Jane Hamsher and Grover Norquist: Two great tastes that taste great together!

[Teaser]

You got your lefty in my wingnut! No, you got your wingnut in my lefty!




http://firedoglake.com/2009/12/23/jane-hamsher-grover-norquist-call-for-rahm-emmanuel%e2%80%99s-resignation

Today, Grover Norquist and I are calling for an investigation into Rahm Emanuel’s activities at Freddie Mac, and the White House’s blocking of an Inspector General who would look into it. The letter follows:

We write to demand an immediate investigation into the activities of White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel. We believe there is an abundant public record which establishes that the actions of the White House have blocked any investigation into his activities while on the board of Freddie Mac from 2000-2001, and facilitated the cover up of potential malfeasance until the 10-year statute of limitations has run out.

The purpose of this letter is to connect the dots to establish both the conduct of Mr. Emanuel and those working with him to thwart inquiry, and to support your acting speedily so that the statute of limitations does not run out before the Justice Department is able to empanel a grand jury.

The New York Times reports that the administration is negotiating to double the commitments to Fannie and Freddie for a total of $800 billion by December 31, in order to avoid the congressional approval that would be needed after that date. But there currently is no Inspector General exercising independent oversight of these entities. Acting Inspector General Ed Kelly was stripped of his authority earlier this year by the Justice Department, relying on a loophole in a bill Mr. Emanuel cosponsored and pushed through Congress shortly before he left for the White House. This effectively ended Mr. Kelly’s investigation into what happened at Fannie and Freddie.

[Prism]

1. Still not as vile as Obama and Warren

I mean, just on the scale of actual importance, power, and influence. Blogger and conservative hack vs. President and one of the most prominent Christians. Is this a contest?

But I realize Hamsher is this week's Must Be Destroyed.

Carry on.

[Teaser]

7. Destroyed? Destroyed? Are you kidding? I love her.

She is my FAVORITE REALITY SHOW!

She is better than "Flavor of Love!"

It's getting harder and harder to wait for this weeks wacky stunt!

[ClarkUSA]

2. She has really jumped the shark. Her bitter sore loserdom has driven her over the edge...

... into political insanity.

Was she always such an attention whore?

[Cha]

10. This DKos link is quite revealing on

hamsher's vulgar history. I found this particulary revealing..

"The google is good. I found her critique of Carolyn Kennedy, a woman I admire for her quiet work here in NY vis a vis inner city education.

She said of Caroline:

It seems Caroline Kennedy has decided she’d rather have a US Senate seat than a pony for Christmas<...> Really? She’s "making calls this morning to alert political figures to her interest?" I guess it was either that or get her nails done."

"Nice, real sisterly solidarity."

http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2009/12/20/817242/-Update-2:-Sorry-Miz-Jane-Hamsher.-No

She and grover can freakin' go down the bathtub drain together if she's still around after "Marching With The Teabaggers" off a cliff.

[ClarkUSA]

11. She never got over the primaries and is as much of an attention whore as Arianna Huffington.

Bet it's all about website hits (which translates into more ad $$ charged) and TV appearances at this point.

We have her number but boy, doesn't she have her fans among the alleged "progressives" here at DU? I mean
those screeching purists who don't seem to mind her Faux News shilling and Grover Norquist slumming but
mindlessly equate Obama with Bush 24/7 in their Eternally Bitter Outrage? Fucking hypocrites.

[Cha]

14. The hypocricy and ignorance is astounding

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=389&topic_id=7303823&mesg_id=7303857

Another poster who has hamsher's number..

"I'm guessing this post will be unrecced into oblivion and trashed by the Hamsherites, and you know what? I don't care, because you won too. You just don't know it yet because you have put your faith in people who have been lying to you for money. I'll give you some leeway to let the reality sink in."

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=433x90300

[ClarkUSA]

16. But oh how many fans she has here among so-called "progressives" who run liberal litmus tests 24/7.

Thanks for the links. I took action on the first and K&R the second.

