September 30, 2005

9/30: Miller's Crossing

This week the season turned into autumn, but on the blogs it almost feels like early summer again: First the frenzy surrounding House Maj. Leader Rep. Tom DeLay, and now the return of the long-developing, recently-dormant CIA leak/Valerie Plame investigation, which started as "Plamegate," a mystery surrounding Bob Novak, later focused on Karl Rove ("Rove-Plame"), was further nicknamed "Traitorgate" by the left and "Nadagate" by Times columnist John Tierney, resulted in the near-jailing of Time's Matt Cooper and the actual jailing of Miller, at which point the story crept along for a few weeks (in this space as "Rove-Plame-Miller") mostly from column-posts by Arianna Huffington. The New York Times and Washington Post are also covering the new developments, whereas TV is focusing more on the stunning visuals of the CA wildfires.

In other news, bloggers debating the DeLay case invoke ex-Pres. Clinton and ex-independent counsel Ken Starr; Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) writes a challenge for Daily Kos; as Bill Bennett's troubles move from the blogs to the MSM, he picks up some unlikely allies on the blogs; there's a bit of anxiety over more soon-to-be-released Abu Ghraib pictures as well as the difficulty of training Iraqi soldiers; CA's gay marriage debate brings some Manichaean responses; and Hugh Hewitt gets in a brawl with CBS News' Public Eye.

ROVE-PLAME-MILLER-LIBBY: If Libby, Libby, Libby Was The Leaker, Leaker, Leaker ...

Miller is out of jail, and Libby was her source. Kevin Drum summarizes the rest: "Miller's lawyer called Libby's lawyer last month; Libby said his generic waiver a year ago was plenty; Miller said it wasn't; Libby said fine, I'm telling you now you have a waiver; really and truly?; yes, yes, really and truly. So tomorrow morning Miller testifies. And as near as I can tell, that's all that [special prosecutor] Patrick Fitzgerald needs to wrap up the Plame case. Before long, we should know if he's got anything or not."

>> On the right there is widespread befuddlement-turning-into-suspicion about Miller's half of the story. The New York Times' own David Johnston and Doug Jehl report: "Much about Ms. Miller's role in the matter remains unclear. Mr. Keller, the newspaper's executive editor, has declined to say whether she was assigned to report about Mr. Wilson's trip, whether she had tried to write a story about it, or whether she ever told editors or colleagues at the newspaper that she had obtained information about the role played by Ms. Wilson." NRO's John Podhoretz: "Wait, hold it. Her 'role in the matter' isn't in the least 'unclear' to the editor of the newspaper website in which that sentence appears. Bill Keller could insert a few sentences of what he knows with his red pencil. So the sentence is a lie. The Times ... is deliberately withholding information from its readers and bizarrely covering its own tail by writing about its own decision as though it were writing about another newspaper." Betsy Newmark: "So, she's been a martyr for press freedom even though it was completely unnecessary. If there isn't something more to this story, then she and the New York Times are grandstanding fools. I do not discount that hypothesis." Volokh Conspiracy's Orrin Kerr: "If you're Bob Bennett, Judith Miller's top-shelf lawyer, wouldn't you try to clear this up before your client spent three months in jail? Something about this seems fishy to me." Even ex-conservative Arianna Huffington reaches the same conclusion: "[I]t defies credulity for Miller, Sulzberger, and Bill Keller to keep insisting that Libby's earlier waiver was coerced when Libby says that it wasn't. I don't have much good to say about the vice president's chief of staff, but I don't doubt that he knows the difference between being coerced and acting on his own free will." Podhoretz, summing up: "Weird wacko crazy bananas."

>> Liberal Digby doesn't believe Miller either, but for different reasons. He speculates that Miller and Libby are in cahoots: "Why would Fitzgerald think she would tell the truth when it's clear that Libby wants her to testify on his behalf? Because somebody else has already spilled the beans. ... Neither Miller or Libby can be absolutely sure what that person told the Grand Jury because neither of them can be absolutely sure that the other one didn't tell someone about their conversation. Who knows how many people could have testified before the grand jury about Miller and Libby? One thing is certainly clear. Fitzgerald doesn't trust Judy as far as he can throw her." And conservative Tom Maguire suggests Miller is "attempting to run out the clock on Fitzgerald's grand jury. It is not news that under DoJ guidelines, Ms. Miller's subpoena was quite narrowly directed towards her conversations with one specified official. And since Fitzgerald's grand jury has a month to run, running out the clock at this point should be easy -- for example, Ms. Miller can (*HYPOTHETICALLY*) testify that she told Libby about Ms. Plame, refuse to discuss the basis of that knowledge, and leave Special Counsel Fitzgerald with the challenge (per DoJ guidelines) of exhausting all reasonable means to ascertain her source before he re-subpoenas her."

>> On the left, there are varying degrees of certainty about what this means for Libby and the overall case -- American Prospect's Murray Waas, at Whatever Already: "Miller's testimony is central to whether" Fitzgerald charges Libby, who "was unwavering in telling prosecutors and the FBI that he knew nothing of Plame's covert work for the CIA, even though he spoke to Miller about at length about her and her husband," ex-Amb. Joe Wilson. More: "Whether that account is truthful is something only both Miller and Libby know." Liberal Oliver Willis: "Wouldn't that mean Scooter Libby is the leaker? ... What involvement did Vice President Cheney or President Bush have in this matter -- are they, like Tom DeLay, also parties to a criminal conspiracy or at the very least treason (as defined by George H.W. Bush)?" Needlenose comments on the Washington Post report that Libby "told her that he had learned that Wilson's wife had a role in sending him on the trip and that she worked for the CIA": "If this is what Libby has told the grand jury, he'd better be figuring out an exercise plan designed to make an orange jumpsuit look flattering. By admitting (through his lawyer the Post's anonymous source) that he was trying to get information from the CIA -- and then passing details to Schmidt -- he's provided all the circumstantial evidence needed to convict himself of leaking classified information."

>> Rob at AMERICAblog suspects larger disintegration of the WH's standing caused Miller to change her mind now: "Wonder if seeing the DeLay/Frist/Katrina house of cards start to fall got her to start singing..."

>> Wizbang: "All indications are that Fitzgerald already knows everything she's going to testify to. Fitzgerald indicated months ago that his case was complete, save for the testimony" of Miller and Time's Matt Cooper. The American Mind's Sean Hackbarth: "It will be a riot if he doesn't charge anyone."

>> Late last p.m., we searched Technorati for 'judith miller'+released to see which of the top political blogs went first up with the news. If you curious, here's just the 1st 10, with the relevant posts: Eschaton, Think Progress, Huffington Post, The Political Teen, TalkLeft, Firedoglake, The Left Coaster, Political Wire, Captain's Quarters, and Whiskey Bar.

DELAY: Or Maybe It Feels Like The Clinton Years Again

National Review's Byron York reports that Travis Co. DA Ronnie Earle granted extensive access to a film crew to follow him for 2 years. It is almost done, and will be called "The Big Buy." Right-libertarian Daily Pundit: "Well, I'm sure prosecutor Earle isn't the self-seeking political scuzzbag this makes him appear to be. Ahh, who am I kidding? Of course he is." R. Musil: "One can well imagine the righteous uproar that would have erupted if Ken Starr had tried something like this. Will the mainstream media protest now as they would have then? Will the Pope convert to Islam?"

At Blogs for Bush this week, Mark Noonan wrote of the DeLay indictment as a partisan act: "I really do urge our Democrats to step back from the edge -- you are sitting in a lake of gasoline and you are playing with fire. We on our side will only put up with so much before we start to pay back with usury what we have received." At Daily Kos, Hunter responds: "I have some words for you. Whitewater. Rush Limbaugh. 'Drug Dealer' Bill Clinton. Swift Boats. Vince F---ing Foster. Playing with fire, you say? ... What utter cowardice. What pathetic anti-American pedantry."

Along similar lines, but in a different direction, conservative Baseball Crank writes: "I was appalled by the personal attacks heaped during the Clinton years on Ken Starr, an upstanding public servant and a man whose previous career had been one of unblemished integrity and civility. I felt then -- and still do -- that the relentless attacks on Starr, as a means of delegitimizing his inquiry and distracting from the merits of the case, were bad for the administration of justice. And so, I have deeply mixed feelings about the "pig pile on Ronnie Earle" playbook. But the more I see of Earle's record, the more obvious it is that this is a guy with a long track record of troubling behavior."

Josh Marshall: "DeLay commanded the loyalty of House Republicans not just because he's a real Texas sh*tkicker, but because his K Street empire is one of the most fearsome tools in Washington history -- a kind of awe-inspiring political Death Star whose reactor shaft Democrats have never been able to locate." But now, "Blunt, Inc. is the new DeLay, Inc."

The post by Josh "Tacitus" Trevino we cited yesterday, it turns out, was also cross-posted as a diary to RedState -- which Trevino co-founded before leaving at the start of this month (see 9/6 Blogometer). Trevino's post was highly critical of DeLay. Fellow RedState contributor Augustine responded soon after in a separate diary: "Help me out here. Leave DeLay out for a moment, his non-conservative policy views notwithstanding, and understand the precedent this establishes... that if they can get one charge through the indictment phase, no matter how small or clearly politically motivated, we'll boot the guy out. How is this just? How is this right?" Trevino responds in the below: "It is the fact that DeLay is a political albatross, coupled with his lack of meaningful commitment to conservatism (in my book, anyway), coupled with his corrosive effect on the conservative movement that leads me to believe he should have been gone some time ago." Debate ensues.

CIVILITY: Who Dares Cross Daily Kos? That Skinny Kid From The South Side ...

Sen. Obama writes a 2100+-word diary for Daily Kos. While it's usually against policy to front-page diaries by pols, Armando decides this one is important enough, and does so. Obama writes in part: "There is one way, over the long haul, to guarantee the appointment of judges that are sensitive to issues of social justice, and that is to win the right to appoint them by recapturing the presidency and the Senate. And I don't believe we get there by vilifying good allies, with a lifetime record of battling for progressive causes, over one vote or position." More: "According to the storyline ... often reflected in comments on this blog," the Dems are "are up against a sharply partisan, radically conservative, take-no-prisoners" GOP, and "in order beat them, it is necessary for Democrats to get some backbone, give as good as they get, brook no compromise, drive out Democrats who are interested in 'appeasing' the right wing, and enforce a more clearly progressive agenda. The country, finally knowing what we stand for and seeing a sharp contrast, will rally to our side and thereby usher in a new progressive era. I think this perspective misreads the American people. From traveling ... around the country, I can tell you that Americans are suspicious of labels and suspicious of jargon. They don't think George Bush is mean-spirited or prejudiced, but have become aware that his administration is irresponsible and often incompetent."

While there are some disagreements in the 100+ comments that follow since Obama posted it early this a.m., by and large the response is appreciative.

SCOTUS: Pins, Needles And Gavels Handle-Up

RedState's Erick Erickson: "'Shell shocked,' 'confused,' 'stumbling,' 'full of doubt.' These are all words I have heard used to describe the current White House effort to find Sandra Day O'Connor's replacement. [Alice] Batchelder, [Karen] Williams, and [Priscilla] Owen have all been interviewed, but the process continues to sputter along. Several have told me not to buy into the [Harriet] Miers trial balloon." An insider told him on the phone this a.m.: "The White House has gone into second guess mode. They want another Roberts, an enigma who will slip through and turn out to be a conservative. They are second guessing their picks. That, I would think, increases the chances of a [Larry] Thompson or [AG Alberto] Gonzales -- someone the President's gut tells him is conservative. My gut tells me we have to keep the pressure on or we're [screwed]." Erickson adds: "I'm told reliably there will be no announcement today."

Captain's Quarters: "While the O'Connor seat presents a bigger target for the Democrats, it still has its drawbacks as a line in the sand on judicial confirmations. ... But one factor that the Democrats have to keep in mind is that George Bush has three more years in office, and the GOP is likely to retain control of the Senate for all three. The Democrats have to defend more seats in the 2006 election and have more red-state incumbents than the GOP have blue-state incumbents. Why is that important? John Paul Stevens." At RedState, NAM's Pat Cleary admonishes the 22 Dems who voted against Roberts: "Shame on these Senators -- a few Presidential candidates past and future among them -- for blatantly kowtowing to their most liberal interest groups rather than putting partisanship aside and focusing on his impressive qualifications." More Cleary: "If they are waiting for a more qualified nominee, they won't get one."

IRAQ: Ready Or Not

Washington Post reports that Gen. George Casey told the House Armed Services Cmte that the "number of Iraqi army battalions that can fight insurgents without U.S. and coalition help has dropped from three to one." Reactions are varied, more or less split along traditional lines of support or opposition to the '03 Iraq war. Anti-war Unqualified Offerings lists some reasons why this might have happened, including "Combat with the insurgency has degraded two of the three units to the point of needing US backup to move and fight" and "Casey is really using code for political unreliability." Pro-war Ranting Profs: "Overall, the level of Iraqi preparedness is increasing, as the number of Iraqi forces that can operate independently -- if they're backed by American forces -- is up. But what gets big press coverage, of course, is that the number who can operate completely independently has slipped. I think that's in part because, as support for the war has continued to slip, there's too much eagerness to push positive news too eagerly. Every time there's the least chance that US forces might possibly, maybe, perhaps, be withdrawn at some point, that possibility gets pushed for all it's worth." Anti-war Democratic Veteran: "As the days have turned into weeks have turned into months, Preznit Pinocchio has stepped up at almost every available opportunity to proclaim how the Iraqi Security Forces have been readying themselves to have it 'Brought On' to them. Uh-huh." Pro-war Outside the Beltway: "Much more problematic in my view, though, is the fact that the Iraqi security forces have been deeply penetrated by insurgents and their sympathizers. Unless that problem is solved, 'readiness' is a chimera. Indeed, we're essentially training the enemy."

ABU GHRAIB: It's Been A Banner Week For Gory Pictures

Andrew Sullivan, on a judge's ruling that the remainder of images from Abu Ghraib must be released to the public: "I don't think most Americans are aware of what really went on at Abu Ghraib, and the depth and extent of the brutality. The reason is that the administration did everything it could to prevent the full record being made public ... Maybe now, we will begin to get accountability for what has been done and is being done in our name in Iraq, with regard to abuse of detainees and violation of the Geneva Conventions. I repeat: Rumsfeld must resign." Lean Left: "There is a danger here that the photos can stir up even more anti-Americanism and radicalize people who would not have bee radicalized without them. That argument, which the government makes, is not without merit. I do worry about the effect these pictures will have, and the potential for violence they may represent. But I fear their being kept secret even more. These pictures represent even worse abuses than where shown originally. It is important that the country be made aware of what has been done in our name.

BENNETT: Just As This Breaks Through To The Mainstream, Bloggers Start Going The Other Way?

TAPPED has the standard left-liberal take on Bennett's controversial remarks: "One thing about this post-Katrina period, it sure has brought out everyone's true colors. No normal person could even think such a thing, let alone utter it, let alone utter it on the radio, in public, for all the world to hear. I don't know where Bennett has been spending his days since turning in his virtuecrat hat, but it clearly hasn't been in decent society, where people are appalled by statements like his." Duncan "Atrios" Black presents the link to Media Matters -- which pushed the controversy first and for which he works -- with the header "How to Bring Down the Crime Rate" and understated teaser: "Bill Bennett has a suggestion."

But already, a few influential observers on the left are staking out a different position. UC-Berkeley economist Brad DeLong: "Bennett did not 'concede' that 'aborting all African-American babies 'would be... morally reprehensible.''" That was his point. ... Bennett is attempting a reductio ad absurdum argument." He advises: "Never attempt a reductio ad absurdum argument on talk radio. You can't keep exact control over your phrasing in real time, and so somebody is bound to think you are endorsing the horrible absurdity that you are rejecting." At TPM Cafe, so does Matt Yglesias: "Not only is Bennett clearly not advocating a campaign of genocidal abortion against African-Americans, but the empirical claim here is unambiguously true. Similarly, if you aborted all the male fetuses, all those carried by poor women, or all those carried by Southern women, the crime rate would decline. Or, at least, in light of the fact that southern people, poor people, black people, and male people have a much greater propensity to commit crime than do non-southern, non-black, non-poor, or non-male people that would have to be our best guess."

Right Wing News explains a bit more: "The reason Bennett specifically mentioned black Americans was because he was answering a question from a caller who was making an argument that was popularized by Steven Levitt's 'Freakonomics'. As a matter of fact, Bennett specifically mentioned the book just before he uttered the quote the left has focused on." At NRO's The Corner, Ramesh Ponnuru sees this a bit differently: "['Freakonomics' co-author] Steven Levitt took the impolitic racial element out of his overt argument between his 1999 paper and his 2005 book. By leaving it out -- although the argument does, in reality, involve (among other things) the abortion of black babies who would otherwise grow up to be criminals -- he was able to get, so far, three rave reviews in the New York Times. But Bennett's argument was actually stronger ... because it is sadly true that blacks are disproportionately involved in crime." At the Freakonomics blog, Leavitt largely defends Bennett, but adds: "There is one thing I would take Bennett to task for: first saying that he doesn't believe our abortion-crime hypothesis [that Roe v. Wade explains the last decades's falling crime rate] but then revealing that he does believe it with his comments about black babies. You can't have it both ways.

CALIFORNIA CABLE: Wallace, Thurmond, Schwarzenegger?

Swing State Project criticizes Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's (R-CA) veto of the Assembly-approved gay marriage bill, and praises Treas. Phil Angelides (D) for criticizing the move: "It's nice to know that there are still parts of this country not only where people feel comfortable standing up for the rights of others, but where it's also the politically sensible thing to do. ... Wallace, Thurmond and their ilk were not just racists but fools for not realizing they were going to be left in history's dustbin. Schwarzenegger is making the same mistake, and kudos to Angelides for being unafraid to point this out." Conservative Say Anything writes, "the larger issue here is not whether or not the bill is necessary or effective but rather the fact that California's elected legislators attempted to pass a law that was clearly in direct conflict with the interests of their constituents." Center-left Michael Stickings, at The Moderate Voice: "[B]oth the recent votes in the Legislature and the trend in public opinion towards acceptance of same-sex marriage, could mean that the people will soon have the final say. Or will Schwarzenegger find some excuse to reject even that?" Gay conservative Boi From Troy disagrees: "While most headlines will tell you that Schwarzenegger vetoed" the marriage bill, "don't overlook the fact that, today, California's Governor added sexual orientation and marital status to the Unruh Civil Rights Act," "signed legislation prohibiting discrimination based on gender identity in health care plans," and approved several other related measures: "So... um... yeah. George Wallace? Don't think so."

BLOGS VS. THE MSM: Surely CBS Knew To Expect Just This Scenario ...

On 9/28, Brian Montopoli created a list of "journo-bloggers" for CBS News' Public Eye. The list was carefully considered, explaining who was left out and why. Among them was conservative radio talker Hugh Hewitt, who responded at his blog: "This is really funny. CBS speaks! And I'm 'right on the line' but don't qualify! Egads. Not up to Brian ('I haven't always been a journalist') Montopoli's measure. Out, out, damn spot." The comments to Montopoli's post were heated from the start, with one posing as a crybaby "littlehugh," and another writing: "As if anything C BS says is relevant or important to the blogosphere!" Hewitt invited Montopoli on his radio show to debate the matter -- significantly, who and what constitutes "mainstream" journalism and whether right-of-center bloggers were omitted; Hewitt producer Duane Patterson posts the transcript at Radioblogger. Back at his blog, Hewitt followed up after: "Look, any "journo-blog" list that omits [Michael] Barone, [Jack] Kelly, [James] Lileks, Malkin and Sullivan is self-evidently absurd. ... Thus the CBS neo-blog produces early evidence of all the oafishness and arrogance that crippled Rather and Mapes. The attempt of the gate-keepers to rebuild the gates is amusing." Back at the Public Eye, CBS News editor Dick Meyer posts e-mails between himself and Hewitt, as agreed-to by both parties.

Aiming to do for John Kerry what The Daily Howler did for Al Gore, liberal Pre$$titutes fingers those most responsible for Kerry being cut down from "genuine war hero" to flip-flopper: "We've said this time and again, it's not people like Limbaugh and Hannity and Coulter, it's Russert and Gergen and Fineman and Mitchell and Blitzer and their ilk who shape Americans' views. The former spew the filth, but the latter legitimize it." More: "As we wade through a river of Republican corruption, and as the sham of 'Bush the protector' drowns in the murky waters of Katrina, it would do us well to remind ourselves how we got here, and to recognize the central role played by the media."

AIR AMERICA: The Network Strikes Back

At The Huffington Post, Air America CEO Danny Goldberg writes under the header "Right Wing Media Gets Desperate": "Air America is in strong financial shape. Last week we started broadcasting from our new multi-million dollar studios. Several weeks earlier the Board of Directors of Air America's parent company accelerated re-payment of a loan from the Gloria Wise Boys and Girls Club of $875,000 two years in advance of a previously agreed upon re-payment plan." As for the "Associates" program asking listeners for money (see 9/22 Blogometer), Goldberg compares it to the "Limbaugh Letter" and "Hannity Insider" offers on conservative talk shows. On Air America's critics: "It is an obsession with stifling debate -- even at the cost of using lies and distortions, which is un-American." Meanwhile, Michelle Malkin comments on a posting at the Al Franken Show Blog announcing co-host Katherine Lanpher's departure: "Guess not enough listeners fell for that panhandling scheme to keep Lanpher on board. Lanpher's actions certainly speak louder than Air America Radio CEO Danny Goldberg's huffy words."

THOUGHT OF THE DAY: Granger Things Have Happened

At the Political Behavior Blog, Harvard prof Barry Burden posts data for Bush's approval ratings and that of Congress from 2/01 to 9/05, and notes: "A quick Granger causality test on the data shown here suggests that the president's approval ratings affect those of Congress, but not the other way around. In other words, a popular president helps the Congress improve its image, but so too does a disliked president drag them down. This finding is based on a small N of 56 months ... but I am unaware of any argument like this in the literature." Further questions: "Does this result hold more generally? Is it true under divided government?"

LEST WE FORGET: Tho Fobo Olorogotomop Nemo Ha Ha Ha!

If you've never been to Bogol, there's no time like the present. The "chins" post is a good one, and so is "step 3 profitt!!1!" but the latest, "heyyy!" is pretty good, too.

Posted by at 12:54 PM

September 29, 2005

9/29: The Sugar Land Express

You certainly don't need us to tell you everybody's talking indictment of House Maj. Leader Tom DeLay. To hear many lefty bloggers tell it, DeLay's fate is sealed, and of a piece with the financial questions surrounding Senate Maj. Leader Bill Frist, and the myriad scandals relating to Jack Abramoff. Plenty link to reports about the news in a celebratory manner without adding much commentary. On the right, there is a good deal of skepticism about the intentions of Travis Co. DA Ronnie Earle plus the validity of the charges. But as right-leaning bloggers tend to describe themselves as conservatives or libertarians more than as GOPers, it is not hard to find conservative critiques of DeLay.

Also on the radar: opponents of the Int'l Freedom Center win their battle to remove it from the WTC site; a very unlikely Senate candidate is floated for the '06 midterms, and another Al Campanis moment raises ire on the left. Plus, we present our latest Blogger Spotlight, with Andrew Sullivan.

DELAY I: Earle-y Takes On The Case

Conservative Captain's Quarters: "Ronnie Earle has tried to derail DeLay for years, and he has conducted himself in a most partisan fashion in doing it. Rather than investigate these charges in a clearheaded, direct, and nonpartisan manner, Earle has made no bones about his personal and political vendetta. ... That has nothing to do with any question of whether DeLay violated the law, of course, but it has plenty to do with whether Earle presented a balanced and honest case to the Travis County grand jury." He predicts: "Don't be surprised to find this indictment quashed within a few weeks." Liberal Thought Mechanics, on Earle's supposed history of partisan indictments: "I guess nobody bothered to tell him that over the span of Earle's career as a prosecutor, TWELVE OF THE FIFTEEN ELECTED OFFICIALS EARLE HAS PROSECUTED HAVE BEEN DEMOCRATS." Conservative Politburo Diktat provides a sampling of characterizations of Earle's character: "Yesterday I had never heard of Ronnie Earle. But before I subscribe to Tom DeLay's characterization of his prosecutor, I'd like to learn some more."

Washington Monthly's Kevin Drum: "It's funny, but no one seems to be speculating about what kind of evidence Ronnie Earle actually has against Tom DeLay. (Except for Republicans, of course, who are unanimously echoing the official line that the whole thing is a partisan witch hunt.) For those who haven't been following this affair, the basic story is that it's illegal in Texas for corporations to contribute to political campaigns. ... The basic case against TRMPAC seems pretty good, but today's indictment says nothing at all in support of the theory that DeLay knew what was going on and actively supported the scheme. Personally, I figure that of course DeLay knew -- but by that standard, half of Congress would be in jail. By the actual standards of real criminal courts, however, Earle is going to have to present some evidence that supports his theory that DeLay conspired with the TRMPAC directors. In other words, someone is going to have to testify against DeLay."

Power Line, on the indictment: "The only time it mentions DeLay's name is when it alleges that he agreed to toll the statute of limitations! The indictment contains no suggestion of what he supposedly did that was illegal." Conservative Junk Yard Blog: "A very knowledgeable contact in Texas tells me that the law Earle is basing the indictment upon, Title 15 of the state's election code, expressly exempts federal officeholders from the state's campaign finance laws. Delay is a federal officeholder. Therefore the law being applied to him is irrelevant."

In 11/04, liberal UCLA prof Mark A. R. Kleiman explained that the GOP rule that forced DeLay to step down was dreamt up after the Rostenkowski scandal as a way to show up the Dems. JustOneMinute comments: "House Republicans should have been more careful in setting the standard at 'indictment'; 'Federal indictment' would have been a bit more cautious, since we are finally seeing a fairly predictable result."

Liberal atty Jeralyn Merritt notes that DeLay has hired "the best lawyer in Texas," Dick DeGuerin. She writes: "Dick has also been a very good friend of mine for 20 years. ... That means I'll be reporting the news on the case and analyzing it legally, but I won't be slamming DeLay any more. Sorry, folks, but loyalty is loyalty. Just thought I'd be up front about it." In the comments, her readers are not pleased.

PoliPundit: "Surely there is some enterprising Republican prosecutor, in a very red county, who could indict a Democrat Congressman or two..."

Don Surber headlines a post: "A Ham Sandwich Can Be Guilty."

DELAY II: If You Think You Need To Read Liberal Websites To See Tom Get Hammered, Think Again

Conservative Josh "Tacitus" Trevino: "We knew all along that Tom DeLay was a bully -- ask the Heritage Foundation about his penchant for petty grudges. We knew all along that he was, on a fundamental level, unprincipled -- ask him about the fat in the Federal budget. We knew all along that he was mostly interested in power for its own sake -- recall, please, that he sought a House rules change to protect his leadership position in this very circumstance. And we knew that if it came to an indictment, it would be the end."

Right Wing News' John Hawkins argues despite the merit of the charges, DeLay should go: "At one time, Tom DeLay was a great conservative leader of the House. Unfortunately, he has been in Washington too long Moreover, while President Bush has taken plenty of well deserved shots for his big spending ways and inept political maneuvers of late, Tom DeLay is just as deserving of scorn as Bush is from conservatives." More: "Republicans pulled out the long knives and got rid of Newt Gingrich when they decided he was a liability and, quite frankly, DeLay isn't half the leader that Newt was."

Lefty Duncan "Atrios" Black: "My guess is he'll decide at some point that it's much more fun (and lucrative) to retire to K street, if he manages to escape the pokey."

Instapundit: "I'm on travel and haven't had time to read the many emails I've gotten proclaiming his obvious guilt or persecuted innocence, but it's obviously an embarrassment for the GOP On the other hand, maybe his replacement will be better at finding pork..."

Daily Pundit Bill Quick: "There will undoubtedly be a DeLay pile-on, and many of the pilers may even be from the right. I won't be one of them. Until liberals and lefties like BJ Clinton, Kofi Annan, Sandy Berger, and others of that ilk are forced to pay a price for their offenses, I am going to remain singularly unimpressed by liberal-inspired vendettas against conservatives."

The Moderate Voice sees problems for both sides, asking: "will the batch of shoes that will soon be loudly dropped be good for the nation or be just one more abrupt shove into rage-tinged political polarization?" More: "Democrats, after talking in a nearly united voice for a while, now seem to be lacking a central message. The fact that DeLay resigned (even if temporarily) took some of the wind out of the Democrats' sails on this one. The best thing for the Demmies: if he beats the case on a technicality and comes back so he can be a political boogieman. The worst thing for them: if he's convicted or eventually eased out for a new, fresher face."

GOP LEADERSHIP: An Interregnum Of Sorts

MyDD's Chris Bowers posts an excerpt from the book "Off Center": "In American politics, centrifugal tendencies are everywhere. Asked to contemplate a House of Representatives without the leadership of the great coordinator, Tom DeLay, a Republican strategist with close ties to the White House commented: "It would be complete and total chaos. The House would descend into 'Lord of the Flies.' (p. 137)" Bowers adds: "With leaders like Cheney, Frist, Rove and DeLay, there is no escape from the Culture of Corruption for Republicans save total defeat and reorgnization. The gatekeepers are all knee-deep in it, and everyone else is knee deep in the gatekeepers."

In the early afternoon 9/28, when it seemed likely that CA Rep. David Dreier would be temporary Maj. Leader, TAPPED's Garance Franke-Ruta wrote, he "will likely find himself drawing some unwanted attention in his new post, if selected, for reasons I'll leave it up to Wonkette to get into." Within the hour, Podhoretz responded at The Corner: "I understand there are some things about Garance Franke-Ruta that she might not want people to know. Just saying." MyDD, Boi from Troy, RedState, Matt Szabo, Don Surber, AMERICAblog, Protein Wisdom and Balloon Juice have more.

The American Mind: "It's nice to see conservative Republicans are feisty and getting tired of the current leadership."

DELAY III: Look Out! Chips Are Falling Everywhere!

At The Corner, John Podhoretz was one of the 1st to weigh in: Next couple of days there will be a lot of gleeful liberals and Republicans claiming that this really does make it possible for Dems to take over the House and Senate in 2006." He suggests analogies will be drawn to ex-Rep. Dan Rostenkowski (D-IL), comparing it to the '94 "GOP landslide" -- "Corrupt Dems in 1994 = corrupt Repubs in 2005. Add to the DeLay indictiment the talk about Bill Frist's stock sale and you have major-league talking points for Democrats all over the country. ... Brace yourself. It's gonna get ugly."

DLC's Ed Kilgore, at TPM Cafe: "Democrats need to raise their game, raise the stakes, and raise the broader issues involved in the DeLay saga, right now. ... It's time for Democrats to connect the dots, and launch an intense, sustained, united reform message and agenda for the country. DeLay doesn't really matter. What really matters is the system which he has served, and what it has done and is doing to our country." In a diary for Daily Kos, MT SEN candidate Jon Tester ties DeLay together with Frist and Abramoff. He writes: "I've been a farmer my entire life, and I can tell you from experience that no matter how hard you try, you can't convince a hog to shovel its own bull. By the same token, we can't expect those in Washington to clean up corruption in Washington." In an interview with Houston Democrats, TX House candidate David Murff (D) comments: "Regarding the DeLay matter, it will probably drag well into the 2006 election cycle, and frankly I'm not excited about the Democratic Party potentially being the beneficiary of the Republicans' misfortune. I'm tired of the Republicans portraying Democrats a certain way, and the truth is that the party in power needs to clean up their house and start serving the people instead of the corporations, and maybe this will give them the incentive to do so. If they don't, or won't, then that's a good enough distinction between us to give voters a clear choice."

NRO's Stephen Spruiell calls the indictment "totally phony." He gives a brief overview of the charges, adding: "What you won't hear in the press is that A) This is a perfectly legal move, and B) the Democrats did the exact same thing" -- the TX Dems did it in '02 -- "Even people who aren't fans of Tom DeLay should show some intellectual honesty and admit that this is an out-of-control prosecutor and a phony charge." Conservative Michelle Malkin: "I don't think the 'Everybody does it' line is going to work for Republicans any more than it does for the Dems defending the actions of Chuck Schumer's ex-employees."

Conservative Junk Yard Blog: "You want a conspiracy, I'll show you a conspiracy. The mid-terms are a year out. We now have" DeLay indicted, Frist "under fire for a stock sale, misuse of MD LG/likely SEN candidate Michael Steele's SSN to get his credit report," and radio talker Rush Limbaugh "fighting off a partisan invasion of privacy and prosecution meant to bring him down. This is starting to look like a concerted effort to criminalize Republicans out of office while silencing our pundits."

Raising Kaine, which supports VA LG Tim Kaine (D) in the 40-days-out GOV race, opines that "the question here" for GOP nominee AG Jerry Kilgore "and his campaign team -- led by Scott 'Max Cleland is an Osama-Loving Traitor' Howell -- is not WHETHER the DeLay/Frist/Bush daily scandals will hurt them but HOW BADLY."

Liberal Running Scared: "Here's a question for you, but don't think about it too long or hard -- if this trial runs well into next year's election cycle and DeLay is in the midst of a criminal trial, do you think the good people of Texas would still elect him again? Don't answer too soon. I have a sick feeling that they would."

ABRAMOFF: Oh No! Hovering Shoes May Descend At Any Moment!

Americans for Bayh, noting the AP story about how temporary House Maj. Leader Roy Blunt hired TRMPAC lobbyist Jim Ellis: "One would suppose that this belongs under the 'the more things change, the more they stay the same' category." Fired Up America has more on the Blunt-Ellis-DeLay connections.

Talking Points Memo: "We've noted before our interest in DeLay-Abramoff contacts which belie DeLay's claim that he cut Jack off soon after the murder of Gus Boulis in February 2001. Here, just added to the TPM Document Collection, we find national GOP fundraiser and fellow DeLay indictee Warren RoBold of ARMPAC setting up a December 14th, 2001 fundraiser for ARMPAC/DeLay at the Jack Abramoff skybox at the MCI Center in Washington, DC. To date, we've found no evidence this one was ever reported. For those of you deeply addicted to Abramoff Skybox love trivia: it was Wizards-Knicks."

DELAY IV: King Of All Media

Watching GOPers smile through interviews yesterday, moderate AmbivaBlog comes up with the term "Facial Spin": "That's the art of smiling (smirking, sneering) with superior amusement to discredit whatever is being earnestly said by the talking head on the other side of the split screen and the political spectrum. I have the impression that while all sides employ it, Republicans have perfected the art of facial spin."

Liberal Newshounds, on DeLay being interviewd by Sean Hannity on "Hannity & Colmes" last p.m.: "DeLay said he wanted to get the truth to the American people. If he was so anxious to be forthcoming and frank, then why did he avoid being interviewed by Alan Colmes? Surprisingly, Hannity conducted a reasonably knowledgable and histrionic-free interview. I'm sure the histrionics will be back before long." The Political Teen has video.

DeLay, on "Hardball" last p.m.: "That's TRMPAC. That's not me ... I was simply, along with four other elected officials, on an advisory board. They used my name as headliners for fundraisers and I had no idea what they were doing." CAP's Think Progress cites prior news reports suggesting otherwise, including DeLay saying TRMPAC was "his idea."

9/11 MEMORIAL: Make That 2 Wins For The Blogosphere

According to the AP, Gov. George Pataki (R-NY) has decided to move the Int'l Freedom Center (IFC) museum away from Ground Zero. Header at New York Times, which carries the story: "Museum Dropped From WTC Site for Now." Take Back the Memorial, dedicated to opposing the IFC, thanks those who helped, adding: "Take Back the Memorial will continue to monitor the plans for Ground Zero to ensure that a fitting and proper memorial is built; one that is respectful of the victims murdered that day, their families, the first responders, and the American people." Michelle Malkin: "Biggest losers: [IFCers] Tom Bernstein, Rich Tofel, and the shameless editorial writers at the NYTimes who had the gall to call critics of the IFC 'un-American.'" Ankle Biting Pundits: "Query: How long will it be before the New York Times writes an op-ed blasting Pataki for kicking out the IFC? I say it will be in Sunday's edition, at the latest."

SCOTUS: You Can En Banc On It

A GOP insider is quoted anonymously at RedState: "I have no clue who the nominee is. In fact, no one I have spoken to inside or outside the White House really knows who it is. We all feel more comfortable with who it is not than with who it is -- and I'm pretty sure it is not [AG Alberto] Gonzales."

Mickey Kaus: "Here is Harriett Miers' bio ... and here's Michael McConnell's. Assume they're both fine people. If you had to make a snap decision, which one should be on the United States Supreme Court?" Kaus, doing his signature editorial note second-guessing: "You just like McConnell because he wrote a piece in 2000 trashing Bush v. Gore--ed. Shhh. That article showed guts. Clearly-written too. We were hoping the Bushies had forgotten it."

RACE: Not-So-Modest Proposal

Media Matters draws attention to a quote from conservative author Bill Bennett saying on his radio show on 9/28: "I do know that it's true that if you wanted to reduce crime, you could -- if that were your sole purpose, you could abort every black baby in this country, and your crime rate would go down. That would be an impossible, ridiculous, and morally reprehensible thing to do, but your crime rate would go down. So these far-out, these far-reaching, extensive extrapolations are, I think, tricky." Steve Gilliard: " I won't even bother to point out all the racist assumptions here." The Zero Boss: "Of course, the statement is couched in enough plausible deniability to feed the victims of Katrina for a month. Sadly, no amount of denial can change the fact that, when forced to grab an example off of the surface of his subconscious, Bennett proposed genocide. Because, you know, those little black babies are just going to grow up sucking the welfare teat and selling crack cocaine to your bored white suburban kids anyway."

SPENDING: Drunken Sailor Report

Captain's Quarters' Ed Morrissey announces he will merge his "Not One Dime More" campaign -- originally conceived as withholding money from the NRSC as long as the GOP leadership couldn't get Bush's jud. nominees through -- with Instapundit/TTLB Porkbusters project. He writes: "Unwilling to rethink priorities and excusing it by demanding that federal money get spent on the 'burbs as well as the big cities? Not One Dime More for Porkers."

At RedState, Rep. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) follows up her poorly-received 1st post (see 9/26 Blogometer), elaborating on her plans and responding to specific criticisms. Plenty of commenters are still skeptical, wanting more cuts and/or arguing the EITC is the wrong target. On the other hand, site co-founder Mike Krempasky comments: "Thanks for being here. You're far ahead of your Republican colleagues in your willingness to engage. Kudos to you -- and I can't wait to help make sure you stay right where you are -- on Capitol Hill."

MIDTERMS '06: The Chances Are Pretty Lowell

Via the New Haven Independent, Markos Moulitsas floats the rumor that GOP-to-indie ex-Sen. Lowell Weicker might challenge Sen. Joe Lieberman (D-CT) for his old seat.

WHITE HOUSE '08: Poll Position

With a few more blogs linking to Patrick Ruffini's Sept. straw poll (including conservative traffic-cop Instapundit), 13K+ have now participated. Ex-NYC Mayor Rudy Giuliani continues to dominate with 33.8%; VA Sen. George Allen comes in at 19.1%; MA Gov. Mitt Romney has 9.9%; Undecided shows up with 7.9%; and McCain makes it into the top 5, displacing CO Rep. Tom Tancredo by just a handful of results.

INTRODUCING: On The Prowl

The American Spectator enters the blogosphere, launching a blog featuring contributions from its writers and editors, including Wlady Pleszczynski, John Tabin, George Neumayr, Al Regnery, Jed Babbin, possibly "Ferris Bueller's Day Off" actor Ben Stein, and the mysterious "Washington Prowler."

