Anderson@Large

Happy New Year

Well, it's nearly over -- the holiday season that is.  Truth be told, it wasn't that bad.  I heard lots of good music, took stock (here and here), reconnected with some old friends, and got organized for the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead.

Be safe.  Have a healthy and happy new year.

Merry Christmas, Baby

This is not my favorite time of the year.  Still, I love Christmas music; Charles Brown’s classic is my all-time favorite.  Also high on my playlist are Albert King’s “Santa Claus Wants Some Lovin’” and Clarence Carter’s “Back Door Santa.”   And, oh yeah, “Silent Night,” “Hark! The Herald Angels Sing,” Aaron Neville's "O Holy Night" and Nat King Cole's "O Come All Ye Faithful."

So, whatever music gets you through the season, have a safe and joyous holiday.

Stocking Stuffer

Though I’m hardwired to do my part to “comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable,” I’m mindful that speaking out comes with some risk.  So, I take comfort in having a network of lawyers that I can turn to if someone decides to get stupid.

I’m indeed fortunate that one of those lawyers is the brilliant and black Charles J. Ogletree Jr.  Tree, a dear friend, was up in Harlem earlier this week for a book signing at Hue-Man Bookstore & Cafe.  Just in time for holiday gift giving, his bestseller All Deliberate Speed is available in paperback.  Tree's "call to arms" is part memoir, part legal analysis of Brown v. Board of Education and its legacy (he is, after all, a Harvard law professor), and all good.

Even if you already have the book in hardcover, buy the paperback because Tree has added some lagniappe, including a chapter on reparations.  Now before you get too excited, your check will not be in the mail.  Tree proposes the establishment of a trust fund to help lift those stuck at the bottom.  The proceeds would be used to tackle the academic achievement gap, employment opportunities, housing discrimination and health disparities.

To purchase All Deliberate Speed, click here.

Poor George

There he goes again. Folks who say “George Bush doesn’t care about black people” are wrong because, well, because Bush says they are wrong:

One of the most hurtful things I can hear is, Bush doesn't care about African Americans, for example. First of all, it’s not true. And, secondly, I believe that -- obviously I've got to do a better job of communicating, I guess, to certain folks, because my job is to say to people, we’re all equally American, and the American opportunity applies to you just as much as somebody else.

It’s insane that Bush believes the problem is his failure to “communicate” rather than his failed policies that disproportionately hurt African Americans. Whether it’s Social Security, Medicaid (and here), or budget and tax cuts, Bush ain't messing with no broke n***.

If he cared about the least of these, he would have joined National Urban League President Marc Morial and told his Congressional allies to show some compassion:

We are a better and more compassionate nation than this. I call upon the Congress to defeat this immoral budget and instead make public policy choices that seek the full development, health and economic security of our citizens and especially those who need our assistance the most.

Because I Say So

Wannabe King Bush (and here) insists that spying on American citizens is legal because he says it’s legal:

So, consistent with U.S. law and the Constitution, I authorized the interception of international communications of people with known links to al Qaeda and related terrorist organizations. This program is carefully reviewed approximately every 45 days to ensure it is being used properly. Leaders in the United States Congress have been briefed more than a dozen times on this program. And it has been effective in disrupting the enemy, while safeguarding our civil liberties.

Sen. Jay Rockefeller, one of those congressional leaders, said Bush is talking out of both sides of his mouth:

For the last few days, I have witnessed the President, the Vice President, the Secretary of State, and the Attorney General repeatedly misrepresents the facts.

The record needs to be set clear that the Administration never afforded members briefed on the program an opportunity to either approve or disapprove the NSA program. The limited members who were told of the program were prohibited by the Administration from sharing any information about it with our colleagues, including other members of the Intelligence Committees.

At the time, I expressed my concerns to Vice President Cheney that the limited information provided to Congress was so overly restricted that it prevented members of Congress from conducting meaningful oversight of the legal and operational aspects of the program.

These concerns were never addressed, and I was prohibited from sharing my views with my colleagues.

Now that this issue has been brought out into the open, I strongly urge the Senate Intelligence Committee to immediately undertake a full investigation into the legal and operational aspects of the program, including the lack of sufficient congressional oversight.

Let’s hope the upcoming congressional hearings (here and here) will end the reign of the lying king (and here).

I Spy (For King George)

                 They that can give up essential
                liberty to obtain a little temporary
                safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.
                           -- Benjamin Franklin

Back in the day, there was a popular song that went “I spy (for the FBI)” (and here). In light of the revelation that the National Security Agency has spied on American citizens, the song should be remixed to I spy for The President (here, here, here and here).

President Bush defended his infringement of Americans’ civil liberties (and here) in his weekly radio address:

This authorization is a vital tool in our war against the terrorists. It is critical to saving American lives. The American people expect me to do everything in my power under our laws and Constitution to protect them and their civil liberties. And that is exactly what I will continue to do, so long as I’m the President of the United States.

Slow your roll, Sen. Russell Feingold said on ABC:

We have a system of law.  He just can't make up the law...It would turn George Bush not into President George Bush, but King George Bush.

Like the imperial Richard "Tricky Dick" Nixon, Bush apparently believes that if The President does it, ipso facto, it’s legal (and here).

Stuff Happens

The service was down most of the day so I wasn't able to post.  Their bad.  I'm sure you got along fine without me.  I'll talk with you next week.