Rove In A STATE OF PANIC-By Mark Crispin Miller

[kpete]

Rove in State of Panic
Submitted by davidswanson on Sat, 2008-04-19 21:20. Criminal Prosecution
By Mark Crispin Miller

I emailed Scott Horton, to ask him what he makes of Rove's letter--which, I said, "seems to me to be the outburst of a very anxious man."

Here is Scott's reply:

Rove has been described to me by several of my GOP sources in Alabama as being in a state of panic. He has been pressing senior Alabama GOP figures to speak out for him and to attack me and Jill Simpson, as well as CBS and MSNBC. But they're keeping quiet, which shows more political smarts than Rove, frankly. Of course Rove has a simple objective here. He wants to know all the underlying evidence that has been accumulated to make a case against him and he's desperate to know it before he speaks any more about it. Which is precisely why CBS, MSNBC and others will keep things close to the vest.

But just to show you how ridiculous his tantrum is. He asks how I "know" he was involved in strategizing and fundraising. Of course he wants the names of my sources in Alabama so he can have them pressured and pilloried. But his involvement is established just by looking at the White House website. The key fundraising event of the campaign was the July 15, 2002 fundraiser for Riley in Birmingham - it brought in $4 million. It was arranged by Karl Rove, working closely with Bill Canary. President Bush was the featured draw. How can he deny he was involved in fundraising and strategizing? The very effort is absurd.

The evidence linking him to the use of the Siegelman case as a technique is of course thinner. That's because this is a felony, and those involved in it are not going to speak voluntarily. Which is why his denial should be under oath and subject to crossexamination, just as Jill Simpson's was.

more at:
http://www.afterdowningstreet.org/node/32871

[annabanana]

1. I am LOVING this post!

Best news all week.

[Voice for Peace]

25. Love to see him too tangled in legal problems to get involved in the GE

k/R

[Joe Bacon]

94. He knows the pardon is coming and he has nothing to worry about

The sad truth is that President Asshole will issue a blanket pardon for him. Republicans are above the law.

[xxqqqzme]

121. Can he issue a pre-emptive pardon?

If saurove isn't found guilty of anything before next January, how can he be pardoned?

[ExPatLeftist]

129. I am not sure how it works legally after a charge...

But I do know that the president can give immunity from investigation before someone has been charged.

Just ask the current Pope. (Amazing that that story is not getting more attention.)

[Joe Bacon]

130. Old Fart Bush did it with Weinberger and North

Everyone in Iran Contra got away with it. So will Rove.

[Voice for Peace]

124. But one day the nightmares will begin. There is that, at least.

"remorse will visit them in the night"

[Joe Bacon]

131. You're assuming Rove has a conscience.

Like every other Nazi, Rove has no conscience. He will walk away clean.

[Voice for Peace]

133. Every human being is born with a conscience.

It will get him, one day, one way or another, I am sure of it.

[MadMaddie]

147. If the investigators are smart they will wait until after the general

election when we will have a Democratic president and then prosecute. That guarantees there will be no pardon.

[Voice for Peace]

139. "I'll explain, and I'll use small words so you'll be sure to understand, you warthog-faced buffoon"

A fitting fate for Karl Rove: "to the pain"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IoSHmVkjmuA

[YDogg]

2. perhaps rove fears a post-bush existence when he will be fair game and unprotected "legally"

[Alpharetta]

82. Bush should issue some post-dated pardons for him

His best hope is some get-out-of-jail cards to be used at a future date.

[Joe Chi Minh]

106. Don't you think the next administration would be willing and able to rescind that?

[cliffordu]

3. Can we just send that prick to the Alabama state prison now??

I figure his days in the general population will bring a whole new meaning to the phrase "influence peddling"

[bow-tie]

115. Oh wow,

in the Alabama joint, I'd be shitting my pants too! Run Karl, run. Run to France, then at least you won't get the needle. Or will you.......
I wonder if he's seen this-http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?artid=1446749

[Voice for Peace]

135. Syphilis for Rove! omigod

[DAGDA56]

4. GOOD! I hope Turd Blossom is taking some serious meds to help him deal with it...

maybe Rushbo can help him DocShop to get more...lots more.

[tularetom]

5. He should be - he looks sorta soft chubby and effeminate

Probably be real popular in prison.

[mac2]

22. Think Jeff Gannon was for Rove or Bush?

Rove is married but looks very effeminate to me. He must hate so much because girls in his youth hated him and guys made fun of him.

[jazzjunkysue]

58. B* before 10 pm, Karl after. Justa guess. n/t. "Don't tell Condi!"

[MetaTrope]

89. Why not Bush and Rove at the same time?

And Laura no doubt liked to watch...

[jazzjunkysue]

128. Oh, please don't go there!

[rhett o rick]

86. There is no truth to the rumor that Gannon was Cheney's close friend. nm

[eleny]

6. Sweeter than sugar

K&R

[sellitman]

7. Seeing this man in leg irons is my wet dream.

Bet I'm not alone.

[rhett o rick]

87. Me too. nm

[Shoelace]

112. me 3!

Turdblossom in jail - oh I love that thought!

[truedelphi]

113. I loves me that dream.

Also the dream wherein he is captured and put in leg irons and walked through the streets of
Baghdad.

Or the streets of New Orleans, for that matter.

[rhett o rick]

148. The only problem with that is that I think I promised someone important that I would join

a monastery or convent or both.

[lonestarnot]

8. I can't wait to watch that fat fucker fry like a maggot in hot ashes!

:applause:

[joeybee12]

9. Wish I could believe this...he thwarted Patrick Fitzgerald, and I fear

he'll get through this also...evil, evil, evil, but sneaky.

[JohnnyLib2]

10. OMG--this could reunite DU.

That would move ol' Karl up one ring of Hell, eh?

[lisa58]

15. it really could

[TBF]

142. Hell is too good for him...

are there any layers below?

