[Update: Jon Stewart’s routine on the press conference is perfect.]

Wow! The White House Press Corps finally gets some backbone. This afternoon journalists actually asked pointed questions of White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan at a press briefing. The principle subject was Karl Rove, the top political aide to President George Bush and whether the White House will honor its pledge to: fire anyone involved in the leak of a name of a CIA operative. The exchange went like this:

QUESTION: Does the President stand by his pledge to fire anyone involved in the leak of a name of a CIA operative?

McCLELLAN: Terry, I appreciate your question. I think your question is being asked relating to some reports that are in reference to an ongoing criminal investigation. The criminal investigation that you reference is something that continues at this point. And as I’ve previously stated, while that investigation is ongoing, the White House is not going to comment on it. The President directed the White House to cooperate fully with the investigation, and as part of cooperating fully with the investigation, we made a decision that we weren’t going to comment on it while it is ongoing.

QUESTION: Excuse me, but I wasn’t actually talking about any investigation. But in June of 2004, the President said that he would fire anybody who was involved in this leak, to press of information. And I just want to know, is that still his position?

McCLELLAN: Yes, but this question is coming up in the context of this ongoing investigation, and that’s why I said that our policy continues to be that we’re not going to get into commenting on an ongoing criminal investigation from this podium. The prosecutors overseeing the investigation had expressed a preference to us that one way to help the investigation is not to be commenting on it from this podium. And so that’s why we are not going to get into commenting on it while it is an ongoing investigation, or questions related to it.

QUESTION: Scott, if I could — if I could point out, contradictory to that statement, on September 29th, 2003, while the investigation was ongoing, you clearly commented on it. You were the first one who said, if anybody from the White House was involved, they would be fired. And then on June 10th of 2004, at Sea Island Plantation, in the midst of this investigation is when the President made his comment that, yes, he would fire anybody from the White House who was involved. So why have you commented on this during the process of the investigation in the past, but now you’ve suddenly drawn a curtain around it under the statement of, “We’re not going to comment on an ongoing investigation”?

McCLELLAN: Again, John, I appreciate the question. I know you want to get to the bottom of this. No one wants to get to the bottom of it more than the President of the United States. And I think the way to be most helpful is to not get into commenting on it while it is an ongoing investigation. That’s something that the people overseeing the investigation have expressed a preference that we follow. And that’s why we’re continuing to follow that approach and that policy.

Now, I remember very well what was previously said. And at some point, I will be glad to talk about it, but not until after the investigation is complete.

QUESTION: So could I just ask, when did you change your mind to say that it was okay to comment during the course of an investigation before, but now it’s not?

McCLELLAN: Well, I think maybe you missed what I was saying in reference to Terry’s question at the beginning. There came a point when the investigation got underway when those overseeing the investigation asked that it would be their — or said that it would be their preference that we not get into discussing it while it is ongoing. I think that’s the way to be most helpful to help them advance the investigation and get to the bottom of it.

QUESTION: Scott, can I ask you this; did Karl Rove commit a crime?

McCLELLAN: Again, David, this is a question relating to an ongoing investigation, and you have my response related to the investigation. And I don’t think you should read anything into it other than we’re going to continue not to comment on it while it’s ongoing.

QUESTION: Do you stand by your statement from the fall of 2003 when you were asked specifically about Karl and Elliott Abrams and Scooter Libby, and you said, “I’ve gone to each of those gentlemen, and they have told me they are not involved in this” — do you stand by that statement?

McCLELLAN: And if you will recall, I said that as part of helping the investigators move forward on the investigation we’re not going to get into commenting on it. That was something I stated back near that time, as well.

QUESTION: Scott, I mean, just — I mean, this is ridiculous. The notion that you’re going to stand before us after having commented with that level of detail and tell people watching this that somehow you decided not to talk. You’ve got a public record out there. Do you stand by your remarks from that podium, or not?

McCLELLAN: And again, David, I’m well aware, like you, of what was previously said, and I will be glad to talk about it at the appropriate time. The appropriate time is when the investigation —

QUESTION: Why are you choosing when it’s appropriate and when it’s inappropriate?

McCLELLAN: If you’ll let me finish —

QUESTION: No, you’re not finishing — you’re not saying anything. You stood at that podium and said that Karl Rove was not involved. And now we find out that he spoke out about Joseph Wilson’s wife. So don’t you owe the American public a fuller explanation? Was he involved, or was he not? Because, contrary to what you told the American people, he did, indeed, talk about his wife, didn’t he?

McCLELLAN: David, there will be a time to talk about this, but now is not the time to talk about it.

QUESTION: Do you think people will accept that, what you’re saying today?

McCLELLAN: Again, I’ve responded to the question.

Go ahead, Terry.

QUESTION: Well, you’re in a bad spot here, Scott, because after the investigation began, after the criminal investigation was underway, you said — October 10th, 2003, “I spoke with those individuals, Rove, Abrams and Libby, as I pointed out, those individuals assured me they were not involved in this.” From that podium. That’s after the criminal investigation began. Now that Rove has essentially been caught red-handed peddling this information, all of a sudden you have respect for the sanctity of the criminal investigation?

McCLELLAN: No, that’s not a correct characterization Terry, and I think you are well aware of that. We know each other very well, and it was after that period that the investigators had requested that we not get into commenting on an ongoing criminal investigation. And we want to be helpful so that they can get to the bottom of this, because no one wants to get to the bottom of it more than the President of the United States. I am well aware of what was said previously. I remember well what was said previously. And at some point, I look forward to talking about it. But until the investigation is complete, I’m just not going to do that.

There’s much more, be sure to read it all.

My Soundtrack: The Man Of Metropolis by Sufjan Stevens on WOXY.

Back on 14 June I first talked about the Electronic Frontier Foundation and its Legal Guide For Bloggers. Today while surfing Dan Gilmor’s blog on the Bayosphere, I came across an invitation to a BayFF on Bloggers’ Rights and thought it would make a good topic for one of our Cleveland Blogger Meetups. The next meeting is Wednesday, 20 July. For time and location, join the meetup group.

I know of at least two attornys — Tim Russo of Democracy Guy and Stephanie of It’s The End Of The World As We Know It — among local bloggers. I’m sure there has to be more that I’m not aware of. Anyone out there who’d like to step forward and offer legal insights for bloggers?

My Soundtrack: World Leader Pretend by R.E.M. on WOXY.

What could be more American than a Miss America? Certainly not the Bentonville Behemoth. Carolyn Sapp, Miss America 1992, is the face for Wal Mart Versus Women. Be sure to watch the excerpt from the organization’s television documentary.

My Soundtrack: Hoist That Rag by Tom Waits on WOXY.

Compliments of my dad comes the 2005 Darwin awards. [Warning, these may be copycats.] At No. 1 we get: When his 38-caliber revolver failed to fire at his intended victim during a holdup in Long Beach, California, would be robber James Elliot did something that can only inspire wonder. He peered down the barrel… Here are the rest.

Remember how much time we spent on President Bill Clinton’s parsing of the word is and whether or not oral sex counted as sex? Well, here’s an example — courtesy of Micahel Isikoff’s Matt Cooper’s Source in the 18 July issue of Newsweek — of how a real weasel works. When CNN asked Karl Rove about the Valerie Plame case last summer, here’s what he said:

I didn’t know her name. I didn’t leak her name.

The person interviewing Rove messed up. The interviewer should have been paying attention to what Rove said and followed up with: Mr. Rove, did you leak her identity? If that question had been asked we wouldn’t have had to wait until now to know the truth:

Karl Rove outed Valerie Plame. And under Title 50, Chapter 15, Subchapter IV, Section 421, paragraph (a), Rove is guilty of a Federal crime punishable by up to 10 years in prison.

Rove, through his lawyer, Robert Luskin, is wiggling as fast as he can on the name thing, but the law punishes those offenders if the information disclosed so identifies a covert agent. Names are not necessary. According to Isiskoff, Rove told Time Magazine correspondent Matt Cooper:

…not to get too far out on Wilson. Rove told Cooper that Wilson’s trip had not been authorized by DCIA –CIA Director George Tenet-or Vice President Dick Cheney.

Rather, it was, KR said, Wilson’s wife, who apparently works at the agency on wmd [weapons of mass destruction] issues who authorized the trip. Wilson’s wife is Plame, then an undercover agent working as an analyst in the CIA’s Directorate of Operations counterproliferation division. (Cooper later included the essence of what Rove told him in an online story.)

Since Valerie Plame is clearly listed as Joseph Wilson’s wife in Who’s Who In America, Rove clearly provided her identity.

The puzzling question is why did Rove give Cooper permission to reveal his source? And if he is the same source as that used by The New York Times’ Judith Miller, why didn’t she get the same permission?

In his pentultimatge paragraphy, Isikoff offers one potential insight into those questions:

A source close to Rove, who declined to be identified because he did not wish to run afoul of the prosecutor or government investigators, added that there was “absolutely no inconsistency” between Cooper’s e-mail and what Rove has testified to during his three grand-jury appearances in the case.

“A fair reading of the e-mail makes clear that the information conveyed was not part of an organized effort to disclose Plame’s identity, but was an effort to discourage Time from publishing things that turned out to be false,” the source said, referring to claims in circulation at the time that Cheney and high-level CIA officials arranged for Wilson’s trip to Africa.

So which will come first, the indictment or the pardon? Or do you suppose, just suppose, that President George Bush will leave turd blossum swinging in the wind?

My Soundtrack: Kidding On The Square by Tsunami on WOXY.

In My Backpack… Women’s Reality by Anne Wilson Schaef; In My Car… Naked Prey by John Sanford; On My Nightstand… Joseph Andrews and Shamela by Henry Fielding; On My Computer… Cherish by Raymond Carver; On My Screen… Mr. Monk Goes To Jail (**) directed by Jerry Levine and written by Chris Manheim .

My Soundtrack: El Manana by Gorillaz on WOXY.

Somebody needs to get Chris Rock to remake this routine in Arabic, because obviously Iraqi citizens don’t understand how occupation works. At least that’s my take on this statement made by Iraq’s Prime Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari when he criticized U.S. military personnel for shooting at Iraqi citizens when they act suspiciously around check points. He said.

…such cases should be handled in a civilized way, such as shooting at tires instead of passengers.

Shooting at tires? The man is smoking something very serious.

I’ve fired an M-16. In a prone position with a good rest I can put a six-inch group in the middle of a stationary man-target at more than 100 yards. But in a combat situation, forget about it. It’s hold down the trigger and rock’n’roll.

If I were driving around Baghdad, or anywhere in Iraq for that matter, I’d carefully follow Rock’s advice so as to not get my ass shot off.

Thanks to my friend John Pike for the link.

My Soundtrack. The Blue Around You by Benzos on WOXY.

This has to be the most genius promotion for a lame movie every conceived. Are you really ready for Wedding Crasher starring Vince Vaughn and me, Jeff Hess? Put down your coffee. If at all possible, make sure you’re alone so that you don’t embarrass yourself more than I already have. I’ll never live this down.

My Soundtrack: Bees by Caribou on WOXY.

OK. This is just getting too creepy. Katie Holmes now has a Scientologist chaperon to tell her how she feels about Tom Cruise? This woman is 26 and, presumably, pulling down at least a six-figure income. You’d think she’d be able to afford a top rate psychologist to help escape from this insanity. Oh. Wait. I’m sorry. Tom thinks psychologists are evil. What Ms. Holmes needs is a deprogrammer like the one who snapped Kate Winslet out of it in Holy Smoke.

My Soundtrack: Precious Things by Tori Amos on WOXY.

Chris Muir’s Day By Day is one of my daily comic reads. He deserves to be there going toe-to-toe with Gary Trudeau.

My Soundtrack: Big Gun by Ruby Vileos on WOXY.

[Update — The Sunday Times in Leaked No 10 dossier reveals Al-Qaeda”s British recruits even more strongly makes the case that financial poverty is not the key factor in creating a terrorist. Be sure to click through and read the PDFs of the Cabinet documents. The key quote?

In addition . . . a significant number come from liberal, non-religious Muslim backgrounds or (are) only converted to Islam in adulthood. These converts include white British nationals and those of West Indian extraction. (Emphasis mine.)

OK. How are you going to profile that?]

This morning as I was reading my friend Dan Wismar’s Wizblog I came across: Root Causes Rear Their Ugly Heads. I’m afraid that my comment is much longer than Dan’s original post. But I spent so much time on it that I thought I ought to post it here as well. What I wrote [full disclosure, I have made some changes for the sake of clarity) was:

Poverty is the root cause of Terrorism. But not in the way most people think of it.

Terrorism is power projection by those who do not have access to the accepted or conventional means of conflict resolution as defined by the dominant society.

Osama bin Laden and his peers obviously do not suffer from financial poverty. Even as cheap as they are on the world market, buying Kalashnikovs and rocket-propelled grenades still requires money.

Financial poverty helps to recruit some people, but it is not what drives them. The driving force is a poverty of control in their personal lives and a personal belief that their paradigm for recovering that control is, in fact, the Truth.

Anytime an individual believes they have come into possession of the Truth, then using terrorism as a power projection tool becomes not only possible, but likely. Believing in the Truth leads to a faulty perception that reality can be broken down into Truth and Not Truth, Black and White, Us and Them. Once someone reaches that point, they can justify anything.

Opposing someone who believes themselves to be in possession of Truth only reinforces their belief. Opponents are immediately seen as the force of Not Truth and must be fought with whatever tools come to hand to defend Truth. My point here is not that they should not be oppossed, but rather that such oppossition will not convince them to alter their concept of Truth.

The short-term tactic of dealing with terrorists by force will not solve the problem in the long run. Yes, when you”re under attack, you eliminate that immediate threat by using all force available. But when the immediate threat has passed, you have to look at from where that threat arose.

In the long-term, we can only create an environment that allows Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness to flourish by fostering individuals” ability to enjoy those inalienable rights. And the surest way to do that is to agree that profit, in any form, at the expense of another creates a power imbalance.

When two individuals, groups or nations participate in a free and open exchange of resources, all parties are satisfied and are encouraged to participate in future exchanges. However, when one party exploits another, then satisfaction is not present and not only are future exchanges discouraged, but a need to right the wrong is engendered.

When we create economies that encourage a poverty of control we lay the groundwork for those with The Truth to indiscriminately slaughter the unbelievers.

My Soundtrack: Splinters by Sparta on WOXY.

Forget the Raging Grannies, I have visions of a hoard of Miss Periwinkle clones advancing on Wal Mart with rulers raised high. OK, it’s just a fantasy, but the National Education Association has endorsed a campaign to encourage shoppers to buy school supplies from stores other than Wal Mart.

My Soundtrack: Legendary by Lou Barlow on WOXY.

Oh my goddess. My friend Colette is going to blow a gasket. In Bumper Stickers: Lightening Rods For The Righteous!, PZ Meyers tells how police stop a car with a pro-Paganism bumper sticker so that Tony Stewart, a volunteer police officer along for the ride, could be at the places where God would have me to be and at the right time.

In My Backpack… Women’s Reality by Anne Wilson Schaef; In My Car… Naked Prey by John Sanford; On My Nightstand… Joseph Andrews and Shamela by Henry Fielding; On My Computer… Trees by W. S. Merwin; On My Screen… Mr. Monk Goes To Jail (**) directed by Jerry Levine and written by Chris Manheim .

My Soundtrack: Spell by Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds on WOXY.

I moved to Cleveland Heights, Ohio, in the fall of 1984. I attended my first Cain Park Arts Festival the following year and haven’t missed one since. The last few years have been disappointing for me. There seemed to less and less of what I would call Fine Art and more and more crafty/arty stuff. And jewelry, way too much jewelry.

After a walk-through Friday afternoon, I was so convinced that this year is exponentially different that I felt compelled to return (partially because I saw something I wanted to buy) on Saturday for a second, slower stroll. And to blog it.

This afternoon I brought my laptop and a clipboard. I had to push my way through a much larger than usual crowd of petition gatherers and Lee-Road employees passing out flyers and coupons. Once in side, I used the list of artists and booths (not entirely accurate by the way) to move slowly through the tents taking note of those that drew me inside.

This is how I gauge art shows. If I stop outside a booth it gets a one. If I go inside a booth, it gets a two. Last year I did not go inside a single booth. This year, I was initially drawn into 10. (I added an 11th at the end of the show, but more on that later.)

It may have been a sign that when I walked through the Lee Road entrance to the park I was captured by the red, blue and yellow, especially the yellow, pottery of Rodney Lemonier (Booth No. 1) from Evening Shade (what a great name for a town), Arkansas. Lemonier has been making pottery and glazes for more than 30 years. You might think from his name that the startling yellow came somehow from his name. It didn”t. It’s called Jenny’s Yellow.

The story goes like this. Lemonier”s daughter came home from college to announce that she wanted yellow for her wedding. When he told his daughter, “Honey, you know I don”t do yellow,” she responded, “You”ve got nine months, dad.”

More inside…

The Plain Dealer is sitting on two big stories based on illegally leaked information. Editor Doug Clifton told Editor & Publisher: The reporters say, ‘Well, we’re willing to go to jail,’ and I’m willing to go to jail if it gets laid on me, but the newspaper isn’t willing to go to jail. That’s what the lawyers have told us. This is indeed a sad day for Journalism.

[Update No. 6 — Bill from Callahan’s Cleveland Diary thinks Clifton is saying that:

The press should be able to break the law by publishing classified documents or violating court-ordered confidentiality as we see fit, without fearing prosecution.

I don’t think Clifton is saying that at all, and I say so in my comment to Bill’s post.]

[Update No. 5 — Blogger Chris Joseph at Sauceruney calls the Plain Dealer spineless.]

[Update No. 4 — I’ve spent the afternoon blogging from the Cain Park Arts Festival. In between conversations and observations, I’ve been thinking about what Clifton did when he outed the lawyers and management on the two stories he’s sitting on. He could have leaked the story to any one of a few dozen reporters here or nationally and stayed anonymous. But he didn’t. He stated a simple fact in a signed editorial and let the chips falls. Not quite heroic, but not fully chicken shit either.]

[Update No. 3 — Tim and George throw down the Chicken-Shit gauntlet:

Brewed Fresh Daily and Democracy Guy, two Cleveland blogs, hereby take up Doug Clifton”s invitation to call him a chicken shit. Hey Doug. You”re a chicken shit.

But we”ll go one step further. We”ll take the story. If you”re an interested PD reporter, sitting on this story, contact us via email, tjrusso@gmail.com, or george@brewedfreshdaily.com. We”ll print it in its entirety.]

[Update No. 2 — The New York Times has weighed in.]

[Update No. 1 — Tim and George are also on the story.]

Toyota decided to build its $800 million plant in Woodstock, Ontario, only 318 miles from Cleveland. The plant will employ 1,300 workers in real jobs paying real wages with real benefits. (As opposed to someone fantasizing about creating 1,800 sort-of jobs paying minimum wage or not much better.)

Why did Woodstock get the new plant and not Cleveland? Was Cleveland ever under consideration? Was Mayor Jane Campbell or anyone at city hall — or in Columbus, for that matter — even aware of the project?

Here’s what Steve Ervin at Canadian Broadcast News had to say:

The factory will cost $800 million to build, with the federal and provincial governments kicking in $125 million of that to help cover research, training and infrastructure costs.

“The educational level and the skill level of the people down there is so much lower than it is in Ontario,” Gerry Fedchun, president of the Automotive Parts Manufacturers’ Association said.

Well, how about Cleveland’s educational and skill levels? How many well-trained and experienced auto workers are there in Cuyahoga County? Seems there a little matter of health care.

In addition to lower training costs, Canadian workers are also $4 to $5 cheaper to employ partly thanks to the taxpayer-funded health-care system in Canada, said federal Industry Minister David Emmerson. Most people don’t think of our health-care system as being a competitive advantage, he said.

And Cleveland’s competitive advantage is more Wal Marts?

My Soundtrack: Absolute Reality by The Alarm on WOXY Vintage.