Breaking news network-wide on:

• Arlen Specter’s about-face on Dawn Johnsen’s nomination for U.S. Office of Legal Counsel;

• Minnesota conservatives’ assault on Jim Llanas who, if elected, would be the first Latino and first openly gay candidate of the Maplewood city council, and

•   Kalamazoo, Michigan’s ballot initiative fight over the city’s anti-discrimination ordinance. Anti- ordinance door hangers, flyers, and robocalls have claimed that if the ordinance is adopted, women would be put “at risk” of sharing public restrooms with transgender individuals. One pro-ordinance city commissioner said he’s hopeful the ordinance will be approved, but he added he realizes anti-gay rights forces are determined to draw a line in the sand in Kalamazoo. 

These recent stories and others from the Center’s five state sites and The Washington Independent are detailed below.

Best,

David

 

 

The Washington Independent’s David Weigel profiled a new conservative documentary taking aim at former Vice President Al Gore and the environmental movement. Weigel reported that the film, “Not Evil Just Wrong,” is noteworthy for its slick production and Michael Moore-style tactics — including interviewing workers at a coal power plant and filming the delivery of a letter to Gore’s house — to turn the tables on the left. Additionally, Weigel outlined the film’s nontraditional, conservative-friendly marketing model: Rather than being released in theaters, it is being offered for sale over the Internet, with “Cinematic Tea Parties” being organized around the country to screen the documentary. Weigel’s piece was picked up at both Daily Kos and National Review.

Spencer Ackerman published a forward-looking piece that anticipated this weekend’s push by the Pakistani military into Taliban-controlled Waziristan. While other news outlets reported that the Pakistani army was moving large numbers of troops into the area, Ackerman was ready to go with an in-depth look at the coming incursion’s political and tactical implications for the Obama administration and the U.S. military in Afghanistan. Hie report probed the possible influx of Taliban militants fleeing the Pakistani military and the opportunity to collect better intelligence on the Taliban and al-Qaeda. Ackerman’s piece outlined how, as President Obama weighs his options in the region, the situation grows more complex by the day.

Daphne Eviatar, who has been watchdogging the White House’s legal stances on national security issues, spotted growing evidence that the Obama Justice Department may try the suspected 9/11 masterminds in federal court rather than in military tribunals. That potential move is prompting fervent opposition from Republicans who say the 9/11 terrorists should never be allowed anywhere on U.S. soil, let alone in a civilian U.S. court. Eviatar’s work was picked up by important bloggers: The Atlantic’s Andrew Sullivan, who wrote that most media missed the important, related decision in the Senate to allow Guantanamo detainees to be tried in federal courts, declared that Eviatar was “all over the story” when others weren’t.

Eviatar also demonstrated that she can hound a politician until she gets results. In the course of investigating why President Obama’s nomination of Dawn Johnsen to head the Office of Legal Counsel has still not gone up for a vote, Eviatar dogged Sen. Arlen Specter (D-Pa.) to find out if his position on Johnsen had evolved since her confirmation hearing in Pennsylvania — when Specter was still a Republican. As Eviatar reported in February during the confirmation hearing, Specter was one of Johnsen’s fiercest critics, expressing concern over her views on executive power and abortion. More recently, Eviatar called Specter’s office daily for nearly a week to get clarification on his current stance on the nomination, until Specter’s press secretary responded with a statement that Specter was now reconsidering his position. Eviatar pointed out that the move is consistent with Specter’s dramatic leftward drift since Rep. Joe Sestak (D-Pa.) announced that he plans to challenge Specter in the 2010 Democratic primary. Eviatar’s relentless pursuit of the Johnsen story has been praised by Salon’s Glenn Greenwald, and her post was cited by The American Prospect.

