A couple years late

And his speech was a dud...as usual.

Flip Flop Iraq Strategy

Bush today:

Before our mission in Iraq is accomplished, there will be tough days ahead.

Bush, May 2003:

On Thursday, I visited the USS Abraham Lincoln, now headed home after the longest carrier deployment in recent history. I delivered good news to the men and women who fought in the cause of freedom: their mission is complete and major combat operations in Iraq have ended.

Flip Flop

Fun at Texas District 22

Blame the Democrats! Sound familiar? A yell from the White House maybe? Sure, but not this time. How about our good friend Tom DeLay? Wow, you are so smart. Houtopia posted an excellent piece on the Tom's recent desperate ploy.

So, when things are looking bad and you just don't have the stroke you used to, what's the solution? Why, hold a rally and blame Democrats for your troubles, of course!

Never mind that Mr. DeLay's latest problems in Washington stem from his own former staffer (who is, shockingly, a Republican) cooperating with the Republican-controlled Justice Department, it's the Democrat Party's fault!

Sadly, as this evening's wire story indicates, only about 100 people showed up to support him at a suburban Houston hotel. The crowds are getting smaller (though the protesters always show up), and the bad news just keeps on coming. Mr. DeLay's former best friend Jack Abramoff is going down, and with Scanlon's help, just might take Tom with him.

2005 has been a long year for Tom DeLay, and it's not over yet. 2006 may prove endless for him, or just the end. Well, at least he has Democrats at whom to direct his bellyaching. Texans don't like a whiner Mr. DeLay.

Delay supporters are also at a loss of words. The best they can do in support of DeLay is ridicule Delay opponent Nick lampson over his interpretation of the Bugs Bunny character. You must feel sorry for them.

But you've got to give Lampson credit for trying to be young and hip! The youngsters looooove those Looney Tunes!

Too bad he got the context all wrong. Nothing wows the voters more than a one-liner about 50 year-old animated cartoons.

I must say, big fucking deal. Though I would have compared him to Tom of Tom & Jerry. Now, that's one stupid cat.

Wrath of Cons

A great little video... please watch.

Take me back, please

Payson explains just how power hungry the congressman from Sugar Land really is and how not so excited the right-wing is about his returning to power.

A very blue holiday season

Blue never looked better. You are doing a heck of a job, Bush. Your party should be proud of you.

Wahington Post says DeLay and company in big trouble

This thing is breaking open. Everyone's involved: Congressman and their wives, Senators, staffers, Bush administration officials. This was the epitome of the GOP's K Street project:

The 35 to 40 investigators and prosecutors on the Abramoff case are focused on at least half a dozen members of Congress, lawyers and others close to the probe said. The investigators are looking at payments made by Abramoff and his colleagues to the wives of some lawmakers and at actions taken by senior Capitol Hill aides, some of whom went to work for Abramoff at the law firm Greenberg Traurig LLP, lawyers and others familiar with the probe said.

Former House majority leader Tom DeLay (R), now facing separate campaign finance charges in his home state of Texas, is one of the members under scrutiny, the sources said. Sen. Conrad Burns (R-Mont.), Rep. John T. Doolittle (R-Calif.) and other members of Congress involved with Indian affairs, one of Abramoff's key areas of interest, are also said to be among them.

Cross-posted from America Blog.

Happy Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving trivia: Can you find the real turkey?

A liar helping a crook

It's just so comical...

Fecal matter needs a time out

Liar Liar Liar

Most Americans agree Bush is a MisLeader

A bit late for Truth Serum in the White House. Most Americans wouldn't trust Bush to open the door for them. If he could find it!

A majority of U.S. adults believe the Bush administration generally misleads the public on current issues, while fewer than a third of Americans believe the information provided by the administration is generally accurate, the latest Harris Interactive poll finds.

Bushnixon

Threat of federal charges against DeLay grows

It's only a matter of time.

Mr DeLay and his supporters have accused Travis County district attorney Ronnie Earle, a Democrat, of being on a political witchhunt.

It would be more difficult for Mr DeLay or other Republicans to make such claims about federal prosecutors.

X marks the spot

Thank you CNN or just a stupid mistake. Either way...bye, bye Cheney.

The best of friends

Some say you are judged by the company you keep.

Scanlon, a former aide to Representative Tom DeLay, is scheduled to appear today in U.S. District Court to present a plea bargain with the Justice Department likely to lead to his cooperation with investigators. His testimony would ratchet up the pressure on Abramoff and aid prosecutors in widening the investigation to members of Congress, such as Republicans DeLay and Representative Robert Ney of Ohio.

As investigators get closer to Abramoff, they may also get closer to DeLay, said Craig McDonald, director of Texans for Public Justice, an Austin-based group that has called for a special prosecutor to investigate DeLay.

`Dirt on DeLay'

``It's likely that Abramoff has lots of dirt on Tom DeLay,'' McDonald said. ``The further Abramoff sinks into trouble, the more likely he is to start pitching that dirt.''

DeLay, 58, who once called the lobbyist ``one of my closest friends'' and went on an Abramoff-sponsored trip to Scotland in 2000, stepped down as House majority leader after being indicted in September in an unrelated campaign-finance case in Texas.

Door thwarts Bush's exit strategy

I saw this and I laughed...this guy is our president...God help us! This is what happens when you really cut and run.


