Failed IndyMac under investigation by FBI

Doesn't this seem to be a bit too late? Are they really saying that only now they're investigating fishy lending practices? Where the heck was the oversight when we needed it?

Now-defunct IndyMac Bancorp Inc. is under investigation by the FBI for possible fraud in connection with home loans made to risky borrowers, The Associated Press has learned.

It was not immediately clear how long the FBI's probe of the bank has been ongoing.

The investigation is focused on the company — which was taken over last Friday by the FDIC — and not individuals who ran it, a law enforcement official said Wednesday. The official spoke on the condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly about the investigation.

IndyMac Bank's assets were seized by federal regulators after the mortgage lender succumbed to the pressures of tighter credit, tumbling home prices and rising foreclosures.

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Confidence in Bush-McCain economy drops

There are no significant differences between the Bush model and the McCain economic model, though perhaps due to Phil Gramm's radical influence, McCain's may be even riskier. The polling for radical right economics looks bad for the GOP and in all likelihood it will get worse as the situation deteriorates.

Public confidence in U.S. economic policy dipped this month as unstable markets and shaky financial institutions left Americans uneasy about the future, according to a Reuters/Zogby poll released on Wednesday.

The Reuters/Zogby Index, which measures the mood of the country, dropped to 88.7 from 90.4 in June as five of the 10 measures of public opinion used in the index fell at least slightly and three remained steady.

The index fell to near its record low of 87.7, recorded in March, as optimism about personal finances waned and approval ratings for the Bush administration's economic and foreign policies dropped.

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While Afghanistan war was getting started, McCain's battle cry in January 2002: "Next up Baghdad!"

Lots of talk about Afghanistan in the presidential campaign this week. After years of neglect from Bush and his cronies, the situation in that country appears to be careening out of control.

Let's get a little historical perspective on the war in Afghanistan. Let's look at what the candidates were saying back in 2002.

I know it was "just a speech he gave in 2002" but there are many words of wisdom from that speech Obama gave:

So for those of us who seek a more just and secure world for our children, let us send a clear message to the President today. You want a fight, President Bush? Let's finish the fight with Bin Laden and Al Qaeda, through effective, coordinated intelligence, and a shutting down of the financial networks that support terrorism, and a homeland security program that involves more than color-coded warnings. You want a fight, President Bush?

In January of 2002, John McCain was also speaking out. McCain was warmongering to attack Iraq ten months before he voted for the war. McCain already wanted another war before the first one was finished:

Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) visited the Roosevelt yesterday and shouted, "Next up: Baghdad!" from the carrier's bridge.

McCain has been pushing the administration to make Iraq and its dictator, Saddam Hussein, the next targets in the war on terrorism.

Pentagon officials and Powell have cautioned against focusing on Baghdad, but McCain said yesterday that Iraq poses "a clear and present danger" to the U.S.

"I think Iraq is going to have to be considered," he said.

McCain couldn't wait to start the next war. Read More......

Gitmo prisoner interrogation video released

Story and brief video inside the article from the Globe and Mail.

From behind the flaps of a ventilation shaft, a hidden camera caught all the rage and righteous indignation of Omar Khadr, a Canadian citizen raised by fundamentalist parents in Taliban-controlled Afghanistan. The 16-year-old al-Qaeda suspect and Guantanamo Bay detainee was facing allegations that he murdered a U.S. soldier.

After a series of Canadian court orders, remarkable footage of federal agents questioning Mr. Khadr is to be released this morning - starting with a 10-minute highlight reel to be released at 5 a.m., and a full seven hours of footage to come later in the afternoon.

Mr. Khadr was sent to Guantanamo after being captured in Afghanistan in 2002. The footage, compiled from three days of interviews taped six months after his capture, is being released by his defence team.

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If today's Congress presided over Watergate

More here.

