24.it, show exactly what the former soldier means. Provided by the Studies Centre of Human Rights in Fallujah, dozens of high-quality, colour close-ups show bodies of Fallujah residents, some still in their beds, whose clothes remain largely intact but whose skin has been dissolved or caramelised or turned the consistency of leather by the shells.

A biologist in Fallujah, Mohamad Tareq, interviewed for the film, says: "A rain of fire fell on the city, the people struck by this multi-coloured substance started to burn, we found people dead with strange wounds, the bodies burned but the clothes intact."

The documentary, entitled Fallujah: the Hidden Massacre, also provides what it claims is clinching evidence that incendiary bombs known as Mark 77, a new, improved form of napalm, was used in the attack on Fallujah, in breach of the UN Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons of 1980, which only allows its use against military targets.

Meanwhile, five US soldiers from the elite 75th Ranger Regiment have been charged with kicking and punching detainees in Iraq.

The news came as a suicide car bomber killed four American soldiers at a checkpoint south of Baghdad yesterday.

(Just remember .... "We Dont Torture" ... but we can obviously maim and cripple people with no problem)

Whos Paranoid ???? ME?

Spurred by paranoia and aided by the USA Patriot Act, the Bush Administration has compiled dossiers on more than 10,000 Americans it considers political enemies and uses those files to wage war on those who disagree with its policies.

The “enemies list” dates back to Bush’s days as governor of Texas and can be accessed by senior administration officials in an instant for use in campaigns to discredit those who speak out against administration policies or acts of the President.

The computerized files include intimate personal details on members of Congress; high-ranking local, state and federal officials; prominent media figures and ordinary citizens who may, at one time or another, spoken out against the President or Administration.

Capitol Hill Blue has spoken with a number of current and former administration officials who acknowledge existence of the enemies list only under a guarantee of confidentiality. Those who have seen the list say it is far more extensive than Richard Nixon’s famous “enemies list” of Watergate fame or Bill Clinton’s dossiers on political enemies.

“How is that you think Karl (Rove) and Scooter (Libby) were able to disseminate so much information on Joe Wilson and his wife,” says one White House aide. “They didn’t have that information by accident. They had it because they have files on those who might hurt them.”

White House insiders tell a disturbing tales of invasion of privacy, abuse of government power and use of expanded authority under the USA Patriot Act to dig into the personal lives of anyone the administration deems an enemy of the state.

Those on the list include former Ambassador Joseph Wilson and his wife, former covert CIA operative Valarie Plame, along with filmmaker and administration critic Michael Moore, Senators like California’s Barbara Boxer, media figures like liberal writer Joe Conason and left-wing bloggers like Markos Moulitsas Zúniga (the Daily Kos).

“If you want to know who’s sleeping with whom, who drinks too much or has a fondness for nose candy, this is the place to find it,” says another White House aide. “Karl (Rove) operates under the rule that if you fuck with us, we’ll fuck you over.”

Rove started the list while Bush served as governor of Texas, compiling information on various political enemies in the state and leaking damaging information on opponents to friends in the press. The list grew during Bush’s first run for President in 2000 but the names multiplied rapidly after the terrorist attacks of 2001 and passage of the USA Patriot Act. Using the powers under the act, Rove expanded the list to more than 10,000 names, utilizing the FBI’s “national security letters” to gather private and intimate details on American citizens.

National security letters, which can be issued by an FBI supervisor without a judge’s review or approval, allows the bureau to sweep up the records of virtually any American citizen, examining their telephone calls, correspondence and financial lives of ordinary Americans.

The FBI issues some 30,000 national security letters a year to employers, credit bureaus, banks, travel agencies and other sources of information on American citizens. The Patriot Act also forbids anyone receiving such a letter to reveal they have passed on information to the federal government.

“Those letters helped us build files quickly on those we needed to know more about,” says a former White House aide.