(Click the image for the video)

Watch the video.

Absolutely pathetic!

Cross-posted from One Good Move. Watch the video and see what I'm talking about.

"You guys are pathetic!" (VIDEO)

The Republicans pulled what is charitably called a cheap stunt. They introduced a resolution. The "Hunter" resolution in an attempt to embarrass the Democrats. The claim was that it was what Murtha had proposed, it wasn't since they had removed key language from Murtha's resolution, namely as soon as it's practicable. Murtha had proposed a planned withdrawal beginning immediately the Republicans proposed leaving at first light. During the debate the Republicans tried to leave the impression that they were debating Murtha's resolution when they were really debating the sham Hunter resolution. In this clip the Democrats are trying to make that clear. The outrage comes when the speaker tries to blur the line once again. A little theater of the absurd, but quite entertaining

Dan Patrick support grows

How exciting...a political candidate excited to get the support of dogs. Yes, what a circus! If you happen to reside in Texas District 7...beware.

Rove's war

Takebackthemedia.com and their Hollywood Award winning director/producer Symbolman is proud to present the Definitive Chronology of the Rove/Plamegate outing in DVD format, "Roves War."

After more than a year of research, filtering through hundreds of hours of footage and blogs, the "Rove's War" double DVD set weighs in at 150+ minutes of Red Meat for those that want to know exactly where, when, what and who pulled treasonous crimes - as we shred media propaganda and rumors, and expose the Truth.

Watch it and learn the Truth.

Abramhoff scandal expanding

Sorry, no hot tubs in prison.

Abramoff scandal expanding, could be the biggest to hit Congress in 100 years. “The Justice Department has signaled for the first time in recent weeks that prominent members of Congress could be swept up in the corruption investigation of Jack Abramoff, the former Republican superlobbyist who diverted some of his tens of millions of dollars in fees to provide lavish travel, meals and campaign contributions to the lawmakers whose help he needed most…’I think this has the potential to be the biggest scandal in Congress in over a century,’ said Thomas E. Mann, a Congressional specialist at the Brookings Institution.” November 19, 2005

Missing Longhorn football today

But that's okay, all the better to kick some major Aggie behind on Friday. I certainly would not want to give them something to get excited about.


No, I don't know who this is. Found it here.
------------------
Tailgating pics from the Texas - Texas Tech game a few weeks back.

No skin in the game

I wonder how he would feel about this war if his two babies were in Iraq?

New grand jury in leak case

If you would l have listened to the right, this case was over with the original indictment. As usual, they have been proven wrong.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - In a sign he may seek new or revised charges in the CIA leak case, special counsel Patrick Fitzgerald said on Friday his investigation would be going back before a grand jury.

It was the first time Fitzgerald said he would be presenting information to a grand jury since the indictment three weeks ago against Vice President Dick Cheney aide Lewis "Scooter" Libby.

The investigation into who leaked the identity of a CIA operative, which has reached into the highest levels of the White House, could be moving into a new phase that could lead to charges against other top administration officials.

Lawyers in the case have said President George W. Bush's top political adviser, Karl Rove, remained under investigation and could still be charged.

$2 billion dollar pyramid

Murtha: Hero of the week

Top Democratic Hawk in the House, John Murtha, Now Wants US Troops Immediately Pulled Out of Iraq

Let the swift boating begin...

Texas GOP promises To stop committing crimes

Via C&L

The Texas Republican Party has struck what might be the sweetest deal in the criminal justice system since Al Capone went to jail for income tax evasion:
The Republican Party of Texas avoided prosecution Thursday by agreeing to stop using corporate money in several ways being investigated by Travis County Attorney David Escamilla.

Escamilla's investigation, which is similar to allegations being pursued by Travis County District Attorney Ronnie Earle against U.S. Rep. Tom DeLay and the Texas Association of Business, is put on hold through March 31, 2007. In return, the Republican Party agrees to stop using corporate money the way it did during the 2002 election. The party's administrative expenses spiked five-fold to about $5.6 million that year.

State law generally prohibits corporate money being spent in connection with campaigns. The law allows political parities to spend corporate money to run their conventions and on administrative overhead. Escamilla had studied some 27,000 GOP documents, but his investigation in the end focused on three instances of using corporate money. [Austin American Statesman]

Here's how this works: If the Republicans promise to stop breaking the laws they broke in 2002, the DA won't prosecute them for the 2002 infractions until after the 2006 elections.

World's "most influential man"

I wonder who that could be? Well it's certainly not Bush who is probably the worlds "most hated man". Give up... it's prez number 42, William Jefferson Clinton, the world's "most influential man". Gotta love it!

51 lies from Dick

51 times that Cheney misled the country about Iraq!

Tell your congressman: vote NO on the budget reconciliation bill

I received this nice little email from the best little organization in Houston... Epilepsy Foundation of Southeast Texas

Your Action Needed

Tell Congress to Say No to the Budget Reconciliation Bill

Background

The U.S. House of Representatives has been attempting a vote on the Budget Reconciliation bill which includes deep cuts to Medicaid, Medicare, Food Stamps and other mandatory programs that support people with disabilities, chronic health conditions and those who have low incomes. However, the vote has been postponed twice because the House leadership cannot muster the votes to pass the bill. The reconciliation bill proposes approximately $50 billion in mandatory spending cuts- including a wide range of programs such as student loans and food stamps. The House bill proposes $15 billion MORE in cuts than the budget resolution mandated. (The budget resolution was passed last year and called for $35 billion in cuts to mandatory spending).