[Olney Blue]

11. Rove has hurt more people than can ever be calculated.

[MagickMuffin]

12. He used some of these same tactics here in Texas back in '80's

This is how he got away with it so many years ago. He had a friend in the FBI, who would go after the Democrats here. Then he would get his FBI friend to lean on the Democrats and go after trumped up charges.

If you don't know what I'm referring to, watch Bush's Brain. It details the way Rove used his connections to go after Jim Hightower when he was the Texas Agriculture Commissioner, and the people who worked for Jim. Rove was actually successful in sending some of these people to jail, on trumped up charges. Rove ruined these men's lives, destroyed their reputations, and their families.

Karl Rove is MUCH more than a TurdBlossom, HE IS THE SHIT A TURDBLOSSOM GROWS OUT OF.

I can only HOPE that this time he GETS what's coming to HIM.

[mac2]

24. Texas politics in the White House.

Why Congress allowed it is beyond me. Guess he can always join Kenny Lay on that off-shore island next to his money. Check the Swiss bank too.

[MagickMuffin]

33. Well as you may recall 6 years of this Nightmare the Democrats were shut out of having ANY Hearings

dealing with this corrupt MisAdministration. John Conyers had to hold a Hearing in the Basement of the Capitol Building for Chrissake, and they were lucky to get that, the rethuglicons weren't even going to let them hold the hearings at ALL, and Conyer's was going to have the Hearing off of the Capitol building, but the rethuglicons knew that would make them look bad. So, they were givin' the Basement, as if that made the rethuglicons look good.

I just wish Congress would get enough dirt, but wait until we have a Democratic President, so Mad king Boy George can't Pardon Rove or commute his sentence.

[demobabe]

54. The Republicans didn't give them the room!

That was the only room the Democrats had control over, and so Conyers proceeded with the hearing. Symbolman went and videotaped it when it looked like no media were going to cover the hearing. If the Rethugs could have shut that one down, they certainly would have!

[mac2]

56. I watched that hearing.

[MagickMuffin]

105. I remember watching, and how the rethuglicons kept having votes come up on the floor

and everyone at the hearing had to leave and go vote, then come back to proceed with their questioning.

If I'm not mistaken this was the hearing on the Iraq War, Downing Street Memo with Joe Wilson, Ray McGovern, attorney John Bonifaz and Cindy Sheehan.

http://www.democracynow.org/2005/6/17/downing_street_and_beyond_hearing_builds

[tex-wyo-dem]

92. I remember that quite well...

They couldn't even call it a "hearing" because it wasn't sanctioned by both sides (rethugs wouldn't recognize, much less attend), so it could only officially be called a forum.

I also remember a time when Hastert cut the mics off during a forum/hearing the Dems were having (can't remember the who was running it or what the subject was). I just remember when the information being presented got very damning against the rethugs, Denny abruptly said "meeting adjorned," cut the mics and left.

[WillyT]

99. Wasn't That Sensenbrenner, Or Did It Happen More Than Once ???

:shrug:

[MagickMuffin]

108. Panel Chairman Leaves Hearing Sensenbrenner Ends Patriot Act

Patriot Act on June 10, 2005 (shutting up minority witnesses, switching off mics, telling steno to stop recording hearings, turning off electronic transmission of hearings, etc. etc.

Another example:

Pelosi Seeks House Minority 'Bill of Rights'
Hastert Dismisses Democrats' Complaint, Saying GOP Record Is Better Than Foes'

Thursday, June 24, 2004


House Democrats' anger at heavy-handed Republican tactics reached a new level yesterday, with the chamber's top Democrat asking the House speaker to embrace a "Bill of Rights" for the minority, regardless which party it is.

In keeping with the general atmosphere of the House these days, aides to Speaker J. Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.) said he will not respond to the two-page proposal from Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.).

For decades, the party in power has used House parliamentary rules to limit the minority party's ability to amend bills and shape debates. But Democrats -- in the minority for 10 years after four decades of control -- say Republicans have gone to unreasonable lengths in recent years. GOP leaders dispute this, but congressional scholars and even some rank-and-file Republicans agree in whole or in part.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A680-2004Jun23.html

More of the rethuglicons bullying behavior.

[MagickMuffin]

100. Rep. James Sensenbrenner cut the mics during one of the hearings

I think there was another time when they turned off the mics and left the room after turning off the lights.

Real Classy:dunce:

[disndat]

96. Interesting thought

Could the Democratic leadership be holding off until after the November elections when a Democrat will be elected,and any indictments/convictions of the Bushies cannot be pardoned by Pres. *? The Democrats in Congress must have enough evidence against these crooks piled up by now. What a fantasy scenario. that could come true.

[MagickMuffin]

102. Well that would seem like the logical thing to do

Wait until this MisAdministration is gone, otherwise what would it accomplish to move before then.

I WANT to see Rove behind BARS, along with his cohorts.

[vanboggie]

126. Then they should at least stop election theft

Dems should have at least done something about that if they have a fantasy of waiting till after the election. As it is, the machines still belong to the rethugs.

[malaise]

13. The noose is tightening

Be afraid Turd Blossom.

[midnight]

14. I know Siegelman knows that Rove is involved.

[mac2]

20. Siegelman was on with Kennedy today.

He said he knew Rove and his wife were involved. Check it out on the Ring of Fire website. It sounds like a movie mystery.

What a bunch of thugs and liars this group are. With the South ruling this country, we are in real trouble. They've always had very corrupt politics. This one was really a violation of Siegelman's rights. When politics puts you in jail...Fascism and the Police State are here.

Thanks to a female "whistle blower" the plot was exposed.

You can't fool all of the people all of the time...

[L. Coyote]

36. The show is in DU Political VIDEOS here:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=385x120912

[Kurovski]

16. I hope someone posts that frog-march photoshop of Rove, here.

It's a very pleasant image. K&R

[HysteryDiagnosis]

21. Yup.... here you go.

[Kurovski]

Thank you.

I think there's even a version where he's wetting his drawers.

[pnorman]

122. "Frog-March of Rove"

I finally found the "original" of that second photo. And that one best illustrates the term "frog-march". It shows a prominent urine splotch on his crotch area. Yes, it's a photoshop job, but it adds such a dramatic touch.

That version used to used to show up on DU from time to time as a Photobucket graphic, but no longer. Perhaps there was a legal problem? At any rate, I've got it stored on my HD!

pnorman

[Vogon_Glory]

143. Nice Images

Nice Images. I can almost here the theme music from "Cops" playing in the background.

[bleever]

23. Number one image

when doing a Google image search for "Frog March":



:toast:

[Kurovski]

26. You guys are the greatest!

:toast:

[bleever]

29. Please, please:

a little louder.

:hi:

[Kurovski]

49. BLEEVER RULES!

He's the second "too smartest and handsomest man" on DU! :rofl: :hi:

[Ellipsis]

17. Sweat Karl, sweat...

Your day is a comin'.

[spanone]

18. i will kick and nominate

[Mme. Defarge]

19. Off to the greatest! n/t

[bleever]

27. Another picture of Rove, from election night 2004:

[annabanana]

37. Hey! He was doing all that in the PEOPLE'S White House.

That's illegal too, isn't it?

[bleever]

46. Hatch Act violation

was definitely a question.

At this point, I think they have much bigger problems than the Hatch Act.

[PassingFair]

42. How candid!

The woman next to him is Abramoff's
ex personal assistant, Susan Ralston.

[bleever]

45. Why, so it is!

It seems just like yesterday that she resigned and slipped out of sight.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x2870756

[ladywnch]

28. anybody have a link to the letter from Rove that is referenced here?

I'd love to read Rove sounding like ".........the outburst of a very anxious man."

[annabanana]

32. Here, but be warned:

It is a RW loonytune wing nut site.
http://www.powerlineblog.com/archives2/2008/04/020328.php

Like Dan said.. "All questions - no answers"

I have copied the text of the letter here so you don't have to "go there":

Dear Mr. Abrams:
On April 7th, you again devoted a substantial part of your show to the claim of former Alabama Governor Don Siegelman that I was behind his prosecution. Your continued coverage of this issue raises questions about your journalistic standards and those of MSNBC and NBC. During your broadcast, Mr. Siegelman referred to Ms. Dana Jill Simpson as a “respected Republican political operative,” a reference it seems you accept because of the frequent attention you give her in your broadcasts.

Have you, during your coverage of Ms. Simpson, ever actually looked into her claims? For example, have you ever asked her what campaigns she worked as “an operative” with me?

And if so, did you check out what she said by calling the candidates who were my clients or their campaign managers to ask if she was involved in those campaigns? Did you review campaign expenditure reports to see if her name appeared as a paid operative? Or did you check with the DeKalb County Republican chairman or activists (such as the Moore campaign chairman, an effort she told the Judiciary Committee she was active in) to see if she really was a “respected Republican political operative?”

Did you inquire when it was that I first asked her to undertake unnamed campaign tasks, as she alleged happened in the years before 2001? And did you try to ascertain whether she was telling the truth about those requests?

Did you inquire when and where her supposed 2001 meeting with me took place at which she was asked to follow Siegelman and photograph him? If so, did you make any effort to see if she could document her claim?

And if you were personally convinced by her answers that there was a good likelihood of such a meeting, did you try to figure out if there was any way that I was likely to have been available for such a meeting? Or is it merely enough for her to assert for you to repeat?

Didn’t it strike you as foolish for me to ask someone with no particular experience to undertake a task requiring adroit surveillance and shadowing skills, a mission with such potential to blow up in everyone’s faces?

Then consider Ms. Simpson’s September 14, 2007 interview with the House Judiciary Committee that followed an earlier extensive interview by a Democratic committee lawyer. Did it not bother you Ms. Simpson failed to mention the claim she made to CBS for their February 24, 2008 story that you then repeated on February 25th? After all, wouldn’t that be something Congressman John Conyer’s people would find interesting?

Don’t you find it odd that in 143 pages of testimony in September she said nothing about having worked with me in campaigns, nothing about being asked by me to undertake various tasks, nothing about my supposedly having asked her to follow Governor Siegelman and photograph him in a compromising position, nothing about having had meetings with me? In fact, she never says she knows me or has met me. Don’t you find that odd? Or were these considerations that got lost as you attempted to catch-up with CBS on the story? Did the pressure of competition lead you to discard tough questions and sober reflection?

In fact, did you even read the transcript of Dana Jill Simpson’s testimony? Did you try to ascertain if there was any evidence that would lead a reasonable person to believe the claims she made to the Judiciary Committee staff about Don Siegelman, Terry Butts, Judge Fuller and others were likely to be accurate? Did it matter to you that following the release of her interview, as one observer has written, that “every single person whose name Simpson invokes as she spins her stories says that she is either lying or deluded?” Are you aware that the list of people denying her claims includes Don Siegelman, whom she claims repeatedly urged her to provide her original affidavit?

Did you try to discover whether there was any evidence she did in fact shadow Don Siegelman? Did you ask for travel records, itineraries, or expense reports that showed Ms. Simpson’s travel from Northeastern Alabama matched up with the Governor’s schedule?

Did you ever consider that the Governor’s security detail might have taken note of an ample-sized, redheaded woman who kept showing up at his events with a camera? Did you talk with the Alabama Department of Public Safety?

In fact, did you ever ask her how she attempted to find him in a compromising position? Was it her practice to follow him from his events and shadow him late at night when he was on the road? Peek through hotel windows? Hang out down the hallway from his hotel room? Were you satisfied she actually did what she was supposedly asked to do?

In your February 25th broadcast, she said she had phone records of calls to “Virginia and Washington” that corroborate her charges. Have you made an effort to review those records and ascertain what they point to? Since I lived and worked in Washington, D.C. in 2001, I can’t imagine what her cryptic reference to Virginia could mean. The Bush/Cheney transition office (where I was rarely, working instead in Austin) was in Virginia until late 2000, before the transition was moved to a government building near the White House before year’s end. But what number and who was she calling in Virginia (presumably) later in 2001 when she was being asked to shadow Siegelman? And what were those Washington numbers? Did you ask her? Or was it good enough for you that she said had them so you were content to let the matter drop?

