by Jeff Morris [courtesy of Blog for America]

                     Torture Planning Inside The White House?

     I'll admit I've cut and pasted some material from some of my previous posts for a new article here. Recent events in the news makes this post as relevant as ever though. I believe something as unbelievable as War Crimes being planned inside the White House to be too important to disappear from the news radar screen in a couple of days. This deserves a thorough investigation, and should stay on the news page until our Congress actually DOES SOMETHING about it.... There's no doubt that these torture planning admissions go right to the top of the Team Bush food chain, criminally implicating Bush, Cheney, Rumsfeld, Rice..... The President has admitted planning the War Crimes himself!!! Just when you think the Bush administration couldn't possibly be any more lawless and corrupt than it already is, a new even worse scandal emerges proving "Yes" They Can!

by Louise Friedman [courtesy of Blog for America]

The Congressman will be speaking at Century Village, Hillsboro Rd.,Deerfiled Beach. I think we should have a DFA presence in attendance as we deliver the Super Delegates petition. He was not available in his office on the Big Day but his assistant recommended, since he would not be back in his office for over a week, that we hand deliver it personally.

Anyone who has buttons, signs, whatever, please bring them along.

Don't miss this opportunity = no doubt there will be press coverage and it would be great advertising for DFA.

by Linda*in*SFNM [courtesy of Blog for America]

Al Gore has been quite busy this past week. Many have been asking for him and wondering what he's been doing, so I thought I would share some of what I have learned.

The week started out with two new videos being uploaded to Current.com

It actually took many days before it went viral and now one of the videos has become all the buzz.

I guess we could call these Rights. The first video, no doubt in honor of the anniversary of Roe V Wade, titled "Who Makes the Decision", reaffirming his position that a woman should choose her medical decisions, including on abortion. And as important it is now days to reaffirm that right and position, it was the 2nd video that thrilled everyone, with Mr. Gore's passion and detailed reasoning for why he believes that "Gay Men and Women should have the same rightsL" and endorses marriage. I couldn't agree more. And having a politician, especially of Mr. Gore's standing, advocate for same sex marriage was a breath of fresh air.

by Brian Leubitz [courtesy of Calitics - Front Page]

Well, I suppose juls is the one that really should be writing this, as she wrote far, far more about Arnold than really anybody in the state, certainly in the blogosphere. But directly from the, uh, what took you so long files, comes this editorial from the right-leaning LA Daily News:

But Schwarzenegger has bested even Davis in fundraising. Whereas Davis grossed $120 million in seven years, Schwarzenegger has raked in $125.8 million in only six. And like the special interests that bankrolled Davis, the special interests that are pouring millions into Schwarzenegger are no doubt looking for something in return.
***
And as long as the special interests control the state's political process, they will continue to bankrupt California(LA Daily News 11.26.07)

Of course, the LA Daily News, as a typical reactionary, fails to make that last logical leap. That if the special interests are killing us, we need clean money. What other solution is there to the problems they've outlined? Of course, they don't think as corporations as special interests, that label is reserved for unions and other organizations that support workers' rights.

by Darryl Daniels [courtesy of Blog for America]

In these times of political uncertainty, where candidates can change positions on issues faster than you can say "news cycle", it's instructive to look back. Four years ago, there was a candidate in the race for President of The United States who left no doubt about where he stood on the issues and most people who frequent this site were excited and energized to be a part of that campaign.

One of those who was also enthused was award-winning filmmaker Heidi Draper, an American living with her family in France. She packed up her camera and came back to the U.S. to chronicle the journey of the Dean for America campaign from beginning to end, leading to the creation of her wonderful documentary "Take It Back: The Movement For Democracy and Howard Dean". Some of you are no doubt familiar with film from its showing at Democracyfest, but I would suggest that everyone who supported the Dean campaign in anyway should have this DVD in their collections, as its message and themes are as relevant today as ever. 

[courtesy of The California Majority Report]

Bay Area Congresswoman Ellen Tauscher, who has been criticized from the left for her early support of the war in the Iraq, announced today that she'll be leading the charge to overturn the military's "don't ask, don't tell law," according to the Associated Press.
 
The move should help quiet some of her critics, and no doubt is widely supported in the Bay Area. 

Here's some excerpts from the article:

"The key is to keep building momentum, to keep building the case, and to give people the sense that it is a significant priority," Tauscher, D-Alamo, told
reporters on a conference call with officials from the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network and the Human Rights Campaign.

Photo courtesy CatCode.

by Lucas O'Connor [courtesy of Calitics: Soapblox California - Front Page]