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Atrocities at Ruby Ridge.the Randy Weaver Story The incident at Ruby Ridge, Idaho may prove to be the most telling reason why Americans must reassess their personal freedoms. Reenactments of the deadly Gestapo type siege bu own own FBI, and the historical events that led up to it are brought to life in this full length video. The video includes actual footage, interviews with eyewitnesses such as Lt. Col. James "Bo" Gritz, who was successful in ending the tragic standoff, Marshall service surveillance footage, the appalled reactions from the local residents. More on Ruby Ridge: http://www.apfn.org/apfn/rubyridge.htm

Atrocities at Ruby Ridge.the Randy Weaver Story The incident at Ruby Ridge, Idaho may prove to be the most telling reason why Americans must reassess their personal freedoms. Reenactments of the deadly Gestapo type siege bu own own FBI, and the historical events that led up to it are brought to life in this full length video. The video includes actual footage, interviews with eyewitnesses such as Lt. Col. James "Bo" Gritz, who was successful in ending the tragic standoff, Marshall service surveillance footage, the appalled reactions from the local residents. More on Ruby Ridge: http://www.apfn.org/apfn/rubyridge.htm

3/16/07: Wait 'til you hear what he had to say about the Bush administration "Well, I think Bush is probably the worst president in the history of the United States. […] Everything is a lie." APFN Messageboard: http://disc.server.com/Indices/234999.html

As if the prosecutorial purge scandal wasn't enough, Alberto Gonzalez will be called to answer even more questions about his role in blocking an investigation into the warrantless wiretapping program. Keith provides some context. CBS is reporting Gonzales' days are numbered. How can he possibly survive this? And how long until we hear the "Clinton did it too!" defense? Last July, it was revealed that the Office of Professional Responsibility in the Justice Department — the office "responsible for investigating allegations of misconduct involving Department attorneys" — repeatedly attempted to investigate whether DOJ lawyers acted improperly concerning their role in the President's warrantless eavesdropping program, but finally stopped their investigation because the President refused to give them the security clearances they needed to conduct the investigation. Yesterday, Murray Waas reported in National Journal that it was Alberto Gonzales who advised the President to deny those clearances even after Gonzales "learned that his own conduct would likely be a focus of the investigation." The investigation which they blocked "would have examined Gonzales's role in authorizing the eavesdropping program while he was White House counsel, as well as his subsequent oversight of the program as attorney general." Gonzales: http://www.apfn.org/apfn/gonzales.htm

The favorite meme of the right-wing apologists has long been that there was no crime committed in exposing Valerie Plame's identity because she was not a covert agent at the time of Novak's article (see here, here, here, here, and here). Rep Elijah Cummings (D-MD) devoted his entire first round of questioning today to clarifying whether or not Valerie Plame was indeed "covert" at the time of her outing. Let this be the video that sets the record straight once and for all. I don't anticipate an apology from the wingnuts anytime soon, however. Leakgate: http://www.apfn.org/apfn/leakgate.htm

3/16/07: Waxman's hearing started today and Valerie took the stand. She explained her role in the CIA and what it means to be covert and says her cover was blown. Plame described the moment when she realized she was outed. Taylor Marsh: "Today, Valerie Plame Wilson spoke in public before Rep. Waxman's committee, describing the day her husband came in and dropped the newspaper on the bed and said: "He did it." There's much more in the clip…. Update: As Christy says…"Apparently, Victoria Toensing still wants to argue what the meaning of "covert" is. But according to Gen Hayden, current head of the CIA, Valerie Plame Wilson was a covert CIA agent at the time that her name was published by Robert Novak." LeakGate: http://www.apfn.org/apfn/LeakGate.htm

Using the recently-disclosed internal White House/DoJ emails, Keith connects the dots and produces a cohesive narrative that shows how intimately involved the White House was in the politically-motivated purge of insufficiently loyal and partisan USAs. In its fumbling attempts to explain the purge of United States attorneys, the Bush administration has argued that the fired prosecutors were not aggressive enough about addressing voter fraud. It is a phony argument; there is no evidence that any of them ignored real instances of voter fraud. But more than that, it is a window on what may be a major reason for some of the firings. The United States attorney purge appears to have been prompted by an array of improper political motives. Carol Lam, the San Diego attorney, seems to have been fired to stop her from continuing an investigation that put Republican officials and campaign contributors at risk. These charges, like the accusation that Mr. McKay and other United States attorneys were insufficiently aggressive about voter fraud, are a way of saying, without actually saying, that they would not use their offices to help Republicans win elections. It does not justify their firing; it makes their firing a graver offense Gonzales: http://www.apfn.org/apfn/gonzales.htm

