The White House is searching for a new Attorney General and the Justice Department releases a 3,000 pages document dump (i.e. the docs that survived the fire). While this is to disguise the political machinations behind the firing of some non-"Bushies" U.S. attorneys and to keep the press off the real trails, another DOJ scandal is developing below the headlines.

The Justice Department’s Inspector General had issued a report that accused the FBI of using illegal means to get citizen phone records through major telecom companies. Now the FBI adopted a new process: to stop documenting the illegal means it uses.

Cont. reading: The FBI’s New Phone Record Process

ABC NEWS/USA TODAY/BBC/ARD POLL – IRAQ: WHERE THINGS STAND (pdf)

• Eighty percent of Iraqis report attacks nearby – car
  bombs, snipers, kidnappings, armed forces fighting each other or abusing civilians.
• More than half of Iraqis, 53 percent, have a close friend or
  relative who’s been hurt or killed in the current violence. One in six says someone in
  their own household has been harmed.
• In November
  2
  2005, 63 percent of Iraqis felt very safe in their neighborhoods. Today just 26 percent say
  the same. One in three doesn’t feel safe at all. In Baghdad, home to a fifth of the
  country’s population, that skyrockets: Eighty-four percent feel entirely unsafe.
• In 2005, despite the difficulties in their country, 71 percent of
  Iraqis said their own lives were going well. Today that’s been all but halved, to 39
  percent.
• In 2005, two-thirds expected their lives to improve over the coming year. Now
  just 35 percent see better days ahead.
• The
  number of Iraqis who call it “acceptable” to attack U.S. and coalition forces, 17 percent
  in early 2004, has tripled to 51 percent now, led by near-unanimity among Sunni Arabs.
• Nationally, 12 percent report that ethnic cleansing – the forced separation of Sunnis and
  Shiites – has occurred in their neighborhoods. In mixed-population Baghdad, it’s 31
  percent.
• In rare agreement, 97 percent of Sunni Arabs and Shiites
  alike oppose the separation of Iraqis on sectarian lines.
• [F]ewer than half of Iraqis, 42 percent,
  say life is better now than it was under Saddam Hussein, …
• Forty-two percent think their country is in a civil war; 24 percent more think one is
  likely.
• Barely over four in 10 expect a better life for their children.
• Three in 10 say they’d leave Iraq if they could.

The survey was conducted by a field staff of 150 Iraqis in all, including 103 interviewers,
interviewing 2,212 randomly selected respondents at 458 locales across the country from
Feb. 25 to March 5.

News & views …

This week I am helping some friends at the Cebit IT fair in Hannover. (The reason why I didn’t post much the last days.)

It’s my twentieth-something visit to the fair, so I am used to all the hype by the 6,000+ exhibitors and the long walks across 70 acres of exhibition space. 

Something that struck me this year during the usual walk arounds and dozens of evaluation talks is the lack of U.S. exhibitors. The usual big ones, Microsoft, Cisco, AT&T are there of course, but the number of small U.S. soft- and hardware companies has shrunk.

Cont. reading: U.S. Losing International Business Attitude?

Watching the Waxman Oversight Committee on Valerie Plame there seem to be some points that will further get the White House into trouble.

Waxman says the CIA confirmed to him that Plame was undercover – so no doubts on that. Then Plame was under questioning and confirmed this too (Wilson must be a lucky man btw.)

Later the committee questioned the director of the White House office of security, James Knodell. The White House first had tried to keep him away from the hearing, but Waxman insisted.

The man, a career employee – not a political appointment, confirmed that Rove had the duty to report to his office that he had breached the security by uncovering Valerie Plame. Even if he had thought she was not undercover, he should have done so immediately after the first public discussions. He says neither Rove or anybody else did so and that there should have been an investigation into this but none was done. I wonder what might be construed from that.

It is just one detail and it may not matter at all. The bigger issue is the whole process that was involved in selling the Iraq war and slowly, slowly this may come to light by such committee hearings.

Together with the Rove involvement in the US Attorney firing it is another impact near the President. The big issue that is still missing in the congress investigation circus is the illegal NSA spying. I wonder who (Conyers?) and when that case will be taken up.

The hearing fire is becoming more dense and one wonders when someone or something in the White House may break through simple
overload.

All of these hardly matter in what will be divulged. But it keeps the President’s staff busy and pulls it away from doing more damage. Even Karl Rove can only have so many meetings a day. If those are all about how to cover for the next round of congress subpoenas, some nasty stuff that was originally planned may well get pushed down the road.

But the bigger danger is Cheney and his shadow government. Is there any investigation touching his immediate realm? In his latest piece Seymour Hersh reported on a new Iran-Contra like effort led from Cheney’s office. Like Tom Engelhardt I wonder why nobody in the media seems to be on that trail.

Starting with the immediate response on 9.11, when Bush was on a plane and Cheney gave the orders, there are many Cheney issues that deserve some attention. The various committees in Congress certainly should put some effort there too.

In a heroic campaign, dubbed by the White House as Capture the Headlines, the U.S. administration has unveiled the collected confessions of Khalid Shaikh Mohammed.