The database of political enemies of the Bush administration is not maintained on White House computers and is located on a privately-owned computer offsite, but can be accessed remotely by a select list of senior aides, including Rove. The offsite location allowed the database to escape detection by special prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald during his investigation of the Valerie Plame leak. The database is funded by private donations from Bush political backers and does not appear on the White House budget or Federal Election Commission campaign reports.

Bush is not the first President to use the FBI to keep track of his enemies. Richard M. Nixon used FBI files to try and discredit his opponents, including Daniel Ellsberg, the Department of Defense employee who leaked the Pentagon Papers to The New York Times. Bill Clinton used the FBI to compile dossiers on critics like Conservative Congressman Bob Barr and legal gadfly Larry Klayman of Judicial Watch.

But worried White House insiders say the intelligence gathered by the Bush administration is far larger, more extensive and potentially more damaging than the excesses of previous occupants of the White House. Even worse, it dovetails into a pattern of spying on Americans that has become commonplace since Bush took office.

“We’re talking about Big Brother at its most extreme,” says one White House staffer. “We know things about people that their spouses don’t know and, if it becomes politically expedient, we will make sure the rest of the world knows.”

The White House press official did not respond to a request for an interview on this story and did not return phone calls seeking comment.

What did YOU do this weekend?

A showdown over a proposed state constitutional ban of same-sex marriage pitted a small Ku Klux Klan group Saturday against a massive rally by opponents.

Only about a dozen members of the American White Knights of the Ku Klux Klan appeared at Austin City Hall for the group's "pro-family values" rally. None wore the traditional hoods or robes of the white supremacist group. Some displayed Confederate flag symbols.

"Let's meet their hate with love and understanding," Glen Maxey, an openly gay former legislator and a leader of the counter demonstration, told hundreds of opponents as they marched toward the Klan event.

At issue was Proposition 2, a proposed constitutional amendment on Tuesday's election ballot stating that marriage in Texas is only between a man and a woman.

"We're asking Texans to support Proposition 2 because God supports it, not because the KKK supports it," said Steven Edwards, the grand dragon of the Klan group.

Maxey, director of No Nonsense in November, an anti-Prop 2 campaign organization, said Tuesday's vote is important, but changing Texans' minds about discrimination is more important.

An estimated 3,000 protesters showed up during the Klan event, said Austin Police Department spokeswoman Toni Chovanetz. Two people were arrested. One was carrying a club and causing a disturbance, and another was arrested on outstanding warrants, Chovanetz said.

The city blocked off several streets to keep members of the public at least a block away from the Klan in all directions. A contingent of 200 police officers -- some wearing riot gear and at least one toting a rifle -- stood along police barricades and patrolled the area.

Many anti-Klan demonstrators carried yellow daisies, sang peace songs and chanted anti-Klan slogans. Some held banners or signs that said, "Vote Against Bigotry," "Vote Against the Klan" and "Killers, Kowards, Kooks Go Away."

Some social conservatives who are actively supporting Proposition 2 made it clear they weren't associated with the Klan event.

The Anti-Defamation League issued a statement saying it "hopes all Texans will understand the significance of an organization with a history of hatred and bigotry supporting a discriminatory amendment."

Austin Mayor Will Wynn and other city leaders had declared Saturday a "day of tolerance" and urged that citizens stay away from the Klan and do community work instead.

But many came to speak their minds and get a glimpse of a faction of the white supremacist group that got its start in Texas in the 1860s.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Yes friends, yours truly was in Austin at this event on Saturday. I have some pictures that I may eventually post (I have to get a USB cable for my camera.) Its hard to believe that there were 3000 people there. Not bad for something that was organized basically a week in advance. I (along with 4 other people) carried a banner. It was definately a very surreal moment to see police in full riot gear and the sky filled with helicopters. Yup, I think that Austin is going to be my new home in 2006.

Here are some pictures from this weekend

What ME worry

A growing number of Republican leaders, party strategists and political professional now privately tell President George W. Bush that his presidency "is effectively over" unless he fires embattled White House advisor Karl Rove, apologizes to the American people for misleading the country into war and revamps his administration from top to bottom.

