http://summapolitico.blogspot.com
If you look at Carl Bernstein's call for impeachment in vanity fair
http://www.vanityfair.com/features/general/articles/060417fege08
and two recent posts by Tom Englehardt, "exporting ruins"
http://www.tomdispatch.com/index.mhtml?pid=73663
and "history ambushes the bush administration"
http://www.tomdispatch.com/index.mhtml?pid=77789
at Tomdispatch. and de la Vega at
http://www.tomdispatch.com/index.mhtml?pid=76008
on "el jefe's final jeopardy question"
and john dean's several, and other, analyses of "el jefe's" legal predicaments:
http://writ.news.findlaw.com/dean/20060407.html
http://writ.news.findlaw.com/dean/20060324.html
http://writ.news.findlaw.com/dean/20060224.html
http://writ.news.findlaw.com/dean/20060210.html
one would reach the conclusion that, while the center continues to put on a brave face and play a nice game of shuffle board, matters are crumbling at the edges, there are moles in the lawn if not inside the salad bowl, and that there are too many matters crumbling at too many edges for the dike not to break altogether.
The center is trying a diversionary face lift, a typical American endeavor that buys aging whores a little time. But it is good to go back to the beginning of all of this, the 2000 election, the Florida voter's mess, the Bush group going into a huddle when Florida seemed to be slipping away, the aborted recount [not to speak of a re-vote that ought to have been held if the two candidates had been seriously interested in democracy more than power], and that exceptionalist decision that justice Sca-li-a was signaling the moment that the matter seemed to be headed in Al Gore's way. Thus it is good to reread Renata Adler's New Republic piece IRREPARABLE HARM http://www.angelfire.com/rant/pearly/htmls1/gop-irreparable.html which is now available, in completeen form, as a chap book from any number of vendors. I would think that is fair to hold that the irreparable harm was also done by then President Clinton in lacking the decency to resign and hand over power to an interesting vice president when caught in a shaming lie, who might have gotten the standing of a sitting president for the election.- An unforgivably selfish and foresightless act by one of the sorriest of womanizers to ever wear pants and never satisfy a woman. However, I would think that revulsion at Bush and cohorts that might lead to a disgorging of an administration as corrupt as it is incompetent and criminal would then stop short at the nightmarish or hilarious thought of a President Dennis Hastert wrestling with the problems of this world, possibly taking orders from a jailed Tom DeLay! A complete goonacracy. So, just as the German Reich went down in flames with Hitler, the American project finds a ludicrous end with the would-be imperialist, the impostor from Texas by way of Kennebunkport.
What interested me was to track down the German lawyer, a formidable and well schooled lawyer, who helped H. pass the various enabling laws that put H. as dictator above the law, Wilhelm Frick.
http://www.dhm.de/lemo/html/biografien/FrickWilhelm/index.html
The equivalent lawyers have been found here meanwhile, and an attorney general, too. By withdrawing from the International Court of Justice, under the guise of trying to prevent the possible indictment of poor American soldiers, the Bush gang has tried to seal itself off , successfully so far, from international apprehension. Neither El Jefe nor his closest advisers and backers could withstand the scrutiny of such a court or of a Nuremberg-like trial which condemned Frick to death - he was executed on October 16, 1946. The only matters that keep this administration in power is the trembling members of the members of the several houses. It sure can't be the frightful thought that Bush can protect anyone but the financial interest of a very limited group of people. But Carl Bernstein sure gave it that extra college try!
Death Squad Allegations Threaten to Derail Bush's Last Latin Ally
http://www.commondreams.org/headlines06/0418-05.htm
Halliburton's Immigrant Detention Centers
"The use of military personnel and military contractors in the event of a Katrina-like disaster, which the Halliburton contract provides for, brings us closer to martial law, whether it is officially declared or not...."
http://progressive.org/mag_rcb041706
Flight Of The Investor Class
Defections are endangering the GOP's hold on power
The investor class is souring on George W. Bush and the Republicans. People who call themselves investors (and they aren't all rich) are part of the reason Bush's approval ratings have dropped to an all-time low. Hitoshi Tada has voted for the President twice, but the 27-year-old St. Louis resident and mutual fund investor says he's disappointed by Bush's "seeming lack of direction or progress on any front." Tada, who describes himself as "conservative across the board," isn't impressed by the management skills of America's first MBA President. "He certainly delegates and lets others screw up," Tada says. He calls the scandal- ridden Republican Congress "a hapless, self-serving mess."
http://www.businessweek.com/print/magazine/content/06_17/b3981044.htm?chan=gl
REVERENCE FOR THE LAW, AND STATUTORY INTERPRETATION The best way to ensure the perpetuation of democratic institutions in turbulent times, said Abraham Lincoln in an 1838 speech, is to cultivate a sense of reverence for the law. "Let reverence for the laws be breathed by every American mother to the lisping babe that prattles on her lap -- let it be taught in schools, in seminaries, and in colleges; let it be written in Primers, spelling books, and in Almanacs; -- let it be preached from the pulpit, proclaimed in legislative halls, and enforced in courts of justice." "And, in short, let it become the political religion of the nation," said the 28 year old Lincoln. http://showcase.netins.net/web/creative/lincoln/speeches/lyceum.htm A newly updated report from the Congressional Research Service introduces lay readers to the principles of statutory interpretation used by the Supreme Court to interpret the law. Some of these rules are commonsensical. Thus, ordinarily, "shall" is mandatory and "may" is permissive. Others are less obvious but no less important. The principle of "constitutional avoidance," for example, dictates that a statute should be read, "if fairly possible," so as not to be found unconstitutional. At Congressional direction, CRS does not make its products directly available to the American public. But a copy of the new CRS report was obtained by Secrecy News. See "Statutory Interpretation: General Principles and Recent Trends," updated March 30, 2006: http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/97-589.pdf
The economics of militarism
Hillary Clinton outlines Democrats' big business agenda
http://www.wsws.org/articles/2006/apr2006/clin-a19.shtml
The very rich in America: "The kind of money you cannot comprehend"
http://www.wsws.org/articles/2006/apr2006/rich-a19.shtml
price of oil going through the roof, so, folks, is the price of texas oil! which has consequences....
