the-peoples-patriot, a political Blog: 05/30/2004

Saturday, June 05, 2004

Reagan at sunsit at his ranch in the sky

"One useless man is called a disgrace; two useless men are called a law firm; and three or more useless men are a congress" John Adams

Tnank you,Sir

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AP: Bush Administration Frees Mabil Al-Marabh, one time, Terror Suspect

"One useless man is called a disgrace; two useless men are called a law firm; and three or more useless men are a congress" John Adams

By JOHN SOLOMON, Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON - Nabil al-Marabh, once imprisoned as the No. 27 man on the FBI (news - web sites)'s list of must-capture terror suspects, is free again. He's free despite telling a Jordanian informant he planned to die a martyr by driving a gasoline truck into a New York City tunnel, turning it sideways, opening its fuel valves and having an al-Qaida operative shoot a flare to ignite a massive explosion.

Free despite telling the FBI he had trained on rifles and rocket propelled grenades at militant camps in Afghanistan (news - web sites) and after admitting he sent money to a former roommate convicted of trying to blow up a hotel in Jordan.

Free despite efforts by prosecutors in Detroit and Chicago to indict him on charges that could have kept him in prison for years. Those indictments were rejected by the Justice Department (news - web sites) in the name of protecting intelligence. Even two judges openly questioned al-Marabh's terror ties.

The Bush administration in January deported al-Marabh to Syria — his home and a country the U.S. government long has regarded as a sponsor of terrorism.

The rest of the story

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Friday, June 04, 2004

Today our MISLEADER IS

"One useless man is called a disgrace; two useless men are called a law firm; and three or more useless men are a congress" John Adams

BUSH IGNORES WAGE CRISIS HITTING MIDDLE CLASS

Over the last month, the Bush administration has
cited recent jobs numbers
to claim that average workers' paychecks are
increasing. Vice President
Cheney said, "real incomes and wages are
growing."[1] But as new studies
show, wages have actually decreased for the average
worker, even as
corporate profits and CEO pay have exploded.

According to the Economic Policy Institute, while
corporate profits have
risen by more than 62%, workers' take home pay has
dropped by .6%.[2] This
follows an earlier report which shows that
industries currently adding jobs
pay 21% less[3] than industries that are slashing
jobs. Despite this wage
crisis, President Bush is pushing to cut off an
estimated 8 million workers
from overtime pay protections,[4] and supports
efforts to outsource even
more well-paid American jobs.[5] Meanwhile, he
refuses to raise the minimum
wage, despite new research showing a minimum wage
hike would not adversely
affect businesses or consumers.[6]

The story, of course, is different for the
president's wealthy campaign
donors. A recent study shows CEO pay exploded by
27% in just one year,[7]
all while the President lavished more than $1
trillion in new tax breaks on
the richest 1% of the population. To put the
contrast into dollars, the
average worker takes home $517 a week[8] and will
receive about $400 in tax
breaks from President Bush. At the same time, the
average CEO takes home
$155,769 a week[9] and this year alone received
well over $50,000 in new tax
breaks from Bush.[10]

Sources:

1. Vice Presidential Speech, White House Website,
5/21/04.
2. "Economic Snapshots: When do Workers Get their
Share?" Economic Policy
Institute, 5/27/04.
3. "Economic Snapshots: Jobs shift from
higher-paying to lower-paying
industries," Economic Policy Institute, 1/21/04.
4. "8 Million White-Collar Workers Could Lose
Overtime Pay Under Bush Plan,"
AFL-CIO, 6/26/03.
5. "Exporting American Jobs," ABCNews.com, 2/13/04.
6. "Economist: Minimum wage boost could add a dime
to meal tab," Associated
Press, 6/4/04.
7. "U.S. CEO pay rose 27 pct in 2003 -- study,"
Reuters, 5/12/04.
8. "Ratio of CEO Pay to Average Worker Pay Reaches
301 in 2003," United for
a Fair Economy, 4/14/04.
9. Ibid.
10. "Details on the Bush Tax Cuts so far (as of
fall 2003)," Citizens for
Tax Justice, Fall 2003.

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And now this just 2 mins. ago ; Bush Ready to Cooperate in CIA Leak Case

"One useless man is called a disgrace; two useless men are called a law firm; and three or more useless men are a congress" John Adams

By TERENCE HUNT, AP White House Correspondent

WASHINGTON - President Bush (news - web sites) said Thursday he was ready to cooperate in the grand jury investigation of who leaked the name of a covert CIA (news - web sites) operative last year and that he had consulted with an attorney to determine if he needs legal advice.

"I've told our administration that we'll fully cooperate with their investigation" Bush said. "I want to know the truth. I'm willing to cooperate myself."

Bush's move suggests the president anticipates being questioned by prosecutors about whether he could shine any light on the case. But there is no indication that Bush is a target of the investigation.

