STOP SOPA

Litbrit and Jim Johnson have blacked out their blogs in protest of SOPA. The English edition of Wikipedia is taking part in the black out. Johnson talked about the black out with Eric Deggans of the Tampa Bay Times.

All five people who hit my website in a day probably won't be disappointed enough to call their Congressman," admitted Johnson, a software consultant for a Tampa firm. "But Wikipedia has enough clout that they can get everyone involved."

SOPA and PIPA is an government overreach of the internet supported by people like Ruport Murdoch. Media moguls such as Murdoch would benefit from the government. An internet provider could decide to take any web site off its search engine under the claim that site is hosting pirated content. No proof is needed on the part of Google. Fortunately, Google is against the current forms of the SOPA and PIPA bills.

The legislation is unenforcibly. I cannot image Twitter and Facebook going through millions of updates looking for pirated content to delete. It is not possible. This is legislation created by members of Congress who have no understanding of just how vast and complex the internet is.

The protest is working: Sen. Marco Rubio has pulled his support of PIPA.

I have decided to withdraw my support for the Protect IP Act. Furthermore, I encourage Senator Reid to abandon his plan to rush the bill to the floor. Instead, we should take more time to address the concerns raised by all sides, and come up with new legislation that addresses internet piracy while protecting free and open access to the internet.

Rep. Lee Terry (R-Neb.) and Ben Quayle (R-Ariz.) have dropped their support for SOPA.

When the going gets tough politicians fold. Rubio, Terry and Quayle have not suddenly become fans of free speech. They are scared of voter backlash against the bills. Politicians want campaign donations from movie and music corporations. Campaign dollars don't mean a thing if they cannot get re-elected.

Side note: Rubio, Terry and Quayle are suppose to be less government conservatives. Internet piracy is already illegal. How is it conservative to make unenforcable laws that could have a financially negative impact on Google, Pay Pal and MSN conservative? The answer is it isn't. The wise thing to do is hire more federal government employees to enforce the anti-piracy laws that are already in place.

Update: There was a SOPA protest outside the offices of Sen. Charles Schumer or Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand.

Andrew Rasiej, chairman of the New York Tech Meetup, told the New York Daily News that not only would SOPA and PIPA open the door to censorship of the Internet, but the laws would also have negative effects on the ability of the U.S. to remain a leader in the global tech industry.

"Because a new innovation by a start-up could be interpreted by a judge unfamiliar with how the technology works as infringing on copyright, investors and entrepreneurs would be discouraged from moving forward with a start-up due to a significantly increased risk of legal entanglement," Rasiej told the New York Daily News. "This in turn would dampen job creation and future opportunities for New Yorkers and Americans as a whole."

Schumer and Gillibrand are the co-sponsors of PIPA.

The Young Turks on Ruport Murdoch's support of SOPA.



Update: Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg posted why he is against SOPA and PIPA.

The internet is the most powerful tool we have for creating a more open and connected world. We can't let poorly thought out laws get in the way of the internet's development. Facebook opposes SOPA and PIPA, and we will continue to oppose any laws that will hurt the internet. The world today needs political leaders who are pro-internet. We have been working with many of these folks for months on better alternatives to these current proposals. I encourage you to learn more about these issues and tell your congressmen that you want them to be pro-internet. You can read more about our views here: https://www.facebook.com/FacebookDC?sk=app_329139750453932.

There are some people angry that Zuckerberg didn't shut down Facebook for the day like Wikipedia. However, that is an inside the internet story.

Update: Matt Yglesias tweeted this.

Obama campaign just sent out an anti-SOPA fundraising email. #bandwagoning

President Obama wouldn't send out that email unless it was safe to oppose SOPA. It's official. People hate SOPA and PIPA. Politicians are running away from this legislation.

Update: Elizabeth Warren released a statement pertaining to SOPA and PIPA.

Illegal piracy should be punished, but I have serious concerns with SOPA and PIPA. We need to deal with piracy without chilling the innovation, diversity, and free exchange of ideas that define the Internet and have shaped our increasingly interconnected world.

Update: Daily Kos has a SOPA petition you can send to your Senator.

Update: President Barack Obama has come out against SOPA.

On Saturday, the White House announced that the Obama administration will not support legislation that reduces freedom of expression or undermines the dynamic, innovative global internet.

As Congress works to address the very real issue of online piracy, we must guard against the risk of online censorship of lawful activity—and we must not inhibit innovation by businesses large and small.

Online piracy hurts our economy, threatens middle-class jobs, and undermines the work of some of our most creative companies and entrepreneurs. The President has called on all parties to work together to find solutions that address the problem of online piracy while remaining true to our values.

Update Video of State of Sunshine blogger Jom Johnson being interviewed on Action News.

