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Alito-The Sooner the Better!

Looks like Samuel Alito will be just what the doctor ordered! With Americans supporting Roe v. Wade by a 2 to 1 margin the sooner the Supreme Court turns abortion rights back over to the states the sooner we can finally get Republicans out of the majority and get the country back on its feet again! He sure sounds like one screwed-up SOB though, doesn't he? Think Progress ALITO WOULD OVERTURN ROE V. WADE: In his dissenting opinion in Planned Parenthood v. Casey, Alito concurred with the majority in supporting the restrictive abortion-related measures passed by the Pennsylvania legislature in the late 1980’s. Alito went further, however, saying the majority was wrong to strike down a requirement that women notify their spouses before having an abortion. The Supreme Court later rejected Alito’s view, voting to reaffirm Roe v. Wade. [Planned Parenthood of Southeastern Pennsylvania v. Casey, 1991] ALITO WOULD ALLOW RACE-BASED DISCRIMINATION: Alito dissented from a decision in favor of a Marriott Hotel manager who said she had been discriminated against on the basis of race. The majority explained that Alito would have protected racist employers by “immuniz[ing] an employer from the reach of Title VII if the employer’s belief that it had selected the ‘best’ candidate was the result of conscious racial bias.” [Bray v. Marriott Hotels, 1997] ALITO WOULD ALLOW DISABILITY-BASED DISCRIMINATION: In Nathanson v. Medical College of Pennsylvania, the majority said the standard for proving disability-based discrimination articulated in Alito’s dissent was so restrictive that “few if any…cases would survive summary judgment.” [Nathanson v. Medical College of Pennsylvania, 1991] ALITO WOULD STRIKE DOWN THE FAMILY AND MEDICAL LEAVE ACT: The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) “guarantees most workers up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave to care for a loved one.” The 2003 Supreme Court ruling upholding FMLA [Nevada v. Hibbs, 2003] essentially reversed a 2000 decision by Alito which found that Congress exceeded its power in passing the law. [Chittister v. Department of Community and Economic Development, 2000] ALITO SUPPORTS UNAUTHORIZED STRIP SEARCHES: In Doe v. Groody, Alito agued that police officers had not violated constitutional rights when they strip searched a mother and her ten-year-old daughter while carrying out a search warrant that authorized only the search of a man and his home. [Doe v. Groody, 2004] ALITO HOSTILE TOWARD IMMIGRANTS: In two cases involving the deportation of immigrants, the majority twice noted Alito’s disregard of settled law. In Dia v. Ashcroft, the majority opinion states that Alito’s dissent “guts the statutory standard” and “ignores our precedent.” In Ki Se Lee v. Ashcroft, the majority stated Alito’s opinion contradicted “well-recognized rules of statutory construction.” [Dia v. Ashcroft, 2003; Ki Se Lee v. Ashcroft, 2004] Moreand more polls

Seven US troops killed in Iraq

Seven U.S. troops were killed in three roadside bombings near Baghdad, the military said on Monday, making October the bloodiest month for Americans in Iraq since January. In the far west, where U.S. marines have been fighting for months to stem a flow of foreign Arab fighters and funds from Syria, local doctors and tribal leaders accused American forces of killing some 40 civilians in an air strike. The military said it knew of no civilian deaths and believed it had killed an al Qaeda leader targeted by precision bombing. Two roadside bombings near Baghdad on Monday killed six soldiers and the military also announced the death of a Marine, who was killed by a similar device near Falluja on Sunday. October is the 4th worst month (93 killed) for Americans killed in Iraq-The situation has gotten worse, not better. BRING THEM HOME!

Italy Leaving 'Coalition' of the Billing-Berlusconi 'Tried to Warn'' Bush

The U.S. must have stopped sending Italy their monthly check. Italian prime minister also states he 'warned' Bush about going to war. Bush, of course, was way too stupid to listen. Of course being 'stupid' includes 80% of the people in this country in the beginning. "Silvio Berlusconi, one of George Bush's closest allies, says he repeatedly tried to talk the US president out of invading Iraq, in comments to be broadcast today. In the television interview, which goes out on the day the Italian prime minister flies to Washington to meet Mr Bush, Mr Berlusconi says he even enlisted the help of the Libyan leader, Colonel Muammar Gadafy, in behind-the-scenes efforts to stop America going to war. "I have never been convinced war was the best way to succeed in making a country democratic and extract it from an albeit bloody dictatorship," he says. "I tried on several occasions to convince the American president not to wage war."

