Friday’s Mini-Report

November 9, 2007

Today’s edition of quick hits.

* Another contentious day in Pakistan: “Pakistan quickly ended house arrest for opposition leader Benazir Bhutto on Friday as President Gen. Pervez Musharraf came under new U.S. pressure to end a crackdown that Washington fears is hurting the fight against Islamic extremism. Earlier in the day, police threw up barbed wire around Bhutto’s house to keep her from speaking at a rally to protest Musharraf’s imposition of emergency rule, and security forces rounded up thousands of her supporters to block any mass demonstrations.”

* Wall Street was also unsettling, in a far-less violent way: “Wall Street finished a turbulent week with another huge drop Friday after major banks warned of further losses on their debt portfolios, raising investor concerns that the credit market slump shows no sign of abating. The Dow Jones industrial average fell more than 220 points…. Further worries about the continuing credit market slump kept investors on edge a day after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said he expects the economy to ‘slow noticeably’ this quarter.”

* The exodus of House Republicans continues: “Rep. Jim Saxton (R-N.J.) will retire at the end of this Congress after 22 years in the House, striking another serious blow to his party’s reelection efforts. In addition, GOP sources expect Rep. Barbara Cubin (R-Wyo.) to announce her retirement Saturday at a meeting of state party officials in Casper.” They are the 14th and 15th GOP House incumbents to announce their retirements this year.

* Last night, the Senate confirmed Michael Mukasey as the nation’s new Attorney General. The 53 to 40 vote was the closest for any AG since 1952. No Republicans voted against him, and seven Dems broke ranks to join the majority — Feinstein (D-Calif.), Schumer (N.Y.), Bayh (Ind.), Carper (Del.), Landrieu (La.) and Nelson (Neb.). None of the presidential candidates in either party voted.

* On a related note, Mukasey was sworn in today at a private Justice Department ceremony, about 16 hours after the Senate vote. Justice Department spokesman Brian Roehrkasse said Mukasey “got right to work.”

* And speaking of the DOJ, this might be one of the more striking headlines in recent memory: “Justice Department returns to enforcing voter laws.” Stick it in a time capsule; future generations won’t believe it.

* We came up a little short in this year’s Weblog Awards, coming in second in our category to TBogg. Thanks to all who voted, and congratulations to TBogg.

* Hazy on the details on exactly why Bernie Kerik is facing federal criminal charges? Paul Kiel runs down what the charges are all about.

* YouPeopleReallyAreNuts.com. This just made my day a little better.

* With a new president, and an end to the war, I hope this will turn around: “The Army is struggling to find volunteers for an unpopular war, despite recruiting bonuses of up to $20,000 and pay increases for enlistees that have beaten inflation by 21 percent since 2000.”

* On a related note, Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell insisted Thursday that the Iraq war is “winding down.” This is why nobody takes Mitch McConnell seriously.

* Joss Whedon has a WGA-strike picket-line update — and a list of five great strike movies. (Have I mentioned that I worship Joss Whedon?)

* AP: “Civil rights advocates criticized plans by the Los Angeles Police Department to map the city’s Muslim communities, calling it racial profiling. The LAPD’s counterterrorism bureau plans to identify Muslim enclaves in order to determine which might be likely to become isolated and susceptible to ‘violent, ideologically based extremism,’ said Deputy Chief Michael P. Downing on Thursday.”

* Congressional Dems may let us down, but they still come through for middle-class families the GOP would leave behind.

* Ugh: “Woodland Hills-based Health Net Inc., one of the largest health insurers in California, ‘set goals and paid bonuses’ for employees ‘based in part on how many individual policyholders were dropped and how much money was saved.'”

* He’s not gone yet: “After months of seemingly self-imposed exile, Sen. Larry Craig is tapping his foot back into the national political scene.”

* Speaking of Republican sex scandals, Sen. David Vitter’s (R-La.) mess is getting worse.

