The death of Executive Privilege?

"As Columbia University law professor Michael Dorf points out, the Supreme Court ruled in United States v. Nixon that, “where the President asserts only a generalized need for confidentiality, [executive privilege] must yield to the interests of the government and defendants in a criminal prosecution.”
Bush is invoking such “a generalized need for confidentiality,” according to a senior administration official this morning:
“This is not a mere exercise relating to a particular event. This is an exercise in an attempt to protect the prerogatives of the president for this president and for future presidents.”"

As I read this, the current administration has so abused the concept of executive privilege that it's future use is in doubt.

More here.

Senate Republican's are blocking these bills:

– Conservatives blocked debate on raising the minimum wage (54-43, Roll Call Vote #23)
– Conservatives blocked debate ethics reforms (Rejected 51-46, Roll Call Vote #16)
– Conservatives blocked debate on funding for renewable energy (Rejected 57-36, Roll Call Vote #223)
– Conservatives blocked a vote on funding for the intelligence community (Rejected 41-40, Roll Call Vote #130)
– Conservatives delayed legislation fulfilling the 9/11 Commission recommendations (Passed 97-0, Roll Call Vote #53)

Read the story here.

Ever wonder why 91% of talk radio is conservative?

No, it is not because the market demands conservative talkers. It turns out that "the gap between conservative and progressive talk radio is the result of multiple structural problems in the U.S. regulatory system, particularly the complete breakdown of the public trustee concept of broadcast, the elimination of clear public interest requirements for broadcasting, and the relaxation of ownership rules including the requirement of local participation in management."

Read the report here.

Thanks to this post from Think Progress.

Digby

I quote Digby a lot. I have not known much of this person, other than they are very smart, pithy, and thoughtful. I did not even know if Digby was a man or a woman. Well, now I know. She comes out of hiding in this video.

Hurrah, hurrah for Digby. May she continue to write forever.

Let's go sailing

I'll be in Chaleston, NC for Nationals this weekend.

Wow!

Bloomberg dumps the GOP!

Bush and Clinton agree on one thing.

Al Qaeda is the most important issue that America faces.

If President Bush believes that Iraq and Al Qaeda are the nexus of terrorism then why does the American ambassador in Iraq say this: "Simply put, we cannot do the nation's most important work if we do not have the Department's best people," It turns out that only ten people in the American embassy even speak Arabic. You gotta be kidding me. I have more people in my neighborhood that speak Arabic than he has in the Iraqi embassy.

Here is the story.

Don't bother to click if you think Bush is a disaster.

However, if you think that Bush serves as the beacon of democracy to the rest of the world then click here.
Why is this relevant? Well, President Bush just nominated a man that endorses this kink of thing.
Oh, I know, the supremely idiotic will say, "well, they did it to us first," or "Ya do what ya gotta do when your way of life is at risk."

I say this in response:

What do you think the rest of the world thinks of us?
Is this what you call "setting a good example."
What would Jesus do?
What would Buddha do?
What would Gandhi do?
If we are in a battle of the hearts and minds of the Middle East, do you think this is working?

Let me get this straight.

What is it that Bush objects to, paying people the going wage?

From Think Progress:

"Bush promises to veto homeland security bill.

Yesterday, the House passed a bill to fund the Department of Homeland Security, despite President Bush’s veto threat. The White House objects to a provision that would require DHS contractors to “pay their employees at least the local prevailing wage.” It also “funds the hiring of 3,000 new border patrol agents, rejects the cuts President Bush sought in the training and equipping of first responders, and improves aviation and port security.” June 16, 2007 6:10 pm "

Take note

From Digby:

"I think that when the "honest conservatives" reject Bush they're just setting up their assault on the Democratic president they expect to see elected next year. Their way of digging themselves out from under the Bush disaster (and obscuring their own massive role in that disaster) will be to swear that "Never again can an American President be allowed that kind of free hand!" This will justify their fighting the new Democratic President tooth and nail for every inch of ground.

For example, Bush's politicization of the career staff in Justice and elsewhere was a very bad thing, no? And certainly this kind of thing has to stop, no? So we will forbid the new Democratic President to interfere with career personnel, with the result that all of the political hacks Bush put in civil service positions will be untouchable. (When that happens, can we expect the media to understand what's going on? No, of course not....)"

I have known this would happen for years. The radical right pollutes the water and the Democrats have to spend all their time cleaning up the mess, and paying the bills. The Republicans then get to say "see, those Democrats just tax and spend." Yeah, cleaning up your mess and paying off the debts you accrued for eight years. Some dolts even have the gall to blame Clinton for the current mess. I know not all Republicans believe this, but the talking heads do, and all too many Americans take what they say as Gospel.