Bush's 'redo' today?

"President George W. Bush is expected to announce his new nominee for the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday as he tries to battle back from a series of difficult developments last week. Among the candidates most talked about were appeals court judges Michael Luttig and Samuel Alito. Bush considered candidates over the weekend at his Camp David retreat, aided by Miers, who is staying on as his White House counsel, and White House Chief of Staff Andy Card. In addition to Luttig and Alito, Bush was also said to have been looking at appeals court judges Michael McConnell, Edith Jones and Alice Batchelder". I miss Harriet...

"But it is what it is"

Tim Russert - dragged unwillingly into the middle of the Valerie Plame leak investigation by Scooter Libby. "It was Mr. Russert's 20 minutes of sworn testimony to the special prosecutor, Patrick J. Fitzgerald, in a Washington law office on a summer Saturday in 2004 that helped undermine the account of Mr. Cheney's chief of staff, I. Lewis Libby Jr.: that Mr. Russert first told him that Valerie Wilson, the wife of Joseph C. Wilson IV, a former ambassador and a sharp critic of the Bush administration's rationale for war with Iraq, worked at the C.I.A. The five-count grand jury indictment against Mr. Libby charges that he called Mr. Russert "on or about July 10, 2003" (four days before Ms. Wilson's identity became public in a column by Robert Novak) "to complain about press coverage of Libby by an MSNBC reporter" (by all evidence, Chris Matthews of "Hardball") and "did not discuss Wilson's wife with Russert" at all. In a telephone interview on Sunday afternoon, Mr. Russert acknowledged some discomfort with his unusual role in the case, in which Matthew Cooper of Time magazine and Judith Miller of The New York Times, have also contradicted Mr. Libby's account under subpoena. "We hate being in the middle of what we're reporting on," he said. "But it is what it is."

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MULTIPLE CHOICE

Here are three scenarios, A, B and C. Of the three scenarios choose the one you think did the least amount of damage to the country. A. "A few months ago I told the American people I did not trade arms for hostages. My heart and my best intentions tell me that's true, but the facts and evidence tell me it is not. As the Tower Board reported, what began as a strategic opening to Iran deteriorated, in its implementation, into trading arms for hostages. This runs counter to my own beliefs, to administration policy, and to the original strategy we had in mind. There are reasons why it happened, but no excuses. It was a mistake." - Ronald Reagan in a speech from the White House on March 4, 1987. Ronald Reagan authorized the trading of arms to the same terrorists who had bombed the U.S. Marine barracks in Beirut Lebanon in 1983, killing 241 marines. He sold arms which included hand-held TOW missiles. The Reagan administration was also supplying the Iraqis and the Afghan Mujadein who were fighting the Soviets. The mujadein fighters included among them a man named Osama bin Laden. B. "Indeed I did have a relationship with Ms. Lewinsky that was not appropriate. In fact, it was wrong. It constituted a critical lapse in judgment and a personal failure on my part for which I am solely and completely responsible." - Bill Clinton in a speech from the White House on August 17, 1998 Bill Clinton lied under oath about having a sexual relationship with Monica Lewinsky, and he was also charged with obstructing justice, for trying to cover-up for that lie. Bill Clinton was tried (impeached) and found innocent by a majority in the Senate. Estimated damage, $200 for stained blue dress. C. "My fellow Americans, I have come before you tonight to admit that I made a terrible error in judgment when I diverted our country's attention away from our pursuit of Osama bin Laden, and those responsible for the attack on us on 9/11. I now realize...I... needlessly invaded Iraq. Some of the intelligence I received was wrong, but, as we now know, former vice president, Dick Cheney, Scooter Libby and Stephen Hadley, have admitted....without my knowledge, of course, to falsifying most of those reports to me, the UN and the U.S. Congress. I guess we blew it... HeHe, sorry bout that...huh..Good night and May God Bless..." - George W. Bush in a speech from the White House on July 4, 2007. I'll go with 'B'...

AT LEAST ONE PATRIOT WAS THERE!

'Tom the Patriot' with Cindy having a cool one... A patriot crashes the party "The most patriotic element of George Bush's speech in Norfolk on Friday morning wasn't the flags on the big "Strategy for Victory" sign behind the podium. It wasn't the backdrop bleachers artfully decorated with warm bodies in military uniforms. It was the moment early on when a man stood up in Chrysler Hall, yanked open his shirt to expose his "Dump Bush" T-shirt in full view of shocked members of Pat Robertson's Christian Broadcasting Network seated nearby and cried, "War is terrorism! Torture is terrorism!" before he was hustled out by security people". George Bush and Pat Robertson... Now there's two of your typical Republicans-shameless hypocritical liars - squelching free speech and continuing their lies but fooling less and less of their flock every day...