In fact, what did you do to ascertain if anything she told you and that you repeated or relied upon was accurate? Or is it good enough for you to simply repeat her charges without examining them personally to satisfy yourself that she is – and has done – what she says she did?

Does it bother you that your coverage asserts, as Governor Siegelman summarized it in his April 7th appearance on your program, that he is the victim of a vast conspiracy involving two U.S. Attorneys, the Alabama Attorney General, unnamed career officials in the Public Integrity Unit at the U.S. Justice Department, unnamed higher-ups in the Justice Department and, oh yes, Karl Rove and that there is not a single piece of paper, not a single email, not a single conversation, not a single disgruntled career employee who’s came forward, not one credible witness to the workings of the conspiracy?

And do you really believe such a scheme could be operated so efficiently and effectively that it would manipulate the career prosecutor who brought the case so that he did not understand he was doing the bidding of this vast conspiracy? And that the FBI agents who conducted the investigation could similarly be so easily and subtly subverted?

In fact, it seems you believe that the absence of any concrete evidence is itself evidence of the conspiracy. If you don’t have any proof Karl Rove did it, that absence is proof enough. I am that good.

And is it your habit not to challenge a guest, as long as he is following your chosen theme for the night? For example, let’s take your December 13, 2007 broadcast.

Scott Horton said “We don’t have all the links in place but we do know that certainly beginning from 2002, Karl Rove out of the White House was deeply involved in the election of Rob Riley, structuring it, raising money for it, putting together a strategy for it. A part of that strategy involved the criminal justice system nailing charges, landing charging on Siegelman on some sort. As we know that it involved at some point, consultation with the Justice Department and also two U.S. Attorneys in Alabama…”

Just how does Mr. Horton know all this “certainly”? Did you ask him what proof he had that I was deeply involved in Congressman Riley’s gubernatorial bid? What evidence does he have that I structured it, raised money for it, put together a strategy for it? What evidence does he have that “my” strategy included indicting Siegelman? With whom and when did I consult with the Justice Department about this “strategy?” When did I consult with the two U.S. Attorneys in Alabama about it? He said, “we do know that certainly” this all happened. If you consider yourself a journalist or even a lawyer, wouldn’t this be the point where you should have asked Mr. Horton, how do you know that, what evidence do you have?

What about you? Did you review campaign spending and news report to identify the Riley campaign consultants or ad team and call them to see if I played a role? Did you do some sleuthing of your own, phoning Republicans in Alabama who might have been in a position to know? Did you call any major donors to Congressman Riley’s gubernatorial bid and ask if they were contacted by me and encouraged to give money? Did you talk with your colleagues in NBC covering the White House and ask them how credible the argument might be that I was serving as the political consultant and campaign manager of a candidate for Governor of Alabama in 2002 while also serving as Senior Advisor to the President of the United States? Or because Mr. Horton’s assertions fit your story line for the night, did you think he didn’t need to prove anything he claimed and you didn’t need to do any work?

As a matter of fact, I had other things to occupy my time in the White House in 2002 rather than “structuring” a campaign for an Alabama gubernatorial candidate, calling people to raise money for his race, and going through the arduous task of “putting together a strategy.” And I certainly didn’t meet with anyone at the Justice Department or either of the two U.S. Attorneys in Alabama about investigating or indicting Siegelman. My involvement in the campaign was to approve a request that the President appear at a Riley campaign fundraising event, one of several score fundraising events the President did that election cycle.

It boils down to this: as a journalist, do you feel you have a responsibility to dig into the claims made by your guests, seek out evidence and come to a professional judgment as to the real facts? Or do you feel if a charge is breathtaking enough, thoroughly checking it out isn’t a necessity?

I know you might be concerned that asking these questions could restrict your ability to make sensational charges on the air, but don’t you think you have a responsibility to provide even a shred of supporting evidence before sullying the journalistic reputations of MSNBC and NBC?

People used to believe journalists were searching for the truth. But your cable show increasingly seems to be focused on wishful thinking, hoping something is one way and diminishing the search for facts and evidence in favor of repeating your fondest desires. For example, while you do ask Siegelman what evidence he had to back up his charges, you did not press him when he said "We don't have the knife with Karl Rove's fingerprints all over it, but we've got the glove, and the glove fits."

The difficulty with your approach is you reduced yourself to the guy in the bar who repeats what the fellow next to him says – “The glove fits! The glove fits!” - only louder, because it suits your pre-selected story line ("Bush Justice") and you don’t want the facts to get in the way of a good fable. You have relinquished the central responsibility of an investigative reporter, namely to press everyone in order to get to the facts. You didn’t subject the statements of others to skeptical and independent review. You have chosen instead to simply repeat something someone else says because it agrees with the theme line your producers slapped on your segment, created the nifty graphic for and promoted in the ads before your appearances.

Sincerely,

Karl Rove

[mhoran]

93. Hmm

That's a whole lot of energy put into that letter. I must say, he does sound a bit rattled.

[hisownpetard]

101. All questions, no answers.

[DCKit]

118. A Fishing Expedition.

As (incredibly intelligently) pointed out by previous posters, he's looking for info so he knows what accusations to defend against.

Does anyone else here think Nancy may have been keeping impeachment off the table only so that it would be ready for a feast?

[BleedingHeartPatriot]

30. K & R. Use your influence to illegally incarcerate a political opponent and hope no one notices.

That strategy isn't working.

:kick:

[L. Coyote]

31. Rove has more than this to worry about. This is all he she said-they said, but

Abramoff, et.al are in jail singing about everything. The illegal campaign contributions probably make him worry too. But, the whole DoJ as political sock puppet of the White House has Rove written all over it. That's all the USA firings, and other corruptions to come. Then there is the slide show to divert GSA billions to elect Rs. That's huge and criminal. The lost e-mails, and not knowing whioch ones are out there somewhere, that sucks!! What does Palast know, that sucks, a muckraker getting your e-mails, LOL. Need I go on? There's more, like war crimes.

