Dear George: Your Presidency is a Warning Beacon for the Ages

There's a neat web site, at Goodbye.us, where people can post their heartfelt letters to George Bush. I didn't think I'd have anything to post, but, of course, finally did:

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Dear Former President Bush:

I really have little to say to you anymore. It's time to focus on the future and the only thing I care about from you in the future is to resist your inevitable attempts at historical rewrites.

Instead, your Presidency should serve as a warning beacon to future politicians to shun lying the country into war, not to deregulate wildly, to govern by uniting and not dividing, to embrace science over fantasy, to avoid politicizing the Justice Dept (at least), to help the people in their need (Katrina).

If we let you rewrite, gloss over and falsify these last eight years, you turn off the beacon. Your ideological heirs could run us up on the rocks again.

Looking forward, I know you and your operatives will seek to rewrite history to try and etch your false version of events in stone. You're going to find this to be pretty difficult because your record was so bad and those us who had to live through this will not let you succeed at your revisionism.

I do hope you are held to account for the laws you have broken.

I'm very happy our nation is finally free of your reign.

A national debate about a nation following the law

Glenn Greenwald marshals evidence and logic to show the absurdity of our national debate over investigating, and possibly trying, Bush-Cheney officials for torture. This post has many helpful links for online debate.

Combine press reports of approval of torture techniques at the highest level of government, with US signed and approved treaties binding us to prosecute torture, and it's clear that the law compels us to act.

The default judgment should be that we follow the law and investigate reports of torture. Wouldn't we investigate murder? It speaks poorly of us as a nation that following the law is viewed as a fringe perspective.

We must investigate the torture record and prosecute the wrongdoers.

We do Obama a disservice by withholding policy criticisms

Watching Sunday morning news shows, catching up on Josh's updates from last night's post, and seeing some of the debates I've been in here, it seems we need a better debate and understanding of the benefits and perils of criticizing our new President.

Josh's update makes the point:

If Nate's right about what Obama's plan is, having people pushing for something better from the outside is part of it. So under either scenario, holding your tongue makes no sense, in addition to being unethical.

Adrian Fenty, on Meet the Press just now praised the Obama economic recovery plan, saying it's just what we need. It's nice to be positive, but that's not entirely true.

The truth is that the Obama plan is a damn good start toward what we need, but it's not big enough for the problem we face. So, if we all run around muting any criticism then the Obama Recovery Plan will have fewer voices trying to make it better.

It's likely that Obama and his team have judged they will have a larger plan in the end if they start low to get bargained higher rather than starting high and getting knocked down. There's some logic there.

But if we limit our roles to a choir praising anything he does, we will be doing him a disservice. We can help with spreading the word on the depth of the Bush crater Obama and Congress need to fill. By remaining involved, remaining active, and not adopting partisan fictions around our Leader's greatness, we can help create the policy environment to make President Obama a huge historical success.

Of course, we should remember to keep the disagreements to policy.

Republicans still in the driver's seat?

You have to hope there's a grand play at work in the economic recovery plan. Josh Marshall notes:

And yet the desire to get a substantial number of Republicans to vote for the bill appears to be having a big impact on the proposal's size and shape. Quite likely, leaving it too small and too tilted toward tax cuts to get the job done.

Paul Krugman and others have shown the current plans for the stimulus are not keeping up with the growing crater left by Republican policies. As Krugman shows, economic output is down by 8% but plans will only cover 3%.

We're hemorrhaging 1/2 million jobs per month now - but the Republicans are obsessed with defending their ideology and the Democrats are obessessing with pleasing Republicans.

Hopefully, that's not all there is to the plan.

Obama Scores Big With Justice and CIA Appointments

President-Elect Obama delivers change and a new course for our nation with today's notice of appointments.

Leon Panetta at CIA will bring an established leader with the power to take control of an agency badly tarnished by Bush corruption and embrace of torture.

The appointment of Dawn Johnsen at the Justice Department's Office of Legal Counsel is a very hopeful sign. From this office John Yoo wrote memos helping Bush and Cheney introduce torture. Johnsen's writings on this and other subjects have been spot-on and properly outraged.

The rule of law -- returning to America!

Bravery in opposing torture

Okay, now I am happy to speak out against torture and torture-enabling policies and ideas.

But, Matthew Alexander lays it on the line. He actually was an interrogator in Iraq, did the job humanely and with better results than the "Dark Side" devotees. The Pentagon is trying to censor him and he's fighting back.