Congress is also finishing up work on the Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Services (LHHS) appropriations bill which cuts funding for discretionary programs by several billion dollars for Fiscal Year 2006. This, coupled with the House Budget Reconciliation bill, will only cause more harm to our nation’s most vulnerable citizens – those with disabilities and chronic health conditions who will take the brunt of these combined cuts. Meanwhile, negotiations have also begun in the House to consider a $70 billion tax cut bill that was also part of the Budget Reconciliation instructions.

We need you to bring your message to Capitol Hill. The House leadership may try to bring the budget reconciliation bill to a vote on Saturday as Congress would like to recess for the Thanksgiving holiday.

ACTION NEEDED:

How can you help?

Call your House Member(s) at the U.S. Capitol toll-free - 1-800-426-8073 or send an email at http://www.house.gov/writerep/. You can learn the name of your representative at this website.

Tell your congressman:

Vote NO on the budget reconciliation bill.

Cutting Medicaid and other vital programs at a time when low-income Americans and people with disabilities need these services and support systems is both reckless and unnecessary.

It is unconscionable and fiscally irresponsible to make the poor and most vulnerable of our nation suffer the consequences of cuts to programs and services designed to provide a safety net for them.

New subpoenas link DeLay, Blunt

By The New York Times

Texas prosecutors in the criminal case against Representative Tom DeLay issued a subpoena on Wednesday for records of transactions between his national political action committee and a political committee run by his successor as House majority leader, Roy Blunt of Missouri.

The subpoena, issued in Austin, the Texas capital, asked for all records from Mr. DeLay's committee, Americans for a Republican Majority, about its contributions from 2000 to 2002 to Mr. Blunt's committee, Rely on Your Own Beliefs Fund, and to the state Republican Party in Missouri, where Mr. Blunt's son is governor.

The subpoena offered no explanation of why prosecutors wanted the records, although news reports have recently questioned why thousands of dollars raised by Mr. DeLay and his committee to entertain delegates at the 2000 Republican convention were shifted to Mr. Blunt's committee.

Mr. Blunt's committee made a $10,000 contribution at about the same time to a charity controlled by Mr. DeLay.

"There's nothing that any of these committees did that was improper," said Stefan Passantino, a lawyer for Mr. Blunt.

A spokesman for Mr. DeLay, who is charged with conspiring to undermine a Texas ban on corporate donations to political candidates, had no immediate comment on the subpoena.

Will the real Bubba please stand up

Remember when had a good president that was respected around the world? Anyway, Billy says Bush is a screw up. I guess a little pay back for the idiotic blame game rhetoric coming from the right.

God left out of Bush's inner loop

Per Drudge:

Sources close to the White House say that Mr. Bush has become isolated and feels betrayed by key officials in the wake of plunging domestic support, the continued insurgency in Iraq and the CIA-leak investigation that has resulted in the indictment and resignation of Lewis “Scooter” Libby, Vice President Dick Cheney’s former chief of staff.

The sources said Mr. Bush maintains daily contact with only four people: first lady Laura Bush, his mother, Barbara Bush, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Undersecretary of State Karen Hughes. The sources also say that Mr. Bush has stopped talking with his father, except on family occasions.

Hunter says it best...Now, according to administration sources he's kicked out everyone else in his Oval Treehouse except for his mom, and three people who remind him of his mom? Shudder.

Oh my Gosh, what next?

Fort Bend Democrats host meeting

A message the Fort Bend Democrats.

It's time to start running. With the filing deadline for the 2006 election less than 2 months away, it's time to start fighting to take back our county, our state, and our country.

This email is just a reminder that all Democratic candidates have been invited to the next meeting of the Fort Bend Democrats grassroots organization. The meeting will be held this Saturday at George Memorial Library at 1001 Golfview in Richmond, Texas, commencing at 10 a.m.

If you're not outraged you're not paying attention

Another video flash from Peace takes Courage.



watch it...

Bush Spinning Again. What will the Media do?

Bush is spinning and it seems that the Media may be bowing, again. It seems the media easily forgets the chronological order of events leading up to the invasion. Let me help them. Forgive me if i'm a little off.

1) Bush is voted in
2) Bush, Wolfowitz, and Cheney push for Iraq invasion (see Richard Clarke's Against All Enemies)
3) 9/11 occurs
4) Bush and team say Iraq did it and request invasion. Others such as Richard Clarke say where's the evidence and disprove the notion of such a link.
5) Tenet says "It's a slam dunk!" that Sadamm has WMDs, and Bush present case to democrats.
6) Democrats see evidence with blinded republican patriotism.
7) Congress authorize Bush to invade with Tenet and Bush manipulated evidence.
8) Weapons inspectors cannot find WMDs
9) Colin Powell delivers manipulated speech to UN and then Bush says, "We cannot wait for final proof," Mr Bush said. "The smoking gun that could come in the form of a mushroom cloud." UN resolution passess.
10) WMDs have yet to be found. Inspectors request more time. Bush rejects.
11) Iraq invasion occurs.
12) WMDs have yet to be found.
13) Bush continues to lie.