The rest of the story. NOTE: Well Tenets leaving have meaning to Bush now being ready to speak on CIA Leak and if one has nothing to do with the other what bad timing. You'd think or at lease I do.

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Thursday, June 03, 2004

In a speech at the U.S. Air Force Academy, Bush our Misleader said,

"One useless man is called a disgrace; two useless men are called a law firm; and three or more useless men are a congress" John Adams

that he, President Bush "maintained the
spread of democracy in the Middle East will
undercut the stagnation and
despair that feeds terrorist ideologies." He
claimed, "we're standing for
human rights and political freedom,1 often at great
personal risk." What he
did not say was that earlier this year, the
president put aside efforts to
promote democracy in the Mideast after the plan was
denounced by his friends
in the Saudi Arabian government.2

Last November, Bush delivered a highly-touted
speech3 about the need to
spread democracy in the Mideast. But when it came
time to act, the New York
Times reported Bush "set aside his plan4 to issue a
sweeping call for
economic, political and cultural reform in the
Middle East" after it was
denounced by Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and
Crown Prince Abdullah of
Saudi Arabia. In dropping his plans, Bush followed
the demands of two
dictators who are regularly criticized by his own
State Department5 for
their undemocratic practices and human rights
abuses.

EDITOR'S NOTE: Yesterday, the Daily Mislead said
the company Accenture was
formerly called Arthur Andersen. In fact, Accenture
was formerly Andersen
Consulting, which was a part of Andersen Worldwide
with Arthur Andersen.6 We
regret the error.

Sources:
1. Presidential Speech, WhiteHouse.gov, 06/02/04.
2. The New York Times, 03/12/04.
3. Presidental Speech, WhiteHouse.gov, 11/06/03.
4. "U.S. Muffles Sweeping Call To Democracy In
Mideast," The New York Times,
3/12/04.
5. Secretary Powell's briefing on the 2003 Human
Rights Report press
release, US Department of State, 02/25/04.
6. "Arthur Andersen, Andersen Consulting Must Split
Up ," SmartMoney.com,
8/07/00.

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Proposed Pollution Rules Reward Election "Swing" States for Bush

"One useless man is called a disgrace; two useless men are called a law firm; and three or more useless men are a congress" John Adams

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will hold a public hearing today on proposed rules that spell out how its interstate air pollution plan would work. Critics say the plan would reward several of President Bush's largest campaign supporters and coal-burning power companies in states seen as pivotal in the upcoming presidential election.

At issue is how the federal government will hand out pollution "credits" as part of its proposed cap-and-trade program for power plants. Initially, the EPA considered two alternatives: one would base credits on the amount of power produced (the "output" method), and one would base the credits upon the amount of fuel consumed (the "input" method). The output method is considered preferable by environmentalists because it encourages more efficient use of power.

However, the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) intervened, stripping the output method from EPA's proposal last month. On May 19, the Bush administration released a supplement to its proposed Clean Air Interstate Rule that would distribute credits to companies based only upon the amount of fuel consumed. [1]

This method favors coal-burning power plants, such as the Southern Company, for whom several of President Bush's large campaign contributors have worked. [2] By weakening pollution regulations for coal companies, the plan would also make winners of several politically important "swing" states where these companies are based -- including Iowa, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Kentucky and West Virginia, said Frank O'Donnell, executive director of the Washington, D.C. based Clean Air Trust.

"The output-based method is an environmentally superior way to go," O'Donnell told BushGreenWatch. "It promotes efficiencies and that in turn would result in fewer greenhouse gas emissions."

O'Donnell pointed out that several states already use the cleaner, output method, such as Massachusetts, Connecticut, New Hampshire and New Jersey.

The Clean Air Interstate Rule, proposed last January, and the more recently proposed supplements, require states to submit plans to EPA showing how they will meet goals for reducing emissions of SO2 and NOx.

###

TAKE ACTION
To submit public comments on the proposed rules, email: A-and-R-Docket@epa.gov.

###

SOURCES:
[1] EPA Supplemental Proposal for the Rule to Reduce Interstate Transport of Fine Particulate Matter and Ozone, drafts dated May 11 and May 18, 2004.
[2] BushGreenwatch, Dec. 15, 2003.

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George Tenet just quit as leader of CIA for what reason:

"One useless man is called a disgrace; two useless men are called a law firm; and three or more useless men are a congress" John Adams

PERSONNAL REASONS. long time coming. Bush takes the resigning and said that other well rise to the job. Could this mean that on one else will work for Bush??? Or is it more like, "Who would even think of taking that job right now!

The rest of the stroy as of 4 mins. after it hit the wires.. Set tuned and come by offen.