* New details on the latest FEMA fiasco: “An internal investigation into a fake news conference staged by the Federal Emergency Management Agency during last month’s California wildfires found that the agency’s press secretary directed aides to pose as reporters, secretly coached them during the briefing and ended the event after a final, scripted question was asked, according to a senior FEMA official.”

* Speaking of humiliating Bush administration employees, there are also new details on the DHS employee who came to work dressed in a dreadlocks wig, a prison outfit, and makeup to darken his skin.

* The Center for Reproductive Rights has a new report: “What If Roe Fell?” Pay particular attention to the state-by-state analysis (.pdf).

* And finally, end the week on a good laugh, and check out Al Gore’s cameo on “30 Rock.” Great stuff.

Anything to add? Consider this an end-of-the-day open thread.

Joss Wheadon destroyed the Alien franchise.

  • Bush’s old buddy Joe Allbaugh has joined team Rudy, because he thinks Rudy is teh best on homeland security issues:

    “To me there is an overriding desire and need to protect our country,” Allbaugh said. “We’ve made a lot of progress but we’re not there yet. We still have porous borders and we have an immigration problem.”

    http://www.statesman.com/news/content/news/stories/nation/10/31/1031allbaugh.html

    Got that? Illegal immigration is the most important thing when you think about homeland security. And I wonder if Old Flat-top knows Rudy once said: “If you come here, and you work hard, and you happen to be in an undocumented status, you’re one of the people who we want in this city.”

  • Bushco is tweaking every statistic they can to hide the recession we are in. Leading and concurrent indicators are all pointing at shrinking numbers. If we muck around with that WW III crap, you can put a big ole D in place of the R.

  • And when you think about it, how could Bernie Kerik’s surrender to authorities today not cry out for a new version of Bohemian Rhapsody called Republican Rhapsody? It was kind of inevitable, really, although it briefly was a flip between that and Warren Zevon’s “Lawyers, Guns and Money.”.

    Ironically, I used MSNBC’s article for the epigraph on Kerik’s surrender. I say “ironically” because, according to what Crooks and Liars pointed out, MSNBC called Kerik a “hero.”

  • “Civil rights advocates criticized plans by the Los Angeles Police Department to map the city’s Muslim communities, calling it racial profiling. The LAPD’s counterterrorism bureau plans to identify Muslim enclaves in order to determine which might be likely to become isolated and susceptible to ‘violent, ideologically based extremism,’ said Deputy Chief Michael P. Downing on Thursday.”

    First they came for the Muslims…

    Since, so often, I notice pro-Hillary remarks at the Carpetbagger Report (I believe CB referred to her as a “tremendous candidate”)–and in no way do I have anything personally against HRC, although I have a bit of a problem with her record–can someone articulate for me Hillary Clinton’s position on the Global War On a Psychological State (or a Nefarious Tactic, if you prefer)? Thanks.

  • Here’s one, just for GP’s:

    SACRAMENTO, Calif. – The Army is spending $2.6 billion on hundreds of European-designed helicopters for homeland security and disaster relief that turn out to have a crucial flaw: They aren’t safe to fly on hot days, according to an internal report obtained by The Associated Press.

    AP IMPACT: New Army chopper overheats

    But, but, but, they’re NEW!

  • We came up a little short in this year’s Weblog Awards, coming in second in our category to TBogg. Thanks to all who voted, and congratulations to TBogg.

    Suggestion: Forget this crap.
    It’s fool’s gold.

    I took a look at a few of the blogs that were in the top 250.
    Painful garbage.
    Something calling itself “Bitch PhD” was ahead of you.
    It’s profanity laced with profanity.
    Is there anything cuter than being flipped off by a child?
    I don’t think so either…
    Cutesy land for sure.

    I voted for you.
    I won’t again.

    It’s a dumb game.
    Full speed ahead CB…
    Damn the establishment.

