Dick Cheney, power broker or handmaiden?

In such moments, we sense in full relief the pathetic handmaid's role that
Dick Cheney has played his entire adult life. He is, if not an errand boy
sent by grocery clerks, a bag man all the same, covered in flop-sweat; our
disgust quickly turns to contempt. We hate him not because he's too
powerful, but quite the opposite."

I agree with Eric Alterman. John Kerry is doing a poor job in explaining his position on the war in Iraq. Here's what Eric says Kerry should be telling us:

• 1. President Bush misled the country and the Congress into war and has conducted it incompetently.
• 2. The war also turns out to have been a dangerous diversion in the war against terrorism.
• 3. Even though we were misled, and even though we would be better off working with our (former?) allies to conduct a truly effective global war against terrorism, in Afghanistan and at home, we have no choice but to try to clean up this mess we’ve created.
• 4. But we should try and do so as quickly, inexpensively and painlessly as possible, so we can begin to repair some of the damage that’s been done to our nation’s reputation and get on with the business of defending the nation with the help and cooperation of our allies, as well as freeing up the resources we need to protect our homeland.

Kerry's recent pronouncements sound like an endorsement of Bush's policy and an after-the-fact justification for his earlier vote in favor of going to war. He's falling into a Bush trap by trying at all costs not to appear that he's "flip-flopped." In doing so, he's not making sense, which is far worse than acknowledging an honest change of heart based upon previous misinformation supplied by the Bush administration.

Kerry staffers, are you listening?

Nathan Rudy is running for Freeholder in Somerset, New Jersey. He's doing some fundraising, if you can help him, please do.

The Rudy for Freeholder campaign is holding a fundraising drive called "A Thousand Fifties" where we are asking for a thousand people to donate just fifty dollars in the fifty days from August 11 to September 30, 2004. It follows the theme of our volunteer efforts that no one can do everything but everyone can do something.

Here are some of his positions on issues.

What Digby says about the ridiculous "Swift Boat Veterans for Truth:"

"What these people are saying is that the US Navy awarded some of its highest medals for bravery to a coward. The many officers who signed those glowing fitness reports and awarded those citations are either liars or they are incompetent. The word of his shipmates, even the man whose life he saved, are worth nothing. You can't believe military documentary evidence. It was all bulls**t, every last piece of it.

And because of this it can now be said that all medals awarded for bravery are suspect. A superior military record is no longer a recommendation. Who can ever believe the government on this issue, now? If they were willing to reward the undeserving Kerry, for reasons about which we can only speculate, then obviously the entire system for awarding valor in combat is corrupt."

ERiposte has a full rebuttal to the smear. Go read both.

I'm watching the author, John O'Neil on tv right now , and I see a partisan, politically motivated hack. For whom? How about the biggest Republican campaign donor in Texas who sponsored the ad?

Bush campaigned today in Virginia and touted his tax cuts. Here's what he said:

Bush criticized Kerry's plan to eliminate the tax cuts for those making more than $200,000 a year, saying that the "the rich in America happen to be the small business owners" who put people to work. Bush also said high taxes on the rich are a failed strategy because "the really rich people figure out how to dodge taxes anyway." [our emphasis]

Asked about that comment, Jonathan Beeton, spokesman for Kerry's campaign in Virginia, said "George Bush can speak with authority about really rich people. ... That's his base, so I'm sure he knows what he's talking about. But that doesn't make it right."

Here's an update on the Vote for Change rock tour.

With military-like precision, some of the most powerful managers and agents in the music business have plotted a groundbreaking exercise in political activism: the pioneering Vote for Change tour. The eight-day tour begins Oct. 1 in Pennsylvania. It will number up to 40 shows, with several concerts in each of nine key "swing states" taking place at separate venues on the same night.

The acts involved -- Bruce Springsteen, Dave Matthews Band, R.E.M., Dixie Chicks, Pearl Jam and others -- are united in the common goal of voting President Bush out of office in November. "These artist citizens all feel the need to speak out," Jon Landau, longtime manager of Springsteen, told Billboard. "They will do that respectfully and intelligently, then let the chips fall where they may."

I put my name in on MoveOn's website for a chance to buy advance tickets. Chances are pretty slim I'll get them. Here are the shows I'd like to go to. If any of you have connections or an extra ticket, I'm there.

Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band / R.E.M. / John Fogerty / Bright Eyes

• Friday, Oct. 1 Philadelphia, PA
• Saturday, Oct. 2 Cleveland, OH
• Sunday, Oct. 3 Ann Arbor, MI
• Tuesday, Oct. 5 St. Paul, MN
• Friday, Oct. 8 Orlando, FL

Here's the full schedule for all the bands. The artists are waiving their fees--so are
many of their managers. I can't begin to imagine the logistics, especially with such short lead time. Good for them. This is a shot in the arm the Democrats sorely need.

Ralph Nader failed to make the ballot in California.

State election officials said Nader fell far short of the 153,035 signatures needed by Friday's deadline. The consumer activist submitted 82,923 with 56 of the state's 58 counties reporting, said Lauren Hersh, a spokeswoman for the secretary of state's office.

Ralph, do the right thing. Endorse Kerry-Edwards. If Dennis Kucinich can do it, so can you. As we've said before, Kucinich's positions on the issues most closely match our own. Some day we hope mainstream America opens its minds to his ideas. Nader, on the other hand, is past-tense to us. He's not progressive, he's focused on his own particular issues and apparently is incapable of putting the good of the country above his own platform.

Nader was great in consumer affairs in the 70's. But what has he done for us lately?

With the presidential race so close, the outcome maybe determined by unforseen events beyond either candidate's control. Here's what might help Bush:

• finding Osama
• dropping gas prices
• replacing Dick Cheney as Veep candidate

Incumbants look for an October surprise. But it doesn't always help. Here are some that failed:

• Gerald Ford's pardon of Richard Nixon and the faltering economy
• Carter's inability to solve the Iran hostage crisis
• G. Bush Sr.'s failure to assess the impact of the slow economy on the average American which was not reflected in the numbers (whatever that means.)

As to Bush and Kerry:

"The president and the Oval Office have the chance to set the terms of the debate every day. Kerry can be bumped out of the news almost every day. That's always a challenge in running against an incumbent president," said GOP consultant Scott Reed, who managed Republican Bob Dole's losing effort in 1996 against President Clinton. "The downside for the incumbent president is the big unknown in Iraq, and it will continue to be right up to Election Day," Reed said.

So the first story will always be about Bush. What if it's always negative? Won't that help Kerry? Who better to bring out the negative about Bush every day than liberal bloggers? Let's get to work.

Raw Story has an article with facts it says proves Bush was AWOL. In another article, Raw Story says it appears the Air Force National Guard tried to discharge Bush after finding out he was AWOL.

Ian Williams explains in this new Nation Article why Bush's national guard records have such a short survival rate. [link fixed]

Sources say Alan Keyes has decided to run against Obama in Illinois.

Obama's the man. The only thing Keyes' entry will accomplish is making Obama even more of a star.

Sen. John McCain, a former POW in Vietnam, has asked President Bush to condemn the latest ad attacking John Kerry's Vietnam service. A major Republican donor from Texas helped finance the ad.

As McCain defended the Democratic nominee, Kerry for the first time criticized Bush for indecisiveness in the moments after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, underscoring how personal issues of war, terrorism and military service have become.

At a morning appearance before minority journalists in Washington, Kerry faulted Bush for spending seven minutes reading to Florida schoolchildren after learning the World Trade Center had been attacked. "Had I been reading to children and had my top aide whispered in my ear that America is under attack, I would have told those kids very nicely and politely that the president of the United States has something that he needs to attend to," Kerry said.

The scenes of Bush continuing to read to children in a classroom after being told by aides of the WTC attacks were some of the most compelling in Fahrenheit 9/11. What was Bush thinking? Did he not understand? Did he think it would all go away? Was he really at such a loss as to what to do that he decided to sit there until someone gave him instructions?

Why do people praise his handling of the terror war post-9/11? Bush chose to go after a target that was not an immediate threat to the U.S., at the cost of failing to stop Al Qaeda, which his administration now tells us is about to launch an even bigger attack against us. What has he accomplished? His Attorney General put some young wannabes from Buffalo and Oregon in jail, but dropped the ball on the real terrorists. Osama's at large (unless he's in hiding for a timed perp walk before the election.) The security restrictions we now live with on a constant basis resemble those of a foreign dictatorship, not a free democracy.

Picture a crisis, and the enemy being successful at getting Bush's advisors away from the Oval office, leaving Bush alone inside. Would you feel comfortable with any decisions he had to make on his own? Or are you terrified at the thought?

Make your answer heard at the voting booth in November.

For more on the already discredited ad attacking Kerry, visit Media Matters.

Update: Joe Conason has more.

Update: Kevin Drumm says "I told you so."

Josh Marshall has the story of Katherine Harris's bogus terror threat comments Monday, in which she said a middle-eastern man was arrested in connection with a plot to blow up a power plant in Indiana. She claimed an Indiana mayor told her....the mayors say they don't know what she's talking about.

Florida residents take note:

Harris, a Republican from Longboat Key who is running for re-election, said the case was an example of the nation's success in fighting terrorism.

She should be booted along with Bush.

Update: Ms. Harris attempts an explanation.

Update: Here's More from Harris on Monday: [link via Agonist] Here's what she said there:

U.S. Rep. Katherine Harris said Monday that the United States has "literally defeated 100 (potential) terrorist attacks on this country" in the past three years, some of which could have been as deadly as the 9/11 destruction of the World Trade Center. Speaking Monday night in Venice at a rally in support of President Bush, Harris said the United States is winning the war against terrorism. "His remarkable leadership … has made our country safe," Harris told an overflow crowd of more than 600 at the Holiday Inn. The event was sponsored by the Republican Club of South Sarasota County.