Moro med Insomnia Blogg

Publisert: søndag 15 august 2010, 00:00

President Franklin D. Roosevelt, en politiker hvis det noen gang var en, var ikke tilbøyelig til å tro på politiske tilfeldig. "I politikk, sa han," skjer det ingenting ved et uhell. Hvis det skjer, kan du vedde på at det var planlagt på den måten. "Det er sannsynlig presidenten som førte nasjonen ut av den store depresjonen og trygt gjennom andre verdenskrig ble refererer til hendelser på den store scenen. Her i hustings av lokal politikk, tabber og tabber og utilsiktede konsekvenser er vanlig.

Den tilsynelatende kontinuerlige kappløpet om den 13. Congressional District Representantenes hus setet har gitt en strøm av undringen og underholdning i mange år, plaget som det har blitt av skandale og intraparty krangle.

Den siste hendelsen å slå tilbake og kaste spektakulære politiske gnister i det 13. kom da en kampanje aide til Den demokratiske Rep Michael McMahon ut en liste påstått å være av republikanske rivalen Michael Grimms jødiske og ut-av-distriktet kampanjen bidragsytere. "Det er mye jødisk penger, mange penger fra folk i Florida og Manhattan, pensjonister, sier rådgiver, tidligere Staten Island Advance reporter Jennifer Nelson, sa.

Ms Nelson, som insisterte på listen var ment kun for å markere Grimms manglende støtte blant velgere som bor i det 13., synes, i det minste, å ha vært plaget av en bemerkelsesverdig tilfelle av politisk tone døvhet og ikke innser at sprøytebruk begrepet "jødiske penger" inn i en New York City Kongressens kampanjen kan tas som kode ord for noe uhyggelig.

Ms Nelson, som ikke kompilere listen, men slapp det, var raskt og usentimentalt sparken.

Er kilden til pengene bidratt til politiske kampanjer av stor viktighet? undersøkelse programvare
Den Grimm leiren mistet ingen tid på å konvertere klønete angrepet i politiske høyet, losji en klage med Federal Election Commission og antydet, men på skrå over en mulig anti-semittiske skjevhet i McMahon rekkene. Mr. McMahon raskt skjøt tilbake, decrying klagen som en "billig shot" stunt.

Hvisker om konspirasjon oppsagt

Den indignert Grimm reaksjon, i sin tur ga opphav til konspirasjonsteorier. Mr. Grimm's skytshelgen er tidligere republikanske bydelen president og politiske strongman Guy V. Molinari, som en gang ansatt Fru Nelson. Noen lurte på åpent hvis Ms Nelson kan være et lettlurt, eller en slags GOP sovende agent og om dette kunne vært en handling av politisk påskudd, om ikke beint sabotasje. At begrepet ble møtt med sterke denials fra begge leire og fra Fru Nelson.

Gitt at skaden synes å ha vært både begrenset og kontrollert, har kampanjen campingvogner begynt å flytte videre til det nye eventyr ligger foran oss.

Politiske kampanjer er litt som skinnende nye biler som tilbys av konkurrerende produsenter. De er festooned med doodads og malt med utydelig ideer skal fange øyet eller fantasien til velgerne. Men uansett hvordan de ser ut, de alle kjører på penger. Massevis av det. Wags har foreslått at dersom alle politikerne enige om å dele opp den tilgjengelige potten av penger, ville det ikke være nok til å gå rundt. Den humoristen Will Rogers en gang sa at "Politikk er blitt så dyre at det tar mye penger selv for å bli beseiret."

Det er ironi i Mr. Rogers 'kommentar, men også mer enn litt sannhet. Det tar betydelig penger å komme inn i det politiske spillet, selv på lokalt nivå, hva med utgifter til åpningen avdelingskontorer og bemanning dem, og begjæring forberedelse og reklame, og hva har du.

En kandidat har ingen håp om å montere en troverdig kampanje uten først å ha en kraftig, godt organisert og effektiv pengeinnsamlingen operasjon på plass.

Bare overholder pengeinnsamlingen avsløring reglene kan holde en kandidat stab opptatt.

Congressional løpene er regulert av Federal Election Commission. Alle pengene, enten det ble samlet inn via pengeinnsamlingen komité arrangementer, eller bare kom som en sjekk i posten, må omhyggelig dokumenteres, spesifisert og utgjorde til FEC.

Det er ikke noe hemmelig om disse postene. Det er faktisk deres tilgjengelighet en viktig sjekk på potensielt rampete rolle ellers udokumenterte penger kan spille i en kampanje. Vi oppfordrer deg til å se selv.

Finn etaten på Internett på fec.gov .

Det FEC gjør spesifisert kvittering på hver kandidat lett tilgjengelig for offentlig innsyn. Du kan finne en donor navn, adresse, arbeidsgiver, yrke, og det akkumulerte beløpet personen har donert i løpet av gjeldende valgsyklusen.

Donasjoner er ikke spores av etnisitet, men det er enkelt for alle med tid, tålmodighet og en Internett-tilkobling til å trekke slutninger fra og med et overfladisk blikk på kvitteringer.

Vi tok en titt på de siste filings av de tre store Kongressens kandidater. Det ble snart klart at Grimm leiren gjør, faktisk, har supportere med jødisk-klingende navn, noen av dem bor utenfor det 13.. Men det gjør de andre kandidatene.

Også stenket blant giverne for alle kandidatene er navn som fremkalle Vest-Europa, Øst-Europa, Midtøsten, det indiske subkontinent og det fjerne Østen.

Betydningen av å delta i den politiske prosessen med et demokrati er en eldgammel bit av visdom. Den greske filosofen Platon bemerket at en av straffen for å nekte å delta i politikk er at du ender opp med å bli styrt av undermenn. Så forstå hvem og hvor av en kandidat er base for økonomisk støtte er et spørsmål om legitim interesse for engasjert velgerne.

Begrenser vår undersøkelse av donor poster til de store Kongressens kandidater, var republikanere Michael Grimm og Michael Allegretti, og demokraten Michael McMahon, et spørsmål om praktiske.

Vår henvendelse involvert analyse av givere oppført i den siste nødvendige FEC kvartalsrapporter, legges ut i juli.

For å holde spiller feltet enda, så vi på de første 100 givere på hver kandidat liste. (Med mindre annet er angitt, når vi refererer til prosenter, snakker vi bare om antall givere, ikke hvor mye disse giverne ga.)

