Overnight Thread

I've got the big nothing, so enjoy the pic.

It's Blog Reader Survey time!!! Please take our Blog Reader Project survey. Just bloody well do it since it helps me and Gotta get ads. DO IT NOW!!!

On a housekeeping note, we have new ads so click thru and check them out. You can also always make a donation thru the PayPal button to the right, and if you are thinking of buying anything from Amazon, if you use the links over to the right (for all the books we know you've already bought), just using one of our links to buy anything gets us a couple pennies a transaction. Time to stock up for Christmas!!

The weight of the world.

The things you have to be concerned about. Amazing and frightening.

Via.

Sebelius out of the running for any post

At this point in the game my spidey sense says there was something that took her out of the running, but I'm just a suspicious broad like that.

Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius, mentioned as a potential veep and then as a likely secretary of labor, emailed Kansas reporters that she's taking herself out of the mix, the Kansas City Star reports.

Her choice leaves unclear whether Obama will pick a prominent labor secretary — Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm has also been mentioned — to speak for labor on the economic team, or a lower profile one whose job could be largely to reorient the Department of Labor.

Sebelius, like other governors, face a very tough few years running a cash-strapped state.

Open Thread

Since I'm such a copycat, here's an open thread for a bit while I try and find news. Tell me something interesting in the comments, or feel free to expound on this-


'Twilight' star Kristen Stewart cast as Joan Jett: Good move?**

Above video is Joan Jett, below the trailer for 'Twilight' with Kristen Stewart.



**I'll watch it either way, I'm a sucker for biopics.

PhotObama: Ebony's Person of the Year

By GottaLaff

Perfect choice:

Meanwhile, behind the scenes:

VIDEO: Idled workers occupy factory in Chicago; "Si se puede"

By GottaLaff

Videos via. Cross-posted from Gapers Block.

Standing up:

Workers laid off from their jobs at a factory have occupied the building and are demanding assurances they'll get severance and vacation pay that they say they are owed.

About 200 employees of Republic Windows and Doors began their sit-in Friday, the last scheduled day of the plant's operation.

Leah Fried, an organizer with the United Electrical Workers, said the Chicago-based vinyl window manufacturer failed to give 60 days' notice required by law before shutting down.

Workers also were angered when company officials didn't show up for a meeting Friday that had been arranged by U.S. Rep Luis Gutierrez, a Chicago Democrat, she said.

I'd be mad too:

No severance. No vacation pay-out, as per their union contract. Nothing. Why? Because the business is plunging towards dissolution, unable to get a line of credit, and Bank of America was instructing them not to honor their obligations--no line of credit to honor obligations. [...]

Members of Local 1110 need your support. Make checks payable to the UE Local 1110 Solidarity Fund, and mail to: 37 S. Ashland, Chicago, IL 60607. Messages of support can be sent to organizer Leah Fried. For more information, call UE at 312-829-8300.

At the Jobs with Justice Web site, you can send a message of protest to Bank of America.

http://nyc.indymedia.org/...

Donations of food and money are requested, as are solidarity actions targeting the Bank of America. The factory is in the Goose Island neighborhood, at 1333 N Hickory (right near Division and Halsted).

BREAKING: General Eric K. Shinseki to be Veterans Secretary

By GottaLaff

CNN just broke that General Eric Shinseki will be announced by President-elect Obama tomorrow, as his next Secretary of Veterans Affairs .

He's the very same four-star general who got canned because he correctly called out BushCo when he said, "'something in the order of several hundred thousand soldiers' would probably be required for post-war Iraq."

UPDATE: When I said "canned" above, I should mention that I didn't mean that literally:

Shinseki retired in the summer of 2003, shortly after the fall of Baghdad. Neither Rumsfeld nor Wolfowitz attended his farewell ceremony.

He "retired". Meantime, look who left with him:

Notably Shinseki led the Army at the same time that Obama's nominee as national security adviser, then-Marine commandant Gen. James L. Jones. Both questioned Wolfowitz's presumptions, before the war in Iraq commenced, about how the fighting would go, and they argued that Pentagon planning was being too optimistic and should prepare thoroughly for worst-case scenarios.

The politics around the planned nomination are intriguing. Shinseki has maintained a near-total silence since leaving the Pentagon. However, earlier this year, a letter he wrote to Rumsfeld in June 2003 leaked. In it, Shinseki criticized Rumsfeld for not letting the Joint Chiefs of Staff "express their best military judgment as often as they should." He also said that the way Rumsfeld and other top civilian officials ran meetings was "unhelpful."

I can't imagine what he's talking about. Rummy helped him, alright... right out the door.

John King taking over for Wolf Blitzer on "Late Edition"

By GottaLaff

Substituting the perpetually constipated Wolf "Eats Hard Cheese and Drywall for Breakfast"* Blitzer with Mr. Dana Bash will give my Sunday morning posts a whole new dimension:

CNN is close to making a change of its own with its Sunday program “Late Edition,” installing John King, its chief national correspondent and longtime White House correspondent, in the host role that has been filled for 10 years by Wolf Blitzer.

CNN executives would not comment on the decision but they did not deny that the Sunday move to Mr. King had been discussed. At the same time, Mr. Blitzer is close to signing an extension of his CNN contract that would continue his role as the network’s chief anchor for breaking news and political coverage, an executive who has been briefed on the plans said. [...]

CNN has been considering a change on Sunday for some time, largely because of the extraordinary work load Mr. Blitzer has taken on over the last several years.

