The NSA - and Mr. Bush - Needs to Read the U.S. Constitution

Did all of you catch the huge gaffe - and not just a gaffe, really since it indicates the level to which they'll go to try to suppress the actual wording of the U.S. Constitution - where Michael Hayden of the NSA insists that the Fourth Amendment does NOT have a probable cause provision for searches and seizures? He insisted that if there was ONE part of the Constitution the NSA knows better than anyone else, it was the Fourth.

Yup.

From Brad Blog (guest blogged by David Edwards):

Prior to the Feb. 6th Senate Judiciary hearing on the NSA's Domestic Spying program, the Bush Administration is rushing to frame the debate. Most of the talk has amounted to little more than political spin.

Principal Deputy Director of National Intelligence, Gen. Michael Hayden lead the PR blitz by taking questions from reporters at The National Press Club on Monday. The General confirmed to NSA expert James Bamford and Jonathan Landay with Knight Ridder that a feature of the NSA program was the lowering of the legal standard from 'probable cause' to 'reasonably believe' (a.k.a. 'reasonable suspicion') -- which would avoid the FISA Law requirements.

Besides showing that he had a limited understanding of the Fourth Amendment, Hayden's assertion of the Constitutionality of lowering the 'probable cause' standard has troubled many. This Kos diary calls the admission "explosive and damning"

Rick Santorum Exposed

OK, the idea of him exposed is a little creepy.

But Santorum Exposed also details Rick Santorum's complete hypocrisy (which does not begin to do justice to his arrogant behavior) on K Street corruption and other matters.

Corruption Digest

David Sirota - if you don't happen to catch him regularly - has been chronicling much of the lobbyist/kickback/sleezy deals in his Corruption Digest over at Working for Change's blog.

It's worth a read. The most recent installment is on Rick "Man on Dog and Republicans on Everything They Can" Santorum's efforts to distance himself from the K Street lobbying scandal, which is a hoot considering Rick regularly commutes on a Wal-Mart jet and used to regularly show up along with Tom DeLay at the K Street sleeze breakfast events.

Sorry about the Paucity of Posts

Work, a six-year-long Bush depression, hardware issues, and a bitch editor from hell have kept me elsewhere. But I'm sadly not joking about the depression.

That we're hearing Bush is doing better in polls right now as he shits on human rights and smirks his way through ripping up the US Constitution and Bill of Rights is honestly getting to me in a way that's hard to imagine. But as much as he bothers me, I'd like to kick some sense (since their anus is clearly the orifice from which they shat their brains a long time ago) into the Bush toadies and even the non toadies who are still clapping for the man.

I'd also like to propose that all these people get forcibly drafted into our war with Iran. You know, the one that won't be a crusade against Muslims even though it's the third Muslim country in a row we've gone in and tried to waste. But Iran isn't quite the country in decline that Iraq was after our sanctions really did wear down so much of the Iraqis. Iran's going to kick ass and it's going to be apparent even to the most fervent Bush apologistas that Bush is on a crusade to puff up his chest while he tries to wipe out every Muslim who isn't doing dirty oil business with his family. Oh, Bush doesn't really believe in all that religious crap. It's an act he bought as true. A few people mistook him for a God-scent King and he's eager to "raise" himself to their expectations.

Of course, it's easy to huff and puff when you aren't sacrificing your sons or daughters. And neither of Bush's kids, or his eight immediate nieces and nephews is doing anything but bar hopping, doing illegal drugs openly but don't face the sanctions you do (in fact, taxpayers pay for the Secret Service to cover up for them), and having rather profiglate sex, sometimes in public, while the Righteous Wrongies pretend that since the kids are in nice clothes, they aren't skanks and sleezes.

My time in advertising (brief) taught me one thing: don't buy the package. :)

Today's Bush Conference "Mechanic Flaw"?

Well, yes, the microphone hanging down was the problem.

But the egregious mechanical flaw, of course, is Bush himself.

He is driving me mad with all the smirking and strange huffing and puffing with all his speeches telling us it's his God given right to commit any atrocity he wants.

Dudlee

Contact me - there's an educational publisher you may want to contact.

Abramoff Billed $25K to a Client for Lunch with the President

The White House's response?

"So?"

Actually, there was quite a testy exchange with White House press spokesweasel last week in which McClellan said it was not his job to tell the press what the White House did wrong, it was the press' job to learn what had been done wrong and then ask him questions about it. Novel idea since McClellan isn't paid by Bush and company but by the American taxpayers, true for most of Weaselton... er. Washington.

The Republican talking heads all say this isn't a GOP problem because Abramoff gave money across the board.

But that last part is hardly an accurate portrayal. One report says that for every dollar a Dem got from the ultra-wealthy lobbyist, GOPers got more than $1,000.

They also ignore the fact that under Tom DeLay, Dem lobbyists were pretty much forced to be fired. Any lobbying agency that had a Dem worker was told to hide them away because only GOP lobbyists were welcome. Tom also supposed had breakfast with K Street lobbying groups every week to give them a list of demands for what he and his people wanted. Under DeLay, he all but told staffers that if they expected to be paid, they needed to ask Jack or his cronies to write a check.