"The only show of unity we have now in the Republican Party is the belief that the President has failed the party, the American people and the presidency," says a longtime, and angry, GOP strategist.

With the public face of support for Bush eroding daily from even diehard Republicans, the President faces mounting anger from within his party over the path that may well lead to loss of control of Congress in the 2006 midterm elections and the White House in 2008.

"This presidency is in trouble," says a senior White House aide. "Even worse, I don't know if there is a way out of the trouble."

Congressional leaders journeyed to the White House before Bush left on his South American tour this week to tell the President that his legislative agenda on the Hill is dead, his latest Supreme Court nominee faces a tough confirmation fight in the Senate and he is facing open revolt within party ranks.

"The Speaker is having an increasingly difficult time holding his troops in line," says a source within the office of House Speaker Dennis J. Hastert. "Anger at the President grows exponentially with each passing day."

At a recent White House strategy session, internal party pollsters told the President that his approval rating with Americans continues to slide and may be irreversible, citing his failed Iraq war, the failed Supreme Court nomination of Harriet Miers and his failure to deal decisively on a number of fronts, including Hurricane Katrina, the economy and the Valerie Plame scandal.

In meetings, leaders and strategists have suggested a number of things that Bush must do to try and save his presidency and GOP prospects in upcoming elections, including:

* Apologize to the American people, Congress and our allies for misleading them on the reasons for invading Iraq;
* Revamp the White House staff from top to bottom;
* Fire Rove.

"We keep coming back to Rove," says a GOP pollster. "He has escaped indictment, so far, but the feeling within the party is that another shoe is ready to drop and the longer he waits to jettison Rove the greater the damage. As long as Karl Rove remains at the President's side, the Bush presidency is effectively over and he is just riding out the days until the nation elects a Democrat to replace him. Even with Rove gone the damage may be irreparable."

Bush, however, has dug his heels in on Rove. When a GOP strategist suggested last weekend that the President fire Rove, Bush exploded.

"You go to hell," he screamed at the strategist. "You can leave and you can take the rest of these lily-livered motherfuckers with you!" The President then stormed out of the room and refused to meet further with any other party leaders or strategists.

Bush's escalating temper tantrums and his intransigence on political issues increase Republican worries about the long term effects on both his presidency and the party's prospects in upcoming elections.

"Right now, George W. Bush is the Republican Party's chief liability," says a GOP strategist who has advised Presidential campaigns for 30 years. "The entire political future of the party and perhaps the nation now rests on the shoulders of a President that no one - Democrat or Republican - believes in or trusts."

From the Presidents Press Conference

This is an excerpt from the White House web site

Q The American people, though -- sir, the American people, though, are beginning to question your honesty, according to the polls, 58 percent. And your approval rating is at an all-time low, primarily because, it seems, of this investigation. They are wondering whether you can keep on track and whether to believe you, sir.

THE PRESIDENT: Well, no, I understand there is a preoccupation by polls and by some. I think this may be -- I think we've got -- this is maybe the fourth or fifth consecutive semi-press conference -- press conference or semi-press conference that I've been asked about polls. The way you earn credibility with the American people is to declare an agenda that everybody can understand, an agenda that relates to their lives, and get the job done. And the agenda that I'm working on now is one that is important to the American people.

First of all, it's to protect our country; it's to understand that we're at war with a radical ideology that wants to inflict harm on America and, at the same time, use that harm they inflict to achieve territorial ambition. I've talked a lot recently about the Zawahiri letter to Zarqawi, which is a clear statement of purpose by these terrorists. It should be viewed for what it is: an open warning to the free world that this is a very vital war and we need to win it. So I spend a lot of time talking about that -- and more than talking about it, acting on it.

