Rove: Will someone tell Woodward that I?m not in Washington?

posted at 1:21 pm on February 21, 2013 by Ed Morrissey

It?s been a tough week in public relations for Karl Rove. First, the Tea Party Patriots objected to Rove?s criticism of extreme rhetoric from grassroots organizations by, er, putting him in a Nazi uniform in an e-mail ? for which they apologized, but not before making Rove?s case.? At nearly the same time, Bob Woodward painted Rove?s efforts to find prepared Republican candidates as an attempt to create an establishment ?politburo? within the GOP, which Rove angrily denounced on Fox?s Hannity last night:

Karl Rove is defending his new super PAC?s intention to get involved in primaries, and criticized Bob Woodward?s assertion that he was creating a ?politburo.?

?[Bob] Woodward goes on Fox News Sunday and calls me a member of the Politburo,? Rove said on Fox News? ?Hannity.? ?The last time I checked the Politburo was the ruling body of the Soviet Communist party and oversaw the extermination of tens of millions of people and during the Cold War threatened the United States with nuclear annihilation and just because Woodward is a center-left journalist, he can get away with calling me a communist and nobody is bothered by this.?

Woodward was critical of Rove?s new super PAC, the Conservative Victory Project, during his Sunday appearance, arguing it was against Republican traditions.

?You?re going to set yourself up as a kind of Politburo vetting these candidates,? Woodward said. ?I mean, the whole theory of Republicanism is to let the local, state or district decide.?

I?m afraid I don?t know what Woodward is talking about here.? Rove didn?t invent the independent PAC, not even within the GOP.? Both parties have a number of outside groups that provide funding to candidates in primaries and general elections.? Rove may be better organized than most, but it?s not a novelty, and since it?s not part of the Republican Party, it?s not a politburo, either ? not even figuratively.

Maybe Woodward missed this for the last hundred cycles or so, but politicians who want to seek higher office are often judged on their effectiveness in interceding in primaries.? In fact, that?s practically a fantasy league for earlier presidential handicapping.? The local and state voters decide, but neither Republicans nor Democrats have ever been non-interventionists when it comes to flexing political muscle at any level.? Woodward has confused governing principles with election principles.

Frankly, I don?t get the angst over Rove?s PAC.? No one is forced to contribute to his PAC, so the people sending him cash must appreciate his efforts, as do the candidates receiving the donations.? Those who dislike Rove?s choices can organize for other candidates.? It?s no different than what has transpired in every election in recent memory, and it?s not the same as having official party orgs like the NRSC intervene in primary contests, which really is an establishment-control issue.

Here?s the full clip from Rove?s appearance last night, courtesy of Mediaite. Does the revelation that Rove spent nearly $6 million in support of Richard Mourdock last year temper any hard feelings over Rove?s new direction?

Source: http://hotair.com/archives/2013/02/21/rove-will-someone-tell-woodward-that-im-not-in-washington/

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Aaron Swartz Prosecutors Weighed 'Guerilla' Manifesto, Justice Official Tells Congressional Committee

A Justice Department representative told congressional staffers during a recent briefing on the computer fraud prosecution of Internet activist Aaron Swartz that Swartz's "Guerilla Open Access Manifesto" played a role in the prosecution, sources told The Huffington Post.

Swartz's 2008 manifesto said sharing information was a "moral imperative" and advocated for "civil disobedience" against copyright laws pushed by corporations "blinded by greed" that led to the "privatization of knowledge."

"We need to take information, wherever it is stored, make our copies and share them with the world. We need to take stuff that's out of copyright and add it to the archive," Swartz wrote in the manifesto. "We need to buy secret databases and put them on the Web. We need to download scientific journals and upload them to file sharing networks. We need to fight for Guerilla Open Access."

The "Manifesto," Justice Department representatives told congressional staffers, demonstrated Swartz's malicious intent in downloading documents on a massive scale.

Swartz was 26 when he killed himself in January. He had been indicted by federal prosecutors in 2011 for downloading millions of academic journal articles from the nonprofit online database JSTOR using the Massachusetts Institute of Technology computer network. He faced a felony conviction and prison sentence for downloading the articles, though he maintained he had permission to access them.

The briefing for congressional staffers on the House Oversight Committee was led by Steven Reich, an associate deputy attorney general. Reich did not respond to a request for comment.

Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) and Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.), the leading Republican and Democrat on the committee, are jointly investigating prosecutors' handling of the Swartz case. