Bush Watch Home: "Gen. Hayden is a Liar, and Implies Bush Is One, Too, Says NYT : 'The hearing produced important — and disquieting — news about President Bush's decision to spy on Americans without a warrant....The National Security Agency's domestic surveillance, which General Hayden ran while he led the agency, loomed over the proceedings. General Hayden could not explain coherently why he testified in 2002 that he had no authority to listen to Americans' phone calls without a warrant, when the president had already given him that authority....General Hayden's appearance also made it clear that the one warrantless spying operation Mr. Bush has acknowledged — listening to calls between the United States and other countries — is not the only one. And he testified that he did not, as Mr. Bush has said, design the N.S.A. operation, which violates the 28-year-old legal requirement for a warrant for any domestic wiretapping....The hearing drove home again that the spying is being conducted outside the constitutional system of checks and balances....Attorney General Alberto Gonzales enthusiastically subscribes to Mr. Bush's imperial vision of the presidency, as well as the president's disregard for the balance of powers. Mr. Gonzales's department recently quashed an investigation by its ethics office into the conduct of the Justice Department officials who approved the spying program....The issue is whether [collecting intelligence] will be done legally, and whether Congress will step up to this challenge of its duties and powers. General Hayden's hearing did not provide much hope on either front.'
Observed: Friday May 19"
Sunday, May 21, 2006
Bush Watch Home
Bush Watch Home: "Bush Sec. of Treasury Caught in a Lie About Tanking Economy, says Krugman (excerpt): [The falling dollar, the weakening housing market, and the high cost of gas may usher in the end of the Bush spin economy.] 'On May 10 the White House issued a press release titled 'Setting the Record Straight: The New York Times Continues to Ignore America's Economic Progress.' The release attacked The Times for asserting that paychecks weren't keeping up with fixed costs like medical care and gasoline. The White House declared, 'But average hourly earnings have risen 3.8 percent over the past 12 months, their largest increase in nearly five years.'
'On Wednesday Treasury Secretary John Snow repeated that boast before a House committee. However, Representative Barney Frank was ready. He asked whether the number was adjusted for inflation; after flailing about, Mr. Snow admitted, sheepishly, that it wasn't. In fact, nearly all of the wage increase was negated by higher prices. Meanwhile, the return of economic gravity poses a definite threat to U.S. economic growth. After all, growth over the past three years was driven mainly by a housing boom and rapid growth in consumer spending. People were able to buy houses, even though housing prices rose much faster than incomes, because foreign purchases of U.S. debt kept interest rates low. People were able to keep spending, even though wages didn't keep up with inflation, because mortgage refinancing let them turn the rising value of their houses into ready cash.
'As I summarized it awhile back, we became a nation in which people make a living by selling one another houses, and they pay for the houses with money borrowed from China. Now that game seems to be coming to an end. We're going to have to find other ways to make a living — in particular, we're going to have to start selling goods and services, not just I.O.U.'s, to the rest of the world, and/or replace imports with domestic production. And adjusting to that new way of making a living will take time.'"
'On Wednesday Treasury Secretary John Snow repeated that boast before a House committee. However, Representative Barney Frank was ready. He asked whether the number was adjusted for inflation; after flailing about, Mr. Snow admitted, sheepishly, that it wasn't. In fact, nearly all of the wage increase was negated by higher prices. Meanwhile, the return of economic gravity poses a definite threat to U.S. economic growth. After all, growth over the past three years was driven mainly by a housing boom and rapid growth in consumer spending. People were able to buy houses, even though housing prices rose much faster than incomes, because foreign purchases of U.S. debt kept interest rates low. People were able to keep spending, even though wages didn't keep up with inflation, because mortgage refinancing let them turn the rising value of their houses into ready cash.
'As I summarized it awhile back, we became a nation in which people make a living by selling one another houses, and they pay for the houses with money borrowed from China. Now that game seems to be coming to an end. We're going to have to find other ways to make a living — in particular, we're going to have to start selling goods and services, not just I.O.U.'s, to the rest of the world, and/or replace imports with domestic production. And adjusting to that new way of making a living will take time.'"
