How to Establish an Empire without Congressional Approval
Charlie Savage has a great article summarizing Bush's threats to establish a security relationship with Iraq without consulting Congress.
President Bush's plan to forge a long-term agreement with the Iraqi government that could commit the US military to defending Iraq's security would be the first time such a sweeping mutual defense compact has been enacted without congressional approval, according to legal specialists.
After World War II, for example - when the United States
Reid: The President and the Republicans Want Failure
One of the things we're fighting for now on FISA is to make sure the Republicans get pinned as the obstructionists here. The key is explaining that the Republicans don't want to protect our country, they want failure.
What Ever Happened to "Upperdown Votes"?
Say what you will about Senator Reid. But right now, he's in a giant showdown with Mitch McConnell (and, disgustingly, Jello Jay Rockefeller), and I guarantee you'd rather have Reid win than McConnell.
The Republicans have refused to allow an "upperdown" vote on any amendment since the Leahy substitution amendment went through.
Fieger Judge: Prosecution "Unusual;" Government Must Explain Recusal
The federal prosecutors prosecuting Geoffrey Fieger are going to have to reveal to him why the top lawyers in Detroit's US Attorney office recused themselves from the investigation--seven months after it began. Judge Borman has judged that, "the reason for the November recusal – is essential to permit the Defendants to argue their claim, of Government misconduct."
Did Bush Re-Nominate Bradbury to Control Mukasey?
Mind you, I'm sure Bush re-nominated Steven Bradbury, the second incarnation of John Yoo, because Bradbury has dutifully shredded the Constitution on demand, and Bush would like to reward him. But the National Journal's coverage of the Bradbury re-nomination raises an interesting point. It notes, as does everyone else, that Bradbury's nomination is a big "Cheney yourself" to the Democrats who have refused to approve Bradbury's nomination in the past.
Dick Wants His Immunity, and He Wants It Now
Dick Cheney decided that he would be a good person to exhort Congress to pass telecom immunity and that the Heritage Foundation would be a good venue for doing so. It's laughable on its face. The pity is, it'll still probably work.
"The 9/11 Commission Wants Internal Emails"
I found something rather interesting in Scooter Libby's notes for July 8 (here's the transcription of his chickenscratch). At the tail end of a conversation about the 9/11 Commission (which may have taken place at the White House's Senior Staff Meeting that morning), and at the beginning of more obsessive notes about Joe Wilson, Libby wrote:
9/11 Commission wants internal e-mails, mark-up drafts of President's speech, materials for President's discussions with Blair,
Two Reminders: Not an Agency and Search Terms
We've been discussing whether the amazing disappearing emails disappeared for nefarious reasons or not. While I still can't answer that question, there are two data points it's worth remembering: the White House suddenly decided that Office of Administration was not an agency, just so it could avoid responding to any FOIA requests about its missing email. And
Brent Wilkes "The Leader of a Criminal Enterprise"
The Probation Office has recommended that Brent Wilkes receive a sentence of sixty years. You think this virtual life sentence will get the attention of all the other Bush cronies getting corrupt contracts through bribes?
Market Fun
It's going to be a crazy day--and week--in the economic world.
Still Investigating Crimes Associated with the USA Purge
The Hill has an update on the US Attorney purge investigations. The most interesting news is that they appear to be chasing down the abundant evidence that the claims about Iglesias' firing were a cover-up of the real reasons, which are reported to personally involve George Bush.
Plame Investigation and Missing Emails: Analysis on Emails
This is the post I promised, in which I'll analyze what the timeline of the missing dates shows. My conclusion? That almost all of the days for which OVP and WH have no emails happened during periods in which they were responding to significant Plame subpoenas.
Championship Trash Talk Part Deux - Go Pack Go!
You guys sure talk a lot. Keep it up! Go Pack!
Plame Investigation and Missing Emails Timeline
An email mapping the Plame investigation against known data about White House emails.
Missing Emails: Addington's Search Terms
Among the documents introduced at the trial was a draft version of the search that David Addington requested Keith Roberts of the Office of Administration to do on the emails on the OVP server. This is not a final version--it is what Addington sent to Agent Roos to get his approval before he submitted it to Roberts to do his search.
emptywheel's Famous Football Trash Talk Thread* - Championship Sunday Edition
Championship Sunday brings conflicting emotions for me. It brings the very essence, the finest, that pro football has to offer; the two best teams in each conference duking it out for the right to go to the Super Bowl. It also means that, save for the commonly anti-climatic Super Bowl, the football season is over, and that leaves a hole in the sports, and emptywheel, world until next fall. Well, enough of that, we DO have one outstanding day of gridiron glory left, lets get to it.
Henry's Dates: Two Data Points from the Plame Investigation
I promised I will consider the significance of the dates of missing email archives wrt the Plame investigation. But first of all, I wanted to look at two data points to establish what these dates offer us.
Henry's Dates: Medicare Part D
One of the reasons it was so unwise for Tony Fratto to open his big fat mouth today regarding the White House habit of losing emails is because it offered Waxman an excuse to make previously unreleased information--the dates for which White House email archives don't exist--publicly available. That allows us to discover neat coincidences, such as that all of OMB's emails disappeared for the period leading up to Bush's signing of the Medicare Part D bill.
Tony Fratto Opens His Big Fat Mouth--and Waxman Responds
When I read Tony Fratto's aggressive denials that the White House had lost millions of emails today I said to myself, "Tony, you just got the White House in a big heap of trouble with your big fat mouth." After all, I reasoned to myself, the White House has previously represented to people, including Patrick Fitzgerald, that they had lost email. That's how they kept Jenny Mayfield and Cathie Martin out of jail for not turning over what appears to be email responsive to subpoena. So if you now say that there are no emails missing, it means all that legal testimony the White House has given--some of it under oath--is incorrect. If you say that, Tony, you're just inviting someone to respond.
And respond Henry Waxman did.
GAO to White House: We Hate to Say We Told You So, But We Told You So
The NYT had a story yesterday reporting that the Iraqis just can't seem to spend its aide money as quickly as it's supposed to be spending it.What the NYT doesn't say, though, is that the GAO itself also reported on how much money Iraq had spent, in its report issued just before Petraeus' dog and pony show. In fact, the benchmark of whether Iraq was spending its money as quickly it was supposed to was one of the ones on which the GAO and the Administration disagreed. Whereas the GAO declared that Iraq had "partially met" its goal to spend $10 billion on reconstruction, the Administration declared Iraq's progress "satisfactory."