After ABC News broke the story that new e-mails have surfaced that place Karl Rove at the center of the purge scandal, Senator Schumer addressed the media to discuss where the road goes from here. Now it's clear Karl Rove was involved. So statements from the White House press office and from others involved have proved to be false, false, false time after time after time." Senate Judiciary Republicans stalled a vote today on whether or not to issue subpoenas to White House officials (i.e. Karl Rove) while WH Counsel Fred Fielding tries to strike a deal that would keep Rove out of the hot seat. If the White House claims privilege and Rove defies subpoena, we could face a serious Constitutional showdown. Jack Cafferty became giddy today at the prospect of an under oath showdown between Senator Leahy and Karl Rove. My money's on Leahy. CAFFERTY: I want to see Patrick Leahy interview Karl Rove under oath in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee. I don't care who wins. I don't care who comes out of it unscathed. I just want to watch it. It would be like watching Ali-Frazier IV. It would just be terrific theater. More scandals:: http://www.apfn.org/apfn/leakgate.htm

Salon's Mark Benjamin appeared on Hardball last night to talk about his searing exposé about wounded soldiers from Ft. Benning being deployed back to Iraq. Benjamin first broke the story about the terrible outpatient conditions at Walter Reed two years before Dana Priest and The Washington Post exposed it to the national media. It's nice to see that this story didn't take another two years. It looks like House Democrats want answers: House Armed Services Committee Chairman Ike Skelton and Military Personnel Subcommittee Chairman Vic Snyder have asked the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to undertake an immediate review of allegations that wounded and injured soldiers are being sent to Iraq. It's amazing that someone like Matt "The Eggman" Drudge has the power to shape the debate while honest and fearless reporting on soldier mistreatment like this goes unnoticed for so long. Glenn examines this phenomenon further. Iraq War: http://www.apfn.org/apfn/Iraq_war.htm

In an interview on The Situation Room today, Chariman of the Senate Judiciary Committee Pat Leahy vowed to get to the bottom of the White House/DoJ's prosecutor purge and told Wolfie that Karl Rove can expect a subpoena if he refuses to come willingly. "I want them in public. I want both Democrats and Republicans able to ask them questions. But those answers will be under oath or they won't be acceptable to me." APFN Messageboard: http://disc.server.com/Indices/149495.html

3/11/07: Scott Pelley reports for 60 Minutes on the plight of Iraqis who risked everything to help the United States, only to see us all but turn our backs on them when they needed us most. How can anyone defend this war and all the havoc it has wreaked on the Iraqi population? Upwards of 600,000 killed; 1.8 million displaced; an emboldened Iran; and no end in sight. Will they ever trust us again? Have we given them any reason to? Retried General Paul Eaton worries about the message all of this is sending to America’s other allies in the world. "Anybody who threw their lot in with the Americans deserves an opportunity for a future. And the loyalty has got to be in both directions. If we do not take care of these people, then the signal to anybody else in the future is a bad signal. And if you throw your lot with the United States, they'll use you for a while and then they will – they'll just cut you off," he argues. Asked if he thinks it's a matter of honor, Eaton says, "I believe this is a matter of morality." APFN messageboard: http://disc.server.com/Indices/149495.html

3/13/07: Attorney General Alberto Gonzales spoke to the media today about the growing controversy over the politically-motivated firing of eight US Attorneys. You gotta love how they're blaming this all on Harriet Miers now that she's out of the picture. Loyalty truly is a one-way street in Bush World. However, he made clear he isn't leaving… More on Gonzales: http://www.apfn.org/apfn/gonzales.htm

3/11/07: On Face the Nation this morning, Senator Schumer called for the resignation of Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, citing the FBI's Patriot Act abuse and DOJ's politically motivated firing of federal prosecutors as two examples of him putting politics above the law. Why do you think he got the job in the first place, Chuck? More on Gonzales: http://www.apfn.org/apfn/gonzales.htm

3/11/07: Rudy ruffled some firefighting feathers last week when he decided to pull out of a planned appearance at the International Association of Firefighters presidential forum. One of the nation's largest firefighting unions came out swinging, blasting Rudy for his "egregious acts" against the FDNY after 9/11. Just one more example that should shatter the "America's Mayor" myth. Lest we forget that the Bush administration pressured the EPA to change the air quality reports at Ground Zero, resulting in widspread respiratory problems in the FDNY and NYPD. The letter reads in part: "Many people consider Rudy Giuliani 'America's Mayor,' and many of our members who don't yet know the real story, may also have a positive view of him. This letter is intended to make all of our members aware of the egregious acts Mayor Giuliani committed against our members, our fallen on 9/11, and our New York City union officers following that horrific day." More on 9/11: http://www.apfn.org/apfn/WTC.htm

3/10/07: Cafferty: “War on terror is used as an excuse to circumvent our civil liberties” Jack Cafferty weighs in on the Inspector General's report that outlines how the FBI was abusing the Patriot Act and severely underreporting the number of National Security Letters issued. "This is the kind of stuff that happens when the war on terror is used as an excuse to circumvent our civil liberties, which has become the hallmark of the Bush administration." U.S. PATRIOT ACT HR 3162: http://www.apfn.org/APFN/HR3162.htm