In 1980s, Defense Nominee Pushed to Bomb Nicaragua
“Robert M. Gates, President Bush’s nominee to lead the Pentagon, advocated a bombing campaign against Nicaragua in 1984 in order to ‘bring down’ the leftist government, according to a declassified memo released by a nonprofit research group. . . .
“In the memo, Gates, who was deputy director of the CIA, argued that the Soviet Union was turning Nicaragua into an armed camp and that the country could become a second Cuba. The rise of the communist-leaning Sandinista government threatened the stability of Central America, Gates asserted.
“Gates’ memo echoed the view of many foreign policy hard-liners at the time; however, the feared communist takeover of the region never materialized. . . .
“‘It sounds like Donald Rumsfeld,’ said National Security Archive Director Thomas S. Blanton. ‘It shows the same kind of arrogance and hubris that got us into Iraq.'” (LATimes)
Experts Concerned as Ballot Problems Persist
“After six years of technological research, more than $4 billion spent by Washington on new machinery and a widespread overhaul of the nationâs voting system, this monthâs midterm election revealed that the country is still far from able to ensure that every vote counts.
“Tens of thousands of voters, scattered across more than 25 states, encountered serious problems at the polls, including failures in sophisticated new voting machines and confusion over new identification rules, according to interviews with election experts and officials.” (NY Times)
Despite a Year of Ire and Angst, Little Has Changed on Wiretaps
“When President Bush went on national television one Saturday morning last December to acknowledge the existence of a secret wiretapping program outside the courts, the fallout was fierce and immediate.
“Mr. Bushâs opponents accused him of breaking the law, with a few even calling for his impeachment. His backers demanded that he be given express legal authority to do what he had done. Law professors talked, civil rights groups sued and a federal judge in Detroit declared the wiretapping program unconstitutional.
“But as Democrats prepare to take over on Capitol Hill, not much has really changed. For all the sound and fury in the last year, the National Security Agencyâs wiretapping program continues uninterrupted, with no definitive action by either Congress or the courts on what, if anything, to do about it, and little chance of a breakthrough in the lame-duck Congress.” (NY Times)
Democrat Pledges Array of Investigations
“The incoming chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee [Rep. John Dingell (D-MI)] is promising an array of oversight investigations that could provoke sharp disagreement with Republicans and the White House….
“Among the investigations he said he wants the committee to undertake:
“The new Medicare drug benefit. “There are lots and lots and lots of scandals,” he said, without citing specifics.
“Spending on government contractors in Iraq, including Halliburton Co., the Texas-based oil services conglomerate once led by Vice President
Dick Cheney.
“An energy task force overseen by Cheney. It “was carefully cooked to provide only participation by oil companies and energy companies,” Dingell said.
“A review of food and drug safety, particularly in the area of nutritional supplements.” (AP)
Alcee Hastings: Out of the Running?
“House Speaker-designate Nancy Pelosi is exploring compromise candidates to resolve the furious lobbying fight over who should chair the House intelligence committee. Pelosi has agreed to meet this week with Rep. Alcee Hastings, who has been pressing hard for the post despite his 1988 impeachment as a federal judge over an alleged bribery scheme. But advisers have warned Pelosi that naming Hastings could be a public-relations “disaster,” especially after ethics questions were also raised about Rep. John Murtha, whom she unsuccessfully backed to be majority leader, according to congressional aides who asked not to be identified talking about internal matters. Even Hastings, who insists he is innocent of the dated charges (he was acquitted in a criminal case), now concedes it’s unlikely he’ll get the post.” (Newsweek)
Gov’t Asks Court Not to Block Records
“The Justice Department on Saturday asked the Supreme Court to refrain from stepping into another First Amendment battle featuring federal prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald and The New York Times.
“The case involves a leak probe by Fitzgerald to track down the confidential sources of Times reporters Judith Miller and Philip Shenon for stories in 2001. Miller, who spent 85 days in jail in 2005 in connection with Fitzgerald’s separate CIA leak probe in the Valerie Plame case, retired from the newspaper a year ago.
“In the current case, the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has said prosecutors can see the journalists’ phone records. Earlier, a federal judge had ruled in the newspaper’s favor, saying the First Amendment supplied a qualified privilege to reporters to protect confidential sources.
“On Friday, the newspaper asked Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg to temporarily block the government from going through the records and said it was prepared to file a petition by Dec. 24 asking the court to take up the case.” (AP)
Iran-Contra Figure Emerges as a Powerful Neocon
“The neocons are reeling, but they’re not dead yet. A few stalwarts are digging in their wing-tips. And there’s already a small backlash against the backlash. At the State Department, supposedly the bastion of realism, some officials are sounding defiant. “There are a lot of people throughout the ranks who believe in the democracy agenda,” says one senior official who would only discuss policy issues anonymously. “If the result of the Baker report is that we have to make any deal necessary … to get out of Iraq, I don’t think that’s going to fly.” Their hopes, and the hopes of neocons everywhere, may rest on the shoulders of Elliott Abrams, the number-two official at the National Security Councilâwho remains in charge of promoting democracy in the Middle East, a linchpin of the neocon agenda.” (Newsweek)
As Power Shifts in New Congress, Pork May Linger
“Senators Ted Stevens of Alaska and Daniel K. Inouye of Hawaii are the best of friends in the Senate, so close they call each other brother. Both are decorated veterans of World War II. They have worked together for nearly four decades as senators from the two youngest and farthest-flung states. And they share an almost unrivaled appetite for what some call political pork.