After 9/11 he had no chance. He also got no support from Bush, as I've heard from Stansfield Turner, a fmr. CIA Director (during Carter). So, now what are we going to have happen between now and Nov. 4. You'd have to be some kind of a nut if your in Congress and you take this job and Bush leaves after losing the Election.

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Wednesday, June 02, 2004

Bush Gives Contract to Tax Traitor/Campaign Donor

"One useless man is called a disgrace; two useless men are called a law firm; and three or more useless men are a congress" John Adams

President Bush has said he wants to "make sure that
the system is fair for
those of us who do pay taxes" and that "we want
everybody paying their fair
share."1 But yesterday, the president went out of
his way to lavish a
massive government contract on a major campaign
contributor,2 even though it
specifically moved operations offshore to avoid
paying U.S. taxes.

According to news reports, the Bush administration
yesterday gave a $10
billion contract3 for the Department of Homeland
Security to Accenture
(formerly Arthur Andersen), despite the company
having recently moved its
official headquarters to Bermuda to avoid U.S.
taxes.4 The contract was
awarded less than two years after the White House
and its allies in Congress
gutted a House-passed provision that would have
banned awarding homeland
security contracts to corporations who exploit tax
loopholes, move offshore,
and avoid U.S. taxes.5 At the time, Accenture
lobbied to eliminate the
provision,6 hiring GOP political consultant "and
Bush family confidant"
Charlie Black to lobby on its behalf.7 Accenture
executives have given
President Bush more than $68,000 in campaign
contributions8 since 2000.

Of course, the president has made a practice of
paying lip service to the
problem of corporate tax evasion, while actively
opposing solutions behind
the scenes. ABC News reported that when Congress
was considering bills to
curb the practice in 2002, Bush "said the Bermuda
loophole should be closed"
but refused to support "any of the bills that would
do so"9 and then allowed
his allies to kill the legislation.

Sources:

1. Presidential Speech, WhiteHouse.gov, 04/15/04.
2. "Donors to George W. Bush between 2000-2004 who
work for Accenture,"
Opensecrets.org.
3. "Homeland Security awards $10 billion border
security contract," WVEC-TV,
6/02/04.
4. "GAO concludes Accenture, others, use tax
havens," Washington Technology,
10/3/02.
5. Congressional Quarterly Weekly, 12/6/02.
6. Baltimore Sun, 6/9/02.
7. "The Taxonomist: Standing up Against America,"
The American Prospect,
11/4/02.
8. "Donors to George W. Bush between 2000-2004 who
work for Accenture,"
Opensecrets.org.
9. ABC News, 07/12/02.

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New Bush EPA Rules Change Adds Still More Health Risks

"One useless man is called a disgrace; two useless men are called a law firm; and three or more useless men are a congress" John Adams

Despite the threat to public health, the Bush administration's Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently revised rules under the Clean Air Act to exempt industrial boilers and plywood manufacturing plants--over 1,000 facilities nationwide--from applying "maximum available control technologies" (MACT) to limit fine-particle pollution, if the facilities can demonstrate that their emissions are "low-risk." However, the risk assessment methods described in the new rules are scientifically suspect.

A new report from the Environmental Integrity Project (EIP), a nonpartisan organization that monitors enforcement of environmental laws, states that EPA's own data shows that the new boiler exemptions alone will result in tens of tons of fine-particle pollution that would otherwise be prevented. This will trigger an estimated minimum of $1.7 billion in annual public health costs, while saving industry about $170 million.

"They're willing to charge the public $10 to save industry one dollar," says EIP Executive Director Eric Schaeffer, who resigned in protest two years ago from his post as director of EPA's Office of Regulatory Enforcement. "That will cost the public in premature deaths, hospitalizations, and asthma attacks."

According to EPA data, application of the original boiler MACT rules would prevent over 2,200 premature deaths, more than 173,000 asthma attacks and nearly 197,000 childhood cases of upper respiratory complications a year. The new MACT exemptions will lead annually to more than 200 premature deaths, over 17,000 asthma attacks and nearly 20,000 cases of upper respiratory problems in young children with asthma.

EIP charges that the Bush revisions and risk analysis methods are based on industry proposals, and were further edited in industry's favor by the White House Office of Management and Budget. In one instance, under the plywood MACT rule, OMB removed reference to relevant National Cancer Institute (NCI) and National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health studies linking higher leukemia rates to formaldehyde exposure (formaldehyde is used in plywood manufacture).

OMB instead inserted reference to a computer-simulated risk model, created by the Chemical Industry Institute for Toxicology (CIIT), which predicts substantially lower cancer risk. The NCI study suggests a cancer risk 10,000 times higher than that in the CIIT study. [1]

Fine-particle pollutants can impair health even when they occur in relatively low concentrations. Winds easily transport them hundreds of miles from where they are generated, and they can be deeply inhaled and embedded in the lungs.