Det tilnærming, mens evenhanded, er riktignok ikke vitenskapelig.

Vår begrensede utvalget gir plass for muligheten at noen statistiske variasjoner kunne bli funnet av tallying hver post, ikke bare de første 100. Vårt mål her er ikke vitenskap, men belysning.

Den eneste konklusjonen vi er villige til å trekke fra denne studien er at den neste kongressmedlem fra det 13. sannsynligvis bli navngitt Michael.

Her er noen av våre observasjoner, basert på de postene vi sett på:

MICHAEL ALLEGRETTI

The Bay Ridge, Brooklyn trekker innfødt om lag 20 prosent av sin finansielle støtte fra Staten Island, andre bare til Brooklyn, som utgjør 23 prosent. Han har større støtte fra New Jersey innbyggere (17 prosent) enn fra New York samfunn utenfor New York City (11 prosent).

Av hans åtte Manhattan støttespillere, tre er advokater og to er i eiendomsmeglerbransjen. Den andre er en bankmann, en arkitekt og en dot-com executive med et nettsted som ikke ser ut til å fungere.

Yrker som vises på Mr. Allegretti's donor listen flere ganger omfatter konstruksjon, entreprenører, konsulenter, lobbyister og pensjonister.

Yrker av sju prosent av giverne kunne ikke fastslås fordi FEC kvitteringen skjemaene ble enten ufullstendig eller oppføringene var vage.

Prisen for lengste avstand reiste med en kampanje donasjon sjekk går til en Allegretti supporter som er en finansiell rådgiver på øya Guam.

Den gjennomsnittlige bidrag til Allegretti kampanjen, beregnet fra utvalget vårt, er omtrent $ 906.

MICHAEL Grimm

Kandidaten gjør mye av sin tjeneste i Marine Corps og FBI (noen ganger landing i varmt vann for uautorisert bruk av deres symboler), men ikke så mye av sin nye Springville røtter. Hans offisielle biografi kampanje nevner ikke Staten Island i det hele tatt.

Kampanjen donasjon postene synes å reflektere den avstanden. Kvitteringene vi undersøkt tyder Staten Islanders står for bare ni prosent av giverne representert i juli 2010 FEC filing. Vil være bestanddeler i Brooklyn står for 15 prosent av giverne undersøkt i utvalget vårt. Resten av Mr. Grimms giverne bor utenfor det 13..

Av de donor postene vi så på, 22 prosent er fra Manhattan, og 28 prosent av sjekkene kom fra andre miljøer i New York State.

Av de tre kandidatene, er Herr Grimm tilsynelatende høyt ansett i slike monied New York steder som Rye og Scarsdale og White Plains, og byene i Nassau County.

Uansett hva hans appell der, har Grimm kampanjen vært svært effektiv på å riste penger treet. Den gjennomsnittlige donasjonen i utvalget vårt, var nesten $ 1930 - mer enn dobbelt så mye som Mr. Grimms rivaler.

Postene vi sett på tyder på Herr Grimm reist $ 10 450 på Staten Island i perioden. Nesten 29 prosent av det pengebeløp kom direkte fra hans politiske sponsor, Guy. V. Molinari. Også kom to av de tre Virginia donasjoner til Grimm kampanje fra Mr. Molinari politiske advokat / lobbyist datter, Susan, og hennes tilsvarende ansatt mann, Bill Paxon.

Vi gjorde ett unntak til vår metode i vår undersøkelse av Mr. Grimms FEC papirer. En Brooklyn kopisenter er oppført med donerte $ 22,617.53 verdi av i-slag bidrag til Grimm kampanjen. For å unngå forvrenger resultatene av vår undersøkelse, hoppet vi over de ikke-pengedonasjon tall i vår rapport om de første 100 postene vi så på, men erkjenner bidraget her.

MICHAEL McMahon

Av de tre store kandidater til House setet, den demokratiske sittende, vises Mr. McMahon, en innfødt av Staten Island North Shore samfunn av Stapleton, for å ha bredest base i det 13.. Postene vi sett på foreslår halvparten av sin donasjon sjekker kommer fra Staten Island, og ytterligere 10 prosent fra Brooklyn nabolag i Bensonhurst, Gravesend, Dyker Heights, og Bay Ridge, som alle ligger innenfor kommunens grenser.

De fleste av Mr. McMahon er ute-av-distriktet støtten kommer fra forskjellige miljøer i New York state (10 prosent) og New Jersey (11 prosent). Bidragsytere i Manhattan utgjør ni prosent av giverne oppført i juli FEC innlevering; ytterligere fem prosent er fra Queens.

Blant de McMahon giverne vi så på, 10 prosent er advokater, det samme antall er bankfolk. Tre på listen sier de er lobbyister, to av dem er fra Staten Island. Andre yrker som vises flere ganger omfatter hjemmeværende, pensjonister, lærere, eiendomsmegling selgere, leger (seks prosent av totalen) og folk ellers ansatt i helse-omsorg felt.

Den gjennomsnittlige donasjonen til McMahon kampanjen, beregnet fra utvalget vårt, var ca $ 914.

En lang historie

Siden den dagen politikk og penger møttes første gang, hver dollar noensinne bidratt til en politisk kampanje har trolig kommet med en agenda av noe slag vedlagt. Det er bare naturen av spillet Platon var beskriver: Mange mennesker delta i politikken, om i det hele tatt, bare i den grad av stemmeberettigede. Andre delta videre, og ganske riktig ved å plassere sine penger der deres sympatier er.

Det vi ikke finner under vårt besøk på FEC posten bin er noen bevis for en kabal. Det synes å være noe uheldig i settet av individuelle-donor poster vi så på, og vi oppdaget ingenting å foreslå noen etniske tunneling, eller stealthy forsøker å sump noen av kampanjene med penger i et forsøk på å gripe innflytelse, eller andre mørke gjerninger.

Mark Twain skrev en gang: "Tall ofte snik rundt meg," skrev han, «særlig når jeg har arrangert av dem [til] meg selv." Han likte å passere langs observasjon at verden lider av tre typer løgner: "Lies, forbannet løgn, og statistikk. "

Hvis du stirrer lenge nok på en himmel fylt med fluffy skyer du vil etterhvert begynne å gjenkjenne former og til og med ansikter i dem. Så det kan være med statistikk, der den vedvarende sensor til slutt, kanskje uunngåelig. snur opp kontrovers eller hva synes å være urett. Funnet kan vise seg å være riktig, eller det kan bli en synder i insinuasjon.