Senate Hearings on Bush, Now
In this VF.com exclusive, a Watergate veteran and Vanity Fair contributor calls for bipartisan hearings investigating the Bush presidency. Should Republicans on the Hill take the high road and save themselves come November?
By CARL BERNSTEIN
http://www.vanityfair.com/features/general/articles/060417fege08
Roll Call On Rumsfeld
Jim Lobe
April 18, 2006
Jim Lobe is Washington bureau chief for
Inter Press Service. Reprinted with permission.
Despite White House efforts to put an end to the controversy, the battle over the fate of Pentagon chief Donald Rumsfeld shows little sign of abating.
And the outcome, which is by no means certain, could well determine the trajectory of U.S. policy in key areas—including Iraq, Iran and even China—through the remaining two and a half years of George W. Bush's presidency.
While the unprecedented calls by six retired generals for his resignation have focused primarily on his competence, management style and strategy for invading and occupying Iraq, Rumsfeld's departure would almost certainly cripple the coalition of neoconservative and aggressive nationalist war hawks in and around the administration for the remainder of Bush's term.
That is why the hawks outside the administration, led by the neoconservative editorial page of the Wall Street Journal, appear anxious to persuade Bush himself that the current campaign against his defense secretary is really aimed at him.
"(O)n Friday Mr. Bush said he still has every confidence
http://www.tompaine.com/articles/2006/04/18/roll_call_on_rumsfeld.php
===
18 April 2006
In light of conditions in Iraq, PINR recommends its recent in-depth analysis on developments there:
"Red Lines Crisscross Iraq's Political Landscape"
http://www.pinr.com/report.php?ac=view_report&report_id=449
------------------------------
Economic Brief: Doncasters Deal Evokes U.S. National Security Concerns
Drafted By:
http://www.pinr.com
Suspected of Bilking Iraq Funds
http://www.commondreams.org/headlines06/0416-02.htm
In light of today's topic, a recent PINR analysis may be of interest:
"China's Strategy of Containing India" http://www.pinr.com/report.php?ac=view_report&report_id=434
Jolie's new baby looks remarkably like Page Six's Stern" http://www.newyorker.com/talk/content/articles/060424ta_talk_martin
New Yorker
WASHINGTON (AFP) - The
.
Pentagon declined to comment on a report that US military planning for
Iran began in 2002 and has been continually updated since
"This is the United States Defense Department. We plan for all sorts of things," said Bryan Whitman, a Pentagon spokesman.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/usirannuclearmilitary;_ylt=AhPW163iO4aHJvsOuDyV2xEDW7oF;_ylu=X3oDMTBhcmljNmVhBHNlYwNtcm5ld3M
-
US Strike on Iran: Fallout Around the World Would Be Grim
http://www.commondreams.org/headlines06/0415-04.htm
Iraq War, Round Two
by Robert Dreyfuss, TomPaine.com
With mid-term elections in mind, are Bush and Cheney planning a major assault to assert U.S. dominance in Baghdad?
http://www.tompaine.com/articles/2006/04/17/iraq_war_round_two.php
Bush's sway over WH press corps seems to be fraying
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/opinion/ideas/bal-id.whiteout16,0,327824 7.story
Baltimore Sun
Documents Link Rumsfeld to Prisoner's Interrogation
http://www.commondreams.org/headlines06/0415-03.htm
Senators push for U.S.-Iran talks
Diplomacy urged in nuclear dispute
April 17, 2006
FREE PRESS NEWS SERVICES
WASHINGTON -- Sen. Richard Lugar, the Republican chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee, and three Democratic colleagues called Sunday for direct U.S. talks with Iran about its disputed nuclear program, in part to address global concerns about energy supplies.
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060417/NEWS07/604170403/1009
Britain Took Part in Mock Iran Invasion
http://www.commondreams.org/headlines06/0415-06.htm
Jared Paul Stern: The FishbowlNY Interview
FPRIVATE "TYPE=PICT;ALT=jared_paul_stern_scandal.jpg"
Today we became the latest bleeping media outlet to interview Jared Paul Stern about the Page Six scandal.
http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowlny/scandals/jared_paul_stern_the_fishbowlny_interview_35403.asp
Walking the White House plank
White House press secretary, Scott McClellan, departs as the investigation into Karl Rove enters into a serious new phase.
http://commentisfree.guardian.co.uk/sidney_blumenthal/2006/04/walking_the_white_house_plank.html
Plan Patriota: What $700 Million in U.S. Cash Will and Will Not Buy You in ColombiaombWill not Buy You in Colombia
http://www.coha.org/NEW_PRESS_RELEASES/New_Press_Releases_2006/06.26_Plan_Patriota.html
Michael Scherer of Salon.com on the Torturer-in-Chief; Michael T. Klare on Iran; Iranian composer and vocalist Sussan Deyhim with cultural commentary. http://alternet.org/multimedia/35170/
(Almost) Wordless Wednesday
2 days ago
