Month: December 2007

Harry Reid Betrays the Constitution. Chris Dodd Calls in Markers to Try to Preserve It

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Harry Reid has announced that he will put forward the FISA bill from the intelligence committee, the one with few protections and teleco immunity.

I don’t know why he is choosing George W. Bush over the constitution of the United States, though I think it may have something to do with the fact that he’s gotten a lot of campaign donations from them.

He is also refusing to recognize Chris Dodd’s hold on the bill, which means that Dodd will have to actually filibuster.

I’m not sure why. After all he allowed Neanderthal Tom Coburn to block an investigation of the brutal racist murder of Emmett Till and other unsolved racial crimes.

In any case, Chris Dodd is reminding Senators Clinton and Obama of their promise to support his filibuster.

A Letter from Dodd Campaign:

Dear Tim, Today, that FISA fight we’ve all been waiting for begins — and it’s time to separate the leaders from the capitulators.

In a few hours, Majority Leader Harry Reid will ask for something called a “motion to proceed” on FISA, effectively disregarding Chris Dodd’s “hold” on the bill.

It’s unfortunate that he chose to go this route, to introduce a bill including retroactive immunity when another route could have been chosen just as easily.

So … that means Chris Dodd will start by introducing an amendment to strip retroactive immunity out of the bill.

But if that doesn’t work, he will do all he can to stop this bill that threatens our security, and that may include a “filibuster.”

Remember when this all started playing out? A lot of people rushed to send out strongly worded press releases about how committed they were to “supporting a filibuster.”

They’ll have a chance to show they are true to their word.

Call or email the Senators that pledged their opposition to this bill to support the Dodd Amendment and a filibuster if necessary. And ask them to be there with Dodd when it counts.

http://chrisdodd.com/filibuster

You don’t demonstrate leadership in the footnotes of a press release, or parroting responses from focus groups.

Leadership is demonstrated through action.
Tim Tagaris
Chris Dodd for President

Hillary I expect to stick to her word, Obama, I expect him to miss the vote.

France Finally Gets Foreign Sale of Rafale: 14 to Libya

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The deal appears to be done, though there are still “i”s to be dotted and “t”s to be crossed.

This is very good news for both the French air forces, who were looking for foreign sales to drop unit costs, and Dassault, who have been pulling their hair out over the flop that the aircraft has made in the world market.

14 is not a lot, but it makes the aircraft a lot more attractive to a second potential purchaser, as being the only export purchaser tends to create worries about support.

Now Krauthammer is Hating on the Talibaptists

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First Peggy Noonan goes after the religious right, and now it appears to be Charles Krauthammer’s turn. (Apologies to the townhall.com link)

….

The right answer, the only answer, is that the very question is offensive. The Constitution prohibits any religious test for office. And while that proscribes only government action, the law is also meant to be a teacher.

In the same way that civil rights laws established not just the legal but also the moral norm that one simply does not discriminate on the basis of race — changing the practice of one generation and the consciousness of the next — so the constitutional injunction against religious tests is meant to make citizens understand that such tests are profoundly un-American.

….

This is pretty elementary stuff. I haven’t exactly invented hot water here. The very rehearsing of these arguments seems tiresome and redundant.

But apparently not in the campaign of 2008. It’s two centuries since the passage of the First Amendment and our presidential candidates still cannot distinguish establishment from free exercise.

It appears that the corporate green heads that have used the religious right for years cannot abide Huckabee, and this time, a few worda about abortion will not mollify his supporters.

I experience some Schadenfreude, but the thought of a Christian Dominionist as a major presidential candidate is rather more worrisome than my uncharitable amusement.

Your Daily Economic Update

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First, you have calculated risk reporting that the discount rate spread has jumped to near record levels:

This is the spread between high and low quality short term (30 days) commercial paper. Even the bad stuff is supposed to be pretty much a sure thing, and the spread between the two is big, indicating a very high fear level.

It’s worse than when the big sh$@pile started to collapse in August.

It’s worse than when the Twin Towers DID collapse on 911.

People are scared, and getting people UNscared will be a very difficult thing.

Then there is the fact that the Producer Price Index took the biggest one-month jump in 34 years, 3.2% in a month, or 45% a year.

The economists will tell you to look at the core rate, but I live in a non core world, as do you.

Florida says $9B can’t be pulled from fund — OrlandoSentinel.com

Remember when I wrote about a Florida money market fund for local governments that froze its accounts because of a run on the account due to its investments in the big sh#$pile?

They are finally releasing some funds to the local governments, but only ¼ of what was deposited.

Citigroup to lay off as many as 32,000 employees.

Lamo Terrorists Jurors Deadlock in 6 of 7 Defendants | World Latest | Guardian Unlimited

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And they acquitted number seven.

This case has been a ginned up clusterf%$# from the beginning. Someone found a group of nutbags, and either (the FBI or Prosecutors) thought that a terrorism bust would make their careers, or they (paid informants) thought that they were dumb enough to unknowingly play along with them so that they could stay on the Department of Justice gravy train.