Secondly, you know, our economy has shown amazing resilience in the face of natural disaster, as well as rising energy prices. But we've got to have policies in place that make it possible for the economy to continue to grow. You know, we're down here talking about trade -- it's hard to trade with somebody if they're broke. And I've told our partners that we've got good economic growth now. But what we need to do is to work with Congress to make sure that we deal with the energy crisis -- what can we do to deal with the energy crisis? Well, we can expand refinery capacity in the United States. I mean, it should be apparent to the members of Congress that when the Katrina hit there was massive disruptions of our own capacity to make gasoline, which put us in a precarious position for the consumers -- which would affect the economy, by the way.

And so we'll be talking to Congress about a further energy initiative to make sure we've got economic growth. We've obviously got work to do with Katrina and Rita, the damage from those hurricanes.

And I mentioned the Supreme Court. This is a very vital issue for the United States Senate and for the country. Sam Alito, Jr., is an incredibly intelligent, well qualified person who should be on the Court. I told the leadership I thought it would be best to have the hearings before Christmas. They didn't feel like they could get the job done. I talked to Chairman Specter, and the reason why, at least he explained to me, that he couldn't get the hearings done before Christmas is because Alito had written so many opinions and he wanted to make sure he had time to read them. And they made that decision. Fortunately, there is a firm date and we look forward to working on that date.

And, finally, an issue that is of concern to the American people is the border, is border security. I signed an appropriations bill for border security and during that signature ceremony talked about our strategy to use technology and border patrol and wise policies to do our job, which is to prevent people from illegally -- not only people, but, by the way, contraband, guns and drugs -- from coming into our country illegally. And so that's the agenda before us, and that's the agenda that I will continue to work on.

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So as you can see, what ISNT important is that one of your cabinet members is being indicted for Obstruction of Justice and Lying while under oath repeatedly. But what is important is a "consistent" message to the American people which we know by now is a LIE. How many thousands protested him today in Latin America. So far I've read tens of thousands of people.

Lets do the math

The following is from an ABC news story that was posted today, talking about the potential of the Avian flu virus outbreak in the US.

The draft of Bush's report predicts as many as 200 million Americans would be infected and 200,000 Americans would die.

NOW if you go back and read what I posted on October 10th, you will see:

"The 381-page draft plan, leaked by health officials who claim that it contains fundamental failures, predicts that a full-scale outbreak could kill as many as 1.9 million Americans and put 8.5 million in hospital at a cost of more than $450 billion"

Does anyone know why these numbers vary SO vastly?

Heres more to add to this puzzle:

October 23/2005 - Just when you thought you understood, and were getting over the fact that Vice President Dick Cheney and his inner elite cabal orchestrated the pretext for the war on Iraq as a massive oil scandal with him being the x-CEO and current inside-tracker, to and for Haliburton - it gets worse.

If you do a little research on Donald Rumsfeld you will see that the avian flu and the ominous pandemic supposedly headed our way is actually another pretext for profits and fear mongering.

Enter Gilead Corporation, who 10 years ago, gave Roche Manufacturers the sole rights to market and sell Tamiflu (but now has rescinded the deal).

Tamiflu has recently been proven to be virtually useless in avian flu prevention, and has been shown to actually accelerate mutations of the bird flu strain.

If you ask Vietnam how Tamiflu works on the bird flu...they'll tell you it is ineffective. Yet it it being touted throughout the US, Canada, and Britiain, of course, as the one thing available to save us from bird flu and are stepping-up production.

War Tsar, Donald Rumsfeld, in 1997 was exalted to chairmen of the Gilead Corporation (creators of Tamiflu), and holds significant shares in the company. As the bird flu scare winds-up Tamiflu stands to pull in record amounts of cash and now deals are bing worked out between a multitude of companies wanting to manufacture Tamiflu. Just follow the money - who stands to profit?

In 1999 Gilead acquired NeXstar Pharmaceuticals of Boulder, Colorado. In the same year, Roche announced first approval of Tamiflu (oseltamivir) for the treatment of influenza. Tamiflu was originally discovered by Gilead and licensed to Roche for late-Phase development and marketing.

