
Update: Bloomberg: "Rove testified Wednesday he still doesn't recall having spoken with Cooper, the people familiar said." I guess Rover's "senior moment" is a bit more protracted than we thought.
Update II: NYT says Fitzgerald will decide in the next 2 or 3 weeks whether to charge Rove. "On Wednesday Mr. Fitzgerald questioned Mr. Rove about how he came to remember his conversation with Mr. Cooper." Looks like there is some confusion regarding Rove's memory.
It's so hard to stop once I get started.
And this is probably only for the serious addicts, but there is a discussion going on over at The Next Hurrah as to what Libby originally testified to relative to his initial conversation with Matt Cooper. As Tom MaGuire noted earlier -- was Libby initially covering for Rove? I bring this up because it's entirely possible that one of the many discrepancies Fitzgerald is going after in Rove's testimony may be the fact that Rove didn't tell Fitz that he, Rove, was Cooper's initial source -- he may have coordinated with Scooter to keep himself out of it such that Scooter said he was the source.
Jeff, from the comments:
Fitzgerald's 8-27-04 affidavit makes it perfectly explicit that Libby testified that he brought up Wilson's wife on July 12 not just with Cooper but also with Miller and, I think, Kessler (who testified that their conversation didn't touch on Plame at all). So I think it's exactly right that one of the things that makes Fitzgerald suspicious about Rove is that it looks like Rove and Libby could have coordinated their stories in order to hide Rove's contact with Cooper, and Rove only started coming around once it was clear that Fitzgerald was going to not only go after Cooper but succeed at getting him to testify about his original source on Wilson's wife.
Remember, from the Washington Post, Fitzgerald was quite surprised at the tale Cooper had to tell him:
Cooper and his attorneys were surprised that Fitzgerald agreed to ask Cooper questions only about his conversations with Libby, sources familiar with the investigation said.
The sources said Fitzgerald looked surprised in the August 2004 deposition when Cooper said it was he who brought up Wilson’s wife with Libby, and that Libby responded, "Yeah, I heard that, too."
The prosecutor pressed Cooper to then explain how he knew about Wilson’s wife in the first place, and Cooper said he would not answer the question because it did not involve Libby, the sources said.
Which brings me back to one of my favorite Murray Waas articles from July of 2005 :
Columnist Robert Novak, who first disclosed Plame's identity in a July 14, 2003, newspaper column, has also been cooperating with investigators for some time, according to the same sources, as I first reported in my blog earlier in the week. But federal investigators have been highly skeptical of Novak's account -- as they have been of Rove's -- and were concerned that the key participants might have devised a cover story in the days shortly after it became known that a criminal investigation had been commenced.
Fitzgerald has quite a bit on Rover. Some think this is an indication Rove has flipped; I'm with Digby who thinks it's more likely due to this :
Rove was no lawyer but he carried a kind of preturnatural confidence in court cases. Like in his high school debates, he always felt better than anybody in the room. He could beat anybody with the strength of his argument or the weight of his will. When a team of blue-chip lawyers in a tobacco case grilled Rove for a deposition some years earlier, he was not just confident, but arrogant, fending off their questions with playful insults. On the stand in the Kay Bailey Hutchison trial, he was masterful in frustrating the prosecution. Now he had a former U.S. Attorney General in his cross hairs, and as Rove sat at the table in the federal courthouse, he turned his head slowly and looked over at the defense table with the thin sliver of a smile. It was a dark smile, determined, and there was not mistaking the message: You are my enemy and you will pay.(Bush's Brain p. 190)
Of course, as many others have noted, as far as the rats are concerned, it's all about the 2006 election. They will do anything, say anything, sell anybody out and devote all their energies to stalling shamelessly to make sure Democrats never get subpoena power and start investigating their sorry asses.
I better stop now or the next thing you know I'll be picking indictment shreds out of the carpet.
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Fitz!
Shall we FITZ????
Fitztastic!
EPU’d so here is Dru’s gift via Watertiger’s commenter:
angie says:
April 27th, 2006 at 9:08 pm
I am about to be EPU’d but y’all gotta see this wrt to FITZ– Dru gave me the heads up via email and tis a gift indeed.
http://www.dingle-region.com/sppatrick.htm
Careful Angie, gonna get everyone worked up again, and remember where that took us last night. ;)
ps. Hi.
I hope C & L streams Colbert, TDS, and Countdown b/c I haven’t been able to pull myself away from FDL all night!
i will try to keep a low profile and use lower case only, urban pirate. ;)
‘Twas the night before Fitzmas, and all through D.C.
The Senate stood empty, just waiting to see.
The Grand Jury listened to Fitz with much care,
He hoped that the votes all would be there.
Ken Mehlman and Rover all snug in their beds,
While visions of November danced in their heads,
And Dick in his bunker, as “W†did sip,
A drink from the flask he poured through his lips.
When out at the Post arose such a clatter,
They sprung from their cubes to see what was the matter.
Away to the phones they flew like a flash,
Called up their sources who asked for some cash.
The Times of New York had the lights all aglow,
As they savored the scuttle they knew soon would flow.
When, what to their wondering eyes should appear,
But a signature sheet with twelve names written so clear.
With Old Crow in his throat, George W then spits,
He knew in an instant it must be the Fitz.
More rapid he guzzled, his Party might lose,
So he bristled and shouted while chugging his booze.
Now Karl! First Libby!
Damn Fitz you vixen!
Lost Browny then Scotty!
Who else are you fixin’
To topple from power!
We’re takin’ a lickin!
Now damn Fitzy, damn you!
Damn you this hour!
If not for those levees and Katrina’s wrath,
Dear God, why all these obstacles, who chose her path?
You live in the big house, but the White House is blue,
What else can go wrong, will Dick Cheney go too?
And then in a tantrum, he ran to the roof,
The stomping and kicking of each little hoof.
As he pulled out his hair and was turning around,
Up through the hatch big Barbara came with a bound.
In blue robe with white dots, from her head to her toes,
Yes her clothes were old fashioned, but everyone knows.
A bag of buckshot she held in her hand,
Then she told him that Karl could not take the stand.
His jaw how it twitched, his chin to and fro,
His cheeks were like roses, his nose white from blow!
His droll little mouth was drawn up like a bow,
She pulled on his ear…you’re back on the snow!
The shaft of a pen he held tight in his fist,
And the smoke it encircled, man was he pissed.
He made a mad face, then reached for the lead,
He shook and he scowled, I wish he were dead.
Righteous and pompous, a nasty old soul,
She slapped him and said, pull Cheney from the hole.
A wink of his eye and a grin on his face,
Soon Fitz he would show that he should stay in his place.
He spoke not a word but went straight to his work,
And filled all the shotguns, then turned with a jerk,
And with shaking fingers, he dialed the phone,
Dick Cheney I need you, he said with a groan.
Dick called for his chopper, to his team gave a whistle,
And away they all flew like the down of a thistle.
But I heard him exclaim as he flew out of sight,
Happy Fitzmas to all and we’ll get him tonight!
read more observations here:
www.thoughttheater.com
Way OT… but interesting
Columbia Business School (CBS) has a parody of Dean Glen Hubbard flaying Ben Bernanke about (Hubbard’s) being snubbed as the head of the Fed. I hear the video is priceless. The lyrics follow…(CBS says that the portrayl of Hubbard in the video is not Hubbard but a look-alike)
Dean Glenn Hubbard
of the Columbia Business School (CBS)
(On the appointment of Ben Bernanke
as Chairman of the Federal Reserve)
Every breath you take;
every change of rate;
Jobs you don’t create
while we still stagnate
I’ll be watchin’ you.
Every single single day
Bernanke takes my pay
When growth goes away
inflation will stay
And I’ll be watchin you
Oh can’t you see
the Fed’s where I should be
How my poor heart aches
with each of your mistakes
When you move your lips
like a few more BPS
and when demand then dips
and the yield curve flips
I’ll be watchin’ you
Since you came supply’s lost without a trace
I dream at night that I punch you in the face
Your interest policies I cannot embrace
I feel so wronged that I long for Greenspan’s place
I keep cryin Benny Benny Please…..
(Boo Hoo Hoo…Boo hoo hoo)
Oh! can’t you see, the FED chair should be me!
How my poor heart aches
When prices esclate.
Every move you make
Every oath you take
Hope your models break
Bet that beard’s a fake
I’ll be watchin’ you
CBS is great
Wouldn’t change my fate
but We’ll be watchin’ you.
(CBS is Great
Wouldn’t change his fate)
We’ll be watchin’ you…
What is it with the Republicans and the hookers? Say what you will about Clinton, he never had to pay for it. Neither did Kennedy.
See you folks in the morning.
Bravo Jane. You know, I am over at tnh a lot, but when you break it down as you did here, it makes it a lot clearer, thanks.
Agree with cleter on both counts….see you folks in the morin’
Sonate - thanks for sharing that one. Poor Bernake, life is going to be tough for him.
OT - when this whole mess is over I see the FDL hostesses coming out with a children’s book (or graphic novel?) for Scooter and Rover: Are you my alibi?
With apologies to Dr Seuss.
ELECTION 2000
‘Twas the night of the election, early in fall
I had just stepped away from my ole mouseball
The ballots were in, so I slid down the hall
Hoping that Florida soon would be called.
The children were nestled snug in their beds
Everything but voting dancing in their heads
Mama’s resting by my desk, “I VOTED†on her cap
Feeling secure in spite of the gop and the gap.
When up on the screen there arose a clatter
I sprang off the couch to see what was the matter
Away to my Windows 98 in a dash
And for no apparent reason, I had a flash of my cash.
The media was abreast of the new fallen state
Bush won it hand’s down, leaving Gore at the gate
And what do my wondering eyes should appear
It’s a band-aided prez, his mouth in a jeer.
With my brand new driver, lively and quick
Tipper’s in the Limo, Gore’s tears she did lick
More rabid than eagle’s his curse words in flames
As he cried, and shouted and called out his name.
Dubya, Dubya, dubya de do
Voted For Bush? What did he do?
He and his brother and father and all
Hold that thought, Tipper, I’m taking this call.
As potables before the wild hurricane will fly
Gore hung up the phone and wiped his eye.
He picked up his cellphone, hitting *69
And when he was done Tipper heard Bush whine.
And then, in a twinkling, I heard Rather say,
There’s been a mistake, in a more at 11:00 way
As I drew in my hand, and was turning around
I hit the remote, and muted the sound.
Seems the voters can’t tell their heads from their feet
Their votes were now tarnished, their brains in their seat.
The Butterfly ballot, made special, in fact.
Had proven too hard for the Palm Beach pack.
Their eyes—how they wrinkled, their dimples how merry!
Their chads remained stuck like gum on a ferry
The droll little arrows drawn atop of the dots
So they counted down 2, giving what they got.
Punchers held tight while grittin their teeth
Uncertaintly encircled their heads like a wreath
They had a long face and tried to act cool
They had voted for years, kids do it in school.
Their eyes struggled to vote not getting too far
Even thought they arrived to the poll in their car.
Winking their eyes and a twist of their head
The butterfly ballot gave them a sense of incoming dread
They cast their ballot and spoke not a word
Their mind now focused on tonite’s early bird
By laying his vot aside of Pat’s dot
Pat got the vote, and Gore did not.
Bush sprang to his Limo, to his team gave a whistle
And away they all flew like the down of a thistle.
But I heard him exclaim, as e drove out of sight “Butterflies rule and to my Mommy goodnight!
Are you still taking (ridiculously basic) questions from lurkers? If so, at some point I wonder if you would mind explaining a few things about the grand jury: are they selected like ordinary juries? I assume they are not sequestered? Or is there no ‘they’ to sequester - in other words is it just a single judge?
I don’t understand why I don’t know these things at this stage.
Angie - I’m really pleased that Fitz got to visit the Irish relatives often and that his parents also regularly made the trip.
And of course the pictures of Patrick are breathtaking….
But I am absolutely amazed that our Patrick Fitzgerald played the accordian. Somehow I would guess that his musical instrument, if he played one, would be the trumpet.
Nore-I have no idea. Someone else will probably be able to help you. Happy Fitzlurking though!
Just watched the Shuster reel at C&L. Jury meets again tomorrow. “Outside forces” again at play. Fitz and Katrina - Rove was blindsided by both.
Who was the guy who appointed Fitzgerald? (Comey perhaps?) Whoever he be, god bless him.
I guess this makes me a serious addict, Jane, ’cause I can’t get enough of this stuff. Thank you, thank you, for giving us more to chew on.
BTW, for those for whom it’s still early enough in the evening, your PBS station, like mine, may be showing a great Watergate documentary, “Watergate Plus 30: Shadow of History.” It played here at 10:20 pm, following a showing of All the Presidents’ Men, and I highly recommend it even if you are well versed in the subject.
It is riveting to watch in the light of current events, and, because it was produced in 2003, the many ironies and resonances with the present are all the more stunning because of their innocence. Hearing Woodward speechify about the perils of Presidential overreaching is a true Scooby-Doo moment.
—-
Nora, a lot wrt to Grand Juries can be found here:
yes they are selected like regular juries, nope, no sequestration, no single judge– they are a jury.
http://www.abanet.org/media/faqjury.html
Nora — Always willing to answer those.
Christy did two really good posts on this:
http://firedoglake.blogspot.co.....-jury.html
http://www.firedoglake.com/200.....gal-knots/
OhioBlue– the accordian- player in Fitz made me smile cause he is true to his roots and it is an inclusive, happy instrument. He is about to trumpet the truth with a wail on the bagpipes shortly. i cannot wait.
o,
you may be interested in this FDL post about Comey, “Turning the Corner.” 31 December 2005.
I caught a segment of Washington Journal on CSPAN this morning and the chair of the house intel committe was on. Believe it or not he was pushing the same old bull that outing Plame wasn’t a crime because she wasn’t NOC.
Viva la Fitz
Long live the revolution
When it comes none will be spared.
BWAHAHAHAHA
that was my first comment Fitz, but I gave up on getting to use it properly.
angie — oh lord that purple jacket needs to be burned.
Yes, Jane, it is oh so bad that I am just gonna say, can I have it as my new comfort blankie?
Only if you take that purple shirt with it or I’m gonna set that on fire, too.
dunno what i am going to do with the extra pockets, though. *g*
So Karl Rove’s a smug, arrogant bastard, eh?
Fitz’ specialty is breaking smug, arrogant bastards.
For the first time in his life, Karl Rove has run into a man he can’t buy off, scare off, shrug off or fend off.
All of Karl’s resources — his money, his friends, his subordinates, all the people from whom he’s exacted fealty — cannot save him now.
Bush can’t pardon him. He does that, and the Democrats win veto-proof majorities in both houses. But if Rove wants to save himself, there’s only one way he can do it, and that’s by delivering Cheney and Bush to Fitzgerald. Not just Cheney — not the way Fitz is pissed at Rove. Cheney AND Bush.
Hard to not get the feeling that the publicly detailed revelations of conspiracy at the highest levels are going to be so atrocious and explicitly laid bare that pardons will amount to less than a relinquished wish.
Fitz looks like the dad of the girl you take out on a first date that scares the hell out of you.
Can you imagine Fitz giving a baseball analogy as you wait for your date to come downstairs?
“If you try to turn the corner and head for second base, I will personally see to it that you go to jail for a long, long, long time.”
NY Times says Fitz will decide in the next two or three weeks.
http://www.rawstory.com/news/2....._0427.html
Well, if you burn his purple rain wardrobe, Jane, I will volunteer to clothe him, feed him and take good care of him. sigh. i am willing to sacrifice so much for the cause. *G*
angie — you’re a patriot ;)
Thanks John Casper - brought it all back - embarassed to remember it was here I learned it. Or thought I did.
Just read Billmons post positing Rove the squealer… seems right (-ish)
“But if Fitz decides to let Rove off, or taps him lightly on the wrist, in order to get what he thinks he needs to prosecute the foulest son of a bitch to inhabit the vice president’s office since Spiro Agnew copped a plea, then all I can say is more power to him.”
While I’d truly be so excited at the announcement of a Rove indictment that I’d probably whip it out and flog the ol’ floogle right there in the front window with Neil Young and Crazy Horse blaring out of the stereo… I honestly don’t expect that we’re gonna see an indictment tomorrow.
Fitzgerald basically just got back from the Ryan case, and from a mental standpoint he’s barely had time to unpack yet. I think this week’s Grand Jury activity was definitely a “Let’s get this show on the road, folks!” sorta thing, but as far as asking for an indictment, I think it would be rushing things a hell of a lot more than what Fitz is known for. Earliest I’d expect it would be a week or two from now, and I think THAT’S probably optimistic.
I do think it’s gonna happen, though. Just not quite yet.
There’s a lot of hungry sharks a-loomin’
Don’t forget that Sununu got Cheney the Defense Secretary job back in the reign of Bush the First. He knew the competitor, Mr. ill-winds, was a no-go from the get-go.
Just sayin’ Payback is a beaych, no?
Jane #34 –happily so, a New Hamsher of the left reporting for duty every day. btw, called my sorry senators’ offices today re: Wyden’s filibuster and the staffers were clueless as usual. they wanted to engage at Gregg’s office about his smackdown of Hillary and that was an interesting conversation… that is all i have to report, unfortunately.
Thanks, Jane and Angie, for the links to Grand Jury info. The FDL posts were before my time, so to speak; started reading a few months ago after following a link from Billmon, who today refers to FDL as the “Plamegate experts.” Indeed!
Merry Fitzmas..!!!!!!!!!
Today I am recommending to the grand jury that they indict White House Deputy Chief of Staff Karl Christian Rove on charges of perjury and lying to federal investigators. At this hour, I am still mulling over charges of obstruction of justice based on yesterday’s testimony.
If 12 of the 23 jurists concur with my assertions and vote to indict I will schedule a press conference for Monday. If they require more time for deliberation then the grand jury will reconvene next Wednesday and I will then hold a press conference upon its conclusion.
Yours Truly,
Patrick
Fighting for truth, justice and the American way.
PS: A note to the mainstream media, pundits and newsreaders: You guys should really stop letting the defense counsel and Administration play you like a fiddle. All, but a very select few of you, look very foolish spinning this way and that and playing fast and loose without checking your facts, doing your homework or asking the tough questions. More importantly, you need to earn the trust of the American people back once again. After the bad examples set by Judy Miller, FOX News, Chris Matthews, and the Bob’s - Woodward and Novak et al, you are despised almost as much the very evil doers I am prosecuting. Please straighten up and fly right your country needs you now more than ever.
http://patrickjfitzgerald.blogspot.com
Jane and Angie-
Oh God…too funny.
I composed a post about Fitz’s mean cousin in Dingle putting up that village idiot-by-the-seaside picture, but then deleted for fear of flaming. I neglected to notice that it was simply the purple shirt that was the problem.
Link to the NYT story from Rawstory.
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/04.....8leak.html
By Elizabeth Bumiller (hasn’t she left to write her biobit yet?) and David Johnson
Patrick J. Fitzgerald, the special prosecutor in the C.I.A. leak case, is expected to decide in the next two to three weeks whether to bring perjury charges against Karl Rove, . . .
. . . Mr. Fitzgerald is now believed to have assembled all of the facts necessary to determine whether to seek an indictment of Mr. Rove or drop the case.
. . . Mr. Rove had known for more than a month that he was likely to make another appearance before the grand jury, and that he had known since last fall that he would be subject to further questions from Mr. Fitzgerald . . .
Per roving sources:
. . . Mr. Fitzgerald is going to find that Karl has been totally truthful and not only has done nothing wrong but has done everything right,
Not only that, he’s going to play a polka for Rove on his accordiaon.
Sorry. Possiblities of unrestrained polkafests just make me bubbly.
Truthfully, there’s something that bothers me about family pics being sent around like that (something just not right or nice about it) but I’m going to have to reassess some lingering animositiy I have felt towards the Spec. Pros. now that I know about the accordion.
The New York Times? Ugh and LOL!
