Suspicious Mind

Bet On Blackmail.

It seems; oh, so deliciously ironic, that one of the top Democrats, part of the Blank Check Club, one who waved her pom-poms so high, with so much vigor and energy, for The Bush Grindhouse, and their illegal wiretapping, finds herself, today, in the middle of a soon-to-grow-bigger scandal, starring herself, and, on - c'mon, everybody at the same time - a wiretap!

We, of course, refer to California Congresswoman Jane Harman.

CQ Politics broke the story this morning, and it's been a feeding frenzy all day.

The Readers Digest version is Harman was working (or, let's say, "communicating") with AIPAC (The American Israeli Public Affairs Committee), or, somebody working as an "agent" with AIPAC, with lots of "winks and nods", about her helping AIPAC get a court case squashed, and this AIPAC contact would help Little Miss Pom-Pom Jane get the coveted chairmanship of the Intelligence Committee.

But wait, it's all on a legal wiretap (something, apparently like a magnet, regarding AIPAC), and the first Crony General got wind of it, and decided to make it all go away, as long as Little Miss Pom-Pom Jane put on her little cheerleading outfit, which she did, and coo for the Crony General, and Bush Grindhouse, even though she tried to duck out of it, saying, heard on the wiretap, "this conversation doesn't exist".

Oh, yes, it does, there, Little Miss Pom-Pom.

Let's just say this is stinkier that the stinkiest French cheese, on multiple levels.

But it would seem, layered in there, between the stinkiest parts (or, perhaps, the stinkiest part), is that the Crony General (and Bush Grindhouse) may have engaged in blackmail, purposefully, and intentionally, backing off prosecution (or, at minimum, investigation), in exchange for all that pom-pom waving.

The Anonymous Liberal has this angle;

Now, again, Stein likely does not have any evidence of such a communication, which is why he is very careful not to suggest that Harman was blackmailed by the administration. But given the overall facts of the story, it's really not that much of a stretch. There is enough smoke here to warrant official investigation. Eric Holder really should appoint a special prosecutor to investigate the circumstances of the decision not to proceed with charges against Harman. If that decision was driven by purely political considerations (which Stein's multiple sources clearly allege) that alone is worthy of investigation. But if the threat of prosecution was secretly wielded in order to influence the actions of a member of Congress, that is a serious crime and as blatant an abuse of power as you will ever see. I hope that's not what happened here, but further investigation is needed.

I mean, can't you just see it?

It is so Rovian, so Chenyesque, to have a Congresswoman pinned against the wall, in their hip pocket, relishing it all the more that she is a Democrat.

Now, we'll just have to see where this fits in with President Obama.

Is this something, looking through the windshield, out in front, on the road, or, does he just "tsk-tsk" it, waving it goodbye in the rear-view mirror, not bothering to talk to his Attorney General, and, you know, maybe, have him investigate it.

Let's hope Holder digs in this, and we don't hear soon that, for some inexplicable reason, the former Crony General gets immunity, or something.

And, all you wannabe Congressmen-types out in California, you've got ready-made campaign slogans, should you think it a good move to run against Harman (like "Did Jane Harman help throw the 2004 election to Bush?")

Hit it, Elvis!

Elvis Presley - Suspicious Mind




Lots Of Links To Wade Through

Josh Marshall: Must Read

Ryan Singel - Harman: It's Not My Fault I Couldn't Figure Out Domestic Wiretapping Was Illegal

Kim Zetter: DoJ Nixed Investigation of Congresswoman to Get Support for NSA Wiretapping

Greg Sargent: New York Times Exec Editor Denies Harman Helped Persuade Him To Hold Wiretapping Story

Emptywheel: Jane Harman: Stupid and Reckless, Not the Victim of Illegal Wiretaps

DougJ: The wages of wiretapping Jane’s sedition?

Libby Spencer: Harmon wiretap: explosive story or clever distraction?

Glenn Greenwald: Major scandal erupts involving Rep. Jane Harman, Alberto Gonzales and AIPAC

"This Is The Capitulation We Have Been Waiting For!"

Or; "A Cave-In You Can Believe In"

Yes, the Junior Senator from Illinois plans on voting for the wretched "bipartisan", "compromise" of a FISA Bill, whenever it hits the Senate next week.

This follows the Stench Hoyer, and table-challenged Nancy Pelosi led Congress's approval of the measure on Friday.

I guess, we'll need historians, some 30-years from now, to come up with the answer and explain why the Democratic-majority House would cave-in to the wants of the worst, and lowest-rated, President in U.S. History.





















Considering they beat back the bill the last time they had it, with the recent Supreme Court decision to restore Habeas Corpus to detainees, and, let's throw in the overwhelming majority of American citizens against Illegal Wiretapping, and Immunity for the crony Telecom companies that conducted it, why on earth did they not stand tall, and emphatically reemphasize the LAME in Lame Duck President?