And, he says stuff like this:

My experiences have landed me in the middle of another war -- one even more important than the Iraq conflict. The war after the war is a fight about who we are as Americans. Murderers like Zarqawi can kill us, but they can't force us to change who we are. We can only do that to ourselves. One day, when my grandkids sit on my knee and ask me about the war, I'll say to them, "Which one?"

Barack Obama holds out a lot of hope that we can put this morally corrupt period behind us.

Thanks for everything

It's Thanksgiving Day, 2008 and I am amazed at the things to be thankful for. My family, my wife, and a rewarding life.

And, my previous kvetching posts aside, I am thankful everyday for the Obama Presidency that awaits around the corner. Obama is a man of talent we're fortunate to have as a leader.

And the dog. How couldn't I be thankful for the pooch?

(And Sarah Palin!)

Happy Thanksgiving!

Change is slow at DoD

So, now the report is that President-Elect Obama will likely re-appoint Bush Secreary of Defense Robert Gates. After what we've seen so far, this is starting to get alarming.

Sure, this is the Bush-Cheney Pentagon that Obama is taking over. It needs work. There's the whole issue of declining US power and influence and continued risk of violent terrorism. And we know the Bush-Cheney Pentagon has been involved in all manner of scandal; torture, anti-Constitutional practices at Guantanamo Bay; waste, fraud, abuse with taxpayer funds and war profiteering. Oh, and where's Osama?

So, if President Obama needs to have a short transition period at Defense with Gates while fighting the economic battles at home, I could live with it. If this is what it takes to bring the Bush-Cheney military under civilian control of a different sort, perhaps we need to do it. (Though the military does have an oath and obligation to the Constitution to follow civilian authority).

Let's consider though, if Obama is going this far to include Republicans, how far will he go to include liberals? I mean, so far we've had the Lieberman bailout he brokered, the record Citigroup bailout his new Treasury signed off on, the increasingly possible return of Clinton Triangulation, and a hawk at Secretary of State.

Here's hoping that the new politics President Elect Obama will display also include a rejection of the typical Democratic “scorn the base” approach, used by Clinton and his followers. We can have hope, at least, and perhaps the deeds.

So much for Change we can believe in

Joe Lieberman was a terrible Chair of the Senate Homeland Security Committee. He held no hearings on the many abuses and corrupt acts by the Bush Administration in regards to "homeland security," Katrina, war on terror, etc.

There is a very real likelihood that he will use the seat now to stick pins and needles into Obama-Biden and cause Republican mischief. There is no mention I can find in press reports that Lieberman has changed anything in his approach. His first public statement was denial.

There's no change here, as Obama promised the American people. Instead, Obama protected Lieberman!

Then there's the question of the Democratic passion to stick it to their base to show the Villagers they are worthy of a pat on the head. Progressive Democrats must be independent of the official Dem party. That means giving contrbutions to MoveOn and DFA and not a dime for the DSCC.

Let's do that again

That was a beautiful election. People from all walks of life in our country came out to vote for Obama-Biden. And when they won, people all over the world celebrated.

We will need to maintain activism for the progressive agenda and, unfortunately, to fight back against the big business opposition. For now, this time is for celebrating.

It's time to campaign (for a mandate)

I'm spending less time at the keyboards and more time at the doors and on the streets campaigning. It's beautiful fall weather for campaigning.

Please help out in this election. A larger margin of victory for Obama will position his agenda of change well. The Republicans and forces of the status quo will try to "Clintonize" Obama and obstruct. We must not allow that because President Obama will need a strong mandate for change to overcome Republican obstructionism.

Further, the deeper we bury Republicans in this election, the greater their disarray, their infighting, their disrepute. Bury `em deep! They'll be digging themselves out longer.

If you want to know how to get started, the Obama web site is a great organizing tool. Check it out, find something that works for you, and just pitch in.

For Victory!

John McCain is losing it

Wow. Just wow. John McCain is losing it!

John McCain, Ringleader of the Keating Five

John McCain associated with, and abetted, a financial confidence man convicted of fraud, racketeering, and conspiracy. Bailing out the investors in Keating's company cost U.S. Taxpayers billions of dollars.

This, however, is directly relevant to our current events and lives, unlike the Ayers opposition research attack.

Let's talk about Charles Keating and John McCain, the Keating Five and the the Savings and Loan scandal. Why should a Senator reprimanded for his involvement with convicted financial felons be trusted with this financial scandal?

Biden Sails Past Palin

Well, that was not as painful a Vice Presidential debate as I expected.

On style, Sarah Palin was only really painfully awkward a couple times. She proved she could loosely string together talking points to make it seem like she was engaging in debate.

But... she embraced Dick Cheney's looney "fourth branch" theories of the Vice Presidency. She repeatedly and falsely accused Joe Biden of lying. She embraced Bush and McCain. She got the name of the commander in Afghanistan wrong and stubbornly lied about his opposition to a surge in Afghanistan.

Joe Biden knocked it out of the park. He demonstrated mastery of the issues with passion for doing the right thing.

And Biden took McCain apart. Not a Maverick on health care, on Iraq, on education. Nice riff! And the Obama-Biden campaign backs it up.

Palin could show she could talk without complete embarassment for an hour and a half. Biden showed that the Obama-Biden campaign is ready to lead America back to international respect, back to economic solvenccy and ahead to great environmental security.

Making up some serious allegations

Picking Sarah Palin for VP was a bad joke.

The McCain-Palin campaign clarified Gov. Sarah Palin’s (R-AK) remark from last week that “Putin rears his head and comes into the airspace of the United States of America.” The campaign told CBS News, “Russian incursions…inside the air defense identification zone have occurred.” But as the Associated Press reports today, no such incursions have occurred ‘in recent years’:

The air defense identification zone, almost completely over water, extends 12-mile past the perimeter of the United States. … However, no Russian military planes have been flying even into that zone, said Maj. Allen Herritage, a spokesman for the Alaska region of the North American Aerospace Defense Command, at Elmendorf Air Force Base. “To be very clear, there has not been any incursion in U.S. airspace in recent years,” Herritage said.


They should have her well-trained in the dark arts of deflection by tomorrow night. McSame has been focusing his staff on getting her ready.

She's pulling the campaign down. Bad choice, McCain. Thanks.

McCain will soon go really negative, start inventing new Republican victimizations to be outraged over.

Reach for the anchor

Bush's popularity is at 22%.
70% of the American people - a new record - disapprove.

Republicans are drowning. Quick, someone throw them an anchor.

Introducing the Obama-Biden Ticket

This, my friends, is a good ticket. Joe Biden strengthens the ticket in so many ways. He has depth of experience, he has a barbed wit that will skewer BBQ McSame through Election Day, and Joe Biden has a no bullshit sincerity that appeals to folks.

Listening to their introductory speeches was inspiring and motivating. I cranked up the sounds and opened up my windows.

We can win this in November, if we get involved and turnout the vote for the Obama-Biden ticket!

Only John McCain Can Talk About His POW Experience (Unless You're Praising Him)

Remember! McCain "doesn't like to talk about when he was a POW"!

He hates doing that! Honest John is shooting you straight when he says he "doesn't like to talk about when he was a POW."

He hasn't just done it at the Saddleback Church! A man with such fortitude and character as John McCain wouldn't have prepared remarks talking up how he was a POW. John McCain sure wouldn't make a campaign video of his capture by the North Vietnamese , because he doesn't want to talk about it!

When the media keep repeating something over and over again, you know it must be true!

All you Republicans now join in on the mass deceit! Bleat along with Republicans: "John McCain hates talking about being a POW!"

But wait! McCain, his campaign and surrogates do talk about being a POW, all the friggin' time! Maybe he just has no self-control? just what we want to hear about a hothead!

Well, just because John McCain talks about his POW experience as the reason he should be President, doesn't mean we can! After all, McCain needs this narrative to be written in stone.

CNN Listing Badly to the Right

CNN continues to make a mockery of its lost journalistic stature. Add this entry to the database of examples of CNN narrowing our nation's debate, lowering standards and pandering to the right wing.

On This Week in Politics today CNN featured views ranging from the near-right wing to the far-right wing. From Iraq apologist Michael O'Hanlon to war advocate Robert Kagan. These are the only views CNN considers worth being heard. Nice.

See the gruesome video for yourself at Crooks and Liars. Michael O'Hanlon seems deferential and fawning toward Robert Kagan, of the war mongering, but never war fighting, Kagan family.

Who is the juvenile here?

With their ads calling Barack Obama a "celebrity," making fun of properly inflating car tires and overall childish playground taunts, the McCain Campaign is looking more and more juvenile.

But are the people behind the ad juvenile? I doubt it. The juvenile nature of their campaign reflects their insulting view of the electorate.

How dumb do they think we are?