Buck Naked Politics

Scott McClellan to Testify before Judiciary Committee; a GOP footnote on Rove & his Tactics

by Damozel | In an interview for Newsnight last week, the BBC's Kirstie Wark asked Scott McClellan if some of his current candor might perhaps have saved citizens of the US who were not shills for the Bush Administration a certain amount of war, devastating expense, corruption, outing of CIA agents, etc.?  (Well, she didn't use exactly those words, but that was what I thinkshe meant.)  McClellan said he didn't know, didn't understand, failed to put 2 and 2 together, and so forth.  Further proof, I guess --- that is, if you believe him --- that neocons and those who support them  just aren't that bright.  How could McClellan, who was right on the scene, not know when even I knew?  Even my 80-year old mother knew. 

Anyway, he is now supposedly trying to make amends 'so that we don't make the same mistakes again.'  Next on his to-do list:  testify before the Senate Judiciary Committee on the Valerie Plame leak. 

Back-Room Deal re: Telecom Amnesty? (plus video)

by D. Cupples |   We've covered here and here (and here) why retroactive immunity for Telecoms that knowingly broke laws while helping the Bush Adminsitration spy on Americans is a bad idea for us taxpayers and citizens.  So far, Democrats in Congress have retarded the Administration's (and its corporate and congressional allies') push for Telecom Amnesty.

Reportedly, Sen. Jay Rockfeller has teamed up with fellow Democrat and House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer to renew the fight for Telecom Amnesty.  Firedoglake reports:

Another Whistle Blower Says Telecom has Domestic-Spying System

Democracy Now reports:

"Babak Pasdar is a computer security expert who was hired in 2003 to help restructure the tech infrastructure at a major wireless telecommunications company. What he found shocked him.

"The company had set up a system that gave a third party, presumably a governmental entity, access to every communication coming through that company’s infrastructure. This means every email, internet use, document transmission, video, text message, as well as the ability to listen to and record any phone call."

Bush's Newest Domestic Spying Program

by D. Cupples |   If President Nixon's staffers had access to our technology, they wouldn't have sent five guys to break into and tap the phones in the Democratic Party's offices at the Watergate complex.  And we likely wouldn't have learned of the Nixon Administration's violations of law and abuses of power.

That said, the Bush Administration seeks to greatly expand its domestic spying powers -- without having satisfied Congress as to procedures and safeguards.  The Washington Post reports:

Sources Tell ABC News: Bush Administration Officials Participated in War Crimes

Posted by Damozel | Did anyone ever doubt that certain top administration officials were involved every step of the way in authorizing the interrogation techniques used on al-Qaeda?  Most of the people I know certainly thought so. 

Everyone, in fact, except my mom.  So I am not surprised, though somehow I am quite shocked.  There is quite a bit of difference between 'knowing' and knowing.  And now the 'highly placed sources' have come out of the woodwork.  What took you so long, highly placed sources?

Judge Pressures Bush Administration about Missing Emails

Remember the White House emails that may or may not have been lost?  The ones that might include evidence of unethical (if not illegal) acts relating to the Scooter Libby scandal, the Iraq war lead up, the Justice Department politicization scandal...?

The federal magistrate hearing a lawsuit brought by the National Security Archives (a group connected to George Washington University) just exerted some pressure on the White House.  ABC reports (via Memeorandum):

House Passes FISA Bill without Immunity but....

by D. Cupples  | Yesterday, the House passed a FISA bill that doesn't contain retroactive immunity for telecom companies that illegally helped the Bush Administration tap Americans' phone calls and emails.  This, even after House Republicans' requested a secret session, during which secret information that would persuade the House to pass Telecom Amnesty was supposed to be presented.  The Washington Post reports: 

House Holds Secret FISA session at Republicans Request

by D. Cupples  | The U.S. House agreed to hold a secret (i.e., no public and no reporters) meeting to debate FISA last night.  According to The Hill, "the last closed House session was held in 1983. Only five have been held since 1825." 

Beforehand, Majortiy Leader Steny Hoyer made this statement:

Mukasey & McConnell Backtrack re: FISA Statements

by  D. Cupples |  Apparently, the Bush Administration has recognized that its use of fear-mongering in order to secure Telecom Amnesty has included the use of untrue statements.  The Los Angeles Times reports:

"A day after warning that potentially critical terrorism intelligence was being lost because Congress had not finished work on a controversial espionage law, the U.S. attorney general and the national intelligence director said Saturday that the government was receiving the information -- at least temporarily."

Gordon Brown 'Disappointed' in Failure of Bush to Disclose Landing of 'Torture Flights' in British Territory

Posted by Damozel | Yeah, welcome aboard,  Prime Minister. 

Apparently those CIA torture flights---I don't know why I or The Independent put the words 'torture flights' in inverted commas since that's what they were---landed in the British territory of Diego Garcia on their way to the 'harsh interrogation' of suspected terrorists.  (The Independent)  Since former Prime Minister Tony Blair and prominent Labour minister Jack Straw (who seems to wear a lot of hats, politically speaking) had 'categorically denied' this, it was all rather embarrassing for  current Prime Minister Gordon Brown and Foreign Secretary David Mililband.

