Executive Privilege... Or Another Nixon-Style Conspiracy?
A review of the news reports, proceedings of Congress, the ongoings from the West Wing, and the events that swirl around us demonstrates that this Bush administration is engaging in what amounts to a racketeering approach to government. The very same tactics of law-breaking, circumvention of the rules, claims to rights and privileges to avoid being held responsible, sabotaging or killing enemies, and kowtowing to those entities that provide money (regardless of ethical considerations) used by the mafia and other bodies of organized crime are being used by the Bush gang.
But this is not the first time we have seen this type of behavior coming from our White House. Nixon used these very same tactics while covering up for the Watergate break-ins, the scandal and the investigation that followed the cover-up efforts. Ford followed the Nixon model by pardoning those that broke the "supreme law of the land" and claimed that it was in the best interests of the nation.
Subsequently, both Reagan and the senior Bush used similar tactics and processes while committing crimes against our nation when they actively engaged in the Iran-Contra Affair.
But George W. Bush and his gang of fascist thugs have taken the process to new heights, making all of the past scoundrels, criminals, liars and cheats seem like amateurs.
The links below demonstrate a deliberate process of denying us our right to proper, legal and fair representation from our president and those that serve in his cabinet and the executive branch. Anyone that takes the time to review these reports, as well as previous reports, could not possibly deny that there is a clear and present danger of casting out our Constitution and instituting a fascist regime.
Outright Lies, False Claims & Power-Grabbing
Gonzales Denies Improper Pressure on Ashcroft
FBI Head Contradicts Gonzales Testimony: Lawmakers Want Probe of Attorney General; Rove Subpoenaed
A White House Warning on Contempt Charges
Power Without Limits
Unfree Speech: The Fourth of July is an apt moment to reflect on one of the great underreported stories of our time: the rise of speech regulation. Glance at the First Amendment, but do not think it still applies. Large bodies of political speech are now governed by laws, agency regulations, court decisions and lawyerly interpretations. Speech has become unfree.
Abuse Of Power, Dishonoring Our Troops & Violation Of Our Constitution and Ratified Treaties
Rules Lay Out C.I.A.’s Tactics in Questioning
War Crimes and the White House: The Dishonor in a Tortured New 'Interpretation' of the Geneva Conventions
Unlikely Adversary Arises to Criticize Detainee Hearings: Some lawyers say Colonel Abraham’s account — of a hearing procedure that he described as deeply flawed and largely a tool for commanders to rubber-stamp decisions they had already made — may have played an important role in the justices’ highly unusual reversal. That decision once again brought the administration face to face with the vexing legal, political and diplomatic questions about the fate of Guantánamo and the roughly 360 men still held there.
U.S. bending rules on Colombia terror? Several lawmakers say multinationals that aid violent groups in return for protection are not being prosecuted. The lawmakers say that, in the cases of U.S. corporations in Colombia, the Justice Department has failed to adequately enforce U.S. laws that make it a crime to knowingly provide material support or resources to a foreign terrorist organization — and they have opened their own investigation.
Pentagon Balked at Pleas from Officers Safer MRAP Vehicles While Iraqi Troops Got MRAPs and Americans Waited... And Died: Years before the war began, Pentagon officials knew of the effectiveness of another type of vehicle that better shielded troops from bombs like those that have killed Kincaid and 1,500 other soldiers and Marines. But military officials repeatedly balked at appeals — from commanders on the battlefield and from the Pentagon's own staff — to provide the lifesaving Mine Resistant Ambush Protected vehicle, or MRAP, for patrols and combat missions, USA TODAY found. In a letter to Defense Secretary Robert Gates late last month, two U.S. senators said the delays cost the lives of an estimated "621 to 742 Americans" who would have survived explosions had they been in MRAPs rather than Humvees. The letter, from Sens. Joseph Biden, D-Del., and Kit Bond, R-Mo., assumed the initial calls for MRAPs came in February 2005, when Marines in Iraq asked the Pentagon for almost 1,200 of the vehicles. USA TODAY found that the first appeals for the MRAP came much earlier. As early as December 2003, when the Marines requested their first 27 MRAPs for explosives-disposal teams, Pentagon analysts sent detailed information about the superiority of the vehicles to the Joint Chiefs of Staff, e-mails obtained by USA TODAY show. Later pleas came from Iraq, where commanders saw that the approach the Joint Chiefs embraced — adding armor to the sides of Humvees, the standard vehicles in the war zone — did little to protect against blasts beneath the vehicles.
