Hey Fitz,Investigate This! DOJ Helps Texas GOP Gov. Cover Up Pedophiles At Youth Facility

[McCamy Taylor]

I. Yet Another Democratic Governor Accused of Soliciting Bribes for a Political Appointment---Now, Where Have I Heard That One Before?

Illinois’s Democratic Governor Rod Blagojevich is so corrupt that the Bush DOJ has had to investigate him for three solid years to finally come up with something to pin on him. His crime---he reportedly solicited bribes in exchange for a Senate appointment. This accusation from the same Injustice Department that swore that ex Alabama Governor Don Siegelman deserved to rot in jail, because he solicited bribes in exchange for a committee appointment. When the original federal indictment was filed, people at DU declared that Siegelman was “corrupt” and he had it coming.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x586874

That is because whenever the current DOJ indicts an enemy of the Bush State, the MSM portrays them as guilty until proven innocent.

I will not rehash the Siegelman case. We all know the truth now. However, once railroaded, it takes years and endless appeals to undo the harm the a few days of biased media coverage and a bunch of good little sheep Democrats can do.

Oh my! they exclaim, as one. He is bad enough to be a Republican! The party is better off without him! When was the last time I heard that one? Oh yes, last spring, when federal prosecutors in New York lied and claimed that Eliot Spitzer used public funds to pay a prostitute (he did not) and that they were contemplating Mann Act charges (they were not) in order to keep him silent about the real cause of the mortgage meltdown—which he had described in a Valentine’s Day Washington Post editorial. Details in my old journal here.

http://journals.democraticunderground.com/McCamy%20Taylor/324

Do I need to remind people at DU of the way that they bought the fed’s case against Spitzer, every silly detail? Though everyone knows that his father is a billionaire, the part about using public funds to pay for a call girl became accepted as gospel truth. Though no one is ever prosecuted on Mann Act charges anymore, people were counting up the years he would spend in federal prison. Because people did not like his style or his decisions in office, they were glad to see him targeted by the DOJ.

Guys, I realize that progressives have an anti-authority streak a mile wide. I have always assumed that was why the folks in California got rid of Davis and replaced him with Gov. Arnold---the man Ken Lay hand picked to represent Enron in the state it was price gouging. But if you are willing to toss your own Democratic elected officials into the bonfires of anarchy with such glee just to prove that the people are more powerful than their elected officials, all that you will be left with is the Tom Delays and David Vitters of this world, because they are the ones who will fight tooth and nail to stay in power despite their many crimes---and their base will keep voting them back into office.

No doubt some of these people who demanded Spitzer's immediate resignation--and withdrawal from public life despite his important message about the coming mortgage crisis---were trolls. But many more were DU regulars, who were all too ready to believe anything that they saw on TV or read in the newspaper---- or heard from the lips of one of the goons that works for the Bush-Cheney Department of Injustice. The same DOJ that ok’s torture and rubber stamps Voting Rights Act violating state legislation and never bothered to investigate what went down in Ohio 2004. Sure, Don Siegelman was railroaded, but Eliot Spitzer was really guilty of misuse of public funds. Chris Matthews said so.

Much has been made today of the identity of the federal prosecutor, as if Scooter Libby's guilt and Cheney's low approval ratings make the case against Gov. Blagojevich air tight. For many Democrats, the one shining star among the Bible College graduates at the Bush DOJ has been the pit bull, Patrick Fitzgerald. He does not tolerate criminal activity from anyone. He always gets his man.

How fortunate for the nation’s Republicans that his district is in the middle of Democratic territory. Model of virtue federal prosecutor Fitz described the crime of which the Illinois Governor has already been tried and convicted in the press as involving a “’staggering’ level of corruption”, according to Republican billionaire Sam Zell’s now bankrupt Chicago Tribune.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/chi-blagojevich,0,2326073.story

It is a good thing that Fitz has not been investigating criminal activity among the elected officials in Texas. What has been going on down here for the last eight years under Governor Rick Perry (R) would blow his mind. However, I do not think that Bush or Cheney would ever appoint someone like Fitz to oversee Republicans in Texas. The DOJ in Texas has a different job. Rather than stamping out crimes, those good ol' boys are entrusted with the task of covering them up.

II. Gov. Rick Perry (R) Accessory to Child Sexual Abuse in Texas, Where is the Federal Prosecution?

The Texas Youth Commission story is an extremely sordid one. Two high ranking officials at a facility for adolescents had been sexually abusing children for several years from 2002 to 2005. Complaints about their behavior to Austin had been ignored or covered up, until finally the Texas Rangers got involved and decided that there was enough evidence to prosecute. The two were fired. The case was handed to a local prosecutor, but then it was moved to the jurisdiction of a Bush DOJ federal prosecutor, who did nothing with it for a while before sending it back to the local prosecutor a year later. Meanwhile, one of the defendants had gotten another job supervising children. During all this time, every effort was made to keep a tight lid on the story to avoid embarrassing the Republican administration of Gov. Rick Perry in Austin. Perry was due to run for re-election in 2006, and he faced a challenge from the right this time.

http://www.texasobserver.org/article.php?aid=2428

In an article entitled “Texas Youth Commission: Why Did It Take Perry So Long To Act?” the author writes

Texas Governor Rick Perry, Lt. Governor David Dewhurst, and Texas House Speaker Tom Craddick all knew about the acts of sexual violence being perpetrated on youthful offenders at the Texas Youth Commission as early as last fall.
But none bothered to act until this week.

“This week” was after the 2006 elections, in which Perry won, just barely.

More:

Perry spokesman Ted Royer said the governor, the lieutenant governor and speaker were notified of the original investigation in 2005, but he said the results were given only to TYC.
If the results were only given to TYC but Perry, Craddick and Dewhurst knew about it, then why didn’t they do something? Perry could have directed the TYC governing board to conduct an inquiry. Any one of them could have established a Joint Select Committee of the Legislature to look into it. Any one of them could have picked up the phone and called the head of TYC and asked, “What the hell is going on down there?”
Snip

I can see Perry not being notified if, say, someone over at the Texas Building & Procurement Commission misplaced a case of paper clips, but the staff not notifying the governor (if that is the case) that there are allegations of sex abuse in a youth correctional facility is a dereliction of duty to the taxpayers of Texas, the children confined therein, and the justice system for it not to have been reported to the governor.
If, however, his staff reported it to Perry and he personally did nothing, then the fault lies with Governor Perry.
In an administration full of scandals and mini-scandals, this will stand out as one of the worst. Forget that he handed the Texas Legislature to Tom DeLay for half of 2003. Forget that he basically gave a utility company carte blanche to pollute Texas skies for generations to come. He stood by while children were sexually abused.
That these are incarcerated children doesn’t make it any better. The reason for the Texas Youth Commission is, primarily, to rehabilitate offenders—not send them out in to the world in a worse state than when they came in.
Once again, the Republican Administration has failed Texas.

http://capitolannex.com/2007/03/03/texas-youth-commission-why-did-it-take-perry-two-years-to-act/

Here is more info about how the federal prosecutors went from taking an interest in the case to deciding that there was no case and dumping it back in the lap of the local prosecutor after stalling.

http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=54861

In the Texas Youth Commission scandal, Texas Ranger official Burzynski received a July 28, 2005, letter from Bill Baumann, assistant U.S. attorney in Sutton's office, declining prosecution on the argument that under 18 U.S.C. Section 242, the government would have to demonstrate that the boys subjected to sexual abuse sustained "bodily injury." Baumann wrote that, "As you know, our interviews of the victims revealed that none sustained 'bodily injury.'"

The prosecutors at the DOJ decided that since the children did not sustain lasting injuries and since they did not resist, it did not count as rape. And never mind that the two defendants on the case had absolute power over when the youths could be released from the facility. There was no coercion involved---according to the Bush DOJ. Which meant that their civil rights were not violated.

How did the feds come to this conclusion?

"The U.S. attorney's office in Texas actually prepared indictments in this case," Angle told WND. "But when the word came from Washington, that's when Baumann wrote his letter declining prosecution. Sutton's office dropped the matter on the desk of the local district attorney, but nobody from Sutton's office said 'if you can’t go on this case, we'll help you out.'"

Snip

"If you read the letters from Sutton's office or from DOJ, it's really amazing what abuse they describe and then downplay as not being serious," Angle explained. "They describe systematic and widespread abuse of juveniles who were held in these facilities by the people who were administering these facilities, and they acknowledge this fully, yet they determine that the evidence is not sufficient to warrant federal prosecution."
snip
"The letters justify not pursuing these cases because, number one, there is no evidence that any of these juveniles felt physical pain while they were being assaulted, and the letters use the word 'assaulted,'" he said. "And then also, they rejected prosecution because none of these juveniles stated in the investigations that they resisted and objected, which of course the facts of the report show to be the case. This case developed right in the middle of Governor Perry's 2006 re-election campaign. While Texas is a Republican state, and the Republicans expected to win, still at that time, Governor Perry was facing an election challenge from Carole Strayhorn, a third party candidate who was also a former Republican comptroller in Texas."
He continued: "I would speculate that the political powers in Texas and Washington in the Republican Party were not interested in this sex scandal coming to light. Sutton and Gonzales let their political responsibilities outstrip their legal responsibilities, and as a result you had children who were in danger of sexual abuse and were left in that danger."

I hope you are getting all this. While Fitz was up in Chicago, spending three years investigating a Democratic governor, and while the FBI spent years investigating every single Black (Democratic ) politician in the Dallas, Texas city government, the Bush DOJ was covering-up child sexual abuse that had been committed in a Texas State institution by high ranking officials in order to help the re-election chances of the Republican governor . That same Republican governor did not send his own state Attorney General (a Republican) in to assist the local prosecutor to see that justice was done. Instead. he made sure to keep the whole thing as quiet as possible. Never mind that it meant that the two perps were free to carry on with their favorite activities. As long as he could run for re-election as a family values man that was all that mattered.

Fitz's "staggering" level of corruption just makes me laugh. When he indicts someone for condoning and covering up a pedophile ring being operated at a state youth facility because it is politically expedient, then I will believe that he has uncovered a "staggering" level of corruption. What I see right now is the start of Whitewater II. The Illinois Governor will be encouraged to name names----anyone. It does not have to be Obama. The person he names will be asked to name someone else. Soon Illinois will be the Arkansas of the 21st Century. Republicans will go on and on about how corrupt Chicago and Illinois are. They will talk about how Obama came out of a climate of corruption (no, that isn't acid rain). Every time a new person is indicted, the TV news pundits will spend hours analyzing how that person knows Obama. They will uncover dozens of pictures of that person with Obama (no way will they do any favors like they did for Bush and Abramoff). This game will be repeated so often that eventually the Republicans will demand a Special Prosecutor to "get to the bottom" of the Illinois affair. In the 2010 midterm elections, the Republicans will run on a platform of cleaning up Washington----

Anyone who can not see this, has not been paying attention.

P.S. Can anyone name for me just one prominent Republican official who has been taken down by a case built solely on a 1) wiretap 2) FBI sting 3) other case that had to be set up by the feds as opposed to walking into a men's room and accosting some guy in public or doing some other equally dumb shit that he should have known would have gotten him in trouble? I would love to hear about how the Bush DOJ is wiretapping the phones of our GOP governors and setting up stings of our Republican Congressmen.

[BeatleBoot]

1. Siegelman was on Tape?

Big difference.




:popcorn:

[hfojvt]

16. the tape sorta reminds me of what Senator Harkin said about Monicagate

He said it typically works that
a) a crime is committed
b) an investigation is done to determine who did it
c) that person, or persons, are then prosecuted

Blago was wiretapped for 8 months. For what purpose? What crime was being investigated? Not the one he is being charged with now which he only just committed in the last few weeks.

So why the open-ended warrant? Maybe that is typical of FBI investigations, which are not trying to find out "who did the crime" but rather trying to find out if "Suspect A" is a criminal. Aren't most of us criminals though? If the police followed me on an average day they would find out that I ran 6 stop signs while riding my bicycle on my way to work.

[ShortnFiery]

22. Excellent Point.

There but for the grace of God go I. We all sin and FITZ is NOT the second coming of "Eliott Ness."

[Radical Activist]

71. He was initially investigated for exactly what he got arrested for.

He was investigated for trading jobs, favors and state contracts in exchange for campaign contributions and personal rewards. That's what he was trying to do with the Senate seat too. They kept the investigation open to build a strong case and see who else they caught engaging in criminal behavior. This is a case where the crime came before the investigation. Its noting like a whitewater fishing expedition.

[NashVegas]

87. Are You Kidding? They ALL "trade jobs, favors and state contracts in exchange for campaign $$"

And we, the people, rubber stamp it every November.

Blago was merely stupid enough to say it in impolite terms.

[Radical Activist]

88. So you're OK with political corruption?

You don't understand. Blago took it to a whole other level. They don't all do it as blatantly as saying that you have to raise $50,000 for his campaign if you want to do any business with the state.

[NashVegas]

90. That's Because When You're In the Club, You Don't *Have* To Say It Out Loud

It's understood. You wouldn't have been allowed into the Club if you didn't know the rules going in. Blago's biggest crime is not being a Club member.

[Radical Activist]

91. hah no.

His father-in-law was an old time machine ward boss. Blagojevich was the club. The problem with Rod is arrogance. He thought he was above the law.

[Two Americas]

96. fishing expedition

It was a fishing expedition. Important point.

They target the person first, and then fish around until they come up with something that sounds sort of criminal or something.

[Octafish]

2. We live not in gangster times.

Thank you for another outstanding analysis, McCamy Taylor.

Didn't know about Rick Perry. What a turd. History will show that the entire Bush administration has been an uninterrupted obstruction of justice.

Something else that has become clear to all who take the time to learn: We live in NAZI times. And we have since November 22, 1963.

[Traveling_Home]

7. Not Gangster but Nazi - Sure - It's really "Lions and Tigers and Bears - oh my"

[spanone]

3. k&r

[mucifer]

4. Fitzgerald is working in IL TX is out of his jurisdiction, unfortunately

[ColbertWatcher]

5. It's not even about buying political appointments.

It's about using money to corrupt people's decisions/actions.

