Dobson's Confidential Source? FOIA suit filed

[Synnical]

http://www.atheists.org/

For Immediate Release, October 10, 2005
Atheist Group Files FOIA Action to Force White House Disclosure of “Dobsongate” Records

An Atheist civil rights group announced today that it has filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request to force the release of any documents and other records released by White House senior advisor Karl Rove to James Dobson and other evangelical leaders in an effort to boost support for Supreme Court nominee Harriet Miers.

Last week, Dobson – head of the “Focus on the Family” group – boasted that he was “privy” to “confidential” information that led him to support the Miers nomination, and that the insider information originated with administration operative Karl Rove. Rove is already the subject of a federal grand jury probe in another matter for his alleged leaking of the identity of a CIA agent.

Attorney Edwin Kagin filed the FOIA request on behalf of American Atheists. Kagin noted that ordinarily the president and the White House staff are exempt from FOIA actions. “By providing ‘confidential’ information to someone like Dobson, the White House has surrendered its executive privilege, and cannot hide behind a FOIA exemption to conceal this information from Congress and the American people,” said Kagin.

Ellen Johnson, president of American Atheists, said her group is supporting the efforts of legislators like Sen. Ken Salazar of Colorado to find out exactly what “confidential” information was provided to religious right leaders, including Dobson.

“The Bush administration is not sharing all of the background information on Miers with the Senate Judiciary Committee, the media and the American people,” said Johnson. “But Karl Rove can pick up the phone and pass this background on to extremist preachers like James Dobson.”

“What’s wrong with this picture?”

Edwin Kagin said that the FOIA request is the first of its kind of which he is aware to force disclosure of White House records on the basis that Executive Privilege has been suspended. “They can’t argue national security or any other sort of exemption here,” said Kagin. “They shared information with a private citizen who happens to be a powerful religious right supporter of the Bush administration. This is about politics, not the war on terror or national security, and the American people have every right to know what is in these documents.”

Mr. Kagin added: “American Atheists is actively contesting the giving of ‘confidential’ information about a Supreme Court nominee to the Religious Right – information that is denied the U.S. Senate and the American people.”

American Atheists is a nationwide movement which defends the civil rights of nonbelievers, works for the separation of church and state, and addresses issues of First Amendment public policy.

[Mr Rabble]

1. Watch this go right down the memory hole.

This is right out of The West Wing.

[Angry Girl]

2. Right on!!! n/t

[Tsiyu]

3. Didn't Dobson say he felt "fear and trepidation" in announcing

support for Miers?

A little off track of the OP, but perhaps Dobson knows that ** is going to be impeached, and will need all the friends he can summon in the Supreme Court and otherwise.

WTF is up with that "fear and trepidation" nonsense?

[FreedomAngel82]

6. Interesting

I didn't hear/read that. Hmm. Could be very true.

[Synnical]

7. I don't re-call that either n/t

[maddezmom]

11. here's a link

Focus on the Family founder questions own support for Miers
---------------
DENVER — Focus on the Family founder James Dobson told listeners on his regular radio broadcast he will never forget if he is making a mistake in endorsing Supreme Court nominee Harriet Miers.

(snip)

On his radio broadcast Wednesday, he prayed he was not making a mistake.

"Lord, you know I don't have the wisdom to make this decision," Dobson said. "You know that what I feel now and what I think is right may be dead wrong."

He said he worried that his position "could do something to hurt the cause of Christ, and I'd rather sacrifice my life than do that."

(snip)

He would not discuss details of a briefing he received from Bush's political adviser Karl Rove.

"When you know some of the things I know — that I probably shouldn't know — that take me in this direction, you'll know why I've said with fear and trepidation (that) I believe Harriet Miers will be a good justice," Dobson said in a broadcast with co-host John Fuller.

(snip)




http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=102&topic_id=1831093#1831759

[Pacifist Patriot]

13. Based on this quote he should have expired long ago.

He said he worried that his position "could do something to hurt the cause of Christ, and I'd rather sacrifice my life than do that."

[clydefrand]

30. He did indeed say this. Strange way to tell us that he had

received privileged information from Rove and turned around to give it to the public.

[Maraya1969]

9. I heard that too and it was followed by an exclamation about innocent

babies being aborted. Maybe she is intent on reversing Roe V Wade and he is fearing and tredpidating about the back lash of the thousands of woman that are going to attack him and every other male supporter with coat hangers.

[Der Blaue Engel]

26. I took it to mean that he feared her utter incompetence

in all other aspects of serving on the Supreme Court, but that he was hoping Jesus thought it was okay to get an incompetent on the bench to stop the proto-babies from being flushed.