Bush's Tax Cuts
Bush Watch Home: "Monday May 22
Bush's Tax Cuts To Wealthy Have Not Helped The Economy, Explains Krugman:
Alan Gertler, Reno, Nev.: I'm a scientist, not an economist, so I'm fairly naive when it comes to what drives the economy.
My question is this: Have the tax cuts stimulated the economy as claimed (which I don't believe given the past cases of Reagan and Bush senior), or has it been the willingness of the government to continue massive spending by increasing our debt that has led to the growth of the economy?
Paul Krugman: It's actually neither.
About the Bush tax cuts: the tax cuts of 2001 evidently didn't do the job; these days, the Bush people talk about the economy as if history began in the middle of 2003, after their SECOND wave of tax cuts. But while the economy did start growing, finally, in 2003, the growth wasn't at all of the form you'd expect if tax cuts were responsible. The main tax cuts were on dividends and capital gains; supposedly this would make it easier for businesses to raise funds and invest. But business investment hasn't been the main driver of growth; in fact, businesses have been sitting on huge piles of earnings, reluctant to invest. Instead, the big driver was housing construction and consumer spending. So what really happened? Low interest rates led to a housing boom that eventually turned into a housing bubble. High house prices made people feel richer, and they could borrow against the increased value of their homes, feeding consumer spending. Tax cuts had nothing to do with it."
Bush's Tax Cuts To Wealthy Have Not Helped The Economy, Explains Krugman:
Alan Gertler, Reno, Nev.: I'm a scientist, not an economist, so I'm fairly naive when it comes to what drives the economy.
My question is this: Have the tax cuts stimulated the economy as claimed (which I don't believe given the past cases of Reagan and Bush senior), or has it been the willingness of the government to continue massive spending by increasing our debt that has led to the growth of the economy?
Paul Krugman: It's actually neither.
About the Bush tax cuts: the tax cuts of 2001 evidently didn't do the job; these days, the Bush people talk about the economy as if history began in the middle of 2003, after their SECOND wave of tax cuts. But while the economy did start growing, finally, in 2003, the growth wasn't at all of the form you'd expect if tax cuts were responsible. The main tax cuts were on dividends and capital gains; supposedly this would make it easier for businesses to raise funds and invest. But business investment hasn't been the main driver of growth; in fact, businesses have been sitting on huge piles of earnings, reluctant to invest. Instead, the big driver was housing construction and consumer spending. So what really happened? Low interest rates led to a housing boom that eventually turned into a housing bubble. High house prices made people feel richer, and they could borrow against the increased value of their homes, feeding consumer spending. Tax cuts had nothing to do with it."
Mike Malloy on Bush
Mike Malloy: "He says he talks to God; is he insane? He says God tells him to invade countries and kill people by the thousands; is he insane? He is the worst political leader in US history; is he insane? This morning, President Chucklenuts was interviewed by NBC’s David Gregory on the Today Show. Gregory asked Bush why so many people disapprove of the job he’s doing. Bush brushed aside the public’s concern about his policies and insisted that nearly 70 percent of Americans are simply “unsettled.” Here’s the exchange:
GREGORY: Let me ask you about your leadership. In the most recent survey, your disapproval rating is now one point lower than Richard Nixon’s before he resigned the presidency. You are laughing.
BUSH: I’m not laughing –
GREGORY: Why? Why do you think that is?
BUSH: Because we’re at war, and war unsettles people. Listen, we got a great economy. We’ve added 5.2 million jobs in the last two and a half years. People are unsettled.
GREGORY: But, they’re not just unsettled, sir. They disapprove of the job you’re doing.
BUSH: That’s unsettled.
MALLOY: No, you’re insane.
"
GREGORY: Let me ask you about your leadership. In the most recent survey, your disapproval rating is now one point lower than Richard Nixon’s before he resigned the presidency. You are laughing.
BUSH: I’m not laughing –
GREGORY: Why? Why do you think that is?
BUSH: Because we’re at war, and war unsettles people. Listen, we got a great economy. We’ve added 5.2 million jobs in the last two and a half years. People are unsettled.
