The Albany Times Union is reporting that, not only will Albany DA David Soares release a report further exonerating members of Eliot Spitzer's staff in the so called "Troopergate" scandal, but he will also criticize Attorney General Andrew Cuomo's initial investigation as well as the "political theater" that dragged his office into a "needless investigation". It's got to be a rather stinging rebuke to the Bruno crew.

X-posted at TAP

(X-posted at TAP)

This story just keeps getting weirder and weirder. It starts about 24 hours after Andrew Cuomo released his report on L'affaire Bruno. Bouldin remembers it like this:

The first Spitzer-bashing email from Michael Caputo's NYFacts.net went out on July 10th, 2007, at 12:41 PM Eastern. Since then, the group has sent out 35 further emails. Another site, Spitzerfile.com, which interestingly only loads through a redirect from NYFacts.net, went live sometime after July 10th, and has also been sending out emails.

NYFacts.net even briefly branched out into Obama-bashing on August 8th, with an email entitled "Obama pulls from all-white Harmonie Club', which contained a piece by Maggie Haberman in the Murdoch Post.

Both Bouldin and I were both on this email list as were pretty much every media outlet in the state. It was one hell of a list and it was apparently assembled in record time. what was interesting was not so much who those emails were going to but the addresses that were being used. Some folks were getting those emails at addresses they hadn't used in years, others at brand new ones. Some people were getting them at purely personal addresses.

You ain't seen nothing yet. MUCH more weirdness on the flip...

Seriously. I know that being a Republican and all, you are predisposed to both extra-legal surveillance and lying about said activities, but please, for the love of Fiorello LaGuardia, please stop bullshitting me. It's unseemly and it makes you look like an even bigger ass. Today I read in the New York Times that you had to unleash the NYPD on all those "potential terrorist" and "anarchist" groups that may have been "planning to cause or take advantage of any disruptions", but that "We were not keeping track of political activities" and "We have no interest in doing that.”

Bullshit. You know it and so do I.

“We had a fundamental responsibility to learn whether groups might include any potential terrorists or anarchists planning to cause or take advantage of any disruptions,” Mr. Bloomberg told reporters at a news conference. Toward that end, he said, the Police Department monitored those who said they intended vandalism or disruptions and, he added, “in a few instances, we did keep track of groups or individuals who did plan to come to New York for the R.N.C. convention and who might have been planning violent acts.”

Well, well. This is interesting. the politicker is reporting in an exclusive that Manhattan Assemblyman Sheldon Silver the stadium slayer might just get a challenger in the next cycle. Who might this be? Current City Coincilwoman, Bloomberg chum and MBP hopeful, Margarita Lopez. Interesting if true.

Exclusive: A Challenge for Shelly?

After Shelly Silver killed the West Side Stadium, there was a quick round of muttering that Bloomberg would take his revenge by supporting a challenger in Silver's Lower Manhattan district.

That speculation dissolved when nobody could name a serious challenger.

But now, The Politicker hears, Bloomberg's circle has a favorite: City Councilwoman Margarita Lopez.

Lopez is now running for Manhattan Borough President, but if she doesn't make it through that crowded field, it's easy to see Bloomberg would backing a woman he's long had a personal liking for. She's also shown her political strength against Shelly by beating his chief-of-staff, Judy Rapfogel, in a 1997 Council race.

In a quick interview this morning, Lopez said she returns the affection -- "He is truly, truly a gentleman," she said -- but called the suggestion she would run against Silver "ludicrous."

Margarita López Torres picked up some rather big league endorsements this morning down at City Hall.

From the press relase:

At 9:30AM Monday morning, July 18, on the steps of
New York City Hall, three
congressional members from Brooklyn, along with
other elected officials and
supporters, will announce their support for Civil
Court Judge Margarita López
Torres to be the next Surrogate Court Judge of
Brooklyn.

Those three congresscritters? Nydia Velazquez (NY-12), Ed Towns (NY-10) and Major Owens (NY-11).

We all know that DailyKos is a great site, the grandaddy of so many others, and that Markos is a sharp guy. Every once and a while we are reminded that Markos is also a great writer and thinker. Today is such a day. I'm posting his excellent post, "Right and Wrong" in toto. I think it's as about as a concise, no bullshit rendering of what's happening with the modern Republican party as I've read in a long, long time. I hope you'll read the whole thing.

Right and Wrong

In the days after the discovery of Deep Throat's identity, many people noted how Watergate would be impossible in today's political climate -- where partisanship trumps the truth inside a GOP machine so deeply entrenched in this country's governance structure that it controls the White House, House, Senate, Supreme Court, most appelate courts, and the media. And where the GOP can do no wrong, regardless of the ethical or criminal transgression.

