January 31, 2007
IMPEACH BUSH
IMPEACH CHENEY
BUSH LINKED TO PLAME OUTING
Right-wingers like to throw around the word "treason" at anyone who doesn't support the war in Iraq. Former Attorney General John Ashcroft and other members of the Bush administration have suggested that any dissent from the war gives aid to the terrorists. I wonder how right-wingers who have backed this war will react to the apparent link between George W. Bush and the outing of CIA operative Valerie Plame. Outing Ms. Plame compromised intelligence vital to the security of the United States. It has emerged in the trial of I. Lewis Libby that Bush may have been directly involved in outing Plame. This story by Jason Leopold and Marc Ash is at www.truthout.org:
Copies of handwritten notes by Vice President Dick Cheney, introduced at trial by defense attorneys for former White House staffer I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby, would appear to implicate George W. Bush in the Plame CIA Leak case.
Bush has long maintained that he was unaware of attacks by any member of his administration against [former ambassador Joseph] Wilson. The ex-envoy's stinging rebukes of the administration's use of pre-war Iraq intelligence led Libby and other White House officials to leak Wilson's wife's covert CIA status to reporters in July 2003 in an act of retaliation.
But Cheney's notes, which were introduced into evidence Tuesday during Libby's perjury and obstruction-of-justice trial, call into question the truthfulness of President Bush's vehement denials about his prior knowledge of the attacks against Wilson. The revelation that Bush may have known all along that there was an effort by members of his office to discredit the former ambassador begs the question: Was the president also aware that senior members of his administration compromised Valerie Plame's undercover role with the CIA?
Further, the highly explicit nature of Cheney's comments not only hints at a rift between Cheney and Bush over what Cheney felt was the scapegoating of Libby, but also raises serious questions about potentially criminal actions by Bush. If Bush did indeed play an active role in encouraging Libby to take the fall to protect Karl Rove, as Libby's lawyers articulated in their opening statements, then that could be viewed as criminal involvement by Bush.
Last week, Libby's attorney Theodore Wells made a stunning pronouncement during opening statements of Libby's trial. He claimed that the White House had made Libby a scapegoat for the leak to protect Karl Rove - Bush's political adviser and "right-hand man."
WE'LL MISS MOLLY
Firebrand columnist Molly Ivins died today of breast cancer. Molly was one of the most perceptive and wittiest columnists I've ever read. I thought in the early years of the Bush administration she was too soft on Bush. She talked about his time as Governor of Texas and that he was personable. But, in general, her commentaries have been right on target. This article by Kelley Shannon is at www.commondreams.org:
Best-selling author and columnist Molly Ivins, the sharp-witted liberal who skewered the political establishment and referred to President Bush as "Shrub," has died after a long battle with breast cancer, the managing editor of the Texas Observer said Wednesday. Ivins was 62.
The writer, who made a living poking fun at Texas politicians, whether they were in her home base of Austin or the White House, revealed in early 2006 that she was being treated for breast cancer for the third time.
More than 400 newspapers subscribed to her nationally syndicated column, which combined strong liberal views and populist-toned humor. Ivins' illness did not seem to hurt her ability to deliver biting one-liners.
"I'm sorry to say (cancer) can kill you but it doesn't make you a better person," she said in an interview with the San Antonio Express-News in September 2006, the same month cancer claimed her friend former Gov. Ann Richards.
Showing posts with label Plame. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Plame. Show all posts
Tuesday, January 30, 2007
January 29, 2007
IMPEACH BUSH
IMPEACH CHENEY
CHENEY AND THE PLAME OUTING
As the trial of I. Lewis (Scooter) Libby proceeds, it's becoming more and more apparent that Dick Cheney was heavily involved in outing CIA operative Valerie Plame as an act of political revenge against her husband, Ambassador Joe Wilson. Wilson made facts known that revealed the administration was lying about Saddam Hussein trying to purchase yellowcake uranium from Niger. Cheney's case for his beloved war was going poof! This article by John Prados is at www.tompaine.com:
There can be no question that Cheney was the puppeteer in this entire production. This is not the same role as previous vice presidents, even activist ones like Al Gore or Walter Mondale—indeed Mondale said recently that had he taken such liberties, President Jimmy Carter would have made him resign. At a minimum it is clear Cheney believes he can substitute his judgment for the president’s. Cheney not only reinforces Bush’s worst traits, he sandbags the president into even more extreme positions. Where this will lead when it comes to Iran or North Korea should send shudders up the spine.
Cheney has gone out of his way to make sure no one got to the bottom of this affair. Sen. John D. Rockefeller, D-W. Va., chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, related new key details of this in an interview with McClatchy newspapers last week. During the previous Congress, the committee attempted to conduct a “Phase II” investigation of how the Iraq intelligence was manipulated to bring on the war, but was stymied at every turn by obstacles thrown up by the Republican majority, led by then-chairman Sen. Pat Roberts, R-Kan. Rockefeller told reporters that Cheney’s interference with committee business “was just constant” and that it was “not hearsay” that Cheney had induced Roberts to drag out the inquiry.
Cheney himself continues to push the line that “obviously” only flawed intelligence was at issue on Iraq, and as he told Newsweek last week , “we should not let the fact of past problems in that area lead us to ignore the threat we face today.” Cheney is himself to testify at the Libby trial. It is a good bet that he hopes questioning will stay away from these areas.
BUSH: PRO BUSINESS, ANTI-PEOPLE
George W. Bush has signed an executive order that gives the White House more control over federal agencies. The order allows Bush to plant a political appointee in each agency to make sure the agency follows the Bush line. It's illustrative that the agencies most targeted are the Environmental Protection Agency and the Occupational Health and Safety Administration. It's no accident that agencies charged with protecting the environment and insuring employee rights and safety would get targeted by Bush. This article is from www.rawstory.com:
This strengthens the hand of the White House in shaping rules that have, in the past, often been generated by civil servants and scientific experts. It suggests that the administration still has ways to exert its power after the takeover of Congress by the Democrats.
The White House said the executive order was not meant to rein in any one agency. But business executives and consumer advocates said the administration was particularly concerned about rules and guidance issued by the Environmental Protection Agency and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.
...
Business groups welcomed the executive order, saying it had the potential to reduce what they saw as the burden of federal regulations. This burden is of great concern to many groups, including small businesses, that have given strong political and financial backing to Bush.
Consumer, labor and environmental groups denounced the executive order, saying it gave too much control to the White House and would hinder agencies' efforts to protect the public.
IMPEACH BUSH
IMPEACH CHENEY
CHENEY AND THE PLAME OUTING
As the trial of I. Lewis (Scooter) Libby proceeds, it's becoming more and more apparent that Dick Cheney was heavily involved in outing CIA operative Valerie Plame as an act of political revenge against her husband, Ambassador Joe Wilson. Wilson made facts known that revealed the administration was lying about Saddam Hussein trying to purchase yellowcake uranium from Niger. Cheney's case for his beloved war was going poof! This article by John Prados is at www.tompaine.com:
There can be no question that Cheney was the puppeteer in this entire production. This is not the same role as previous vice presidents, even activist ones like Al Gore or Walter Mondale—indeed Mondale said recently that had he taken such liberties, President Jimmy Carter would have made him resign. At a minimum it is clear Cheney believes he can substitute his judgment for the president’s. Cheney not only reinforces Bush’s worst traits, he sandbags the president into even more extreme positions. Where this will lead when it comes to Iran or North Korea should send shudders up the spine.
Cheney has gone out of his way to make sure no one got to the bottom of this affair. Sen. John D. Rockefeller, D-W. Va., chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, related new key details of this in an interview with McClatchy newspapers last week. During the previous Congress, the committee attempted to conduct a “Phase II” investigation of how the Iraq intelligence was manipulated to bring on the war, but was stymied at every turn by obstacles thrown up by the Republican majority, led by then-chairman Sen. Pat Roberts, R-Kan. Rockefeller told reporters that Cheney’s interference with committee business “was just constant” and that it was “not hearsay” that Cheney had induced Roberts to drag out the inquiry.
Cheney himself continues to push the line that “obviously” only flawed intelligence was at issue on Iraq, and as he told Newsweek last week , “we should not let the fact of past problems in that area lead us to ignore the threat we face today.” Cheney is himself to testify at the Libby trial. It is a good bet that he hopes questioning will stay away from these areas.
BUSH: PRO BUSINESS, ANTI-PEOPLE
George W. Bush has signed an executive order that gives the White House more control over federal agencies. The order allows Bush to plant a political appointee in each agency to make sure the agency follows the Bush line. It's illustrative that the agencies most targeted are the Environmental Protection Agency and the Occupational Health and Safety Administration. It's no accident that agencies charged with protecting the environment and insuring employee rights and safety would get targeted by Bush. This article is from www.rawstory.com:
This strengthens the hand of the White House in shaping rules that have, in the past, often been generated by civil servants and scientific experts. It suggests that the administration still has ways to exert its power after the takeover of Congress by the Democrats.
The White House said the executive order was not meant to rein in any one agency. But business executives and consumer advocates said the administration was particularly concerned about rules and guidance issued by the Environmental Protection Agency and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.
...
Business groups welcomed the executive order, saying it had the potential to reduce what they saw as the burden of federal regulations. This burden is of great concern to many groups, including small businesses, that have given strong political and financial backing to Bush.
Consumer, labor and environmental groups denounced the executive order, saying it gave too much control to the White House and would hinder agencies' efforts to protect the public.
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