Cheney Has No Defense

There is no defense for what Dick Cheney did. He flat-out lied about the intelligence given to him by the CIA and if what he got from the CIA didn't suit what he wanted to hear, he changed it. Cheney deserves a long prison sentence for his lies that led us to invade a country that he knew wasn't a threat. As soon as Scooter starts revealing what he knows the country can be served the justice it deserves for being led into a war that didn't need to happen. In Indictment's Wake, a Focus on Cheney's Powerful Role "Vice President Dick Cheney makes only three brief appearances in the 22-page federal indictment that charges his chief of staff, I. Lewis Libby Jr., with lying to investigators and misleading a grand jury in the C.I.A. leak case. But in its clear, cold language, it lifts a veil on how aggressively Mr. Cheney's office drove the rationale against Saddam Hussein and then fought to discredit the Iraq war's critics". ..."I don't think it's ever been about Cheney's staff," said Victoria Clarke, a former Pentagon spokeswoman and aide to the first President Bush. "It's about him. Cheney's influence has always been his own."

OIL FOR FOOD AND TEXANS

Oscar Wyatt Jr. Oscar Wyatt Jr.? David Chalmers Jr.? Doesn't sound French to me... "Billionaire Texas oilman Oscar Wyatt Jr. pleaded not guilty yesterday to charges he paid millions in secret kickbacks to Saddam Hussein's government to obtain oil under the United Nations' oil-for-food program. Wyatt, 81, founder and former chairman of Coastal Corp., was arraigned in Manhattan before U.S. District Court Judge Denny Chin, who scheduled a June 20 trial date. Wyatt was arrested last Friday at his home in Houston on federal charges along with Swiss executives Catalina del Socorro Miguel and Mohammed Saidji. The indictment against the three expanded a federal one filed in April against David Chalmers Jr., president of Houston-based Bay Oil USA Inc., and Ludmil Dionissiev, a Bulgarian oil trader. Wyatt is accused of conspiring with Chalmers, Miguel, Saidji and Dionissiev. All entered not guilty pleas Thursday".

He'll Make A Fine Young Republican...

"Africans will have sex with anything that has a pulse." 'At the center of a firestorm this week is Chris Craddock, the Republican candidate running for state delegate in the 67th District, after comments made last week to a Westfield High AP government class about both gays and sex in Africa'. "Negroes are crazy..." *****bartcop

Hey, way to go Texas & Illinois!

"The House approved a ban on horse slaughter Friday after a confusing amendment about meat inspection caused two Republicans who initially had been sponsors of the ban to vote against it. Those sponsors, Reps. John Sweeney, R-N.Y. and Edward Whitfield, R-Ky., were among the lawmakers who voted against the spending bill that included the ban on horse slaughter. The spending measure passed 318-63. About 65,000 horses are slaughtered each year in the U.S. Texas and Illinois are the only two states that slaughter horses, which are processed for human consumption overseas".

cartoon editorial...

Uh.....No shit Bill, you think?

"If there are those who abuse the free enterprise system to advantage themselves and their businesses at the expense of all Americans, they ought to be exposed, and they ought to be ashamed," Frist said in a statement. Exxon Mobil Profit, Sales Soar to Records Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM) rewrote the corporate record books Thursday as the oil company's third-quarter earnings soared to almost $10 billion and it became the first public company ever with quarterly sales topping $100 billion. Third-quarter earnings at some energy companies: Company - Profit ExxonMobil $9.92B Royal Dutch Shell $9.03B BP $6.53B ConocoPhillips $3.8B Marathon Oil $770M Burlington Resources $748M Apache $687M Amerada Hess $272M Chevron reports today Valero reports next week Hillary Clinton "Today's news of record profits by our nation's oil companies further proves the point that it is time for them to step up to the plate and use the huge benefits they are reaping to become part of our nation's energy solution." Harry Reid "It's long past time the Senate addressed the record high prices consumers have faced the past months," Reid said in a statement. "While oil companies have reaped record profits, middle-class families have been left wondering whether anyone had noticed." Howard Dean They [Republicans] continue to hold on to the hands of big oil. Their idea is to give billions of dollars of tax breaks to special interests and to give billions of dollars to big oil companies that turn around and gouge the American people. Instead of leaving this in the hands of oil executives, President Bush and Republicans in Washington ought to stand up to oil companies". Charles Schumer "All together, the 29 major oil and gas firms in the Standard and Poors 500 stock index are expected to earn 96 billion dollars this year -- up from 68 billion dollars last year and 43 billion dollars in 2003. Its become perfectly clear that the big oil companies are cashing in while average American families are being bled dry," John Dingell "What was the Republican answer to the hurricanes? More subsidies to the oil industry."

Franken Beats Limbaugh-Why Wouldn't He?

You have to be a big idiot (not necessarily,'fat') not to listen to Franken over Limbaugh. Franken is not only funnier and much more informative, but he doesn't lie and has more integrity than Limbaugh has oxycotin pills. You'll never hear Franken lie which is something Limbaugh does multiple times on a daily basis. You only have to compare these two's views on the Iraq war to know which one of the two, gets it right and tells the truth about it. Franken destroys Limbaugh on credibility! Air America Radio announced today that "The Al Franken Show" beat "The Rush Limbaugh Show" for the first time in San Francisco and Portland, Ore., 2 of the top 25 markets, in the target demo of 25-54, according to Arbitron Summer 2005 Metro. The two shows air at the same time (9am-12pm) in both markets. In San Francisco, the #4 Metro, "The Al Franken Show", heard on KQKE, came in with a11,400 AQH and a 1.8 Share. "The Rush Limbaugh Show," heard on KSFO, had an 8,500 AQH and a 1.4 Share. In Portland, Ore., the #24 Metro, "The Al Franken Show," heard on KPOJ, was ranked #4 with an 11,800 AQH and a 5.6 Share. "The Rush Limbaugh Show," heard on KEX, was ranked #7 and came in with a 10, 400 AQH and a 4.9 Share. Buzzflash

CIA Didn't Like Being Made the Scapegoat...

Libby case shows bad blood between White House, CIA "Vice President Dick Cheney's former chief of staff is learning one Washington lesson the hard way: Don't do battle with people who run covert operations for a living". The bad blood between the White House and CIA has been known for some time. But the 22-page indictment Friday of I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby displays — in black and white — just how nasty relations had become between senior White House officials and the nation's spy chiefs. When Libby complained to the CIA in June 2003 that agency officials were making comments to reporters "critical of the vice president's office," he specifically mentioned former Ambassador Joseph Wilson's trip to Niger to investigate whether Iraq was trying to obtain nuclear materials. He also spoke of Wilson's wife, Valerie Plame. Later, at the CIA's request, the Justice Department launched an investigation into how Plame's identity and employment with the agency were leaked to the media. The 22-month review involved some of the White House's most senior players and resulted in Libby's indictment and resignation Friday. A grand jury charged him with obstruction of justice, perjury and making false statements in relation to the investigation. Other instances of bad blood between the White House and CIA were more clandestine. The indictment said Libby in 2003 "disparaged" the CIA for its "selective leaking" of information during a discussion with New York Times reporter Judith Miller. In a later exchange, the indictment said, Libby asked Miller to identify him as a "former Hill staffer" rather than a "senior administration official" when he criticized the CIA's reports about Wilson's trip and told Miller he believed that Wilson's wife worked for the CIA.

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Federally Sponsored Research Saving Lives

Dr. Arul M. Chinnaiyan, University of Michigan U-M finds prostate cancer culprit Medical researchers at the University of Michigan have identified a likely cause of prostate cancer they say could lead to more effective treatments and possibly a cure. Scientists have discovered a recurring pattern of scrambled chromosomes that causes certain genes to merge -- an abnormal gene activity occurring only in prostate cancer, the leading cancer diagnosis for men in the United States. An estimated 232,000 new cases of prostate cancer will be reported this year, according to the American Cancer Society. Identifying the specific genes involved may now lead to a new, more accurate test -- of the blood or urine -- to detect prostate cancer, and possibly more effective methods of treatment, said Dr. Arul M. Chinnaiyan, the U-M pathology professor who directed the research. The closer medical researchers are to nailing down a cause, the closer they are to finding its cure, he said. "We'd like to think it's the first step," he said. "A lot of work still needs to be done." While similar forms of the abnormal gene activity have been detected in "liquid" cancers like leukemia and lymphoma, this is the first evidence it's occurred in solid tumors like prostate cancer. The finding also suggests similar gene activity may be involved in the development of other soft-tissue cancers such as cancer of the breast, lung, ovaries and colon. The study's results were published Thursday in Science Magazine. Your tax dollars saving lives