Distractions, Disinformation, Misinformation, Propaganda & Lies Our Mothers Wouldn't Allow Us Tell
President [Falsely] Links Qaeda of Iraq to Qaeda of 9/11
Mahdi Army, Not Al-Qaeda, is Enemy No. 1 in Western Baghdad
NEWS ANALYSIS; Same People, Same Threat: The National Intelligence Estimate (NIE) concludes US is losing ground in war on terrorism.... suggests the threat against the US is growing worse, fueled by Iraq war and spreading Islamic extremism; says report belies Pres Bush's assertions that Al Qaeda is growing weaker due to US efforts
Court Tells U.S. to Reveal Data on Detainees at Guantánamo: A federal appeals court ordered the government yesterday to turn over virtually all its information on Guantánamo detainees who are challenging their detention, rejecting an effort by the Justice Department to limit disclosures and setting the stage for new legal battles over the government’s reasons for holding the men indefinitely.
Security Lies, Distractions, Abuses & Fear-Mongering
Gonzales Knew About Violations, Officials Say: Two senior Justice Department officials said yesterday that they kept Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales apprised of FBI violations of civil liberties and privacy safeguards in recent years. The two officials spoke in a telephone call arranged by press officials at the Justice Department after The Washington Post disclosed yesterday that the FBI sent reports to Gonzales of legal and procedural violations shortly before he told senators in April 2005: "There has not been one verified case of civil liberties abuse" after 2001.
Long-Delayed Security: As new warnings stoke the public’s fear of terrorist attacks, Congress is finally moving on some of the most important and neglected recommendations of the independent 9/11 commission.
The Politics of Fear: The National Intelligence Estimate is powerful rebuke to Pres Bush's approach to war on terrorism; says it vindicates those who say that Iraq war has been distraction from real fight and charges Congress to work toward exit strategy from Iraq
Limited Capacity Is Seen in Flu Defenses: More than a year after President Bush unveiled a plan for coping with a pandemic flu outbreak, the federal government still has limited capacity to detect a disease outbreak and track its progress across the country. The government has also decided that it will not close the borders if a pandemic flu outbreak occurs somewhere in the world.
F.D.A. Inspections Lax, Congress Is Told: According to testimony Tuesday before a House subcommittee, they have been able to bring tainted products into this country because the F.D.A. has neither enough resources nor inspectors to stop them. And each year it has become easier: since 2003, the number of inspectors has decreased while imports of food alone have almost doubled.
FEMA Runs for Cover: More than 66,000 of the victims still live in FEMA’s trailers, unable to return home. In a sickening twist to their woeful tale of neglect, it appears that their trailers have been poisoning them. FEMA, which knew of the problem for more than a year, ignored warnings from its own staff and avoided addressing it because it was worried about being sued.
Guard Problems Spur New Effort In Protection of Federal Buildings: Homeland Security officials unveiled new steps yesterday to ensure that federal buildings are not left unprotected, after two cases in which contract security guards stayed away from their jobs because they had not been paid. The new measures come after weeks of congressional scrutiny of the Federal Protective Service, a branch of the Department of Homeland Security that provides the private security guards at most federal buildings. Legislators have contended that the service's poor record in paying and overseeing contractors could leave government buildings vulnerable to crime or terrorism.
State-Run Sites Not Effective vs. Terror: Report Blasts Costly Intelligence Centers -- More than 40 state-run operations set up after 9/11 to help uncover terrorist plots are proving to be a costly but largely ineffective weapon against terrorism, according to congressional investigators. Homeland Security has given states $380 million to set up the high-tech intelligence centers to help law enforcement officials do what they were not able to do before Sept. 11, 2001: recognize suspicious activity, patterns and people and use the information to prevent terrorist attacks. However, the centers "have increasingly gravitated toward an all-crimes and even broader all-hazards approach," focusing on traditional criminals and local emergencies, according to a report this month by the Congressional Research Service (CRS).
A Nuclear Ruse Uncovers Holes In U.S. Security: Government Accountability Office investigators set up bogus company and obtained license from Nuclear Regulatory Commission that would have allowed them to buy radioactive materials needed for 'dirty' bomb; GAO report says security measures to prevent terrorists from obtaining radioactive materials are insufficient; bomb would not have caused widespread damage but it still could have had serious consequences in any city where it was detonated; regulatory commission says it has taken steps to improve safeguards and that danger associated with amount of radioactive material auditors were trying to buy should not be overstated; auditors' findings are latest in series of reports about weaknesses at Nuclear Regulatory Commission that investigators argue make nation more vulnerable to dirty bomb attack.
