Update, about 9:30 p.m., and the results are unsurprising but somewhat indefinite: Clinton wins PA, but the margin is undetermined. So far her lead has wobbled betw 4 percentage points and 10 at most, mostly in the 6-7-point range.

The pundits have chewed this one so hard they could regurg it and feed baby storks with it: anything into two digits wd represent a win for Clinton. Anything under 5-6-7 wd do little to help her. Betw those, a bit unclear. Et cetera.

What does seem to be clarified, once and for all, tonight is what peculiar individuals Terry McAuliffe ...   more »

Watching CNN and MSNBC dole out tidbits from exit polls is fun, in a way, but in an awfully cheesy way. Chris Matthews keeps trying out Tonight's Big Number--almost unfailingly something unimportant.

My idea of a big number is the statistic they haven't fed us yet. Here's one they have: 17 percent of Pennsylvania voters made up their minds just this past week or in the past few days, acc to MSNBC. Now, acc to an exit poll over at CNN earlier, of such voters--the only recently decided, i.e. since the televised ABC 'debate' acc to the commentators--the majority went ...   more »

133^rd in continuing blog series on the administration push to war. Summer, 2005                In the realm of Washington and New York media, Bob Woodward’s “Deep Throat” from Watergate years, former FBI agent Mark Felt, is big news, the subject of numerous media discussions about confidential sources and almost always compared to the CIA leak matter. After Mark Felt is exposed as Deep Throat by Vanity Fair magazine, scooping Bob Woodward, Woodward brings out a book on Felt and Watergate. On numerous occasions, Woodward is called upon to discuss the CIA leak matter, sometimes with Carl Bernstein; Woodward consistently ...   more »

Apr. 2, 2005 – Pope John Paul II, a staunch opponent of the Iraq war, dies.

The administration push to war reportedly energized the frail Pope, aged 84 at the time of his death, who spoke vigorously and publicly against it.

 

Apr. 19, 2005 – The U.S. Court of Appeals in D.C. turns down a request by Judith Miller to review the previous decision rebuffing her effort to get the grand jury subpoena quashed in the CIA leak case. Miller will appeal to the Supreme Court.

 

Apr. 25, 2005 – In his final statement, the CIA top inspector ...   more »

A big hearty plug for the open letter to Charles Gibson and George Stephanopoulos, posted today by Attytood (Will Bunch) of the Philadelphia Daily News/philly.com. He's right about last night's show on ABC, which was supposed to be--by the way--a debate between Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton. Excerpt from the piece:

"You implied throughout the broadcast that you wanted to reflect the concerns of voters in Pennsylvania. Well, I'm a Pennsylvanian voter, and so are my neighbors and most of my friends and co-workers. You asked virtually nothing that reflected our everyday issues -- trying to fill our gas tanks ...   more »

131st in continuing blog series on the administration push to war. Two solid and amply research studies appear in the month of March, either of them sufficient documentation, if any further documentation were required, that the war and its aftermath are ill conceived.
March, 2005:

 

March 14, 2005 – The Government Accountability Office (GAO) publishes a report on Rebuilding Iraq, Preliminary Observations on Challenges in Transferring Security Responsibilities to Iraqi Military and Police:

“Since the fall of the former Iraq regime in April 2003, the multinational force has been working to develop Iraqi military and police forces capable of ...   more »

130^th in continuing blog series on the administration push to war. Politics and policy become even more tense in the new post-election year, with the ongoing conflict in Iraq, administration intransigence about getting out, and the ongoing revelations of prison abuses in Iraq. The administration continues to circle the wagons, with the highest level personnel appointments going to individuals directly tied to the president.
February, 2005:

 

Feb. 4, 2005 – Alberto Gonzales is confirmed as Attorney General of the United States.

 

Feb. 7, 2005 – Office of the Vice President emails from this day ...   more »

A sprinkling of news reports has suggested that CBS is looking for a replacement for Katie Couric. Not to do product placement here, and I have not been hired by anyone to provide PR for Keith Olbermann—who doesn’t need it anyway--but there is something to be said for sportscasters. They have to know how to count, they learn to keep their eye on the ball, and they have to be able to understand concepts like fair play. This may not sound like much of a yardstick, but it’s like knowing what beats what in poker—if you take a seat at ...   more »

Jan. 16, 2005 – The Washington Post publishes an interview with George W. Bush in which he says that the 2004 election ratified his approach to Iraq:

“We had an accountability moment, and that's called the 2004 elections,” Bush said in an interview with The Washington Post. “The American people listened to different assessments made about what was taking place in Iraq, and they looked at the two candidates, and chose me.”