Why DADT Is Obama's Failure

In July 2009, Alcee Hasting got 76 Democrats and Republican Ileana Ros-Lehtinen to back a repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" in the House. Hasting sent this letter to President Barack Obama asking for an end of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell."

The United States of America prides itself on having the finest military in the world because of the hard work, dedication, and sacrifices of our brave servicemen and women. And yet, under 10 U.S.C. § 654 (Policy Concerning Homosexuality in the Armed Forces), better known as "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," the talents and contributions of our openly gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) service members continue to be ignored simply because of who they are. Every day, we lose approximately two service members to this misguided, unjust, and flat-out discriminatory policy. Don't Ask, Don't Tell is not only an injustice to them, but a disservice to the U.S. military and our country as a whole.

The White House responded by forcing Hasting to dop his repeal amendment from the Defense Department bill. Hastings went on-record saying the White House was not going to back the repeal.

``Due to pressure from some of my congressional colleagues and from the White House, I have withdrawn my amendment,’’ he said. ``I would, however, like to note that it is most unfortunate that we are not addressing `don’t ask, don’t tell’ at this time.’’

After the amendment was dropped, Hastings wrote a letter to President Obama asking for a repeal of DADT. Hastings was brushed off. Obama was too concerned about appeasing social conservatives who would never vote for him.

To Harry Reid's credit, he took up a vote for a repeal of DADT. Reid failed to break the 60 vote Senate filibuster. Blanche Lincoln and Mark Pryor voted against the bill. Reid voted against the bill so the bill could be taken up again.

Does anyone recall Obama leaning on Senators to vote for appeal of DADT? Obama leaned on the Senate to protect law that does not allow Medicare to negotiate for cheaper pharmaceutical drug prices.

Many Democrats, especially committee chairmen and liberal lawmakers, were chaffed at the backroom deal Baucus and the White House struck with the drug industry, a perennial boogeyman for the political left.

“We don't represent their stockholders, we represent our stockholders, which are the taxpayers,” said Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.).

There is more support for ending DADT than the Obama-backed health care bill. It is not surprising the party that produced Mark Foley and Larry Craig would pander to the base by voting against repeal of DADT. What is Obama's excuse? Neoliberalism needs to die. The sooner the better.

Why the Public Option Failed in the Senate

Sen. Bill Nelson voted against the Jay Rockefeller amendment. Nelson did vote for the watered down public option amendment authored by Chuck Schumer.

"It seems to me that this is very important that we have this competition. It has all safeguards in it ..." Nelson said.

The Schumer amendment failed 10 to 13. All the cynical outreach efforts by President Barack Obama to get Republican votes failed. I previously wrote the Obama and Baucus were crafting legislation that would mandate citizens buying private insurance and protect pharmaceutical industry profits. Lindsey Graham explained to Ezra Klein that Obama never pressed Congress on the public option.

You make people afraid of opposing you or you get them rewarded for helping you. There's no fear for opposing Obama's public option, and the reward is for opposing it. Right now, Republicans feel no political exposure from opposing the president's health-care initiative.

Obama reneged on his campaign promise to hold open meetings with insurers and the pharmaceutical industry. Health insurers will get more customers and drug prices will continue to escalate. It is up to Nancy Pelosi and Democrats in the House of Representitives to keep the public option alive.

Update: the Democrats whom voted against the Rockefeller amendment were Max Baucus, Kent Conrad, Blanche Lincoln, Tom Carper and Nelson.

Max Baucus's Faulty 60 Vote Logical

Max Baucus just announced he won't for Chuck Schumer's public option amendment because it won't get 60 votes. It certainly won't get 60 votes if one of the members of the Democratic caucus votes against the amendment. That one Senator would be Mr. Baucus. Open Secrets lists Baucus's campaign contributions from the insurance industry at $558,075 and pharmaceutical companies at $507,313. These corporations are Baucus's true constituents.

Update: Baucus against Jay Rockefeller public option amendment.

Public Option Alive

President Barack Obama has never previously said the public option must be in the health care bill. Senator Chuck Schumer and Nancy Pelosi have promised the public option in the bill. Obama's Joint Session of Congress speech left progressives wondering if the public option was being abandoned.

"The public option -- the public option is only a means to that end," the President said. "And we should remain open to other ideas that accomplish our ultimate goal."

Administration officials implied a health care bill without the public option would be acceptable.

Rahm Emanuel's comments to the Wall Street Journal created a progressive backlash.

WASHINGTON -- It is more important that health-care legislation inject stiff competition among insurance plans than it is for Congress to create a pure government-run option, White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel said.

"The goal is to have a means and a mechanism to keep the private insurers honest," he said in an interview. "The goal is non-negotiable; the path is" negotiable.

