Tannishblog

Just when I thought my bullshitometer was fixed form the other night’s utterance form Jack Abramoff, it moans loudly after trying the digest this WaPo quote:

“He defrauded the tribes, he defrauded his law firms, so why isn’t it that he defrauded public officials, as well?” asked Jan W. Baran, an attorney at Wiley Rein & Fielding. “Proving somebody accepted campaign contributions and expense-paid trips and then did something of benefit for Abramoff is not in and of itself proving bribery.”

This is said in attempt to discredit Jack before he even begins to testify against our enlightened leaders. What I anticipate to be most interesting to watch about this latest Republican scandal (I’ve lost count already!) is just how low the affected and their attorneys will stoop to deflect blame or distract from their actions. It’s starting already.

On a side thought, I wonder how many future indictees will be on the roster for “Justice Sunday III,” the latest attempt of the extreme right to fuse politics and the pulpit into a holy crucible of power.

Big Dick Cheney says the “eavesdropping program,” (also known as illegal wiretapping to us outsiders) might have prevented 9/11. After sipping some coffee over that thought, I propose a short list of other things that “might have prevented 9/11.”

• Paying attention to reports from previous incumbents on issues of the day during administration “changing of the guard” period following election.
• Locking up all angry-looking non-whites on general suspicion (Yes. You, too Condoleeza.).
• Immediate establishment of United States of Christianity and announcing any un-American behavior to be act against God.
• Ask Pat Robertson to interpret to bible to prove that George W. Bush is anointed by God to become the Supreme Leader of the Known Universe, then to change by executive order term limits for American presidents to life terms.
• Nuke the entire Middle East.
• Force the nearly half of Americans who oppose Bush to wear colorful scraps of cloth on their outer clothing for easy identification, then seize all their assets in the name of National Security to sell on EBAY overseas, refilling campaign coffers and legal funds for Republicans.

Any or all of these actions “might have prevented 9/11.” The problem lies in proving this. We’ll never know for sure. What we can be sure of is that our government’s “eavesdropping program” has not found a guilty person subverting national security in the many days following 9/11; No bad guys have been implicated due to these questionable tactics, therefore no reason exists to sustain these questionable tactics.

Personally, I’m becoming more convinced our national security, such as it is, would be better served by throwing out the pompous, fractious and arrogant Republican majority from the Capitol. At least is would make great “reality TV.”