The Talk Show American

THE TALK SHOW AMERICAN: 05/22/2005 - 05/29/2005

Friday, May 27, 2005

Kerry Has Signed SF-180, Or Has He?

During an interview yesterday with Globe editorial writers and columnists, the former Democratic presidential nominee was asked if had signed Form SF 180, authorizing the Department of Defense to grant access to all his military records.

��I have signed it,� Kerry said. Then, he added that his staff was ��still going through it� and ��very, very shortly, you will have a chance to see it.�

The devil is usually in the details. With Kerry, it�s also in the dodges and digressions. After the interview, Kerry�s communications director, David Wade, was asked to clarify when Kerry signed SF 180 and when public access would be granted. Kerry drifted over to join the conversation, immediately raising the confusion level. He did not answer the question of when he signed the form or when the entire record will be made public.

Several e-mails later, Wade conveyed the following information: On Friday, May 20, Kerry obtained a copy of Form 180 and signed it. ��The next step is to send it to the Navy, which will happen in the next few days. The Navy will then send out the records,� e-mailed Wade. Kerry first said he would sign Form 180 when pressed by Tim Russert during a Jan. 30 appearance on ��Meet the Press.�

Six months after Kerry�s loss to George W. Bush, it feels somewhat gratuitous to point out how hard it can be to get a clear, straight answer from Kerry on this and other matters. But as long as the Massachusetts senator is thinking about another presidential run, the candor gap remains on the table, because he puts it there.

Democrat Party, Jesse Jackson Violated Election Laws

The Federal Election Commission is fining both the Democratic Party and two of Jesse Jackson's groups for campaign finance violations dating back to the 2000 presidential campaign.

Jackson's Rainbow/PUSH Coaltion and Citizenship Education Fund will pay a fine of $100,000, and so will the Democratic National Committee -- for orchestrating a partisan voter registration drive.

The fines stem from a September 2000 agreement in which the DNC paid Jackson's groups $450,000 to offset the costs of a get-out-the-vote and voter registration drive intended to get more Democrats to the polls, the FEC said.

The American Conservative Union, which filed the complaint against the DNC and Jackson's groups four years ago, called the FEC ruling a "real vindication" for Republicans and conservatives.

"The word is now out -- crooked election practices that have become the standard of the Left will not be tolerated," said ACU Chairman David Keene in a statement on the group's website.

According to the ACU, Jackson and his Rainbow/PUSH Coalition orchestrated a massive voter registration drive before the 2000 election.

Election law says such efforts must be strictly nonpartisan, but the Rainbow/PUSH campaign was closely coordinated with the DNC and targeted Democrats, ACU said. In addition to planning and coordinating campaign efforts, the DNC reimbursed Jackson's group for its work.

The ACU said it filed suit in 2001 "after the public evidence of the abuse became too visible to ignore."

Another Jackson-watcher, the National Legal and Policy Center, said FEC ruling confirms that Jackson's Citizenship Education Fund (CEF) - his largest nonprofit group - operates outside of its nonprofit tax status.

"The tax-exempt purpose of CEF is to conduct nonpartisan voter registration and get-out-the-vote campaigns," said Peter Flaherty, president of the National Legal and Policy Center.

"Now that the FEC has officially determined that CEF has engaged in partisan activities, it is confirmation that CEF is in violation of its tax-exempt status. The Internal Revenue Service should revoke CEF's tax-exempt status without further delay."

In 2001, the National Legal and Policy Center filed a formal IRS complaint against CEF.

The complaint alleges that Jackson uses the Citizenship Education Fund as a vehicle to "shake down" corporate America; that Jackson appears to have used the tax-exempt group to enrich himself and those close to him; and that CEF, among other omissions, failed to disclose on its tax return payments to Jackson's mistress, Karin Stanford.

NLPC said Jackson responded to the complaint "with a furious attack on NLPC," but he also announced that CEF's tax return would be amended to reflect the payments to Stanford.