Making A Big Noise In The West While Attacking In The East
The Iraq War Debate: The Great Denier: With the White House refusing to lead, lawmakers in both parties have begun to talk about the best way to end the war. But instead of seizing the opening, Mr. Bush and his team continue to spout disinformation and vacuous slogans about victory and, of course, more character assassination.
Misusing Public Position, Public Funds & Public Office For Partisan Politics
White House Had Drug Officials Appear With GOP Candidates: White House officials arranged for top officials at the Office of National Drug Control Policy to help as many as 18 vulnerable Republican congressmen by making appearances and sometimes announcing new federal grants in the lawmakers' districts in the months leading up to the November 2006 elections, a Democratic lawmaker said yesterday.
White House Would Have Its Political Wing, Officially or Not: Have Congressional overseers have their hands full investigating the deeds and, they allege, misdeeds of the White House Office of Political Affairs. Did the office's involvement in the firing of the nine U.S. attorneys cross the line? What about its staff's use of Republican National Committee e-mail accounts? Did its minions improperly seek to enlist executive agencies to help GOP candidates? Intriguing questions, all. But so is this one: Why is there a taxpayer-funded political office in the White House to begin with?
Over Spending, No-Bid Contracts, Profiteering & Wasting Billions Over There While Ignoring Us Over Here
The Iraq War Debate: A Reality Check on Military Spending: The measure, larded with the usual billions in weapons more suited for another era, seemed headed for routine approval when it became snarled in the debate over Iraq and was pulled from the floor until after Labor Day. That gives the Senate and the public an unexpected chance to reflect on the frightening disconnect between the exotic and unlikely threats the Pentagon spends so much of its investment money preparing for and the 21st century wars America has actually been fighting.
Congressional Agency Predicts War Costs Will Climb: The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan will cost U.S. taxpayers hundreds of billions of dollars over the next decade, no matter how quickly U.S. troops are reduced in those countries over the next few years, according to a report released this week by the Congressional Research Service (CRS). The Bush administration and Congress have allocated $577 billion to the conflicts through the end of the current fiscal year, but that amount is only a small down payment, the report suggested in examining the impact of various deployment scenarios. If today's troop level -- roughly 180,000 -- is cut by 85 percent by 2010 and remains at that level through 2017, the total cost of the two conflicts would be an additional $472 billion, according to the Congressional Budget Office figures. If U.S. troop deployments were cut more gradually -- to 75,000 soldiers, or by about 60 percent, by 2013 -- the additional costs would be nearly $600 billion. Keeping troops at that level for five years beyond that would cost $300 billion more, the report said.
Back Room Deals, Tax Breaks For The Rich, Special Treatment For Liars & Cheats
Tax Break Used by Drug Makers Failed to Add Jobs: Drug makers were the biggest beneficiaries of the amnesty program, repatriating about $100 billion in foreign profits and paying only minimal taxes. But the companies did not create many jobs in return. Instead, since 2005 the American drug industry has laid off tens of thousands of workers in this country. And now drug companies are once again using complex strategies, many of them demonstrably legal, to shelter billions of dollars in profits in international tax havens, according to their financial statements and independent tax experts.
On Eve of Vote, Farm Bill Draws Threat of a Veto: Farm-state Republicans had been lining up with Democrats to defend the bipartisan bill but changed course when notified that a proposed increase in nutrition programs would be funded partly by tightening the rules on U.S.-based foreign companies that avoid U.S. taxes by using offshore havens.
Taxes in the Global Economy: As Americans grapple with the impact of trade and globalization, the government should be trying to ensure that America’s multinational corporations — and by extension, their shareholders — pay a fair share in taxes on the profits from globalization. Unfortunately, policy makers have moved in the opposite direction, dishing out excessive corporate tax breaks that have done little for workers and have served mainly to concentrate wealth among the few.
Casinos Booming In Katrina's Wake As Cash Pours In: Casinos in Biloxi, Miss, and New Orleans are doing record business in spite of massive damage inflicted by Hurricane Katrina; Biloxi has 40 percent fewer hotel rooms and only two-thirds as many slot machines as it did before Katrina, but business in gambling halls has reached all-time highs in recent months; Harrah's New Orleans is on pace for its best year ever; analysts say casinos in region are generating more revenue--from significantly fewer players--largely because of extra money many area residents have in their pockets and fewer alternatives on where to spend it; another factor in Mississippi is new law that allows casinos to be within 800 feet of water rather than requiring them to be on floating barge or riverboats
Going Once, Going Twice . . . The FCC proposes rules for the spectrum auction. THE FEDERAL Communications Commission is readying an auction of prime real estate -- in the radio spectrum, that is. The 700 MHz band being auctioned off is ideal for broadband services, and the proceeding is likely to be the last big spectrum auction in the telecommunications industry for a long time. The auction could have major implications for businesses, consumers and even victims of crises nationwide. As a result, companies and consumer groups have been lobbying the FCC about conditions to be placed on the spectrum's use -- which will be decided in the next few weeks -- with all parties claiming to promote the public interest. The most heated debate is over whether the telecom industry is competitive enough and which auction conditions might increase competition. In the mobile services market, some Goliaths have been consolidating, but even so, new sales packages are developing.
Judge Rejects Charges for 13 On Tax Shelter: Federal Judge Lewis A Kaplan dismisses charges against 13 former employees of accounting firm KPMG; decision delivers blow to prosecutors who once heralded case as showpiece in government's crusade against questionable tax shelters; Kaplan rules that he has no choice because government had strong-armed KPMG into not paying legal fees of defendants and had violated their rights; while decision is setback for prosecutors, it does not end case; criminal charges remain against five others, including three former KPMG employees; Ronald J Nessim, co-chairman of White Collar Crime Committee of American Bar Assn, says case has broad implications for goverment; lauds Kaplan for standing up to prosecutors; US attorney's office has not decided whether it will appeal; while prosecutors have had successes in battle against corporate fraud, ruling is latest in which they have seen prominent case unravel because it hinged, in part, on aggressive legal tactics.
Vetoing Children’s Health: President Bush is threatening to veto any substantial increase in spending for a highly successful children’s health program on the bizarre theory that expanding it would be the “beginning salvo” in establishing a government-run health care system. His shortsighted ideological opposition would leave millions of children without health insurance at a time when medical costs are soaring.
Tax Loopholes Sweeten a Deal For Blackstone: Blackstone Group devises way for its partners to effectively avoid paying taxes on $3.7 billion of the $4.75 billion it raised last month from selling shares to public; plan, laid out in fine print of Blackstone's financial documents, is similar to one used by other private equity firms and hedge funds that have gone public; Congress is debating how much managers at private equity firms like Blackstone and hedge funds should pay in taxes on their compensation; at issue is whether most of compensation that fund managers earn should be taxed at 35 percent rate that applies to other highly paid Americans, or at 15 percent rate for capital gains; Blackstone's tax maneuver hinges on its use of good will, accounting term for value of intangible assets that are built up by company over time; Blackstone partners paid 15 percent capital gains rate on shares they sold, then arranged to get deductions for $3.7 billion worth of good will at 35 percent rate.
Federal Appeals Court Orders Dismissal of Domestic Spying Suit
Health Care Fiascoes, Selling Our Heroes Short, & Lying About Concern For Our Troops, The Poor & Our Children
Overhaul Urged in Care for Soldiers: Dole-Shalala Commission Wants Bush to Act Quickly -- The panel issued six broad recommendations intended to transform a troubled system for military health care and veterans' assistance that has left some injured soldiers languishing for years and resulted in inequitable and inconsistent disability benefits.
How Specialist Town Lost His Benefits: Jon Town has spent the last few years fighting two battles, one against his body, the other against the US Army. Both began in October 2004 in Ramadi, Iraq. He was standing in the doorway of his battalion's headquarters when a 107-millimeter rocket struck two feet above his head. The impact punched a piano-sized hole in the concrete facade, sparked a huge fireball and tossed the 25-year-old Army specialist to the floor, where he lay blacked out among the rubble.
On Base, a Plea to Give Each Death Its Due: Twenty soldiers deployed to Iraq from this Army base were killed in May, a monthly high. That same month, the base announced a change in how it would honor its dead: instead of units holding services after each death, they would be held collectively once a month.
Drug Safety Critic Hurls Darts From the Inside: A former 1960s campus activist is now shaking up the nation’s pharmaceutical industry.
Filling Gaps in Iraq, Then Finding a Void at Home: This is the face of battle in a new war and a new century — a 46-year-old Pakistani-American woman, part of a rented army of 130,000 civilians supporting 160,000 United States soldiers and marines. Taking the place of enlisted troops in every American army before this one, these contract employees cook meals, wash clothes, deliver fuel and guard bases. And they die and suffer alongside their brothers and sisters in uniform. About 1,000 contractors have been killed in Iraq since the war began; nearly 13,000 have been injured.
But this is not the first time we have seen this type of behavior coming from our White House. Nixon used these very same tactics while covering up for the Watergate break-ins, the scandal and the investigation that followed the cover-up efforts. Ford followed the Nixon model by pardoning those that broke the "supreme law of the land" and claimed that it was in the best interests of the nation.
Subsequently, both Reagan and the senior Bush used similar tactics and processes while committing crimes against our nation when they actively engaged in the Iran-Contra Affair.
But George W. Bush and his gang of fascist thugs have taken the process to new heights, making all of the past scoundrels, criminals, liars and cheats seem like amateurs.
The links below demonstrate a deliberate process of denying us our right to proper, legal and fair representation from our president and those that serve in his cabinet and the executive branch. Anyone that takes the time to review these reports, as well as previous reports, could not possibly deny that there is a clear and present danger of casting out our Constitution and instituting a fascist regime.
Outright Lies, False Claims & Power-Grabbing
Gonzales Denies Improper Pressure on Ashcroft
FBI Head Contradicts Gonzales Testimony: Lawmakers Want Probe of Attorney General; Rove Subpoenaed
A White House Warning on Contempt Charges
Power Without Limits
Unfree Speech: The Fourth of July is an apt moment to reflect on one of the great underreported stories of our time: the rise of speech regulation. Glance at the First Amendment, but do not think it still applies. Large bodies of political speech are now governed by laws, agency regulations, court decisions and lawyerly interpretations. Speech has become unfree.
Abuse Of Power, Dishonoring Our Troops & Violation Of Our Constitution and Ratified Treaties
Rules Lay Out C.I.A.’s Tactics in Questioning
War Crimes and the White House: The Dishonor in a Tortured New 'Interpretation' of the Geneva Conventions
Unlikely Adversary Arises to Criticize Detainee Hearings: Some lawyers say Colonel Abraham’s account — of a hearing procedure that he described as deeply flawed and largely a tool for commanders to rubber-stamp decisions they had already made — may have played an important role in the justices’ highly unusual reversal. That decision once again brought the administration face to face with the vexing legal, political and diplomatic questions about the fate of Guantánamo and the roughly 360 men still held there.
U.S. bending rules on Colombia terror? Several lawmakers say multinationals that aid violent groups in return for protection are not being prosecuted. The lawmakers say that, in the cases of U.S. corporations in Colombia, the Justice Department has failed to adequately enforce U.S. laws that make it a crime to knowingly provide material support or resources to a foreign terrorist organization — and they have opened their own investigation.
Pentagon Balked at Pleas from Officers Safer MRAP Vehicles While Iraqi Troops Got MRAPs and Americans Waited... And Died: Years before the war began, Pentagon officials knew of the effectiveness of another type of vehicle that better shielded troops from bombs like those that have killed Kincaid and 1,500 other soldiers and Marines. But military officials repeatedly balked at appeals — from commanders on the battlefield and from the Pentagon's own staff — to provide the lifesaving Mine Resistant Ambush Protected vehicle, or MRAP, for patrols and combat missions, USA TODAY found. In a letter to Defense Secretary Robert Gates late last month, two U.S. senators said the delays cost the lives of an estimated "621 to 742 Americans" who would have survived explosions had they been in MRAPs rather than Humvees. The letter, from Sens. Joseph Biden, D-Del., and Kit Bond, R-Mo., assumed the initial calls for MRAPs came in February 2005, when Marines in Iraq asked the Pentagon for almost 1,200 of the vehicles. USA TODAY found that the first appeals for the MRAP came much earlier. As early as December 2003, when the Marines requested their first 27 MRAPs for explosives-disposal teams, Pentagon analysts sent detailed information about the superiority of the vehicles to the Joint Chiefs of Staff, e-mails obtained by USA TODAY show. Later pleas came from Iraq, where commanders saw that the approach the Joint Chiefs embraced — adding armor to the sides of Humvees, the standard vehicles in the war zone — did little to protect against blasts beneath the vehicles.
Distractions, Disinformation, Misinformation, Propaganda & Lies Our Mothers Wouldn't Allow Us Tell
President [Falsely] Links Qaeda of Iraq to Qaeda of 9/11
Mahdi Army, Not Al-Qaeda, is Enemy No. 1 in Western Baghdad
NEWS ANALYSIS; Same People, Same Threat: The National Intelligence Estimate (NIE) concludes US is losing ground in war on terrorism.... suggests the threat against the US is growing worse, fueled by Iraq war and spreading Islamic extremism; says report belies Pres Bush's assertions that Al Qaeda is growing weaker due to US efforts
Court Tells U.S. to Reveal Data on Detainees at Guantánamo: A federal appeals court ordered the government yesterday to turn over virtually all its information on Guantánamo detainees who are challenging their detention, rejecting an effort by the Justice Department to limit disclosures and setting the stage for new legal battles over the government’s reasons for holding the men indefinitely.
Security Lies, Distractions, Abuses & Fear-Mongering
Gonzales Knew About Violations, Officials Say: Two senior Justice Department officials said yesterday that they kept Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales apprised of FBI violations of civil liberties and privacy safeguards in recent years. The two officials spoke in a telephone call arranged by press officials at the Justice Department after The Washington Post disclosed yesterday that the FBI sent reports to Gonzales of legal and procedural violations shortly before he told senators in April 2005: "There has not been one verified case of civil liberties abuse" after 2001.
Long-Delayed Security: As new warnings stoke the public’s fear of terrorist attacks, Congress is finally moving on some of the most important and neglected recommendations of the independent 9/11 commission.
The Politics of Fear: The National Intelligence Estimate is powerful rebuke to Pres Bush's approach to war on terrorism; says it vindicates those who say that Iraq war has been distraction from real fight and charges Congress to work toward exit strategy from Iraq
Limited Capacity Is Seen in Flu Defenses: More than a year after President Bush unveiled a plan for coping with a pandemic flu outbreak, the federal government still has limited capacity to detect a disease outbreak and track its progress across the country. The government has also decided that it will not close the borders if a pandemic flu outbreak occurs somewhere in the world.
F.D.A. Inspections Lax, Congress Is Told: According to testimony Tuesday before a House subcommittee, they have been able to bring tainted products into this country because the F.D.A. has neither enough resources nor inspectors to stop them. And each year it has become easier: since 2003, the number of inspectors has decreased while imports of food alone have almost doubled.
FEMA Runs for Cover: More than 66,000 of the victims still live in FEMA’s trailers, unable to return home. In a sickening twist to their woeful tale of neglect, it appears that their trailers have been poisoning them. FEMA, which knew of the problem for more than a year, ignored warnings from its own staff and avoided addressing it because it was worried about being sued.
Guard Problems Spur New Effort In Protection of Federal Buildings: Homeland Security officials unveiled new steps yesterday to ensure that federal buildings are not left unprotected, after two cases in which contract security guards stayed away from their jobs because they had not been paid. The new measures come after weeks of congressional scrutiny of the Federal Protective Service, a branch of the Department of Homeland Security that provides the private security guards at most federal buildings. Legislators have contended that the service's poor record in paying and overseeing contractors could leave government buildings vulnerable to crime or terrorism.
State-Run Sites Not Effective vs. Terror: Report Blasts Costly Intelligence Centers -- More than 40 state-run operations set up after 9/11 to help uncover terrorist plots are proving to be a costly but largely ineffective weapon against terrorism, according to congressional investigators. Homeland Security has given states $380 million to set up the high-tech intelligence centers to help law enforcement officials do what they were not able to do before Sept. 11, 2001: recognize suspicious activity, patterns and people and use the information to prevent terrorist attacks. However, the centers "have increasingly gravitated toward an all-crimes and even broader all-hazards approach," focusing on traditional criminals and local emergencies, according to a report this month by the Congressional Research Service (CRS).
A Nuclear Ruse Uncovers Holes In U.S. Security: Government Accountability Office investigators set up bogus company and obtained license from Nuclear Regulatory Commission that would have allowed them to buy radioactive materials needed for 'dirty' bomb; GAO report says security measures to prevent terrorists from obtaining radioactive materials are insufficient; bomb would not have caused widespread damage but it still could have had serious consequences in any city where it was detonated; regulatory commission says it has taken steps to improve safeguards and that danger associated with amount of radioactive material auditors were trying to buy should not be overstated; auditors' findings are latest in series of reports about weaknesses at Nuclear Regulatory Commission that investigators argue make nation more vulnerable to dirty bomb attack.
Making A Big Noise In The West While Attacking In The East
The Iraq War Debate: The Great Denier: With the White House refusing to lead, lawmakers in both parties have begun to talk about the best way to end the war. But instead of seizing the opening, Mr. Bush and his team continue to spout disinformation and vacuous slogans about victory and, of course, more character assassination.
Misusing Public Position, Public Funds & Public Office For Partisan Politics
White House Had Drug Officials Appear With GOP Candidates: White House officials arranged for top officials at the Office of National Drug Control Policy to help as many as 18 vulnerable Republican congressmen by making appearances and sometimes announcing new federal grants in the lawmakers' districts in the months leading up to the November 2006 elections, a Democratic lawmaker said yesterday.
White House Would Have Its Political Wing, Officially or Not: Have Congressional overseers have their hands full investigating the deeds and, they allege, misdeeds of the White House Office of Political Affairs. Did the office's involvement in the firing of the nine U.S. attorneys cross the line? What about its staff's use of Republican National Committee e-mail accounts? Did its minions improperly seek to enlist executive agencies to help GOP candidates? Intriguing questions, all. But so is this one: Why is there a taxpayer-funded political office in the White House to begin with?
Over Spending, No-Bid Contracts, Profiteering & Wasting Billions Over There While Ignoring Us Over Here
The Iraq War Debate: A Reality Check on Military Spending: The measure, larded with the usual billions in weapons more suited for another era, seemed headed for routine approval when it became snarled in the debate over Iraq and was pulled from the floor until after Labor Day. That gives the Senate and the public an unexpected chance to reflect on the frightening disconnect between the exotic and unlikely threats the Pentagon spends so much of its investment money preparing for and the 21st century wars America has actually been fighting.
Congressional Agency Predicts War Costs Will Climb: The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan will cost U.S. taxpayers hundreds of billions of dollars over the next decade, no matter how quickly U.S. troops are reduced in those countries over the next few years, according to a report released this week by the Congressional Research Service (CRS). The Bush administration and Congress have allocated $577 billion to the conflicts through the end of the current fiscal year, but that amount is only a small down payment, the report suggested in examining the impact of various deployment scenarios. If today's troop level -- roughly 180,000 -- is cut by 85 percent by 2010 and remains at that level through 2017, the total cost of the two conflicts would be an additional $472 billion, according to the Congressional Budget Office figures. If U.S. troop deployments were cut more gradually -- to 75,000 soldiers, or by about 60 percent, by 2013 -- the additional costs would be nearly $600 billion. Keeping troops at that level for five years beyond that would cost $300 billion more, the report said.
Back Room Deals, Tax Breaks For The Rich, Special Treatment For Liars & Cheats
Tax Break Used by Drug Makers Failed to Add Jobs: Drug makers were the biggest beneficiaries of the amnesty program, repatriating about $100 billion in foreign profits and paying only minimal taxes. But the companies did not create many jobs in return. Instead, since 2005 the American drug industry has laid off tens of thousands of workers in this country. And now drug companies are once again using complex strategies, many of them demonstrably legal, to shelter billions of dollars in profits in international tax havens, according to their financial statements and independent tax experts.
On Eve of Vote, Farm Bill Draws Threat of a Veto: Farm-state Republicans had been lining up with Democrats to defend the bipartisan bill but changed course when notified that a proposed increase in nutrition programs would be funded partly by tightening the rules on U.S.-based foreign companies that avoid U.S. taxes by using offshore havens.
Taxes in the Global Economy: As Americans grapple with the impact of trade and globalization, the government should be trying to ensure that America’s multinational corporations — and by extension, their shareholders — pay a fair share in taxes on the profits from globalization. Unfortunately, policy makers have moved in the opposite direction, dishing out excessive corporate tax breaks that have done little for workers and have served mainly to concentrate wealth among the few.
Casinos Booming In Katrina's Wake As Cash Pours In: Casinos in Biloxi, Miss, and New Orleans are doing record business in spite of massive damage inflicted by Hurricane Katrina; Biloxi has 40 percent fewer hotel rooms and only two-thirds as many slot machines as it did before Katrina, but business in gambling halls has reached all-time highs in recent months; Harrah's New Orleans is on pace for its best year ever; analysts say casinos in region are generating more revenue--from significantly fewer players--largely because of extra money many area residents have in their pockets and fewer alternatives on where to spend it; another factor in Mississippi is new law that allows casinos to be within 800 feet of water rather than requiring them to be on floating barge or riverboats
Going Once, Going Twice . . . The FCC proposes rules for the spectrum auction. THE FEDERAL Communications Commission is readying an auction of prime real estate -- in the radio spectrum, that is. The 700 MHz band being auctioned off is ideal for broadband services, and the proceeding is likely to be the last big spectrum auction in the telecommunications industry for a long time. The auction could have major implications for businesses, consumers and even victims of crises nationwide. As a result, companies and consumer groups have been lobbying the FCC about conditions to be placed on the spectrum's use -- which will be decided in the next few weeks -- with all parties claiming to promote the public interest. The most heated debate is over whether the telecom industry is competitive enough and which auction conditions might increase competition. In the mobile services market, some Goliaths have been consolidating, but even so, new sales packages are developing.
Judge Rejects Charges for 13 On Tax Shelter: Federal Judge Lewis A Kaplan dismisses charges against 13 former employees of accounting firm KPMG; decision delivers blow to prosecutors who once heralded case as showpiece in government's crusade against questionable tax shelters; Kaplan rules that he has no choice because government had strong-armed KPMG into not paying legal fees of defendants and had violated their rights; while decision is setback for prosecutors, it does not end case; criminal charges remain against five others, including three former KPMG employees; Ronald J Nessim, co-chairman of White Collar Crime Committee of American Bar Assn, says case has broad implications for goverment; lauds Kaplan for standing up to prosecutors; US attorney's office has not decided whether it will appeal; while prosecutors have had successes in battle against corporate fraud, ruling is latest in which they have seen prominent case unravel because it hinged, in part, on aggressive legal tactics.
Vetoing Children’s Health: President Bush is threatening to veto any substantial increase in spending for a highly successful children’s health program on the bizarre theory that expanding it would be the “beginning salvo” in establishing a government-run health care system. His shortsighted ideological opposition would leave millions of children without health insurance at a time when medical costs are soaring.
Tax Loopholes Sweeten a Deal For Blackstone: Blackstone Group devises way for its partners to effectively avoid paying taxes on $3.7 billion of the $4.75 billion it raised last month from selling shares to public; plan, laid out in fine print of Blackstone's financial documents, is similar to one used by other private equity firms and hedge funds that have gone public; Congress is debating how much managers at private equity firms like Blackstone and hedge funds should pay in taxes on their compensation; at issue is whether most of compensation that fund managers earn should be taxed at 35 percent rate that applies to other highly paid Americans, or at 15 percent rate for capital gains; Blackstone's tax maneuver hinges on its use of good will, accounting term for value of intangible assets that are built up by company over time; Blackstone partners paid 15 percent capital gains rate on shares they sold, then arranged to get deductions for $3.7 billion worth of good will at 35 percent rate.
Federal Appeals Court Orders Dismissal of Domestic Spying Suit
Health Care Fiascoes, Selling Our Heroes Short, & Lying About Concern For Our Troops, The Poor & Our Children
Overhaul Urged in Care for Soldiers: Dole-Shalala Commission Wants Bush to Act Quickly -- The panel issued six broad recommendations intended to transform a troubled system for military health care and veterans' assistance that has left some injured soldiers languishing for years and resulted in inequitable and inconsistent disability benefits.
How Specialist Town Lost His Benefits: Jon Town has spent the last few years fighting two battles, one against his body, the other against the US Army. Both began in October 2004 in Ramadi, Iraq. He was standing in the doorway of his battalion's headquarters when a 107-millimeter rocket struck two feet above his head. The impact punched a piano-sized hole in the concrete facade, sparked a huge fireball and tossed the 25-year-old Army specialist to the floor, where he lay blacked out among the rubble.
On Base, a Plea to Give Each Death Its Due: Twenty soldiers deployed to Iraq from this Army base were killed in May, a monthly high. That same month, the base announced a change in how it would honor its dead: instead of units holding services after each death, they would be held collectively once a month.
Drug Safety Critic Hurls Darts From the Inside: A former 1960s campus activist is now shaking up the nation’s pharmaceutical industry.
Filling Gaps in Iraq, Then Finding a Void at Home: This is the face of battle in a new war and a new century — a 46-year-old Pakistani-American woman, part of a rented army of 130,000 civilians supporting 160,000 United States soldiers and marines. Taking the place of enlisted troops in every American army before this one, these contract employees cook meals, wash clothes, deliver fuel and guard bases. And they die and suffer alongside their brothers and sisters in uniform. About 1,000 contractors have been killed in Iraq since the war began; nearly 13,000 have been injured.
posted by Jim Downey at 6:30 PM
1 Comments:
Great job! There are MANY of US out here.
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