[grannylib]

4. Could it be that the Imbecile has a *gasp* LITMUS TEST for SCOTUS

appointees??????


Naaaahhhhhhhhhhhh....ya think??????

[Synnical]

44. Good Call

See my post #43.

:yourock:

[FreedomAngel82]

5. Good!

I hope they find out if he knows anything or not. I still don't think he does, but if he does we do deserve to know. Dobson isn't an elected official or anything like that and doesn't deserve to know something the rest of us don't. What will happen if they don't get it?

[texpatriot2004]

8. Uh Oh it's going to court it looks like. Good for them. Dobson is

NO CHRISTIAN.

[Gelliebeans]

10. Way to go! Thanks Synnical, for the post.

I hope they can get this information.

[Pacifist Patriot]

12. Excellent! Brilliant argument. I concur.

[donheld]

14. Praise god for atheists

:evilgrin: This should be praised by anyone who really believes in a true democracy. We all know this administration thinks the separation of church and state is a joke.

[rucky]

15. If this Meirs thing doesn't work out, I hear Jesus is on the short list nt

[ReadTomPaine]

16. To these types, 'Jesus' would be just another hippie.

If a figure such as the biblical 'Jesus' actually were alive today, he would have already been tasered half to death by police and sent up the river on hoaxed charges.

[catmandu57]

17. Sic em

I only hope there is enough time to get the information and get it dispersed, before the arm breaking of the Senate begins.

[brainshrub]

18. Here's another article on this:

www.brainshrub.com/radical-cleric

I am seriously creeped out at the idea that the White House wooed a fundamentalist cleric and assured him that the next Supreme Court Justice would be someone he could support for secret reasons.

To put this into some context: Imagine if Rove had called the Vatican to convince Pope Benedict that Miers is a safe nominee? If then the Pope came out and mentioned that he knows things "he probably shouldn't know" about Miers and that she will make a great Justice... do you think that would raise some eyebrows?

I wrote this.

[katinmn]

19. When is Rove going to learn to keep his mouth shut?

Loose lips sink ships.:evilgrin:

[Neil Lisst]

20. Dobson stepped in it now

This is too funny. Now he's going to get a subpoena from Congress. I'm going to love this testimony. Making a TV evangelist swear on the Bible to tell the truth is priceless.

Especially since he probably won't.

http://www.webcomicsnation.com/neillisst/neillisst/series.php

[Initech]

21. I love the Freedom of Information Act!

[yellowcanine]

22. So Dobson is either going to have to say he lied and was blowing

smoke (which is what I suspect - unless Rove is truly dumber than I thought) or the Bushbots are going to have to release the information. How delightful. Hey this week is starting off on a high note.

[FVZA_Colonel]

23. It's been said, but good for them!

It is completely intolerable that someone like James Dobson would be finding out about these "secret qualifications" before the American Senate.

[msrbly]

24. Rove is too smart to get caught by FOIA

If I remember correctly Dobson said he talked to the "white house" and got this information. If that is the case there is nothing to get via a FOIA request because FOIA only includes written documents. If Rove spoke with Dobson over the phone, we don't get to know what Rove told Dobson. I guess it's none of our business!

[zonkra]

25. Cripes...

all Nixon got was "fear and loathing". Snarky O'Smirk gets "fear and trepidation". That's way scarier to me. Almost as scarey as Karl Rove, Pat Robertson, Jerry Falwell, and Jimmy Dobson exiting from the mensroom toilet at the same time. Pork has beem blown...

[ThoughtCriminal]

27. Call Dobson to testify at confirmation

Ask specific questions.

[Swamp Rat]

28. Dobson's Confidential Source?

Satan

[stevedeshazer]

32. Spot on, Swamp Rat

:hi:

[Doctor Panacea]

29. So what?

*An Atheist civil rights group announced today that it has filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request to force the release of any documents and other records released by White House senior advisor Karl Rove to James Dobson ...*

Is anyone, anywhere, so fatuous as to think that it will make any difference?

It won't work, and the wingnuts could not care less. They don't even pay attention to anything like this.

[stevedeshazer]

34. So what...will YOU do?

Just asking.

Have you given up?

[Ikonoklast]

36. Too late, cat's out of the bag

Dobson put his foot in it. He will be subpoenaed by Congress and will be directed under oath to either tell the truth about what he was told or perjure himself (likely). Either way, they look stupid.

The right wing will have to either distance themselves from this nutcase or have another noose put on their necks. By an ally, no less.

Pride goeth before a fall. Lots of pride there. Gonna be a long ass fall.