BLOGGER SPOTLIGHT: Sullivan Generis

Today the Blogometer talks to ex-TNR editor/veteran blogger Andrew Sullivan, who writes The Daily Dish.

What is your full name?

Andrew Michael Sullivan

What is your age?

42

Where did you grow up?

East Grinstead, a small town thirty miles south of London in England.

Where do you live now?

Adams Morgan in DC and Provincetown, MA.

What is your occupation? Have you ever worked on a political campaign or for the mainstream media?

I'm a writer. I have never worked on a campaign; but I edited the New Republic for five years, still write for them, and for Time, the Advocate, the Sunday Times of London, and the New York Times Book Review.

When did you start blogging and why?

The summer of 2000. It seemed to me that this was a great opportunity to write without an editor or publisher to cramp my style.

What has been your favorite post, or favorite story to write about, in that time?

Inevitably, making sense of the war is the central theme of the last five years -- and the struggle for gay equality. I've also tried to draw attention to the Bush administration's embrace of torture as a military policy.

Describe your typical blogging schedule. And what is your average output?

It has changed over the years. Right now, I blog for a couple of hours in the morning and then sporadically in the afternoon when I'm trying to avoid other work. I typed around 500,000 words last year. You do the math.

Who is your favorite political blogger? Favorite non-political blogger?

Glenn Reynolds. No one does it better as fast-food. I only browse political blogs. I don't have a favorite.

Who is your favorite mainstream media columnist?

Dan Savage.

What is your favorite television news program, either network or cable?

I watch O'Reilly with morbid fascination.

What MSM-produced websites (i.e. newspapers, magazines) do you visit on a daily basis?

NYT, WaPo, Guardian, Telegraph, Times, Slate, TNR.

What non-MSM websites (i.e. blogs) do you visit on a daily basis?

Drudge, Instapundit, Romenesko, NRO's Corner, Volokh, Kos, TPM, Kevin Drum, Power Line, Jeff Jarvis, Dan Drezner, OxBlog, Yglesias, Michelle Malkin, Hit & Run, Wonkette.

How often, or do you ever, read a newspaper in its dead-tree (i.e. print) form?

Once a day, with coffee: the NYT. Sometimes the WaPo over lunch. I'm thinking of switching the two around.

How do you see the new media and old media affecting and influencing each other in the next five years?

Mutual encouragement, continuous sniping, eventual merging.

THOUGHT OF THE DAY: Is It True That In France They Put Malaise On Fries?

When the identity of Watergate's "Deep Throat" was revealed this summer (see 6/1 Blogometer) a few writers noted that the famous phrase "Follow the money" was never reported by Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein; it was in fact the creation of screenwriter William Goldman. And now, picking up on the liberal blogosphere's anger about The Note's fake Bush speech practical joke (see 9/28 Blogometer), Anonymous Liberal makes a related point: "[W]hat annoys me even more [than the deception] is that the writers of The Note also inserted a line into the speech that was not originally there. Buried in the middle of their version of speech is the line '[s]imply put, there is a malaise afflicting America.' While Carter's speech has since become known as his 'malaise speech,' he never actually used that word."

LEST WE FORGET: Put Up Your Dukes

Liberal bloggers are having no small amount of fun with the DeLay indictment:

The Poor Man Institute presents its latest installment of "Keyboard Kommando Komics" -- this time a "Dukes of Hazzard"-themed comic strip, with Frist as Bo, DeLay as Luke, House Speaker Denny Hastert as Uncle Jesse, and Michael Moore in for Boss Hogg.

Daily Kos posts the image of a "Get Out of Jail Free" card with DeLay's face photoshopped over Rich Uncle Pennybags. The card says: "The Republican Party has passed an amendment in your favor!"

At Huffington Post, liberal comic/blackpeopleloveus.com co-creator Chelsea Peretti creates an Evite parody: "Edite," which invites: "You're Indicted!" -- sent by "Ronnie Earle and a Grand Jury." Among those attending: DeLay, TRMPAC officials Ellis, John Colyandro, Abramoff and business partner Adam Kidan. Not yet replied: Rove, Bush. Unable to attend: Frist -- "Can't: have to attend SEC par-tay... sorry." And Judy Miller -- "Regrets. Can't." In the Maybe column: Scott McClellan -- "I'd rather not comment at this time. Like I said, I'm just not going to engage in the e-dite commenting you want me to engage in at this time."

Posted by at 01:18 PM

September 28, 2005

9/28: It's A Blog Blog Blog Blog World

Note: Today's Hotline went to press before House Maj. Leader Tom DeLay was indicted; it's a bit too soon to collect blogger reax, but we'll have reax aplenty tomorrow.

Today's edition covers stories far and wide. Ex-FEMA dir. Michael Brown's 9/27 cong. testimony was the hottest story to interest both left and right bloggers; the 1st chapter of ex-CBS producer Mary Mapes' book, available on Amazon, draws both serious criticism and mockery from conservatives; a monthly GOP straw poll once again confirms ex-NYC Mayor Rudy Giuliani and Sec/State Condoleezza Rice are the favorites; the Abu Ghraib-like "gore for porn" story gains a bit more traction; the New York Times loses to Geraldo Rivera and seems to be losing its battle with online readers; SCOTUS speculation runs rampant; plus, liberal bloggers watch disturbing new developments in the Jack Abramoff scandal; and eagerly await news on whether House Maj. Leader Tom DeLay will be indicted on conspiracy counts [Update: They are no longer waiting]. But first, we consider the New Orleans Times-Picayune's new online publishing format and its implications for other papers:

ONLINE JOURNALISM: The Future Of Content Management?

When Katrina struck and the Times-Picayune temporarily ceased to publish as a printed newspaper, much of the website was reinvented as a series of blogs. 1 month later, the T-P's NOLA.com is still publishing as a weblog. Here is the 9/28 news section. Here even is the sports section. In fact, the print edition stories linked on the front page all go to a single page where stories are listed one after the other and each story has its own permalink. One immediate benefit is that one can search the entire text of a day's edition on one page using Ctrl-F.

Newhouse/Advance, which owns the Times-Picayune, has long had one of the less-attractive and unnavigable templates for its newspapers, and the T-P page still has its faults. On the other hand, it's also been one of the first chains to experiment with weblogs, such as their "Sopranos"-oriented Bada Bing Blog. As for the news pages of their other papers, it's business as usual at those websites, such as Oregonlive.com, AL.com and NJ.com. But how long before they switch over entirely? And how long before others follow suit? Indeed, the blogging format -- the chronologically-arranged, clearly-delineated series of items on a single page -- offers inherent advantages for both the reader and the website managers.

KATRINA RESPONSE: No One Wins The Blame Game -- You Only Lose

On 9/26, ex-FEMA dir./current FEMA adviser Brown appeared before a House Select cmte investigating the Katrina response:

• From the left -- Supreme Irony of Life summarizes the MSNBC article on the story, and concludes that Brown's take is: "Everyone is at fault for FEMA's performance, except for the person directing FEMA." Demagogue scoffs at Brown's claim, as reported by the New York Times, that FEMA was mistakenly believed a "rapid-response" agency: "I can't imagine where the media and the American people would have gotten the impression that FEMA played a rapid-response role. Unless, umm... maybe it was from this FEMA update, released last September." The FEMA document uses the phrase "rapid response" to describe its efforts, plus a few similar-meaning phrases. Alas, A Blog doesn't trust the panel to get it right: "As for this committee or commission investigation (whatever they're going to call it) into 'what went wrong,' will we truly get any honest answers from them?"


• From the right -- The Political Teen doesn't think the panel should have been convened yet in the first place: "It hasn't even been a month since Katrina hit, residents haven't returned to their neighborhoods and we're holding hearings to decide where the blame goes? It wasn't until 14 months after the 9/11 attacks that a commission was held to find out where the blame resides." But conservative PoliBlog isn't impressed with Brown's "defiant" stance: "Even if this is all wholly accurate, I don't think that approach it going to be effective or productive. Indeed, I have little doubt that a substantial amount of the blame belongs at the local level, but to start out by shifting all blame is not the way to go -- nor do I think it is an accurate presentation." GOP Bloggers wonders why it's "taboo" to mention that Gov. Kathleen Blanco (D-LA) "completely bungled" the hurricane response, whereas GOPers FL Gov. Jeb Bush and TX Gov. Rick Perry managed just fine with their hurricanes.


• A few liberal bloggers go after a favorite target -- Conservative Power Line's John Hinderaker titles a post "Brownie Kicks Butt," writing: "It's hard to say what a marginally-informed citizen would make of the Katrina hearing, but my own impression was that the only person in the room who had any idea what he was talking about was Michael Brown." The Mahablog objects: "Only a ten-cup-a-day Kool Aider could believe this." Oliver Willis announces that "The Stupidity of John Hinderaker" will become a regular feature at his site.

MEMOGATE: Book Of The Month

The 1st chapter of ex-CBS producer Mapes is available on Amazon, in advance of its 11/8 release date."Truth and Duty: The Press, the President, and the Privilege of Power"; not surprisingly, conservative blogs are all over it. In one passage, Mapes writes: "Within a few minutes, I was online visiting Web sites I had never heard of before: Free Republic, Little Green Footballs, Power Line. They were hard-core, politically angry, hyperconservative sites loaded with vitriol about Dan Rather and CBS. Our work was being compared to that of Jayson Blair..." Power Line's John Hinderaker: "Her writing reveals that she has no idea what she is talking about; repeatedly, she says that critics of her television program talked about 'peripheral spacing' in the alleged National Guard documents. This is astonishing; it's hard to say what is more amazing: that after a year, Mapes still doesn't know that 'proportional spacing' is what we and many other bloggers discussed, or that she and her editors 1) know nothing about typography, and 2) on top of that, are too lazy to read our posts." Mapes also writes of reading the blogs: "I had a real physical reaction as I read the angry online accounts. It was something between a panic attack, a heart attack, and a nervous breakdown. My palms were sweaty; I gulped and tried to breathe." The Great Satan replies: "Yeah Mary, those are symptoms usually associated with embarrassment, and fear." Bloggledygook observes that Mapes "writes that she and her team had 'made news' in the story she produced" for "60 Minutes II," but what she "fails to realize even now is that her job is not to make news, but to report it."

Co-Power Liner Scott Johnson: "We keep waiting for Karl Rove's minions in the media world to give us a call and offer us a book contract on the inside story ... We figure he owes us after we so dutifully followed his orders and played our role in exposing the fraudulent 60 Minutes II story with which CBS sought to tip the campaign last fall." Actually, at Rathergate, Mark Kilmer notes that site founder Kevin Craver is writing a book on the subject, which "will contain a chapter taking down the Mapes novel."

Media Lies: "It's ridiculous to keep rehashing this story, but so long as the dinosaurs keep rising from the dead, we have to stab them in the heart one more time."

GOP STRAW POLL: Rudy, Rudy, Rudy, Rice, Rudy, Rudy, Rudy

36 hours after Patrick Ruffini's latest straw poll went up, 10K+ participants have voted; click here for results.

Just like in previous polls (see 8/24 Blogometer), ex-NYC Mayor Rudy Giuliani leads by a wide margin at 34.0%. Trailing: Sen. George Allen (R-VA) at 19.0%; MA Gov. Mitt Romney at 10.1%; Undecided at 7.6%; and CO Rep. Tom Tancredo at 6.6%. Further down, MS Gov. Haley Barbour inches ahead of AZ Sen. John McCain. The Aug. poll included ex-Speaker Newt Gingrich, although this time he gets a "bye." Leaders last time were Giuliani, Allen, Gingrich, Romney and McCain.

On the fantasy ballot, where readers can keep their original pick or go with a new one, the top 5 vote-getters are: Sec/State Condoleezza Rice at 34.4%; Giuliani at 12.5%; FL Gov. Jeb Bush at 10.2%; VP Cheney at 8.3%; and ex-Sen. Fred Thompson at 7.9%.

As before, the list is sortable according to a handful of variables, including referring blog. Top referrers are Michelle Malkin, Ruffini's own site, Hugh Hewitt, RedState, PoliPundit and InstaPundit who just linked at 8 a.m. RedState is the only blog whose readership favored Allen, and is only one of two blogs where McCain finished in the top 5 (at #3).

Also notable with this poll is the use of Technorati-style "tags"; readers can enter descriptors of themselves, and results are sortable in this manner. In the cases we checked, Giuliani's strong support holds true for most categories, although Allen leads by about 2 points with "pro-life" voters and edges Giuliani for those self-described as "Christian."

Ruffini explains his introduction of tags: "Tired of meaningless poll questions that don't ask about things you really care about? Want to get across what really drives you, and find what others exactly like you think? Then tagging is perfect. If you're a pro-life libertarian concerned about immigration and taxes, just type in: pro-life, libertarian, immigration, taxes. Then see how other self-identified libertarians and pro-lifers voted. (Though it's an unscientific poll, could tagging revolutionize how traditional polling is done? Could be.)"

WHITE HOUSE '08: Joe Montana

Here's a WH'08 draft blog that is a few months old, but which we just found: Schweitzer for President. It is accompanied by a bare bones TLD site of the same name (i.e. top-level-domain, meaning that phrase followed by ".com"), and a draft petition. The latest post trumps his 66% approval rating.

In a column for Town Hall, PoliPundit contributing blogger Lorie Byrd argues that in the post-Katrina climate, Giuliani's leadership is all the more attractive, plus, "one thing that Giuliani may be able to do, that some other Republicans might not, is unite the country."

Conservative Scared Monkeys, noting an AP story on China's crackdown on political websites, wonders if Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-NY) still stands by a statement she made during the Lewinsky scandal: "We are all going to have to rethink how we deal with this, because there are all these competing values ... Without any kind of editing function or gatekeeping function, what does it mean to have the right to defend your reputation?" Scared Monkeys: "Does some one maybe think that Hillary Clinton may need to inform us just how she does think about today's 'freedom of speech' on the internet?"

PENTAGON: Is This A Case Where The Pictures Actually Hurt This From Getting More Attention -- Because The Pictures Are Actually Too Horrible?

Liberal AMERICAblog notes that the New York Times has picked up on the "gore for porn" scandal, i.e. the pornographic message board to which some U.S. soldiers have apparently posted images of themselves posing with dead bodies in Iraq and Afghanistan (see 9/26 Blogometer). AMERICAblog's John Aravosis noted earlier: "Think about how crass the Pentagon is. DOD is contacted about this scandal earlier today, tell the press they're investigating, because of course they only JUST heard of this horrible scandal recently (that's why they didn't act sooner, of course), and then a few hours later says sorry, we can't prosecute but we'll be sure to consider disciplinary action. Huh?" The Times doesn't mention AMERICAblog as having pushed the story, although the Editor & Publisher story linked in the above paragraph does.

In the voice of Gen. George S. Patton -- as portrayed by George C. Scott -- Trey Jackson berates critics of the Iraq war, particularly Sen. Ted Kennedy (D-MA) for calling the Abu Ghraib abuse "torture" and "atrocities" -- compared with actual atrocities such as the beheading of Nick Berg and the 9/11 attacks.

SCOTUS: Yeah, And It Could Also Be Yo Mama

RedState's court-focused Confirm Them and NRO's Bench Memos the places to go for purportedly genuine SCOTUS rumors (as opposed to blogger favorites like Janice Rogers Brown). There are almost too many to keep track of, but even though we're surely missing some, let's try:

• AG Alberto Gonzales
• WH counsel Harriet Miers
• 4th Circuit Karen Williams
• Ex-SG atty Miguel Estrada
• 5th Circuit Judge Priscilla Owen
• FL Judge Raoul Cantero
• 7th Circuit Judge Diane Sykes
• 6th Circuit Judge Alice Batchelder

It seems almost pointless to detail the speculation, although Williams' name has been arguably the most-mentioned in the past 24 hours. NRO's Jonathan Adler asks if Williams is "a serious contender for the Supreme Court? Or is she destined to be a whisker away like Judge Edith Brown Clement? We should know before the end of the week."

NEW YORK TIMES: Other Possible Analogies Include The Pentagon Papers, Standard Oil, Whack-A-Mole ...

As the Blogometer reported yesterday, bloggers are posting TimesSelect material to the web, and readers are using Technorati to locate them. Noting the same trend, Kausfiles nicknamed the blog search engine "Dowdster" (as in Napster). Technorati is still being used this way this a.m., and unlike on 9/27, now they're searching for the conservative columnists as well. Among the top 10 NYT-related searches this am: "Find The Brownie" (Krugman's latest); "Paul Krugman"; "John Tierney"; "Maureen Dowd"; "Human Beings 2.0" (Tierney's latest); and "David Brooks." Meanwhile, John Tabin's Never Pay Retail page notes the existence bootlegs of all recent columns save for the latest. On a related note, Bob Herbert and David Brooks are still available online at the Atlanta Journal-Constitution; click here for the Brooks' 9/27 column.

ABRAMOFF: GOPfellas

The DCCC's Stakeholder links to this AP report on the arrest of 3 men in connection with the murder of Miami businessman Gus Boulis, "a murder that happened a few months after he sold a fleet of casino boats" to Jack Abramoff. Josh Marshall says that AP doesn't mention "the quarter million dollars in unexplained payments Abramoff business partner Adam Kidan made" to do of the men arrested. In a separate post, he links to an Orlando Sun-Sentinel timeline of the circumstances surrounding Boulis' death, what he calls look at the few "degrees of separation between your Majority Leader and a Gotti family contract killing."

TChris at TalkLeft notes that acting U.S. Atty for Guam Fred Black was demoted after he notified the DoJ 11/02 that he opened an investigation of Abramoff, and asks: "Can it be a coincidence that this sudden change of personnel and priorities saved Abramoff from an earlier investigation?"

DELAY: The Hopes And Fears For Elections Next Year ...

Liberal Benny's World: "The Austin American-Statesman is reporting that House Majority Leader Tom DeLay could be indicted on criminal charges today. Our fingers are crossed." Late last p.m., DCCC's Stakeholder linked to an AP story reporting that the grand jury's "recent interest in conspiracy charges could lead to last-minute criminal indictments," and links back to a 9/13 post at Stakeholder saying: "There's been increasing buzz that DeLay may be off the hook indictment-wise," but "things may be a little murkier than they seem. In short, if" Travis Co. DA Ronnie Earle "has given up looking at DeLay because of jurisdiction, why not refer him to the proper channels?"

BLOGS VS. THE MSM I: Nevertheless, FNC Still Doesn't Have A Prime Time Slot To Give Its Puerto-Rican Pugilist

On 9/27, following strong criticism from New York Times public editor Byron Calame, Times editor Bill Keller issued an "Editor's Note" acknowledging that FNC's Geraldo Rivera did not "nudge" officials out of the way in helping to rescue a Katrina victim, as Times TV critic Alessandra Stanley had written. Conservative Mediacrity comments: "After reading" Keller's "dog-ate-homework, childishly defiant rationalization," "grudgingly and dishonestly sliming its way around a correction of its blatantly false report on Geraldo Rivera, I have changed my opinion of the Times. This is not an arrogant newspaper after all! No, what I had thought was arrogance is actually a very deeply engrained stupidity." Prior to the correction, Hoy Story called it potentially libelous: "Rivera is a public figure, and therefore would have to prove that the Times acted with 'malice aforethought' when it attacked him. Based on Keller's 'defense' of his TV columnist's piece, I'd say that Rivera has a good chance of proving that." Liberal Eric Alterman: "The problem, once again, is not bias; it's arrogance."

Liberal watchdog Media Matters argues that despite Calame's "professed intention to maintain accuracy on the Times' op-ed page, Calame has yet to criticize Times columnist John Tierney, whose twice-a-week columns have included several factual inaccuracies." Media Matters writes, "Tierney falsely claimed that Pres. Bush's proposal to address the solvency of Social Security by reducing benefits for upper- and middle-class workers would actually "improve benefits for the poor" and "falsely claimed that "Chileans who control their own private-account pensions don't have to count on politicians or groups like AARP to decide when they can retire."

BLOGS VS. THE MSM II: Malaise Across The Blogosphere

AMERICAblog didn't take well to The Note's practical joke of tweaking and reprinting ex-Pres. Carter '79 "malaise" speech, despite agreeing with the Bush-as-Carter meme: "This isn't parody. It's a serious, legitimate new source publishing a presidential address and claiming it's a scoop they just received. There is no irony in what they wrote in the intro, none at all. Now sure, if you're some geek with a PhD in government you might recognize this as Jimmy Carter's speech from 25 years ago. But otherwise, we're to believe this speech is real. ... Well, yeah, real funny guys. So funny in fact that I won't be reading or trusting anything you write in the future." Among those duped were DC gossip blog Wonkette.

On 9/27 the Los Angeles Times was one of several MSM outlets who followed up on 9/26 reports that the media had overstated deaths and other violence in N.O. after Katrina. Times-Picayune editor Jim Amosson is quoted: "If the [Superdome] and Convention Center had harbored large numbers of middle class white people ... it would not have been a fertile ground for this kind of rumormongering." Conservative Wuzzadem: "Can someone please tell me what he was trying to say there? Because it sounds like he's saying the media erroneously reported" what they did "because poor and/or black people are especially susceptible to (or maybe even prone to trading in) bullshit."

AIR AMERICA: The Last Days?

Last p.m. bloggers Malkin and Brian Maloney appeared on "The O'Reilly Factor" to discuss their reporting on Air America's legal and financial problems. On the show, Maloney said: "As things stand now they may be down to their last months unless one of the big guns like [George] Soros comes in..." NRO's Stephen Spruiell notes the appearance, posts the interview in WMV, and wonders of the MSM outlets that haven't been covering this story: "I wonder how the New York Times, the Washington Post and the other news organizations that heralded Air America's arrival will cover its disgraceful departure? If Maloney is right, we might find out soon."

MISCELLANY: Monkey Business (That Is To Say, We've Run Out Of Clever Headlines. Try Back Tomorrow)

• Little Green Footballs digs up a CodePink media advisory, posted to DC Indymedia, which "announced their intention" to get Cindy Sheehan arrested while protesting at the WH on 9/27. The advisory describes their protest as "Nonviolent Civil Disobedience": "Cindy Sheehan will participate in the action and risk arrest as will members of the clergy and other military families."
• CAP's Think Progress' offers a timeline of Senate Maj. Leader Bill Frist's HCA stock dealings, starting in '99.
• The Nation DC corresp. David Corn reports at his personal blog, on 9/26 the CPB board elected Gay Hart Gaines (R) as vice chair. Corn points out Gaines was once chair of ex-Speaker Gingrich's former outfit, GOPAC, which in 1990 issued a memo recommending GOP candidates "brand Democrats 'traitors.'" Adds Corn: "Should a supporter of party propagandists be in charge of overseeing the journalism of PBS and NPR? Only in Bushworld does this make sense."
• Freelance journalist Daniel Radosh, at his blog: "The MSM is doing a piss-poor job of covering Scopes II" -- aka Kitzmiller v. DASD -- "Case No doubt some weekly magazine will soon weigh in with more depth, but in the meantime, Panda's Thumb is blogging it, and today links to an anti-ID ACLU blog and a pro-ID one from the Discovery Institute, which it goes on to soundly demolish."
• New York Post's Robert George follows up the "most widely-read post in the brief history" of his Ragged Thots blog -- "Why Am I (Still) A Republican?" -- with today's "Why Am I (Still) Not A Democrat?" The former addressed his "frustrations" as a black GOPer" in light of "various Republican statements during the Katrina aftermath." He writes today: "Why don't I just pack it in and" become a Dem? "Well, it is because it has been made only too clear what Democrats have to offer me -- or anyone who might share some of my rather idiosyncratic views." He also responds to a criticism by black Dem Steve Gilliard, who criticized his recent post, and who frequently makes use of racially charged words and phrases reminiscent of Jim Crow: "How many real, live, actual white racists feel so comfortable in their racism to use these words in public? Steve is obviously not so shy. Too early to say whether Steve will be successful in sparking some revival in massa-slave linguistics. Perhaps they will only be used in this most narrow of circumstances -- as rhetorical bullwhips to be used on the treacherous black conservatives who need to be made into examples."
• The eventually-to-be-renamed coming blog news/ad agency Pajamas Media continues to roll out bios of its participants. Among the latest: Volokh Conspiracy's Eugene Volokh, Balloon Juice's John Cole, conservative columnist Michael Barone and liberal journalist Corn.
• Alarming News' Karol Sheinin finalizes the location for the "NY Blogger Party" she has organized: "It's this Friday at 8pm at K Lounge, 30 W 52nd St between First and Second Avenue. There are 58 bloggers currently RSVP'd to attend. If you're in the NY area this weekend, come on by."

THOUGHT OF THE DAY: Six Degrees Of Zarqawi

Liberal Blogenlust, on the 9/26 announcement that Zarqawi's No. 2 has been killed: "Does Zarqawi have an infinite supply of lieutenants/deputies/aides/associates/second-in-commands/etc., or do we just arbitrarily declare that every 100th insurgent we capture or kill is "a top aide" to Zarqawi? ... Below is an almost comprehensive list (I'm sure I missed a few) of Zarqawi's 'top lieutenants' we've captured, killed, or acknowledged over the last two and a half years. I count 33."

LEST WE FORGET: The Truth About HuffPo

HuffPo-hosted HuffPo critic Greg Gutfeld reveals the truth about HuffPo: "I now realize that Huffpo is like a bug zapper. It attracts all the pests in your big backyard to one little blog where they can be safely ignored while they die their little bug deaths. It's what I call the Huffpo Attractive Nuisance Strategy. HANS is a lot like the Flypaper strategy, except it makes more noise. "HANS is a startling discovery that we're only now understanding the implications of," says Greg Gutfeld, speaking on the condition that he wear a gardening hat. ... Has-beens and wannabes could not afford to ignore the Huffpo presence on the internet and are driven by their own ego and need for a public platform to flood the blog with their gleeful conspiracies. A source who might also be Greg explains its benefits: "It's better to capture these cranks on the net than at any establishment where they might actually confront the public."

Posted by at 12:56 PM

September 27, 2005

9/27: TimesShare

The MSM is always coming under fire from the blogosphere, but it's been especially pronounced in the last 24 hours. In particular, a couple of newspaper reports debunking the apparently-exaggerated early reports of massive unrest in New Orleans elicit strong criticisms from liberals and conservatives alike.

On the other hand, we notice this a.m. that while the New York Times' much-derided TimesSelect program has prompted some to argue that the Times would soon find that their columnists aren't really that important to people, we noticed something very unusual at Technorati this a.m.: 7 of 10 of the top search terms, including the top 5, were for Times columnists:

1. 'Find The Brownie'
2. 'Paul Krugman: Find The Brownie'
3. 'Paul Krugman'
4. 'Bring Back Warren Harding'
5. Bob Herbert: A Waking Nightmare 6. Ifilm
7. 'Bob Herbert'
8. Krugman
9. 'Don Adams'
10. 'Cindy Sheehan'

Perhaps not surprisingly, the top searches are for the Times' liberal columnists. There aren't that many results (also unusual for top searches) but there are definitely a handful of blogs hosting these columns in knowing violation of the Times' policy. How ugly will this get?

On the SCOTUS front, RedState is once again a hotbed of rumors -- supposedly culled from DC and WH insiders -- about who will get the nod for the open sat. Judge Priscilla Owen and AG Alberto Gonzales get serious mentions, and ex-DC Circuit nominee Miguel Estrada gets some attention.

Other news on bloggers' radar screens: ex-FEMA dir. Michael Brown is still on the gov't payroll brings condemnation from both sides; Cindy Sheehan gets arrested at the WH; Dan Rather considers his critics; Rep. Charlie Rangel (D-NY) appears on TV as a conservative blog swarm hovers; and a 3+ min. clip of the upcoming John Kerry documentary hits the web. Plus, we bring you our latest Blogger Spotlight.

KATRINA COVERAGE: Of Course, The New Reports Also Come From The MSM

Where the blog swarm is headed, who's taking part, and what they're saying:

• 2 newspaper reports from 9/26 focus on the early reports of violence in N.O. during the 1st week after Katrina, in the New Orleans Times-Picayune and a Newhouse report carried in the Seattle Times, got plenty of attention from the right and left yesterday a.m.
  
  

  >> Conservative Pejman Yousefzadeh: "It now falls to those who either spread or repeated such stories to retract them. Doing so will restore a semblance of honesty in the analysis of the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Failing to do so will cause honest observers to believe that those who continue to spread a false meme have an ulterior motive in doing so." Liberal Kevin Drum agrees: "The national press could do everyone a favor by weighing in on this." Instapundit: "Apparently, the press' performance during Katrina wasn't any better than the governments involved." Power Line: "It's time for some accountability here. The conventional wisdom is that no one performed particularly well in the aftermath of Katrina--not local, state or federal authorities, and not considerable numbers of private citizens. But it now appears clear that the worst performance of all was turned in by the mainstream media. Congress should promptly investigate..."
  

  >> The Left Coaster, on the racial angle: "So far, [the rumors] turned out to be bullsh*t. But it helped Fox and others in the wingnut galaxy keep the base drinking the Kool Aid that the blacks weren't worthy of any help, right?" Liberal Michael O'Hare snarks: "The murder rate in New Orleans in the week after the storm was not even a single case higher than an average week. Obviously they didn't even try, and with the whole world watching and telling them exactly what was expected. ... If they won't misbehave when it really counts, they shiver the entire just desserts structure of social policy. These people just have no respect for authority and their betters, and no manners, and that's the plain fact."
  

  >> Liberal Seeing the Forest, on the origin of the reports: "Sure -- some of those stories came from Democrats, and some of those Democrats were black. There's enough blame to go around. My guess is that in the end Blanco, Nagin, and Bush will all get together and cover for one another, and the whole episode will be forgotten." Centrist Roger L. Simon: "Baghdad immediately after the invasion. Remember all those reports of the mass looting of their national museum that turned out to be little more than some minor thefts (most returned), principally by the museum's own directors? ... Of course the major intent of the misdirection and distortion in Baghdad and New Orleans was the same -- to embarrass George Bush." Conservative Scared Monkeys: "The press has spent the last few weeks patting themselves on their backs regarding their coverage of the horrors of New Orleans in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Well, odds are these are the same reporters who hide out at the pool in Baghdad and report body counts in Iraq, but never get near the real news."
  

  >> Protein Wisdom's Jeff Goldstein takes issue with AP TV writer David Bauder's praise of FNC anchor Shepard Smith, writing: "As FOXNews' Major Garrett did the far less glamorous work of learning about FEMA and identifying bottlenecks in the relief effort by reviewing the local and state disaster plans in an effort to understand how states are set to integrate with the federal support efforts, Smith received 'critical praise' ... and 'his first visit to Letterman's couch' for standing on an overpass and wringing his hands, showcasing his concern as his preened before the camera, tossing out implied blame and misinformation with each new utterance, and doing so in a way that really drove the story: 10,000 dead; rapes and murders widespread; people starving and dying of thirst; the federal government nowhere in sight..." Meanwhile, Dick Meyer at CBS's Public Eye's criticizes BuzzMachine's Jeff Jarvis for a critique of Tim Russert (see 9/26 Blogometer) that included the line "Anybody can get facts. Facts are the commodity." Meyer disagrees: "Why can't anybody get the facts? Because lots of times people -- sources, officials, real people -- lie to you. Sometimes they shoot at you. Getting the facts about what's going on in, say, a 200-square-mile part of southern Louisiana that's flooded is very difficult. Getting the facts in a murder case is difficult. You get the idea. Good reporting of true facts is not something to denigrate."

SCOTUS: So Many Choices, So Few Retirements

RedState's Erick Erickson wrote last a.m.: "RedState's sources tell us to expect a Presidential announcement any day concerning Sandra Day O'Connor's replacement. ... Who the nominee will be is a mystery. What seems sure is that Larry Thompson's star has fallen just as fast as it rose. Back on the horizon is Priscilla Owen, who the White House seems to think will placate conservatives. Across the board, sources outside the White House feel like Judge Owen is the nominee. These same sources almost totally agree that Owen will not get confirmed, but her nomination fight will help re-energize the Republican base. Inside the White House, sources are not so sure." Then a few hours later, he updates with another bit of gossip: "Unfortunately, I have received reliable information late this afternoon that Karl Rove, among others, is making a last minute push for the President to consider Alberto Gonzales..." The Gonzales news elicits a series of "SHUDDER" headlines at The Corner, where Jonathan Adler emphasizes part of Erickson's post that notes, assuming this is even true, that "Rove is pushing Gonzales because (Rove believes) Gonzales is more conservative than his reputation."

Reading this line from a Michael Fletcher/Dan Balz Washington Post report -- "Democratic strategists privately say that [AG Gonzales] could win confirmation without a bloody fight" -- Mickey Kaus is skeptical: "The opposition to Gonzales among conservatives I know is not ideological. It is personal and almost visceral. They think he is a mediocrity and a whiny, gutless careerist! Also a classic overpromoted affirmative action hire. It seems entirely possible that a Gonzales nomination would become the cathartic vehicle for conservatives to vent all their frustrations with Bush (over spending, Katrina, and even Iraq). At some point, Democrats might sense the chance to deal the President a defeat. ... If Bush loses the right, the left, and Arlen Specter, how, exactly, does Gonzales win easy confirmation?"

Early this a.m., a writer at RedState's Confirm Them speculates that the success of John Roberts may have paved the way for Miguel Estrada, who "can provide through his benign but Roberts-esque work experience and charming style a strikingly similar scenario with some added bonuses that were mentioned in this post. Roberts fortuitously cleared away Daschle's excuse to filibuster Estrada about the lack of White House cooperation in releasing sensitive and privileged documents." Then later, Erickson weighs in (at both RedState and Confirm Them) writing, ex-AG Ted Olson "has been a big proponent of Estrada's, but it is unclear that Estrada wants to try that fight again -- especially when the stakes are so much higher."

FEMA: Hash Brownie

CBS News reports that FEMA has hired ex-dir. Brown as a paid consultant.

Lefty Jim MacDonald, at Making Light: "Brown, if there were a shred of decency left in Washington DC, would be talking to a grand jury, not consulting at FEMA. Didn't he already prove that he knows not one solitary thing about emergency management? ... They're mixing up whitewash in industrial-sized drums." Liberal The Green Knight: "Patronage has always been a part of politics; it's done for various reasons, but the Bush administration seems to do patronage for the sheer joy of it. They positively wallow in it." Conservative Michelle Malkin: "The retention of disgraced bureaucrats is, unfortunately, nothing new. ... Bureaucratic insiders at the old INS had a slogan that sums up the management philosophy of the government workforce concisely: 'Screw up, move up.'"

Wizbang's Kevin Aylward: "After a few WTF's, I actually thought about possible rationales. Perhaps the agency is serious about learning from it's mistakes. If that's the case then Brown's knowledge is essential." Unfutz, thinking along the same lines: "Now, in the abstract, this is not a bad idea, making sure you get the value of an employee's experience before they leave to go elsewhere. In this particular instance, though, one has to think What experience?" CA-based Matt Szabo: "What part of 'I take responsibility for federal failures' didn't President Bush understand? Paying Mike Brown to assess the failures of Katrina is like hiring Gray Davis as a budget consultant or Cruz Bustamante as an ethics advisor."

Author/military expert Austin Bay asks in a header: "Should the US military take the lead in responding to natural disaster?" and answers in the entry below: "Not if we want to keep a federal system. Unless we're talking about fighting a war, a 'let the military do it' idea is bad for a democracy. What the military can do is provide extraordinarily fine 'special asset' coordination. ... Coordination doesn't necessarily mean command -- and that's an important distinction." BAGnewsNotes posts newly released original photos of suffering and devastation from the immediate aftermath of Katrina.

BLOGS VS. THE MSM: Select Disobedience

Re: discussion of illicit sharing of New York Times columns mentioned above, conservative John Tabin -- who had been collecting links to New York Times columnists' work as it appeared on other newspapers' websites -- now updates the situation: "I'm aware that bloggers and message-board posters have put up copies of several TimesSelect op-eds that I don't have links to. I started this site to point to newspapers who print syndicated Times columns, not to promote copyright violations .... But I never intended to play Napster to the Times's Metallica; if I did, I wouldn't have signed my name to the site. So here's what I'll do. When I know there's a bootleg copy out there, I still won't link to it, but I will put up a link that says '(Bootleg available)' ... You are free to search for those yourself. Try Technorati and Google Groups."

MRC's News Busters reports on a C-SPAN-broadcast Marvin Kalb interview with Dan Rather, where Rather "stated that his network will not allow him to continue to pursue the story" of Bush's TANG service, "expressed suspicion about bloggers' role in publicizing CBS's mistakes in the whole Memogate affair" and "expressed wonder that professional journalists immediately looked at blogger accusations that CBS had run with phony documents." News Busters provides the audio, video and transcript. Liberal King of Zembla wishes CBS would let him follow up the report." Ace of Spades HQ is of like mind with many conservative bloggers -- and it is nearly all conservatives who are covering Rather this a.m. -- "Pathetic. It is perfect, delicious irony that Dan Rather, scourge of Dick Nixon, is now spending his winter years pacing around muttering to himself about dark conspiracies against him."

ABC News' The Note acknowledges its critics on the left: "How would the bloggers who think The Note is 'a stinking repository of Bush-licking Pre$$titution' ... convince those who think it is devoutly anti-Bush that they are right?" The line refers to a post on the a new liberal blog, Pre$$titutes. FishBowl DC has a brief round-up of lefty blogs' issues with The Note; see 9/20 Blogometer for more.

An occasional feature at Little Green Footballs is the presentation of a MSM photo of a media event that benefits liberal causes, with another photo from a different angle showing a mass of photographers huddling together to get the best shot; the point being to expose the absurdity of a manufactured media event. The latest shows an anti-war protester dressed in the infamous hood-and-wires Abu Ghraib position in front of the WH, with a half-dozen or so photojournalists assembled just a few feet away. Header: "Let's A/B the Media."

WHITE HOUSE '08: Bubble Boy

A clip of "Inside the Bubble," the Steve Rosenbaum documentary, can be viewed here. To our knowledge, this hasn't been widely seen, and we haven't see any commentary on it yet. Center-left Kerry supporter Michael Stickings: "Excited? Me neither. (Although, as a Kerry supporter who is still lamenting the result of last year's election, I wouldn't mind seeing it, if only to acquire a better understanding of what went wrong when all should have gone so well." Conservative Pardon My English, noting Rosenbaum was a Kerry supporter, speculates: "I suspect the underlying purpose of this film is illustrate the failures of the Kerry Campaign to serve as an excuse for their loss. But why do that? The propaganda campaign of this movie -- I suspect -- is to show the American people that it was the ineptitude of the Kerry campaign that lost the election, not that President Bush actually won re-election."

Update: There are 3 more clips available: here, here and here. Hat tip for these to Political Wire.

MIDTERMS '06: The "Gigli" Of Candidacies?

MyDD's Chris Bowers, on Washington Post-reported rumors that actor Ben Affleck (D) is interested in challenging Sen. George Allen (R-VA) in '06: "[W]hy not? ... Actually, I can think of one main reason why not. Someone like Affleck would be a horrible, media sucking distraction from the 2006 campaign. This would be the equivalent media circus of the 2003 California recall election. It would destroy the generic advantage Democrats are poised to hold in 2006, and from which they will reap huge benefits if Bush's approval rating stays low. So, please God, no, don't let Affleck run. The last thing we need in 2006 is for the star of Gigli to be our most recognizable national face."

SHEEHAN: The Endless Summer

As virtually everyone reported last p.m., anti-war activist Cindy Sheehan was arrested while protesting outside the WH on 9/26. The Political Teen hosts video of the arrest. Blogs for Bush, like many right-of-center blogs, notes that she appears "smiling and happy" while being arrested: "Doesn't exactly come across as a 'greiving mother.'" Others, like NYC-based gossip blog Gawker, focus on the spin it received at Drudge Report. Right Wing News guest blogger Mary Katherine Ham: "I'm guessing she won't be using her right to remain silent." Ham also follows the updated AP versions of the story, which changes its lead description of Sheehan's activism from "[Sheehan] has used her son's death" to "driven by her son's death" to "became a leader of the anti-war movement following her son's death."

RANGEL: Hitler References Are So Out This Season

In reference to Rep. Charlie Rangel (D-NY)'s comments last week that "George Bush is our Bull Connor," California Conservative calls attention to last p.m.'s "Hannity & Colmes," where Rangel "was taken to task by" Sean Hannity. CC: "Basically, Rangel backpedals," although he pointedly avoids a retraction. Previously, conservatives The Anchoress, Orrin Judd, Amy Ridenour, and centrist Joe Gandelman and many others had criticized him for it. The Moderate Voice's Gandelman, on his latest appearance: "It's clear Rangel's comments will be lambasted by Republicans, but it'll be interesting to see how many independents, independent thinkers and Democrats denounce it. As they should. This is the kind of verbal tripe that has poisoned American politics -- a statement that's "red meat" to fire up people in a room up but that serves no purpose except to arouse angry passions." Conservative Michelle Malkin: "Some sufferers of Bush Derangement Syndrome have grown tired of Fourth Reich analogies. ... Fellow Democrats have done nothing to distance themselves from Rangel's insane remarks. Sadly, so-called civil rights leaders abandoned the high road for cheap demagoguery years ago."

ENQUIRER: Too Subtle For Us!

On 9/24, film producer Jane Hamsher passed along a bit of gossip at her personal blog: "[A]ccording to sources within the Enquirer itself, the source for Bush's drinking story is -- an incredibly pissed-off, recently scapegoated head of a federal agency who thinks that BushCo. done him wrong." For more reaction on the National Enquirer story, see the 9/23 Blogometer.

MISCELLANY: A Better Question Might Be, Which Dem Pols Haven't Showed Up On Blogs ...

• Last p.m., Rep. Jane Harman's (D-CA) office sent out a press release announcing she will be a guest contributor at TPM Cafe, "marking her first venture into the growing world of blogs. Harman will share daily dispatches with readers about her experiences during a four-day trip to the Middle East. Harman is quoted as saying: "Writing this blog is an opportunity to share with the audience my experiences in real time with no filters. It's a direct line into what I'm seeing and feeling during my trip." Harman's 1st post went up just after noon on 9/26.
• Hullabaloo's Digby, who last week argued for the word "fascism" as an apt description of the Bush admin., responds to the much-noticed San Francisco Chronicle story on the death of Pat Tillman (see 9/26 Blogometer), which reports for the 1st time that Tillman was outspokenly opposed to the Iraq war, comments: "My first shocking thought after reading it was that a high profile star like him could have been seen by someone as a very dangerous guy. He might have been fragged. ... I no longer trust what any official says about the Iraq war. There seem to be no limits."
• BradBlog highlights the fact that the Cleveland Plain-Dealer has picked up on his Diebold reporting (see 9/21 Blogometer), specifically mentioning the "Dieb Throat" insider Friedman has been quoting about the company's little-noticed security problems and recent financial trouble.

BLOGGER SPOTLIGHT: He Has Seen The Best Minds Of His Generation ...

Today the Blogometer talks to pioneering liberal blogger/ex-Hotline Senior Key Grip Bob Somerby, who writes The Daily Howler.

What is your full name?

Bob Somerby

What is your age?

57 (if we're counting in human years, an accomodation I often make).

Where did you grow up?

Winchester, Mass. thru 7th grade. San Mateo, California thru the end of high school in 1965.

Where do you live now?

Baltimore.

What is your occupation? Have you ever worked on a political campaign or for the mainstream media?

Occupation: Comedian. I have never worked for a campaign, although I've written jokes for some campaigns/candidates. (Did you ever wonder why Governor Jeanne Shaheen was so witty?) I briefly worked as part of a morning radio show at WTEM-AM Washington in 1993. Then they brought in Imus. As a part-time matter, I did a long stint of humorous commentary for WBAL-AM in Baltimore.

When did you start blogging and why?

Early 1998. Couldn't listen to the unchallenged BS from the MSM any more. At the time, there was essentially no one talking back to the trashing of Clinton (and, later, to the trashing of Gore).

What has been your favorite post, or favorite story to write about, in that time?

The story I stumbled into was the press corps' remarkable trashing of Candidate Gore from 3/99 through 11/00. I take it as obvious that this bizarre two-year, press corps campaign put Bush into the White House.

Describe your typical blogging schedule. And what is your average output?

Ugh. All day, every day, although I am now changing that. Average output: Way too much.

Who is your favorite political blogger? Favorite non-political blogger?

Because TDH has always been focused on the MSM, I have never read a huge number of blogs. Can't say I have a fave. I don't read non-political blogs.

Who is your favorite mainstream media columnist?

Krugman

What is your favorite television news program, either network or cable?

I can't say I have a favorite, or one I could much recommend. During the time of TDH, I have found that journalists sometimes speak more freely (less guardedly) about their own attitudes and practices on Imus than in other venus. For a student of the MSM, Imus is a good place to eavesdrop.

What MSM-produced websites (i.e. newspapers, magazines) do you visit on a daily basis?

I'm not sure what you'd call MSM. I review, in non-alphabetical order, Salon, Slate, Josh Marshall, Kevin Drum, TAPPED, Andrew Sullivan, Atrios, Daily Kos, Romenesko, Dan Kennedy, CJR Daily, James Wolcott, Altercation, Media Matters, HuffPo.

What non-MSM websites (i.e. blogs) do you visit on a daily basis?

See above.

How often, or do you ever, read a newspaper in its dead-tree (i.e. print) form?

NYT, WP, each morning, with a bagel amd some dead coffee beans in hot water. During Campaign 2000, I read WP/NYT/WSJ/USAToday/Wash Times every morning, in their dead-tree variants.

How do you see the new media and old media affecting and influencing each other in the next five years?

I think the environment in which I started has changed substantially, and I will probably change TDH to an urban ed web site as a result. When I started, the MSM was essentially out-of-control (on its way to a group nervous breakdown starting in 3/99), and there was no liberal web to complain about this. Now, the MSM is less irrational -- they no longer invent strings of bizarre, inaccurate stories about major Democrats, as they did all through Campaign 2000--and the liberal web is often more irrational than the MSM, I'm afraid. I didn't get into this to yell at libs, so I'm pretty much planning to switch my attention to an older interest -- urban education. (I taught in the Baltimore City schools from 1969 thru 1982.) I hope to finish my work on the press corps' War Against Gore in a different format, as I should have done long ago. It remains an astonishing untold story -- a story that changed our history.

THOUGHT OF THE DAY: DCM? Hey, It Has The Benefit Of Not Also Being A Personals Ad Term

TX-based One-Handed Economist proposes a term for the Beltway magazines such as Weekly Standard, Washington Monthly and The New Republic: the DCM. He explains: "Without the insular world of think-tanks, politicians, and various campaign committees, there wouldn't be a market" for their "agenda-driven journalism." Their "obvious political slant, which is neither hidden nor apologized for, sets these publications a bit apart from what the blogosphere has dubbed the MSM. What's more, many of those publications are direct participants in the blogosphere, and joined long before many MSM outlets decided to give it a try ... the DCM plays a pretty big role in not only blogospheric conversation, but also in conversations between Beltway insiders, and I think it's high time we have an easy way to identify them."

LEST WE FORGET: The Dolphin Menace

The UK Guardian reports, in the aftermath of Katrina: "Armed dolphins, trained by the US military to shoot terrorists and pinpoint spies underwater, may be missing in the Gulf of Mexico. Experts who have studied the US navy's cetacean training exercises claim the 36 mammals could be carrying 'toxic dart' guns. Divers and surfers risk attack, they claim, from a species considered to be among the planet's smartest." Liberal Needlenose's Swopa understands what's really going on: "Do you see what's happened here? What we're looking at is a dolphin sleeper cell that managed to acquire top-secret U.S weaponry and training before going over the wall ... or, ummm, whatever the appropriate seaborne analogy might be. And to think that they were kept near Lake Pontchartrain! Remember how the earliest criticisms of the slow federal response to Hurricane Katrina asked, what if terrorists had blown up the levees surrounding New Orleans? How do we really know that didn't happen?"

Posted by at 12:27 PM

September 26, 2005

9/26: Where The Streets Aren't So Tame

This weekend's anti-war rally in DC is much-discussed among conservative and liberal bloggers, and both sides showed up to report on the event. Many who couldn't attend live-blogged it via C-SPAN. Needless to say, there's a wide range of opinion about whether the protest was successful. The size of the crowd was a matter of contention, as it always is with such events, but even some liberals were upset that the message was not more focused. And of course, both have problems with how the MSM covered it.

Meanwhile, a possible emerging Iraq scandal involves an overseas-based message board site that appears to show U.S. soldiers posing with dead and mutilated Iraqis and Afghans, apparently uploaded by GIs themselves. Plus, the story over Senate Maj. Leader Bill Frist's stock sale continues to develop; liberal blogs have been critical since the story broke, but now many conservative bloggers are pointedly declining to defend him. Also in this edition: Hurricane Rita, "Meet the Press," Pat Tillman, more debate re: the war on terrorism, and the '06 midterms.

DC PROTEST: One Size Doesn't Fit All

Liberal 2 Political Junkies: "C-SPAN covered some of the speeches today. Unfortunately, they were not covering the massive amount of people on the street. While it was nice that they broadcast the speeches, that was not where the bulk of people were and it made the event look deceptively small." The Mahablog's Barbara O'Brien dismisses his post as unrepresentative of the rally she attended: "The righties are going to lie and try to spin a myth that only a few thousand people showed up. Don't you believe it. It was a massive turnout. Tens of thousands, easily." Conservative Gateway Pundit blogs the event as seen on C-SPAN, noting speeches by activists unrelated to the war, plus an appearance by ex-AG/ex-Saddam atty Ramsey Clark. Liberal Demagogue: "This is how the Left works, unfortunately. Organizers are so damned afraid of appearing "insensitive" that an anti-Iraq war platform ends up being diverted or hijacked, for example, to speak of "indigenous peoples," slam the World Bank and attack Israel. This is strange timing for a volley of anti-Israeli messages. Didn't Sharon just complete a pullout from Gaza and forcibly remove Israeli settlers who had been living there?" Headline at conservative GayPatriot: "If Iraq is like Vietnam, how come the rallies keep getting smaller?" Right-leaning Uncorrelated notes the difference between the Vietnam-era protests and the professionalism of the "current anti-war constituency": "This isn't a bunch of scruffy hippies with a Gestetner machine printing up crude fliers and delivering them hand to hand. This is big money, big media astroturf and yet this is the best they could do. Kind of puts things in perspective doesn't it?"

Looking at news photos of the event from Yahoo and Getty Images, Charles Johnson at Little Green Footballs strongly doubts there were even 100K. Liberal PSoTD calls the coverage "subdued," adding: "Not a surprise. Maybe the way it will always be." AMERICAblog mocks the apparently smaller-than-expected FreeRepublic-led counter-protest.

Getting a good deal of attention from conservative bloggers is a pre-rally list of Do's and Don'ts published as a diary at Daily Kos. Suggestions include "Do have citizen journalists on site" and "Don't have a hippy drum circle." Instapundit, whose link brings it to attention doesn't think the rally met some of those do's and don'ts, and also finds some bad reviews of the protest at Daily Kos. Afterward, Mudville Gazette goes down the list, comparing it with post-protest reports, reaching the same conclusion; indeed there was something like a drum circle. The list is also the subject of the 9/26 "Day by Day" cartoon, available at Daily Pundit and many other conservative blogs.

Stop the Bleating googles the name of a protester quoted by the Washington Post, Patrice Cuddy, and concludes the Post was had: "To hear the WaPo tell it, Patrice is a mild-mannered, middle-aged former schoolteacher from Olathe, Kansas, and will be a 'novice protestor' in the upcoming rallies. ... But it turns out that Patrice Cuddy is also known as J. Patrice Cuddy-Lamoree (see here and here), and has been helping organize antiwar protests from the beginning." As she "says openly" on a DFA blog, "'I have been in the streets since the beginning of this war...'" Protein Wisdom criticizes the AP's Jennifer Kerr for treating a pro-Bush, anti-war GOPer as representative of the "varied" political beliefs, and for not pointing out that ANSWER is "a hard-left group that supports the insurgency."

• Video of some of the speeches at is available at Brad Blog, including Jesse Jackson, Cindy Sheehan, Rep. Cynthia McKinney (D-GA) and Scottish MP George Galloway.
• Michelle Malkin posts photos of protesters, with snarky captions.
• At Daily Kos, RenaRF posts her pictures.
• There's another couple of personal accounts at BooMan Tribune.

This a.m., Malkin updates: "What a lot of folks don't know is that the moonbats haven't left yet. Today, they plan on lobbying Capitol Hill and then sapping local police resources the entire day with what they're calling 'nonviolent direct action.' The event's main co-sponsor, the far left-wing group United for Peace and Justice, has organized a bunch of 'affinity groups' who will try and get themselves arrested. ... After last year's presidential inaugural, the peace-lovers went on a rampage in DC that resulted in thousands of dollars of damages to private businesses. I would expect more of the same today from the likes of these black-masked 'pacifists.'"

FRIST: Wouldn't It Be Ironic If Frist Steps Down And DeLay Survives?

Never a favorite of GOP-leaning bloggers, Frist has yet fewer defenders following the latest reports from the AP and Washington Post that he was "updated" on his portfolio even as he claimed he wasn't, bring criticism from the right as well as left. Lefty Atrios: "Bill Frist can and should now be referred to in the press as 'Senator Bill Frist, documented liar.'" Liberal Bad Attitudes: "You won't find me piling on Bill Frist. I want him to be the GOP nominee in 2008. Why would anyone who wants to stop the pathological Republican-led weakening of America get in the way of the one major GOP candidate who we can be 100 percent sure cannot win a general election?" Jon Henke at right-leaning QandO writes, "depending on what information he had prior to the sale," what Frist did "may be illegal" but is "certainly unethical. I suspect both Republicans and Democrats are going to spend the upcoming months considering the fate of former Speaker of the House Jim Wright. And if it turns out Frist did engage in insider trading, I hope we'll all consider the fate" of ex-Rep. James Traficant. Conservative Tom Maguire offers the "obvious defense": a bipartisan Senate bill changing Medicare reimbursements to hospitals "created a huge conflict of interest for Frist, so he did the responsible thing and sold his shares. ... However -- if this bill created a new and problematic conflict of interest for the Senate Majority Leader on May 11, why did he wait until June 13 to order the sale of his stock?"

UCLA law prof Stephen Bainbridge: "If some SEC enforcement lawyer in fact were to start looking into this, the first question will be whether Frist had material nonpublic information about HCA at the time he ordered the sale. If he had the common sense God gave gravel, the answer to that will be a resounding no." However, Frist may be held accountable to "Rule 10b-5" -- a hypothetical Bainbridge explores but cannot conclusively judge. Power Line: "Absent evidence that Frist had material non-public knowledge about his corporation, I see no reason why Frist should resign or even step aside temporarily pending any investigation." RedState's Leon H, writing for himself: "The situation is clear. Bill Frist cannot at this current time act effectively [as Maj. Leader] and should step aside from his position immediately." Some commenters defend Frist half-heartedly; most say they wouldn't miss him and many are keen on the prospect of Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) as Maj. Leader.

PENTAGON: A DIY Abu Ghraib? Is The MSM Doing The U.S. A Favor By Not Covering This?

Header at liberal AMERICAblog: "US soldiers allegedly trading pictures of dead Iraqis & Afghanis for porn." The story had already been reported by alt-paper East Bay Express, which noted that the media was "strangely silent." AMERICAblog's John Aravosis says the follow-up reporting he's done, which he explains, suggests the story is legit: "The death photos are hosted on a Web site hosted in Holland, called NowThatsF---edUp.com. The site is an amateur porn site where people can post their own nude photos and browse the photos of other visitors." But it "isn't just about the usual porn. It's also about military death porn." He posts multiple pictures of what appear to be U.S. soldiers posing with dead bodies (or body parts).The graphic bits are obscured on the front page, but Aravosis provides links to the much-more gruesome unedited images. He writes: "I'm publishing the photos and helping to spread the word about this site, because we need answers from our government as to why more photos of US soldiers with dead people are floating around the Internet."

Left-trending conservative Cunning Realist highlights a San Francisco Chronicle report showing that military investigators looking at the friendly-fire death of Pat Tillman "allowed witnesses to change key details in their sworn statements so his finding that certain soldiers committed 'gross negligence' could be softened." Writes the Realist: "The extent of the disgrace defies belief: the initial coverup of the way Tillman died, the harvesting of that death for political expedience as the Abu Ghraib story broke, the predictable promotions of those arguably responsible for what happened on the ground that day, the changing of crucial testimony, the destruction of physical evidence, and the willful, flat-out lies our political and military leadership told to Tillman's family and the American public. In the context of Tillman's strong and openly-stated opinions about Bush and the war in Iraq, it's all more than a bit interesting." Center-right Andrew Sullivan, on the same Chronicle story: "Did you know that one of Pat Tillman's favorite authors was Noam Chomsky and that he opposed the Iraq war? I didn't. It makes his patriotism and service more admirable, in my view. And the obvious lies and obfuscation and contradictions from the military all the more reprehensible."

WAR ON TERRORISM: The Good, The Bad And The Fugly

UK's Guardian newspaper reports that an "extraordinary appeal to Americans from the Bush administration for money to help pay for the reconstruction of Iraq has raised only $600." Newshog mocks pro-war bloggers: "Insta-skinflint, Powerlame, Little Green Mothballs, Captains Sixteenths, QandBigO, Charging RI-NoMoney, My Vast Right Wing Bankruptcy.... I could go on but I'm laughing too hard. The chickenhawks are as unwilling to put their money where their mouths are as they are to put their necks on the line. Figures."

Belmont Club compares Iraq casualty accounts for '04 with '05. KIA numbers are almost even, but in '05 non-fatal injuries are down substantially. Writes Wretchard: "Yet the mood conveyed in the press is that things are sliding into the abyss. That may be true for other reasons, but with US casualties at a quarter to a seventh of their historical values in a month full of offensives and important dates, the honest analyst must at least ask himself if something is changing on the battlefield."

Lefty Middle East scholar Juan Cole, in a lengthy post: "The protesters are right that we have to get US ground troops out of Iraq. The issue is not the rights and wrongs of the war. ... The first reason to get the ground troops out now is that they are being fatally brutalized by their own treatment of Iraqi prisoners. ... The second reason is that the ground troops are not accomplishing the mission given them, and are making things worse rather than better." Pro-war Belgravia Dispatch asks, "what happened to Juan Cole's much ballyhooed 10 point Iraq exit plan? It's, like, history," a month later. More: "How can a knowledgeable regional expert like Cole not more seriously reckon with the impact such a hugely precipitous withdrawal would have in terms of destabilizing the region? Just a month ago, he was at least pretending to reckon with that reality. But no more..." Whiskey Bar's Billmon writes, he has "largely kept silent on the issue" of withdrawal, "in part because I've been so conflicted about it, and in part because (I'm trying to be honest here) I've been reluctant to buck the overwhelming anti-war, pro-withdrawal sentiment on my side of the political fence, or give even the slightest aid and comfort to the war hawks on the other side." But now he's changed his mind. He writes: "We have to get out -- not because withdrawal will head off civil war in Iraq or keep the country from falling under Iran's control (it won't) but because the only way we can stop those things from happening is by killing people on a massive scale, probably even more massive than the tragedy we supposedly would be trying to prevent."

Power Line's John Hinderaker posts translated text of a story from Iraqi newspaper Iraq Al-Ghad reporting 70% voter registration in Fallujah: "Seventy percent voter registration compares favorably, I believe, with many American cities. And this is Fallujah, hotbed of the 'insurgency'! Good news indeed."

Lefty Jerome Armstrong notes the Islamic coalition led by mujahedeen leader Younus Qanooni was victorious in the latest round of Afghan elections: "Qanooni says that Afghanistan remains the world's biggest opium producer, and he's gonna stop it. Is this what the LGF keyboarders [anti-anti-semitism community blog Little Green Footballs] are fighting for? Is electing an Islamic fundamentalist government really something that Republicans agree on that is 'positive news for the world.'"

Counterterrorism Blog: "Abu Musab al-Zarqawi and his Al-Qaida acolytes may be facing the most serious political and operational challenges" since the insurgency began, as he has been officially rebuked by an influential Sunni group.

BLOGS VS. THE MSM: Like Most Sequels, Reviews Are Mixed

Jefferson Parish pres. Aaron Broussard caused a stir with his 9/4 "Meet the Press" appearance. Broussard had claimed an elderly woman drowned because of the slow fed'l response, but later reports (pushed by conservative blogs) showed his timeline was incorrect. MSNBC.com has the transcript; Political Teen has video. On 9/25 he was back on the show to discuss Rita and his previous appearance. Liberal Crooks and Liars (which also hosts the video) vigorously defends him against NBC's Tim Russert, who "went on the attack today to please the right wing apologists [i.e. MSNBC and NBC News] who had the nerve to fact check his impassioned outburst on MTP during the nightmare of Katrina. ... When you don't like what you hear -- attack the messenger. Yes, you uncovered a distorted time line of events. A man who had experienced the pain of his friend's mother's death muddied the facts. Who did it hurt? All levels of government including the President and you can't have that." Arianna Huffington: "If you're a local official with very little power or resources, you're on notice: Tim is comin' after you." The Moderate Voice: "Russert's questioning indeed made it sound as if he was trying to compensate for his earlier broadcast by suggesting that the federal government did get a bum rap." Centrist Jeff Jarvis: "Tim Russert lost sight of the story because he was embarrassed that bloggers caught a guest on his show with facts that were wrong. Russert's proper response should have been to fix those facts quickly and clear but still pursue the real story. Instead, he chose to shoot the messenger who embarrassed him with the bloggers." Right-leaning Pundit Guy thought it was justified: "I was glad to hear Broussard state again and again that he believes all branches of government were to blame for the tragedy in New Orleans and that they should be held accountable. I think he needed to do that, and for me his statement to that end closed the book on the subject." LA-based Bayou Buzz's Steve Sabludowsky writes, "it was not just looking foolish again on national television that makes one wonder if this very talented and politically astute man [Broussard] has what it takes to meet the media nationally. As he cried weeks ago on the same show, 'shut up,' after reading his interview from today, perhaps he might take some of his same advice -- shut up!" Conservative Lorie Byrd: "Can anyone answer this question: are there any Democrats that have emerged from Katrina looking better than they did before she arrived? I know that Mayor Nagin, Aaron Broussard and Gov. Blanco certainly have not."

Kausfiles, still relentlessly mocking the TimesSelect program, notices how the same edition of "Meet" featured Maureen Dowd, David Brooks and Tom Friedman, all 3 of them New York Times columnists: "The joint Meet appearance by three NYT columnists seemed like a marketing gimmick. (Next they're going to be given away to audience members on Oprah!) But it may also have been a desperate plea for attention on their part..."

MIDTERMS '06: Will Hackett's Announcement Come First As A Blog Entry?

At Grow Ohio, sponsored by Rep. Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Tim Tagaris writes: "A number of campaigns and organizations have contacted me about finding bloggers inside Ohio to write for campaigns and issue advocacy during the 2006 election cycle. If this is something that interests you, please send me an email ... These are paying positions and will be full-time jobs. ... Of the two positions I know of right now, one is in Southwest Ohio and the other in Central Ohio." Cleveland-based Democracy Guy -- noting that Cleveland Plain Dealer columnist Elizabeth Auster wrote on 9/25 that ex-House candidate Paul Hackett "has all but decided to take on" Sen. Mike DeWine (R) -- writes: "Southwest Ohio? Hmmmmmmm... wonder who's down there..."

GOP-leaning Pensieri heard TN SEN candidate/ex-GOV candidate Van Hilleary "say no less than thrice that he would 'not be a wobbly-knee Republican' if he was elected to the US Senate." Pensieri writes: "Tennessee voters don't buy that [fellow GOP candidate/ex-Rep.] Ed Bryant is the "wobbly-knee" Republican to whom Mr. Hilleary is referring; thus, we must assume he is speaking of [fellow GOP candidate/ex-Tallahassee Mayor Bob] Corker. How effective can such a strategy be when there is no separation between Mr. Hilleary's message and that of his long-time friend and colleague Mr. Bryant?"

In a post titled "Why Musgrave is Endangered," liberal Colorado Luis writes that Rep. Marilyn Musgrave's (R-CO) 4th CD "is very rapidly transforming away from being a rural, conservative district into something different and new" -- it has the "fastest-growing city in America" and many residents are upset about oil and gas companies "trampling" their property rights. Luis: "When even real estate developers are angry at the oil and gas industry's behavior in the heart of Musgrave's district, conditions are ripe for" state Rep. Angie Paccione "to pull support from some surprising quarters in her bid" win CO 04 for the Dems.

RITA: Witnessing Houston

Houston-based BeldarBlog, who evacuated in anticipation of Rita, writes of his return: "I just returned from a long, looping walk through my neighborhood. I took along the digital camera, but saw nothing more exciting than a shrub and its 3-1/2-foot clay pot overturned. ... Dusk traffic on Southwest Freeway and its access roads looked typical for a Sunday evening in both directions. I did pass by three or four gas stations, a couple of which were open to sell sundries, but none of which had gas to pump. But otherwise things seemed remarkably normal." Upon return to Galveston, Liberty's Blog "found very little damage."

Banner headline at Drudge Report late 9/25 through early 9/26: "STREISAND DECLARES 'GLOBAL WARMING EMERGENCY'" Entertainer Barbra Streisand, from a Streisand interview with ABC's Diane Sawyer: "We are in a global warming emergency state, and these storms are going to become more frequent, more intense." Editor Matt Drudge then lists a number of Cat 5 hurricanes that occurred during Streisand's early lifetime. Right-leaning EU Rota and Classical Values have a good laugh at her expense, but liberal Why Are We Back In Iraq? defends her, arguing that the Cat 5s are more frequent now.

SPENDING: Know Your Audience

Rep. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) posts an item to conservative group blog RedState reiterating her 9/21 "Operation Offset" proposal to reduce domestic spending in the wake of Katrina. But the post draws a few tepid replies, and as National Journal's Beltway Blogroll points out, the "blog entry mostly reiterated the information already available in the Operation Offset report."

Hugh Hewitt, on a Washington Post report that LA wants $40B in Army Corps projects: "Whatever the final cost, Senate GOPers "should insist that as part of the package, reforms in the federal Endangered Species Act -- similar to this that are poised to pass the House -- be included in the appropriation so that the notoriously expense-increasing and private property rights destroying ESA not delay or increase the costs of these projects or other Corps projects across the country."

ABRAMOFF: Corporate Buy-In?

Talking Points Memo's Josh Marshall revisits the case of Dep. AG nominee Timothy Flanigan, Flanigan's former employer Tyco, and disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff: "If Flanigan was so plugged in at the White House -- enough to know how tight Abramoff was with the president's key advisors -- why exactly did he need to hire Jack Abramoff? Didn't he already have enough access to handle the issue on his own? Good question. But there's a pretty straightforward answer once you get a clear view of what sort of operation Abramoff was running." He goes through the twists and turns of Abramoff's shady dealings and passing money from bilked clients along to GOP institutions, concluding: "If Tyco wanted help, they had to pay in. That's what the $2 million [lobbying fee] was. Of course it got passed on to some other GOP outfit with Abramoff connections. That was the point!"

WHITE HOUSE '08: The Challenging Movies Always Do Come Out In The Fall

Sister Toldjah, guest-blogging at Right Wing News, on the upcoming, apparently unflattering documentary about John Kerry: "I can understand why those 'Kerry loyalists' aren't too keen on people seeing it. If I ran against a guy my supporters called things like Dumbya, Chimpy, Pretender in Chief, pResident, Rove puppet, and still lost, I'd be pretty embarrassed for people to get an inside look on how it all fell apart, too."

ROBERTS: He Sure Is Dreamy

BeldarBlog's William Dyer quotes from an "irredeemably silly" Eleanor Clift column which relates the notion that Roberts will one day become POTUS -- it came to a colleague in a dream. Dyer comments: "I suppose the reference to NBC's Sid Davis as having come up with this nonsense was intended to make Ms. Clift look less silly than if she'd originated it." Considering Roberts' ease before the Senate Jud Cmte, he adds: "I suppose it ought not be a surprise, then, when they engage in fabulous and implausible speculation that John Roberts might therefore similarly slay any type of opposition he might meet for any governmental position."

THE MARCH OF BLOGS: Does This Mean He Has Ebola?

Yahoo has announced that starting 10/05, they will begin publishing war correspondence from indie journalist Kevin Sites -- in Iraq and Afghanistan but also in other "hot zones" around the world. Appropriately enough, the presumably blog-like site will be called The Hot Zone. Sites had previously reported for MSNBC and maintained a blog. That blog had not been updated since early '05, but was recently updated to include an explanation of his new employment.

Liberal Internet TV show/network Evolve TV posts its first episode, with Markos Moulitsas interviewing prof Juan Cole. Moulitsas gives his take on it at Daily Kos. Cole posts his at Informed Comment.

Liberal Allison Hantschel, aka Athenae from First Draft has edited and released what Rising Hegemon calls "a fine book on the lies and machinations" of ex-Pentagon Undersec. Doug Feith. It's titled "Special Plans: The Blogs on Douglas Feith & the Faulty Intelligence that Led to War" and includes contributions from Daily Kos, Orcinus, AMERICAblog, Talking Points Memo, TAPPED, Whiskey Bar and others.

THOUGHT OF THE DAY: Hey, Wait A Minute ...

Last Friday's "Thought" concerned Universal's blog-based preview campaign for the sci-fi movie "Serenity"; now the backlash: Liberal Kevin Drum at Political Animal admits that it's gotten him to write about it, even without a ticket, and admits some more: "I'll confess to a certain amount of curiosity about whether the extensive blog marketing campaign for Serenity actually works ... However, what I'm really struck by is the fact that bloggers can apparently be bought so cheaply. I mean, a free movie ticket? That's what, ten bucks? Sheesh." Conservative Hei Lun at Begging To Differ signed up for the screening, but balked upon receiving an e-mail specifying how one should write about the movie, not to mention finding out that admittance isn't guaranteed: "In other words, if you become a complete shill for them, they just might let you see their movie. Or they might not -- sure, they have only 150 seats in the theater, but if they can get 200 bloggers to get down on their hands and knees and beg them for a ticket, who cares if 50 of them can't get in? Mighty tempting (well, not really), but no thanks."

LEST WE FORGET: Lost

WuzzaDem imagines and photo-illustrates an episode of "Scarborough Country" focusing on a missing-persons story perhaps not so different from the one usually seen on MSNBC. The opening is excerpted below:

SCARBOROUGH: "Welcome to Scarborough, I'm Joe Scarborough, and tonight we have a Scarborough Country exclusive report. Let's go to our own Rita Cosby, live in Galveston, Texas. Rita, what's happening?"
COSBY: "Joe, I'm here in Galveston, and I can report to you that at this moment there are hundreds, if not thousands of people missing from their homes..."
SCARBOROUGH: "Hold on here, Rita, did you say hundreds of people are missing?"
COSBY: "That's right, Joe. Our investigation has found that scores of houses in this town are completely empty, most of them still furnished, many with cars still in the garages, but the occupants are nowhere to be found."
SCARBOROUGH: "This is absolutely astonishing, Rita. What are the local authorities doing to track these people down?"
COSBY: "Joe, you won't believe this, but when I tried to ask local police what kind of investigation they have underway, they basically blew me off, saying they were too busy dealing with water damage and downed power lines to stop and talk to me."

Posted by at 01:03 PM

September 23, 2005

9/23: Blogger Barrage Besieges Beltway Bosses

There's quite a bit of interaction between bloggers and cong. members to report this a.m. The conservative blogosphere's crusade against what they consider gov't pork elicits responses from House GOPers -- some of it to their satisfaction and some not.

Plus, Eschaton's Duncan "Atrios" Black and RedState's Mike Krempasky testified before a House cmte on 9/22, hoping to avert FEC rules that would infringe on bloggers' freedom to cover campaigns. And a conversation between Power Line's Paul Mirengoff and Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) about the same issue has more than a few observers asking just what McCain thinks the McCain-Feingold law means.

Meanwhile, liberal bloggers are very interested in a report that Jack Abramoff claimed close involvement with Karl Rove, and debate the WH Dem hopefuls' decisions on the upcoming John Roberts votes -- in particular WI Sen. Russ Feingold and NY Sen. Hillary Clinton. And what's to be made of the National Enquirer's story that says Pres. Bush is hitting the bottle again? Some on the left see that as a possible Rovian trick. Plus, more on Hurricane Rita.

BLOGS VS. THE FEC: Speaking Truth To Power Line?

Black and Krempasky -- who testified before the FEC about blogs and possible new campaign finance rules on 6/29 (see 6/30 Blogometer) -- testified before Rep. Bob Ney's House Admin. Cmte on 9/22. The AP carries a report. Their testimony can be found here; the archived webcast is here.

Black writes: "The committee was exploring the issue generally, and in particular a Reid proposal in the Senate to essentially make the court case moot by changing the law. Not many members were present, and those who were clearly sided with a very hands off approach, however that's achieved. ... Overall, I'm not too worried about this issue at the moment. One way or another I predict a decent outcome for the whole process." In a later post he disputes AP write-up, which states bloggers have told the FEC that regs. "even ... just on advertising" would have a "chilling effect." Disclosure of blogad purchases by campaigns doesn't bother him; what does is that disclosure reqs. for "bloggers which are not required of any other members of the media or which in any way open up bloggers to FEC scrutiny that other media are not subject to ... would have a major chilling effect." Instapundit, on the same story: "You'd think the First Amendment would take care of this, but, you know, 'eternal vigilance' and all that. My advice: Tar and feathers futures -- buy!" More Soft Money Hard Law: "The House Committee hearing yesterday was not overrun with Members anxious to ask their questions. No more than four attended at any one time, and it was a short time, at that. None seemed eager to advocate regulation of Internet politics, though Chairman Ney did seem to smart somewhat from recent experience with cyber-criticism."

In a separate but related event, on 9/21 Power Line's Mirengoff attended a dinner with McCain, where he answered questions on the record: "I asked Senator McCain about the impact of the McCain-Feingold campaign finance reform act on bloggers. He replied that he wanted no government regulation of the internet." Mirengoff told him that a court decision based on McCain-Feingold "was serving as the basis for proposals to regulate the bloggers. McCain responded that he was not aware ... and that he would look into the matter. He then reaffirmed that there should be absolutely no regulation of the internet in the name of McCain-Feingold or campaign finance reform." Patterico's Pontifications: "I could understand if McCain had said that he had heard some people say that the legislation would impact bloggers, but he disagreed. But to say that he was not even aware that the litigation had raised that prospect -- I'm sorry, but I find that astounding." Conservative Skeptic's Eye, on the same: "So, did McCain forget? Was he unaware of these arguments? Or did he artfully avoid a little 'straight talk' in an effort not to arouse the ire of an influential blogger? We report, you decide."

SPENDING: Constituent Services

Right-leaning Punditeria wrote a letter to Rep. George Miller (D-CA) asking whether he would cut "some of our local transportation bill pork so that the money could go to Katrina recovery." Miller responded, Punditeria quotes the reply, and comments: "I think the Congressman's argument is that because the whole budget is askew, and priorities are wrong, we shouldn't have to tighten our belts to pay for Katrina recovery. Am I wrong to think this is short-sighted and a little bit childish?" Nicholas Schweitzer posts an e-mail from Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK) announcing a presser to be held on 9/22 with several other Senate GOPers (including John McCain) to "release a menu of specific options to find savings to pay for our Hurricane Katrina relief and recovery expenditures." Schweitzer: "I can only assume that the good Senator from Oklahoma and his staff have been paying attention to the [TTLB PorkBusters project], and that's how my name ended up on an email list. I find this very encouraging. Keep it up!"

Washington Post's Achenblog, on the House GOP recommendations, which include a number of Medicare cuts: "So many politicians hide behind generalities or vague references to pork or waste or earmarks or whatnot. At least you know where some of these House Republicans stand. Which is: We should raise taxes on the poor."

At TPM Cafe, Reed Hundt advises "creating an economic redevelopment and social reconstruction agency for the Gulf, giving it a time line, appointing a business person with real management experience as the boss, and setting a fixed date for its termination. It needs to spend the reconstruction money; in fact it needs to state what is necessary. The Congress doesn't know and left to its own devices might build more bridges to just about anywhere."

Conservative RedState's Jay Reding: "President Bush went from an isolationist to a nation-builder by necessity following the terrible events of September 11, 2001. Now, necessity demands that he go from being a big spender to a fiscal hawk."

At the same site, Pejman Yousefzadeh advises: "The key for the anti-porkers is to stop thinking that this battle will be won in the short term on pure outrage alone. It may be that small government advocates will have to settle for a mere 30% of what we want this year. And perhaps another 30% the next year. And the year after that. Etc. Eventually, the gains add up and we have a more responsible budget. But they will only add up if we are patient enough to dedicate ourselves to a long term fight in order to bring about that more responsible budget."

WHITE HOUSE '08: Does This Foretell A Clinton-Feingold Ticket?

Daily Kos' Markos Moulitsas writes, the "litmus test people must be having a tough going these days, as everyone's favorite candidates are failing to follow the script." Sens. Hillary Clinton (NY) and Joe Biden (DE) both voted against Roberts but for the war; WI Sen. Russ Feingold voted against the war but for Roberts; and ret. Gen. Wesley Clark is "talking Dems out of calling for withdrawal from Iraq." Moulitsas adds, "if we're looking for purity in our 2008 nominee, we'll have to look elsewhere. Or, we'll have to realize that no candidate is perfect, and none can ever be perfect." In the comments below, more than a few agree with this sentiment: "Methinks Feingold is finished." Noting that Feingold's fellow WI Dem Herb Kohl voted the same, one writes: "Obviously Kohl and Feingold both must be worried that Wisconsin is turning Republican underneath their feet."

Liberal MyDD's Chris Bowers, on HRC's "no" vote: "This helps my image of Hillary. I'm not about to go work for her," but with "every good vote she has made this year, opposing the limiting of class action lawsuits, to not invoke cloture on the bankruptcy bill, against the budget, against drilling in the Arctic refuge, against CAFTA, and now against Roberts, she is going a long way to showing that she is not some stereotype of a conservative/moderate/DLC Democrat." At RedState, NAM VP Pat Cleary finds it "puzzling [that] she'd use up this bullet at this time," considering Roberts' confirmation is a sure-thing: "Why wouldn't she join the bandwagon here, move to the center and live to fight the next nominee?"

Earlier in the day, Moulitsas opened up 2 new straw polls, eliminating the "stragglers" from his 9/19 straw poll (see 9/20 Blogometer) but adding 1 fantasy candidate to each: DNC chair Howard Dean in one poll, and ex-VP Gore in the other. Dean takes 37%, leading decent-showing runners-up Clark, John Edwards and Feingold; Gore takes 48%, leading the same runners-up, taking nearly equally from all comers, including HRC, Other and No Freakin' Clue.

ABRAMOFF: One To Watch

Washington Post reports, dep. AG nominee Timothy Flanigan recently told the Senate Jud Cmte that lobbyist Jack Abramoff "bragged" in '03 that he was "that he was in contact with" Bush adviser Karl Rove on behalf of Tyco, where Flanigan was an exec. Dem-leaning Swing State Project: "In 2006, the Republicans will fear two words: competence & corruption. The worst case scenario is when the Democrat is authentic." MyDD's Scott Shields: "With the arrest of David Safavian, I was wondering how long it would take the Abramoff scandal to reach the White House. I've got to admit... this was much faster than I expected." Liberal War And Piece: "Is this an accident that the Bush administration picks nominees who are so intertwined with those being investigated? The proliferation of conflicts of interest is dizzying."

BLOGS VS. THE MSM: Hard Times?

Center-left Mickey Kaus (scroll down) points out that the New York Times is "crack[ing] down on papers that syndicate its op-ed columns. ... Meanwhile, by plastering the NYT home page with little orange 'you gotta pay' logos, the NYT makes it look as if much more of the site is behind the subscriber wall than actually is. So TimesSelect is hurting the readership even of Times writers who are still 'free.'" And he points out that Maureen Dowd has yet to provide a promo video as the other columnists have done, adding, "If the TimesSelect home page were like the Kremlin Wall on May Day -- and it is! -- you would take Dowd's video absence as the sign of a deep internal rift." He also asks: "Will Times Web chief Martin Nisenholtz make up the columnists' diminished book and lecture fees?"

Conservative The New Editor's Tom Elia disputes an AP poll showing Bush with a 40% rating; the poll includes 23% non-voters and has an 8-point Dem regis. advantage. He asks: "How is this an accurate representation of the electorate?"

DAVIS-BACON: The Wages Of Weather

Lefty Carpetbagger Report reports that House Dems have 186 cosponsors on a bill to re-instate Davis-Bacon in the Gulf Coast area. And Rep. Frank LoBiondo (R-NJ) is earning tepid praise from liberal bloggers for his letter calling on Bush to do the same, albeit for 60 days. Josh Marshall: "It doesn't really ask him to call [off the "Gulf Coast Wage Cut"]. The letter, which is supposedly going to be released tomorrow, asks for him to leave it in place for no more than sixty days. ... But, really, why even wait sixty days? It was a bad idea to start with. And all the excuses about cutting red tape are bunk. Can't they do better?" Uggabugga sees a parallel to WH spokesperson Scott McClellan's comments that suspending the Act will help "women-owned and minority-owned businesses" to the old joke about how the New York Times would subhead a story on the end of the world: "Women and minorities adversely affected." For the 2nd time in as many days, WSJ's James Taranto points out Davis-Bacon was intended to benefit "white workers who belonged to white-only unions over non-unionized black workers."

RITA: Road Rage

Conservative Michelle Malkin posted a round-up of news from bloggers in and around the Rita storm path last p.m., and updates it several times. She posts multiple e-mails, including this one: "I want to be the first to formally predict that within HOURS of Rita hitting the Texas coast, some Moonbat (probably from within the MSM) will accuse Bush of taking better care of his own state than of Louisiana."

Liberal Swing State Project's Bob Brigham, who visited the N.O. area in the immediate aftermath, posts a photo of a dead person, and intones that "Texas bloggers won't have to see (and smell) such a sight": "The Republican Administration did nothing to evacuate those who could not themselves, they did nothing to stop the flooding until it was too late. And that is why the Bush Bodies floated and bloated."

Much-discussed is the fact that cars are running out of gas on the highway out of Houston. Conservative blogHOUSTON gives Mayor Bill White good marks for his response so far. At The Corner, Jonah Goldberg posts e-mails from readers around the evacuation here and here. One writes: "The traffic situation in Houston is lapsing into incompetency on the part of local and state officials. First, they tell everyone to evacuate the city, especially in low lying areas, and then they ask them to sit on highways that do not move." PoliPundit's DJ Drummond, from Houston: "If you want a signature word for Hurricane Rita, an apt choice might be 'gasoline' ... every refinery in the Houston/Galveston/Baytown area has shut down in preparation and evacuation for Hurricane Rita. In consumer terms, fully 27% of the United States consumer gasoline production has become unavailable for the next week at least."

Houston-based Beldar Blog: "My preliminary impression, In a nutshell: Don't blame Bush, state, or local officials for the evac gridlock. Blame Katrina and the local news media. Katrina + news media hysteria = lots of folks in non-flood-prone areas of Houston, who otherwise would have hunkered down altogether or at least waited until tomorrow to evac, instead hitting the road yesterday afternoon, last night, and today = avoidable degree of gridlock."

BUSH: I'll Take Potent Potables For $500, Alex

The National Enquirer story claiming that Bush has fallen off the wagon is getting wide play on the lefty blogs, including some of A-listers Crooks & Liars, AMERICAblog and Steve Gilliard. Liberal Loaded Mouth: "I'm starting to fear that the rumors of him drinking again are going to be used against him for negative purposes, and it's that kind of crap which makes me hate politics ... it could be true even though it was printed in the National Enquirer. However, to place a conspiracy spin on this, how do we know that Rove didn't help place it in that rag?" Avedon Carol at The Sideshow wonders, "when people talk about how his drinking might become a problem or get out of control I just think, "What's the difference? How could he be worse?'"

Conservative Ian Schwartz at The Political Teen is disgusted that a number of liberal bloggers have picked up the story: "Since when has anyone taken The National Enquirer seriously?" When a reader responds that the Paula Jones story originated in the Enquirer, Schwartz responds that the Enquirer is "the only 'media' covering this."

PoliPundit's Lorie Byrd posts a link to "the most pointless ad I have ever seen" -- a MoveOn TV spot calling Bush a "misleader" over Katrina and stating we are "no safer" now than 4 years ago. Writes Byrd: "Not only have these extreme liberal groups decided that not only does it not matter how much damage they do to the country, as long as Bush is destroyed, but they have evidently decided that bashing Bush also gets top priority over their own self interest to not waste their contributors' money by attacking a man that will never again run for public office."

SENATE '06: Man Of Steele

This week's revelation that the DSCC had illegally obtained SEN candidate/LG Michael Steele's (R-MD) credit info -- by using his SSN, obtained from public documents -- has set off a couple different debates. Captain's Quarters' Ed Morrissey points out that DSCC chair Chuck Schumer (D-NY) has made an issue of identity theft before. Michelle Malkin notes: "There has been no outcry from privacy advocates, the ACLU, the champions of clean campaigns, or any major MSM editorial board. Needless to say, if it had been Republicans involved in this outrageous scheme and the target had been a liberal minority politician, it would be a front-page NYTimes scandal." MD-based The Hedgehog Report: "All the whining and crying we hear from Maryland Democrats about [Gov. Bob] Ehrlich's supposed ethical lapses, yet at the same time, they are sending out their people to illegally obtain Michael Steele's credit reports. Nope, no hypocrisy here..."

Of Katie Barge, the now-fired staffer responsible for obtaining the documents, Morrissey notes in the above post that she has quite a resume as a researcher" -- for Media Matters and Edwards' WH campaign: "It seems that Ms. Barge got hired by the DSCC for exactly the purpose for which she got suspended." Hugh Hewitt nicknames her "Schumer's Colson."

BLOGGERS VS. BLOGGERS: Semiotically Offensive

When the Steele/DSCC story 1st surfaced, Morrissey noted it (in the post mentioned above) and praised Steele: "I had the good fortune to see Steele speak in person to the Republican convention in 2004, and the man will provide Democrats with nightmares on the stump. Articulate, knowledgeable, passionate, and humorous, he embodies the communication skills of a Ronald Reagan with a keen grasp of policy." Before long, a commenter suggested: "Captain Ed, may I recommend not using the modifier 'articulate' when refering to African-Americans?"

The same day, liberal Oliver Willis, himself an African-American and a Media Matters employee, mocked Morrissey: "Aw lawzy! That Michael Steele is sho nuff one of them 'articulate' negroes. One of 'the good ones,' you know?" TBOTCOTW: "All this outrage over the use of the word 'articulate' to describe a black man who is, in fact, articulate is ridiculous (but unsurprising) coming from a guy that used the phrase 'the filthy Wolfowitz' to describe a Jew. At the time I was willing to assume that Oliver was just being stupid, but now I think maybe I should hold him to his own standard and call him a racist." In the comments to a later Willis post on race and blogging (in which Willis says his racial politics are closer to "Bill Cosby than Michael Eric Dyson") a fierce debate breaks out on the meaning of "articulate." Among those involved: St. Wendeler of Another Rovian Conspiracy and Protein Wisdom's Jeff Goldstein, defending Morrissey; plus Days of the Locust's Paul Malcolm and others criticizing him. Derrida is mentioned. In a post titled "Moribund intentionalism and the death of the author II: The Wrath of Cant" at his own site, Goldstein deploys Derridean concepts such as "signifiers" and "signified" to show how words were put into Morrissey's mouth. Since it went up last p.m., it's picked up 70 comments.

This a.m., Morrissey asserts that he "wasn't aware that 'articulate' constituted some sort of racist smear," adding: "Fortunately, here in the sane world, paying one person a compliment doesn't denigrate anyone else, because most of the people here understand that good qualities such as articulation don't amount to some strange zero-sum game. ... Politics has many inarticulate boobs in office and out; all one has to do to understand this is to tune into a Congressional hearing to find them."

THOUGHT OF THE DAY: Universal Reduces Political Movers And Shakers Into Billboards?

Instapundit writes, Universal is opening free screenings of the movie "Serenity" -- based on the cult Joss Whedon sci-fi series "Firefly" -- to bloggers, asking in return that they write a post about it. In NYC there will be a special screening for readers of Talking Points Memo, in the Twin Cities one for readers of Power Line (nothing for Atrios in Philly, though) Conservative Town Hall posts a list of participating theaters. Daniel Drezner has more, as does Alina Stefanescu.

LEST WE FORGET: Rhapsody In JetBlue

At Chase me ladies, I'm in the cavalry, Harry Hutton live-blogs Wednesday evening's dramatic emergency landing. It's funny because everyone's okay.

Posted by at 12:33 PM

September 22, 2005

9/22: Blogging Up A Storm

Not only is the gov't paying closer attention to Rita as it approaches than it paid to Katrina, so is the blogosphere. The hurricane, now a Cat 5, isn't set to make landfall for another 36 hours or so, but already it's the talk of the blogs. (Rita and "Hurricane Rita" are the top 2 searches at Technorati this a.m.). We've got live-blogging, FEMA-bashing, and evacuation evaluations. And already there's debate about where money will come to clean up not just coastal LA-MS-AL, but now TX.

The other noteworthy discussion of the moment is the confirmation of CJ nominee John Roberts. There's plenty of angst on the left about Senate Jud Cmte ranking Dem Pat Leahy voting yes, and others wonder how NARAL can stand by its endorsement of moderate Sen. Lincoln Chafee (R-RI) though he has announced he will support Roberts as well. And how will Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-NY) vote?

Plus: JetBlue's near miss, Able Danger's neutered hearing, Air America's fundraising plans, the Los Angeles Times' circulation problems, and more.

RITA: Ready Or Not, Here She Comes

As Hurricane Rita bears down, Houston Chronicle's SciGuy: "One can only think the a city that opened its arms so wide to the victims of the truly catastrophic Katrina deserves a better fate. We shall see..." Happy Puppy Furry Story Time's Norbizness: "As for preparations, let's put it this way: there was no bottled water in the Randall's I went to tonight. In Austin." Andrew Sullivan and Radley Balko are two libertarian-minded bloggers upset that FEMA is sending ice to ME. Balko: "If FEMA wanted to have that ice further away from Hurricane Rita's likely Texas landfall, they really couldn't have done better in the lower 48 than send it to Maine." QandO: [M]ost are hoping that Rita doesn't take a right turn toward New Orleans. You know, I'm not sure I agree. New Orleans is already devastated and mostly empty. We already know its going to cost a lot to fix it back up. How much more could it be if Rita hits it?" Everyone seems to have track 10 from Sgt. Pepper on the brain for their headlines. But is Hurricane Rita "Lovely" or some negative variant (i.e. "Not-So-Lovely"?) Judging by Technorati search results, we'd have to say the former has a decisive lead. But that could change.

Bloggers are covering multiple angles of the storm. Here are a few:

>> On the evacuation -- Generation Why? posts 2 contrasting photos, of the N.O. school buses sitting under water and of the Houston evacuation, where school buses are being used to transport evacuees. At his personal blog, Charleston Daily Mail's Don Surber also notes the Houston bus photo. Liberal Your Right Hand Thief quotes ex-Speaker Newt Gingrich recently discussing the N.O. buses: "Southern conservatives haven't been this exercised about the urban poor riding buses since..."

>> On the economic impact -- The Left Coaster: "As Hurricane Rita now becomes a Category 5 storm heading straight for the Texas oil refinery infrastructure, a day after Sir Alan raised interest rates another quarter point based on inflationary fears post-Katrina, the market fell again by over a hundred points because oil prices shot up over $2 per barrel today, and fears of what the storm can do to our domestic oil production." The Indepundit's Citizen Smash: "If oil and gas production is further impacted, energy prices are going to go through the roof, and we're looking at a possible global economic downturn. Businesses will go bust, factories will shut down, and people will lose their livelihoods." He adds: "Please, please, please remember this: hurricanes will happen. It's not our fault. No leader, politician, or policy can prevent them. We can't control the weather, but we can control how we react to it."

>> On the coverage -- Hugh Hewitt: "The Houston Chronicle is asking bloggers in Rita's path to team up for storm coverage. This raises an interesting issue or two should any of those bloggers get seriously injured as a result of the storm. Are the Chron lawyers requiring a waiver stating that the bloggers were absolutely positively going to stay anyway? ... Most bloggers are mature adults... well, most bloggers are adults and can make up their own minds. But lets be clear that the Chron is putting out a pretty tempting offer to the always looking for audience bloggers." A Chronicle editor e-mails him to disagree with the interpretation; Hewitt posts the message and stands by his concern.

>> On the cause -- Noting arguments at The Huffington Post (including Laurie David and RFK Jr.) that global warming contributed to Katrina's strength, right-leaning Independent Sources points out an '01 Science article which "suggests that recent ocean warming trends are part of a recurring 30-40 year cycle, not any human-caused permanent increase." Interestingly, Bitch Ph.D., Majikthise and others cite a different Science article which suggests the opposite. Pandagon's Amanda Marcotte: "I'm gonna go ahead and plead for sympathy for Texas and I'll tell you why. If in fact the huge numbers of recent hurricanes is the fault of global warming ... I would like to point out that those Texans most likely to die from this are those least likely to be driving cars that get 4 miles to a gallon."

A handful of reader resources:

• At Weather Underground, Dr. Jeff Masters and Steve Gregory have been following Rita at their weather blogs. In a recent post, Masters points out that Rita has joined Katrina as one of the most powerful hurricanes ever recorded.
• This Blog Is Full Of Crap posts a good listing of TX news, weather sources, and TX blogs, including a special note for those in the storm's path. He adds: "If you're getting your Houston news through the New York Times, Washington Post, or some out of state blogger, you might as well shove your head up your ass, too."
• Prairie Pundit blogged extensively on the evacuation and storm tracks on 9/21, and looks set to keep doing so.
• The Wall Street Journal's blog-like Storm News Tracker has been made available free to the public.
• Wikipedia's Hurricane Rita page is just getting under way. A disclaimer at the top reads: "Information on Wikipedia may not be current or applicable to your area. Do not decide whether to leave your house, shelter or vehicle based on Wikipedia information."

ROBERTS: Another Storm Brewing?

While the GOP and right are solid behind Roberts, Dems are making their calls one by one, and the lefty bloggers are arguing about the impact of the Dem division. More than a few note that Leahy is positioning himself well for the next time, but some on the left think that's not enough.

• On Leahy -- Ed Kilgore at New Donkey: "I didn't find it terribly surprising." As the cmte's ranking Dem, Leahy "will be the particular object of a massive Republican propaganda campaign about 'Democratic obstruction'" next time: "I would guess that Leahy calculated he would be more effective in opposing a Justice Brown or Owens or Jones or Garza if he takes a dive on Roberts." Captain's Quarters: "Leahy's turnaround gives the base an opportunity to calm its rhetoric and start acting like adults rather than petulant children who still haven't gotten over the losses the electorate dealt them in 2002 and 2004." Quoting Leahy's statement that "in my conscience I find it is better to vote yes than no," AMERICAblog gives him benefit of the doubt: "Democrats always vote their conscience. When was the last time a GOPer even had a conscience?" Centrist Ann Althouse , on Leahy saying of Roberts: "I can only take him at his word that he does not have an ideological agenda.": "Interesting. The hearings were full of statements by Democrats that it's not enough to be asked to take Roberts at his word that he's not an ideologue. Leahy sounds like he's admitting that the Senate's role is weak. At the same time, he's preserving room for himself to say later that Roberts deceived the Senators."


• On GOPer Chafee -- Oliver Willis, Scott Lemieux and Ezra Klein are among liberals who notice that Lincoln Chafee, who has announced his intention to vote for Roberts, is backed by NARAL. Writes Klein: "NARAL should pull their endorsement. Actually, take that one step farther: NARAL should pull their endorsement and work like hell to defeat Chafee. If it was important for them to prove they'd reward friends, it's orders of magnitude more crucial to show they'll steamroll those who betray them." Liberal Dadahead sees it differently, noting that Leahy will vote the same as Chafe: "So Republicans confirm Republican judges, and so do Democrats. Is anyone else confused?"


• On HRC: Liberal Cowboyz 'n' Poodles: "Hillary Clinton owes a good portion of her political success to the upswing in activist feminism after the Anita Hill testimony/Clarence Thomas hearings. So how can she still... STILL be on the f---ing fence about John Roberts?" The Next Hurrah speculates, "Reid's coming out against Roberts will also clear the way for Hillary Clinton to oppose Roberts, inasmuch as Reid actually opposes abortion, while Hillary prefers to keep it "safe, legal and rare."


• On the Dems as a whole: David Sirota, at Huffington Post: "I can't decide who is more pathetic: the mainstream media, or unnamed DC strategists/aides/beltway-gliterrati-types and the Democratic Party they've run into the ground? ... The fact is, there are very serious questions surrounding Roberts' record that go well-beyond just the fact that we are about to make a guy who has served less than 3 years on the bench the most important judge in America." Fellow HuffPo contributor Cenk Uygur makes the same point: "Democrats are always ready to fight the next battle. Republicans are the complete opposite. They fight every battle, no matter how large or small." RedState's Leon H writes an open letter to cmte Dems, whom he expects will mostly vote for Roberts: "You know, of course, that you're providing some great incentive for Bush to send up another pick who's just like Roberts, and I think that's pretty much a loser for both of us. It's bad for you, because you lose a perfectly good opportunity to pontificate about the evils of 'Emilio Garza's America' ... And hey, between us, we're pretty sure that we got the short end of the stick in trading Rehnquist for Roberts, which is what usually happens with Republican nominees who have no paper trail ... So we're pretty much in favor of the President not having incentive for throwing unknowns up there. So you see there? It's a win-win for us both. I hereby renew my call for bipartisan comity, expressed in a good old-fashioned party-line vote. It's not too late for you to change your mind and go 10-8 tomorrow. Then, later, we can really put the screws on Max Baucus and see if we can't forge a 55-45 final tally. Whaddya say? TPM Cafe's Reed Hundt considers several different ways to consider the man his post header already calls "Justice Roberts." Conservative South Dakota Politics highlights a quote from the 9/22 Sioux Falls Argus Leader, wherein ex-Senate Min. Leader Tom Daschle says he "would support" Roberts because he is qualified. Comments SDP: "The political implications are huge. Reid is Daschle's direct successor as Senate Leader, but not even the guy who hand-picked him is supporting his position."

SPENDING: Fiscal Conservatism Is Sooooo Cute!

Reports in the Washington Post and The Hill about cong. GOP dissent from the WH position on Gulf Coast rebuilding sets off a few liberal bloggers, although Sen. Judd Gregg (R-NH) gets some credit for not ruling out tax increases. OH-based Tim Russo criticizes the TTLB/InstapunditPorkBusters effort, writing: "By the time Rita is done with the Gulf Coast, all those cute little 'porkbusters' (aren't they just so adorable!) are gonna look like a bunch of DUMB F--- TRUSTAFARIAN CHEAPSKATE ASSHOLES scrounging for loose change in their fixed-income grandmother's couch cushions." Liberal Duncan Black, on the same: "It's sorta cute when the right wingers start spinning their wheels over something not entirely awful. But they obviously haven't been paying much attention to what happens when a reporter gingerly questions these people on their pork. I saw Chuck Grassley [(R-IA)] on CNBC looking like he swallowed a giant slug when the host gingerly asked him about his indoor rainforest. ... The real test is what happens when [conservative bloggers] realize that the Republicans, who do indeed control the government, aren't going to give up a damn bit of their hard-earned pork." Markos Moulitsas: "Despite the debate over funding reconstruction on our home soil (which threatens to split the GOP, interestingly enough), fact is they would rather spend hundreds of billions of dollars rebuilding Iraq than rebuilding America. It's clear the new GOP slogan is 'America Second!'"

For his part, Instapundit keeps up the pork-blogging, here and here and here. In the first post he gives House Min. Leader Nancy Pelosi credit for saying she was willing to return fed'l funds earmarked for her district; he updates later to note: "Pelosi backpedals." Today's Day-By-Day cartoon criticize House Maj. Leader Tom DeLay for his earlier reports that there isn't any room to make cuts. Heritage's Policy Blog notes that the House GOP Study Cmte recommends rolling back the Medicare Rx benefit, but to "say that the White House doesn't look upon these efforts favorably, however, would be an understatement -- it has no intention to delay what it considers perhaps the President's greatest domestic policy achievement." N.Z. Bear has updated his PorkBusters page to show the names of all 535 members of congress by state and noting whether they have committed to make budget cuts. So far all are listed as "NO CUTS COMMITTED."

WHITE HOUSE '08: Taking Daschle Seriously

Captain's Quarters, on Daschle's possible WH'08 positioning: "He's aiming higher, not lower, and all of this fundraising and campaigning is meant to remind Democrats of his ability to build the party and deliver the money. Daschle would be the darkest of dark-horse candidates for the top slot in 2008, but he could make a good VP candidate if other combinations don't mesh well. Hillary-Daschle? It could happen."

9/11 MEMORIAL: Back To Ground Zero

Little Green Footballs criticizes a "typically slanted" New York Times story on the controversial Int'l Freedom Center, which is part of the future plans for Ground Zero: "You wouldn't expect the Times to mention it, but it's not just 'some victims' relatives' who are opposed to plans to turn the site of the September 11 attacks into an America-bashing Moonbat Disneyland." Take Back The Memorial points out that the Times didn't mention the opposition of the Uniformed Firefighters Assn., representing some 20K members.

ABLE DANGER: The Hearing That Barely Was

NRO's The Buzz live-blogged the hearings. On 9/21, he noted the only Dem "to appear so far" was DE Sen. Joe Biden, who arrived late and left after 1 question. Meanwhile, Jud cmte chair Arlen Specter was the only GOPer "in attendance the entire time." He adds: "However, just like with yesterday's hearing, the public seating section is full and the backflow is at its capacity as well." JustOneMinute guesses what the story is: "It was allowed to lapse per plan in 2001, with a major clean-up due to domestic spying concerns, however misplaced. ... My guess is that a similar program has since been reconstituted, but no one wants to tell [GOP PA Rep. Curt] Weldon because the intel community thinks he is daft."

MIDTERMS '06: You Pick A Fight With Slaughter, You Pick A Fight With The Blogosphere

Roll Call reports that netroots-friendly Rep. Louise Slaughter (D-NY) may face a primary challenge from Buffalo councilor Antoine Thompson, Atrios writes: "She's been a great supporter of issues important to the netroots, and she deserves our support in the primary and the general election if need be." He adds Slaughter to his approved-candidates list. MyDD's Chris Bowers: "She is the absolute definition of what I would like a Democratic member of Congress to do. ... This is a slap in the face to all of us who are trying to get Democrats to actually stand up and fight Republicans. Tread on Louise at your own peril."

DEMOCRATS: Know Your Democrats!

Right Wing News offers up the 4 types of Dems: the conservative "Old School" Dems such as ex-Sen. Sam Nunn, the late Scoop Jackson, ex-Sen. Zell Miller; the "relatively moderate" "DLC Crowd" including TN Gov. Phil Bredesen, VA Gov. Mark Warner, Sen. Joe Lieberman; the "Stealth Dems" who are "very liberal" but use conservative rhetoric, including ex-Sen. Tom Daschle, MA Sen. John Kerry, Sen. Clinton; the "Radicals," who are similar to the "Stealth Dems," but are "more open about their views -- examples are MA Sen. Ted Kennedy, filmmaker Michael Moore, and Daily Kos founder Moulitsas.

BLOGS VS. THE MSM: Will Kaus Do For The Tribune Co. What Jarvis Did For Dell?

Mickey Kaus reported last weekend that he had canceled his Los Angeles Times subscription -- but then got a bill and found out only a "stop delivery" order had been recorded. He reports last p.m., "I got a phone call from the Times this morning. 'Thank you ... [We] want to welcome you back!' ... I told him I'd cancelled. He said, 'It's on hold right now.' I said no, I'd cancelled it twice. He said "So you don't want the paper right now" and rang off." Having previously noted that the behavior sounds illegal (and reeks of "desperation" from a paper in a "death-spiral," Kaus filed a "handy Web complaint form" with the CA AG, and provides a link for others having the same experience.

JETBLUE: Fear Of Flying

Right-leaning McCanta relays a CNN interview with New York Observer features editor Alexandra Jacobs, who "said that it was a bit unnerving to see their own ordeal competing" with Rita coverage. Jacobs: "We couldn't believe the irony that we might be watching our own demise on television. It just seemed a bit post-post-modern if you will." McCanta adds: "In a darkly comedic moment as they approached the airport just before landing, as if nothing out of the ordinary was happening, the pilots announced 'Flight attendants, please prepare for landing.' To this, many in the plane quietly laughed, relieving the pressure and anxiety just a bit before landing."

• Crooks & Liars has the video in WMV, QT and BitTorrent versions of both.
• Header at (recently re-designed) Sploid: "Huzzah! Pilot nails emergency landing."
• Daily Kos: "Wow, I was glued to the TV for that JetBlue landing. Mad props to the pilot, who gave his passengers the smoothest landing ever (according to one passenger) while missing the front tires."

FRIST: Need Input

Senate Maj. Leader Bill Frist's curious stock sale isn't catching on yet; not enough yet is known, and he isn't nearly as disliked on left-leaning blogs as DeLay or WH dep. CoS Karl Rove. Josh Marshall wonders about this final paragraph from the 9/22 Washington Post story on Frist: "An SEC spokesman said it is the commission's policy not to comment on investigations, and would neither confirm nor deny that it is probing insider trading at HCA." Marshall: "The passage is left sort of hanging there, without context or further explanation. ... Is Frist in some real trouble over this? And if he is, who can explain how a guy with such vaunting ambitions for higher office would do something so foolish and, it would appear, easy to detect?" Marshall's preceding 3 posts concern the Frist deal as well.

Liberal Carpetbagger Report notes that "when asked why he hadn't sold the stock previously," Frist's spokespeson said: "'I don't know that he's been worried about it in the past.' But that answer doesn't make any sense. Something prompted Frist to change his mind. It couldn't have been Senate ethics rules; he's been there 11 years and been cleared by the Senate Ethics Committee to own the stock. So what made him, in his spokesperson's words, 'worry' about the stock now?"

IRAQ: Calling In Reinforcements?

Conservative Andi's World reports from Walter Reed, where the Code Pink protest is ongoing, as is a counter-protest largely organized by Freepers (FreeRepublic regulars). She reports that while CodePink has tried and failed to call the police on the Freepers over supposed noise violations, now they have "resorted to sneaky tactics in the hopes that they can trick someone else into doing their dirty work for them," distributing flyers to the neighborhood encouraging residents to complain. Conservative Propaganda: "It sounds like the Freeper counter-protestors, doing the work of the angels, are getting under the skin of the Code Pink anti-war protestors, who have little taste for free speech from anybody but themselves."

AIR AMERICA: Cue The NPR Comparisons

Michelle Malkin: "Having taxed the patience of deep-pocketed liberal sugar daddies, Air America execs have cooked up a new campaign to hit up their own listeners for cash donations." Brian Maloney posts text of the e-mail at Radio Equalizer.

THOUGHT OF THE DAY: I'm With Stupid

Oliver Willis asks under the header "Have Right Wing Bloggers Ever Met Any Black People?": "According to Vodkapundit and Instapundit, 'Stuck on Stupid' is a brand-new catchphrase that has never been uttered before. Well, I suppose if you've never talked to a black person, that might be true. But even then, it seems to have made an appearance or two on the internets. Ironic that the people who are truly 'stuck on stupid' are jamming the gas pedals." Ace of Spades HQ partly concedes the point, writing: "Well, look here Old Man, it is true that blacks and whites don't socialize as much as we should in a perfect world, which is why some black slang ... suddenly becomes the white flavor of the month when we finally hear it." He adds: "Wonder how many 'homies' (I'm down!) Eric Alterman 'chills' with on a regular basis."

LEST WE FORGET: Non-Friday Cat-Blogging

Welcome To Blog tells a "semi-tragic anecdote involving kittens, fire and airport security" about being disallowed from bringing on board a "bizarre knicknack" -- a "cigarette lighter covered in photos of kittens" from Paris. "Parisian kitty lighters are pretty rare in this part of the world so I wasn't going to let it go without at least a twenty second argument. ... After one guard misunderstood my rambling explanation, she concocted a story about how the lighter was a sentimental gift from my 'fiancee.'" Succeeding in persuading them to keep it in storage for the duration of his trip, he now posts a poll asking his readers: "Should I go back to the airport to get the lighter?"

Posted by at 12:54 PM

September 21, 2005

9/21: Nomination Conflagration Concatenation

A number of interesting stories are vying for the top slot this a.m.: more WH nominations of questionably-qualified individuals draw plenty of flak from the left and right; the conservative blogosphere hearts Lt. Gen. Russel Honore, who in a 9/20 presser told reporters not to be "stuck on stupid"; while the Katrina aftermath remains contentious, people are looking nervously ahead to Hurricane Rita; and the New York Times' TimesSelect program still has buzz, albeit negative buzz. No one story dominates, but all and more are covered below:

BUSH: What's This, Nepotism In Government?

Conservative Michelle Malkin blasts the Bush admin. for nominating Gen. Richard Myers niece Julie Myers to a DHS customs post, though she has "with little immigration or customs experience": "Oh, give me a ^*&%$# break and a half! This nomination is a monumental political and policy blunder in the wake of the Michael Brown/FEMA fiasco. And I can tell you that contrary to the Miss Mary Sunshine White House spokeswoman's comments, rank-and-file DHS employees and immigration enforcement officials are absolutely livid about Myers' nomination." She posts an e-mail from an apparent DHS nominee upset with the nod. And Malkin captures a photo of Myers "Another disastrous crony appointment in the making." == Header at Ankle Biting Pundits: "Immigration Nominee Latest Sign That Bush And GOP Don't Get It On Border Policy." == Liberal TalkLeft: "The Bush Administration continues its policy of handing out top Administration jobs based on cronyism. Did it not learn from Michael Brown? Apparently, not."

Think Progress' Nico Pitney: "One week ago, the Office of Women's Health of the FDA 'sent an e-mail notice to women's groups and others announcing the appointment of Norris Alderson as its new acting director.' Immediately, eyebrows were raised. Alderson was a Mike Brown-redux -- an 'FDA veteran trained in animal husbandry who spent much of his career in the agency's Center for Veterinary Medicine." As reported in the Washington Post, "Asked yesterday who exactly was running the office, FDA spokeswoman Suzanne Trevino said that Alderson had never been appointed acting director." Pitney posts an image of the Google cache of the FDA page with Alderson's name, then updates later to note the cache has been removed.

Right Wing News' John Hawkins has a list of 8 things Bush can do to improve his approval ratings. Among them: "Now would be a great time to get rid of any dead wood in the administration -- like Norm Mineta, Douglas Feith, &Michael Chertoff . Nothing says, 'We've got a new attitude,' like getting rid of incompetent &/or unpopular cabinet members." And: "Social Security reform is going nowhere. Bush should admit just that, blame the Democrats for obstructionism, and accuse them of putting seniors at risk by refusing to reform the program." And: "Split Bush's illegal immigration policy into two parts. The tough enforcement of our immigration laws and new proposals to beef them up? That's very popular and should be done now. The soft amnesty and guest worker programs? Those are not popular and should be packaged together and pushed much later after the other changes go into effect."

Daniel Drezner, who worked informally with the Bush campaign in '00 but supported Kerry in '04, writes: "It's no secret that I've been disenchanted with President Bush for some time now." Citing a Washington Post story, he writes, "a lot of conservatives have joined the club." He also rounds up a number of links from prominent right-leaning blogs, writing, the "conservative blogosphere is not really thrilled with the administration either." He adds: "So it was definitely amusing to read" a much-referenced post from Pandagon's Jesse Taylor stating: "'I find the conservative blogosphere to be one of the most closed-minded, insular, circular pits of denial I've ever encountered.'"

KATRINA AFTERMATH: Stuck On You

It took a few weeks, but it seems that Katrina finally has its Giuliani figure in Lt. Gen. Honore. He's been praised by the media already, and like ex-NYC Mayor Rudy Giuliani, he's now a favorite of conservative bloggers, owning to a 9/20 presser which Michelle Malkin writes has catapulted him to "pop culture and political superstardom." Responding to reporters' questions about Rita: "Let's not get stuck on the last storm. You're asking last storm questions for people who are concerned about the future storm. Don't get stuck on stupid, reporters. We are moving forward." Radioblogger has the transcript, and Political Teen has the video. As of late this a.m., "stuck on stupid" is the #5 most-searched phrase on Technorati. Radioblogger's post is also currently the most-discussed item on Memeorandum right now. Vodkapundit: "Ladies and gentlemen, we are witnesses to a rare and wonderful moment: a new catch phrase has been born."

Linking to a Washington Post story on the levee collapses, Captain's Quarters writes, "the evidence now shows that the north levee breaks that did most of the damage to New Orleans should not have occurred, given the level of the water and the pressure it generated. ... Perhaps that's why in those first few hours, federal and state authorities said that no one expected the levee failures."

Instapundit's Glenn Reynolds notes that the Wall Street Journal has made note of the PorkBusters effort to single out cong. pork he's been co-spearheading. == Liberal Exegesis calls conservative rhetoric opposing excessive gov't spending "subtly seductive," adding, "it is critical for us to criticize the spending priorities of the administration while not falling into the trap of going after government spending itself. The difficulty of doing this is precisely why this very public conservative despair is a win-win situation for them."

Beltway Blogroll's Danny Glover writes, along with a friend, he has "launched a site called Hurricane Job Hunter as a forum for volunteering my writing and editing services. I also have recruited some of my journalistic colleagues to help. The site will enable people left jobless by the hurricane to contact us so we can write cover letters, resumes or other materials they need as they try to recover from the storm. That is the easy part. The hard part is finding the people who need the help, especially when we are nowhere near the hurricane's path or the key evacuee areas, and when many of the storm's victims are homeless, computer-less or never had computers or Internet access before the hurricane hit. ... I believe in the power of the Web to connect people and make things happen."

Hurricane Rita is now at Cat 4, and Galveston has announced a voluntary evacuation. Houston blogger Charles Kuffner wonders if his city will do the same: "As I live in the Heights, I don't expect flooding to be a problem in my neighborhood, though some areas on the southern end, closest to the White Oak Bayou, did flood during TS Allison. We're making plans for staying and for leaving; we'll decide tomorrow what we need to do." Houston Chronicle's SciGuy writes that predictions of Rita-related damage at $7.55B might be low-balling it.

KATRINA AFTERMATH II: Mmmm... Davis-Bacon

DLC's Bruce Reed and Washington Monthly's Kevin Drum are among a number of liberals who have recently criticized the Bush admin. for lifting the Davis-Bacon Act in the Gulf region. Talking Points Memo's Josh Marshall has labeled it the "Gulf Coast Wage Cut," and uses the phrase to link to a 9/16 TPM post in multiple 9/20 posts. In one, Marshall is on the lookout for "one single" House GOPer "willing to co-sponsor H.R. 3763, the bill to overturn President Bush's Gulf Coast Wage Cut." He also posts a list of House Dems who haven't signed on, noting which ones were part of the "Faint-Hearted Faction," i.e. the list TPM compiled of Dems who were open to Bush's Soc. Sec. overhaul. FL's Allen Boyd and TN's Harold Ford Jr. are 2 who make both lists.

Contrarian Mickey Kaus doesn't think the Bush move was a bad one: "Now Bush is using various indefensible regulations that Democrats defend at the behest of public employee unions -- the civil service rules that cost the Dems the 2002 election when Bush suspended them as part of the Homeland Security bill (prompting many Democrats to oppose it), and now Davis-Bacon's wage regs. The way to defuse this new Bush weapon is for the Dems to stop defending the indefensible regulations! Not to accuse Bush of playing 'politics' or exploiting a 'wedge issue.'"

In response, Matt Yglesias argues for Davis-Bacon: "Scrap Davis-Bacon and the GOP doesn't call off the tax cut jihad. But progressives will have knee-capped unions, one of the only forces in American society that's actually capable of serving as a constituency for the principle that the government ought to have revenue."

ABRAMOFF: Safavian The Best For Last

DCCC's Stakeholder has a roundup of posts related to the arrest of ex-Bush admin. chief procurement officer David Safavian, noting among other things "Safavian's (lack of) credentials for his former post" and the fact that "until now, the connections between [disgraced GOP lobbyist Jack] Abramoff and the White House had been relatively meager." Sisyphus Shrugged has a lengthy explanation of Abramoff and Safavian's activities w/r/t the Marianas Islands and involvement of House Maj. Leader Tom DeLay.

Seeing the Forest notes that Sen. Robert Byrd (D-WV) briefly put a hold on Safavian's nomination, and calls him a "(temporary) hero."

Liberal Las Vegas Gleaner notes that Sen. John Ensign (R-NV) has received donations from Safavian as well as Abramoff. Irritated with Dems' inability to field a candidate against Ensign, he adds: "One could, one supposes, make some point or another about how such contributions merely reflect how Ensign's political principles and positions are amenable to those peddled in the halls of Congress by influential crony capitalists who use the federal government chiefly to enrich themselves and their clients at the expense of the broader public interest. But with Ensign facing no opponent in his bid for re-election next year, really, why bother?"

NDN Blog, noting that Safavian had a role in Katrina recovery efforts and was quoted by the Washington Post about it on 9/10: "It's nice to know who exactly is steering our ship of state through this tumultuous period. Really makes you wonder why House Republicans would be so afraid of an independent investigation of the government's handling of the crisis..."

Liberal TAPPED suggests one overlooked "is who Safavian was replacing as chief procurement officer, and why that person stepped down. That would be Angela Styles, who had repeatedly clashed" with House Gov't Reform Cmte chair Tom Davis "by pushing for tighter oversight rules and opposing efforts to loosen restrictions on corporate contracting. Styles, it should be said, spent a lot of her time carrying water on behalf the OMB's competitive sourcing initiative; but on the whole she was a force for restraint and stricter oversight in the contracting process..."

SCOTUS: Doing The Splits

Swing State Project describes Sen. Max Baucus (D-MT) as a "skittish senator known for bolting and running," notes that Baucus has announced he will vote for judge John Roberts, and asks: "Why is Max Baucus running from the Democratic Party? Instead of running away, why can't Max Baucus play with the team?" Office numbers are provided, readers are implored to call and ask for themselves. Header at MyDD, which also urges readers to call Baucus' offices: "Baucus Conspires With The Enemy."

Senate Jud Cmte ranking Dem Pat Leahy has announced he will vote "yes" on Roberts. Daily Kos' Armando comments: "Leahy surrenders. Will vote yes on Roberts. Depressing betrayal. This signals that many Blue State Dems plan to vote yes. Incredibly stupid and HARMFUL to the next fight in my opinion."

Conservative David Wissing, on Senate Min. Leader Harry Reid's announced decision to vote against Roberts: "Frankly, it would seem that this move by Reid just gave Bush even more incentive to put up another conservative and not even bother consulting with the Democrats. What would be the point?" Patterico, at A Chequer-Board of Nights and Days: "When pressed for specifics, Reid said that Judge Roberts's performance at his confirmation hearings was at an eighth-grade level, and nowhere near the standard of Justice Scalia's dissent in the Hillside Dairy case. Kidding! I just enjoy reminding people of Reid's claim that Justice Thomas's dissent in the Hillside Dairy case was inferior to Justice's Scalia's. For some reason, that always makes me laugh. I think it's because Justice Scalia wrote no dissent in that case."

At Confirm Them, Erick Erickson notes that a source of his in a position to make suggestions for the SCOTUS "has a decided preference for O'Connor's spot" -- judge Michael Luttig.

BLOGS VS. THE MSM: Call Us Crazy, But We Don't Think Bloggers Are Taking To The NYT's New Program

On 9/20, the New York Times announced 500 layoffs including 45 newsroom job cuts, plus newsroom cuts at the Boston Globe, which it owns. Power Line: "As life-long newspaper junkies, we take no pleasure in the industry's current crisis. Apart from anything else, we web-based commentators need newspapers to produce the raw material for our commentary. But my sympathy for the Times, the Globe, the Chronicle, et al. is tempered by the knowledge that there is a path to solvency, which I think would likely succeed, but that they would never consider: stop being so liberal."

Ex-Times contributor/frequent Times critic Andrew Sullivan writes, the TimesSelect program "begins to make a little more sense. The NYT is in financial trouble. It still seems dumb to me to charge for online content. Isn't online ad revenue booming for them?" Earlier in the day he wrote (in a post featured on the Washington Post's opinion page last p.m.: "MEMO TO ARTHUR SULZBERGER: I would have linked to John Tierney's excellent NYT op-ed today on how Wal-Mart is better able to deal with natural disasters than FEMA. But only Times Select readers can read the link. So I won't. Nyah nyah." == John Tabin's Never Pay Retail has the link.

Mark in Mexico: "The New York Times may have stepped in it, big time, with [TimesSelect]. Editor and Publisher says that the popular columnists Dowd, Friedman, Krugman, Brooks et al have dropped out of the top five in the 'Most E-mailed Articles' list from the Times which they typically dominate."

Jonah Goldberg, at The Corner: "This will in turn send precisely the wrong feedback for the Times, confirming their strongest biases and undermining their already weak efforts at balance ... Krugman will become comparatively more popular because his slice of the shrinking pie will have increased. I think in years to come we will see this pattern repeated in television and print as the Dinosaurs of the MSM chase their base rather than try to be all-purpose news providers. Fox, obviously, is accelerating this process."

Hugh Hewitt accuses the Washington Post of "agenda journalism" in passing along the estimate from an organizer of the 9/24 DC anti-war protest that there will be "thousands" of military family members present: "My observations of military families would estimate that for every Cindy Sheehan, there are at least 100 proud and genuinely supportive family members who do not 'support' the troops by condemning the war. The Post refuses in this article to provide any estimates, even though this isn't an impossible or even difficult task, just one certain to undermine the reporter's agenda of implying that significant numbers of military family members are opposed to the war."

ABLE DANGER: Does Anyone Else Keep Wanting To Add "Will Robinson" To This Phrase?

This a.m. brings the Senate Jud Cmte's Able Danger hearings. To the disappointment of conservative Tom Maguire, the Pentagon has disallowed its employees to testify. He writes: "I had imagined that Specter's hook into an oversight role was the issue of intelligence sharing between the military and the FBI. My hope was that Specter would produce a witness who could explain the details of the meetings allegedly scheduled between the Able Danger team and the FBI - were the meetings actually scheduled, and what legal area shut them down?" He goes through the list of witnesses, describing their backgrounds to the best he can determine. Defense Dept. lawyers, or lawyers at OIPR would be the obvious candidates, and the Pentagon seemed to rule out Defense Dept lawyers."

Liberal AMERICAblog also notes the Pentagon's non-participation, asking rhetorically if they're "nervous about the truth coming out? Even Specter doesn't get it. What ever happened to the idea of freedom and democracy, or are they just words?"

Power Line's Paul Mirengoff: "I don't know enough facts to pass a definitive judgment on the Pentagon's decision, but on the face of things I don't have a problem with it. The testimony of the DOD witnesses would seem to involve senstive national security information, and the Committee presumably can get that testimony in private session."

ELECTRONIC VOTING: ICYMI, The Diebold Story Continues To Simmer

Noting that shares of Diebold "hit a 52-week low today, for some reason," BradBlog wonders if it has anything to do with his report on "exclusive stunning admissions" by a Diebold "insider" last week "acknowledging that the company's 'upper management' -- as well as 'top government officials' -- were keenly aware of the 'undocumented backdoor' in Diebold's main "GEM Central Tabulator" software well prior to the 2004 election." In that post, he pointed readers to a "little-noticed" gov't Cyber Security Alert from 9/04: "A vulnerability exists due to an undocumented backdoor account, which could a local or remote authenticated malicious user modify votes. No workaround or patch available at time of publishing. We are not aware of any exploits for this vulnerability."

FRIST: Good News -- He Just Saved A Lot Of Money On Car Insurance

AMERICAblog, on Senate Maj. Leader Bill Frist selling all the stock in his hospital chain just prior to said stock dropping by 15%: "His defense at the moment is that the stock is in a blind trust and he has no idea how much is there, but the fact remains that he can give the order to sell all of it at any time to the trust and it would be foolish to think that an owner of a large hospital chain would not have some idea of what is happening in his own business." At Eschaton, Duncan Black suggests that readers "call the good Senator's office and find out if he has any other stock tips he'd like to share."

ROVE-PLAME-MILLER: Was Bolton The Source?

Arianna Huffington: "I'm now hearing that the investigation may be inching closer to never-confirmed UN Ambassador John Bolton. According to two sources, Bolton's former chief of staff, Fred Fleitz, was at least one of the sources of the classified information about Valerie Plame that flowed through the Bush administration and eventually made its way into Bob Novak's now infamous column." Huffington wonders if Bolton "actually be a target" of the investigation.

NORTH KOREA: That's More Like It

Conservative In From The Cold: "A day after supposedly agreeing to give up its nuclear weapons program, North Korea has thrown a monkey wrench into the process, demanding that the U.S. give Pyongyang a light-water nuclear reactor before it begins disposing of its nukes. ... Does this surprise anyone? I'm not on the staff at Foggy Bottom, but I can't recall a single international agreement that North Korea has actually kept." Scrappleface's Scott Ott was ahead of the news with the fake-news headline "North Korea Vows to Give Up Nukes, Lying."

THOUGHT OF THE DAY: You Might Not Be A Libertarian If ...

Michael Berube Online guest contributor John McGowan writes, "there are many liberalisms; Adam Smith and John Rawls have just about nothing in common, yet each is recognizably a liberal thinker. There is simply no way to produce a coherent account of a single ideology called 'liberalism. I believe, in fact, that liberalism is best understood as a range of responses to the conditions of modernity -- responses that are often local and specific, that are not coordinated with other liberal expedients, and that belie the holistic 'ism' applied to various liberal thinkers and liberal practices." More: "Probably the surest litmus test for distinguishing one with a liberal sensibility from someone who has a conservative one is the individual's response to modern cities. Liberals find the multi-ethnicity, cacophony, and jostling crowds energizing and thrilling. Conservatives find those same cities emblems of social chaos (and, in the American context, dens of iniquity). The conservative response to the city is 'there ought to be a law.' For this reason, conservatives can never be libertarians. Thoreau's 'the best government is the one that governs least' runs directly counter to the conservative fear of chaos."

LEST WE FORGET: Be Prepared

IMAO's Frank J.: "'What's with all the hurricanes?' you're probably asking, 'And why isn't the U.S. government stopping them?' Well, hurricanes are a global problem, and thus the U.N. should take care of them." Until they get around to solving this problem, he offers hurricane survival tips. One: "There is a rumor about opening windows to equalize air pressure in your house in the case of strong winds. This is bunkum. Keep your windows shut, especially if you're my neighbors and like to play loud music." More: "When taking inventory of your supplies, make sure to ask your self important questions: "'If I have a sudden craving for quesadillas, am I prepared?' 'While I might have enough water for drinking and cleaning my socks, if a water balloon fight breaks out, do I have enough water (and balloons) to return fire?' 'If the water balloon fight turns into a war and then a quagmire, how long can I keep armed with water balloons until my water supply is exhausted?' 'If the only food left is Spam, am I prepared to eat it, or is that the time to resort to cannibalism?'"

Posted by at 12:20 PM

September 20, 2005

9/20: You Do Know Jack!

In today's edition, the scandal surrounding disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff returns, the Gulf Coast recovery plans remain as controversial as the initial Katrina response, the results of a Daily Kos WH'08 straw poll are in, bloggers debate the limits of their influence, Cindy Sheehan makes waves in NYC, and one lefty defends his choice of words.

ABRAMOFF: Arresting Development

At liberal Talking Points Memo, Josh Marshall calls attention to the arrest of David Safavian, who according to a DoJ statement, Safavian made "false statements to a GSA ethics officer" and "concealed the fact that the lobbyist had business before GSA prior to the August 2002 golf trip, and that Safavian was aiding the lobbyist in his attempts to do business with GSA." Marshall: "Did I mention that before he signed on with the Bush administration Safavian worked for Jack Abramoff at Preston Gates? ... He's also a former business partner of Grover Norquist." House Maj. Leader Tom DeLay was present for at least one Abramoff-directed Scottish golf trip in '00. He speculates later that the "feds are trying to flip" him.

Ex-Pandagon writer Ezra Klein points out his "favorite part" of the relevant New York Times story: "Mr. Safavian had recently been working on developing contracting policies for the multibillion-dollar relief effort after Hurricane Katrina." Conservative PoliBlog: "This case is ripe with potential political implications -- not to mention that Safavian had a high-level job in the OMB and the Bush administration has already taken heat of late over the appointments after the Brown/FEMA fiasco." Scott Shields writes at liberal MyDD: "As hard as it may seem to believe, I have a strange feeling that this investigation may uncover a vastly more widespread culture of corruption than we can even imagine." Lefty Carpetbagger Report: "Just what the Bush gang needed -- another front-page blockbuster that makes the Republican establishment look like an organized crime family. The more one looks at the details of this scandal, the worse it looks." Header at DNC blog: "Corrpt [sic] Chickens Coming Home To Roost." Basie! asks, "can the administration continue to justifiably claim that is had no connection to the embattled lobbyist?"

SCOTUS: The Moderate Dems' Dilemma

Ed Kilgore disagrees with his DLC colleague Marshall Wittmann, who yesterday argued (grudgingly) for confirming John Roberts as CJ: "I would respond that Bush has already deeply undermined that tradition by (1) refusing any serious bipartisan consultation over his judicial nominations, in sharp contrast with his predecessor, Bill Clinton, who almost certainly took a few names off his potential SCOTUS list to avoid a confirmation fight; and (2) engaging in an open, high-stakes campaign to reshape the Court and U.S. constitutional law through his appointments, with Roberts serving as the linchpin if not the ultimate tipping point. In other words, we are at a moment in which Supreme Court appointments represent a lunge towards Eternal Life for this wounded presidency. If stopping that lunge means sacrificing routine Republican votes for future Democratic SCOTUS nominations, so be it." Liberal The Rude Pundit sees things differently: "F--- his writings, f--- his interviews, f--- the cases he's tried, f--- the cases he's decided. John Roberts is a known quantity for one simple reason: he was nominated by George W. Bush. And to trust these vicious bastards for a moment is to end up with a shiv in your ribs."

Conservative Captain's Quarters, on a Washington Post report on the DoJ's new "porn squad": "It might appear crazy in the middle of a war on terror to suddenly ask for volunteers among a group of already overextended professionals to join what looks to be the Adult Publication Of The Week Club to troll for possible prosecution. ... Appearances, however, can deceive -- especially when the AG [Alberto Gonzales] might want to brush up his conservative credentials while the Supreme Court has an opening."

KATRINA AFTERMATH: Duly Note-d

Via ABC News' "The Note" (in a 9/19 edition, which doesn't seem to be online any longer) we get confirmation that WH dep. CoS Karl Rove does have a major role in the Katrina recovery (see 9/16 Blogometer for the 1st report and reactions). Atrios slams "The Note" for its apparent annoyance with the "press and the Democrats" for "expressing shock and horror that a deputy White House chief of staff with wide-ranging applicable experience is helping to oversee the Katrina response." Kevin Drum argues, "Rove has, if anything, negative qualifications ... It's not just that he's never done anything like this before, it's the fact that a reputation as the most ruthless partisan operative of his generation is precisely the qualification you most want to avoid." Plus, liberal Presstitutes notes more plenty more "Note"-bashing yesterday.

Re: feared overspending in Katrina recovery, PoliPundit's Jayson Javitz writes, in the Senate "the GOP currently has 48 solid votes for fiscal austerity measures. We know that to be the case by virtue of two roll calls: (1) an amendment to remove deep cuts to the growth rates of Medicaid spending from the FY-2006 budget, and (2) the final vote on that budget -- by which Medicaid was subject to less rigorous cuts to its growth rates ... Alas, the GOP Senate caucus does not quite have 50 solid votes for serious fiscal conservatism." He mentions this as something to think about for the '06 midterms. Re: the right-blogosphere's PorkBusters effort, Power Line's John Hinderaker writes: "The only thought I would contribute is this: the best place to look for pork is in the proposed reconstruction spending itself. It is precisely in these circumstances -- natural disaster, congressmen trying to look compassionate, spending other peoples' money, everything in a hurry -- that government waste is most extreme." Mystery Pollster comments on the latest Survey USA poll: "An interesting ... trend highlighted in the written analysis appears on the question of whether the federal government is doing too much, not enough or just the right amount to help the victims of Hurricane Katrina. As this chart shows, the 'not enough' percentage has fallen 10 percentage points (from 56% to 46%) since last Tuesday, while the number who say the government is doing "too much" has doubled (from 7% to 15%)."

At his personal blog, New York Post's Ryan Sager quotes from a 12/04 commencement address by ex-FEMA dir. Michael Brown, who said then: "You should expect to make mistakes. You should expect to fall down. You should even expect to fail at a few things." Sager writes: "If it weren't on the FEMA Web site, I'd have thought it was a hoax."

In a post for RedState, NAM's Pat Cleary notices a Newsday header: "Kerry, Edwards Blast Bush Over Katrina." He asks: "Isn't the campaign over, or has it only just begun?"

KATRINA INVESTIGATION: Did Frist Throw The Fight?

Lefty bloggers praise Dems upon hearing that House GOPers have scrapped a joint House-Senate Katrina investigation. Josh Marshall: "Mammalian biologists cite development as new evidence for late-stage testiculogenesis." Whiskey Bar makes a similar comment with a fake New York Times front page. Conservative Hugh Hewitt calls it "another stunning display of the GOP's collective 'minority mentality.' The long march to the non-confrontation over the abuse of the filibuster and now the capitulation [on Katrina] ... signals [to] the base that the Republican leadership just doesn't have the guts to take on the hyperpartisan remnants of the Democrats." Liberal Daily Kos: "Why are Republicans so afraid of an independent commission? ... At this point, let's just find out what went wrong, free from political pressures, so we can make sure something like this never happens again."

WHITE HOUSE '08: Lots Of Movement Among Candidates Whose Surnames End In K

Re: criticism of "The Note" mentioned above, GOP-leaning Mike Huckabee President 2008, on the other hand, finds yesterday's edition much more agreeable. Among the conclusions drawn from attending a recent DC assembly of liberal bloggers, "The Note" concluded: "Mike Huckabee instills fear [on the left]." But MHP08 argues that Huckabee is a threat to "extremists" on the right as well.

On 9/19 Daily Kos launched its latest unscientific WH'08 straw poll. With 10K+ votes recorded, he leader board as of this a.m.:

Candidate                 Results
Ret. Gen. Wesley Clark      35%
WI Sen. Russ Feingold       20%
Ex-Sen. John Edwards        10%
NY Sen. Hillary Clinton      8%
No Freakin' Clue             6%

Full results here. For results of the Aug. and June straw polls, see the 7/20 Blogometer. Clark has won all 3, and by a bit more each time. Feingold has gained ground while Clinton has lost some. But the biggest loser is "No Freakin' Clue" -- might not want to cast your lot with that guy.

At TPM Cafe next week, the Table for One guest-blogger will be IA Gov. Tom Vilsack (D). Since Rep. Rush Holt (D-NJ) last posted 9/9, the table has been empty.

BLOGS VS. THE BELTWAY: The New Triangulation

Liberal Salon blogwatcher Peter Daou writes in an essay titled "The Triangle: The Limits of Blog Power" that "without the participation of the media and the political establishment, the netroots alone cannot generate the critical mass necessary to alter or create conventional wisdom. This is partly a factor of audience size, but it's also a matter, frankly, of trust and legitimacy. ... To understand what happens when the online community is on its own, look no further than electronic voting. The progressive netroots has been hammering away at this for years, but the media and the political establishment is largely mute. Traction = Zero. The conventional wisdom puts it squarely in the realm of conspiracy theories." More Daou: "Whereas rightwing bloggers can rely on their leadership and the rightwing noise machine to build the triangle, left-leaning bloggers " have faced a "half-decade ... of scandal after scandal melting away as the media and party establishment remain disengaged. It would seem reasonable to conclude, then, that the best strategy for the progressive netroots is to go after the media and Democratic Party leaders and spend less time and energy attacking the Bush administration. ... Kos's willingness to attack the DLC is mocked on the right, but it is precisely the right's fear that Kos will 'close the triangle' that causes them to protest so loudly."

• Liberal Pam's House Blend builds on the piece: "The weakness on the Left that I notice, is the schism in the lefty blogs between men and women. By and large most big bloggers don't cite female political bloggers often ... This lack of inclusiveness of female political bloggers is reflected in what seems to be the eternal conflicts on gender issues such as reproductive freedom and gay rights issues, which are seen by many larger, male lefty bloggers as political liabilities if discussed, let alone promoted."
• MyDD's Chris Bowers is skeptical of letting up on the GOP: "While altering the ideological content of the national political discourse is an undeniably important task, the netroots must also serve as a new grassroots outlet and organizational tool for the progressive movement. We cannot just equal the Republican Noise Machine and think that will be enough -- we also must vastly surpass the grassroots power of the theocon, social conservative movement. It is for this reason that the blogs can never, under any circumstances, spend less energy and time attacking the Bush administration and other seats of conservative power."
• Echidne of the Snakes comments: "Where I differ from Daou Report is explained by the place where I sit. Though I'm a fairly widely-read feminist blogger, I'm but a tiny speck as a political one. ... Nothing much is getting triangulated here, but I hope that something else is happening, perhaps a debate, a discussion about the need to include women's points of views more, a discussion to start finding the political machinery that we need and the access to the traditional media we simply don't have. That's when I feel like a really ambitious and powerful divine, which isn't often."

SoapBlox Chicago: "Sometimes the tension between" Dem cong. challengers" and the DCCC "is strained at best. This was not noticeable" at a 9/15 IL meeting between the 2 groups, facilitated by Dem strategist/ex-IL 19 nominee Tim Bagwell. "Staff members of PACs know only too well that a meeting with Rep. Rahm Emanuel's entire staff in a room and having his undivided attention for more than 10 minutes just does not happen. To have that kind of meeting for 45 minutes is an unprecedented event."

BLOGS VS. THE MSM: Maybe The Martini Set Will Pay, Even If Bloggers Won't?

Kausfiles passes along a reader comment observing, "Do we read the times op-ed page and argue with it because it's that good, or because we know that the NYT website gets 29 million readers a month (which few free sites do) and we want to comment on ideas that 'most people are reading'? I think it's the latter. If they make people pay, that could change! For example: like reading a lefty-liberal-economist? Can't pay for Krugman? Try ... Brad De Long!"

Blogger John Tabin starts a blog service titled Never Pay Retail dedicated to finding links to NYT columnists in other papers: "As they become available -- usually within a few days -- at least one link will be added in the body of each post to a syndicated copy of the column from a news source that doesn't charge for access." Bob Herbert runs in the Minneapolis Star-Tribune; Paul Krugman columns are available at pkarchive.org as well as the Raleigh News & Observer. Links have yet to be found for Nick Kristof and John Tierney.

IRAQ: Those British Tabs

Duncan "Atrios" Black quotes from a story in the Guardian: "Iraqi authorities are preparing an arrest warrant for the country's former defence minister in connection with a massive fraud case involving the 'disappearance' of more than $1bn from ministry coffers." The story was also mention in the UK Independent. Black titles his post: "Um, American Press Want to Touch This?" If Technorati is to be believed, it doesn't have much traction in the blogosphere yet, either.

SHEEHAN: 14:57... 58... 59...

A 9/19 Union Square rally featuring anti-war mom Cindy Sheehan was broken up by the NYPD over a "sound permit" not obtained. This a.m. brings a sympathetic report from the Village Voice and an unsympathetic one from the New York Sun. BradBlog was one of the first up after the rally was disbanded. He posts the familar "Drudge siren" and writes: "Reports from eye-witnesses are now emerging on the net here, here and here ... that a "Camp Casey" Peace Rally in NYC was broken up earlier today by police just as Cindy Sheehan was beginning to speak. Unclear whether she was arrested or not at this time..." Later, GOP and the City wrote of Newsday's amNew York coverage: "Much to my surprise, the article on her speech was way back on page 8, after Pataki's trip to China and the Emmy Awards. A month ago, she would have been on the front page, back page, sports, and classifieds." Liberal AMERICAblog finds it hard to believe that one of the officers could say: "I don't even know the woman." Conservative Brainster's Blog points out that only 400 showed up, adding: "As if further confirmation was needed that she's yesterday's news, Phil Donahue was in attendance." RedState's Mark Kilmer points out that Lenora Fulani has been kicked off the NY Independence Party board "for anti-Semitic remarks by which she continues to stand" and wonders when the MSM will come to disregard Sheehan in the same manner.

BLOGGERS VS. BLOGGERS: Swearing To Tell The Wole Truth

Anyone who reads blogs regularly knows that left-wing bloggers curse far more often than right-wing blogs do. Likewise, one would know that the right frequently criticizes the left for it. Pandagon's Jesse Taylor offers a defense of cursing, arguing: "For some reason, 'You're a f---ing racist idiot' is a more offensive statement than 'black people have less native intelligence than other races, and embrace poverty accordingly.'" Another reason for cursing is "because I find the conservative blogosphere to be one of the most closed-minded, insular, circular pits of denial I've ever encountered. The ringleader [i.e. Instapundit's Glenn Reynolds] of the group has been calling those of us who are anti-war traitors going on three years at this point. ... You're a little bit more likely to enter in to some form of dialogue with them if you piss them off than if you pretend they care about having an honest debate." He adds, "these people simply aren't worth treating nicely and politely. In all honesty, if the worst we do the F---ing Moron Brigade is call them the F---ing Moron Brigade while they damn our eternal souls and tell us we hate our country, then we win." Dohiyi Mir and Crooks and Liars concur.

Meanwhile, Little Green Footballs, a site Taylor cites as an example of the "unrepentant racists" on the right, names the above piece the "Vitriolic Lefty Post of the Day." LGF's Charles Johnson: "You know, I'm worried about Jesse. It's not healthy to be that full of animosity and hatred."

BACKLOG: Beware Of Carnies

And we had intended to mention last week that the Carnival of the Vanities turned 3 years old on 9/14. We didn't, so we're mentioning it now. The carnival, essentially a round-up of blogger-submitted posts hosted at a different site every week, was the first of many similar carnivals to pop up in the years since. Founder Silflay Hraka, who hosted the anniv. edition, observes: "Three years ago today, give or take a week or so, the CoTV -- and the idea of blog carnivals itself, was born. As with so many blog inventions, its genesis is owed more to a desperate desire for traffic than from any more altruistic reasons. Adam Smith would have recognized it instantly, once he was brought up to speed."

THOUGHT OF THE DAY: Le Freakonomics, C'est Chic

"Freakonomics" co-author Steven Leavitt draws attention to a Planned Parenthood clinic in Philly "with a very clever strategy for fighting back" against pro-life demonstrators, called Pledge-a-Picket. From the PP page: "Here's how it works: You decide on the amount you would like to pledge for each protester (minimum 10 cents). When protesters show up on our sidewalks," the clinic "will count and record their number" from 10/1-11/30. "At the end of the two-month campaign, we will send you an update on protest activities and a pledge reminder." Leavitt: "My prediction: abortion clinics around the country will soon be adopting this approach." Markos Moulitsas points up the post, adding: " During the heady days of the Dean campaign, Dean supporters would fundraise off Dean's fiercest critics. Attack Dean in the press or troll the site, and it meant dollars for the campaign. I'm surprised organizations haven't adopted the model."

LEST WE FORGET: Geeks On Call

For anybody who remembers "Magic: The Gathering" -- whether one played or made fun of those who played -- Katrina: The Gathering is a very funny send-up of the people, places and things that made the stories after Hurricane Katrina. The self-proclaimed "ubergeek" creators, Ubiq and Lum, claim the game is "vaguely" playable. Card categories include: "WHITE: John Kerry Doesn't Care About White People. White is the realm of The Vast Right Wing Conspiracy and Leave It To Beaver." And: "BLUE: The bureaucracy moves slowly, but can deny anything! Blue is the realm of Bureaucratic Ineptitude." And: "RED: Chaos! Damage! Oscar Winning Actors! Red is the province of Media Whores."

Posted by at 12:05 PM

September 19, 2005

9/19: Think Globally, Blog Locally

This was a big weekend in foreign affairs. Easily the biggest topic of discussion is the just-announced nuclear disarmament of North Korea, following the latest round of 6-party talks. Pres. Bush gets a modest amount of grudging praise from the left, and while everyone is greatly encouraged, more than a few express their skepticism.

But that wasn't all: Conservative blogs tend to take a great deal of interest in overseas elections, particularly countries in which the U.S. has recently fought wars, or which had some impact on the '03 Iraq invasion. This weekend there are 2: Afghanistan and Germany. Because the former is seen to have gone smoothly, it doesn't attract much comment. The latter, however, was closely followed and will be as the uncertain situation evolves.

Meanwhile, the left and right are both debating how the country will pay for the large-scale fed'l programs intended to help rebuild New Orleans and the Gulf coast. Liberal bloggers argue that tax increases are necessary and want Dems to be vocal in their agreement; over the weekend, conservative bloggers put together a collaborative project identifying pork in domestic spending.

Plus, the New York Times public editor clashes with the paper's most popular columnist, said paper finally gets around to withdrawing said columnist and other content from free access, and liberals debate whether to support SCOTUS nominee John Roberts.

NORTH KOREA: Terrorist Your Game Is Through 'Cause Now You Have To Answer To ... America, F--- Yeah!

The apparent agreement by North Korea to surrender its nuclear program is a big topic this a.m. on blogs left and right. Centrist Donklephant's Justin Gardner: "I'm not going to put a ton of stock in this until we see some serious movement." DPRK Studies headlines its post "Hell Freezes Over," but adds: "I hate to be a doomsayer, but in the end, North Korea will likely keep some sort of nuclear program, since it has in the past so adamantly spoken of it's 'right' to have one (even if it signed several agreements saying it wouldn't -- just paper, like the current one)."

>> Not a few liberal blogs are willing to give Bush and some (but not all) of his admin. members credit for the accomplishment -- The Left Coaster's Steve Soto: "Props to Colin Powell and now Condi Rice, and yes, Bush himself, for giving negotiations led by China a chance to succeed, and for overcoming the advice of Cheney and others to ignore North Korea and isolate them." Rising Hegemon: "What will the anti-communists core of the GOP do? Is their love of Bush greater than their contempt for the most repressive of Marxist governments?" Liberal Kevin Drum: "If this is on the level, it's great news. It would also be a terrific accomplishment for the Bush administration. They could use one. ... But why did the U.S. finally accede to a nonaggression promise? We've never been willing to agree to that before."

>> The right is both triumphant and apprehensive: Joe's Dartblog: "This is the second major nuclear coup for the Bush Administration, which launched the Iraq War in 2003 which was widely recognized as the impetus for Khaddafi and Libya to voluntarily disarm its nuclear program." Winds of Change: "If this in fact pans out, people who have previously argued that the North Korean diplomacy was a complete failure will now start arguing that this would have happened anyway regardless of what the US did." Conservative Matthew Hoy takes a wait-and-see approach, citing "past behavior by Kim Jong Il."

>> Some consider what this means for negotiations with Iran -- War & Piece passes along a reader's observation: "Iran is also going to explode in the news, with this week's IAEA BOG meeting and the lack of any conciliatory proposals in the Iranian President's speech yesterday." Conservative Captain's Quarters: "The agreement should allow the US to focus much more attention on Iran, once a compliance team gets on the ground in North Korea. We will also find out how good our intelligence on Kim's nukes have been, and that might give us an idea about how we can improve it for Iran."

OVERSEAS ELECTIONS: The 35-35-10-10-10 Nation

Right-leaning Cold Fury: "Whilst political statements in the immediate wake of an election should be taken with as much salt as your blood pressure can tolerate, party leaders' statement on who they will not work with rule out any conceivable coalition at this point, with the remotely possible exception of a CDU/CSU/FDP/Green coalition (and I don't know if the FDP and Greens could stomach each other)." U.S.-centric German blog Davids Medienkritik provides the "official provisional result" by party in terms of %age of the vote and seats in the next Bundestag, and compared with the results in '02. Mid-1/18, Instapundit posted a brief wrap-up, declaring it then a "loss for Schroeder." Jim Geraghty at NRO's TKS: "The really quick recap: It's a big, intensely divided mess." Mark Noonan at GOP Bloggers: "[F]or Germany to have a shot at a good future, it will need to come to the firm conclusion that the left is a failure. That day does not seem to have arrived, so it is better for the right in Germany to just stand aside and let the train wreck continue."

Largely overshadowed were the successful Afghan parliamentary vote: The Indepundit posts photos from the Afghanistan elections, including people holing up ink-stained forefingers, a la the '05 Iraqi election. Power Line: "The dogs bark, but the caravan passes by."

KATRINA FALLOUT: Do You Smell Bacon? Definitely A Pork Product Of Some Kind ...

In the 2nd series partnership this month (the 1st being for Katrina relief) Instapundit and Truth Laid Bear have launched a call for bloggers to identify cong. pork. On 9/16, Instapundit's Glenn Reynolds hopefully but skeptically cited an AP story quoting Bush apparently promising to cut domestic spending in light of Katrina. By 9/18 readers were sending him e-mails detailing more "fat," often from their home states. Later that day N.Z. Bear set up a TTLB PorkBusters page to keep track of this research. As of 9/19. it identifies $8.5B of considered pork, broken down by state, with explanations of each item. Reynolds got the word out.

At his blog, NRO contributor Donald Luskin posts a 1-page OMB document (PDF) showing how $60B will be spent 5 weeks from enactment of fed'l Katrina relief.

Liberal Bad Attitudes let-me-get-this-straights: "We take on an optional war in Iraq, and it is fine to put that on a credit card for the past three years and for years to come; but the minute we need to launch a two-year rebuild of a major region of the United States, we have to find budget offsets such as delaying/gutting the new Medicare drug benefit?"

LiberalOasis argues, Dems need to "get over their squeamishness and make a compelling case for higher taxes. Otherwise, they'll never have the mandate to do what's necessary to properly fund our government's responsibilities and get our fiscal house in order." LiberalOasis notes ex-Pres. Clinton and Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) on the Sunday shows making comments that help "legitimize discussion" of tax hikes, but laments, "we are still seeing Dems flinch at actually saying we need tax increases, which undercuts their ability to claim they will level with the public and make necessary tough choices."

Ex-Bush econ. adviser Andrew Samwick, at his blog Vox Baby, argues for "an income tax surcharge that funds the rebuilding over a given period": "Taxes may be bad, but deficits are surely worse. What's the explanation for why future generations should have to pay for this one, too?" Liberal Angry Bear credits Samwick for objecting to "Bush's free lunch philosophy."

Conservative Punditeer, on reports that some Katrina victims spent their $2K debit cards at strip clubs and designer accessories: "FEMA should have had a system set up with businesses such as national food chains whereby victims could spend their cards only on certain types of goods at certain places. The lack of planning and obliviousness to opportunities for waste can only be described as stunning."

ROBERTS: If Hillary Votes Yea ...

Centrist Charging RINO evaluates the Roberts confirmation editorials in the Washington Post (pro) and New York Times (con). He praises the Post for "recognizing that Roberts may end up taking positions with which the paper disagrees" and supporting him anyway on the strength of his strengths. Meanwhile the Times opposes Roberts "because he didn't prove himself as having 'qualities to be an excellent chief justice.' I'm not sure what they mean by that, but obviously they weren't watching the same hearings I watched." Jon Last at Galley Slaves attributes the Post's greater insight to editorial contributor Ben Wittes.

Liberal Carpetbagger Report asks readers whether they think the Dems should vote against Roberts en masse or not. Most recommend a "no" vote, but some worry about the "obstructionist" label. At his Bull Moose Blog, DLCer Marshall Wittmann argues that Dems should vote to confirm: "Roberts has shown that he is ... a conventional conservative not a right wing revolutionary jurist. People for the American Way knows this. The American people know this. The Family Research Council knows this. Ted Kennedy knows this. Sam Brownback knows this. And they will all take their predictable side on the question of his confirmation." He laments the likelihood that a majority of Dems will vote against: "Is the Democratic Party merely the sum of its interest groups?"

BLOGS VS. THE MSM: A Krugmanian Calame-ity

• On 9/16, New York Times public editor Byron "Barney" Calame posted a note to his Times "web journal" titled "Columnist Correction Policy Isn't Being Applied to Krugman" criticizing both columnist Paul Krugman and editorial editor Gail Collins. The dispute goes back to Krugman's 8/19 column claiming re: the WH'00 FL fiasco, that 2 of 3 statewide recounts would have favored then-VP Gore in the '00 FL controversy. Conservative blogs including Patterico's Pontifications, Brainster and Conspiracy to Keep You Poor and Stupid argued that Krugman had his facts wrong (see 8/29 Blogometer), and communicated this to Calame. When Krugman issued a partial correction on the NYT website only, they took up the matter once again. It seems Calame's post is at least in part the outcome of the resulting criticism.
  
  

  Conservatives and other Krugman critics have a field day: Decision '08's Mark Coffey applauds Calame's judgment, but adds, "nothing will change until Gail Collins is forcibly removed. The columnists of the Times have become national laughingstocks; no one but the most extreme partisan believes anything they read in a MoDo column, to take just one glaring example." Mickey Kaus writes, it's taken Krugman "only four months to alienate" Calame "to such a degree that Calame is taking the argument public ... The previous ombudsman, Daniel Okrent, waited until the end of his tenure to do that." Man Without Qualities: "Given the violent and intemperate reaction of Herr Doktorprofessor [Krugman] to criticisms leveled at him by the Times' prior public editor, how likely is it that this situation is not going to become rapidly and highly inflamed -- with Herr Doktorprofessor resorting to his customary paranoid rants, superheated accusations and apocalyptic doomsaying?"




• As of this a.m., the New York Times' TimesSelect program, which takes its op-ed columnists, sports coverage, and other sections behind a subscription wall. It may come as no surprise that we couldn't find a single blogger who thought the Times would succeeed, and even some with subscriptions had a bit of trouble accessing the paid content.
  
  

  Liberal Blah3: "If you look at the NYT home page today, you'll see a little orange icon next to their op-ed columns. Their long-standing plan to charge people to read their Op-Ed section goes into effect today. ... See ya, New York Times. I get the feeling you're going to lose a lot of traffic over this." Conservative Patterico: "In three days you'll have to pay to read Paul Krugman's lies and Maureen Dowd's trivial nonsense. Me, I say no thanks. I can find lies and nonsense aplenty on the Internet -- for free." Fishbowl NY, on the above controversy and this, asks: "[H]ow will this play out on the pages of the Public Editor? There is already a brouhaha between Byron Calame and Krugman, Daniel Okrent's favorite pen pal, and if the Public Editor is truly to fulfill his mandate ought he not provide access to any contested material?" Gawker points out that "bootleg copies" of Krugman's columns can be found at pkarchive.org. Here's today's column.

BLOGGERS VS. BLOGGERS: The Sidney Wars

In a 9/16 aside, Andrew Sullivan referred to conservative radio talker Hugh Hewitt as "the Sid Blumenthal of the Bush administration." At his own blog, Hewitt decided to take it as a compliment. The crack elicited defenses of Hewitt from Galley Slaves came to Hewitt's defense, as did Power Line, which lists 10 reasons why Hewitt is not like Blumenthal. #4: "Sid demonizes those with whom he disagrees; Hugh invites them on his radio show for a discussion." Sullivan later followed up, responding to the Power Line post and reaffirming his analogy: "I don't think even he would deny that he is one of the last true believers in the administration. Rove would abandon the ship before Hugh would. As with Sid, it's admirable in a strange kind of way."

Tipped by a participant at Free Republic, Michelle Malkin reports that ex-Gingrich confidant/CA GOV candidate/anti-SUV activist/Huffington Post-founder Arianna Huffington was seen riding in a Chevy Suburban to the Sierra Club nat'l summit last weekend. Malkin investigates: "I interviewed Sierra Club national spokesman Eric Antebi by phone yesterday, who confirmed that the group sent the SUV. He blamed an 'outside contractor,' which he declined to name, for the rather dissonant choice of vehicle. ... Curious, I asked Antebi whether any of the staff at the Sierra Club headquarters owned and drove SUVs. He stumbled and said the group didn't keep track of who drove what. It's 'a personal decision,' he explained. 'People drive different cars for different reasons.' Well, um, exactly. Now, wouldn't it be nice if these anti-SUV green busybodies took the same attitude towards the rest of us and left our car choices alone?!"

SHEEHAN: In-Cindy-Ary

Last week, anti-war mom Cindy Sheehan wrote in a recent commentary that Bush should "pull our troops out of occupied New Orleans"; conservative blogs had long moved on from her at this point, but plenty returned to ridicule this. WSJ's James Taranto comments: "Mrs. Sheehan, originally a sympathetic figure, is now merely a pathetic one, and we're inclined to ignore her totally, except that we keep remembering all those Angry Left types who, a few short weeks ago, were declaring that she had "absolute moral authority" and was going to transform American politics. If thinking about that doesn't give you a good, deep, soul-cleansing laugh, nothing will." At RedState's RedHot, Sheehan is mocked for accusing Clinton of being a war criminal. Start here and scroll up.

Erick Erickson from RedState announces Operation Iraq Hope, which aims to help supporters of the Iraq war travel to DC to counter-protest against the big 9/24 anti-war rally. He writes: "Between the homeless, the unemployed, the trust funders, and the hippie college types, the Peace Movement is well stocked with societal rejects and dope smoking FM types. ... It is more difficult for those who support the war effort, the nation, and the troops. We all have jobs, mostly outside the government section, and cannot afford to hop a bus to Washington to counter protest the unemployed and stoned blame America first crowd. Well, it has gotten a bit easier for us."

MISCELLANY: Whatever You Were Doing Before, Just Keep Doing That

• At MyDD, Chris Bowers takes a look at a new Pew poll, in particular the generic ballot showing Dems with a 2-1 advantage with indies. And re: other findings, he titles the post: "Democrats Pissed At Leadership; Ready to Vote For Dems Anyway."
• On 9/17 Little Green Footballs reported: "I've just received a credible tip from an LGF reader that an America West flight out of New York was fired upon by a surface to air missile yesterday, and that the pilot and passengers witnessed it and are now being questioned by the FAA and FBI." Captain's Quarters and Michelle Malkin followed up quickly. Later, Malkin reported in a same-post update that the FAA considered the "SAM" attack a false alarm, quoting an anonymous source: "Turned out to be nothing more than birds, and [a] big game of 'telephone.'"
• Freelance journalist Daniel Radosh writes at his blog, "I have a chart of 'five winning political blogs' in the October Playboy. I'm always reluctant to write about blogs for print magazines ... because it just opens me up to abuse from the blogosphere. I decided to risk it in this case because 1) nobody reads Playboy, so who's even gonna notice, and 2) Playboy pays me, while the blogosphere does not." For more, see 9/15 Blogometer.

THOUGHT OF THE DAY: Selective Service

OxBlog's David Adesnik: "Take a look at the article about Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on page A26 of this morning's WaPo. The article is basically a summary of Ahmadinejad's press conference in New York. Even when he says things that are fairly absurd or insulting, you don't get a counterpoint from any of his critics, domestic or foreign. Why is that? To some degree, I think that when you are a charter member of the Axis of Evil, journalists assume that no one will believe anything you say, so why take up space with a counterpoint?" Likewise, the same edition contains a C1 story that is "95%" Rep. John Lewis (D-GA) arguing that CJ nominee Roberts "isn't fully aware of just how much blacks suffered as a result of Jim Crow." Adesnik: "In this instance, you obviously can't say that readers will know not to trust what Lewis says. To the contrary, his status as a 'civil rights icon' ensures that his argument will carry the presumption of truth. ... Although Lewis comes pretty close to saying that white conservatives can't possibly be fair to black people, I don't care so much about the lack of balance there because the Roberts issue has already been decided. Plus, there are always lower standards for the 'C' section, even though its contents are often the same as the hard news in 'A'."

LEST WE FORGET: Avast! Ye Landlubbing Bloggers

Whether you were aware of it or not, today is Talk Like A Pirate Day. Liberal Pharyngula is participating. So is conservative Pirate's Cove, although it would arguably be a dereliction of duty if they didn't. To make your prose bluster like a scurvy-ridden knave, you can download the proper codehere. Arrrrr!

Posted by at 12:25 PM

September 16, 2005

9/16: Tough Crowd

Pres. Bush's speech last p.m. is not getting universal praise from conservative bloggers. While many applaud his tone and regained presidential aura, some are troubled by the big-gov't approach and other aspects of his speech. Liberal bloggers didn't tune in as many numbers, and the angle they're pursuing is a one-line report in the 9/15 New York Times stating that WH dep. CoS Karl Rove is "in charge" of N.O. rebuilding efforts.

Meanwhile, there's a lot going on that isn't related to Katrina. The FEC has announced that it will hear strategist Roy Temple's argument that his blog should receive the same exemptions as MSM outlets. There are a few new developments in the Able Danger case, and possibly one in the ongoing imprisonment of New York Times reporter Judy Miller. An ABC News reporter was apparently surprised by the pro-Bush post-speech reactions of some New Orleans evacuees. And there's even a bit of talk about SCOTUS nominee John Roberts.

BUSH SPEECH: Shirt Cuts

A round-up of blog reactions:

• Radio talker Hugh Hewitt: "Perfect pitch returned tonight, and the president's looks backward and forward were on target."
• Syndie columnist Michelle Malkin: "Maybe it's just me, but isn't there something tacky about having the leader of the free world reading a phone number from the teleprompter? Also, it's been three weeks and they're only now publicizing a number for Katrina families looking for missing relatives?"
• Conservative JustOneMinute's Tom Maguire: "Watching Bush's speech, my jaw dropped when he said that he was ordering the Department of Homeland Security to undertake an immediate review of emergency plans in every major city in America. What has been happening before now?"
• Liberal AMERICAblog calls it a "lead balloon speech" and cites an AP story titled "Viewers Skeptical Over Bush Speech": "The photo-op president just isn't getting the response that he used to get these days. After so many lies for so long, people either don't believe him or take a wait and see attitude."
• Libertarian Matt Welch liked the speech, and writes: "I also find it enduringly interesting that Kanye West really did seem to get under Dubya's skin."
• Headline by right-leaning Matt Szabo: "President Bush's Way-Too-Large Shirt Reinforces Small-Man Image." Kicking off an open thread, RedState's Erick Erickson notes: "His shirt blends in with the background lighting color." California Mafia asks, "isn't it protocol to wear a suit when you address the nation?"
• Lefty Steve Gilliard: "Watching Bush's speech tonight, I realized that there is no chance he will recover his presidency. His speech was a list of gifts, but lacked an element of responsibility, contrition. The true art of leadership is sacrifice."
• Ex-RedStater Josh Trevino: "Tax credits for rebuilding is okay. Urban homesteading is okay. The rest of the President's address from New Orleans? Everything one has come to fear within the past five years."
• NRO's Jonah Goldberg has a similar take: "[I]t sure sounds like we're heading for a really Great Society."
• Power Line: "You can call it FDR/LBJ liberalism, big government conservatism, or compassionate conservatism. I call it American-style pragmatism."

From the left as well as the right, some suggest Bush's speech will have a limited impact:

Democracy Guy's Tim Russo: "I didn't watch the Bush speech last night. I bet a lot of people who normally watch such things didn't this time. The collective disgust at this man deigning to speak to the country about his latest incompetence is almost palpable in the air. Hurricane Katrina will be a benchmark event in American history, for so many reasons. One of the most immediate is the utter liberation of criticism of the Bush administration. The endless deference to George W. Bush after 9/11 is finally at an end." Conservative Captain's Quarters: "Bush's uplifting speech, designed to inspire the confidence of the people most affected by the devastation of Hurricane Katrina, may have less effect than he hopes. He delivered it well and introduced intelligent plans for renewal, but" according to the Washington Post, "half of the New Orleans evacuees appear to have decided not to go back regardless of the circumstances." More: "If their allies do not return to New Orleans, they may lose the state to the GOP. Expect that possibility to fuel the Farrakhanish rumors that the Republicans bombed the levees on purpose to gentrify New Orleans, and the Democrats to continue their descent into Howard Dean nuttiness."

ROVE: The Unofficial Czar?

On 9/15 the New York Times' Elisabeth Bumiller and Richard Stevenson wrote, as the Washington Post's Dan Froomkin quoted from their story: "Republicans said Karl Rove, the White House deputy chief of staff and Mr. Bush's chief political adviser, was in charge of the reconstruction effort."

Josh Marshall has a caustic take on the speech: "Let's see. What was the problem with Michael Brown exactly? Let's see. No expertise or experience for the job. Got the gig because he was pals with Bush's political fixer. Also a political loyalist. So to learn the lesson and get back on track, to run the recovery, President Bush picks Karl Rove. That's great." He adds: "This is how repressive governments operate -- mixing inefficiency with authoritarian tendencies. You don't repair disorganized or incompetent government by granting it more power. You fix it by making it more organized and more competent. If conservatism can't grasp that point, what is it good for?" Over at Daily Kos, Hunter picks up on Marshall's 1st point and seems to think it means Rove has operational authority: "The person who is being placed in charge of the Gulf Coast rebuilding effort, in the wake of stunning government bungling of a national disaster due to political patrons who had no expertise in their ostensible 'duties' for which they were collecting paychecks: yes, Karl Rove. And apparently, nobody in the media has a problem with this..." The DNC played up this angle in a release last p.m., quoting the Times. Arianna Huffington sarcastically writes: "I love how the news that Karl Rove has been placed in charge of the reconstruction effort was buried in the ninth paragraph of a twelve paragraph New York Times story on Bush's big speech."

The nature of Rove's involvement has yet to be cleared up; based on the news clips going into the Bush section of today's Hotline, no one else has reported this.

KATRINA RESPONSE: Lingering Complaints

Washington Monthly's Kevin Drum notes Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK) hinting he wouldn't extend Bush's tax cuts absent spending cuts, and comments: "Griping about spending is one thing, but when they start suggesting they might hold the line on tax cuts, it's clear that some serious rebellion is in the air."

More reax on the New York Times interview with ex-FEMA dir. Michael Brown: Right Wing News's John Hawkins (who as yet seems to have escaped the worst of Ophelia) summarizes Brown's assessment as that his "biggest mistake was not immediately realizing how incredibly incompetent the locals were in Louisiana, especially" LA Gov. Kathleen Blanco (D).

Michelle Malkin disagrees: "[L]et's face it: FEMA's performance under Brown was a joke. Just read [the NYT interview]. Start with his admission that he did not ask for federal active-duty troops to be deployed to New Orleans on the night of Monday, August 29, because 'he assumed his superiors in Washington were doing all they could.'" She cites other "clueless public comments" and mistaken judgments by Brown.

ROBERTS: All Over But The Countin'

Instapundit is troubled by CJ nominee Roberts' regulationist answer to a hypothetical question from Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY). According to Roberts according to Reynolds, "everything is subject to regulation under the commerce power. That it's a good answer as far as Schumer is concerned doesn't surprise me, but that it's the answer of a Bush nominee to the Supreme Court is damning, if not terribly surprising -- for the Bush Administration. Fair-weather Federalism, indeed."

Confirm Them posts a "must-read" wrap-up memo from Roberts allies Leonard Leo, Wendy Long and Jay Sekulow. They write, Roberts "hit it out of the park" in his testimony and will be confirmed, but "we have no expectation that the margin of victory will be very generous."

TAPPED's Jeffrey Dubner: "What, specifically, does Roberts agree with in Griswold v. Connecticut? It's been taken for granted that he agrees with the whole decision. But I really don't think this is what he said. .. [I]f I'm right, it's very unfortunate that no Democrat simply asked: 'Is the right to marital privacy a fundamental, constitutional right? Is contraceptive use an incontrovertible element of that fundamental, constitutional right?'"

Liberal MyDD wants 41 Dems to vote against Roberts to "make it clear we will not tolerate another stealth candidate who ducks and dodges endlessly. That is a number that will make it clear that we will not tolerate someone in the mold of Rehnquist, Thomas or Scalia in replacing O'Connor. ... The march of progress must not be reversed. The Congress must be allowed to engage in social investment."

Volokh Conspirator Erik Jaffe: "I am struck ... at the complete disconnect between the criticisms of many of those opposing Judge Roberts and a cogent view of the role of the courts. It seems that many of the criticisms are policy based -- x or y rulings would lead to bad RESULTS -- and make no reference whatsoever regarding whether such results are in fact the correct interpretation of the law (or the Constitution)."

A bit of backfill: On 9/13, Kevin Drum wrote: "I haven't been blogging about the John Roberts hearings, and I feel like this makes me a bad blogger. The thing is, the hearings are so obviously a Kabuki dance that I just can't get excited about any of the details. Is there anyone who seriously thinks that Roberts will sustain any damage during the hearings or that he won't sail through confirmation?" Daily Kos' Armando objected: "The Supreme Court of the United States has been the bulwark of the defense of citizens against the abuse of government. And has been for decades. Not interested in the details? ... Oh by the way, you know there is another appointment coming? To be honest, Drum's statement is reprehensible. Fine, don't blog about it. That's his prerogative. But to pretend it does not matter? Utter bullshit."

BLOGS VS. THE FEC: Push It To The Limit ... Walk Along The Razor's Edge

Late this summer, blogger and MO Dem consultant Roy Temple requested an advisory opinion from the FEC about whether his Fired Up! America website may be treated as a press entity and entitled to the standard protections. (For a summary of the request, see this Daily Kos diary from 8/24.) There now begins a 60-day period for interested parties to submit comments.

On 9/15 the FEC accepted the request, which is available on the FEC website, listed as AOR 2005-16 (PDF). The full request is 34 pages; for what it's worth, a reproduction of the Blogometer's 9/9 edition (we actually noted Temple's initial request on 9/8).

Ex-FEC staffer/FEC watchdog Allison Hayward observes, "the additional information says that Fired Up! is an LLC taxed as a partnership, and the partners are individuals. If that is the case, there's a nuance that possibly relieves the FEC from answering the press exemption question squarely. Partnerships may make contributions and expenditures -- and can make independent expenditures. They aren't banned under 441b like corporations and labor organizations. So, it would seem to me that independent commentary would be allowed (perhaps reportable) without reference to the press exemption, and coordinated commentary would be limited by the value of the contribution limit -- presently $2100 per election."

BLOGS VS. THE MSM: Not What The Framers Intended

A number of conservative blogs are buzzing about an ABC News segment that appears to not have gone as planned. News Busters reports: "ABC News producers probably didn't hear what they expected when they sent Dean Reynolds to the Houston Astrodome's parking lot to get reaction to President Bush's speech from black evacuees from New Orleans. Instead of denouncing Bush and blaming him for their plight, they praised Bush and blamed local officials." The Political Teen has the video. He notes, "Around the 17 second mark you can tell Reynolds cut her off to ask her another question because he was unhappy with the result." PoliPundit's Lorie Byrd has a round-up of reactions from conservative blogs.

Citing a report by OJR's Mark Glaser, Jeff Jarvis is appalled that the Pulitzer board is equivocating on whether they'll consider the Times-Picayune's post-Katrina related reporting. Pulitzer standards require journalism to be printed to be eligible, but the T-P had no printers to work with at the time and produced unique work online. An exasperated Jarvis: "Don't you just want to take them by the shoulders and shake hard and shout in their faces: Wake up! Your audience is online and you're not! ... You are not serving the public where the public is! You're fiddling with your rules and nobody but you gives a damn!"

ROVE-PLAME-MILLER: Judy Who?

Arianna Huffington: "Further confirming a shift in the New York Times' official thinking on the Judy Miller case, Exec Editor Bill Keller has let it be known" -- speaking at a CUNY discussion panel featuring Time editor Norman Pearlstine and Miller atty Floyd Abrams -- "that he is no longer 'an absolutist' when it comes to revealing the name of confidential sources. ... "The Times' new absolutist-lite strategy affords Miller the wiggle-room she needs as she tries to cut a deal with Fitzgerald. The question becomes, will the neocon sources she threw her lot in with give her the fig leaf waiver she is looking for?" Huffington picks up this bit from Jeff Jarvis, who live-blogged the event.

ABLE DANGER: Post Hoc Able Danger Hoc

Captain's Quarters writes, despite 5 "eyewitnesses to the Able Danger project who now insist" that it identified Atta, "the 9/11 Commission has publicly asserted that the program did not produce any such analysis" because there are no verifiable documents.

PoliPundit's Jayson Javitz quotes from the AP -- "A Pentagon employee was ordered to destroy documents that identified Mohamed Atta as a terrorist two years before the 2001 attacks, [Rep. Curt Weldon (R-PA)] said Thursday." -- and comments: "I can't help but wonder what was written in the margin notes of the original documents Sandy Berger purloined from the National Archives and then destroyed. I have a sneaking suspicion the names 'Gorelick' and 'Cohen,' perhaps even 'Clinton,' might have been there."

DEMOCRATS: Singled Out

Markos Moulitsas, a frequent critic of interest group politics, applauds a Mark Schmitt American Prospect piece declaring the demise of single-issue politics: "Defenders of certain groups will be quick to charge, 'Kos attacks NARAL, so he's 'anti-woman'', or 'Kos attacks HRC, so he hates gays.' Fact is, those groups were created for a governing system where progressives had some measure of power, and those constituency groups could lobby for their causes in the halls of government. ... That formula doesn't work in today's political environment. And we won't have a governing majority until the energy expended in pursuing pet interests gets redirected toward getting Republicans out of power and getting Democrats -- even some of the imperfect ones -- elected to replace them." He adds, there is a "clear generational divide between people who came of political age in the 60s and 70s, and those of us who came of age after the Republican takeover of government (the last 10 years or so)." And "the new progressive organizations arising the past few years" such as MoveOn, DFA, bloggers are all "movement-based multi-issue organizations."

Matt Yglesias highlights 2 conflicting Sen. Joe Biden (D-DE) quotes on the progress (or lack thereof) in Iraq: "The administration's line on Iraq -- it's all good just stay the course -- is at odds with the facts, but it's coherent. Most Democrats, meanwhile, warn that we're on the brink of failure, but it's too soon to give up. But they've been saying that for over a year now, and that can't be right. We can't perpetually be on the brink of failure. Calls to take one last stab at changing the course would have more credibility if I felt the callers would ever concede that, if the course isn't changed, it's time to start cutting our losses." He notes that ret Gen. Wesley Clark has the same problem.

IN THE STATES: NoVa Means "No Go" For Kilgore?

MyDD founder Jerome Armstrong, noting that VA LG Tim Kaine (D) is gaining on AG Jerry Kilgore (R) in VA GOV: "Gods, Guns and Gays are not working for the Republicans, I guess Ken Mehlman will just have to take back his apology for the Republicans having a Southern Strategy that embraced segregation if Kilgore has his way. That, and have the feds take away the local counties authority of making their own safety laws regarding the congregating of people on the sides of highways, public spaces, and the front of 7/11's." Meanwhile, Commonwealth Conservative sees some "very good news" for Kilgore in the same Rasmussen poll.

IDENTITY POLITICS: Offensive Patterns

Crooks and Liars notes the resignation of an Greenville (SC) Technical College official who resigned after twice calling N.O. refugees "yard apes"; liberal satire blog Jesus' General takes issue with a Daily Tar Heel columnist who wrote: "I want all Arabs to be stripped naked and cavity-searched if they get within 100 yards of an airport." At his News Blog, black liberal Gilliard portrays NRO's writers as Klansmen (Klanspersons?).

Little Green Footballs is astonished to see that CAIR Photoshopped a headscarf onto the head of a woman at a rally outside the U.S. Capitol building, ostensibly "to avoid offending CAIR web site readers."

BACKLOG: There's No Demi Moore In This Disclosure

On 9/13, RedState's Mike Krempasky discloses his work for the Edelman PR firm, noting: "[F]or obvious reasons, I will not always have the freedom to disclose my client list publicly -- but I can tell you that the other Directors of RedState will always have that information and the freedom to make decisions regarding the content at RedState."

INTRODUCING: Tapped

Last p.m. ABC News correspondent Jake Tapper launched a blog for ABC titled Down and Dirty. He writes in his 1st post: "Yo. Today begins the grand abc news blog experiment. Blogs being built on spontaneity and opinion -- neither of which big mainstream news organizations are particularly known for -- but we'll see how it goes ..." He lists a few stories he's been reporting on for "Nightline," then closes out: "Gotta go interview a pissed-off local government official, more later."

THOUGHT OF THE DAY: Twilight Of The Pundits

Kausfiles: "At first I wasn't sure that one effect of the post-Katrina 'emo' broadcast news trend -- unleashing Tim Russert to say what he really thinks, which turns out to be an even more overwrought and pompous version of the CW -- was at all beneficial. But now I realize it's just another manifestation of the faster news cycle. After all, it used to be that Washington journalists had an advantage -- they could go to cocktail parties and hear Russert himself spout the latest CW line in person a few days before he did it on national television. That gave them a head start in reacting against it and preparing the inevitable contrarian, anti-CW pieces. When you moved out of town, you lost a step or two. ... But now, increasingly, anyone with a TV can see Russert bloviate on the day's topic every night! This evening, for example, he more or less declared that the remainder of the Bush presidency would be devoted to Katrina -- to rebuilding the Gulf and, of course, solving the problems of race and class in America! If you think this view is a typical CW echo-chamber overreaction -- which it is -- you can now blog that point immediately. What's left for poor John Tierney?"

LEST WE FORGET: Notes From The Glue Factory

Don't say we didn't warn you first -- click on this link only if you really, really hate horses.

Posted by at 12:30 PM

September 15, 2005

9/15: Ten Blog Posts From Normal

Is the blogosphere back to normal (whatever that means)? After 2 months of obsession about anti-war mom Cindy Sheehan and reaction to the destruction wrought by Hurricane Katrina, there is no single story dominating the landscape. Whereas a few weeks ago non-political or friviolous stories were all but absent, there is more space to discuss other topics. How do we know? By taking another look at Technorati's fun and informative (if unscientific and imperfect) Top 10 Searches list. Here's what it looked like shortly before deadline:

1. 'Impeach Bush'
2. Katrina
3. Nokia 7710
4. 'Bush Bathroom'
5. Hitchens Galloway
6. 'Ipod Nano'
7. 'Pledge Of Allegiance'
8. Dreamhost
9. 'John Roberts'
10. Flock

What do we find? Liberal bogs, led in part by the Impeach Bush Coalition, have successfully pushed the phrase "Impeach Bush" to the top of the charts. Technology and consumer electronics, 2 topics all but nonexistent from the searches in Katrina's aftermath (see 9/1 Blogometer) are back. Katrina certainly remains a top story, and the SCOTUS hearings for John Roberts are up there, but also showing up today are stories we address below: an Iraq debate between 2 colorful, contentious figures; the court ruling against the Pledge of Allegiance; and an amusing photo that Pres. Bush probably was not expecting.

Also getting play today: the 9/11 memorial to Flight 93 is going to be redesigned, this after just a few days of outcry from the conservative blogs. Plus, we present our latest Blogger Spotlight.

ROBERTS HEARINGS: What's Not Happening

Right-leaning law prof Ann Althouse comments: "You know one Supreme Court case the Senators aren't grilling Roberts about? Despite all the talk about the Commerce Clause at the hearing, none of them wants to bring up Gonzales v. Raich, the medical marijuana case. Wouldn't you think the Democrats would want to champion the rights of the powerless, suffering cancer patient, oppressed by the government, with whom the heartless Supreme Court Justices could not empathize?" Explaining that the case turned on interpretation of the Commerce Clause, she writes, "If the Court was wrong, it was wrong because it found that Congress had too much power. The Senators don't want to push Roberts to say that they lack power."

Liberal law prof Jack Balkin writes at his Balkinization blog: "If you read Judge Roberts' testimony carefully, you will see that he states that Roe is settled precedent whose continuing authority is determined by another precedent, Casey, and its rules for when you are allowed or not allowed to overturn an existing precedent. This is not a representation that Roberts will never vote to overrule Roe. It is a statement that he will regard Roe as settled unless the precedent becomes vulnerable along the lines set forth by the Casey joint opinion ... As I've said before, this suggests that Roberts satisfied the 'reverse litmus test' that President Bush's nominees have to meet. And as I also said before, I think the new mainstream conservative position on abortion is going to be something like 'Roe is settled law, but we are going to read it very narrowly and chip away at it slowly.'"

Later at the same blog, Georgetown law prof Mark Tushnet isn't satisfied with Roberts' statement that "No one is above the law" re: Sen. Patrick Leahy's (D-VT) question about whether the POTUS can authorize extra-legal coercive interrogation: "I take little comfort from the proposition that Judge Roberts is (a) an advocate of judicial restraint and an opponent of judicial activism, who believes (b) that the Supreme Court properly enforces constitutional limitations on legislative power. All the interesting work happens in the space between (a) and (b)."

Daily Kos' Armando states that Roberts should not be confirmed: "The problem is Roberts has not said enough that proves him worthy of the position at this time in history. Roberts has said no more about his judicial philosophy, his decisionmaking process and how he sees the issues than did Clarence Thomas. Indeed, there are eerily striking similarities between the answers given by now-Justice Thomas during his confirmation hearings and those given by Judge Roberts the past two days."

THE REPLACEMENTS: Now More Than Ever?

Discourse.net's Michael Froomkin (Dan's brother) writes, some think "Bush's political weakness will result in a more moderate appointment" to replace Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, but they "are deluding themselves. In fact, it's worse than wishful thinking: it's exactly backwards. The weaker Bush gets, the more certain it is that he (or Cheney or Rove) will appoint someone certain to reverse Roe v. Wade." Froomkin argues, such a move fits perfectly with the Rovian "fire-up-the-base" strategy: "While not guaranteeing a favorable result, this strategy plus a financial advantage at least creates a possibility of locking in GOP gains against what otherwise would be a renewed and nationally vigorous Democratic challenge."

KATRINA FALLOUT: Department Of Heightened Scrutiny

Stygius reiterates a point it made back on 9/5: "This whole notion that it's the state-and-locals' fault requires this operating premise: Hurricane Katrina was not an Incident of National Significance as defined" by DHS's National Response Plan. Noting the widespread attention to a KRT story on DHS Sec. Michael Chertoff's apparent culpability (see 9/14 Blogometer), Stygius writes, "We'll be seeing a lot more on that soon. Washington Monthly's Kevin Drum expresses some befuddlement at the New York Times' interview with Brown: "I don't really know what to make of it. Is he blaming Chertoff and Bush, even though he says he isn't? Does he realize that recounting his frantic -- and apparently futile -- efforts to get anyone to pay attention to him just makes him look like a doofus?" In a diary for Daily Kos, liberal gadfly Michael Petrelis makes the case that an acting DHS official, Matt Mayer, has a "puffed-up resume" just like ex-FEMA dir. Michael Brown. He writes, what "is of prime interest to me for what is not mentioned: Matt A. Mayer has a long involvement with the Colorado GOP and their redistricting efforts."

Conservative Protein Wisdom disagrees with Andrew Sullivan's argument that Bush's Katrina response "emboldened terrorists," particularly in Iran PW: "Did a federal response burdened by the unpreparedness of one of the three locales hit by Katrina embolden our enemies? Or did our thirst for sensationalism and controversy, coupled with the poisoned partisanship of our current political climate, conspire to convince our enemies (to the extent that it convinced them of anything at all) that we are less prepared than we actually are, and so to draw up their plans accordingly?" PW also writes: "But what is the message our enemy in the war on terror has received? What should happen in the event they attack a city? Panic. Divisiveness. Unpreparedness. Finger pointing -- the very things that Andrew helpfully points out are likely to embolden them." PW also calls into question whether Sullivan really is a conservative, noting how Sullivan seems to argue that the fed'l should have had "clairvoyance" to know all the problems and handled them all.

In a memorable 9/4 "Meet the Press" appearance, Jefferson Parish pres. Aaron Broussard told the story of a man whose mother "drowned Friday night" after having been assured help was on the way since the previous Tues. But WuzzaDem finds more details on the man Broussard spoke of -- Thomas Rodrigue -- who told "Dateline" that his mother died on 8/29. The New York Times corroborates this account. Asking "Why would he lie about such a thing?" WuzzaDem notes that Broussard is a Dem and may be deflecting criticism from the local level to the fed'l: "At best, I think Aaron Broussard is the political equivalent of a price gouger; taking advantage of a tragedy in order to gain political capital. He may very well be purposely trying to blame someone's death on an innocent party (or parties). Either way, it's despicable."

KATRINA INVESTIGATION: Indies Rocked

The Moderate Voice's Joe Gandelman wrote that he hoped to see the signs of a "post-Katrina presidency" in Bush's speech this p.m., but in an update he laments, the "political context for this speech is already contaminated by the Senate's decision yesterday to nix an independent commission." He notes that all voting GOP sens. opposed the commis., and sends readers over to liberal AMERICAblog, which has contact info for all the GOP sens. AMERICAblog calls these GOPers the "Dirty Bomb 54" and writes, they "don't want the truth, they want a whitewash. They don't want to protect America against Al Qaeda, they want to play politics with our lives." (AMERICAblog heads that post "Ask GOP Senators why they hate America?"; the question is a variation on a post-9/11 joke among lefty bloggers who saw conservative bloggers as claiming that liberals "hate America.")

The 1 GOPer to not vote on the measure was LA Sen. David Vitter. Liberal Crooks and Liars calls for his resignation: "If anyone should want an independent commission to sort out what happened it should be him because his people died. The fact that he failed to vote is just as powerful as voting against the measure.

9/11 MEMORIAL: The Blogosphere Gets Results?

AP reports this a.m. that the architect, Paul Murdoch, will "work to satisfy critics" of the design. Said Murdoch: "It's a disappointment there is a misinterpretation and a simplistic distortion of this, but if that is a public concern, then that is something we will look to resolve in a way that keeps the essential qualities."

Captain's Quarters: "Perhaps the intent did not exist -- although his defiance of the jury's request to rename the centerpiece makes it look otherwise -- but the use of a crescent that would naturally turn bright red every anniversary of the attack provides an unmistakable symbol of Islam, given the context of the attacks. Architects deal with symbolism as an integral part of their work, and the prominence of the "crescent" and its highlighting of a natural feature of the landscape in the most symbolic of all architectural projects, a memorial, cannot have come by accident." Mark In Mexico suggests the essence of the design can be saved if the crescent is reshaped to appear like a keyhole Joe's Dartblog points out a CAIR's release objecting to Rep. Tom Tancredo's (R-CO) inserting himself into the debate described the center of controversy as "a memorial to those aboard a plane that crashed in Pennsylvania on 9/11..." Joe Malchow asks rhetorically: "The important question: can CAIR still claim to represent American Muslims, when it insists not only on giving terrorists the benefit of the doubt, but on actively misleading in order to mitigate acts of terrorism?"

There aren't many liberal blogs weighing in here. Before the redesign was announced, one that did was Feministe, which derisively refers to a Flight 93 memorial post-changes it "Michelle Malkin's War Memorial": "The innocent passengers on Flight 93 didn't die fighting in a war. This is not a war memorial. I agree that it's important to immortalize the heroics of the people on that flight. But it's completely innappropriate to turn a memorial into a politicized 'let's kick some ass, yay war!' campaign."

PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE: If You Wonder How "Do-Gooder" Became A Slur, Consider Michael Newdow

The 9/14 ruling by fed'l district judge Lawrence Karlton that reciting the Pledge of Allegiance in public schools is unconstitutional kicks up no small amount of debate. Most of the interest comes from the right. Opinions are divided, but several attys argue that Karlton is wrong simply on the merits.

Liberal Common Sense agrees with the ruling: "I don't have a problem with Congress having a chaplain or a prayer before convening. I can even overlook the Ten Commandments mural in the SCOTUS building. But how can you tell me legally requiring children to affirm the existence of God and his supremacy over our country everyday isn't establishing a national religion? That would be a clear violation of the 1st Amendment." Atty Howard Bashman calls the decision "really, really wrong": "Today's federal district court ruling cites precedents for the proposition that a court may reach the merits where the existence of prudential standing is especially difficult to resolve. But the district court's decision severely misapplies these precedents." UCLA law prof Eugene Volokh: "Now there'll almost certainly be an appeal, and a new Ninth Circuit panel will have to decide for itself whether it's bound by the prior panel's decision. I predict that the new panel will say that it's not bound (and thus disagree with Judge Karlton on this score). But, hey, I'd have predicted the same about Judge Karlton's decision, and I'd have been wrong."

• L.A. Co. prosecutor Patterico: "Judge Karlton failed to cite any cases that actually support his argument in a meaningful way."
• Damnum Absque Injuria calls Karlton "Moron Judge of the Day."
• Atheist God is for Suckers!: "Get ready for another wild ride ... the theocrats are already screaming."
• Header at The Sundries Shack: "Christmas Comes Early for Bush"
• Conservative Big Dog's Weblog: "I say we stop paying Judge Karlton. He works for the government and he gets money that reads 'In God We Trust' on it."
• For a list of links to comments from the right, see Stop the ACLU.

HITCHENS VS. GALLOWAY: And On The Undercard ...

Last p.m. Christopher Hitchens and British PM George Galloway debated the Iraq war in NYC, in an event coinciding with the start of Galloway's U.S. book tour. In May Galloway electrified the left-wing blogosphere with a hard-hitting performance before a Senate cmte, rhetorically dismantling Sen. Norm Coleman (R-MN). Hitchens recently previewed the debate in a recent Slate column. C-SPAN 2 is set to air the event at 9:00 ET on 9/17.

Decision '08 live-blogged the event and nicknamed it "The Grapple In The Apple." TigerHawk, who saw it in person, nicknames it the same. OxBlog's Patrick Belton live-blogged it as well. Like Coffey, he gives the edge to Hitchens: "Hitchens's ability to deflate Galloway's points, and his greater variety and command of argument, made it rather more one-sided a contest to my mind than I would have hoped it to have been." At Winds of Change, Armed Liberal announces he will be "doing peaceful, informational leafleting" outside Galloway's L.A. appearance next week.

Liberal Majikthise guest-blogger Thad writes, the "nominal topic of the debate," Iraq, was "merely as a convenient mise en scène for the real main event -- a public pissing match between a pair of besotted narcissistic showboaters." Although Hitchens Watch missed it live, HW comments, as "as predicted the Jingosphere is screeching victory." One commenter reports that Hitchens made a series of faulty arguments, but Galloway let them "slip." Lefty journalist Greg Palast is no fan of Hitchens, but cautions fellow progressives against aligning with Galloway.

The event largely overshadowed another debate concerning U.S. foreign policy between National Review's Victor Davis Hanson and Huffington Post founder Arianna Huffington; this a.m. Technorati counted 703 results for Hitchens+Galloway, compared to 94 results for Huffington+Hanson. Conservative Mister Snitch!: "More evidence that better promotion is needed -- this should have been billed as the warm-up bout."

MIDTERMS '06: Prime Moves

Lefty activist David Sirota says of the on 9/13 Dem vs. Dem primary for St. Paul Mayor, challenger Chris Coleman's "ass-whooping" of Mayor Randy Kelly -- who endorsed Bush in '04 "could be a sign of things to come" in '06, and Coleman "pounded" him for it. Sirota: "The sheer margin of the challenger's victory over the incumbent is a sign that the Democratic base is really fired up, and that Bush could be an albatross around incumbent's necks. Stay tuned for the final battle between the two in November."

Re: House Maj. Leader Tom DeLay's comments that the "ongoing victory" against spending means there is (in the words of the Washington Times) "no fat left to cut" elicits this headline from Obsidian Wings' Hilzoy: "Tom Delay Has Gone Stark Raving Mad." NY Post's Robert George, at Ragged Thots: "Next? Re-naming the war against government waste. How about calling it a "Global Struggle Against Voracious Expenditures"? Call it G-SAVE!!! It's not like that's being used anymore..."

Outside The Beltway, on an ESPN report re: Steelers legend Lynn Swann (R) running for PA GOV: "One hopes that the day will come when a black man running for office, even as a Republican, will no longer be noteworthy. Swann has an opportunity to help make that day come a little faster."

Liberal Joe Scott writes, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (R) is "expected to announce his candidacy for re-election" on 9/16 "at another phony 'Ask Arnold' town hall" in the "W. rally formula: preach to cheering acolytes in the choir and create maximum excitement to rally the troops. ... His strategy: recreate the successful reform message from the 2003 recall race. The irony: his current low poll numbers are about where Gray Davis's were a year before he was recalled."

Colorado Pols reports, VP Cheney will visit C0's 7th CD on 10/24 to fundraise for candidate Rick O'Donnell (R).

BUSH: Passing Notes

A number of liberal blogs are linking to (and making hay of) a Reuters photo of Bush at the U.N. writing a note to Sec/State Condoleezza Rice that he "may need a bathroom break." Atrios: "I had no idea this was part of job of the Secretary of State." People's Republic of Seabrook is more forgiving than most: "I'm all for exposing the foibles and criminal prevarications of the most inept President in our nation's history, but if a man's gotta pee, a man's gotta pee." Conservative Michelle Malkin is not amused: "Stupidest. Media-manufactured. Non-scandalette. Possibly ever. If only these people had a fraction of the same outrage about the U.N. Oil for Food scandal as they do over the Bush administration's U.N. bathroom breaks..."

A bit more on the Impeach Bush Coalition: "The Blogosphere has erupted in activity around the mantra 'Impeach Bush,' making this phrase one of the top 5 searched items on Technorati (frequently at #1). The Impeach Bush Coalition was born on Thursday, September 8th, 2005, of which I am a proud Coalition supporter from the very first day. So is this just a bunch of crazy liberal moon bats that have fallen off their rockers, or will this effort actually gain traction? Can impeachment occur? In a word, yes it will gain traction (and already is), and impeachment can indeed occur." The post linked makes the case. The Coalition was founded by lefty bloggers Martian Anthropologist and Bulldog Manifesto.

BLOGS VS. THE BELTWAY: Let's Call The Whole Thing Off

Daily Kos founder Markos Moulitsas wrote in a comment to one of his own posts on 9/14: "I've laid off the DLC for the time being. The Katrina disaster has not only made this sort of intra-party fight a bit counterproductive at the moment, but it has refocused the allies and media I was going to engage in the campaign to the more important task of getting to the bottom of the disaster on the gulf coast. The window has closed for now." NRO's Byron York notices, titling a post at The Corner: "KATRINA SPARES THE DLC".

Newsweek's Howard Fineman writes in his latest MSNBC column about the brewing "civil war" between Beltway Dems and liberal activists based at such blogs as Daily Kos and Atrios' Eschaton. He interviews NDN's Simon Rosenberg (but no bloggers), who aims to bridge their differences. Most interesting, he picks up on the little-used term "Vichy Democrats," a left-blogosphere term for DLC/Beltway types. The Blogometer failed to mention in our post-EschaCon report last week that the term was used by at least one attendee during a panel discussion with representatives from the DNC and DCCC; DNC's Jesse Berney (not surprisingly) made a special point to indicate his dislike of the term.

Center-left Jonathan Singer Basie! has an interview with FEC commish David Mason (R) about possible regulation of blog activity. Singer: "Mason indicated that he -- along with his fellow FEC Commissioners -- was loath to regulate political activity on the Internet, though court cases have forced his hand on the matter. Although he arrived at this belief from conservative (or libertarian), rather than liberal perspective, it is a conclusion almost all liberal bloggers would agree with."

AIR AMERICA: Wise Up

Righty bloggers Brian Maloney and Michelle Malkin write at Malkin's site that while Air America distances itself from problems at Gloria Wise Girls & Boys Club and assigns all blame for any financial misdoings to ex-exec Evan Cohen, "Air America has failed to disclose ... that at least one other of its officials held a key job at Gloria Wise. Yesterday, we confirmed with Martta Rose of Rubenstein Public Relations, which is representing the Boys & Girls Club branch, that Air America's Vice President of Finance, Sinohe Terrero, worked at the inner-city charity as finance director from 2000-2002 under Cohen. Though he left Gloria Wise for Air America before the controversial loan scheme was initiated, it strains credulity to believe that Terrero was completely in the dark about what kinds of things Cohen and his former colleagues were doing."

THE MARCH OF BLOGS: Google Isn't Just A Verb, It's A Way Of Life

At long last, Google has unveiled the beta version of its blog search engine. It comes in 2 styles: like that of the regular Google search, plus the blue, orange and khaki of its Blogger service. AP has a version of the story; so does PC Mag. Tech blogger Robert Scoble praises its speed; Search Engine Lowdown has a round-up of tech blog reactions. The Blog Herald likes it so far, but notes its search "depth of numbers just isn't there." Technorati founder David Sifry welcomes the competition. Search Engine Watch has a long list of things that need to be clarified or changed.

Captain's Quarters' Ed Morrissey notes that Playboy names his site the "Best conservative blog" in their new issue. Matt Yglesias has the "Best liberal blog"; Low Culture is their "Funniest political blog"; Jeff Jarvis' BuzzMachine is the "Most influential blog"; Reason's Hit and Run is the "Best libertarian blog." Oddly enough, none of the others had mentioned the honor when we last checked, late this a.m.

INTRODUCING: Interactivity Or Inert Activity?

On 9/14 Patrick Ruffini announced ECorps, a new collaborative project for "conservative web geeks" to "harness tech talent from every corner of America"; his ECorps page includes a form for volunteers. Ruffini pitches: "Do you dabble in Flash, and wonder why everyone just like you seems like a Michael Moore-addled lefty? Tired of the liberal tilt on Slashdot? Then ECorps is perfect for you." At Talking Points Memo, Josh Marshall announces the TPM Reader Survey.

BLOGGER SPOTLIGHT: The Outside Track

Today the Blogometer talks to conservative James Joyner, who blogs at Outside the Beltway.

What is your full name?

Dr. James H. Joyner, Jr.

What is your age?

39 (40 in November)

Where did you grow up?

All over. As an "Army brat," I was born in Virginia, moved to Germany as an infant; to Houston, Texas as a toddler; a year in Missouri (grade 4); three years in Germany (grades 5-7); El Paso, Texas (grade 8 and first half of 9); and Jacksonville, Alabama (9-graduation). I've moved many times since, including an overseas tour as an Army officer.

Where do you live now?

Just Outside the Beltway in D.C.'s Northern Virginia suburbs.

What is your occupation? Have you ever worked on a political campaign or for the mainstream media?

I'm a DoD contractor, after stints as an Army officer, political science professor, and in the publishing industry. Never worked a campaign or for the press, aside from a few freelance op-ed pieces.

When did you start blogging and why?

31 January 2003. To pontificate, mostly.

What has been your favorite post, or favorite story to write about, in that time?

Probably the 2004 presidential election, although the Iraq War has been the subject of the most posts and probably what got the site noticed in its early days.

Describe your typical blogging schedule. And what is your average output?

I blog whenever I can. Before work, sometimes at work, often after work, sometimes including weekends. I've averaged 10 posts a day since starting the site.

Who is your favorite political blogger? Favorite non-political blogger?

I've got lots of favorites but no one favorite. I don't really read much in the way of non-political blogs. Probably David Pinto's Baseball Musings.

Who is your favorite mainstream media columnist?

Either George Will or Charles Krauthammer, depending on my mood. Mark Steyn and Christopher Hitchens are also quite good, even though I only agree with Hitch on every other column at most.

What is your favorite television news program, either network or cable?

"Special Report with Brit Hume" is the only one that I still watch with any regularity. I try to catch the Sunday shows ("Meet the Press," "Fox News Sunday," and "This Week") via TiVo but often don't get through them.

What MSM-produced websites (i.e. newspapers, magazines) do you visit on a daily basis?

NYT and WaPo are probably the only dailies, although I catch Slate and a few others several times a week.

What non-MSM websites (i.e. blogs) do you visit on a daily basis?

Perhaps twenty of them, with probably fifty multiple times a week. It depends on my schedule and who's showing up "hot" on the blogroll, which is sorted by last published.

How often, or do you ever, read a newspaper in its dead-tree (i.e. print) form?

Virtually never, unless I'm at an airport or in a hotel. I get the Sunday Washington Post, but tend to throw it away except for the supplements. I read the online version instead, as it's more conducive to blogging. These days, I read as a content provider rather than a consumer.

How do you see the new media and old media affecting and influencing each other in the next five years?

The old media will continue to dominate, simply because they've got the resources -- especially time -- to do it. The blogs will function mostly as fact checkers on the national stories. At the local level, though, blogs could wind up gaining equal footing, as almost all local papers are on a small budget with less-than-stellar staffs.

THOUGHT OF THE DAY: Best "Christmas" Ever?

The Next Hurrah notes that on 9/14 the House unexpectedly passed a hate crimes bill to protect gays, lesbians, and the transgendered." GOP co-sponsors included Chris Shays (CT) and Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (FL). "The big question is will the Senate block a full vote on the amendment, whether this was just to help a few moderate Republican Congressmembers in tough reelection fights. If it does pass the Senate, would Bush dare to support 'special rights'? Would he use gays as a smokescreen or a scapegoat due to his other political woes?"

LEST WE FORGET: Kings Of Cartoons

Is every right-leaning humor blog doing SCOTUS confirmation comics/fake transcripts? No, but it seems like it. Here's Sean Gleeson and here's one from Hubris, another from Think Sink, and Ace of Spades HQ. From the left, Ezra Klein imagines the transcript if Univ. of TN law prof/Instapundit's Glenn Reynolds was named to the SCOTUS. His first 3 answers are "Heh" and "Indeed" and "Hugh Hewitt has more!"

Posted by at 12:34 PM

September 14, 2005

9/14: Not Just Hearing Things

As the Blogometer has noted in recent days, the SCOTUS hearings for John Roberts have nothing approaching a monopoly on this week's blogospheric discussion. There are a few reasons for this, among them: 1) The subject matter is largely esoteric, and the bloggers who have the expertise to discuss specific rulings are relatively few. 2) It can be difficult to meaningfully live-blog an event that is already on TV. 3) There isn't much suspense as to the likely outcome. That said, it's still our top story, and there does seem to be more debate than yesterday.

There's another reason why the SCOTUS confirmation isn't a bigger deal: fallout from Hurricane Katrina, and most recently Pres. Bush's admission that he is responsible for the lackluster fed'l response. Conservatives praise him for being so candid, but wonder if it will help or hurt. The liberal response is less uniform. Meanwhile, a report that DHS Sec. Michael Chertoff may bear more responsibility for FEMA's mistakes is a big topic, so far just on the left.

In other news, blogs on either end of the spectrum have little good to say about the NYT's looming subscription service, which will remove the columnists (particularly liberal favorite Paul Krugman) from free access. Michael Kinsley's departure from the LAT generates some buzz, and so does an accusation of sensationalism he recently leveled against CNN.

Beyond that we have reactions to the NYC Dem mayoral primary, concerns about the Flight 93 memorial design, and -- wait for it -- more!

ROBERTS HEARINGS I: Are Senators As Interested In Blogs As Bloggers Are Interested In Them?

On 9/12, Volokh Conspiracy contributor Jim Lindgren offered an extended version of Roberts' "umpire" analogy, namely that there are 3 types of ump-judges. 1 says: "Some are balls and some are strikes, and I call them as they are"; he 2nd says "I call them as I see 'em"; and the 3rd says "they ain't nothin' 'til I call 'em." On 9/13, Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) referenced this and mentioned having found it on a blogs, and asked Roberts what he thought. Back at the blog, Lindgren rates Roberts' reply: "As I suggested he might yesterday, Roberts today adopted the second approach, that of a traditional judge in a liberal democratic society, believing in truth but recognizing the difficulty of perceiving it." Betsy's Page: "How cool is it that Senator Cornyn reads blogs and that he reads [UCLA prof Eugene] Volokh's blog in particular."

Sen. Pat Leahy's (D-VT) staff is maintaining a blog, Heard At The Hearing, at his Senate site. It lacks permalinks but has includes a date stamp, and is clearly meant to be a blog. A few entry headers from this a.m.:

• "11:07 a.m. Senator Kennedy is questioning Judge Roberts about the Voting Rights Act."
• "10:46 a.m. Senator Hatch is questioning Judge Roberts about the Voting Rights Act and civil rights."
• "10:30 a.m. Senator Leahy is questioning Judge Roberts about capital punishment."
• "10:24 a.m. Senator Leahy is questioning Judge Roberts about media access."

It's not the Leahy office's 1st blogging endeavor -- there is also More from the Floor, written by his legis. staff.

Balloon Juice's John Cole: "My goodness these hearings are boring. Can't someone find a pubic hair on a coke can or something?" He derides the intelligence of Cmte members both Dem and GOP, concluding: "If I were a Senator on the Judiciary Committee, I would do everything I could to make these hearings as short as possible to keep the public from finding out how stupid our elected leaders really are..."

Blogs for Bush's Matt Margolis: "The Democrats were shameless today... Politicizing Katrina... Gross mischaracterizations... Asking questions they knew Roberts wasn't going to answer (per the Ginsburg Precedent) but still asked repeatedly and insisted he answer. ... They want to say over and over again that he wasn't going answer certain questions so they can accuse him of dodging. I don't expect any of the Democrats on the committee to vote for him. Never did, and nothing was going to change that."

At Bench Memos, Jonathan Adler writes, Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) repeatedly referred to Wickard v. Filburn, an "infamous New Deal-era case" as a "foundational and fundamental case of constitutional law, on a par with Griswold or Brown. This is just silly. Wickard is now -- and has long been seen -- as a fringe decision ... It is also not the case (contrary to Sen. Schumer's claims) that [the ruling] established Congress' authority to regulate intrastate economic activity. My first year ConLaw students get this, but somehow Senator Schumer does not."

Liberal Capitol Buzz flips out over Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) saying he "can relate" to Roberts' having "argued different positions" because he was "paid to." Capitol Buzz: "What the f--- can Graham relate to? Is he saying that people pay him to sponsor bills and that's what he does?" Although this gets an approving nod from Atrios, commenters quickly move to point out Graham was surely referring to his time as an atty in private practice.

Wizbang guest-blogger Mary Katherine Ham keeps a running tally of how many times Dems and GOPers each mention Hurricane Katrina. Day One -- Dems: 4; GOP: 0. Day Two -- Dems: 4; GOP: 0.

ROBERTS HEARINGS II: Wake Us When He's Confirmed

Univ. of Madison-WI law prof Ann Althouse, who is TiVo-blogging (a new (?) variation on live-blogging) the hearings and trying to resist the urge to fast-forward through parts: "Hey, it's grueling listening through all of this. It must be hard on John Roberts. It's just weird to have to sit there and be grilled all day long. Ah, but he'll have to work long and hard on the Court. Why not test his stamina?"

Think Progress lists the "25 Ways To Not Answer The Question," all direct quotes from Roberts at the 9/13 hearings: #1: "I feel the need to stay away from a discussion of specific cases." #25: "Well, that's an issue that is before the court in particular cases, and I can't comment on a case that's coming before the court."

At Daily Kos, Armando is curious about why there isn't more outcry -- from one side, the other, or both -- about Roberts' answers re: a right to privacy in the Constitution.

Criminal law-focused Prawfsblawg's Douglas Berman had predicted that criminal issues would be little-addressed in the hearings, and so far seems to be proved right: "I am not surprised about the short shrift given to criminal justice issues in the Senators' questions, though it is a notable (and telling) omission given that a significant portion of the Supreme Court's docket involves criminal law issues."

BUSH: From Slow Response To Relatively Quick Acceptance Of Responsibility?

At PoliPundit, Lorie Byrd comments on Bush's 9/13 acknowledgment of blame for the fed'l gov't's poor Katrina response: "It is entirely appropriate that he take responsibility for the actions of the federal government which he has under his control -- the 'buck stops here,' and all that." However, Byrd recalls the pressers "that largely consisted of reporters trying to get President Bush to admit that he had made mistakes in Iraq" and so admits she "cringed" when Bush made the admission. She writes: "It will be interesting to see the response of those on the Left to this acceptance of responsibility. Will it be mischaracterized as an admission that the federal government is the one to blame for any and all deficiencies in the response?"

>> Conservative Don Surber: "That is the way it should be. Presidents should take responsibility for the actions -- or, in this case, inactions -- of their administrations. His speech on Thursday should be enlightening. Equally enlightening will be the left's reaction. The political pendulum could swing back their way, provided they give some scintilla of an appearance of putting the national interest ahead of personal ambition. We shall see."

>> Liberal Demagogue: "I hate to be cynical, I want to congratulate the president for owning up to his responsibility, but I can't help but wonder if this new tactic of taking responsibility has been either focused grouped or if it was an off-the-cuff moment that won't be repeated." Less-trafficked lefty blog Byzantium's Shores, simply writes: "Good for him." And yet, this from a Daily Kos diarist: "Now that Bush has taken responsibility, he must resign. He has pleaded guilty. He has admitted that he was complicit in the deaths of thousands of people. ... If that chimp thinks that he can get off the hook by saying, 'my bad,' then he is mistaken. The media had better milk this story for all it is worth."

>> The Political Teen's Ian Schwartz hosts vide of a presser where N.O. Mayor Ray Nagin "accepts blame" for the handling of Katrina, and comments: "President Bush accepts blame, Mayor Nagin accepts blame, when will you Governor Blanco?"

The presser where Bush accepted responsibility for the Katrina response was actually convened for visiting Iraqi interim Pres. Jalal Talabani. The Anchoress quotes from Talabani's statement: "In the name of Iraqi people, I say to you, Mr. President, and to the glorious American people, thank you, thank you. Thank you, because you liberated us from the worst kind of dictatorship." She observes: "Try to find some coverage of this on the television -- you won't see more than 30 seconds of it, and it's all about the press playing 'gotcha' with President Bush. ... Not a single question to Talabani. This is sick, sick, SICK."

Conservative Decision '08 is not particularly surprised by a Washington Post poll (as highlighted by the Post's Dan Froomkin) showing a majority of blacks and a 3rd of all respondents agreeing with Kanye West's assessment of Bush's interest in African-Americans' well-being: "The Democratic Party and a good chunk of the media have been selling the notion that Republicans are racist (the party of Lincoln, mind you) for decades. ... Thus, it is not surprising at all that 1 out of 3 Americans thinks such a ridiculous thing."

Washington Post's E.J. Dionne is getting a fair amount of attention for his 9/13 column titled "End of the Bush Era." In it, Dionne notes Bush's plethora of political problems, and observes: "The Bush Era is over. The sooner politicians in both parties realize that, the better for them -- and the country." Conservatives disagree, and even some liberals are skeptical. Left-leaning Michael Stickings alliteratively appraises it as "provocative, but perhaps premature." Right-leaning Travelling Shoes: "Here's a never fail rule of thumb, if E.J. Dionne says it's so, you can be certain it ain't." Conservative Hugh Hewitt: "The great news about the left is that its capacity for self-delusion is undiminished by the electoral losses of the past few years. It remains eager to believe what it wants to believe, in this case that President Bush is in deep political trouble." Liberal Marc Cooper is one of the few we saw who agrees; in fact, he'd written essentially the same thing for the L.A. Weekly recently. He titles the post: "Bushism R.I.P. 9/11/2001 - 9/02/05" "Impeach Bush", a favorite search term on Technorati, was #1 when we last checked.

KATRINA: Take Your Chertoff!

Header at The Left Coaster: "The Smoking Gun: Memo Shows Chertoff Didn't Act For 36 Hours Even With Authority To Go Around State Officials" Under it, Steve Soto credits KRT for scooping the New York Times and Washington Post by finding and reporting on documents that show DHS Sec. Chertoff had the authority to mobilize FEMA and didn't designate ex-FEMA dir. Michael Brown with those powers until 8/30: "In short ... Chertoff abdicated his existing responsibility to activate federal forces without waiting for any request from Governor Blanco, and wasted at least 36 hours of critical time before empowering FEMA to act. And the system wasn't the problem, it was the White House." The news report quotes ex-Clinton and ex-Reagan FEMA officials as criticizing Chertoff's response. One says of documents uncovered: "It shows that the president is running the disaster, the White House is running it as opposed to Brown or Chertoff." Plenty of other liberal bloggers take note, although there isn't much to add except exasperation with Bush and Chertoff: Josh Marshall writes, "Chertoff 'may have been confused about his lead role in disaster response and that of his department' under the National Response Plan promulgated by the administration earlier this year. There's a lot of stuff in this piece. And the leaks behind the story suggest much afoot." Political Animal, on FEMA's indecision on how many buses to order for evacuees: "So FEMA didn't request any buses at all until two days after the hurricane hit, then puttered around a bit, and finally settled on a firm number on Saturday. Saturday? I don't know if the state of Louisiana was primarily responsible for buses or not, but even if they were, how could it have taken until Saturday for FEMA to finally figure out what was going on and how many buses it needed?" Needlenose: "I can't prove this, but I get the feeling that Knight Ridder waited until after renowned FEMA incompetent Michael Brown had been officially scapegoated for the post-Hurricane Katrina blundering to point the finger of blame higher up the totem pole..."

Meanwhile, the debate over whether sunken N.O. school buses could have been used to evacuate residents isn't over. Think Progress attempts to "debunk" claims that they could have been; Bill Hobbs offers a lengthy rebuttal to their charges. Likewise, liberal Media Matters defends the city from these accusations; conservative Junkyard Blog takes issue with them.

ABC News' Jake Tapper reports that on 9/2, Rep. William Jefferson (D-LA) used the Nat'l Guard to "check on his property and rescue his personal belongings," and starting 9/13, conservative bloggers are bringing it more attention. Among them are Captain's Quarters and Michelle Malkin, who ties the story to previous reports that people inside the disaster zone have had their guns confiscated: "Hmmm. Wonder if the National Guardsmen whom this Democratic congressman used as personal escorts to his New Orleans house were allowed to carry fully-loaded weapons?"

NC-based John Hawkins alerts readers that his Right Wing News blog may go dark for a few days if Hurricane Ophelia knocks out his power, as Gov. Mike Easley (D-NC) has warned: "Ophelia has been upgraded to a category 1 hurricane and it's moving like it has drawn a bead on my location. They've even done mandatory evacuations of some of the nearby areas that are on the beach front. ... If my power is out for 2-3 days, I blame FEMA, Chimpy McBushHitler, and Halliburton! Furthermore, for every hour that my power is out, I demand that a new FEMA employee be fired or else I'll be forced to start looting TVs, stereos, and other essentials to survive!"

BLOGS VS. THE MSM I: It's Kinsley's World, We're Just Reading About It

Constant LAT critic Kausfiles, on ex-LAT editorial editor Michael Kinsley's decampment to Washington Post: "The hope Kinsley brought to Los Angeles wasn't that he'd improve the Times. It was that by improving the Times he'd help give L.A. the lively, East-coast style political culture it desperately needs -- a culture the city's stolid monopoly newspaper has suffocated for decades. The idea that Kinsley could do this by leveraging the Times' unfindable and largely unread editorial pages was always a longshot. But to have any hope of success in a bloated GM-like institution filled with stuffy veteran editors who'd have to lose their current positions (but who have families and mortgages) Kinsley would need solid long-term backing -- no, more like actual encouragement -- from the top. It's now obvious he didn't have this." Hugh Hewitt posts the internal memo from LAT publisher Jeff Johnson to staff that Andreas Martinez will assume control of the op-ed pages.

Earlier this week, Kinsley suggested in his LAT column that CNN was telling guests to "get angry" on the air; Kinsley cited an anonymous LAT colleague as his source. Many blogs took interest, inferring that CNN execs (including blog pariah Jonathan Klein) were betting that the emotion showed by anchors (chiefly Anderson Cooper) in the early days after Katrina could generate (or sustain) viewer interest.

TV Newser -- a blog read by many in the TV news biz -- has apparently caught wind of a Klein memo urging exec. producers to do just that. In a one-sentence post, last a.m., TV Newser's Brian Stelter asks: "Does anyone have Jon Klein's memo to EP's about harnessing CNN's 'voice?'"

At CBS's Public Eye blog, ex-CJRer Brian Montopoli fingers LAT's Jon Healy (who recently appeared on "Paula Zahn Now") as the Kinsley colleague in question. Healy confirmed this to Montopoli, who reports: "Healy says he replied that he was willing to reflect the ... content [of an unsigned LAT editorial on the slow Katrina response] -- he characterized it as 'a combination of mystification and anger' -- but that he wouldn't express more anger than he otherwise would have. 'I'm a news guy ... I'm not an actor. If they ask me a question, I'll answer it.'"

Conservative News Busters took issue with Montopoli's post, arguing that in addition to "being a flack for CNN, Montopoli decided to be a spokesperson for a liberal editorial writer [Healy] as well." NRO's Media Blog disagrees.

CNN's Cooper doesn't escape without criticism; Power Line writes: "Without experiencing the death of a loved-one, Cooper has managed to become the Cindy Sheehan of Hurricane Katrina. Because he saw dead bodies, he asserts the "moral authority" to dish out blame without analysis and without rejoinder."

BLOGS VS. THE MSM II: Get With The Times? Most Say They Will Not

In a letter, New York Times makes known that its previously-announced TimesSelect program will go into effect on 9/19. Among other things, the Times will be taking its op-ed columnists behind a subscription firewall. This was a big story when the plan was unveiled in May (see 5/17, 5/23 and 5/31 Blogometers) and it's generating a great deal of interest once again. What's more, it's one of those rare issues that unites the left and right blogospheres -- against the Times.

A few headers:

• Simian Brain: "Mike Kinsley Heads to WaPo. Me too."
• Radams Ad Nauseum: "$50 a year for Maureen Dowd?"
• WMET Talk Back Blog: "NYT: America, please stop reading our paper"

Some responses:

• Lying in Ponds's Ken Waight, who tracks the relative and absolute partisanship of MSM columnists, is "opposed in principle and practice" to paying for the service, "given the extremely low-budget nature of my efforts." He asks if readers will chip in to defray the cost.
• Atari Democrat senses a harbinger: "The move may start a trend; as more and more newspaper readers move on line and as print subscriptions falls providing free online may be less attractive to publishers."
• Jupiter Research's David Card goes the other way, suggesting a death pool for the fledgling service.
• At NRO's Media Blog, Stephen Spruiell announces: "I'll continue to track Dowd, Krugman, Rich and company through a new feature on the Media Blog called TimesReject. TimesReject will keep an eye on these factually-challenged NYT columnists so you don't have to."

NEW YORK MAYOR '05: Everybody Loves Nobody

Prior to the late-breaking news that Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-NY) is withdrawing from the NYC Mayor's race, here's what was being said:

Liberal Doug Ireland: "I've participated in as a campaign manager, and subsequently covered as a journalist, more electoral campaigns than I care to remember -- but in my lifetime there hasn't been a New York City mayoral election that was such a snooze-a-thon as this one." On the possibility of a runoff: "And it's not impossible that Weiner could beat [Dem Freddie] Ferrer in a low-turnout runoff -- I never underestimate the racism of the average white New York voter -- especially if Sharpton and his support for Ferrer again become an issue in the runoff, as they were four years ago."

Arbitrary ChuckJerry: "Personally, I voted for Weiner and I hope he forces a runoff. Also I hope he wins the runoff and runs against [GOP Mayor Mike] Bloomberg. Ferrer has absolutely zero chance of winning against Bloomberg. Truth be told, Weiner doesn't have much of a shot either, but if he comes out of nowhere to win the Democratic nod, he'll definitely hit the ground running. Also Ferrer kinda sucks. Incidentally, this is the first time that I'm certain my vote actually meant something."

Conservative Mark Kilmer: "I'm not certain if a runoff at this point would help or hurt city Dems. There's the 'divisive skirmish' argument, but more important, I think, is the free publicity it would gave the eventual nominee. Remember, the eventual selection will be running against a Bloomberg who has all their issues and is hugely popular."

MIDTERMS '06: Could The GOP Be Hammered With The Hammer?

The indictment of 2 House Maj. Leader Tom DeLay associates in TX brings little joy to DeLay critic Jeralyn Merritt at TalkLeft, as she notes a Roll Call story suggesting the recent meeting between DeLay and prosecutor Ronnie Earle suggests it is "unlikely" DeLay will himself be indicted.

A Left In The West contributor notes some good poll numbers for MT SEN candidate Jon Tester (D). Left in the West's founder (who is not the author of the post linked) is a Tester consultant.

9/11 MEMORIAL: Crescent Country

The controversy over the Shanksville, PA memorial to Flight 93 (see 9/12 Blogometer) continues to simmer. Conservative columnist Mark Steyn has weighed in on 9/13 with a column criticizing the planned memorial: "'The Crescent of Embrace' looks more like the embrace of the Crescent -- ie, Islam. After all, what better way to demonstrate your willingness to 'embrace' your enemies than by erecting a giant Islamic crescent at the site of the day's most unambiguous episode of American heroism?" He adds, " all that's needed in that field: the kind of simple dignified memorial you see on small-town commons saluting Civil war veterans, a granite block with the names of the passengers and the words 'LET'S ROLL.'"

Sissy Willis is one of a few right-leaning bloggers who disagrees with the prevailing wisdom on the memorial's interpretation, quoting the architect's response to such criticisms. She also disagrees with Steyn's aesthetics, writing: "The large scale demands large landscape gestures."

Brainster observes, the Shanksville memorial "might never have become an issue without the anti-American exhibit proposed for the WTC site." The reference is to the blog-based Take Back The Memorial campaign; for background see the 6/27 Blogometer.

THE MARCH OF BLOGS: Bananas About Pajamas

The news service/ad agency project as yet still known as Pajamas Media (see 8/29 Blogometer) continues to roll out profiles of its contributors. Among them: Slate's Eric Umansky, Daily PunditBill Quick and Baldilocks' Juliette Ochieng. The participants tend to be right-leaning and CA-based, as are founders Charles Johnson and Roger L. Simon (who may better be described as right-trending).

The most recent profilee is anonyblogger Grim's Hall, who writes: "I've read Althouse's critique of PJM, but she and I are coming at if from different perspectives. She is considering what's best for the individual blogger. What matters to me is the effect on the MSM, and looking past that, toward society and particularly to the Republic." He also notes that CA journalist Jill Stewart wrote his profile.

THOUGHT OF THE DAY: As If We Needed More Proof That Garrison Keillor Lacks A Sense Of Humor

MNspeak announces that it is being sued by Garrison Keillor for selling T-shirts with the phrase "A Prairie Ho Companion" -- for the NPR-impaired, that's a reference to Keillor's series, "A Prairie Home Companion." MNspeak (which by the way appropriates more Keillor phrases in this blog post) contacted Keillor's atty, arguing that the suit was groundless and, as he quotes himself, would "make your client look extremely out of touch. I'll even write the headline for you: 'Liberal Comedian Sues Blogger.' Do you really want that?" A week later, the atty called back to confirm that Keillor wanted to move forward with the suit. MNspeak: "So what now? I've temporarily honored the cease and desist, but haven't decided how to proceed. Since there were only about 10 shirts left (and I had no plans on reprinting new ones), there's no real economic reason to pursue this. And besides, let's be clear about the scope of what we're actually talking about: a fairly stupid t-shirt with four words on it. In an age of much bigger problems, is this really worth fighting for? But here's the thing: it annoys the living hell out of me that Garrison Keillor thinks he can bully me. And not only that, he incorrectly invokes our legal system to do it."

LEST WE FORGET: If Only Roberts Hailed From Nantucket ...

From the right, Protein Wisdom's Jeff Goldstein locates "Ted Kennedy's SCOTUS confirmation hearings crib notes." Among his questions for Roberts: "Do you think my head is huge? Some people think it is. But I think it's just right. Thoughts?" The crib notes are written on a pink "Labyrinth" notepad.

From the left, Mad Kane shares a couple Roberts-related limericks. Here's one:

Judge John Roberts is smooth and quite smart.
Unlike Bork, he's not testy or tart.
But we still do not know
What he'll do about Roe.
He's declined to his viewpoint impart.

Posted by at 12:27 PM

September 13, 2005

9/13: Crickets Chirping

The confirmation hearings for John Roberts emerged as a bigger focus in the blogosphere today, but most react today with a sense of boredom. The question seems to be whether Dems will step up once questioning begins, or lie down and see Roberts confirmed as the new Chief. It is somewhat surprising, outside of the few who've followed closely SCOTUS all along, how little focus there is at this point though. There were probably as many references to a cricket match between England and Australia as to Roberts on some of the blogs checked this am.

Also today, now-ex FEMA Dir. Michael Brown's resignation stirs up the Katrina pot, with a few wondering why he didn't just resign immediately. Even some moderate and conservative bloggers see this as a negative reflection on Pres. Bush's leadership style. Elsewhere, there's an interesting debate on what conservative gov't has wrought. Also, don't miss our latest blogger spotlight.

ROBERTS: It's On (Sort Of)

This is one of those events made for live blogging, and Blogs For Bush, MyDD, and our own Newsblog had lengthy play-by-play. The Buzz offered some on-the-scene photos. Althouse reviewed the performance of each Sen., and eventually Roberts. Patrick Ruffini kept his SCOTUS Wire updated.

For the left, one of the things that seemed to stand out about Roberts' statement was his baseball analogy. Daily Kos' "Armando" says that "seems to me to be an excellent argument for why Judge Roberts must answer the questions put to him by the Senate. As any baseball fan knows, umpires are not uniform in the delineation of the strike zone. ... And when it comes to the Supreme Court of the United States, it is important that we know what Judge Roberts' 'strike zone' is." NewDonkey picks up and runs with the ball, offering some ways Dem Sens. can incorporate that analogy into questions on specific Court issues.

Conservative RedState writes: "A foreigner arriving in the US and turning on the TV to see [the hearings] would be forgiven if they believed the President had instead nominated someone named Katrina. To be sure, her name was invoked far more than the nominee's in the early salvos fired by Sens Leahy and Kennedy."

Liberal David Corn believes Senate Dems "spent too much time on countering the Republican strategy (questioning the questioning of judicial nominees) and not enough on dissecting what's already known about Roberts." More: "Why not frame the real debate -- or attempt to do so -- from the get-go? ... True, the game was over before it began. But it seemed that the Democrats lost the chance to fight the best fight possible."

Aforementioned Matt Margolis called the hearings "boring" and summed up the day by saying: "It was basically all the Democrats repeating the same points each time in their own way, and the Republicans repeating the same points each time in their own way... At times there were some good lines... good sound bytes... but in the end it will be what Roberts says in response to questions that will matter more than the grandstanding of Senators." Liberal Marc Cooper says he "had to prematurely check out" of the hearings "because I felt a deep numbness setting in. Or was it a nausea?"

Conservative Captain's Quarters explains a tepid start that surprised WaPo's Dan Balz: "The Democrats ... have to present themselves as credible judges of Roberts' credentials. Thanks to their allies at PFAW and especially at NARAL, the kind of firebrand stemwinder speech that Balz appears to have expected would only serve to reinforce the notions that the Democrats have gone completely rabid. ... The real test of whether the Democrats have given up will come today."

Liberal Chris Bowers at MyDD criticizes Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK) based on this photo that seems to show he was planning on filling in a crossword during the hearing. "The more I think about it, the more important I think this picture is. All day, Republicans pounded home the idea that they were all already going to vote for Roberts, and that Roberts didn't have to really say anything during the hearings."

Nico Pitney at the liberal blog Think Progress criticizes Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA) for what he sees as Grassley's dig at bloggers for pushing for comprehensive hearings.

BROWN: Why The Delay?

Moderate Jeff Jarvis writes that "l'affaire Brownie" "reveals how indecisive the Bush White House is. ... What was gained versus just getting rid of him in one swift cut? Why be indecisive when indecisiveness is exactly the problem with the government's response to the storm? If local and state governments hadn't screwed up, too, I think the downfall of the Bush legacy wouldn't be Iraq after all, but Katrina."

Typically right-leaning Galley Slaves is confused: "If he was doing a heck of a job, why is he being allowed to resign? And why did he wait to resign until the Roberts confirmation had begun, instead of stepping down sooner, if it really was in the 'best interest of the agency and best interest of the president'? Was it not in FEMA's best interest to resign sooner? Or was it not in the best interest of the president to resign sooner?"

At TAPPED, Garance Franke-Ruta writes: "What's totally inexplicable to me about the Brown resignation and replacement is why it wasn't done at the president's request early in the process, rather than on account of the exposes of the news media at a point at which Bush can no longer reap any image benefits (as, say, a take-charge leader) from the change. Instead it looks like Brown resigned out of pure humiliation, and Bush stuck with him just long enough for Brown to become a scandal and, very likely, a lasting cultural joke."

At The Moderate Voice, Michael Stickings writes: "The problem is, Brown isn't the only official who needs to be held accountable for what went wrong. After all, someone appointed him to the position, no? Again, I know there's a lot of blame to go around, but clearly some of it needs to be directed at President Bush, even if he himself won't take responsibility for what went wrong."

Xark has some ideas on what Brown can do now.

KATRINA: Where's Rudy?

Liberal Marshall Wittmann writes: "It is truly stunning to contemplate that this President won re-election by touting his 'decisive leadership.' If this is 'decisive' give the Moose a 'French flip-flopper' any day of the week."

Liberal Matthew Yglesias hears Bush's defense of the fed's response, that "a lot of people said we dodged a bullet" in the initial MSM reporting, and responds: "[I]t's plausible that that explains the Bush administration's day-late, dollar-short approach to the crisis. But just as we liberals like to say when talking about 'root causes,' to explain is not to excuse. The president of the United States, the director of FEMA, and the secretary of Homeland Security have no business relying on inaccurate CNN reports for facts on the ground when the state, local, and federal agencies responsible for monitoring the levees and the flooding situation all knew what was happening."

Even liberal blog Daily Howler criticizes LA Sen. Mary Landrieu (D) for her "utterly woeful" performance on "Fox News Sunday."

Mickey Kaus hears that the Bush admin is considering a "a public jobs program for Katrina victims," and asks: "Why only for Katrina victims? If the wage is set low enough-- i.e. below the minimum private-sector wage--a public jobs program can be made available to all comers."

The issue of the body count comes up again, with Big Rick.fm wondering why the MSM kept giving a count of up to 10K when it appears much lower. Instapundit agrees: "So they were off by 9700, so far. That's good news, but it's also reason to take other things they tell us with many grains of salt."

A Daily Kos contributor calls GOPers "the real victims" of Hurricane Katrina, noting the price tag of recovery.

Right Wing News lists the "20 Most Obnoxious Hurricane Katrina Quotes." Are you listening, John Edwards? At The View Through The Windshield, Joe Sherlock gives us not 1, not 2, but "Eight Americas."

REPUBLICANS: Not So Conservative

Ross Douthat at The American Scene notes the "pessimistic view" of the state of conservatism by Weekly Standard's Andrew Ferguson, and the rebuttal by PowerLine. He then asks 9 questions, including a request to "name a major legislative accomplishment other than the Bush tax cuts that made you proud to have a conservative majority in power."

Lefty Kevin Drum adds: "Despite all the griping that liberals do about George Bush, Ross is right." He lists 12 of the major legislative actions in Bush's term and calls 4 "just plain liberal," 4 "basically neutral or bipartisan" with only 2 "clearly conservative." He continues: "The fact is, conservatives haven't won much of anything in the last 10 years except a PR triumph."

Conservative Ramesh Ponnuru at "The Corner" chimes in: "Douthat's premise that conservatives have controlled both chambers of Congress for ten years strikes me as inaccurate. We have had a majority of a majority in both chambers for most of that time. We have not had an absolute majority -- and it's odd to find Douthat, of all people, equating conservatives with Republicans. ... It's fine to criticize conservatives and Republicans in Congress, and I agree with some of the specific criticisms that Douthat makes. But too much of the criticism seems romantic and, worse, nostalgic for a time that never existed."

Libertarian Vodkapundut, who is "no huge fan of President Bush," admits he "giggled -- actually giggled, like a schoolgirl -- when Instapundit described Bush as 'adequate.' Talk about killing with kindness." Instapundit was referring to poll numbers showing that Bush loses in a head-to-head matchup with every recent ex-POTUS, but not to John Kerry.

ELECTIONS '05: Start Spreading The News

Today is primary election day in New York. Swing State Project highlights some of the blog-supported candidates, including Andrew Rasiej for Public Advocate. A look at the blog search engine Technorati.com/ listed "Rasiej" as the 2nd-most searched item today, beat only by "Impeach Bush." To show just how tepid the SCOTUS hearings have been, "John Roberts" was a mere 6th.

TNR Online's &c. continues a series on the NYC elections, with guest blogger Fred Siegel, author of The Prince of the City: Giuliani, New York and the Genius of American Life. Siegel writes today that Mayor Michael Bloomberg's (R) team "has been salivating at the prospect of running against" ex-Bronx BP/'01 candidate Freddy Ferrer (D) in the general. "A strong opponent would hammer home the point that while Bloomberg wasted time and energy on his failed project for the Olympics and a West Side stadium, the rebuilding of Ground Zero languished." In '01, Ferrer said the attacks didn't change his priorities, and this year, Katrina "has placed additional emphasis on emergency management, an area in which Ferrer has done little to hide his disinterest." He continues: "For his part, [Rep. Anthony] Weiner [(D)] sounds like an increasingly confident candidate -- one who is certain, should he lose, that he has a future as a mayoral candidate four years from now."

ELECTIONS '06: Dems, Dems, Everywhere

Daily Kos and the DCCC's Stakeholder seem to think the NRCC is feeling the heat. Markos Moulitsas Zuniga says "it's clear" that NRCC Chair Tom Reynolds "is cracking under the strain." But right-leaning PoliPundit notes that Dem numbers in the Senate and House have only dropped in each decade since LBJ. "Regarding next year, suffice it to say that if the media somehow defeated each and every vulnerable GOP House Member, and then somehow prevailed in each and every one of its own vulnerable House Districts, the GOP would ... still retain the majority of seats in the House."

TX-Based Burnt Orange Report has thoughts on '05 San Antonio Mayor mayoral candidate/'04 TX-21 nominee/ex-security guard Rhett Smith joining the GOV race.

Moderate Oxblog checks in on DC Mayor candidate Adrian Fenty, and is unimpressed.

WHITE HOUSE '08: Checking In

Mike Huckabee President 2008 runs a hearty list of blog commentary RE: the AR Gov. Also, Russ Feingold for President returns after a hiatus with a "surrogate stump speech" about why he supports the WI Sen., called "Forward with Feingold."

BLOGS VS. THE MSM: All About Reporting

Hearing that Yahoo! has hired an Iraq war correspondent, Jeff Jarvis writes: "Yahoo emphasizes that this doesn't mean they are 'building any kind of news organization.' So that means, instead, that they're just going for the bloody bits?"

DavidNYC at Daily Kos reminds readers that 9/19 is the day when the New York Times "is putting most of its op-ed content behind a subscription firewall," and laments the loss of "important voices" like Paul Krugman.

MISCELLANY: A Final Hat Tip

A number of conservative bloggers bid farewell to Chrenkoff, who posts his final entry today. Most will miss his regular "Good News From Iraq" features.

The Blog topic hub Memeorandum is up with new design today, as well as a tech-oriented sister site. Robert Scoble explains how they work.

A number of blogs noted that they were impacted by the L.A. blackout. Patterico's Pontifications took it a step further, and with tongue-in-cheek blamed Bush for his "failure to act."

BLOGGER SPOTLIGHT: Chronicle Of The Conspiracy

Today the Blogometer talks to UCLA law prof Eugene Volokh, founder of the popular academic blog Volokh Conspiracy.

What is your full name?

Eugene Volokh

What is your age?

37

Where did you grow up?

Los Angeles, to which my family moved from Kiev when I was 7.

Where do you live now?

Los Angeles

What is your occupation? Have you ever worked on a political campaign or for the mainstream media?

Professor of Law. I was a legal advisor to the California Yes on 209 campaign in 1996, and to the Washington State I-200 campaign in 1998; both were initiatives that prohibited race and sex discrimination and preferences in government employment, education, and contracting.

When did you start blogging and why?