Uansett, å arrangere tall bevise et punkt er en glatt virksomhet. Dette er spesielt så i den grove-og-tumle av politikk, som kan være en bety og uforsonlig idrett.

Vi er enige med den store Platons ringe for everyman deltakelse i den politiske prosessen, men liker å tro at han kan nå til dags inneholder en formaning: "Se hvor du går."

Republikanske Kongressen kandidat Ben Quayle fredag kveld surret ute på sin politiske fiender og media for det han beskrev som sine "koordinert innsats for å drepe min karakter."

Den 33 år gamle sønnen til tidligere visepresident Dan Quayle ble beleiret av kontroversen denne uken etter Nik Richie, grunnleggeren av den nå nedlagte DirtyScottsdale.com, outed Quayle som en av de opprinnelige skaperne av frekk, sex-tematiske nettsted lampooning Scottsdale's trashy nattklubb scene.

Nettstedet ble lansert i mars 2007, senere morphed i den nasjonale sladder nettstedet TheDirty.com.

I en heftig uttalelse til kampanjen støttespillere, Quayle, som fremmer seg selv som en familie-verdier konservativ, kaller Richie en "sote kramkar." Men Quayle medgir at han har kjent Richie siden 2005, introduserte ham med til et åndsverk politisk advokat i 2007 å innlemme Dirty Scottsdale, og postet en håndfull "fiktive satiriske kommentarer" til området samme år.

"Det er helt utrolig at media vil ta en tilfeldig bekjentskap og snu det til noe glorete, tok ordet til en sote kramkar til ansikt-verdi, sa Quayle, som kjører i den overfylte 24.08 GOP primære for Arizona's tredje District . «Men jeg vil ikke ned igjen og jeg vil fortsette å kjempe for vår fremtid."

Quayle, en advokat som driver et lite Scottsdale verdipapirforetak, har gjentatte ganger påpekt at Dirty Scottsdale ikke eksisterer lenger. Men bloggere nylig avdekket tidlig skrifter fra nettstedet skrevet av "Brock Landers," navnet på en fiktiv pornostjerne i 1997 flick "Boogie Nights" og pseudonym som Richie sier ble brukt av Quayle.

"Han er 100 prosent uten tvil Brock Landers," Richie fortalte politisk.

Landers 'innlegg er skrevet tungen i kinnet. I den ene, skriver han: "Jeg er høy drikke vann som er lett på øynene. Plus, er min moralske kompass slik ødelagt jeg kan nesten ikke finne parkeringsplass. Lang historie kort, på en skala fra 1 til 10, jeg er fantastisk. "

I en annen: «Da jeg tok av meg skjorta, og damene fikk et glimt av mine hugget kroppsbygning, var jeg summarisk mobbet som om jeg var medlem av Menudo løpet av Puerto Rico Day Parade i NYC."

Andre er mer grafiske.

I et halvt dusin lokale og nasjonale TV-intervjuer denne uka, har Quayle ettertrykkelig uttalt: «Jeg er ikke Brock Landers." Men han har ikke nektet å bruke pseudonym, og Richie sa bare to bloggere hadde evnen til å legge opprinnelige innholdet på nettstedet i 2007: Richie og Brock Landers.

Gjennom sin uttalelse til kampanjen støttespillere, portretterer Quayle seg selv som et offer, sier han har vært "angrepet, baktalt og smurte" av en "kryssild av fornærmelser, løgn forvrengninger og rykter."

"Som Quayle, mens det aldri føles bra, er jeg vant til denne type urettferdig behandling, sa han, uten tvil en referanse til hans far, som visepresident ble mobbet av mediene og kveldsåpne talk show verter for stavefeil "potet" og andre tabber.

Den yngre Quayle, som noen har sagt er en spitting image av sin far, har kritisert medier for å rapportere at han først nektet senere innrømmet sin involvering med Dirty Scottsdale. Og han hevder sin "historien har holdt seg konsekvent" siden han ble knyttet til området denne uken.

"Jeg er ikke en medskaper, en av grunnleggerne heller ikke jeg har noen tilknytning til det aktuelle nettstedet (TheDirty.com),» skriver han, men det er viktig å påpeke at han ikke gjøre de samme krav om originale området, Dirty Scottsdale, som han skrev.

Quayle har påstått at en av hans motstandere i 10-veis primære, tidligere Paradise Valley ordfører Vernon Parker, er å konspirere med Richie. Og Quayle pekte til media rapporter som tyder Richie hadde gått en Parker fundraiser tidligere i år hjemme hos kandidatens politiske strateg, Jason Rose.

Men begge parter benektet at de arbeider sammen. Richie sa han var i California på den tiden av pengeinnsamling, og deltok ikke.

En pensjonert New Jersey Superior Court dommeren med en historie med å stå opp til politisk press trolig vil få navnet skjermen, som sørger for at Gloucester County selveiere samsvar med Open offentlige møter lov, ifølge en politisk advokat involvert i et søksmål mot styret .

John A. Sweeney, som var oppdraget dommeren i Burlington County 1992-2008, vil bli anbefalt når skjermen, sier Mark Cimino, som anla søksmål påstand om at selveiere feil godkjente bonuser, opprettet stillinger, og bosatte seg rettssaker i lukket økter. Cimino representert David Burnett av Clayton, en tidligere direktør i fylket republikanske Executive Committee.

Den 27. juli besluttet Superior Court Judge Francis J. Orlando jr, oppdraget dommeren i Camden County, en skjerm var nødvendig å se på all-demokratiske selveier styret og rapportere tilbake til ham. Han sa at bøndene hadde brutt loven møtene, også kjent som Sunshine Law, selv etter at søksmålet ble arkivert.

Det var en sjelden kjennelse, utstedt etter en anke panel bedt Orlando for å se om det var «et mønster» av brudd; søksmålet henvist til 50 tilfeller.

Orlando spurte Cimino og Michael Sullivan, til advokat for selveiere, å bli enige om navn av pensjonerte dommere som kunne tjene som skjermen i seks måneder. Orlando vil vurdere Sweeney navn 16.08. Cimino sa selveiere hadde avtalt å betale for overvåkningen.

