Open Thread

Have it your way Read the rest of this post...

So, what did Bush know and when did he know it?

The Rove story seems to be heating up. Even the MSM is talking about it. If Karl Rove was the leaker, that's only part of the story. We need to know what Bush knew and when he knew it.

If Rove outed an undercover CIA operative, he endangered the lives of Americans. He undermined national security in a time of war. He should go to jail for a long time.

But, Bush is culpable in this scandal, too. He has never been held accountable. John posted Bush's statement. People in the White House knew who was involved. Yet, Bush had Rove run his re-election effort -- on the issue of national security, no less. Bush PROMOTED Rove to Deputy Chief of Staff in the White House. Those two clowns are joined at the hip.

Newsweek reports there is "growing concern" at the White House. That's a good indicator. If Rove is involved, this scandal leads right to the Oval Office. If it's Rove, Bush isn't off the hook. Read the rest of this post...

Open thread

About to board the plane to Scotland. Met and had a great talk with Melissa Fitzgerald, the woman who play's CJ Craig's secretary on West Wing (dark hair, very pretty). I keep looking at her, thinking she worked for CNN and I'd met her, so I went over and asked her. She doesn't work for CNN :-) Very nice woman, very pretty, and really up on stuff. I was quite impressed. She's helping a group called International Medical Corps, they're going to the Live 8 events with us. Melissa has done volunteer HIV/AIDS work in Africa, heads up her own non-profit in LA, in addition to her acting. Just a very cool person. Hanging out with the other bloggers now, which include a guy from RedState.org and woman who works at the Family Research Council. She's actually quite nice - I think I'm her first homosexual. Should be interesting :-) I told her we both need a good glass of sherry once we arrive, then let's talk politics.

Going to do more interviews on the plane, Richard Branson is flying with us, as is Djimon Hounsou, who was in Amistad, Jamie Drummond who runs DATA, but loooks awful familiar, and I hear that Natalie Imbruglia (sp?) is flying with us from London to Edinburgh. More once we arrive (I forgot my camera cable, so can't transfer my photos until I go to Edinburgh and hit a camera store. Argh.

JOHN Read the rest of this post...

Taliban Resurgence?

This headline in today's NY Times caught my eye, "U.S. Searches for Missing Soldiers Amid Taliban Resurgence." During his speech the other night, our Great Leader talked about the liberation of Aghanistan and said:

To complete the mission, we will prevent Al Qaeda and other foreign terrorists from turning Iraq into what Afghanistan was under the Taliban - a safe haven from which they could launch attacks on America and our friends.

Once again, facts seem to get in his way. A resurgence by the Taliban doesn't really fit with the rhetoric. Read the rest of this post...

Schumer Challenges Rove to speak up

Via the Reverend Moon's Paper:

"We've heard it from his lawyer, but it would be nice to hear it directly from Mr. Rove that he didn't leak the identity of Valerie Plame, and that he didn't direct anyone else to do such a dastardly thing," Schumer said in a statement. "I have said from the first day ... whoever leaked the classified information should be punished to the full extent of the law."

Schumer was one of the first people to demand action on the outing of Valerie Plame. And, we all know one thing about Chuck. He's tenacious. Read the rest of this post...

Sunday Afternoon Open Thread

Tell me something good... Read the rest of this post...

Lawrence O'Donnell keeps up the pressure on Rove

Thanks to Atrios for pointing us to the latest salvo in the Rove scandal from over at the Huffington Post where O'Donnell gives an update and issues a challenge:

Rove would not let me get one day of traction on this story if he could stop me. If what I have reported is not true, if Karl Rove is not Matt Cooper’s source, Rove could prove that instantly by telling us what he told the grand jury.

This is getting really good. There have been plenty of leaks about what Karl said or didn't say under oath at the Grand Jury. Let's hear from him. Read the rest of this post...

When to give up a source?

Ineresting piece in TIME Read the rest of this post...

Sunday Morning Open Thread

Today Show News mentioned the Rove-Plame connection. Read the rest of this post...

Blair government forcibly sending Zimbabweans back to be Zim where they are tortured

Another brillant move by Blair, where his government is knowingly deporting Zimbabweans back to Zimbabwe where they have been tortured by the Mugabe regime. The UK government has to know that if someone is a political refugee, they will not be treated very well when sent back to Zim. Either offer asslyum or do something about Mugabe but sending people back into the grips of the murdering government is cruel and senseless. The British government owes the people of Zimbabwe after years of colonial rule and this is not acceptable.

The allegations uncovered by the IoS - based on investigations by Zimbabwean human rights groups and church leaders - include:

* A refugee in his 40s sent back last December alleges he was handcuffed at Harare airport by Zimbabwean secret police and driven into the bush. He was then beaten repeatedly, had his head forced into a bucket of water and was accused of being a British spy.

* In May, British officials escorting another man back to Zimbabwe allegedly handed him straight to the secret police at Harare airport. He was assaulted by his interrogators, and is now in hiding.

Read the rest of this post...

Gonzales makes surprise visit to Iraq

A PR tour? Unless he was going to visit the prison system to investigate problems, I'm struggling here to think of any reason other than politics for the visit. Read the rest of this post...

Conflicting Reports on Rove's Testimony

It seems to have changed.

American Prospect had this in March of 2004:

President Bush's chief political adviser, Karl Rove, told the FBI in an interview last October that he circulated and discussed damaging information regarding CIA operative Valerie Plame with others in the White House, outside political consultants, and journalists, according to a government official and an attorney familiar with the ongoing special counsel's investigation of the matter.

But Rove also adamantly insisted to the FBI that he was not the administration official who leaked the information that Plame was a covert CIA operative to conservative columnist Robert Novak last July. Rather, Rove insisted, he had only circulated information about Plame after it had appeared in Novak's column. He also told the FBI, the same sources said, that circulating the information was a legitimate means to counter what he claimed was politically motivated criticism of the Bush administration by Plame's husband, former Ambassador Joseph Wilson.

Rove and other White House officials described to the FBI what sources characterized as an aggressive campaign to discredit Wilson through the leaking and disseminating of derogatory information regarding him and his wife to the press, utilizing proxies such as conservative interest groups and the Republican National Committee to achieve those ends, and distributing talking points to allies of the administration on Capitol Hill and elsewhere. Rove is said to have named at least six other administration officials who were involved in the effort to discredit Wilson.

Rove, through an aide, declined to comment for this story. The White House also declined comment, referring any further inquiries to the Department of Justice because of the ongoing criminal investigation.

Granted, this was a leaked version of what Rove said, but this is the key line, I think:

Rove insisted, he had only circulated information about Plame after it had appeared in Novak's column.

From Newsweek, we learn that might not be quite accurate:

But according to Luskin, Rove's lawyer, Rove spoke to Cooper three or four days before Novak's column appeared.

So which was it? Before or after? Read the rest of this post...