:hi:

[OregonBlue]

15. She seems to think she can roll in filth with the likes of Norquist and come out of it clean.

She is wrong. The ends don't justify the means and she has made a very big mistake. Yesterday she went on Fox and Friends with Steve Doocy, one of the most disgusting hatemonger racists on TV and today she allies with Grover Norquist. How to I un-sign her petition. I want nothing more to do with her or FireDogLake. I have deleted her from my bookmarks.

[Cha]

17. After learning more of her history

only recently..I can say I'm not surprised at all by this latest upping the vulgarity meter by hamsher.

She's had no credibility from me since August when I realized she was lying and I wrote her back an email letting her know. Now, it's just more ugliness being revealed on a daily basis.

She's a creepy little closet repuke or she's letting herself be exploited by the obstructionists.

[cadmium]

51. Do you remember her blackface

post. It was vs Lieberman (admitedly a disgusing human being himself)

[kayla9170]

54. Glad someone wrote this.....

If I did, the thread would be locked.....:scared:

[Cha]

57. Yes, I just learned about the "Blackface"

a couple of days ago..and I don't care who it is..why would do a "Blackface" if you're not racist?

"I googled on and found lots of references to her, on black blogs, and a few here on daily kos, from a while back. They weren't very flattering. 'Cause this seems to be the same woman whose photo of Joe Lieberman in blackface ignited a fire storm in my community. We don't take kindly to blackface.

This photo."



http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=433&topic_id=89919&mesg_id=90995

[ClarkUSA]

28. She's counting on the bulk of her following being much less intellectually honest than you.

And they are, judging by the number of folks here who keep sheering on her lunacy.

<<How to I un-sign her petition. I want nothing more to do with her or FireDogLake. I have deleted her from my bookmarks.>>

Good for you, though. I don't know how you unsign her petition. I have a feeling she's just going to sell the emails she collects
for profit to her advertisers, anyway.

[ShortnFiery]

3. This is just beyond the pale. Classless and Tasteless in ONE thread. eom

[BeyondGeography]

4. Self destructive, that Jane

Adulthood is so hard on some people.

[saltpoint]

62. Agree. Douses herself with oil and lights the Norquist match.

Kaboom! Ouch -- it hurts!

[PBS Poll-435]

5. Lolz

Jane - You ******** ****!

[Cali_Democrat]

6. Hamsher is one sick puppy.

Grover Norquist? Really?

[SoFlaJet]

8. As much as I love Jane...

I think she's starting to like being on TV a little too much...when you align yourself with the likes of this guy, you are smack in the middle of a shark jump.

[depakid]

9. Politcs makes for strange bedfellows

Think this is something, study the process of immigration policy over the years

[stevenleser]

13. Yep, whole chapter devoted to it in the book I am writing

weird stuff.

[Cha]

24. You definetly have an indefatigable

supply of strange material for your book.

[OregonBlue]

21. If she doesn't get enough attention from this do you think she might turn to Dick Cheney? Now that

would really get her some attention and she would get all the TV time she craves. I wouldn't put it past her at this point.

[Cha]

25. Then she would have guaranteed cnn with john king time..yay.

[OregonBlue]

31. She's really setting her sites high!!. Maybe even Wolf.

[inna]

12. ridiculous. -1.

[wyldwolf]

18. fascinating. Someone redecorated while I was gone.

[Cha]

39. You have been gone awhile.

[seeinfweggos]

19. grover

norquist

grover norquist

[WeDidIt]

20. Hamsher joins with a key figure from the Abramoff scandal

in order to fight corruption?

WTF was she thinking?

She's gone more batshit insane than Orly Taitz!

[OregonBlue]

22. Hamsher/Taitz 2012? What a perfect ticket. LOL

[WeDidIt]

23. You know, when Hamsher stops getting invited to go on TV shows

she might start questioning whether or not Obama is a natural born citizen, just to start getting the calls again.

If I see her on Rachel Maddow again, I'll probably stop watching Rachel.

