Archive for September, 2008

[UPDATE: Goldy has the "smoking gun"... Click HERE for the story.]

Very likely!

The evidence released today shows that Mr. Rossi was not just a beneficiary of these illegal activities, but was a knowing and active participant. The Attorney General’s lawsuit found that the illegal fundraising campaign involved BIAW senior officers soliciting contributions from 15 local building groups. According to the Attorney General’s lawsuit, this fundraising was illegal because BIAW was not registered as a political committee and the proceeds of the fundraising were concealed for over a year.

The MBA was one of the groups solicited for a donation. On April 30, 2007, BIAW President Daimon Doyle attended the MBA’s Board meeting to solicit a donation to BIAW’s campaign fund, which was considered a “Fund for Rossi,” according to Sam Anderson, the MBA Executive Director. Based upon a formula, MBA was targeted for a donation of over $570,000! The Board decided to table the request until the next meeting three weeks later, expressing concern that most MBA members were democrats and may not appreciate the donation and also about other pressing MBA expenses including building repairs.

When MBA leadership met next on May 21, 2007 at a “Chair Officers Meeting,” the discussion turned to BIAW’s pending request for campaign funds. While discussing the request, all three of the MBA’s top officers reported that they had received calls from Dino Rossi. The one call for which additional detail is provided clearly confirms that Rossi called to support a MBA contribution to the BIAW’s governor’s race war chest. The minutes leave no question that Dino Rossi spoke to this officer about whether and when MBA would give to the BIAW’s governor campaign fund. The officers receiving calls from Rossi were then-MBA President Doug Barnes, First Vice President Joe Schwab, and Second Vice President John Day.

He did it, he knows it, the BIAW knows it and they likely don’t care.  Despite any fines and bad press Rossi and his BIAW friends receive, it will be chump change if they win the governor seat.  The republican game plan for this election:  Winning is everything.  Even if you have to break the law to do it.

Around these parts, You’d think Dino Rossi walked on water.  Otherwise good people hang on his every word, but if they were to learn he was a skunk, they might think twice about voting in his favor.  The problem is, they may never hear about it at all.

Drinking Liberally in the Tri-Cities is tonight and every Tuesday night.  With just a couple days to what should amount to be a vastly entertaining VP debate, come on down and enjoy the good weather we are having with 20 - 30 of your closest friends!

(Also, this would be a good time to plan a VP debate party!)

Cheers!

Drinking Liberally in the Tri-Cities

O’Callahans - Shilo Inn

50 Comstock Rd.

Richland

7pm till?

I dunno how I missed this… well, actually I do.  I’ve been trying to stay away from blogging and intentionally reducing my news consumption out of consideration for my well being.  But I can’t believe I missed this quote from our very own Doc Hastings:

“It has been my repeatedly stated intention since July that the committee should form an investigative subcommittee to look into matters relating to Rep. Rangel,” Hastings said. “This has been delayed for far too long. Action should have been taken in July or since the House reconvened two weeks ago.”

He has to be kidding right?  Hastings shut down the ethics committee during some of the worst corruption amongst republicans we have seen in decades and says this?

Sara Palin - single handedly saving jobs at Saturday Night Live…

A quick warm up for this post from Horsesass.org

The Seattle P-I’s Neal Modie.  The Everett Herald’s Jim Haley.  The Columbian’s Gregg Herrington.  KING-5 News’ Robert Mak.  The AP’s Dave Ammons.  The Seattle Times’ Ralph Thomas and David Postman.  And that’s only a partial list of Washington state political reporters who have quit the business this year alone.  And in a busy, presidential election year at that.

Add one more to that list as Chris Mullick is leaving the Tri-City Herald.

As the list of folks departing the dead tree news grows, I really wonder what is to become of the daily newspaper.  It’s hard to believe they will all survive as Internet editions and the ones that do survive online will likely take years to do so as the demographic of their users shift from paper to the net.  In between that shift I see some hard times and even more reporters and news heads jumping ship for better prospects.

