Thursday, October 16, 2008

Headlines - Thursday

 
Over at Oxdown, Ari reports that, despite all the Republican's crocodile tears about voting, John McCain's so-called Clean Elections committee is stacked with Republicans who have been engaged in voter suppression. Yeah, the people who tried to prevent voters from voting are now going to make sure people get to vote. Huh?

The GOP has a different definition of clean elections than most of us. For them, it means stealing elections with no fingerprints. But, this time, they're being watched --
and busted
 
Nearly a quarter of John McCain's "Clean Election and Voter Fraud Committee," chaired by Warren Rudman and John Danforth, have been involved in GOP voter suppression efforts and unfounded partisan claims of voter fraud. Of the 21 members of the committee, five have been engaging in these shady efforts.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4dZmDHeEcnA&eurl=http://www.americablog.com/
 
It's no surprise that Republicans engage in voter fraud. Last week when "Clean Election and Voter Fraud Committee," member Tom Davis told an audience of reporters at the National Press Club that Republicans don't suppress votes, they laughed! A lot! It is laughable. Voter suppression is a hallmark of GOP election strategy.

Not this time.
 
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h/t Dick
 
Tests on leading brands of bottled water turned up a variety of contaminants often found in tap water, according to a study released Wednesday by an environmental advocacy group.
 
And score one for winning the war for freedom - Christians in Iraq free to flee the city of Mosul because of a series of killings and threats by Muslim extremists ordering them to convert to Islam or face possible death: 
 
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What if God loses the election? http://www.afterdowningstreet.org/node/36866
 
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Ok, McCain isn't exactly George Bush, he's 90% George Bush:  
 
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McCain wins a post debate poll!
 
CNN POLL: Who spent more time attacking during the debate?

McCain – 80%
Obama – 7% 
 
Daschle on Olbermann: "2/3 of the American people think [McCain is] an angry candidate, and for 90 minutes, he tried to convince the other third."
 
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McCain: don't give me that health of the mother crap
 
 

Clearly, in all his debate prep, no one thought to coach McCain not to go to the third rail of the abortion issue. Boy, was that an oversight. Because not only did McCain go there, he jumped right on to it.

In trying to paint Obama as being for the great Republican bugaboo of late term abortions (because, you know, there are so many women running around and deciding after being pregnant for six or more months that being pregnant is no longer convenient for them), Obama replied that he didn't vote for the late term abortion ban because it had no provision for the health or life of the mother. And that's when McCain proved how heartless and clueless he is:

Again…just again, an example of the eloquence of Senator Obama, health (indicates air quotes) of the mother. You know that's been stretched by the pro-abortion movement to mean almost anything.

Really? Not a legitimate concern? Tell that to these women.

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As the bottle of tequila quickly disappered last night during the debate, a lot of words came to mind: angry, frustrated, petulant, dyspeptic, smirky, immature....but the only word that never came to mind with regard to McCain was "presidential." 

US Republican presidential nominee Senator John McCain (R-AZ) ...

Ladies and gentlemen, one of these two men will be your next President. Choose wisely.

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Yesterday, the Sacramento County Republican party removed from their website images that likened Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) to Osama bin Laden. One of the images "encouraged people to 'Waterboard Barack Obama'":

waterboard2.jpg

The chairman of the Sacramento County Republican party, Craig MacGlashan, told the Sacramento Bee on Tuesday, "Some people find it offensive, others do not. I cannot comment on how people interpret things."

There's a rather large number of "occasional nuts" right there in the Republicon party leadership. This is a freaking chairman who can't figure out that everyone aside from a xenophobic, mouth-breathing SOB would find those images and sentiments highly offensive.

What is wrong with these people? How can a party be filled to the brim with this kind of disgusting, crude, bigoted hate and retain even a tiny shred of credibility in a civilized society? They think this sort of immature bullshit belongs on their official websites. Don't forget that these are the people that claim to be moral authorities.

The few good Republicans left standing out there need to clean these shitstains out of their party ASAP, before there's nothing left worth saving.

