POLITICS, AGAIN AND AGAIN, AND AGAIN....
Ah, politics. I want to have confidence in a new administration, and have great hopes for the correcting of many errors in judgement from this administration, but the Democrats need to get their act together---if there's even one scintilla of truth to these allegations(and there's much more than mere smoke, here!)---there should've been an investigation, years ago.
The Republicans jumped at the chance to investigate, when there was a President who was a Democrat in the White House, who lied.....his lie was about an affair, and though it certainly is a felony to lie to federal prosecutors, what was at stake was a President's reputation as family man or womanizer. What's at stake--what has been at stake--for years now, is whether statements were fabricated to cause, encourage, or promote a war with Iraq. Which has led to hundreds of thousands of Iraqi people being killed, as well as our brave young men and women risking their lives(nearly 5,000 have already been killed, as well as over 200,000 with traumatic injuries, many of them brain injuries). To create a false scenario for war is treasonous.I believe there is more than sufficient evidence that this happened. Indeed, George W.'s own commissioned investigative report (The 9/11 Report) clearly states that Iraq had nothing whatsoever to do with 9/11. We've all heard these facts, again and again. But bear with me, and read below. I find it ALMOST amusing(if it weren't so sad, and reprehensible!) that the press refuses to follow-up on any investigative work, or even questions about this. It's hilarious that the common belief in this country, is that the press is a "liberal press".
If this were a Democrat, the press would be all over it...And if this were a Democrat, you can be certain the Repubs would be all over the President, and his administration.(Bold italics, below, are mine)
A recent article at salon.com:
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The Scott McClellan sideshow
The former press secretary's testimony about Valerie Plame is valuable, but only the press can uncover whether Bush and Cheney lied to investigators.
By Joe Conason
Jun. 21, 2008
At long last, the most significant issues in the case of one-time CIA officer Valerie Plame Wilson are emerging under congressional scrutiny. With former White House press secretary Scott McClellan as a willing foil, the Democrats on the House Judiciary Committee seem determined to examine the actual roles of George W. Bush and Dick Cheney in the Plame affair -- from the leaking of her CIA identity through the subsequent attempt to cover up that unpatriotic and possibly illegal act of political vengeance.
But McClellan's appearance before the committee Friday was in certain respects a sideshow -- even though he recounted under oath several of the most damaging allegations and arguments in "What Happened," his recent bestselling memoir.
It was a sideshow because, as McClellan's critics both inside and outside the White House contend, he simply wasn't present for the most crucial discussions among the Bush administration officials who went after Plame Wilson and her husband, former ambassador Joe Wilson, to punish them for his public repudiation of the justifications for invading Iraq. He was a messenger, not a player at that level.
Indeed, McClellan admits forthrightly that he doesn't know what Vice President Cheney said to Scooter Libby, the former Cheney chief of staff ultimately convicted of perjury by special prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald, although he alluded to widespread suspicions that Libby took the fall for his boss. McClellan also doesn't know what Cheney and Bush and former presidential deputy Karl Rove said to one another as the conspiracy unfolded and eventually unraveled under pressure from Fitzgerald.
What he does know now, however, is that "the top White House officials who knew the truth -- including Rove, Libby and possibly Vice President Cheney -- allowed me, even encouraged me, to repeat a lie." In Friday's testimony, he identified former White House chief of staff Andrew Card as the messenger from Bush and Cheney who asked him in September 2003 to stand up on the press podium and exonerate Libby as well as Rove. Repeating the same allegation originally made in his book, McClellan said Card asked him to tell reporters that Libby had nothing to do with the leak of Plame's identity to the media -- just as he had publicly cleared Rove of any involvement.
"There's been nothing -- absolutely nothing -- brought to our attention to suggest any White House involvement," said McClellan back then. His unwitting falsehood concealed the leaking by Rove, Libby and former presidential press secretary Ari Fleischer, who was immunized in exchange for his testimony by Fitzgerald. (Oddly enough, Fleischer has never suffered the kind of right-wing vilification as a "rat" that poor McClellan is enduring.) And we now know as well that Libby first learned of Plame's CIA identity from Cheney.
So if Cheney urged McClellan to lie, did the vice president likewise lie when it was his turn to talk?
Five years into the Plame scandal, that remains the most salient question not only for Cheney but for Bush too. What did they tell Fitzgerald when he and his investigators interviewed them about the leak of Plame's identity and the attempted coverup?
According to published reports, the special prosecutor questioned the president and the vice president during the summer of 2004. Those same reports indicate that Bush, who was accompanied by private counsel, wasn't sworn in during his interview. But even if neither he nor Cheney was placed under oath during their encounters with Fitzgerald, that wouldn't excuse them from telling the truth. Lying would expose them to prosecution for making false statements to federal investigators -- a felony -- as well as possible counts of conspiracy and obstruction of justice.
Nearly 18 months ago, I pointed to this obvious line of inquiry -- and for the past six months, at least, the redoubtable Rep. Henry Waxman, D-Calif., chairman of the House Oversight Committee, has pressed the Justice Department to turn over the Bush and Cheney interviews. In a June 3 letter to Attorney General Michael Mukasey, Waxman politely reminds Mukasey that he first requested those documents last December, along with the interviews of several other officials. He also points out that the interviews provided earlier by Justice, including that of McClellan, were "redacted." Among the passages blacked out in the McClellan interview were his answers about his conversations with the president and vice president concerning the Plame affair, as were "similar passages" in other interviews.
"There are no sound reasons for you to withhold the interviews with the President and the Vice President from the Committee or to redact passages like Mr. McClellan's discussions with the President and the Vice President. Mr. Fitzgerald's investigation is closed and he has indicated that it would be appropriate to share these records with the Committee. There has been no claim of executive privilege."
Waxman's letter also notes that when the House Oversight Committee was investigating Democratic campaign finances in 1997 and 1998, the Justice Department promptly surrendered FBI interviews on that subject with President Clinton and Vice President Gore to the Republicans in control.
Finally, Waxman writes: "The FBI interview reports that you have shared with the Committee raise the possibility that Vice President Cheney may be implicated in the release of Ms. Wilson's identity. Mr. McClellan's recent disclosures indicate that both President Bush and Vice President Cheney played a role in directing the White House response. The Committee cannot complete its inquiry into these matters without receiving the reports of their FBI interviews."
Most Americans have long since discarded any illusions about the integrity of this administration, especially in matters surrounding the war in Iraq. That includes the Plame scandal, where early promises of candor, transparency and accountability, many of them uttered by McClellan, have certainly never been fulfilled (to say the least). "Only those who know the underlying truth can bring this to an end," he told the Judiciary Committee members Friday. "Sadly, they remain silent."
They will remain silent as long as they can get away with it, of course. The members of the congressional committee who are seeking the truth deserve credit for their efforts, frustrated as they are by an attorney general who promised to uphold truth and law and has so far done little to establish his sincerity.
But why has the White House press corps permitted Bush and Cheney to stonewall for years? How long will the press remain silent when it ought to be asking questions? If the vice president and the president deceived the special prosecutor, aren't reporters supposed to find out? Aren't they even curious?
-- By Joe Conason
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It's hard to say it today, with the same questions here, again and again, unanswered, but....
Peace, kids. Peace.