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McCain's major flip-flop on Afghanistan

Using the vernacular of the GOP, I believe that this is called a "flip-flop":

After months of saying additional troops were not needed in Afghanistan, McCain changed position Tuesday and called for an additional three brigades -- or roughly 15,000 troops -- to be sent to the country. It was unclear if those troops would be redeployed from Iraq or come from NATO forces.

In other words, McCain is not only flip-flopping. He's not even sure how far he's actually flopped. Clearly, McCain's hand has been forced because of the deteriorating situation in Afghanistan. But, that situation has been deteriorating for years. Where's he been?

Obama did not change his position on Iraq, but the media went into a frenzy claiming he did. Now, continuing the established pattern, McCain has radically altered his position on Afghanistan. Let's see what ensues. Read More......

Next round of economic stimulus?

Bush is an optimist so he doesn't think any such actions are necessary. Yes, the same Bush who assumed business would act responsibly but they didn't, which is why we're in this situation today. For those grounded in reality it's obvious a follow up stimulus package is necessary. The longer this is delayed, the longer this cycle will drag out. Bush wants to avoid being pinned not only with two recessions, but he also wants to avoid any more spending as if he hasn't already broken the bank.

The Republicans spent years telling the country that they were business people so they could run the country like a business. What they failed to explain was that yes, they'd run it like Enron or Countrywide Financial or another failed model. Forget about what the Republicans want and let's think about what the country wants. For the next stimulus, forget about these tax rebates and let's refocus on the infrastructure of the US which is not worthy of a great country. Create new jobs for families and bring this up to date. Sure it's going to be expensive, but it needs to be done and we need to pump more cash into the system. The GOP and friends cashed in on the American population in recent years so tough luck if they don't like it. Read More......

Obama ahead in three national polls, but McCain is up a few points -- in South Carolina

Three new national polls released in the past day - all show Obama with the lead:

Three new national polls have come out -- New York Times/CBS (which has Obama leading by six, 45%-39%, among registered voters), the Washington Post/ABC (which has Obama up eight among registered voters, 50%-42%), and Reuters/Zogby (which has him up seven, 47%-40%). When adding yesterday’s Quinnipiac poll (which had Obama up nine among likely voters), it cements the CW that Obama’s lead over McCain right now is in the high single digits.

I am more interested in state polls, and this one from South Carolina, caught my eye. It's from Public Policy Polling:

John McCain 45
Barack Obama 39
Bob Barr 5

Barack Obama is keeping it closer than other Democrats have in recent years in South Carolina, but still trails John McCain by six points.

The demographics fueling Obama's ability to stay within striking range are the same ones that allowed him to win a dominant victory in the state's Democratic primary. He leads 77-10 with black voters and 54-32 with voters under 30. John McCain leads within pretty much every other subgroup.

If there is a path to victory for Obama in South Carolina it includes maximizing turnout from those two groups favorable to him, and also hoping that more conservatives unhappy with John McCain will turn toward Bob Barr.

Okay, the idea that anyone can even discuss the possibility that Obama has a "path to victory" in South Carolina is astounding. McCain's lap dog Lindsey Graham must be in a tizzy over this poll.

Nate Silver provides the smart analysis on what the latest batch of polls really mean. Read More......

The McCain campaign finance scams continue unabated and unchallenged by the press

Here at AMERICAblog, we've written many times about how John McCain scams the campaign finance system. He basically broke the campaign finance law during the primaries -- and was warned about that manipulation of the system by the Republican Chair of the Federal Elections Commission. But, the punditry thinks of John McCain as a campaign finance champion -- so, basically they never question McCain's shenanigans.

Jed has uncovered the latest scam:

Here's a story you can say you read first at The Jed Report: according to FEC reports filed on July 15, through June 30, John McCain had raised at $62.5 million in private funds that can be used for his general election campaign -- even though he's already committed to accepting public funding for the general.

Moreover, based on my own analysis, of that $62.5 million, three-quarters -- $46.3 million -- comes from a total of 1,803 wealthy individuals who made five figure contributions averaging $25,664 each.