There it lies the truth where Bush and team used WMDs as a scapegoat. They were going to invade anyway and if they waited for the Inspectors, their case would've been debunked. Phase II of the Senate investigation must be speedy. Why do you think Colin Powell is never seen on the airwaves, b/c he regrets his actions and support of Bush.

Now, they're saying Democrats had the same intelligence reports. Will the Democrats have a backbone and counter Bush?

The media must do their job, look out for the national public, and recall these chronological events to Bush before Bush attempts to rewrite and distort the past, again. If the media fails to question Bush about these events and play hardball, they will be of no public service to us.

The "I'm being investigated" fundraiser

The Tom Delay fundraiser with Dick Cheney which was canceled a few weeks back has now been rescheduled. Maybe Tom is hoping for a Cheney approval rating above 19% or is it those pesky FBI people that just keep following them around.

Remember Bob Gammage

Bob Gammage is contemplating a run for governor of Texas. He's a Clarkie and that's an instant plus. Once a Clarkie always a Clarkie. Anyway, the Democratic ticket needs a spark so this may be a good thing... Below is the email floating around about Bob.

Bob Gammage was instrumental in the DraftClark movement adopting the "Crank It Up" slogan. He did, and we did, and we all worked hard to encourage and then support General Clark in his 2004 candidacy.

At the urging of a number of concerned Democrats across the state, Bob is considering running for Governor -- the filing deadline is January 2, 2006. Governor is at the top of the ticket. We need not only an inspiring, competent and compassionate candidate who understands the issues facing ALL Texans. We need a gubernatorial candidate who can deliver an aggressive 2006 campaign message. We need a messenger, with a compelling public message about what the Democratic Party believes in. We need a messenger whose presence at the top of the ticket will help generate turn-out for our down-ballot candidates.

Texas is at a crossroads and we face a crucial decision in November 2006. Do we continue the politics and policies built on the desires of the far-right, cronyism, and most importantly, corrupt and incompetent leadership...or do we seek a change. We have less than two months before filing ends for the 2006 elections. The primary is in four months. One year from now, the 2006 campaign will be over.

Bob Gammage helped lead Texans For Clark in 2004 to bring about change at the national level. He donated, fund-raised, recruited, organized, and knocked doors for General Clark in New Hampshire and Oklahoma. When Wes endorsed Democratic Presidential candidate John Kerry, Bob immediately went to work helping the Kerry Campaign, and continued helping John Kerry and the Democratic Party with fundraising, organizing and volunteer recruitment right through election day when he worked a poll for Kerry/Edwards in New Mexico.

Today, Bob is considering stepping up and putting his name, family, and life on the line to take Rick Perry to task for his incompetence and lack of leadership. Personally, we believe there is no one better suited than Bob. He speaks from the heart. He means what he says. Bob has a compelling message and he can deliver it directly to the current Governor. He can deliver our message, broaden our base, and has a proven ability to reach across the aisle to solve problems in the public interest.

Many of you may not be aware of what Bob has accomplished. A lawyer and a teacher, as well as a veteran of both Army and Navy service, including a tour of duty in Korea, Bob was elected from the Houston/Gulf Coast area to serve in the Texas House of Representatives, the Texas Senate, and the U. S. House of Representatives. He was later elected to the Texas Court of Appeals from a 24-county Austin/Central Texas district, and in November, 1990, Texas voters elected Bob to the Texas Supreme Court in a statewide election.Bob entered politics to clean up corrupt and incompetent leadership. During his very first session, he was a member of the "Dirty 30", of whom Texas Monthly wrote:

"IDEALISTIC? YES. REFORM-MINDED? ABSOLUTELY. BIPARTISAN? THAT TOO. [During the 62nd Legislature], the state representatives who came to be known as the Dirty Thirty were everything you've learned not to expect in politics. The group —- which eventually numbered 35 members -- put aside party loyalty to force out Speaker Gus Mutscher, who ruled the chamber like a dictator and would soon become entangled in the infamous Sharpstown stock-fraud scandal. Even more unlikely, perhaps, is that they were successful. Though the Dirty Thirty was a clear minority in the 150-member House, it continued to apply pressure. The next year, Mutscher resigned, marking at least one instance in which the little guys actually won."

Against overwhelming odds, Bob challenged the corrupt and incompetent practices of the day and became a successful member of both houses of the Texas Legislature, U.S. Congress, and Texas Court of Appeals and the Supreme Court of Texas. In the very next legislative session, only his second, Texas Monthly named Bob as an Honorable Mention in the Ten Best Legislators. The magazine wrote Bob "carried one of the largest legislative programs in the Senate (including a number of controversial measures like portions of the Speaker's reform package, consumer protection, and the eighteen-year-old rights bill), fought for it in the rough-and-tumble tradition of Babe Schwartz, and got much of it passed."

Bob sees incompetent leadership saddling our children and grandchildren with decades of future problems. Just how many special and regular sessions does it take to get school finance right? And sadly, that's just the tip of the iceberg.

We encourage you to read Bob's note below. E-mail your thoughts to Kathy who will get them to Bob. You can reach her at tx_demkat@yahoo.com. Time is short. If you believe as we do that Bob should take on this challenge, join with us and let's see if we can elect a competent leader with a heart.

