Rep. Jay Inslee will introduce a resolution of impeachment against Alberto Gonzales Tuesday morning in the House

From the Seattle Times:

http://blog.seattletimes.nwsource.com/davidpostman/archives/2007/07/inslee_to_push_impeach_of_ag_gonzales.html

Congressman Jay Inslee will introduce tomorrow a resolution calling for impeachment of Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, according to a statement from his office. Inslee, a former prosecutor in Selah, has lined up other former prosecutors in Congress to join as co-sponsors. As of this afternoon he had five co-sponsors.

The resolution is brief. It says in full:

Directing the Committee on the Judiciary to investigate whether Alberto R. Gonzales, Attorney General of the United States, should be impeached for high crimes and misdemeanors.Resolved, That the Committee on the Judiciary shall
investigate fully whether sufficient grounds exist for the
House of Representatives to impeach Alberto R. Gonzales,
Attorney General of the United States, for high crimes and misdemeanors.

A few words about Representative Inslee.

To say that I am sorry we live just a few miles outside of his district is an understatement. I think a lot of him because, despite the fact I’m technically not a constituent, if I show up wherever he’s appearing and ask questions, he answers them. If he can’t answer them on the spot, he has a staff member get our contact information and gets back to me.  I don’t ask softball questions, either. Let’s put it this way: I asked him very specific questions in a town hall meeting almost three years ago about the CIA leak case, for instance.

This is the right guy to start this effort. He and his colleagues spent a lot of late nights in the House speaking about Iraq when to oppose the war was considered tantamount to treason. He doesn’t back down from a fight.

-S

p.s. I’m hoping that Reps. Hodes and Whitehouse are also joining this effort. Let’s just say that House Oversight committee hearings became must-see TV when they joined the committee.

Happy birthday to me, and some words about my mom

Yes, it really is my birthday today.

It was a hundred degrees in Seattle the day I was born. I’m sure this was a precursor of my fiery personality. (My mom wrote the following in my baby book: “Strategerie is a very sweet baby, except when she’s crossed.”)

I posted the Beatitudes earlier this week. Of course, reading them over reminds me yet again how I fall short of the mark on a daily basis. I also think about what my mom would have to say about the whole thing. I realize this is most likely subject matter for Mother’s Day, but I wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for her, would I? Let me introduce the most influential person in my life.

My mom, Evelyn, was a shy Irish Catholic girl who had me eleven days after her 21st birthday. Her whole world was my dad and their three children. She didn’t go to college. She never flew on an airplane, despite the fact my dad worked at Boeing as a machinist most of his life. The farthest away she ever traveled was Southern California. She liked to watch Carol Burnett’s show and loved Erma Bombeck’s column. Mom thought having a sloe gin fizz was really living it up. I was always surprised to hear her giggling when she talked with her two best friends, my aunt Marilyn and their friend Kathy. She was also the most patient and compassionate person I have ever known. My mom was kind and generous to people who had no idea that she gave to them and went without herself. For example, as a pre-teen in the early 70’s during Boeing’s layoffs, there was more than one time she sent me to a neighbor’s front porch with a bag of groceries. I was told to ring the bell and run. She’d say, “They can’t see you, or they’ll feel bad.”

My mom wasn’t perfect. After all, she was human. (Let’s just say I think she must have had a Master’s in guilt, for instance.) At the same time, I never doubted that she loved me, and that she wanted the best for me.

Mom’s been gone sixteen years, and I still hear her in the back of my head when I’m being impatient or unreasonable. She’s my conscience, because I know she’d expect me to do better. “You don’t know where they come from. Maybe their family isn’t nice. Maybe nobody cares about them.” Every day of my life, I still strive to live up to what she tried to teach me, through word and deed.

Thanks, Mom.
I love you, and I’ll always miss you.

-S

I now have a Starbucks habit. Could an intervention be far behind?

 The Tazo Tangerine Tea/Juice Frappucino. Howard Schultz, I’m holding you personally responsible for this.