It is quite instructive and shocking, even with this administration, that the outing of a CIA agent, her front company, and god knows how many other agents and operations, is met with a collective shrug from wingnut circles. While a blow job gave them the vapors, a genuine breach of national security gives them no pause, gives them no reason to abandon "the architect". Political power trumps everything -- even the safety of our nation.

Cross posted at Daily Kos

Goddamn if I don't love this city in the summer. Yeah, it's hot and smells less than fresh some days. But, summer is also free outdoor music season and there isn't a city on Earth that does it better or more often than the Big Apple. There are some days when it's almost impossible not to feel that we live at the center of the effin' rock and roll universe. Today is one of those days.

Just check out what's on tap tonight:

The folks over at Celebrate Brooklyn give us a free show at the bandshell in Prospect Park by one of the finest and most fun live bands working today, LA'S Ozomatli. This band can do it all and do it well. They are also very politically conscious. And they just plain kick ass. from the Celebrate Brooklyn site:

The gritty Latin fusion clan Ozomatli provides the perfect soundtrack for some hot-blooded midsummer indiscretion with its "captivating brew of salsa, ranchero, rock, jazz, funk and rap" (USA Today).

Do try to catch them if you can.

Decisions, decisions. Uncle Tupelo alum and OG alt-country guru Jay Farrar does a free show with his superlative band Son Volt down at the South Street Seaport. They've got a new record that was engineered by a friend of mine. It rocketh. Should be a hell of show and, hey, it's free, yo.

The secert is out now. Free Williamsburg spills the beans:

Check it out! Gotham Gazette suggests taking a look at Daily Gotham.

Published today:

The Daily Gotham

This blog consists of
several authors' interpretations of local and national politics, coming
from a liberal perspective. The blog also seeks to provide ammunition
and motivation for potential political activists. On three consecutive
days, Daily Gotham lamented the Parks Department's failure to keep up
its out-of-the-way properties, advised its readers about a forum
focused on lobbying for secure voting, and feared the impending
retirement of a Supreme Court Justice.

Thanks, GG!

Cross posted at Daily Kos

It seems that the state GOP machine is somewhat uneasy about the fact that progressive think tanks such as the Drum Major Institute are, ya know, actually trying to influence policy and stuff. Funny, I thought that's why such entities existed. I doubt many folks at the Heritage Foundation or the American Enterprise Institute, the folks that succeeded in large part in bringing us "War in Iraq II - The Quagmire", would shy away from stating that there organizations exist to influence policy and policymakers and are funded in large part by those who wish to do the same. Apparently that's cool if you're rationalizing the more destructive parts of the GOP agenda and making pre-emptive war and grand scale looting of the federal treasury palatable to Joe Sixpack. Not so much if you see things differently.

Andrea Batista Schlesinger, Executive Director of DMI, fires back today over at the Huffington Post.

War of the Worldviews – The GOP Takes on Progressive Think Tanks

You think the right-wing is only out to bring down progressive candidates?

Think again.

Now they are sending their party hacks to attack progressive think tanks.

That’s one way to win the battle of ideas!

Stephen Minarik, head of New York State’s GOP, and Bill Cunningham, a Republican operative, have made it their personal mission to undermine the credibility of the New York-based Drum Major Institute for Public Policy, a progressive think tank founded during the civil rights movement.

Their claim: DMI is in cahoots with Fernando Ferrer, a former DMI President and the perceived frontrunner for the Democratic nomination to challenge Mayor Michael Bloomberg in the fall.

Our real crime: Threatening the status quo.

More on the flip...

From DavidNYC's FP post at DailyKos

Whatever happens with the Supreme Court nomination battle that is about to ensue, it's going to happen fast. Here are some things you can do right now:

• If you have a cell phone, sign up for People at the American Way's Mass Immediate Response site. This way, you'll be able to receive text message action items instantly as events break. (If you signed up during the nuclear option fight, you'll need to re-sign up.)

• Also sign up with the Save the Court, another PFAW website devoted specifically to this issue.

• Recruit friends and family members to the cause.

• Write to the President, telling him he should choose a consensus candidate to replace O'Connor.

• Contact your Senators to tell them the same thing.

If you have any other action items, please post them in the comments below, with links.

Update [2005-7-1 11:33:32 by DavidNYC]: If you have a blog, please post these action items on your site. If you don't, e-mail them to your like-minded buddies and relatives.