Aside from the destruction of practical things, like civil liberties, the Constitution, the 4th Amendment, etc, they're handing Stumblin' Bumblin' John McCain a gift, for his trumped up National Security credentials, as well as ammunition to the GOP for the Fall Election.

Couldn't you just hear Obama, at one of the upcoming debates, hammering Stumblin' Bumblin' John McCain, asking him pointedly, yet calmly, why he wants to illegally spy on American citizens, and give the telecom companies that do it a free pass?

Let's face it, SB John would only be able to stutter back some unreality-based, jingoistic, rehashed Commander Guy-speak

This helps the Republican establish the talking point of how "they" are the ones leading the fight on terror. That, it is because of "them" that we are "safe" and, only "they" can keep us safe, and only "they" can fight this war on terror.

Oh, if they blocked or voted down the bill, the Republicans would call them sissies, appeasers, and soft on terror.

Really?

You mean the Swiss-cheese brains of the Democratic Leadership can't figure that out? That they have to sit there, cowering over such school-yard taunting?

Maybe they could remind their counterparts across the aisle, of the tsunami of material that has been released recently, between Scott McClellan's book, the Senate Intelligence Committee's report (and not to mention the classified material they are privileged to see) on how much (if not all) of what the Bush Grindhouse put out there was over-hyped lies.

Remind those across the aisle that the existing FISA law adequately protects us, that it is unnecessary to trample the Constitution and conduct illegal activities to do so.

Yes, this is a change year, a change election, and what the American people are hungering for is representatives that work for the people, that stand up to injustice, that protect our civil liberties and the Constitution.

Hoyer and Pelosi just led the Democrat-controlled Congress in parroting a Dick-Cheney-like "SO!", ignoring the will and wishes of a majority of the country.

While it could play out that Chris Dodd will rally the Senate troops to squash this injustice, or, perhaps Leahy and Feingold.

That would be fine, but the one person, the one Senator, that should be leading the charge, whose voice should be bone-hoarse come Monday, is Barack Obama.

He is now the flag carrier for the Democrats and it is egregious that he is buying into this capitulation.

If Only ... Obama's Frank Capra Moment (That we won't likely see)

Think of the soaring speech he could give, say, from the floor of the Senate, one in which he challenges his colleagues -no, make that shames his colleagues, to stand up for America, to protect our rights, to end the treacherous evil that has suppressed us for the past seven-years, to rise up and reclaim our country, our ideals, our principles.

Christ, the way he can fire it up, even the networks would likely break into the daily soaps to beam this out.

The country comes to a slow stop.

Mass gridlock, as vehicles stop, their occupants leaning over to listen ....

People huddled in front of television store windows ... The Times Square Jumbotron ... Cellphones ... iPods ...Any device that can pick up the speech.

Word reaches the Senate floor that the Senates computer system has crashed, from the millions of emails sent, telling the Senate to follow Obama and kill the bill ...

Fired up, hoarse and haggard, exhausted and in pain, from the injustice that this bill represents, Obama, down to a whisper, extorting his colleagues, perhaps to the point of passing out, ala Jimmy Stewart in 'Mr. Smith Goes To Washington'.

The money shot coming with Stumblin' Bumblin' John McCain, sunken and sullen, embarrassed, places his vote against the measure, unleashing enough of the other rubberstamp Republicans to follow suit and kill this off.

If Obama isn't going to give the speech, and kill the bill, someone needs to ...

"This Is A Very Frightening Bill"

It's likely that a significant portion of the country doesn't have any idea what going on with this FISA Bill, or the implications awaiting upon its' passage.

This is a video of Professor Jonathan Turley, from 'Countdown with Keith Olbermann' Thursday evening, discussing the FISA Bill.

Turley doesn't mince words or sugar-coat anything, and you can sum it up with his "This is a very frightening bill"

From the transcript;

TURLEY: Yes. This is a very frightening bill. What people have to understand is that FISA itself is controversial. This court issued tens of thousands of warrants granted applications for surveillance without turning down any. Only recently did they turn down two.

So, the standard is already so low that they have virtually never refused a request. That standard, however, was too high for the Bush administration.

And, so, people need to be very, very much aware of this bill. What you‘re seeing in this bill is an evisceration of the Fourth Amendment of the Constitution. It is something that allows the president and the government to go in to law-abiding homes on their word alone, their suspicion alone, and to engage in warrantless surveillance. That‘s what the framers that drafted the Fourth Amendment wanted to prevent.

Congress Prepares to GUT the Fourth Amendment!




Read the full transcript Here

You are now warned and armed ...

Do let happen to you, what happened to Dr. Miles Bennell, in 'The Invasion of the Body Snatchers';

"Listen to me! Please listen! If you don't, if you won't, if you fail to understand, then the same incredible terror that's menacing me WILL STRIKE AT YOU!"


Bonus Bend Over Riffs

Christy Hardin Smith: A Necessary Word Of Thanks…

Glenn Greenwald: Time Magazine uncritically prints Nancy Pelosi's "justification" for the FISA "compromise"

Cernig: Obama Backs FISA Cave

digby: Sistah Soljah'd ?