Announcing the surrender of the Front Pages of the LA Times, the Washington Post and the New York Times as well as nearly every other news outlet the Pentagon spoke of a total victory not seen since battle in the Gulf of Tonkin.

As the LA Times stenographs:

In his 31-point statement, Mohammed claimed responsibility for a wide range of terrorist plots, including the 1993 attack on the World Trade Center; the 2002 bombings of nightclubs in Bali, Indonesia; and the so-called shoe-bomber plot to down U.S. airliners traveling across the Atlantic. He said he took part in plans to kill former Presidents Carter and Clinton, as well as the late Pope John Paul II.

The New York Times adds:

Mr. Mohammed also outlined a vast series of plots that were not completed. Among his targets, he said, were office buildings in Chicago, Los Angeles and New York; suspension bridges in New York; the New York Stock Exchange “and other financial targets after 9/11”; the Panama Canal; British landmarks including Big Ben; buildings in Israel; American embassies in Indonesia, Australia and Japan; Israeli embassies in India, Azerbaijan, the Philippines and Australia; airliners around the world; and nuclear power plants in the United States.

He said he managed “the cell for the production of biological weapons, such as anthrax and others, and following up on dirty-bomb operations on American soil.”

Mr. Mohammed also said that he had taken part in “surveying and financing for the assassination of several former American presidents, including President Carter.” He added that he was responsible for an assassination plot against President Clinton in the Philippines in 1994.

But Mr. Mohammed interrupted his representative to clarify that he was not solely responsible for a 1995 attempt on the life of Pope John Paul II during a visit to the Philippines.

“I was not responsible,” Mr. Mohammed said, “but share.”

The Washington Post, citing redacted parts of the confession, reports on self allegations of Mohammed’s involvement in the killing of John F. Kennedy and Abraham Lincoln.

Meanwhile Attorney General Gonzales was seen joining Karl Rove and other White House aides in what was announced to be an early celebration of a successful April fools’ day. "Getting one of the editors to swallow this stuff is easy and getting some is pretty normal. But we got all of them off the Justice Department trail with just one hoax. That’s pretty unprecedented and deserves some Champagne."

Sorry for not posting today. I am travelling, now on a thin modem line and have hardly kept up with the news.

Just one thing I wondered about. The European and East Asia markets went down some 2-3% earlier today. The Dow was down some 1.5.% at noon and threatened to fall further. But at 1pm without any reason it suddenly went up and closed +0.5%.

So I am wondering who called whom to achieve this.

Anyway – please use this as an open thread.

AIPAC wanted the Democrats to leave Bush’s hands unbound for an attack on Iran:

Hawkish pro-Israel lawmakers are pushing to strike a provision slated for the war spending bill that would, with some exceptions, require the president to seek congressional approval before using military force in Iran.

The influential American Israel Public Affairs Committee also is working to keep the language out, said an aide to a pro- Israel lawmaker.

At the recent AIPAC’s annual policy conference Olmert pushed for this:

"All of you who are concerned about the security and the future of the state of Israel understand the importance of strong American leadership addressing the Iranian threat and I’m sure that you will not hamper or restrain that strong leadership unnecessarily," Olmert said.

Israel’s foreign minister Livni and VP Cheney argued the same way:

Livni told participants at the Washington event that “impressions are important” in this region and added, “This is relevant concerning decisions on Iran, it is true regarding Iraq, and it is true throughout the Middle East.”
…
“It is simply not consistent for anyone to demand aggressive action against the menace posed by the Iranian regime while at the same time acquiescing in a retreat from Iraq that would leave our worst enemies dramatically emboldened and Israel’s best friend, the United States, dangerously weakened,” said Cheney.

The Democrats have deferred to the pressure from the Republican vice president and the premier and the foreign minister of a foreign country:
Democrats Won’t Hold Bush Back on Iran

Top U.S. House Democrats have frozen their attempt to limit President Bush’s authority to take military action against Iran.

Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and other members of the leadership decided on Monday to back down from presenting a requirement for Bush to gain approval from Congress before moving against Iran.

The Iraq resolution or amendment – if the Dems will ever be able to deliver one at all- has thereby lost its last tooth.

Can anyone think of less backbone in political leadership?

How many stocks of New Century did Bear Stearns sell between March 1st and today?

New Century upgraded at Bear Stearns – Mar 1, 2007

New Century Financial Corp. was upgraded Thursday by analysts at Bear Stearns, saying the risk of the subprime lender’s shares falling further is limited by the potential for an acquisition of the struggling business.

Shares of New Century were lifted to peer perform from underperform by Scott Coren and Michael Nannizzi at Bear Stearns.

The shares climbed almost 3% to $15.78 during afternoon trading Thursday.
…
If New Century is forced to sell itself or liquidate, the stock could still be worth $10 to $11, according to Coren and Nannizzi.

New Century Creditors Cut Funding – Mar 12, 2007

New Century Financial Corp. said Monday that all of its lenders have cut funding or announced their intent to halt financing after the subprime mortgage lender failed to make payments, pushing the company further toward bankruptcy.

