The Fight against Poverty Was a Lie, Too

/in /by

I was never an Edwards supporter. Not because I didn’t like what he said, but because, since he could never speak in more depth on an issue than your average talking point, I suspected all those nice things he was saying about helping the poor were false, just convenient lines around which an old DLCer could build a presidential run. The revelation that Edwards believed he could run for President even while hiding an affair only made me more suspicious that the whole campaign was one convenient lie.

Now, Ken Silverstein makes that case even stronger.

Once upon a time John Edwards wanted to be president and he vowed, back then, that poverty would be his signature issue. “Poverty is the great moral issue of our century,” he told a group of students at Berkeley in 2005. “People living in poverty need you. And another thing: America needs you.”

To show his own dedication, Edwards “created a tax-exempt nonprofit dedicated to fighting poverty”, the New York Times reported.

[snip]

In other words, the Center may have done some good but its primary purpose was to serve as a vehicle for Edwards’ political career. Indeed, it appears to be very similar to the bogus “Reform Institute” that John McCain set up after his defeat to George W. Bush in 2000, and which was designed to keep alive his presidential ambitions and reward his cronies.

Anyway, Edwards of course lost his bid for the Democratic presidential nomination this year, and guess what happened to his big anti-poverty initiative? That’s right—it appears he pulled the plug on it.

About a week before Edwards acknowledged having an affair with Rielle Hunter, Edwards quietly shut down a “scholarship program he started at an Eastern North Carolina high school — a program he once promised would be a model for the nation under an Edwards presidency,” reports the Raleigh News & Observer:

I suppose there are charitable interpretations for why he dismantled his scholarship program. Perhaps he didn’t want it to be associated with what he knew was going to be his soon-to-be-sullied reputation. Perhaps he couldn’t fund the charity anymore because he has been spending so much money keeping Rielle Hunter in her big house in California that he couldn’t afford to fund the charity, either. Perhaps he just wants to spend time with his family(s).

But the whole thing just stinks.

Down the Toobz: Ted Stevens Indicted on Seven Counts

/in /by

TV news is reporting that Ted "Toobz" Stevens has been indicted on seven counts of public corruption. (Update: A DOJ press conference is scheduled for 1:20.)

Wouldn’t you know that "Toobz" would go down based on electronic surveillance?

The FBI, working with an Alaska oil contractor, secretly taped telephone calls with Sen. Ted Stevens as part of a public corruption sting it was reported late last year, according to people close to the investigation.

The secret recordings suggest the Justice Department was eyeing Stevens long before June 2007, when the Republican senator first publicly acknowledged he was under scrutiny. At that time, it appeared Stevens was a new focus in a case that had already ensnared several state lawmakers.

The recorded calls between Stevens and businessman Bill Allen were confirmed by two people close to the case who spoke on condition of anonymity because the investigation is still under way. They declined to say how many calls were recorded or what was said.

Stevens has two primary challengers, one who just started dumping money into the race and another self-financing millionaire. Update: There are six other Republicans on the primary ballot with Toobz. But the deadline for new candidates has passed, so the Republicans will be stuck with either Indicted-Toobz or one of the other six.

Update: CBS says they’re false statements charges.

A federal grand jury in Washington has handed up the indictment against Stevens — which the Justice Department is set to announce very shortly.

Stevens faces seven counts of false statements involving VECO, the oil services company in Alaska, and the renovations done on his home.

Update from the press conference–and with the indictment itself.  

Acting AAG, Criminal Division Matt Friedrich (he replaced Alice Fisher) said they didn’t go for bribery here bc they didn’t have a clear quid pro quo for VECO. It was more like Stevens was just VECO’s Senator.

Friedrich said they didn’t charge a tax violation bc these were gifts, and you don’t have to declare gifts on your taxes. 

Instead, they charged him generally for false statements, and then with one tied to each yearly financial disclosure from 2001 to 2006.  

The Off the Record Club Now On the Record, Still Desperate for Positive Press for McCain

/in /by

I speculated the other day that Bob Novak’s Plame leak brokers in the Off the Record Club–specifically, top McCain aides Charlie Black and Ken Duberstein–were using him as a tool again when they leaked that McCain was about to name his running-mate.

Well, lo and behold, guess who’s now on the record, once again pitching an imminent announcement of McCain’s running mate?

Anxious to counter the blanket media coverage that has followed Sen. Barack Obama on his overseas journey, Sen. John McCain is weighing whether to announce his running mate in the coming weeks before the spotlight shifts to China and the opening of the Olympic Games next month.

"He’s in a position to make [the decision] on short notice if he wanted to," said Charles R. Black Jr., one of McCain’s top political advisers.

