Updated: 7/1/08; 9:56:51 AM.
Patricia Thurston's Radio Weblog
        

Thursday, June 26, 2008

Conyers Asks DOJ Torture Lawyer: Could President Order Suspect Buried Alive?

David Addington is going to say as little as possible to the House Judiciary Committee today. The Vice President's chief of staff didn't submit testimony today or make an opening statement, and he successfully stonewalled the first round of questioning from subcommittee Chairman Jerrold Nadler (D-NY). He did submit 10 exhibits to the committee as evidence, but it's not yet clear what they consist of.

But then it was Chairman John Conyers (D-MI) turn to ask questions. And he went toe to toe with Yoo, the former DOJ attorney and torture-memo author extraordinaire.


<a href="http://www.pheedo.com/click.phdo?s=3c257c0d45014c7ae956eec8247a4f4a";><img alt="" style="border: 0;" border="0" src="http://www.pheedo.com/img.phdo?s=3c257c0d45014c7ae956eec8247a4f4a";/> <img src="http://www.pheedo.com/feeds/tracker.php?i=3c257c0d45014c7ae956eec8247a4f4a"; style="display: none;" border="0" height="1" width="1" alt=""/> - The Huffington Post News Editors [The Full Feed from HuffingtonPost.com]
12:40:44 PM    comment []

Will Evangelicals Ditch McCain?

COLUMBUS, Ohio — If Christian conservatives stay on the sidelines during the fall campaign, presidential hopeful John McCain probably stays in the Senate.

Christian conservatives provided much of the on-the-ground, door-to-door activity for President Bush's 2004 re-election in Ohio and in other swing states. Without them, the less-organized and lower-profile McCain campaign is likely to struggle to replicate Bush's success. And so far, there's been scant sign that the Republican nominee-in-waiting is making inroads among these fervent believers.

"I don't know that McCain's campaign realizes they cannot win without evangelicals," said David Domke, a professor of communication at the University of Washington who studies religion and politics. "What you see with McCain is just a real struggle to find his footing with evangelicals."

Family groups in Ohio outlined their doubts about the Arizona senator in a meeting with McCain's advisers last weekend. They're concerned about his record on abortion rights and on campaign finance laws that they believe limited their ability to criticize candidates who are pro-choice on abortion.

"There's certainly a little reservation about Mr. McCain. I think the VP choice is going to be important," said Chris Long, president of the Ohio Christian Alliance. "If they choose a conservative for the VP, that will help his campaign. It would go a long way of sending a positive message to evangelicals."

Marlys Popma, McCain's director of evangelical outreach, was one of two aides who met with the forum and reminded them of McCain's record supporting school choice while opposing abortion rights and Internet pornography. She said the campaign understands the interest in the vice presidential nominee, but she noted that McCain "is the one who is going to be nominating judges. He's going to be the one who is signing or not signing bills."

"John McCain is their guy," Popma said. "John McCain's record is what will bring individuals to him. I think there are some people out there who do not know John McCain's record."

McCain's senior aides try to downplay the fissure with this part of the GOP's base. They say their internal polling data suggests McCain has the support of three-quarters of white evangelicals in swing states, slightly less than Bush finished with. They also stress that McCain is against abortion rights, even if it's not the centerpiece of his campaign.

McCain, who identifies himself as Episcopalian and attended Baptist services last weekend, has done himself no favors. He appeared ignorant of high-profile figures, especially as he sought _ and then was forced to reject _ the support from Ohio's Rod Parsley and Texas' John Hagee after their controversial sermons brought the candidate unwanted criticism.

MCCAIN HAS A DIRECTOR OF EVANGELICAL OUTREACH???

"That was one of the most ill-advised faith and values adventures this campaign," said Jacques Berlinerblau, a religious scholar at Georgetown University who studies faith and the U.S. presidential campaign.

It gave religious conservatives yet another reason not to like McCain, even though he has sought a truce this time after calling televangelists Pat Robertson and Jerry Falwell "agents of intolerance" during his first presidential run.

"It's hard to believe he's really changed, from his absolute disregard and disdain for the traditional guard of the religious right," Domke said.

Republican Ken Blackwell, Ohio's former secretary of state, coordinated Bush's campaign in the state and built a strong ground game from Christian conservatives. He said he appreciates McCain's bluntness but doesn't think it's helping him with the base.

"He has never identified with the evangelical and Christian movement and therefore he can, at times, misread or misinterpret certain activities in the political field of play or certain comments that are offered," said Blackwell, now at the Family Research Council, a conservative think tank. "I personally would like for John to get to the point of comfort with some of our issues and policy positions, through understanding and genuine acceptance."