[OregonBlue]

32. I won't stop watching Rachel but I hope Rachel will call her out on her choice of friends.

[kayla9170]

53. I bet the Hamster is hooking up another Obama-Kenya Birth Certificate

Right now with the likes of Birther Taqiz.

[ipaint]

26. The aclu has partnered with him several times.

persona non grata, too?

Here a big list of people you can defame-

And as for the letter that Firedoglake signed onto with major left groups and conservative and libertarian groups, it was also signed by these groups below in opposition to Ben Bernanke's nomination. Letters like these get co-signed all the time in D.C. where common interests verge on populist issues. Here's the list below:

Ryan Alexander, president, Taxpayers for Common Sense
Chris Bowers, founder, OpenLeft
Dean Baker, co-director, Center for Economic and Policy Research
Robert Borosage, co-director, Campaign for America's Future
Danielle Brian, executive director, Project On Government Oversight
Mark Calabria, director of financial regulation studies, Cato Institute
Mark Cohen, executive director, Government Accountability Project
Tom DeWeese, president, American Policy Center
Tyler Durden, founder, Zero Hedge
Sandra Fabry, executive director, Center for Fiscal Accountability
James Kenneth Galbraith, economist
Adam Green, co-founder, Progressive Change Campaign Committee
George Goehl, executive director, National People's Action
Jane Hamsher, founder, FireDogLake
Gary Kalman, Washington director, Public Interest Research Group
Matt Kibbe, president, FreedomWorks
Grover Norquist, president, Americans for Tax Reform
Duane Parde, president, National Taxpayers Union
Aaron Swartz, co-founder, Progressive Change Campaign Committee
Phyllis Schlafly, president, Eagle Forum
John Tate, president, Campaign for Liberty
John Taylor, CEO, National Community Reinvestment Coalition
Stephanie Taylor, co-founder, Progressive Change Campaign Committee
Robert Weissman, president, Public Citizen
John Whitehead, president, The Rutherford Institute

http://wwww.dailykos.com/story/2009/12/20/817331/-A-History-Of-Strange-Alliances

Norquist is 17th and look who is 11th. You've got your work cut out for you now.

[Kurt_and_Hunter]

27. Beautiful reply. A real thread-ender

[Teaser]

30. This thread don't end until I stop laughing at Jane

and I ain't done yet.

[KrR]

29. Yea who can complain about grouping up with

Matt Kibbe, president, FreedomWorks and Phyllis Schlafly, president, Eagle Forum

:sarcasm:

[ClarkUSA]

33. Doesn't mean that it's the right thing to do. Coupled w/her Faux News "Kill the Bill" shilling...

... and her cry to unite with teabaggers, it's obvious that she's become a bitter and pathetic attention whore who's
fishing for website hits and has jumped the political shark.

[ipaint]

35. She has lots of good company in the left. n/t

[ClarkUSA]

37. Only in the bitter sore loserdom pseudo-"left" who're really Failers through and through.

The same ones who screech mindlessly about Obama = Bush but who raise Hamster onto their crackpot political pedestal.

Fucking hypocrities.

[ipaint]

40. Where is loserdom?

Next to failersville...

How old are you?

[ClarkUSA]

42. Somewhere very close near "failersville".

I'll ignore your rude question.

Keep defending your heroine. I know if Pres. Obama ever joined forces with Grover Norquist, the same folks who are
cheering Hamster unequivocally would be screeching about Obama = Bush being a "sell-out" to liberals.

[ipaint]

47. Heroine?

Fairytales again. Must be bedtime.

[Cali_Democrat]

34. Look who is 9th.....Tyler Durden!!!

:scared:

[NYCGirl]

36. The ACLU has also defended the American Nazi Party. Doesn't mean I have to

like the American Nazi Party.

The ACLU defends everyone in free speech cases.

(Edited to clarify.)

[ipaint]

41. I didn't say they defended him. nt

[NYCGirl]

49. It was the medical marijuana case? Questioning the Patriot Act? NT

[jefferson_dem]

52. Questions of contitutionality such as engaged by the ACLU are apolitical.

and should be concerns for us all.