 

Jan. 18, 2005 – National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice, nominated for Secretary of State, is questioned in confirmation hearing by the Senate Foreign Relations ...   more »

128^th in continuing blog series on the administration push to war with Iraq.      2005          The year 2005 is largely a year of punctures and fizzles as far as the administration is concerned. The White House has been successfully retaken and Congress still has a GOP majority, but the air is let out of all the big administration themes. Osama bin Laden is mysteriously able to communicate from whatever technological high-production-values haven contains him, but no longer seems much of a bogeyman; Iraq is broken, but all the purported links with nuclear weapons, Islamic terrorists, and 9/11 ...   more »

127^th in continuing blog series on the administration push to war. The year closes with a whimper, not a bang, as the disappointing and compromised election process ends with George W. Bush retaining the White House. Voters in Ohio and elsewhere are not strongly protected by their Congress. On other fronts, the dubiously credentialed James Guckert/Jeff Gannon steps up his defense of the White House in press briefings, the ‘war on terror’ continues its selective and closeted detentions, and the violence in Iraq intensifies.
December, 2004:

 

December, 2004. Abdallah Tabarak, formerly driver and companion to Osama bin Laden, ...   more »

126^th in continuing blog series on the administration push to war. The big news of this month is the election, which turns out to make little difference to the course of the war in Iraq. Although Sen. John Kerry looks good for the win at least in the electoral college, a desperately micro-targeted effort by the GOP, the last-minute appearance on television by Osama bin Laden, and the long-running effects of swift-boating take their toll. One final factor: on election day itself, exit polls are released around noon or in the early afternoon indicating that Kerry is ahead, ...   more »

11:15 a.m. With the televised portion of the Petraeus and Crocker appearances now concluded--including a very little Q&A with some senators--there is indeed little new news. What Petraeus said, or projects for the future--"the way ahead," it's characterized--amounts to little good, for the public interest.

The 'drawdown' of the 'surge' buildup will be completed in about July. Then there will be a 'pause,' acc to SecDef Gates, tho Petraeus phrases it differently, for "assessment" and "evaluation." The 'pause' is projected to last about 45 days, during which time apparently they're not going to be trying to bring any more troops ...   more »

9:52 a.m. Gen. Petraeus is up, gives his prepared statement. The real defeat, for us, in Iraq was going in. But we're not going to hear that from this 4-star general representing administration policy. Literally it's 8 stars, 4 on each shoulder. U.S. military uniforms are more ornate than they used to be. Listening to Gen. Petraeus, I cannot help wondering how he got his fourth star when the general I long ago knew best, a very highly qualified man, did not. But the question answers itself.

Parade magazine once ran an article, in my childhood, showing a historical pattern ...   more »

From the Senate Armed Services Committee--this morning, a well-publicized hearing with testimony from Gen. Petraeus and Ambassador Ryan Crocker. Live-blogging, up to a point:

CNN 9:30 a.m. Opening statements by Armed Services Comm Chair Carl Levin (D-Mich.) and ranking member John McCain, both of whom begin by thanking Petraeus and Crocker. Camera shots show Petraeus and Crocker not looking cheerful. Petraeus looks resentful; Crocker somber or perhaps exhausted. This is a thankless situation to be in--justifying or fronting for or even putting the best face possible on an immoral, illegal and unconstitutional invasion of another country.

While McCain reads his ...   more »

125^th in continuing blog series on the administration push to war. The 2004 U.S. election race heads into its final month, but no definitive calling to account is achieved. Millions of Americans show themselves more able to call the White House to account than does the presidential campaign process.
October, 2004:

 

Oct. 3, 2004 – The deadly assault on the city of Fallujah in Iraq begins.
 

Oct. 3, 2004 – National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice, appearing on Sunday talk shows, says she stands by her pre-war intelligence assessment of Saddam Hussein’s weapons of mass destruction.

Interviewed on ...   more »

September – October 2004   As the fall elections heat up, quiet efforts by the administration and by prominent media outlets and personalities to keep the CIA leak out of the public eye continue. The full falsity of pre-war claims by the White House about purported Iraq WMD, a relationship between Saddam and al Qaeda, or complicity in 9/11 is never adequately clarified in the presidential or vice presidential debates. Related stories such as the fact that the president’s own relatives number among those profiting from the Iraq war and the ‘war on terror’ are, literally, not mentioned in the ...   more »

So we should figure out how to get out of Iraq, was the gist of Sen. Jim Webb's discussion on ABC's This Week with George Stephanopoulos today. As Democrat Webb of Virginia put it, the actual war--defeating the pathetic Iraqi so-called government--ended soon after the U.S. went in. "Since then," what we've had, as Webb pointed out, is a "very contentious occupation"--which is draining our military resources, tying them mostly down in one place--the country of Iraq--and sidelining "our grander strategic interests," including the--what?--oh, yes--our economy.