 

 

Joe Boven and John Tomasic scrutinized the efforts to pass municipal initiatives that target illegal immigrants living in Colorado. The so-called impound initiatives, which require police to seize the vehicles of anyone found driving without a current license, have been introduced in Denver, Aurora, and Lakewood by Daniel Hayes, a resident of Jefferson County. While pushing earlier initiatives, Hayes said that without such laws on the books “we’ll have more of these Hernandezes driving off the road” and killing people. Hayes told Tomasic that it is the people who oppose his initiatives who are the racists. He said Colorado Ethics Watch, which filed lawsuits this summer against the Aurora and Lakewood initiatives, has a pro-illegal immigrant agenda and pointed as evidence to the fact that Ethics Watch attorney Luis Toro is Latino.

David O. Williams was present for a somewhat tense screening of the new anti-gas-drilling documentary, “Split Estate,” for the commissioners of Garfield County. The film details the conflicts between surface property owners and mineral-rights holders allowed to extract natural gas from their land, and was screened at the request of the Grand Valley Citizens Alliance (GVCA) with hopes of a resolution from the board supporting greater federal oversight. Democratic County Commissioner Trési Houpt thanked the GVCA for presenting the film and drafting a resolution for the board’s consideration. Republican John Martin has said he thinks federal oversight is unnecessary, while Republican Mike Samson seems still undecided on the issue.

Joseph Boven fact-checked claims made by Republican gubernatorial candidate Josh Penry that Gov. Bill Ritter (D) has released “hardened criminals” and sex offenders earlier than parole boards advised, picking up a well-worn GOP tack on Democrats as “soft on crime.” The governor’s office told Boven that Penry’s statements were “just flat wrong.” Penry seemed to be talking about Ritter’s years-long push to reduce prisoner recidivism by funding education, job training, and substance abuse prevention programs, which have met with success and have not overridden any parole board decisions.

Katie Redding continued to follow the Republican Party’s internecine warfare in Douglas County, where hard-line conservative activists are skewering union-endorsed GOP candidates in upcoming school board elections. In a race where Republicans are eating Republicans, the point seems to be less about the candidates than it is about the kind of school system. A right-wing GOP would like to install an all-charter school district with no teacher contracts and former U.S. Rep. Bob Schaffer as superintendent in Douglas County. The fight has already attracted a complaint by Colorado Ethics Watch, which accuses one Republican candidate of violating the Hatch Act by engaging in partisan activities while employed by the Defense Department.

 

 

During a carefully scripted press conference, former Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad resigned the presidency of Des Moines University to “fully explore” the possibility of running for the Republican gubernatorial nomination. Chase Martyn carefully examined what Branstad said and, more importantly what he avoided talking about: abortion and same-sex marriage. Martyn parsed Branstad’s move to merely ”explore” the GOP race, which is sure to anger Republican activists. It was one of Branstad’s state Supreme Court appointees who wrote the deciding opinion that legalized same-sex marriage in the state earlier this year. 

After weeks in the spotlight following his now-famous “pull the plug on grandma” quote (first reported by The Iowa Independent’s Jason Hancock in August), it came as no surprise that U.S. Sen. Charles Grassley ended up voting “no” on proposed health care reform legislation when it was under consideration by the Senate Finance Committee. But as Hancock confirmed, the Republican lawmaker’s justification for his opposition pointed to debunked myths that the bills would provide federal coverage for abortions and illegal immigrants as reasons to block reform.  

Jason Hancock noted that local conservative bloggers are butting heads in an online debate over how much influence social conservatives exert in Iowa’s presidential caucus process. The Atlantic’s Marc Ambinder fired up the discussion in a recent column, concluding that “unless you’re beloved by conservative Christians don’t bother campaigning in Iowa.” But this comment drew the ire of conservative blogger and former Republican Party of Iowa Political Director Craig Robinson, who said the argument that  “social conservatives dominate Iowa” just doesn’t carry water historically. GOP strategists have long been warning that the rising dominance of social conservatives in Iowa could result in presidential candidates abandoning the state. Meanwhile, controversial Christian radio host Steve Deace said social conservatives need not apologize for feeling that their first responsibility as voters is to God. “Is there a better basis from which to choose a candidate to support?” he asked.

Hancock also noted an important development in U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley’s planned re-election bid next year: Democrat Roxanne Conlin, a well-known civil rights attorney who says she could likely raise $10 million, states that “more likely than not” she will jump into the race for the Democratic nomination to challenge Grassley. Conlin, who unsuccessfully ran for governor in 1982, has an interesting political profile, personal wealth, and national connections that could make the 2010 race competitive. However, Hancock notes, other Democrats say a Conlin candidacy would do little to energize the grassroots.

 

 

Todd A. Heywood examined the case of Veronica Piochette, a Haslett Public Schools teacher searching for justice following a 2007 incident in which she was allegedly “drunk shamed” at an off-campus party by fellow teachers. The story has rocked the Haslett community and raised serious questions about whether the school took any meaningful action to discipline the teachers who drew lewd words and images on Piochette’s unconscious body at the party. No charges were ever filed by prosecutors in the case, and Haslett school officials didn’t take any action until The Michigan Messenger began its inquiry, more than two years after the incident. The Michigan Department of Civil Rights is now investigating the situation. 

David Alire Garcia, who recently transferred from The New Mexico Independent to The Michigan Messenger, reported from Kalamazoo, on a ballot initiative fight over the city’s anti-discrimination ordinance that is set to go before voters in November. Conservative activists are trying to block Kalamazoo’s ordinance, which outlines specific housing and employment protections for gay and transgender citizens. Anti-ordinance door hangers, flyers, and robocalls have claimed that if the ordinance is adopted, women would be put “at risk” of sharing public restrooms with transgender individuals. One pro-ordinance city commissioner, David Anderson, said he was hopeful the ordinance would be approved, but said he realizes that anti-gay rights forces are determined to draw a line in the sand in Kalamazoo. 

U.S. Rep. Bart Stupak has backed down from legislation he introduced that would have transferred ownership of U.S. Coast Guard land in Cheboygan to a Christian school free of charge, a deal first uncovered by The Michigan Messenger’s Ed Brayton in August. Following Brayton’s report, Stupak, a pro-life Democrat who lives in the now-infamous “C Street” Christian fellowship house near the U.S. Capitol, was informed by Americans United for Separation of Church and State that arranging a gift of federal land to a religious group was unconstitutional. Stupak wrote the group to say he was changing his legislation to offer the land for sale at fair market value. 

Eartha Jane Melzer reported that a University of Michigan study of dioxin contamination in the Saginaw River watershed was paid for by Dow Chemical and carried out by a researcher who has a history of studies conducted for industry interests such as asbestos. Both the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality have said the research, conducted by Dr. David Garabrant, was biased. Nevertheless, the study has been published, raising fears that the university is being used to craft science meant to buffer Dow from looming liability connected to contamination claims.

 

 

Chris Steller was among top traffic earners with his follow up on a claim Rep. Michele Bachmann made to Fox News’ Glenn Beck. The federal government owns or controls 30 percent of private wealth in America, Bachmann said, citing as her source an unnamed Arizona State University professor. Steller tracked down the professor, who said the math behind the claim is an “approximation” and could not be attributed to any published research. Sources also pointed out that the claim is only plausible if you count payments, such as Social Security checks, that the government transfers among citizens but doesn’t actually spend.

Paul Demko was first to get conservative former lawmaker Allen Quist on the record that the Republican hasn’t ruled out a bid to unseat Rep. Tim Walz (DFL) in CD-1 (First Congressional District). Quist served three terms in the state House and made two runs for governor before signing on to work with EdWatch, a conservative advocacy group that champions home schooling and criticizes public school curricula. Historically, the southern Minnesota district has leaned Republican, but Walz won his second term last year by a 30-point margin.

