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LOUISVILLE /JEFFERSON COUNTY

DEMOCRATIC PARTY NEWSLETTER

Week of April 15, 2007

The link to this electronic newsletter is being e-mailed to 4,000+

Jefferson County Democrats 

We hope you will forward the link to your own e-mail list.

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CLICK HERE FOR CURRENT LIST OF EVENTS

Updated on a regular basis

The Louisville/Jefferson County Democratic Executive Committee meets the 4th Wednesday of every month at 5:00 pm at 901 Barret Avenue .

 

Notice to our Readers &  2007 Primary Election Candidates:

This newsletter will carry in this space any Democratic candidates' notice of events or communications (250 words or less) to our readers that the candidate provides to the editor at rcrider@louisvilledem.com

 

Democratic candidates who want pictures of their fund raisers, activities, events, etc to be posted on this website, e-mail them to rcrider@louisvilledem.com. 

 

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CEOs Beat the Odds With Stock Options, by James Parks 

Your odds of winning the lottery with a $1 Powerball ticket are one in 146 million. But if you are a corporate CEO, you can almost guarantee you’ll hit the jackpot several ways by rigging the system to get a perfect payday.

One of the more popular ways CEOs beat the odds has involved backdating the stock options their corporate boards granted them, picking a date when the stock was trading at a lower price than the date of their options grant, resulting in an instant profit. Many CEOs did just that last year in what has become the biggest executive pay scandal in decades.

According to the AFL-CIO’s 2007 Executive PayWatch website, released today, 257 companies have announced internal reviews, Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) reviews or Justice Department subpoenas related to stock option grants.

This year, the PayWatch website features case studies of CEOs who backdated stock options to take what they want from their companies and their shareholders with impunity. The case studies highlight the need for reform to protect companies and their investors—and the PayWatch site makes it easy for users to contact the SEC and member of Congress to urge new rules governing executive pay.

In 2006, the average CEO of a Standard & Poor’s 500 company made $14.78 million in total compensation, according to initial estimates. Where available, this year the PayWatch site includes some of the executive compensation data required under new rules issued by the SEC in 2006. The new disclosure rules go further than ever before in revealing just how much executives are paid, making transparent previously hard-to-find information such as pension totals.

But a last-minute change in the rules weakened requirements for disclosure of stock options. The new PayWatch site will provide, in comparison with the SEC provided total, the total compensation an executive received that includes the total value of stock and option awards granted in 2006, giving a better representation of what the CEO was awarded in 2006. The rest of the story…….  

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NAFTA ‘ Super Highway’ Would Link Canada, Mexico

An international super-highway system is being proposed that would span the nation’s mid-section and create a direct link between the U.S.-Canada border in Detroit, Michigan and the U.S.-Mexico border crossing in Nuevo Laredo, Mexico.

The first phase of the massive project is a network of privately funded, limited-access toll roads in Texas called the Trans-Texas Corridor (TTC). The super corridor would be 1,200 feet wide and incorporate existing and new highways and will provide for freight and high-speed commuter railways.

Critics, who refer to the proposed project as the “ NAFTA Super Highway,” are concerned the thoroughfare could facilitate the movement of Chinese goods landed at Mexican ports, further widening a record trade deficit and costing even more U.S. manufacturing jobs.

The super highway is being promoted by the North America’s SuperCorridor Coalition, Inc. (NASCO), a privately funded, non-governmental entity that is hoping to develop the international roadway as part of a network of roads and waterways to facilitate cargo flow around the country. To watch a video about the project on YouTube click here.

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Louisville Young Democrats seeks volunteers 

Like most civic organizations, the Louisville Young Democrats rely on volunteers to help it organize its events and initiatives. Getting involved with the Louisville Young Democrats is a great way to become involved in the Democratic Party and help improve our community. 