Telecom Amnesty Refresher

by D. Cupples |  My last post was about the expiration of FISA and the Senate's passing of a bill that contains Telecom Amnesty provisions.  I've been posting about Telecom Amnesty (a.k.a, retroactive immunity for telecom companies) for months (see e.g., here and here). 

I've seen nobody do a better job than Keith Olbermann of explaining Telecom Amnesty and why it's not in the interest of us ordinary taxpayers.  Even if you don't like his editorial style, his analysis is dead on.  Click the image below.

Bush (et. al.) to Let FISA Bill Expire

Posted by D. Cupples |  President Bush talks about how important the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) is to our nation's security.  His actions show that Telecom Amnesty is far more important to him, which is why he repeatedly threatened to veto any FISA bill that didn't include immunity for Telecom companies that illegally helped his Administration tap Americans' phone calls and emails. 

In January, the truly Democrat-controlled House passed a FISA bill that didn't include Telecom Amnesty.  Mr. Bush persuaded Republicans (and some Democrats) in the evenly divided Senate to pass a FISA bill with Telecom Amnesty -- instead of encouraging them to pass a temporary extension of FISA.  The House Speaker commented:

Senate to Pass Telecom Amnesty (UPDATED)

Posted by D. Cupples | As I've said before,  it's only natural that President Bush craves retroactive immunity for telecom companies that violated laws while helping his Administration tap Americans' phone calls and emails: when telecoms get sued, their records get subpoenaed -- records likely doubling as evidence of Administration officials' crimes.  Three things to remember:

1) Evidence suggests that the domestic spying program was in the works before 9/11;

2) Some telecom lawyers expressed doubts about the legality of the Bush Administration's wiretapping programs (e.g., Qwest Communications refused to participate); and

3) One telecom giant had no problem saying "No" to the government's wiretapping requests when the FBI forgot to pay its bills.

Today, Glenn Greenwald reports:

CIA Director Admits to Use of Waterboarding

Posted by D. Cupples |  Yesterday, while most media obsessed over Super Tuesday, intelligence officials testified before Congress.  Director of National Intelligence Michael McConnell begged for retroactive legal immunity for telecom companies that broke laws while helping the Bush Administration spy on Americans.

CIA Director Michael Hayden also testified, admitting to Congress that his agency had engaged in waterboarding, an interrogation technique that many people think is torture and, as such, is illegal.  ABC News reports:

Telcom Amnesty Debate Resumes in Senate

By D. Cupples  (photo from White House) | Retroactive immunity for telecom companies that illegally aided the Bush Administration's warrantless wiretapping program is about more than whether bored agents listen to naughty chats between you and your sweetheart.  It's about massive potential for abuse.  Remember, the Nixon Administration illegally wiretapped Americans who disagreed with Nixon politically.  

Yesterday, the Senate began debating whether to grant retroactive immunity to telecoms (a.k.a., Telecom Amnesty).  Vice President Dick Cheney urged Congress to grant it quickly.  Senator Russ Feingold thinks that wouldn't be wise:

White House Emails Conveniently Missing?

Posted by D. Cupples | Last week, House Oversight Committee chairman Henry Waxman released data from the White House about missing emails, after White House spokesperson Tony Fratto suddenly (and shockingly) said that there is no evidence that any emails are missing. (BN-Politics)  This after months of news that emails had not been properly archived.

After examining that data, the Associated Press found that gaps in the email archives coincide with dates in 2003 and 2004, when the Bush Administration was struggling with the CIA leak investigation (Valerie Plame Wilson) and a possible congressional probe into Iraq intelligence failures.  The White House is now disputing its own data. The AP reports:

White House Ordered to Provide Email Info

by  D. Cupples  |  Special Prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald said that not all emails of the President's and Vice President's office were preserved via normal archiving processes in 2003, the time when White House staffers outed covert CIA agent Valerie Plame Wilson.  Citizens for Responsiblity and Ethics in Washington suggested that between 5 and 10 million emails are missing.

It may not have much practical effect, but yesterday a federal magistrate ordered the White House to reveal whether copies of the missing emails were stored on backup tapes.  The Associated Press reports:

Torture Tapes: Criminal Case Opened, but Prosecutor Neither Independent nor Outside

by D. Cupples |  In 2005, the CIA  destroyed video tapes of detainees being "interrogated," despite a court's request to see evidence relating to detainee interrogations. Yesterday, Attorney General Michael Mukasey opened a criminal investigation, to be led by federal prosecutor John Durham  (Associated Press via Memeorandum). 

Though he may have integrity, Mr. Durham is not an independent prosecutor (unlike Patrick Fitzgerald during the Scooter Libby case) and Durham is not outside the Justice Department.  As Balkanization's Marty Lederman points out, Durham is a career Justice Department prosecutor and, in the tape case, he will report to a Deputy Attorney General, who will report to Attorney General Mukasey.

House Judiciary Committee chairman John Conyers bluntly commented: