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February 12, 2005

Terminated

SF Gate has the list of the programs Mr. Bush is trying to kill. Here goes:

AGRICULTURE
AMS Biotechnology Program
Forest Service Economic Action Program
High Cost Energy Grants
NRCS Watershed and Flood Prevention Operations
Research and Extension Grant Earmarks and Low Priority Programs

COMMERCE
Advanced Technology Program
Emergency Steel Guarantee Loan Program
Public Telecommunications Facilities, Planning and Construction Program

EDUCATION
Comprehensive School Reform
Educational Technology State Grants
Even Start
Vocational Education State Grants
Vocational Education National Activities
Tech Prep State Grants
Upward Bound
Talent Search
GEAR UP
Smaller Learning Communities
Perkins Loans: Capital Contributions and Loan Cancellations
Regional Education Laboratories
Safe and Drug Free Schools State Grants
Javits Gifted and Talented Education
National Writing Project
School Leadership
Dropout Prevention Program
Close Up Fellowships
Ready to Teach
Parental Information and Resource Centers
Alcohol Abuse Reduction
Foundations for Learning
Mental Health Integration in Schools
Community Technology Centers
Exchanges with Historic Whaling and Trading Partners
Foreign Language Assistance
Excellence in Economic Education
Arts in Education
Women's Educational Equity
Elementary and Secondary School Counseling
Civic Education
Star Schools
Higher Education Demos for Students w/Disabilities
Underground Railroad Program
Interest Subsidy Grants
Occupational and Employment Information
Tech-prep Demonstration
Literacy Programs for Prisoners
State Grants for Incarcerated Youth
LEAP
Byrd Scholarships
B.J. Stupak Olympic Scholarships
Thurgood Marshall Legal Opportunity
Vocational Rehabilitation Recreational Programs
Vocational Rehab (VR) Migrant and Seasonal Workers
Projects with Industry
Supported Employment
Teacher Quality Enhancement Program

ENERGY Hydropower Program Nuclear Energy Plant Optimization Nuclear Energy Research Initiative Oil and Gas Programs

HHS
ACF Community Service Programs
ACF Early Learning Opportunities Fund
CDC Congressional Earmarks
CDC Preventive Health and Health Services Block Grant
CDC Youth Media Campaign
Direct Service Worker Delivery Grants
HRSA Emergency Medical Services for Children
HRSA Health Facilities Construction Congressional Earmarks
HRSA Healthy Community Access Program
HRSA State Planning Grant Program
HRSA Trauma Care
HRSA Traumatic Brain Injury
HRSA Universal Newborn Hearing Screening
Real Choice Systems Change Grants

HUD
HOPE VI

INTERIOR
BLM Jobs-in-the-Woods Program
LWCF State Recreation Grants (NPS)
National Park Service Statutory Aid
Rural Fire Assistance (BLM, NPS, FWS, BIA)

JUSTICE
Byrne Discretionary Grants
Byrne Justice Assistance Grants
COPS Hiring Grants
COPS Interoperable Communications Technology Grants
COPS Law Enforcement Technology Grants
Juvenile Accountability Block Grants
National Drug Intelligence Center

Other State/Local Law Enforcement Assistance Program Terminations
State Criminal Alien Assistance Program (SCAAP)

LABOR
Migrant and Seasonal Farm Worker Training Program
Reintegration of Youthful Offenders

TRANSPORTATION
National Defense Tank Vessel Construction Program
Railroad Rehabilitation Infrastructure Financing Loan Program

ENVIRONMENT
Unrequested Projects
Water Quality Cooperative Agreements

NASA
Hubble Space Telescope Robotic Servicing Mission

OTHER
National Veterans Business Development Corporation
Postal Service: Revenue Forgone Appropriation
SBA: Microloan Program
SBA: Small Business Investment Company (SBIC) Participating Securities Program

Definitely check the article here. There's an additional list containing the programs Bush has significantly cut funding for.

05:47 PM | Comments (19) | Posted By Bob Cesca

A Democratic Revolution

Howard Dean has been elected to chair the DNC (full story). Contribute to the DNC below (script courtesy dKos).

Contribution amount: $

01:40 PM | Comments (1) | Posted By Bob Cesca

Gannongate: keep the media focussed

The last several days have been frustrating. Observing the media's treatment of the Guckert/Gannon has been similar to watching the Three Stooges fix a plumbing leak. They simply have it all wrong.

And the blogosphere is partly to blame.

The issue is all about the White House allegedly planting a ringer in the press corp in order to, 1) control the flow of questions in the briefings and gaggles, and 2) control the spread of news into the media. In other words, this all comes around to PROPAGANDA and the subversion of the media by our government.

The problem here is this... So much is being made of the details, the press doesn't know what the big picture is. Even Aaron Brown, who could be the most savvy newsman on television now, totally missed the point and focussed on bias in the press corp.

This isn't about bias, or male escort services, or the use of pseudonyms. It's not even about Gannon, any more than Watergate was about Liddy or Hunt. They're all clues, yes. And the clues have to be gathered, yet any presentation of the clues MUST be prefaced with the thesis -- and that thesis must be SCREAMED in order for the television media to understand.

We're losing on the underscoring of the thesis.

I call upon every blogger covering this story, either online or as guests on television news shows, to emphasize this: all these little details are leading to the singular conclusion that the White House is continuing its propaganda effort and its subversion of the media. The press's function in this nation is to watchdog the government for us -- not to rubber stamp it. But when the government co-opts the press, that function is destroyed.

Don't allow the discourse to be muddied and make sure that when communicating with television media, the thesis is rammed down their throats or else they'll become distracted by the shiny objects behind you.

10:18 AM | Comments (0) | Posted By Bob Cesca

February 11, 2005

Does Bush's quacking scare anyone else?

It's becoming quite clear that Mr. Bush has overestimated his power and accelerated his lame duck status. 45% approval. Little support for Social Security reform. Propaganda. Gannon. More torture. Rough confirmation hearings for Gonzales, Rice, and Chertoff. The Kerik debacle. Ignored 9/11 warnings. North Korea calling Bush's bluff. Credibility issues regarding an approach to Iran. A weird inaugural address that scared many on both sides of the ideological isle.

I'd really like to savor the slow-motion train wreck, but something's eating at me. Will the Bush administration allow itself to be crushed before it's really even begun its second term? The grand plans of Rove and the PNAC neocons have been decades in the making. Bush has taken up the mantle of "big ideas" and "big reforms" here and abroad, most of which are in keeping with those plans -- and none of which are possible with such a dismal (for them) array of problems. Will they really allow it all to crumble in a few short months without taking some sort of action?

And when I say "action", I mean something scary. Something that will rally the nation around Mr. Bush again. Here's to hoping I'm just being paranoid, but we all know what this crew is capable of when threatened. Let's just keep our eyes open. Impeachment, lame duck status, approvals in the 30s, and retaking the Congress in '06 are all possibilities. But a twinkle in the eye of Karl Rove could change all of it.

11:14 AM | Comments (5) | Posted By Bob Cesca

Bush approval sinks to 45%

Bubble Boy continues to drop according to the new AP Poll.

07:54 AM | Comments (0) | Posted By Bob Cesca

February 10, 2005

Lautenberg calls out Bushco

Gannongate continues as Senator Lautenberg writes to Scott McClellan demanding answers:

February 10, 2005
Scott McClellan
Press Secretary
The White House
Washington, DC 20500

Dear Mr. McClellan,

I am writing to request that you immediately release documents to my office relating to the White House press credentials of James D. Guckert, a.k.a. "Jeff Gannon." Specifically, I am seeking documentation related to the question of which name Mr. Guckert/Gannon used when applying for credentials, and which name was on the official White House press credentials he received. Additionally, I am seeking documents indicating whether Mr. Guckert/Gannon received a "hard pass" or daily passes from your office. Despite your assertions to the contrary, at least one White House reporter has revealed that Mr. Guckert/Gannon appeared to have "hard pass" credentials.

As you may know, Mr. Guckert/Gannon was denied a Congressional press pass because he could not show that he wrote for a valid news organization. Given the fact that he was denied Congressional credentials, I seek your explanation of how Mr. Guckert/Gannon passed muster for White House press credentials.

I have led the effort in the Senate to investigate a number of instances of troubling propaganda efforts by the Administration. The Government Accountability Office has agreed to my requests to investigate various attempts at media manipulation: fake television news stories touting both the new Medicare law and the "No Child Left Behind" education program; a study rating individual journalists on their "favorability" to Republican education policies; and the payment to journalist Armstrong Williams.

Since the Armstrong Williams controversy became public, Administration payments to two other journalists, Maggie Gallagher and Michael McManus, have come to light. Given the backdrop of these scandals, coupled with Mr. Guckert/Gannon's role in recent White House press briefings and press conferences, it is understandable that the circumstances of Mr. Guckert/Gannon's credentialing have raised suspicion.

Thank you for your cooperation.

Sincerely,
Frank R. Lautenberg

This has yet to fully break open. I'm also still curious about why Mr. Bush called on Gannon immediately after being questioned about propaganda in his 1/26/05 press conference. Coincidence or "seating order" doesn't cut it. "Freudian slip" is closer. And make no mistake... Gannon is a cretin of the worst kind, but he's only a pawn in a large scale GOP effort to completely subvert the media and the First Amendment.

07:31 PM | Comments (1) | Posted By Bob Cesca

GOP losing control; making insane threats

So the RNC is threatening TV stations that air the anti-privatization ads produced by MoveOn -- with revoking their FCC license! They really are shameless, these "freedom" and "liberty" advocates. USA Today:

The RNC's letter noted that the stations have a responsibility as holders of Federal Communications Commission licenses "to avoid broadcasting deliberate misrepresentations. ... This letter places you on notice that the information (in the ad) is false and misleading."

I would be more enraged by this latest action against free speech if it wasn't so desperate on their part. It's clear that the Republicans are losing control of the Social Security debate and their president has hastened his lame duck status.

What worries me is this: the PNAC neocons looking for another "Pearl Harbor" (their words, prior to 9/11) to rally support for their destructive policies. When politics fail, the neocons can always play a "war" or "attack" card and suddenly they're back in business.

01:22 PM | Comments (1) | Posted By Bob Cesca

Why did Bush block hijack reports?

The FAA received piles of reports in 2001 warning of Al Qaeda plane hijackings in the United States, but laughed them off. More bizarre, however, is the fact that the Bush administration blocked the release of those documents until just recently -- and even now, they're heavily redacted. The NY Times:

The Bush administration has blocked the public release of the full, classified version of the report for more than five months, officials said, much to the frustration of former commission members who say it provides a critical understanding of the failures of the civil aviation system. The administration provided both the classified report and a declassified, 120-page version to the National Archives two weeks ago and, even with heavy redactions in some areas, the declassified version provides the firmest evidence to date about the warnings that aviation officials received concerning the threat of an attack on airliners and the failure to take steps to deter it.

Full article here.

11:38 AM | Comments (2) | Posted By Bob Cesca

February 09, 2005

Some '08 speculation

I'm trying to resist the urge to look beyond 2006, but what say you about this ticket:

Hillary Clinton / Wes Clark

03:28 PM | Comments (24) | Posted By Bob Cesca

Gannon flashback: what a coincidence!

Another look at Bush's January 26 press conference reveals an interesting coincidence. Just after answering questions regarding the administration's propaganda machine, Bush immediately took a question from White House shill Jeff Gannon:

Q Mr. President, do you think it's a proper use of government funds to pay commentators to promote your policies?

THE PRESIDENT: No.

Q Are you going to order that --

THE PRESIDENT: Therefore, I will not pay you to -- (laughter.)

Q Fair enough. Are you ordering that there be an end to that practice?

THE PRESIDENT: Yes, I am. I expect my Cabinet Secretaries to make sure that that practice doesn't go forward. There needs to be independence. And Mr. Armstrong Williams admitted he made a mistake. And we didn't know about this in the White House, and there needs to be a nice, independent relationship between the White House and the press, the administration and the press. So, no, we shouldn't be going for it.

Yes, sir.

Q Well, Mr. Williams made a mistake --

THE PRESIDENT: Who?

Q Mr. Williams made a mistake. Did the Department of Education make a mistake?

THE PRESIDENT: Yes. They did.

Q What will happen to the people that made this decision?

THE PRESIDENT: We've got new leadership going to the Department of Education. But all our Cabinet Secretaries must realize that we will not be paying commentators to advance our agenda. Our agenda ought to be able to stand on its own two feet. I'm confident you'll be, over the course of the next four years, willing to give our different policies an objective look -- won't you? Yes, I can see that.

Yes, sir.

JEFF GANNON: Thank you. Senate Democratic leaders have painted a very bleak picture of the U.S. economy. Harry Reid was talking about soup lines, and Hillary Clinton was talking about the economy being on the verge of collapse. Yet, in the same breath, they say that Social Security is rock-solid and there's no crisis there. How are you going to work -- you said you're going to reach out to these people -- how are you going to work with people who seem to have divorced themselves from reality?

THE PRESIDENT: Continue to speak to the American people. Right after my State of the Union, I think I'm going to four or five states to continue to address this issue.

Clearly, just like McClellan, Gannon was used as an escape hatch for Mr. Bush. But don't you think Bush should've just said, "Speaking of propaganda, go ahead Gannon..."

02:56 PM | Comments (1) | Posted By Bob Cesca

Rep. Slaughter's letter regarding Gannon

Via dKos, we discover that NY representative Louise Slaughter is demanding an explanation from Mr. Bush regarding Jeff Gannon:

Wednesday, February 9, 2005

The Honorable George W. Bush
President of the United States
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue
Washington, DC 20500

Dear Mr. President:

In light of the mounting evidence that your Administration has, on several occasions, paid members of the media to advocate in favor of Administration policies, I feel compelled to ask you to address a matter brought to my attention by the Niagara Falls Reporter (article attached), a local newspaper in my district, regarding James "JD" Guckert (AKA Jeff Gannon) of Talon News.

According to several credible reports, "Mr. Gannon" has been repeatedly credentialed as a member of the White House press corps by your office and has been regularly called upon in White House press briefings by your Press Secretary Scott McClellan, despite the fact evidence shows that "Mr. Gannon" is a Republican political operative, uses a false name, has phony or questionable journalistic credentials, is known for plagiarizing much of the "news" he reports, and according to several web reports, may have ties to the promotion of the prostitution of military personnel.

Several weeks ago when it was revealed that radio/TV host Armstrong Williams had received payment from your Administration in exchange for his vocal support of the 'No Child Left Behind' initiative, I was stunned. For years now I have been leading the fight in Congress for fairness and accountability in the media; the Williams revelation only underscored the need for a media that has integrity, is balanced and expresses the local interests and concerns of its consumers.

Since that time, two more members of the media have been found to have received money from your Administration in exchange for their vocal, yet undisclosed support of Administration policies.

And just this morning we have learned that "Mr. Gannon" has resigned his post at the, so called, Talon News amid growing concerns over his controversial background and falsified qualifications. In fact, it appears that "Mr. Gannon's" presence in the White House press corps was merely as a tool of propaganda for your Administration.

Mr. President, I am sure we both agree the White House Press Corps is an honored institution in America that should be beyond the scope of partisan meddling, and that a free and independent media is the cornerstone of our success as a democracy. Likewise, I am sure we can both agree the American people have the right to expect that journalists who question their President everyday are experienced, independent, and perhaps most importantly, unbiased in their approach.

I was already concerned about what appears to be an organized campaign to mask partisan propaganda as legitimate news by your Administration. That we have now learned this same type of deception is occurring inside the White House briefing room itself is even more disturbing.

That is why I am asking you to please explain to the Congress and to the American people how and why the individual known as "Mr. Gannon" was repeatedly cleared by your staff to join the legitimate White House press corps?

Mr. President, your Administration has driven the so-called "values" debate in this country. But the most important value for those of us in public service should always be honesty and integrity, particularly when considering the manner in which we conduct our affairs of state.

I would appreciate your prompt response on this matter.

Respectfully,
Louise M. Slaughter
Ranking Member, House Committee on Rules

Even though Gannon has resigned and GOPUSA has removed many of his "articles", this thing is just getting started.

02:44 PM | Comments (1) | Posted By Bob Cesca

"Gannon" quits under pressure

I suppose the pressure of being exposed as a complete and total fraud, as well as a propaganda arm of the GOP disguised as a White House press corp reporter just became too much to handle. Via AmericaBlog:

Jeff Gannon A Voice of the New Media

The voice goes silent.

Because of the attention being paid to me I find it is no longer possible to effectively be a reporter for Talon News. In consideration of the welfare of me and my family I have decided to return to private life.

Thank you to all those who supported me.

Go here for a complete history of Gannongate.

12:01 PM | Comments (4) | Posted By Bob Cesca

February 07, 2005

Massive drop in veteran housing spending

Mr. Bush's 2006 budget is out, and as we've mentioned, the news isn't good for America's veterans (Bush's VA budget jpg). To wit:

The proposed spending for housing for veterans has been slashed from $1.9 billion to a ridiculous $65 million.

You Bush voters... Kindly remove those yellow ribbon magnets and petition your president to give our veterans what they deserve. Especially the 250,000 homeless veterans living in shelters and drainage culverts.

12:21 PM | Comments (2) | Posted By Bob Cesca

Cross "democracy" off the justification list?

With the near-certain victory of al-Sistani's faction in the Iraqi election, it's becoming quite clear that an Islamic theocracy will rise in Iraq. I wonder how democratic that will be when there's so many religious and secular factions in that nation. Vice President The Penguin doesn't even know:

Vice President Cheney, on Fox News Sunday, cautioned against jumping to conclusions about what kind of document Iraq's Transitional National Assembly will write. He indicated the United States plans a hands-off approach. "We need to step back a bit now," Cheney said. "The bottom line for everybody to remember here is, this is not going to be, you know, an Iraqi version of America. This is going to be Iraqi."

Full article at USA Today. Does this mean that a "free and democratic" Iraq is off the table? When even the bottom shelf war justification looks tenuous...

11:45 AM | Comments (0) | Posted By Bob Cesca

Bush Youth! Let the Thousand Years Reign

Broadcasting and Cable Newsletter has this editorial on a Knight Foundation report released last week found that three-quarters of American High School students had no idea what the First Amendment was. Further, one third thought it would be prudent if "journalists received prior approval from the government before they report anything".

Couple that with the one third of them who thought that news organizations need more restrictions on what they produce.

Chilling, no doubt - but heartening to the Fascists in power.

10:37 AM | Comments (8) | Posted By Jim Biederman

Bush cuts veteran benefits, hates the troops

Why break with tradition? Mr. Bush owes U.S. soldiers his career and he turns around and stabs them in the back. NY Times:

President Bush's budget would more than double the co-payment charged to many veterans for prescription drugs and would require some to pay a new fee of $250 a year for the privilege of using government health care, administration officials said Sunday.

In Michigan, for example, thousands of veterans are on waiting lists for medical services, and some reservists returning from Iraq say they have been unable to obtain the care they were promised. A veterans clinic in Pontiac, Mich., put a limit on new enrollment. Cutbacks at a veterans hospital in Altoona, Pa., are forcing some veterans to seek treatment elsewhere.

Everyone, including Bush's right-wing pundit apologists, should be asking today: "Why does the Bush administration hate the troops?" This flag-waving charade from the Republicans -- this myth that they're the party of patriotism and strong national defense -- is purely and simply a farce.

The Bush administration has shown zero respect for the soldiers they claim to hold so dear: whether they're blaming the troops for Al QaQaa and Abu Ghraib or sending them into battle without the armor they need or increasing their tours of duty without explanation. The Republicans view the troops as a meal ticket and nothing else. Expendable pawns in their endgame of permanent majority.

09:04 AM | Comments (1) | Posted By Bob Cesca

February 06, 2005

Ministry of Truth

This from FOX News on George Bush's proposed federal budget for 2006 (notice the use of language):

Bush designed the roughly $2.5 trillion spending plan for 2006 as a response to a string of record federal deficits. Among the programs slated for savings are Amtrak , environmental protections, American Indian schools, farmers' subsidies and Medicaid. [emphasis added]

Savings!?! Savings?!? In the good old days before the Fascists won, they used to be called budget cuts!

I guess it's true, I guess we have always been at war with Eurasia!

11:41 PM | Comments (1) | Posted By Jim Biederman

Bush Pushing Private Accounts Since 1978

In an interesting and telling LA Times article, the right wingnuts admit that what they really want to do is dismantle Social Security. As in the quote from Grover Norquist, Bubble Boy confidant and founder of the evil and corrupt Americans for Tax Reform:

Norquist acknowledged that for some conservative activists, including himself, the ultimate objective was to eventually replace traditional Social Security benefits with a system of individually owned accounts.

"If the left views the purpose of the New Deal as making older people dependent on politicians, then this will in fact undo the New Deal," Norquist said. "But if you view the New Deal as trying to give older people independence and dignity in retirement, then the president's reform provides that."

Sounds warm and fuzzy except that it is the most cynical spin on the truth. The New Deal (as it was started and exists even today) guarantees older people's dignity and independence through a pension system. Bush and the Right Wing's desire is to eliminate those guarantees and potentially eradicate older people's dignity and independence. And why not? They're old and useless anyway, right?

Don't think for a moment that fixing Social Security (which is not broken) is on the agenda. The agenda is to completely dismantle and destroy Social Security.

Bush has been pushing a privatization program for Social Security since his ill-fated run for congress in 1978. You know, before the made up crisis - and as this article discusses, it's more ideology than economics.

10:35 PM | Comments (0) | Posted By Jim Biederman

Bush to Single Mother - "Fantastic!"

This strange story via Atrios.

From the Washington Post:

Bush's fast-moving manner can make his listening skills appear suspect, Lahkani says. This point is bolstered during Bush's onstage "conversations."

In Omaha on Friday, a divorced single mother named Mary Mornin tells the president, "I have one child, Robbie, who is mentally challenged, and I have two daughters."

"Fantastic," the president exclaims, and he tells her she has "the hardest job in America, being a single mom."

Later, the 57-year old Mornin tells Bush that she works three jobs, which the president deems "uniquely American" and "fantastic." He asks her if she gets any sleep.

I just don't understand how this guy won?

08:22 PM | Comments (3) | Posted By Jim Biederman

The Planet Bowl

As the millionaires gather to play their ball game, I'm wondering where we'd be as a nation if we possessed as much regional pride and enthusiasm for our town's clean air and water as we have for (sorry, sportsfans) a globally irrelevant sports team.

Play ball!

06:36 PM | Comments (1) | Posted By Bob Cesca

Emporer's New Hump: Bulgegate continues

Remember that odd bulge under Bush's suit during the debates? Here's an interesting and disturbing chronicle of how the press killed the story before the election and allowed the White House to dispell the whole thing as a "conspiracy". Read more here.

01:59 PM | Comments (1) | Posted By Jim Biederman

White House fails on mercury regulation

Evidently the "culture of life" GOP demands more unwanted babies to be born... with diseases and birth defects.

The Bush administration overlooked health effects and sided with the electric industry in developing rules for cutting toxic mercury pollution, the Environmental Protection Agency's inspector general said Thursday.

Mercury from power plants settles in waterways and accumulates in fish. The toxic metal can cause neurological and developmental problems, particularly in fetuses and young children. It also is being studied for risks associated with cardiovascular diseases.

Full article.

10:53 AM | Comments (0) | Posted By Bob Cesca

Rush Limbaugh is a big fat racist

He just doesn't know when to shut the f**k up. The New York Times:

Limbaugh, who resigned from a short stint as an ESPN football commentator after the fallout from his comments about McNabb, jumped back into the fray last week. On his nationally syndicated radio show, he said, "There's no question McNabb has improved, and I'm happy to see it," before adding that the media were "still giving McNabb credit because there's this social hope."

What Rush may not know is that there's a social hope that he's tossed in prison on drug charges. There's a social hope that Rush will put his anal boil (his Vietnam deferment) where his mouth is and enlist for duty in Iraq.

02:19 AM | Comments (1) | Posted By Bob Cesca

What happens when the rich get tax cuts

Funding for the following items are slashed in Bush's budget, just so he can preserve his irresponsible tax cuts:

Grants to local law enforcement
SLASHED from $600 million to $60 million

Environmental protection
SLASHED by $450 million

Native American schools
SLASHED (or "Left Behind") by $100 million

Grants to local firefighters
SLASHED by $215 million

Funding for home-heating for the elderly
SLASHED by $200 million

The good news is that defense spending is getting a 4.8% hike. More ass-backwards Bush budget news here -- and the full budget hasn't even been released yet.

02:03 AM | Comments (17) | Posted By Bob Cesca