Like the way the GOP did with Iran-Contra.

But, that was so long ago and everyone involved was arrested, tried by a jury of their peers and everyone found guilty are still in prison.

[RB TexLa]

6. Northern Illinois is his US judicial district. It's not that he is "up there"

that is his assignment. He doesn't operate across the country unless investigating a crime in his district.

[sce56]

8. Why does this sound familiar?

The Franklin Coverup Scandal

The Child sex ring that reached Bush/Reagan Whitehouse


This was the biggest scandal in the history of the U.S.A history. The story received some newspaper coverage but there was a TV News Media blackout on the subject. For this reason, most Americans have never heard of it.

Former republican Senator John Decamp was involved in the production a documentary called "Conspiracy of Silence" it was to air May 3, 1994 on the Discovery Channel. This documentary exposed a network of religious leaders and Washington politicians who flew children to Washington D.C. for sex orgies. At the last minute before airing, unknown congressmen threatened the TV Cable industry with restrictive legislation if this documentary was aired.

Almost immediately, the rights to the documentary were purchased by unknown persons who had ordered all copies destroyed. A copy of this videotape was furnished anonymously to former Nebraska state senator and attorney John De Camp who made it available to retired F.B.I. chief, Ted L. Gunderson. While the video quality is not top grade, this tape is a blockbuster in what is revealed by the participants involved. You can purchase a VHS copy at this link. Or you can view an online copy at this page. Franklin Cover up video page

Boy prostitutes 15 years old (and younger) were taking midnight tours of the Whitehouse. There are 19 more Washington Times articles in full text about this case available here at this link.

[defendandprotect]

58. Terrific reminder.... I don't see the link ...?

Yes -- immediately reminded me of the Franklin Case which I wasn't aware

of until long after.

There were some others in Texas who had things like this in their background --


One of the Texas organizations used to report that story and how they were

still connected to Bush administration. It's the org started by former Gov.

Ann Richard's daughter. They fight mainly religious intrusions on Texas government.

[nadinbrzezinski]

9. Not his jurisdiction

you understand that, RIGHT?

[McCamy Taylor]

10. WHY is his jurisdiction a Democratic stronghold and good ol' boy Sutton's doing favors in Texas?

It makes a mockery of Fitz's statement that he has uncovered "shattering" levels of corruption when he well knows that his fellow attorneys at the DOJ are covering up much worse crimes such as pedophilia, torture, voter suppression, illegal rendition---all because it is politically expedient.

Just say that he caught the Illinois governor trying to get some money. Caroline Kennedy is up for consideration in NY because of the help her family gave Obama. That's quid pro quo, too, just of a slightly different kind. Do not try to make this case out as worse than it is---which is pretty petty compared to the high crimes and treasons of Bush-Cheney and Ashcroft, Gonzo and Mukasey.

Just watch. Before long they will be blaming the entire economic meltdown on the state of Illinois.

[nemo137]

17. Two things you're missing.

First, Blago was implicated in pay-for-play starting in his first term. He's been shady from the start. Second, this was about Blago trying to personally enrich himself by selling a seat in the U.S. Senate. Not appointing a legacy politician or a political ally, but trying to personally profit from his constitutional duties. He was charged by an attorney with oversight of one specific region (the same attorney, by the way, who brought down the also stunningly corrupt Republican governor George Ryan). You can try and tie this into the travesty that was the Siegleman case or a Texan pedophilia ring, but it doesn't quite work. Blago was stupid, venal and greedy, and trying to paint him as a martyr is a fool's errand.

[Raskolnik]

40. Because that's where he was appointed. That's also where he indicted & convicted a REPUBLICAN ex-gov

But I'm sure you knew that.

[nadinbrzezinski]

52. Because he is the Federal Prosecutor for the State of Illinois,

not Texas, where he has also convicted Republicans. In fact, the last feather in his cap is the Republican Gov that Blago replaced who is still seating in jail

You knew that, right?

[TexasObserver]

11. They only investigate those they want to bust.

[McCamy Taylor]

12. Yep, and like the Terminator, they never stop. Three f**king years. That's a vendetta.

[Radical Activist]

72. The investigation of the last Republican Governor by Fitzgerald was much longer.

He was a crook too. It's called being thorough.

[Ysabela]

13. Spot on analysis.

Your prediction for the Republican strategy for 2010 is very thought provoking. I can definitely see how Fox news is going to make it's living for the next couple years.

[pinto]

14. I see your big picture, I think, but is it effective to conflate a bunch of seperate

situations into a whole scenario?

I mean, Fitzgerald is prosecuting a case in his district. Seems to have a good case. Doubt he has much input in a Texas case or what's happening in NY politics.

[McCamy Taylor]

15. Are you really asking if it is necessary to see the big picture?

If we did not look at the big picture, Siegelman would look guilty, because a court found him that way and Vitter would look innocent, because he has never been charged, and Bush would look like someone who has been elected president twice rather than someone who stole two elections.

The little picture is what the TV shows us on the evening news. It is the prepackaged corporate spiel that helps sell dog food and it is all lies .

[pinto]

67. No. I'm asking if it's worth it to construct a big picture that may not be there.

Fitzgerald can't prosecute outside his jurisdiction. And I doubt he represents, or can act as, the broader federal judiciary system. Your post seemed to imply that he was somehow responsible for Texas cases.

When I mentioned the big picture, I was thinking you have a point to make about the justice system as a whole. Not Fitzgerald as one prosecutor, in one district. That might be a good discussion...

Thanks for your response.

[Jim Sagle]

68. Yes, a small truth can easily serve as a brick in a wall of big lies.

It's so discouraging to think about that, and it's a great service of you to make us do that thinking.

[timtom]

18. Astounding display of logic and intelligence!

The few posts of yours that I have seen are among the most remarkable I've ever seen here at DU.

This particular case hasn't grabbed my attention so much as others, primarily because I have only so much time and brain space. I'm not willing to dedicate research time to this just now. But what stands out is the alarming comparison to Whitewatergate. How many years of investigation? and all they could finally come up with was a lousy lying under oath charge?

But your call for reason and your focusing on the process is stellar. I personally don't know of the guilt or innocence of Gov. Blagojevich, but the timing and geographical proximity do seem noteworthy.

In the words of CCR, keep on chooglin'.

[CitizenPatriot]

19. from the bottom of my heart...thank you.

The fundy, partisan DoJ (guilty by Inspector Fineman - not just supposition) and the OCC corruption impact us in such a large degree, but we only see the end results.

I hardly think the OP was trying to make a martyr out of Blago. The point isn't that he's been targeted, but the point is WHY were they listening? Same question I asked re Spitzer yesterday. Gee, you have a DoJ already found guilty of partisan investigation of democrats, esp in election years. Guilty of leaking word of said investigation to press (also illegal). So you read "Gov so and so being investigated for---" and for all intents and purposed, person is deemed guilty. Witness the Siegleman case.