The SAG Awards were televised last night...if you missed them, you may click on the LINK to the right of this entry, where it says SAG AWARDS, Jan. 27th, 2008, where you'll read the transcripts, and view pics of the winners accepting.
I was pretty pleased with the winners from television.
"The Sopranos" swept that, and I am happy for them. I voted for "The Sopranos" to win Ensemble, and Edie Falco to win Best Performance by a Female.
I still want Michael C. Hall-- of "Dexter" fame-- to get more recognition, though. Mr. Hall was on fire as David in "Six Feet Under" several seasons ago, and I felt that show never received the kudos it deserved, either. I think in television's history book, both "Six Feet Under" and "Dexter" will be remembered as groundbreakers.

In film, I voted for, and predicted "No Country For Old Men" would win Ensemble, and it did, as did my favorite, Javier Bardem, for Best Performance, male.
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I just watched Barack Obama receive Ted Kennedy's endorsement for President.
Hmmmm..
I am delighted that Ted Kennedy has worked tirelessly for the poor, the disenfranchised, and has always supported the arts in this country.
But. Uh. If I were Barack Obama, I'm not sure having his endorsement is the ultimate. As in-- is someone is going to say:
"Ted Kennedy's supporting him? Oh, well, then he's my man."
Barack Obama already has Caroline Kennedy's support(which is a wonderful thing!), and the support of all the nephews, etc., of JFK.
At the rally where Ted Kennedy made his announcement,
The always uplifting Barack Obama spoke eloquently to American University students, about us being united"White or black, straight or gay...".
How refreshing to have a candidate include us-- LGBTQ folks--in the national discussion of unity.God Bless Barack Obama!
He really does not "need" Ted Kennedy, who is a target for Republicans, and sometimes an embarassment for Democrats(alleged heavy drinking, a few scandals which were never completely resolved, etc.).
And speaking of scandals, the mud-slinging is officially beginning...CNN is reporting on a developer from Illinois who is being charged with impropreity in busness affairs, who long-ago donated $80,000.00 to Senator Obama's campaign(all the money is already being returned, Senator Obama has said he "wants none of it.").
Several "reporters" are trying to insinuate Senator Obama has done something wrong, even though all he did was purchase a house(which is in all public records, nothing improper), a few years ago, from this individual, who was considered trustworthy, and was a friend, at that time. The Senator has not even been accused of ANYthing, much less been charged with anything!
I'm certain FOX "News"(I have not looked, but we all know what they do best is rumor-mongering) will accelerate this to Olympian status, and give it hours of coverage, only to drop the story quietly(since there is no truth linking Obama to any of this), in a few days...
Leave Barack Obama alone, and go find something that actually threatens this country to write about. Like, I don't know--how 'bout the usual nonesense we're all going to hear tonight on t.v., entitled, "The State of the Union" address, by our Liar-in-Chief, George W.?

A Mother's Letter

Please do Post A Comment at my Blog, here, regarding this letter from Cindy Sheehan--let's figure out what we can do as individuals, and collectively, to stop this madness called war...