[annabanana]

35. The beauty of THIS PARTICULAR peccadillo is that it will

much harder to claim executive privilege. EP would imply that it had something to do with his position at the WH... But]it had something to do with his position at the WH it is, ipso facto.. improper partisan influence.!

[L. Coyote]

38. The "peccadillo" is a Republican operative saying someone said so in a phone call.

The focus on Rove re Siegelman may be very misplaced.
It certainly isn't the decisive concern in the appeal.

So, beaty or not, how do you hang this charge on someone.
That is the beauty of it, and why it seems a red herring.
Noone can prove it, except by confessing to a crime, or,
it is a distraction from the real crime. Stealing the election!!!

[JDPriestly]

62. And Governor Siegelman stated in his interview with RFK, Jr.

that Abramoff was active in Alabama. Because Abramoff was so close to Rove, Abramoff's activities in Alabama on behalf of Siegelman's opponent, Ryan, is, Siegelman suggests, a part of the evidence of Rove's involvement in the Alabama race. Rove, of course, mischaracterizes the statements of those who are making the allegations against him. That is the typical strategy of a person who can't disprove the facts underlying the statements of opponents.

[L. Coyote]

88. Abramoff and Scanlan are at the center of the "Alabama Election Theft Scandal"

What all the distraction is about is hiding the "Alabama Election Theft Scandal" by spinning this as centered on a Rovian conspiracy to prosecute, post-the election theft! The real scandal begins with all the crimes committed to steal the election, from illegal funding through hacking the vote database in Baldwin County. What is not being "spun" as the scandal is actually the cover-up of what came before!! Persecution of Gov. Siegelman served to keep him from power, assuring the previous crimes would remain uninvestigated.

Abramoff and Scanlan are at the center of illegal funding of the Riley campaign and Rove is linked to this aspect of the Alabama Election Theft Scandal in several ways. Most significantly, his staff included an Abramoff aid. Abramoff installed people elsewhere too. Scanlan was Riley's aid, before moving up the CBC ladder to the national chapter. The election theft and illegal financing is further discussed in this DU Archive thread:

==================
FROM: Abramoff and Kark Rove Linked to Prosecution of Ex-Alabama Governor and Campaign Finances
Jun-01-07 - http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x1023111

From June 3, 2005 by the Boston Globe
Gambling, GOP Politics Intertwine
Casino Payments Seen as Influential
by Michael Kranish - http://www.commondreams.org/headlines05/0603-08.htm


WASHINGTON -- George W. Bush gave the nation's gambling industry plenty of reason to fear his presidency. .... He wooed religious conservatives by boasting in a presidential debate about his ''strong antigambling record."

But as president, Bush has not spoken out against gambling. .... as Republican lobbyists and activist groups collected tens of millions of dollars from Indian tribes seeking to preserve their casinos. Now those payments are the focus of Senate and Justice Department investigations.

... White House ... annual sessions over a four-year period that were arranged by antitax crusader Grover Norquist ... After Bush dropped his antigambling rhetoric, lobbyists touted their access, and fund-raising from Indian tribes grew exponentially.

...Norquist('s) ... organization received $1.5 million from tribes and fought a tax on Indian casinos; lobbyist Jack Abramoff, a top Bush fund-raiser who earned millions of dollars in fees as a consultant to gaming tribes; and Ralph Reed ... allegedly used some money from Indian gaming tribes to fund his efforts to close down rival casinos and lotteries

.........Bush worked closely with religious conservatives, especially Reed....

..... Tiguas poured tens of thousands of dollars into the campaign of the Democrat running against Bush in 1998 .... Bush redoubled his earlier efforts to shut down the Tigua casino. ... special appropriation ... for the state's attorney general, John Cornyn, now a US senator, to take legal action against the tribe.....

Abramoff, who helped arrange for the rival tribes to give the money to Reed's group, turned around and offered his services to the Tiguas -- for $4.2 million in fees split between himself and a partner

..... Abramoff and his partner in Indian gaming consulting would receive more than $60 million in fees from six different tribes seeking to advance their gambling interests ... Abramoff also told the tribes to give money ... the tribes gave $3 million, two-thirds of it to Republicans

.... Abramoff and Norquist .. worked (for) ... candidate ... following year, Abramoff and Norquist came to Washington together to lead the Republican Party's national effort to recruit college students. Reed soon joined ...


In 1999, Don Siegelman, the Democratic governor of Alabama, proposed a lottery that would have pumped hundreds of millions of dollars into public schools and even provided free college education for most Alabama high school graduates.

Reed, rallying religious conservatives, set out to try to defeat it ... quickly raised $1.15 million .... money came from Norquist's group, Americans for Tax Reform. Norquist ... got the funds from an Indian gaming tribe ...At the time Reed raised the money, he was working for Abramoff ... and Abramoff represented the Mississippi tribe.

Siegelman ..."'I don't know how they can sleep at night taking money from the Indian casinos to deny Alabama schoolchildren...."

.... Abramoff, meanwhile, appears to be the central focus ....Bush has not spoken on the matter.

.............

[JDPriestly]

119. The Republican Party has been reborn as a Mafia.

[eppur_se_muova]

34. Heeheehee! Love it! nt

[Subdivisions]

39. Perhaps I'm just overlooking it, David, but

to which specific letter does the following quote from your OP refer:

"I emailed Scott Horton, to ask him what he makes of Rove's letter--which, I said, 'seems to me to be the outburst of a very anxious man.'"

Is the letter posted on a website or is it one that Rove sent out while on his fishing expedition?

If it was sent to you, can you please transcribe it either on your site or here in this thread?

Thanks for all you do, David.

[annabanana]

41. This is the letter that Rove sent to Abrams in response to his

coverage of the Seigleman case. The full text is in one of the above posts...