Sullivan kunne ikke nås for kommentar.

Cimino sa begge sider hadde valgt Sweeney grunn av hans "store integritet" og hans "erfaring i å håndtere" Åpne folkemøter lov.

Selv om Sweeney startet sin karriere som demokrat, som et råd for Gov James J. Florio i 1990 og senere som en assemblyman, sier Cimino partitilhørighet var ikke et problem. "Det handler om å utnevne noen som er rettferdig, sier han.

Cimino bemerket at i 1995, Sweeney avslått en forespørsel fra en innflytelsesrik demokratiske senator for å endre en avgjørelse han hadde utstedt. Sen Thomas P. Foy kalte Sweeney's hjem å si at han var redd for at hans selskap, Hill International, skulle gå konkurs etter at dommeren har avgjort at den hadde misligholdt $ 7600000 i lån. Sweeney recused seg fra saken og deretter vitnet om samtalen.

Ti år senere, beordret han staten justisministeren kontor å løslate 330 timer med opptak de hadde i all hemmelighet festet i løpet av en to-års kriminell sonde i JCA, en politisk koblet ingeniørfirma som holdt millioner av dollar i no-bid kontrakter regjering. Den tapes følger samtaler med bemerkelsesverdige politiske figurer, inkludert tidligere Camden County demokratiske formann Georg Norcross III, tidligere Burlington County demokratiske formann R. Louis Gallagher Jr, nå Superior Court Judge John Harrington, og Palmyra tjenestemenn.

Cimino sa Sweeney hadde rett til å la publikum til å høre kassetter.

Kontakt personalet forfatter Jan Hefler på 856-779-3224 eller jhefler@phillynews.com .

Army oberstløytnant Jon Jackson ble tatt fra retten med ambulanse torsdag etter at han kollapset.

Bryan Broyles, den stedfortredende sjef forsvarer for de militære rettssakene på Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, sa han forventer samme jury vil senere ta opp saken, og at Jackson har til hensikt å holde på som Omar Khadr Sayed's Pentagon-oppnevnt advokat. Jackson er den eneste advokat autorisert til å tale for Khadr Sayed, som skjøt to amerikanske sivile politiske advokater under pretrial høringer.

Det Khadr Sayed saken har blitt holdt oppe i mer enn fire år av juridiske utfordringer og endringer i offshore system for påtalemyndigheten påståtte terrorister. Rettssaken, som er ventet å ta rundt en måned, er det første på Guantanamo under president Obama.

- Associated Press

Domstoler

Acorn anke av midler kuttet avslått

En føderal domstol klager på fredag kastet ut et vedtak som hadde sperret kongressen fra tilbakeholdelse midler fra Association of Community Organisasjoner for Reform Now (Acorn), den aktivistgruppe drevet til ruin av skandale og økonomiske woes.

Den herskende av US Court of Appeals for 2. Circuit i Manhattan omgjort et vedtak av en amerikansk distrikt dommer i Brooklyn som fant Kongressen hadde brutt gruppens rettigheter ved å straffe den uten en rettssak.

Kongressen avskåret Acorn's føderal finansiering fjor som svar på påstander gruppen engasjert i stemmeregistreringen bedrageri og underslag og brudd på skatte-fritatt status for noen av dets tilknyttede selskaper ved å delta i partipolitiske aktiviteter.

The CNN Washington Bureau's morning speed read of the top stories making news from around the country and the world.

WASHINGTON/POLITICAL
For the latest political news: www.CNNPolitics.com

CNN: Obama å signere lovforslaget som godkjente $ 600,000,000 for grensesikkerhet
President Barack Obama vil signere en regning fredag som gir $ 600 000 000 i beredskap finansiering for å sikre den amerikansk-Mexico grensen. En dag tidligere, to senatorer - demokratene Charles Schumer fra New York og Ben Cardin i Maryland - tilbake fra sine august fordypningen å gi kammeret godkjennelse for regningen. Representantenes hus hadde allerede godkjent tiltaket.

CNN: Petraeus ønsker å sette inn direkte på juli 2011
Et av de viktigste målene for den nye øverstkommanderende i Afghanistan, general David Petraeus, er å prøve å avgjøre debatt om betydningen av juli 2011 dato, ifølge en International Security Assistance Force offisielle kjent med Petraeus 'tenkning.

Washington Post: Pentagon push to phase out top brass causing much consternation
Of all the spending cuts and budget battles the Pentagon is confronting, none is causing more angst than Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates's vow to start getting rid of generals and admirals. By almost any measure, the military is more top-heavy an institution than it has been for decades. Today, there are 40 four-star generals and admirals – one more than in 1971, during the Vietnam War, even though the number of active-duty troops has shrunk by almost half. The number of active-duty generals and admirals of all rank, meanwhile, has increased by about 13 percent since 1996.

CNN: Obama to visit Gulf Coast to assess economic impact on businesses
President Barack Obama and his family will travel to the Gulf Coast this weekend to support businesses that rely on tourists but have been devastated by the oil disaster. The family will leave Saturday morning for Panama City Beach, Florida.

Los Angeles Times: Working for Grandma Waters on Capitol Hill
Many people who encounter Mikael Moore, the chief of staff for Rep. Maxine Waters, see a typical Capitol Hill aide: a young, serious, BlackBerry-toting workaholic in a business suit with an intense belief in the importance of his work. If they know he is also Waters' grandson, making him a rarity in Congress, it is not because he talks about it much, if at all. Moore's family ties to the powerful Los Angeles Democrat became better known last week when the House Ethics Committee noted their relationship in charging Waters with ethics violations for her work on behalf of a minority-owned bank during the 2008 financial crisis. He was not accused of any wrongdoing.

CNN: Rangel dismisses critics, pledges tough re-election fight
US Rep. Charlie Rangel, D-New York, under fire for alleged financial wrongdoing and harming the credibility of Congress, renewed his demand Thursday for a hearing before the House ethics committee. The beleaguered 20-term congressman, stumping for votes in his Harlem district, also dismissed his upcoming Democratic primary opponents and pledged to run a tough re-election race over the next month.