At least this is Plame related and not besotted metaphysical (wild) speculation…
After reading the recent post about Woodward I went back and reread his WaPoo article about his GJ testimony.
Towards the end there is this:
Is it just me, or was the WHIG, even as late as late June 2003 still trying to cover up the fact that they had no basis for the uranium from Africa claim? That objective not being the same thing as blaming the 16 SOTU words on bad intelligence (which came later in July).
In other words, in June 2003 the WH was trying to hide the fact they knew the uranium claims were false from the bulk of the American public.
Does that make sense?
And someone should ask Bush when he became aware that the claim was baseless.
Re: The Gosstitution Scandal. Too much Fitz today, my brain has overheated and switched to random mode, resulting in this (completely off the wall) thought:
Could Gary Condit somehow be mixed up in this? He “Fitz” the description of former intelligence committee member - he was on the House intelligence Committee with Porter Goss.
An old Condit story from 2001
And some discussion about that story, Condit and lie detectors here
It’s interesting the support that Porter Goss appears to give Condit. Gonna do some more digging.
At least from this question, it looks as though the WaPo’s John Harris is trying to moderate his kool-aid chugging image:
“Arlington, Va.: “All we can do is ask the questions, and point out if the answers are evasive.” Don’t forget showboating for the TV cameras - NBC’s David Gregory was my favorite - and repeatedly asking the same “navel gazing” questions, while missing out on asking about many foreign policy and economic issues. Both the White House and the press can do better.
John F. Harris: Here’s a different view. I do not know Gregory well, but admire the work he has seen. I do not think he’s a showboater. Sometimes pinning down a press secretary can be a hard job and you have to keep coming back to the same question. So Gregory and the others on the White House beat have my sympathies
At this point, all the conspirators might have tapped out for Fitzgerald the fullest dimensions of their respective holes, only for him to know how much he has to shovel.
Decider
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Redirect page
Machine that always halts
Does this machine have to run (burn) out of oil first ?
So the NYT has PF making the decision to indict rather than the Grand Jury making the decision. Don’t they know that this makes Christy angry?
http://www.regis-nyc.org/news......;Type=Main
Interesting recent interview with Fitz, from his HS Alma Mater newspaper. Excerpt:
“I appreciated Regis much more once I had graduated,†Fitzgerald noted. “You have nearly a century of people going through the school for free, getting a great education.â€
In a tribute to Regis faculty past and present, Fitzgerald said, “there are great teachers at Regis who teach because they want to teach, although they could be doing something else; they are extremely selfless.†Fitzgerald sees Regians as “down-to-earth city kids who go to school and work hard.â€
As Fitzgerald went on to college and graduate school, he “felt that Regis made more of an impact than other great institutions because it grabbed me in my teens, teaching me to work hard and think.†After Regis, Fitzgerald attended Amherst College and Harvard Law.
Though the pecuniary reward as private attorney would be much greater, Fitzgerald has pursued the noble path of a federal prosecutor. “I think that people do not realize that when you are a private lawyer, your obligation is to serve your client,†says Fitzgerald. “If your client wants to do something, you have to take that position even if it’s a position that you don’t agree with.â€
As a “federal prosecutor, my job every day is to do the right thing,†emphasized Fitzgerald. Working in the federal government is a learning experience and I feel like I am always on the side to pursue justice.†Fitzgerald warns, “In the private sector, you make a lot more money [than in the public sector], but it is a lot less interesting and you do not have the luxury of making your own decisions.â€
My, oh, my… Them Repubs got a whorable time ahead of ‘em, what with ForniGate, BoyWhores, an all.
Figures like, “over $21 million, just on ’shuttle services’ and limos!” oughta register in the minds of even my most rapidly unreasonable evangelical acquaintance — I look forward to Gomorrah this stuff! Yeowzah!
Is it possible that in all this excitement we’ll ever know why Jeff Gannon, aka MilitaryStud.com, was spendin’ nights at the WH? Maybe he was just helpin’ save on gas and limo fees?
Considering what Jimmie Jeff was charging per hour for his ’services’, my little $100 gas rebate for drilling ANWR just seems so… paltry.
The spectre of Porter G.O.S.S. (’Got Us Some Sluts’ per oilfieldguy) has me FOTFLMAO. Never in my wildest dreams did I hope or suspect these a$$holes would f*uck up THIS bad.
I am DEFINITELY buying extra popcorn at the grocery tomorrow. Yeowzah…!!
what a week! may ghost of hunter s. thompson lurk in turd blossom’s bedroom every night this weekend and utter depraved howlings at 2AM………..
and on the other choice tidbit today: anybody wanna bet that the NSA had every phone in “the watergate” tapped?
readerOfTeaLeaves:
are you old enough to remember the chicago band leader, ben bernie, who used to say “yeowzah, yeowza, yeowza!” on the radio? out of chicago, i think it was……………….
whoever coined Forni-gate: brilliant!
and for the record, harkening back to the previous thread, I do not have a crush on Porter Goss (ewwww). It was a rhetorical observation to spur a discussion…and it worked!
