Bush Aides Can Be Subpoenaed

Suck on this:

President George W. Bush's top advisers aren't immune from congressional subpoenas, a federal judge ruled Thursday in an unprecedented dispute between the two political branches.

The House Judiciary Committee wants to question the president's chief of staff, Josh Bolten, and former legal counsel Harriet Miers, about the firing of nine U.S. attorneys. But President Bush says they are immune from such subpoenas. They say Congress can't force them to testify or turn over documents.

U.S. District Judge John Bates disagreed. He said there's no legal basis for that argument. He said that Ms. Miers must appear before Congress and, if she wants to refuse to testify, she must do so in person.

Now if Congress will subpoena them...

All the Tubes' Fault

Stevens indicted.

All About the Benjamins

Conservativism:

Influential former Pentagon official Richard Perle has been exploring going into the oil business in Iraq and Kazakhstan, according to people with knowledge of the matter and documents outlining possible deals.

Mr. Perle, one of a group of security experts who began pushing the case for toppling Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein about a decade ago, has been discussing a possible deal with officials of northern Iraq's Kurdistan regional government, including its Washington envoy, according to these people and the documents.

It would involve a tract called K18, near the Kurdish city of Erbil, according to documents describing the plan. A consortium founded by Turkish company AK Group International is seeking rights to drill there, the documents say. Potential backers include two Turkish companies as well as Kazakhstan, according to individuals involved.

The pursuit of one's happiness.

McWhine

I'm a little worried his base may even get sick of him.

Credibility Gap

CBS and John McCain.

McCain's Media

Indeed.

War?

Oh yeah, that war.

Two suicide bombers posing as army recruits struck an Iraqi base just east of Baquba on Tuesday morning, killing at least 35 Iraqi recruits and wounding 63, according to the Iraqi police and medical officials in Diyala Province.

John McCain and Joe Lieberman say we have to stay, and McCain is a POW and Lieberman a good man, so they must be right!

WAAAAAHHH!!!!!

Because he can, because he is the worst president ever:

President Bush will veto the recently cleared Medicare bill Tuesday, a senior administration official said Monday on a conference call arranged by the White House.

The administration is unhappy with the Republican senators who voted for the bill July 9, but appears to hold out little hope of being able to sustain the veto, or flip back GOP senators who deserted the president on the controversial measure.

[...]

The House passed the bill, 355-59, on June 24. The Senate passed it by voice vote July 9 after voting 69-30 to overcome a procedural hurdle. Both chambers have more than enough votes to override the president, assuming no members change their votes. In the case of a veto override, the House would vote first.

First SCHIP, now this. The man is fetid.

L'Etat C'est Moi

Bushie:

In another push to deal with soaring gas prices, President Bush on Monday will lift an executive ban on offshore drilling that his stood since his father was president. But the move, by itself, will do nothing unless Congress acts as well.

The president plans to officially lift the ban and explain his actions in a Rose Garden statement, White House press secretary Dana Perino said.

There are two prohibitions on offshore drilling, one imposed by Congress and another by executive order signed by former President Bush in 1990. The current president, trying to ease market tensions and boost supply, called last month for Congress to lift its prohibition before he did so himself.

Abstinence for Dummies

It doesn't work:

The number of U.S. teenagers who gave birth increased for the first time in 15 years, raising what a health official called ``a red flag.''

The rate at which teen girls became mothers rose 2.8 percent in 2006 from a year earlier, according to a report on children compiled by 22 U.S. agencies. The increase ended a decline that began when the teen birthrate peaked at 38 births per 1,000 girls ages 15 to 17 in 1991, the report's authors said.

Keep on truckin, Bushie.

Obama's FISA Vote

Obama voted for the awful FISA bill, which is some egg on his face, and although some on the left are up in arms, let's think about his vote in a political context. Obama will most likely become president with a sitting Democratic Congress with the same Speaker and majority leader. Whether you love or hate the FISA bill - I hate it - it was Steny Hoyer's - ugly, mentally-impaired, kitten-killing - baby. If Obama publicly came out against the bill this late in the game he would only antagonize Hoyer, with whom he has to work come 2009. I see the same logic behind his support of Blue Dog John Barrow in GA-12 against a progressive, black candidate. If Congressional incumbents feel threatened they will circle the wagons and thwart Obama's plans.

Obama needs to get along with the 111th Congress in order to get legislation passed. Although I disagree with his FISA vote, I abide by it.

69 Senators Unfit for Their Jobs

The Senate has approved a bill overhauling the rules on secret government eavesdropping and granting immunity to telecom companies that helped listen in on Americans after Sept. 11.

The Senate passed the bill Wednesday, 69-28. It turned back three amendments that would have watered down, delayed or stripped away the immunity provision demanded by President Bush.

Silence.

McCain Mancrush Watch

The AP.

Nothing funnier than dead people!

John McCain Does Not Support the Troops

And gets hissy when called on it.

Club of Fools

I'm sure they will be regular guests on TV.

Two hard-charging political operatives are teaming up to create a bipartisan consulting organization to advise corporations in crisis -- as they work to burnish their own reputations as well.

Former Clinton strategist Mark Penn, chairman and CEO of public-relations firm Burson-Marsteller, is hiring former Bush adviser Karen Hughes as a vice chairman, the principals say. The political combatants, known for their partisan efforts, decided to combine forces to offer a one-stop crisis-communication and public-affairs shop to corporations caught in front-page headlines or faced with a changing Washington.