[worldgonekrazy]

37. I agree...this is making a mountain out of a molehill, IMO

Dobson was just doing the *wink wink, nod nod* bit, saying "come on people, SHE"S ONE OF US." They do it all the time, and frankly I just don't think its that big of a deal.

[DanCa]

31. Thank you Atheists

I wanted to thank my athiest cousins for laying the smack down on this blasphemic poor excuse for a christian. I owe you a huge thank you. Note I hope that this sets the tone of positive direction where people of every faith and non faith back ground starts protesting the right wing fundies and stop beatting up our left wing counter parts. I mean we are all on the same team regardless of our background.

[stevedeshazer]

33. Thank God I'm an atheist, DanCa

I support your right to believe in whatever your head and heart tell you.

We are on the same team.

We must have separation of church and state. Period.

:patriot:

[ClintonTyree]

35. I was going to say, "thank God for the athiests".........

;) you beat me to it! I'm more of an agnostic, I don't know what the hell to believe any more. :shrug:

[mom cat]

39. You both beat me to it, but it bears repeating: "THANK GOD FOR

ATHIESTS!"

[DanCa]

41. And I support your rights 100 not to believe in anything at all

Now let's go get the fundies and show em what the power of a left wing united front against tyranny will do. You know I miss the days when these loonies sat in thier basement listening to elvis records and listening to them backwards and slower and slower looking for naughty words :D Nowadays it seems like they have too much damn time on thier hands.

[smartvoter]

38. Recommended. nt

[KittyWampus]

40. choice!

[Voltaire99]

42. Go, atheists!

The last rationalists in an age of wonders.

[Synnical]

43. UPDATE: WH Should Release Rove Docs to Confirm Dobson Claims

Press Release:

AMERICAN ATHEISTS, INC.
http://www.atheists.org
http://www.americanatheist.org


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: October 12, 2005

WHITE HOUSE SHOULD RELEASE ROVE DOCUMENTS
TO CONFIRM DOBSON CLAIMS ON INFO LEAK...

An Atheist civil rights group today said that claims by televangelist
James Dobson that he did not receive improper information about the
Harriet Miers nomination from the White House can only be verified if
the Bush administration promptly releases all records pertinent to the case.

Dobson, head of the Focus on the Family organization, boasted last week
that he had been made "privy" to "confidential" information about Miers'
background and ideological reliability by White House senior adviser
Karl Rove. That led to calls for the Senate Judiciary Committee to
subpoena Dobson as a witness, and ascertain whether he had been "leaked"
insider information not being made public to Congress, the media and the
American people. Today during his weekly radio broadcast, Dobson denied
that he received any specific or other improper information about how
Miers would vote in cases involving abortion rights and other issues.
Rove, he said, merely revealed that Miers was active in an evangelical
church congregation.

"We simply can't believe either James Dobson or Karl Rove until the
White House releases any documents, phone logs, e-mails or other
material about these conversations," said Ellen Johnson, President of
American Atheists. "This needs to be confirmed one way or another; we
cannot take Dobson's claims 'on faith' "

Earlier this week, Johnson's group filed an unprecedented FOIA action
(Freedom of Information Act) with the White House demanding release of
pertinent documents which might cast light on the Rove-Dobson
communications. Johnson said that the White House had lost the veil of
Executive Privilege since information may have been leaked for political
purposes to a private individual.

"Here's the White House reassuring Dobson and other religious right
leaders that Miers is a reliable, evangelical Christian, while at the
same time George Bush is going on television insisting that there is no
'litmus' test for a Supreme Court position," added Johnson.

Dave Silverman, Communications Director for American Atheists, said that
the White House is being hypocritical with its strategy to have Harriet
Miers confirmed for the high court.

"The Constitution states that there is no religious litmus test for
public office, but here we have a senior administration operative, Karl
Rove, telling one of the nation's most powerful evangelicals that Miers
should be supported for the position because she is affiliated with an
evangelical church," said Silverman.

"The Constitution states that there CAN BE no religious litmus test for
public office, but here we have a senior administration operative, Karl
Rove, EXPOSING AN ILLEGAL LITMUS TEST by telling one of the nation's
most powerful evangelicals that Miers should be supported for the
position because she is affiliated with an evangelical church," said
Silverman.

"Wouldn't it be nice for our president to say, instead, that a candidate
for the Supreme Court should be confirmed because OF HER QUALIFICATIONS
AND NOT BECAUSE OF HER RELIGIOUS BELIEFS?"

AMERICAN ATHEISTS is a nationwide movement that defends civil rights for
Atheists; works for the total separation of church and state; and
addresses issues of First Amendment public policy.

American Atheists, Inc. P. O. Box 5733 Parsippany, NJ 07054-6733
Tel: [phone] Fax: [phone]