Progress Report: Divide and Conquer

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Mon, 23 Jan 2006 10:20:29 -0500 (EST)

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Progress Report: Divide and Conquer

 

 

AMERICAN PROGRESS ACTION FUND

The Progress Report

by Judd Legum, Faiz Shakir, Nico Pitney

Amanda Terkel and Payson Schwin

www.progressreport.org

1/23/2006

 

For news and updates throughout the day, check out our new blog at

ThinkProgress.org.

 

LEGAL

Divide and Conquer

 

The White House is desperately trying to portray the controversy about

President Bush's warrantless domestic surveillance program as partisan

squabble. Yesterday, Scott McClellan said, " The NSA's terrorist

surveillance program is targeted at al Qaeda communications coming

into or going out of the United States . ... Senate Democrats continue

to engage in misleading and outlandish charges about this vital tool.

.... It defies common sense for Democrats to now claim the

administration is acting outside its authority. " In fact, some of the

harshest criticisms have come from Republicans. Sen. Arlen Specter

(R-PA) said, " There is no doubt that this is inappropriate. " Sen.

Lindsey Graham (R-SC) said the law required domestic surveillance to

be approved by a special court and " I don't know of any legal basis to

go around that. " Yesterday, Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) was asked if he

thought the program was legal and responded, " I don't think so. " The

truth is that members of both parties believe Bush broke the law.

 

ADMINISTRATION RAISES LEGAL ARGUMENT FROM THE DEAD: On Thursday, the

administration released a 42-page legal defense of Bush's warrantless

surveillance program. The core of it is a radical argument the

administration has been forced to distance itself from in the past.

The most recent legal defense asserts that President Bush is the " sole

organ for the Nation in foreign affairs. " Similarly, to justify

torture of foreign detainees, a 2002 Department of Justice memo argued

that laws may not " place any limits on the President's determinations

as to any terrorist threat, the amount of military force to be used in

response, or the method, timing, and nature of the response. " After

the 2002 memo was made public, the administration withdrew it.

Nevertheless, as the Washington Post notes, the arguments in the

administration's 42-page legal defense " call into question Congress's

ability to prevent the administration from engaging in torture or

cruel and inhuman treatment. " All the arguments contained in the

administration's document have been comprehensively rebutted by the

Congressional Research Service.

 

ADMINISTRATION CONTRADICTS ITSELF: The administration argues that, in

addition to the President's unchecked power over anything he deems

related to security, the power to conduct warrantless domestic

surveillance was granted by Congress in 2001 through the Authorization

for the Use of Military Force against al Qaeda. (Sen. Sam Brownback

(R-KS) disagrees. Asked if the 9/11 resolution authorized the

warrantless domestic surveillance program, Brownback replied, " It

didn't in my vote. " ) The administration's claims on this issue are not

even internally consistent. On the one hand, the administration argues

Congress gave them this power. But Attorney General Alberto Gonzales

claims that the administration didn't go to Congress for the authority

because Congress would have rejected them. At a press conference on

Dec. 19, Gonzales said, " We have had discussions with Congress in the

past -- certain members of Congress -- as to whether or not FISA could

be amended to allow us to adequately deal with this kind of threat,

and we were advised that that would be difficult, if not impossible. "

 

OUT OF LEGAL ARGUMENTS, ADMINISTRATION LAUNCHES PROPAGANDA CAMPAIGN:

Fox News reports that, beginning today, " The Bush administration is

launching a campaign to go on the offense against criticism of its

wiretapping program. " The effort includes events by Gonzales and

former NSA director Mike Hayden, as well as a photo-op by President

Bush at the NSA this Wednesday.

 

IRAQ

Votes Are In, Problems Persist

 

Results from last month's Iraqi elections are finally in, beginning a

high-stakes contest between Shiites, Kurds, and Sunnis for control of

the government and the constitutional process. President Bush

described the December elections as " a landmark day in the history of

liberty, " but the process of forming a successful Iraqi democracy is

just beginning. United Press International reports, " Contrary to

repeated Bush administration predictions, the Dec. 15 parliamentary

elections in Iraq did nothing to drain support from the insurgency. "

Over 500 people have died since the elections last month, at least 13

more people died in attacks yesterday, and more violence is on the

horizon if the three main alliances cannot work together to form a

" national unity " government. The country faces challenges not only in

forming a government and defeating the insurgency, but also in

renegotiating a constitution. The three groups are already showing

signs of tension; despite " all the expressions of solidarity, most of

the political factors now in play seem weighted against a broad-based

government. " The Bush administration now needs to keep its promise to

" establish the institutions of a unified and lasting democracy " and

help ensure that all of Iraq's citizens are represented in the new

government.

 

HIGH STAKES FOR IRAQ AND THE UNITED STATES: Shiites received the most

votes in the elections, with 128 of 275 seats. The Kurdistan Alliance

picked up 53 seats and the Sunni bloc received 44 seats. While the

Shiites and Kurds have said they are " willing to explore " including

Sunnis in a national unity government, it " seems clear that the Shiite

leadership is considering going ahead without the Sunnis. " The stakes

in these negotiations are high. The New York Times reports that

" [a]nything short of a unity government, Iraqi and American officials

here say, would be tantamount to disaster, with the Sunnis the most

likely losers. Leaving them out of the government could very well

prompt them to turn away from democratic politics again, and give the

insurgency a fresh shot of energy. " A national unity government is

also key to the U.S. strategy " of using politics to undercut support

for the Sunni Arab insurgency " and exclusion of the Sunnis may delay a

major withdrawal of U.S. troops.

 

KEY CABINET POSTS SOUGHT AS RIGHTS TO PAST WRONGS: Prospects for

cooperation between the three political groups are already beginning

to look dim. The minority Sunni coalition believes it should have won

11 more seats and plans to " seek key ministries in the new government

as compensation. " At issue are two key security positions -- interior

minister and defense minister. The Shiites are " insisting that the

election results dictate the distribution of the spoils, meaning they

should be given the majority of the cabinet posts. " But past

grievances are driving motivations for both the Sunnis and the

Shiites. The Sunnis believe the Shiites have abused the security

positions, indiscriminately targeting Sunni neighborhoods in attempts

to quash the insurgency. " We must have the Defense and the Interior to

ensure the security of our cities, and to stop the terrorizing of our

supporters, " says Salman al-Jumayli, a spokesperson for the Sunni

Accordance Front. But the Shiites are still suffering from decades of

repression under Saddam Hussein, when the minority Sunni group --

favored by Saddam Hussein -- held political power.

 

SHIITES MAY RENEGE ON PROMISE TO RENEGOTIATE CONSTITUTION: Sunnis have

expressed a willingness to work with Shiites and Kurds to form a new

government, but one of their key demands is a renegotiation of the

constitution to strengthen the federal state. Sunnis opposed last

October's constitution and were promised later amendments in " a deal

to persuade them to abandon support for the insurgency and vote in the

December 15 parliamentary poll. " But the Christian Science Monitor

reports, " Earlier this month, some Shiite leaders seemed to be

reneging on that agreement, calling any substantial changes to the

Constitution unacceptable. "

 

SUNNI INSURGENCY REMAINS STRONG: A major issue between the groups is

the Sunni-led insurgency. Shiite leaders and U.S. officials have said

it is " absolutely incumbent " upon Sunni leaders to renounce violence

and reign in the insurgency, which may be next to impossible for some

Sunni Arab politicians whose leadership credentials are untested or

have limited political influence. After the announcement of the

election results, Sunni insurgents vowed to keep up attacks. " The

coming period will witness a military escalation against occupation

forces and the Iraqi army. We will focus on planting roadside bombs, "

said a senior member of the Iraqi militant group Mujahideen Army

Brigades. The President touted the inclusion of Sunnis in the December

elections as a major success and has named security as one of the

three parts of his strategy for success in Iraq. In order to keep the

Sunnis engaged and counter the insurgency, the United States must now

work with Iraq's leaders to create an inclusive democratic government.

 

 

INTERNSHIPS

 

The research team that brings you The Progress Report and Think

Progress needs interns! Click here for more information.

 

GOOD NEWS

 

Maryland judge rules that the state's law defining marriage as being

between a man and a woman violates the state constitution.

 

STATE WATCH

 

NEW JERSEY: Members of the police and fire retirement system move a

step closer to being able to extend pension benefits to domestic partners.

 

EDUCATION: Parents campaign to take back kids' summers.

 

ENERGY: States move to regulate energy use and emissions, working

around a " federal government that state officials say has not done

enough. "

 

BLOG WATCH

 

THINK PROGRESS: CBS's Bob Schieffer: Kerry and bin Laden expressed

" almost the same " sentiments.

 

TALK LEFT: Russert and Obama: Race-based questions?

 

THE PLANK: Right-wing activist Grover Norquist's brother tapped as new

CFO for the Homeland Security Department.

 

POGO BLOG: To fill shortages, the Bush administration is allowing all

TSA employees, including screeners and administrative personnel, to

serve as air marshals.

 

DAILY GRILL

 

" Available records show that Mr. Abramoff was not in attendance. "

-- White House spokeswoman Erin Healy, 1/22/06, referring to a 2001

meeting that Abramoff arranged between the chairman of the Kickapoo

Indians, one of his tribal clients, and President Bush

 

VERSUS

 

" Three attendees who spoke to Time recall that Abramoff was present,

and three of them say that's where the picture of Bush, Abramoff and

the former Kickapoo chairman was taken. "

-- Time magazine, 1/22/06

 

UNDER THE RADAR

 

JUDICIARY -- BUSH COURT NOMINEE REPORTEDLY BROKE LAW: Judge James H.