The Bush Regime IS Taking Things to New Extremes
We must also point out that channeling opposition toward candidates who support the war is not the only problem confronting the anti-war movement. There is also a stubborn refusal to confront the full scope and scale of what the Bush regime is doing, and its implications for the not-so-distant future.
ANSWER’s call for action on the 3rd anniversary of the war says that singling out the Bush administration for protest is an “exercise in misleadership”. While we would be the first to point out the complicity of the Democratic Party leadership in the war, at the same time a failure to recognize the fascist remaking of society and bring this understanding to the people we are seeking to mobilize against the war will only consign people to ignore and be crushed by this onslaught
On Thursday, OCTOBER 5TH 2006: All day and into the night, across the country, we must decidedly break the paralysis that still grips too much of American political life.
Taking off work, taking off school, shutting down campuses and coming together in mass gatherings, we must let the country and the world know that:
—millions of us reject this illegitimate regime that is as criminal as it is dangerous to humanity & the existence of this planet.
—we refuse to grow accustomed to a political climate that is becoming everyday more frightening & reactionary.
http://www.worldcantwait.net/
angie 4 - dingle regions? that sounds a bit, um, suspect.
I’ll be off that day.
No Democrat will receive my vote until they promise to fully investigate what the GOP has done and if found guilty of crimes, prosecute.
The dems need to quit worrying about the pull to the left, and start focusing on the push for what is truthful, righteous, and Constitutionally sound. Both parties need to pay attention to the grass roots, you can feel it, a change is coming.
Matt O, 31: wouldn’t that be third base?
http://de.fishki.net/video/bush.swf
Okay, who is the beautiful blonde woman walking with Fitz in the picture? Presumably an AUSA? I want to start a fan club. The ladies (and some guys, I presume) have Fitz to drool over, so us guys (and some of the ladies, presumably) need some high-IQ eye-candy too!
from the Times….
It was exactly one month ago today that Andy Card resigned.
A bit more than a month earlier, the White House turned over 250 pages of “missing” emails to Fitzgerald.
of course, this is speculative, but I believe that the personnel changes at the white house are being driven by this investigation (and Rumsfeld job security is based, at least in part, because he’s one of the few “insiders” who hasn’t been directed tainted by Plamegate.)
As others have noted, there isn’t three hours worth of questions and answers for Rove directly concerning the Vivak-Luskin conversation. The real story is the missing emails — and the Rove-Hadley email was doubtless among those delivered by the White House to FitzG.
PLuk - sounds plausible, but one thing puzzles me: surely Fitz isn’t directly alerting the WH to pending indictments, is he? So how do they decide when the jig is up?
fahrender… not sure that I’m old enough for ben bernie, but I am old enough for Watergate. (Barely!)
The term ForniGate was tossed out by someone on a previous thread… perhaps cleter, who was ON FIRE tonight. Course, we’ve all had some pretty great posts to howl over, thanks to the blog owner(s).
Good to know that the paymasters who were outing a CIA agent and overseeing black ops still found time to contract for $21 million, just for ‘Shuttle Services” to whores at the Watergate. Gee, I was just so worried these Repubs were “all work, no play.” Now, I can lay those fears to rest 8^0
I hope that Rover and the rest of the depraved fiends have spun miles of rope for Fitz to hang them with. I’m hoping for some rather elaborate nooses.
Can’t happen soon enough.
But I am absolutely amazed that our Patrick Fitzgerald played the accordian.
Oh, no, that is simply too dorky and adorable. Can’t you see him in his too-tight blazer and clip-on tie? Little ten-year old PF, earnestly mangling some poor, wheezing second-hand accordion? Awwwwww. Just. Awwwwww.
p lukasiak — wasn’t the Rove/Hadley email turned over in 2004?
use an accordion, send people to prison
#62 - TARGET LETTERS
thanks, 67
It might be worth it to wander over and take a look at Fitz’s blog. Fitzmas may come early this time!
Merry, merry Fitzmas!
If there is an indictment tomorrow, I hope the FDL servers are ready! :)
ForniGate. Heh. I like it.
I agree with the Andy Card resignation being tied into this. IIRC, I wondered at the time of his resignation if it had to do with Fitz and the 12 hour delay. I think the 12 hour delay has a lot to do with the missing, and suddenly found 250 emails. He left with no future job set up.
I think Andy got a letter.
Ahem. I would just like to say, as the original dingle-region link poster at watertiger’s: Dibs on the purple shirt!
Suzanne — he indicts Card & Rove both and he can keep the purple jacket. Hell I’ll wear it.
PLuk - sounds plausible, but one thing puzzles me: surely Fitz isn’t directly alerting the WH to pending indictments, is he? So how do they decide when the jig is up?
well, when Fitz tells Rove he wants to talk about the missing emails, and Fitz’s techies have been all over the White House servers and seen who was responsible for deleting emails, if Card was involved it probably wasn’t too tough to figure out that his particular jig was up.
p lukasiak — wasn’t the Rove/Hadley email turned over in 2004?
jane— yes. But my understanding is that the copy that was turned over was found from a search of hard copies of emails that were stored on Rove’s computer that had been printed out and stored with Luskin.