Scores of community health studies have linked fine particle pollution directly to impaired lung growth and function, increased need for asthma medication, greater numbers of emergency room visits and hospitalizations, and tens of thousands of premature deaths every year. Infants, children, the elderly, and those with heart disease or respiratory illnesses--such as asthma, chronic bronchitis and emphysema--are especially vulnerable. [2]

"Even if the public ultimately wins on the science, industry and OMB are still carrying the day," Schaeffer told BushGreenwatch. "They chip away at the science to get it to support their conclusions. They narrow the parameters of the risk analysis to minimize risk. And then, when the rules still don’t make sense, they change the rules anyway."

"The Bush administration is just ignoring the scientific facts," says Schaeffer. "Now these rules can only be stopped in Congress, or in court."

###

SOURCES:
[1] "Stacking the Deck: How EPA's New Air Toxics Rules Gamble with the Public's Health to Benefit Industry," Environmental Integrity Project, May 24, 20004.
[2] American Lung Association fact sheet.

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From the blog of Al Franken of www.airamericaradio.com

"One useless man is called a disgrace; two useless men are called a law firm; and three or more useless men are a congress" John Adams

http://www.ofrankenfactor.com/ ,June 1, 2004

President Bush: Flip-Flopper-In-Chief

From the beginning, George W. Bush has made his own credibility a central issue. On 10/11/00, then Governor Bush said: "I think credibility is important. It is going to be important for the president to be credible with Congress, important for the president to be credible with foreign nations." But President Bush's serial flip-flopping raises serious questions about whether Congress and foreign leaders can rely on what he says.

1. OPEC

BUSH PROMISES TO FORCE OPEC TO LOWER PRICES..."What I think the president ought to do [when gas prices spike] is he ought to get on the phone with the OPEC cartel and say we expect you to open your spigots...And the president of the United States must jawbone OPEC members to lower the price." [President Bush, 1/26/00]

...BUSH REFUSES TO LOBBY OPEC LEADERS With gas prices soaring in the United States at the beginning of 2004, the Miami Herald reported the president refused to "personally lobby oil cartel leaders to change their minds." [Miami Herald, 4/1/04]

2. Iraq Funding

BUSH SPOKESMAN DENIES NEED FOR ADDITIONAL FUNDS FOR THE REST OF 2004..."We don't anticipate requesting anything additional for [Iraq for] the balance of this year." [White House Budget Director Joshua Bolten, 7/29/03]

…BUSH REQUESTS ADDITIONAL FUNDS FOR IRAQ FOR 2004 “I am requesting that Congress establish a $25 billion contingency reserve fund for the coming fiscal year to meet all commitments to our troops.” [President Bush, Statement by President, 5/5/04]

3. Condoleeza Rice Testimony

BUSH SPOKESMAN SAYS RICE WON'T TESTIFY AS 'A MATTER OF PRINCIPLE'...“Again, this is not her personal preference; this goes back to a matter of principle. There is a separation of powers issue involved here. Historically, White House staffers do not testify before legislative bodies. So it's a matter of principle, not a matter of preference.” [White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan, 3/9/04]

…BUSH ORDERS RICE TO TESTIFY: “Today I have informed the Commission on Terrorist Attacks Against the United States that my National Security Advisor, Dr. Condoleezza Rice, will provide public testimony.” [President Bush, 3/30/04]

4. Science

BUSH PLEDGES TO ISSUE REGULATIONS BASED ON SCIENCE..."I think we ought to have high standards set by agencies that rely upon science, not by what may feel good or what sounds good." [then-Governor George W. Bush, 1/15/00]

...BUSH ADMINISTRATION REGULATIONS IGNORE SCIENCE "60 leading scientists—including Nobel laureates, leading medical experts, former federal agency directors and university chairs and presidents—issued a statement calling for regulatory and legislative action to restore scientific integrity to federal policymaking. According to the scientists, the Bush administration has, among other abuses, suppressed and distorted scientific analysis from federal agencies, and taken actions that have undermined the quality of scientific advisory panels." [Union of Concerned Scientists, 2/18/04]

5. Ahmed Chalabi

BUSH INVITES CHALABI TO STATE OF THE UNION ADDRESS...President Bush also met with Chalabi during his brief trip to Iraq last Thanksgiving [White House Documents 1/20/04, 11/27/03]

...BUSH MILITARY ASSISTS IN RAID OF CHALABI'S HOUSE"U.S. soldiers raided the home of America's one-time ally Ahmad Chalabi on Thursday and seized documents and computers." [Washington Post, 5/20/04]

6. Department of Homeland Security

BUSH OPPOSES THE DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY..."So, creating a Cabinet office doesn't solve the problem. You still will have agencies within the federal government that have to be coordinated. So the answer is that creating a Cabinet post doesn't solve anything." [White House spokesman Ari Fleischer, 3/19/02]