Spring 2002. I'd been writing op-eds and doing other public commentary since 1994, and I thought this would be another good way to spread ideas to the public.

What has been your favorite post, or favorite story to write about, in that time?

This post on the myth of the median hyper-promiscuous gay male, and (a much more picayune example) this oneon a misquote of Rep. Cynthia McKinney [(D-GA)]. Naturally, I blog about many other matters, including many that are more general and less detail-oriented -- but (and perhaps this is the academic in me showing) I particularly like it if I can identify an error, even a small one, that others have missed, and try to correct it.

Describe your typical blogging schedule. And what is your average output?

Several posts a day, posted whenever I'm inclined to post them.

Who is your favorite political blogger? Favorite non-political blogger?

Political and politicalish: InstaPundit, James Taranto on Best of the Web, Mickey Kaus at Slate, Ann Althouse, Virginia Postrel at Dynamist. Non-political: GeekPress.

Who is your favorite mainstream media columnist?

Jonathan Rauch, Stuart Taylor, Max Boot, Heather MacDonald.

What is your favorite television news program, either network or cable?

I don't watch TV news.

What MSM-produced websites (i.e. newspapers, magazines) do you visit on a daily basis?

Slate.com, plus whatever sites InstaPundit and other blogs link to, for the specific stories to which they link.

What non-MSM websites (i.e. blogs) do you visit on a daily basis?

InstaPundit, KausFiles, Best of the Web, Althouse, Dynamist (see #9).

How often, or do you ever, read a newspaper in its dead-tree (i.e. print) form?

About once a week, usually on Sundays.

How do you see the new media and old media affecting and influencing each other in the next five years?

My hope is that the new media will keep correcting -- and perhaps even deterring -- old media mistakes, and will push good stories that the old media would otherwise ignore.

THOUGHT OF THE DAY: This Calls For ... A Think Tank!

Daniel Drezner wonders about the value of think tanks, given that the bigger ones seem to have "switched their focus from churning out deep policy proposals in favor of op-eds. Indeed, the staffing at many think tanks had shifted, with the communications and PR sides receiving a much larger share of the pie relative to the policy wonks." He said he doesn't necessarily know if it's a good or bad thing, and leaves it to commenters to discuss.

LEST WE FORGET: I'll Always Be A (201)er, Even With My (410)

Notes From The Lounge laments the "Death of the Area Code": "I noticed that the area codes on folks' phone numbers were far more varied than the addresses of their owners. ... [T]he numbers in general were much more likely to reveal where someonegone to college (or, for some of the younger ones who had cell phones in utero, where they grew up) than where the currently live. ... [T]he number tells you where someone came from -- or, at any rate, what place they want to identify themselves with. I kept my 917 number in part to avoid the hassle of disseminating a new number, but also in part to keep a link to Manhattan."

Posted by at 01:14 PM

September 12, 2005

9/12: Things Are Gonna Change

Perhaps because of the 9/11 anniversary and the still-heavy focus on Katrina, discussion of the pending confirmation hearings for Chief Justice nominee John Roberts was scant this weekend. But this is likely to change now that hearings are underway and the MSM is devoting gavel-to-gavel coverage. Of note today is how the blame for Katrina seems to be shifting more towards LA Dems and away from Pres. Bush; also, the dearth of coverage of the 9/11 anniversary by lefty bloggers.

KATRINA RESPONSE: Brown-Out For Dems?

FEMA Dir. Michael Brown's non-dismissal dismissal seems to have diminished somewhat the left's attacks, while LA Dems are still feeling the heat.

>> Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-LA) draws a lot of criticism after her appearance on "Fox News Sunday." The Political Teen has video and says she "as usual dodged questions and committed blatant hypocrisy." Instapundit's Reynolds calls it a "meltdown," saying her comments defending the city's evacuation efforts "seem a bit, um, dubious."

>> A New York Times story documenting LA Gov. Kathleen Blanco's (D) plea for more buses to evacuate city residents convinces no one on the right that it was the fed. gov'ts fault. Just One Minute counters that "Bloggers everywhere have seen the photos" of unused school buses in N.O., but "Somehow, those municipal buses never appear in this Times story."

>> In the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Jack Kelly's defense of FEMA drives a the push by righty bloggers to point the finger at local officials. Power Line's Paul Mirengoff says that if Kelly's analysis is true, "then the MSM's coverage must rank among the most monumental and (thus far) successful frauds in the history of journalism."

Liberal bloggers aren't conceding anything yet.

>> Newsweek's "How Bush Blew It" drives the left's surge against Bush. MyDD's Scott Shields says that Evan Thomas "paints an absolutely horrifying and infuriating portrait" of Bush and his admin "as completely inept, out of touch, and irresponsible to the point of complete and total negligence. ... While New Orleans drowned, the President was clueless."

>> Re: Brown, Marc Cooper writes: "While he completely and totally failed, he had little power to begin with. So his sacking -- more than anything else -- raises a whole number of other questions." One: "What did Bush mean when he said last week that Brownie was doing 'a heck of a job?' If the White House believes conversely, as it now apparently does, that Brownie was remiss, then what exactly in the administration's view, were his specific failings?"

KATRINA FALLOUT: So That's What They've Been Up To

Liberal Oliver Willis: "The Republicans had big plans for this fall, built around an ownership society fueled agenda (tax cuts for Paris Hilton, social security privatization, etc.) that they thought would cut off war critics and give their guys a slate to run on in '06. Instead, Katrina and the criminal response has given us a choice between two visions of America."

Lefty DemocracyGuy writes under the header "Why Katrina Is Bigger Than Iraq": "At the bare minimum, it shows Republicans out of touch, and from there it just spirals into every single GOP stereotype the GOP has struggled to overcome. ... Katrina reminds voters that Republicans want power not in order to govern, but merely to have the power in their possession, because it is power. Period. Governing is precisely what Katrina required, and governing is precisely what Republicans are incompetent to do and have no interest in doing."

Patrick Ruffini counters: "This feels like 1993 all over again. That was the year we elected Republican mayors who turned around New York and L.A., and the Democrats comically proposed midnight basketball. Center-right ideas should carry a great deal of weight in rebuilding New Orleans because they're the only ones that have worked for big cities in a generation."

Bizzy Blog notes that a Dem seems to have taken pre-emptive action in reserving the domain impeachblanco.com/.

Discussing the still mounting death toll, liberal James Wolcott writes that since 9/11, "'3000' has been elevated to a sacred, symbolic number in political discourse." Now that Katrina's death toll "is threatening the inviolable aura of '3000 dead,' rightwingers are playing their own form of hopscotch to put things in 'proper perspective.' They recognize they're in danger of losing a mass grave marker on the high moral ground."

Gadflyer asks: "Why Aren't We at Code Orange Alert?": "We now have parts of the country without power and water lines. We have thousands of National Guard troops displaced from their native states. Military equipment has been summoned away from its usual stations. In short, we are neither at full alert, full capacity, nor fully at national attention."

Lefty Eschaton's "Atrios," discussing rebuilding of New Orleans, says: "It's going to be boring, monotonous, dreary work, mostly leading to a bunch of boring, monotonous stories that no one cares much about. ... But, it will, if done right, also involve people. Please, press, both local and national, do your job following the saga of the reconstruction of New Orleans. There are going to be land grabs and corruption and bribery and efforts by the NO elite to keep the poor from returning." Atrios also offers readers a chance to find out who their "FEMA flunky" is.

9/11: Not Forgotten In The Blogosphere (At Least On One Side)

It was difficult to find many lefty bloggers posting on the subject of the 9/11 anniversary, as Ankle Biting Pundits capably notes. Most of the substantive posts that were on the subject were by moderate to righty bloggers. Some were focused solely on the attacks themselves and remembering the victims, while more seemed to take a "what has changed" approach. Naturally, some felt obliged to tie the events of 9/11/01 to the aftermath of Katrina. Others simply provided links to other Web/blog tributes. If one can draw a common theme from these posts, it's the idea that partisanship has come back with a vengeance to the point that a new disaster provides no unifying moment like the one 9/11 did.

>> Conservative Pat Cleary writes at RedState: "[S]omehow the reaction [to Katrina] is so very different from the clear Fall day of four years ago. Almost instantly the finger-pointing started, almost instantly the partisan rancor rose to a fever pitch. What the hell has happened to us."

>> Pardon My English's "Aaron" noted that the DNC Web site was "curiously lacking any mention to remembering 9/11" while the RNC posted had several items commemorating the attack. Aaron updated to say that when the DNC did note the anniversary, it was "riddled with politicization."

>> Liberal Juan Cole was a rare lefty poster: "Four years after September 11, al-Qaeda's leadership should have been behind bars or dead. Four years after September 11, Afghanistan should have been stabilized. Four years after September 11, the government should have been ready to save lives in an urban disaster. Bush recently started likening his poorly conceived and misnamed "war on terror" to World War II. What his handlers have forgotten is how long World War II lasted for the United States. Four years."

ROBERTS: Wait And See

As noted, blogs are mostly in wait-and-see mode on today's Judiciary Cmte hearings.

Armando at Daily Kos says: "The Democratic Senators on the Judiciary Committee must compel answers from Roberts and the White House. Senators Leahy, Kennedy, Schumer, Feingold, Feinstein, Biden, Kohl and Durbin -- we will be watching."

Red State's Thomas writes: "I personally think this will be so much sound and fury, signifying nothing. Then again, I went to sleep on Election Night 2000 resigned to a Gore Presidency."

Lefty Chris Bowers at MyDD cites a Newsweek poll and says: "Less than half of the country is ready to see this guy confirmed, and that number seems to be dropping fast. There are a lot of minds still to be made up." He adds: "It is time for our first major fight since Bush's numbers began falling off a cliff in late July. It is time to stand up."

Conservative Captain's Quarters writes: "A funny thing happened after Bush shifted John Roberts to William Rehnquist's seat rather than Sandra Day O'Connor's after the death of the Chief Justice: the Washington Post suddenly began to treat Roberts more rationally." CQ highlights "more balanced and neutral reporting" on Roberts in the 9/10 WaPo than previous stories "insinuating that Roberts was a closet racist ."

BLOGS VS. THE MSM: Revenge Of The Pajamas

A few celebrate the anniversary of CNN Pres. Jon Klein saying: "Bloggers have no checks and balances ... [it's] a guy sitting in his living room in his pajamas." To mark the occasion, Ace of Spades berates him for the Klein-endorsed "new style" at CNN, which he called a "hybrid of news and strong dramatic narrative." Ace defines that as "kind of made-up fictitious s--- with a pleasing emotional resonance," and notes LAT's Michael Kinsley's statement that a colleague appearing on CNN "was told by a producer to 'get angry.'"

Another debate is over what some feel is CNN's hypocrisy in suing to show dead bodies floating in flood-ravaged New Orleans when during 9/11 they would not show victims jumping from the upper stories of the WTC. From Instapundit: "[CNN] didn't want to show bodies, or jumpers, on 9/11, for fear that doing so would inflame the public. I can only conclude that this time around, the press thinks it's a good thing to inflame the public. What could the difference be?" But Pandagon counters by drawing a distinction between "showing people dying and showing a dead body."

Righty Hugh Hewitt writes: "There are many failures to be investigated in the aftermath of Katrina ... . But there's at least a day of hearings on MSM's role in this fiasco as well, from the question of the responsibility of flooding the area with reporters who, while they encourage people to 'take cover' or evacuate, are in fact doing neither, to the relentless peddling of the most sensational of stories and estimates."

Michelle Malkin is among those critical of a CNN report alleging profiteering by companies with WH ties, saying that "in their zeal to embarrass the Bush administration, CNN overlooks one very fat and inconvenient fact -- and embarrasses only itself."

MIDTERMS '06: If Only It Were Today

Regarding the another Newsweek poll showing that 38% would vote for a GOP Congress, compared with 50% for a Dem Congress, MyDD's Bowers writes that the GOP has "closed famously" in '02 and '04, and "we still have a lot of work to do. However a poll like this should put to rest any conservative fantasies that Democrats are not looking like a real alternative to Republicans right now in the eyes of the electorate."

INTRODUCING: Keeping An 'Eye' Out

Vaughn Ververs introduces CBS News' Public Eye, saying: "There is no model to follow here, no formula, no directions for assembly. It will evolve, change and develop over time." Ververs says the goal is to "help illuminate the process of doing news work," focusing primarily on CBS News but also looking "at overall coverage trends and the other news organizations." Among topics he says we can expect to see: "Who decides what makes the 'Evening News' and what doesn't? What are the factors that go into that decision? Why was a particular expert interviewed on a given topic? What did they say that wasn't included? How difficult is it to put together a package that runs just one minute and 30 seconds? Why wasn't a certain piece of information mentioned?"

The actual first post on the "Eye" was a rough chronological examination of how Hurricane Katrina was covered by the MSM, from when it first hit Florida to it's eventual strengthening and devastating hit to the Gulf Coast. PE's Brian Montopoli includes comments from CBS News Pres. Andrew Hayward on why there was no primetime coverage the Tuesday after the storm hit.

MISCELLANY: Seeing Red

Michelle Malkin offers a good roundup of the outrage at the design for a memorial to Flight 93 proposed for Shanksville, PA. RealClearPolitics wonders if anyone else thinks the "Crescent of Embrace" "bears a striking resemblance to one of the major symbols of Islam? as eerily similar to the iconic Muslim Crescent." Little Green Footballs: "For those who are trying to argue that this design is a pure coincidence, please note the following from the [Pittsburgh] Post-Gazette, revealing that the jury members knew in advance that this issue might come up, and recommended changing the name to avoid controversy: Flight 93 memorial decried as Islam symbol."

THOUGHT OF THE DAY: Revisionist History

DJ Drummond at PoliPundit gives a timeline of a world in which Al Gore wins WH'00. Among the differences: Bill Clinton becomes UN Amb, the U.S. signs Kyoto, terrorists bomb the U.S. Embassy in Berlin and the '04 Summer Olympics, China invades Pakistan, Iraq invades Iran, Jacques Chirac is assassinated, the GOP takes huge majorities in the Senate and House in '02, Gore is impeached and convicted, VP Lieberman becomes POTUS and Hillary Clinton becomes VP. But Bush defeats Lieberman in WH'04.

LEST WE FORGET: Iraq A Winning Issue?

Jim Treacher lists a few ways in which the entertainment industry might adjust to show greater deference to the victims of Katrina: Cartoon Network's Adult Swim bloc of programming is on hiatus pending name change. Contenders include Pack Another Bowl, Three Hours of Colorforms and Two Laughs, and It's Okay, Mommy & Daddy Are Asleep."

Posted by at 02:06 PM

September 09, 2005

9/9: Katrina, Katrina

Hurricane Katrina shows no sign of diminishing as the most contentious issue in the blogosphere. This may change some when the SCOTUS hearings for John Roberts begin next week, but don't expect the recriminations and ruminations re: the destruction of New Orleans and a big part of the Gulf coast to go anywhere soon.

Thanks to a Time investigation into the truth behind FEMA dir. Michael Brown's resume, he ends the week about where he began: reviled by the left and hung out to dry by the right. Regardless of whether Pres. Bush sticks by him, his reputation is destroyed. Plus, this a.m. brings a possible development in the Rove-Plame-Miller investigation and some embarrassing news for '06 and '08 candidates alike. Plus, the blogs most responsible for promoting the CBS Memogate scandal mark its 1-year anniv.

Plus, last weekend we attended part of the 3-day EschaCon convention in Philly for liberal bloggers and commenters to the popular lefty blog Eschaton. Our report is below; to go there directly, click here.

FEMA: The Unsinkable Mikey Brown?

Where the blog swarm is headed, who's taking part, and what they're saying:

• In an online-only report, Time reveals that Brown's resume is not what it appeared to be. He claimed a professorship, but at best he only served as an adjunct instructor while still a student. He claimed to have experience "overseeing" emergency services, but the job was more like that of an "intern." Brown also claimed a directorship at an OK nursing home that the management strenuously denies, and he apparently exaggerated his legal experience.
  
  

  >> From the left Public policy prof Mark A.R. Kleiman suggests that Brown may have "committed a felony" by tampering with his resume, a violation of 18 U.S.C. 1001, making him "eligible for up to five years of free room and board at the taxpayers' expense." L.A.-based lefty Marc Cooper: "George W. Bush's FEMA looks with every passing moment more and more like Fahrenheit 451's "Fire Department." It's specialty seems to be creating disasters, rather than managing them. "Oliver Willis writes, Bush turned "FEMA into nothing more than an extension of the campaign war chest handing out our tax dollars to his crony pals -- never giving a damn that they should actually be qualified for their positions. Now, people are dead." Josh Marshall: "You can't make this stuff up. Or, I guess, maybe that's not the best line in this case." Steve Gilliard points out a "devastating expose" in The New Republic, where UC-Boulder law prof Paul Campos determines "'exactly what, given Brown's real biography, he is qualified to do.' The answer, not surprisingly, is very little." Atrios posts a photo of Gareth from BBC's "The Office," comparing Brown to the character, with the caption: "Assistant TO the manager."
  

  >> From the right (and center-right) Conservative Betsy Newmark: "I think that K Lo's prediction that he was going to resign on Friday saying that he had become more and more of a distraction from relief efforts is looking more and more likely. ... The only thing that seems to be protecting him now is that to fire him would be to give in to Bush's critics, something he is usually loath to do. So, ironically, criticism from people like [House Min. Leader Nancy] Pelosi is helping Brown." L.A.-based righty Matt Szabo writes, although "failure to do one's job -- especially when it contributes to the deaths of thousands -- should be reason enough to be fired," now Bush "finally has the face-saving excuse he needs to dump" Brown. Reason's Matt Welch: "I think I can speak for most college dropouts when I say that there are few flavors of schadenfreude more tasty than watching some Type A kiss-ass get caught with a padded resume."

NRO's Eric Pfeiffer uncovers the official "FEMA for Kidz Rap."

RESPONSE: N.O. Diggity

• There is no consensus re: a New York Times story this a.m. evaluating the political considerations involved in the WH and LA gov't responses to Katrina in the early going.
  

  >> Liberal Arch Pundit: "I'm pretty sure you could drive some trucks over the Crescent City Connector, take the first exit and drop off food and water. Or if you really didn't think that was an option, drop it off the damn bridge. I'm very aware the Louisiana National Guard could have done the same thing -- but the Feds could have too..." Daily Kos' Armando, on the WH's reticence to take away Dem Gov. Kathleen Blanco's authority: "This was not a novel legal issue. This was settled. What is was about was politics. 'Political implications.' That drove them. States rights again. Who gives a shit about political implications when people are dying? The Bush Administration, that's who. ... Politics first. Always for BushCo. It's all they know."
  

  >> Noting that Blanco said "Nobody told me that I had to request" soldiers from the U.S. gov't, conservative PrestoPundit suggests she "should be impeached," as she "now admits herself that she doesn't know the high school basics of the American Federal system." At Wizbang, Kevin Aylward asks readers to "unleash your inner moonbat" and do the best imitation of a left-wing blog post blaming the Bush admin: "For the sake of your post assume that Bush did invoke the Insurrection Act and seized control of the Louisiana National Guard. Your assignment is to describe that historic takeover in the style of either Kos or Atrios."
  

  >> Mickey Kaus, who has been arguing the federalism angle already (see 9/7 Blogometer) But why should the Bushies even have the federalist excuse? Why should there be any doubt that the President can take command of a relief effort within our own country? Other countries, I suspect, don't have this hangup. Nor does private industry. Again, does UPS need to meet a special legal standard in court before it can take control of one of its branch offices?"

A number of right-leaning bloggers are upset by reports (courtesy the New York Times) that N.O. officials are seeking to seize residents' firearms, but private security contractors could keep theirs. NRA radio talker/blogger Cam Edwards: "Talk about class warfare." UCLA law prof Eugene Volokh: "Is there some implicit emergency exception to the right to bear arms here? On the other hand, doesn't the emergency make the right especially valuable to the rightsholders?" The Spoons Experience: "Some of these people are no doubt alive today at least in part because they had those guns. And some of these people are... cranky."

Yesterday we noted that FNC's Major Garrett did a radio interview with Hugh Hewitt in which he reported that LA DHS turned away Red Cross aid the afternoon after Katrina passed. On last p.m.'s "Special Report," Garrett followed up with a full report. An LA official appears to defend their decision; their thinking was that bringing in supplies would induce people to stay when the goal was to evacuate them. The Political Teen hosts video. UK-based libertarian Samizdata: "The job of aid agencies is to supply aid. It is not to tell people what to do. It is not to kidnap people from their homes. It is not to violate their Second Amendment rights and steal their property. It is not to prevent people from creating spontaneous order. It is not to prevent those who attempt to evacuate themselves from doing so." On the other side of the aisle, liberal Corrente asks: "Did we not know that they were prevented from delivering them by a combination of the intensity of the on-going damage in New Orleans, which extended into the second day after Katrina had moved on, and the lack of a mode to deliver supplies to those trapped in a city largely underwater? So, what has Major Garrett added to this narrative. Presumably, it's the fingering of the state government of LA as the ones responsible for all the went wrong in New Orleans by the Red Cross itself."

Harvard's Juliette Kayyem points out at TPM Cafe that Sen. Joe Lieberman (D-CT) discussed evacuation plans at Brown's confirmation hearing to become dep. dir. of FEMA, and that Brown said state and local gov'ts are "looking to us for leadership. They are looking to FEMA to tell them where are the holes in response plans?"

A few conservative bloggers point readers toward a photo-illustration identifying unused buses that could have been used to evacuate, clear roads despite flooding elsewhere in the city, and areas with available food that could have been delivered to the Superdome. A caption at the top exclaims: "There was a massive State and Local failure!" Ramblings' Journal: "The Crescent City Connection is the tall bridge over the Mississippi River. The bridge and the access ramps to the bridge have remained accessible from downtown New Orleans. That is how the rescue vehicles accessed New Orleans once they arrived. This overhead shot shows buses that were NOT underwater, yet were not used to evacuate people in the Superdome or in the Convention Center. The magic question: why!?"

Liberal Pandagon's Amanda Marcotte calls attention to a header at The Conservative Voice asking: "Are Blacks to Blame for New Orleans Disaster?" Marcotte: "You can imagine what the answer is." TCV's post quotes black conservative Rev. Jesse Lee Peterson saying: "Black people died not because of President Bush or racism, they died because of their unhealthy dependence on the government and the incompetence" of Blanco and N.O. Mayor Ray Nagin (D).

PoliPundit's Jayson Javitz, on a DSCC fundraising appeal inspired by Bush's handling of Katrina: "Again, folks, modern-day leftism is not a political ideology. It's a mental disorder."

KATRINA: Caught In The Gulf Stream

Liberal Joystory declares: "New Orleans must stop pumping now!" "Scientists are warning that if they follow through with the plan to pump the water out of the city and back into Lake Pontchartrain and the Mississippi, there will be a massive contamination of the lake, river, delta and Gulf ecosystem that could have untold repercussions on the entire food chain of the Gulf region. ... How much mayhem will these toxins do before cause and effect is even acknowledged let alone laws and regulations invoked to prevent further contamination, if by then it is even possible short of abandonment of the entire infected ecosystem for human habitation and food cultivation?"

Re: the New York Times' claim that Geraldo Rivera elbowed aside, of authorities to save an elderly woman, Johnny Dollar's Place hosts what it calls "all relevant footage of Geraldo's rescues from the home for retired nuns" and asks readers to make up their own mind.

Black conservative La Shawn Barber recalls a column she wrote about Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-TX), who "wanted whoever was in charge of naming hurricanes to consider 'black' names like Keisha, Jamal and Deshawn. Self-esteem issues. Since the majority of refugees devastated by Hurricane Katrina are black, and Lee and her fellow [CBC] cronies believe the slow federal response was because they were black, I wonder if she's changed her mind?

Echidne of the Snakes comments on Bush's signing of an exec. order allowing contractors to pay below the "prevailing wage" in reconstruction contracts: "It's the contractors who will benefit if they can find people desperate enough to work for very little money. And what did Bush sign to curtail the contractors' profits from the hurricane? As far as I know, nothing at all."

Andrew Sullivan publishes a reader e-mail without comment: "[F]rankly, I'm stunned that not a single prominent Democrat has called for Bush's resignation. Apparently, the Democrats are just too cowed by their electoral losses, but it's still stunning. Not that Bush would actually resign, of course, but calling for his resignation would force Republicans up and down the line into the unenviable position of defending this indefensible incompetence. How long do you suppose the GOP would have waited to call for President Kerry's resignation?"

NRO's The Buzz attended MoveOn's Katrina-related protest outside the WH, posting photos, and reporting that there were "about 200 protesters on hand" with just 2 Katrina survivors in attendance, and "they kept their criticism somewhat muted when compared to the other protesters."

WHITE HOUSE '08: Gee, Rudy

Josh Marshall gives ex-NYC Mayor Rudy Giuliani a sarcastic "way to go" for "endors[ing]" Cincy mayoral candidate Charlie Winburn, "who says only born-again Christians should be elected to public office."

ROVE-PLAME-MILLER: Will Judy Crack?

Arianna Huffington writes at her Post: "This just in: Judy Miller's principled, absolute stand is crumbling." Huffington asked Miller atty Floyd Abrams about whether Miller was looking to cut a deal. Abrams' reply: "If there are any discussions, they would be private." Although Abrams also told her that Miller was "resolute" about not testifying, Huffington asks rhetorically: "If she is so 'resolute' why get all cutesy about it? Why not just say, 'No, she's not talking. And that's final'?" Because a "source with inside knowledge" tells her that the Times has received "additional legal advice very different" from Abrams', and that "there are definitely negotiations under way."

ANNIVERSARY: They'd Rather Be Exposing Forged Documents

Last p.m. Charles Johnson at Little Green Footballs reminded readers: "One year ago tonight the Rathergate scandal broke, as CBS News and Dan Rather used obviously faked documents to try to influence the course of a presidential election -- and got caught red-handed." He re-posts his original animated GIF superimposing CBS's memo with the same text typed out on MS Word -- which early on helped persuade many that the memos were forgeries -- plus a link to LGF's CBS Killian Document Index.

Power Line's John Hinderaker dates the anniv. to this a.m.: "It was at 7:51 on the morning of Sept. 9, 2004, that Scott [Johnson] hit the 'save' button on the original version of 'The Sixty-First Minute,' that discussed the '60 Minutes' program on President Bush's National Guard service that had aired the previous evening ... now the most famous post in the young history of the blogosphere ... Have things changed in the ensuing year? Well, sure. I think the MSM are more careful about documents now, and perhaps about other claims that can readily be fact-checked. My own impression, though, is that, far from having ameliorated since last year, the liberal bias of the MSM has, if anything, worsened. I think the fact that alternative media now exist has prompted some reporters and editors to abandon even the pretense of objectivity."

ROBERTS: They're Moving On Roberts

Univ. of WI-Madison law prof Ann Althouse caught the USA Today report yesterday that MoveOn was going to go after CJ nominee John Roberts with an ad featuring Katrina-caused carnage, compares it to MoveOn's '04 objection to Bush using 9/11-related imagery in his campaign ads, and adds: "I'm lawyer enough to know how to make the argument that that is not rank hypocrisy, but, man, that is rank hypocrisy!" Later noting MoveOn's later statement that they had no such plans to do so, adds: "So what do you think? Never planned to do it or saw the criticism and changed?"

THE REPLACEMENTS: Al B. Sure

RedState's Erick Erickson, a GOP consultant who hears his share of whispering: "[W]hat I'm told is a reaffirmation of earlier reports -- [AG Alberto] Gonzales is not going to be the pick. The caveat as always is that 'POTUS is POTUS.' He will do as he wants. ... I'm told not to pin hopes or fears on Gonzales or [Edith] Clement or even Janice Rogers Brown. But, I have also been told not to write off [Michael] Luttig. [Edith] Jones is a possibility, but not a probability right now."

MISCELLANY: This Would Be News, But, You Know ...

• Radio Equalizer's Brian Maloney reports that while Air America "refuses to respond to Michelle Malkin and myself directly" -- the 2 have led investigative efforts -- "they're talking to others who publish follow-ups and news summaries. Their key tactic: outright issue deflection." As Al Franken is a possible future MN SEN candidate, he makes a note of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune's treatment of the story, which he deems inadequate: "The story ignores our primary point: Franken claimed on the air in August he'd heard about the Gloria Wise payments just a week earlier. We have the transcript. But he signed the document last November which discusses the Gloria Wise 'loan.'"
• Fired Up! America reports on some interesting connections and possible misdeeds involving Rep. Tom DeLay, House Maj. Whip Roy Blunt, disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff, and associates involved in their leadership PACs.
• Power Line: "Will we ever find out what was going on with [ex-NSA Sandy] Berger's stealing documents from the National Archives? Does anyone care? Don't hold your breath waiting for the MSM to get to the bottom of it."
• Pro-GOP Blogging for Bryant points out, TN SEN candidate/Rep. Harold Ford Jr. (D) "has now put out 12 Hurricane Katrina-related press releases since last Wednesday 8/31," but "didn't bother to show up and vote" on major appropriation bills on 9/2 and 9/7, although he did issue more releases. More: "Maybe Ford should stop focusing so much on getting his name in the paper and start doing the job he was elected to do."
• Hit and Run's Ron Bailey, on Georgetown prof Edmund Pellegrino, Bush's new Bioethics Council chair: "The bottom line: Pellegrino's appointment as chairman of the President's Bioethics Council will, if anything, increase that body's opposition to a lot [of] biotechnological progress."
• MyDD's Chris Bowers builds on his report about left- vs. right-blogosphere traffic: "Two years ago, Instapundit had an audience three times larger than Daily Kos. Now, Daily Kos is the equal of nearly the entire conservative blogosphere."
• Pejman Yousefzadeh, at RedState, on the aftermath of the Volcker Report on Oil-for-Food: Kofi Annan is "trying to get ahead of any attempt to oust him by posing as a champion of U.N. reform. This, needless to say, simply won't do--especially given the less-than-frank manner in which the Secretary-General has dealt with the Volcker Commission (cf. Annan's reluctance to mention the role his son has had in the oil-for-food program). ... Annan can save himself by being a genuine reformer and putting his money where his mouth is. Let's see if he is willing to do so. If not -- and I suspect he won't -- let's have him leave."

DEMOCRATS: Among The Atriots

PHILADELPHIA -- This past weekend, the Blogometer traveled a few hours north to Philly -- home of Sylvester Stallone's Rocky Balboa, Jonathan Franzen's Passafaro family, and Ben Franklin's Poor Richard's Almanack -- for the first annual EschaCon 2005, a gathering of liberal bloggers and blog readers known amongst themselves "Atriots" or "Eschatonians." Indeed, it's a fitting location for a convention of e-pamphleteering left-wing underdogs. More than that, the city is something of a Mecca for the left-blogosphere. Many gather on a regular basis for the popular happy hour Drinking Liberally, which has become a place to be seen for local Dem pols. Plus, 10 of the top 50 most-popular liberal blogs are based there. Number one among them is Eschaton, the long-running weblog of Duncan "Atrios" Black.

Unlike other community blogs -- we're thinking here of Daily Kos, MyDD and the conservative RedState -- Eschaton is a relatively simple website. The blogs just mentioned all use Scoop, a type of blogging software written specifically for community-oriented blogs; it is these sites that have enabled what bloggers call "diaries." By contrast, Black is still using the same Blogger account he started with in early 2002. Little has changed at the website in that time; he still uses the long-obsolete original template. The website's community aspect derives from the comment feature at the bottom of each post. Black's comments are powered by HaloScan, which in its free version -- which Black uses -- will not hold comments after a certain period, about a week on his blog. The comments on Atrios (Black's handle often substitutes for Eschaton as the name of the site) are ephemeral; the community exists with the participants.

The convention ran from a cocktail party on Friday evening to a softball game on Sunday afternoon, but we only attended the discussion panels on Saturday: the morning session featured bloggers talking strategy; the afternoon brought Dem pols and the campaign cmtes to meet with the attendees.

The morning panel comprised NTodd, a VT instructor who writes Dohiyi Mir and seemed a bit like a non-obnoxious Tom Green; Dem activist and early Sheehan-promoter Bob Fertik from Democrats.com; self-described "recovering economist" Black; ex-journalist/Suburban Guerrilla Susie Madrak, and Spin Dentist of All Spin Zone. The panel was moderated by Thersites from Metacomments, a NY-based English professor (also Donnelly's husband).

The original topic had been "Potential for Progressive Blogging," but just as with everything else last week, the horrors unfolding in New Orleans immediately took precedence. Anyone who has read the discussion boards at Eschaton would recognize the subject matter of the discussion that unfolded over the next 2 hours. But the tone was different. While the same calls came to "Impeach Bush!" (as were Fertik's well-received first words) they came without the same profanity, and without the same bitter edge. And despite the elevated status of the panelists up front -- Atrios included -- the audience was oftentimes more vocal than the panel.

Typically, the liberal blogosphere is no more complimentary of the MSM than conservatives are -- for different reasons -- but this weekend they were surprised to have some nice things to say, particularly about FNC's Shepard Smith. Madrak saw comparisons to the 90's when the elite media reached a point with then-Pres. Clinton where they had a "visceral disdain" for him; now Bush is in the same boat, saying: "I don't think this is going to go away." Media training for bloggers was an idea that made sense to the Eschatonians assembled. But what are bloggers, one asked: "para-journalists"? Madrak expressed her preference for the term "news concierge."

NTodd and others called attention to the Bush admin's "bending of time" and the use of different tenses when speaking to the media. Bush may say help is "on the way," but what about the help that wasn't there for days and days? An audience member added to the list of the WH's deceptive maneuvers the use of passive tense, such as when Bush says "the results are unacceptable" -- without actually saying whose results, or unacceptable to whom.

Black defended "politicizing" the hurricane. Calling for impeachment might not be the best course of action, but if blaming Bush helps, do it: "Politics is about trying to get things done." He argued, "We can make being a little shrill okay, make people used to the idea that Dems can be hardasses." Black also observed: "Democrats could win the House back easily if it became the Lou Dobbs party" -- anti-immigrant economic populists, as he described -- "But I don't want to be in that party."

As is the case with many progressive-left strategy discussions, the conversation fell to a Lakoffian framing-of-the-message debate. Fertik suggested a set of "Contract With America"-type promises to the voter summed up as "Fix America First." The concept went over well, except for a woman who stood up and admonished the crowd: "Fix America First is... horrible. I think it should be inherent in the phrase ... but it's too isolationist. We can't close down. And that would be broadcast all over the world."

Also present was New York Times columnist Paul Krugman -- affectionately known to Atriots as The Shrill One -- as an observer in the audience. Now that's the new media for you. Krugman had showed up unannounced, but when mentioned by a panelist, he stood, offered some thoughts, and joked that as a member of the media he was there strictly "out of non-partisan interests, of course." Krugman said that "bloggers can do stuff we [employees of the MSM] can't," i.e. calling attention to controversial stories the media has downplayed: "I'm enormously grateful and I couldn't do what I do without it."

The afternoon panel brought Rep. Louise Slaughter (D-NY), who has worked to court the netroots as much as any member of Congress. Along with Sherrod Brown (D-OH) she is one of a few who have hired ex-Dean bloggers to coordinate their Internet efforts (see our 7/14 report on Slaughter's anti-Karl Rove BlogAds). Slaughter spoke as if at a particularly friendly, albeit dissatisfied, constituent meeting. While she and the Atriots had plenty of common ground -- Slaughter received copious clapter when she announced how she'd like to "slap Bush silly" -- she also had to explain why a walkout of House Dems wouldn't be a constructive move.

The most-popular candidate attending was Patrick Murphy, an Iraq war vet from the Philly burbs, a Paul Hackett-type self-proclaimed progressive. Murphy has had recent fundraising success, and was among the more interesting speakers, drawing acclaim for saying: "The president was fiddling his guitar while people were lying dead in the water. That's not leadership." And: "Leadership is leading from the front, where our president should be." Other Dems present were state Rep. Mark Cohen and PA SEN candidates Chuck Pennacchio and the lesser-known Alan Sandals. The 2 are challenging Treas. Bob Casey Jr. (D) for the nod; Casey is the only Dem SEN candidate to have not met with Philly progressives at Drinking Liberally.

Also in attendance were DNC's Jesse Berney and DCCC's Ali Wade -- both of whom gamely explained the Beltway approach to '06 before a somewhat unsympathetic crowd.

To the contrary of many who'd think the blogosphere is dominated by the young, the average age here was about 40, with many of them over the age 50. Of course the turnout here might reflect those with the means to come -- but then there didn't seem to be anyone below 30. Overall the Atriots are not much different from regular, middle-class Dem activists, albeit on the geeky side. And one happens to be a Benedictine monk. For participants' photos, see: here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here and here.

As of late p.m. on 9/9, this version of the report should be considered the "Complete & Uncut" edition.

THOUGHT OF THE DAY: Outplay, Outwit, Outlast

Lefty Max Sawicky suggests "any funding failure as far as flood control goes is a decades-long, bipartisan, dare I say systemic thing. As in two-party democratic-capitalism (sic) systemic. [Ex-Pres.] Clinton's pissant $100 million program wouldn't have made any difference. It was more of his Administration's teaspoon liberalism, when what was needed was industrial-strength social democracy, something the public would not have accepted. That leaves the efficiency of evacuation and the rescue effort as the key issues. State and local government failed at evacuation, and the Feds failed to backstop evacuation. The Feds failed at rescue. Looking forward, I see the blossoming of survivalism."

LEST WE FORGET: Were We Laughing About 9/11 By Week Two?

Huffington Post's anti-Huffington Post contributor Greg Gutfeld concocts a "HUFFPO EMERGENCY BUSH BASH BLOG APPLICATION FOR THE VICTIMS OF ALL DISASTERS EVERYWHERE!" Questions include:

Do you always try to relate large-scale tragedies to your own life? Do you say things like,
_"Wow, I was just in New Orleans."
_"I had a connecting flight there."
_"I bought some beads in terminal 2."
_"I rented the Big Easy once. It was good."

Friday Bonus "Lest We Forget"!: Don't miss "Fafblog Presents: The Do-It-Yourself Emergency Management Guide!" Projects include: "Do-It-Yourself National Guard! First get some old socks. Sew on some buttons for the eyes. Use yarn for the hair but keep it trimmed short on accounta discipline!"

Posted by at 12:39 PM

September 08, 2005

9/8: N.O. Confidential

To go directly to the SCOTUS section, click here.

The hottest blogger of the last 24 hours is... NBC anchor Brian Williams? Apparently so. As we'll show later in this edition, a post at his official Daily Nightly blog is finding praise among bloggers primarily -- but not exclusively -- on the left. Williams' blog post happens to fit in with a series of reports in the past day or so that FEMA and other gov't officials are refusing to admit media entry to disaster-ravaged areas, in effect censoring (the less-charged term is "blackout") independent news reports from the area.

While MSNBC has had its roster of TV news personalities posting blogs for some time, they haven't had much impact. Credibility matters in the blogosphere, and members of the MSM are uniquely disadvantaged. This is particularly true of those like Williams who strive for "objectivity"; bloggers right and left tend to believe "objectivity" is at best an impossible goal and at worst a deception. Among the few MSM types to succeed with traditional bloggers are lefty ex-ESPNer Keith Olbermann (although more for "Countdown" than his blog) and conservative columnist Michelle Malkin (who in a year's time has become among the widest-linked conservative bloggers). The Blogometer hasn't seen much discussion of Williams or his blog since conservatives criticized him for drawing parallels between the Founding Fathers and the Iranian hostage-takers on 7/1; the controversy was short-l