The Hamsher-Norquist "collaboration" is rooted in sheer politics and it stinks on its own...aside from the fact that the goal is to torpedo a Democratic president. There's no defense for it.

[dave29]

38. Norquist, for those of you who want to know whose bed you are crawling into:

(This does not get into the Abramoff ties):

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


Americans for Tax Reform

Norquist is best known as the founder Americans for Tax Reform in 1985, at the request of President Ronald Reagan, and has headed the organization ever since.<11> The primary policy goal of Americans for Tax Reform is to reduce the percentage of the GDP consumed by the government.<6><12> ATR states that it "opposes all tax increases as a matter of principle."<13> Americans for Tax Reform seeks to curtail government spending by supporting Taxpayer Bill of Rights (TABOR) legislation<14> and transparency initiatives,<15> and opposing cap-and-trade legislation<16> and Democratic efforts to overhaul health care.<17>
In 1993, Norquist launched his Wednesday Meetings series at ATR headquarters, initially to help fight President Clinton's healthcare plan and eventually becoming one of the most significant institutions in American conservative political organizing.<10>
Other political activities

Early in his career, Norquist was executive director of both the National Taxpayers Union and the national College Republicans organization, holding both positions until 1983. Afterward, he held the positions of Economist and Chief Speechwriter at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce from 1983 to 1984.<18>
Norquist traveled to several warzones across the world to help support anti-Soviet guerrilla armies in the second half of the 1980s. He worked with a support network for Col. Oliver North's efforts with the Nicaraguan contras and other insurgencies, in addition to promoting U.S. support for groups including Mozambique's RENAMO and Jonas Savimbi's UNITA in Angola.<10>
In addition to heading Americans for Tax Reform, Norquist serves on the board of numerous organizations. He is former chairman of the Islamic Free Market Institute. Norquist was a co-founder of the Merritt Group, later renamed Janus-Merritt Strategies, whose clients included international companies, Indian gaming interests, the government of Pakistan and the government of Gabon, and the American Muslim Council. Norquist has also represented American Express and Microsoft.<19><20>
Influence in national politics

Norquist was instrumental in securing early support for then Texas Governor George W. Bush, continuing a decades-long association with Karl Rove. After Bush's election, Norquist was a key figure involved in crafting Bush's tax cuts. The Wall Street Journal's John Fund dubbed him "the Grand Central Station" of conservatism and told The Nation: "It's not disputable" that Norquist was the key to the Bush campaign's surprising level of support from movement conservatives in 2000.<21>
Working with eventual Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich, Norquist was one of the co-authors of the 1994 Contract with America, and helped to rally grassroots efforts, which he later chronicled in his bock Rock the House.<10> Norquist also served as a campaign staff member on the 1988, 1992 and 1996 Republican Platform Committees.<1>
Norquist, along with Bill Kristol, Ralph E. Reed, Jr., Clint Bolick, and David McIntosh, is one of the so-called "Gang of Five" identified in Nina Easton's 2000 book by that name,<22> which gives a history of leaders of the modern, post-Goldwater conservative movement. Humorist P.J. O'Rourke has described Norquist as "Tom Paine crossed with Lee Atwater plus just a soupçon of Madame Defarge".[10

[Cha]

60. hamsher is crawling into bed with more than fleas..norquist is

a particulary toxic kind of vermin. She'll never be able to fumigate herself clean 'cause she wasn't in the first place.

[Davis_X_Machina]

43. Just how far...

...down the presidential line of succession is the Secretary of State anyways?

[ipaint]

46. These left -right alliances with norquist happen all the time.

LEFT-RIGHT COALITION SAYS SENATE BANKING COMMITTEE MUST DELAY VOTE ON BERNANKE RENOMINATION
Letter Sent To Committee in Advance of Thursday Hearing; Group Also Behind Effort to Audit Actions of Federal Reserve at Early Stages of Financial Crisis

WASHINGTON – In a letter to members of the Senate Banking Committee today, a coalition of liberal and conservative leaders, strategists, activists and public interest advocates called for a delay of the nomination of Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke to a second term.

