“I and my former colleagues trusted the government to protect us in our jobs.” Plamegate enters a new phase as Valerie Plame files a lawsuit against Cheney, Rove, and Libby for “leaking Plame’s identity to ‘discredit, punish and seek revenge against the plaintiffs.’” And for all the rabid right-wingers out there cheering on Paula Jones back in the day, it looks like the chickens have come home to roost: “Cheney and others might be compelled to turn over documents to the Wilsons, as well as give sworn depositions, as President Bill Clinton eventually had to do when Paula Jones sued him for sexual harrassment.”
Category: GOP
They Shall Overcome.
“‘I gave blood,’ Mr. Lewis said, his voice rising, as he stood alongside photographs of the clash. ‘Some of my colleagues gave their very lives.'” Publicly embarrassed by their recent lapse into old-school “massive resistance,” (and no doubt chagrined by their dismal poll numbers), the House GOP get their act together enough to pass the Voting Rights Act extension 390-33, after giving fringe right-wingers the chance to vote up or down on a few poison-pill amendments. (All failed, thanks to the Dems.) Still, several southern conservatives are not appeased: “One of the 33 holdouts was Rep. Patrick T. McHenry (R-N.C.). ‘Some politicians in Washington wouldn’t dare vote against this bill because they’d be lambasted by the media and liberal interest groups.’“
Governing least, governing worst.
“If government is necessary, bad government, at least for conservatives, is inevitable, and conservatives have been exceptionally good at showing just how bad it can be. Hence the truth revealed by the Bush years: Bad government–indeed, bloated, inefficient, corrupt, and unfair government–is the only kind of conservative government there is. Conservatives cannot govern well for the same reason that vegetarians cannot prepare a world-class boeuf bourguignon: If you believe that what you are called upon to do is wrong, you are not likely to do it very well.” Perhaps overplaying the Hartzian “America is liberal and liberal only” card just a bit, Boston College professor Alan Wolfe argues convincingly why conservatives can’t govern, and explains how, despite the emerging right-wing consensus to the contrary, Dubya’s many failures and Boss DeLay’s corruption aren’t a betrayal of conservative thinking, but a culmination of it. (By way of Blivet.)
Spoils Spoiled.
As war profits begin to dry up, the Army announces it is finally ending Halliburton’s exclusive deal to provide logistical support to US troops, in favor of a multi-company approach that will hopefully spur some degree of price competition. Good news, sure, but this newly rational stance against Cheney’s pet corporation is coming more than a little bit late in the game: “The decision on Halliburton comes as the U.S. contribution to Iraq’s reconstruction begins to wane, reducing opportunities for U.S. companies after nearly four years of massive payouts to the private sector….No contractor has received more money as a result of the invasion of Iraq than Halliburton, whose former chief executive is Vice President Cheney.“
Up from Dubyaism?
“As it looks beyond the elections of 2006, a Republican Party known for ideological solidarity is on the cusp of a far more searching philosophical battle than are the Democrats, historically accustomed to bruising fights over the finer points of political theory. The coming Republican brawl reflects the fact that President Bush will leave office with no obvious heir, and Bushism as a political philosophy has yet to establish itself in the way that Reaganism did.” E.J. Dionne previews the coming campaign for the soul of the GOP.
Uneven Stevens.
“I just the other day got, an internet was sent by my staff at 10 o’clock in the morning on Friday and I just got it yesterday. Why? Because it got tangled up with all these things going on the internet commercially.” Via my sis-in-law Lotta, GOP Senator Ted “Bridge to Nowhere” Stevens (R-AK) seems more than slightly confused about the functioning of the Internets, to use Dubya’s parlance.
God and Monsters.
“The Reed story confirms what many devout Christians have argued since conservative social activists became a force in national politics in the 1970s: Engaging in worldly political maneuvering is ultimately debasing…Hearts are better changed one at a time in the churches than through elections or legislation.” With Ralph Reed’s recent shenanigans as a newspeg, Slate‘s John Dickerson surveys the continuing crackup of the evangelical GOP.
Win Some…
In a blow to the monarchial presidency that may also affect future rulings on warrantless wiretaps and torture policy, the Supreme Court strongly rebukes Dubya for his Gitmo tribunals, declaring they “were not authorized by any act of Congress and that their structure and procedures violate the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ) and the four Geneva Conventions signed in 1949.” As Justice Stephen Breyer summed it up in a concurring opinion: “The Court’s conclusion ultimately rests upon a single ground: Congress has not issued the Executive a ‘blank check.‘”
Oh, that tribe.
“In the fall of 2004, Rep. Robert W. Ney (R-Ohio) told Senate investigators that he was unfamiliar with a Texas Indian tribe represented by lobbyist Jack Abramoff. Days later, evidence emerged that the congressman had held numerous discussions with Abramoff and the Indians about getting Congress to reopen their shuttered casino.” A new Senate report on tribal lobbying catches Abramoff flunky Bob Ney in a lie. Hmmm. Hopefully, that’ll cut into his GOP standing O next time ’round.
Minimum humanity…
Forced to capitulate somewhat on the estate tax in the House, the Republicans nevertheless illustrated anew their grotesque economic priorities in the Senate by voting down a raise in the minimum wage (Still at $5.15, it hasn’t been raised in nine years.) “Just last week, the House rejected an effort to block a $3,300 annual increase in the base salary for a member of Congress. If the raise goes through, rank-and-file members will earn $168,500 — a $31,600 increase since the last minimum-wage increase was enacted in 1997.“