Democrat Mark Begich now leads Alaska Sen. Ted Stevens by 1061 votes. That may not sound like an awful lot, but as the remaining ballots continue to trend in Begich’s favor, it sure does look like Stevens will be hanging up his Incredible Hulk tie. And that’s a good thing, as we wouldn’t want to give him the opportunity to hang himself with it in prison.
Can’t Bring Yourself to Type the Word “Ass”?
Eager to share our brilliant political commentary and blunt media criticism, but too genteel to link to horsesass.org? Well, good news, ladies: we also answer to HASeattle.com, because, you know, whatever. You're welcome!
The Great Mother Rabbit Spirit wants us to have a 60-seat senate and She’s gonna make it happen!! Wait and see! Next up: Minnesota. Then, Georgia. It might even be worth putting up with Lieberman for — temporarily, anyway.
Unfortunately that lunatic Bachmann will be back to pollute the House with her hate rhetoric.
To hell with Lieberman. I say recruit Olympia Snow with a spiffy committee to chair. She’s constantly crossing party lines and no one in Maine would be upset if she switched parties.
Prison Expansion Needed
Not only to hold all the Republicans crooks, but also because law enforcement is experiencing a record number of threats against President-elect Obama. The Associated Press reports,
“The Secret Service would not … provide the number of cases they are investigating. But since the Nov. 4 election, … officials have seen more … threatening writings, Internet postings and other activity directed at Obama than has been seen with any past president-elect ….”
Among cases being investigated:
A sign on a tree in Vay, Idaho, with Obama’s name and the offer of a “free public hanging.”
Threatening graffiti near the North Carolina State University campus.
A sign in a Maine convenience store inviting customers to join the “Osama Obama Shotgun Pool” with the prize going to whoever comes closest to picking the date that Obama is assassinated. “Let’s hope we have a winner,” the sign said — until it was taken down.
A poster of Obama in a Milwaukee police station depicting a bullet traveling toward his head.
(Material from news sources lifted under fair use.)
@3 I like your plan better than mine, if it’s workable.
Why Does McCain Hate Vietnam Veterans?
Because he’s a Republican that’s why! From Huffington Post:
“Saxby Chambliss [is] … a U.S. Senator … due to a very successful ad campaign that painted Max Cleland, a man whose seat in the Senate was a wheelchair due to having left three limbs on the battlefield in Vietnam, as a friend of Osama bin Laden and Saddam Hussein.
“John McCain is in Georgia today helping Chambliss defeat another Vietnam vet, Jim Martin, … in a runoff election on December 2nd. …
“I don’t know if John McCain … got so used to pissing away his principles … that by now it’s just reflexive … but I do know this: Jim Martin has decency and honor on his side, and Saxby Chambliss has John McCain.”
The commentary concludes, “Let’s beat John McCain again, and restore some honor to Max Cleland’s seat,” and asks for campaign donations. If you’d like to help, you can find links on The Huffington Post.
(Quoted under friendly use.)
New Misconduct Allegations Surface In Siegelman Case
Time magazine reports that “new documents” filed in the appeal case of former Alabama Gov. Don Siegelman, including “internal prosecution e-mails given to the Justice Department and Congress by a whistle-blower,” reveal “extensive and unusual contact between the prosecution and the jury” that was hidden from the judge and defense attorneys, and contradict Bush administration assertions that the case was handled by career prosecutors, not political appointees.
According to the documents, U.S. Attorney Leura Canary, who recused herself ostensibly “before any significant decisions … were made” to avoid a conflict of interest, continued to advise prosecutors and follow the progress of the case on a daily basis.
The e-mails revealed that one of the jurors who convicted Siegelman repeatedly sent messages to the prosecution team stating she was romantically interested in one of the prosecutors.
According to Time, a letter sent by House Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers to Attorney General Michael Mukasey about the case suggests that Democrats intend to investigate the Bush Administration after it leaves office. According to congressional sources, such investigations could include, in addition to the Siegelman case, the question of who authorized the use of “harsh interrogation methods” and Karl Rove’s role in the U.S. Attorney firings.
(Material quoted from Time used under fair use.)
Roger Rabbit Commentary: This new evidence buttresses the argument that the Bush administration brought a politically motivated malicious prosecution against a sitting Democratic governor to flip that state’s statehouse to a Republican candidate.
There are few things a rogue administration can do that are more dangerous than using the awesome prosecutorial power of government to railraod innocent people to prison to gain a political advantage. Siegelman’s is not the only case in which the Busheviks did that. A federal appeals court, in an unprecedented move, ordered a Wisconsin state employee released from federal prison the same day her appeal was filed because it appeared she had been framed by a partisan U.S. Attorney, and here in Washington, U.S. Attorney John McKay may have been fired because he refused to initiate a political prosecution against King County election officials.
If the allegations in the Siegelman case prove to be true, Canary should be disbarred and sent to prison. And it’s hard to imagine that Karl Rove will escape indictment if serious investigations of his activities are pursued.