A senator from each major party, if they're still major, was interviewed by Stephanopoulos, ...   more »

August is usually quiet in the national capital. But the violence in Iraq—it’s called war—continues, as do indirect and direct attempts by the administration to justify what is going on there. Meanwhile, sectors of the news media that have acted as a fourth branch of the worst administration in U.S. history continue their own efforts to shore up their credibility.
August, 2004:

 

Aug. 6, 2004 – A hearing is held at the U.S. District Court for D.C. on a motion by Matthew Cooper and Time magazine to quash the grand jury subpoena in the CIA leak investigation. The ...   more »

122^nd in continuing blog series on the administration push to war. In summer of 2004, the news keeps coming out—about administration uses of the intelligence community leading up to the Iraq war—and a consensus begins to emerge, that intelligence was indeed misused. Regrettably, that soft consensus does not provide enough impetus for hard action. Meanwhile, the White House continues to take its own measures to maintain position.
July, 2004:

 

 

July 6, 2004 – A hearing is held in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., on Matthew Cooper’s motion to quash the subpoena issued by the ...   more »

June 1, 2004 – The Government Accountability Office (GAO) publishes a report on contracting and reconstruction in Iraq indicating widespread problems:

“Congress has appropriated more than $20 billion since April 2003 to support rebuilding efforts in Iraq. This complex undertaking, which is occurring in an unstable security environment and under significant time constraints, is being carried out largely through contracts with private-sector companies. As of September 2003, agencies had obligated nearly $3.7 billion on 100 contracts or task orders under existing contracts.”

“The agencies encountered various contract administration challenges during the early stages of the reconstruction effort, stemming in ...   more »

120^th in blog series on the administration push to war. As more information on the abuse of prisoners in Abu Ghraib and other U.S. prisons becomes public, the White House becomes more defensive. Its special new ally in the White House press corps continues his effort to defend the administration. The situation in Iraq continues to worsen, predictably, and the administration responds—not by leaving Iraq, now that Saddam is gone and WMD are shown to be nonexistent, but by upping its use of military force. This is the month which should have indicated definitively to American news media ...   more »

119^th in blog series on the administration push to war. As the election year proceeds, the tragedies of war continue, including the death of football star Pat Tillman, who gave up his pro contract to volunteer in Afghanistan. The death occurs under suspicious circumstances, and the administration instantly fabricates a John Wayne-style narrative.
April, 2004:

 

Apr. 18, 2004 – Bob Woodward is interviewed on CBS’ 60 Minutes about his new book on the Bush administration and the Iraq war, Plan of Attack:
 

“WALLACE: (Voiceover) Woodward reports that just five days after September 11th President Bush ...   more »

Spring, 2004           The political atmosphere is dominated by the national elections. In a show of political unity, the Democrats solidify around John Kerry as their prospective candidate in March, unusually early for Dems in an election year. Regrettably, the national party ticket, although largely supported by opponents of the war, never commits adequately to informing the public about the lead-up to the war, or about war profiteering, or about the behind-the-scenes maneuvering by the administration to avoid being held to account. With the single honorable exception of Congressman Ron Paul (R-TX), Republican officeholders and candidates largely hew to the ...   more »

Fox News is battling desperately to keep Hillary Clinton in the Democratic race. Had there been any remaining question about the impartiality of Fox, Fox News Sunday this morning would have laid it to rest definitively. The topic gummed by visiting interviewee Tennessee Gov. Phil Bredesen and the panelists on Fox's round table discussion was the question of whether 'Hillary' should get out of the race. All were agreed, predictably, that she should not.

When was the last time you heard Rupert Murdoch's television outlet griping about 'bigwigs' dominating a process, any process?--Well, this morning, as it happens, when Bredesen ...   more »

117^th in continuing blog series on the administration push to war. While the White House continues to fight a rearguard campaign on Iraq, using its most prominent spokespersons in public—including the president and the National Security Adviser—it also receives support in a narrower venue from the unorthodoxly credentialed new addition to the White House press corps, James Guckert/Jeff Gannon. Meanwhile, White House cronies and insiders benefit from contracts for Iraq reconstruction.
February 13-29, 2004:

 

 

Feb. 13, 2004 – Jeff Gannon/James Guckert asks a helpful question about WMD at the White House press briefing conducted by ...   more »

Feb. 1, 2004 – The British Guardian newspaper reports that U.S. officials knew in May, 2004, that Iraq had no stockpiles of WMD:

“Senior American officials concluded at the beginning of last May that there were no weapons of mass destruction (WMD) in Iraq, The Observer has learnt.

Intelligence sources, policy makers and weapons inspectors familiar with the details of the hunt for WMD told The Observer it was widely known that Iraq had no WMD within three weeks of Baghdad falling, despite the assertions of senior Bush administration figures and the Prime Minister, Tony Blair.”

What this news ...   more »

115^th in continuing blog series on the administration push to war. The nonexistence of Iraqi WMD becomes increasingly public, but top administration figures, fighting a step-by-step rearguard action rhetorically, continue to put the best face they can on previous rationales for war.
January 17-31, 2004:

 
 
Jan. 17, 2004 – Halliburton wins a $1.2 billion contract from the Pentagon for oil industry work in Iraq. The contract is awarded to Halliburton subsidiary Kellogg Brown and Root by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for the southern region of Iraq, even though Halliburton is already under ...   more »

114^th in continuing blog series on the administration push to war.

January-February 2004       Election year 2004 is a year of considerable challenge for the administration. Inside the administration, the whole Iraq story is unraveling even more decisively than it has unraveled in public, and the White House and the Office of the Vice President must fend off challenges including investigation and oversight at several junctures. Meanwhile, the ‘antiwar movement,’ as the corporate media outlets call it, is making itself felt. In other words, awareness of what actually led to the Iraq war continuously spreads through a wider and ...   more »