A WHITE HOUSE privacy board…..that kinda says it all, doesn’t it?

WASHINGTON - A White House privacy board is giving its stamp of approval to two of the Bush administration’s controversial surveillance programs - electronic eavesdropping and financial tracking - and says they do not violate citizens’ civil liberties.

Democrats newly in charge of Congress quickly criticized the findings, which they said were questionable given some of the board members’ close ties with the Bush administration.

“Their current findings and any additional conclusions they reach will be taken with a grain of salt until they become fully independent,” said Rep. Bennie Thompson (news, bio, voting record), D-Miss., who chairs the House Homeland Security Committee.

After operating mostly in secret for a year, the five-member Privacy and Civil Liberties Board is preparing to release its first report to Congress next week.

The report finds that both the National Security Agency’s warrantless eavesdropping program and the Treasury Department’s monitoring of international banking transactions have sufficient privacy protections, three board members told The Associated Press in telephone interviews.

Both programs have multiple layers of review before sensitive information is accessed, they said.

“We looked at the program, we visited NSA and met with the top people all the way down to those doing the hands-on work,” said Carol Dinkins, a Houston lawyer and former Reagan administration assistant attorney general who chairs the board.

“The program is structured and implemented in a way that is properly protective and attentive to civil liberties,” she said.

Some board members were troubled by the Homeland Security Department’s error-ridden no-fly lists, which critics say use subjective or inconclusive data to flag suspect travelers.

One area the board will focus on in its report is the computerized anti-terrorism screening system recently announced by DHS and used for years without travelers’ knowledge to assign risk assessments to millions of Americans who fly abroad.

More at YahooNews

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Singing to the choir…..he’s good at that!
It’s March 6th. 21 U.S. deaths, 372 Iraqi deaths, and as promised by Bush, the Iraqis are stepping up to the plate! Right!

WASHINGTON - President Bush said Tuesday his decision to send more troops to Baghdad is yielding “gradual but important” progress in Iraq. He portrayed himself as steadfast while Democrats squabble over strategy.

War-weary voters put Democrats in charge of Congress, but lawmakers have not decided how or whether to restrict Bush on Iraq through legislation. Bush seized on that divide and cautioned Democrats not to interfere with military missions.

“Other members of Congress seem to believe that we can have it all: that we can fight al-Qaida, pursue national reconciliation, initiate aggressive diplomacy and deter Iran’s ambitions in Iraq - all while withdrawing from Baghdad and reducing our force levels,” Bush said in a speech to the American Legion.

“That sounds good in theory, but doing so at this moment would undermine everything our troops have worked for. There are no shortcuts in Iraq,” the president said.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (news, bio, voting record), D-Calif., said Democrats are determined to lead a new direction on Iraq policy. That includes getting troops home and shifting the U.S. mission from combat to training, troop protection and counterterrorism.

“The war in Iraq is not making our country safer, our military stronger or the region more stable,” Pelosi said Tuesday. “In fact, the war in Iraq is the greatest ethical challenge facing our nation.”

Read more at YahooNews

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Van Morrison & Ray Charles
Crazy Love

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Just thought I’d share these pictures of a Florida gator, near Sebring, Florida in Lake Istapoka that my brother-in-law sent to me. That’s a deer it has in it’s mouth. The gator was captured (dead). Skiing, anyone?

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But of course!

WASHINGTON - Reporters will be barred from hearings that begin Friday in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, for the 14 suspected terrorists who were transferred last year from secret CIA prisons, officials said Tuesday.

Interest in the 14 is high because of their alleged links to al-Qaida. Among them is Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the suspected mastermind of the Sept. 11 attacks. He was captured in Pakistan in March 2003.

A New York-based human rights group that represents one of the 14 men accused the Pentagon of designing “sham tribunals.” The organization contended that its client, Majid Khan, has been denied access to his lawyers since October 2006 “solely to prevent his torture and abuse from becoming public” and to protect complicit foreign governments.

Read more at MSNBC

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Sen. Chuck Schumer’s opening statement at the Senate Judiciary Committee Hearing regarding the purging of US attorneys.

GET GONZALEZ!!!!

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WASHINGTON - Michael A. Battle, formerly the top federal prosecutor in Buffalo and now a senior official at the U.S. Department of Justice, called several U.S. attorneys from across the country Dec. 7 and gave them some unusual bad news.

It was time for them to resign.

Little noticed at the time, the unprecedented purge of eight of the nation’s 94 U.S. attorneys has caused a huge uproar in Washington that is culminating today in hearings on both sides of Capitol Hill. Democrats are alleging that the fired prosecutors, Republicans all, lost their jobs for political reasons.

Meanwhile, Battle on Monday announced that he plans to leave the Justice Department for private practice but stressed that his resignation was not connected to the controversial personnel changes.