CNN: CNN Poll shows big similarities between 2010, 1994
When it comes to the political landscape three months before the midterm elections take place, is everything that's old new again? A new CNN/Opinion Research Corporation survey paints a picture that is markedly similar to that of August, 1994, when few people predicted that in only three short months the Republican Party would snatch 54 seats from the Democrats and wrestle control of the House from the beleaguered party.

Bloomberg: Palin Joins Armey as Republicans Aid Tea Party Takeover
The pitch came at the end of Rand Paul's conference call with 2,000 potential supporters: Go online to donate to Paul, the Kentucky Republican Senate candidate who is courting Tea Party activists. Or press seven to give $25 to FreedomWorks, the advocacy organization headed by former House Majority Leader Dick Armey that sponsored the July 13 call, said Matt Kibbe, the group's president. Even as candidates such as Paul tout their anti- establishment credentials, much of their financial clout comes from veteran Republicans such as Armey, former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin, South Carolina Senator Jim DeMint and onetime US Representative Chris Chocola, who aim to reshape their party.

The Hill: Ron Paul kan spille spoiler i 2012 løp
Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas), a two-time presidential contender, could wreak havoc for Republicans if he decides to make a third-party or independent bid for president in 2012. New numbers from Public Policy Polling show Paul winning 13 percent of the vote in a hypothetical three-way general election contest with President Obama and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney (R).

CQ Politics: DeMint's New Focus: Directing Dollars To Favored Candidates
Sen. Jim DeMint ran up a successful record with the candidates he endorsed in Republican primaries. Now he's shifting his focus to the general election and preparing to support his favored Senate nominees with new and expanded fundraising initiatives.

Albany Times Union: CPI schedules hearing on Yankees ticket scandal
The Commission on Public Integrity has scheduled a public hearing at 9:30 am Tuesday at its offices in downtown Albany into the Yankees tickets mess involving Gov. David Paterson and his troublesome aide David Johnson. In early March, the CPI released a notice of reasonable cause that concluded Paterson had testified falsely under oath about the effort to obtain the World Series tickets and an alleged subsequent effort to paper it over with a backdated check. Paterson responded by saying the commission was being unfair.

Charleston Post and Courier: SC to spend $2.4 million on weight loss surgeries for state workers
South Carolina lawmakers think they can ultimately save cash by paying up-front for 100 obese state workers to have weight loss surgery that can cost up to $24,000 a pop. The state Budget and Control Board voted today to approve a pilot program, authorized by the state Legislature, to spend $2.4 million on gastric bypass and Lap-Band surgery for the state's heaviest employees, under the state health plan. The surgeries will be offered after Jan. 1 and be divided among the state's regions on a first come, first served basis.

Denver Post: Bennet, Romanoff join hands, shift target to GOP's Buck
Sen. Michael Bennet used a Democratic unity rally to take his first detailed shots Thursday against his Republican opponent, calling Ken Buck out on Social Security, student loans and tax breaks for the wealthy.

Houston Chronicle: Governor's race more like 'game of chicken'
Suggesting his opponent has something to hide, Gov. Rick Perry said Thursday he will not budge on his refusal to debate unless Democrat Bill White releases more income tax returns. The Republican governor said he will not meet with newspaper editorial boards, either – the same approach he took in the GOP primary. White hit back, saying his financial records are more readily available than Perry's and that he will be happy to debate an empty chair if necessary. He said Perry's “handlers” simply do not want him to answer questions.

Las Vegas Sun: No more Mr. Meek: Reid forces Sandoval's hand with challenge
The governor's race has so far been Brian Sandoval's to lose. While Rory Reid leads in fundraising, by more than $2 million at last count, Sandoval has consistently led in the polls by double-digit margins. On Wednesday, during the candidates' first appearance together, Reid attempted to abruptly change the dynamic of the race with an uncharacteristically bold maneuver. Reid, the Democrat, and Sandoval, the Republican, were scheduled to deliver separate keynote speeches to the Nevada Subcontractors Association. Instead, Reid stepped up to the stage and challenged a stunned Sandoval to a debate.

New York Post: Sen. Lautenberg, 86, has gone totally Gaga
Apparently, Pat Boone was busy. New Jersey Sen. Frank Lautenberg – the oldest living US senator – is planning to host a fundraiser at a Lady Gaga concert in Washington, DC, it was reported yesterday. The 86 year-old “Little Monster,” as Gaga calls her fans, sent an e-mail to his supporters inviting them to the “Senator Frank R. Lautenberg & Lady Gaga – the Monster Ball Tour” on Sept. 7 at the Verizon Center.

Miami Herald: Hispanic backlash over law targeting migrants
Republican gubernatorial candidate Bill McCollum sought damage control Thursday as prominent Hispanic supporters fumed over him spearheading legislation that's even tougher than Arizona's new crackdown on illegal immigration. McCollum hastily arranged a conference call with his Hispanic leadership team late Thursday, calling them the “backbone” of his campaign and acknowledging that they had concerns about his stance.

St. Petersburg Times: Jeff Greene brushes off raucous party boat tales
[Jeff] Greene tends to get testy when reporters ask him about celebrity pals like Tyson and Hollywood madam Heidi Fleiss or what Vanity Fair called a Moroccan “love den” in one of his California mansions. Nor does he hide his annoyance when reporters ask him about former Summerwind employees describing the yacht as a party palace. Or about Summerwind allegedly damaging reefs in Belize or visiting the normally off-limits Cuba (first described as a Jewish humanitarian mission and later as a stop for repairs). “There's a million people not working in Florida. Why are we talking about the yacht all the time?” Greene said in a recent interview. “I care too much about my country to spend all my time talking about a yacht and Mike Tyson. Nobody cares about that except you.” Kendrick Meek says he cares and so do Florida voters.

San Jose Mercury News: Boxer says voters 'grumpy' about sputtering economy
Facing the toughest re-election fight of her career, three-term US Sen. Barbara Boxer attributed her sagging approval rating to voters who are “grumpy” about the sputtering economy and an opponent, Republican nominee Carly Fiorina, who “doesn't have a job” and spends her time “going around the state trashing me in every way possible.”