The 250 pages of emails were (apparently) from some additional/redundant back-up/archival system for White House emails, etc — and a copy of the Rove-Hadley email was doubtless among those 250 pages. (Its entirely possible that every week or month the White House servers are archived, and that is where the “missing” emails” came from — a restored “archival” copy of the White House servers.)
Folks, I can’t help but think this is a load of Bumiller hooey. The message behind the story is that if Rove ain’t indicted by May 15, then he ain’t gonna be indicted. Couple that with six-plus more months of stall tactics and it gives cover to the stalling: “He’s not stalling, we already heard that he was supposed to be indicted back in May, and it didn’t happen!”
It would be verrry conveeenienent to Rove if he were an “old story” between now and the November elections.
Jane, it is those little hairs on the back of my neck that are a’quivering about Card & Rove and have been since his resignation. Those hairs have saved my tush many times and I tend to pay attention to it.
On the other hand, I thought the purple jacket was not so bad (and practical) so take my opinion with a grain or two.
Just in case anyone has any lingering questions about Gold Bars’ faxes, PoolBoy’s up on the Post Politics Hour tomorrow starting at 11 eastern time. Submit your questions now to beat the rush!
http://www.washingtonpost.com/.....01402.html
Why does waiting for Fitzmas have to be so hard?
p lukasiak — but I thought the 250 emails were from Cheney’s office.
Rove was testifying Wednesday about obstruction of justice on the part of people in the VP’s office relating to the 250 emails that mysteriously resurfaced. He is not the target of that investigation. Rove is still on the hook for the previous acts, especially perjury, and possibly false statements and his own obstruction of justice.
The bulk of Rove’s testimony yesterday dealt specifically with several emails out of the 250 pages that were recently discovered that Rove sent to COS in which Rove discussed a way to undercut or discredit Joe Wilson. Rove had testified in previous appearances that he was not involved in a “get Wilson†campaign.
Merry Fitzmas!
I still think that Fitzgerald has had to frame his indictment of Libby very carefully to avoid having the AG pull the case out from under him for “security” reasons. Since Judge Walton is apparently very sympathetic to the government’s claims of security, Fitz has limited his indictment to the coverup rather than the underlying criminal conspiracy (which he indicates in his filing is real).
Perhaps he has to do the same in Rove’s case. The outing of Valerie Plame was a serious breach of security, for it publicized a whole secret counterproliferation department. Whether it was just the usual incompetence of the gang that can’t shoot straight or a plot by the neocons (or should I say radical right-wing extremists) to destroy a section of government that was on to some of their shenanigans in the Mideast (i.e., attempts to plant WMD in Iraq; using MEK to disrupt Iran; collusion with the Taliban and Russian Mafia to smuggle heroin to pay for some of their clandestine operations, etc.) I don’t know.
May be seriously left behind here, as I started this an hour and a half ago but got called out to a meeting (it’s Friday afternoon JST).
Jane, I heard from a one of my DFA friends in VA that Card went to work for Mitt Romney. It was one of those convoluted things, he was talking to a kid on the train who turned out to be one of those baby ReThugs in training who was very willing to chatt up telling stories. But what my friend was told was that Andrew Card already had the job with Romney before he quit. I have never reseached it so I have no idea how valid the information is….
I am hunting for the email but that baby ReThug reminded me of a Box Turtle in training pants….
If Rove wasn’t involved in the “get Wilson” campaign, then maybe he was involved in the “get the CIA” campaign instead.
#83: I think Rove was involved with killing two birds with one stone-discrediting Wilson and flushing out the CIA. But he was not alone.
p lukasiak — but I thought the 250 emails were from Cheney’s office.
although the emails were reported as being from Cheney’s office, I have my doubts that they were all just from Cheney’s office — the “announcement” about the 250 pages came from the White House, but here is how FitzG explained the “missing” emails in his filing…
If its just stuff from the OVP, the whole “Card deleted the emails during the 12 hour gap” goes out the window, because Card was Bush’s CoS, not Cheney’s….
http://www.bellaciao.org/en/ar.....icle=11719
Cannot locate another source for this story. The US House site is down or ‘document has been relocated.’ Not a peep out of the NYT or WaPo.
House votes 397-21 for “Iran Freedom Support Actâ€
After everything that has been exposed…the lies, the profiteering, the long list of war crimes, 397 ‘Representatives’ gave Bush the go ahead on attacking Iran. Only 21 Patriots voted Nay.
http://benfrank.net/blog/
Katymine #82 — There’s an opening for the governor’s seat coming up this fall in Massachusetts, because Mitt Romney thinks his hair entitles him to a much better job, such as being the next Republican president. When Andy Card announced he was jumping from the Bush trainwreck, the first in-state speculation was that Card might be thinking about running for governor. The immediate reaction to that was a large laugh among the political insiders, who agree that even people who don’t remember how bad a job Card did working for former Rep. Gov. William Weld will remember Woodward’s portrayal of “Andy the Cheeseburger Fetcher”. Romney’s not nearly as smart as he thinks he is, but even if he were dumb enough to hire Bush’s cast-off, he’s too vain to hire someone with Andy’s reputation as a coat-holder and low-level fixer. Of course, Mitt’s chosen successor, and current Lt. Gov., Kerry Healey, seems to be even dumber and just as eager as Our Andrew, so maybe he’ll get a job helping run her campaign into the ground.