...BUSH SUPPORTS THE DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY "So tonight, I ask the Congress to join me in creating a single, permanent department with an overriding and urgent mission: securing the homeland of America and protecting the American people." [President Bush, Address to the Nation, 6/6/02]

7. Weapons of Mass Destruction

BUSH SAYS WE FOUND THE WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION..."We found the weapons of mass destruction. We found biological laboratories…for those who say we haven't found the banned manufacturing devices or banned weapons, they're wrong, we found them." [President Bush, Interview in Poland, 5/29/03]

...BUSH SAYS WE HAVEN'T FOUND WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION "David Kay has found the capacity to produce weapons. And when David Kay goes in and says we haven't found stockpiles yet, and there's theories as to where the weapons went. They could have been destroyed during the war. Saddam and his henchmen could have destroyed them as we entered into Iraq. They could be hidden. They could have been transported to another country, and we'll find out." [President Bush, Meet the Press, 2/7/04]

8. Free Trade

BUSH SUPPORTS FREE TRADE... "I believe strongly that if we promote trade, and when we promote trade, it will help workers on both sides of this issue." [President Bush in Peru, 3/23/02]

...BUSH SUPPORTS RESTRICTIONS ON TRADE "In a decision largely driven by his political advisers, President Bush set aside his free-trade principles last year and imposed heavy tariffs on imported steel to help out struggling mills in Pennsylvania and West Virginia, two states crucial for his reelection." [Washington Post, 9/19/03]

9. Osama Bin Laden

BUSH WANTS OSAMA DEAD OR ALIVE... "I want justice. And there's an old poster out West, I recall, that says, 'Wanted: Dead or Alive.'" [President Bush, on Osama Bin Laden, 09/17/01]

...BUSH DOESN'T CARE ABOUT OSAMA “I don't know where he is. You know, I just don't spend that much time on him… I truly am not that concerned about him.” [President Bush, Press Conference, 3/13/02]

10. The Environment

BUSH SUPPORTS MANDATORY CAPS ON CARBON DIOXIDE... "[If elected], Governor Bush will work to…establish mandatory reduction targets for emissions of four main pollutants: sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxide, mercury and carbon dioxide." [Bush Environmental Plan, 9/29/00]

...BUSH OPPOSES MANDATORY CAPS ON CARBON DIOXIDE "I do not believe, however, that the government should impose on power plants mandatory emissions reductions for carbon dioxide, which is not a 'pollutant' under the Clean Air Act." [President Bush, Letter to Sen. Chuck Hagel (R-NE), 3/13/03]

11. WMD Commission

BUSH RESISTS AN OUTSIDE INVESTIGATION ON WMD INTELLIGENCE FAILURE... "The White House immediately turned aside the calls from Kay and many Democrats for an immediate outside investigation, seeking to head off any new wide-ranging election-year inquiry that might go beyond reports already being assembled by congressional committees and the Central Intelligence Agency." [NY Times, 1/29/04]

...BUSH SUPPORTS AN OUTSIDE INVESTIGATION ON WMD INTELLIGENCE FAILURE "Today, by executive order, I am creating an independent commission, chaired by Governor and former Senator Chuck Robb, Judge Laurence Silberman, to look at American intelligence capabilities, especially our intelligence about weapons of mass destruction." [President Bush, 2/6/04]

12. Creation of the 9/11 Commission

BUSH OPPOSES CREATION OF INDEPENDENT 9/11 COMMISSION... "President Bush took a few minutes during his trip to Europe Thursday to voice his opposition to establishing a special commission to probe how the government dealt with terror warnings before Sept. 11." [CBS News, 5/23/02]

...BUSH SUPPORTS CREATION OF INDEPENDENT 9/11 COMMISSION "President Bush said today he now supports establishing an independent commission to investigate the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks." [ABC News, 09/20/02]

13. Time Extension for 9/11 Commission

BUSH OPPOSES TIME EXTENSION FOR 9/11 COMMISSION... "President Bush and House Speaker J. Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.) have decided to oppose granting more time to an independent commission investigating the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks." [Washington Post, 1/19/04]

...BUSH SUPPORTS TIME EXTENSION FOR 9/11 COMMISSION "The White House announced Wednesday its support for a request from the commission investigating the September 11, 2001 attacks for more time to complete its work." [CNN, 2/4/04]

14. One Hour Limit for 9/11 Commission Testimony

BUSH LIMITS TESTIMONY IN FRONT OF 9/11 COMMISSION TO ONE HOUR... "President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney have placed strict limits on the private interviews they will grant to the federal commission investigating the Sept. 11 attacks, saying that they will meet only with the panel's top two officials and that Mr. Bush will submit to only a single hour of questioning, commission members said Wednesday." [NY Times, 2/26/04]

...BUSH SETS NO TIMELIMIT FOR TESTIMONY "The president's going to answer all of the questions they want to raise. Nobody's watching the clock." [White House spokesman Scott McClellan, 3/10/04]

15. Gay Marriage

BUSH SAYS GAY MARRIAGE IS A STATE ISSUE... "The state can do what they want to do. Don't try to trap me in this state's issue like you're trying to get me into." [Gov. George W. Bush on Gay Marriage, Larry King Live, 2/15/00]

...BUSH SUPPORTS CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT BANNING GAY MARRIAGE "Today I call upon the Congress to promptly pass, and to send to the states for ratification, an amendment to our Constitution defining and protecting marriage as a union of man and woman as husband and wife." [President Bush, 2/24/04]

16. Nation Building

BUSH OPPOSES NATION BUILDING... "If we don't stop extending our troops all around the world in nation-building missions, then we're going to have a serious problem coming down the road." [Gov. George W. Bush, 10/3/00]

...BUSH SUPPORTS NATION BUILDING "We will be changing the regime of Iraq, for the good of the Iraqi people." [President Bush, 3/6/03]

17. Saddam/al Qaeda Link

BUSH SAYS IT IS IMPOSSIBLE TO DISTINGUISH BETWEEEN AL QAEDA AND SADDAM... "You can't distinguish between al Qaeda and Saddam when you talk about the war on terror." [President Bush, 9/25/02]

...BUSH SAYS SADDAM HAD NO ROLE IN AL QAEDA PLOT "We've had no evidence that Saddam Hussein was involved in Sept. 11." [President Bush, 9/17/03]

18. U.N. Resolution

BUSH VOWS TO HAVE A UN VOTE NO MATTER WHAT... "No matter what the whip count is, we're calling for the vote. We want to see people stand up and say what their opinion is about Saddam Hussein and the utility of the United Nations Security Council. And so, you bet. It's time for people to show their cards, to let the world know where they stand when it comes to Saddam." [President Bush 3/6/03]

...BUSH WITHDRAWS REQUEST FOR VOTE "At a National Security Council meeting convened at the White House at 8:55 a.m., Bush finalized the decision to withdraw the resolution from consideration and prepared to deliver an address to the nation that had already been written." [Washington Post, 3/18/03]

19. Involvement in the Palestinian Conflict

BUSH OPPOSES SUMMITS... "Well, we've tried summits in the past, as you may remember. It wasn't all that long ago where a summit was called and nothing happened, and as a result we had significant intifada in the area." [President Bush, 04/05/02]

...BUSH SUPPORTS SUMMITS "If a meeting advances progress toward two states living side by side in peace, I will strongly consider such a meeting. I'm committed to working toward peace in the Middle East." [President Bush, 5/23/03]

20. Campaign Finance

BUSH OPPOSES MCCAIN-FEINGOLD... "George W. Bush opposes McCain-Feingold...as an infringement on free expression." [Washington Post, 3/28/2000]

...BUSH SIGNS MCCAIN-FEINGOLD INTO LAW "[T]his bill improves the current system of financing for Federal campaigns, and therefore I have signed it into law." [President Bush, at the McCain-Feingold singing ceremony, 03/27/02]

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Tuesday, June 01, 2004

U.S.: Padilla (A US citizen) Classified as Enemy Combatant by Bush, which means you could be next

"One useless man is called a disgrace; two useless men are called a law firm; and three or more useless men are a congress" John Adams

"

By LARRY MARGASAK, Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON - Former Chicago gang member Jose Padilla is a trained terrorist who met with top al-Qaida leaders, discussed detonating a nuclear bomb in the United States and accepted an assignment to use natural gas to blow up high-rise apartment buildings, the Justice Department alleged Tuesday.

The disclosure by Deputy Attorney General James Comey, based on interrogations with Padilla and other suspected al-Qaida operatives, came two years after the arrest of the suspected "dirty bomber." It was meant to answer criticism that the government overreached in arresting a U.S. citizen and denying him normal access to the court system.

Comey said President Bush's decision to classify Padilla as an enemy combatant is supported by what was learned through the interrogation process. He described Padilla as "a soldier of our enemy, a trained, funded and equipped terrorist" who accepted "an assignment to kill hundreds of innocent men, women and children."

Comey told a news conference there was no connection between release of the information and last week's criticism that his boss, Attorney General John Ashcroft (news - web sites), overstated the possibility of an imminent al-Qaida attack on the United States.

Nor, he said, was the department attempting to influence the Supreme Court — currently considering whether the war on terrorism gives the government power to seize Americans such as Padilla without charging them. One other American citizen is being held as an enemy combatant.