Inflation Up; Wages Down

Fastest Decline in Real Wages on Record "Employers' wage costs grew 2.3% over the past year, the slowest growth rate on record, according to today's report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Factoring in the recent energy-driven increase in inflation, the real wage is down 2.3%, also the largest real loss on record for this series that began in 1981. For the first time in this employers' costs report, the Bureau of Labor Statistics presented these values adjusted for inflation. Both wages and compensation are losing growth in real terms, down 2.3% and 1.5%, respectively, as slower nominal wage growth is colliding with faster inflation. In both cases, these are the largest yearly real losses on record". By Jared Bernstein, an economist at the Economic Policy Institute CounterPunch real wages And how is consumer confidence?

chump change...

IRS told to pay Warren Buffett's investment firm $23 million in taxes, interest over deductions! Man, $23 million bucks! One hell of a 'refund', huh? For a little perspective on what $23 million means to Mr. Buffett, who is worth $44 billion; Let's say you're worth $500,000. You have some good equity in your home, a good start on a retirement fund and some cash in the bank and it totals a $1/2 million dollars. That $23 million that Buffett was just awarded is the equivalent of a person worth $500,000, getting a refund of $261. Maybe not chump change, but you get the point... MSNBC

Cut to the chase

A short excerpt from Fitzgerald's news conference; "Valerie Wilson was a CIA officer. In July 2003, the fact that Valerie Wilson was a CIA officer was classified. Not only was it classified, but it was not widely known outside the intelligence community. Valerie Wilson's friends, neighbors, college classmates had no idea she had another life. "The fact that she was a CIA officer was not well-known, for her protection or for the benefit of all us. It's important that a CIA officer's identity be protected, that it be protected not just for the officer, but for the nation's security. Valerie Wilson's cover was blown in July 2003. The first sign of that cover being blown was when Mr. Novak published a column on July 14th, 2003. But Mr. Novak was not the first reporter to be told that Wilson's wife, Valerie Wilson, Ambassador Wilson's wife, Valerie, worked at the CIA. Several other reporters were told. In fact, Mr. Libby was the first official known to have told a reporter when he talked to Judith Miller in June of 2003 about Valerie Wilson". Text of Fitzgerald news conference

SAY WHAT YOU WANT....

...ABOUT HARRY REID, BUT HE NAILS IT DEAD ON THE HEAD WITH THIS QUOTE; "This case is bigger than the leak of highly classified information. It is about how the Bush White House manufactured and manipulated intelligence in order to bolster its case for the war in Iraq and to discredit anyone who dared to challenge the president." AND THAT IS EXACTLY WHAT HAPPENED...

Cheney Takes Scooter For A Ride

'Scooter' is facing 30 years in prison. It may be time for Scooter to start 'driving'. All Hat No Cattle

Looks like investors have no problem with going after criminals in the White House. Thought I read somehwere today about some feared specualtion of the opposite happening... Markets: 5:16 p.m. ET, Oct 28 DOW UP 172.82 TO 10,402.77 NAS UP 26.07 TO 2,089.88 S&P UP 19.51 TO 1,198.41 (Like that DOW number, huh? Just think, another 180 points and it'll be all the way back up to where it was when Bill Clinton left office-58 long months ago.)

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Don't You Hate It When That Happens?

As some of you know, Bible-thumping Neanderthals in Pennsylvania have been attempting to 'sneak' creationism into the science curriculum of public schools under the guise of calling it 'intelligent design'. School board members have been lying in their testimony by testifying that they weren't attempting to 're-package' creationism and that they never used that term. Well, there's video tape that says otherwise. Doesn't the 6th 'Commandment' say something like "Thou Shall Not Bullshit Thee"? Ex-School Trustee 'Misspoke' on Evolution Says He 'Misspoke' in Advocating Creationism in TV Interview HARRISBURG, Pa. - A former school board member who denied saying creationism should be taught alongside evolution in high school biology classes changed his story Thursday after being confronted in court with TV news footage of him making such comments. William Buckingham explained that he "misspoke" during the TV interview. "It's OK to teach Darwin," he said in the interview, "but you have to balance it with something else, such as creationism."

WHEN MEN WERE MEN...