Despite his apparent popularity, especially among many womenfolk I've read about, I'm not a fan of King's. His repeated use of Republican talking points is one reason. His lulling me to sleep is another. But I guess John Bash's manipulation of the Big Magic Wall impressed CNN enough to appoint him as the next master of TBPNTOTV!!! I'm all a-quiver with anticipation (sarcasm).

We can only hope the Bash-Kings' relationship will survive such an elevation in status.

*Apologies to Stephanie Miller and the Mooks

Oprah not looking for an Obama post

By GottaLaff

Where do these rumors start? It's not as if Oprah doesn't have a million obligations, much less the inclination to switch careers:

Although Oprah Winfrey worked hard on Barack Obama's presidential election campaign, she never considered going to work for the president-elect's administration, the talk show host said Friday.

"I have a few full-time jobs already and a few full-time commitments, you know _ contractual commitments that say I have to be where I am," Winfrey told AP Television. "So, it never ever occurred to me, not even occurred to me."

Winfrey said she would stay put, even if the president-elect came calling.

"Even if I was offered, I still have contractual commitments and what could I do?" Winfrey said. "I do what I do best on TV every day."

I guess that means Secretary of Most Influential Woman in the World Winfrey is no longer an option.

The ugly Bush stain: Guns 'n' parks edition

By GottaLaff

The slimy, scummy, toxic Bush stain spreads to our pristine, quiet, formerly-safe national parks. Someone please explain why this was necessary, and please pass that info on to Nancy Reagan:

People will now be able to carry concealed firearms in some national parks and wildlife refuges.

An Interior Department rule issued Friday allows an individual to carry a loaded weapon in a park or wildlife refuge — but only if the person has a permit for a concealed weapon, and if the state where the park or refuge is located also allows loaded firearms in parks.

The rule overturns a Reagan-era regulation that has restricted loaded guns in parks and wildlife refuges. The previous regulations required that firearms be unloaded and placed somewhere that is not easily accessible, such as in a car trunk. [...]

The National Rifle Association hailed the rule change, which will take effect next month before President-elect Barack Obama takes office. [...]

A group representing park rangers, retirees and conservation organizations said the rule change will lead to confusion for visitors, rangers and other law enforcement agencies.

"Once again, political leaders in the Bush administration have ignored the preferences of the American public by succumbing to political pressure, in this case generated by the National Rifle Association," said Bill Wade, president of the Coalition of National Park Service Retirees.

"This regulation will put visitors, employees and precious resources of the National Park System at risk. We will do everything possible to overturn it and return to a commonsense approach to guns in national parks that has been working for decades," Wade said.

The park rule will be published in the Federal Register next week and take effect 30 days later, well before Obama takes office Jan. 20. Overturning the rule could take months or even years, since it would require the new administration to restart the lengthy rule-making process.

I didn't realize those pesky squirrels and chipmunks were so threatening. I'll start packing a sidearm pronto.

Golly, I hope I don't shoot anyone in the face by accident. That would be so embarrassing.

Sunny Von Bulow Dead After 28 Years in Coma

By GottaLaff

Martha (Sunny) von Bulow, the American heiress who was first married to an Austrian playboy prince and then to a Danish-born man-about-society who was twice tried on charges of attempting to murder her, died Saturday at a nursing home in Manhattan. Mrs. von Bulow, who was 76, had been in a coma for nearly 28 years. [...]

Mrs. von Bulow's death came nearly 28 years after she was found unconscious on the floor of her bathroom in her mansion in Newport, R.I., on Dec. 21, 1980.

In her long, silent years at the Milstein Building at NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia and then at the nursing home on the Upper East Side, Mrs. von Bulow was not on any life support system. She was fed through a tube in her stomach. Though doctors said she showed no signs of brain activity, there were always fresh flowers in the room, and photographs of her children and grandchildren sat on a bedside table. [...]

Her second husband, Claus von Bulow, was convicted and later acquitted of twice trying to kill her with injections of insulin so as to aggravate her hypoglycemia, a low blood sugar condition.

His trials were among the most sensational of the 1980s. The news media from around the world were irresistibly drawn to the drama of the beautiful heiress who lay in a twilight zone, the debonair husband accused of murder, two royal children pitted against their younger stepsister and the glittering social milieu of Newport and New York providing the backdrop.

Bush: "Welcome to my hanging"

By GottaLaff

From the Department of Wishful Thinking:

Today, President Bush presided over the unveiling of his presidential portrait, at the Union League. “Welcome to my hanging,” Bush joked to the crowd.

So many tasteless jokes come to mind.

Bill Ayers Speaks Out

By GottaLaff

Pallin' around with the truth:

William Ayers, writing in the New York Times: "Now that the election is over, I want to say as plainly as I can that the character invented to serve this drama wasn't me, not even close... President-elect Obama and I sat on a board together; we lived in the same diverse and yet close-knit community; we sometimes passed in the bookstore. We didn't pal around, and I had nothing to do with his positions. I knew him as well as thousands of others did, and like millions of others, I wish I knew him better."

And there's this:

I never killed or injured anyone. I did join the civil rights movement in the mid-1960s, and later resisted the draft and was arrested in nonviolent demonstrations. I became a full-time antiwar organizer for Students for a Democratic Society. In 1970, I co-founded the Weather Underground, an organization that was created after an accidental explosion that claimed the lives of three of our comrades in Greenwich Village. The Weather Underground went on to take responsibility for placing several small bombs in empty offices — the ones at the Pentagon and the United States Capitol were the most notorious — as an illegal and unpopular war consumed the nation.

