PSoTD

Sunday should be a big day for Tennessee newspaper analysis of the Frist SEC investigation. But will it be?

It's not like Tennessee hasn't been thinking about the ethical question before...

From Glass Houses: Congressional Ethics and the Politics of Venom
Book by Martin Tolchin, Susan J. Tolchin; Westview Press, 2001

Similarly confusing are the growing accusations of conflicts of interest, an issue that will surely dominate congressional ethics for years to come. Sen. William Frist (R-Tenn.) is a former heart and lung transplant surgeon whose family founded one of the nation's largest for-profit hospital chains, the Hospital Corporation of America. Many of his critics believe that his family ties should preclude him from voting on managed care reform or from bringing the first managed-care bill to the Senate floor, and they brought their concerns to the Senate Ethics Committee. Ruling in his favor, the committee said he did not have to recuse himself from votes on issues of health care. Rep. Harold Ford (D-Tenn.) disagreed and barnstormed the state in 1999, charging Frist with "protecting his family's company at the expense of his constituents."

Frist's experience with the Ethics Committee could either be considered a heavily partisan issue, because his accuser is a Democrat and he is a Republican, or a serious question of legislative ethics. Frist defended his actions. He put his stock in a blind trust before the Senate considered managed care legislation, he argued, and made it a practice of not discussing pending legislation with his family. For-profit hospitals did not particularly benefit from the legislation that Frist pushed. His record, he said, spoke for itself and included ten thousand medical procedures and missionary work in Africa. His defenders argued that he was an ideal citizen legislator, a specialist in a complex field, and that the Senate should take full advantage of his expertise.

We await ye Sunday Editorial Pearls of Wisdom, Tennessee newspapers. Don't disappoint.

In business, this would be specifically the fault of leadership and policy...

The Small Business Administration is the worst place to work in the federal government, according to employee surveys analyzed by the Partnership for Public Service and American University.

The SBA ranked 30th out of 30 federal agencies, just behind the Department of Homeland Security.

Downsizing and restructuring of the SBA's regional offices appears to have taken a toll on employee morale at the agency. The agency employs 2,813 people, down from 3,315 in 2001. The SBA ranked 29th on training and development, 28th on performance-based rewards and advancement, and 27th on leadership. The only high ranking was for pay and benefits, where the SBA was No. 9.

All small business organizations ought to be kicking George W. Bush's ass for letting SBA slip in morale. And the rest of the nation ought to be greatly concerned about the morale at Homeland Security.

Boy, the crap sure rises to the top these days in the Republican Party!!

November 2002:

--- snip ---

Only hours after Rep. Roy Blunt was named to the House's third-highest leadership job in November, he surprised his fellow top Republicans by trying to quietly insert a provision benefiting Philip Morris USA into the 475-page bill creating a Department of Homeland Security, according to several people familiar with the effort.

The new majority whip, who has close personal and political ties to the company, instructed congressional aides to add the tobacco provision to the bill — then within hours of a final House vote — even though no one else in leadership supported it or knew he was trying to squeeze it in.

...

The provision would have made it harder to sell tobacco products over the Internet and would have cracked down on the sale of contraband cigarettes, two practices that cut into Philip Morris's profits. Blunt has received large campaign donations from Philip Morris, his son works for the company in Missouri and the House member has a close personal relationship with a Washington lobbyist for the firm.

--- snip ---

From The Jakarta Post:

As the country braces for more street protests and panic buying ahead of the fuel price increase on Oct. 1, the fuel scarcity has created long lines on Wednesday at filling stations and kerosene distributors nationwide.

In Bandarlampung, the increased price of kerosene from Rp 800 to Rp 2,000 per liter made the three-day wait for the fuel -- which the nation's poorest people use for cooking -- all the more frustrating. Moreover, a purchase of five liters was the most a family could hope for. Several small-scale industries have reportedly switched from using kerosene to diesel fuel.

In some areas, like Way Kanan regency, the price of kerosene had surpassed that of Premium gasoline at Rp 3,000 per liter.

Ruslan, a kerosene agent in Bandarlampung, said he let customers deposit their empty containers with him out of pity.

He said he usually received 5,000 liters of kerosene every three days but, over the last month, he received it once a week.

"Now we only get the supply once a week, on Saturdays, so it's not enough for all residents," said Ruslan.

In Harapanjaya subdistrict, a 200-liter supply of kerosene was quickly sold. "Once the kerosene supply arrives, customers storm in and it's gone within an hour," said Husin, the trader.

In Lempasing, South Lampung, residents pitted against fishermen who are now powering their boats with kerosene, while in Kotakarang subdistrict in Bandarlampung, kerosene was hard to come by as retailers preferred to sell it to fishermen at higher prices.

Head of state oil company Pertamina in Lampung, Amilin Ali, blamed the kerosene scarcity on panic buying ahead of the imminent fuel price increases.

Currently, he said, the company had a three-day supply of 2,700 kiloliters of Premium gasoline, 4,400 kiloliters of kerosene for six days and 17,400 kiloliters of diesel oil for 11 days. "Although the supply is counted on a daily basis, two tankers provide a fresh fuel supply everyday," Amilin said.

Long queues were observed at gas stations across the country, including in Semarang, Surakarta and its surrounding cities like Salatiga and Magelang, as many motorists had to wait for hours to get gasoline.

At Tanjung Emas harbor in Semarang, tanker MT Sinar Yogya unloaded on Tuesday 24,000 kiloliters of Premium gasoline.

"We hope the arrival can help with the fuel shortages at several gas stations in Semarang," Pertamina's spokesperson in Semarang, Heppy Wulansari, said on Wednesday.