The coalition includes Campaign for America’s Future co-director Robert Borosage, Americans for Tax Reform president Grover Norquist, Campaign for Liberty president John Tate, Center for Economic and Policy Research co-director Dean Baker and FreedomWorks president Matt Kibbe.

Borosage said it’s simply astounding that the Banking Committee plans to vote on Bernake’s nomination for another term after only a couple of hours of desultory hearings with the chairman.

“We know that Bernanke’s errant views contributed directly to the worst financial collapse since the Great Depression,” said Borosage. “He was blind to the housing bubble, wrong on the dangers of unregulated over-the-counter derivative trading, wrong on the scope of the crisis once it began, and was late to respond.”

http://www.ourfuture.org/news-release/2009125115/left-right-coalition-says-senate-banking-committee-must-delay-vote-bernanke-

This was signed by-

Dean Baker, co-director, Center for Economic and Policy Research
Robert Borosage, co-director, Campaign for America’s Future
Danielle Brian, executive director, Project on Government Oversight
Tom DeWeese, president, American Policy Center
Sandra Fabry, executive director, Center for Fiscal Accountability
Terry Francke, general counsel, Californians Aware
Gary Kalman, Washington Director, Public Interest Research Group
Matt Kibbe, president, FreedomWorks
Leland Lehrman, president, Mother's Arms
Chuck Muth, president, Citizen Outreach
Grover Norquist, president, Americans for Tax Reform
John Richard, director, Essential Information
David Swanson, cofounder, AfterDowningStreet.org
John Tate, president, Campaign for Liberty
Rob Weissman, president of Public Citizen
John Whitehead, president of The Rutherford Institute

[jefferson_dem]

48. The extreme wings are equally wacky and unconstructive.

Political dogmatism reeks whether it comes from the hard left or the hard right.

They deserve each other.

[ipaint]

50. A voice representing from the 30 year massive policy fail of the center.

Sorry no credibility.

[jefferson_dem]

55. Stuff that stale ideological paradigm in the trash.

:boring:

But first, i'm curious. How can you complain about how much the center sucks while defending the "team of extremists"? Don't you have to pick a side?

[ipaint]

61. What is a team of extremists?

Anything to do with the axis of evil?

[ipaint]

44. More perspective.

Political opposites aligned against Bush wiretaps
January 26, 2006|By James Sterngold, Chronicle Staff Writer

Larry Diamond a Democrat and a Hoover Institution senior fellow went to Baghdad in 2004 as a consultant for the U.S.-run Coalition Provisional Authority believing strongly in the Bush administration's goal of building a democracy there. While critical of many aspects of the Iraq war he has he says wholeheartedly supported President Bush's aggressive approach to the war on terror.

Grover Norquist is one of the most influential conservative Republicans in Washington. His weekly "Wednesday Meeting" at his L Street office is a must for conservative strategists and he has been called the "managing director of the hard-core right" by the liberal Nation magazine. Perhaps the country's leading anti-tax enthusiast he is like Diamond a hawk in the war on terror.

Despite coming from opposite ends of the political spectrum they agree on one other major issue: that the Bush administration's program of domestic eavesdropping by the National Security Agency without obtaining court warrants has less to do with the war on terror than with threats to the nation's civil liberties.

"My view on the terrorists is that we should find all of them and kill them" said Norquist. "But we should also protect our civil liberties which the terrorists are trying to destroy."

Diamond whose academic specialty is the building of democracies has taken his opposition one step further joining a lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union last week to halt the president's program.

"I teach about democracy and the rule of law the quality of a democracy" he said. "I meet so many people around the world who want to look up to the American model and a spying program like this really harms us."


http://articles.sfgate.com/2006-01-26/news/17277194_1_sen-john-mccain-bush-administration-national-security-agency

[kayla9170]

45. This is how the Americans for Tax Reform Group Works.....

Against a 80+ year old Congressman at a town hall. My great Congressman John Dingell:

Link to article from the Atlantic-http://politics.theatlantic.com/2009/12/odd_couple_of_n...