In January 2003 Gilead completed its acquisition of Triangle Pharmaceuticals. The company also announced its first full year of profitability.

Just like Dick Cheney claimed to have stepped down from Haliburton (but continues to receive millions from them and award them no-bid contracts in Iraq and New Orleans) Rumsfeld too stood-down from the Gilead Sciences Board in January 2001 when he was appointed Secretary of Defense at the start of George W. Bush's first term as President. It's all very neat and tidy.

Yet more to add .......

WASHINGTON, Oct. 27 - Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld has recused himself from government decisions concerning medications to prevent or treat avian flu, rather than sell his stock holdings in the company that patented the antiviral agent Tamiflu, according to a Pentagon memorandum issued Thursday.

The memorandum, to Mr. Rumsfeld's staff from the Pentagon general counsel, said the defense secretary would not take part in decisions that may affect his financial interests in Gilead Sciences Inc.

Before becoming defense secretary in January 2001, Mr. Rumsfeld was chairman of Gilead. On each of his annual financial disclosure statements, he has listed continued stock holdings in the company.

Gilead holds the patent on Tamiflu, but contracts for it are signed with an American subsidiary of F. Hoffman-LaRoche Ltd., which holds marketing and manufacturing rights.

Mr. Rumsfeld will remain involved in matters related to the Pentagon response to an outbreak, so long as none affect Gilead.

Am I reaching you yet?

Tamiflu(c), manufactured by Roche, a Swiss company, is the FDA approved medicine purported to be an effective treatment for influenza. It has been around for years but hasn't sold well due to the lack of a large influenza epidemic in the world. The threatened Bird Flu pandemic has changed that. Now stocks of Tamiflu(c) are in great demand and large quantities are impossible to secure. Roche is backlogged for years into the future. World health authorities including the UN's World Health Organization (WHO) are urging Roche to license other companies to make the drug, but they are resisting, claiming the drug-making process takes a year and that it would take new makers three years to get tooled up and that the main ingredient is in limited supply. They have been caught in a lie, however. Within hours of Roach's public statements about the unfeasibility of allowing other entities to make their newly crowned "blockbuster" drug and perhaps save millions of inhabitants of planet earth, several potential makers, two of them governments have stepped up and revealed their plans to "break" the Tamiflu(c) patent and start production by the end of this year, should a pandemic break out. Taiwan stated yesterday that they already had made the drug in the lab and could commence commercial production within a few months. India made a similar pronouncement in this release. Though intellectual property such as patents is important to incentivize innovation and research, in the case of Tamiflu(c), "stealing" the patent would seem to be a case of "Turn about is fair play." You see, Tamiflu(c) is but a knock-off of an ancient oriental treatment for coughs and flues. The fruit of the Chinese Star Anise tree is the starting point in the manufacture of this "modern" wonder drug. Chinese medical practitioners have used a tea of this licorice-tasting spice to treat respiratory problems for hundreds, if not thousands of years. The fruit of this Magnolia-like tree is being quickly scooped up by enterprising thinkers around the world and large, commercial quantities are already in short supply. Once the small quantities currently in the supply chain are gone, further Star Anise will not be available till the harvest next March. Roche claims to be able to synthesize the shikimic acid which is the substance extracted from Star Anise in the first stage of the manufacturing of Tamiflu(c). This reporter has at least a mild curiosity as to whether all the complex processing of making Tamiflu(c) is necessary to make a good flu treatment.

SO, once again, I'll let you draw your own conclusions. These stories are from various places around the web. If I wasnt so lazy I'd actually post the links BUT if you're interested do the following:

1. Go to www.google.com
2. type in Donald Rumsfeld + Tamiflu patent + Gilead (which is what I did)
3. revel in the fact that there are 192 results for those three things together.

Realize now that there are some conspiracy laden sites listed here, so I cant be blamed for that, but the message is clear.

