A Spork in the Drawer

Legislator-In-Chief

Gail Collins picks up something I've been thinking about for a few days:

John McCain is not actually running for president. He’s running for Senate majority leader. All his passion is directed at defects in the legislative process. He’s been a military man or a senator for virtually all of his adult life, and listening to him talk, you get the definite impression that the two great threats of the 21st century are Islamic extremism and the appropriations committee.

McCain goes on and on about how when he's president he will reform Congress. But there's one small problem with this: The Bully Pulpit aside, the president has zero, and I mean zero, power to tell Congress how to conduct its business. It's called "Separation of Powers."

Then again, maybe we're back to the whole "Unitary Executive" thing.

Perhaps somebody in the "news" media should ask him about this, yes?

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Things Democrats Can Do Without

Bigoted candidates like Nikki Tinker.

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Can't Imagine Why

Congress:

[A] new Gallup poll now has Congress at its lowest approval rating ever in the firm's 34 years of tracking this stat: Approve 14%, Disapprove 75%.

Further:

And get this: The poll, like several others before it, also finds that the group now most likely to approve of the Democratically-controlled Congress is Republicans, at 19% approval. Only 11% of Democrats and 14% of independents approve.

And yet Nancy and Steny and Rahm and Harry and Chuck won't even notice.

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The End Of The Fourth Amendment

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.

Tomorrow some corrupt and/or cowardly Senate Democrats - including the leader of the party - are going to virtually eliminate the above section of the Constitution. It was nice while it lasted, huh? See Glenn and Jane for the details of this mind-boggling destruction of the Rule of Law.

Glenn:

To initiate and fund our new campaign, we have teamed with the individual who was behind the innovative and extraordinarily successful Ron Paul "money bombs" -- Trevor Lyman, along with Rick Williams and Break the Matrix -- to plan an "Accountability Money Bomb" for August 8. That is the day in 1974 when Richard Nixon was forced to resign from office for his lawbreaking and surveillance abuses. That day illustrates how far we have fallen in this country in less than 35 years, as we now not only permit rampant presidential lawbreaking and a limitless surveillance state, but have a bipartisan political class that endorses it and even retroactively protects the lawbreakers.

If you wish to join the coalition click here and if you have a blog post a logo from here - I have. You can also donate here.

In addition, today's print edition of the Washington Post features this ad in the A-section:

(Hi-res .pdf (suitable for printing) can be downloaded here.)

It's only the Constitution that's being killed.

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Nelson Mandela

No longer considered a terrorist.

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Big Surprise

No one could have predicted:

A key provision of the housing bill now awaiting action in the Senate -- and widely touted as offering a lifeline to distressed homeowners -- was initially suggested to Congress by lobbyists for major banks facing their own huge losses from the subprime mortgage crisis, according to congressional staff members and bank officials.

The banks will take a small loss in exchange for the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) assuming the risk on bad loans. And when those bad loans turn into outright defaults who pays? Hint: Not the banks. No, the banks won't be on the line for an estimated 1.7 billion-with-a-"B" in losses. Homeowners - so to speak - will see a slight reduction in monthly payments.

And now for a bit of understatement:

Still, critics expressed disappointment that banks were given such a large hand in writing legislation designed to ease a foreclosure problem they helped create.

Disappointment, indeed.

I believe it was the economist Paul Krugman who talked about "socializing the losses and privatizing the profits."

Well, here you go.

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Irrational Exuberance

As BushCo and Congress prepare to fight over how much regulation the financial markets are subject to it's really going to come down to this:

Wall Street firms have also been major contributors to both political parties, and they are certain to oppose tough new restrictions.

Neither party want to lose those $$$.

Nonetheless, a good start would be to restore the Glass-Steagall Act. The act, properly the Banking Act of 1935, was repealed in 1999.

Thanks, Bill Clinton.

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Another Day...

...another Republican criminal:

Republican Rep. Rick Renzi has been indicted for extortion, wire fraud, money laundering and other charges related to a land deal in Arizona.

But wait, there's more! Via Laura Rozen, Renzi has a mysterious background:

For a national political figure who served on the powerful House Intelligence Committee, Renzi's background is, as described by Wikipedia, "unclear."

[...]

Exactly what Renzi did for the next two decades is blurry. He has said he worked overseas for the Defense Department, but research turned up no information on which agency, where he was assigned or what duties he had.

Gee, do ya think Renzi might have been/might be a spook?

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Oh Yeah...

I suppose I should mention that alleged Democrats Jay Rockefeller (D-WV), Evan Bayh (D-IN), Daniel Inouye (D-HI), Tim Johnson (D-SD), Herb Kohl (D-WI), Mary Landrieu (D-LA), Claire McCaskill (D-MO), Mark Pryor (D-AR), Blanche Lincoln (D-AR), Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), Ken Salazar (D-CO), Tom Carper (D-DE), Barbara Mikulski (D-MD), Jim Webb (D-VA), Ben Nelson (D-NE), Bill Nelson (D-FL), Kent Conrad (D-ND), and Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) this afternoon stripped us of our rights to benefit Bush, Cheney, and the telecommunications industry.

I hope they spend their thirty pieces of silver wisely.

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The State Of Things

People just want it to be over:

It's almost as if people can barely stand the thought of President Bush and Congress anymore. Bush reached his lowest approval rating in The Associated Press-Ipsos poll on Friday as only 30 percent said they like the job he is doing, including an all-time low in his support by Republicans. Congress' approval fell to just 22 percent, equaling its poorest grade in the survey. Both marks dropped by 4 percentage points since early January.

[...]

Yet Bush's acceptance by his own party is at bottom in the AP-Ipsos poll. Just 61 percent of Republicans gave Bush positive reviews; his previous low was 65 percent last month. Only 28 percent of them expressed strong approval.

About one in 10 Democrats and three in 10 independents gave Bush positive marks.

[...]

Bush also hit a new low in this month's poll for his work on domestic issues like health care, energy and the environment, getting approval from 27 percent, a 7-point tumble since January. Thirty-three percent approved of his handling of the war in Iraq, virtually unchanged.

346 days.

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Reminder

Today:

Dear michael,

Beginning at 2:30 p.m. EST today, the Senate will resume debate on the pending FISA bill, by proceeding to vote on a series of amendments, most proposed by Democrats, to improve the bill.  Key amendemnts include one jointly sponsored by Sens. Dodd and Feingold to strip the bill of telecom immunity; an amendment from Sen. Feinstein to transfer the telecom cases to the FISA court; an amendment jointly sponsored by Sens. Specter and Whitehouse to substitute the government for the telecoms as defendants; and an amendment from Sen. Feinstein emphasizing that FISA is the "exclusive means" by which the Government can conduct eavesdropping activites.

 

On Thursday, Democratic and Republican leaders reached agreement whereby certain amendments would require only 50 votes to pass, while others would require 60.  It appears that these vote thresholds were set so as to ensure that none of the amendments opposed by the White House could actually pass.  It seems clear that the Senate is well on its way to passing a bill that will provide both telecom immunity and vast new warrantless eavesdropping powers for the President.  Nonetheless, it is still vital to secure as many favorable votes as possible, since that will provide added leverage in trying to pressure the House, which passed a much better bill back in November, to stand firm as it proceeds to negotiate with the Senate over the final bill to be sent to the White House.

 

Marcy Wheeler will be liveblogging the Senate proceedings at http://emptywheel.firedoglake.com.

 

Cheers,

Glenn Greenwald and Jane Hamsher 

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Brutal

La Belle Dahlia on on the Democrats and PAA:

The cliche holds that we are always fighting the last war. I disagree. For the last seven years, congressional Democrats have been fighting the next one: the war perennially set to erupt if they don't deliver whatever the president asks of them immediately. Time and again, they've been rendered so terrified by White House threats about imminent terrorist attacks that they have caved on issues ranging from detainee rights to secret surveillance to torture. And every time they've caved, it's under the threat that if they withhold from the president extra powers (ones that he's often already seized in secret), terrorists will mass against us instantaneously, and they will be blamed.

I've no doubt that when the 15-day "snooze" expires Harry and Nancy and the rest of the invertebrates of Congress will give George and Dick everything they want - including immunity for crimes committed by the Telcos.

Future historians are going to look on this period with awe and disgust.

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Is It Dictatorship Yet?

Sooo...George signed the 2008 National Defense Authorization Act today. Did he also issue a "signing statement" at the same time? Need you ask?

Even though he forced Congress to change its original bill, Bush’s signature yesterday came with a little-noticed signing statement, claiming that provisions in the law “could inhibit the President’s ability to carry out his constitutional obligations.” CQ reports on the provisions Bush plans to disregard:

One such provision sets up a commission to probe contracting fraud in Iraq and Afghanistan. Another expands protections for whistleblowers who work for government contractors. A third requires that U.S. intelligence agencies promptly respond to congressional requests for documents. And a fourth bars funding for permanent bases in Iraq and for any action that exercises U.S. control over Iraq’s oil money.

What will Congress do in response?

I think we all know the answer to that.

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Another Shock!

Via CREW, the Democratic House leadership caves again:

House Democrats will postpone votes on criminal contempt citations against White House chief of staff Joshua Bolten and former White House counsel Harriet Miers, while congressional leaders work with President Bush on a bipartisan stimulus package to fend off an economic downturn, according to party leaders and leadership aides.

Senior Democrats have decided that holding a controversial vote on the contempt citations, which have already been approved by the House Judiciary Committee as part of its investigation into the firing of nine U.S. attorneys, would “step on their message” of bipartisan unity in the midst of the stimulus package talks. [Emphasis added.]

And not even a Sternly Worded Letter™ this time.

Prediction: In the spirit of Bipartisan Unity the Republicans will steamroller the Dems.

Greenwald:

So it is important to note that [the Democrats] are fearless in some respects -- such as when it comes to forcing famous baseball players to make exciting appearances before them so they can "investigate" the grave matter of whether, as this blogger put it, "a man who is already a far outlier on the curve of human physical development wishes to shrink his balls and grow his boobs in order to swat a ball farther and with more frequency," all as part of "a situation where a collection of superhuman genetic freaks perform feats of unimaginable speed and strength for our amusement."

True, that.

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Sign The Letter

Over at the Lake, Jane has this:

We’re joining together with the following people to send a letter to Harry Reid to tell him to respect Chris Dodd’s hold on any bill that includes retroactive immunity for telecom companies:

American Civil Liberties Union
ColorofChange.org
Electronic Frontier Foundation
Moveon.org Political Action
Working Assets Wireless
Duncan Black, Atrios
Markos Moulitsas Zuniga, DailyKos
Glenn Greenwald, Salon
Matt Stoller, OpenLeft
John Aravosis, Americablog
Chris Bowers, OpenLeft
Taylor Marsh Taylormarsh.com
Digby, Hullaballo
John Amato, Crooks and Liars
Howie Klein, DownWithTyranny

We want you to be a part of it. If you feel strongly about this issue, please co-sign the letter to Harry Reid with us (you can view the entire letter here). (.pdf-ed.)

This is important.

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Buyer's Remorse

I gave money to Jason Altmire in his race against Missy Hart.

That's a mistake I won't be repeating.

A true Bush Dog.

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Lead Or Leave

Nancy Pelosi:

"Look," she said, the chicken breast on her plate untouched. "I had, for five months, people sitting outside my home, going into my garden in San Francisco, angering neighbors, hanging their clothes from trees, building all kinds of things -- Buddhas? I don't know what they were -- couches, sofas, chairs, permanent living facilities on my front sidewalk."

Unsmilingly, she continued: "If they were poor and they were sleeping on my sidewalk, they would be arrested for loitering, but because they have 'Impeach Bush' across their chest, it's the First Amendment."

[...]

"We have to make responsible decisions in the Congress that are not driven by the dissatisfaction of anybody who wants the war to end tomorrow," Pelosi told the gathering at the Sofitel, arranged by the Christian Science Monitor. Though crediting activists for their "passion," Pelosi called it "a waste of time" for them to target Democrats. "They are advocates," she said. "We are leaders."

That's just it, Nancy: You're not leading.

As digby says, he riff-raff is getting on her nerves.

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Words For The Democratic Congress

"When voters are given a choice between voting for a Republican, or a Democrat who acts like a Republican, they'll vote for the Republican every time."

- President Harry S Truman

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I'm Sure Glad The War Is Over

Otherwise Congress wouldn't have the time for this:

Lawmakers, music industry executives and rappers disagreed Tuesday over who was to blame for sexist and degrading language in hip hop music but united in opposing government censorship as a solution.

And now for a bit of cognitive dissonance:

[Philippe Dauman, president & CEO of Viacom Inc.] said his company takes an active role in editing obscenities out of music videos and excising gang symbols or portrayals of violence, but "we also believe that it is not our role to censor the creative expression of artists."

Parse that one.

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A Monarchy, Not A Republic

The Congressional Republicans filibustered the most basic right of any American.

Never, ever forget the Republicans' fascism.

(And if any reader objects to my use of the word "fascisism" then bring it on.)

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Sucker

Not. Gonna. Happen:

Democratic leaders in Congress have decided to shift course and pursue modest bipartisan measures to alter U.S. military strategy in Iraq, hoping to use incremental changes instead of aggressive legislation to break the grip Republicans have held over the direction of war policy.

[...]

"We're reaching out to the Republicans to allow them to fulfill their word," Senate Majority Leader Harry M. Reid (Nev.) said yesterday. "A number of them are quoted significantly saying that come September that there would have to be a change of the course in the war in Iraq."

And you fall for that every time, Harry.

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When PowerPoint™ Owns The World

Snark or not? You decide!

Petraeus showed members of Congress a slide -- the last of 13 he presented -- that projected U.S. forces staying in Iraq for an indeterminate time. It did not attach dates indicating any set timetable for withdrawal. Rather, Petraeus's spokesman said, the envisioned drawdown to 35,000 to 50,000 troops would be "conditions based."

No one engaged him on this point, trying to get him to flesh out the slide and explain its assumptions. The bottom-line question -- how long until the last U.S. troops will return from Iraq -- was never asked. "Overall, I haven't seen such impressive charts since I worked in the Pentagon when McNamara ran the place," commented retired Army Col. Charles Krohn, referring to Robert McNamara's tenure in the 1960s. Krohn served in the Vietnam War and as a civilian in Iraq.

I'm going to assume that Col. Krohn is being sarcastic. Only George would be stupid enough to cite Robert McNamara in a positive fashion.

I believe this is the slide being referred to:

Utterly meaningless. But pretty to look at which, I suppose, is the point.

(Slide stolen from Matt Yglesias.)

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Buh-Bye

The NYT reports that Alberto Abu Ghraib Guantanamo Gonzalez has resigned. On Friday USN&WR reported that Abu G would be replaced by Michael Chertoff.

From one incompetent moron to another.

Perhaps the Congressional Dems will make a stand and block Chertoff (if it is indeed him).

(Yes, I made myself laugh at the thought of Dems making a stand.)

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Listen Up, Congressional Dems

Via Swampland, this could be important:

A new Gallup Poll finds Congress' approval rating the lowest it has been since Gallup first tracked public opinion of Congress with this measure in 1974. Just 18% of Americans approve of the job Congress is doing, while 76% disapprove, according to the August 13-16, 2007, Gallup Poll.

[...]

The nine-point drop in Congress' job approval rating from last month to this month has come exclusively from Democrats and independents, with Democrats' ratings dropping 11 points (from 32% to 21%) and independents' ratings dropping 13 points (from 30% to 17%). Republicans' 18% approval rating is unchanged from last month. [Emphasis added.]

Dear Nancy and Rahm and Harry and Chuck:

Your strategery of simply not losing next year's elections is pissing off your base in a big - and I mean BIG - way. Now imagine a big chunk of them sitting on their hands or voting for independent candidates on election day.

Think about it.

Love and kisses,

-spork

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So Much For That

Since Congress and the punditocracy has vested everything - but everything - on September's report by Jesus Gen. David Petraeus this must be a disappointment:

Senior congressional aides said yesterday that the White House has proposed limiting the much-anticipated appearance on Capitol Hill next month of Gen. David H. Petraeus and Ambassador Ryan C. Crocker to a private congressional briefing, suggesting instead that the Bush administration's progress report on the Iraq war should be delivered to Congress by the secretaries of state and defense.

Instead, everyone will have to listen to spinning from Condi and Bob Gates.

This latest, combined with yesterday's revelation that the report will be written by the White House, should inform everybody that it will be a whitewash. However, it will be likely that these inconvenient truths will be elided and we'll hear nothing but "stay the course!"

Unless the "news" media do their jobs.

Sorry, I made myself laugh with that last sentence.

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Disgraceful

A clearly angry EJ Dionne has ferreted out the details of the Democrats' shameful surrender last weekend:

Several members from swing districts -- including Reps. Heath Shuler of North Carolina and Patrick J. Murphy of Pennsylvania -- expressed openness to having Congress stay in town to fight if important constitutional issues were at stake.

But the moment passed. Even some very liberal Democrats worried about the political costs of blocking action before the summer recess. That Saturday night, the House sent the president a bill that, as a disgusted Rep. David Wu (D-Ore.) put it, with just a touch of exaggeration, "makes Alberto Gonzalez the sheriff, the judge and the jury."

Most Democrats opposed the bill, but 41 (including Shuler) voted yes, allowing it to pass. (Murphy remained passionately opposed.) The one Democratic victory: The legislation expires in six months, meaning the debate will resume this fall. But Rep. John F. Tierney (D-Mass.) warned his colleagues that "when you give up your rights under the Constitution, it is not likely you are going to regain them."

Tierney is absolutely correct. Does anybody actually believe that in six months - that would be six months closer to the elections - the political pressure to "be tough" will be any less? And it should go without saying that the only way the Democrats can avoid being called "soft on terrorism" is to completely disband as a political party. Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid could personally go to Pakistan and kill bin Laden and the Republicans and their shills in the "news" media would find a way to accuse the Dems of being weak.

Continuing:

The episode was the culmination of a shameful era in which serious issues related to national security and civil liberties were debated in a climate of fear and intimidation, saturated by political calculation and the quest for short-term electoral advantage.

Politically, Republicans won this round in two ways. They got the president the bill he wanted and, as a result, they created absolute fury in the Democratic base. Pelosi has received more than 200,000 e-mails of protest, according to an aide, for letting the bill go forward.

It would be one thing if the Republicans won a hard-fought battle but in this situation the Dems didn't even show up for the fight.

Dionne concludes:

The entire display was disgraceful because an issue of such import should not be debated in a political pressure cooker. It's not even clear that new legislation was required; Holt, for one, believes many of the problems with handling interceptions involving foreign nationals are administrative in nature and that beefing up and reorganizing the staff around the FISA court might solve the outstanding problems.

But if legislation was needed, there were many ways to grant necessary authority while preserving real oversight. The Democrats got trapped, and they punted. The Republicans have never met a national security issue they're not willing to politicize. This is no way to run a superpower.

If someone asks me why they should vote for the Democrats the best I would be able to come up with is the alternative is worse.

But I wouldn't say it with much conviction.

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Lovely

Providing cover:

House Majority Whip James Clyburn (D-S.C.) said Monday that a strongly positive report on progress on Iraq by Army Gen. David Petraeus likely would split Democrats in the House and impede his party's efforts to press for a timetable to end the war.

[...]

Clyburn noted that Petraeus carries significant weight among the 47 members of the Blue Dog caucus in the House, a group of moderate to conservative Democrats. Without their support, he said, Democratic leaders would find it virtually impossible to pass legislation setting a timetable for withdrawal.

"I think there would be enough support in that group to want to stay the course and if the Republicans were to stay united as they have been, then it would be a problem for us," Clyburn said. "We, by and large, would be wise to wait on the report."

We might as well get used to the fact that unless Dennis Kucinich is elected (not an endorsement) we're going to be in Iraq forever. None of the leading Democratic candidates will remove the troops in any significant way and I need not even mention the All War All the Time party.

Yes, we might as well just get used to it. There are no more Profiles in Courage.

BooMan has another look.

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Hey, Looky Here

Surprise, surprise:

FBI Director Robert S. Mueller III yesterday contradicted the sworn testimony of his boss, Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales, by telling Congress that a prominent warrantless surveillance program was the subject of a dramatic legal debate within the Bush administration.

Mueller's testimony appears to mark the first public confirmation from a Bush administration official that the National Security Agency's Terrorist Surveillance Program was at issue in an unusual nighttime visit by Gonzales to the hospital bedside of then-Attorney General John D. Ashcroft, who was under sedation and recovering from surgery.

[...]

"[Gonzales] tells the half-truth, the partial truth and anything but the truth," said Sen. Charles E. Schumer (N.Y.) [...]

I'm no fan of Schumer's but that's a pretty good line.

So, Leahy and Conyers, now do you have enough to start impeachment proceedings? Or will it be another round of Sternly Worded Letters™?

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Another Lousy Idea

And on it goes:

The Senate Judiciary Committee issued two more subpoenas as part of the U.S. attorney firings investigation today: one for Karl Rove and the other for his deputy, Scott Jennings. Senate Judiciary Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-VT) announced the subpoenas on the Senate floor.

Karl and Scott will simply refuse to show up and Leahy will respond with another Sternly Worded Letter™.

Second verse, same as the last.

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Special Prosecutor?

Senate Dems:

Three Senate Democrats called on the Justice Department's Solicitor General to appoint a special prosecutor to investigate whether or not Attorney General Alberto Gonzales committed perjury in Congressional testimony on the Bush administration's domestic spying program.

Senator Charles Schumer (D-NY) harshly criticized the Attorney General in the Thursday Capitol Hill press conference.

"His inability to answer simple and straight forward questions was stunning," Schumer said. "His instinct is not to tell the truth, but to dissemble and deceive."

[...]

Judiciary Committee Chair Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT) is giving Gonzales until next week to change his testimony or face a perjury investigation. However Schumer told CNN, "I would like to see an investigation occur right away."

We've already seen one special prosecutor during this administration:

...who won of conviction of this guy:

...who, in turn, was immediately had his sentenced commuted by this guy:

...and that process took 3 1/2 years.

A special prosecutor is merely a time-waster for those who value the law and the Constitution. And a special prosecutor will take enough time so that George can simply pardon Abu as he prepares to leave the White House.

Just like his daddy.

Senate Democrats: Drop this idea and try something that might actually work. Impeachment comes to mind. Otherwise just go back to doing what you do best: Being spineless bloviators.

---

ADDED: Marcy Wheeler add details and (unlike me) intelligently explains why a special prosecutor is a bad idea.

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A World Of Possibilities

Hey, Congressional Democrats! Check this out:

The latest Washington Post-ABC News survey shows that 65 percent of Americans disapprove of Bush's job performance, matching his all-time low. In polls conducted by The Post or Gallup going back to 1938, only once has a president exceeded that level of public animosity -- and that was Richard M. Nixon, who hit 66 percent four days before he resigned.

The historic depth of Bush's public standing has whipsawed his White House, sapped his clout, drained his advisers, encouraged his enemies and jeopardized his legacy. Around the White House, aides make gallows-humor jokes about how they can alienate their remaining supporters -- at least those aides not heading for the door. Outside the White House, many former aides privately express anger and bitterness at their erstwhile colleagues, Bush and the fate of his presidency.

[...]

The current president, though, has endured bad numbers longer than Nixon or his father did and longer than anyone other than Truman. His disapproval rating has topped 50 percent for more than two years. And though Truman hit 65 percent once, Bush has hit that high three times in the past 14 months.

But you wouldn't want to do anything that upsets the White House, would you?

And this backs up what I've been saying:

Bush has been so down for so long that some advisers maintain it no longer bothers them much. It can even, they say, be liberating. Seeking the best interpretation for the president's predicament, they argue that Bush can do what he thinks is right without regard to political cost, pointing to decisions to send more U.S. troops to Iraq and to commute the sentence of I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby, Vice President Cheney's former chief of staff.

Translation: BushCheney have nothing to lose. Just imagine all of the things they can do with that attitude.

Think on that, Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi.

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But Let Me Say This

My understanding is that Alberto Gonzales spent the day perjuring his smarmy little head off.

You know what?

I. DON'T. CARE.

When the Democrats grow a pair and open impeachment hearings rather than sending more Sternly Worded Letters™ then I'll start to care.

Until then screw the Democrats.

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Are You Listening, Democrats?

WaPo/ABC:

Most Americans see President Bush as intransigent on Iraq and prefer that the Democratic-controlled Congress make decisions about a possible withdrawal of U.S. forces, according to a new Washington Post-ABC News poll.

As the president and Congress spar over war policy, both receive negative marks from the public for their handling of the situation in Iraq. But by a large margin, Americans trust Democrats rather than the president to find a solution to a conflict that remains enormously unpopular. And more than six in 10 in the new poll said Congress should have the final say on when to bring the troops home.

The president has steadfastly asserted his power as commander in chief to make decisions about the war, but his posture is now viewed by majorities of Democrats, independents and even Republicans as too inflexible. Asked whether Bush is willing enough to change policies on Iraq, nearly eight in 10 Americans said no.

And yet Congressional Repubs and some Dems haven't yet figured this out. More inexcusable is the blindness (willful?) of the WaPo's own such as Jackson Diehl (via Sadly, No!) and Fred Hiatt still insist that the war is unpopular among only the leftiest of the lefties (the "Dirty Fucking Hippies" in Atrios' parlance).

Onward to Tehran!

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Spineless

Harold Meyerson gets shrill:

Anyone searching for the highest forms of invertebrate life need look no further than the floor of the U.S. Senate last week and this. These spineless specimens go by various names -- Republican moderates; respected senior Republicans; Dick Lugar, John Warner, Pete Domenici, George Voinovich.

[...]

In wisdom, they are paragons. In action, they are nullities.

[...]

Instead, they have drafted legislation that would require the administration to draw up plans for a pullback -- but not to implement them. Indeed, they act continually as if George Bush and Dick Cheney are amenable to argument and open to facts. "I'm hopeful they'll change their minds," Domenici said last week after a meeting with national security adviser Stephen Hadley. "I think we should continue to ratchet up the pressure, in addition to our words," said Voinovich, "to let the White House know we are very sincere."

Very sincere -- now there's a threat that concentrates the mind. These Republicans who proclaim their independence without acting on it have failed to come to terms with the single most important reality confronting them: that Bush and Cheney will keep the war going until Congress forces them to stop.

No comment from me is necessary.

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Restoring Habeas

Christy has the details.

Don't let this stand.

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Picture Of The Day

[Via The Muck.]

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It's Very Simple

If Harriet Miers refuses to appear before Congress then chuck her ass into the pokey for contempt.

As Pat Leahy asks, “What is the White House trying to hide?”

---

ADDED: Marty Lederman examines what Congress can do and Cass Sunstein explains the legal confusion over "executive privilege."

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Bush To Congress:

Drop dead:

President Bush invoked executive privilege Monday to deny requests by Congress for testimony from two former aides about the firings of federal prosecutors.

Still, you have to admit that the White House is generous:

The White House, however, did offer again to make former counsel Harriet Miers and one-time political director Sara Taylor available for private, off-the-record interviews.

Ah, yes, the old "off-the-record-no-swearing-in-so-there's-no-perjury" plan.

And it will likely work.

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Foreigners

So the United States has lost billions of dollars and hundreds of thousands of jobs because foreigners have stopped visiting us. Luckily, Congress is on the job!

The Senate Commerce Committee has approved a bill to establish a nonprofit public-private corporation to promote the United States as a tourist destination and clear up misperceptions about U.S. travel policies. It also would create a new office in the Commerce Department to work with other agencies on fixing visa policies and entry processes that discourage visits.

That ought to fix it. But however shall we pay for this?

The new corporation envisioned by the bill would be funded by industry contributions and a $10 user fee levied on travelers from the 27 countries participating in a visa waiver program with the United States. But industry experts also stressed that increased advertising about the wonders of Broadway or the Grand Canyon must be accompanied by changes in the visa and entry systems that keep people away.

I don't like the sound of "industry contributions"; "industry" will be wanting something in return. And taxing, errr..."levying a fee", on those tourists we want so much seems, I don't know, a little counterproductive.

No doubt fixing the visa system and entry procedures would certainly help. But how about we stop treating every foreigner as an enemy and stop being a frigging rogue nation?

That might help, too.

Just a thought.

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Keep Him Vetoing

Keep George busy:

The House easily passed legislation yesterday that would loosen President Bush's six-year-old restrictions on embryonic stem cell research, but the vote once again fell short of the two-thirds majority needed to override a promised veto.

Bush immediately renewed his pledge to veto the bill, which passed 247 to 176, and matches language approved by the Senate in April.

[...]

"I don't believe, given that millions of Americans believe in the sanctity of life, that we should be funding research that destroys human life," [Rep. Dave Weldon (R-Fla.)] said. Citing the new research advances in mice, he predicted that embryonic stem cells would before long be seen as an antiquated means of developing cures.

And millions more support stem cell research, Dave. So you might not want to play that game.

"Science," Weldon said, "is going to move beyond this discussion."

On that we agree.

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Veto George

Good for the Dems:

Family planning groups outside of the United States would be allowed to receive contraceptives from the U.S. government under a Democratic plan moving through the U.S. House of Representatives that could prompt a veto by President George W. Bush.

[...]

If passed by the House and Senate, the provision could provoke a veto by President George W. Bush, warned Rep. Dave Weldon, a Florida Republican.

The Bush administration instead has advocated education programs on abstinence until marriage.

Y'know what? The Congressional Democrats should pass every bill imaginable that would provoke a veto from Li'l Georgie. Just make the remainder of his time in office nothing but one veto after another.

Let that be his "legacy."

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Losing The Advantage

Congressional Dems had better move fast:

Republicans moved Tuesday to seek Rep. William J. Jefferson’s expulsion from the House, a day after the Louisiana Democrat was indicted on charges of receiving more than $500,000 in bribes.

[...]

Republicans, citing Pelosi’s election-season promise to run the most ethical House in history, sought Jefferson’s expulsion from the chamber, possibly before he comes to trial on the bribery charges.

While the hypocrisy of the GOP is to be expected, they can still be able to claim the high road on one of their most vulnerable points - a complete lack of ethics. (Remember one of Karl Rove's favored and successful tactics: attack your opponent for your own vulnerabilities.)

Fair or not, Jefferson has to go and if he refuses to resign Nancy Pelosi et al had better move to expel him immediately.

Then tell John Murtha and his crowd to shut up and get moving on true ethics reform.

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Deaf And Blind

Eugene Robinson:

Everyone else who was listening Wednesday had to be flabbergasted as Republican members of the House Judiciary Committee -- apparently having been struck deaf and blind -- lobbed softball after softball at witness Monica Goodling. This was after Goodling had already 'fessed up to applying a political litmus test for career Justice employees. I repeat: career employees, not political appointees. Only loyal Republicans should bother to apply.

The deaf and blind Republicans on the committee apparently missed that part of her opening statement. They also missed the part when she accused Gonzales's former deputy, Paul McNulty, of telling untruths to Congress -- and, in the process, hanging Goodling out to dry. Those dogged GOP interrogators did, however, manage to elicit from Goodling the startling disclosure that she believes she is a good person and also the revelation that while she might have broken a few laws, she didn't set out to do anything illegal.

[...]

Did all this fly over the heads of the Republicans on the Judiciary Committee? Of course not. But House Republicans evidently have made the cynical political calculation that to acknowledge reality would be to grant the Democrats some sort of victory. This, apparently, must be avoided at all costs.

Of course the they're cynical; the only thing the modern Republican Party cares about is power. Authoritarians to the core, they subscribe whole-heartedly to a strange code:

The aide said that guys like me were "in what we call the reality-based community," which he defined as people who "believe that solutions emerge from your judicious study of discernible reality." ... "That's not the way the world really works anymore," he continued. "We're an empire now, and when we act, we create our own reality. And while you're studying that reality—judiciously, as you will—we'll act again, creating other new realities, which you can study too, and that's how things will sort out. We're history's actors . . . and you, all of you, will be left to just study what we do."

Normal people call this "delusional."

Whether cynical or delusional, or both, the failure to recognize reality (real reality) alone should disqualify the Republican Party (in it's current form) from holding any position of power. Sane Republicans (if such an animal still exists) should either reform their party or quit and create a new conservative party.

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Remember Washington, DC?

Cave-in:

Congress sent President Bush a new Iraq funding bill yesterday that lacked troop withdrawal deadlines demanded by liberal Democrats, but party leaders vowed it was only a temporary setback in their efforts to bring home American troops.

Apparently I missed a memo. It appears that the term "liberal Democrats" refers to the large majority of Americans:

Most Americans support a timetable for withdrawal. Sixty-three percent say the United States should set a date for withdrawing troops from Iraq sometime in 2008.

If I've learned only one thing in this life it's to never believe that, in the end, the Democrats have a spine.

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What Athenae Says

Here.

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Dems Cave

And Pelosi isn't happy:

Instead of sticking with troop-withdrawal dates, Democrats accepted a GOP plan to establish 18 political and legislative benchmarks for the Iraqi government, with periodic reports from Bush on its progress, starting in late July. If the Iraqis fall short, they could forfeit U.S. reconstruction aid.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) was so disappointed with the outcome that she said she might vote against the Iraq portion of the package, which will be split into two parts when it comes before the House. "I'm not likely to vote for something that doesn't have a timetable," she said.

I'm sure that those periodic reports from George will be honest and candid.

Right.

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Deadline

Think Progress reports:

Earlier this month, Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-VT) subpoenaed Alberto Gonzales to turn over all e-mails to or from Karl Rove in connection U.S. attorney scandal. The committee gave the attorney general until 2 PM today to comply. That deadline has passed.

Wouldn't this be called "obstruction of justice"? At the very least, we're talking contempt of Congress.

Dispatch the Sergeant-at-Arms with manacles!

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Worth Remembering

Congressional Democrats are writing up a budget that includes funding increases for education, health care, and other domestic concerns. Needless to say, Republicans are unhappy and George is threatening a veto. But here's the important part:

Most federal agencies have been operating without a budget since October, when Congress, then under Republican control, failed to agree on spending limits for domestic programs.

Yes, that's right, the Repubs are whinging about a Democratic-written budget even though it was their responsibility to come up with one seven months ago.

Why do Republicans even bother existing?

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Make Him Beg

Short-term funding passes the House:

The House last night pushed through its second plan to fund the Iraq war and reshape war policy, approving legislation that would provide partial funding for the conflict but hold back most of the money until President Bush reports on the war's progress in July.

Coming only a week after the Democrats' first war funding bill was vetoed, the House's 221 to 205 vote defied a fresh veto threat and even opposition from Democrats in the Senate.

Let's get the Senate to pass this bill. If we can't have a timeline then let's make George crawl back to Congress every two months for funding.

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