Day: March 12, 2006

Bush’s Chief Domestic Policy Advisor Resigns to Spend More Time With His Family — Scamming Target

Trish

If, unlike my friend Cathy, you haven’t been involved with exposing abstinence education for the evil, judgmental, pregnancy- and STD-producing sham that it is, the name Claude Allen might not mean that much to you.

On the other hand, it should.

Claude, also hailed as the New Clarence Thomas, was until recently George Bush’s chief domestic policy advisor. Shortly after Democrats blocked Allen’s nomination for an appeals court judgeship, Bush appointed him to his staff. Bill Berkowitz summed Allen up nicely.

“The man was then seen selecting merchandise throughout the store and placing items in the Target bag…The man then went to guest services where he produced a receipt and received a refund for the items he had just selected from the store shelves.

Careerwise, Claude Allen has come a long way from honing his political chops as the first African American aide to Jesse Helms, North Carolina’s long-time rabid right wing Senator. But he hasn’t moved very far from the politics or ideology of his former boss…Now, after nearly four years serving as Tommy Thompson’s Deputy Secretary at the Department of Health and Human Services, Allen has been promoted…

In a recent piece for the LA Weekly, veteran journalist Doug Ireland described Allen as “a notorious homophobe, a ferocious enemy of abortion and an opponent of safe-sex education who for years has been one of the AIDS community’s principal enemies.” Allen is also an outspoken opponent of abortion, even in cases of rape or incest, and a champion of abstinence-only sex education programs.

When Allen announced his resignation last month — citing the old chestnut about spending more time with his family — speculation was far and wide but not even Wonkette could anticipate the ridiculous reality.

It’s possible Allen left on his own accord, but the abruptness makes it rather unlikely. We have no clue, actually, why the hell he’d be forced out, especially now, when one might think Bush would want to refocus on “morality” in preparation for a midterm election which has thus far looked pretty lousy for the party…

But hell. He’s a morality-issues Christian-right Republican. So he’s probably a drug-addicted gambling gay adulterer with illegitimate children. But if anyone has proof (or a different theory, or idle speculation), we’re dying to hear it.

Oh, so close! But truth is stranger than fiction, Wonkette.

[…]

Justice O’Connor Warns of Dictatorship under GOP

Jon Ponder

Dictatorships flourish when governments are allowed to interfere with the judiciary, she says.

NPR’s Nina Totenberg reported on Friday that retired Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor has launched a fusillade against against the leadership of her own party over the issue of judicial reform. In a speech at George Washington University, O’Connor said that Republicans have incited violence against judges and that their efforts to dismantle the independent judiciary are the first steps in the path toward dictatorship.

O’Connor prohibited audio or video recording when she spoke last Thursday, March 9, 2006, so all we have is a transcript of Totenberg’s report on Friday’s Morning Edition:

[…]

Feingold to Introduce Censure of Bush on Illegal Wiretaps

Jon Ponder

Sen. Russ Feingold (D – Wisconsin) has just announced on ABC’s “This Week” that will introduce a censure of President Bush tomorrow over the NSA illegal domestic wiretapping program.

Just found this on Raw Story.

Update: ABC has details:

In an exclusive interview on “This Week with George Stephanopoulos,” Democratic Sen. Russ Feingold called on the Senate to publicly admonish President Bush for approving domestic wiretaps on American citizens without first seeking a legally required court order.

“This conduct is right in the strike zone of the concept of high crimes and misdemeanors,” said Feingold, D-Wis., a three-term senator and potential presidential contender.

He said President Bush had, “openly and almost thumbing his nose at the American people,” continued the NSA domestic wiretap program.

Frist! Frist! Frist!

Jon Ponder

Sen. Dr. Bill Frist of Tennessee, the Republican Majority Leader, won the presidential straw poll at the GOP frat party this weekend in Memphis — yes, that Memphis, the one in Tennessee.

Senator Frist won with 37 percent of the total vote and it was a great display of Party unity and grassroots energy for 06.

Second place went to Gov. Mitt Romney of Massachusetts, and Sen. Bill Allen of Virginia was third. Sen. John McCain of Arizona, the nominal frontrunner, came in fourth.

I hope the Republicans nominate Dr. Frist in 2008. Democrats would have a field day over his involvement in the Terri Schiavo matter, when he diagnosed imminent recovery for a woman who’d been brain dead for almost 20 years — by viewing her on videotape.

Frist’s main problem is he is a Bush stooge who was annointed majority leader by the White House political office in 2002 when Sen. Trent Lott flamed out. The Bush presidency is going to be a long slo-mo train wreck from here on out, and the next Republican nominee will have no choice be to run away from the Bush presidency.

Frist has been complicit with President Bush by using his leadership position to rubberstamp the the administration’s failed policies. Bush wouldn’t have been able to get away with dereliction of duty on Katrina, illegal domestic spying and going to war based on a pack of lies without Dr. Frist’s enabling.

Here’s an email Frist sent to supporters this morning:

The Southern Republican Leadership Conference in Memphis this weekend was a tremendous success. With over 1800 people representing 26 states, 19 speakers and a number of very interesting seminars, VOLPAC was happy to participate in this Republican Party building activity.

Thought you would also be interested to know that Hotline conducted the first straw poll for the 08 Presidential Primary and Senator Frist won with 37 percent of the total vote and it was a great display of Party unity and grassroots energy for 06.

Run, Bill, run!