  • don’t know if anyone on joss’ blog mentioned it (i couldn’t get in), but one of my fave strike movies has always been “brassed off.” hearing one of the striking miners rant to a bunch of six year olds about “margaret-bleeding-thatcher” brings a smile to my lips and a clenched fist to my left hand every time!

  • * Last night, the Senate confirmed Michael Mukasey as the nation’s new Attorney General. The 53 to 40 vote was the closest for any AG since 1952. No Republicans voted against him, and seven Dems broke ranks to join the majority — Feinstein (D-Calif.), Schumer (N.Y.), Bayh (Ind.), Carper (Del.), Landrieu (La.) and Nelson (Neb.). None of the presidential candidates in either party voted. — CB

    I’ve been waiting all day for you to comment on this. It’s 6 Dems, actually, not 7, who sold us down the river. Not that it makes much difference but out of curiosity… Who did you think was the 7th? The other Nelson? Or that Connecticut guy who, for some inexplicable reason, is always listed as ID, making him neither fish nor fowl (though he’s always foul enough)?

    I’m really surprised at how calmly you reacted to the lockstep “dodge and duck” manœuvre that all, ALL, our Senators-cum-presidential-candidates executed so flawlessly. Biden. Clinton. Dodd. Obama. Every effing one of them was missing in action. Dodd? The recently-brave Dodd??? What did he think he was gonna lose if he voted as he should have? The nomination? Sheesh…

    At least, “my” — nominally-Dem — Senator (Webb) voted on the side of the angels. When I saw his name on the TPM’s list of “undecideds”, I sent him a real love letter, using some of the choice Southern phrases I learnt during the past 34 yrs (“have you lost your cotton-pickin’ mind?” was one of them) and bringing to bear my experience of growing up in Poland — so unlike the US I moved into in ’73 but becoming so much more *like*, with every day that Bush and Cheney are allowed to get away with everything, including murder…

    PS Mellowjohn, @10

    “Brassed Off” is one of the best films, ever. But it’s not really about a strike, much (not that all of the films listed on Joss’ site were, either). And, of course, the folk in the film don’t speak English; they speak Yorkshire… My DH — born and bred in VA — found it 70% incomprehensible 🙂

  • Musharraf is toast—and Bush is afraid of the consequences. It’s important to remember that the Terror that was the French Revolution came on the heels of our own—and Musharraf’s been having serious internal problems ever since ol’ Saddam got himself hung. It’s like a row of dominoes going down; the first to fall goes slowly, and each succeeding hit is a bit harder than the preceding hit. the last to fall usually not only hits the floor, but slides out of the line as well—because it’s been hit the hardest, and there are no succeeding dominoes to halt its movement. Bush is going to be like that last domino….

    Bernanke the Muppet thinks the economy will “slow noticeably” this quarter? The “closet anarchist” in me has spent the afternoon imagining a great big dive-siren sounding on Wall Street, and a whole lotta FDIC folks hurling themselves from atop tall buildings when they realize how futile it’s going to be, once they actually have to KEEP all those “guaranteed up to $100,000.00″ promises. Some of the European economists are beginning to illustrate fatal links betwen the various international markets—the UK’s third largest bank being severely overextended due to buying heavily into ‘repackaged” US subprime mortgages being one example—that the “REC” in recession could be at risk of turning into a “DEPR” of global proportions. A euro on steroids could be a death sentence to European exports, and if the oil-barrel disengages from the dollar abruptly without linking to a new currency platform, no one is going to have enough oil this Winter. Floating oil as you would float a currency would put a really big spotlight on the core issuie of the day—that the world can no longer pump enough to meet all current and projected future needs. The nation whose currency successfully becomes the platfrom for petroleum value will be the new “king of the mountain.”

    Thus ends America’s lustful affair with neoconservativism….

  • The LAPD’s counterterrorism bureau plans to identify Muslim enclaves in order to determine which might be likely to become isolated and susceptible to ‘violent, ideologically based extremism,’

    Jesus fucking Christ. With the goons of the LAPD involved, you can bet your arse these areas will become susceptible to violence.