...AND THE SHEEP WERE PETRIFIED! "When I was in the White House, if somebody was working at Langley, they were fair game" - Charles Colson Back in the day, when Richard Nixon and his band of 'Plumbers' were burglarizing, smearing and obstructing justice, that administration didn't shy away either from those in the CIA who thought of getting in their way. And that is where Dick Cheney, working in the Nixon White House, cut his teeth on vindictiveness for anyone who dared to challenge his authority. Unfortunately for the new gang of 'Plumbers', the similarities with the Nixon regime are as Charles Colson says, 'ironic', and hopefully, the similarities will continue with the justice that is served. I guess we'll find out more about that today... Media Matters The October 26 edition of Fox News' Hannity & Colmes featured the analysis of Townhall.com columnist Charles W. Colson, who served as special counsel to President Richard Nixon from 1969 to 1973. After noting that CIA operative Valerie Plame was working at the agency's headquarters in the Langley neighborhood of McLean, Virginia, when her identity was allegedly leaked, Colson said: "When I was in the White House, if somebody was working at Langley, they were fair game." Colson was indicted in connection with the Watergate cover-up. The charges were dropped when he subsequently pleaded guilty to obstructing justice by disseminating information from the FBI file of Daniel Ellsberg in an effort to influence the outcome of Ellsberg's trial in connection with leaking the Pentagon Papers. Colson served seven months in prison. On Hannity & Colmes, Colson noted that the Plame investigation "is very much like the Watergate [case], in the sense that it wasn't the original crime in Watergate, that is, the break-in to the Democratic headquarters, it was the cover-up. I hope and pray this isn't so." Later in the segment, he explained to co-host Sean Hannity: "But the other thing that's ironic about this, Sean, is that I went to prison for disseminating an FBI file attempting to smear Daniel Ellsberg. So there are stark similarities in this case." Watergate, Brief Timeline

SAVE IT GEORGE

Harriet Miers did NOT voluntarily withdraw her name. George W. Bush withdrew her name for her in a historical display of weakness. No president in history has fallen out of favor with the American people in such a way as Bush has over the last 12 months. George Bush caved to his narrow-minded base. The 30% that even many Republican Senators are now running away from. But that's all right. He played to his base-the 30% that will crawl into their corner by themselves and drive moderate Republicans and independents (independents have already left Bush) to Democrats in the 2006 congressional elections. Democrats couldn't have written the script any better. But George, and Bill Frist, save the lame-ass lies about it being "Harriet's decision". We're tired of your bullshit. We'll see your lying asses in 2006.

Bartcop

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No Doubt, Plame Was a Covert Agent

FBI agents swarmed her neighborhood trying to find anyone who knew previous to the scandalous White House dirty trick of 'outing' her, if Valerie Plame was a CIA agent. None of them knew. Also, in the first paragraph of the linked article from the Boston Globe you will find further confirmation that Valerie Plame was not only covert but she was still doing assignments overseas. That takes care of the Republicans' excuse of her case not fitting into the 'Intelligence Identities Protection Act of 1982', because she had not been overseas since 1997. Valerie Plame was a covert CIA agent and she DID have assignments overseas so that makes what Cheney, Libby and Rove did, treason! And, treason during 'war time' has the penalty of death and I, unlike Al Franken, don't think the Vice President should be given any breaks on sentencing. The spy next door left couple in dark Plame's neighbors cite visit by FBI as probe wraps up By Michael Kranish, Globe Staff | October 27, 2005 WASHINGTON -- David and Victoria Tillotson knew Valerie Plame as a neighbor and friend for more than five years. Plame was, the Tillotsons believed, an international economic consultant, taking occasional trips abroad while looking after her young children in an upper-class enclave of Northwest Washington. Then, one morning in 2003, David Tillotson read a Robert Novak column that quoted two unidentified administration officials as saying Plame was a CIA operative. ''I was stunned," Tillotson said. Yesterday, Tillotson said he had shared his surprise with FBI agents on Monday, who questioned him about whether he had any inkling of Plame's CIA work before the Novak column was published. The FBI visit came as special counsel Patrick Fitzgerald is wrapping up his investigation into whether White House aides Karl Rove and I. Lewis ''Scooter" Libby leaked Plame's identity. Fitzgerald met with the grand jury yesterday without making an announcement about indictments, and also met for 45 minutes with Chief Judge Thomas F. Hogan of US District Court in Washington. The developments kept the White House in suspense about one of the most highly anticipated federal investigations of in recent years. White House spokesman Scott McClellan yesterday again declined to comment on the investigation. ''Everybody is focused on the priorities of the American people," he said, while also acknowledging that White House staffers are ''following developments in the news." As part of his probe, Fitzgerald is checking whether it was publicly known that Plame worked at the CIA. Tillotson, a communications lawyer, believes the visit by FBI agents demonstrates the special counsel is double-checking his theory that the leak by administration officials exposed Plame as a CIA operative, even to some of her close friends. Plame is the wife of Joseph Wilson, a former US ambassador who was sent by the CIA to investigate assertions that Iraq was trying to acquire material for nuclear weapons from Niger. After Wilson publicly expressed his doubts, his wife's identity as a CIA operative was leaked. That led Wilson to say that his wife's job was disclosed by White House officials seeking retribution against him. Tillotson recalled that one day in early July 2003, Wilson pulled him aside and told him to look for an op-ed piece he was writing in The New York Times. In that article, Wilson wrote that ''some of the intelligence related to Iraq's nuclear weapons program was twisted to exaggerate the Iraq threat." More than a week later, on July 14, the identity of Wilson's wife was reported by Novak in a column. ''We were stunned, despite the fact that we knew them well," Tillotson said, referring to Plame and her husband. ''We understood she worked for some company doing economic consulting on an international basis. I heard my wife in the kitchen saying, 'No, that can't be.' It didn't fit the person we knew at all." Can I pull the switch?