These guys are too whacked out and too stupid to organize a PTA meeting, much less engage in terrorism. This is precisely the sort of manufactred bullsh&$ that seems to happen every time that Bush and His Evil Minions&trade need something to distract from the bad news coming out of the White House.

Solidarity Works. Unions Get It, But the Democrats Don’t

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SEIU Local 99 in Los Angeles, representing teachers and other school workers, has fired Chris Lehane because he took a job consulting for the producers, and against the writers, with regard to the writers’ strike.

I think that this sort of solidarity is what Democrats lack. FWIW, I will not support any primary candidate who employs Mr. Lahane. He is a strike breaker.

If we want our control of congress, and hopefully the White House in a year and a month, to mean anything, then we have to impress upon the national Democratic party that solidarity means something.

Democrats Cave on Spending

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David Obey had a suggestion, if Bush is adamant about his bogus numbers, cut out earmarks, the idea was to make lawmakers, particularly Republican ones, pay more than lip service to budget restraint.

Of course, this was shortly followed by a story titled Pelosi backs down.

Am I the only one who thinks that this headline occurs far too often?

Mr. 33% is a lame duck. If he wants to trigger a shutdown, well f#$@ him.

How about some guts, Mrs. Pelosi.

Former Gitmo Prosecutor Blasts Military Commissions, Bush and His Evil Minions™ Order Him Not to Testify Before Congress

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Interesting, Colonel Morris Davis, former prosecutor writes an OP/ED for the LA Times about why he stepped down from his position as prosecutor as the Pentagon’s Chief War Crimes Prosecutor blasts the military commissions process because he, “”elt that the system had become deeply politicized and that I could no longer do my job effectively or responsibly.”

He goes on to state that the commissions lacked the, “atmosphere of honesty and impartiality”, essential to legitimacy. He accuses the convening authority (basically the people who will act as judge and jury)), of, “Intermingling convening authority and prosecutor roles perpetuates the perception of a rigged process stacked against the accused.”

Further he believes that the trials can be conducted largely in open court, and that closed door proceedings further degraded the legitimacy of the proceedings.

The Senate Judiciary Committee called him, but did not subpoena him, to testify before them on these and related issues, but he was ordered not to appear.

Orwell is spinning so rapidly in his grave that you could power all of Bristol with him.

Telco Immunity: Reid to Choose Which Surveillance Bill to Send to Senate Floor

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It makes a big difference if it’s the Senate intelligence committee or the Senate Judiciary Committee version.

The former has retroactive Telco immunity for the illegal wiretaps that the Telcos did for Bush and His Evil Minions™.

Senators are aggressively lobbying Senate Leader Harry Reid on this.

Chris Dodd has already made it clear that he will filibuster, and because Reid won’t extend the courtesy that he does to the obstructionist Rethuglicans, this will mean him talking, and talking, and talking, and talking on the floor of the Senate.

It would take Dodd off the campaign trail, but the spectacle would be the best thing that could possibly hit his candidacy.

The following letter was sent to him:

Dear Majority Leader Reid:

We understand that the Senate will shortly be considering amendments to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. As you know, the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence and the Senate Judiciary Committee have reported very different versions of the FISA Amendments Act, S. 2248, and it is up to you, as Majority Leader, to decide how the Senate considers this legislation.

We urge you to make the version of S. 2248 reported by the Senate Judiciary Committee the base bill to be considered by the full Senate. While the structure of Title I of both bills is the same, and both make improvements over the Protect America Act, the reasonable changes to Title I made in the Judiciary Committee ensure that the FISA Court will be able to conduct much-needed oversight of the implementation of these broad new surveillance authorities, and help to better protect the rights of innocent Americans. While we appreciate the hard work that the Intelligence Committee has done on this legislation, the process by which the Judiciary Committee considered, drafted, amended and reported out its bill was an open one, allowing outside experts and the public at large the opportunity to review and comment. With regard to legislation so directly connected to the constitutional rights of Americans, the results of this open process should be accorded great weight, especially in light of the Judiciary Committee’s unique role and expertise in protecting those rights.

We also believe that the Judiciary Committee bill is preferable because it does not provide immunity for telecom companies that allegedly cooperated with the administration’s warrantless wiretapping program. As this is such a controversial issue, we feel it would be appropriate to require the proponents of immunity to make their case on the floor.

Thank you for your consideration.

Sincerely,

Russell D. Feingold (D-WI)

Christopher J. Dodd (D-CT)

Barack Obama (D-IL)

Bernard Sanders (I-VT)

Robert Menendez (D-NJ)

Joseph R. Biden, Jr. (D-DE)

Sherrod Brown (D-OH)

Tom Harkin (D-IA)

Benjamin L. Cardin (D-MD)

Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-NY)

Daniel K. Akaka (D-HI)

Jim Webb (D-VA)

Edward M. Kennedy (D-MA)

Barbara Boxer (D-CA)

For your convenience, I have highlighted the presidential candidates who have objected.