The Weather Underground crossed lines of legality, of propriety and perhaps even of common sense. Our effectiveness can be — and still is being — debated. We did carry out symbolic acts of extreme vandalism directed at monuments to war and racism, and the attacks on property, never on people, were meant to respect human life and convey outrage and determination to end the Vietnam war. [...]

I cannot imagine engaging in actions of that kind today. And for the past 40 years, I’ve been teaching and writing about the unique value and potential of every human life, and the need to realize that potential through education.

I have regrets, of course — including mistakes of excess and failures of imagination, posturing and posing, inflated and heated rhetoric, blind sectarianism and a lot else. No one can reach my age with their eyes even partly open and not have hundreds of regrets. The responsibility for the risks we posed to others in some of our most extreme actions in those underground years never leaves my thoughts for long.

The antiwar movement in all its commitment, all its sacrifice and determination, could not stop the violence unleashed against Vietnam. And therein lies cause for real regret.

Republicans: The party of destruction.

Whitaker Christmas Tree Farm in Crockett/Grapeland, Texas are not selling trees to blacks

By GottaLaff

This post comes from Democratic Underground, verbatim (errors included):

A friend of mine (who is Black) went to purchase a tree every year for the last 16...yes...16 years at this christmas tree farm. When she drove up, parked and walked up the hill to choose which tree she wanted, the young man told her that he wouldn't cut the tree for her. So she was walking back to her car and saw that two or three others that were after her were getting trees. They were White, by the way. He cut their tree. So she figure she would go and have a talk to the owner. She explained to the owner what happened and what the young man told her. The owner said basically in so many words that they were not selling trees to Blacks. I don't know why my friend didn't ask why but she didn't. She said she was so damn mad, she couldn't think straight. So the next day she called her local radio station and told them the weird news. The DJ didn't want to talk about that. He said we have no control over their business and when she started giving more info, they hung up on her.

I know there is nothing she can do about this situation but I told her I would tell everyone I know what happened at WHITTAKER'S CHRISTMAS TREE FARM IN CROCKETT,TEXAS right at the border of GRAPELAND, TEXAS.

I'm Googling everything I can think of, but can't seem to locate the tree lot in question.

UPDATE, I found this little bit of info:

Farm: Whitaker Christmas Tree Farm
Owner(s): Jerry Whitaker
Day(s) open: Open daily, 8:30 am to dark.
Address: Rt. 2, Box 63A
City: Grapeland	State: Texas	Zip: 75844

Phone: (936) 687-4699

E-mail: whit989@lcc.net

Species: Leyland Pine

Directions: Call for directions.

UPDATE #2, an interesting comment from an attorney:

I am an attorney who handles discrimination cases.

And I wouldn't want that one. Here's why: I wouldn't expect to win it, and if I did win it, I'd expect to lose money on it. I might take it just for the publicity if I were personally wealthy already and could afford to do so. It's hard to prove that a tree farm is a common carrier. Common carriers (hotels, restaurants, etc.) can't deny services on the basis of race. Employers can not discriminate on the basis of race. The government can not discriminate on the basis of race. But because this tree farm is neither a common carrier, nor an employer of the injured parties, nor the government, this would be a tough case to win, I think. Generally speaking, individuals are free to discriminate, at will, without recourse. This is a case for attorneys who are willing to do a whole lot of work for free (ACLU, SCLC, etc.). Of course, the behavior is reprehensible, and should be fought. I just couldn't afford to do it.

H/t: One of our Anonymi

Dorgan Won't Be Energy Secretary

By GottaLaff

Aleksandar Rodic’s Energy Plant

There's plenty of energy surging through the new Obama administration, but Dorgan won't be secretary of any of it:

Sen. Byron Dorgan (N.D.) is no longer under consideration to be secretary of energy in President-elect Barack Obama's administration, according to transition officials. The decision was arrived at based on a belief within the former Illinois senator's inner circle that the plains state Democrat is more valuable to them where he is. [...]

The names still in the mix for energy secretary, according to well informed senior Democrats include: Govs. Kathleen Sebelius (D-Kansas), Arnold Schwarzenegger (R-Calif.), Bill Ritter (D-Colo.) and Jennifer Granholm (D-Mich.), Sen. Jeff Bingaman (N.M), Google's Dan Reicher, Duke Energy CEO Jim Rogers, former Edison International CEO John Bryson, Federal Express Chairman Fred Smith and Steve Chu, the director of the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.

The decision to take Dorgan off the list is an acknowledgment by the Obama team of political reality. Dorgan is up for re-election in 2010 in a state that John McCain carried 53 percent to 45 percent in November over Obama, and that President Bush won with 63 percent in 2004. [...]

Obama and his team have been careful in their Cabinet picks so far not to hand seats to Republicans.