So not only is John McCain blatantly violating his public financing pledge, but he's doing it in grand style, raising money in increments of up to $70,000 per donor -- more than thirty times the amount a donor can give to Barack Obama's general election campaign.

Granted, this is a bit complicated. But, Jed figured it out. Most reporters won't take the time do to the research. Plus, this conflicts with their storyline about John McCain.

It's good to be John McCain. He can blatantly and repeatedly abuse the campaign finance system -- without any risk of being busted. Read More......

The Bush Economy: "Inflation in June rose at the fastest rate in 17 years"

Ouch:

Almost everything that consumers spent money on last month — from food to electricity and gasoline — took a bigger piece of their paycheck.

Inflation in June rose at the fastest rate in 17 years, the government said on Wednesday, just a day after the chairman of the Federal Reserve warned that inflation poses a significant risk to the nation’s economic outlook.

The Consumer Price Index, which measures prices of a batch of common household products, rose 1.1 percent in June, the Labor Department said. That increases caps a year where inflation has surged to proportions seen by some as threatening the stability of the American economy. In the last 12 months, the price index has risen 5 percent, the biggest annual jump since May 1991.

So much for Bush's little happy talk press conference yesterday. Do the American people really want four more years of this? Millionaires like the Bushes and McCains might not be impacted, but most Americans literally can't afford it. Read More......

For fourth time, McCain references country that doesn't exist

For a fourth time, John McCain this week referenced Czechoslavakia, a country that hasn't existed in 15 or so years. McCain spoke of Czechoslovakia in the present tense - it was dissolved and split in two in 1993. This matters because it's John McCain's supposed area of expertise, foreign and military policy. Foreign policy is also one of my areas of expertise. Have I said "Czechoslovakia" since 1993? Yes. But every time I've said it I immediately caught my mistake and corrected myself. In McCain's case, he actually believes that Czechoslovakia still exists. That's bizarre, and a bit scary. But don't worry, Mrs. Greenspan and David Broder will tell us that they know John McCain, they've seen his soul, so we should ignore stories like this because they know what he really meant. Which is a fascinating standard for news reporting - don't report what they say, report what you think they meant to say, or would say, if they'd gotten it right. Read More......

Dead racist bigot Jesse Helms, AIDS hero? I don't think so.

Republican Senator Elizabeth Dole wants to rename the international AIDS legislation after the now-dead arch-conservative, gay-hating racist Jesse Helms. Yes, Helms, who was more than happy to let gay people with AIDS die during the 80s and 90s, did finally embrace the international AIDS cause, in so far as the "victims" that interested him were "innocent children." But that's the only reason Helms got on board, because kids were involved and they were innocent "victims," as compared to the rest of those with AIDS who, according to Helms, deserved what they got. Look, I get the importance of using conservatives to sugar coat and inoculate liberal proposals. It makes it much harder for Republicans to oppose a bill named after Jesse Helms. But at some point, moral decency demands you draw a line. Jesse Helms was a pig. A racist, bigoted pig. He not only represented a crystallization of the worst of America, he went out of his way to promote policies that would have thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, of men and women with AIDS in America. To name any AIDS bill, even an international one, after one of America's most infamous AIDS-haters, strikes me as beyond the pale, regardless of how much it might help build support on the right for the legislation. At some point, expediency has to yield to common decency. Jesse Helms, now dead, was a hateful, racist, gay-bashing pig. It's time to bury Jesse Helms, not praise him.

UPDATE: One legacy of the Jesse Helms era was his bill that enacted a ban on foreign visitors with HIV from entering the United States. Amazingly, that is still the law. But, there is legislation to change it in the Senate right now. It would be an amendment to the same bill Liddy Dole is trying to name for Helms. But, the end of the ban would be real progress and one more chance to defeat the Helms legacy of hate. HRC has an action alert here. Read More......