“Mr. Stevens, an 83-year-old Republican, and Mr. Inouye, an 82-year-old Democrat, routinely deliver to their states more money per capita in earmarks â the pet projects lawmakers insert into major spending bills â than any other state gets. This year, Alaska received $1.05 billion in earmarks, or $1,677.27 per resident, while Hawaii got $903.9 million, or $746.05 per resident, according to Taxpayers for Common Sense, a nonpartisan group that tracks such figures.
“Representative Nancy Pelosi, the Democratic leader, and many Democratic candidates have railed for months against wasteful ‘special interest earmarks’ inserted into bills ‘in the dark of night.’ Now their partyâs electoral victories mean that Mr. Stevens will hand Mr. Inouye the gavel of the Senate defense appropriations subcommittee, which presides over the largest pool of discretionary spending and earmarks. But if the Democratic leaders are talking about âearmark reform,â that may be news to Mr. Inouye.
â’I donât see any monumental changes,’ Mr. Inouye said in a recent interview. He plans to continue his subcommitteeâs approach to earmarks, he said. ‘If something is wrong we should clean house,’ he said, ‘but if they can explain it and justify it, I will look at it.’â (NY Times)
Waxman Has Bush Administration in Sights
“The lawmaker poised to cause the Bush administration’s biggest headaches when Democrats take control of Congress may just be a grocer’s son from Watts who’s hardly a household name off Capitol Hill….
“When he became top Democrat of the Government Reform Committee in 1997, [Rep. Henry] Waxman [D-CA] realized that he didn’t have to settle for playing defense like most in the House minority. He took advantage of the committee’s large staff to hire talented investigators to pursue projects large and small.
“His targets have ranged from why the Taekwondo Union was allowing 12- and 13-year-olds to kick opponents in the head, to Medicare drug costs and baseball steroid use, to abuse of Iraqi prisoners at Abu Ghraib and government contracts given to Vice President Dick Cheney’s former company, Halliburton.
“After agitating by Waxman, the State Department had to revise a report claiming terrorism had decreased in 2003, to reflect that it actually had increased.” (AP)
Alleged Cunningham Briber Hires Celebrity Lawyer
“In the latest twist to former U.S. Rep. Randy “Duke” Cunningham’s tale of greed and corruption, celebrity defense attorney Mark Geragos has joined the legal team of one of the former congressman’s alleged conspirators in a massive bribery scam.
“Geragos, whose former clients include pop star Michael Jackson, former first brother Roger Clinton and former Congressman Gary Condit, said Wednesday that he recently began representing Poway businessman Brent Wilkes.” (North County Times)
Get Ready for Reform, Emanuel Tells Dems
“Rep. Rahm Emanuel, newly elected chairman of the House Democratic Caucus, has sent colleagues a one-page memo emphasizing ‘real lobbying and ethics reform’ as the key to his party’s future electoral success.
“Emanuel, architect of taking over the House as Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee chairman, in the memo cited eight extra seats won by Democrats in Republican districts because of scandals. That included the defeat of Representatives John Sweeney (N.Y.); Richard Pombo (Calif.); Curt Weldon (Pa.); Don Sherwood (Pa.), and Charles Taylor (N.C.), plus Republicans in seats formerly held by Representatives Tom DeLay (Texas); Mark Foley (Fla.), and Bob Ney (Ohio). A ninth scandal-blemished Republican targeted by Emanuel, Rep. John Doolittle of California, escaped with a four-point victory.
“Emanuel intends to push reforms restricting earmarks, gifts and travel. ‘Failure to deliver on this promise,’ said his memo, ”would be devastating to our standing with the public and certainly jeopardize some of our marginal seats.”’ (Chicago Sun-Times)
DC Starbucks Markets on Foley Scandal
“The Starbucks location on the corner of New Jersey Avenue and E Street Northwest, the one next door to the Billy Goat Tavern, features fake ‘testimonials’ from caffy-happy customers who have bought Starbucks coffee by the case. Most of the quotes â from a ‘Redskins helmet shiner,’ a ‘chimney sweep’ and a ‘shoelace designer’ â are innocuous.
“But the one that caught our eye is a testimonial from ‘Timothy H.,’ identified as a ‘Congressional page.’
“‘When I bought a case of Starbucks coffee, the text messages stopped coming,’ the (fake) teenage boy says.” (Roll Call) (sub. req.)