The media no longer belongs to the people

The new president of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) has stacked the agency's offices with propagandists and White House loyalists in a bold-faced effort to carry forward Kenneth Tomlinson's right-wing crusade against public broadcasting.

Since taking up her post as CPB President in June, Patricia de Stacy Harrison - the former co-chair of the Republican National Committee - has brought in senior officers from the State Department's "Public Affairs and Public Diplomacy" division, the group that oversees efforts to "advance U.S. interests and security and to provide the moral basis for U.S. leadership in the world."

Each of the new hires had previously served under Harrison when she was assistant secretary for educational and cultural affairs and acting undersecretary for public affairs and public diplomacy.

"Public diplomacy" is gov-speak for propaganda. The packing of the CPB with individuals more comfortable with selling U.S. propaganda than with honest journalism sends a not-so-subtle signal to those working in public broadcasting that truth is out and government spin is in. Harrison's CPB hires include:

Tom Igsitt, now CPB's vice president for government affairs, was a driving force behind the campaign to place pro-American propaganda in Arabic media worldwide to win Arab support for the war on terror. Before joining the State Department, Isgitt was a manager for international public relations giant Burson-Marsteller; the firm has a history of placing key players in George W. Bush's presidential campaigns into top public relations jobs across the industry.

Mike Levy, the new CPB vice president of communications, served as Harrison's chief of staff when she headed the RNC. At the State Department, Levy developed "pro-active media strategies" to increase support for U.S. counter-narcotics initiatives in more than 100 countries as part of the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs. He also previously worked as special assistant to Labor Secretary Elaine Chao and as press secretary to several GOP congressional campaigns.

Helen Mobley, hired as CPB's senior director of corporate communications and planning, worked closely with Harrison to manage the State Department's efforts to bring Afghan women to America to showcase new freedoms after the downfall of the Taliban regime. Mobley also was deputy director of scheduling during George W. Bush's first presidential run and has been active in GOPUSA.com, Bobby Eberle's Texas-based campaign "to spread the conservative message throughout America." Eberle became known earlier this year for having hired J.D. Guckert - aka Jeff Gannon - as his White House corresondent.

I have posted extensive profiles of these three at Free Press.

The CPB was created to shield public broadcasting from political interference, not to be a megaphone for the White House. Harrison's actions have made it clear that she and her right-wing cronies at the CPB will not be deterred from their quest to turn America's treasured public broadcasting system into partisan echo chamber.

Harrison got her own position at the CPB through her political connections to then-Chairman Kenneth Tomlinson, who also heads the Broadcasting Board of Governors - which oversees the Voice of America, Radio Free Europe, Radio and TV Marti and other government-run international broadcasting. Tomlinson's successor, current CPB Chairwoman Cheryl Halpern, is another big GOP fundraiser who spent seven years as a member of the Broadcasting Board of Governors.

Tomlinson is currently being investigated for efforts to impose his political agenda at CPB by funding programming with a pro-government slant, secretly monitoring PBS and NPR for signs of "liberal advocacy journalism," as well as hiring unqualified political cronies like Harrison. Inspector General Kenneth Konz is expected to present his findings - which reportedly included ethical and procedural violations as well as misuse of funds - on Tuesday to a closed-door meeting of the CPB board of directors, of which Tomlinson remains a member.

"CPB is being governed more like a private, secret society than an agency supported by taxpayers," said Jeff Chester, executive director of the Center for Digital Democracy. "As the hiring of former State Department propaganda colleagues by Patricia Harrison illustrates, the CPB has been ideologically hijacked."

The packing of CPB with individuals more comfortable with selling U.S. propaganda than with honest journalism sends a not-so-subtle signal to those working in public broadcasting that truth is out and government spin is in.

Free Press, the Center for Digital Democracy and Common Cause have repeatedly called for greater openness and accountability at the CPB. Earlier this year, we delivered more than 150,000 petitions to the CPB, demanding Tomlinson step down and boardmembers end their partisan interference with public broadcasting.