Several gas stations, including in the North Sulawesi town of Manado, had run out of gas on Wednesday, while in the East Java town of Kediri, several stations had set a five-liter limit on sales to prevent stockpiling ahead of the fuel price increases.

"We support the move (to set a five-liter limit) as it makes it easier to control," Kediri Police chief Adj. Comr. Suyono, told Antara.

Meanwhile, security is being ramped up for protests are expected on October 1:

City police are tightening up security in the capital, especially at 14 places that are likely to be targets of protesters out to oppose a government plan to raise fuel prices on Oct. 1.

Besides securing the streets, police have also deployed several officers to guard each of some 200 gas stations in the capital to ensure that all of them serve motorists as usual.

City police chief Insp. Gen. Firman Gani said Wednesday that police have deployed around 5,500 personnel from various units, including the antiriot unit, mobile brigade, intelligence and detective units, at 14 strategic locations.

"Upon receiving intelligence reports we decided to focus on these 14 places as we believe that most protesters will concentrate at those places," he said.

The 14 places included the Presidential Palace in Central Jakarta, which was guarded by some 1,200 personnel, and the House of Representatives (DPR) building, which was secured by 374 personnel.

State oil company Pertamina's station in Plumpang, North Jakarta, an area near the Christian University of Indonesia (UKI) in East Jakarta and the Hotel Indonesia traffic circle in Central Jakarta, were guarded by 440, 270 and 173 personnel respectively.

Other areas being given special security attention included the Golkar Party's national headquarters in Slipi, West Jakarta; the area near the Islamic State University (UIN) in Ciputat in South Jakarta; Semanggi and the Istiqlal Mosque, both in Central Jakarta; the Vice President's office and residence, both in Central Jakarta; and Tugu Tani, Harmoni and Pecenongan, all in Central Jakarta.

The House voted to raise fuel prices on Tuesday in order to save the country's budget from blowing out. Vice President Jusuf Kalla said earlier that prices of heavily-subsidized fuel would increase by up to 80 percent.

The plan, which is expected to come into effect on Oct. 1, has drawn strong opposition from students and labor activists.

Many student organizations and trade unions have warned that they would stage massive protests.

The Mandiri Workers Union, for instance, has announced that some 16,000 of its members would hold rally in front of the Presidential Palace on Thursday. Student organizations are also expected to join the group.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono urged those who oppose the policy to stage peaceful rallies without disrupting the daily activities of other people.

"We are not going to ban any protest rallies against the fuel price hike since this is a democratic country. You are free to voice your protests. But please do it peacefully, don't burn anything," said Susilo during a gathering of university heads and academicians including members of the Rector's Forum.

Susilo also urged protesters to clearly explain to the public the reasons for their objection to the fuel price increases, as well as providing reasonable solutions to address the problems.

"Please explain the objections clearly to the public in order to provide good political education. Don't just provoke the public with unreasonable solutions to the problem," said Susilo.

Meanwhile, Governor Sutiyoso said that his administration had prepared around 400 buses and trucks to anticipate dysfunctions in public transportation because of massive demonstrations.

"We have prepared our personnel and equipment for the worst scenario if people from the public transportation sector stage a rally and paralyze city's transportation," he said.

Atrios says that Tom DeLay is done, based on what David Brooks is already saying.

I'll go a step further. It won't take long before Tom DeLay is the favorite Republican scapegoat for out of control Republican federal spending. Not that it wasn't partly his fault, or that he deserves any sympathy for the choreographed Congressional chorus, but he's going to get the boot of blame from his colleagues.

Perhaps God is in attendance on this earth.

Heralds: Majority Report, Nitpicker, Unfogged, I'm Just Waiting for the Robot Invastion, Centerfield, Radical Georgia Moderate...

Spotted this at Majikthise. At the risk of advertising my lack of recent reading, I'm going to answer...

How many of the American Library Association's top 100 most frequently challenged books have you read?

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck
The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes
Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
Cujo by Stephen King
James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl
Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut
Lord of the Flies by William Golding
Carrie by Stephen King
The Dead Zone by Stephen King
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain
Private Parts by Howard Stern

The FTC has come up with a web site with practical tips to help be on guard against Internet fraud. It's called OnGuard Online.

If I were with the Federal Trade Commission, I would strongly investigate the possibility of having all U.S. based Internet Service Providers email a brief blurb about this site - and internet fraud - to their subscribers, at least once. If they really want to get the word out, that's the way to do it using the Internet.

The Moderate Voice has a good roundup of yesterday's hearing, from both sides. There are still people supporting Brown on the right.

The First Gore-Bush Presidential Debate
October 3, 2000

George W. Bush:

The man is practicing fuzzy math again. There's differences. Under Vice President Gore's plan, he is going to grow the federal government in the largest increase since Lyndon Baines Johnson in 1965. We're talking about a massive government, folks. We're talking about adding to or increasing 200 programs, 20,000 new bureaucrats.

From the Independent Institute:

Since 2001, even with record low inflation, U.S. federal spending has increased by a massive 28.8% (19.7% in real dollars)—with non-defense discretionary growth of 35.7% (25.3% in real dollars)—the highest rate of federal government growth since the presidencies of Richard Nixon and Lyndon Johnson.

And that Independent Institute report is from 2004... pre-Katrina. It's only gone up since then.

George Bush accusing somebody else of fuzzy math... now that's irony!

This probably would be funnier if it wasn't so close to the freakin' truth:

(Originally posted in August, but Revere's recent post made it seem timely to repost)

Froomkin nails Bush on his adherence to the gas "conservation" suggestion today.

One fair test of how seriously Bush takes his new energy conservation kick will be whether he exercises any self-restraint. But don't expect cardigans or thermostat-lowering in this White House.

Bush's gas-guzzling motorcade was whizzing all over town yesterday--and today he flies off in his fuel-gulping 747 for his seventh trip to the Gulf Coast since Katrina struck a month ago.

Somebody in the White House Press Corps asked yesterday:

Q Will you tell us how much gas the motorcade uses?

MR. McCLELLAN: I'm sorry?

Q How much gas the motorcade uses?

MR. McCLELLAN: Let me take your question. I'll look into it.

I hope somebody continues to ask that question. Let's see if McClellan gives a real answer.

From today's press gaggle: They've scaled back on vans!!!! A couple less in the motorcade. Oh, yeah... those are press vans.

I'm just one voice, but...

Just wanted to let you know, effective today, I'm putting down my marker. If the Democrats can't win back at least one House of the Congress in the 2006 elections, consider my membership in the Party over. Finito. Extinct. After 6 of the crappiest years in American history, if Democrats can't replace the party in power during those years in at least one House of the Congress, then the Party is, for all intent and purposes, no longer viable as a national political power, and it will be time for the rest of us to move on in a way to change things for the better without that dead weight.

And so, I say to you, National Democrats - concentrate on winning in Congress in 2006. I'm not waiting until 2008 for you to improve this country. Too long. You fail in 2006, and I'll leave. I'll find a niche party, perhaps one with a much longer road to travel for power but to a destination more appealing to my viewpoint, and leave you as wadded tissue. What you offer, Democratic Party, is a tourniquet to Bush's hemorrhaging policies. But only if you can lead at least one house of the Congress. And if you can't do it in 2006, I don't believe you can ever do it. The stakes are too high, and the opposition too disturbing, to play a waiting game.

But for 2006, I will help, as much as I can. And then we can work on fixing the Democratic Party.

Rita looks like it is expected to move about 125 miles in four days, from Eastern Texas into Southwestern Arkansas.

That's going to mean a lot of rain for a small geographic area. According to the Association of State Dam Safety Officials, Arkansas has 79 dams that are identified as having high hazards and needing federal funding for repair, Louisiana has 10 such dams, and Texas has the most in the nation - 576.

Let's hope Rita doesn't stall as long as predicted.

Be loud. Be smart. Be brave. Be noticed. Be safe.

Huckabee for president?

Interesting article about whether Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee might run for the Republican nomination for President in 2008. I don't know if he has much chance, but I think one gist of the article is that the remaining national Republicans all have severe problems. Other than Hagel in Nebraska, most have some sort of major issue that burns them in either the primary or the general. Of course, so does Huckabee, but that may be less important, because the theory may be, for the Republicans, to go with someone who hasn't had the national spotlight. Pick a Governor, someone unattached to the current Administration which is so unapproved of by the American public, and go with that.

I noticed Ezra Klein also picked up the Huckabee story, albeit a different part of it. So does Education on the Brink. Check them out as well.

Republican partisan hardpan. Is it even about conservatism? Or is this just Party branding...

Frist's HCA Stock Sale Being Investigated

The Securities and Exchange Commission and federal prosecutors are investigating Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist's sale of stock in HCA Inc., the hospital operating company founded by his family.

In a statement released Friday, the Nashville-based company said federal prosecutors for the Southern District of New York issued a subpoena for documents HCA believes are related to the sale of its stock by the senator.

Don't waste time on Frist or his staff's denials of wrongdoing, that is standard procedure on their part. Paper trail. Email trail.

At least 24 dead in evacuee bus explosion

From the Victoria Advocate:

Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott today issued a warning to all Texas businesses not to gouge customers.

The attorney general’s Office has received complaints, including allegations of rental car companies charging up to $137 per day for mid-size cars and grocers charging $35 for a 12-pack of bottled water. These complaints are under investigation.

Abbott’s office said teams of field investigators will be closely monitoring unseemly business practices and consumer complaints about price-gouging.

Businesses that gouge could face civil penalties of up to $20,000 per violation of the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act, which encompasses price-gouging during a declared disaster such as this one.

I just do not believe in the power of "business fines" in these kinds of situations. The whole premise constructs, during periods of community emergency, a layer of individual irresponsibility in business operations decisionmaking. And the worse thing is, it informs the community BEFORE THE EMERGENCY that the business can not be counted on.

Individual responsibility is required in these cases. There is no excuse for selling water at that price except greed. There should not be a fine structure for such actions - there should be jail time for the person responsible for the decisionmaking on such gouging. And it should be heartily and publicly enforced.

No More Mister Nice Blog has more on Limbaugh's newest "branding" look.

One of the things about President Bush, he is one repetitive fella. And his speechwriters recycle, over and over, the same old "disaster" speeches. And why not? The press gives him airtime for being "Presidential" every time.

If Hurricane Rita does any damage, expect Bush to dust this baby off, fly to the region, grab a couple of locals for a photo moment, and deliver a barely geographically tailored adaptation of the following (except the Michael Brown part, it will be a new name).

THE PRESIDENT: I have seen the devastation that took place. The storm and the floods were lethal, and they cause a lot of heartache and damage. I know there are people in this part of our country who are grieving for lost ones and we send our prayers to all who grieve.

I know there are people here who are concerned as to whether or not they'll ever get their life back together. I hope my visit here with the senators and congressmen say as clearly as we can that we care about the devastation that took place; that we understand the federal government has an obligation to help, and we will.

Most of all, I'm here to thank the people of this community who have risen up to deal with the hardship. My message not only is to the people of the Millvale, but is to Etna and Carnegie, as well, communities in this part of the world that were hard hit.

You know, the volunteer firefighters here, I was honored to be able to shake hands with some. I looked in the guy's eyes and said, "You got flood eyes" — obviously, he had no sleep. He's doing all he could do to help save lives and help begin to heal the hurt.

The first thing I want to do is thank all the first responders, firefighters and police — (applause) — and the EMS teams. I want to thank Dave Sango, of the state for — he's the FEMA, he's the emergency management director who has been on top of the situation ever since the flood started to come. I'm absolutely convinced that as a result of the coordination between the federal government, the state government and local governments loss of life had been minimized. Dave has done a terrific job, and I appreciate your service to your state. (Applause.)

Mike Brown is with me — he's the head of the FEMA. I'm down here to let people know that FEMA is going to move quickly. The best way to make sure people understand FEMA is going to move quickly is bring the main guy with me, and let the mayor — Mayor Burn — talk to him and county executive of the County. I wanted him to hear firsthand what the people in these communities and this county have been through. And I want Brown to know that he's going to respond as quickly as he can; and that's what I want the people to know.

I want to thank the local officials who are working hard to help the people in this community. You know, what happens when these disasters hit, the real character of a community comes out, people show up, neighbors love neighbors, firefighters help save lives. You met the storm — this storm with compassion and courage. You showed the true spirit of the American people by how you've responded and are responding to this — these floods.

I want to thank the National Guard and Coast Guardsmen who worked hard all across the state to save lives and do their duty. I want to thank the power workers, people that — and the telephone crews — for getting electricity back up and running for the people of this part of the world. I know there are some homes that still don't have their electricity hooked up, but I've been assured that the power company is working as hard as they can to get electricity up. I know there's some people without natural gas. I know they're working hard to get the natural gas lines fixed so people can have power in their homes.

I appreciate the men and women of the Red Cross. The Red Cross has been tested during the last months. I've seen Red Cross workers all across our country. They're out there providing compassion and care. The Red Cross is a great organization, mainly because it's got great workers, people who care a lot.

I want to thank the faith-based communities who have been responding to this disaster. You know, the concept of neighbor loving neighbor is a powerful concept, it helps lift people's spirits. I met the lady who runs the food bank here. She's working overtime to make sure people have got something to eat. I want to appreciate all those who are working at the food banks. I asked her, I said, "Do you have enough food to make sure the good people of this part of the world got something on the table to eat?" She said, "Absolutely." People are responding to the crisis and out of the harm is coming some good.

I want to let you know that we're dedicated to responding as quickly as we possibly can. I've been told that those who have registered with FEMA have started to receive checks. I urge people to find out the facts, to get 800 numbers that are available, and to sign up for help. We can't help you unless you sign up for the help.

Again, I want to reassure the people that a lot of people are praying for you. You know, I saw the look in the people's eyes when I was driving through the town here — small business owners and entrepreneurs whose businesses were destroyed, their stuff piled up in front of their business, wondering whether or not there's a future. There is a future. I predict to you, Mr. Mayor, that within a reasonable period of time this town is going to be back on its feet, better than ever, more hopeful — (applause.)

We ask God's blessings on everybody who lives here. And may God continue to bless our country. Thank you all for coming. (Applause.)

Millvale, Pennsylvania
September, 2004

Or something slightly shorter, like this speech from Lake Wales, Florida, a week later.

How many times will our nation be doomed to hear Bush make this speech? And when will the press treat it as the boilerplate repetition it is?

From the Clarion-Ledger:

Trucks loaded with millions of pounds of bagged ice destined for the hurricane-ravaged Gulf Coast have been diverted hundreds of miles to cold storage facilities in New England and elsewhere around the country.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency ordered the ice delivered to staging areas in the South to help in hurricane relief efforts. But the agency ended up with more ice than it could use, forcing it to direct the trucks to freezers nationwide.

Some truckers who were waiting to unload their rigs at an AmeriCold Logistics warehouse in Portland today said diverting the ice some 1,300 miles from Alabama to Maine seems like a waste of money.

"This is a bad use of taxpayers' money to do this. Why send it here?" said Ricky Gosnell, a truck driver from Greenville, S.C.

Just how much money?

Jeff Campbell, a truck driver from Rockingham, N.C., said he figured it is costing more than $5,000 per truck — or more than $1 million overall — to send the ice-loaded trucks to Maine. Each truck typically carries 40,000 to 46,000 pounds, he said, meaning the total weight would be more than 8 million pounds.

So, will Congress provide any oversight on this? There is a bill to establish a congressional committee to study how American tax dollars are being spent for relief and reconstruction efforts following Katrina. Let's hope they pass it.

Others posting on this story: Davenetics, Overspun.com, Hit and Run, The Republic of T, and Proof Through the Night.

The symbol is going national. If the size of the problem somehow defines the size of the pig, Washington DC is going to have one the size of the District...

From the York Dispatch:

HARRISBURG — With lobbyists prowling the halls and a 25-foot inflatable pink pig squatting behind the Capitol, the Senate returned to session yesterday for the first time since approving legislative pay raises of up to 54 percent in the pre-dawn hours of July 7.

Unsurprisingly, lawmakers were more interested in talking about the upcoming fall session than about the pay raise or the sign draped on the pig: "Repeal the illegal legislative pay raise."

"It's beating a dead horse," said Rep. Angel Cruz, D-Philadelphia, who came out to see the pig while at the Capitol on legislative business. "We've got a lot of other things to worry about than what we did in the past."

Wow. The Pink Pig does not scare Angel Cruz. It needs to be bigger. FATTER! WITH HEFT TO CRUSH ANGEL CRUZ!

Meanwhile, across the country in Colorado...

From the Grand Junction Sentinel:

Colorado voters are living high off the hog these days.

Critics and cheerleaders of Referendums C and D continue to serve up full helpings of slogans, puns and parodies, with no immediate relief in sight for voters’ indigestion.

The latest dish from naysayers’ arsenal of words?

“We’ve unleashed the animals of war,” Independence Institute president Jon Caldara said Friday.

Caldara, one of two Front Range go-to guys leading the opposition, referred to the two barnyard staples expected to cruise through Colorado communities between now and November.

The anti-C crowd employed a giant pink pig to characterize its contention that C and D would fund pork and a Trojan horse whose saddle blanket proclaims: “Vote no on Ref C! Stop the Trojan horse forever.”

Bigger pigs for every state Capitol. And a freakin' pig planet for DC.

There's no reason why the liberal side of the blogosphere can't participate in this. It's the kind of thing blogs SHOULD be doing.

But, as time will tell, pork is in the eye of the beholder, and eventually there will be a need for some sort of rating system so that readers can be polled as to whether they believe some of these items are actually pork. It's easy for someone in George to declare a project in Minnesota as pork when they have no idea what the project is really supposed to accomplish. If each item could then have it's own conversation, pros and cons, by site visitors, then a clearer picture of pork will emerge.

Couldn't Americans use a governing lesson right now - a lesson from Mexico?

On the national level, I think it's worth some strong media consideration of the impact of long-term one party rule at the federal level for this country - how it begins, how it is maintained, and what happens to the country if it occurs.

If Americans don't respond in 2006 like Mexicans did in 1997, what evidence will there be that we're not heading for one party federal rule? What more could George W. Bush do to convince Americans that he should not have a rubber stamp in federal government?

They need a bigger sample, a more diverse sample from original location, but there's some interesting things in this Washington Post/Kaiser Family Foundation/Harvard School of Public Health Survey Projectsurvey:

Asked of those from New Orleans:

Before the hurricane hit, did you yourself hear that an order to evacuate had been given, or not?

Yes - 73
No - 25
Don’t know - 1
Refused - 0

So one quarter of the respondents did not know before the hurricane hit that an evacuation order had been given. And that was with 24 hours of functioning radio/television/newspaper service prior to the storm.

Has your experience made you feel like the government cares about people like you, or has it made you feel like the government doesn’t care?

Government cares - 28
Government does not care - 61
Don’t know - 10
Refused - 1

Ouch. I suspect these answers are more deeply ingrained than their experiences from Katrina.

A little of this survey was discussed in the Washington Post this morning, but there's a lot more to it.

Other posts about the survey worth checking out: Houston's Clear Thinkers, Just a Bump in the Beltway, and The Next Left.

this song keeps running in my head...

We passed upon the stair, we spoke of was and when
Although I wasn’t there, he said I was his friend
Which came as some surprise I spoke into his eyes
I thought you died alone, a long long time ago

Oh no, not me
I never lost control
You’re face to face
With the man who sold the world

I laughed and shook his hand, and made my way back home
I searched for form and land, for years and years I roamed
I gazed a gazely stare at all the millions here
We must have died along, a long long time ago

Who knows? not me
We never lost control
You’re face to face
With the man who sold the world

Who knows? not me
We never lost control
You’re face to face
With the man who sold the world

This is the word that America has to consider when hearing what Bush is "planning". Competence within his administration. Within the Congress. Within the two party system. Within the state-federal system. Within the government contracting process.

It is one thing to promise big things.

But we've been promised before. The promises haven't turned out. We can afford these tax cuts because of the Surplus! We'll catch Bin Laden! We'll be greeted in Iraq with flowers!

How many times will this nation believe one man who promises us more than he can deliver? Have we learned our lesson yet?

Hope and belief are important, but it takes competence and determination to reach goals.

And as Josh Marshall is warning, this Administration hasn't displayed it yet.

From The Attic:

Bush speech translated here

My fellow Americans,

Spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend.

Spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend.

Spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend, spend.

Thank you and God bless.

However, I think drjonz is not quite accurate. Change the word spend to promise, and you've got it.

And he was reiterating the talking point that the Bush Administration is locking into:

It is important to find out what went wrong with the government during Katrina to prevent it from happening again. But now it is more important to help those who are suffering.

Frankly, the inability of the Bush Administration to prioritize both equally is incredibly disturbing for the long run. It is a continuation of policy ineptitude. It is fatally flawed.

Take the issue of possible avian influenza pandemic. In the dark future where it might occur, this reasoning is going to lead us to:

It is important to find out how the Government failed to prevent the spread of the influenza. But now it is more important to help those who are suffering.

This talking point - the idea that there is a higher priority than finding out how to prevent such a disastrous response again - is ineptitude. There is no reason why federal government cannot prioritize both prevention and repair/rehabilitation equally.

Looks like there's at least one Republican U.S. Senator that doesn't have a tin ear...

Grassley: Bad time to repeal estate tax
The senator says it would appear 'unseemly' because of the hurricane disaster.

Now if Grassley could just grasp that abolishing the estate tax would be unseemly in general...

And it doesn't get any more mainstream than Howard Fineman, who has an article about the Democratic Party DC insiders versus the blogosphere titled Beltway versus Blogosphere. I'm not going to suggest that Fineman necessarily "gets it" as far as grassroots dissatisfaction for many of the Democratic National Hierarchy. But this acknowledgement is interesting:

Well, for one, it could affect Hillary Rodham Clinton’s run for the White House. The consensus, among the insiders and in the early national polls, is that the 2008 nomination is hers to lose. But Clinton, by virtue of her DLC family roots and her role in the U.S. Senate—not to mention the job her husband used to have—has no choice but to “inherit the leadership of the Washington governing class.” Not to mention the fact that she is a Baby Boomer of an almost grandmotherly age.