Asked why he was resigning, Battle said, “Opportunity.” He will be joining Washington office of Fulbright & Jaworski, a top international law firm.

But Sen. Charles E. Schumer, a Democrat who has taken the lead in questioning the purge of prosecutors, isn-t so sure about Battle’s motives.

“This raises another question about a subject where there are already too many unanswered questions,” Schumer said. “While Mike Battle, a man of integrity, must issue the customary denial, the timing of his resignation asks whether he’s another casualty of the U.S. attorneys imbroglio.”

Read more here

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Another day…….another hearing.

(CBS/AP) Six former U.S. attorneys said they got little or no information about why they were fired, as another Republican lawmaker reportedly acknowledged contacting one of the federal prosecutors about an investigation.

Republican Sen. Pete Domenici had complained repeatedly to high-level Justice Department officials about New Mexico prosecutor David Iglesias, the department said. Republican Rep. Heather Wilson late Monday said that she, too, had spoken with Iglesias about one of his pending cases.

But like Domenici, Wilson denied pressuring the New Mexico prosecutor. She said Tuesday she had called Iglesias because she had received an allegation “by a constituent with knowledge of ongoing investigations” that he “was intentionally delaying corruption prosecutions.” She said Iglesias denied that allegation, saying he simply had few people to handle corruption cases. “I told him that I would take him at his word, and I did,” Wilson said.

Read more at CBSNews

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Bring on the pardons! (You know it’s gonna happen)

Think Cheney may be a little nervous right about now? Bunch of rat-bastards.

CNN.com:

‘Scooter’ Libby guilty on four of five counts

WASHINGTON (CNN) – Former White House aide I. Lewis “Scooter” Libby has been found guilty on four of five counts in his perjury and obstruction of justice trial.

Libby, 56, faces a maximum sentence of 25 years in prison and a fine of $1 million.

Libby was convicted of obstruction of justice, making a false statement and two counts of perjury.

Jurors cleared him of a second count of making a false statement.

The indictment against the former aide to Vice President Dick Cheney concerned how Valerie Plame was outed as a CIA operative and what Libby said to a grand jury concerning the case.

Libby was not accused of exposing Plame. He resigned in 2005 after the grand jury indicted him.

Prosecutors contended Libby disclosed Plame’s covert profession to reporters as part of a plan to discredit her husband, Joseph Wilson, a former ambassador who alleged that the Bush administration twisted some intelligence in the run-up to the Iraq war.

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WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States, acknowledging its own record is in question, criticized Iraq on Tuesday in its annual report on human rights abuses, listing death squads with government links, kidnapping and torture.

“We do not issue these reports because we think ourselves perfect but rather because we know ourselves to be deeply imperfect,” said U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, in announcing the annual report on human rights worldwide.

“Our democratic system of governance is accountable but it is not infallible,” she told reporters.

Iraq was listed among the most problematic nations when it came to human rights abuses listed in the 2006 report, which covered more than 190 countries.

The United States invaded Iraq in 2003, partly to end abuses committed by then-president Saddam Hussein, but the State Department’s report said worsening sectarian violence and terrorism undercut any progress in human rights last year.

“On one side, predominantly Sunni Arab groups such as al Qaeda in Iraq, irreconcilable remnants of the Baathist regime, and insurgents waging guerrilla warfare violently opposed the government and targeted Shi’a communities,” the report said.

It also highlighted the role of Shi’ite militias and security forces attached to some ministries “nominally allied with the government who committed torture and other abuses.”

“Predominantly Shi’a militias with some ties to the Iraqi Security Forces (ISF), targeted Sunnis in large’scale death squad and kidnapping activities,” it said.

Read more at YahooNews

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VIENNA, Austria - Iran seems to have at least temporarily halted the uranium-enrichment program at the heart of its standoff with the U.N. Security Council, the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency said Monday.

The pause could represent an attempt to de-escalate Iran’s conflict with the Security Council, which is deliberating a new set of harsher sanctions on the Islamic Republic.

Iran has enriched small quantities of uranium to the low level suitable for nuclear fuel generation. The U.S. and its allies fear that Iran could build nuclear weapons with larger amounts of more highly enriched uranium.

Hard-line President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad had been expected to announce last month that Iran had started installing 3,000 uranium-enriching centrifuges at a facility in the desert outside the central city of Natanz, where it has about 500 centrifuges above and below ground. But the announcement never materialized, an apparent step back that IAEA chief Mohamed ElBaradei appeared to confirm Monday.

“I do not believe that the number of centrifuges has increased, nor do I believe that (new) nuclear material has been introduced to the centrifuges at Natanz,” he said.

Read more at Chron.com

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Nine more dead, who khows many wounded……and the war drums keep beating as the U.S. claims the deadly armor-piercing roadside bombs are made in Iran……. and this…..

BAGHDAD, Iraq (AP) Iraqi police say up to 90 people were killed in a suicide attack on Shiite pilgrims in Hillah.

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Nine U.S. soldiers were killed in two bomb attacks north of Baghdad, the military said on Tuesday, in the deadliest day for U.S. forces since they launched a security crackdown in the capital three weeks ago.

Commanders had warned that militants may launch assaults outside Baghdad, where more than 90,000 Iraqi and U.S. troops have intensified operations to rein in sectarian violence.

In the worst of Monday’s two attacks against U.S. forces, six soldiers were killed and three were wounded by a blast near their vehicles in Salahaddin province, a Sunni Arab insurgent stronghold north of Baghdad.

In a separate incident, three U.S. soldiers were killed and one wounded by another blast near their vehicles in Diyala province, northeast of Baghdad.

The U.S. military did not specify if the two blasts were caused by a roadside bomb or a car bomb.

But U.S. commanders are concerned about the increased use by insurgents of a particularly deadly type of armor-piercing roadside bomb which, U.S. commanders say, is made in Iran. The bombs have killed more than 170 U.S. troops in Iraq since 2004.

More than 3,170 U.S. soldiers have died in Iraq since the U.S.-led invasion in March 2003.

Read more at Reuters

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This scandal brings back memories of Hurricane Katrina. I think Katrina was an eye opener for many Americans. It was for me. My dislike for this administration turned to pure hatred at that point. Who can ever forget the images of people on roofs, waiting day after day after day for rescue. Who can forget the images of people in the Convention Center or the Superdome. Who can ever forget the people who tried to cross a bridge to safety only to be greeted with shootguns and told they couldn’t cross. Who will ever forget Brownie stating he had no idea there were people at the Convention Center, when the whole world knew. Who will ever forget Bush telling him, “You’re doing a heckuva job Brownie!” Yes…..this was a major eye opener for many of us. It was at that point that I realized that they really don’t care ANYTHING about us. I realized just how very little they care for the underprivledged, the most needy of us.

And now, we have Walter Reed. Another instance of this administration’s total disregard for people in need. Worse yet, soldiers in need. The conditions at Walter Reed are nothing new. This is the “premiere” facility, so you can imagine the conditions at VA hospitals around the country. Many of the hospitals that are out of the limelight have been in deplorable conditions for years. This is the tip of the iceberg. And it’s nothing new. Veterans have been fighting tooth and nail to get benefits and services that are rightfully theirs for a long time. The Iraq and Afghanistan veterans aren’t the first to go through this. The problem transcends political party. It’s been around through Democratic leadership and Republican leadership. The veteran’s struggle is nothing new. It’s why there are so many homeless veterans.

Yesterday on national television, General Kiley stated he had no idea of the problems until he read it in the Washington Post. Yet he still has a job. There continue to be no consequences for the worst of the worst. They are all still in place. And will continue to be in place. Their incompetence is rewarded. So they sit in front of a committee and answer questions. They don’t care. Because for the “chosen”……..there are no consequences.

And I might add, I find it hard to believe that the politicians on that committee were unaware of the problems facing our veterans. Previous government reports that they were privy to told them there were problems. So for them to sit on that panel and act like they had not a shred of evidence that there are problems with our system is a disgrace.

This didn’t happen overnight. Just like they knew the levees in New Orleans were at risk, they knew of the struggles our soldiers have faced for decades. And just like Katrina, Americans will be disgusted and then move on to the next scandal. And the soldiers struggles, just like the struggles of the victims of Hurricane Katrina…… will be forgotten. The problem won’t go away…..but the concern will. Don’t let that happen.

Wounded Warrior Project

Veteran’s Organizations

VA Voluntary Services

VA Heartland Network

VA Facilities Locator

Soldier’s Angels

VetHomes Foundation

Veteran’s Help Network

Please feel free to leave any helpful links in comments!!!

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Calm down… CALM DOWN!… It wasn’t fatal. It was in his leg and he’s being treated.

*consults DICK board here*

QuestionGirl, you got the date right. But I’ve got you down for “massive stroke while eating at a Denny’s“. Sorry, sweetheart. Maybe next time!

MSNBC.com:

Cheney treated at hospital for blood clot

Vice president experienced ‘discomfort’ following overseas trip
WASHINGTON - Doctors discovered a blood clot in Vice President Dick Cheney’s left leg Monday, a condition that could be fatal if left untreated.

The 66-year-old Cheney, who has a history of heart problems, will be treated with blood-thinning medication for several months, said spokeswoman Lea Anne McBride.

She said Cheney visited his doctor’s office in Washington after feeling minor discomfort in his calf. An ultrasound showed the blood clot - called a deep venous thrombosis - in his left lower leg.

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