Those Morons in Washington Are Doing It Again

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I mean, of course, the Democrats, particularly the DSCC and DLCC.

There are two very good posts on open left (here and here) discussing the losses in the special elections in Virginia and Ohio yesterday.

The basic point is that the candidates, and the DCCC which backed them made no mention of the war.

These guys are still running away from ending the war. The Democrats took control of congress on this issue, despite these guys ducking covering on this issue in 2006, and they are doing it again.

It’s the war stupid, no matter how much these guys, largely ex-Clintonistas, want to make it the 1992 election.

No money to the DSCC or DCCC. When I give, it’s only to candidates who are clear and vocal about their opinion on the war. It does not have to be the centerpiece of their campaign, but it has to be out there and clearly visible.

‘Nuff said.

Alan “Bubbles” Greenspan, the “I Didn’t Do It” Kid

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Yep, he has an article in the Wall Street Journal claiming that it’s not his fault.

Felix Salmon of Portfolio.com pretty much eviscerates him on his lies.

That said, however, the main reason why the housing bust seems to be much worse in the US than elsewhere is surely those ARMs – which, as Greenspan concedes, were a function of low short-term interest rates. They allowed many people to buy houses they couldn’t afford, which in turn created a massive solvency crisis.

Greenspan’s reputation is trashed, as well it should be.

On the Fed Shoveling Currency Out The Door

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Yesterday, the Fed cut rates, and the market screamed in anguish, because it was not enough.

Well today, the Federal Reserve, and other nations’ central banks, came up with a scheme to deal with the credit freeze that is a result of what amounts to widespread insolvency in the financial markets (here, here, here, here), and here).

Basically, they are flooding the market with currency by lending out large sums of money on the basis of illiquid worthless securities.

Quotes from some of the articles cited above:

You will note that it allows the lending of up to 85 percent of the face value of AAA-rated collateralized mortgage obligations, if there is no observable market value.

…

So much for discouraging future risk taking.

…

The most prominent sign of that is that the Libor, a benchmark for many dollar-loans between banks especially in Europe, has shot up as much as 0.8 percentage points above the federal funds rate. The gap is normally less than 0.2 points. A high Libor rate raises banks’ costs of funds and thus the rates they charge borrowers. In addition, many U.S. homeowners have adjustable rate mortgages with linked to Libor.

…

“Clearly, the Fed is feeling its way in the dark here,” said Ian Shepherdson, chief U.S. economist at High Frequency Economics.

(Emphasis mine)

Nouriel Roubini says that this is, “Too Little Too Late To Address the Fundamental Problems of the Financial System.”

I tend to agree with Dr. Roubini, but he’s a bear, as I have been, for the past few years.

Honestly, I think that what is going on here is the beginning of a major devaluation of US currency, so people will be paying back loans in devalued dollars.

Basically, it’s using inflation to get out of the problem. It was done during the Great Depression, and the amount ov exotic and dishonest leverage in 1929 is far less than now.

Nancy “Know Nothing” Grasmick Re-Appointed State School Superintendent

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Despite pleas from the Governor, Speaker of the State House, and Senate President, lamd duck members of the Maryland State Board of Education voted to trenew Nancy Grasmick’s contract for another four years.

It should be noted that Grasmick tried to seize 11 low performing Baltimore City schools during the election for Governor, and was for a long time considered a potential running mate for then incumbent governor Republican Bob “Bad Hair” Ehrlich.

She also was front and center in Ehrlich’s attempts to take over the whole Baltimore City School District and to decertify the Teachers’ Union.

This is going to get ugly, and she’s a hack, in addition to being one of the most test crazy senior executives in the nation. Her policies got schools not teaching science or social studies for two months so that they can do test prep.

Gravel, Kucinich Out of Tomorrow’s Debate

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I think that this is a good thing. They aren’t serious candidates, and they aren’t serious by the definition of Iowa PBS either:

  • an F.E.C. statement of candidacy;
  • having an Iowa campaign staffer and Iowa campaign office as of October 1;
  • registering at least at 1 percent in the October Des Moines Register poll.

Not quote sure how Keys got into the Republithug debate today. My only explanation is that it was affirmative action.

FEC to Review Matching ActBlue Funds To Edwards

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Well, it looks like the FEC will not be matching Act Blue contributions. The theory behind this is that Act Blue is a dingle entity, and hence no matching except for the first $250 from the group.

At least that is what the draft ruling says.

Of course, it is the individual donors who decide which candidate gets the cash with Act Blue. They are really more of a clearinghouse than a PAC.

Kos has more info. Comments must be in by tomorrow.

Hat Tip to David Obey, for Having Some Backbone

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Obey, the House Appropriations Committee Chairman, has been working for some time on compromise spending legislation with the Congressional Republicans and the White House, and now that Bush has threatened a veto of anything more than what he submitted (Obey was trying to split the difference), he has terminated negotiations, and told the White House and Republicans that he will balance the budget by wacking Republican priorities and earmark pork.

Good for him. If Bush and His Evil Minions™ don’t want to negotiate in good faith, hit back hard.