John McCain's black problem

Regarding John McCain's speech to the NAACP today:

1. John McCain has received an F rating from the NAACP in the 106,107, 108, 109th Congresses

2. He might be speaking the to the NAACP tomorrow, but in 1996 he told Bob Dole not to go.

3. According to the Phoenix NAACP Head: McCain Has "Zero Relationship With The African-American Community."

4. John McCain criticized the NAACP for brutal attacks on President Bush

All these facts and more right here.

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Wednesday Morning Open Thread

Good morning.

I'm in Austin for the Netroots Nation. It officially starts tomorrow, but I got in last night. Love this town. I got to see my good friend, Bruce Elfant, last night. He's a constable here in Travis County -- and one of the most committed Democrats in the state. I can tell you, Bruce is pumped about the Democratic prospects for November.

I keep going back to the Politico article about the Obama campaign's plans for the state, which I wrote about last month:

The Obama campaign is using its resources not only to win the presidency, but to insure more Democrats are elected. And, they're not limiting those pick ups to House and Senate seats at the federal level. Steve Hildebrand explained to Ben Smith Obama's campaign wants to also help with state house races, which will impact re-districting. This is revolutionary thinking for Democrats:

Barack Obama will focus his resources largely in 14 states George W. Bush won in 2004, his chief field operative said Tuesday, hoping to score upsets in places such as Virginia, Indiana and Georgia.

But winning the White House won’t be his only goal, deputy campaign manager Steve Hildebrand told Politico: In an unusual move, Obama’s campaign will also devote some resources to states it’s unlikely to win, with the goal of influencing specific local contests in places such as Texas and Wyoming.

“Texas is a great example where we might not be able to win the state, but we want to pay a lot of attention to it,” Hildebrand said. “It’s one of the most important redistricting opportunities in the country.”

Texas Democrats are five seats away in each chamber from control of the state Legislature, which will redraw congressional districts after the 2010 census.

Things are looking more blue in Texas. Very exciting.

I'll be posting updates from the conference once it gets rolling.

Now, thread the news. Read More......

Another after effect of inflation - school lunches

The fallout from bad economic and energy policies are eventually going to touch every part of daily life. For people who are working, there's the concern about employment, high cost of actually getting to work, fear of losing retirement money and so forth. For retirees on fixed incomes, the thought of paying more for food and gas are scary. For school children, they will either grumbling parents who will have to pay more (either in taxes or at checkout) or the high probability of more cutbacks for poor children. This story on school food increases is from Boston though it could be almost anywhere. It was Reagan who reclassified ketchup as a vegetable during a previous round of cutbacks. (Yes, what an asshole.)

None of the financial options that we face in the next few years are attractive. In all likelihood we will be paying more at the pump, more to heat and more for food until there is a major change in policy. We're also very likely to have tax increases to pay for the excesses of the past when we gave away everything to Republican special interests who promised the world but delivered rubbish. Read More......

E. coli problem expanding

Of course they have no idea what's going on because that's the way industry wanted it and that's what the Republicans let them have. There may be a growing understanding that we need to find a balance between business interests and consumer interests but industry currently has the upper hand. Even with the salmonella and e. coli outbreaks many in the food business still believe they should control the food safety process, facts be damned.

The outbreak has been traced to beef sold in Kroger supermarkets in Michigan and Ohio. The Kroger Co. last month recalled ground beef sold in Michigan and Ohio stores, then this month expanded it to include other states. About 5.3 million pounds of beef was recalled.
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The Kentucky patient lives near Ohio, but the New York and Indiana patients did not travel to either of the states where the outbreak began, said Mark Sotir, a CDC investigator working on the outbreak.

All 44 illnesses in the outbreak are attributed to the same type of E. coli, one that causes a potentially deadly bacterial infection. The illnesses began between May 30 and June 24. CDC officials say 21 of the victims have been hospitalized and one developed kidney failure, but no one has died.

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No wonder McCain can't figure out how to get online

Learning isn't McCain's strong suit. At Google, no less, John McCain boasted of his academic failings. That explains a lot, like why he's such a worthy successor to Bush. Jed provides the video:


Get this one around. Watch it and Digg it. Read More......