Thanks for your consideration.

The boy needs help

The quagmire continues in Iraq as the Liar in Chief continues the "You are irresponsible Tour". Running around the country lecturing the majority of Americans who think he fibbed on the war is a fucking joke. I'm serious, the more he opens his mouth the more people grow to dislike him. That said, keep talking George.

Crazy spin zone

Listen to this ass...guess who?

Update: Yes he's a terrorist sympathizer... a very loco terrorist sympathizer! The terrorist sympathizer has been bombed.

Bush Forcefully Attacks Iraq Critics

He states his case to go to war and implied "it is the central front in the war on terror and... extremists are trying to establish a radical Muslim empire extending from Spain to Indonesia".

I haven't heard this one before.

Time for another vacation

Isn't it time for another King George holiday? It couldn't hurt. It seems whenever he opens his mouth his approval with the American people just sinks lower and lower.

See new Fox poll.

Hollow words

watch the video...a little graphic

Pat goes wacky again

Today's right wing wackiness...

Conservative Christian televangelist Pat Robertson told citizens of a Pennsylvania town that they had rejected God by voting their school board out of office for supporting "intelligent design" and warned them on Thursday not to be surprised if disaster struck.

"I'd like to say to the good citizens of Dover: if there is a disaster in your area, don't turn to God, you just rejected Him from your city," Robertson said on his daily television show broadcast from Virginia, "The 700 Club."

"And don't wonder why He hasn't helped you when problems begin, if they begin. I'm not saying they will, but if they do, just remember, you just voted God out of your city. And if that's the case, don't ask for His help because he might not be there," he said.

**

In voting on Tuesday, all eight Dover, Pennsylvania, school board members up for re-election lost their seats after trying to introduce "intelligent design" to high school science students as an alternative to the theory of evolution.

Revelations 9:11

It states somewhat like this - They have over them as king the angel of the abyss. His name in Hebrew is "Abaddon, " but in Greek, he has the name "Apollyon". Apollyon can be translated as the great destroyer.

I wonder if they were talking about Usama or George???

On second thought, maybe I'm giving George too much credit. He is more like the Great Menace.

Oil Execs Get Their Way, Again

Sen. Ted Stevens, R-Alaska, Chairman of the Energy and Natural Resources Committee and the Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, should be burned in effigy for his actions yesterday at the joint hearings to question oil execs for making a mockery of the senate joint hearings process and us as voters and constituents. As I watched CSPAN last night, I saw certain committee members call for the oil execs to give an oath. The Chairman immediately, in a childlike way, yelled out to committee members that the oil execs would not be allowed to give an oath and Senator questioning would be limited to only five minutes. So much for accountability.

This is another example of a right wing conservative oil grubbing scum looking out for their own interests and definitely not looking out for the hard working middle class. This free pass sends messages that these type of elected officials are not looking out for us, and that the little guys should not have a voice. Just like Bush failing to make Libby accountable for his actions, this republican chairman threw the accountability viewpoint out the window.

Don't get me wrong, I'm a capitalist, but when millions of Americans are donating for the needs of hurricane victims and meanwhile suffering at the pumps, it strikes me that these oil execs are not donating some of their profits to keep prices low and stable. Where is their american loyalty?

He's their man

57% of Americans say Bush deliberately misled the nation into war, according to a new NBC News/WSJ poll.

No further comment needed.

A night off to see Depeche Mode

Being the old farts that we are, the wifey and I made a visit to the Houston Toyota Center Monday night to listen to the great synth-pop sounds of Depeche Mode. Ah the 80's...they were so much fun and what a great show.



Hat tip to omnious0ne for the pics who just happened to sit four rows behind us. I forgot my camera.

I'm with loser

Democrats swept both governors' races Tuesday, with Sen. Jon Corzine easily winning New Jersey and Lt. Gov. Tim Kaine taking Virginia despite a last-minute campaign push for his opponent from President Bush. AP

Look real hard at the picture above. Who's the real loser?

Shrub losing his base

See more of the Pew Poll...

Good Hair, teachers, same sex marriage and Tom Delay

Educators see Rick Perry's incentive-pay plan for teachers as a dud. It's time for a new Texas governor. Besides, Tom DeLay should be hiring soon.

Voter No on Texas Prop 2

Dear friends,

Tomorrow is Election Day and I'm writing to tell you about something on the ballot I particularly care about. I plan to vote No on Prop. 2, which would ban marriage between people of the same sex but would also ban the state from recognizing "any legal status identical or similar to marriage," such as civil unions or domestic partner benefits. Here's why:

Government should stay out of the private lives of people.

That's why I'm voting No on Prop. 2, and I hope you will too. Find out where to vote by going to http://www.friendsvote.org/ and entering your name & county.

Sincerely,
–Truth Serum Blog

The perfect couple

Thank you may I have another, you big Prince!

DeLay attorneys want change of venue

From the mouth of DeLay attorney Dick DeGuerin - law mandates this type of case be returned to the home county of the accused. That would put the trial in Fort Bend County, outside of Houston. Would the free publicity in Fort Bend County be a wise move with the 06 election just one year away? Here is the risk as I see it...take your chance with a conviction in a very liberal county or have a trial on your home turf and possibly lose an election. Just where do run to?

