I heard this guy on Air America. He is an Iraq War Vet [the war we are in now] and he sounds pretty good. This is not just an Iraq war vet but one who decided to run for office on the car ride home from the air port when he got back. I have no doubt that he is probably pretty conservative though I haven't checked up too much on his issues. He is a democrat in Southern Ohio. His district is about 30 minutes from where I grew up in Kentucky, so you know that is just the way it is there. For now.

The other guy was going to swept him but now it is a close race. ALMOST entirely thanks to over $300,000 he got via bloggers on the internet. BUT RECENTLY the GOP is dumping 6 figures into their candidate’s campaign. I believe they just gave $500,000. If you have a couple of bucks for an Iraq War Vet and Democrat please send it. But hurry the Special Election is August 2nd.

And think of it this way. It’s better then covering you ENTIRE hummer in those made in china yellow ribbon magnets.

http://hackettforcongress.com/index.php?page=display&id=73

GREENVILLE (AP) — A Baptist pastor has been accused of sexual exploitation and peeping after investigators found videotapes showing at least 10 women and girls at his church undressing and using the bathroom, a Pitt County sheriff's investigator said Wednesday.

Leon E. Harris, 54, is charged with six felony counts of secretly peeping and four felony counts of sexual exploitation of a minor. He was released Wednesday after posting bond of $30,000, said Lee Moore, Pitt County chief of investigations.

As a condition of his release, Harris cannot go on the premises of Rose Hill Free Will Baptist Church or have any contact with the people he allegedly videotaped, a court record stated.

"This is just the tip of the iceberg," Moore said. "We still have a lot more evidence to go through."

from news-record.com via Atrios

Hey, ya'll - I'm just back from Concord, where the OreoMobile made it's debut, complete with Ben Cohen himself, speaking about our budgeting priorities. I urge everyone to come to Lancaster on Saturday to see the OreoMobile presentation - it's very compelling. Bring your friends, bring your neighbors, bring the Main St. Republicans - this may help them think in a new direction. I had the distinct honor of conducting a brief interview with Ben, who is a good guy, with good values. I'll be writing this up in next week's column.

In other good news, I learned that my favorite Ben&Jerry's flavor was voted out of the flavor graveyard for a brief appearence - yes, WAVY GRAVY will return for a limited time only - and only available in scoop shops.

See you in beautiful downtown Lancaster on Saturday!!

susanb

In order to pass the Central American Free Trade Agreement, the House leadership held the vote open for an additional 47 minutes after the 15 minute voting period had expired. At the end of the original voting period, opponents of CAFTA had defeated the bill by a vote of 180-175. Forty-seven minutes later, conservatives eked out a 217-215 victory by "twist[ing] arms" and exchanging favors for votes. Last night's antics parallel the tactics employed in passing the 2003 Medicare prescription drug bill -- a process that has led to congressional ethics investigation.

from C4AP

CONCORD, N.H. --Agencies that offer home health care to seniors have dropped a lawsuit to force the state to increase the rates paid for their services.

The agencies got a 4.6 percent increase in the budget Gov. John Lynch signed last month. The agencies had wanted more, arguing that reimbursements have failed to keep pace with costs so they are now being paid 50 cents for every $1 they spend on services.

The state ignored a law that requires it to update reimbursements regularly. In the new budget, lawmakers suspended that law and tied rates to the money lawmakers appropriated for the services.

The Home Care Association dropped their lawsuit after extensive negotiations with the state produced an agreement that they would work together to increase rates.

from boston.com news

Nursing Home Fires Whistleblower

OSSIPEE, N.H. --A county nursing home social worker who criticized the dismissal of the home's 20-year top administrator says she was fired Wednesday without being given a reason.

from boston.com news

We now know who the 15 Democrats are that each undermined their party and America's middle class by casting the deciding vote for the Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA). The bill passed by one vote, meaning each of the 15 Democrats cast the deciding vote. When 27 Republicans vote against their own party leadership as they did on CAFTA, Democrats have only these 15 sellouts within their ranks - and groups like the DLC that pushed CAFTA - to blame for the fact that the Democratic Party has been relegated to permanent minority status.

The 15 Democratic sellouts were:

Melissa Bean (IL)
Jim Cooper (TN)
Henry Cuellar (TX)
Norm Dicks (WA)
Ruben Hinojosa (TX)
William Jefferson (LA)
Jim Matheson (UT)
Greg Meeks (NY)
Dennis Moore (KS)
Jim Moran (VA)
Solomon Ortiz (TX)
Ike Skelton (MO)
Vic Snyder (AR)
John Tanner (TN)
Ed Towns (NY)

from Sirota blog

After no challenge or questioning, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee yesterday "unanimously approved the nomination of Karen Hughes...as the State Department's top public relations official."

From C4AP

The Wall Street Journal has hired Manuel Miranda, an activist working for the confirmation of President Bush's judicial appointments, as a columnist for OpinionJournal.com, where he will "report" on the Senate proceedings over the nomination of John Roberts to the Supreme Court. The Journal "has released no similar plans to include a columnist 'reporting' from a different perspective," Media Matters reports.

"Will Adams, a spokesman for Rep. Tom Tancredo (R-Colo.), an outspoken advocate of stronger immigration laws, called [American Progress' new immigration] study an 'an interesting intellectual exercise' by liberals that is 'useless...because no one's talking about' employing mass deportation as a tactic."
-- Washington Post, 7/26/05

VERSUS

"We have laws on the books that call for [the Homeland Security Director] to find and deport these people, and if he is unwilling to do so, he should resign."
-- Rep. Tom Tancredo (R-CO), 12/11/03

Once Health Regulators, Now Partners

Estate Tax Cut

Estate Tax Myths

BUSH'S SUPREME COURT NOMINEE

Stirling Newberry | Cathedrals of Resonance
Just as the Spanish found that when push came to shove, the carefully built up web of marriage alliances was worth little, so too are Americans about to find out that treaties and corporate governing bodies and monetary rules are no stronger than the basic economics behind them.

Innocent Civilians Being Killed by US Troops
Innocent civilians, including people who are considered vital to building democracy, are increasingly being killed by US troops.

North Korea Nuclear Goals: Case of Mixed Signals
Early this year, American spy satellites detected a spike in suspicious tunneling activity in North Korea. It alarmed some of the government's top nuclear analysts, who saw it as a sign that North Korea might be preparing to test a nuclear weapon.

Norman Solomon | "Wagging the Puppy" -- And Unleashing the Deadly Dogs of War
Changing the subject is a key aspect of political damage control ... No one is in a better position to shift the country's media focus than the president. And no technique has been more successful than military action.

J. Sri Raman | India-US Partnership Spells a Setback for South Asia
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's recent mission to the US has set off a series of political controversies in India. Almost absent in all the raging polemics, however, is the most important and immediate outcome of the mission - for South Asia and its much talked-about peace process.

Haitian Priest Assaulted by Mob at Funeral and Arrested for Murder
As the well-dressed people continued yelling at Fr. Jean-Juste, the prayer service nearly turned into a riot. The other priests turned to leave and a well-dressed crowd of screaming people surrounded him.

Senate to Vote on Repealing Estate Tax
Those who want to leave the tax in place say its repeal gives billions of dollars to wealthy families at the expense of others who might be helped through government programs or other tax breaks paid for with money from the inheritance tax.

Gérard Dupuy | Terrorism Targets the Heart of Social Functioning
It is useless, even counter-productive, to overreact the better to demonstrate one's power and firmness ... The brutality of the Egyptian police after the Taba attacks did not anticipate a recurrence and could complicate their inquiry in the present case.

Marjorie Cohn | The Roberts Court?
Consider this: John Roberts's nomination for Associate Justice of the Supreme Court is confirmed by the Senate. Chief Justice William Rehnquist steps down. Then, Bush elevates Roberts to Chief.

John Roberts' Rule: Reach for the Top
Many on the right see a soul-mate in Roberts. The left is making its judgment that Roberts is indeed everything the right thinks he is and, as such, opposes him.

Bomber Targets Iraqi Police Post
"Operation Lightning, Operation Dagger -- every day they use a different name for a new military operation," Khazraji said, ticking off recent US-backed military raids against insurgents. "But the attacks killing mostly civilians increase every day."

Britain's Top Cop Defends Shoot-to-Kill
In the days since the July 7 bombing of three trains and a bus in London, newspapers and television news broadcasts have been filled with images of heavily armed police on the streets of London.

Time Editor Defends Giving Up Reporter's Notes
Pearlstine's decision broke ranks with The New York Times, which allowed a reporter to be jailed for refusing to cooperate with the investigation.

Four Unions to Boycott AFL-CIO Convention
Leaders of the four unions said they were shunning the convention because the AFL-CIO has been ineffective in halting the decades-long slide of organized labor.

Frank Rich | Eight Days in July
Mr. Bush's nomination of John Roberts for the Supreme Court was one of the hastiest, most abrupt court announcements in memory, and the White House intended it to change the subject in Washington. But, to do that, the president would have had to nominate Bill Clinton.

Roberts Listed in Federalist Society Leadership Directory
Supreme Court nominee John G. Roberts Jr. has repeatedly said that he has no memory of belonging to the Federalist Society, but his name appears in the influential, conservative legal organization's 1997-1998 leadership directory.

Gonzales Admits Giving Plame Warning to Key Bush Aide
"The real question now is, who did the chief of staff speak to?" asked Sen. Joseph R. Biden Jr. "Did the chief of staff pick up the phone and call Karl Rove?"