I used to smirk at those lining up for their four-dollar venti split-shot non-fat with no whip every morning. Why be a helpless lemming, hurling oneself over the Starbucks cliff? Did they honestly need coffee to achieve? I’m sure my resistance to a daily latte had something to do with the fact that I really didn’t start drinking coffee at all till last year. At the same time, my car is magically pointing itself to the local Starbucks drive-through on a regular basis these days. Honestly. I’m on my way somewhere else, and before I know it, I’m clutching yet another logo cup of sunshiny, freezing cold goodness.

It started out so innocently. I’m one of those weirdos who actually likes iced tea with no sugar. I could go to Starbucks and get my iced tea, and I’m outta’ there for very little money and hardly any calories. Of course, I spied the word “tangerine” on their menu, and I was LOST.

All hail the Tazo Tangerine juice/tea frap thing. All I can say is that I’ve (barely) been able to resist reaching through the drive-through window, grabbing the container out of their blender, and chugging the whole thing. It’s crack through a straw. I don’t need those additional 170 calories. Plus, this is going to start cutting into my book budget. So far, I’ve managed to hold out and only go there every other day.

I can’t believe I’ve actually caved to the social pressure. Now I’ll be lining up with the shakes over my tangerine frap thing, just like everyone else. Oh, the humanity.

-S

Claiming the Courtesan: The return of forced sex in romance novels?

One of the great benefits of attending the Romance Writers of America’s national conference is the huge amount of free books given out by publishers to the attendees. There are authors attending National that come home with autographed books that end up as gifts for family and friends, or door prizes at conferences around the country. I brought home a suitcase full. One of the books I snagged while I was there was a novel I’ve been curious about because it’s sparked quite a bit of discussion on author blogs and at Amazon.com.

Anna Campbell’s “Claiming the Courtesan” is billed as “Regency noir”.  The reason the book is so controversial is because the hero essentially forces the heroine into multiple sexual encounters as part of the plot. (The hero is a duke who can’t quite seem to let go of his courtesan, Soraya, in 1800’s England. He will win her love at any cost.) Forced sex was an accepted plot device in the 70’s, but now? I’m not so sure. Interestingly enough, another author and I were having a bit of a chat awhile back about another New York Times multiple bestselling romance author who’s also featured not-so-consensual sex in her novels; we must be the only people who’ve noticed, because we’ve never heard anyone else object.

Don’t get me wrong. Anna’s book is gripping. I’m not a huge historicals fan, but she kept me glued till the last page. She’s a great writer, and she’s entitled to tell her story any way she sees fit. (She’s doing pretty well on the bestseller lists, and this is her first book — good for you, Anna!) I’m curious, though: Is this a trend? We’ve all been so politically correct. I also realize there’s a certain amount of suspension of belief in romance novels. Most of our heroes are alpha males who (of course!) are tender and gentle with the heroine. I don’t know how many of you have ever had a relationship with an alpha male, but let’s face it, it’s a testosterone festival in real life. They can be nice, they’re definitely toe-curling, but they’re not the kings of romance. They’re not writing you a sonnet and trailing rose petals through your bedroom. They’re doing something — manly. That’s why we love them.

I understand that there are women who fantasize about being overcome or dominated. That’s their thing. I wonder, though — there’s nothing fun or romantic about being sexually assaulted. Part of the PR issue with romance novels in their previous incarnations were “bodice rippers”. I wonder if the pendulum is swinging back because readers and authors are tired of the ultra-PC, safe sex, metrosexual guys thing. Who knows?

I know that there are other authors and romance readers who visit The Little Pink Clubhouse, and I’m curious to know what they think about this one, or if they’ve read the book.

-S

p.s. On the subject of being glued into a romance novel: I write them. I know how they’re constructed. About page 130 to 150, I’m looking for the first plot twist. Pages 175 to 200, the characters are typically doing the wild thing, or getting pretty close. Page 250 to 300 or so? Big Black Moment. There’d better be an ending that makes me smile and if I’m really lucky, there’s an epilogue. If the author in question can make me keep reading and forget the “tent poles” of plot construction, she’s GOOD. IMHO, YMMV.