It's a comeback effort of sorts for both players. Mr. Penn, 54, who served as chief strategist and pollster for Sen. Hillary Clinton's presidential bid, has been blamed in recent months for her failed candidacy. Ms. Hughes, 51, who came to Washington with President George W. Bush as his communications director, left her State Department position several months ago after making little progress on her mission to improve the U.S. image around the world.

I'd say that last paragraph nicely sums up this operation.

Cheney Hearts Evil

How else do you explain this?

U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney's office was behind a push to censor congressional testimony that global warming poses a danger to the public, a former Environmental Protection Agency official told Congress.

The director of the Centers for Disease Control testified to a U.S. Senate panel last year about the public health effects of climate change in testimony that was heavily edited by the White House's Office of Management and Budget. Until now, Mr. Cheney's office hadn't been publicly linked to the efforts to keep information about climate change out of the public eye.

"The Council on Environmental Quality and the Office of the Vice President were seeking deletions to the CDC testimony," Jason Burnett, formerly an EPA associate deputy administrator, wrote in a letter dated July 6 to U.S. Senate Environment and Public Works Committee Chairman Barbara Boxer (D., Calif.).

Apparently Cheney can only survive in an atmosphere filled with poisonous gases.

Elections have consequences. Vote the crooks out.

Why Hello Mr. Pot!

JP Morgan Chase’s chief executive, Jamie Dimon, said U.S. regulators should investigate whether people betting on Bear Stearns‘ stock falling deliberately brought down the investment bank.

“Where there is smoke, there’s fire,” Mr. Dimon said in an interview with Charlie Rose on PBS, televised on Monday. “I think the Securities and Exchange Commission should investigate it, okay? I think if someone knowingly starts a rumor or passes on a rumor, they should go to jail.”

Then the same should go for those who make absurdly optimistic predictions about their companies' performances. If people can be punished for causing a stock to unduly drop, they should also take heat for causing one to unduly rise.

Then again, when stocks rise everyone makes money, so who cares?!

Link.

Stupid Buddy Poll Questions

As long as we're being subject to the stupid "Which candidate would you rather have a drink/bbq with?" questions, can we please add "Which candidate would you rather fill up a tank of gas with?"

Q You must be the most excellent expert on oil business.

THE PRESIDENT: Yes. (Laughter.) Look where our price is. (Laughter.)

Q Well, actually, I'm suffering high gas prices.

THE PRESIDENT: You are?

My vote still goes for the press giving McCain a free ride.

McCain's Base

At least we already know how this cycle is going to play:

Bob Schieffer, on Face the Nation, responding to John Kerry stating that McCain has completely changed his position on a large number of issues:

“Are you attacking John McCain’s integrity?”

I'm going to place a roll of John McCain's integrity in my bathroom where it belongs.

McCain Is Playing Loose with Campaign Finance

But it's ok, because he was a POW:

Allies of Sen. John McCain have found new loopholes in the campaign-finance law he helped write -- and they're using them to reel in huge contributions to help him compete with Sen. Barack Obama.

In one method, a Republican Party fund aimed at electing governors has started marketing itself as a home for contributions of unlimited size to help Sen. McCain. His 2002 campaign law limits donations to presidential races to try to curtail the influence of wealth.

The Republican Governors Association isn't subject to those limits, and has long gathered up large donations from individuals and companies. Now it is telling donors it can use their contributions to benefit Sen. McCain in some key battleground states.

I wonder if the media will go into conniptions and scold McCain for weeks like they did when Obama legally refused public financing.

...

:: ROFL ::

Worst Legislation Ever

Telecom Act of 1996, which spawned Clear Channel:

Conservative talk radio host Rush Limbaugh signed an eight-year contract extension worth as much as $400 million with Clear Channel Communications Inc, The New York Times said on its website on Wednesday citing an interview with Limbaugh.

You reap what you sow.

Winning the Stupid

I'm glad we're winning, but come on:

People would rather barbecue burgers with Barack Obama than with John McCain.

While many are still deciding who should be president, by 52 percent to 45 percent they would prefer having Obama than McCain to their summer cookout, according to an Associated Press-Yahoo News poll released Wednesday.

Men are about evenly divided between the two while women prefer Obama by 11 percentage points. Whites prefer McCain, minorities Obama. And Obama is a more popular guest with younger voters while McCain does best with the oldest.

Having Obama to a barbecue would be like a relaxed family gathering, while inviting McCain "would be more like a retirement party than something fun," said Wesley Welbourne, 38, a systems engineer from Washington, D.C.

It's because our media continues to focus to stupid things like this that we can't have relevant discussions about policy and where our country is headed.

Dangerous Territory

Does he have to go there? Really?

Reaching out to evangelical voters, Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama is announcing plans to expand President Bush's program steering federal social service dollars to religious groups and -- in a move sure to cause controversy -- support some ability to hire and fire based on faith.

Sen. Obama was unveiling his approach to getting religious charities more involved in government anti-poverty programs during a tour and remarks Tuesday in Zanesville, Ohio, at Eastside Community Ministry, which provides food, clothes, youth ministry and other services.

I'm skeptical to say the least.