skippy the bush kangaroo

The men who create power make an indispensable contribution to the Nation’s greatness, but the men who question power make a contribution just as indispensable, especially when that questioning is disinterested, for they determine whether we use power or power uses us.

John F. Kennedy, Amherst College, Oct 26, 1963 - Source JFK Library, Boston, Mass.

sixteen residents of the u.s. armed forces retirement home in washington d.c. this week filed a class-action suit against the government and the facility, alleging budget cuts by the defense department have resulted in poor medical care.

more than 1,000 residents cannot get prescriptions and regular doctor checkups due to service cuts since the defense department installed new management, the suit claims. because of the cuts, the number of deaths at the home increased from 59 in 2000 to 131 in 2003, according to the suit, which was filed on behalf of all residents. - mcknightsonline.com

...there was a lot, i mean a lot that the andersen folks were not privy to. especially stuff that went on at the top and was hidden from andersen auditors. of course, there is enough blame to be spread around. but the job of an auditor is to make sure that things aren't out of whack, and lots of that is based on the client's management, the management representations, information provided by the client and other things that are done by the client. there were fraudulent documents that were provided by enron management. there were schemes that were hidden form andersen. but of course, andersen does deserve a share of the blame.

both my wife and i swore (even back in late 2001/early 2002) that we were done with bu$hco because of bush and cheney's relationship with lay and the enron crew, and us losing our jobs because of it. it is clear to us that cheney and the justice department were more interested in finding a scapegoat and moving on.

andersen was that scapegoat. little did we know at the time how effectively this administration would rely on the "scapegoat" strategy...

according to a ucla study released last week, the top layer of sand at many los angeles county beaches is harboring bacteria usually associated with feces, giving beachgoers more reason to wash up after a day in the sun.

....the tests showed that e. coli and enterococci bacteria were prevalent in the top layer of sand even when the water tested clean. the highest concentrations were found in the sand on enclosed beaches — the kind often favored by parents with toddlers. - ventura county star

a 26-year-old college dropout who carries president bush’s breath mints and makes him peanut butter-and-jelly sandwiches will follow in his boss’s footsteps this fall when he enrolls at harvard business school (hbs) - the crimson and the nation

or maybe they'll go ahead and chip us all. (cue twilight zone music now....)

verichip's silverman bandied about the idea of chipping foreigners on national television tuesday, emboldened by the bush administration call to know "who is in our country and why they are here." he told fox & friends that the verichip could be used to register guest workers, verify their identities as they cross the border, and "be used for enforcement purposes at the employer level." he added, "we have talked to many people in washington about using it...."

the numbering and chipping of people seems like a plot from a dystopian novel, but the company has gotten the buy-in from highly placed current and former government officials, including columbian president alvaro uribe. he reportedly told senator arlen specter (r-pa) that he would consider having microchips implanted into colombian workers before they are permitted to enter the united states to work on a seasonal basis.

...tommy thompson, former secretary of health and human services joined the board of verichip corporation after leaving his bush administration cabinet post. shortly thereafter, he went on national television recommending that all americans get chipped as a way to link to their medical records. he also suggested the verichip could replace military dog tags, and a spokesman boasted that the company had been in talks with the pentagon. - spychips

are we not men? no...we are levi's. (apologies to devo)...oh...and say hello to spychips rfid blog, too.

Labels: freeway blogger, protest

beginning next month, washington residents who play poker or make other types of wagers on the internet will be committing a class c felony, equivalent under the law to possessing child pornography, threatening the governor or torturing an animal.

although the head of the state gambling commission says it is unlikely that individual online gamblers will be targeted for arrest, the new law carries stiff penalties: as much as five years in prison and a $10,000 fine. - seattle pi

so...going into a card club and playing some staked poker games is legal but doing it at home online is a felony?

coca cola plant's twin tubewells siphon off close to 2.5 million of litres of drinking water a day from the district's aquifer, resulting in a sharp fall in ground water levels, dry wells and hand-pumps, and the destruction of local agriculture. the company has also been charged with polluting fields and water bodies with toxic effluents, lowering farm yield, encroaching on government land, and intimidating local dissenters.

look! it's punch


and judy!

Hamza El Din video



Desmond Dekker video

The loss of two great talents was announced today – Desmond Dekker and Hamza El Din.

Dekker’s song “Israelites” was a surprise hit out of Jamaica in the 1960’s, long before reggae became trendy or popular. (The same thing happened with “My Boy Lollipop” by Millie Small.) Teenagers across America and the UK puzzled over the lyrics, which said (more or less) “my wife and-a kids they pack up and leave me/darling she said I was yours to receive/I don’t want to end up like Bonnie and Clyde.”

Desmond was a brilliant singer and songwriter. He was slated to star in “The Harder They Come” but had to bow out for health reasons. Jimmy Cliff got the role and became a huge star. Desmond had written “You Can Get It If You Really Want” for the movie, and it became a Cliff hit. My son and I were just listening to his records on our road trip this week – but then, that’s no real coincidence. He’s a family favorite, so we listen to him often.

Desmond Dekker died at 64. The AP obit for him says that he was a “welder” before becoming a singer, but then lots of reggae singers (including Bob Marley) told hapless reporters they had been welders – since “welding” was a Jamaican euphemism for sex.

Hamza El Din played the oud, a Middle Eastern lute – beautifully – and sang both traditional and modern songs. He helped bring Arab and Nubian music to the West, as well as embodying the gentle Muslim tradition of courtesy and gentility known as “adab.” He played with the Grateful Dead, taught music in San Francisco, and worked for years to open cross-cultural doors. He was 76.

Two ambassadors, two great musicians. We’ll remember them.

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Capitol Police said Friday they were investigating reports of shots fired in the garage of the Rayburn Office Building, where members of the House have their offices.

The entire Capitol complex has been locked down, CNN's Dana Bash reported.

Tunnels connect all of the buildings in the complex.

Today's random walk:

1. "Betty & Dupree," Cookie & His Cupcakes - Heartbreak with piano triplets.
2. "Nashville Cats," Lovin' Spoonful - Great record. But "yellow Sun records" were from Memphis, John, not Nashville.
3. "A Picture of Me Without You," George Jones - Seeing George sing this on TV is 1968 changed my life. No kidding.
4. "Stormy Monday Blues," Bobby Bland - The Voice does T-Bone's classic.
5. "Party of Special Things to Do," White Stripes - Unto each generation is sent a rock & roller. This time it's Jack.
6. "I'm Ready," Muddy Waters
7. "It's a Good Feeling," Smokey Robinson - He says his biggest vocal influence was Sarah Vaughan.
8. "Junkie's Promise," Sonic Youth
9. "My Shoes Keep Walking Back to You," Webb Pierce
10. "Ain't That Lovin' You Baby (live)," Van Morrison
11. BONUS TRACKS: "Runnin' Dry (Requiem for the Rockets)," Neil Young & Crazy Horse
12. "Ego Trip," Albert Collins

Perhaps I am a dim bulb, but President Bush has never surprised me, and that is probably why I have never felt let down or "betrayed" by him. He is, in essentials, precisely who he has ever been. He did not surprise me when he managed, in August of 2001, to find a morally workable solution in the matter of Embryonic Stem Cells. He did not surprise me when, a month later, he stood on a pile of rubble and lifted a broken city from its knees. When my NYFD friends told me of the enormous consolation and strength he brought to his meetings with grieving families, I was not surprised.

There's the standard misrepresentation by the conservatives too...

There were no surprises when he went after an Iraq which everyone believed had WMD...

As Wolcott points out, The Anchoress writes like Peggy Noonan at her most shrill although even Noonan has shown an inclination of late to throw Bush under the bus. She at least recognizes Bush is an anchor to sink the conservative movement whereas The Anchoress just can't seem to understand that if everyone is running away from aWol, it is because he is a monster and not the hero she wishes him to be.

But what really shows how dishonest or insufferably unobservant The Anchoress to be was this:

When my NYFD friends told me...

Would anyone who really has friends on the Fire Department write "NYFD?" I've only visited New York twice in my life. Once on my honeymoon and once after the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks when the New York Times wrote an editorial pleading for tourists to return to the city to save the city's economy. I passed by many fire stations on that grim day caused by Bush's inattention to the numerous warnings given to him of an impending attack. (Just as he ignored the Hurricane Katrina warnings later.)

And I know this. Anchoress, it is FDNY. This is a long standing point of pride with the firefighters and EMS workers. It is not the kind of mistake anyone who really has friends on the FDNY would ever make.

The Anchoress is not attached to reality in believing the American public failed aWol and not the other way around. Nor is she much attached to telling the truth. And those explain why she is able to be a proud supporter of aWol.

treasury secretary john snow has signaled to the white house he is ready to leave once president bush has picked a successor, administration officials and people close to snow said thursday. - ap

the bush administration was said to have sounded out some top wall street executives, including goldman sachs chairman henry paulson, but was having trouble attracting a candidate from the financial markets to serve at treasury for the remaining 2 1/2 years of bush's tenure. - the boston globe

"and the new treasury secretary, what a record we have here! john snow, chairman of a champion corporate tax-dodger. according to citizens for tax justice, snow's company, csx corp., a railroad, paid no federal income tax at all in three of the past four years. instead of paying taxes, csx supplemented its over $1 billion in pretax profits (los angeles times) over the four years with a total of $164 million in tax rebate checks from the federal government. just the guy we need at treasury -- makes a profit, pays no taxes and gets tax rebates on the taxes he didn't pay. during the same period, csx gave snow $36 million in salary, bonuses, stock and options, and forgave a $24 million loan so he would not lose money along with other shareholders as the company's stock price declined. lends a whole new meaning to 'snow job.' - sourcewatch

• running water is available for one hour, between 1 and 2 in the morning
• garbage chokes a city of 4.5 million people. trash collection is erratic or nonexistent. more than 300 garbage collectors have been killed in the past six months
• garbage clogs sewage pipes, causing raw sewage to overflow into the streets and fill the air with the stench of decay
• scores of gas stations have shut down....stations still open, lines of cars stretch sometimes for more than a mile, waiting for gasoline that has quadrupled in price

...listen denny, the man owns your house! you got it? that's rule number one. he can come in anytime he wants and you just put out a plate of cold cuts and some scotch and welcome him like royalty, okay?

after all, mr. rove was just having the fbi go after a black democratic congressman to play the race card and shift the focus from the ongoing revelations about the republican mob. it was a two-fer. magnifico!

and what did you do? you ruined the operation.

you start screaming about how "your house" was violated and the separation of powers and all that stuff that gave me a headache in high school. the man is the power: there ain't no separation. you dig, denny?

and then you sign a letter with that democratic lady -- "poodle pelosi" -- asking the fbi to return the files they seized from that black guy's office. man, you're lucky you're still breathing, my friend. you got mud all over karl's good work. you sat on his cheese sandwich. a made man like yourself ought to know better...

this morning, delay’s legal defense fund sent out a mass email criticizing the movie “the big buy: tom delay’s stolen congress,” by “outfoxed” creator robert greenwald.

the email features a “one-pager on the truth behind liberal hollywood’s the big buy,” and the lead item is colbert’s interview with greenwald on comedy central (where colbert plays a faux-conservative, o’reilly-esque character). the headline of the “fact sheet”:

hollywood pulls michael moore stunt on delay
colbert cracks the story on real motivations behind the movie

delay thinks colbert is so persuasive, he’s now featuring the full video of the interview at the top of the legal fund’s website. and why not? according to the email, greenwald “crashed and burned” under the pressure of colbert’s hard-hitting questions, like “who hates america more, you or michael moore?”

Time: Saturday, May 27, meet at 11 a.m.

Location: At the Water Taxi Landing in Fells Point. Here is a map to the landing.

Parking: Parking is available at a city lot at Caroline and Lancaster (cheaper, but further away) or at Thames and Bond, by the Bond Street wharf (which is much closer, but more expensive).

Thanks to CabinGirl for helping organize this year's event.

This is a chance to meet some great people, make new friends, and delurk if you've lurked.

Hope to see you there.

the time has now come, however, to issue a partial apology to our readership for this story. while we paid very careful attention to the sourcing on this story, we erred in getting too far out in front of the news-cycle. in moving as quickly as we did, we caused more confusion than clarity. and that was a disservice to our readership and we regret it.

as such, we will be taking the wait-and-see approach for the time being. we will keep you posted.

marc ash, executive director - t r u t h o u t

i'm so sor

1. "Excursions," A Tribe Called Quest - that bass part is extremely familiar ...
2. "Can't Turn You Loose," Otis Redding - this one is, too.
3. "Streets of Fire," New Pornographers - head trip pop.
   
4. "Til Death Do Us Part," Dolly Parton - Tennesee Death Trip country.
5. "Empty Bed Blues," Bessie Smith - Bessie, on the other hand, wouldn't kill herself. She'd kill you.
6. "Jesus Is a Mighty Good Leader," Skip James - Blues giant's testimony.
7. "It Must Be Your Love," Etta James - It's Etta. That's enough.
8. "Let's Shake Hands," White Stripes - I saw a guy on the plane the other day I thought it was Jack White. It wasn't. He was from a band called H.I.M. Haven't heard them - but they know how to pick their clothes.
9. "My Bucket's Got a Hole In It," Ricky Nelson (live) - Great version of the rockabilly classic( formerly a country song). Ricky cleaned it up - the original lyric is "I can't buy no beer," but he says "it don't work no more." Doesn't matter, anyway ...
10. "The World Is Round," Rufus Thomas - It's Rufus, playing it relatively straight on this one.
11. BONUS TRACKS: "Stop And Check Myself," Al Greene - Lesser-known and beautiful track by the Right Rev. Mr. Greene.
12. "Time," Chris Kenner - Great churchical recording by Mr. "Land of a 1,000 Dances." As he says, "Time changes things, then it keeps moving on."

...as the president has said, one of the things that you want to make sure is that when at the end of a path, people who wish to become american citizens... have a command of the english language...

...at&t, verizon and bellsouth have given $511,955 to president bush since his election in 2000, making him the top recipient of their political largesse... [oped news]

In Russia's early transition days, amid the collapse of authority and resulting lawlessness, organized crime groups wielded great influence. Teams of armed thugs used to carry out takeovers, arriving at a businessman's door with little to back them up but the threat of violence, even murder. Indeed, contract murders reached a frequency of more than one a day in the mid-1990's.

Later, law enforcement, from the tax police to special forces units, played a role in forcing transfers of property in the scramble for assets of the former Soviet state ...

Now, the trend in business crime in Russia is decidedly white-collar — with the faking of documents, hiring of lawyers or payoff of judges — but no less insidious, Mr. Matthews and other business owners say.

the rev. pat robertson says god has told him that storms and possibly a tsunami will hit america's coastline this year.

the founder of the christian broadcasting network has told viewers of "the 700 club" that the revelations came to him during his annual personal prayer retreat in january...

..."there is a debate over the difference between a prisoner of war under the geneva convention and an unlawful combatant in a situation that is different from the situation envisioned by the geneva convention." rumsfeld told the senate appropriations committee's defense subcommittee. "and those issues are being wrstled with at the present time"... [yahoo! news]

a young staffer, new to the protocol of the building, came tearing through the halls of the white house shouting that the president's best friend, confidant, and most skillful advisor, barney, had been indicted for, uh, "leaking."

before he could make it to the oval office, dick cheney (who was in his office cleaning his shotgun) used his sith powers to stop the kid cold in his tracks.

"son," he growled, "didn't anyone ever tell you that's no way to break bad news to your boss? not that i give a shit, but doing it that way'll like as not get you zinni-ed or shot in the face."

'n-n-n-o, sir," said the terrified staffer. "how should i do it?"

"you remember how the little prince completely froze up and freaked out on 9/11? how he just fucking blew off all the scary news about katrina? punk can't handle the hard cider, so you gotta tippy-toe up to it slowly, see," cheney muttered, half to himself. "so today you only tell him the stupid dog's up on the roof and we can't get him down. tomorrow, you tell him we're still working on it, and that the little fella's scared to come down because you found out he bit that sumbitch fitzgerald on the ankle or some such. you follow?"

the staffer nodded.

"then, after a few days of prepping him, you can sorta ease him into it. got it?"

"yes, sir!" the staffer turned to leave.

"look kid, i'm going to see him anyway," cheney smirked. "i'll get the ball rolling on this."

"thank you very much, sir," the staffer said slowly. "and if it's not too much trouble, there was one other piece of information that i was supposed to tell him."

cheney leveled his shotgun at the staffer's face, saying, "choose your next words very carefully, pissant."

"and you're obviously so brilliant at this sort of thing. and i'm such a moron..."

cheney lowered his weapon.

"yeah, whatever," cheney said. "what's the other thing?"

the staffer paused for a moment to make sure he got it right.

"tell him... that karl rove is up on the roof and he won't come down."

twin obsessions - music and god (or is that one obsession?)

Check out Jon Nelson's Weblog of Wonders. He's a really good guy - with outstanding music tastes (that is, similar to mine). He's a leftist Christian with a unique perspective. And here's a sample of his semi-random 13's:

1.) Just Like A Woman-- Bob Dylan
2.) W.A. Mozart: Adagio in C minor for Glass Harmonica-- Academy of St Martin In The Fields, Under the direction of Sir Neville Mariner. Who says I ain't got no class.
3.) Pride Of Man-- Quicksilver Messenger Service
4.) Tin Soldier-- The Small Faces
5.) Grandma Got Run Over By A Reindeer-- Santa Rosa's own Dr Elmo. I ain't got no class. Dr. Elmo is a real Doctor by the way. He's a mycologist. That means he studies mushrooms... (more)
6.) Sally Go 'Round The Roses-- The Jaynettes
7.) God Don't Never Change-- Blind Willie John
8.) That's Cool-- The Gizmos. I can't thank Mike Whybark enough for posting MP3 files of the Gizmo's 1988 reunion
9.) Eddie You Should Know Better-- Curtis Mayfield
10.) Fade Away and Radiate-- Blondie
11.) Dead To The World-- Patti Smith
12.) Crimson And Clover-- Tommy James and the Shondells. Talk about trashy pop. This is one of my all time favorite songs. I saw Tommy James in a parking lot in Paramus, New Jersey in 1972. It was one of the best live performances I have ever seen.
13.) King of Useless Drinking-- Lyle Sheraton and the Daylight Lovers.

The fact that he says nice things about me hasn't affected my opinions. He says (probably rightly) I'm more blues-oriented and he's more pop, although I gave him some of my b.g. in a comment over there:

I'm probably more COUNTRY than you are, and a little more blues, but I love great pop music - I was in rock & pre-punk bands in NYC in the 60's (NY Dolls to Blondie days), so that was my "thing."

In fact, I opened for Tommy James once at a county fair. I wanted to play all of his his hits as a joke but my manager wouldn't let me.

I had the same manager as Blondie and thought I had it made, until I read in Rolling Stone that they were suing him or something.

I wasn't meant to be a pop star, though ... played country in bars as a teenager and again in my declining years (which continue).

"Pride of Man," "Sally Go Round the Roses," "Eddie You Should Know Better," "Crimson and Clover" - some of the best records ever.

And as James Brown says, "no one remembers Little Willie John."

But enough about me. Give Jon some support if you can. He deserves more traffic.

addendum: maybe wishful thinking, maybe they know something, maybe somebody's trying to corner skippy's share of the snark market over at msnbc with this headline to the piece about rove's speech at the american enterprise institute today:

analysis: a final word from karl rove

*yes, it's an elaborate pun on bush's brain

waas (not waas)

(links courtesy Eschaton)

a senior federal law enforcement official tells abc news the government is tracking the phone numbers we call in an effort to root out confidential sources.

newsmax goes big comparing numbers from one poll to another. check it out. bush’s approval is up. way up. or is it?

a harris interactive poll published in the wall street journal online on friday had bush’s approval rating at an all time low - with just 29 percent of americans saying they liked the way he was handling his job…

a newsweek survey released on sunday, however, found that the president’s approval numbers had improved markedly, with 35 percent saying he was doing a good job.

various instapundidiots jump on the news. alert the media that apples really are oranges. and somebody else who doesn’t bother to read says: the ginned-up hysteria has actually improved bush’s approval ratings. except it hasn’t.

what the newsweek poll actually says:

there’s more bad news for the white house in the newsweek poll: president bush’s approval rating has dropped to the lowest in his presidency. at 35 percent, his rating is one point below the 36 percent he received in newsweek’s polls in march and november, 2005.

the world's largest retailer, battling to build a huge new distribution center in putnam county, is threatening a handful of rural residents that they may have their land taken if they don't agree to sell it to the company.

representatives of wal-mart have told the landowners they will ask putnam county to use its powers of eminent domain if the families won't sell. the retailer needs about a half-dozen parcels to widen a road that would provide access to a proposed 800,000-square-foot distribution center just over the volusia county line -- a project volusia officials have gone to court to block.

...residents were given letters offering them $1,000 for the right to buy their property at prices mullis claimed were twice the market value. but the letters went on to warn what could happen if they don't agree to the deal:"in the event any of these property parcel owners are not willing to either sell, or to provide the needed r.o.w. [right of way] . . . our firm will ask the county to proceed with the necessary legal actions to secure those properties from the property owners to accommodate the public purpose needs to serve the planned project's utility and road requirements." - the sun sentinel

houston, may 10 -- the judge in the enron trial dealt a serious blow on wednesday to the two former chief executives accused of defrauding investors by agreeing to allow jurors to find both men guilty for consciously avoiding knowing about wrongdoing at the company... {nytimes}

concern is building among the military and the intelligence community that the us may be preparing for a military strike on iran, as military assets in key positions are approaching readiness, raw story has learned.

....retired air force colonel and former faculty member at the national war college sam gardiner has heard some military suggestions of a possible air campaign in the near future, and although he has no intimate knowledge of such plans, he says recent aircraft carrier activity and current operations on the ground in iran have raised red flags.

gardiner says his concerns have kept him busy attempting to create the most likely scenario should such an attack occur. - raw story

will iran be next? - soldiers, spies, and diplomats conduct a classic pentagon war game—with sobering results. as a preview of the problems iran will pose for the next american president, and of the ways in which that president might respond, the atlantic conducted a war game this fall, simulating preparations for a u.s. assault on iran. (the atlantic, dec 2004)

the senate gave final approval thursday to a $70 billion election-year package of tax cuts that will extend lower rates for investors and save billions for families with above-average incomes.

...just three republicans — olympia j. snowe of maine, lincoln chafee of rhode island and george voinovich of ohio — voted against the bill. democrats ben nelson of nebraska, bill nelson of florida and mark pryor of arkansas voted in favor. - ap

the national security agency has been secretly collecting the phone call records of tens of millions of americans, using data provided by at&t;, verizon and bellsouth, people with direct knowledge of the arrangement told usa today.

the nsa program reaches into homes and businesses across the nation by amassing information about the calls of ordinary americans -- most of whom aren't suspected of a crime. this program does not involve the nsa listening to or recording conversations. but the spy agency is using the data to analyze calling patterns in an effort to detect terrorist activity, sources said in separate interviews...

..."our intelligence activities strictly target al-qaida and their known affiliates," bush said. "we are not mining or trolling through the personal lives of innocent americans"...

...he may be open to changes in eavesdropping law to allow the bush administration's warrantless surveillance.

bush's ship is sinking into the ocean. he's fallen so far, the new york times reports he may not be able to reverse the damage. he continues to lose support among his base as well as democrats and independents. according to the new cbs-new york times poll,

mr. bush's approval rating for his management of foreign policy, iraq and the economy have fallen to the lowest levels of his presidency.

....mr. bush's overall job approval rating hit another new low, 31 percent, tying the low point of his father, george h. w. bush, in july 1992, four months before the elder mr. bush lost his bid for a second term to bill clinton. that is the third lowest approval rating of any president in 50 years; only richard m. nixon and jimmy carter were viewed less favorably.

hillary clinton has a few problems if she wants to secure the 2008 democratic presidential nomination. she is a leader who fails to lead. she does not appear "electable." but most of all, hillary has a bill clinton problem. (and no, it's not about that.)

moving into 2008, republicans will be fighting to shake off the legacy of the bush years: the jobless recovery, the foreign misadventures, the nightmarish fiscal management, the katrina mess, unimaginable corruption and an imperial presidency with little regard for the constitution or the rule of law. every democratic contender will be offering change, but activists will be demanding the sort of change that can come only from outside the beltway.

hillary clinton leads her democratic rivals in the polls and in fundraising. unfortunately, however, the new york senator is part of a failed democratic party establishment -- led by her husband -- that enabled the george w. bush presidency and the republican majorities, and all the havoc they have wreaked at home and abroad...

Former CIA Director Stansfield Turner told CNN that Goss may have resigned because he was passed over for the position of director of national intelligence, which went to Negroponte.

My "Christian hymn for the rest of us" is now online at the Huffington Post as a music exclusive there:

"I Wish More Christians Loved Jesus"

Jerry, Pat - I couldn't have done it without you guys.

I'm writing to give you a campaign update from Arizona. This Saturday (May 6th, 2006) is going to be a big day. That day, the State democratic party meeting is going to be held. This meeting will be held at the Pheonix Wyndham hotel. The main meeting will probably not start until late morning but there will be activities held before then. Progressive Democrats of America will be hosting an immigration panel which is open to the public. Some well known communities members will probably be there such as Ben Miranda.

People do not have to be members to attend the meeting. There will be much useful information there. Candidates are not supposed to speak to the whole audience at once but rather will be allowed to man tables at the meeting to meet people. I have contacted the state Democratic party and we will see if they are cooperative (because we know whom they are favoring in the U.S. Senate race. But, one word of caution many people who work in the party at lower levels support our grassroots campaign to win the U.S. Senate for the Clark campaign.)

I'm hoping any of our supporters who are in attendance will help us man our campaign booth because you know that the other guy's 2 million dollars is going to buy him lots of support. I will try to keep you updated on what's going on. By the way, if you or any of your friends can attend this meeting it will be very helpful. I will be there.

well, first of all, i, i haven't lied, i did not lie then... (several seconds of applause)... colin powell didn't lie. he spent weeks and weeks with the central intelligence agency people, and prepared a presentation that i know he believed was accurate. and he presented that to the united nations. the president spent weeks and weeks with the central intelligence people, and he went to the american people and made a presentation. i'm not in the intelligence business...

Does Bob Menendez have no shame? It is appalling that he would use the people of Darfur for political gain. Menendez actually worked against their interests when he was raking in major campaign cash from Gum Arabic importers.

This should come as no surprise. MenendezÂ?s priorities have always been about building his fundraising machine, and not about helping the people of Darfur.

...the nine men and three women rebuffed the government's appeal for death for the only person charged in this country in the four suicide jetliner hijackings that killed nearly 3,000 people on sept. 11, 2001.

the verdict came after four years of legal maneuvering and a six-week trial that put jurors on an emotional roller coaster and gave the 37-year-old frenchman of moroccan descent a platform to taunt americans. the judge was to hand down the life sentence thursday morning, bound by the jury's verdict... {cbs news}

back before the election in 2004, i remember telling anyone who asked me that no matter who got elected president in november, they were going to immediately drop in popularity because they were going to have to raise taxes. think about it, i'd say, the country simply cannot go on spending so much more than it's taking in, the deficit is already ridiculous.

jurors at the federal fraud trial of enron corp. founder kenneth lay got a glimpse at his lavish lifestyle, including homes in aspen, a vacation on the french riviera and $20,000 spent on antiques in Spain.

prosecutor john hueston introduced the details to suggest that lay had many ways to cover margin calls issued by banks to which he owed millions of dollars in 2001, just before enron imploded.

instead, lay borrowed cash in $4 million chunks from enron -- and to pay the loan back each time, he sold the company shares of his enron stock, sales that did not have to be disclosed immediately to the public.

when hueston asked whether lay considered cutting personal expenses so he could borrow less cash from enron, the ex-chairman said he could not simply turn off his lifestyle "like a spigot." - ap

"you saw to it you were taken care of before the enron employees," hueston said. he showed the jury that lay took a last $1 million in cash from his revolving credit line just days before he told employees that after the impending bankruptcy filing that they'd be paid a maximum $4,650 per person.

"i wanted to make sure we were not personally filing for bankruptcy," lay said. - houston chron

kenny, who?

federico peña, the only hispanic ever elected mayor in denver, took the microphone monday afternoon on the steps of the state capitol and signaled a new phase in the debate - one in which people who have been largely unseen are walking onto the political battlefield.

"so today," peña said, "let us ask of our leaders in washington to listen carefully: we want an effective immigration system.

"we want congress to penalize the employer whose addiction to low-cost labor draws immigrants to come and work in our country. we want ceos to verify that they hire employees legally.

"and if they fail, they should receive harsh penalties. we want congress to recognize the obvious: it is the demand for immigrant labor that is the issue, not the supply." - rocky mountain news

...major combat operations in iraq have ended. in the battle of iraq, the united states and our allies have prevailed. (applause.) and now our coalition is engaged in securing and reconstructing that country.

in this battle, we have fought for the case of liberty, and for the peace of the world. our nation and our coalition are proud of this accomplishment -- yet, it is you, the members of the united states military, who achieved it. your courage, your willingness to face danger for your country and for each other, made this day possible. because of you, our nation is more secure. because of you the tyrant has fallen, and iraq is free. (applause)...