Two top aides to the presumptive Republican nominee said the decision is likely to be announced after Obama returns from Europe on Sunday and before the Beijing Olympics begin Aug. 8. They said the campaign fears that unanticipated events coming out of China — whether in the form of athletic accomplishments or human rights protests — could deflect attention from the announcement if it were made during the Games. [my emphasis]

And if you compare this on the record story with what Novak was told–"they didn’t want it to come out the way it was going to come out"–both stories seem designed to pressure McCain not to announce his running mate when he currently plans to announce.

Many Republicans say the traditional time frame for an announcement — the days leading up to the GOP convention — is not practical this year, because the Democratic convention ends so soon before the Republican gathering. It’s unlikely, they said, that McCain would announce his pick the day after Obama gives his convention speech.

And several McCain aides said they oppose the idea of making a vice presidential announcement during the Olympics.

That, and I’m sure Charlie Black and friends are desperate to get whathisname back in the press, now that Obama’s sucking up all the media’s attention. How many more times do you think Charlie Black is going to try this ploy, before someone labels him the Boy Who Cried "Veep!"?

Once a Predictable Tool, Always a Predictable Tool

/in /by

novak-pawned.pngPoor Bob Novak. Usually when people use him for political ends, he’s able to maintain the fiction that the leaks he gets are true.

But not so his "scoop" that McCain was going to announce his Veep choice this week:

I got a suggestion from a very senior McCain aide late yesterday afternoon that he was going to announce it this week, that they didn’t want it to come out the way it was going to come out, and they suggested that I put it out. I then called another senior person, who said, "I can’t talk about that but wouldn’t this be a terrific week to announce it, that is, with Obama getting the headlines? So I just put something on the Internet that the McCain camp–sources close to the McCain campaign suggested he might, he might name it this week, but didn’t disclose the name. I, I since have been told by certain people that this was a dodge, they were trying to get a bit of publicity to rain on Mc–on Obama’s campaign. That’s pretty reprehensible, if it’s true, but we’ll find out in a few days whether, uh, what I was, suggested was true or was a scam.

Curiously, Novak doesn’t seem all that pissed at being set up as a tool. Given that he was quick to admit Karl Rove and Richard Armitage as his sources for the CIA leak case–though not, remember, Scooter Libby–that sort of suggests Novak’s not that surprised or pissed this tip turned out to be false. Otherwise Novak would name the senior McCain aides.

Then again, I can’t help but remember the central role that the Off the Record Club played in the leak of Valerie Wilson’s name. There was Ken Duberstein, the guy who set up Richard Armitage to leak to Novak. He’s McCain’s senior political aide. The founder of the Off the Record Club, Richard Hohlt, is the guy who faxed Novak’s column to Rove in advance, so he would know that Valerie was good and outed so Rove could start prepping the secondary "Wilson’s wife is Fair Game" campaign. I don’t think Hohlt has a significant role in McCain’s campaign–though he is "known as the person you go to to try to get stuff in Novak’s column." Another key Off the Record Club member sure does have a key role in McCain’s campaign, though: Charlie Black, McCain’s ethically-impaired Chief Strategist. Read more →

Let The Sun Shine In

/in , , , /by

Today Tomorrow (per CHS) is a big day in the life of Firedoglake, the debut of the new, powerful and reader driven Oxdown Gazette. Oxdown will be run by Ari Rabin-Havt, formerly of Harry Reid’s office, an immensely talented and committed progressive voice. But the real power behind Oxdown will be you, and all the other readers, who heed the call and step forward to lend their voice to the work ahead. You are the future; the time is now.

Fittingly, one of the first substantive contributors anteing up at Oxdown is none other than our own longtime Emptywheel and FDL regular, masaccio. Following the lead started by Marcy in her The FISA Loss: Recommendations for the Future post, masaccio has taken the next step in formulating a progressive based action plan. He has done an excellent job identifying several key goals and discussing modalities for obtaining them, and the thoughts and suggestions previously made by many of you here at EW and FDL are an integral part of his discussion. Go read What Should Obama Do For Us? and make your own further suggestions as to what we can accomplish through, and obtain from, Barack Obama in return for our support and votes. Here is my suggestion.

I would like a full and definitive pledge to open and transparent government. When the Democratic leadership were campaigning to claim a majority in 2006, and after they seized that mandate in the election, there was a promise made to change the ways of Washington, specifically in Congress, and stop the secretion of legislation being proposed, stop secret manipulation in back rooms, and to insure that bills are available to the individual members of Congress and the public sufficiently ahead of time to allow intelligent analysis and informed review before voting on the floor.