Strategically, Clinton has no higher priority than reaching out to what Rosenberg calls “the emerging activist class” and word is that, through aides and advisors, she is doing just that: they have set up meetings with key bloggers.

There's a couple of things of interest to me here. For one, the idea that the 2008 nomination is Clinton's to lose. Pure Beltway. That belief is based way too much on fundraising ability - a perception of fundraising ability. I seriously do not expect Hillary Clinton to be the candidate that comes out of the 2008 Democratic Convention, and from this far away, I'd be heavily disappointed if that happens. My mind could change - but she's had quite a while to change it, and not made progress.

The second interesting point is this "meetings with key bloggers." I'd like to know who those "key bloggers" are, although there are the usual suspects: Kos, Duncan Black, etc. Frankly, I think there's more risk to those bloggers than to Clinton if anything should be accomplished by the Clinton camp as part of this campaign, particularly at this time. Independence rules.

Now that is specialization. These aren't just lawyers. They don't just have a specialization or a practice. No, apparently they are so partisan in how they practice law that they've joined the Republican National Lawyers Association.

Of course, the Democrats are playing catchup.

Is this where we're heading as a nation? Will there be Republican Party medicine and Democratic Party tourism and Republican Party food service and Democratic Party transportation? Is it really a good idea for professions to break themselves into organizations specifically focused on one party or another?

Of course not.

My gut feeling is that Bush needs to have the best speech of his life Thursday night.

With growing numbers of people actually writing publicly to impeach Bush, with the lowest approval and highest disapproval numbers of his Presidency, and with a high wire act Iraq election coming up, Bush needs something that resonates with the American people. It can't be more of the same. People aren't going to want to see Bush hog prime time television time to tell Americans all the things his administration is doing that they should obviously be doing. The damage is done, and proving competency at this late date means little to Americans who were promised competency at all times.

Fineman, Gregory and Matthews didn't sound too hopeful for Bush's chances on Hardball.

And that's the problem. President Bush isn't leaving anyone hopeful these days.

The Democrats ought to pay very close attention to whoever is seated on the network programs after this speech and make sure they are represented. I don't want to see a bunch of Republican toadies hyping an underwhelming Bush speech - which is what I expect to see - without some sort of hard questions being asked.

Natural Gas Shortages Worry Bush Officials

Something tells me this winter there is going to be a record number of space heater fires in the Northeast.

As someone that uses natural gas for heating, this has me concerned.

The signs are not so blunt, but they are increasing...

From The Bush Blade:

Beach closings due to sewage contamination rose 51 percent from 2002 says an August 5 released study by Natural Resources Defence Council who blames USA's decaying pipes and treatment structures.

.... "High bacteria levels from human or animal waste prompted 88 percent of beach closings and advisories in 2003. Last year there were more than 18,000 closings and advisories for US oceans and Great Lakes beaches," says NRDC.

.... USA has a major water system break-down nationwide and federal, state, and local authorities need to wake up and fix it, said NRDC's Nancy Stoner. Authorities must prevent raw sewage discharge, reduce contaminated storm-water run-off and set stronger public health standards, she said.

.... "The average age of collection systems is 33 years but some pipes are 200 years old," said Stoner.

Bush Takes Responsibility for Blunders

As for blunders in the federal response, "I'm not going to defend the process going in," Bush said. "I am going to defend the people saving lives."

...

It was the closest Bush has come to publicly finding fault with any federal officials involved in the hurricane response, which has been widely criticized as disjointed and slow. Some federal officials have sought to fault state and local officials for being unprepared to cope with the disaster.

Bush planned to address the nation Thursday evening from Louisiana, where he will be monitoring recovery efforts, the White House announced earlier Tuesday.

I suspect it's the conservative peel-away that has them hinting at facing responsibilities. The speech Thursday evening is probably a last best chance to try to reframe public opinion on the disaster, a "mistakes were made but we have to focus on fixing, not blaming" approach. Because at this point, it looks like E. J. Dionne's End of the Bush Era piece in today's Washington Post nails the reality.

I wonder if Google has considered improving their news search engine at all. At first blush, it seems pretty good, but if you regularly use it and notice all the local newspapers that it fails to collect from around the country, you realize it's pretty weak, actually. 4,500 English language sites seems like a lot of sources until you really want to dig.

Especially when you realize that while they're not indexing many legitimate local news publishers around the United States, they are throwing The Jawa Report in the mix as news.

C'mon.

From AP:

Federal Emergency Management Agency director Mike Brown said Monday he has resigned "in the best interest of the agency and best interest of the president," three days after losing his onsite command of the Hurricane Katrina relief effort.

"The focus has got to be on FEMA, what the people are trying to do down there," Brown told The Associated Press.

"I'm turning in my resignation today," Brown said. "I think it's in the best interest of the agency and the best interest of the president to do that and get the media focused on the good things that are going on, instead of me."

Now that's just great. No mention of victims of the Hurricane. No mention of taxpayers or relief organizations or charities. Just FEMA, and President Bush.

The news media ought to be asking Brown AND Bush: Why is Brown's resignation in the best interest of President Bush? We all know the political answer, but it's worth having their answers on the record.

Every day it seems to be getting stronger...