Said Flaherty, "Our previous allegations should have been enough to result in the revocation of CEF's tax-exempt status. The FEC's finding that CEF is partisan should settle the issue once and for all.

"We plan to amend our complaint with this new information."

Thursday, May 26, 2005

Web Site Announces Al-Zarqawi Replacement

Iraq's most lethal insurgent group appears to be facing a leadership crisis amid conflicting reports about the fate of its leader, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, and whether a Saudi militant has been named to stand in for him.

Iraq's interior and defense ministers said Thursday they have information that al-Zarqawi has been wounded -- apparent confirmation of recent rumors that the Jordanian-born terrorist leader of al-Qaida in Iraq was injured. But the officials said they did not know how severe the injury might be.

Meanwhile, a host of sometimes-dueling statements posted by militants on Web sites made it clear there could be confusion within the group itself -- or perhaps even a leadership struggle -- over al-Zarqawi's status.

None of the statements could be independently verified, but many of them were posted on a Web site known as a clearinghouse for al-Zarqawi, thus increasing their chances of being credible.

The first Internet statement, on Tuesday, claimed that al-Zarqawi had been wounded and asked Muslims to pray for him.

A second, on Thursday, signed in the name of Abu Doujanah al-Tunisi of the media committee of al-Qaida in Iraq -- an unfamiliar name from past statements -- said an interim leader had been appointed to stand in for al-Zarqawi because of his injury.

The statement said the new leader would be Abu Hafs al-Gerni, "deputy of the holy warriors."

Then a third Web posting, later Thursday, disputed the claim that a deputy had been appointed. That statement was posted in the name of the person who usually handles the group's Web site claims, Abu Maysara al-Iraqi.

The authenticity of none of the statements could be verified.

But the back-and-forth on the same Web site, known as a clearinghouse of Islamic militant material, could be a sign of confusion or even political competition within al-Qaida of Iraq.

It follows speculation about al-Zarqawi that has been unusual in size and scope.

On Thursday, Interior Minister Bayan Jabr said during a news conference: "We are not sure whether he is dead or not but we are sure that he is injured."

Iraqi Defense Minister Saadoun al-Duleimi also said al-Zarqawi had been wounded. When asked how he knew, he said: "It is my job."

Al Hayat, a respected pan-Arab newspaper, reported Thursday that several candidates were jockeying to succeed al-Zarqawi, none of whom it identified as al-Gerni. But one candidate the paper did name was Abu Maysara al-Iraqi -- the man who issued Thursday's denial that a deputy had been appointed.

Al Hayat quoted multiple unidentified sources, saying that sources in Jordan close to al-Zarqawi, including a former Iraqi officer, told the newspaper that Abu Maysara al-Iraqi and Abu al-Dardaa al-Iraqi, an al-Qaida operative in Baghdad, were two potential successors.

Thursday's first statement said al-Gerni "was known for carrying out the hardest operations, and our sheik would choose him and his group for the tough operations."

Middle East experts on Islamic militants told The Associated Press that al-Gerni is a Saudi who has been al-Zarqawi's military adviser and is the emir, or prince -- as senior commanders are called -- of the military committee of al-Qaida in Iraq.

The two experts spoke on condition they not be further identified.

An aide to Abdul Aziz Al-Hakim, head of Iraq's largest political party, the Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq, said al-Gerni was a non-Iraqi and a key lieutenant to al-Zarqawi.

"We are not sure 100 percent that al-Zarqawi is dead, and we can't consider this step as a confirmation for his killing," said Haitham al-Hussaini, director of al-Hakim's office.

"According to our intelligence, this al-Gerni is well known to us as one of al-Zarqawi's top aides in Iraq who has an Arab nationality," al-Hussaini said without elaborating on which country al-Gerni came from.

Teamsters President Defends Bush on Social Security

Teamsters President James P. Hoffa, breaking his estrangement from the White House, praised President Bush on Tuesday for attempting to fix Social Security and said Democrats were wrong to oppose any discussion until Mr. Bush drops his personal retirement accounts plan.
Mr. Hoffa said preserving Social Security's long-term solvency and pension retirement reform were major concerns in his 1.4-million-member union and that he was willing to work with the administration and the Republican majority in Congress to come up with bipartisan solutions to both issues.


His words of praise for Mr. Bush's efforts were seen as another sharp break with the AFL-CIO and its president, John Sweeney, whose policies and leadership are being challenged by Mr. Hoffa and several other major unions.
"Social Security is a major problem in this country. We have to make sure that it's preserved for those that come after us," Mr. Hoffa said in an interview with Gannett News Service. "I think President Bush should be given credit for the fact that he has initiated a debate regarding what we should do."
The once-cozy relations between the Teamsters union leader and the White House have been virtually nonexistent over the past couple of years, and Mr. Hoffa campaigned against Mr. Bush's re-election. But some White House advisers saw Mr. Hoffa's words of support for the president's efforts as a calculated move to show that the Teamsters are willing to work more closely with the administration and Republicans on issues of mutual interest.

Democrats Refuse to Join Medicaid Commission

Democrats are once again refusing an invitation to discuss public policy -- this one involving a new Medicaid Commission, an advisory panel that's supposed to recommend ways of "modernizing" Medicaid and making it "financially sustainable."

As directed by Congress, Health and Human Services Secretary Michael Leavitt established the commission earlier this month.

By September, the panel must recommend ways of saving the program $10 billion over five years; and by the end of 2006, the panel must submit recommendations to sustain the program over the long term.

On Thursday, Democrat leaders refused an invitation to appoint four non-voting Democrats to the advisory panel.

"After much deliberation, we have decided not to appoint Members of the Senate and House as non-voting members of the administration's Medicaid Commission. An invitation to Democrats to select four Members of the Senate and House to advisory roles without a vote is wholly inadequate to lend any Commission even the air of bipartisanship," said House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi and Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid in a joint statement.

Pelosi and Reid complained that the administration will select all 15 voting members of the commission as well as 15 non-voting advisers. In addition, House and Senate Republican leaders will select four non-voting Republican advisors -- the same invitation that was extended to Democrats.

Iraqi Forces Arrest Key Zarqawi Aide

The U.S. military has confirmed the arrest of an aide to the al-Qaida chief in Iraq, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, by Iraqi forces near the city of Baquba. The arrest was announced as the U.S. launched an operation in the western city of Haditha intended to round up insurgent suspects.

A statement released by the U.S. military describes Mullah Kamel al-Aswadi as the most wanted terrorist in north-central Iraq. Officials say Iraqi forces made the arrest of al-Aswadi as he tried to bribe his way through a checkpoint in the town of Balad. His vehicle was found to contain a global positioning system, multiple identification papers, a scope used to launch mortars, and U.S. currency.
Abu Musab Zarqawi (undated State Dept. photo) Officials say al-Aswadi served as a key aide to Iraq's al-Qaida front man, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, a Jordanian-born militant. The statement says al-Aswadi was involved in the funding of terror cells, terrorist training, and the making of car and roadside bombs.

On Tuesday, an Islamist website al-Zarqawi reported had been wounded, and asked for his supporters to offer prayers for his recovery. It did not say how he was injured or where he was. U.S. officials could not confirm the authenticity of the statement.

Charges Against Pantano Dropped

A former Wall Street trader who rejoined the Marines after the Sept. 11 attacks will not be tried on murder charges for killing two suspected Iraqi insurgents, a Marine general decided Thursday.
The decision by Maj. Gen. Richard Huck, commander of the 2nd Marine Division based at Camp Lejeune, ends the prosecution of 2nd Lt. Ilario Pantano, whom prosecutors accused of killing the men without justification.


"Down at the unit level, there was never a question about Ilario's conduct and whether or not he did the right thing," Charles Gittins, Pantano's civilian lawyer, said. "It was up in the higher echelons. The people removed from combat situations needed to put more trust in their officers rather than assuming they're guilty."

"That's exciting, isn't it," said Pantano's mother, Merry Pantano of New York, who said she hadn't yet spoken to her son about the decision. "Needless to say, we are quite ecstatic."

The two Iraqis were killed during an April 2004 search outside a suspected terrorist hideout in Mahmudiyah, Iraq. Pantano, 33, contended he shot them in self-defense after the men disobeyed his instructions and made a menacing move toward him.

Prosecutors alleged Pantano intended to make an example of the men by shooting them 60 times and hanging a sign over their bodies - "No better friend, no worse enemy," a Marine slogan. While citing self-defense as his motive, Pantano did not deny hanging the sign or shooting the men repeatedly.

An Article 32 hearing, the military equivalent of a grand jury session, was held in April. In a report dated May 12, the hearing officer, Lt. Col. Mark Winn, had recommended that the murder charges be dropped.

While finding some problems with Pantano's behavior, Winn concluded that one witness' accusation that Pantano shot the detainees while they were kneeling with their backs to him was not supported by other testimony or evidence.

Witnesses testified the sergeant who was Pantano's main accuser was a weak Marine who was bitter about Pantano removing him from a leadership role within the platoon.

More than a half-dozen Marines who served with Pantano in Iraq praised him in testimony, saying he was an able leader who remained cool in combat and was amiable with Iraqis.

Winn wrote in his recommendation that Pantano should face nonjudicial punishment for allegedly desecrating the bodies by reloading his weapon and repeatedly shooting them. Pantano said he shot the men until they stopped moving.

Huck could have accepted Winn's recommendation, given some form of administrative punishment or gone ahead with a court-martial. He decided that Pantano should face no punishment for any of his actions.

"The best interests of 2nd Lt. Pantano and the government have been served by this process," the Marine Corps said in a statement.

Supporters of Pantano said troops should not be second-guessed for decisions made in fleeting seconds of combat. A North Carolina congressman had urged President Bush to intervene and dismiss charges.

Pantano also has become a popular subject for conservative radio hosts, and his mother started a Web site in his defense.

Iraqi Government Says al-Zarqawi Wounded

Iraq's Interior Minister said Thursday his office believes Abu Musab al-Zarqawi was wounded, but doesn't know if he is dead, as Iraqi officials announced a new crackdown on insurgents in the capital.
At least 10 Iraqis died in violence nationwide, including a child. The statement by the Interior Ministry came hours after an Internet statement claimed Iraq's most feared terror group had appointed a fill-in for purportedly wounded leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi.


The statement, the authenticity of which could not be verified, was quickly denied in another Web site claim disputing Abu Hafs al-Gerni had taken over from al-Zarqawi, the Jordanian-born head of the al-Qaida in Iraq terrorist group. The conflicting statements follow days of rumors al-Zarqawi was wounded and possibly killed or moved outside Iraq for treatment.

Interior Minister Bayan Jabr said his office believes al-Zarqawi was wounded, but said he did not know how seriously or if he was dead. It was not clear on what evidence Jabr was basing his statement.

Monday, May 23, 2005

Man accused of trying to sell bomb to terrorists

A 68-year-old man who told undercover agents he has ``no loyalty for America'' has been arrested and charged with trying to build a bomb and sell it to terrorists, U.S. Attorney Michael Shelby announced Monday.

Ronald Allen Grecula, of Bangor, Pa., was arrested Friday in Houston during a meeting with undercover FBI agents. During that meeting, Grecula indicated willingness to build and sell an explosive device that was to be used by al-Qaida or its affiliates against Americans, according to court documents.

Grecula was angry at the government over the custody loss of his children, whom he had kidnapped and fled with to Malta. He served less than a year in prison on that charge.

Grecula made his initial court appearance in the terror case Monday without entering a plea. A detention hearing was scheduled for Thursday. He has been charged with attempting to provide material support and resources to a designated foreign terrorist organization. If convicted, he faces up to 15 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000.

