It now turns out that those highly touted (and shortly lived) FEMA debit cards were used by some people who had them...just like regular debit cards. Your tax dollars at work:Houston divorce lawyer Mark Lipkin says he can't recall anyone paying for his services with a FEMA debit card, but congressional investigators say one of his clients did just that. The $1,000 payment was … [Read more...] about FEMA Funds Debit Card Used For Divorce And Sex Change

Kurtz Media Notes: So how does Jason Leopold, who wrote on the Truthout website some weeks back that Rove had been secretly indicted , deal with the news that no charges are being brought? He still insists he was right: "I am standing by the story I wrote a few weeks back regarding Karl Rove's indictment. Today's announcement by Rove's attorney, Robert Luskin, stating that he … [Read more...] about No Retraction from Truthout

All sorts of exciting political news this morning (and it's also Flag Day), but I forgot to write about this article last night and did want to comment on it at least briefly. It's from yesterday's LATimes, and discusses recent events in Kansas, where a former state Republican chairman is now the Democratic governor's running mate. Mark Parkinson's not alone, either; at least … [Read more...] about Something’s Happening in Kansas

Yes, it had to happen and it's logical: rappers remaking classic westerns for a new generation on the big screen, updating a western to modern times. And who better to remake one of the best "adult" westerns of all, CBS's Have Gun Will Travel (1957-1963) than Eminem? He has charisma, a built-in defiant persona — and he got great reviews for his last big star vehicle. The … [Read more...] about Eminem Will Star In “Have Gun Will Travel” Remake

The news that Karl Rove wasn't going to be indicted after all — despite a growing unspoken conventional wisdom in many press reports that he would and a flat assertion that he would by one Internet website — has been greeted with all kinds of reactions and analyses. Most of them partisan (and predictable). But Walter Shapiro, the moderate former USA Today columnist … [Read more...] about Shapiro: Rove’s Non-indictment Is Good For Country And The Democrats

Means no real posts from me, only a roundup. Eat well. … [Read more...] about First Day of Work

A piece in Knight-Ridder Newspapers makes some of the same points were have made here in our posts on the killing of terrorist bigwig Zarqawi and the news today that White House political guru Karl Rove won't be indicted:The [Rove] developments added to the optimism that swept through the White House after last week's slaying of terrorist chief Abu Musab al Zarqawi in Iraq and … [Read more...] about Is Bush Now On A Roll?

Yes, sometimes hopes and prayers are realized in a tragedy. ABC News' Bob Woodruff, seriously injured while reporting a story in Iraq five months ago, returned to the ABC Newsroom yesterday — a day many thought would never come. And as Charles Gibson noted, "As you might expect, he attracted a crowd." Watch the video here (there is a commercial first). … [Read more...] about ABC‘s Bob Woodruff Returns To Visit Newsroom

Three enemy combatants killed themselves recently at Gitmo. Sean Aqui has three words for our leaders: Shut It Down. … [Read more...] about Shut It Down

Amba observes, and I agree, that an independent party could have a major impact come 2008. However, is it less a third party and more an endorsement of a more common sense way in politics? Could there be a way to bring members of both parties back towards the sensible middle? Amba rounds up the latest thoughts around the mediasphere on the third way. … [Read more...] about Third Party Time Is Ripe

Just for fun, I'm linking to this tasty article: Jerusalem Post: Onions 101 Onions play a supporting role instead of starring on menus. Yet the behind-the-scenes impact of these powerful bulbs should not be underestimated; they may be the most universal of fresh flavorings. In every cuisine, a member of this fragrant family - whether yellow, white, red or green onions, leeks, … [Read more...] about An Ode to Onions

A lot of the news and weblog assumptions of the past few months have been swept away with news that White House political guru Karl Rove will not be indicted in the Plamegate case — a case that many reports had suggested had distracted Rove from full-focus on President George W. Bush's political ills. No more. Because the bottom line is that under the American system of … [Read more...] about No Charges For Rove Means He Focuses Full Attention On Political Role

WP: Rove Unlikely to Be Charged in Leak Probe Special Counsel Patrick Fitzgerald tells top White House aide he does not expect to seek charges against him, Rove's lawyer said today. … [Read more...] about Karl Rove Escapes By The Hair On His Chinny-Chin-Chin

By way of followup to yesterday's post on the NSA eavesdrop program's day in court, I'd point to today's article by Adam Liptak in the NYTimes. He reports that the hearing room was packed for the arguments yesterday, and that the government, as expected, urged the judge to toss the case on "state secret" grounds. Lawyer Anthony Coppolino argued that the while program is lawful, … [Read more...] about Government Wants Eavesdrop Case Tossed

These are important days for Daily Kos founder Markos Moulitsas. The Yearly Kos convention he put together got substantial blog and mass media coverage, culminating with his appearance on Meet The Press where viewers could put a face to a name and to words they see on their computer screens (he came off quite well). And now the Drum Major Institute For Public Policy is … [Read more...] about The Honors Keep Flowing For Markos Moulitsas

New analyses continue to emerge on the race between GOPer Brian Bilbray and Democrat Francine Busby — a closely watched race that ended with Bilbray hanging on to the seat once held by the disgraced and now-jailed Randy "Duke" Cunningham. First, read Citizen Smash who looks at whether the Democrats made much of a dent this time. And, secondly, listen to Ed Schultz, the … [Read more...] about More On CA 50 Bilbray Versus Busby

"Nuclear Jihad," a new documentary by the Canadian film maker Julian Sher, focuses on the nuclear-proliferation activities of A.Q. Khan, the Pakistani engineer who made Pakistan a nuclear power and quietly helped spread nuclear technology to Iran, North Korea, and Libya, says Nikola Krastev in Radio Free Europe. The documentary states that David Sanger and William Broad, … [Read more...] about Pakistan’s A.Q. Khan, Rogue Regimes and Terrorists

A new CBS News poll indicates President George W. Bush is still stuck in the Benny's Bargain Basement level of polling results after the death of Iraqi terrorist chief Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, which some analysts felt would given him a substantial boost. And a Rasmussen Reports poll echoes the CBS poll's finding: that there has been little change in perceptions of the President's … [Read more...] about Two Polls Show Bush Didn’t Benefit From Zarqawi Killing (UPDATED)

Bill Clinton is raising eyebrows among some Democrats these days. First, there's his friendship with the father of "the enemy" (George Bush Sr.). And then there's a general rejection on the part of one segment of the party of his approach of trying to rope in independent and GOP voters. Bull Moose writes:The Moose has been struck by how many in the party have either implicitly … [Read more...] about How Bill Clinton Differs From Some Democrats Today

It's all about the perception of procedural fairness. The majority of cases where you see widespread rejection of the legitimacy of certain laws--from abortion to immigration--it's because they don't think they had a fair chance to influence the outcome. … [Read more...] about How To Get People To Follow The Law