TO hear the reports yesterday, it sounded as if Blago had committed the worse crimes ever. As if he ignored a federal subpoena, thereby crapping on the very laws that make this a democracy (see Cheney, Rove, Palin, et al). He did not. He must have lied about WMD, killing thousands illegally. Nope. Ok, what then did he do? Did he build a house worth 500k with tax payer money, as it seems Palin did? Anyone wire-tapping her? Is anyone wire-tapping Cheney? Rove? Known criminals! The law only works if it is applied equally, regardless of party.

To ponder if Blago is guilty is not the same as to question the motives and fairness of the dept investigating him. A dept illegally staffed with fundy partisans and already found guilty of ongoing illegal investigations of democrats.

It looks as if there will be a special election and a Republican may take this seat.

The same people defending the DoJ on this one will be screaming bloody murder about our "weak" dems in congress not doing what they promised, never bothering to look under the surface to the corrosion of our constitution and 3 arms system. Never putting together that article they read about the DoJ with why their representatives don't vote for impeachment.

The * admin caused long term damage to our govt, which may or may not be able to be repaired. In time, it will come out that their violations at the DoJ and the way they cut off congress at the knees fundamentally changed this country's govt. The illegally appointed fundy lifers at the DoJ can not be gotten rid of, and * is just stacking the place a mile high before he leaves office. One of pol appointees is refusing to tender her resignation. People responsible for the horrific partisanship of our own dept of justice (!!) have simply "stepped down" and no one was punished. All systems a go for a Fundy take-over. Fascism, the flag and the bible...

meanwhile, good democrats eat their own, never looking beyond the headlines. Tinfoil hattery? Hardly. Fineman is a Republican. He found the DoJ guilty. It's a sad day when we know we can't rely on our justice dept to be impartial and a worse day when we crucify and buy into the msm meme that Blago committed the most stunning corruption ever seen. Please.

No one ever talks about the real corruption and scandal behind the 350,000 the RNC paid for Palin's clothes, which violated the McCain Fiengold Campaign Finance Act -- where's the "outrage"? That isn't corruption? So, corruption is defined by what the pundits tell us. But, we "think for ourselves". Where's the outrage over failure of our current president and his people to operate transparently? It's like THAT doesn't matter. It was OK for Palin to copy Bush and hide emails. None of that was an outrage, even though it clearly violates the way a democracy functions...and those very violations deconstruct the essence of democracy. That's not an outrage???

People will come back screaming about how Blago is guilty. I hear you screaming and I don't really care. Look beneath the surface or be quiet when your reps suddenly lose their spine. And why not use logic to determine that of the many cases brought forward against a Dem in the last 8 years, many of them didn't hold up later. Many of them were illegally done to influence an election. Maybe, just maybe, it's possible that there is more going on here than we see right now. Sure, it's been true in almost every other case since * took over -- but don't let that stop the naive wanderings down persecution before trial lane.

And no, I am not saying Blago is innocent. If that's all you get from this post, you missed the entire point.

[MinM]

20. So you're claiming that Blago is innocent?

Just kidding. Thanks to you , CitizenPatriot, McCamy Taylor, and others for giving some context to this story.


:kick: 'n R

[CitizenPatriot]

21. ha ha! When I read the subject line, I thought

either this person is super funny or a real moran:-)

Loved it!


:pals:

[The Backlash Cometh]

23. I think Fitzgerald needs to clean house in all the FBI agencies.

Just keep those who know where the bodies are buried and have been frustrated about going after the bad guys. Then start from the top and start cleaning up political corruption. You do that and you'll get the Mr. Bigs in the private sector, too.

[ShortnFiery]

24. You're assuming that Fitzgerald is "playing it straight." That assumption is not universal. eom

[The Backlash Cometh]

25. It's always good to have someone skeptical to keep everyone honest.

You can be that person, in this case. I need to start believing in someone, again.

[ShortnFiery]

26. How very "clear and classy" of you to note.

Thanks for putting a smile on my face and a re-focusing perspective on my base views.

Yes, I can be too morose.

I hope you have a beautiful day. :toast: :hi:

[The Backlash Cometh]

27. And you too.

:hug:

[bertman]

28. McCamy, I'm usually right with you on your threads, but this time I think you're off base.

If Blago did what they are accusing him of--and who could doubt it based on the arrogant SOB's own statements--he deserves what they are handing him.

This is certainly not the first time a Senatorial seat has been bought or sold, but thank Dog they got the asshole talking about it on tape.

For all of the Bush Justice Department's illegal bullshit over the past eight years I hate them, but this one sounds legit to me. I'm glad they busted the corrupt bastard. In my opinion, the timing is just fine. Maybe now we'll get a replacement who is more of a people's choice.

[McCamy Taylor]

29. I disagree. He does not deserve a full court press media perp walk for this that sullies Obama.

That was what yesterday was all about. Remember how we were told that Fitz keeps his cases close to the belt? He does not act like Ken Starr? He does not make a media circus?

You could have fooled me into thinking that Ken Starr was the prosecutor in this one yesterday. All the news coverage----and all the "How involved is Obama in this one?" The Republicans are already making hints that they will demand a deeper investigation into Obama's role.

Fitz dealt the new administration a terrible blow yesterday. Running to the press and proclaiming this the worst crime he has ever seen. All politicians do things that are unethical and a few do things that are illegal, and what the Illinois Governor did (if he really did it assuming that the evidence is not being misrepresented as it was in the Seigelman case) was small beans. Trying to make it genocide only illuminates the fundamental problems with this investigation and case.

And guys, before you call Fitz God for what he did in the Plame case, remember that the net result was Libby got a pardon and everyone else walked--and the nation got the impression that the Bush DOJ could police the Bush administration.

Now, about the case itself, it can not possibly be as cut and dried as Fitz claims. Every Governor who appoints someone to a position like this tries to select a politician who will support his own brand of politics. That means someone who will vote for the Governor's favorite charities, unions, companies, pet projects. That means someone who will help the Governor raise contributions from his usual donors, because they will be so pleased at how well the new Senator that the governor appointed is working out. For instance, if Boeing is THE company in your state, you will make sure that Boeing approves of the new Senator. That is not illegal. But, if you select the right Senator, you will get a little something extra in your stocking. If what the Governor was talking about was really solidifying his political capital and his fund raising potential by pleasing his base, then Fitz could lose this case----which may be why he is trying to try and convict the governor in the court of public opinion now.

"'I've got this thing and it's golden, and uh, uh, I'm just not giving it up for nothing,' he allegedly said."

If that is the best they have got----and why are they leaking it to the press?---that is open to way too many interpretations to win a conviction in court.

Though I enjoyed Fitz's prosecution of Libby, my gut tells me that this case is rushed, sloppy and most likely going to end up like the Spitzer one----with a resignation and no conviction. Even the issue of why he was being wiretapped could get the case thrown out on appeal. It is a political play designed to embarrass Obama, and Fitz should be ashamed of himself.

[mojowork_n]

31. Good thinking. Name recognition should be discounted if it walks like a duck, talks...

And on the Texas thing, I still can't get this part of your essay out of my head:

"...Bush DOJ was covering-up child sexual abuse that had been committed in a Texas State institution by high ranking officials in order to help the re-election chances of the Republican governor. That same Republican governor did not send his own state Attorney General (a Republican) in to assist the local prosecutor to see that justice was done. Instead. he made sure to keep the whole thing as quiet as possible. Never mind that it meant that the two perps were free to carry on with their favorite activities. As long as he could run for re-election as a family values man that was all that mattered..."

All of which begs the question, if the governor wanted to run for re-election as a "family values man," why would this have been suppressed for so long? Cui bono? Shutting down sexual abuse of children, should be good for the 'family values' image, one would think. It should even be worth a few votes, to be able to claim you did that.

So why was this, instead, suppressed? That link upthread with the .gif of the headline from the Washington newspaper might not be such old news.

[McCamy Taylor]

34. Because the Gov. appoints the people who head the Texas Youth Commission

and who had been looking the other way, failing to respond the allegations of abuse for two years before the Texas Rangers finally took action. If Perry did not have a right wing challenger, it would not have mattered. However, Stayhorn a Republican who ran as an Independent (and who happens to be former press secretary Scott McClellan's mother) was a big family values candidate who would have pilloried Perry for appointing the kind of people who cared more for nepotism and contracts and kickbacks than they did for the welfare of the children they were supposed to take care of. So, he buried the scandal for two years so she would not hear about it.

[mojowork_n]

63. Is that the way politics works in Texas?

"...If Perry did not have a right wing challenger, it would not have mattered..."

I understood that from the o.p. but it's still the part that makes little sense to me.

• A moderate, or a liberal -- or for that matter a Ron Paul Libertarian, or another Republican challenging during the primary -- couldn't have raised the issue?
  
• If the "family values" political trump card is the Big Ace in Texas politics, then why did Perry fail to play it himself, scapegoating one of his own appointee's in public, while making sure that the contracts and kickbacks continued, business as usual, through another arrangement?
  
• It suggests that the people who would have had to be 'sacrified' knew too much, about too many top players. (Who were those top players? Is anyone ever going to find out?)
  

I didn't know that was Barr Mclellan's 1st wife:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barr_McClellan

Scott Mclellan came around to endorse Obama. Maybe there's hope for Texas Republicans, yet.

[bertman]

35. I think we'll have to agree to disagree on this one. First, this should be a POSITIVE for PE Obama.

Blagojevish's statement that all he is willing to give is appreciation works totally in Obama's favor.

Perhaps Fitzgerald pulled the trigger quicker than he might normally have; however, considering that the outcome could have been a bought and sold U.S. Senator, I feel that the hustle by Blagojevich warranted immediate and swift intervention. For all of the howling we Democrats have been doing for the last eight years about corruption and government being bought and sold to the highest bidder, it's pretty amazing to me that some of us are now backpedaling when it's a high-ranking Dem who is only peripherally involved with the PE. Now, if PE Obama is implicated in this, that is a whole new can of worms that I don't want to open now.

It sounds to me like you are rationalizing Blagojevich's corrupt attempts at getting paid for the Senate seat to be just politics as usual. If that is the case, then I want Blagojevich prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. Then we should go after the rest of the government crew that thinks this is how our democracy works.

So, for me the importance of Senate seats not being available to the highest bidder is the ultimate question here. If Fitzgerald blows it in trial, well at least we stopped the initial transaction. And that has certainly put a lot of politicians on notice.

Of course, it will be up to the Obama administration to follow up on this.

[Radical Activist]

76. You have absolutely no fucking idea what you're talking about.

1) Fitzgerald released transcripts which make it clear that Obama did nothing wrong. Why would he do that if he was out to get Obama? He could have easily held back the quotes exonerating Obama.

2) Fitzgerald repeatedly said Obama was not a suspect or under investigation. Why would he do that if this was a Republican conspiracy?

3) There's a shitpile more evidence for many other crimes than the one line you quoted . Look into the allegations. Do some more research than what you saw on the news. Rod is a huge crook.

4) Fitzgerald also prosecuted former Republican Governor George Ryan. If he had been in Texas then the guy you're complaining about would probably be in jail. Just because they have a lousy Governor in Texas doesn't mean those of us in Illinois should have to suffer under a crooked Governor too.

5) Texas has a completely different prosecutor who has nothing to do with Fitzgerald. Texas may have an asshat prosecutor in Bush's pocket but that doesn't mean the same is true of Fitzgerald.

6) They HAD to do full press coverage. If they arrested him without a public statement just imagine the outcry of people asking what he was arrested for. Even with all the very clear and obvious evidence against him we still have a few people like you who would rather concoct conspiracy theories than accept the plain truth.

7) Democratic Senator Dick Durbin just asked Fitzgerald to be reappointed last month because he wanted Fitzgerald to continue the investigations.

[pberq]

30. Bank of America issue

http://www.democracynow.org/2008/12/9/headlines

Illinois Cuts Ties to Bank of America Over Plant Closing

A sit-in at a closed Chicago factory has entered its fifth day as laid off union workers refuse to leave until the plant is reopened or they receive severance pay and accrued vacation time. The Republic Windows and Door factory closed last week after Bank of America cut off the company’s line of credit. The factory owners gave workers just three days of notice of the plant’s closure. Many of the plant’s 250 union workers have been occupying the plant since Friday. The laid-off workers are members of the United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers of America Local 1110. On Monday, Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich ordered state agencies to stop doing business with Bank of America until it uses some of its federal bailout money to keep the factory open.

Rod Blagojevich: “So unless and until they do that, we, the state of Illinois, will suspend doing any business with the Bank of America, and we hope that this kind of leverage and pressure will encourage the Bank of America to do the right thing for this business, take some of that federal tax money that they’ve received and invest it by providing the necessary credit to this company so these workers can keep their jobs.”

Political leaders on the Chicago City Council and in Cook County threatened similar actions against Bank of America.

[McCamy Taylor]

32. Is this an attempt to steal a Senate seat for the GOP?

This just gets worse and worse. Even though all we have is a paper thin indictment, now the word is that the Illinois legislature is going to rush to change the process so that there will be a special election in February. That way, Obama will not be able to suggest someone with whom he can work in the Senate. Since special elections have low turn out, they almost always favor Republicans---meaning that there is an excellent chance that this will allow the GOP to increase their filibuster potential in the Senate. All because Fitz filed a last minute indictment and paraded it in front of the press.

And worse yet, Fitz has sullied the name of Jesse Jackson Jr. by declaring that an "emissary" offered a million dollars for the Senate seat (but Jackson is not under indictment). WTF? For all we know, this was just the Gov. making up shit to try to get someone else to offer money. Or it was just some third party making something up. But by making this public, Fitz and the Bish administration have ensured that one candidate with the name recognition to win a special election can not run.

Will every Democrat who has a snowball's chance in hell of being Senator find himself named in this case?

The Illinois legislature needs to think long and hard about holding a special election since that may be exactly what they are being manipulated into doing. Instead, how about a bill that allows the Lt. Gov. to choose if the Gov. is under indictment or ill or has a conflict of interest?

[Jim Sagle]

78. It's a LOT worse than that, McCamy. Fitz doesn't even HAVE an indictment yet.

He filed "charges" (whatever that means), rousted the governor from his home at 6 AM as if he were just another Democrat dope dealer, and started yammering away on the teebee the very same day. From the press conference transcript as printed in the New York Times (bolding emphasis mine):

Justice Department Briefing on Blagojevich Investigation

Published: December 9, 2008

(Page 13 of 13)

<snip>

QUESTION: You spoke very directly about why these indictments had to come now.

