More Evidence The GSA "Politicized" By White House

Panel Asks Rove for Information on '08 Election Presentation - washingtonpost.com:

The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee sought more information yesterday about a presentation by a White House aide given to political appointees at the General Services Administration that discussed targeting 20 Democratic congressional candidates in the next election.

In a letter to White House political affairs director Karl Rove, the committee chairman, Rep. Henry A. Waxman (D-Calif.), asked about the Jan. 26 videoconference by Rove deputy J. Scott Jennings, which was directed to the chief of the GSA and as many as 40 agency officials stationed around the country.

I didn't even know about this investigation when I wrote that I thought the GSA had become politicized just as Justice, the EPA, and every single Federal Agency in existence has been. These people have no integrity, no shame, no moral compass, no redeeming social value, no excuse for existing....

Another Crony Puts Policy First (Ahead Of Science And Everything Else)

Report Says Interior Official Overrode Work of Scientists - New York Times:

WASHINGTON, March 28 — A top-ranking official overseeing the Fish and Wildlife Service at the Interior Department rode roughshod over agency scientists, and decisions made on her watch may not survive court challenges, investigators within the Interior Department have found.

Their report, sent to Congress this week by the department’s inspector general, does not accuse the official, Julie A. MacDonald, the deputy assistant secretary for fish, wildlife and parks, of any crime. But it does find that she violated federal rules when she sent internal agency documents to industry lobbyists.

So she just broke the rules, and not the laws, see? Hey! Is it just me or does it seem that lots of things that ought to be illegal are, somehow, not? I'm just sayin'...

Saudis & Friends Diss Rice Bigtime

Saudis Leave Rice Stranded | TIME

I am constantly astounded that anyone associated with BushCo could possibly think that anyone anywhere in this sad world would have an IQ low enough to take anything they say seriously; even former partners. I mean, really!

Looks Like A Duck, Quacks Like A Duck,...

Gonzales' Fall Guy Fires Back | TIME:

Almost as bad as the drip, drip, drip of diminishing Administration denials is the overall suspicion surrounding the case. The central question raised by the firing of the U.S. attorneys by the Bush Administration is this: was Bush or Rove or anyone else at the top levels of the executive branch trying to subvert justice by firing prosecutors who were too light on Democrats or too tough on Republicans? Senators Chuck Schumer of New York and Dianne Feinstein of California say it appears the Administration was; the White House, Justice Department and Republican Senators adamantly say they weren't.

At the hearing, Feinstein reeled off a list of cases that some of the fired U.S. attorneys were pursuing — or had declined to pursue — that could have been seen as disadvantageous to the White House or other Republicans, implying that those cases might have been the cause of the firings. The list included: Carol Lam of San Diego, who was investigating the Randy "Duke" Cunningham bribery case and had issued subpoenas for the third-ranking CIA official the day before Sampson wrote in an e-mail that Justice had a "real problem" with her "right now"; Dan Bogden of Nevada, who had opened a probe relating to Nevada Republican Governor Jim Gibbons; John McKay, who had declined to intervene in a contested governor's election in Washington; Paul Charlton of Arizona, who had opened preliminary probes into Republican Congressmen Jim Kolbe and Rick Renzi; and Iglesias, who had been overseeing an investigation of state Democrats.

Can you say "impeachable?" Sure you can.

Is BushCo Still Going For "Double-Or-Nothing?"

Is a U.S.-Iran War Inevitable? | TIME:
"The Bush Administration is doing nothing to allay Tehran's paranoia. With the largest buildup in the Gulf since the start of this Iraq war, it's actually fanning it. You have to wonder if Bush is counting on the Iranians' overreacting the way they did when they seized our embassy in 1979. And lest we forget, this was driven by paranoia that we were plotting to destroy the revolution."

Out of the frying pan and into the fires of hell? We need to impeach these maniacs and we need to do it NOW! This means you, Congress! Get on the stick or expect to be out of a job (if not a world) come 2010!

"Uh, heh-heh, I was Only Kiddin'."

My Way News - White House Withdraws Ambassador Nominee:
"President Bush withdrew the nomination of St. Louis businessman Sam Fox to be ambassador to Belgium after Democrats denounced Fox for his 2004 donation to the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth."

Even Bush's Boss Says It's Time To Leave Iraq

U.S. Iraq Role Is Called Illegal by Saudi King - New York Times:
"RIYADH, Saudi Arabia, March 28 — King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia told Arab leaders on Wednesday that the American occupation of Iraq was illegal and warned that unless Arab governments settled their differences, foreign powers like the United States would continue to dictate the region’s politics."

