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Political groups preparing to battle over the first U.S. Supreme Court nomination in 11 years have a powerful new tool — Internet blogs — to spread information quickly and influence decision makers without relying on traditional media. Web logs likely numbering in the dozens provide a way for the thoughtful and the passionate to publish their views. Politicians are taking notice as they prepare for the first high court nomination fight since the Internet became common in American households. President George W. Bush walks to the podium to make remarks on the retirement of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington, July 1, 2005.

Blogs seen as powerful new tool in U.S. court fight

It is good to know that we are appreciated and valued members of the journalistic community. Cough! Cough!

Carol Darr, director of George Washington University’s Institute for politics, democracy and the Internet, said those who read and write blogs aren’t “the sad, the mad and the lonely.” Rather, research shows they tend to be people able to influence others, she said

Heh.

HT: Powerline

Senate Majority Leader, Bill Frist, should never have allowed Senator Arlen Specter, R- Pennsylvania to ascend to the Chairmanship of the Senate Judiciary Committe in January of this year.

He is infamous in his role as a member for the campaign against Supreme Court nominee Robert Bork, and is considered by many in the Republican Party as a RINO – Republican in Name ONLY.

Now, Senator Specter desires soon to be retired Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor to become Chief Justice of SCOTUS. The New York Times has Specter Offers a Suggestion for Chief Justice: O’Connor.

Senator Arlen Specter, chairman of the Judiciary Committee, suggested on Sunday that President Bush could name Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, who is retiring from the Supreme Court, to the position of chief justice if it opens up.

“I think it would be very tempting if the president said to Justice O’Connor, ‘You could help the country now,’ ” Mr. Specter, Republican of Pennsylvania and a pivotal player in any confirmation hearings, said in an interview on the CBS program “Face the Nation.” “She has received so much adulation that a confirmation proceeding would be more like a coronation, and she might be willing to stay on for a year or so.”

Although Mr. Specter’s seeming endorsement of the idea was highly speculative – Justice O’Connor, 75, has announced her retirement, while Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist, 80, has not stepped down – it was the clearest of his several recent signals that he plans to steer his own course as he oversees hearings on a replacement for Justice O’Connor, independent of the president and of his party’s conservative base.

Conservatives were very nonplussed when Specter took over the judiciary committee in January. In fact, many Republicans telephoned Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist to replace Specter, despite seniority.

Both Mr. Specter and Mr. Leahy said they were familiar with an account of a meeting that two senators, one from each party, had had with Justice O’Connor weeks before her retirement, in which they discussed a campaign to elevate her if Chief Justice Rehnquist does step down. Senator Richard J. Durbin, Democrat of Illinois, described the same meeting to The Chicago Tribune last weekend, suggesting that Justice O’Connor had not objected. No one identified the senators.

“I did hear about it,” Mr. Specter said, “that there had been senators who had made that suggestion to Justice O’Connor, and that the response that I heard was that she said she was flattered. That she didn’t say no.”

Describing what he called credible speculation, Mr. Specter said that before she retired, “there was some speculation in the intervening week that Justice O’Connor might be waiting to see what Chief Justice Rehnquist did, perhaps with the chance to become chief justice herself.”

Justice O’Connor should be allowed to retire when her successor is confirmed by the Senate.

Senator Specter should be asked to step down from the Chairmanship of the Judiciary Committe of the U.S. Senate tomorrow morning.

Removed before he does more harm…… remember Judge Bork?

Please don’t click this!

Ok, I warned you!

Go ahead and Click This

HT: Drink this

Flap had published these telling photos on the London July 7th attacks, London: Barbaric Terrorist Attacks.

Now thanks to Michelle Malkin who has the story about the woman behind the Mask:

Remember this famous photo of one of the 7/7 terrorist attack victims?

London Sun columnist Mark Bonokoski has a moving piece today about the woman behind the mask and the man who assisted her:

“She never once cried.”

Her name is Davinia. His name is Paul. Read the whole thing.

***

British expat Mamoon Chowdry is raising money for victims of the 7/7 terrorist attacks. Go here. Excellent idea.

What a wonderful story of love for your fellow man in the time of tragedy.

God Bless both Paul and Davinia.

Davinia we will all pray for your speedy recovery.

Flap reported yesterday on Superintendent Roy Romer’s Secret Slush fund in this piece.

Now, Mayor Sam via Full Disclosure has this piece, Secret LAUSD Bond Operation.

Full Disclosure Network will be issuing a report that claims that the Los Angeles Unified School District maintains “a secret public financing operation whereby they quietly issue non-voter approved, tax-exempt bonds, mounting billions in public debt, and which is passed on to unsuspecting taxpayers for undefined projects.”

Anthony Patchett, special district attorney and head of the LA County D.A.’s Belmont investigation, describes the LAUSD financing operation as a “pyramid scheme to defraud the voters” and LAUSD Chief Facilities Executive Jim Mc Connell confirms the existence of a secret public benefit corporation saying the LAUSD Land Bank is funded by Certificates of Participation (COP) bonds.

Full Disclosure has a video report online featuring interviews with Patchett, LAUSD Inspector General Don Mulllinax, former US Attorney General Ed Meese who describes the secret bond financing process as a “gimmick” to fool the taxpayers. To view the report and interviews, click here.

Actually, Certificates of Participation are not secret nor illegal.

However, do they avoid the intent of voter adopted Proposition 13? Do they increase debt with little public scrutiny? Do Bond underwriters make commissions?

You betcha!

Superintendent Romer has alot of explaining to do…… eventually before the Los Angeles County Grand Jury.

Matt Drudge has an exclusive, REVEALED: INSIDE A MOVEON SUPREME COURT HOUSE PARTY; TAKE ‘BUSH LIAR’ T-SHIRTS OFF.

Over the weekend, the liberal activist group MOVEON.ORG hosted over a 1,000 house parties across the nation to stop President Bush from nominating a “radical right judge” — and the DRUDGE REPORT obtained an exclusive invite to one of their hottest parties.

Charles Fazio of Alexandria, VA was the host of one of the most widely attended MOVEON parties in the Washington, DC area. The DRUDGE REPORT has learned because of Fazio’s registration success, his party was chosen to be a finalist on the WASHINGTON POST’s list of house party events it would use in its Monday edition to cover MOVEON’s weekend efforts.

In a desperate bid to sanitize his house party and control how its attendees would be perceived by the POST, the MOVEON host emailed talking points to his guests. A copy of those talking points was obtained by the DRUDGE REPORT.

Fazio warned his guests: “Its very important that if you talk to the reporter, you stay on message. Remember, it is quite possible that our event will be the one the POST uses to represent the entire MoveOnPac effort this weekend.”

The key message for the event: “The momentum is finally shifting away from extremism. We will not accept a extremist nominee. This is not about conservatism vs liberalism or Republicans vs Democrats, this is all about extremism vs moderation and we’re on the side of moderation.”

The MOVEON host reminded his guests: “We don’t want to come across as leftist, liberal activists. We want to come across as we are- regular folks who are finally saying enough is enough to the extremists; that we’re not falling for their extremist rhetoric anymore and we’re finally going to expend the effort necessary to get our country back.”

Fazio: “Please stay on message and just know that ANYTHING you say can be taken out of context and used against the effort.”

One last suggestion from Fazio to his liberal MOVEON party-goers: “Oh, because a photographer will be here, might I suggest we put away our ‘Bush is a Liar’ t-shirts. Let’s look like they do.”

Extreme positions by the extreme folks on the LEFT.

Appearances over substance…… as usual.

Flap thought you Moonbats were proud of your views?