Payne, " nominated by President Bush to one of the highest courts in

the nation apparently violated federal law repeatedly while serving on

the federal bench, " Salon.com reports. Payne, who was nominated to the

10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals last September, " issued more than

100 orders in at least 18 cases that involved corporations in which he

owned stock. " According to Salon, Payne's financial filings " show

holdings of up to $100,000 in SBC Communications stock, up to $50,000

in Wal-Mart stock and up to $15,000 in Pfizer stock, among others,

while he presided over lawsuits involving the companies or their

subsidiaries. " Indeed, it appears that " since he was appointed by Bush

in 2001 as a federal district judge in Oklahoma, Payne has been

sitting inappropriately on at least one case at any given moment for

nearly his entire federal judgeship. "

 

ETHICS -- MORE REVELATIONS ABOUT ABRAMOFF'S TIES TO BUSH: When asked

last week how many times lobbyist Jack Abramoff met with President

Bush, Press Secretary Scott McClellan said, " We just don't get into

discussing White House staff-level meetings. ... If you have something

specific to bring to my attention, I'll be glad to look into that. " It

appears there was good reason for the White House to express

reservations about discussing the ties between Bush and Abramoff. This

weekend, both Washingtonian and Time magazines reported on the

existence of about a half-dozen photos showing the two together. Time

reported on its Web site Sunday that its staff members have seen at

least six photos featuring Bush and Abramoff. They appeared to have

been taken at White House functions, according to the reports. The

Washingtonian reports that an inside source tells the magazine that

Abramoff is prepared to lay out the depth of the relationship that

existed between him and the president. " Abramoff would tell

prosecutors, if asked, that not only did he know the President, but

the President knew the names of Abramoff's children and asked about

them during their meetings. At one such photo session, Bush discussed

the fact that both he and Abramoff were fathers of twins. "

 

ENERGY -- NATURAL GAS COMPANIES PAYING LESS IN ROYALTY PAYMENTS: " At a

time when energy prices and industry profits are soaring, the federal

government collected little more money last year than it did five

years ago from the companies that extracted more than $60 billion in

oil and gas from publicly owned lands and coastal waters, " the New

York Times reports. " If royalty payments in fiscal 2005 for natural

gas had risen in step with market prices, the government would have

received about $700 million more than it actually did. " American

taxpayers have missed out on the booming natural gas industry at a

time when " the Interior Department has scaled back on full audits,

pushed out a couple of its more aggressive auditors and been

criticized by its own inspector general for the audits that it did

pursue. " " These companies had knowingly been cheating on oil for

years, if not decades, " said Danielle Brian of the Project on

Government Oversight. " To ignore the likelihood that the same thing is

happening on the gas side is absurd. "

 

ENVIRONMENT -- STUDY RANKS UNITED STATES 28TH ON ENVIRONMENTAL

PERFORMANCE: The 2006 Environmental Performance Index, a joint product

from professors at Yale and Columbia universities, ranked the United

States behind more than two dozen nations, including " most of Western

Europe, Japan, Taiwan, Malaysia, Costa Rica and Chile. " The professors

took several environmental factors into account, " from clean drinking

water and low ozone levels to sustainable fisheries and low greenhouse

gas emissions. " For example, the United States ranked in the bottom

third of the air quality rankings among countries in the Americas.

" Policy choices matter, " said Yale professor Daniel C. Esty. " Good

governance emerges as a critical driver of environmental performance. "

 

ADMINISTRATION -- ANOTHER WEST VIRGINIA COAL MINE DISASTER CALLS

ATTENTION TO LACK OF ENFORCEMENT: Two men trapped in a West Virginia

coal mine made a " valiant effort " to escape but died over the weekend.

The deaths came on the heels of an explosion at the Sago Mine in West

Virginia earlier this month that killed 12 coal miners. The tragedies

have spurred calls for improving mine safety and have brought renewed

attention to the Bush administration's lack of enforcement of mine

safety regulations. The Alma Mine, like the Sago Mine before it, had

its share of safety problems. " In 2005, the mine's nonfatal accident

rate was 9.01 injuries per 200,000 hours worked, compared to the

national average of 6.39 for similar mines, according to MSHA. " The

mine was repeatedly cited for having inadequate firefighting

equipment. Now, only after these back-to-back disasters, the Bush

administration is announcing that it is " reviewing safety equipment in

mines after scrapping similar initiatives started by the Clinton

administration. "