But when it came to seminal landmark legislation fundamentally weakening and eroding the rights of, and guarantees made to, every citizen that are embedded in the Fourth Amendment, they reneged. When it came to the literal, and arguably unconstitutional, taking of vested monetary claims, by mass numbers of US citizens, being actively and affirmatively pursued in courts of law against co-conspirator telephone companies, the Democratically controlled House of Representatives reneged. Instead of living up to their promises, Nancy Pelosi, Harry Reid, Steny Hoyer, and a cast of cronies saw fit to do an about face and operate covertly and clandestinely out of sight, in the shadows, concealing Read more →

McCain: Is He Addled And Confused Or A Dishonorable Man?

/in /by

It is becoming increasingly clear that it is really one or the other; either John McCain is addled and confused in the face of trying to keep up with all that he must as a candidate for the most powerful position in the world, or he is a dishonorable cad that will blithely pass out confidential information and place important people’s lives in danger to serve his own vain powerlust.

The last time there was an insinuation made that McCain was confused and couldn’t keep things straight, there was much consternation and soiling of undergarments by the McCain camp and across the board covering of his butt by the mainstream media. (See here and here). But these are not occasional incidents with McCain. Sunni or Shia? Sudan or Somalia? He is for immigration reform or against it? Does Czechoslovakia still exist or not (Um, no Senator, it ceased existence over 15 years ago, and you’ve been there since then more than once). And then there is this painful example of cognitive dysfunction.

Yesterday John McCain went all in with his chips of mental incompetence. From Reuters:

Republican presidential candidate John McCain commented on Friday on the unannounced timing of a high-security trip by Barack Obama to Iraq, saying he believed his Democratic rival was going this weekend.
…
"I believe that either today or tomorrow — and I’m not privy to his schedule — Sen. Obama will be landing in Iraq with some other senators" who make up a congressional delegation, McCain said at a Republican fund-raiser.

John McCain must have a far different definition of "high security" and "Senatorial courtesy" than has been known and understood throughout the history of this country. Apparently McCain not only doesn’t care about Obama’s safety, but has a similar disregard for the health and well being for the other fellow Congressional members with Obama on the trip, their staffers and the secret service personnel that have to protect all of them. As Teddy Partridge noted, this isn’t quite on the level of outing a covert CIA spy, but it is sure in the ballpark. For a comparison, consider how when Bush travels to Iraq they often don’t even tell the press, much less publicize the specific dates he will be going; pretty much the same for even lesser Bush Administration officials. McCain’s trips are kept secret as to most details for security reasons.

So just exactly how did McCain come to know the day schedule of Obama’s trip anyway? All that had been discussed prior to McCain’s shameful leak was that Obama would be traveling in the Middle East and might go to Iraq Read more →

John McCain Battles the Veterans

/in /by

I’m not a veteran, so it’s not my place to question McCain’s claims on both his own service and his work for other veterans.

But I wanted to put up this YouTube and this post by Michigander djtyg–an Iraqi veteran–because I think the two, together, say a lot of what needs to be said. Plus, djtyg does the fact-checking that this YouTube just begs.

There’s been a lot of hoopla over the past few weeks about John McCain’s military service.

[snip]

So now the discussion is on about the values of military service. Does it have any value in politics? Could you learn those values in the civilian world instead? Does being a veteran make you an expert in military affairs?

Being a veteran does have its benefits in building character. While in the military I learned the value of looking out for other people, even at your own expense. I learned how to have the courage to do things even when I was sure I was going to die. I learned that talking about doing something and actually doing it are two different things (you’d be surprised how many grown adults don’t realize this). Being a Soldier changed who I was, and I’m better for it.

[snip]

… most Soldiers would tell you that they’re better people for having served.

Moving on to John McCain…..

As for John McCain, the question that no one wants to answer is how being a POW and a veteran have given him the qualifications to become President. This would be considered a fair question if McCain had an answer. If he said that being a Navy officer gave him leadership experience (and challenged Gen. Clark’s assesment of his leadership experience), if his policies for respecting the Geneva Conventions came from his being tortured as a POW (which he initially did, before he buckled to his right-wing base and decided to support waterboarding), and that being a veteran made him want to look out for the new veterans coming home from places like Iraq and Afghanistan, the question wouldn’t be asked anymore. But because McCain has refused to answer the question now being asked, it’s become clear that he is using his service not as an example of why he would be a good President, but as a shield from criticism.

Read more →

John McCain Says: Want to Fix the Economy? Elect a Democrat

/in , /by

A number of people are already mocking John McCain’s "plan" to fix the economy.

Savings from Victory!

First, there’s this little Orwellian gem.

The McCain administration would reserve all savings from victory in the Iraq and Afghanistan operations in the fight against Islamic extremists for reducing the deficit. Since all their costs were financed with deficit spending, all their savings must go to deficit reduction.