GREGORY: But, they’re not just unsettled, sir. They disapprove of the job you’re doing.
BUSH: That’s unsettled.
MALLOY: No, you’re insane.
"
The Writings of Greg Palast
The Writings of Greg Palast: "SPIES AND LIES: STEAL YOUR DATA, STEAL YOUR VOTE
Drum Major Blog
Thursday May 18, 2006
By Greg Palast
There are kooks and cranks and crazies among you who think that George Bush lost the 2004 election. For example, there's an audio blog going around with TV star Larry David reading a story called,'Kerry Won,' a chapter in a book called, Armed Madhouse. I know, because I wrote it.
How you go about jerry-rigging a democracy has a lot to do with two other, seemingly unrelated stories, in the news this week: illegal surveillance of our phone records and the new border war against immigrants.
The glue between these three stories -- elections manipulation, War on Terror and War on Immigration -- is a four letter: data.
ELECTIONS: I'm an investigative reporter for BBC TV. In that job, in November 2000, I discovered that Katherine Harris and Jeb Bush knocked tens of thousands of African-Americans off Florida voter rolls -- thereby handing the Presidency to Brother George. The key to the vote heist was a database of supposed 'felons' whose registration was 'purged.' They were innocent, but hey, that's the data game for you. One man's abuse of data bases is another man's inauguration.
On to 2004: Same game, new data bases and more purges. But there was a new twist, 'caging lists' which I discovered within Republican Party files (how I got them, well, read the book). These were lists of HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS of Black folk (and a few Jewish voters) -- i.e. Democrats -- whom the Republican Party secretly planned to challenge on election day. They did. It's illegal, but hey, when you steal the Presidency you get the Justice Department as a bonus and that means you control the civil rights enforcement cops. It's the perfect crime.
The challenges, by the way, were based on 'suspicions' about a voters' proper address. We went through the confidential sheets and found, for example, Randall Prausa, one of a large group of African-American soldiers whose addresses became 'suspect' because they were shipped overseas.
But you can't keep using data to bend elections without more data. Hence, the War on Terror, while thin on hunting terrorists, is fat with contracts to hunt for your data profile, from your finances to your voting reco...[ Click here for full article ]"
Drum Major Blog
Thursday May 18, 2006
By Greg Palast
There are kooks and cranks and crazies among you who think that George Bush lost the 2004 election. For example, there's an audio blog going around with TV star Larry David reading a story called,'Kerry Won,' a chapter in a book called, Armed Madhouse. I know, because I wrote it.
How you go about jerry-rigging a democracy has a lot to do with two other, seemingly unrelated stories, in the news this week: illegal surveillance of our phone records and the new border war against immigrants.
The glue between these three stories -- elections manipulation, War on Terror and War on Immigration -- is a four letter: data.
ELECTIONS: I'm an investigative reporter for BBC TV. In that job, in November 2000, I discovered that Katherine Harris and Jeb Bush knocked tens of thousands of African-Americans off Florida voter rolls -- thereby handing the Presidency to Brother George. The key to the vote heist was a database of supposed 'felons' whose registration was 'purged.' They were innocent, but hey, that's the data game for you. One man's abuse of data bases is another man's inauguration.
On to 2004: Same game, new data bases and more purges. But there was a new twist, 'caging lists' which I discovered within Republican Party files (how I got them, well, read the book). These were lists of HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS of Black folk (and a few Jewish voters) -- i.e. Democrats -- whom the Republican Party secretly planned to challenge on election day. They did. It's illegal, but hey, when you steal the Presidency you get the Justice Department as a bonus and that means you control the civil rights enforcement cops. It's the perfect crime.
The challenges, by the way, were based on 'suspicions' about a voters' proper address. We went through the confidential sheets and found, for example, Randall Prausa, one of a large group of African-American soldiers whose addresses became 'suspect' because they were shipped overseas.
But you can't keep using data to bend elections without more data. Hence, the War on Terror, while thin on hunting terrorists, is fat with contracts to hunt for your data profile, from your finances to your voting reco...[ Click here for full article ]"
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