So I ask you once again, who wants us to stay in Iraq other than BushCo and 47.5 Republicans in the Senate?

Gonzales Is Toast! And Rove Is The Butter

Panel Queries Ex-Aide of Gonzales - New York Times

The Once and Never Queen

BBC NEWS | Middle East | Muted reaction to US Mid-East peace push:
"A lot of talk, little to show for it, is the accepted wisdom amongst most Israelis and Palestinians."

Why should I be the only effective one in the Cabinet? No one else is doing anything constructive.

The History Of Abuse Of Power...Anybody?...Mueller?...Mueller?

My Way News - Mueller: FBI Can Properly Use Its Powers:
"In a review of headquarters files and a sampling of four of the FBI's 56 field offices, Inspector General Glenn A. Fine found 48 violations of law or presidential directives during 2003-2005. He estimates there may be as many as 3,000 violations throughout the FBI that have not been identified or reported."

It was just a little whopper, about yay-big, honest!

Can't Be Honest If You Did The Crime

My Way News - Gonzales Aide Won't Testify in Senate

Can't really blame her. She has a right not to testify against herself. One the other hand, there's nothing that says she can't testify against her bosses. Maybe this is a good place to offer immunity? Hmmmmm.

Progress In Peace

BELFAST (AFP) - Northern Ireland's arch-enemy Protestant and Catholic leaders clinched a historic 11th-hour deal Monday to restore self-rule for the province, after unprecedented face-to-face talks.

Northern Ireland rivals agree historic self-rule deal - Yahoo! News

It's good to know at least some people have been working toward peace and tranquility in their small part of the world. This particular conflict looked at one time as unstoppable as that between Israel and Palestine. So, one down, and about twenty-seven to go.

technorati tags:peace, Northern Ireland, progress

The Surge Is Failing

Despite the infusion of American and Iraqi troops to Baghdad this year, suicide bombings, a hallmark of the Sunni Arab-led insurgency, have been rising. Maj. Gen. William B. Caldwell IV, the top spokesman for the United States military here, said last week that the number of car bombs in Baghdad reached a record high of 44 in February, of 77 nationwide.

47 Are Killed in Iraq Bombings, 20 in Baghdad - New York Times

It comes as no surprise that the pResident's latest attempt to snatch failure from the jaws of debacle in Iraq has shown no sign of success. If anything, the chaos and loss of life is getting worse in direct defiance of Bush's escalation surge, as the insurgents know that the sooner it becomes apparent to the world at large that things are not getting better, the sooner the American public will ratchet up the pressure to withdraw all of the troops. It's been obvious for some time that it would require five to ten times the number of additional troops (and we're talking trained and ready troops, not rushed-into-battle rookies who know nothing at all about Iraq or counter-insurgency tactics or even standard armed services discipline) to make a difference in Baghdad and the rest of Iraq.

Meanwhile, reports are out indicating that the reason Britain is pulling out its troops in the south of Iraq while sending more troops to Afghanistan is because the Taliban are taking over there, with the growing approval of the local residents, and not, as Darth Cheney has tried to suggest, because of great strides in progress (unless he was talking about the progress made by the Taliban, and not the coalition forces).

technorati tags:Iraq, Afghanistan, surge, failure

Purgegate Is Just The Tip Of The Iceberg

While the brewing showdown between Congress and the Bush administration over the dismissed prosecutors is the high-profile clash, it is just one area where the Democrats, with some Republican help, have put Justice Department operations under a microscope.

In the past few days alone, Democrats have challenged Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales, and by extension the White House, not only on the firings and the national security letters, but also on the agency’s record of civil rights enforcement, the accusation of political interference in tobacco litigation and redistricting cases, the status of pending corruption cases, and Mr. Gonzales’s role in halting an in-house inquiry into the domestic surveillance program.

Congress Expands Scope of Inquiries Into Justice Department Practices and Politics - New York Times

And we thought the "swamp" that Nancy Pelosi was talking about was Congress. The Justice Department is starting to make Congress look more like the cesspool of national politics in comparison to itself. No wonder nothing much has come from the Abramoff and other scandals. The Justice Department is being run by "loyal Bushies," and not by responsible, ethical, impartial law enforcement personel. Frak!

technorati tags:Justice Department, Gonzales, Congress, scandal, impeachment, loyal Bushies, cesspool, politics