Buck Naked Politics

Jon Stewart Unleashes on McCain's Paris Hilton Ad & the Presumptuousness of McCain

In my opinion, this is the way to attack McCain's smear campaign:  with incredulous laughter.   Jon Stewart takes up McCain on the Paris Hilton ad and unleashes on both McCain and the media on the 'Obama-eats-arugula-and-is-arrogant meme.'  Don't get down in the mud---fight the smears by pointing and laughing! 

Harry Shearer Sings '935 Lies' (from 'Songs of the Bushmen')

H/t Jesus's General '  (MDC: From Harry's new record Songs of the Bushmen. Releasing via digital download only, Songs of The Bushmen can be purchased from the iTunes store here.)

Senior White House Aides Can Be Subpoenaed, Says Bush Appointed Federal Judge

by Damozel |  Legal expert Marty Lederman thinks the 93-page opinion--- an extraordinarily thorough, scholarly and thoughtful opinion -- surely one of the best opinions ever written on questions relating to executive/congressional disputes---will be a 'landmark decision.'  District Judge John Bates (a George W. Bush appointee, who Lederman points out,  'worked on the Starr Whitewater team'):

The Daily Show on Monica Goodling

Jon Stewart strolls down memory lane and that little scandal in the Justice Department.  ('Ideologically pure robo-lawyer...with a degree from Messiah College.')

Oil Companies Report Record Profits & Other News on the Economy

In these troubled economic times, it's nice to know that someone's doing well.  High prices at the gas pump may mean none of us can afford a vacation, but at least American oil companies are benefiting...up to a point, of course.  It's not as if they can spend their profits on dinner and a movie, or a European vacation, what with dwindling reserves, and the need to refine crude as well as produce it. 

Still:  high profits.  Very high.

An Interesting Comment on the Privilege-to-Avoid-Subpoenas Argument

Posted by Damozel | I found this comment at the end of Larissa Alexandrovna's post (cited in my previous note).  To quote Jeeves, it touches the matter with a needle:

More on the Bush Administration's Policy of Political Hiring: A Rove Connection?

Posted by Damozel | On May 17, 2005, the White House sent a letter to agencies throughout the executive branch instructing them to find jobs for certain 'Bush loyalists.'   The passage shows that even if Goodling and Sampson weren't working under direct orders from the White House, they were acting in line with its policies. (NYT)  And Larissa Alexandrovna asks the question that is troubling inquiring minds everywhere. 

The White House is a building. Who actually sent the memos instructing these activities?

Alexandrovna argues that the trail seems to lead back to Karl Rove...i.e.,the Political Affairs Office.

Questions Remain on Transparency of Candidates' Campaign Financing

by Damozel | Deb Cupples can follow up on this, but this article from Open Secrets makes it clear that the Obama campaign is holding back on providing full information about donors---though McCain has been more cooperative than Obama. 

A Response to Michael Novak (With Bonus Poetry)

by Damozel |  The Corner has posted the sort of inane self-congratulatory post on flag pins that I thought we'd seen the last of.  It is founded on the smug belief that love of country can only express itself by unquestioning acceptance of whatever the government does (plus a lapel pin) and that criticism of those who would tear down the principles on which this nation stand is something other than loving.  Furthermore it argues that the lapel pin the writer wears is a more sincere lapel pin than Barack Obama's.

On behalf of those with a slightly different concept of what it means to love one's country, I've posted my colleague's trenchant response (including a poem) here.  Memeorandum has---I hope---many other responses by left-tilting bloggers here.

Another Death by Taser

by Damozel |  Via Digby, yet another tragic tale of death-by-tasering in circumstances in which the death penalty wouldn't have been an option if the offense were prosecuted.

Why aren't people up in arms about this?  You don't have to believe that a tasering is torture to see that there is something wrong with the way they're being used---i.e., in situations where the police would not have been justified in using a weapon of any kind to subdue or control a person. 

In fact, that seems to be the crux of the problem:  they're being encouraged, or allowed, to use tasers to control suspects. 

Nancy Pelosi on The Daily Show: Congress Will No Longer be a Rubber Stamp; Greenwald: Send the Blue Dogs to the Pound

By Damozel |  First Pelosi on The Daily Show. I want to be fair, so let's let her speak for herself.  Man, only Nancy Pelosi could be so banal when chatting with Jon Stewart.  Sorry...guh...LET HER SPEAK FOR HERSELF.

BN-Politics Extends Its Condolences to Elrod and to The Tennessee Valley Unitarian Universalist Church

by Damozel | The Moderate Voice's Elrod, a member of the church, has a beautiful post about how they are coping with this tragedy (discussed here in The Guardian).  Elrod writes:

Last night we mourned.