…
New Century, which lends money to prospective home buyers who have poor credit histories, uses short-term borrowings to finance mortgage loan originations and purchases.

…
Its stock has been hammered by investors in recent weeks, falling from around $30 a month ago, to close Friday at $3.21 on the New York Stock Exchange. Shares plummeted $1.29, or 40.2 percent, to $1.92, in pre-market trading before trading was halted.

Socialism

Socialism is an economic system that requires public ownership and government control over the production of goods. Government is supposed to make decisions about what and how much to produce in an attempt to increase the common welfare. Socialism is common in most parts of the world outside of the United States.

Cont. reading: Fun with Conservapedia

It is known by now that the Justice Department has manipulated various issues for political gains. In most cases we know so far that these manipulations were used in elections and Republican power-politics. But common sense leads us to assume that we have so far only seen the tip of the iceberg.

The shameless political use of Justice’s power started to become obvious as early as December 2005. The Washington Post reported at that time:

Cont. reading: U.S. Attorney Scandal Is Just A Start

I like this idea:

TK told the mayor that the problem was not about parking meters and how to use them, it was about people parking their cars all day on the street. "Don’t use parking meters," he told the mayor. "Tell people they can park as long as they want for free, provided they keep their headlights on while the car is parked."

Other weekend news & views …

Mortar rain willing, there will be an international diplomatic conference in Baghdad tomorrow. Iraq, its immediate neighbors, Israel and the occupier will attend.

Some moderates have lauded this as a new approach and change in policy by the Cheney administration. But if this is serious diplomacy, we need a new word for comedy:

Cont. reading: Diplomatic Conference

The "surge" as it was announced did not look like a serious attempt. Some 21,500 troops for a few months, essentially early deployments or prolonged stays, and some movement from the provinces to Baghdad were announced. The "surge" was sold as a temporary measure because the U.S. public would not agree to any longer troop increase. Now the real surge comes to light bit by bit.

In Germany we call this Salami Taktik, cutting the resistance chop by chop. As one slice an extended timeframe has now been presented:

Cont. reading: The Surge 2.0

Condi Rice has hired a new counselor. The announcement was made on a Friday afternoon, the time that guarantees the least media resonance. As usual this tactic was successful and hardly any of the major news outlets did some analysis of this move.

To understand this move and why it may not be Rice’s man at all, a short look at recent foreign policy events is needed.

On February 8 Abu Abbas and Hamas announced an internal peace deal under the tutelage of Saudi King Abdullah. Cheney and his henchmen were pissed:  How the Saudis stole a march on the US

Cont. reading: Cheney’s New Consigliere

Incoming fire might be the feeling the administration has as finally some of its outrages are discussed in public.

The guilty verdict on Scooter Libby in four of five counts is probably the easiest issue. It will be appealed and whatever the outcome, at the end of the Bush presidency Scooter will get a pardon. The public effect was and is to demonstrate the administration’s lies and its coziness with the mainstream media.

More serious is the scandal just bubbling up over U.S. Attorneys being fired for doing their job. The hearing today at the Judiciary Committee  was quite devastating. (TPM Muckraker did some live blogging.) Of course the president can fire these attorneys who serve at his pleasure, but there were false statements about the reasons to do so. There were also illegal influence calls by Republican lawmakers plus intimidation and possible obstruction of justice by the Justice Department chief of staff. The story certainly has legs and as it is essentially non-partisan, the spin-masters will have problems to turn it around and to blame Democrats.

Another pending issue is the care for wounded GIs and veterans. The Walter Reed hospital story is only a start. A lot of local journalists all over the states will start to look into this and find some unsatisfied veterans who want to vent. Hiding the wounded in bureaucratic limbo will no longer be effective. Like the other issues above it is something that hurts the Republicans in their central constituency and it is an issue they cannot blame on anybody else.

The looming economic recession will add to the salvo.

All this may restrict the administration’s ability to commit more outrages. But the rising smoke from these impacts may also be used as diversion and enable the cabal to further its goals elsewhere while everyone looks at the headlines of the day instead of those of tomorrow.

At the Washington Post Karen DeYoung and Thomas E. Ricks are fretting about Bush not having Plan B for Iraq.

During a White House meeting last week, a group of governors asked President Bush and Marine Gen. Peter Pace, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, about their backup plan for Iraq. What would the administration do if its new strategy didn’t work?

The conclusion they took away, the governors later said, was that there is no Plan B.

Of course there is Plan B. Abort the Maliki goverment and start over with Allawi. 

But be careful of adverse reactions:

Common side effects associated with the use of Plan B^® included nausea, vomiting, stomach pain, tiredness, diarrhea, dizziness, torture pain, head-shots, and genocide charges.

News & views …

One could start a profession of running down the relations of the various U.S. financed  disinformation campaign entities. But unlike the millions spent on these, I have to keep doing it for fun.

A good start for such a run is always the British Telegraph. Today it has this story: Iran poised to strike in wealthy Gulf states:

Cont. reading: More Anti-Iran Propaganda