GOP Lawmaker Calls for Voter Suppression

You can't make this stuff up: a GOP lawmaker in Michigan publicly called for efforts to “suppress the Detroit vote” in Michigan elections.

This disgusting call highlights other ominous signs from Republicans regarding the November elections: with new voting machines having no paper record, the efforts to remove voters from rolls and prevent eligible voters from registering in Florida, the thinly-veiled effort to gain the power to postpone the election, and the owner of the company that makes Ohio's voting machines pledging his commitment to helping re-elect Bush, something fishy seems to be going on.

Rep. Fox (R-Henhouse)

Rep. Jim Greenwood (R-PA), who holds a top committee position overseeing Medicare, the FDA and other agencies of interest to the pharmaceutical industry, yesterday announced he was retiring to become the top lobbyist for one of the most powerful pharmaceutical industry trade groups, the Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO). In an “emotional” interview, Greenwood claimed the decision “is consistent with the high ethical standards that have characterized my 24-year career in elective office” and claimed the decision “is keeping with a commitment…to devote my life to public service.” Greenwood has been a staunch ally of the drug industry in Congress, pushing the Medicare bill that prohibits the federal government from negotiating lower drug prices while providing billions to the same companies he will be lobbying for. Since just 2000, the drug industry has showered Greenwood with more than $123,000 in campaign contributions, consistently ranking as one of his top contributors.

Rep. Tom Davis, Hypocrite

NOW:
House Government Reform Committee Chairman Thomas M. Davis III, Virginia Republican, yesterday called the actions of Samuel R. Berger "a disturbing breach of trust and protocol" and said his committee will soon begin an investigation into the matter, despite CBS News reporting "law enforcement sources say they don't expect any criminal charges will be filed."
- Washington Times, 7/22/04; CBS News, 7/20/04

THEN:
In 2003, when he was asked to hold hearings into the administration's leak of an undercover CIA operative's name, Rep. Tom Davis (R-VA) declined, saying, "I know Ashcroft very well, and I'm sure he'll go by the book." He had his spokesman claim an investigation into the administration leak (unlike an investigation into the Berger matter, apparently) "should be conducted by career FBI agents." Davis has also refused to undertake a probe into Vice President Cheney's office's now-admitted "coordination" of federal contracts for his former employer Halliburton (a company he still owns stock options in, and still receives deferred compensation from). 
- St. Louis Post Dispatch, 10/03/03; Roll Call, 9/30/03

Bush Creates Website for Homeless

Instead of reversing massive cuts to housing and job training he has proposed, the President apparently thinks the way to help the homeless is to set up a website for them...Here's an excerpt from the Dept. of Labor press release today:
 
WASHINGTON—The Department of Labor (DOL) today launched a Web site to help America’s homeless find jobs through mainstream as well as targeted training, education and placement services and to provide a vital link to government-wide resources.  “This Web page furthers the Administration’s commitment to helping the homeless, including homeless veterans,” said U.S. Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao.
 
See the full official Bush administration press release here.

Franken Beats O'Reilly

Though not necessarily the most reliable source, this is from Drudge...and its GOOD NEWS:

"AIR AMERICA's Al Franken shot past INFINITY's Bill O'Reilly in the just released ARBITRON radio rates for April thru June, the DRUDGE REPORT has learned. The Franken victory over his latest nemesis came in the ad-friendly 25-54 demo, during the 2 to 3 pm hour, the only hour when the two directly squared off in the nation's top market New York City."

Cheney Attacked America Abroad

With Cheney now on the hot seat for Halliburton's business dealings with Iran while he was CEO, check out this story. According to the Malaysian National News Agency, Cheney actually traveled abroad to meet with foreign government officials and publicly attack American foreign/anti-terrorism policy. Specifically, he attacked U.S. sanctions on Iran - a country the U.S. government lists as a state-sponsor of terrorism. Here are the excerpts from the 4/20/98 story:

"KUALA LAMPUR - Former United States Defence Secretary Dick Cheney today hit out at his government for imposing unilateral economic sanctions like the Iran-Libya Sanctions Act, saying they have been "ineffective, did not provide the desired results and a bad policy"..."I have made it clear that our (the US unilateral) sanctions policy is wrong," he said when asked to comment on the Iran-Libya Act which contains provisions for sanctions to be imposed by the US against foreign companies making investment beyond US$ 20 million a year in the oil and gas sector of the targeted countries...Speaking to reporters after calling on Datuk Seri Dr Mahathir Mohamad at the Prime Minister's office here, Cheney, who is now the chairman and CEO of Halliburton, said: "The US needs to be much more restraint then we have been in terms of pursuing unilateral economic sanctions."...He said he also disagreed with the unilateral economic sanctions imposed on Myanmar and Arzerbaijan."

Cheney, Iran/Iraq & Halliburton

On the same day President Bush announced plans to investigate Iran for ties to terrorism, Halliburton acknowledged that "a U.S. grand jury issued a subpoena to the company seeking information about its Cayman Islands unit's work in Iran, where it is illegal for U.S. companies to operate."
 
Earlier this year, CBS News reported "Halliburton is the company that Vice President Dick Cheney used to run. He was CEO in 1995 to 2000, during which time Halliburton Products and Services set up shop in Iran."
 
During the 2000 election, Cheney openly acknowledged that "Halliburton did business with Libya and Iran through foreign subsidiaries."
 
According to the Forward, Halliburton and Cheney have argued that, despite Iran's suspected ties to terrorism, U.S. sanctions against Iran do not cover "independent foreign subsidiaries," a description that they say applies to the Cayman Islands-based subsidiary. 
 
As CEO of Halliburton, Cheney actively lobbied for the U.S. to lift sanctions on Iran, despite its suspected ties to terrorism.

Earlier this year, the New Yorker reported "The United States had concluded that Iraq, Libya, and Iran supported terrorism and had imposed strict sanctions on them. Yet during Cheney’s tenure at Halliburton the company did business in all three countries" - even though Cheney specifically claimed during the 2000 campaign "I had a firm policy that we wouldn’t do anything in Iraq, even arrangements that were supposedly legal."

Fox News Violates British Regulations

The British Government’s Office of Communications (Ofcom) recently chastised Fox News and found it in violation of various regulations in that country aimed at preventing the media from deliberately spreading misinformation. Ofcom found that Fox News anchor John Gibson made “false statements by undermining facts.” In its report it stated:

“Fox News was unable to provide any substantial evidence to support the overall allegation that the BBC management had lied and the BBC had an anti-American obsession…Even taking into account that this was a ‘personal view’ item, the strength and number of allegations that John Gibson made against the BBC meant that Fox News should have offered the BBC an opportunity to respond…Fox News was therefore in breach of Sections 2.1 (respect for truth), 2.7 (opportunity to take part), and 3.5(b) (personal view programmes - opinions expressed must not rest upon false evidence) of the Programme Code.”
 
Ofcom is described as the official "regulator for the UK communications industries, with responsibilities across television, radio, telecommunications and wireless communications services." The write-up on Fox was included in Ofcom's 6/14/04 report.

Bush: "God Speaks Through Me"

From the local Lancaster County, PA paper:
 
At the end of the session, Bush reportedly told the group, “I trust God speaks through me. Without that, I couldn’t do my job.’’

As always, I try to provide a link to the source material, so here is where you can read the full story:
http://lancasteronline.com/pages/news/local/6/7564