The history of Glover Norquist from Wiki-http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grover_Norquist

Video John Dingell Town Hall Meeting in August 2009 (Which I attended) and the Teabagger protesters, including the Members of the American for Tax Reform link-http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M7csIynKOUY

At this Town Hall, members of Norquist so called group, shouted down Congressman Dingell on too many occasions. On the video, the guy holding the wheelchair of the other gentlemen, tried to attack Congressman Dingell. This man was took away in Handcuffs temporary..but not arrested. Congressman Dingell is about 80 years old, a FIRM UAW supporter (heck, he helped my Father get his Social Security Benefits started after he retired from GM because a of paperwork error), a lifelong supporter of Universal Health Care (he has introduced this legislation in the House, EVERY YEAR he has been there....which is over 40 years, I think).

The point is the Hamster believes that we should line up with people like this? People that would harass a U.S. Congressman who is a firm Middle Class, UAW, Union, Health Care Legislation supporter at a town hall? I think not.

I will stand with Congressman Dingell. Also, they-i.e. Teabaggers-Harassed his lovely wife Debbie Dingell in the hallway way leading into the Romulus Community Complex that night too.

[Cha]

59. Thanks kayla for the links on the idiocy of grover norquist.

[saltpoint]

56. You know, Hamsher's talent recalls to me the equally blazing talent of

Ezra Pound.

I thought Pound's poetry was / is amazing, as I respect and appreciate Hamsher's gift with film.

But in both cases we have a brilliant, insightful artist down on their knees in a back alley to bad politics.

[ipaint]

63. What a way with words. nt

[tishaLA]

58. "Hey! You got Hamsher in my Norquist!" "No! You got your Norquist in my Hamsher!"

:P

[Cha]

64. Here's what norquist thinks of Dems..Cross post from GD..

trumad (1000+ posts) Wed Dec-23-09 09:47 PM
Original message
Uh Jane---You've gone a bit to far with this Grover partnership.

"Here's what Paul Krugman wrote about your new Pal Grover:

"Why do I want to see movement conservatism crushed? Partly because the movement is fundamentally undemocratic; its leaders don’t accept the legitimacy of opposition. Democrats will only become acceptable, declared Grover Norquist, the president of Americans for Tax Reform, once they “are comfortable in their minority status.” He added, “Any farmer will tell you that certain animals run around and are unpleasant, but when they’ve been fixed, then they are happy and sedate.”

http://select.nytimes.com/2006/11/10/opinion/10krugman....

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x7311128

[ipaint]

66. Someone please send this to the aclu.

They have been teaming up with him throughout the bush years.

Quick warn them.

[Cha]

67. Fuck grover norquist and his new best friend.

[ipaint]

68. Would that be Rahm?

Two peas in a pod it seems.

Rahm Emanuel's profitable stint at mortgage giant

"On Emanuel's watch, the board was told by executives of a plan to use accounting tricks to mislead shareholders about outsize profits the government-chartered firm was then reaping from risky investments. The goal was to push earnings onto the books in future years, ensuring that Freddie Mac would appear profitable on paper for years to come and helping maximize annual bonuses for company brass.

The accounting scandal wasn't the only one that brewed during Emanuel's tenure.

During his brief time on the board, the company hatched a plan to enhance its political muscle. That scheme, also reviewed by the board, led to a record $3.8 million fine from the Federal Election Commission for illegally using corporate resources to host fundraisers for politicians. Emanuel was the beneficiary of one of those parties after he left the board and ran in 2002 for a seat in Congress from the North Side of Chicago.

The board was throttled for its acquiescence to the accounting manipulation in a 2003 report by Armando Falcon Jr., head of a federal oversight agency for Freddie Mac. The scandal forced Freddie Mac to restate $5 billion in earnings and pay $585 million in fines and legal settlements. It also foreshadowed even harder times at the firm."