[Subdivisions]

57. Thanks for the link. BTW,

I just realized that I must've been confused about who the original poster was when I posted the above questions. I just realized it was kpete, and thank you, kpete, for the thread. However, the David I was referring to is DUer davidswanson, whom I confused as the original poster, and whose work to preserve democracy and justice we here at DU know well and appreciate.

So, again, thank you David =).

To the rest, sorry for the confusion. My daughter just got married last night and I'm a bit shaken by it all.

[Voice for Peace]

136. congratulations! daughters getting married is traumatic.

[bonito]

40. Soooo Sweet

:bounce: :bounce: :bounce:

[Stinky The Clown]

43. Queue the Fab Four ......

When I find myself in times of trouble, mother Mary comes to me,
speaking words of wisdom, let it be.
And in my hour of darkness she is standing right in front of me,
speaking words of wisdom, let it be.

Let it be, let it be, let it be, let it be.
Whisper words of wisdom, let it be.

And when the broken hearted people living in the world agree,
there will be an answer, let it be.
For though they may be parted there is still a chance that they will see,
there will be an answer. let it be.

Let it be, let it be, .....

And when the night is cloudy, there is still a light, that shines on me,
shine until tomorrow, let it be.
I wake up to the sound of music, mother Mary comes to me,
speaking words of wisdom, let it be.

Let it be, let it be, .....

[Hissyspit]

44. Text of Rove's letter is here:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=389&topic_id=3181624&mesg_id=3181624

[Octafish]

47. The Choctaw Republicans will want to weigh in on Herr Rove.

Abramoff and the Riley Band of Choctaw Republicans

http://www.harpers.org/archive/2008/02/hbc-90002511

Rove is acting like this DoJ thing looks like it's going to land a lot of crooks 'n' traitors in jail.

[bleever]

64. Are you following the money?

Cuz it seems like that's where it came from.

I doubt they want to take the fall for where their money was funneled.

[Octafish]

70. The good people of the Choctaw Nation were used and know it.

May we see Justice served.

Panel Says Abramoff Laundered Tribal Funds

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/06/22/AR2005062200921.html

Wonder who'll end up as Ralph Reed's cellmate?

[gratuitous]

48. Nah, Dubya will just crank up the pardon machine

And just like his Daddy did in the dead of night on Christmas Eve 1992 after the voters had turned him out of office, Dubya will write pardons for all his cronies and sycophants, and they'll all skip away scot-free.

[Ellipsis]

50. Doubt very much it will be over by then.

[gratuitous]

51. He'll just cobble the language from Ford's pardon

Nixon hadn't been charged with anything, but Ford pardoned him for everything he'd done. Sort of like the Pope, but from Michigan.

[Ellipsis]

52. Fuck! You just bummed me out.

Now, THEREFORE, I, GERALD R. FORD, President of the United States, pursuant to the pardon power conferred upon me by Article II, Section 2, of the Constitution, have granted and by these presents do grant a full, free, and absolute pardon unto Richard Nixon for all offenses against the United States which he, Richard Nixon, has committed or may have committed or taken part in during the period from January 20, 1969 through August 9,1974.

[L. Coyote]

104. "during the period from January 20, 1969 through August 9,1974"

Another good reason not to elect a McBush!

Will Bush pardon his father before leaving office?

[wtmusic]

65. Yup. Too bad he can't pardon himself.

:evilgrin:

[Spiffarino]

55. I've been wondering for some time...is this why Pelosi

...doesn't want impeachment hearings? After all, if the goons go up on charges, all Herr Schrub has to do is pardon the lot of them. However, once he leaves office they are all fair game and Bush can't anything about it.

Just wonderin'.

[mikehiggins]

81. Very generous thought

However, it is more likely that the pros in Congress just don't want to be bothered with taking up the challenge of investigating all these abuses (which is different from taking action about them, by the way). You must never forget that all but a tiny handful of Congresscritters are not there todo the People's Business, but to further and secure their own interests. End of story. The potential for trouble inherent in opening up the box on what has happened since the Supreme Court stole the nation and gave it to the Bushes, et al, is just too much for most pols to willingly concern themselves with. Pelosi't refusal to even consider impreachment should have told you that from the outset.

And by the way, the failure to impleach makes all these Dems we're depending on complicit in everything that has gone on since 2006, including the Iraq war and tne coming conflict with Iran. Now everyone's hands are covered with blood.

[drm604]

144. I don't think that he can pardon him for state crimes.

Someone correct me if I'm wrong but I think that he can only pardon federal crimes, not state. I'm pretty sure that Rove is guilty of state crimes, probably in several different states, but certainly in Alabama.

[progressoid]

53. I want to be happy about this but...

he manages to weasel out of these things time and time again. I'm not getting my hopes up (again).

[jazzjunkysue]

59. I want him in the state of 24-7 lockup. Orange suit, nice silver bracelets.

[EFerrari]

60. Send this everywhere you can, DUers. Make him sweat.

:kick:

[Baby Snooks]

61. Panic?

Why would he be in a panic? He won't be held accountable. None of them will be. I was told once that George HW Bush willingly let go of his second term. He feared someone might hold him accountable. So he ran and acted disappointed that he lost. But was he?

The Empress serves her Emperor. And his henchmen. Congress will hold hearings. Call for investigations. In the end, nothing will come of it.

Why would the Justice Department waste its time when a president has made it clear that he will commute sentences and pardon those who might expose him if need be?

Something wicked this way came in 1980. It arrived like an ill wind that blew in that day when Ronald Reagan was inaugurated. Behind him and beside him they stood. The Bushes, the Bakers and the Candlestickmakers. The Candlestickmakers. The military-industrial complex that Eisenhower warned us about. The oligarchy. It took 20 years. But they succeeded in hijacking our country. And our Constitution.

The "neo-conservatives" who in the end, at least in terms of the partisan division they created in this country, are neo-con artists.

Anyone who thinks they did not hijack us merely needs to look at the Empress and her table. It is cleared of anything that might disturb the Emperor.

Karl Rove is not in a panic. Perhaps perturbed. But not in a panic.

[KoKo]

91. ...the Empress and her table...interesting...

the way you put it...

[CrispyQ]

97. You nailed it.

Something wicked this way came in 1980. It arrived like an ill wind that blew in that day when Ronald Reagan was inaugurated. Behind him and beside him they stood. The Bushes, the Bakers and the Candlestickmakers. The Candlestickmakers. The military-industrial complex that Eisenhower warned us about. The oligarchy. It took 20 years. But they succeeded in hijacking our country. And our Constitution.

Rove will walk. They all will.

[riderinthestorm]

110. I wish he was even perturbed but I'd guess he's not even that. Great post. nt

[NJCher]

123. obsessed is more like it

Karl Rove is not in a panic. Perhaps perturbed. But not in a panic.


Yes, I'd say more obsessed than in a panic. Panicked people don't spend hours writing up diatribes like the above. One doesn't write lengthy pieces just because one is perterbed. It is way more than that.

As far as being held accountable, if there's a change in administrations, he could very well be held accountable. That's when the panic starts talking.



Cher

[KoKo]

137. Rove knows he will be "pardoned" of all his sins...with the rest of him...and go on

to a glorious future being well paid by Faux and others who would "court his favor." He can bide his time at Fox and wait for the "next election" to be hired.. Just like Carville and Begalla managed to make careers (big bucks and fancy homes in DC and Spreads in the Virginia Hill country) off their "spoils."

It's what it is. Karl Rove will never be held accountable.

[happygoluckytoyou]

63. OH WHAT A TANGLED WEAVE WE HAVE ON THE WEB

TOUGH FOR A LYING SACK OF SHIT LIKE ROVE TO KEEP HIS LIES STRAIGHT IN THE INFORMATION AGE...

HE IS MORE USED TO SLINKING AROUND IN THE DARK... ALL OF THIS QUOTING AND SPEECH FINDING IS REALLY WORRYING..... THAT IS THE TOUGH PART OF BEING A SLIME

[lovuian]

66. Rove is soooo cooked and he knows it

noone is going to protect him

[thecrow]

67. Lest we not forget... Google is our friend....

Who was in charge of cleaning up NOLA after Katrina?
Web Results 1 - 10 of about 69,800 for rove to be in charge of katrina cleanup. (0.23 seconds)

Stealing the ‘08 Election: Rove and Reconstruction After Katrina ...May 24, 2007 ... Karl Rove - who I probably need to remind you is in charge of the ... were well on our way to becoming a republican state without Katrina. ...
trenches.wordpress.com/2007/05/24/stealing-the-08-election-rove-and-reconstruction-after-katrina/ - 53k - Cached - Similar pages

Rove in charge of Katrina cleanup, goes to North DakotaExposing the lies and impeachable offenses of George W. Bush.
zzpat.tripod.com/cvb/sept_2005/rove_in_nd_.html - 8k - Cached - Similar pages

Making Light: The Greatest GenerationOn Tuesday, 30 August 2005, the day after Hurricane Katrina hit the ..... Did you'all read who has been put in charge of rebuilding New Orleans? Karl Rove. ...
nielsenhayden.com/makinglight/archives/006771.html - 58k - Cached - Similar pages

CNN.com - TranscriptsSep 17, 2005 ... Cost of Hurricane Katrina Cleanup; Effect of Hurricane on Economy ... CAFFERTY: The question now is whether or not Karl Rove and the spin ...
transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0509/17/cnnitm.01.html - 64k - Cached - Similar pages

Who's in Charge? Karl Rove!All you really need to know about the White House's post-Katrina strategy is ... Who's in Charge? Karl Rove! By Dan Froomkin Special to washingtonpost.com ...
www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/blog/2005/09/15/BL2005091501098_pf.html - Similar pages

Christian Alliance for Progress Blog: Hurricane Bush: The Disaster ...Sep 19, 2005 ... What does Karl Rove know about disaster relief? ... They finance the Katrina clean up by going further into deby by asking China, Japan, ...
blog01.kintera.com/christianalliance/archives/2005/09/hurricane_bush.html - 40k - Cached - Similar pages

KATRINA AS A TERRORIST RESPONSE : NO QUARTERand sadly Halliburton is getting the Katrina hurricane clean-up contract ... Fleaflicker on Words and the Power of Words: Rove on Obama; simon, ...
noquarterusa.net/blog/2005/09/02/katrina-as-a-terrorist-response/ - 68k - Cached - Similar pages

Will Bush put Rove in charge of Kansas clean-up? He has all that ...Will Bush put Rove in charge of Kansas clean-up? He has all that Katrina ... Hey, how is that "Karl's in Charge" thing going for Katrina folks anyway? ...
www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x3258388 - 29k - Cached - Similar pages

p m carpenter's commentary: A creeping suspicionKarl Rove isn't merely trying to help Hillary Clinton get nominated. ..... This is the man who was in charge of the Katrina clean-up, who had the "right" ...
pmcarpenter.blogs.com/p_m_carpenters_commentary/2007/08/a-creeping-susp.html - 48k - Cached - Similar pages

Michael BérubéSep 28, 2005 ... our body politic are planning to pay for Katrina cleanup by lining the oily ... kleptocrat kleanup of Katrina (with Karl Rove in charge of ...
www.michaelberube.com/index.php/weblog/disability_and_disasters/ - 55k - Cached - Similar pages

*********************
This Turd Blossom has SO MUCH to answer for.... SWEAR HIM IN!!!!

[guyanakoolaid]

68. That nice cushy ass is gonna be worth at least a carton of smokes

His pimp is gonna stand by the cell door and proposition "who wants to rent my suckling pig?"

[mwb970]

75. Karla will be *very* popular in prison.

All soft and porky and girly. It's been a long time for some of those guys.

[donheld]

69. Poetic Justice: Have Siegelman's conviction over turned and

then run as Obama's running mate.

[McCamy Taylor]

71. If he is tried in state court there is no pardon for him. And now is he too busy to campaign

:nopity:

[Window]

72. Oh hell yeah! Thanks for sharing.

:kick:

[The Doctor.]

