Alright, let me be the first to post it...

[Yonivore]

...under the heading of "WTF Were They Thinking?"


Education Dept. paid commentator to promote law (http://usatoday.printthis.clickability.com/pt/cpt?action=cpt&title=USATODAY.com%2B-%2BWhite%2BHouse%2Bpaid%2Bcommentator%2Bto%2Bpromo te%2Blaw&expire=&urlID=12798241&fb=Y&url=http%3A//www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2005-01-06-williams-whitehouse_x.htm%02%22nerID=1660)

[desflood]

What a big can of worms we've opened here, boys and girls!

[Yonivore]

Maybe that's why Rod's gone?

[CommanderMcBragg]

What were they thinking?

[Bandit2981]

dont worry Yoni, it will go away shortly, say a day or 2. lord knows the current crop of democrats are too pussy to raise any big stink about it

[Nbadan]

lord knows the current crop of democrats are too pussy to raise any big stink about it

Ouch! ...but oh, so true. Time to get rid of the pussies who refused to stand with Barbara Boxer yesterday.

[Nbadan]

More fall out...

Media Release just out from Reid's office:
For Immediate Release
DATE: Thursday, January 06, 2005
CONTACT: Phil Singer 202 224-2939

Lawmakers Demand President Bush STOP Paying
Journalists to Promote Administration Policies

Reid, Lautenberg, Kennedy Also Ask President If His Administration Has Paid Other Journalists to Promote other Policies, including Social Security Privatization


WASHINGTON, DC – In light of alarming news that the Bush administration paid a popular conservative radio commentator and columnist almost a quarter of a million dollars to skew his reporting to promote the No Child Left Behind Act, United States Senators Frank R. Lautenberg (D-NJ), Edward Kennedy (D-MA) and Harry Reid (D-NV) sent a letter to President Bush today demanding that he recover the money paid to Armstrong Williams, citing federal laws that prohibit such activity. In addition, the lawmakers also asked President Bush to disclose any payments to other journalists to push Administration policies, including President Bush’s decision to privatize Social Security.

In news reports today, it was revealed conservative pundit and commentator Armstrong Williams was paid $240,000 to promote President Bush’s No Child Left Behind Act on his syndicated radio program and in addition, to urge other pundits to routinely hype the law during their own appearances on other programs.

In their letter to President Bush, the Lawmakers cite federal laws that prohibit taxpayer funds from being spent by the Executive Branch for “Covert Propaganda”.

“In addition to the illegality of these actions taken by your Administration, we believe that the act of bribing journalists to bias their news in favor of government policies undermines the integrity of our democracy. Actions like this were common in the Soviet Union, but until now, thought to be long extinguished in our country,” wrote the lawmakers in their letter to President Bush sent today.

These revelations regarding Mr. Williams are the latest – and most disturbing – in a series of actions by your Administration to manipulate public opinion through covert propaganda. On May 19, 2004, the GAO found that your Administration illegally spent taxpayer funds on covert propaganda by paying Ketchum Incorporated to produce fake news stories promoting the image of the new Medicare law.

The links below are examples of syndicated columns published by the Tribune Media Company from Armstrong Williams in support of the No Child Left Behind Act

Townhall.com (http://www.townhall.com/columnists/Armstrongwilliams/printaw20040524.shtml)

[Opinionater]

IMHO, Honest Abe, Bush is NOT!

[Yonivore]

IMHO, Honest Abe, Bush is NOT!
I'm betting he's as honest as Abraham Lincoln. The question is, how honest was Abraham?

[Spurminator]

I'm surprised they feel they have to pay a conservative pundit to praise a law or policy of this Administration. Sean Hannity's got to be wondering where his paycheck is...

[Yonivore]

I'm surprised they feel they have to pay a conservative pundit to praise a law or policy of this Administration. Sean Hannity's got to be wondering where his paycheck is...
Yeah, something's fucked up here...I'm betting it's behind Rod Paige's departure from Education.

[Opinionater]

IMHO, there are many of us Americans who cannot be bought!!

[exstatic]

Bush's new program - NT$LB

[Yonivore]

Bush's new program - NT$LB
Are you intentionally obtuse?

[Hook Dem]

dont worry Yoni, it will go away shortly, say a day or 2. lord knows the current crop of democrats are too pussy to raise any big stink about it
Are you including yourself Bandit? You would have liked the Democratic Party of old. What you see today isn't the way it's always been.

[Bandit2981]

Are you including yourself Bandit? You would have liked the Democratic Party of old. What you see today isn't the way it's always been.
no, i hate the current group of democrats that are around. i was constantly frustrated with the way kerry ran his campaign(can he have been any dumber?), and even with chumps like terry mcauliffe and tom daschle...im glad to see them gone, and i would have loved to give them the ol' one finger salute on the way out. not all of them are bad, but the recent party "leaders" seem to be acting like putting on a "bush lite" performance will win over voters, when that strategy has failed time and time again. thats why i was a Dean fan, he spoke his mind and didnt give a crap what people like lieberman and the clintons said about him(specifically, that he would lead the party into the wilderness if nominated...hmm, the wilderness? is that a situation where republicans control the house, senate, and presidency? doh!) anyways, i guess its nothing new. conservatives were in the same state back in the day until the Goldwater defeat...then they got smart. can dems do the same? we'll see, but it'll take some new blood in there.

[Yonivore]

no, i hate the current group of democrats that are around. i was constantly frustrated with the way kerry ran his campaign(can he have been any dumber?), and even with chumps like terry mcauliffe and tom daschle...im glad to see them gone, and i would have loved to give them the ol' one finger salute on the way out. not all of them are bad, but the recent party "leaders" seem to be acting like putting on a "bush lite" performance will win over voters, when that strategy has failed time and time again. thats why i was a Dean fan, he spoke his mind and didnt give a crap what people like lieberman and the clintons said about him(specifically, that he would lead the party into the wilderness if nominated...hmm, the wilderness? is that a situation where republicans control the house, senate, and presidency? doh!) anyways, i guess its nothing new. conservatives were in the same state back in the day until the Goldwater defeat...then they got smart. can dems do the same? we'll see, but it'll take some new blood in there.
It's not their performance, Bandit...it's their message.