"There is no WAY to Peace; Peace is the Way."---Ghandi

Thanks in advance, kids, for reading, and posting...

May 28, 2007

An Open Letter to the Democratic Congress
Why I Am Leaving the Democratic Party
By CINDY SHEEHAN

Dublin, Ireland

Dear Democratic Congress,

Hello, my name is Cindy Sheehan and my son Casey Sheehan was killed on April 04, 2004 in Sadr City , Baghdad , Iraq . He was killed when the Republicans still were in control of Congress. Naively, I set off on my tireless campaign calling on Congress to rescind George's authority to wage his war of terror while asking him "for what noble cause" did Casey and thousands of other have to die. Now, with Democrats in control of Congress, I have lost my optimistic naiveté and have become cynically pessimistic as I see you all caving into "Mr. 28%"

There is absolutely no sane or defensible reason for you to hand Bloody King George more money to condemn more of our brave, tired, and damaged soldiers and the people of Iraq to more death and carnage. You think giving him more money is politically expedient, but it is a moral abomination and every second the occupation of Iraq endures, you all have more blood on your hands.

Ms. Pelosi, Speaker of the House, said after George signed the new weak as a newborn baby funding authorization bill: "Now, I think the president's policy will begin to unravel." Begin to unravel? How many more of our children will have to be killed and how much more of Iraq will have to be demolished before you all think enough unraveling has occurred? How many more crimes will BushCo be allowed to commit while their poll numbers are crumbling before you all gain the political "courage" to hold them accountable. If Iraq hasn't unraveled in Ms. Pelosi's mind, what will it take? With almost 700,000 Iraqis dead and four million refugees (which the US refuses to admit) how could it get worse? Well, it is getting worse and it can get much worse thanks to your complicity.

Being cynically pessimistic, it seems to me that this new vote to extend the war until the end of September, (and let's face it, on October 1st, you will give him more money after some more theatrics, which you think are fooling the anti-war faction of your party) will feed right into the presidential primary season and you believe that if you just hang on until then, the Democrats will be able to re-take the White House. Didn't you see how "well" that worked for John Kerry in 2004 when he played the politics of careful fence sitting and pandering? The American electorate are getting disgusted with weaklings who blow where the wind takes them while frittering away our precious lifeblood and borrowing money from our new owners, the Chinese.

I knew having a Democratic Congress would make no difference in grassroots action. That's why we went to DC when you all were sworn in to tell you that we wanted the troops back from Iraq and BushCo held accountable while you pushed for ethics reform which is quite a hoot...don't' you think? We all know that it is affordable for you all to play this game of political mayhem because you have no children in harm's way...let me tell you what it is like:

You watch your reluctant soldier march off to a war that neither you nor he agrees with. Once your soldier leaves the country all you can do is worry. You lie awake at night staring at the moon wondering if today will be the day that you get that dreaded knock on your door. You can't concentrate, you can't eat, and your entire life becomes consumed with apprehension while you are waiting for the other shoe to drop.

Then, when your worst fears are realized, you begin a life of constant pain, regret, and longing. Everyday is hard, but then you come up on "special" days...like upcoming Memorial Day. Memorial Day holds double pain for me because, not only are we supposed to honor our fallen troops, but Casey was born on Memorial Day in 1979. It used to be a day of celebration for us and now it is a day of despair. Our needlessly killed soldiers of this war and the past conflict in Vietnam have all left an unnecessary trail of sorrow and deep holes of absence that will never be filled.

So, Democratic Congress, with the current daily death toll of 3.72 troops per day, you have condemned 473 more to these early graves. 473 more lives wasted for your political greed: Thousands of broken hearts because of your cowardice and avarice. How can you even go to sleep at night or look at yourselves in a mirror? How do you put behind you the screaming mothers on both sides of the conflict? How does the agony you have created escape you? It will never escape me...I can't run far enough or hide well enough to get away from it.

By the end of September, we will be about 80 troops short of another bloody milestone: 4000, and MoveOn.org will hold nationwide candlelight vigils and you all will be busy passing legislation that will snuff the lights out of thousands more human beings.

Congratulations Congress, you have bought yourself a few more months of an illegal and immoral bloodbath. And you know you mean to continue it indefinitely so "other presidents" can solve the horrid problem BushCo forced our world into.

It used to be George Bush's war. You could have ended it honorably. Now it is yours and you all will descend into calumnious history with BushCo.

The Camp Casey Peace Institute is calling all citizens who are as disgusted as we are with you all to join us in Philadelphia on July 4th to try and figure a way out of this "two" party system that is bought and paid for by the war machine which has a stranglehold on every aspect of our lives. As for myself, I am leaving the Democratic Party. You have completely failed those who put you in power to change the direction our country is heading. We did not elect you to help sink our ship of state but to guide it to safe harbor.

We do not condone our government's violent meddling in sovereign countries and we condemn the continued murderous occupation of Iraq .

We gave you a chance, you betrayed us.

Sincerely,
Cindy Sheehan
Founder and President of
Gold Star Families for Peace.

Founder and Director of
The Camp Casey Peace Institute