...In his investigation, Falcon concluded that the board of directors on which Emanuel sat was so pliant that Freddie Mac's managers easily were able to massage company ledgers. They manipulated bookkeeping to smooth out volatility, perpetuating Freddie Mac's industry reputation as "Steady Freddie," a reliable producer of earnings growth. Wall Street liked what it saw, Freddie Mac's stock value soared and top executives collected their bonuses.

Another focus of Freddie during Emanuel's day—and one that played to his skill set—was a stepped-up effort to combat congressional demands for more regulation."

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/politics/obama/chi-rahm-emanuel-profit-26-mar26,0,5682373.story?page=1


Freddie Mac scandals began during Emanuel's watch
By Bob Secter and Andrew Zajac Tribune reporters

March 26, 2009


Before its portfolio of bad loans helped trigger the current housing crisis, mortgage giant Freddie Mac was the focus of a major accounting scandal that led to a management shake-up, huge fines and scalding condemnation of passive directors by a top federal regulator.

One of those allegedly asleep-at-the-switch board members was Chicago's Rahm Emanuel—now chief of staff to President Barack Obama—who made at least $320,000 for a 14-month stint at Freddie Mac that required little effort.

As gatekeeper to Obama, Emanuel now plays a critical role in addressing the nation's mortgage woes and fulfilling the administration's pledge to impose responsibility on the financial world.

Emanuel's Freddie Mac involvement has been a prominent point on his political résumé, and his healthy payday from the firm has been no secret either. What is less known, however, is how little he apparently did for his money and how he benefited from the kind of cozy ties between Washington and Wall Street that have fueled the nation's current economic

...The Obama administration rejected a Tribune request under the Freedom of Information Act to review Freddie Mac board minutes and correspondence during Emanuel's time as a director. The documents, obtained by Falcon for his investigation, were "commercial information" exempt from disclosure, according to a lawyer for the Federal Housing Finance Agency.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/chi-rahm-emanuelmar26,0,1946702.story?page=2


800 billion is about to disappear. As Hamsher says:

"In this instance, the fact is that most “liberals” who work at institutions can’t step out and take a shot at Rahm, because Rahm would take it out on their organizations. That leaves the people on the right — those out of Rahm’s reach — who can be called upon to get the media “heft” you need to call attention to an issue. The year-end deadline for doubling the Fannie/Freddie commitment to $800 billion was fast approaching, and it’s hard as hell to get media traction on something over the holidays."

http://firedoglake.com/2009/12/23/why-i-reached-out-to-grover-norquist-on-fanniefreddie/#comments

[Cha]

70. You poor thing..can't handle the jane hamsher-grover norquist

schmooze fest so you try to distract with fucking firedoglake shit..from a proven liar.

And, now she wants Bernie Sanders fired bc he's not voting to follow her freakshow orders and "kill the bill".

Cross Posted..

"don't know Jane...but I know Bernie and I don't think she should be calling him out
by EdgedInBlue

After reading one of the wrecked list diaries about Jane Hamsher of Firedoglake.com joining forces with Grover Norquist to call for the resignation of Rahm Emmanuel, a poster pointed me to a twitter by Ms. Hampher calling for Bernie Sanders to kill the bill or lose his seat.

I've got to tell you. Until this week, I didn't know much about Ms. Hamsher. I knew that a diarist blogged here and got donations through FDL. I signed up several months ago on FDL because of that diarist's involvement in health care reform.

<...>

But it wasn't until a poster noted that Ms. Hamsher had tweeted about Senator Bernie Sanders losing his seat unless he killed the bill. Losing his seat. The only self-professed socialist in the political spectrum. Losing his seat because he wasn't progressive enough? Bernie Sanders, promoter of single-payer health care? That guy who passionately argued for, and offered an amendment that would provide health care and dental coverage for every American? I almost couldn't believe it. But I clicked the linky, and sure enough...there it was, in all its glory."


http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=433x91345

Batshithouse crazy

[ipaint]

71. A link to a prosense thread.

If I wanted regurgitated talking points from the administration I'd go the the white house website.

[HughMoran]

65. like this?

[Phx_Dem]

69. Lefty wingnut and insane. n/t