Friday morning

First of all, Happy Statehood Day. Oklahoma Statehood Day, that is. 100 years old, eh? I still think Oklahoma doesn't look a day over 98.

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TPMmuckraker reports that Dems finally stood up against the Bush machine and voted against telecom immunity--at least in committee. The stakes are probably not what Bush suggests:

"AT&T whistleblower Mark Klein says that the reason isn't to spare the telecoms financial indemnity, or a matter of 'fairness,' as administration officials claim. Rather, it's to stop some 40 class-action suits against the companies from revealing how massive, how domestic and how illegal warrantless surveillance was between 2001 and 2007. Revelations from those suits could even, hypothetically at least, lead to criminal charges against administration officials and telecom companies."

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Martin Schram asks how a Bush/Cheney/Rove campaign would look like if it were run today against a President Clinton (either one) who had allowed bin Laden to get away and then frequently videotape threats and taunts to us from Pakistan (our supposed ally).

"We all know the answer: What Bush-Cheney-Rove and company would have done to either Clinton would have made what they did to one-time Vietnam War POW John McCain, triple-amputee Vietnam veteran Max Cleland and Vietnam Purple Heart medalist John Kerry look like a Crawford, Texas, picnic. They would have accused either Clinton of selling out and ducking out, of cutting and running from the vow to get Osama bin Laden and crush al Qaeda. . . .

"Bush-Cheney-Rove would have had America believing that a President Clinton who had done all of the above had sold America and our Star-Spangled Banner to the terrorists. They would have had us distrusting and despising a president who had been so weak after talking so tough.

"And they would have been right."

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Some more evidence that evangelicals might be shifting politically:

"Evangelicals, particularly younger evangelicals, are undergoing a shift in attitudes. Many have little interest in the self-destructive purity of the prophet or the raw pragmatism of the kingmaker. They remain culturally conservative, but uncomfortable with a harshly judgmental tone in their politics. They find the model of the religious right too narrow and are increasingly motivated by a broader range of social concerns, from disease in Africa, to the environment, to racial reconciliation. And they want to be a witness to these values instead of a tool in the power games of others."

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Now for a bit of humor. Thanks to Jadon for pointing to this piece which suggests I am not the only one who thinks those who love Mel's Passion film AND Bush's torture policy might need to rethink things:

"'The subject of our meeting is crucifixion, or as the crowd is calling it, 'hammer boarding,' Pilate announced. 'There has been an outcry by some that the practice is not worthy of a civilized people and possibly ineffective. Some feel the practice may cause us more trouble in the long run. But are there any options?"