How about that liberal Travis County?

Defense attorneys argue that DeLay has been vilified in liberal Travis County, which was split into three different congressional districts as a result of a redistricting map DeLay engineered.

President Bush's Watergate

DCCC has put together this nice little video to remind America of the facts behind this case, and what makes this indictment so monumentally important.

WMP - Video
QT - Video

This weeks top idiot

From this week's The Top 10 Conservative Idiots (No. 221)

What pleasure! What joy! What an utter, utter buffoon! If you saw Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-Martha) almost crap himself live on television last week, you'll know exactly what I'm talking about. If you didn't, here's the deal...

Several times over the past year, Republicans have publicly promised to carry out an investigation into how the Bush administration used intelligence before the invasion of Iraq. But somehow the GOP kept forgetting about it. Last week, sick of Republican stonewalling and emboldened by the recent Libby indictment, Democrats decided that it was time to take action.

The fun began when, during a speech on the Senate floor, Minority Leader Harry Reid suddenly invoked Rule 21. Rule 21 forces the Senate into closed session and is normally only invoked through mutual agreement between the two parties - but not this time. Oh no. This time Harry Reid picked up ol' Rule 21 and swung it like a club straight into Bill Frist's nuts.

When Frist appeared before reporters shortly afterwards to discuss the situation, he looked a bit like someone really had just given him a swift kick in the balls. Red-faced and spluttering, the senator could barely contain his outrage.

"About 10 minutes ago or so, the United States Senate has been hijacked by the Democratic leadership!" he raved. "Never have I been slapped in the face with such an affront to the leadership of this grand institution. They have no conviction. They have no principles. They have no ideas. This is a pure stunt. This is an affront to me personally. It's an affront to our leadership. It's an affront to the United States of America!"

whAAAAAAA!!! Someone get that man a diaper.

Frist went on to complain that back in the good old days, the Senate Minority Leader would never have been so rude or discourteous. Why, if Harry Reid had been a better person he would have given Bill Frist the opportunity to stop the Democrats from invoking Rule 21 in the first place. That would have been the gentlemanly thing to do.

Oh Bill, why are you such tool?

The good news is that it all worked out. Harry Reid and the Dems obviously got a brand new spine for Fitzmas, the Republicans were - finally - forced to agree upon a schedule for the intelligence investigation, and Bill Frist ended up looking like a complete moron.

Good times!

Leaking secrets

Anbody here called the hammer?

The steady growth of Truth Serum

Thanks for visiting.

What was he thinking?

I would realy like to take the Kinkster serious...

White House Counsel to give 'refresher' course to staff...on ethics

A little late and absolutely the funniest thing I've read all week. Who will train the trainer...that's where the problem lies.

President Bush has ordered White House staff to attend mandatory briefings beginning next week on ethical behavior and the handling of classified material after the indictment last week of a senior administration official in the CIA leak probe.

According to a memo sent to aides yesterday, Bush expects all White House staff to adhere to the "spirit as well as the letter" of all ethics laws and rules. As a result, "the White House counsel's office will conduct a series of presentations next week that will provide refresher lectures on general ethics rules, including the rules of governing the protection of classified information," according to the memo, a copy of which was provided to The Washington Post by a senior White House aide.

The mandatory ethics primer is the first step Bush plans to take in coming weeks in response to the CIA leak probe that led to the indictment of I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby, Vice President Cheney's former chief of staff, and which still threatens Karl Rove, the deputy White House chief of staff. Libby was indicted last week in connection with the two-year investigation. He resigned when the indictment was announced and on Thursday pleaded not guilty to charges of lying to federal investigators and a grand jury about his conversations with reporters.

A senior aide said Bush decided to mandate the ethics course during private meetings last weekend with Chief of Staff Andrew H. Card Jr. and counsel Harriet Miers. Miers's office will conduct the ethics briefings.

The meetings come as Bush faces increasing pressure from Democrats to revoke a security clearance for Rove as punishment for Rove's role in unmasking to reporters a CIA operative whose husband was critical of the White House's prewar assessment of Iraq's weapons capabilities. The five-count indictment against Libby maintains that other government officials were aware of, if not involved in, leaking the identity of Valerie Plame to the media.

First impeachment poll, majority says yes if bush lied about war

What a difference a a year makes...from a so called mandate to impeachment...maybe he should move to Argentina.

DeLay aide's memo betrays the playbook

Hat tip to VirginaDem:

How anybody could vote Republican until they do a full fumigation to get rid of DeLay and Co. is beyond me. Check out what (indicted) DeLay aide Mike Scanlon says here:

"The wackos get their information through the Christian right, Christian radio, mail, the internet and telephone trees," Scanlon wrote in the memo, which was read into the public record at a hearing of the Senate Indian Affairs Committee. "Simply put, we want to bring out the wackos to vote against something and make sure the rest of the public lets the whole thing slip past them."

The article explains the strategy we've come to know all too well:

Scanlon confessed the source code of recent Republican electoral victories: target religious conservatives, distract everyone else, and then railroad through complex initiatives.

Well, here's their plan finally in black and white. This should piss off the wackos. It should anger the public. We're already fuming. If this quote is run as a DNC ad in every district in the country, we win both chambers in a landslide.

