Daily Kos

Email: harmonic_iris@yahoo.com

Rove (and others) Deleted Emails From The RNC Server, EVEN AFTER THEY WERE TOLD NOT TO

by thebes

Thu Apr 12, 2007 at 02:08:49 PM PDT

In 2004, in response to Patrick Fitzgerald's investigation of the leaking of Valerie Plame's identity, the Republican National Committee began to preserve all emails sent by White House staffers through RNC email accounts. But a funny thing happened on the way to retrieving those emails in response to recent Congressional requests - they're not there.

[UPDATED] VA-Sen: DSCC asks George Allen, "Why were you arrested and what are you hiding?"

by thebes

Sat Oct 28, 2006 at 08:15:16 PM PDT

The gloves are off in Virginia. The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC) is calling for George Allen to explain
why multiple warrants were issued for his arrest in 1974 while he was a student at the University of Virginia. The court records of his arrests are missing but one of the few official documents detailing the circumstances surrounding his arrests is Allen's application to the Virginia Bar Association.  Allen has so far refused to release that information.

 

VA-Sen: Michael J. Fox is coming to campaign for Jim Webb

by thebes

Wed Oct 25, 2006 at 10:24:11 AM PDT

I just opened my email and there it was - an invitation to a Jim Webb rally with Michael J. Fox, in my own backyard!

When: Thursday, November 2, 2006
Where: The Clarendon Ballroom, Arlington, VA

General admission tickets are only $50 ($25 for students, non-profit and government employees)

RSVP to RSVP@webbforsenate.com

More suppression of free speech - Secret Service investigates art exhibit

by thebes

Tue Apr 12, 2005 at 09:39:43 AM PDT

Last Thursday, April 7, a new art exhibit, "Axis of Evil, the Secret History of Sin", opened at Columbia College, a well-regarded arts college in Chicago. The college's website describes it as

an international exhibition featuring 47 stamp artists, from eleven countries, thematically peeking into the depths of sin in search of the evils in our world and culture. The results are a provocative visual labyrinth in social commentary, reflecting a historical parallel to protest art of the 60's and 70's. We can truly say, this exhibition is a carnival of images and adjectives that can be described by the alphabet's A's through Z's.

Curated by Chicago-based artist Michael Hernandez de Luna, this exhibition includes a collaborative stamp sheet by the late Ed Paschke. The countries represented are Russia, Mexico, England, Japan, Italy, Switzerland, France, Canada, the former Yugoslavia, Uruguay, and the USA. The exhibition features over one hundred visual works, all with one aim: to define evil through the print making form of the postage stamp sheet.

 

Newly released Gannon docs - Talon News wasn't a legitimate news organization

by thebes

Fri Feb 11, 2005 at 08:31:58 AM PDT

The blog Mediacitizen has obtained documents from the Standing Committee of Correspondents of the Senate Press Gallery which show that James Guckert ("Jeff Gannon") was unanimously denied accreditation to the Congressional Press Gallery. Even though Scott McClellan thinks Guckert represented a legitimate news organization, the Congressional Committee thought otherwise. (more after the break)

Sen. Lautenberg requests info re: Gannon's credentials

by thebes

Thu Feb 10, 2005 at 02:45:43 PM PDT

(From the diaries -- kos)

In a letter sent today to Scott McClellan, Senator Lautenberg requested that the White House

immediately release documents to my office relating to the White House press credentials of James D. Guckert, a.k.a. "Jeff Gannon." Specifically, I am seeking documentation related to the question of which name Mr. Guckert/Gannon used when applying for credentials, and which name was on the official White House press credentials he received. Additionally, I am seeking documents indicating whether Mr. Guckert/Gannon received a "hard pass" or daily passes from your office.
The Senator notes that Gannon/Guckert was denied a Congressional Press Pass because "he could not show he wrote for a valid news organization", and in light of "a number of instances of troubling propaganda efforts by the Administration", "it is understandable that the circumstances of Mr. Guckert/Gannon's credentialing have raised suspicion."

Bush: It's OK if you die young because you'll be able to afford a pretty coffin

by thebes

Sun Jan 16, 2005 at 10:29:06 AM PDT

One of the most illuminating parts of the Post's interview with Bush (which is discussed in this diary) is at the very end when they ask him about how he's going to work on "winning over" African-Americans:

The Social Security issue is an interesting issue when it comes to African Americans. After all, the life expectancy of African American males is a lot less than other groups and, therefore, if you really think about that, you have people putting money in the system that aren't -- families won't benefit from the system. And, therefore, it seems to me to make sense, if I were a part of a group of people that were being disadvantaged by the Social Security system, that I'd at least like to have the opportunity to have some of the money I put in the system passable to my family.

Translation: Hey, Black America, we're going to make it OK that you don't live as long as other Americans because your family will be able to afford to have a nice funeral for you when you die.

Fox News host compares U.S soldiers to crusaders

by thebes

Sat Dec 11, 2004 at 12:42:55 PM PDT

Yesterday in his daily rant, John Gibson, the host of Fox News' The Big Show, compared U.S. soldiers scavenging for armor to the soldiers of the Crusades:

However, I'd like to say that I've been reading a lot about the Crusades lately and, as you might expect, that involves a lot of discussion of military matters of the time.

A situation in common between invading Crusaders and liberating Americans -- and let's keep some perspective here on the difference between invading and liberating -- is the extent to which armies have always had to forage for what they need either on the way, or once they got to where they are going.

OK, John, please fill us in - what exactly is the difference between "invading" and "liberating"? Didn't the Crusaders believe they were "liberating" the heathens of the Middle East from their godless tradition? Just like we "invaded" Iraq to "liberate" the Iraqis?

Biographer says Bush talked of invading Iraq 2 years BEFORE 9/11

by thebes

Thu Oct 28, 2004 at 08:58:30 AM PDT

Mickey Herskowitz, the writer who originally started ghostwriting George W. Bush's biography A Charge to Keep, says that Bush was thinking about invading Iraq 2 years before 9/11 even happened. From an interview with Russ Baker:

"He was thinking about invading Iraq in 1999," said author and journalist Mickey Herskowitz."It was on his mind. He said to me: `One of the keys to being seen as a great leader is to be seen as a commander-in-chief.' And he said, `My father had all this political capital built up when he drove the Iraqis out of Kuwait and he wasted it.' He said, `If I have a chance to invade....if I had that much capital, I'm not going to waste it. I'm going to get everything passed that I want to get passed and I'm going to have a successful presidency."

Herskowitz said that Bush expressed frustration at a lifetime as an underachiever in the shadow of an accomplished father. In aggressive military action, he saw the opportunity to emerge from his father's shadow.

Federal law - ID requirement for new voters

by thebes

Tue Oct 26, 2004 at 07:01:18 PM PDT

Under the Orwellian-named Help America Vote Act (HAVA), which was passed after the 2000 election, new voters who registered by mail MUST show a form of identification to vote. Under HAVA, the list is fairly broad - a driver's license, social security card, current and valid photo ID, a current utility bill, a bank statement, a government check, a paycheck, or another government document that shows the name and address of the voter.

Some states such as Colorado and Kentucky have gone even farther and require that ALL voters, old or new, MUST show an ID at the polls.

If a voter does not have the proper ID then under HAVA they should be given a provisional ballot.

I found this pdf document prepared by civil rights groups which has a state-by-state chart of ID requirements, but I don't know how up-to-date it is.

This is a ready-made way to disenfranchise voters and the word needs to be spread about these ID requirements. Any ideas?

Something's fishy about the Rehnquist announcement

by thebes

Mon Oct 25, 2004 at 12:49:06 PM PDT

First, in Ron Suskind's article in the NY Times Magazine, Bush is quoted as telling his biggest supporters last month that he'll have the opportunity to appoint a justice to the Supreme Court shortly after the inaguaration.

Second, the press release from the Court states that Rehnquist went into the hospital on Friday, "and underwent a tracheotomy on Saturday in connection with a recent diagnosis of thyroid cancer." This is worded in a very precise way - Rehnquist knew he had thyroid cancer before he went into the hospital. And, also note, the press release does NOT say he underwent a thyroidectomy - the removal of the thyroid - just a tracheotomy, a procedure which is not routine in cases of thyroid cancer.

Third, McClellan said today that Bush was not told about Rehnquist's hospitalization until this morning. Does anyone really believe that the President wasn't told the Chief Justice had major surgery and was in the ICU until 2 days after it happened?

There's more to this story then we're being fed.

In Demand is pulling F911 from pay-per-view

by thebes

Thu Oct 14, 2004 at 07:37:14 PM PDT

Aaron Brown just reported on CNN that In Demand, the company that shows pay-per-view movies on cable, is pulling Fahrenheit 911 from its scheduled showing the night before the election.

The company gave no reason for its decision, but Michael Moore told CNN that In Demand is caving to political pressure - hmmm, where have we heard this before?

Here's a link to In Demand's email feedback form. Please tell them what you think.

Who really financed the making of "Stolen Honor"?

by thebes

Tue Oct 12, 2004 at 10:56:36 AM PDT

The publicist for the anti-Kerry film, "Stolen Honor", which Sinclair Broadcasting has ordered its affiliates to show before the election, is Charles (Charlie) Gerow, a 3-time Republican Congressional candidate and delegate to this year's GOP convention. And although his corporation, Quantum Communications, Ltd., has been described as "the public relations and marketing firm" that represents the film, it appears from Pennsylvania corporate records that there may be a closer relationship.

"Stolen Honor" was produced by a company called "Red, White, and Blue Productions, Inc.", described at the film's website, as an independent film company. But it wasn't incorporated until July 14, 2004 and its entry at the Pennsylvania Corporate Records website shows its corporate address as 123 State Street, Harrisburg, PA, the same address as the offices of Quantum Communications. (I couldn't find out the names of officers or incorporaters over the phone - someone would need to pull those off the microfiche in Harrisburg.)

All other information available on and related to the film leads back to Quantum Communications and Charlie Gerow - the Stolen Honor website registration, as well as the PayPal account receiving proceeds for the film.

All of this raises the issue - who is REALLY behind this film? The film's website claims the original funding for the film came from "Pennsylvania veterans" - who are these veterans?

The producer, Carlton Sherwood, a former aide to Tom Ridge, claims he made the film for personal, not political, reasons. In fact the film's website states: "No political campaign, candidate or political party have been involved in any way in the financing or production of Stolen Honor." But the web of  connections to Charlie Gerow, a highly conservative Republican activist, belies that. These are issues worthy of further investigation.


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