Rebutting the "no underlying crime" spin

Debate practice. The spin coming from the right that there was no underlying crime is laughable, but it needs to be countered. Offer up your best rebuttals in the comments. Here's some to get us started.

How is the prosecuter supposed to get to the underlying crime if he's being lied to? That's why they call it obstruction of justice. And if you believe in the rule of law, lying to a grand jury is not a "technicality."

If there's no underlying crime, why is Libby lying? It may be difficult to prove, but we all know Libby is lying to protect Cheney. As far as I'm concerned, either Cheney had to know she was covert, or he had to make it his business to know. The bottom line is the Vice President is involved in obscuring the true reasons they led the country into war. Is there any worse crime than this?

Quotes from Maureen Dowd on Leak Scandal

Some nice turns of phrase from Maureen Dowd:

"To protect a war spun from fantasy, the Bush team played dirty. Unfortunately for them, this time they Swift-boated an American whose job gave her legal protection from the business-as-usual smear campaign."

"This administration's grand schemes always end up as the opposite. Officials say they're promoting national security when they're hurting it; they say they're squelching terrorists when they're breeding them; they say they're bringing stability to Iraq when the country's imploding. (The U.S. announced five more military deaths yesterday.)

And the most dangerous opposite of all: W. was listening to a surrogate father he shouldn't have been listening to, and not listening to his real father, who deserved to be listened to."

A FORCE MORE POWERFUL | Global Events

Finally, a video game for Meta. From the Serbian resistance movement.

A FORCE MORE POWERFUL: "AFMP is the first and only game to teach the methods of influencing or changing the political environment using nonviolent methods. Destined for use by activists and leaders of nonviolent resistance and opposition movements, the game will also educate the media and general public on the potential of nonviolent action, and serve as a simulation tool for academic studies of nonviolent resistance."

VoteBluePA

From VoteBluePA

NN collecting signatures in Rittenhouse Square Saturday 10-15

If you want to get out and talk to some folks, Neighborhood Networks is collecting signatures in Rittenhouse Square for raising the minimum wage tomorrow from 8:30 am till the afternoon. They will be setting up on the west side of the square. Bring a clipboard and go for it. I think it's finally supposed to stop raining.

Romanesko

I thought the group would like to check out a new site I found that has some really interesting stories.


Romanesko, a new site for good news

Bush popularity keeps dropping

Bush popularity is below 40% overall, just 2% with African Americans!

Bush popularity keeps dropping: "The poll showed Bush's approval ratings dropping to 39%, the lowest of his presidency in the NBC/Journal surveys. Other polls have shown a similar decline with Bush's ratings falling below the 40% threshold in recent weeks.

Anxious about Bush's plunging poll numbers, Republicans in Congress have begun to break ranks and defied the White House on important issues.

The poll also revealed overwhelming opposition to Bush among African-Americans. Only two percent said they approved of his performance as president, the lowest level ever recorded in that category, NBC television reported."

The conservative crack up - Howard Fineman

The conservative crack up - Howard Fineman - MSNBC.com: "The “movement” – that began 50 years ago with the founding of Bill Buckley’s National Review; that had its coming of age in the Reagan Years; that reached its zenith with Bush’s victory in 2000 — is falling apart at the seams."

What's The Matter With What's The Matter With Kansas

What's The Matter With What's The Matter With Kansas: "In a fascinating paper called 'What's the Matter With What's the Matter with Kansas?', Princeton professor Larry Bartels uses data from National Election Study (NES) surveys to test Frank's thesis. He examines class-related patterns of issue preferences, partisanship, and voting over the past half-century. Bartels concludes that the white working class hasn't moved right and that 'moral values' are not pushing them to vote Republican."

At last, Democrats get a clue.

Well, at least from the perpective of the president of the Democratic Leadership Council: Considering the source, this does seem like a ray of light. The article contains a link to an interesting website brought to us by Andy Stern's SEIU - and if any of you win the "new idea" contest it is promoting, I want a cut.

WSJ.com - Bloggers Debate Miers

My reaction is I don't like Miers at all. She's not qualified and she's a Bush crony. I agree with the Liberal Oasis take. What is up with Harry Reid?

WSJ.com - Bloggers Debate Miers: "Here's a roundup of what bloggers and others are saying online."

Liberal Malcontents: Think Progress � Source to Stephanopoulos: President Bush Directly Involved In Leak Scandal

A nice little site that I thought would interest the group.

Think Progress � Source to Stephanopoulos: President Bush Directly Involved In Leak Scandal

Think Progress � Source to Stephanopoulos: President Bush Directly Involved In Leak Scandal: "Source to Stephanopoulos: President Bush Directly Involved In Leak Scandal"