73. Grrrrr.....

These assholes have people thinking of 'patriotic expedience' as a cure for their wanton treachery.

They really ought to pray that civil justice finds them before anything else does.

[democrank]

74. Karl Rove...

the epitome of winning at all cost.

[Joanne98]

76. There is a God!!!!

[The Wizard]

77. Ku Klux Karl

knows the Bush cartel's MO and he's preparing to be throw under the bus. Is there honor amongst thieves?
I can see Karl pleading with the trial Judge that he needs a little more time to prove his defense and the Judge replies, "You need time? I'll give you time: thirty years."
Will Herr Bush issue a blanket pardon to Karl and all other cartel members for all offenses past, present and future?
I hear Alberto Gonzalez is having a hard time finding work. What greater irony than Rove hiring Gonzo as his defense attorney?

[blogslut]

78. Are you sure you want to recommend that thread?

Yes, I'm sure.

Hey, Karl,

Here's a present for you:



Don't get all tangled now. :devil:

[liberal N proud]

79. I hope he goes to jail

[Breeze54]

80. The 'Rove' is on Faux today...

:kick: & Recommended

[InfiniteNether]

83. The title is misleading. Psychopaths don't feel panic, or fear.

[fascisthunter]

84. Not So Bold ANymore is He. Especially When he Thinks he may be held accountable

Remember righties.... it will not end when Bush leaves office. Oh no... too many of us are pushing for accountability to the end of their days. And the longer it takes the more information will come out for the public to chew on. Check mate!

[Phred42]

85. Image: Rove: Then & Now

Laugh it off asshole

[Phred42]

95. Rove (and others) have committed TERRORISM AGAINST DEMOCRACY

We have to change OUR thinking before we can change the Frame. And we have to change the frame.

Dirty Tricks

Let’s STOP referring to the evil manipulative crap that the Republicans do as ”Dirty Tricks”!

The term “Dirty Tricks’ is a term for something cutesy and benign. What these bastards have done, are doing, and will continue to do, is not cute, and it is not benign. What they are doing is a blatant, premeditated, dishonest, underhanded and direct attack on the foundations of Democracy. They are calculated backdoor full assault, designed to subvert, undermine and manipulate the Nation, the Constitution, the Truth and the Democratic Process.

Switching the salt and sugar in their respective containers for April Fools day - is a Dirty Trick.

Filling a paper bag with dog shit, leaving it on someone’s door step, lighting it on fire, ringing their doorbell and running away – is a Dirty Trick.

What Nixon did to Muskie, what Reagan did to Carter and what the Bush’s did to Gore was not cute, what Bush did to McCain and Kerry was not benign. What they did was nothing less than subvert the Democratic process and hijack the Nation.

It was, and is, in fact - Terrorism against Democracy. And we MUST treat it as such!

This is what cowards do when they cannot make an honest, factual, truthful and convincing argument.

You have some heavy thinkers there. So do the Nation a service and find another term for this evil, corrupt, and dishonest practice. Start calling it what it is, and calling the people that do it, what they are.

[L. Coyote]

107. Let's add "subversion" of democracy. And "mutiny" for the bounty seems appropriate too.

"Dirty tricks" is certainly an euphemism.
Often, euphemisms replace the unspeakable,
such as "criminal conspiracy" or "typical felony."

[Phred42]

109. Ok.

[driver8]

90. Oh, I feel so sorry for KKKarl.

After all of the pain and suffering he has caused, I hope this fucker never finds another moment of peace...

[libodem]

98. Yeah, boo fuckin' hoo

[WillyT]

103. WooHoo !!!! - K & R !!!

:bounce::woohoo::bounce:

[ooglymoogly]

111. The more delicious part of this story is that

Rove does not know what lies he can and cannot get away with. For a slimy crook like Rove, for whom lies are just a method of getting what he wants, that is a real teeth gnasher. He must be having nightmares of poison lollipops (Jeff Gannon meets sumo like) and endless prison bars stretching off into eternity and at its end only to be met by war crimes trials at the Hague. That is quite a place in history that he will leave for his progeny.

[samsingh]

114. good bye rove you fing asshole. hopefully you'll go to prison for this one

[City Lights]

116. How sweeeet it would be to see his ugly criminal ass carted off to jail. nt

[lunatica]

117. the worst kind of karma for Rove to have

Wouldn't be going to jail. It would be for him to lose every ounce of power over anything for the rest of his life. To be able to go out there looking as often as he wants but to invariably find himself considered the kiss of death in any election or power struggle. To be shunned even in casual company for fear of being thought of as his friend or even acquaintance. To get all the speaking gigs he wants only to be booed into silence at every single one of them until those who would invite him just drop him as being too much trouble to bother with.

Oh, and to have to wake up to hundreds of civil lawsuits against him every single day for the rest of his life. And to lose them, starting with Joe Wilson and Valerie Plame. To feel himself becoming more and more irrelevant while his victims become more and more important personages in the world.

That would be the kind of payback karma his actions dictate. Tit for tat to the exact same degree he created it for others. He would never re-emerge a better person for it the way his victims have, although it would be good if he did.

[Voice for Peace]

138. "Ill explain, and I'll use small words so you'll be sure to understand, you warthog faced buffoon"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IoSHmVkjmuA

"to the pain"

[elizfeelinggreat]

140. He can do most of that

from his jail cell.

[lovuian]

120. One must reap what one sows

Rove is in really really deep

[L. Coyote]

125. DUPE. I just started another thread on this.

Some Reflections on "Rove in State of Panic." Are things what they seem?
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x3183926

[Cleita]

127. This is the best news I have read here since Bush took office. n/t

[lefty2000]

132. Good. Very Good. n/t

[rndmprsn]

134. K&R

[pjt7]

141. Rove has to go down

eom.

[onehandle]

145. Prison. nt

[myrna minx]

146. K&R

Does anyone have a tally of how many indicted and/or convicted felons are on FOX news' payroll? :rofl: