The Young Turks' Cenk Uyger, with our buddy RJ Eskow from Huff Po co-hosting yesterday morning, invoked The BRAD BLOG, calling on us to get to the bottom of Sanjaya's removal from American Idol. We're on it.

The most valuable takeaway from the entire U.S. Attorney Purge scandal will likely prove to have been the exposure of the long-perpetuated GOP "voter fraud" scam. The scheme has been been so pervasive for so long, but the coverage of it has been largely contained to blogs like ours.

In the interim, the MSM coverage of the issue had been given over to the well-funded Republican propaganda machine which had detailed the phony claims of "voter fraud" as if they were legitimate.

The result, as designed, were calls for restrictive Voter ID legislation at the polling place, an effort that was successful in a number of states. After all, as the Republican snakeoil salesmen oft-repeated, "you need an ID to get on a plane, to cash a check, why not to vote?"

It was a difficult line to refute on its face, but it was built on lies, disinformation, and attempts by this White House and this Republican party to wage an unprecedented effort to keep any portion of the 10 to 30 million Americans (mostly Dem-leaning) without photo ID's (many even without birth certificates!) from being able to cast a vote.

The U.S. Attorney Purge scandal has helped to reveal the insidious scheme, opening it up for everyone to see by helping to expose the slimy, well-funded campaign for what it really is: little more than a broadly-waged, party-funded, voter suppression ploy.

Scores of MSM articles and columns over the past week or two have finally helped expose this scam to the public, and the likes of vote-suppression operative Thor Hearne's well-financed, systematic, White House-run "non-partisan" American Center for Voting Rights (ACVR) has, for now, slithered back underground.

Much of the MSM coverage to date has repeated what BRAD BLOG readers already know since we've been covering it for so long. But there are a couple of notable must-read exceptions recently which move many of these inter-related stories forward several moves...

NPR's Morning Edition reported yesterday that Douglas Feith, the Bush Administration's former Under Secretary of Defense for Policy, has a new job since leaving the Pentagon. Apparently he's busy rewriting history as a professor at Georgetown University.

In apparent and extreme denial, one of the main Neocon architects for Bush's failed war had the following extraordinary exchange with host Steve Inskeep (who, unfortunately, didn't correct the record, so we guess we'll have to) concerning the rationale for going to War in Iraq. Feith turned downright indignant when Inskeep suggested that there were analysts who didn't see Saddam Hussein as a threat before the war...

"Nobody saying that"?! Really? Here's just two of them for a start. Names that Mr. Feith might be familiar with:

"[F]rankly, [the sanctions on Iraq] have worked. He has not developed any significant capability with respect to weapons of mass destruction. He is unable to project conventional power against his neighbors."
- Colin Powell, February 24, 2001

"But in terms of Saddam Hussein being there, let's remember that his country is divided, in effect. He does not control the northern part of his country. We are able to keep arms from him. His military forces have not been rebuilt."
- Condoleeza Rice, July 29, 2001

What planet do these Bush dead-enders live on, anyway?! Amazing.

Yes, he seems to have a straight face during this exchange.

GONZALES: "With respect to voter fraud...as someone who grew up in a poor neighborhood, the one day when we equaled everyone else was on Election Day. And so I really appreciate how important the right to vote is."

But it it gets even worse than that. Hold onto your lunch and click the PLAY button...

Video courtesy of Paul Kiel at TPMMucker, who has a few more thoughts on what a frickin' joke this particular Gonzo Moment was... As if all regular readers of The BRAD BLOG don't know it already by heart.

Guest Blogged by Alan Breslauer

Note from Brad: Holy cow...

*** Special to The BRAD BLOG
*** by D.C. Correspondent Margie Burns

Today I sat in on the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing, “Department of Justice Oversight,” part of which Brad posted about, earlier. The solo witness was Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, covering some by-now familiar ground in the matter of those questionable firings of US Attorneys in seven of 93 districts. In spite of some repetitive questioning, primarily by Charles Schumer (D-NY), the day was actually enlightening.

First, the hearing further indicated the direct White House connection suggested earlier by Brad. Gonzales is still in a position where he cannot speak freely about Bush, even if he wanted to do so. But even Gonzales’ measured and cautious answers to questions were revealing. Senator Patrick Leahy (D-VT), chair of Judiciary, led off by asking whether Gonzales had had any conversations about the US Attorneys with White House senior advisor Karl Rove. Answer: yes, in fall 2006 Gonzales had a conversation with Rove about USAs, regarding “voter fraud” in three districts – New Mexico, Milwaukee, and Philadelphia....

Guest Blogged by John Gideon of VotersUnite.org

In written testimony presented to the US House Information Policy, Census, and National Archives Subcommittee, Government Accountability Office representative Randolph Hite said in part:

That story, and many other voting related stories from today, all linked below...

[NOTE: SEVERAL UPDATES NOW ADDED INCLUDE ADDITIONAL DETAILS]

One quick observation concerning Gonzales's sorry "don't attack our troops" defense, and another --- much more important note --- on a so far unreported aspect of the U.S. Attorney Purge scandal that seems to reach straight into the White House and about which someone on the Senate Judiciary Committee needs to ask some questions.

First, just the observation that Gonzales has been continuously suggesting today that questioning him is actually an attack on the career attorneys at DoJ. Nothing could be more disingenuous, yet familiar as a now-routine defense for this bunch. The reprehensible defense is identical to the oft-employed White House/GOP response to criticism of George W. Bush's handling of the Iraq War. "Stop attacking our troops!" they say, whenever someone is critical of Bush's horrendous war management.

Gonzales's "Stop attacking our career DoJ attorneys!" defense is no different and equally as disingenuous, particularly considering the now-long documented history that this White House has for its unprecedented politicization of the DoJ, its direct attacks on career attorneys in the civil rights division and elsewhere, its overruling of positions of those employees by Bush's political appointees, and so much more.

Thankfully, just before the lunch break, Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) pointed out exactly that, and likewise compared it to the "Stop attacking our troops!" defense. It brought a round of applause from the audience in the room. (UPDATE: TPMMuckracker now has video of the exchange.)

Secondly, but certainly of far more importance, there is the so far ignored --- yet as I see it, direct --- connection to the White House concerning the firing of Arkansas U.S. Attorney Bud Cummins...

For those linking in from Joe Conason's NY Observer column today on the GOP's phony "voter fraud" claims in general, and the very real voter fraud committed by Republican celebrity Ann Coulter... Here's our Special Coverage page on Coulter's felony, which offers a great deal of documentation, including her felonious Florida Voter Registration Application from 2005.

You'll certainly find what you're looking for quicker than Palm Beach County's Election Supervisor has been able to find a law enforcement official in Florida willing to bring charges against the powerful Republican, despite the dead-to-rights evidence against her.

Color us stunned that George W. Bush's U.S. Attorney down there hasn't found fit to bring a case, since we all know how eager they were to send Democrats to jail (or even deport them) for such things --- even when the "crime" was accidentally committed...unlike the clearly purposeful and fraudulent efforts of Coulter.

Guest Blogged by John Gideon of VotersUnite.org

The Associated Press reports:

That voting news story, and many others from today, all linked below...

RAW STORY has just posted an anonymous letter sent from "A Group of Concerned Department of Justice Employees" to the chairs of both the House and Senate Judiciary Committees detailing their concerns about the politicization and "litmus" test applied to hiring of new career employees, and even interns, at DoJ.

The two-page letter as posted at RAW is somewhat difficult to read, so here is a PDF of that letter if useful.

We're trying to catch up, as time allows, on a number of important items from the last few days and weeks which travel, various background work and deadlines of late have kept us from covering. The following is one of those items (with more to come) and relates to the anonymous letter mentioned above.

We've reported, in a number of stories, how the unprecedented politicization of the Dept. of Justice via the U.S. Attorney purge, and related actions, were meant to influence elections. From the upcoming 2008 Election (here) to the 2004 and 2006 elections (a few examples are here, here, here, here and here.)

An important editorial from Joseph D. Rich, the chief of the voting section in the Justice Department's civil right division from 1999 to 2005, was published a few weeks ago by the LA Times but fell through the cracks (as so much has of late) in the busy last couple of weeks. We didn't get to cover it originally, but want to make sure we do.

Rich speaks to much of what we'd reported long ago in late 2005, when few were paying attention to this issue, about the Administration's work in gutting the beloved, 40-year old Voting Rights Act by political contravention of of consensus opinions of career civil rights attorneys at DoJ.

After revealing the tip of the iceberg of the DoJ's corrupt electoral gamesmanship, Rich concludes that "As the 2008 elections approach, it is critical to have a Justice Department that approaches its responsibility to all eligible voters without favor."

Indeed, he details several points that we've reported here over the last several years, but from his insider, first-hand eyewitness experience.

His enlightening op/ed, exposes how the Bush Administration --- for the first time in Rich's 35 years devoted to civil rights law enforcement at DoJ --- politicized and gamed every aspect of the job and the civil/voting rights division for solely partisan purposes. It begins this way...

Look, I hate to keep banging this same drum, but someone needs to.

While the American media continue their infatuation with the horrible shootings at VTech on Monday where 33 students were killed, the carnage continues, several times over, every single day in Iraq. Never mind all that "signs say that the surge is working" bullshit you've been hearing from wingnuts and repeated in the Mainstream Media. It doesn't seem to be doing anything of the kind.

233 were killed or found dead across Iraq today (Wednesday) in a country of 27.5 million.

183 of them were killed in a single car combing incident in the exact same marketplace where 137 were killed at once in a February bombing the month before last.

That follows 85 killed or found dead on Tuesday, 51 killed on Monday, and 65 killed on Sunday (when 20 police officers were also taken captive).

None of that takes away from the tragedy of the 33 killed on Monday at Virginia Tech. But in the United States, a country of more than 300 million, where such mass killings are exceedingly rare --- versus horrifically daily occurrences, year after year after bloody year on end in a country less than one-tenth the size of the U.S. --- one might think the American Mainstream Media would finally pause to take a serious review of the way in which they cover news events.

In case you feel, as one emailer suggested to me, that Americans seem to view the lives of non-American citizens as somewhat less valuable than those of American citizens, I'll also remind you that the killings in Iraq --- though you wouldn't necessarily know it based on American news coverage --- also result in dead Americans.

Some 3,312 American troops have now been killed in Iraq.

3,312.

To date, George W. Bush has failed to attend even one funeral, or ordered flags lowered to half-staff for a single one of them.

Leading me to ask again...At what point does the entire debacle become a criminal action? I suspect that point occurs just as soon as the Mainstream Media realizes that it is, and begins to regard the murders of U.S. Troops and Iraqi Civilians in the same light they view the VTech murders.

Perhaps Nancy Grace can make an honorable woman of herself yet. But I seriously doubt she will.

Prior to the Easter Congressional recess, there was a great deal of speculation as to why the scheduled mark-up for the Holt Election Reform Bill (HR811) had been delayed until after recess in the U.S. House Administration Committee.

Among reasons for the delay, The BRAD BLOG had heard from various Hill staffers that chairwoman Juanita Millender-McDonald (D-CA) had come down with the flu. Another staffer said the issue was due to a failure by Microsoft to present promised information on problems with the software disclosure portions of the bill. Some Election Integrity activists had attributed the postponement to their phone and fax campaign warning lawmakers about perceived dangers in the bill.

While we've been unable to confirm that any of those reasons specifically caused delay of mark-up for the controversial bill, The Hill is reporting today that Millender-McDonald has been diagnosed with cancer and will now be taking a leave of absence through late May...

Uh, oh...Anybody seen Dick Cheney lately?

Apropos of our earlier post today...

Not sure why everyone is so upset about the VTech shootings. After all, many parts of America are stable now. But, of course, what we see on television is this one shooting and everybody gets discouraged.

We're not alone in this school of thought, of course...

Laura Bush, Feb. 26, 2007:

BTW, Laura's numbers may be somewhat off. Brookings Institute's latest data, as of Nov. 2006, puts the number of insurgent and militia attacks at 185 a day, instead of just one...

...Still, turn that frown upside-down, Negative Nellies!

(Hat-tip Think Progress.)

UPDATE: 85 killed or found dead in Iraq on Tuesday...
UPDATE 4/18/07: 233 killed of found dead in Iraq on Wednesday...