You can have fun with email and the documents of sleaze...just go this .pdf document. Page 119 has the above references.

Typical car in Fort Bend County

Are they not ashamed!

One flew over the Cukoo's nest

Tom Delay via Atrios.

WASHINGTON - Republicans may control Congress and the White House, but a leading House Republican says they can't be blamed for runaway federal spending on their watch.

Blame it on the war, said Rep. Tom DeLay, R-Texas. Or the Democrats.

...

He also blamed Democrats, complaining that they haven't offered any suggestions on how to cut spending. He said they created a congressional budget process that makes it difficult to cut spending.

"We've been operating off a Congress designed by Democrats," he said.

The Republicans took control of Congress in 1995.

Faux News pays for DeLay air time

Rep. Tom DeLay filed a report with the Clerk of the House of Representatives indicating he received free travel valued at $13,998.55 from Fox News Sunday for "officially connected travel" on October 1-2, 2005, from Sugarland, TX to Washington, D.C. and back to Sugarland, TX. Rep. DeLay appeared on Fox News Sunday on October 2, 2005, the weekend after his indictment on September 28, 2005.

Thank you Political Money Line.

Boston Legal takes on Iraq war

If you caught Boston Legal this week, you surely will agree the Iraq war case was great. C&L has the video clip that you must watch.

Alan Shore: First, this is hardly about anti-war sentiments. Private Elliot was for the war. Personally I was against it, then I was for it, then I was against it again--but that's just me. I'm a flip-flopper.

But whether one is for or against the occupation--and let's assume judging from your tie you wer for it--that does not exempt the military from a duty to be honest with its soldiers. Private Elliot was told he'd serve for a year, he was told that he wouldn't see combat. OK, unexpected stuff happens; he did see combat fine, but he was sent into combat with insufficient backup; he was sent to perform duties for which he was never ever trained; he wasn't given the most basic of equipment and then after his tour of duty was finally up they wouldn't let him leave. He never assumed those risks by enlisting.

Overextended, under-equipped, non-trained. He never signed up for that and now he's dead. And aside from his sister, nobody seems to care. We talk about honoring the troops, how 'bout we honor them by giving a damn when they're killed. Our kids are dying over there. In this country, the people, the media, we all chug along like there's nothing wrong. We can spend a month obsessing about Terri Schiavo but dare we show the body of a fallen soldier. The most watched cable news station will spend an hour a night on a missing girl in Aruba but God forbid we pay any attention when kids like Private Elliot are killed in action-

Judge: You're off the point.

Alan Shore: I'll not off the point. We've had 2,000 American trees fall in that forrest over there and we don't even know it, not really. But maybe we don't want to know about our children dying. So lucky for us that this war isn't really being televised. We are not seeing images of soldiers dying in the arms of their comrades, being blown apart in the streets of Baghdad. But they are, by the thousands and all the American public want to concern itself with is whether Brad and Angeline really are a couple. At least with Vietnam we all watched and we all got angry.

Judge: What does this have to do with the death of Private Elliot?

Alan Shore: Private Elliot is dead in part because we have a people and a government in denial. We currently have no strategy to fight this war, we have no time table for getting out, some of these troops could be extended for 20-plus years, their mothers and mathers have to spring for body amor but the Army doesn't and they're getting killed and we as a nation in denial are letting them. We simply don't seem to care. Well, she does. She's in this courtroom honoring one dead soldier. That's a start.

To the dismay of some, Fitzgerald investigation not over

While many on the right are convincing themselves the Fitzgerald investigation is over, the person overseeing the investigaton, Fitzgerald himself, strongly disagrees.

While Rove faces doubts about his White House status, there are new indications that he remains in legal jeopardy from Special Counsel Patrick J. Fitzgerald's criminal investigation of the Plame leak. The prosecutor spoke this week with an attorney for Time magazine reporter Matthew Cooper about his client's conversations with Rove before and after Plame's identity became publicly known because of anonymous disclosures by White House officials, according to two sources familiar with the conversation.

Fitzgerald is considering charging Rove with making false statements in the course of the 22-month probe, and sources close to Rove who holds the titles of senior adviser and White House deputy chief of staff said they expect to know within weeks whether the most powerful aide in the White House will be accused of a crime.

In the mean time the security risk remains in the white House. Any they wonder why they have lost the trust factor with the American people?

New poll for white House a disaster

As expected and predicted, the approval rating for Bush is now a whopping 35% and a spectacular 19% for the Vice President.

Most Americans believe someone in the Bush Administration did leak Valerie Plame's name to reporters even though Special Prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald indicted no one for doing that. Half of the public describes the matter as something of great importance to the country, and this poll finds low assessments of both the President and the Vice President with the President's overall approval rating dropping again to its lowest point ever.

The nomination of Samuel Alito to the Supreme Court has had minimal impact so far, and assessments of the war in Iraq remain negative with more than ever before saying the Administration was less than honest in discussing their reasons for war.
Another interesting part of the poll is just important the libby indictment and the CIA leak is to the American people.

HOW IMPORTANT TO THE NATION IS THE CIA LEAK MATTER?