Democrats call for a special prosecutor, and someone finally subpoenaes Karl Rove’s, uh, posterior

In honor of such a day, let me present the only band that could possibly herald the above announcements: the Wicked Tinkers. You haven’t lived till you’ve seen them live, and you certainly haven’t lived till you’ve heard traditional Irish music played on a digideroo. If you just can’t get enough, please go to www.wickedtinkers.com.

In the meantime, welcome to Attorney General Gonzales’ terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day. Someone in the Democratic Party ate their Wheaties this morning…

http://www.abcnews.go.com/print?id=3417127

Democrats Urge Perjury Probe of Gonzales
Senate Democrats Ask Perjury Probe of Gonzales; Subpoena for Karl Rove
By LAURIE KELLMAN
The Associated Press

WASHINGTON

Senate Democrats called for a perjury investigation against Attorney General Alberto Gonzales on Thursday and subpoenaed top presidential aide Karl Rove in a deepening political and legal clash with the Bush administration.

“It has become apparent that the attorney general has provided at a minimum half-truths and misleading statements,” four Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee wrote in a letter to Solicitor General Paul Clement.

They dispatched the letter shortly before Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., announced the subpoena of Rove, the president’s top political strategist, in remarks on the Senate floor.

“We have now reached a point where the accumulated evidence shows that political considerations factored into the unprecedented firing of at least nine United States Attorneys last year,” said Leahy, the chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee.

If that weren’t enough:

http://www.reuters.com/article/topNews/idUSN2636722220070726

Senate panel subpoenas White House aide Rove

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The chairman of the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee said on Thursday he had subpoenaed two more White House aides, including political adviser Karl Rove, in the probe of fired federal prosecutors.

“This is not a step I take lightly,” Sen. Patrick Leahy declared in a Senate speech.

This ought to be interesting.

-S

I’m proud to be a partisan, by Jane Hamsher of Firedoglake

It’s Jane’s birthday today, but the presents are for us. Happy birthday, Jane, and thank you for the reminder. Please take the few minutes necessary to read the article; it’s one of the most outstanding essays I’ve seen on www.firedoglake.com since I started reading it almost two years ago.

http://www.firedoglake.com/2007/07/25/im-proud-to-be-a-partisan/

One of the most pernicious and popular soundbites being exploited these days is the denigration of “partisanship.” When it comes out of the mouths of Republicans who perfected the art of soulless political grandstanding in the 90s, it’s hard enough to take. It’s even tougher to stomach when it comes from George Bush with his thorough devotion to Karl Rove (who needs no better reason to sabotage national security and flagrantly violate the law than the fact that someone is a Democrat). Then there are the useful idiots like Sam Waterston and the Unity ‘08 nuts who really just don’t know what they’re talking about.

But people like Joe Lieberman (and his protege Barack Obama) who consistently indulge this frame ought to know that sometimes the right thing to do is to acknowledge that the other side cannot be bargained with, that no negotiation is possible, that what you’re up against is just wrong and it’s incumbent upon people of conscience to draw a line in the sand and say “enough.” That too is partisanship, and they need to stop decrying it just because it focus groups well with people sick of the GOP and their bully tactics. Partisanship in fact has a glorious history.

Sometimes, to paraphrase Jane, it’s necessary to fight back. She’s a fighter, and she’s leading the way.

-S

In which I almost blow up the house while trying to give Mojo a bath

Mojo’s on the left in this photo.

We’re about to discover, once and for all, whether or not the Dauphin reads my blog. He’s in an undisclosed location. He’ll be back soon, but he hasn’t called home for almost 24 hours. Imagine how surprised he will be to learn the following!

Yesterday was not a good day.  It’s not bad enough that I had to watch Alberto Gonzales smirk like Eddie Haskell for several hours. Oh, no. Our big boy, Mojo, had (how shall I put this?) some intestinal distress in the wee hours of the morning yesterday. Without offering a description that’ll make everyone but our vet sick to their stomachs as well, I awoke to a mess. It was fairly obvious that Kitty needed a little assistance in the personal hygiene department. After doing what I could with a warm washcloth and a comb, I knew I was going to have to at least rinse him off.

We’ve given Mojo a bath before when we were still doing the cat show thing. He likes water. He tolerates bathing. He’ll even let me use a blow dryer on his fur. I could handle this, couldn’t I? After all, I have opposable thumbs and much more tenacity than a twenty-pound feline. Mojo was having No Part Of It yesterday. I put him in the sink and ran a trickle of water over his fur. He went straight from sweet, cuddly boy to Cujo. (Yes, I know Cujo is a dog.) Mojo snarled. He hissed. He dug his claws into me repeatedly. We’ll just say he won. During the ensuing fracas, I bounced off the front of the gas stove. I didn’t realize I’d somehow hit the knob that turns one of the burners on.

I’m bleeding, I’m upset, and it’s become evident I’m not going to be able to do anything about the situation for awhile. I decide I’m going to the grocery store. I’m gone for about an hour. I wandered around, chatted with people I knew that were in the store (and who admired the fresh, bloody cat scratches all over my arms,) and bought a few things.

I knew something was wrong when I opened the front door of our house and smelled gas. It couldn’t be that bad, could it? I rounded the corner to the kitchen, opening windows as I went. The burner was on? I shut it off. Thank God, the cats were fine. I grabbed the cordless and went outside to call Puget Sound Energy. I love Michael, one of their customer service people. He didn’t even laugh at me. He stayed on the phone until I could no longer smell gas, and then he said he was going to hold my hand while I actually turned the burner on once more to make sure they all worked.

Things were somewhat back to normal a short time later. I was pretty scared, but I’m okay. The moral of this story? The vet will be giving Mojo a bath later this afternoon.

-S

p.s. One of my friends found the following yesterday — more candid photos of America’s Hottest Prosecutor’s appearance on “Wait…Wait…Don’t Tell Me!” http://www.flickr.com/photos/mjkmjk/sets/72157600916207240/with/856422345/ Of course, they’re drool-worthy!

Fort Lewis: You died for your country? We don’t have the time or resources for a personalized service anymore!

 

I found this photo on the Web. The woman that took it lost her job for doing so. If I remember correctly, she and her husband are from the Seattle area as well.

I’ve seen this article on a couple of other blogs today. Hat tip to both www.firedoglake.com and www.huffingtonpost.com for keeping the heat on the US Army. I hope I can add to it in some tiny fashion.

Washington State’s Fort Lewis announced their intention to hold group funerals for those from the base that have died in Iraq in May. To say that this touched off a firestorm of anger and criticism in the area and around the country is an understatement. After all, there are so many fatalities per month now from Fort Lewis that it’s just not practical to grieve each life lost separately, according to those who made this decision. They will continue holding the group funerals until further notice.

I can’t even imagine what the family and friends of those who have died in the misadventure that is Iraq must feel about this. There are no photos in the media of our lost returning. There is a virtual blackout on the true number of injured, the true number of fatalities (it came out recently that those who are not dying in country are not counted in the death toll, for instance,) and the Commander in Chief is yet to attend one funeral of an American soldier. If that wasn’t enough, we are now told that these men and women aren’t even being afforded the dignity of a private memorial.

The New York Times has a few things to say on this subject.

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/25/us/25funeral.html?_r=2&hp&oref=slogin&oref=slogin

On Army Base, a Plea to Give Each Death Its Due

By WILLIAM YARDLEY

FORT LEWIS, Wash. — Twenty soldiers deployed to Iraq from this Army base were killed in May, a monthly high. That same month, the base announced a change in how it would honor its dead: instead of units holding services after each death, they would be held collectively once a month.

The anger and hurt were immediate. Soldiers’ families and veterans protested the change as cold and logistics-driven. Critics online said the military was trying to repress bad news about deaths. By mid-June, the base had delayed the plan.

[Its commander, Lt. Gen. Charles H. Jacoby, was expected to decide Wednesday whether to go through with it.]

“If I lost my husband at the beginning of the month, what do you do, wait until the end of the month?” asked Toni Shanyfelt, who said her husband was serving one of multiple tours in Iraq. “I don’t know if it’s more convenient for them, or what, but that’s insane.”

We’ve driven past the exit to Fort Lewis multiple times over the past few years on our way to Oregon. We’ve seen the overpass, festooned with thousands and thousands of yellow ribbons tied to every available surface. For every one of those ribbons, there’s a family or friends that wait and pray their loved one returns. This is the thing: If we ask these men and women to lay down their lives for all of us, the least they should expect from us in return is to remember them with respect and dignity. If we can’t do that, we’ve lost our way.

-S

Alberto Gonzales testified today. What did we learn?

I loves me some government hearings.

Today’s lessons, via Mr. Gonzales.

We still do not have an answer as to who compiled “the list” of US Attorneys slated for firing. Mr. Gonzales insists that personnel changes are “sometimes a good thing”.

He claims he was not sure of James Comey’s status when he made his little late-night visit to Mr. Ashcroft’s ICU room. He says his visit did not have anything to do with the NSA wiretapping. He says he was not aware that Mrs. Ashcroft had barred visitors from her husband’s room. He would not answer Senator Schumer’s question about what was in the envelope he had in his hand when he walked into the room.

I’d also like to know why Mr. Gonzales can refuse to answer any question put to him by the committee at all without taking the Fifth Amendment.

Senator Leahy, it’s long past time to stop playing patty-cake with this man. Charge him with inherent contempt. TODAY.

-S

p.s. Mr. Spector is looking for a special prosecutor. Is anyone taking bets on the chances of getting that law resurrected, through Congress, and having Bush sign off on it?

Gonzales to Senate: I’m Staying, or, where can I get a “Patrick Fitzgerald for Attorney General” t-shirt?

 

St. Jude medal — you can get your own at www.saintsforsinners.com

There I was, musing over what on earth I was going to write on the blog today. I wish I were making this up.

Let’s document the atrocities:

http://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2007/07/23/ap3941298.html

AP

WASHINGTON –

Attorney General Alberto Gonzales says he’s staying at the Justice Department to try to repair its broken image, telling Congress in a statement released Monday he’s troubled that politics may have played a part in hiring career federal prosecutors.

The attorney general’s comments came in 26 pages of prepared testimony that was released on the eve of his scheduled appearance before the Senate Judiciary Committee. He is expected to face detailed questions Tuesday about the firings and conflicts between his earlier statements and the testimony of a former aide.

After months of critics calling for his resignation, Gonzales appears to have weathered the political furor that began with the firings of eight U.S. attorneys last year and subsequently revealed a Justice Department hiring process that favored Republican loyalists.

In his written testimony, Gonzales touted the department’s focus on terrorists, violent crime and even aid to the 2005 Hurricane Katrina victims. He made no reference to the fired U.S. attorneys and only briefly mentioned the controversy that has torpedoed morale at the Justice Department and has called the fairness of its attorneys’ into question.

“Reinforcing public confidence in the department is also critical, and will be one of my top priorities as attorney general for the remainder of my term,” Gonzales said in the prepared statement. (Bolding is mine.)

He’s “troubled” that “politics may have played a part” in hiring career DoJ prosecutors? I think my head just exploded.

The above defies description, at least to me. The person who has presided over the willful destruction of the credibility of the Department of Justice, the person who continues to stonewall and obfuscate the investigation into the purging of US Attorneys around the country who didn’t meet the Bush administration’s purity tests by any means necessary, the person who can’t make anything but heavily controlled public appearances because he has an approval rating that only outranks the Ebola virus, claims he’s staying to “repair the broken image” of the DoJ?

This leaves me absolutely breathless.

How dare you, Attorney General Gonzales? Let’s be truthful, shall we? The ONLY REASON WHY you remain in the post you do is to protect the Bush administration. There is no other reason!

In the meantime, I need the above t-shirt. I was hoping that James Comey wanted the job, but now he’s insisting he wants his buddy to have it.  They can arm-wrestle for it or something. I realize the latter may sound flip, and it’s not my intention. I’d be happy with either of them running that office, and I’m thinking the vast numbers of Americans would agree. I can’t recall any other time in history in which we need someone in the Attorney General’s office that would do his or her job “without fear or favor” more.

I continue to be stunned and astonished at the never-ending hubris of the Bush administration and their apologists.

-S