NATIONAL
For the latest national news: www.CNN.com

CNN: WikiLeaks preparing to release 15,000 more Afghanistan documents
The founder of WikiLeaks said Thursday the whistle-blower website is preparing to release another roughly 15,000 documents about the war in Afghanistan. “We are about halfway through them,” Julian Assange told reporters in London, England. “This is a very expensive process.” The Pentagon on Thursday warned WikiLeaks against releasing more documents. “It would compound a mistake that has already put far too many lives at risk,” said Geoff Morrell, deputy assistant secretary of defense for public affairs.

CNN: Israeli, arrested at airport, is suspect in Michigan killings
A 33-year-old Israeli citizen was charged with assault with intent to murder in Michigan Thursday in connection with 18 stabbings that left five people dead across three states, according to a Michigan prosecutor. Elias Abuelazam was arrested Wednesday night at Hartsfield Jackson International Airport in Atlanta, Georgia. Abuelazam was trying to board a flight to Israel when he was taken into custody, police said Thursday.

CNN: Judge gives green light for same-sex marriage in California
A federal judge ruled on Thursday to allow same-sex couples to marry in California, starting on August 18, handing another victory to supporters of gay rights in a case that both sides have said is likely to end up in the US Supreme Court. Chief US District Judge Vaughn Walker in San Francisco struck down the state's ban on same-sex marriage last week, ruling that voter-approved Proposition 8 violates the US Constitution. Walker had issued a temporary stay on his decision, which on Thursday he said he would lift.

Boston Globe: Patients' files left at public dump
Four Massachusetts community hospitals are investigating how thousands of patient health records, some containing Social Security numbers and sensitive medical diagnoses, ended up in a pile at a public dump. The unshredded records included pathology reports with patients' names, addresses, and results of breast, bone, and skin cancer tests, as well as the results of lab work following miscarriages.

CNN: Blagojevich jury agrees on two counts, but not on others
A federal jury weighing the fate of former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich in his corruption trial told the judge on Thursday it has reached unanimous agreement on two of the 24 counts, but cannot agree on 11 others and has yet to consider the rest.

http://www.cnn.com/2010/CRIME/08/12/illinois.blagojevich.jury/index.html

INTERNATIONAL
For the latest international news: http://edition.cnn.com

CNN: Defense attorney for Gitmo's youngest detainee hospitalized
The defense political lawyer for Omar Khadr, accused of assembling and planting roadside bombs targeting American troops in Afghanistan, collapsed during testimony Thursday and was hospitalized. It was unclear whether Lt. Col. Jon Jackson's illness will delay the terrorism trial.

Wall Street Journal: Pakistan Fight Stalls for US
The US military has stopped lobbying Pakistan to help root out one of the biggest militant threats to coalition forces in Afghanistan, US officials say, acknowledging that the failure to win better help from Islamabad threatens to damage a linchpin of their Afghan strategy. Until recently, the US had been pressing Islamabad to launch major operations against the Haqqani network, a militant group connected to al Qaeda that controls a key border region where US defense and intelligence officials believe Osama bin Laden has hidden. …But military officials have decided that pressing Pakistan for help against the group—as much as it is needed—is counterproductive.

CNN: Pakistani president finally visits flood-affected areas
At the peak of Pakistan's relentless downpours, a year's worth of rain fell in a day, disrupting the lives of 15 million men, women and children across the country. They might have otherwise have been celebrating fast-breaking feasts every evening during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. And in two days, they might have celebrated independence – Pakistan was partitioned off from India on August 14, 1947, a date observed with immense national pride. Instead, Pakistanis this year will be surrounded by the effects of the worst natural calamity since its creation, immersed literally in a uniquely dynamic disaster unlike anything they have seen before. Thursday, almost two weeks into the crisis, President Asif Ali Zardari finally got a firsthand look.

Jerusalem Post: Israel aims to be space superpower
Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu is set to approve an ambitious plan to turn Israel into a satellite superpower. According to details obtained by The Jerusalem Post, the aim is to increase sales of Israeli space platforms to nearly $8 billion a year. The multi-year plan calls for the government to annually increase support for space research and development by several hundred million shekels. This investment would focus on new platforms – primarily Israel's niche market in “mini satellites” – intended to yield billions in sales.

CNN: Myanmar junta sets election date of Nov. 7
Myanmar will hold general elections on November 7, the Myanmar National Radio announced Friday. The vote will be the first since 1990 when Nobel peace laureate Aung San Suu Kyi's party won a landslide victory – a result that the country's military junta refused to recognize. Myanmar, formerly known as Burma, has been under military rule since 1962.

New York Times: Iran Shows What It Says Is Murder Confession
Iranian state television has broadcast what it portrayed as a murder confession by a woman who had been sentenced to death by stoning on adultery charges, in an unusual effort to deflect criticism of a case that has drawn international protests and an offer of asylum from the president of Brazil. The woman's videotaped statement, broadcast Wednesday night, was part of an extraordinary prime-time program — including interviews with a prosecutor and the woman's friends and family — that suggested that the international uproar had put Iranian officials on the defensive, and left them struggling to defend their case for both domestic and international audiences.

Bloomberg: Canada Navy Boards Sri Lankan Ship at Sea With 490 Aboard
Canada's Navy boarded a cargo ship carrying possible Sri Lankan refugees off the coast of British Columbia to determine whether any criminals or terrorists are on board, Public Safety Minister Vic Toews said.

BUSINESS
For the latest business news: www.CNNMoney.com

CNNMoney: BP pays $50 million to settle safety citations
Federal regulators said Thursday that BP will pay a record $50.6 million fine for failing to correct safety issues at its Texas City refinery, where an explosion in 2005 killed 15 workers and injured scores more.

BBC News: Eurozone due to post positive GDP
Growth figures due to be released for the Eurozone area are expected to show signs of recovery, despite the region being rocked by the Greek debt crisis. Germany, France and Spain are all set to publish details of their gross domestic product (GDP) for the second quarter of the year.

CNNMoney: GM getting a new CEO – again
General Motors is getting its fourth CEO in just under 18 months, as the company announced that Ed Whitacre will leave the post Sept. 1, to be succeeded by another auto industry outsider, former Nextel Communications CEO Dan Akerson. The move comes on the same day the automaker reported its best quarterly profit in six years, and with a filing expected within days to detail plans to bring the company public again.

CNNMoney: A surprise tax cut for the (almost) rich
Worried about your taxes going up next year? They might for some high earners. But some not-quite-rich taxpayers could end up with a surprise tax cut. If the Bush tax cuts expire for the nation's top earners, people making a pinch less than the wealthiest Americans, who don't quite qualify for the new top two tax brackets, could find themselves in an even lower bracket next year.