Miers withdraws Supreme Court nomination

George the Wimp accepts Miers' withdrawal. I don't want to hear any more whining from Republicans in this country about the president's nominees 'deserving an up or down vote'! Bush caves.

NY Times Provides On-Line Graphic

I know the Bush ass-kissers, those who have no problem with Bush's lies and those who could care less about our troops, won't like this reminder of what those lies have cost, but then again, that's why I do what I do... Those who died because you didn't care that Bush lied.

The Bush Curse-White Sox Sweep

Barbara "Body Bags" Bush with her other criminal son, Neil casting their curse on the Houston Astros Shoeless Joe Jackson's 88 year curse no match against the Bush curse! Sox on top of the world HOUSTON -- The White Sox completed their incredible conquest Wednesday night, eliminating the final demons that haunted the franchise since their last World Series title in 1917. They completed their stunning run in a manner that mirrored their amazingly successful season, riding the pitching of Freddy Garcia and the bullpen to a 1-0 victory over Houston and completing a four-game sweep of the 2005 World Series. 'Shoeless' Joe Jackson was a choir-boy compared to the Bush criminals! (For anyone interested in reading about Neil Bush's criminal past, do a web search on 'Silverado Savings & Loan'.)

CAN I PRODUCE ONE OF THE COMMERCIALS?

You tricked me on that question Richard, you son-of-a-bitch!! So Republicans are all excited about the possibilty of Condi Rice being the next Republican nominee for president, huh? I have already sent an email to Howard Dean requesting the opportunity to do a campaign TV commercial for Democrats and it goes something like this; (Starts with scene of both planes flying into the WTC's with a strong voice which say's something like), Can we as a nation afford to have some one as out of touch as Condoleeza Rice as our president? And then I'd show the tape of the following exchange between Richard Ben-Veniste and Rice at the 9/11 Commission's hearings. BEN-VENISTE: Isn't it a fact, Dr. Rice, that the August 6 PDB warned against possible attacks in this country? And I ask you whether you recall the title of that PDB? RICE: You said, did it not warn of attacks. It did not warn of attacks inside the United States. It was historical information based on old reporting. There was no new threat information. And it did not, in fact, warn of any coming attacks inside the United States. BEN-VENISTE: I asked you what the title was. RICE: I believe the title was, "Bin Laden Determined to Attack Inside the United States." Now, the... BEN-VENISTE: Thank you. 'CONDI FOR PRESIDENT' Cultivated Rice by Michelle Cottle Post date 10.25.05 | Issue date 10.31.05 "Crystal Dueker vividly recalls the moment she was bitten by the Condi bug. "I was at the Republican convention in New York, where I was one of the alternates," the 50-year-old office manager recounts in her made-to-charm North Dakota accent. "We were probably a hundred feet away from Father Bush's box, where Barbara and the daughters were sitting. And, when I saw Condoleezza Rice walk in and exchange pleasantries and start hugging everybody, I thought, 'Oh my gosh, I think I'm looking at the next president of the United States.'"... If Condoleeza Rice is the best Republicans have for 2008, I say 'Bring it on'! I sort of think those eyes fit her personality, don't you?

I'M WITH 'CINDY' ON THIS ONE

Even though I think Cindy Sheehan is half a nut, I agree with her on not supporting Hillary Clinton, or any Democrat for that matter, who voted in favor of going to war with Iraq. Below is a list of the 23 Senators; 21 Democrats, 1 Independent and 1 Republican who had the courage to do what was right when it was time to stand up; Akaka (D-HI) Bingaman (D-NM) Boxer (D-CA) Byrd (D-WV) Chafee (R-RI) Conrad (D-ND) Corzine (D-NJ) Dayton (D-MN) Durbin (D-IL) Feingold (D-WI) Graham (D-FL) Inouye (D-HI) Jeffords (I-VT) Kennedy (D-MA) Leahy (D-VT) Levin (D-MI) Mikulski (D-MD) Murray (D-WA) Reed (D-RI) Sarbanes (D-MD) Stabenow (D-MI) Wellstone (D-MN) Wyden (D-OR) Here's a list of those who voted 'no' on the House version, H.J. Res. 114. Let's start with a clean slate. If you didn't have the foresight that the Iraq war was needless and wrong and if you weren't smart enough to know Iraq had nothing to do with al-Qaeda or 9/11, then you shouldn't be leading the country. Sorry Hillary, if I have no other choice besides you or a Republican that's one thing, but I won't support anyone in the Democrat primaries who voted yes on S.J. Res 45 or H.J. Res. 114. You had your chance. Keep this list handy.

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The Lying Bitch Could Always Work at Fox

Judy and Other Republicans Admiring Their Sheepherder on Fox News Judy Miller will soon be out of a job at the NY Times and with her reputation of being a known liar and a sheep, she'd do very well working at Fox News. "New York Times reporter Judith Miller has begun discussing her future employment options with the newspaper, including the possibility of a severance package, a lawyer familiar with the matter, said yesterday".

The Idiots Among Us

Poll: Bush would lose an election if held this year A majority would vote for a Democrat over President Bush if an election were held this year, according to a CNN/USA Today/Gallup Poll released Tuesday. In the latest poll, 55 percent of the respondents said that they would vote for the Democratic candidate if Bush were again running for the presidency this year. Thirty-nine percent of those interviewed said they would vote for Bush in the hypothetical election. Almost without exception, everything people are turning against Bush and Republicans on now was said BEFORE the election so it's a little late I'm afraid for those of us who were right, and told you so all along. Fucking idiots!

Iraqi vote final, divide deepens

What a mess... "To defeat the constitution, the Sunnis would have had to marshal a two-thirds "no" vote in at least three provinces. The election commission announced in recent days that Anbar province, the stronghold of the Sunni insurgency, had rejected the constitution by a 97 percent vote, and Salahuddin province by 88 percent". Hey, the Sunnis? No problem.....There's only 8 million of them... Did you know it took 4 years to reach 2,000 casualties in Viet Nam?

great Americans...

Wal-Mart Memo Suggests Ways to Cut Employee Benefit Costs "An internal memo sent to Wal-Mart's board of directors proposes numerous ways to hold down spending on health care and other benefits while seeking to minimize damage to the retailer's reputation. Among the recommendations are hiring more part-time workers and discouraging unhealthy people from working at Wal-Mart". Damn, it certainly would be an American tragedy if any of the 5 Waltons, who are worth a combined $90 billion, would have to sacrifice any of it to help their employees out, now wouldn't it?

Ben Bernanke; Only Part 'Crony'

Greenspan's heir apparent President Bush on Monday named his chief economic adviser, Ben Bernanke, to succeed Alan Greenspan as chairman of the Federal Reserve. The 51-year-old former Fed governor and Princeton University economist was considered a top candidate, in part, because of his close relationship with Mr. Bush, who named Bernanke to the Fed Board in 2002 and chairman of his Council of Economic Advisers earlier this year. Some encouraging words from Chuck Schumer; "We need a careful, non-ideological person who understands that the Federal Reserve's main job is to fight inflation, and Ben Bernanke seems to fit that bill." -- Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y. But the comment that sealed the deal for me was from the ol' senile former baseball pitcher and current Republican cretin, Jim Bunning; "Its a shame that President Bush has decided to select Dr. Ben Bernanke as chairman of the Federal Reserve. Though I believe Dr. Bernanke has the qualifications to be chairman of the Federal Reserve, I must oppose this nomination." -- Sen. Jim Bunning, R-Ky. Bernanke's got great credentials, the stock market liked the pick, I heard Ted Kennedy and some other Democrats like him and Jim Bunning obviously doesn't, so it might be a good pick. We'll see how independent he becomes...we'll see how much 'crony' he has in him.