Conversely, given the fact that all this is now out in the open, is it possible that anyone appointed to the Senate seat by Governor Blagojevich could do so and take office without there being a cloud over his or her head?

MR. FITZGERALD: First of all, there's not an indictment, realize. It's a complaint. So I don't want people to understand it's an indictment. We filed a criminal complaint.

And I'm not getting into where things stand in the Senate seat, other than that we've -- there's an ugly episode that we've aired. We've brought charges, will proceed, and the public discourse will go its way without our guidance.

And why the HUGE rush? Fitz told us why at the very beginning of the press conference:

MR. FITZGERALD: Good morning. Joining me is, to my far right, is Rob Grant, the special agent in charge for the FBI office here in Chicago. To his left is Al Patton , the special agent in charge of the IRS Criminal Investigative Division. And to his left is Tom Brady, the inspector in charge for the Postal Inspection Service in Chicago.

Behind me, to my left, are Cary Hamilton (ph), Reed Sharp (ph) and Chris Neewanner (ph), assistant U.S. attorneys.

This is a sad day for government. It's a very sad day for Illinois government. Governor Blagojevich has taken us to a truly new low.

Governor Blagojevich has been arrested in the middle of what we can only describe as a political corruption crime spree. We acted to stop that crime spree.

Yeah.

Right.

He made it sound as if Blago was running a cannibalism ring out of his office.

Exaggerate much, Fitz?

[onenote]

33. when did fitz get jurisdiction over acts occurring in Texas?

Oh, wait, he didn't. Nice red herring.

[McCamy Taylor]

36. When did soliciting favors become the worst corruption ever?

Never. But it makes the TV news pundits sit up and take notice, so that they are more likely to broadcast your story 24-7.

[onenote]

38. still a red herring to suggest that fitrz shouldn't prosecute acts occuring in his jurisdiction

because others aren't prosecuting acts in their jurisdiction.

[Raskolnik]

39. Soliciting "favors!?" Why haven't you even bothered to read the complaint?

Do yourself a favor and read it. We're not talking about "favors," we're talking about corruption of the most base, venal sort.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/media/acrobat/2008-12/43789434.pdf

[blondeatlast]

41. Jurisdiction? Are you having a problem with that concept? Perhaps I can cut and paste

something together for you... :shrug:

[McCamy Taylor]

44. Can you understand sarcasm or do I need to find a reference?

The point of this OP is that Fitz managed to get the entire news media focused on Illinois and the new GOP talking point du jour by declaring that Illinois is the site of the most shattering political corruption in the world . This was an out and out lie as I have proved with my OP. In fact, Texas is a worse state, and the Bush DOJ is the most corrupt political body in the land.

I am not actually calling upon Fitz to launch an investigation in Texas. I am calling upon everyone to consider what he said in the broader reality of the corruption that has run rampant in America.

[Raskolnik]

50. Could you please point out where Fitzgerald said this was the "most shattering political corruption"

"in the world?"

Thanks.

[TankLV]

77. Watch the video of the press release from Fitzgerald...

he effectively said "that if this wasn't the worst case of corruption in the history of the country, then it surely must be in the top tier" to paraphrase what he said...

I'm sure it's on one of the networks video archives from last nite or this morning...I saw it over and over and over on CNN...

[Raskolnik]

85. I listened it, and I agree with what Fitzgerald said. He did NOT say that

this was the most earth-shattering corruption in the history of the world.

[Jim Sagle]

95. Did you see quotes around McCamy's original phrase? Me neither.

Guess what THAT means? It means it wasn't intended as a direct quote.

Case dismissed.

[TankLV]

100. not "world" - "country" is what he said...

the worst case of corruption in the history of the country, if not in the top tier...

[Jim Sagle]

81. See comment 78 for some of what he said.

[Raskolnik]

86. I know what he said, and he didn't say what the poster said he did. n/t

[Jim Sagle]

92. There's no substantive difference. Who ya crappin'?

[Raskolnik]

93. If you really think there is no substantive difference, then you hold an unreasonable opinion.

Fitzerald said nothing approaching the hyperbole that this was the "most shattering political corruption in the world."

The poster was talking out of his ass about things he hasn't bothered to learn about. Don't let his nonsense pull you in.

[Raskolnik]

45. But why didn't Fitzgerald prosecuteTed Stevens or Jack Abramhoff!?

Let's see how you and your two-dollar words like "jurisdiction" explain *that*, smart-guy.

[defendandprotect]

60. Yep --- so true --!! And probably pardons in offing --

[Raskolnik]

84. I sincerely didn't think that a sarcasm tag was necessary, but apparently I was wrong.

Wow.

[defendandprotect]

98. Responded to wrong msg -- a few have same tag --

And in regard to your comment, I'll agree with another poster's comment --

when did fitz get jurisdiction over acts occurring in Texas?

Seems Fitz works kind of "at large" -- but would also suggest he's looking

for GOP forgiveness for "Scooter" case ... which they probably wanted to get

under the wire anyway so a Presidential forgiveness could still be lodged.


The question remains, if Governor's sins were only captured on tape a few

weeks ago, why was the investigation begun years ago??

The harassment of Democratic Governors seems obvious ...


THIS administration is the most criminal ever hatched --

If Fitzpatrick had spent two years taping Bush, Cheney, Rumsfeld and a few of the

Supremes, they'd probably ALL be in jail -- permanently--!!!

[Raskolnik]

37. You spent all that time cutting, pasting, and writing an OP, but you don't even bother

to learn about the actual *facts* of this investigation.

But why let something like the facts get in the way of your knee-jerk response, right?

[McCamy Taylor]

42. You mean the Illinois one? I know they have been fishing for 3 years, endless wiretap

and they finally got him asking for something, but I will be damned if I can tell what it was. I know that they accuse him of several other charges, but none of them rise to the level of the earth shattering importance that Fitz claimed yesterday---not if you compare them to what went down in Texas. Or compared to lying about WMDs so that 4000 of our troops could die and a million Iraqis could die and not compared to torture and to illegal wiretaps and to the DOJs own partisan prosecutions.


Fitz works for the most criminal organization in the country and he can go on TV and tell the public with a straight face that he was shocked, absolutely shocked by what he found in Illinois. He is trying to do to Illinois---and Obama---what they did to Arkansas and the Clintons. People who can not see that are blind.

[Raskolnik]

43. If you can't understand what these charges are, or why they are serious, that is a personal failing

on your part that I wouldn't brag about if I were you.

This is part of the same investigation that (rightfully) convicted Rezko and exposed his circle of cronies. This is part of the same investigation that has been slowly and consistenly tightening the noose around corruption in the Illinois governor's office.

If you can't understand what this criminal complaint alleges Blago did, and/or you don't think it rises to the level of blatant, unforgiveable corruption, then you need to have someone sit down with you and go through the complaint paragraph by paragraph.

[McCamy Taylor]

47. "The crow wished everything was black, The owl that everything was white"

Somewhere in the middle, lies the truth. The Governor may or may not be guilty of criminal actions. A court will decide. He is innocent until proven guilty. That is the law of the land, and I always follow the law of the land.

The press has declared that he is guilty (which they always do), and Fitz has declared that he is guilty of the most "shattering" corruption ever, which is unforgivably hyperbole coming from a federal prosecutor in a case which he knew would be associated in the public mind with the president-elect. Why is Fitz out to get Obama? For this was clearly an attack on the president-elect. Fitz's style is to keep quiet. Yesterday, he broke his own rule. He talked. He knew that in talking and in saying what he did, he would turn a smallish story huge. When this small story turned huge, it would become even more of a nightmare for Obama.

I do not trust Fitz in this case. I worry that he is angry because Obama is now beyond his reach, and so he is trying to get at him through indirect means.

[Raskolnik]

49. If Fitzgerald was "out to get Obama" do you think he would have cut off the investigation

at a point that *exonerates* Obama? Obama and his staff come out of this complaint looking nearly incorruptable. If Fitzgerald had charged Blago right before the election, it would have been much worse for Obama. If Fitzgerald was on a fishing expedition against Obama, he would have let the wiretaps continue until appointment. All of those facts point indicate that Fitzgerald was not "out to get" Obama in any way whatsoever.

What you're saying just doesn't square with the known facts. What you're saying only confirms what you want to believe.

[grantcart]

54. Your reply is squarely on point

Fitzgerald did everyone a favor by pulling the plug now rather than letting it disassemble further with someone trying to play ball with Blago. Some independent person could have entered the scene and attempting to help Obama made it appear that Obama was trying to influence his replacement.

By arresting Blago at this point Fitzgerald created a fence protecting others who might have been weak minded or undisciplined and fell into the sinkhole.

Federal Prosecutors would rather investigations go on and on so that they can a) build up huge mountains of evidence and slam dunk verdicts - there success rate is 99% b)catch more people in the web. Fitzpatrick did us a favor.

The OP ties every corrupt Democrat prosecution into a thin web of conspiracy but somehow is unable to process facts like the prosecution of Duke Cunningham by a Republican Prosecutor, or the firings of Republican Prosecutors by the DOJ for not playing political ball.

The fact is that there are many independent professional prosecutors who play it by the book whether they were appointed by Republicans or Democrats.

[TankLV]

80. No - YOU don't understand the point the OP is trying to make.

The OP is in no way trying to excuse or otherwise minimize what Blago did. In fact he clearly states so.

What you are refusing to see is a PATTERN of EXCESSIVE OUTRAGE and CONCERN for "laws" and "proper conduct" and "investigations" when DEMOCRATS are involved - even when they are not even a part of the investigation dujour, but amazingly and "coincidentally" yawn, and GO OUT OF THEIR WAY to excuse, ignore, downplay WORSE actions on the part of REPUKES when they are in power!

It is the PATTERN.

bush* and his fellow WAR CRIMINALS, if they are even questioned at all, are given excuse after excuse for "misstatements" and "lets not use this for finding fault" or "we will look into that "later" - now is not the time for "partisan witchhunts"...

And don't ever forget, not only were the Clintons found "not guilty" of ANY wrong doing in "whitewatergate" - the prosecutor in the case was forced to admit that, in fact, the Clintons were EXHONERATED and actually PROVED INNOCENT of all the slime and trumped up charges that the REPUKES tried to bring against them when the investigations were concluded - but only after EIGHT YEARS of dragging the Clinton's good name thru the mud...!!!

And what the OP is trying to impart on us all, is that this is just the FIRST SALVO in the beginning WAR on OBAMA and his presidency - before it's even begun! just like happened with the Clintons! No sooner had the elections been completed in 92, that the rumour machine and witchhunts begun JUST LIKE NOW!!!

[Raskolnik]

83. If this was the "FIRST SALVO" in the "WAR on OBAMA," why did Fitzgerald stop

the investigation at a point that *exonerates* Obama?

If Fitzgerald was out to damage Obama politically, he would have moved just before the election, which would have been a large problem for Obama regardless of whether he was implicated. If Fitzgerald was out to get Obama, he would have kept the wiretaps going until someone in Obama's team said something that could be interpreted as knowledge of Blago's activities, then imputed that knowledge to Obama.

So why did Fitzgerald conduct this investigation and filing of the complaint in such a way to (relatively) benefit Obama?

Could you explain that, please?

[madrchsod]

64. selling the seat to the us senate is`t important? wow.....

now that we have a new sheriff in town you`ll have your investigation into texas.

selling the senate seat pretty dam important to us and the country. to us our senator selection was corrupted given the climate there is no guarantee that a democrat will be elected. that means the senate could have one less democrat. that`s why it`s a big fucking deal.

he works for the mot criminal organization in the country? i do not see what he`s doing? wow you really assume a lot about me do`t you.

what i see is someone who cleaned up the republican`s and now the democrat`s corruption. i`ve seen him throw some of the worse street gang leaders and members of the most vicious drug cartels in northern illinois. i `ve seen him take on the aryan nation , conrad black and other guys like rezko.

by the way obama is letting him stay in northern illinois....to take on the corrupt daley machine.

i lived in this state for 62 years so i do have some idea what i`m talking about.

[terrya]

46. Maybe Fitzgerald can somehow travel back in time to prosecute people from the past.

Richard Nixon and Watergate.

Perhaps Fitzgerald can set the way back machine to 1923 and prosecute Teapot Dome.

[McCamy Taylor]

48. Maybe he can issue indictments and not get on TV and act like he has caught Judas.

[Missy Vixen]

89. I hate to break this to you

but I hardly think Patrick Fitzgerald or his representatives called the media. They issued a press release. Even if you don't, national media knows this is a huge story, and wanted to cover it as a result.

Patrick Fitzgerald is one of the last people who would think TV attention was a good thing.

Julie

[madrchsod]

65. lol.....grant`s administration! remember grant lived in illinois-lol

[noonwitch]

51. It is very difficult to prove any type of abuse in a juvenile delinquency program

I'm not justifying abuse of delinquent kids, I'm just saying it's hard to prove it. I used to be a delinquency worker. Kids get into fights and end up getting injured when the staff is trying to break it up. Kids make up stories sometimes about sexual abuse because they think they'll get out of the place quicker-this makes it harder for the kids who are sexually abused in juvie to be able to prove it.

I'm not saying that no one should look into this, but I'm saying it's hard to prove.

[Erin Elizabeth]

53. Oh no. Are you one of those people who think Democrats are

all as pure as the driven snow, wonderful perfect angels who never do wrong? Are they all saints?

Every group has its bad apples. I'd rather find out who the hell they are and get 'em out of my party and where ever they belong--Republican party, prison, whatever.

Selling a Senate seat is wrong. Why is that so hard to understand?

[McCamy Taylor]

55. Innocent until proven guilty. What is so hard about that to understand?

[Erin Elizabeth]

56. Yeah, der. Which is why there have been *charges filed.*

I don't see anywhere that they have skipped steps in the usual process. Can you point out where steps have been skipped?

