The Grey Matter

Hopefully the first of many Reaganites to get sane. Larry Hunter, an admitted lifelong Republican, supply-side conservative economist, and former Reagan adviser, is going to vote for Obama. On Keith Olbermann's TV show, Hunter said one reason he went public with this stance is because he heard so many of his colleagues and friends profess similar concerns and beliefs about this upcoming election but were too afraid or embarrassed to speak out.

It's an interesting observation. Whereas many have feared that a Bradley effect could compromise Obama's chances this November, it would seem what's much less anticipated is perhaps many voters like Hunter will cross over to Obama in secret, casting their vote for him but not professing their intention to do so -- a sort of reverse-Bradley effect. In that respect, let's hope timidity wins out over racism.
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Regarding the latest in a running series of executive-privilege assertions:

"As far as I know, this is an utterly unprecedented executive-privilege claim," said Peter Shane, an Ohio State University law professor who is an expert on executive privilege and separation-of-powers issues. "I've never heard this claim before."

Normally, claims of executive privilege are invoked to protect the disclosure of the president's communications with his top advisers. But in this case, the White House invoked the claim to keep secret Cheney's responses to FBI agents (hardly what anybody would call his advisers), who were grilling him as part of the now-closed criminal investigation headed by Fitzgerald.
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But a number of former federal prosecutors and legal scholars said that Mukasey's argument that future White House officials wouldn't cooperate with the Justice Department if Cheney's 302 report were to be publicly disclosed seemed a stretch. (The legal claims were prepared in part by Office of Legal Counsel chief Stephen Bradbury, whose legal opinions on interrogation and torture have come under fire from Congress).

"Creative is a good word to describe it," said Mark Rozell, another executive-privilege expert who is a professor at George Mason University's School of Public Policy, about the attorney general's contention. "This is really an argument to protect the White House's own political interests and save it from embarrassment."

And constitutional law professor Jonathan Turley adds:

You know, reading this letter from Attorney General Mukasey, the president is extraordinary, he doesn‘t just claim presidential privilege, he claims deliberative process privilege, he claims law enforcement privilege, he claims anything short of a copyright infringement, to keep the documents away from Congress....We‘ve seen this in other area where Mukasey is treating the White House as off the constitutional grid. That anything that happens in that building, in his view, is simply not accessible to Congress.
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And, you know, this is why when senators Schumer and Feinstein saved Mukasey‘s confirmation, this is what they purchased. And what Congress needs to do, the only thing they can do, is to bring back inherent contempt and to say they‘re going to start to exercise contempt on their own, that the deal is off.

Attorney General Mukasey has broken a very long-standing promise to be a faithful broker, to bring this case to the grand jury—he won‘t. And Congress has a right, now, to say, “We‘re going back to doing this stuff ourselves.”

Btw, where is Chuck Schumer regarding all of this? Wasn't he Mukasey's biggest cheerleader for the Dems? Thanks much AWOL Chuckie!

But is Mukasey there to represent we the people and enforce the laws of this land, or is he there to first and foremost protect, defend, and insulate the president? I thought we got rid of the last stooge performing such a role -- we now just have a new one?

And if Mukasey can do this and get away with it, what's stopping him or any other arm of the administration from doing anything they want whatsoever? I'm starting to think our system of government has no teeth when it comes to checks and oversight, that perhaps the founding fathers never anticipated such a brazen, ambitious and dare I say fascist type leader to take the helm of the country. Is this the fault of the naiveness of our great forefathers -- or does the right amount of checks and balances exist and it's the congressional Dems who are just too weak-kneed and flaccid to enforce such powers?
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Another error committed by McCain, this time potentially jeopardizing the life of his opponent.

This is not the first time McCain has had a "senior moment." (click here, here and here, just to list a few)

It's one thing for him to incessantly flip-flop to pander to anyone and everyone, but it's quite another matter when McCain just literally makes a mistake, repeatedly. We've had eight years of a bumbling fool in the White House who has made one enormous mistake after another, can we really afford to have four more years of the same?
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Intros are no longer needed:

Environmentalists are bracing for a final battle with the Bush administration over its efforts to weaken clean water, air and toxic waste regulations before a new president moves into the White House.