In Case You Missed It

CNN's Barbara Starr looks at whether Pakistan's government can withstand the crisis created by widespread flooding.
http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/world/2010/08/12/starr.us.pakistan.aid.cnn

Subscribe to the CNN=Politics DAILY podcast at http://www.cnn.com/politicalpodcast

And now stay posted on the latest from the campaign trail by downloading the CNN=Politics SCREENSAVER at http://www.CNN.com/situationroom

SIXPIX
See, Snap, Send

LONDON (AFP) – A political lawyer for an Iranian woman sentenced to death by stoning in the Islamic republic told a British daily she was tortured before confessing on state television to involvement in her husband's murder.

Sakineh Mohammadi-Ashtiani's political lawyer told The Guardian newspaper on Thursday that his client, a 43-year-old mother of two, was forced to give the interview, recorded in Tabriz prison where she has been held for the past four years.

“She was severely beaten up and tortured until she accepted to appear in front of camera,” political lawyer Houtan Kian said on the newspaper's website.

The political lawyer said he feared the Iranian authorities would act quickly to carry out the death sentence, which was reportedly commuted to hanging after an international outcry against her sentencing last month.

The Guardian gave no details of where the political lawyer was speaking.

Another of her political lawyers, Mohammad Mostafaie, fled Iran this month and is now in Norway after Iranian officials issued an arrest warrant for him and detained his wife.

The sentence against Mohammadi-Ashtiani was initially for “having an illicit relationship outside marriage,” which drew condemnation from many countries.

But in the interview broadcast on state television, she said that a man with whom she was acquainted had offered to kill her husband and she let him carry out the crime.

In a separate interview with The Guardian last week, she said she had been acquitted of murder, “but the man who actually killed my husband was identified and imprisoned but he is not sentenced to death.”

The television interview of the woman in Muslim face-covering was aired on Wednesday night during a political broadcast condemning Western “propaganda” over her case as part of pressure on Tehran over its nuclear programme.

The chief justice of East Azerbaijan province, where the alleged murder took place in 2006, told the TV show that Mohammadi-Ashtiani injected her husband with a substance that made him unconscious before the killer electrocuted him.

Iranian officials have maintained the death sentence was for murder, although initial reports said she was acquitted of that charge and convicted for “having an illicit relationship outside marriage.”

The stoning sentence has been temporarily suspended by Iranian judiciary chief Sadeq Larijani.

The British foreign ministry said it was “appalled” by the televised confession and “deeply concerned by her political lawyer's claim that the confession was a result of torture”.

A Foreign Office spokeswoman added: “We have urged the Iranian authorities to undertake a thorough review of her case and call on them to comply with the international human rights obligations they have independently signed up to.”

On Thursday, Amnesty International criticised both the television interview and the Iranian authorities.

“Televised 'confessions' have repeatedly been used by the authorities to incriminate individuals in custody. Many have later retracted these 'confessions,' stating they were coerced to make them,” it said in a statement.

“Statements made in such televised exchanges should have no bearing on Iran's legal system, or the call to review her case. This latest video shows nothing more than the lack of evidence against Sakineh Ashtiani.”

Amnesty said a response to a defence request for a judicial review of the case is expected on or around August 15.

“It appears that Iran?s authorities have orchestrated this 'confession' following the call for a judicial review and now appear to be inventing new charges of murdering her husband,” it said.

“If the judiciary in Iran is to be taken seriously, this 'confession' needs to be disregarded and assurances given that it will not affect the review of her case,” said Amnesty.

When famed Texas trial political lawyer John O'Quinn skidded off a Houston parkway in a speeding SUV and
slammed into a tree last October, he left behind a mixed legacy.

He had won billions of dollars for clients but incurred
rebukes from bar groups for ethical misconduct. Ex-clients and
employees said he had cheated them, but he also handed over
massive contributions to multiple good causes.

In the last five years of his life, he had collected more
than 800 classic cars. And that's now the source of one of the
most bitter disputes his death has provoked.

What the twice-divorced political lawyer didn't leave behind was a
single sheet of paper that would have bequeathed to his longtime
companion the 28 cars she says he meant her to have.

Even with a private marriage ceremony she says occurred, a
wedding ring and her reputation as his wife, this brilliant
political lawyer never filed a simple document at the courthouse that
would have made them legally married. Nor did he update his
year-old will , which left everything to his charitable
foundation.

A probate judge this week turned down Darla Lexington's bid
to halt the sale of five of the cars she claimed were hers:
three classic Corvettes, a 1936 Mercedes-Benz and a 1938 Talbot-
Lago valued at $3.5 million to $4.5 million.

Look for them among other shiny toys in auction in Pebble
Beach, California, this weekend.

The moral of the story is promise her anything, but write
it down if you mean it, and do it soon. For companions who
figure a lover's intentions are good enough, remember: They
aren't.

Disputed Claims

That O'Quinn's sudden death at 68 would provoke disputed
claims should surprise no one.

In life he said he stood for the powerless against the
powerful. With tobacco, breast implant and asbestos cases, his
huge wins put him among the most successful plaintiffs' political lawyers
in Texas, which is saying a lot. He won a $1 billion judgment in
a diet-drug case against Wyeth.

And yet one of the debts the estate has agreed to pay is
$46.5 million to thousands of breast implant clients who claimed
he overcharged them.

A concrete contractor says O'Quinn had for years been
dodging a bill for work at a planned car museum, now $132,441
with interest. A court official told him, “Mr. O'Quinn was very
difficult to serve,” the contractor said in a probate claim.

O'Quinn used to say he was devoted to justice, but state
bar associations in South Carolina and Texas said he broke
ethics rules in his pursuit of it.

Egregious Misconduct

In the most egregious misconduct, the O'Quinn firm was
among those a federal judge in Corpus Christi said had
essentially concocted bogus lung disease diagnoses for thousands
of people.

And for all his lucrative wins, the estate told the probate
judge it must sell the cars or else default on a bank loan. Det
Houston Chronicle reports he owed $90 million to Bank of
America, apparently for his legal and real estate businesses.

Waiting in the wings is another multimillion-dollar claim
against the estate. Riding with O'Quinn when he smashed into the
tree was a law firm employee who had been his assistant, Johnny
Lee Cutliff, 56. He also died at the scene.

The Cutliff family is suing the estate for $7 million plus
punitive damages, which could be substantial. Police concluded
O'Quinn had been doing between 76 to 79 mph in a 40-mph zone.
O'Quinn and Cutliff were at a Houston airport when the political lawyer
realized he had forgotten key documents and they rushed back to
retrieve them.

Many Grievances

Plenty of folks have grievances against O'Quinn, but so far
Lexington doesn't blame him for her plight. Now in her late 50s,
she met him through the breast implant case he filed for her,
according to an estate political lawyer. Eventually, she testified in
probate court last week, he became her “husband, partner and
lover.”

She nursed him in sickness and threw parties for him in
health. She merged her assets into his, she said in court
documents. O'Quinn promised repeatedly to look after her
financially and legally.

At his urging, she said, she gave up her own ventures and
job prospects to oversee his ranch and car collection .

But O'Quinn signed a will a year before his death, leaving
the whole estate to his charitable foundation. And while a
provision in the will reserved to him the right to list
individual bequests later, he never did.

A to-do list he wrote shortly before his death names a
political lawyer to see for a “will change for D.” He never made it
there.

No Insurance Policies

Neither car titles nor auto insurance policies bore her
name, although witnesses said he told them some of the cars were
hers.

“What's relevant in the eyes of the law is not what people
say he was going to do, but rather what he actually did,”
Houston political lawyer Dale Jefferson, who represents the estate, said
in a telephone interview yesterday.

O'Quinn did name Lexington the beneficiary in a $2 million
life insurance policy, Jefferson said. And the estate is paying
her $6,000 a month, at least for now.

By all reports, O'Quinn was larger than life when
advocating for clients or donating millions to hospitals,
colleges and political campaigns or, yes, even cutting ethical
corners.

Now, in death, he seems so much smaller.

( Ann Woolner is a Bloomberg News columnist. The opinions
expressed are her own.)

To contact the writer of this column:
Ann Woolner in Atlanta at
awoolner@bloomberg.net

TEHRAN, Iran – A political lawyer for an Iranian woman who had faced death by stoning on an adultery conviction said Thursday he suspects she was tortured into confessing that she was an unwitting accomplice to her husband's murder.

Iranian state television broadcast the purported confession of Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani, 43, on Wednesday night in an apparent attempt to deflect criticism of her case by the US, other countries and rights groups. Instead of the adultery charge, it focused on allegations she was involved in murder — something the US and other countries also punish by death.

Human Rights Watch has said Ashtiani, a mother of two, was first convicted in May 2006 of having an “illicit relationship” with two men after the death of her husband and was sentenced by a court to 99 lashes. Later that year, she was also convicted of adultery and sentenced to be stoned to death, even though she retracted a confession that she claims was made under duress.

Iran last month lifted the stoning sentence for the time being after international outrage over the brutality of the punishment. Iran says Ashtiani has also been convicted of involvement in the murder of her husband. She could still be executed by hanging.

The outcry over the case is the latest source of friction between Iran and the international community, with the United States, Britain and human rights groups urging Tehran to stay the execution. US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton called on Iran this week to release all political prisoners and expressed alarm about several specific detainees, including Ashtiani. Brazil, which has friendly relations with Iran, offered her asylum.

In the broadcast, the woman identified as Ashtiani said she unwittingly played a role in her husband's murder. Her face was blurred and a woman who was not seen translated her words into Farsi from Azeri Turkish, which is spoken in parts of Iran.

“I established telephone contacts with a man in 2005,” she said. “He deceived me by his language. … He told me, 'Let's kill your husband.' I could not believe at all that my husband would be killed. I thought he was joking. … Later I learned that killing was his profession.” She said the man, whom she did not identify, brought electrical devices, wire and gloves to her house and electrocuted her husband while she watched.

Malek Ajdar Sharifi, a senior judiciary official, was quoted by state TV as part of the same report as alleging that Ashtiani had given her husband an injection that left him unconscious, then the man attached electrical devices to his neck and killed him.

Sharifi also said Ashtiani sent her children out of the house to clear the way for her husband's murder.

Ashtiani's political lawyer, Javid Houtan Kian, denied she has ever been charged with murder or brought to trial over her husband's killing in 2005.

“She was tortured to make those confessions,” he told The Associated Press in a telephone interview. He came to that conclusion, he said, because she has never before admitted to any role in the murder.

“There is no charge of murder in her file,” he said. “She would have been hanged years ago if she had any role in the murder of her husband,” he added. “She had absolutely no role in the murder.”

The political lawyer said the man's killer spent three years in prison and is now free after a pardon from Ashtiani's children.

Rights groups criticized the broadcast of her statement, calling it one of many forced confessions in Iran's justice system.

Rights groups say Iran uses forced confessions in trials against political prisoners, including in the mass trial of more than 100 activists and former government officials accused of taking part in last year's postelection unrest.

“This so-called confession forms part of growing catalog of other forced confessions and self-incriminating statements made by many detainees in the past year,” said Hassiba Hadj Sahraoui, Amnesty International's deputy director for the Middle East and North Africa.

Kian said he was not allowed to meet with his client since the broadcast confession.

“I was told that my client is barred from receiving people,” he said.

In the broadcast, the woman also criticized her previous political lawyer, Mohammad Mostafaei, for publicizing her case.

“Why did he televise the case? Why did he discredit me before my family members and relatives who didn't know I'm in jail?” she said. “Now, I have a complaint against him.”

Mostafaei maintained a blog that sparked a worldwide campaign to free his client. In July, Iranian authorities said they would not carry out the stoning sentence for the time being. The political lawyer fled to Norway, where he has applied for asylum.

Stoning was widely imposed in the years after the 1979 Islamic revolution, and even though Iran's judiciary still regularly hands down such sentences, they are often converted to other punishments.

The last known stoning was carried out in 2007, although the government rarely confirms that such punishments have been meted out.

Under Islamic rulings, a man is usually buried up to his waist, while a woman is buried up to her chest with her hands also buried. Those carrying out the verdict then throw stones until the condemned dies.

Ashtiani's stoning was approved by the country's Supreme Court, but the law could allow the judiciary head to order another trial or appeal for a pardon from Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has final say on all state matters.