Tony Snow Lies??!!....No, tell me it isn't so Tony!

In Tony's defense. He has to lie a lot or he would be out of a job. It really is not that hard to catch him at lying either. Just listen to any press conference with even a basic understanding of his topic du jour.

Oh the Drama!

All the over-the-top drama about Scooter Libby's prison sentence, from the Right wing, amazes me. Libby broke an actual law. He broke the law when he obstructed an investigation of actual state business. That is, he was not being coy about who he slept with, or who he cheated on in his personal life. He lied about how his office, the Office of the Vice President, intentionaly outed a CIA agent, in a "time of war," and then tried to hide that from the special prosecutor. 'Nuf said.

Transportation back to my high school.

Pink Floyd Live:



Best listened to while laying on your bed with head phones, loud, and a bit of a...

Oh the irony.

Press release from the White House.

I am sorry to be glib, but what makes this crowd think they have any chance of accomplishing this stuff?
Here are some things they can't even seem to do now, much less after an attack, my comments are in parentheses:

Policy
(5) The following NEFs are the foundation for all continuity programs and capabilities and represent the overarching responsibilities of the Federal Government to lead and sustain the Nation during a crisis, and therefore sustaining the following NEFs shall be the primary focus of the Federal Government leadership during and in the aftermath of an emergency that adversely affects the performance of Government Functions:

(a) Ensuring the continued functioning of our form of government under the Constitution, including the functioning of the three separate branches of government; (try not to think about the fact that the Congress for all of six years was not a functioning branch of Government)

(b) Providing leadership visible to the Nation and the world and maintaining the trust and confidence of the American people; (Please try not to think about the abject failure of this President to keep any of his campaign promises about being a uniter, an education president, and someone who will not get involved in nation building. That is a confidence builder.)
(c) Defending the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic, and preventing or interdicting attacks against the United States or its people, property, or interests; (don't think about illegal domestic spying, Guantanamo Bay, or the fact that some guy the Government thought had a highly infectious form of TB got on a plane in Atlanta and then returned home to Atlanta by driving unchecked across our border with Canada.)

(d) Maintaining and fostering effective relationships with foreign nations; (this is just laughable.)

(e) Protecting against threats to the homeland and bringing to justice perpetrators of crimes or attacks against the United States or its people, property, or interests; (again, don't think of Guantanamo)
(f) Providing rapid and effective response to and recovery from the domestic consequences of an attack or other incident; (It might help not to think about Katrina or the fact that our National Guard has less than half the equipment it needs to be effective.)
(g) Protecting and stabilizing the Nation's economy and ensuring public confidence in its financial systems; and (It,will help to ignore the ballooning national debt, unfunded Social Security, and the lack of health care for 40 million Americans.)

h) Providing for critical Federal Government services that address the national health, safety, and welfare needs of the United States. (Again, you must be joking.)

From Greenwald

"The great fraud being perpetrated in our political discourse is the concerted attempt by movement conservatives, now that the Bush presidency lay irreversibly in ruins, to repudiate George Bush by claiming that he is not, and never has been, a "real conservative." This con game is being perpetrated by the very same conservatives who -- when his presidency looked to be an epic success -- glorified George W. Bush, ensured both of his election victories, depicted him as the heroic Second Coming of Ronald Reagan, and celebrated him as the embodiment of True Conservatism.
This fraud is as transparent as it is dishonest, yet there are signs that the media is nonetheless beginning to adopt this theme that there is some sort of epic and long-standing "Bush-conservative schism." But very little effort is required to see what a fraud that storyline is."

...

"There is really only one thing that has changed about George W. Bush from the 2002-2004 era when conservatives hailed him as the Great Conservative Leader, and now. Whereas Bush was a wildly popular leader then, which made conservatives eager to claim him as their Standard-Bearer, he is now one of the most despised presidents in U.S. history, and conservatives are thus desperate to disassociate themselves from the President for whom they are solely responsible. It is painfully obvious there is nothing noble, substantive or principled driving this right-wing outburst; it is a pure act of self-preservation."
The rest of the post

Sen. Craig Thomas (WY) In Serious Condition

Let us all hope he improves soon. Our thoughts are with Sen. Thomas and his family.

Rove vs. The Facts

Everyone thinks Rove is so smart and has all the "real numbers." Turns out Rove is quite off his line when talking about where the country is going. He significantly exaggerates the numbers to suit his needs.

Digby has a great post:

"So Rove is spinning like crazy. The Christian Right is not growing and the "spiritual" non-evangelical or non-born again Christians tend to be Democrats."

Great movie, great music.

My wife and I love this movie. We came home and downloaded "The Frames" last two albums from itunes. The two lead characters do all their own singing, and are magic to watch, in a very well shot, and well directed, piece of cinematic art.