Just as our membership is diverse, so too are the needs of our organization. For example, the Communications Committee is looking for individuals to help design a new Web site and help provide content for the organization’s monthly newsletter. If interested or for more information, email Steve Bittenbender at lydcommunicationsdir@gmail.com. 

Other committees seeking volunteers include: 

Social Activities - Kenya McGruder -lydsocialactivitiesdir@gmail.com 

Fundraising - Shawn Reilly - lydfundraisingdir@gmail.com 

Membership - Antonia Lindauer - lydmembershipdir@gmail.com 

For additional volunteer opportunities, please contact Lisa Tanner. 

About the Louisville Young Democrats

The Louisville Young Democrats represent hundreds of young democrats, ages 18 to 39, in Louisville and surrounding areas, including student organizations at University of Louisville, Bellarmine University and several area high schools. The organization works toward the following purposes: To represent the interests of young people and to communicate those interests for the purpose of promoting political debate and change, to serve as a social and learning network for common interest in political involvement, connecting members with other young people, elected officials and political candidates and to assist and promote Democratic candidates and the Democratic Party.

To start receiving communications from the Louisville Young Democrats, please contact Lisa Tanner or Steve Bittenbender.

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DAILY GRILL     

On the fourth anniversary of the fall of Baghdad and the toppling of Saddam's statue, up to one million Iraqi Shias summoned by Moqtada al-Sadr "have gathered in the holy city of Najaf for a mass demonstration calling for US-led troops to leave Iraq."

President Bush heads to the Arizona border today for a speech debuting his new, more hard-line conservative approach to immigration "devised after weeks of closed-door meetings with Republican senators."

Salon.com has uncovered further evidence that the military, in a desperate effort to fill its ranks for President Bush's escalation, "sent soldiers with acute post-traumatic stress disorder, severe back injuries and other serious war wounds back to Iraq."

"After weeks of arguing over when the military will run out of money, House and Senate Republicans hope to up the rhetorical ante this week by formally calling on Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) to bring the House back from a two-week spring recess to finish drafting the controversial $120 billion-plus Iraq War spending bill."

"Army prosecutions of desertion and other unauthorized absences have risen sharply in the last four years," as negative discharges and prison time are being used "to serve as a deterrent to a growing number of soldiers who are ambivalent about heading -- or heading back -- to Iraq and may be looking for a way out."

The New York Times calls for an investigation of a "loyal Bushie" U.S. Attorney in Wisconsin. "The case involved Georgia Thompson, a state employee sent to prison on the flimsiest of corruption charges just as her boss, a Democrat, was fighting off a Republican challenger. It just might shed some light on a question that lurks behind the firing of eight top federal prosecutors: what did the surviving attorneys do to escape the axe?" 

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Quotes of the Day  

 "The American people believe English should be the official language of the government. ... We should replace bilingual education with immersion in English so people learn the common language of the country and they learn the language of prosperity, not the language of living in a ghetto." --Newt Gingrich, speaking to the National Federation of Republican Women (Watch him apologize in Spanish here)

"I purchased a gun when I was a young man. I've been a hunter pretty much all my life." --Republican presidential candidates Mitt Romney, who later admitted he's been hunting twice, once when he was 15, and once in 2006

"The president is really sorry he couldn't be here tonight. ... His book club is meeting." --Dick Cheney, at the 2007 Gridiron dinner

"My name is Patrick Fitzgerald ... I like to tear the tops off small animals." --Bush adviser Karl Rove, before rapping at the Radio-TV Correspondents' dinner (Watch video)
 

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Maryland First State to Pass Living Wage, by James Parks 

Maryland today became the first state to require contractors to pay workers a living wage, the fruit of a months-long coalition campaign that included union members, religious leaders and civil rights advocates.

On its last day in session, the Maryland Senate voted, 31–16, to approve the measure, which was passed by the state House last week. Gov. Martin O’Malley (D), who campaigned for the legislation, has promised to sign the bill.

The new law will require service contractors doing business with the state to pay employees $11.30 an hour in urban areas and $8.50 an hour in rural areas. The state’s minimum wage is $6.15 an hour.

The final vote is another step toward lifting thousands of Maryland workers out of poverty, says Fred Mason, president of the Maryland State and D.C. AFL-CIO.

This vote is important for all workers. The union movement is the voice for all workers. We look out for workers, whether they are union members or not. And we don’t think the state should ever have been in the business of creating poverty-level jobs.

Maryland lawmakers passed a living-wage bill in 2004, but it was vetoed by then-Gov. Robert Ehrlich (R). The same year, legislators raised the state’s minimum wage from $5.15 to $6.15 an hour.

This year, O’Malley called upon lawmakers to pass a statewide living wage during his State of the State address. Recently, cities and counties across the country have voted to pay workers a living wage. Read about living wage campaigns in Greater Boston, Memphis, Chicago and on college campuses.

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Recent Senate Votes 

IN RECESS

 

Recent House Votes 

IN RECESS

 

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HUMOR    

 

"The White House says it wants to appoint a high-powered official to oversee the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and issue directions to the Pentagon and the State Department. This person would be called 'the president of the United States.'" --Conan O'Brien
 

"Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama, and John Edwards, as well as a number of other Democratic candidates, say they the will not participate in a presidential debate next month, because the debate is on Fox News and Fox News is biased. How are you going to stand up to terrorists when you're afraid of Fox News?" --Jay Leno

"Last week, presidential candidate Mitt Romney called himself a lifelong hunter. Turns out he's only hunted twice in his life. And, of course, both of those times were for Easter eggs. He said he hunts only small animals, like Jed Clampett did. Comparing himself to Jed Clampett? Is that a good idea? Anybody gonna want to vote for President Jed Clampett, especially after eight years of President Jethro?" --Jay Leno

"I'm going to talk about these 15 British soldiers captured, tagged and then released by Iran. ... Some in England aren't giving these sailors a hero's welcome. Apparently, playing ping pong in captivity doesn't qualify as keeping a stiff upper lip. ... Sailor Arthur Bachelor reportedly 'cried himself to sleep after one guard kept flicking my neck with his index finger and thumb.' Ohh, his index finger and thumb? God help us if Iran ever develops the wet willy." --Stephen Colbert

"The White House had its annual Easter Egg Roll and there were several cartoon characters there, including Clifford the Big Red Dog, Bugs Bunny, and Charlie Brown. Afterwards, President Bush said, 'Finally, a summit meeting I enjoyed.'" --Conan O'Brien

"Do you believe the weather around the country? It was snowing in Washington. It was so white, people thought the Republicans were back in charge. It was so cold in Georgia that Newt Gingrich had another affair just so he could stay warm." --Jay Leno

"Former Wisconsin Governor Tommy Thompson has announced he is running for president of the United States. Experts are saying this announcement could have absolutely no affect on the race whatsoever." -Jay Leno

"Radio personality Don Imus is in trouble after making racially insulting remarks about the Rutgers University's basketball team. Today he went on Al Sharpton's radio show to beg for forgiveness. Of course, no one can believe this -- Al Sharpton has a radio show?" -Jay Leno

"The Republicans issued a statement today demanding that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi get back to work. President Bush would have made the statement himself, but he's still on vacation." -Jay Leno

"A consumer watchdog group says there should be a box to check on your ballot if you want a dollar of your taxes to fight crime instead of going to presidential candidates. Which I think is a great idea. I mean, every time you take a buck away from a politician, you're fighting crime right there." -Jay Leno

"Down in Washington, D.C., is the big annual Easter egg hunt they have on the White House lawn. No surprise here -- the $187 billion egg coloring contract went to Halliburton. The kids are all running around hunting for the Easter eggs. And periodically, they'll pick up some of Cheney's shell casings. The kids did a tremendous job. The kids found hundreds and hundreds of eggs. And I'm thinking, 'Hell, lets let them look for bin Laden'." -David Letterman

"It makes you realize what a helacious s**thole Indiana must be." -- Aasif Mandvi, on Rep. Mike Pence comparing the Baghdad marketplace to summertime in Indiana

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ETHICS -- WOLFOWITZ'S HYPOCRISY ON CORRUPTION: Soon after his tenure as president of the World Bank began, former Undersecretary of Defense Paul Wolfowitz made it clear that "the new boss is going to be tough on corruption." He held up $800 million in lending to Indian health projects because of corrupt politicians in the Indian government, froze loans to Chad because the government had reneged on its promise to use oil revenue for poverty reduction, and cancelled 14 road contracts in Bangladesh because of corrupt bidding. But now, Wolfowitz's tenure is in danger of coming to an abrupt end because of his own corruption scandal. Following revelations that Wolfowitz arranged for his girlfriend, Shaha Riza, to be given a promotion -- including an annual salary of $193,590 -- that "clearly does not conform" to bank procedures, the chair of the World Bank Staff Association called yesterday for him to "act honorably and resign." When Wolfowitz addressed employess at the press conference, "calls of 'resign, resign' resounded through the World Bank's atrium." Wolfowitz apologized for his handling of the promotion yesterday, saying, "I made a mistake, for which I am sorry." His apology is not likely to stem calls for his resignation, as the World Bank's board of directors issued an unfavorable finding of facts on his role in Riza's promotion today and promised to "move expeditiously to reach a conclusion on possible actions to take." The Treasury Department's top international adviser, Undersecretary of International Affairs Timothy Adams, offered kind words about Wolfowitz yesterday, but "deflected questions on whether the Bush administration continues to support him," though Deputy White House Press Secretary Tony Fratto told reporters yesterday that President Bush retains "full confidence" in him.

ETHICS -- WHITE HOUSE STONEWALLS WAXMAN'S INQUIRY INTO CHENEY-LINKED MZM CONTRACTS: On March 26, Rep. Henry Waxman (D-CA) wrote a letter to White House Chief of Staff Josh Bolten demanding "all contracts, subcontracts, and task orders between MZM, Inc. ... and the Executive Office of the President." As The Progress Report has reported, there is good reason to believe fired U.S. attorney Carol Lam was targeting the White House's connections to MZM contractor Mitchell Wade, who pled guilty to paying more than $1 million in bribes to former Rep. Duke Cunningham. Despite no record of having ever received a federal contract, Wade's firm received a $140,000 contract in 2002 to provide a system to screen the President's mail. In his letter, Waxman requested that the White House provide documents relating to the White House-MZM contracts as soon as possible, but not later than Friday, April 6. Yet as the North County Times reports, Waxman has yet to receive the information he requested. "'The White House response is clearly not adequate at this point,' Waxman said in a written response to questions from the North County Times. On Friday, the White House gave its initial response to Waxman's March request, with President Bush's special counsel Emmet T. Flood saying there would be a delay." Waxman said he is willing to grant an extension, but that "any extension should be accompanied by a firm and expeditious schedule for production." He noted that on Jan. 23, his committee asked the Department of Homeland Security to provide it with documents on the Department's $30 billion contract with Boeing to design and build a comprehensive border security plan. Fifteen days later, he received 1,800 pages in documents in response to the request. By contrast, Waxman noted, "The [MZM] contract is small and complying with the request should not be complicated."
 

INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS -- FOX NEWS CALLS OUT GINGRICH HYPOCRISY ON PELOSI TRIP TO SYRIA: Yesterday on Fox News Sunday, host Chris Wallace asked former House Speaker Newt Gingrich (R-GA) about his views on the Pelosi-led delegation to Syria. Gingrich criticized House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), saying, "I think it's very important not to have two foreign policies, and I think it's very dangerous for America to do what Speaker Pelosi did." Wallace confronted Gingrich with public comments he made as Speaker that clashed with Clinton administration policy before and during his travels abroad to China and Israel in the 1990's. Gingrich said at the time: "We will defend Taiwan, period" [3/31/97] and "I think it's wrong for the American Secretary of State to become the agent for the Palestinians" [3/12/98]. On Sunday, Gingrich reacted to the Taiwan comment stating, "What I said in China was U.S. policy." But Wallace quickly refuted him: "Not according to the Clinton administration." Gingrich then attempted to defend his statements criticizing Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, saying, "I think at the time she was taking steps that were very, very pro-Palestinian." Throughout the segment, Gingrich followed the White House line, attacking Speaker Pelosi but conveniently failing to mention that at least five Republicans also traveled to Syria last week, including Rep. David Hobson (R-OH), who accompanied Pelosi. Contrary to Gingrich's statements criticizing Clinton's foreign policy, Pelosi's delegation did not attempt to undermine President Bush. Hobson said, "We reinforced the administration's positions and at the same time we were trying to understand and maybe getting some voice to some things people wanted to say that maybe they were not comfortable saying to the administration."

ETHICS -- GONZALES'S FORMER ASSISTANT CAUSES TURMOIL AS U.S. ATTORNEY: The Justice Department has faced criticism not only for firing well-respected U.S. attorneys, but also for replacing them with loyal Bushies. The U.S. attorney's office in Minnesota demonstrates the havoc that ensues when the Bush administration places politics over justice. Four top staffers to Rachel Paulose, the U.S. attorney in Minnesota, have voluntarily demoted themselves in protest of Paulose's "highly dictatorial style" of managing. Paulose has also "earned a reputation for quoting Bible verses and dressing down underlings." According to news reports, the staffers' dramatic moves were "intended to send a message to Washington -- that 33-year-old Paulose is in over her head." The Bush administration tried to prevent the resignations by sending a "top justice official to Minneapolis Thursday to mediate the situation. The mediation failed." A look at Paulose's background indicates that she was handpicked by the Justice Department because of her personal connections, rather than her professional qualifications. She "was a special assistant to Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, worked as a senior counsel for deputy attorney general Paul McNulty and is best buds with Monica Goodling -- the assistant U.S. Attorney who recently took the Fifth rather than testify before Congress." Paulose had been in her position for a year as an interim U.S. attorney before she was sworn-in officially last month. She created controversy when her lavish swearing-in ceremony included a professional photographer, a color guard, and a choir. 

ETHICS -- WHITE HOUSE CLAIMS IT LOST RNC E-MAILS: E-mails released by the Bush administration last month revealed that White House aides may have been "conducting sensitive official presidential business via non-governmental accounts to get around a law requiring preservation -- and eventual disclosure -- of presidential records." In response, House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman Henry Waxman (D-CA) wrote to the Republican National Committee and the Bush-Cheney '04 campaign early last week and directed them to preserve all e-mails by and for White House officials because they "may be relevant to multiple congressional investigations." He has asked that the records be delivered no later than April 18. The RNC-owned-and-operated e-mail system has been "used by dozens of officials for more than six years," including senior presidential advisor Karl Rove for "95% of his e-mail communications." Indeed, while the non-governmental e-mail system is heavily used, White House spokesman Scott Stanzel said yesterday that "the White House has not done a good enough job overseeing staff using political e-mail accounts" and that as a result, "some official e-mails have potentially been lost." He added that the White House is doing "everything practical" to recover the lost messages. Waxman, who initiated the request for the administration's records, issued a brief statement: "This is a remarkable admission that raises serious legal and security issues. The White House has an obligation to disclose all the information it has." The administration, however, "told Mr. Waxman's committee on Wednesday that it would not be able to comply fully." Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT) responded saying, "This sounds like the administration's version of the dog ate my homework. ... I am deeply disturbed that just when this administration is finally subjected to meaningful oversight it cannot produce the necessary information."

EDUCATION -- FLORIDA LEGISLATURE FORCES UNIVERSITY TO IDOLIZE JEB BUSH: Two weeks ago, the University of Florida voted to deny Jeb Bush an honorary degree. By a 38-28 vote, the faculty Senate rejected the former governor's nomination, citing concerns about some of Bush's educations initiatives, including his dismantling of affirmative action programs in the state. Under Bush's "One Florida" plan, which outlawed affirmative action at state universities, African-American enrollment dropped at the University of Florida and across the state, as critics predicted it would. Bush's policies of "rewarding and punishing schools according to students' standardized test results and using vouchers to send certain students to private schools at public expense" also contributed to the rejection of his nomination. The faculty's decision did not sit well with Bush's supporters in the Florida legislature, especially Rep. David Rivera (R-Miami), who was "outraged" and responded by introducing a proposal to name the school's college of education after Bush. The measure passed the conservative-controlled House Schools & Learning Council on Tuesday. So now, over the faculty's objections, the school will "have to erect 'suitable markers' noting the college's new name and include the revised name in all university documents, including catalogues and brochures." That new name? The "Jeb Bush College of Education."

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NEED COMPUTER ASSISTANCE?? 

Democrat Activist Mike Bailey is now providing “Professional Computer Support.”  He can be contacted at 502-558-4026, or mikebailey2000@usa.net. 

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Think Fast    

Former Chrysler CEO Lee Iacocca lambastes the Bush administration in his new book. "Am I the only guy in this country who's fed up with what's happening?" Iacocca writes. "Where the hell is our outrage? We should be screaming bloody murder. ... But instead of getting mad, everyone sits around and nods their heads when the politicians say, 'Stay the course.'"

Gov. John Corzine (D-NJ) was seriously injured yesterday in a hit-and-run car accident, hospitalizing him "with fractured ribs, a broken leg, and chest injuries." Corzine did not "appear to have suffered life-threatening injuries."

Rudy Giuliani's (R) current foreign policy advisers include retired Gen. Jack Keane, the architect of President Bush's Iraq escalation policy, and former U.N. Ambassador John Bolton.

"Four years after Iraq's Saddam Hussein was deposed by U.S.-led troops, an international panel charged with recommending invitations for an exclusive meeting of the world's democracies" has ruled that Iraq is "not invited," the same status the country had under Hussein's rule. Last year, Iraq had observer status at the Community of Democracies meeting.

"President Bush is threatening to veto a Senate intelligence bill that's laced with provisions that would force the White House and spy agencies to be more responsive to Congress." 

Advocacy groups are scoring a "surprising success in an effort to link the Olympics, which the Chinese government holds very dear, to the killings in Darfur, which, until recently, Beijing had not seemed too concerned about."

$100,000: The legal fees paid this year by Rep. Rick Renzi (R-AZ), who is wresting with separate investigations probing whether Renzi "introduced legislation that benefited a military contractor that employs his father," and whether he "helped promote the sale of land that netted a former business partner $4.5 million."

As many as 6 million prepared meals worth more than $40 million that were "stockpiled near potential victims of the 2006 hurricane season spoiled in the Gulf Coast heat last summer when the Federal Emergency Management Agency ran short of warehouse and refrigeration space."

White House officials privately concede that much of the added domestic funding projects in the Iraq supplemental is necessary, contrary to President Bush's claim that they are "pork barrel projects." "We agree that the funding is needed," one official said, specifically citing added funds for homeland security and to help Gulf Coast states still recovering from Hurricane Katrina.

"Tony Blair yesterday claimed the spate of knife and gun murders in London was not being caused by poverty, but a distinctive black culture. His remarks angered community leaders, who accused him of ignorance and failing to provide support for black-led efforts to tackle the problem."

"A librarian who fended off an FBI demand for computer records on patrons said Wednesday that secret anti-terrorism investigations strip away personal freedoms." George Christian said his experience "should raise a big patriotic American flag of caution" about the strain that the Bush administration has put on civil liberties.

The war in Iraq has "spawned new terror in the region," the Oxford Research Group, a British think tank, states in a new report. The United States and Britain have tried to "keep the lid on" terrorism problems with military force but "failed to address the root causes." The report also states that Iran, Syria, and North Korea have become "emboldened."

"Al Qaeda's new affiliate in North Africa asserted responsibility Wednesday for the deadliest attacks in Algeria's capital in a decade as 24 people were reported killed and 222 injured in bombings that shattered the prime minister's headquarters and a police base."

Conservative state legislators killed an effort yesterday to hang Coretta Scott King's portrait in Georgia's Capitol, next to a photo of her late husband, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. "Mrs. King certainly is a wonderful humanitarian...but this is not a museum," said State Rep. Calvin Hill (R).

"Five years after the Bush administration began a crackdown on voter fraud, the Justice Department has turned up virtually no evidence of any organized effort to skew federal elections." Just 120 people have been charged with voter fraud crimes, and 86 convicted as of last year.

Freshmen Sens. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Sherrod Brown (D-OH) "are locked in a tight race over who will be class geek." They are competing to win the Golden Gavel Award, which "goes to any senator who has presided over the Senate for 100 hours in any given year." At this point, Klobuchar is winning by a mere 20 minutes.

President Bush, the Vice President, Secretary of Defense, and Secretary of State all failed to mention Iraq publicly yesterday on the fourth anniversary of the "liberation" of Baghdad. Instead, "the lead item on the White House Web site, under the heading 'LATEST NEWS,' was a photograph of Clifford the Big Red Dog at the annual Easter Egg Roll on the South Lawn."

MoveOn.org is hosting a "live 'virtual town hall' forum about the Iraq war, in what is being billed as the largest and most ambitious experiment yet in harnessing the power of Internet technology to reshape participatory democracy." Seven Democratic presidential candidates are expected to take part in the event tonight.

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad invited Speaker Nancy Pelosi and others in her delegation that met him in Damascus last week to make a return visit, Rep. Tom Lantos said. "I have every intention of going back," said Lantos, refusing to back down in the face of heavy criticism from the White House.

"A half-dozen sitting U.S. attorneys also serve as aides to Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales or are assigned other Washington postings, performing tasks that take them away from regular duties in their districts for months or even years at a time, according to officials and department records."

The late Jeane Kirkpatrick, "the godmother of the neoconservative movement," and former U.N. ambassador whom John Bolton sought to emulate, acknowledges in a posthumous memoir that the Iraq war was "something of a mistake."

Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) yesterday said that he would have "taken his tour of an Iraqi market last week even if he hadn't been accompanied by heavily armed U.S. soldiers." He added that the only reason he walked through Baghdad's Shorja market with 100 soldiers, three Blackhawks, and two Apache gunships was because "General Petraeus asked" him to do so.

"Public approval for Congress is at its highest level in a year as [the 110th Congress marks] 100 days in power and step up their confrontation with President Bush over his handling of the Iraq War, the issue that overshadows all others."

"Millions of dollars of North Korean funds, frozen for two years amid allegations of money laundering, are to be released," the Bush administration said. "The chief US nuclear envoy said the release of the funds cleared the way for the North -- which in October said it had successfully tested a nuclear weapon -- to begin shutting down the reactor later this week."

"Stem cells will be at the top of the agenda for the U.S. Senate" when it returns from recess today. The Senate will consider a bill to expand federal funding of human embryonic stem cell research. President Bush vetoed a similar bill last year.

Each year, the Thomas Jefferson Center for the Protection of Free Expression gives out Jefferson Muzzle awards to "the most egregious First Amendment violators." This year's winners: the Bush administration (for censoring scientists on climate change) and the Defense Department (for its "investigations of organizations that conducted peaceful anti-war protests").

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