Steven Shapiro, legal director of the American Civil Liberties Union (news - web sites), called the timing of the public release "curious at best," with the Supreme Court expected to rule on the legality of the detention in the next few weeks.

"At the very least, it suggests that the Justice Department is feeling pressure to explain its unprecedented decision to detain U.S. citizens as enemy combatants," Shapiro said.

A seven-page summary of interrogations of Padilla and other detainees alleged he planned the attacks with the most senior lieutenants of Osama bin Laden (news - web sites). The al-Qaida operatives weren't certain whether Padilla would carry out the apartment attacks or try to release radiation from a "dirty bomb" after arriving back in the United States on May 8, 2002. He was arrested after landing in Chicago.

Comey and a written summary by the Justice Department said Padilla and an accomplice were to locate as many as three high-rise buildings that had natural gas. They were to rent two apartments in each building, seal all the openings, turn on the gas, and set timers to detonate the buildings simultaneously at a later time.

The information alleged that al-Qaida operations chief Khalid Shaikh Mohammed "wanted Padilla to hit targets in New York City, although Florida and Washington, D.C. were discussed as well. Padilla had discretion in the selection of the apartments."

But Comey said other detainees gave different accounts, identifying possible locations for the attacks as Chicago, Texas and California.

Comey said Padilla originally suggested to his handlers that he detonate a nuclear bomb that he thought he could make from instructions on the Internet, or that he set off a radiological bomb. However, the al-Qaida officials wanted him to focus on the apartment plot instead.

One of Padilla's lawyers, Andrew Patel, characterized Comey's information as "an opening statement without a trial. We are in the same position we've been in for two years, where the government says bad things about Mr. Padilla and there's no forum for him to defend himself."

The information released by Comey had been requested by Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee (news - web sites). Hatch said in a statement, "The information released today confirms the very real and dangerous threat posed by Jose Padilla."

Padilla, by his own admission, accepted his terrorist assignment, Comey said. But the detainee "continues to maintain that he was not in the United States for that reason, and he was never really planning to go through with it," Comey added.

The Justice Department has the option of filing criminal charges against Padilla, but if that had been done initially, a lawyer may have advised him not to cooperate, Comey said. And Padilla "would likely have ended up a free man."

He added the newly released information could not be used in court because an attorney was not present during the interrogation.

Comey said Padilla's partner in the attacks originally was to be Adnan El Shukrijumah, one of seven suspected al-Qaida operatives who the Justice Department cited last week as planning attacks on the United States. Nicknamed "Jafar the pilot," the Saudi native once lived in Florida and has been sought by federal authorities for more than a year.

While Comey said the two broke up the partnership because they couldn't get along, the official said the information learned from Padilla and others about Jafar's role makes his capture imperative.

"We need to find that guy," Comey said.

Comey traced Padilla's alleged transition into a terrorist as beginning in earnest in March 2000, when he joined a pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia and met an al-Qaida recruiter. Two months later, he met someone in Yemen who arranged training for him in the Afghan terrorist camps, Comey said.

___

On the Net:

Justice Department: www.usdoj.gov

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Wise Use Activists Steering Federal Policy Under Bush

"One useless man is called a disgrace; two useless men are called a law firm; and three or more useless men are a congress" John Adams

In 1994, a book called The War Against the Greens exposed the "Wise Use" movement and its corporate sponsors in compelling and sometimes chilling detail. The book helped delegitimize the movement by showing how "Wise Use" fringe groups, posing as grassroots organizations, were in reality backed by some of America’s most powerful industries.

Now author David Helvarg is releasing a revised and updated version of The War Against the Greens (in bookstores this summer) documenting how Wise Use supporters have landed prominent jobs in the Bush Administration, where they hold sway over the nation’s environmental laws and policies.

The Wise Use movement was launched by right-wing extremists, mostly in the American West, who aimed to convince lawmakers and the public that environmentalism infringed on property rights, cost jobs, and hurt the nation’s economy. Backed by mining, timber, development, and energy interests, the movement was linked to militia groups. It created a climate that encouraged violence against environmentalists such as anti-logging activist Judi Bari, who was maimed in 1990 when a bomb exploded under the seat of her car in Oakland, California.

Although the Wise Use movement lost momentum for a while during the later 1990s, Wise Use supporters and their monied sponsors today steer environmental policy for the Bush Administration.

Interior Secretary Gale Norton is a veteran of the right-wing law firm in Colorado, Mountain States Legal Foundation, once headed by James Watt. The group billed itself as "the litigation arm of Wise Use." As attorney general of Colorado, Norton opposed the Endangered Species Act and supported paying financial compensation to developers whenever environmental laws limited their real or potential profits.