With only about six months left in office, the administration is proposing rule changes that would repeal a 25-year ban on loaded guns in national parks, ease air pollution regulations on power plants near the parks, exempt factory farms from key provisions of the Clean Water and Clean Air acts, allow mountaintop mining near streams, and make it easier to dump hazardous waste into the recycling system.

"The Bush administration is feverishly trying to undo as many environmental regulations as it can in the final days before the president leaves office in order to reward big business and special interest groups that have supported them," said Anna Aurilio, director of Environment America's Washington, D.C., office. "It's really a shame because it could take years to undo some of the damage."

That's quite a list of pollution, toxin release, and cancer. He feels his job is not quite complete, there are still things to be done to further wreck the planet....
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Censorship and purposeful scuttling occurring to the point of confusion. Cheney's staff deletes testimony, crucial email goes ignored, they scoff at a 588-page report by their own experts -- it goes on and on. Bush continues to spout the empty rhetoric concerning the costs to the economy, but his EPA recently said measures taken to combat global warming would save us close to $1 trillion (with a "t") over the next 30 years. Instead of carbon offsetting, we could also look at this as Iraq War offsetting (the cost of the war estimated to be $1+ trillion).

Regarding climate change, they're already calling 2001-2008 as "The Eight Lost Years." They were lost in more ways than one.
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I give you not just the most inept and clueless president ever, but also the most disgraceful and embarrassing:

George Bush surprised world leaders with a joke about his poor record on the environment as he left the G8 summit in Japan.

The American leader, who has been condemned throughout his presidency for failing to tackle climate change, ended a private meeting with the words: "Goodbye from the world's biggest polluter."

He then punched the air while grinning widely, as the rest of those present including Gordon Brown and Nicolas Sarkozy looked on in shock....One official who witnessed the extraordinary scene said afterwards: "Everyone was very surprised that he was making a joke about America's record on pollution."

It's not just 71% of America that can't wait for this guy to exit but it's very apparent that most nations of the world are likewise counting the days. We've had a spoiled frat-boy moron presiding over us for far too long.
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Many a political tout is exclaiming that Obama needs to get his biographical story out there for public consumption, sooner rather than later. That Americans need to get to know him fast, given more voters are already familiar with the McCain story, both fact and fiction.

But before Obama does that he first needs to fully explain why he voted for the FISA bill, after saying he would vote against it. The flip-flops of McCain far outnumber those of Obama, but this flip-flopper by Obama needs to be explained ASAP.

To further muddy up the landscape is Hillary's vote; she voted against it. Granted, on the first vote concerning this bill she was conveniently absent; reminder: she was still running for president then (like Obama). Now out of the race, she can be "bold" and principled.

However, Obama is supposed to be about change, strong-held beliefs, and looking out for the people over special interests, so what gives here?

But don't fret. Sen. Feingold was on Olbermann's show suggesting next year, assuming a stupendous election this November for the Dems, they'll be able to fix this travesty of a bill. Really? How can we have confidence in this happening when the current bunch of incumbent Democrats have collectively acted in such gutless, flaccid fashion for far too long? Are we to believe they'll suddenly grow spines and vote their conscience?

No evidence equates to much continued doubt and they have only themselves to blame for this much-deserved skepticism and cynicism.
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Regarding the recently passed horrendous FISA bill, Chris Hedges states that it will work to intimidate those "who seek to expose the lies of our government or governments allied with ours." He goes on to explain how and why.

I wonder if this was a primary goal of this legislation, to further cut down on info being received and reported that embarrasses or exposes our government. Our ever increasingly secretive government becomes that much more clandestine and less accountable.
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Pat Buchanan describes Obama as being "exotic" -- you know what that's code for (starts with a "B" ends with a "K")....

Christopher Hitchens (correctly) describes Jesse Helms as "a senile racist buffoon."

Old news: GW's approval rating is at new lows. New news: of those 71% who disapprove of Bush, just 26% support McCain. Basically that says very few are buying that McCain is a better alternative to Bush; confirms McCain = Bush ("McBush").

Ever disappearing oil reserves? Kuwait claims 100 billion in reserves, internal documents cite just 48 billion barrels, some say it's as low as 24 billion. Any wonder why the price of crude is skyrocketing?

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# posted by Grey Matter : 6:56 PM

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So the right has become apparently so frustrated with Obama, the fact that he's a darn good politician and a very strong candidate, that they must stoop to attacking his wife. The ever-smug and a bit crazy Dinesh D'Souza offers up a recent example.

If the right refuses to stick to the actual candidates running, and even more so the issues that face this country, then it should be reminded that Cindy McCain has less than a stellar background.

What's that saying about glass houses....?
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How desperate is McCain? Enough to accept Swift Boat money.

It wasn't that long ago when this vet condemned the Swift Boat liars as they attempted to smear and bring down John Kerry. But I suppose that was then this is now, and McCain will continue to toss aside any remaining principle he has to win the White House -- even if it means accepting $$ from a propaganda group who did to Kerry, as McCain said in 2004, “the same kind of deal that was pulled on me.”
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As criminal as the interrogation policy under Bush has been its wrongful repercussions won't truly be felt until that fateful day when unfortunately we learn of one or more of our soldiers suffering the same brutal fate, with the captors specifically citing Gitmo and/or Abu Ghraib as the catalyst. Yes, as Alberto Mora states, the images of Gitmo and Abu Ghraib are already responsible for X number of U.S. deaths in Iraq, but again the American public won't pay attention until one or more of our own are captured and tortured.

Let's pray that day never comes, but Bush/Cheney's past actions re "interrogation techniques" have likely made it all the more probable.
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In the Guardian, Dan Kennedy wrote:

I think [Scott] McClellan believes what he's saying now, and imagines himself to have arrived at some deep insights into what went wrong in the Bush White House. But deep insight requires deep thought, and there is no evidence to suggest he's any more capable of that today than he was when he was stammering and stumbling through the daily press briefings.

Basically sums up this administration: they may believe real hard, but staunch, die-hard beliefs are in no way substitutes for knowledgeable insights and intelligent, sensible policy. Trusting that the Easter Bunny truly exists is not enough to make it so, or right (after a certain age).
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What does it say when the United Arab Emirates, ranked #5 in the world when it comes to known oil reserves, plans to go nuclear for its energy needs in the not-so-distant future? That black gold is running out and the Middle Eastern countries will be the last to tell us this fact. Note what they do, not what they say.
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McCain's growing list of flip-flops (thanks to Steve Benen). Perhaps he'll hit 100 in time for the GOP convention.

Recall when Republicans found such behavior intolerable and would immediately cry foul if they even suspected any Democrat of reversing on a prior decision. Apparently that was then, this is now (or could it simply be partisan hypocrisy?).
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Keith Olbermann recently caught Sean Hannity believing he was doing his usual nightly act (reciting the GOP talking points), in this case praising Bush for his progress with North Korea, only for Sean to be abruptly "corrected" by that mental giant of world affairs, John Bolton. Sean then quickly did an about-face and agreed with Bolton.

To normal people this is embarassing, but to the world of Fox and its viewers it's just another typical evening.
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Recently in the Washington Post:

White House Dismissed Legal Advice On Detainees

Senior lawyers inside and outside the Bush administration repeatedly warned the White House that it was risking judicial scrutiny of its detention policies in Guantanamo Bay if it did not pursue a more pragmatic legal strategy that considered the likely reaction of the Supreme Court.

Even the Bush senior legal lackeys knew that the policies for holding detainees at Gitmo were most likely illegal and unconstitutional, and yet the Supreme Court ruled against it by just a 5-4 margin.

Yes, the dissenting four Justices went against the urgings and instincts of the crack Bush legal team. Incredible. We know how inept and hostile towards the Constitution anyone remotely involved with law is within this administration and despite that fact we now know that four Justices are worse than this collective cabal of legal idiocy.

The election this November MUST be made about the Court's future.
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