    “We want to know where the Pakistanis, Iranians and Chechens are

    All of them? I assume the people from these countries are scattered all over the city so how are you going to know where they are? Will you require registration and perhaps the wearing of some sort of signifying mark on their clothing?

    so we can reach out to those communities,” said Downing, who heads the counterterrorism bureau.

    Here’s an idea buppy. If you want to reach out to people, do it through something other than a fucking counterterrorism unit. People might get the idea you think they’re terrorists, which tends to piss people off.

    Man, this sounds like the set up of the century. When the “outreach” is greeted with less than open arms, the cops will say the people must be up to something and issue warrants.

  • “Justice Department spokesman Brian Roehrkasse said Mukasey “got right to work.””

    Yep; those suspects won’t waterboard themselves, after all. *Sigh*

  • What’s happening on Wall Street has just as much to do with Democrats as Republicans. The US Real Estate is being repriced which is a nice way of saying deflating and will be for many years. Since Wall street and the banking industry have been making huge profits off this bubble they are suffering the consequence of this liquidity contraction which was based on the ponzi scheme that RE always goes up. Main street also will suffer a loss of lifestyle as the inflated value of the housing stock comes down to reality and they no longer will be able to borrow and spend. The rising foreclosures and BK are signs that the citizens cannot service their debt load and the Federal Reserve even with lower interest rates will not be of much assistance. The coming political election cycle will be a horse race between which political party can offer the most gov’t assistance to the most people and business, should be quite a show.

  • The vote on Mukasey was 53-40. 40 is a significant number. One more vote, and Mukasey could have been filibustered and stopped.

    All four of the Democratic senators running for President announced their opposition to Mukasey. Not one of them voted.

    Why do these goddamned asswipes need to make it so hard to be a Democrat???

  • Actually, the LAPD, which has never in the 40 years I have known those jackbooted morons ever “Served and Protected” anyone, can find out easily where the Muslims live. They live near me. They run the stores in the neighborhood. Their kids go to school here. They’re more law-abiding than I am (easy to do).

    Hollywood Bill Bratton is as big a piece of dog excrement as William Parker ever was.

  • Why do these goddamned asswipes need to make it so hard to be a Democrat???

    The excuse for the Dem candidates was that they weren’t notified in time for the vote. Harry Reid was fearful that a filibuster would be invoked so the motion to confirm was rushed to the floor. So, the Dem Majority Leader couldn’t or wouldn’t notify his own party’s Presidential candidates of an important floor vote in a timely manner. He rushed a confirmation vote on a controversial nominee from a failed President because…? Who’s side, exactly, is Reid on?

    Bonus Question: Why is it that the only candidate promising an immediate withdrawal from Iraq is a Republican?

  • Dennis, every last one of those candidates—including the nitwit of your bonus question—knew full well, as did all of us, that this vote would take place. If you feel the need to blame Reid for this, then your bonus question merely links your “Gone-Churian Candidate” to the Big Lie.

    Now, about this Pakistan thing. This goes beyond “the terrorist threat.” Masharraf is just another tinpot, trying to keep from having to flee to another country in order to save himself from the mob. The same thing is happening in Georgia and Malaysia right now; people are beginning to rise up against corrupt governments. It is an embarrassment to see this Republic—once renowned for having thrown off the yoke of a despotic tyrant by daring to take arms against the mightiest army on the planet with nothing but some shopkeepers and farmers—sit in its living room and cower.

    Those who will not act against the Tyranny—are Cowards.

  • I freaking love Al Gore. Anybody remember the Futurama episodes he guest-starred in? (He lead a team of super geeks, who were saving the world). If you haven’t seen them, maybe they’re on youtube. “I’m a 12th level Vice President.” Amazing.

    Go watch the clip. I don’t watch 30 rock but this was hilarious.

    Anyone who thought he didn’t have a sense of humor really should get their head checked. Could you imagine King George laughing at himself?

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