``The charges are serious,'' Shelby told a news conference. ``The very first priority of this administration and this Department of Justice is to stop another 9/11 attack and this is a success story in that effort.''

Peter Bray, a public defender appointed to represent Grecula, had no comment. Grecula told a federal magistrate he is receiving Social Security and works part-time for $400 a month as a dock employee for a moving and storage business.

Grecula met a confidential source for the FBI when he was imprisoned in Malta awaiting extradition to the United States. He had been charged with kidnapping his children, then 10 and 3, in a custody dispute in 2002.

Grecula asked the source to find a client for a large bomb that he was willing to build and sell. He specifically mentioned al-Qaida, but indicated he would sell it to any such group.

Negotiations with the confidential source and later undercover FBI agents continued between April and Friday, according to the complaint against him.

Grecula told the source he could buy all the components for a bomb whose ingredients would include hydrogen chlorine at a welding store. He said he was educated as a mechanical engineer and experiments with alternative fuels and energy, according to the criminal complaint.

During the Friday meeting in Houston with the confidential source and an undercover officer who presented himself as an al-Qaida agent, Grecula said, ``If we had one of those in this room right now filled with hydrogen chlorine, this hotel wouldn't be here. It would be a crater in the ground. Nothing would be here.''

Grecula said he would be willing to build the bomb in exchange for custody of his two children.

N.Y. Audit: Sex Offenders Getting Viagra

Scores of convicted rapists and other high-risk sex offenders in New York have been getting Viagra paid by Medicaid for the last five years, the state's comptroller said Sunday.

Audits by Comptroller Alan Hevesi's office showed that between January 2000 and March 2005, 198 sex offenders in New York received Medicaid-reimbursed Viagra after their convictions. Those included crimes against children as young as 2 years old, he said.

Hevesi asked Michael Leavitt, secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, in a letter Sunday to "take immediate action to ensure that sex offenders do not receive erectile dysfunction medication paid for by taxpayers."

A call to Leavitt's office was not immediately returned Sunday.

According to Hevesi, the problem is an unintended consequence of a 1998 directive from federal officials telling states that Medicaid prescription programs must include Viagra. His office discovered that the state was helping sex offenders pay for Viagra by checking Medicaid pharmacy expenditures against the state's sex offender registry.

Pepsi President Compares US to Middle Finger

The president of Pepsi ignited controversy after comparing the United States to the middle finger in her commencement speech at Columbia Business School in New York on Sunday, according to WorldNetDaily.

Newsweek put U.S. flag in trash on foreign cover

With Newsweek still reeling from its forced retraction of the Quran-in-the-toilet story, the magazine is now under fire for publishing what some see as staunchly anti-American covers in foreign editions.

For instance, while a Japanese edition of Newsweek dated Feb. 2 published a cover story featuring an American flag in a trash can under the headline, "The day America died," and the international edition featured a photo of President Bush with the headline, "America Leads ... But Is Anyone Following?," the U.S. edition cover story was an "Oscar Confidential" featuring Hilary Swank, Jamie Foxx and Leonardo DiCaprio.

The cover story in the foreign editions, titled, "Dream on, America," about what Newsweek characterized as "the world's rejection of the American way of life," did not run in the U.S. edition of the magazine.

The Japanese edition of the magazine is raising the ire of bloggers for its illustration of a dirtied American flag, its staff broken and discarded in a trash can.

"I think they have crossed the line into outright treason," wrote one blogger yesterday. "It's time to see some of these enemy propagandists hanging from the end of a rope."

Some Newsweek international readers noticed that the story didn't run in the U.S.

"Why didn't this fine story run in my U.S. edition?" wrote one letter writer in the March 14 edition.

The Japanese cover story was noted on the blogsite Riding Sun, produced by "a New Yorker living in Tokyo."