[blondeatlast]

57. Do you hold GWB and Dick Cheney to the same standard?

So you believe they are innocent? To my knowledge, there really aren't any charges against them.

Or can I still opine that they are guilty as hell of war crimes (for which they have yet to be charged)?

I hate corruption and unless Blago was playing an enormous practical joke, I can still presume he's innocent while stating I think he's guilty as hell of corruption, stupidity, and arrogance.

What, pray tell, is the difference here?

[mondo joe]

75. He deserves the benefit of the doubt in his trial. But everyone is free to form an opnion.

Mine is that he's crooked, so I wouldn't be a good person to sit on his jury.

[defendandprotect]

59. Agree with you ...

I didn't even know they were suggesting he used public funds --!!

But DU gets very up tight about these reflections on party ...

and they tend to make haste for exit.

Spitzer was obviously not intended to reach Governorship - and this was

the solution -- after he led other Governors to intercede to prevent

mortgage crisis -- and Prez Bush broke that up--

This is criminal Texas at work, tho happy to see that quite a few tried to intercede

on behalf of the victims --

The prosecutors at the DOJ decided that since the children did not sustain lasting injuries and since they did not resist, it did not count as rape. And never mind that the two defendants on the case had absolute power over when the youths could be released from the facility. There was no coercion involved---according to the Bush DOJ. Which meant that their civil rights were not violated.

And, as someone else points out below, reminiscent of Franklin Case --

and at least one other case I've heard about in Texas.

Sorry I don't know, but how did Dems do in Texas this past ekection ...??

Richards was a Democrat ... and wonder if this is really election stealing --???

[McCamy Taylor]

61. Texas is controlled by fraudulent e-voting now. In the past, Dems did ok, but

they have a hard time except in the major cities now. Until these e-vote machines are taken out, the GOP will rule here. Bush beat Richards because dumb as shit Texans thought he was his dad. Recall that W. lost New Hampshire in 2000 when he dad campaigned for him---it was clear he was the Jr. When they took his dad off the campaign trail he started winning. Idiot Republicans started voting thinking it was Bush Sr. No one ever talks about that, but it is true. There are a lot of really ignorant people who vote Republican especially in the South.

[defendandprotect]

66. The r-w propaganda works very well to confuse voters ...

So --- I'm taking it you think Texas may get a little blue .... or better.

We have to get rid of the e-vote machines -- everywhere--!!

These steals have been going on since they killed JFK -- right afterwards

they started to bring in the large computer counters used by media to report

the vote. Two journalists noticed the frequent breakdowns and when they were

running again the odd jumps for unfavored candidates and the odd drops for

predicted favorites. They began to investigate.

http://www.constitution.org/vote/votescam__.htm

[McCamy Taylor]

62. Pat Buchanan "Obama has a serious problem...."

"These are the questions the press ought to be asking Obama, because everyone will be walking into a Grand Jury."

Someone just try to claim that the Bush administration and Mukasey did not foresee this on Sunday night.

"They are tainted... they are supposed to report that to the U.S. attorney" And then he compares them to Nixon and says that Obama and Axelrod did the same thing as Nixon.

[Radical Activist]

73. So the fuck what?

Of course Republicans will do that. It doesn't mean that Blagojevich is innocent or that it was a big conspiracy.

[ColbertWatcher]

69. Sheila Jackson Lee already put that in the Congressional Record, when ...

... she questioned Speedy.



http://cspan.org/Watch/watch.aspx?MediaId=HP-A-6410

Starting at about 00:02:40

[Radical Activist]

70. I won't accept a complete crook as my Governor just because there's a "D" next to his name.

You're no different than the Republicans who still support Bush because they're blind party loyalists. You're making a fool of yourself and I have to wonder if some of the people defending Blagojevich are trolls trying to make Democrats look bad. There's nothing Illinois Republicans want more than for Democrats to defend Blagojevich and sink down with him.

I'll give you another case where someone was arrested by the FBI and taken down by a federal investigation: Illinois REPUBLICAN Governor George Ryan. You know who investigated that case? Patrick Fitzgerald. That wrecks your conspiracy theory.

The fact that Republicans in Texas are getting away with things doesn't make Blagojevich innocent and it doesn't mean Illinois should have to suffer under a mentally imbalanced crook. Two wrongs don't make a right.

You have no idea what you're talking about and you should stop now before you make a bigger ass of yourself. The fact that no Illinois Democrat is defending Blagojevich should tell you something.

[mondo joe]

74. Not Fitz's business. And I have no desire to tolerate crooks in the Democratic party.

He deserves a fair trial, and should be dealt with appropriately if guilty.

[defendandprotect]

99. Agree on both points ...

[rvablue]

79. U.S. Attorneys work by district....he wouldn't have the authority even if he did want to investigate

[bevoette]

82. You're wrong about TYC...I worked there in Austin for 25+ years.

I left just 18 months ago, in the middle of the "scandal".

What happened to TYC was not nearly that complicated.

John Whitmire (D-Houston), one of the most powerful men in the TX senate, also knew, as did his entire committee on criminal justice. They were informed, on video, of the allegations and investigation when it happened. They couldn't be bothered (nor could the governor).

There was no coverup. The allegations were found TRUE by internal investigation, the staff was disciplined, and the case turned over for prosecution.

The ineptness of TYC's leadership combined with regular 'old-school' Texas politics led to the "scandal".


It's a fucking depressing story :(

[brindis_desala]

94. McCamy you do not need to try this hard to convince me this

tempest in a teapot stinks. It astonishes me how naive many passionate Democrats are about just how corrupt and corrosive U.S. politics has become. There are no good guys in this story only them and us and quicker we understand the "media rules" (pun intended), the more effective the netroots will become.

[Two Americas]

97. our man Fitz

Why,"I'd have his baby."

Time for a bed time story...

Our fearless and courageous crime-buster and champion for the American way has been on a mission to stop corruption.

He searched everywhere for corruption, tirelessly, digging and digging, with all of the resources and the full police state powers of the federal government behind him. He looked at the Bush administration real hard, for months and months. But try as he might, he just couldn't seem to find much corruption there. Guess they are squeaky clean after all. Guess those pinko libruls were wrong.

But,he kept looking and what did he find? Why, an unpopular and very unfashionable politician from the other party, right from the very state that the new president is from - in fact, pretty close to him all and all. The very guy who was about to appoint someone to the now vacant seat of the president elect! What a coincidence!

So he set the g-men to work, wire-tapping and taping and taping and taping, but they just couldn't get the mark to say very much that was incriminating. But time was running out! They needed some creative writing to cobble up an indictment, and a strong public relations campaign to pull this one off.

Fitz and his men burned the midnight oil night after night. Finally they decided to gamble. "Hell if we write out a long double talk document with a lot of obfuscation and legalese, hold a press conference and keep pounding on the theme of what a sleazy character the guy is... Most people are such obedient and compliant little things when it comes to serious faced federal law enforcement making sober pronuncements - with a straight face! Hear me? Everybody! Practice your serious look and tone of voice! - that they will go along with it no matter how little there is to it. Of course we will have to skip the Grand Jury...that could blow the lid off of this. OK, boys, I think we can pull this off."

Go to sleep now, children. Sweet dreams.