Kathleen Sebelius and Robert Gibbs made similar comments on the Sunday talk shows. The White House held private meetings with health industries companies and refused to make the visitor logs public. Obama attempted to have Tom Daschle appointed as Health and Human Services secretary. Daschle is a paid advisor for UnitedHealth and Tennessee Hospital Association. He has also worked as a lobbyist. Daschle has been going to the White House in attempts to steer Obama from the public option. To make matters worst: a memo of the deal the White House and Max Baucus struck with the pharmaceutical industry has been leaked to Huffington Post reporter Ryan Grim.



The Baucus bill has been greeted with contempt. Senator Jay Rockefeller said he won't support the Baucus mark up.

"There are only about 4 to 7 [Co-ops] that exist [nationwide]. And I’m very skeptical… of starting up a system that doesn’t work."

Rep. Anthony Weiner called the bill "dead on arrival."

Rep. Weiner on Maddow: Baucus Bill Dead on Arrival- Watch more Politics Videos at Vodpod.

President Obama has had a sudden change of heart. The Hill reports Obama gave a near endorsement of the public option.

"I absolutely do not believe that it's dead," Obama told Univision. "I think that it's something that we can still include as part of a comprehensive reform effort."

Blogger Jesse Livermore predicted in August that the Baucus bill would fail. I agree that the bill will pass by reconciliation.

Side note: Health care industry officials that met privately with the White House.

Just How Dumb Is Gonzo

The answer is the depths of Alberto Gonzales's stupidity can not be measured. Let's replay this exchange Gonzo had with Senator Chuck Schumer.

SCHUMER: I'll let you speak in a minute, but this is serious, because you're getting right close to the edge right here. You just said there was just one program -- just one. So the letter, which was, sort of, intended to deceive, but doesn't directly do so, because there are other intelligence activities, gets you off the hook, but you just put yourself right back on here.

GONZALES: I clarified my statement two days later with the reporter.

SCHUMER: What did you say to the reporter?

GONZALES: I did not speak directly to the reporter.

SCHUMER: Oh, wait a second -- you did not.

(LAUGHTER)

OK. What did your spokesperson say to the reporter?

GONZALES: I don't know. But I told the spokesperson to go back and clarify my statement...

SCHUMER: Well, wait a minute, sir. Sir, with all due respect -- and if I could have some order here, Mr. Chairman -- in all due respect, you're just saying, "Well, it was clarified with the reporter," and you don't even know what he said. You don't even know what the clarification is. Sir, how can you say that you should stay on as attorney general when we go through exercise like this, where you're bobbing and weaving and ducking to avoid admitting that you deceived the committee? And now you don't even know. I'll give you another chance: You're hanging your hat on the fact that you clarified the statement two days later. You're now telling us that is was a spokesperson who did it. What did that spokesperson say? Tell me now, how do you clarify this?

GONZALES: I don't know, but I'll find out and get back to you.

Gonzales had someone else clarify his statement. He then didn't know how the statement was clarified. Gonzales is risking perjury by making excuses that don't pass the laugh test. He is a lawyer. He should have the common sense not to put himself in legal jeopardy.

Another example of Gonzo's stupidity.

In the Justice Department's Great Hall (the very room where giant, blue drapes covered the underdressed statuary during John Ashcroft's tenure as attorney general), an array of prosecutors, securities regulators and FBI honchos gathered yesterday to celebrate the fifth anniversary of the President's Corporate Fraud Task Force.

Chicago U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald, who famously prosecuted former vice presidential aide Scooter Libby, was chatting with a pair of reporters about his upcoming appearance on the National Public Radio program "Wait Wait . . . Don't Tell Me!" when none other than Attorney General Alberto "Fredo" Gonzales appeared at his side.

"Good job," Gonzales said, extending his hand to Fitzgerald. Must have been thinking of Fitzgerald's office's successful prosecution last week of media mogul Conrad Black for fraud, obstruction, etc. Fitzgerald, taken aback, didn't say much in response, our colleague Carrie Johnson reports.

Loop Fans may recall that a former Gonzales aide had placed Fitzgerald's name on a list of prosecutors who had "not distinguished themselves" in March 2005, just after Fitzgerald had indicted former GOP Illinois governor George Ryan and as he was investigating the leak of the identity of CIA officer Valerie Plame.

Gonzo trying to buddy up to a U.S. Attorney he attempted to fire. Calling him a fucking idiot would be an insult to people with that level of intelligence.

Justice Department Cards Crumbling Down

The testimony between of Jemes Comey is amazing. Alberto Gonzales and Andy Card were attempting to go around acting Attorney General Jame Comey by having an ailing John Ashcroft approve a domestic spying program. The matter is made more distasteful by the fact Ashcroft was bed ridden in George Washington hospital.