High-emotion ballot initiatives banning gay marriage in 11 states helped drive conservatives to the polls in 2004. Ohio's ban helped give Bush a win by energizing the party's base in a state that every successful Republican presidential candidate has won. But only two states proposed such bans this year: Florida, a swing state, and California, which has been an easy win for Democrats in recent years.

One of the more influential figures among Christian conservatives, James Dobson, told listeners to his popular Focus on the Family radio program this week that Obama's religious views are problematic. Yet Dobson continued to vent about McCain, who has not been a vocal supporter of Arizona's state ban on gay marriage.

"This is a year when we have a lot of frustration with both political parties," Dobson said Tuesday.

Domke's research suggests Obama could lose big among older evangelicals, particularly elite faith-based activists, who take their cues from Dobson.

Bob Heckman, who leads McCain's outreach to conservatives, said voters will see clear differences _ and McCain's values better dovetail with their views than do Obama's, he added.

"Part of our job is to remind them they're down to a binary choices," Heckman said.

But Dobson has not backed off his statement that he could not in good conscience vote for McCain and has suggested he might not cast a presidential ballot.

"A lot of evangelicals would rather take a defeat than to vote for a candidate they don't trust," Domke said. "A Republican defeat, particularly McCain's defeat, would help their movement."

Although the Arizona Republican's advisers privately worry about rejection by the religious right, McCain's campaign lacks the faith-based savvy of Bush's campaigns. McCain skipped the Southern Baptist Convention Annual Meeting, a gathering that Bush addressed by video in 2004. Unlike Bush, whose campaign also threw a private reception at that meeting, McCain didn't even bother sending aides.

Meanwhile, Obama's campaign is aggressively reaching out to evangelicals.

The Illinois senator dispatched former 9/11 Commission member Tim Roemer to meet with fellow Roman Catholics. He sent Brian McLaren, one of the country's most influential pastors, to meet with fellow evangelicals. And aides have conducted more than 200 "American Values Forums," soon to be followed up with house parties and town hall-style meetings aimed at young Catholics and young evangelicals.

Obama's strategy isn't aimed at outpolling McCain among evangelicals.

"Obama knows he can't win (among evangelicals)," said Berlinerblau, who wrote "Thumpin' It: The Use and Abuse of the Bible in Today's Presidential Politics."

"If he can get up for 21 to 30 percent, he's gold," Berlinerblau said. "And that's exactly what he's doing. He's going to fissure off this progressive evangelical voter."


<a href="http://www.pheedo.com/click.phdo?s=8d505f8e75313ec27840b3484992bf93";><img alt="" style="border: 0;" border="0" src="http://www.pheedo.com/img.phdo?s=8d505f8e75313ec27840b3484992bf93";/> <img src="http://www.pheedo.com/feeds/tracker.php?i=8d505f8e75313ec27840b3484992bf93"; style="display: none;" border="0" height="1" width="1" alt=""/> - The Huffington Post News Editors [The Full Feed from HuffingtonPost.com]
12:35:16 PM    comment []

Flashback: As Governor, Bush Said, ‘Why Should I Care About North Korea?’.

bushamb.gifToday, President Bush announced that North Korea has turned over a statement describing its nuclear program, prompting Bush to lift sanctions and rescind its designation as a state sponsor of terror. The news is a step [base ']Äútoward reintegration into the world community and rapprochement with the United States,[base ']Äù the New York Times observed.

But the developments come after seven wasted years by the Bush administration. In his book, State of Denial, Bob Woodward reported that in a conversation between then-Gov. George W. Bush and former Saudi ambassador Prince Bandar, Bush wondered why North Korea even mattered:

George W. pulled Bandar aside.
“Bandar, I guess you’re the best asshole who knows about the world. Explain to me one thing.”
“Governor, what is it?”
“Why should I care about North Korea?”

Bandar said he didn’t really know. It was one of the few countries that he did not work on for King Fahd.
I get these briefings on all parts of the world,” Bush said, “and everybody is talking to me about North Korea.”

Through aggressive diplomacy, President Clinton reached the Agreed Framework in 1994, under which North Korea agreed to freeze nuclear production for the next eight years. In 2001, Secretary of State Colin Powell said the administration will [base ']Äúpick up where President Clinton left off.[base ']Äù But Bush objected to returning to Clinton’s diplomatic approach. A quick recap of what followed:

January 2002: Bush labels North Korea a member of the [base ']ÄúAxis of Evil.[base ']Äù

December 2003. Vice President Cheney: “We don’t negotiate with evil; we defeat it.”

April 2005: North Korea appears to unload nuclear reactor with up to another 15 kg of weapons-grade plutonium.

October 2006: North Korea tests nuclear bomb.

The Bush White House accused Clinton of sending “flowers and chocolates” and instead took Cheney[base ']Äôs hard line. In fact, Bush once shouted to Woodward, [base ']ÄúI loathe Kim Jong Il![base ']Äù and mocked the dictator at a dinner with senators, calling him a [base ']Äúpygmy.” In the meantime, North Korea continued to acquire greater nuclear ability.

Today, the Bush administration still refuses to use similar diplomacy with Iran. As blogger Steve Clemons noted, [base ']ÄúWe ‘engaged’ North Korea and blew it with Iran.[base ']Äù

[Think Progress]
11:55:19 AM    comment []

Addington: Vice President Isn’t Part Of Executive Branch, ‘Attached’ To Legislative.

In a protracted battle with the National Archives last year, Vice President Dick Cheney sought to avoid submitting records to the archives by claiming that the office of the vice president is not part of the executive branch. During today’s House Judiciary Committee hearing, Cheney’s chief of staff David Addington reasserted that position, declaring the vice president’s office to be a separate entity that “attached” to the legislative branch:

REP. STEVE COHEN (D-TN): Mr. Addington, what branch are we in?

ADDINGTON: Sir, perhaps the best that can be said is that the vice president belongs neither to the executive nor to the legislative branch, but is attached by the constitution to the latter. […]

COHEN: So he’s a member of the legislative branch?

ADDINGTON: No I said he’s attached to the latter.

Watch it:

The assertion is ridiculous. President Bush and Cheney have themselves repeatedly tied the office of the President and Vice President together in the executive branch, not to mention the White House and the Senate websites. In fact, there is video showing Cheney lauding the strength of the vice presidency, asserting that “the vice president[base ']Äôs become an important part of the administration of the executive branch“:

Screenshot
<script type="text/javascript"> var flvvpexectshor32024025304 = new SWFObject('/wp-content/plugins/flvplayer.swf?file=http://video.thinkprogress.org/2007/06/vpexectshor.320.240.flv&;autoStart=false', 'em-flvvpexectshor32024025304', '320', '260', '6', '#ffffff'); flvvpexectshor32024025304.addParam('quality', 'high'); flvvpexectshor32024025304.addParam('wmode', 'transparent'); flvvpexectshor32024025304.write('flvvpexectshor32024025304'); </script>

In fact, in 2001 Cheney sought to avoid a lawsuit over his energy task force by claiming that a congressional probe “would unconstitutionally interfere with the functioning of the executive branch.”

Despite Politico’s Mike Allen’s claim that, last June, Addington and Cheney were “throwing in the towel on the claim that the vice president is distinct from the executive branch,” the next month Cheney continued to insist that the Vice President’s office is a “unique creature.”

[Think Progress]
11:48:01 AM    comment []

Blackwater affiliate company urges use of Sharia law in American court..

[base ']ÄúTo defend itself against a lawsuit by the widows of three American soldiers who died on one of its planes in Afghanistan,[base ']Äù a sister company of Blackwater is asking an American federal court to apply Islamic law, known as Sharia. The lawsuit “is governed by the law of Afghanistan,” Presidential Airways argued in a Florida federal court. “Afghan law is largely religion-based and evidences a strong concern for ensuring moral responsibility, and deterring violations of obligations within its borders.” But when it comes to Iraq, Blackwater has fought aggressively for immunity from Iraqi law.

[Think Progress]
11:32:17 AM    comment []

Addington Clashes With Democrats As Torture Hearing Starts. David Addington, Vice President Cheney’s chief of staff, has started a testy duel with Democrats on the House Judiciary Committee. Watch the hearings. Addington, appearing cocky and not in the least intimidated by the congressional inquisitors, denied that he played a key role in drafting an Aug. 2002 memo on interrogation techniques that could be used on [...] [CommonDreams.org » Headlines07]
10:52:17 AM    comment []

General Taguba Knew Torture Scandal Went to the Top.

    Tony Taguba knew something about prisoners in wartime long before the Pentagon ordered him to investigate the torture and shameful mistreatment of Iraqi detainees revealed by those soldier photographs taken inside Abu Ghraib prison.

read more

[Truthout - All Articles]
10:23:33 AM    comment []

The Nuclear Expert Who Never Was.

As a former U.N. weapons inspector, Scott Ritter knows a thing or two about nuclear threats around the world. So when so-called “experts” go on T.V. to help make the case for war with Iran, it gets his attention.

READ THE WHOLE ITEM

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9:52:46 AM    comment []

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