"Newsweek's false, retracted story about American guards flushing the Quran down a toilet at Guantanamo doesn't necessarily mean the magazine's staff hates America or Bush, or wants us to lose in Iraq," wrote Riding Sun. "To be charitable, let's just chalk that one up to sloppy journalism. But I'm at a loss to explain this."

Both the Japanese and international editions featured cover stories by Andrew Moravcsik. But that piece did not run in the U.S. edition.

"It's one thing for Newsweek to actively promote the notion that America is a 'dead,' 'rotting' country overseas," wrote Riding Sun. "But it's quite another thing indeed to hide those efforts from its American readers. If Newsweek really think America is dead, and our flag belongs in the trash, why won't it tell us?"

Sunday, May 22, 2005

Frist Said to Have 'Nuclear Option' Votes

Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist reportedly has the votes to enforce the so-called "nuclear option" against judicial filibusters instigated by Democrats, despite claims to the contrary by Minority Leader Harry Reid.

After a Thursday meeting with Senate Democrats, Reid boasted he was ready for the coming battle. "It was one of the most pleasant experiences of my entire life," he told reporters. "We walked out of there so united. We talked about what's going to happen after Tuesday," when the filibuster showdown is expected to come to head.

But according to New York Times columnist David Brooks, Reid was blowing smoke.

"Harry Reid told a small group of us Friday he was cautiously optimistic that he had the votes to defeat the nuclear option, but I think he's wrong," Brooks said Sunday.

"John McCain, Lincoln Chafee, John Warner and maybe Susan Collins and Olympia Snowe will vote against the nuclear option, but none of the other Republicans are likely to."

"Bill Frist has the votes," he predicted.

Brooks also reports that attempts by Senate moderates to hammer out a deal to avoid the filibuster showdown have collapsed.

"The talks stalled. Joe Lieberman didn't bother to attend the final meeting. Positions will probably harden over the weekend, making a deal less likely tomorrow," he said.

DA Pressured to Quit Over DeLay Remark

State Republican Party leaders have called for the resignation of Travis County District Attorney Ronnie Earle for referring to House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, R-Texas, as a "bully" at a recent Democratic fundraiser in Dallas, according to a report in the Washington Times.

DA Earle's Austin office is investigating a case involving a DeLay-led political action committee.


"For Ronnie Earle to say with a straight face that he is an unbiased prosecutor is laughable," said state GOP Chairman Tina Benkiser of Houston. "Ronnie Earle's political motives are transparent. He is tainted and he should resign."


In his speech at the Democrat fundraiser, white-collar crime prosecutor Earle said, "If it isn't this Tom DeLay, it'll be another one - just like one bully replaces the one before. This is a structural problem involving the combination of money and power. Money brings power and power corrupts."

Earle and DeLay, who has been charged with no crime by Earle, sparred in a "60 Minutes" segment recently - with DeLay calling the Earle investigation "partisan" and "frivolous." Earle replied, "Being called vindictive and partisan by Tom DeLay is like being called ugly by a frog."

Ethics Committee to Probe Harry Reid

The Senate Ethics Committee will investigate Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid based on two separate complaints filed against the Nevada Democrat, the committee's vice chairman said this week.

On Wednesday the Center for Individual Freedom filed a complaint with the committee based on Reid's decision to reveal confidential information from the FBI file of Henry Saad - one of President Bush's judicial nominees. "All you need to do is have a member go upstairs and look at his confidential report from the FBI, and I think we would all agree there is a problem there," Reid told the Senate last week, in comments that outraged Republicans.

Asked about the CIF complaint, the Ethics Committee vice chairman, South Dakota Democrat Tim Johnson, told Human Events magazine: "Filing does automatically set off a preliminary investigation, which is usually staff-driven."

On Thursday, the American Conservative Union filed a second ethics complaint against Sen. Reid over the Saad incident.

The ACU complaint also cites "improper referencing of confidential materials by Senators Patrick Leahy and Carl Levin."

It's not clear whether the reference to Leahy and Levin will spur additional probes by the Ethics Committee.