Sen. Coburn Puts A Hold On Money For AIDS Prevention

Compassionate conservative Tom Coburn (R-OK) decided along with several other Republicans to place a hold on a bill that will greatly expand AIDS prevention techniques across the country. The bill has widespread support and is one of those no-brainer things that are passed without debate. Yet Coburn, who amazingly is a doctor, decided to stall the program.

From ThinkProgress:

Coburn may be an obstetrician, but he seems to be out of the mainstream with other medical professionals on this issue, who say that focusing on treatment as a form of prevention is short-sighted and ineffective:

“Most experts agree that treatment is only one small part of the prevention agenda,” said Denis Nash, director of monitoring, evaluation and research at the International Center for AIDS Care and Treatment Programs at Columbia University. […]

“The prevention effect of treatment is not likely to be anywhere near the magnitude of prevention through prevention,” including safe-sex education and condom distribution, said Mead Over, senior fellow at the Center for Global Development.

Coburn has a habit of blocking bills funding medical research, and his record on health care is abysmal. Coburn has repeatedly blocked legislation funding breast cancer research, doing so as recently as April, as well as funding to screen returning veterans for signs of suicide risk. In 2005, he proclaimed that silicone breast implants “make you healthier.” When running for Senate in 2004, he suggested the death penalty for abortion doctors.

In a letter to Senate leaders last month, 14 GOP senators urged the passage of the PEPFAR funding bill. ONE has a petition here urging senators to support the legislation.

Please sign that petition above and make sure the Senate understands that Coburn and his group of friends have no business blocking that funding. In my opinion, he is opposing it because like many problem-people in the health care world, treatment is much more lucrative than prevention. You can't sell expensive drugs and bill lengthy hospital stays if people steer clear of the disease altogether. It's all good if almost everyone lives in the end, right Senator?

McCain Doesn't See Lives Of Troops As Important

Once again McCain made himself look like an ass on television (probably since he is one) by talking about his supposed strong suit, the war in Iraq. If McCain wants to talk about the war and say that bringing the troops home isn't that important, then more power to him. Keep on talking Johnny boy, the American people are starting to understand what kind of scoundrel you are.



Senator, our troops stationed in South Korea, Japan and Germany aren't being shot at every single day. The reason we have those casualties is because the troops are in Iraq. We need to bring them home and John McCain is clearly against that.

Quinn Panders To NYC Renters

Speaker Christine Quinn is as we all know running for Mayor and if hollow words were a pre-requisite then she's all ready to move uptown to Gracie Mansion. Quinn had a few words for the Rent Guidelines Board this week and she certainly sounded tough. She's in favor of a state bill that would stop increases for a year, deny landlords with city code violations from rent hikes and connect renters' financials with rent hikes. It sounds good at first, but it doesn't come close to the heart of the problem.

From The NY Sun:

The director of government affairs for the Rent Stabilization Association, Frank Ricci, said the increases announced last month are modest and do not compare to the rising costs of utilities and increases in property taxes incurred by landlords.

"It is the property taxes that have been imposed by the City Council and the mayor that are driving the rents up," Mr. Ricci said. "If she wanted to help renters, she would make sure that there would be a reduction in the tax rate."

Between 2005 and 2007, rents on unregulated apartments in Manhattan increased 16%, a Citi Habitats report found.

The Rent Guidelines Board is composed of nine members appointed by the mayor, with two members representing tenants, two representing landlords, and five representing the general public.

The former "Idiot of the Week" isn't a stranger to screwing over renters for other things. That includes rolling over for Mayor Mike and his strong advocacy for pushing long-time New Yorkers with gentrifying zoning laws for the past few years. If Quinn really wanted to help renters, she'd go at this by looking at the big picture and not focusing on gimmicks.

BBC Helps Uncover Billions In Iraq War Profiteering

It is common knowledge to those trying to follow the details surrounding the Iraq war that profiteering has been going on since the moment we crossed the border from Kuwait into Iraq in 2003. Millions, then billions of dollars disappeared from U.S. taxpayer funds meant for the war and seemingly vanished into thin air. That air though isn't thin, it is choked up with the foul stench of greed, callousness and blood money. Thanks to George Bush's Administration, it all came to fruition.

From The BBC:

For the first time, the extent to which some private contractors have profited from the conflict and rebuilding has been researched by the BBC's Panorama using US and Iraqi government sources.

A US gagging order is preventing discussion of the allegations.

The order applies to 70 court cases against some of the top US companies.

While George Bush remains in the White House, it is unlikely the gagging orders will be lifted.

To date, no major US contractor faces trial for fraud or mismanagement in Iraq.

Not a single thing has been done, save for Democratic pleas for accountability and expressed outrage at hearings led by the intrepid Henry Waxman. However, since George Bush stonewalls accountability, justice and the Democratic attempts to find the truth about the missing $23 billion (or more). The BBC however found a little chunk of it:

The search for the missing billions also led the programme to a house in Acton in West London where Hazem Shalaan lived until he was appointed to the new Iraqi government as minister of defence in 2004.

He and his associates siphoned an estimated $1.2 billion out of the ministry.

They bought old military equipment from Poland but claimed for top class weapons.

Meanwhile they diverted money into their own accounts.

How much longer must we suffer these atrocities? Oh yeah, I remember now. It can't come soon enough.

Welcome To Work Mayor Bloomberg

There is nothing like a warm welcome when you walk into work. Too bad for Mayor Bloomberg, KRS-ONE did not let that happen for him yesterday:

Ex- NY GOP Chairman Tied To Sweeney Investigation

William Powers office on 90 State St in Albany was the center of attention yesterday for FBI agents investigating ex-Congressman John Sweeney's connection with the former NY GOP Chairman and now-lobbyist. Powers and Sweeney have been buddies for a long time and now that Sweeney has been found to be a(n alleged) crook, it seems that the spoils of Republican leadership prior to 2006 was beneficial to Powers. At least a judge thought it was worthy enough to look at and see if information in Powers' office could help their case against Sweeney.

From The Times-Union:

ALBANY -- A federal criminal investigation is focusing on the relationship of lobbyist William D. Powers and former U.S. Rep. John E. Sweeney in connection with a series of federal grants that were steered to Powers' clients, according to several people familiar with the probe.

The probe is being overseen by the Justice Department's Public Integrity Section in Washington, D.C.

Several people familiar with the case said it is centered on a period when Powers' clients received the earmarks while Sweeney's then-wife, Gayle, was working for Powers' Albany-based lobbying firm.

Armed with a search warrant, federal attorneys and FBI agents from Albany and Washington appeared at Powers & Co.'s 90 State St. office building on Friday. They confiscated files and interviewed employees who were encouraged to remain in the office during the search. It's not clear whether Powers was present.

Powers may or may not be involved with all of this, but there are interesting coincidences all around. Sweeney's wife at the time worked at Powers' firm until Sweeney lost his re-election bid. Now why would she suddenly lose her job (or resign, whatever) in such fashion? And does their subsequent divorce have anything to do with that? We'll have to see what the investigators find from Powers and if it comes out when Sweeney has his day in court.

Bush Tries To Salvage His Reputation

Of course it is much to late (about 6-7 years or so) for George Bush to redeem himself to the American people and the world, but that won't prevent him trying to do so. Perhaps he finally read that he is going to be labeled America's worst President ever and wants to do something about it. One of his problems is that he is known as a warmonger, because frankly, he is. Since we went into Afghanistan and Iraq, his cold, callous statements and actions have shown zero sympathy for our soldiers and the millions of people they are sent to fight.

From The London Times:

In an exclusive interview, he expressed regret at the bitter divisions over the war and said that he was troubled about how his country had been misunderstood. “I think that in retrospect I could have used a different tone, a different rhetoric.”

Phrases such as “bring them on” or “dead or alive”, he said, “indicated to people that I was, you know, not a man of peace”. He said that he found it very painful “to put youngsters in harm’s way”. He added: “I try to meet with as many of the families as I can. And I have an obligation to comfort and console as best as I possibly can. I also have an obligation to make sure that those lives were not lost in vain.”

The unilateralism that marked his first White House term has been replaced by an enthusiasm for tough multilateralism. He said that his focus for his final six months in office was to secure agreement on issues such as establishing a Palestinian state and to “leave behind a series of structures that makes it easier for the next president”.

Even in his rare moment of regret, he is still lost in a his own world of delusions. Any "multilateralism" Bush tries to imbue will be met with at-best skepticism from world leaders because he is an unilateralist at heart. No one believes he will do anything for a Palestinian state. The only thing he is doing in the Middle East is bring chaos to Iraq, instability between Israel and Iran, claiming false victory of a Lebanese democracy that clearly isn't and keeping the threat of going into Iran and Syria while appeasing Saudi Arabia. George Bush is a warmonger, and despite this pathetic attempt at humbleness he'll be remembered for the tyrant he is.

Oh and by the way, he has never been to a fallen soldiers funeral, ever.

McCain Gets A Zero From NARAL

McCain may tout himself as a maverick, but when it comes to women's rights, he gets a big fat zero on his pro-choice record...or should I say anti-choice:

What Really Happened Between Obama And Lieberman

Last week, the day after Barack Obama clinched the number of delegates needed for the nomination, he showed Joe Lieberman who was boss. Leading the "Independent Democrat" by the hand, Senator Obama scolded Joseph on the Senate floor, but for what? Reporters watched with glee but couldn't write much on their pads, only speculating that it had something to do with their appearances at the AIPAC meeting earlier that day. Now we know exactly what went on.

From Newsweek:

In a brief but animated Senate floor confrontation last week, according to a campaign aide who asked for anonymity when talking about private discussions, Obama told Lieberman he was surprised by Lieberman's personal attacks and his half-hearted denials of the false rumors that Obama is a Muslim. (The aide says Lieberman was "strangely muted" during the exchange; a Lieberman spokesman says the chat was "private and friendly.") McCain spokeswoman Jill Hazelbaker says Lieberman "played a key role in reaching out to the Jewish community in the primary … and you can expect that will continue."

Joe Lieberman is certainly reaching all right, when it comes to telling the truth. His antics have shown he is certainly no Democrat and his talk of bi-partisanship is a sham. He should be cast aside by the Senate leadership and be stripped of committee assignment power. All Lieberman has done this primary season is smear, lie and deceive the American public on John McCain's behalf and continues to do so now.

Republicans Vote To Let Oil Companies Keep Ridiculous Profits At Our Expense

In an election year one might suppose that the Republican Party would try to have (or make it seen that they) have a heart and want to help the broad majority of Americans instead of the wealthy few at the top of the oil industry and those that trade the commodity on Wall Street. Apparently this year the GOP is going 100% heartless by voting against a windfall profits tax for oil giants like ExxonMobil, Chevron, Shell, etc that do not substantively work for energy independence. Their argument is that we'll import more oil if we roll back their tax cuts that Bush and the old Republican Congress gave them. Unfortunately since our majority is so slim in the Senate, they have effectively killed the bill by threatening to filibuster it.

From The Huffington Post:

WASHINGTON — Senate Republicans blocked a proposal Tuesday to tax the windfall profits of the largest oil companies, despite pleas by Democratic leaders to use the measure to address America's anger over $4 a gallon gasoline.

The Democratic energy package would have imposed a tax on any "unreasonable" profits of the five largest U.S. oil companies and given the federal government more power to address oil market speculation that the bill's supporters argue has added to the crude oil price surge.

"Americans are furious about what's going on," declared Sen. Byron Dorgan, D-N.D., and want Congress to do something about oil company profits and "an orgy of speculation" on oil markets.

But Republicans argued the Democratic proposal focusing on new oil industry taxes is not the answer to the country's energy problems.

"The American people are clamoring for relief at the pump," said Sen. Pete Domenici, R-N.M., but if taxes are increased on the oil companies "they will get exactly what they don't want. The bill will raise taxes, increase imports."

The Democrats failed, 51-43, to get the 60 votes needed to overcome a GOP filibuster and bring the energy package up for consideration.

Of course there was no filibuster, the Democrats led by Harry Reid just caved at the mere threat of it. If he were a true leader, he would have let the Republicans get up there and stall for their buddies in the oil industry. Enough about Harry Reid though, we can deal with him later (for other reasons as well). As I said, this is an election year and the Democratic Party is running Barack Obama as their candidate for President against John "McSame as Bush" McCain.

McCain has claimed he is in favor of working to save the environment but his actions (as usual) are far from words on the campaign. McCain could have shown up today to pretend prove his leadership abilities and stand up for what he claims, to be a departure on the environment and the economy as well. However, as he has done many times in the last few years, he couldn't be bothered to show up for the vote. Republicans already saw themselves winning on the issue and the Democratic leadership in the Senate pathetically resigned to losing. Barack Obama has pledged to enact a windfall profits tax when he becomes President. That is a difference between him and McCain that no one can deny, so remember that when you go and fill up your tank for $3 $3.50 $4 something a gallon.

TPM Takes A Look At The Possible 2008 Battleground

Will Ohio and Florida still be as crucial to the candidates as they were last time? Is Pennsylvania really in play? Can Obama make inroads into the Mountain West and the South? Joshua Micah Marshall of TPM looks at the early numbers between the nominees.

What Can McClellan's Testimony Do To Bush?

Yesterday Scott McClellan agreed to testify in front of Congress about the "alleged" abuses of the Bush Administration and the lies that he "unwittingly" advanced to the public that were told to him by scumbags such as Karl Rove and Dick Cheney. Of course he has waited years to tell his story, first and foremost to sell a book that will undoubtedly make him a lot of money. He probably thought of (or his attorneys thought of) the consequences of writing this stuff on paper, that some Democratic members of Congress would be interested in getting Scotty's words under oath. Bush and Co. turned their back on him after the book came out, but I have to wonder if McClellan's testimony will mean anything to us.

From The Huffington Post:

McClellan's book "What Happened" detailed the "propaganda campaign" that led up to the Iraq war. His hearing is expected to focus heavily on the outing of CIA agent Valerie Plame, an episode that McClellan has said was driven by political motivations from within the Oval Office. But the committee could press the former press secretary on other matters within its jurisdiction, including the possible authorization of torture by administration officials (though it remains to be seen how much knowledge McClellan has of that topic).

Earlier on Monday, Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers sent an letter to McClellan requesting his testimony.

"I have extended an invitation...after discussions between Committee staff and his attorneys," wrote Conyers. "In his book, Mr. McClellan suggests that senior White House officials may have obstructed justice and engaged in a cover-up regarding the Valerie Plame leak. This alleged activity could well extend beyond the scope of the offenses for which Scooter Libby has been convicted and deserves further attention."

It certainly deserves further attention and it should end with those who broke the law to be put in jail. Yet I doubt any of that will happen. Bush could try to pull his "executive privilege" card but he hasn't. The testimony is supposedly set for the 20th of June, a date that isn't that far off. If Bush isn't worried, then that worries me that anything Scott says will not be able to carry out justice for anyone in the Bush Administration. Karl Rove has taken that privilege and that makes me think he is the one with the hard evidence, not Scotty. He was merely a pawn in the White House's game to con and deceive the American public.