Andy Birkey was first to report that a round of racist, anti-gay election fliers was circulating in Maplewood, targeting city council candidate Jim Llanas. If elected, Llanas would be both the first Latino and first openly gay council member. The flier, which chastises Llanas for his support of gay rights and human rights, has often been found attached to campaign brochures promoting conservative write-in council candidates Dave Hafner and DelRay Rokke, as well as mayoral candidate Ken Smart. Only Smart had acknowledged the flier as of press time, saying he had no knowledge of the its origins, but neither he nor any other candidate denounced it.

Birkey also continued to investigate You Can Run But You Cannot Hide, the controversial punk-rock ministry whose chief supporters include Rep. Michele Bachmann. Birkey looked into the stated beliefs and public positions taken by the ministry’s leader, Bradlee Dean, and found them to be politically problematic. Among Dean’s recent affirmations: President Obama is “not American” and “unpatriotic to the max”; gay men can live no longer than 42 years: alleged Ponzi schemer Tom Petters is being “crucified” like Jesus Christ, and the 1969 NASA moon landing was a hoax. Bachmann’s office hasn’t responded to The Minnesota Independent’s inquiries about Dean’s statements or her involvement in the ministry’s fundraiser, which she is keynoting next month.

 

 

The New Mexico Independent (NMI) team provided full, real-time coverage of a special session of the legislature, which was called to resolve the $660 million budget deficit. Staffers live-blogged the proceedings at the Roundhouse, and Trip Jennings followed up immediately with a report on the reactions of key lawmakers, who uniformly balked at Democratic Gov. Bill Richardson’s requirement that the shortfall be fixed without raising taxes. Some lawmakers proposed updating New Mexico’s corporate tax, Jennings reported, while others introduced plans to track how much money the state loses on tax breaks. Richardson responded with a proposal to cut eduction funding, a measure NMI’s  Matthew Reichbach quickly reported was opposed by more than 80 percent of New Mexicans.

Marjorie Childress interviewed Bernalillo County Sheriff – and former GOP congressional candidate — Darren White, whom Mayor-Elect Richard “R.J.” Berry tapped to be Albuquerque’s new chief public safety officer. Childress noted that the appointment was significant in that Berry used it to make good on his campaign promise to use police officers as de facto immigration agents. Berry had long praised White’s use of such a policy with his deputies, allowing them to use their own discretion in questioning individuals about their residency status. “We need to get these people off our streets,” White told Childress. “I see this as the responsibility of any public safety officer.”

The emergency legislative session continued to dominate the news, and NMI continued to dominate its coverage. Staffers live blogged each day’s key proceedings, earning praise from legislators and competing media, while also creating the only record — public or otherwise — of the session’s events.  

Trip Jennings and Heath Haussamen largely led the coverage of the session’s many budget battles, especially those among Democrats over Gov. Bill Richardson’s demand that the budget not include new taxes. But the team also shed light on a key problem: NMI posted a list of so-called exempt employees whose salaries are often overinflated and account for millions of dollars in the state budget. Soon after posting the list, NMI staffers were inundated with tips indicating that many exempt employees are “double-dippers” — state workers who retired, began drawing their state pensions, and then were rehired – a practice that is legal in New Mexico. Jennings and Marjorie Childress were quick to determine that at least four employees on the list were double-dipping, all senior staffers in the attorney general’s office.

 

GOOD NEWS: 

Prisoners pick apples for Detroit 

Inmates from the Pugsley Correctional Facility near Kingsley picked apples in northern Michigan this week as part of an effort to ensure that this year’s bountiful apple crop is put to good use. 

Lansing priest to receive international peace award

Father Peter Dougherty of Lansing’s Michigan Peace Team is on his way to India to pick up an international award for his lifetime of efforts in the cause of peace. Dougherty, who was featured in the recent Michael Moore film “Capitalism: A Love Story,” leaves next week to receive the International Award for Contributions to the Promotion of Ghandian Values from the Jamnalal Bajaj Foundation.