Glenn Greenwald: Obama's support for the FISA "compromise"

emptywheel: A Letter to the Next President of the United States

Greg Sargent: Why Obama's Support For FISA Cave-In Is Such A Downer

Jack Balkin: Why Obama Kinda Likes the FISA Bill (But He Won't Come Out and Say It)

Pass The Word ... Mukasey Lies!

Ed.Note: This was intended to be posted yesterday, however, homefront difficulties surfaced and pulled me away, squashing my writing time)

There is something fun, almost liberating, about calling the Crony General of the United States a liar.

Mukasy's a liar! ... Mukasey's a liar! ... Mukasey's a liar!

Go ahead try it, it's fun, isn't it?

Mukasy's a liar! ... Mukasey's a liar! ... Mukasey's a liar!

Okay, not exactly earth-shaking news, but certainly, a most significant revelation.

And that is was water-carrying, for the Bush Grindhouse's egregious fearmongering, over Telcom Immunity, warrants multiple poxes to be placed on the new Crony General.

I mean, let loose ... Conjure up as many as you can! ... Empty out the cupboard! ... Just keep firing pox, after pox, after pox ... No pox will be too large, or too small ... We can take shifts, but keep the poxes coming!

Last week, at a speech given at the Commonwealth Club in San Francisco, the Crony General for the United States, Michael Mukasey, puckered up, and tearfully added his voice to the chorus of lies the Bush Regime has thrown against the wall, in their pursuit of absolute power.

Glenn Greenwald is all over this, big time, first noting the speech last Saturday, and on Thursday, calling for action

The Crony General, in his speech;

"Officials "shouldn't need a warrant when somebody with a phone in Iraq picks up a phone and calls somebody in the United States because that's the call that we may really want to know about. And before 9/11, that's the call that we didn't know about. We knew that there has been a call from someplace that was known to be a safe house in Afghanistan and we knew that it came to the United States. We didn't know precisely where it went."

At that point in his answer, Mr. Mukasey grimaced, swallowed hard, and seemed to tear up as he reflected on the weaknesses in America's anti-terrorism strategy prior to the 2001 attacks. "We got three thousand. . . . We've got three thousand people who went to work that day and didn't come home to show for that," he said, struggling to maintain his composure.

Think Progress has a video of it here.

The Raw Story also covers it, and has a video of Keith Olbermann, in his "Bushed" segment (Olbermann, nightly, hightlights three of the Bush Grindhouse's numberable, and still climbing, scandals)

More from Greenwald;

"This isn't just a matter of academic and historical interest about the 9/11 attacks, although it is that. One of two things almost certainly happened here, each of which is of great importance. Either Mukasey is lying about the 9/11 attacks in order to manipulate Americans into believing that FISA's warrant requirements are what prevented discovery of the 9/11 attacks and caused 3,000 American deaths -- a completely disgusting act by the Attorney General which obviously cannot be ignored. Or, Mukasey has just revealed the most damning fact yet about the Bush's administration's ability and failure to have prevented the attacks -- facts that, until now, were apparently concealed from the 9/11 Commission and the public.

Now, the Crony General is a former judge (Greenwald: "Mike Mukasey was a long-time federal judge and so I feel perfectly comfortable calling that what it is: a brazen lie.") so it's not like he's merely a Bush Grindhouse political hack ...

Wait a minute, what am I saying? ... He's the Crony General ...With the shit train that was on the tracks at the time he was offered the position, no way he didn't agree to play inside the alternate reality, and climb aboard the shit train that is the Bush Grindhouse.

Sooooo ....

He's either lying, playing politics (not to mention exploiting the horror of Sept. 11th) within the long-running Bush policy of lies and fearmongering.

Or, he let slip just how deep an REM snooze the Bush Grindhouse was in when they hijacked the office.

And this would have come before the infamous blow-off of the now infamous August 2001 PDB - "Bin Ladin Determined to Strike in US".

Oh man, either way, this sucks and we can't do enough, can't get them out fast enough, can't heap enough criminal and moral charges on these dwarfs, finks, phonies and frauds!

So, let off the steam ....

Mukasey's a liar! ... Mukasey's a liar ... Mukasey's a liar!


Bonus Mukasey Mish-Mash

Digby/Hullabaloo: Clever Gaffes

EmptyWheel/Firedoglake: Snowball

Glenn Greenwald: The DOJ comments on the Mukasey controversy

Get Ready For The SuperSizeMe Fearmongering ... House Passes - Without Immunity - New FISA Bill

The Garlic seconds, and joins in heartily, Jane Hamsher's call for "Lets have a party!"

The Congress beat back the lies and fearmongering, and passed the new FISA Bill, by a count of 213-197-1.

From Glenn Greenwald;

"As impressive as the House vote itself was, more impressive still was the floor debate which preceded it. I can't recall ever watching a debate on the floor of either House of Congress that I found even remotely impressive -- until today. One Democrat after the next -- of all stripes -- delivered impassioned, defiant speeches in defense of the rule of law, oversight on presidential eavesdropping, and safeguards on government spying. They swatted away the GOP's fear-mongering claims with the dismissive contempt such tactics deserve, rejecting the principle that has predominated political debate in this country since 9/11: that the threat of the Terrorists means we must live under the rule of an omnipotent President and a dismantled constitutional framework."

So, what next?

If they stay-to-form ...

The Commander Guy, eyes slanted, lips pursed, sounding very much like someone who hasn't taken their meds, will vent against it, promising to veto it, if he doesn't get his ass-saving Telcom Immunity, and, accusing the Democrats of leaving the country at the mercy of terrorists.

Since its long established that facts, truth and losing a vote battle are mere fleas on an elephant, the GOP (perhaps another tearful performance from John Boehner), the Freakshow and other nitwits, will be screaming to the high heavens on how the Democrats are making the country unsafe, complete with vivid tales of nefarious terrorists, apparently hanging around right offshore, on the ready to bounce on us and kill all our families.

And on and on ...

Time to cue up Que Sera Sera...


Bonus Links

House Clerk: FINAL VOTE RESULTS FOR ROLL CALL 145

James Oliphant: FISA bill passes House; time for Spring Break '08!

CNN: House challenges Bush on surveillance

The Gavel: House Passes FISA Amendments Act

Bush Grindhouse Launches "We Want Angel Back" Approach Over Telcom Amnesty

OMG! ... The Country Is Still Safe, and Standing!

Top Ten Cloves: Things Overheard In House Secret Session Last Evening

News Item: The Secret Is Out: There Was No Big Secret

10. Hey, Steve King, why don't you do a little of the Islamist dancing in the aisles for us ...

9. Did you hear about Tucker Carlson being fired?

8. I hope we can wrap this up by 9:00 ... The Big East tourney is on tonight

7. That 'Green, Green, Grass' song Bush sang the other night, it that some new Global Warming tune, or something?

6. I hope, if I run for president, and I get the nomination, and I get invited to the White House for lunch, whoever is President won't serve fucking hot dogs to me!

5. I've said it for years, that Hillary is a monster...

4. Can you believe Karl Rove is getting $40,000 a pop, out on the circuit?

3. I heard they called for a Secret Session, for no other reason that they hope Saturday Night Live does a skit about it

2. Billy Crystal is on the phone ... He wants to know if he can be a Congressman for a day ...

1. Okay, since we're in secret session, and off-the-record, everyone can throw their Emperor Club cards in here and we'll burn them


Secret Bonus Riffs

Closed sessions of the United States House of Representatives

James Oliphant: FISA infinitum: Debate rolls on and on

Jane Hamsher: Telecom Immunity Removed From House Bill

Paul Kiel: TOP SECRET

OMG! ... The Country Is Still Safe, and Standing!

I have to say, I am having some difficulty writing this.

You see, my hands are trembling, making for many errors, while my body aches, still encased in fear.

It began early last evening, a fairly low-key Saturday night, with no special plans in place.

And once I remembered, it became anything but, and if I did have special plans, they'd be thrown out the window (that is before I wrapped them up with plastic and duct tape).

I kept staring at the clocks in the house, whatever room I moved to-and-from.

As I did this, I couldn't help hearing in my head, the theme song from 'High Noon', playing over-and-over ... At times, I would find myself quietly singing it ... "Do not forsake me O my darlin' ..."

Would they come in, by train, like Frank Miller?

It wasn't my wedding day, but, oh no, would I die alone? Should I run out, grab the first woman I see and get married - all before the stroke of midnight?

Would there be time to do all the paperwork? Make her my Emergency Contact, download and fill in a quick Last Will and Testament? Should I leave everything to her, should she survive?

Then another fear whacked me like a three-ton locomotive - Should I go out shopping?

The Commander Guy has, pretty consistently, advocated, urged and otherwise encouraged us to go out shopping, a don't-let-them- win-kind-of-thing ...

And this put me in a terrible state of confusion - do I go out shopping before it happens, or after it happens?

My computer was still downloading the Last Will and Testament, so I couldn't go out to The Google, and search for that.

And I still had windows to button up with the plastic and duct tape (moments like this, you can't help but curse that you live in a big house).

And the High Noon theme seemed to be getting louder and louder with each passing minute.

As I slapped the plastic against the last window that needed to be covered up, I noticed my next-door neighbors' windows were open and clear, no plastic-and-duct-tape on them ... Hmmm ... Poor bastards, I thought ... I hope it will be quick and painless for them ... I hope they're not hysterical screamers (this was a point where I was wishing the High Noon theme was playing louder in my head) ... I did make a note, in the notebook I started earlier in the day, to go down to City Hall - if it was still standing - and make an inquiry on my neighbors property ... Maybe, it I get there early ...

I checked the box of food and water I had stored, everything looked good.

OMG! ... What about ice? ... I quickly scanned my notebook, to see if I jotted down FEMA's number, to call them after it happens, and see if they still have any ice left.

Made a check, and the bathtub was still full of water, though it was considerably colder now (Hmmm, maybe I should have waited to do that last).

When I passed the next clock, the fear took a tighter grip of me.

It was well into the 11-O'clock hour and I couldn't help but obsess on how it will come ... A quick, bright flash, or a big, resounding boom? Damn, I thought, I should have left one window without the plastic and duct tape, so I could have a view, maybe keep sentry, perhaps seeing which way they will come from.

High Noon theme again ... If I did see them coming, what would I do?

Should I do something, or just call the authorities, and let them do something? Would there be enough time for that?

That quickly shifted to thinking, would the authorities believe me, or would they think I was one of them?

No camera in the cell phone so I couldn't talk with the authorities, snap a quick photo and email it to them all at once.

I quickly dug through the barricade I built in front of my den, deeming that as my last point of refuge, so I could get in there and dig out my camera (Old Minolta, but a good one, when they still made them with steel bodies), popped in a roll of film ... When they find my body, maybe I would have had time to snap a few pics that they could use in some future trial, if they ever catch them ...

I think the cacophony of the High Noon theme playing in my head, the smell of the duct tape and plastic wafting through the house, the dust the got kicked up breaking through the barricade, put me in a frenzy, as the clock was inching closer to the midnight hour.

For I was awoken, somewhere between the hours of 2AM-to-3AM, - startled awake, I should add - by a wicked sound.

I quickly realized that it was the wind, rattling my windows, not some al Qaeda terrorist attempting to break in and kill me.

I drifted off again, only to be startled a second time, when the alarm clock rang off this morning, fearing, for a moment that I had left my television on, and the Emergency Broadcast System was breaking in, not with their usual "weekly test" but with an "actual emergency".

I dressed quickly and ran out the front door - my street, my neighborhood was still intact!

No billowing smoke coming from any of the structures.

No charred, smoldering, blown-apart automobiles anywhere in sight.

The Protect America Act expired, but the country didn't.

Those lying sons-of-bitches.

Or maybe, just maybe, the terrorist know that the Protect America Act was only about protecting and giving the Telcoms immunity, and that the U.S. Government still has a boatload of options on tracing their calls, reading their emails and otherwise tracking them down.

Maybe the terrorists where all caught up in all the excitement of NBA Weekend, hanging out to watch the All-Star game ... Or the Daytona 500.

It's the President's Day holiday, so maybe their busy going through the newspapers, and planning on going automobile shopping.

Boy, that would be a kicker ...

After all of The Commander Guy's exhortations to go shopping, wouldn't that be the cat's ass if it was the terrorists who were the ones going out shopping?


Bonus Faux Fear Riffs

Jane Hamsher/Firedoglake: The FISA Dishonesty Hour

The Carpetbagger Report: Don’t believe the FISA hype — ‘The sky is not falling’

mcjoan/Daily Kos: How quickly we forget

FISA Update #4 - Don't Let the Fat Lady - Or The Fat Corporate Cats - Sing!

SIGN THIS PETITION!

We did two posts yesterday (that you can see here and here) on the collapse of our democracy, with the U.S. Senate caving in to give the Bush Grindhouse their Stay Out of Jail Card, passing the Protect American Act, which included immunity for the telecommunication companies that bought the "It's legal" bullshit.

Scarecrow, from Firedoglake, gets our spotlight today;

"The Fourth Amendment has been handed down to us unchanged for over two centuries:

The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.

Almost none of that is left if today's bill stands. In an age in which "bipartisan" has come to mean weak Democrats joining unanimous Republicans to vote against the Constitution, the Fourth Amendment would be eviscerated by a bill that provides a virtual blank check for the executive to invade the privacy of Americans ..."

In the post, Scarecrow offers a link to a petition that Firedoglake has started, to urge the House of Representatives to reverse this action by their cowardly brothers, when the two houses meet in conference to bang it out.

Tell House Members to Stand Firm Behind the RESTORE Act!

The FISA bill passed by the Senate is a disgrace. By legalizing warrantless spying on Americans and granting retroactive amnesty to lawbreaking telecoms, the Senate seeks to ensure that the Bush administration's illegal spying programs are never investigated or subjected to the rule of law. The Senate bill is a profound betrayal of the votes of millions of Americans who voted in 2006 to put Democrats in control of Congress in order to increase, not eliminate, checks and oversight on this administration, and to restore the rule of law to our country.

The House's RESTORE Act is an infinitely superior bill. It provides real safeguards on the President's spying powers while providing him with the surveillance powers he needs to protect the country. It enables the issue of the legality of the President's spying programs to be decided where it belongs -- in a court of law. And it preserves the crucial balance that has existed for decades between enabling necessary surveillance on Americans and ensuring that our political leaders do not abuse that power.

In the wake of the discovery of the Watergate crimes and decades of surveillance abuses, the Congress of the mid-1970s acted on a bipartisan basis to put into place safeguards to ensure that even our highest political officials must adhere to the law and can only exercise eavesdropping powers with real safeguards. The RESTORE Act continues that tradition, while the Senate bill eviscerates it. We urge Democratic House members to stand firm behind the bill they passed and not capitulate once again to the bullying, manipulative demands of the Bush administration for ever-greater unchecked power, as embodied by the warrantless eavesdropping and telecom immunity provisions of the Senate bill.

Go here, to Firedoglake, and sign the petition and take part in, hopefully, getting this thing straight.

SIGN THIS PETITION!

FISA Update #2 - Who Are These Men That Sold Out Our Democracy Today!

Rather than add a rather long "Update #2", to Today's Must Read - Glenn Greenwald's "Amnesty Day for Bush and lawbreaking telecoms" posted earlier today, a separate post is warranted.

As you can imagine, an avalanche of reaction, to this dark, dark day our elected U.S. Senate has put upon this country.

Who Are These Men That Sold Out Our Democracy Today!

U.S. Senate Roll Call Votes 110th Congress - 2nd Session; Question: On the Amendment (Dodd Amdt. No. 3907 ); Statement of Purpose: To strike the provisions providing immunity from civil liability to electronic communication service providers for certain assistance provided to the Government.


Paul Kiel, from TPMmuckraker

"Let there be no doubt: a majority of senators, and a large number of Democrats, think the telecoms should not suffer the hazard of accountability for cooperating with the administration's warrantless wiretapping program. Sen. Chris Dodd (D-CT) took to the floor last night to give a speech asking, "This is our defining question, the question that confronts every generation: The rule of law, or the rule of men?" The resounding answer: the rule of men."

Steve Benen, from The Carpetbagger Report

"For the 18 Dems who went along with this nonsense, I’d love to hear an explanation. For the Republicans, not even one GOP senator was willing to take a stand for the rule of law. Not one ...

And what arguments were presented by the other side? Not much — a few lies about the cooperation coming in the immediate aftermath of 9/11, and a basic understanding that Republicans had to go along with the wishes of Mr. 28% at the other end of Pennsylvania Avenue."

Presidential candidates Sens. John McCain (R-AZ) and Barack Obama (D-IL) were present for the vote – voting nay and yea, respectively ... Hillary Clinton and Lindsey Graham did not vote."

Taylor Marsh

"What a shell Congress is from its former greatness ... Bush gets away with illegal wiretapping and so do the companies that helped him do it ... Bush gets away with the Iraq war, all without any consequences whatsoever ... No wonder more and more people are registering as Independents"

Kagro X, on Daily Kos - "US Senate commits suicide on national television"


Update #3

"The Senate had "just sanctioned" the "single largest invasion of privacy in the history of the country,"

Paul Kiel from TPMmuckraker - Dodd: It's up to The House

"The Senate had "just sanctioned" the "single largest invasion of privacy in the history of the country," he said. When asked why he thought so many Dem senators had crossed over, he replied: "Unfortunately, those who are advocating this notion that you have to give up liberties in order to be more secure are apparently prevailing. They seem to be convincing people that you're at risk politically or we're at risk as a nation if we don't give up rights."

Today's Must Read - Glenn Greenwald's "Amnesty Day for Bush and lawbreaking telecoms"

What if Spartacus was voting in the Senate today, on the Protect America Act, the FISA bill update?

We suspect that Spartacus wouldn't bend over the American people, and violently sodomize them, the way our elected U.S. Senate is about to do today.

We believe Spartacus would rise to the occasion (no pun intended) to protect, not persecute, to do what is right, to follow and protect the Constitution and, lastly, he would buck and revolt against the Emperor, for attempting this hijacking of the laws of the country.

When the sun sets today, it may well install a permanent darkness on the U.S. Senate, marking it, for decades to come, as the august chamber's saddest day.

Glenn Greenwald, of Salon, has a most sobering, depressing account of the whole sordid affair, in "Amnesty Day for Bush and lawbreaking telecoms";

"All sorts of "controversy" erupted from that story. Democrats everywhere expressed dramatic, unbridled outrage, vowing that this would not stand. James Risen and Eric Lichtblau were awarded Pulitzer Prizes for exposing this serious lawbreaking. All sorts of Committees were formed, papers written, speeches given, conferences convened, and editorials published to denounce this extreme abuse of presidential power. This was illegality and corruption at the highest level of government, on the grandest scale, and of the most transparent strain."

And Greenwald than asks, rhetorically, "What was the outcome of all of that sturm und drang? What were the consequences for the President for having broken the law so deliberately and transparently?"

"Absolutely nothing. To the contrary, the Senate is about to enact a bill which has two simple purposes: (1) to render retroactively legal the President's illegal spying program by legalizing its crux: warrantless eavesdropping on Americans, and (2) to stifle forever the sole remaining avenue for finding out what the Government did and obtaining a judicial ruling as to its legality: namely, the lawsuits brought against the co-conspiring telecoms. In other words, the only steps taken by our political class upon exposure by the NYT of this profound lawbreaking is to endorse it all and then suppress any and all efforts to investigate it and subject it to the rule of law."

And this, as Greenwald notes, is happening in a Democrat-led, Democrat-majority Senate!

Maybe I missed the MoveOn.Org memo, that the 2006 elections, of having the Democrats take back the Congress, was all about greenlighting, aiding and abetting the Bush Grindhouse, and their executive power-grab.

And we have Harry "Give'em What They Want" Reid, the Senate Majority Leader (now there's a deafening oxymoron) to thank for this.

Greenwald closes with this;

"From Frank Church and the bipartisan oversight protections of the post-Watergate abuses in the mid-1970s to Jay Rockefeller, Dick Cheney, legalized warrantless eavesdropping and retroactive telecom amnesty in 2008 -- that vivid collapse into the sewer illustrates as potently as anything could what has happened to this country over the last eight years."

Update! Update!

Just as I am posting this, news is breaking on the voting

From Jane Hamsher, over on Firedoglake;

"Update: Woo hoo! You lose. Dodd's amendment to strip retroactive immunity fails spectacularly, 31-67. I have to say that what constantly amazes me is just how damn little it costs corporate America to buy our elected officials. Pennies on the dollar, really, for what they get."

From KBusch on BlueMassGroup;

The following Democratic Senators just voted for telecom immunity.

Jay Rockefeller WV
Evan Bayh IA
Daniel Inouye HI
Tim Johnson SD
Herb Kohl WI
Mary Landrieu LA
Claire McCaskill MO
Mark Pryor AR
Blanche Lincoln AR
Dianne Feinstein CA
Ken Salazar CO
Tom Carper DE
Barbara Mikulski MD
Jim Webb VA

Read the Greenwald piece anyway, it's very good ... And, it's playing out, pretty much, as he foresaw

As we stated above, a very, very dark day!

And, just late last month, The Garlic gave the Senate all the advise they would need in this fight

Mukasey Plays The Card ... So, Pelosi, We Need That Table - Now!

Well, the new Crony General might as well had a brass band playing behind him.

Crony General Michael Mukasey, and this was real big of him, let the House Judiciary Committee know today that - Surprise, Surprise - he has no intentions of opening criminal investigations on the Bush Grindhouse, for their admitted torture of detainees or their illegal wiretapping.

The reason?

The Department of Injustice signed off on the practices as LEGAL!

That being the previous Crony General, and the handpicked henchman, the Bush Grindhouse stocked it with.

Duh!

Didn't Woody Allen do a film like this? ... The Marx Brothers?

From David Kurtz, over on TalkingPointsMemo;

"It is as brazen a defense of the unitary executive as anything put forward by the Administration in the last seven years, and it comes from an attorney general who was supposed to be not just a more professional, but a more moderate, version of Alberto Gonzales (Thanks to Democrats like Dianne Feinstein and Chuck Schumer for caving on the Mukasey nomination.).

President Bush has now laid down his most aggressive challenge to the very constitutional authority of Congress. It is a naked assertion of executive power. The founders would have called it tyrannical. His cards are now all on the table. This is no bluff."

Steve Benen, from The Carpetbagger Report, notes in his Mukasey to honor the ‘get out of jail free’ card the administration gave itself "I’m fairly certain impeachment was developed for situations like these."

Hear that Harry Reid?

Hear that Nancy Pelosi?

Think you can, Nancy, dig up that table you so callously tossed aside, to put an end to this madness?

If not, it's still out there for anyone that wants to save this country, The Garlic laid it out last July, and it's still a good deal;

Happy 4th of July ... Okay, It May Be Down To This .... Citizen's Arrest!

Help Me Mr. Wizard!


More Mukasey Treason

dday from Hullabaloo: If The President Does It, Then It's Not Illegal

emptywheel: Mukasey Refuses to Say Whether He Was Instructed Not to Enforce Subpoenas

Justice Dept. 'Cannot' Probe Waterboarding, Mukasey Says













Hmmm ... Did Mukasey get the thick, bulging envelope up-front, or does he get it on the way out, after the job is complete?

Breaking News! Bush Sees Shadow; Another Year of Lawbreaking Predicted

Oval Office Event Draws Thousands; Top Hat and Tails, and an Outcome "Just Like The Movie"

In what started out as an inside joke, among just a few staffers, has now grown to a full-scale event, with thousands of government employees gathering around the West Wing, and the grounds of the Bush GrindHouse, to see the spectacle.

For the past seven years, as soon as The Commander Guy walks into the Oval Office on February 2nd, hearts are stopped and breath is held - will he see his shadow, a bona fide indicator of continued disregard for the laws of the country - or not.

Reports are just coming in, over the roar of the crowd - The Commander Guy saw his own shadow ... Another year of lawbreaking lays ahead!

Often timed with the other famous prognosticator, Puxsutawney Phil, the legendary Pennsylvania groundhog, who also saw his own shadow this morning, the Oval Office event has grown to almost the same, frenzied, party-atmosphere as takes place in Gobbler's Knob.

Government employees from the State Department, Pentagon, Transportation, FBI, CIA, including some who travel to Washington from federal offices around the country, and a few from international posts, all begin gathering at and around the Bush Grindhouse in the pre-dawn hours, some staking out positions days in advance.

For the occasion, as like the crew at Gobbler's Knob, those that work in the West Wing, don tails and top hats, and only a chosen few handle The Commander Guy after he's seen his own shadow.

A cottage industry has grown around the Oval Office event, with trinkets, tchochtkes and T-Shirts - this year's showing, being the last Bush Shadow event, on the front, an outline of hand, holding a pen over a document, and, on the back, a listing of The Commander Guys' over-700 Signing Statements.

Vice President Dick Cheney, sources have told The Garlic, was at the event, wearing last years' official T-Shirt, simply the image of a pair of headphones embracing the country at both coasts, with the words "We're Listening" underneath.

"This really has come to emulate the movie," offered Hildy Johnson, editor of the monthly newsletter “What Did He Say Now?” that tracks and reviews President Bush’s speeches and interviews, referring to the comedy classic, 'Groundhog Day'.

"Bill Murray goes through the same day, over and over, and nothing happens to him," continued Johnson. "He doesn't get injured or hurt ...Arrested ... Nothing happens ... And Bush, it's the same thing ... He breaks law after law and nothing happens to him ... It's amazing, just like the movie."


Bonus Groundhog Riffs

Groundhog Lied; Investigation Launched

Breaking News! Bush Administration To Tap Punxsutawney Phil To Bolster Foreign Policy; Gobbler's Knob Appearance Tomorrow Will Be Last For Famous Prognosticator

More Discord In The White House; White House At Odds With Groundhog Hire, Handlers Over Cheney Shooting; Bush Said To Be "Livid, As Famous Prognosticator 'Never Tipped Us Off"; UK's Blair Said To Be Frantic For Direction



















For the occasion, as like the crew at Gobbler's Knob, those that work in the West Wing, don tails and top hats, and only a chosen few handle The Commander Guy after he's seen his own shadow.

Hey, Dems, Let'em Veto It! ... Here's All The Ammunition You Need!

There is a small, but fascinating. drama that is to play out in the nation's capital today.

Before sunset, the Senate resumes its' debate, and possible vote, on the Protect America Act, the FISA Bill that the Bush Grindhouse wants, the one that will give immunity to the telecommunications companies that went along with them in breaking the law.

After sunset, the Lame Duck Commander Guy will take to the podium, before a joint session of Congress, and deliver his final (Thank God!) State of the Union address.

Whether he crows, or carps, all depends on what happens in the Senate.

No doubt the Stepford Republicans will continue to block, and otherwise attempt to bully through what the Bush Grindhouse wants.

They, along with the Bush Grindhouse will be laying down the vibe - as they have all along - of fearmongering, claiming the Democrats will get us killed while they, thumping their chests, are the protectors.

Trust us, we'll take care of you ...

Fat chance.

So, Harry Reid, and all you other Democrats, here's your ammunition.

Bush Lied!

Over 935 times (and that's just a couple of years) on the threats to the country, to justify his preemptive, colossal mistake, in taking us into Iraq.

While we have all known this, it was documented last week... And with a searchable database, in case you want to cherry pick some of the juicy lies.

But wait, there's more bullets.

Why not force the Stepford Republican to explain, and justify, The Commander Guy's giving up on capturing Osama bin Laden?

Have them explain the need to continue this illegal wiretapping program, and the need to give immunity, because, if the bill isn't passed, the terrorists are going to come and get us.

Have him explain how his illegal wiretapping is only capturing the conversation of terrorists, and not American citizens.

Point out, that their fearless leader has already given up ... That he's content to pass it along to the next president, the justice due Osama bin Laden.

So much for the Republican being our protectors.

The Commander Guy has indicated he will veto the bill, if it is not exactly how it wants it.

Fine.

Let'em veto it! ... Let'em go out, and continue his lying, for he is the Emperor with no clothes! ...

Perhaps, someone, like Senator Feingold, or Senator Whitehouse, can read into the record the Bush Lying Report.

Let's have Senator Kennedy, or Senator Boxer read into the record the interview in which The Commander Guy says he's passing Osama bin Laden onto the next administration.

Let's hear from Lawrence Wright, the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Looming Tower, on how he was wiretapped, and threatened.

The New England Patriots landed in Arizona last night, to fight for the Super Bowl.

It long past due that few patriots stand up and fight in Congress.

For all you Senators, vote against the bill, deny the immunity and let The Commander Guy piss-and-moan his way out the door in less than a year!

Protect America ... Yes, indeed ... Protect us, please!


Bonus Must Reads

Glenn Greenwald: What's at stake today in the Senate's FISA filibuster vote

Paul Kiel/TPMmuckracker: Today's Must Read