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And the stupid just never stops.

In the waning days of the Bush regime, it seems
a scorched-earth policy is firmly in place:

Bush's presidency may be winding down, but he's not quite done with his conservative domestic agenda.

Bush administration officials, in their last weeks in office, are pushing to rewrite a wide array of federal rules with changes or additions that could block product-safety lawsuits by consumers and states.

 

So, the Bush gang is adding provisions to obscure federal regulations that will block product safety lawsuits by consumers and states. The scheme would affect products ranging from cars to prescription medication to railroad cars.

At this rate, he might as well just nuke the place on the way out. It would be quicker.

Bush also uncapped his extra-special signing statement pen to let Congress know what he thinks of their little schemes to
limit his authority:

Yesterday, President Bush asserted "that he had the executive power to bypass several parts of two bills: a military authorization act and a measure giving inspectors general greater independence from White House control," the New York Times' Charlie Savage reports:

In the authorization bill, Mr. Bush challenged four sections. One forbid the money from being used "to exercise United States control of the oil resources of Iraq"; another required negotiations for an agreement by which Iraq would share some of the costs of the American military operations there. […]

In the other bill, he raised concerns about two sections that strengthen legal protections against political interference with the internal watchdog officials at each executive agency. One section gives the inspectors general a right to counsels who report directly to them. But Mr. Bush wrote in his signing statement that such lawyers would be bound to follow the legal interpretations of the politically appointed counsels at each agency.

Bush has issued signing statements to bypass more than 1,100 sections of laws. A recent report by the House Armed Services Committee said Bush has used the statements in a "broad and unsubstantiated" manner and that 78 percent of them "have raised constitutional or legal objections."

Seventy. Eight. Percent.

This man doesn't give two shits about the Constitution. He doesn't give one single shit about democracy. He's a petty tyrant with the mind of a three year-old, playing Big Man In Charge, high on the power. 

He has issued nearly double the number of signing statements of
all previous presidents combined.

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there's a problem

Apparently Joe the plumber wasn't undecided afterall:

http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2008/10/16/95127/280/275/632293

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Pornographic earmarks

Homobigot GOP Congressman Virgil Goode of Virginia is the subject of an investigation by Mike Stark of Accountability Moments and Mike Rogers of BlogActive. It won't be popular with the fundie crowd:

http://www.pamshouseblend.com/showDiary.do;jsessionid=BFAA86AC64657D45BD24164D9A8A0ABB?diaryId=7575

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The top brass of AIG are now being investigated to see if they broke the law by paying humongous bonuses at the same time they knew the company was going down the shitter.

This could be fun. 

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Let the Troopergate fallout begin 

The two people in the Alaska staties whose balls the Palins were busting are now planning to sue their asses off.

I'd love to watch those depositions.

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A report in the Rupert Murdoch's Times of London suggests that McCain and Palin are on the outs: http://www.pensitoreview.com/2008/10/15/palin-mccain-rift-raises-questions-about-roves-role/#more-6023

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Compare and contrast

He gets 14 months, while another airman's drug and booze problems propelled him into the White House! Funny world, isn't it?

KADENA AIR BASE, Okinawa — An airman who smuggled a bag of Ecstasy tablets into Japan was sentenced Wednesday to more than 14 months in prison, concluding a case that his commander said had hurt the morale and efficiency of the entire 300-member unit.

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hugoc.jpg

Socialist Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez "mocked US President George W. Bush as a 'comrade.'" "Bush is to the left of me now," Chavez told an audience of international intellectuals debating the benefits of socialism. "Comrade Bush announced he will buy shares in private banks."

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The Fark.com Biden-Palin debate. Click on each one to open.

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The most insecure job in the universe absolutely has to be al Qeada's #2 guy. We just killed another one. That's about 500 of them so far.

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The Obama's greatest family moments - slideshow: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/10/16/the-obamas-greatest-famil_n_132339.html

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Here's the skinny on the debate from Democracy Corps.

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