Guest Blogger of the Week

Anna Granfors in comments says we must shame them into doing the right thing: "Here is what I keep hoping that someone else will organize (hey, at least I'm honest)--a last ditch nationwide protest march on DC and other major cities in the US and worldwide, focussed on the demand that this administration be held responsible (no Mumia, please). I'd think the disgust and shame that Bush has inspired is widespread enough that a well-organized late summer event would be fairly easy to get the millions out to. Obama has started to make predictable noises about comity and healing, but as Hartmann is fond of saying, if you make the parade large enough, politicians will vie to get in front. (There is, of course, the possibility that Obama will call marchers an "opinion group" like Bush did, but we won't know unless we try.)" I think she's right. What's a good date?

So some lawyer on a bicycle sees a black Corvette hit a pedestrian who flies up across the car's windshield. And then the Corvette just starts speeding away. So the lawyer on the bike chases him, gets in front of him, makes him pull over and tells him he hit someone. And the hit-and-run driver says he didn't know, and it turns out he is none other than Robert Novak. And all this time I just assumed Novak's car was a hearse.

Here's some YouTube video of Sam Seder and Governor Don Siegelman talking about the bizarre restrictions that were placed on his travel after he was released because he was innocent. He still needs money to cover his legal costs, but he thanks all us DFHs who listen to Air America for helping to get him out. (More here about holding Karl Rove et al.

After the disgusting FISA vote and the insulting lies Dems spilled to defend the indefensible, Steve Soto will vote for the Yellow Dogs, but that's all: "Then today, I got the face-slap that an Obama administration will not prosecute most Bush Administration officials for their lawbreaking. As a result, he'll only get my vote and nothing more. [...] But life's too short, and I've been disappointed by my party and its leaders many times over the last eight years, and I don't feel like going along anymore. Money is tight but principle is still in abundance with me. The DSCC, DNC, and DCCC don't need me and frankly never have. And truthfully, Obama doesn't either. There's the Beltway, and then there's the rest of us." Me, I will still call my reps from time to time and ask why they voted for indefensible bills and against good ones, but if they tell me lies about how they were protecting me, I will routinely say, "But since everyone already knows that's a lie, what's the real reason?" In fact, I think we should have a postcard campaign in which we write to our reps and say something similar. "Dear _______ ________, When I called your office and asked why you supported the FISA bill, I was told that we need it to protect us and the new version protects our civil liberties. Since everyone knows that this is a lie, please tell me the real reason you supported it." (Copy it to your nearest local and national papers.) They won't answer, but they should be told they're not fooling anyone.

Macro Man presents A modest proposal to re-fill US coffers and get rid of some debt burdens at the same time - beginning with what you might call The Louisiana Unpurchase.

Bob Herbert read Jane Mayer's The Dark Side: The Inside Story of How the War on Terror Turned Into a War on American Ideals and got chills up his spine reading about Cheney's best pal. In "Madness and Shame" he says: "Dick Cheney's main man and the lead architect of the Bush administration's legal strategy for the so-called war on terror. She quotes a colleague as saying of Mr. Addington: 'No one stood to his right.' Colin Powell, a veteran of many bruising battles with Mr. Cheney, was reported to have summed up Mr. Addington as follows: 'He doesn't believe in the Constitution.'"

You know, it's interesting: McCain releases an attack ad, and the media reports its content like it's news - and doesn't bother to get any rebuttal from the Obama team. I just can't imagine the same thing happening if Obama released an attack ad. You just know there'd be plenty of rebuttal from Republicans being reported, probably in great (and fallacious) detail.

The electoral-vote map shows Obama with Nevada and Montana, now, and North Dakota in play, with McCain's support weakening in South Dakota. (In fact, McCain has been weakening in quite a few of the southern states, although they haven't moved over to blue.) On the other hand, although Ohio and PA are still blue, they're still not as blue as I'd like - and Rassmussen is showing McSame ahead in Ohio, which is pretty worrying. Now, understand, it's early days and all that, but if the polls show McCain close or leading in these important states, that makes the election a lot easier for Republicans to steal.

Maliki did talk about things other than Obama's plan in that interview with Der Spiegel, though not much attention has been paid to it.

As should surprise no one, the insurance criminals have their own spiffy front group to convince you that they're already giving you the best possible health insurance, and you wouldn't want to change a thing.

Glenn Greenwald on "The honorable centrist Joe Lieberman", who isn't centrist enough to appeal to Jews, who tend not to support right-wing nuts.

Eric Alterman alerts us to an exciting story in The Las Vegas Sun about product placement on the news - well, it's Fox, of course, and they have fake coffee from McDonald's.

Rachel Maddow explains why Evan Bayh would be a terrible VP pick for Obama.

If John McCain could travel in time.

Are reduced American casualties a good excuse to stay in Iraq?