Remarks by the President Upon Arrival at Barksdale Air Force Base
Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana
September 11, 2001

THE PRESIDENT: I want to reassure the American people that the full resources of the federal government are working to assist local authorities to save lives and to help the victims of these attacks. Make no mistake: The United States will hunt down and punish those responsible for these cowardly acts.

From the Daily Mountain Eagle:

CARBON HILL - The city of Carbon Hill has received some federal tornado cleanup funding owed to other contractors, but the city is still awaiting approximately $85,000 owed to the city itself.

Terry Acuff of Community Consultants told the Carbon Hill City Council Tuesday that the Federal Emergency Management Agency has sent approximately $32,000 of what it owed for tornado cleanup, which should allow the city to collect $200,000 from the state.

Acuff said the city received $32,000 for utility work done after tornadoes damaged parts of the city in 2002. City Clerk Polly Haley said Thursday those funds are owed to utilities.

Haley said the city has also received approximately $58,000 owed to a contractor for sidewalk and paving work.

However, Haley said the city itself is still owed about $85,000 in outstanding money from FEMA to help pay for the cleanup that took place. She said the latest word was that the money would come in about 10 days, but officials are concerned it could be delayed further because of Hurricane Katrina.

City officials have been frustrated in collecting the funds from FEMA, which has been criticized in the national media over the past week for its handling of Hurricane Katrina.

The city has at times resorted to asking for only as much as other cities have received in regards to percentage. An additional 15 percent from the total cleanup cost would equal more than $45,000.

U.S. Sen. Richard Shelby and state Rep. Ken Guin have both been asking about the situation.

This just in:

The health of Louisiana's Lake Pontchartrain is not at stake despite 2 million gallons of fetid floodwaters being pumped per minute into the vast inland body of water, experts said yesterday.

Doesn't this just seem very hard to believe? The article focuses on bacteria. What about chemicals? Other toxins?

Not buying it.

Nice intentional sympathy pitch. Forget it.

DENVER -- Federal Emergency Management Agency Director Michael Brown sent a candid e-mail to family and friends this week as he was becoming the center of criticism of the handling of the Hurricane Katrina disaster.

"I don't mind the negative press (well, actually, I do, but I try to ignore it) but it is really wearing out the family," Brown wrote. "No wonder people don't go into public service. This country is devouring itself, the 24-hour news cycle is numbing our ability to think for ourselves," the Rocky Mountain News reported Saturday.

Brown was relieved of his command of the onsite relief efforts Friday amid increasing criticism over the sluggishness of the agency's response and questions over his background.

"It's horrible," said Mary Ann Karns, an Oklahoma lawyer who once worked with Brown in the Edmond, Okla., city government and got the e-mail addressed. "He does not deserve this as a human being."

Okay, I'm going to admit something now - I do feel a bit sorry for Mike Brown the human being. It's not his fault that the previous Administration's FEMA director, James Lee Witt, set the standard for how to deliver in the position. It's not his fault that that the Bush Administration's version of FEMA would be compared to the Clinton Administration's agency during emergencies. It's not even his fault that he didn't know where the bar was set by Witt, since Brown was not an emergency management professional. And it's not his fault that Bush appointed him to run FEMA.

But that's where it ends, at the point where he accepted the position. The only thing I'm sorry about Mike Brown the FEMA Director is the performance his agency delivered in the first several days of the Katrina disaster. As far as the heap of criticism he's received for how FEMA has performed - not sorry at all. And no intentionally leaked sob email by Brown is going to change that. Get facts that support that you've done the job right out into the public, or leave the job, for the sake of the family that is wearing out.

From The Vicksburg Post:

FEMA aid days away

[9/9/05] Federal aid is likely 10 days away, leaving the Red Cross and church and community groups standing in the gap in Vicksburg to assist hundreds of evacuees remaining here indefinitely.

"I just got the official word from FEMA," Warren County Emergency Agency Director L.W. Callaway said this morning, "and it's not that good."

FEMA will be taking applications for a variety of assistance - but only from displaced people and probably no sooner than Sept. 19 - at a site yet to be selected.

"They're stretched to the max," Callaway said, "and quite naturally they're starting south and working north."

The rolling tide of federal bureacracy moves ever so slowly.

I think something that would be useful in a time where a President is so unpopular is to continue to point out who paid for his campaign, and the Republican Party in general. Actions should have repercussions, and that includes financial support. Corporations may think they are gaining access with campaign contributions, and that can be true. But by paying for the campaign which leads to election which leads to policies - the contributors' goal - they should also bear responsibility for the policies. When policies and capabilities are unpopular - contributors should be held accountable, at least to the extend where the public knows who to "blame" beyond the President. People who think this administration stinks on ice ought to focus on who financed its promotional campaign to get to this place - and bring the proper amount of dismay to those individuals and organizations.

To that end, for the majority of the country that is unhappy with the Bush Presidency and the policies and capabilities of it, here's one of the fine companies that brought you their "winning" 2004 election campaign: Morgan Stanley, which contributed $600,480, according to opensecrets.org.

So, when you're out there saying your "go fuck yourself, Mr. Cheneys", save a few for Morgan Stanley, too. They paid for Bush and Cheney to lead, and this is what we're getting.

You were first Republican in line for the position of scapegoat for the President. Not that you didn't deserve it.

But that ain't nearly enough.

Do you know who'd be in charge if somehow we could impeach Bush and impeach Cheney?

It's pretty damn sad...

President Ted Stevens. Hey, maybe he'd have the nation's Capital moved to Alaska! That would be some sweet honeymoney to bring home...

and details the deteriorating situation in Baghdad.

I'm going to check this every few days, see how the meme is or isn't growing.

Technorati Posts with "Impeach Bush": 1581
Google News articles with "impeach bush": 47

From Association of Fundraising Professionals:

This month, the Senate Finance Committee is expected to finally introduce legislation that will dramatically affect numerous tax incentives for charitable giving.

AFP is greatly concerned because the committee is considering eliminating or significantly modifying the deductions for noncash charitable contributions, such as art, collectibles, real estate, household goods, books, food, medicine and clothing.

Proposals to Use Cost Basis Instead of Fair Market Value for Noncash Gifts

The proposals would eliminate or restrict the fair market value of the following types of gifts:

Land and real estate
Artwork
Stock in family companies
S corp stock
Privately traded securities

AFP is concerned that this valuation change will have a devastating effect on charities. A similar proposal enacted in 1986, replacing fair market value with the donor’s basis for gifts of appreciated property, was fully repealed in 1993 after a dramatic reduction in giving. In addition, initial evidence shows that donations of vehicles have plummeted by nearly 50 percent since the beginning of 2005 when new regulations regarding these types of contributions came into effect.

Okay, we tried this before, and decided it was a failure barely more than a decade ago - and the Senate Finance Committee thinks it's a good idea again?

Between this and their efforts on the estate tax, the Congressional Republicans are systematically trying to hobble the fundraising abilities of this nation's charities.

Dear Chuck Hagel,

Hurricane Katrina permanently disabled Bush's power. He has no moral authority. He has no intellectual authority. He has no personal appeal. He has federal and executive power, but fails to use it wisely over and over again. Respect for his authority, which has been in steep decline the past few years, likely will continue to decline. On most of the important questions of the day, President Bush does not have any answers, let alone helpful ones, but his administration insists on pretending that he does.

Most of the public knows this at some level or another. Part of the public might be fooled by Limbaugh and Hannity and the rest of the conservative turdthrowers that haunt the nation's airwaves. But the majority is moving away from Limbaugh and Hannity and Bush. Katrina - New Orleans - that's just not something that Bush's brand of separation politics can survive. Nor Rove's. Nor Limbaugh's. Nor Hannity's. Will yours?

Bush is bringing your Party down with him. Katrina has spawned a giant ripple of new political focus and priorities, and the Bush Administration is on the wrong side - that is, absent - on almost all of them. Those ripples will become their own powerful forces over time - and not much time - and since Republicans are in power for the next 16 months, perhaps your Party can start to deal with those issues. Poverty. Class. Federal projects management and expenditures. Environmental planning. Health coverage. Energy planning. Every one of those issues is going to be looked at in new ways, with new solutions, with new suggestions, with new voices - and with new interest from voters.

Republicans can continue, irresponsibly, to ignore them and follow the President's descent into history. Or, at least some Republicans can behave responsibly, work together with Democrats towards a vision of governing that most Americans would approve of, and lead. It's a choice, one that will determine whether Republicans have Congressional responsibility in the future or not.

I think if there's a National Republican who knows this, it is you, Chuck Hagel. How much longer can you ignore your gut feelings on this? Chuck Hagel, I would reconsider such weak responses if I were you. You need to get on the humane side of history now.

(thanks to lowkell for the DailyKos diary on this...)

Embarrassing. Disconcerting. Disappointing. Shocking. Take your pick.

Juan Zarate, Deputy Assistant to the President and Deputy National Security Advisor for Combating Terrorism spoke yesterday at a Terrorism and Security Conference to hundreds of professionals in Washington DC.

He claimed that since 9/11, Bush's campaign against terrorism has killed, among others, Mohammed Atta.

Most Americans probably know that Atta died during the 9/11 attack.

Certainly the professionals knew it.

Chilling preparation - or lack thereof - by Zarate. The video of his speech is here.

The damage in the South by Katrina will create many, many, many spreading issues. Just to get an idea, check out the national associations in this country on this Google Search:

and you'll see things like the following:

American Bus Association
Fuel Shortages

According to Lancer, fuel industry sources say that there will be acute diesel fuel shortages in the weeks ahead, with some industry sources predicting a shortage will last months. While the price is an issue, it’s predicted that the availability of fuel will be the more pressing issue. Despite the Administration’s decision to release oil from federal reserves, it may only put a small dent in the shortfall caused by the damage to the Gulf Coast’s oil industry infrastructure. It is recommended that operators top off the tanks in all your units as soon as possible.

National Association of Home Builders

Additionally, imports of building materials will be disrupted by the damage to port facilities. New Orleans was the top destination for imports of cement and a number of other building materials into the U.S. in 2004. Cement imports, in particular, involve the use of specialized terminal facilities. The New Orleans and Mobile customs districts reported about 12 percent of national cement imports in 2004.

National Community Pharmacists Association

Mississippi’s Medicaid pharmacy director has appealed to pharmacies in other states “to please take care of our beneficiaries in this emergency” caused by Hurricane Katrina. “If an out of state pharmacy is willing to accept our reimbursement, we will work with that pharmacy, on an individual basis, to insure its enrollment as an approved provider on an emergency basis,” Judith Polk Clark, R.Ph., wrote in an e-mail to counterparts in other state Medicaid offices.

National Multi Housing Council

Urge HUD & Treasury to Waive Program Requirements on Federally-Assisted Housing Temporary emergency waiver on all program requirements needed to expand housing supply available to Hurricane Katrina's victims.

National Association of Railroad Passengers

Amtrak Service Changes From Hurricane Katrina

The Sunset Limited, City of New Orleans, and Crescent all face long-term service disruptions due to the devastation from Hurricane Katrina.

Service disruptions. Supply shortages. New sharing arrangements between governments. Funding issues. That's just scratching the surface. And all of today's issues beget issues for tomor