We grieved....

Senator Ted Stevens Indicted

Today Sen Stevens was indicted by an Alaska Grand Jury (CNN).  The indictment is here. Stevens, 84, is the man who once memorably described the internet as 'a series of tubes,' poor thing.  Almost one year ago today, Deb Cupples wrote:

In 2000, Sen. Stevens' house underwent major remodeling, turning the one-story structure into a two-story structure and roughly doubling its size.  The building contractor reportedly was paid by a Veco executive (Anchorage Daily News). Perhaps coincidentally, Veco has received $30 million in federal contracts since 2000 (WaPo citing FedSpending.org).

In May, two Veco executives pled guilty to bribery and other charges (Justice Dept.). One Veco exec admitted to laundering campaign donations by illegally reimbursing the employees who actually gave them (WaPo).  (BN-Politics)

Will Goodling be the Bush Administration's Scapegoat?

by Damozel | Yesterday, I posted in some depth about Goodling's work at what legal scholar Jonathan Turley has called 'The Voldemort Department of Human Resources.' (Countdown, embedded below)  Via The Raw Story:

The White House's silence on the Justice Department report should indicate, perhaps, at least a tacit endorsement of Goodling's tactics, Turley says.

"The question really is why isn't the president coming forward and saying there's a shame factor here at what occurred at the Justice Department," he said. "Alberto Gonzales picked this person, not because of the merits -- she lacked anything on the merits. She was picked because she was an extremist, and this is the result." ( The Raw Story discusses the segment in depth.)

Jonathan Turley: Two More Questionable Taserings

by Damozel | Legal scholar Jonathan Turley---whose blog is on my personal 'read every day' list---has reported today on two more extremely questionable taserings. (See also: Police Taser a Blind Diabetic Women with Cancer 'to Facilitate Cuffing')

First, he tells of a Missouri boy who had fallen or jumped from an overpass and who was tasered 19 times as he lay there with a broken back.  Here's what the Police Captain said:

Cause for Remorse: Robert Novak's Brain Tumor

by Damozel | I very sorry to learn that Robert Novak has a brain tumor.  As I shall further addres, I feel bad for assuming that his recent accident was a hit and run. 

Michelle Malkin is, as usual, wrong, at least as regards the nutroots I know"  'There will, of course, be gloating and death wishes on the nutroots side of the Internet aisle. Ignore it all.'  Malkin always projects her rage, cowardice, and bile onto everyone else. The Chicago Sun-Times has the story:

The Monica Goodling Files: Notes on the Investigation

by Damozel | Joe Windish has provided some background,  some blogger reactions,  and some other useful links. JI  spent a couple of hours this afternoon browsing the report (h/t to  Sadly No! where I found the link to the report (actually entitled 'Investigation of Allegations of Politicized Hiring by Monica Goodling and Other Staff in the Office of the Attorney General') (pdf.file)  I've set out relevant quotes below.  I felt angry while I was reading it---which probably shows in my commentary; I don't know---but now that I'm done I just feel sad.  I certainly don't feel disposed to rejoice, but I do want to see these people held accountable.

Victory in Iraq: Not Ours to Claim?

by Damozel |  It seems that Petraeus doesn’t accept the idea of a timeline.  You can read his reasons here. Right-wingers, who have nothing else but the war to pin their hopes on, will tell you that this ‘proves’ that McCain knows more about war than Obama. I don’t think it proves anything at all.

My question remains:  what specific conditions, according to the candidates, must be met in order for us to start to withdraw? In sober reality, both McCain and Obama are disputing about semantics (timelines, horizons, etc.) and will be subject to the same ‘conditions’ of which Petraeus speaks.At least, unlike McCain (and recently, the media), he’s not framing his statements in terms of ‘winning.’ It isn’t the sort of engagement that will have a clear end and a settled outcome. And in playing it, we’ve gambled away more than we’ve yet had the chance to assess.

Has Maureen Dowd Got a Big Swoony High School Crush on Obama?

by Damozel | Based on this column (Stalking, Sniffing, Swooning),  I could certainly make that case.

Note to Obama from a Supporter: Time to Dismount from the Flying Unicorn and Take Your Stand

Iby Damozel |  All righty, then.  We've seen that Obama can round up all the prettiest ponies and fly through space on the unicorn's back.  Time for his campaign to start thinking about something other than making pretty pictures and generating stirring rhetoric.

His speech in Berlin doesn't cut any ice with me---except from the 'Oooh, look!  Shiny!' standpoint--- because he hasn't got the means to make any of the things he talked about happen unless he wins the presidency.  The triumphal march abroad demonstrated that the rest of the world adores him, but people who care about this---I am one---already knew it.  It's important, but I didn't need a demo.