I’d like to give McCain credit for this first debate, but I can’t.  When his moments happened, it was his broken re-theme of the Bush administration or a contorted regurgitation of Obama in a twisted “change” fashion that didn’t settle into the stomach like a meatloaf comfort meal.  It was mystery meat and more like an uncomfortable meal at an all to familiar chinese resturaunt where the servings were made up of long term loans on America’s future.  Not pretty.  And despite his ability to put up a manhandled view of foreign policy he wasn’t able to properly transform any of his weaknesses to strenghts.  And his attempts at converting Obama’s “mainstreet” theme to his own fell hollow on his inability to address the tax inequity most Americans understand so well.
McCain jumped around from housing crisis to foriegn oil and while there is somewhat of a connection if you live in overpriced suburbs, until you parse that out between the average guy who is still plugging along (and making his mortage payment, the theme simply doesn’t make sense.  McCain simply couldn’t connect the dots when the majority of American’s finances where on the table.
Then he lied.  “I warned about Freddy and Fannie” were classic because that simply isn’t true.  Not with his sleeping habits between those failed financial giants and his historical past amongst the Keating 5.  It was bleeding over the debate for anyone who’s memory was longer than the latest Brittney Spears drama.  And when asked by Jim Leherer what it would take to get out of the current financial crisis, McCain could only cite excessive government spending forgetting that the two are unrelated.  It’s the lack of regulatory oversight under his watch that created much of what we are experiencing. For Obama’s part, he could have expanded on that theme.  However, McCains obvious superficial response, of which most voters susceptible to that type of persuasion, would have been simply that those regulations were loosened under the Clinton administration… forgetting the oversight that has actually been the crux of the issue.  Problem: people believe what they want to believe despite the facts.  If anyone was paying attention, they would have realized that government spending had little or nothing to do with the widespread failure of our financial institutions.  Well… unless you now count in the bailout being contemplated in congress.
Sure, you could lump the bailout and lax oversight with spending but only in the face of the simple lack of investing of in the necessary oversight. That costs money too, but far less than the pork barrel spending that McCain so vehemently criticized during the debate.
Obama could have been much stronger in my opinion.  McCain had opened himself to several criticisms that Obama didn’t capitalize on when the opportunity to do so was there.  And they were subtle and yet important bits outside of the national conscience that relate back to the every day lives of Americans.
But as far as first debates go… I’ll take it.
Now lets take bets of when Palin will be Bailin!

Aren’t you righties just getting a little tired of this shit?

Obama puts out a good message here.  Interesting is the reality of it all when we talk about expenses and healthcare, the middle class…  Almost polar opposite is McCain who I keep hearing say “I know how to do this” like a kid who really doesn’t, but just wants to try.  No thanks McCain.

I’ve been a bit out of the loop but as far as I remember, Drinking Liberally is every Tuesday at O’Callahans.  Be there tonight.  I’ll bring that really cool invention of John McCains for everyone to see…. The Blackberry!

Drinking Liberally in the Tri-Cities

50 Comstock Rd.

Richland

7pm till?

Posted Via Blackberry Mobile

Update:  Ha ha!!!!

WaPo

No, he has never put lipstick on a pig, Sen. Barack Obama told David Letterman in an appearance to be broadcast tonight on CBS’s “The Late Show with David Letterman.”

“But I think it might be fun to try,” Obama said.

In defense of his critique Tuesday in Virginia of Sen. John McCain’s pitch that he’s a changemaker, Obama said, “It’s a common expression in at least Illinois. I don’t know about in NYC. I don’t know what you put lipstick on here.”

“Keep in mind that technically, had I meant it this way, she would be the lipstick,” Obama added, referring to GOP vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin. “The policies of John McCain would be the pig.”

And now for your viewing pleasure…

Oh yeah… I knew I’d heard that somewhere before!

The Obama camp could probably pull a page from The Daily Show and laugh their way to the end of the election.  Ya ya… I know.  Enough voters would be turned off that it could backfire if the Obama folks took to comedy (at least the humorless ones).  But at least I’d be able to laugh my way to November.

I wonder if Biden has ever had a mooseburger? If not, I think he’ll have that opportunity.