Elsewhere, McCain admits we might not have victory in Iraq for 100 years. Until then, I presume we’ll be using deficit spending under President McCain to fund the garrisons of our empire that he’s loath to close down. But once we get victory, we’re going to have "savings," in that we’ll no longer be doing all that deficit spending, and somehow we’ll put the money we never had in the first place and still don’t have to pay down Bush’s Iraq disaster.

Because saying, "if we withdraw from Iraq, we won’t be spending so much money that we don’t have and can’t afford" doesn’t sound quite so honorable, does it, even if the "savings" (as in, huge amounts we won’t be using deficit funding to fund) are bigger and quicker?

McCain Writhes Around on the Third Rail in Glee!!

And then there’s this bit–where he appears to be planning to both privatize social security and cut promised benefits.

John McCain supports supplementing the current Social Security system with personal accounts – but not as a substitute for addressing benefit promises that cannot be kept.

Vote McCain! He will renege on the promises made to our nation’s seniors! Because I hear seniors don’t vote in appreciable numbers!

"Read My Lips: No New Taxes Growth"

McCain, faced with a shitty economy and the prospect of huge deficits, still isn’t going to make the mistake Poppy Bush made. Rather than talking about taxes and deficits, he’ll just magically promise growth!

Growth is an imperative – historically the greatest success in reducing deficits (late 1980s; late 1990s) took place in the context of economic growth.

Or, to state that another way, "historically the greatest success in reducing deficits (later 1980s; late 1990s) took place in the context of tax increases." Only he doesn’t mention that part; it’s so much easier to snap your fingers and make this economic disaster go away.

Democrats Are Good for the Economy, One

But I’m most amused that twice, McCain advocates doing what his Democratic colleagues have been busy doing while McCain was AWOL from the Senate. Read more →

Mark Schauer: Happy Birthday America

/in /by

I managed to get some of Blue America-endorsed candidate Mark Schauer’s (candidate for MI-07, just west of Ann Arbor) time on Wednesday. We talked about the crummy auto industry, what he hopes to accomplish when we elect him to Congress next year, and his wife’s recipe for Pasty Pie–some of which I’ll write up at more length in the coming days. But for now, I wanted to share what Mark had to say, on Wednesday, as he looked forward to the July Fourth weekend.

emptywheel: The question is, as we go into the July Fourth weekend, and there’s lots of people feeling very frustrated about the status of our Constitution and the values that went into that original Fourth of July, what can you, Mark Schauer do, when you get to DC, to restore the Constitution and to restore those values that are all about Fourth of July?

Schauer: I think our country has been steered off a cliff by this Administration, they’ve compromised our Constitution in lots of ways. I’ve spoken out against the FISA issue and I’ve also talked with my constituents about basic things like signing statements that this President has abused. And a Vice President, Dick Cheney, on one hand insists he’s a member of the Executive Branch, and on the other hand, insists he’s a member of the legislative branch. I think one of the ways we restore our reputation abroad is by restoring our commitment to our Constitution. I will defend people’s privacy, I will defend people’s protection under the Constitution at every opportunity. I will take that oath of office seriously–frankly, as I have as a member of the Michigan legislature. And I think that that’s part of the change that this country is ready for and I look forward to helping to bring that about.

emptywheel: What do you think Congress can do moving forward–because so far Congress hasn’t been successful at bringing the Administration in check, even though we all admit that there are these problems and we’ve got a terrible reputation abroad. What do you think one Congressperson can do to help restore the Consitution?

Schauer: I think actively uphold that oath. I think one of the roles of a legislature is oversight over the Executive Branch. Now, I’m going to be enthusiastically campaigning for Barack Obama and I hope he’s our President. But let me be clear–my job is not to work for a future President Obama, Read more →

John McCain, George Bush’s Bagman

/in , /by

So I spent a day and a half, knowing full well that the Colombian rescue was done with the assistance of our intelligence services, wondering, still, why they timed the rescue to coincide with McCain’s visit to Colombia.

Leaders of the Colombian FARC rebel movement were paid millions of dollars to free Colombian politician Ingrid Betancourt and 14 other hostages, Swiss radio said on Friday, quoting ‘a reliable source’.

The 15 hostages released on Wednesday by the Colombian army ‘were in reality ransomed for a high price, and the whole operation afterwards was a set-up,’ the radio’s French-language channel said.

Saying the United States, which had three of its citizens among those freed, was behind the deal, it put the price of the ransom at some $20 million.

[snip]

White House spokeswoman Dana Perino said the rescue ‘was conceived by the Colombians and executed by the Colombians with our full support,’ while implying that Washington had provided intelligence and even operational help.

Silly me! They didn’t need McCain there for a photo op! They needed a bagman.

Now I wonder how long it’ll be before we find out the ransom came from Bandar’s little slush fund? But don’t worry–McCain’s just aspiring to be like Saint Ronnie.