Reid bars Biden from Dem caucuses to restore checks and balances

By GottaLaff

Don't take this as a rejection, Joe:

Coming in Sunday's LAS VEGAS SUN, By Lisa Mascaro/Washington Bureau -- BIDEN TO BE BARRED FROM SENATE DEMOCRATIC CAUCUS MEETINGS AS PART OF REID EFFORT TO RESTORE CHECKS AND BALANCES: "The new Congress will reassert its constitutional independence from the White House by barring the vice president from joining in internal Senate deliberations, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said in an interview with The Sun. The move is intended to restore checks and balances to a system that tilted heavily toward the White House in the Bush presidency. By giving Vice President Dick Cheney regular access to Senate Republican caucuses, at times with White House advisers in tow, party unity became more important to many Republicans than upholding their responsibilities to provide legislative oversight of the executive, experts say. Asked if Vice-President Joe Biden will be allowed to attend Senate Democratic caucus meetings, Reid said: 'Absolutely not.'" Must credit Las Vegas Sun. Full story 2 a.m. Sunday at http://www.lasvegassun.com/

Checks and balances? What are those?

Obama speechwriter's big oops

By GottaLaff

Oops:

Jon Favreau, future White House director of speechwriting, has so far been at a loss for words over Facebook pictures of him at a recent party.

Pictures of Favreau, 27, at a recent party appeared on Facebook Friday. In one of the photos, Favreau, who served as President-elect Barack Obama’s chief speechwriter during the campaign season, was dancing with a life-sized cardboard cut-out of future secretary of state Hillary Clinton. In a second photo, a friend was offering the cutout a bottle of beer while Favreau stood beside the likeness with his hand on the cardboard New York senator’s chest.

The picture was reportedly up for a scant two hours or so before Favreau removed it, along with every other picture of himself beyond his profile photo — but there’s no getting the Facebook genie back in the bottle.

Yes, it was disrespectful and distasteful. Yes, Favreau apologized. And Campbell Brown, being all "no biasy and no bully", was incredulous yesterday when Hillary accepted the apology and brushed it off:

The Clinton camp reaction? "Sen. Clinton is pleased to learn of Jon's obvious interest in the State Department, and is currently reviewing his application," Clinton aide Philippe Reines told the Washington Post.

Doesn't Hillary know that she's not supposed to be gracious/avoid another embarrassing news cycle? Doesn't Hillary realize that she's expected to exhibit any outrage she might feel about this publicly? Doesn't Hillary understand that Campbell Brown needs a juicy story to boost her ratings? The nerve.

Castro expresses willingness to meet with Obama

By GottaLaff

Everyone wants to get into the act:

Former Cuban President Fidel Castro says he is open to the idea of meeting with U.S. President-elect Barack Obama.

"With Obama, one can talk whenever he wants, because we're not preachers of violence or war," the communist leader wrote in an essay published Thursday on a state-run Web site. "He must be reminded that the carrot-and-stick theory cannot be applied in our country."

Friday's missive marked the second time in recent weeks that a Cuban leader has said he is open to meeting with Obama.

Fidel's brother made an overture of sorts a little bit ago.

Despite the indications that the Cuban leadership is open to warmer relations with its neighbor to the north after 47 years of a U.S.-imposed trade embargo, some in Havana expressed skepticism that the impending change in leadership in the United States will translate in to a changed Cuban policy.

"Obama is a product of the American empire," Carlos Pose said.

But Elisany, a high school student, said she's hopeful. "We've got to wait and see. I hope things change."

There's that word again.

More excellence in advertising

Really, this stuff is starting to get to me. Maybe I've watched too much "Mad Men", but who the hell came up with the idea that it would sell cars to show giddy women swooping up shoes that have fallen from the sky into the back of their vehicles. First, shoes falling from the sky? Second, they're not matched! All these women are doing is scooping up raggedy single shoes. I give up.

Obama to name secretary of veterans affairs Sunday

Gotta posted about the press conference Obama is doing on Sunday, but here's an added tidbit-

(CNN) – A source in the Obama transition reveals President-elect Barack Obama will announce his choice for Secretary of Veterans Affairs Sunday at a news conference scheduled on Pearl Harbor Day and intended to highlight the service of veterans and current service members.

Someone needs to find out where Tammy Duckworth and Max Cleland are going to be on Sunday.

OPEC head says markets should brace for 'surprise' announcement

Nope, no problem with OPEC manipulating the markets at all. God forbid they should have to downsize the solid gold Rolls Royce fleet. At least it might keep people on the ball about their gas usage.

The head of OPEC said financial markets should brace for a "surprise" decision on oil output cuts by the cartel during its summit later this month.

Chakib Khelil, who is also Algeria's energy minister, has told The Associated Press that "a consensus has formed for a significant reduction of production levels" by the 14-member Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries.

(snip)

Markets are expecting an output reduction but Khelil suggested in an interview Saturday that it could be deeper than expected.

Khelil said the best way to boost oil rates is to "surprise" markets.

Oil prices settled at four-year lows Friday at $40.81 per barrel.

Saturday Cartoon

Ben Sergeant via.

'NYT' Report: `Miami Herald Up For Sale, Too

Greg over at E&P has been keeping track of all the closings, lay offs and scale downs in the newspaper industry. If you go over there you will be astounded by the blood on the ground. (or should I say ink?) Now, the Herald? It's bad folks.

CHICAGO The Miami Herald is for sale, according to a report on The New York Times Web site Friday night.

Times staffer Richard Perez-Pena, quoting “people briefed on the company’s plan,” reported that The McClatchy Company has approached potential buyers for its biggest newspaper.

The sources said “they knew of no serious offers for the paper, reflecting the evaporation of major investors’ interest in buying newspapers.” A McClatchy spokesperson declined to comment on “market rumors,” the Times said.

The article concludes: "The people briefed on the company’s plans say The Herald generates a very slim operating margin and that the most attractive part of any deal could be its prime waterfront real estate. But the Florida real estate market is in deep recession — one of the reasons for the struggles of the paper, which used to benefit from heavy real estate advertising."