COMEY: That he had gotten a call from Mrs. Ashcroft from the hospital. She had banned all visitors and all phone calls. So I hadn't seen him or talked to him because he was very ill.

And Mrs. Ashcroft reported that a call had come through, and that as a result of that call Mr. Card and Mr. Gonzales were on their way to the hospital to see Mr. Ashcroft.
SCHUMER: Do you have any idea who that call was from?

COMEY: I have some recollection that the call was from the president himself, but I don't know that for sure. It came from the White House. And it came through and the call was taken in the hospital. So I hung up the phone, immediately called my chief of staff, told him to get as many of my people as possible to the hospital immediately. I hung up, called Director Mueller and -- with whom I'd been discussing this particular matter and had been a great help to me over that week -- and told him what was happening. He said, "I'll meet you at the hospital right now." Told my security detail that I needed to get to George Washington Hospital immediately. They turned on the emergency equipment and drove very quickly to the hospital. I got out of the car and ran up -- literally ran up the stairs with my security detail. SCHUMER: What was your concern? You were in obviously a huge hurry.

COMEY: I was concerned that, given how ill I knew the attorney general was, that there might be an effort to ask him to overrule me when he was in no condition to do that.

SCHUMER: Right, OK.

COMEY: I was worried about him, frankly. And so I raced to the hospital room, entered. And Mrs. Ashcroft was standing by the hospital bed, Mr. Ashcroft was lying down in the bed, the room was darkened. And I immediately began speaking to him, trying to orient him as to time and place, and try to see if he could focus on what was happening, and it wasn't clear to me that he could. He seemed pretty bad off. SCHUMER: At that point it was you, Mrs. Ashcroft and the attorney general and maybe medical personnel in the room. No other Justice Department or government officials. COMEY: Just the three of us at that point. I tried to see if I could help him get oriented. As I said, it wasn't clear that I had succeeded.

I went out in the hallway. Spoke to Director Mueller by phone. He was on his way. I handed the phone to the head of the security detail and Director Mueller instructed the FBI agents present not to allow me to be removed from the room under any circumstances. And I went back in the room.

I was shortly joined by the head of the Office of Legal Counsel assistant attorney general, Jack Goldsmith, and a senior staffer of mine who had worked on this matter, an associate deputy attorney general. So the three of us Justice Department people went in the room. I sat down...

SCHUMER: Just give us the names of the two other people.

COMEY: Jack Goldsmith, who was the assistant attorney general, and Patrick Philbin, who was associate deputy attorney general.

I sat down in an armchair by the head of the attorney general's bed. The two other Justice Department people stood behind me. And Mrs. Ashcroft stood by the bed holding her husband's arm. And we waited.

And it was only a matter of minutes that the door opened and in walked Mr. Gonzales, carrying an envelope, and Mr. Card. They came over and stood by the bed. They greeted the attorney general very briefly. And then Mr. Gonzales began to discuss why they were there -- to seek his approval for a matter, and explained what the matter was -- which I will not do.

And Attorney General Ashcroft then stunned me. He lifted his head off the pillow and in very strong terms expressed his view of the matter, rich in both substance and fact, which stunned me -- drawn from the hour-long meeting we'd had a week earlier -- and in very strong terms expressed himself, and then laid his head back down on the pillow, seemed spent, and said to them, "But that doesn't matter, because I'm not the attorney general."

President Bush ducked the question of whether he ordered Gonzales and Card to have Ashcroft approve the domestic spying program.

O'Donnell: There's been some very dramatic testimony before the Senate this week from one of your former top justice department officials, who describes a scene that some Senators called stunning about a time when the warrantless wiretap program was being reviewed. Sir, did you send your then chief of staff and White House counsel to the bedside of John Ashcroft, while he was ill to get him to approve os that program and do you believe that kind of conduct from White House officials is appropriate?

Bush: Kelly, there's a lot of speculation about what happened and what didn't happen and I'm not going to talk about it…It's a very sensitive program…

Bush then proceeds to go into usual talking points about the war on terror.

Democrats in the Senate Judiciary Committee held a Statement of No Confidence in Alberto Gonzales.

Gonzales Testimony

Alberto Gonzales had a month to prepare and he still lies badly to the Senate. Both Carol Lam and former AG Chief of Staff Kyle Sampson have publicly testified that her handling of immigration was never brought up.

Gonzales first said that the Justice Department contacted Lam. Later, Gonzales said that members of Congress contacted her.

Chuck Schumer asked that is it standard procedure to have members of Congress speak to U.S. Attorneys when the Justice Department has performance problems.



Gonzales gets hammered more.