Under Norton at Interior are J. Stephen Griles, a former oil, coal, and gas lobbyist, and Lynn Scarlett, formerly with the libertarian Reason Foundation. Norton’s special assistant on Alaska is the former head of Arctic Power, a Wise Use group dedicated to opening the Arctic Wildlife Refuge to drilling.

At the Department of Agriculture, Secretary Ann Veneman once represented a Wise Use coalition made up of timber interests, off-road vehicle associations, and Wise Use activists trying to stop a conservation plan for the Sierra Nevada. Veneman’s chief of staff is a former lobbyist for the Cattlemen’s Beef Association, a group closely aligned with the Wise Use movement. Her undersecretary for Natural Resources and Environment, who oversees the National Forest Service, is a former vice president for the Forest and Paper Association, Mark Rey, formerly a popular keynote speaker at Wise Use functions.

It seemed for a while that the Wise Use movement had lost clout since its heyday in the early 1990s. But in fact its adherents are more influential than ever: they are running the U.S. government under the Bush Administration.

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Bush Thanks Veterans, Then Cuts Their Health Care

"One useless man is called a disgrace; two useless men are called a law firm; and three or more useless men are a congress" John Adams

President Bush spent the Memorial Day weekend
thanking the nation's veterans for their service,
saying "we acknowledge the debt [we owe them] by
showing our respect and gratitude." [1] Yet, his
rhetoric came just hours after the Bush Administration
announced new plans to slash veterans health care
funding if it returns to power in 2005.

Late last week, the Administration released a memo
detailing a plan to cut $1 billion from the
Veterans Administration [2] in the first budget of its
second term. The cut would come even after the White
House has tried to close veterans hospitals
throughout the country, [3] and has proposed veterans
health care budgets that have been criticized by
veterans groups and the President's own Veterans Affairs
secretary. [4] It also comes after the president
decided to cut off 164,000 veterans from their
existing prescription drug coverage, [5] and threatened to
veto [6] any bill that would allow veterans to
receive both the military pension they were promised,
and any disability compensation to which they are
entitled.

Visit Misleader.org for more about Bush
Administration distortion. -->
http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=2460565&l=38287

Sources:
1. Presidential Weekly Radio Address Speech,
WhiteHouse.gov, 05/29/04,
http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=2460565&l=38288.
2. "Democrats rip Bush's outline for cuts in
domestic programs," Palm Beach Post, 5/28/04,
http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=2460565&l=38289.
3. "VA Seeks Major Hospital Overhaul," CBS News,
8/05/03,
http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=2460565&l=38290.
4. "President Bush's Veterans' Budget Called
Woefully Inadequate and Inexcusable," Senate Democratic
Policy Committee, 2/12/04,
http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=2460565&l=38291.
5. "VA Cuts Some Veterans' Access to Health Care,"
Washington Post, 1/17/03,
http://daily.misleader.org/ctt.asp?u=2460565&l=38292.
6. " Bush Threatens Veto of Defense Bill,"
Washington Post, 10/7/02, p.A02.

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Monday, May 31, 2004

A message from the Nater camp

"One useless man is called a disgrace; two useless men are called a law firm; and three or more useless men are a congress" John Adams

This Memorial Day as we pause to reflect on all those who have lost their lives in war and the families that have sacrificed, it is imperative to think about waging peace. We are working hard to ensure that the candidate with a strategy for waging peace is in the electoral arena. Please take a moment today to learn more about Ralph Nader's position on the Iraq quagmire. It cannot be said often enough, if the 2004 presidential race is only about war and occupation, we will continue to have war and occupation.

It is obvious, that Nater is not reading this blog or he'd have alot more to say...

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the-peoples-patriot, a political Blog

Saturday, June 05, 2004

Reagan at sunsit at his ranch in the sky

AP: Bush Administration Frees Mabil Al-Marabh, one time, Terror Suspect

Friday, June 04, 2004

Today our MISLEADER IS

And now this just 2 mins. ago ; Bush Ready to Cooperate in CIA Leak Case

Thursday, June 03, 2004

In a speech at the U.S. Air Force Academy, Bush our Misleader said,

Proposed Pollution Rules Reward Election "Swing" States for Bush

George Tenet just quit as leader of CIA for what reason:

Wednesday, June 02, 2004

Bush Gives Contract to Tax Traitor/Campaign Donor

New Bush EPA Rules Change Adds Still More Health Risks

From the blog of Al Franken of www.airamericaradio.com

Tuesday, June 01, 2004

U.S.: Padilla (A US citizen) Classified as Enemy Combatant by Bush, which means you could be next

Wise Use Activists Steering Federal Policy Under Bush

Bush Thanks Veterans, Then Cuts Their Health Care

Monday, May 31, 2004

A message from the Nater camp

Agree or not, talking it over is better...

Saturday Night Live - Palin / Hillary Open

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