CIA Leak
Great importance - 51%
Some importance - 35%
Little/no importance - 12%

Clinton-Lewinsky (1/98)
Great importance - 41%
Some importance - 21%
Little/no importance - 37%

Whitewater (3/94)
Great importance - 20%
Some importance - 29%
Little/no importance - 45%

Iran-Contra (2/87)
Great importance - 48%
Some importance - 33%
Little/no importance - 19%

Watergate (5/73; Gallup Poll)
Great importance - 53%
Some importance - 25%
Little/no importance - 22%

Wow, almost as important as Watergate and more important than Iran-Contra. The reasoning for the above results is the American people know they were lied to. Not just once but often and by many in the White House. And the Rublicans thought this story would just fizzle.

Face off today in the House, Republican lawmakers want DeLay out…

Republicans say - The bad seed must go.

Oh oh Scalito likes gays

A history lesson for Pat Robertson, Jerry Falwell and the rest of the American Taliban.

In college, Samuel Alito led a student conference that urged legalization of sodomy and curbs on domestic intelligence, a sweeping defense of privacy rights he said were under threat by the government and the dawning computer age.

Looking for a way out

I have it to give to the few people, and I mean very few, living in la la land who feel this past week has been a victory for the Republicans. Do they live in some sort very odd bubble? The truth is, it has not gone well at all for our friends on the right. Harry Reid's manuever outfoxed anything Frist could ever dream of.

First, obviously, it forced the Senate to agree to finally investigate the massaged and/or bogus Iraq War intelligence, after stonewalling the investigation for over two years.

Second, it shows the American people that the Democrats are serious about the Republicans' ongoing dismissal of critical national security matters, even if Republicans like Frist and Roberts have proven over the last two years they aren't trustworthy or responsible about pursuing them. And that Democrats are also dead serious about the Iraq War, and investigating any frauds or manipulations used to send us into the quagmire.


It absolutely nails the Republicans to the wall on Plamegate. President Bush, the Senate, and now the entire nation knows that senior administration official Scooter Libby, chief of staff to the Vice President, was the first administration official to leak the name of a covert CIA agent to the press, in retaliation for her husband's political stance. And we now know that Rove was the second, and that the two had some conversations as to Plame's status and what they were telling reporters about it.

And yet Bush didn't fire either one of them. He allowed Libby to resign after being indicted for obstructing the further investigation into the White House leaks. And Rove remains by his side today, while the investigation continues.

Today, by demanding a response to Senate obstruction efforts, Reid squarely brought the national discourse back to the ongoing now-criminal obstruction efforts in the White House -- a criminal obstruction that had in the last days been made into a talking point praised by Republicans as a Republican victory over the investigation. And it masterfully highlights the fundamental dishonesty of a Republican Senate with no intentions of getting to the bottom of either of them. Frist squealed like a stuck pig at even the mere thought of having to discuss either matter.


It completely disrupted and short-circuited the nasty, Swift Boat hackery of the Republicans attempting to defend the far-right Judge Sam Alito. The Republican spin machine isn't the only group capable of setting the parameters of the national debate.


Perhaps most importantly, it fires a huge warning shot into the Republican efforts to break Senate rules to disallow filibusters. Remember, Reid did similar parliamentary moves during the last discussion of Senate-busting "nuclear" rule changes by Republicans. So this is just a little punch to say "You want to mess with the rules? We can make your legislative lives into an unworkable living hell, if you're not willing to play by the rules. Think about whether you want to fire those shots."

That is, in fact, why it was called the Nuclear Option by the original Republicans to propose it... because the Senate revolves around the basic comity of allowing the majority party to set the debate. But that's not because of the rules -- it's because of the gentlemen's agreement of the minority party. If the Senate goes nuclear, bye-bye gentlemen's agreement. Bye-bye to the ability of the Republicans to set the terms of legislation.


And finally, it made Bill Frist look like an utter amateur. Whining like a stuck pig, Frist made it perfectly clear that he isn't nearly the political tactician his lockstep demands for party loyalty require him to be. Today, Reid made Frist look like a complete fool -- actually, Frist mainly did it all by himself. This further weakens him and his own hold on his party.

But looking for a way of a very deep dark isn't easy for those who may actually like it there.

Jimmy Carter understands the truth

Jimmy Carter sends truth serum to Bush.

Carter says claims that Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction were "manipulated, at least" to mislead the American people. He says he thinks the decision to go to war was the "culmination" of a long-term plan to attack Iraq that resulted from the first President Bush not taking out Saddam.

Carter says President Bush should tell the American people "the truth" about why he decided to go to war.

A toast to Harry Reid

"Never have I been slapped in the face with such an affront to the leadership of this grand institution."

And with today's sorry performance from the Republican Senate Leader, it should not be the last bitch slap from the fine Democratics in the Senate.

I raise my beer to you, Harry Reid!

What so bad about Scalito?

Kos has an good take on the Supreme Court nominee.

It always amazes me how the Right Wing insists they want judges like Antonin Scalia and then when Democrats liken conservative nominees to Scalia they have hissy fits complaining about the comparisons. Now I certainly think it is a terrible thing for a Supreme Court Justice to resemble Scalia, but when did the Right Wing start agreeing eith me on that?

Stranger than strange

If you have nothing else, go after the judge. Who knows it just may work.

Experts say US is losing war on terror

Thank you GW for making us all safer!