Yep, the purple jacket’s not the best.
I used to work with a guy who had bought himself a purple winter ski jacket one year, he thought it was brown.
He’s also colour blind.
Those Dingle pictures are adorable.
punaise #58
Third base would be oral, though that kind of discussion - what is or isn’t sex - would just be a painful throwback to 1998.
However, Fitz does not strike me as someone that would allow making out/feelin’ up, which is second base in my interpretation.
This leakgate or Plamegate scandal looks dead set to cut out Bush’s brain ( Turd blossom ) and cut off his balls ( Biggus Dickus or sprayshot as I affectionately call him from a long distance )
That leaves Field Marshall Von Runsfeldt and the wicked witch of the west to form a Siegfried line and even launch a Battle of the Bulge in Iran or Syrianna.
I’m merely speculating about a Gossibility here…the whole thing could implode faster than a bubble in nucular reactor. This scenario then becomes Yellowgate then doesn’t it cos’ the Plame game is over. The firedogs bark and the caravan of the yellow press move on to what all this criminal covering up is all about.
So the investigation settles then on the political use of the intelligence for going to war with Iraq. Follow the yellowgate road and let them eat yellowcake at the W/house dinner to be attended by the yellow haired Ms Plame/*ilson.
Follow the yellowgate road.
Why wait for Fitzmas? I’m looking forward to the Fitz of July! Oh, the fireworks will be magnificent!
Somebody tell Fitzgerald not to get on any airplanes with Paul Wellstone.
Rove’s defense: “I couldn’t have been obstructing justice. Didn’t you hear the President issue an executive order that this wasn’t justice?”
concerning W.H. Email archiving: in most operations, there’s a daily backup of new Emails, then weekly backups of everything and then the tapes get recycled monthly. Often the last weekly backup tape of the month will get permanently stored “for historical purposes”. My suspicion is that Fitz got ahold of the tapes for July 2003 — Card or others may have done their attempted deletions in September, not realizing copies of the interesting stuff was already off-premises.
Phoenix Woman says:
April 27th, 2006 at 9:51 pm
Bush can’t pardon him. He does that, and the Democrats win veto-proof majorities in both houses.
Not at all sure that I agree. The Repub’s have been spinning this for so long as “there has obviously been no underlying crime - Fitz is just wasting everyone’s time by charging ‘technicalities’ ” (perjury & obstruction having now become technicalities to the base). For the die-hard base, this is now, I believe, an acceptable position, and pardons, at least for Libby and Rove, might even be applauded. After all, there are wars on brown people to be waged, and Rove is needed politically in 2006 and 2008 to properly put before the electorate issues of fear, bigotry, hatred, smears, we’re fightin’ for God, (and did I mention FEAR).
However, assuming that there may be at least one or two reasonably intelligent people still left in the WH, it must be apparent that the Pardon Card can only be played *once*. While I believe that GWB could pardon Libby and Rove right now without too much of a political hurt, he’ll never again be able to pardon others, or even the same guys if/when Fitz brings charges actually stemming from the leaks and the damage done to Plame and the CIA, or even other obstruction-related stuff.
So the poker game is on, big time. Fitz holds the Indictment Card - Bush the Pardon Card. Both are big ole trump cards - each card has an expiration date. Bush’s Card expires in January 2009. Fitz’s Card expires - well, just when, exactly?
I need more info regarding statutory limitation periods.
*ilson46201 94
Yep. That would be my experience/expectation. I’m not forgetting Gonzo was in on this also. I really want Fitz to lay some paper on that fascist bastard.
Oh, I thinki it was our poster PJF earlier tonight mentioned he only needs 12 out of 23. Thanks. I wondered if simple majority vs. unanimous held.
Up to see if Fitz announces press conference. I hope tomorrow’s NYT headline is “Fitz makes surprise announcement” or WTTE (words to that effect)
woof!
Jane, it isn’t about Rove.
It’s about Rove’s boss.
Rove had no clearance to view that. Even if it was declassified it didn’t pass through traditional channels, but the fact is it was classified.
It was classified so the gang of four in the SWenate INTEL committee could not disclose the information that could derail the war in Iraq’s supposed justification.
Fitz is too good with his paperwork.
After this week, Cheney, Condi, AWOL take the stand. Two of those names bring up new issues regarding the prosecution.
My rainjacket IS purple. Even more purple than Fitzgerald’s jacket. :)
Punaise 62
“one thing puzzles me: surely Fitz isn’t directly alerting the WH to pending indictments, is he? So how do they decide when the jig is up?”
Because they are spying on him.
How big a shitstorm would there be if the WH was using the doublesecret plenary wartime spy power on Fitz?
We’ll likely see a black monday spade of resignations soon. It will be swift and Rove will run a coordinated campaign to slight the fact it happens.
reader of tea leaves
Fornigate weren’t me. I was supporting Hookergate, until Forn