Olbermann and The Nexus of Terror: I'm going to start with this incredible story from Keith Olbermann on his June 4, 2007 story Nexus of Terror on Countdown. You can view the transcript to the story here, but it is even more incredible to watch it in the two part YouTube episodes. In this story, Olbermann points out the "coincidences" in the timing between the Bush administration's terror alert announcements, and certain news stories that would have been politically damaging to the Bush administration, which were then subdued by the sudden terror threats. Here is Part One;
And here is Part Two:
It doesn't surprise me that the Bush administration would use these terror fears to advance their own political gains, or to stifle news stories that were damaging to the administration.
Scooter Libby Sentenced to 30 months in prison: Scooter Libby is going to the slammer! According to MSNBC:
WASHINGTON - Lawyers for I. Lewis “Scooter” Libby wrapped their client in the flag Tuesday, but the tactic didn’t work.
In the end, U.S. District Judge Reggie Walton said Libby’s lies in the Valerie Plame affair outweighed his public service, from the Cold War to the Iraq war.
Walton sentenced Vice President Dick Cheney’s former chief of staff to 2½ years in prison for lying and obstructing the CIA leak investigation — the probe that showed a White House obsessed with criticism of its decision to go to war.
In addition, Walton published 198 letters written by the Washington DC elite, regarding Scooter Libby's sentencing. The Smoking Gun has highlights of these letters, as well as the full PDF file of all of the Scooter Libby letters.
The next big question to ask here is if, or when, President Bush will pardon Scooter Libby. I honestly don't know the answer to that question. On one hand, I can see Bush pardoning Scooter Libby for being "the fall guy" for protecting Vice President Dick Cheney and President Bush on the Valerie Plame scandal, and expecting a presidential pardon for being this fall guy. I can also see Bush pardoning Libby just to spite the Democrats, the law, and the country because he's...well...President Bush. And he's going to do things as he damn well pleases, regardless of the political damage in the poll ratings, or even the Republican Party. On the other hand, a Bush pardon to Libby would cause a huge outcry of anger with the Democratic Congress. I would imagine there would be more congressional investigations into the Bush White House on the Valerie Plame affair, perhaps even congressional subpoenas levied against the White House for documents on this scandal. So I really can't say if Bush will pardon Libby at this moment. I can, however, see Bush pardoning Libby just before he leaves office in January 2009.
Representative William Jefferson indicted: This CBS News story is reporting that Representative William Jefferson (D-La) has been indicted on 16 counts of "racketeering, money-laundering and soliciting more than $400,000 in bribes in connection with years of trying to broker business deals in Africa." Jefferson was the representative which stuffed $90,000 cash in his freezer, which federal investigators discovered in a search of his home in August, 2005. The best thing that the Democrats in Congress can do is to investigate these allegations, strip him of his committee seats, and leave him alone. If Jefferson is found guilty, then he should be expelled from the House. It would be even better if Jefferson were to resign from his seat, but apparently Jefferson is refusing to give up his seat. So the Democrats should shun Jefferson until this legal mess is completely resolved.
Turkey invades Iraq: I have got some conflicting stories here regarding a possible invasion of Iraq by Turkey. This CNN story reports that "Several thousand Turkish troops crossed into northern Iraq early Wednesday to chase Kurdish guerrillas who attack Turkey from bases there, two Turkish security officials said. Turkey's foreign minister denied its troops had entered Iraq." Then there is this Reuters story reporting that "Turkey denied a report on Wednesday it had launched a major incursion into northern Iraq to crush Kurdish rebels, but a military source said troops had conducted a limited raid across the mountainous border." Finally, there is this Yahoo News story, reporting that "Hundreds of Turkish soldiers crossed into northern
Iraq on Wednesday pursuing Kurdish guerrillas who stage attacks on Turkey from hideouts there, Turkish security officials and an Iraqi Kurd official said." So what exactly happened here?
The latest news on Yahoo reports:
One Turkish security official said 600 commandos entered Iraq before dawn after Kurdish rebels shot at Turkish patrols near the Turkish border town of Cukurca. The commandos returned to Turkey later in the day, the official said.
Two other officials said troops went less than two miles into a remote, mountainous area in Iraq.
An Iraqi Kurd security official in the Shanzinan area said 150 Turkish soldiers occupied a mountain about a half mile inside Iraq for an hour and then left. The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said 200 other Turks staged a similar cross-border operation around the same time in the nearby Sirzeri area.
It was not immediately clear whether the Kurdish official referred to the same raid cited by the three Turkish officials.
So somewhere between 600-1,000 Turkish troops entered Iraq to pursue the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) rebels. So more than likely this was a quick border strike by the Turkish military--a border incursion--rather than a full-scale invasion. But this May 30, 2007 CNN story also reports that Turkey has "sent large contingents of soldiers, tanks, guns and armored personnel carriers to reinforce its border with Iraq...." The Turkish military claims that "the border reinforcement is routine in summer, to prevent guerrillas of the Kurdistan Workers Party, or PKK, from infiltrating from bases in northern Iraq." So Turkey does have a good size invasion force sitting on the border of Northern Iraq. More to come on this story.
Bob Barker retires from Price is Right: This little CNN story reports that game show host Bob Barker has taped the last episode of The Price is Right. The 83-year-old host is capping a fifty year career in daytime television, first hosting the game show "Truth or Consequences in 1956, and going to the CBS game show "The Price is Right," when it debuted on September 4, 1972--and Barker has been the host of "The Price is Right" ever since. And while Barker may be retiring from "The Price is Right," CBS has no plans to drop the game show. CBS is replacing Barker "with a new host, who has yet to be named. Among those reportedly in the running are Todd Newton of the E! network, Mark Steines of "Entertainment Tonight," George Hamilton and John O'Hurley."
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