Bill O’Reilly and Megyn Kelly yell at each other over atheism

Link:

The only time I've ever linked to Hot Air, and damn well worth it. Christine Gregoire as Pontius Pilot? You go Bill.

Surprise fireworks as FNC’s most combative anchor tries to explain the First Amendment to its most combative commentator. Good luck, Megyn!

Obama Having Custom Tux Made... For About $1k

He's going to have to buy alot of them to catch up with Bible Spice.

President-elect Barack Obama is sticking with his Chicago-based suit maker, Hartmarx, to make a tuxedo, a topcoat and a suit for his inauguration Jan. 20.

The custom black tuxedo, made by union workers at the Hart Schaffner Marx plant in Des Plaines, is sold at Nordstrom department stores for $895.

(snip)

The 121-year-old Hartmarx, maker of menswear labels Hickey Freeman and Hart Schaffner Marx, is the largest U.S.-based menswear maker and one of the few, if not the only, men's topcoat manufacturers in North America.

"We are thrilled at the opportunity to create a wardrobe for someone as dynamic as President-elect Obama and to participate, in however small way, in our nation's civic activities," said Brett Schenck, president of Hart Schaffner Marx. "Equally positive is that we are being embraced as an American, union-made manufacturer that prides itself on quality, value and fit."

Weekend Links

It's really nice to wake up and turn on C-Span and see a rep from the Center For American Progress on for the second time this week. Think Podesta's position make it more "respectable" to have them on these days?

Amsterdam to close many brothels, marijuana cafes

The Girl Turned Into A Human Bomb

Video- New population of Tonkin snub-nosed monkeys found

PINK PENSIONIERS- Germany's Gay and Gray Get a New Home

UK anti-terror laws used to swoop on paperboys - for not having the correct paperwork

Intelligent men 'have better sperm'

Bettie Page hospitalized

Vision of Mary could help foot doctor's bill

Your Weekly Address from the President-Elect

Text here.

Obama Adds Two More to White House Staff

By GottaLaff

While we weren't looking, Obama hired two more Chicagoans:

Christina M. Tchen, who has a range of commercial, intellectual property and employment-related litigation experience, will serve as director of public liaison. The Office of Public Liaison promotes the president's priorities with constituencies and public interest groups and plans White House briefings, meetings and large events. As a lawyer, Tchen has represented public agencies in state and federal class actions, including the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services, the Illinois Department of Public Aid and the Chicago Housing Authority. She serves on the board of several organizations, including the Chicago Bar Foundation.

Michael Strautmanis, a Chicago native who first met the Obamas when he worked as a paralegal for Michelle Obama at the law firm Sidley & Austin, will serve as chief of staff to the assistant to the president for intergovernmental relations and public liaison.

Strautmanis served as chief counsel and deputy chief of staff to Obama in the U.S. Senate and as senior counsel for the Obama campaign. He has practiced law in Chicago, worked at the U.S. Agency for International Development in the Clinton Administration and is a former top aide to Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich.

White House, Democrats Reach Deal on $15 Billion Auto Aid

By GottaLaff

Early reporting:

Democratic leaders and the White House reached a deal to provide billions of dollars in relief to the ailing U.S. auto industry, a senior congressional aide told Reuters on Friday.

The package, which Democratic leaders hope to win passage of next week and send to President George W. Bush, totals between $15 billion and $17 billion, the aide said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

The amount is less than the $34 billion the auto guys requested . It's an interim move until Obama takes office, apparently. Pelosi is reported to have changed her tune after the latest unemployment report.

Poll-itics: 12 Percent of Atlantans Plan to Attend Inauguration

By GottaLaff

Queuing up: A voter waits in College Park, Ga., to vote in [the] primary.

Take that, Saxby:

ATLANTA -- A recent survey conducted by Survey USA, commissioned by 11Alive News, found that 12 percent of Atlantans polled planned to attend the inauguration of President-Elect Barack Obama on January 20th. [...]

The survey results indicated enthusiasm among Atlanta residents for Barack Obama and his 2008 election win.

Last night on MSNBC, someone said Bush got a crowd of 150,000 at his inauguration. They're expecting millions at Obama's, including, apparently, many Georgia residents.

For a "very red" state (as Rachel Maddow likes to say), Georgia's awfully excited. What a great story. Thanks, Jon!

H/t: Jon Lester

Five Blackwater guards indicted

By GottaLaff

Too little too late, but, well, it's something, and it's about time:

Five Blackwater Worldwide security guards have been indicted and a sixth was negotiating a plea with prosecutors for a 2007 shooting that left 17 Iraqis dead and became an anti-American rallying cry for insurgents, people close to the case said Friday. [...]

Six guards have been under investigation since a convoy of heavily armed Blackwater contractors opened fire in a crowded Baghdad intersection on Sept. 16, 2007. Witnesses say the shooting was unprovoked but Blackwater, hired by the State Department to guard U.S. diplomats, says its guards were ambushed by insurgents while responding to a car bombing.

Young children were among the victims and the shooting strained relations between the U.S. and Iraq. Following the shooting, Blackwater became the subject of congressional hearings in Washington and insurgent propaganda videos in Iraq.

The exact charges in the indictment were unclear, but the Justice Department has been considering manslaughter and assault charges against the guards for weeks. Prosecutors have also been considering bringing charges under a law, passed as part of a 1988 drug bill, that carries a mandatory 30-year prison sentence for using a machine gun in a crime of violence. [...]

Regardless of the charges they bring, prosecutors will have a tough fight. The law is unclear on whether contractors can be charged in the U.S., or anywhere, for crimes committed overseas. The indictment sends the message that the Justice Department believes contractors do not operate with legal impunity in war zones.

I was all over Blackwater for some time when we were over at the Brave New Films bloggy, and with good reason. Here's a sample. Consider it a refresher course.

Lawyer: Justice Department could drop Don Siegelman conviction

By GottaLaff

As Thom Hartmann and Don Siegelman have said repeatedly, "This will bust open the criminal activity of DoJ/Rove, which will lead to the White House. This is The Case." But for the moment, let's concentrate on freeing Siegelman from this nightmare:

The Justice Department has reopened an investigation into potential juror misconduct in the bribery conviction of former Democratic Alabama Gov. Don Siegelman, whose case has widely been panned as an example of political prosecution.

The revealed was first reported by Glynn Wilson, on the Locust Forks Journal. The filing is available at his site.

"In light of recent information from a new whistle-blower in the Bush Justice Department’s political prosecutions still under investigation by Congress, including the case of former Alabama Governor Don Siegelman, the federal court in Montgomery has re-opened the investigation into juror misconduct, according to a document just filed with the appeals court in Atlanta," Wilson wrote.

The Justice Department's appellate response indicated that the investigation was reopened after concerns were raised about the fairness of the trial. [...]

One of Siegelman's attorneys, Vince Kilborn, told Wilson the information was "significant" and that the three-judge panel -- all Republicans -- considering Siegelman's appeal could drop the case against him at a hearing next Tuesday, Dec. 9.

He also claimed that "he was not concerned about the all-Republican three-judge panel selected to hear the oral arguments and decide the appeal."

I've been following this case from the beginning. This is, potentially at least, the best news ever.

You can catch up on the back story here.

VIDEO: Obama-citizenship conspiracy mongers wonder why media won't cover them

By GottaLaff

Oy. As Jerry Seinfeld would say, "Who a-a-are these people?"

A small but determined band of conservative protesters gathered outside the Supreme Court Friday morning to pray the justices would invalidate Barack Obama's election.

The court was deciding whether it would hear oral arguments in Donofrio v. Wells, which argues that Obama's placement on the New Jersey presidential election ballot was invalid because he is not a natural born citizen. The justices are expected to dismiss the case.

Discussions with several of the 18 demonstrators who gathered despite freezing temperatures revealed disjointed, confusing and increasingly conspiratorial reasons for their presence. Several alleged varying degrees of a cover-up to hide the circumstances surrounding Obama's birth; none were willing to accept the much simpler explanation that Obama was in fact a natural-born citizen eligible to be president. [...]

To be clear, the questions of Obama's birth have been roundly and convincingly debunked.

The citizenship questioners organized on fringe Web sites and through YouTube videos. Several questioned why the mainstream media wasn't covering their conspiracy-mongering.

Pete Anderson, a retiree from Springfield, VA, spun a theory involving "staged backpack nukes already in this country" that were somehow involved in preventing the media from reporting on Obama's citizenship.

"There is a theory -- as crazy as it may seem -- that we are now in a state of siege," Anderson said.

It was tough to follow Anderson's logic, and even fellow demonstrators thought it was too far out there.

"I didn't bring my tinfoil hat," Bredow ribbed, cutting into our interview.

The two demonstrators went on to bicker between themselves over the true reasons for the media's silence.

I've posted about this previously. Every single legal mind on the Tee Vee Machine has literally bet anything from their reputations to their "vast wealth" (said kiddingly by Jeff Toobin) that the Supremes will throw this time-wasting excuse for a case out on Monday.

Obama's Hawaiian Punahou High School marching band to be in Inaugural Parade

By GottaLaff

Awww:

Presidential Inaugural Committee Invites Punahou School Marching Band and JROTC Marching Unit to Perform in 56th Inaugural Parade

Talent From Across America To March In Parade From Capitol To White House

Today, in keeping with its commitment to hold inaugural events that celebrate our common values and reflects the diversity and history of our great nation, President-elect Barack Obama and Vice President-elect Joe Biden's Inaugural Committee officially extended an offer to the Punahou School Marching Band and JROTC Marching Unit to march in the 56th Inaugural Parade. [...]

Members of the Punahou School Marching Band and JROTC Marching Unit will join representatives from across the country and our Armed Forces in the historic parade down Pennsylvania Avenue following President-elect Obama's swearing-in ceremony on the steps of the Capitol.

"I am honored to invite these talented groups and individuals to participate in the Inaugural Parade," said President-elect Obama. "These organizations embody the best of our nation's history, diversity and commitment to service. Vice President-elect Biden and I are proud to have them join us in the parade."

President-elect Obama attended Punahou School from 1971 to 1979.

Color me wrong: Caroline IS interested in Hillary's Senate seat

By GottaLaff

You could knock me over with a Palin calendar. In a previous post, I expressed strong doubts about Caroline Kennedy having much interest in becoming a Senator, since she's a relatively private person (according to a family member of mine who co-wrote books with her). Well, well, according to the AP, how wrong I was:

Caroline Kennedy has spoken to New York's governor about the Senate seat that will come open when Hillary Rodham Clinton becomes secretary of state, and Kennedy and the governor are expected to meet as early as Saturday to discuss it further, according to people familiar with the conversation.

Kennedy reached out to Gov. David Paterson, who will pick someone to fill the seat for two years, according to a Democratic source who spoke on condition of anonymity because the conversation was private.

Two New York Democrats told The Associated Press that Kennedy and the governor are expected to meet privately to discuss the matter Saturday, when Paterson travels to Washington, D.C., for a dinner.

Kennedy is interested in the Senate appointment, said a person close to the Kennedy family.

At least I got this part right:

As famous as she is, she always has been viewed as almost painfully shy. She does not like talking about herself, nor does she appreciate those who do.

If she does end up in the Senate, she'll have some serious de-shying to do.

Obama to Hold Another Press Conference

By GottaLaff

Be there or be square:

President-elect Obama will hold a Sunday press conference in Chicago at 2 p.m. ET.

According to a statement, on the anniversary of Pearl Harbor, Obama will be speaking about the contributions of those that have served our nation.

Obama will also be the sole guest on Meet the Press with Tom Brokaw on Sunday.

And here you thought you'd never get your own personal assistant to remind you of these things.

Valerie Jarrett: Realize the promise

By GottaLaff

Those damn community organizer types! Accentuating the positive, realizing the promise, who do they think they are:

Valerie Jarrett, who has been selected to be a senior adviser to President-elect Obama, got back to her Chicago roots by reaching out to community organizers at a roundtable event at the Washington Hilton yesterday. “Realizing the Promise,” a forum designed to give the transition team input on solutions from the grassroots level, showed Jarrett in a light similar to the president-elect, rallying the masses with a message of hope.

“Yes we can!” she cheered, stirring up the crowd. The audience, filled with nearly 2,500 community activists from around the nation stood to their feet as she entered the room.

[...] She relied on rhetoric about how optimism and unification are the keys to the success of the new administration.

“Our future is bright, and there’s nothing we can't do if we can come together as one,” said Jarrett. “The challenges are daunting ... but [we can] hold hands and follow the vision of President-elect Obama's campaign, which is let's not talk about all the issues that divide us, let's talk about what we have in common.”

Melody Barnes, the soon-to-be director of the White House domestic policy council, echoed Jarrett about the importance of community effort in setting the policy agenda.

[...] Jarrett continued the plea for outreach from the ground level, suggesting that town halls and forums are the best way to brainstorm during the transition.

“We can count on you to advise us,” said Jarrett. “You know better than anybody else what your community needs in order to improve your neighborhood.”

Obama transition team making documents, details from official meetings available to the public

Transparency is excellent. At the end of the article it says that the Obama team is considering extending this into the actual administration. The page where these are to be posted isn't up yet. Found it.

WASHINGTON - President-elect Barack Obama is making public details and documents of official meetings between his transition team and outside organizations such as interest groups. The policy, outlined in a memo obtained by The Associated Press, goes into effect immediately.

It is retroactive to the Nov. 4 election and covers the transition period until Jan. 20 when Obama is sworn into office as the country's 44th president.

Basel Art Show, Miami Beach, Florida 2008

Other than the food, I miss Miami's festivals and shows (art, boat, whatever) the most. Oh, and right now I also miss the heat. h/t Ben.

Overseas Ballots Discovered in Minneapolis

What a fiasco.

Minneapolis Elections Director Cynthia Reichert said today that the 133 missing ballots were not found in the Minneapolis elections warehouse. While the search for the ballots continues, officials have called off search operations at the warehouse. Meanwhile, 20 overseas absentee ballots were discovered at the warehouse.

Call Obama's Era 'Generation Change,' Not 'Obamalot'

I like it. "Generation Change" came in with 46%, "The Obama Era" at 22%, "Yes We Can Rebellion" at 13%, "Obamalot"(?) at 11% and "Age of Obama" at 8%.

That whole change thing Barack Obama hyped during the presidential election seems to have settled into the American psyche. Because when Washington Whispers asked you for a phrase to describe his incoming administration, the overwhelming answer was "Generation Change".

Anyone who has access to the Gotham font want to make me up a banner for it?

MSNBC's Mika Brzezinski to Write Advice Book

Aw c'mon people, give me a fracking break. She's 41 years old, grew up in a wealthy and affluent family, went to private school and then a toney college. Mika's the person to write an advice book?

Morning Joe co-host Mika Brezinski has parlayed her show's buzz into a book deal. In spring 2010, Weinstein Books will publish Sometimes You Have to Take a Step Back, "a motivational book aimed at women, based on Mika's own personal and professional triumphs and failures." Topics will include the "importance of remaining equally humble in the face of great success and seemingly devastating setbacks."

Bush Showed Off White House Gym to President-Elect Obama

It's about the only thing I can think of the two have in common.

It didn't make the headlines at the time—first lady Laura Bush's tour of the kids' rooms for Michelle Obama nabbed those—but when the outgoing president gave his replacement the guy's version of the White House look-see, the duo made a beeline to the gym. "They just rushed upstairs to look at the gym," says Mrs. Bush. It's the "guy thing," she adds.

And why not? Unlike previous presidents, President Bush is a regular in the gym and on the mountain bike trail and has equipped his gym well. And given President-elect Barack Obama's post-election workout schedule, he looks to be every bit Bush's match.

(snip)

And look for the new prez to pull down the nets on the White House tennis courts. We hear he's planning to wheel in a basketball backboard.

Michelle Obama's Slave Ancestors Discovered

Not sure what you can say about this, since "interesting" or "cool" really don't reflect the reality of slavery.Via Taegan-

Michelle Obama's great-great-grandfather, Jim Robinson, lived as a slave, at least until the Civil War, on a rice plantation in South Carolina, the Seattle Times reports.

Sen. Barack Obama's campaign "hired genealogists to research the family's roots at the onset of his presidential bid, but aides largely have kept the findings secret... Obama aides refused to discuss the report or allow Michelle Obama to be interviewed about her ancestry."

Not Bankers

Nope, and it's not just the US losing jobs.

TORONTO — General Motors of Canada Ltd. is laying off 700 more workers at its Oshawa, Ont., operations, the Canadian Auto Workers union said Friday.

The layoffs at the car plant will take place in February.

The auto maker also told the union that it is delaying plans to assemble new transmissions in St. Catharines, Ont., CAW chief Ken Lewenza said.

Joe Scarborough & Mika Brzezinski Begin Radio Show Monday

Ugh, it really is happening.

First on TVNewser: Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski begin hosting a radio show on WABC in New York Monday morning. The show will air from 10am-Noon, following Imus in the Morning. Scarborough and Brzezinski will continue with MSNBC's Morning Joe from 6am-9amET, before heading to the WABC studios for the late morning radio show.

The only part of this fiasco I like?

After the jump, the WOR press release, which includes this news: "Bill O'Reilly, Dennis Miller and the station's longtime daily Food Talk program will cease to broadcast on the station."

BREAKING: O.J. Simpson sentenced to at least 15 years in prison

By GottaLaff

The judge just sentenced O.J. Simpson to at least 15 years, with possibility of parole after 5. He'll be serving the sentence in a Nevada prison.

UPDATE: He was sentenced to 48 years, but some sentences were concurrent. Correcting the numbers as they come in, he will spend somewhere to a minimum of 6-9 years in prison. The recommendation was 18 years. (I'm liveblogging this)

O.J. Simpson is 61 years old. This is considered to be a generous sentence, surprising from a very tough judge.

MSNBC carried it live.

The Goldmans were in the room. Needless to say, they were in tears.

The 2009 Sarah Palin Calendar, yours for only $15.95!

By GottaLaff

Via Mudflats:

Sarah Palin 2009 Photo Wall Calendar 9×12
just $15.95

This high quality 13-month wall calendar features:
Over 50 photographs of Sarah Palin and her family
Never before seen photos
13 pages of high quality gloss paper
Closed dimensions 9″x12″
Pre-drilled hole for hanging
Cellophane wrapped
Produced and printed in the USA

Maybe some of the proceeds can be used to pay back the $180,000 she spent on the wardrobe and make-up that will undoubtedly be featured on the pages of her glossy new calendar.

The ugly Bush stain: Interior Dept. Changes Rule to Remove Congress Veto edition

By GottaLaff

That putrid whiff of flatulence you smell? It's Bush... again:

'The revision of the rule eliminates all references to Congressional authority.' Interior Dept. Changes Rule to Remove Congress Veto

In another regulatory action in the waning days of the Bush dictatorship, the Interior Department on Thursday unveiled a new rule that challenges Congress’s authority to prevent mining planned on public lands. Congress has emergency power to stop mineral development, and has used it six times in the last 32 years. The most recent was in June, when it put a three-year moratorium on uranium mining on one million acres near the Grand Canyon. Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne has ignored that Congressional directive, saying it was procedurally flawed. The revision of the rule eliminates all references to Congressional authority.

Bush can have all the farewell, maudlin, revisionist interviews he wants, but nothing... nothing... will eliminate the stench he leaves behind after eight years of infecting this country with a rotting, decomposing morgue full of felons hell bent on vaporizing the Constitution.

Ann Romney Diagnosed With Early Stage Breast Cancer, Treated

By GottaLaff

Here is her statement:

Last week, following my annual mammogram at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, I was diagnosed with Ductal Carcinoma In Sutu (DCIS). While this is commonly referred to as early stage breast cancer, it is technically not cancer but rather pre-cancer, as it has not become invasive. Today, I have had a lumpectomy. This procedure does not require hospitalization. Mitt and I feel fortunate to have caught this so early. And, it reminds us how important it is for women to have regular mammograms. As in all cases of cancer, early detection is critical. Many families are facing medical hardships–our hearts go out to all of you and also our wishes for healing holidays.

It sounds like she'll be fine, hopefully, which, of course, is a wonderful thing. And she's right: early detection is critical. Pay attention.

Biden Appoints Jared Bernstein As Chief Economic Policy Adviser To VP

By GottaLaff

Via Ambinder:

Jared Bernstein is a highly qualified economist; he is affiliated with the Economic Policy Institute. If that doesn't ring any bells, well... KLANG KLANG KLANG. The EPI one of the nation's premiere left-leaning economics enterprises and is funded in part by labor unions. Bernstein served in the Clinton administration under Robert Reich. Bernstein, who has written academic tractates and popular works on the middle class squeeze, blogged regularly at Talking Points Memo.com.

His position -- chief economist and economist adviser to the vice president -- isn't in the Plum Book. It's new -- a signal of the urgency of the times -- and it's highly ranked, which means that Bernstein will be involved in every major debate about economics that takes place within the administration. He's the first unambiguously progressive /populist ecomomist to join the upper echelon of Obama's team. He's also less of a monetarist than others on the Obama team, believing that changes in fiscal policy can have greater effects on aggregate demand.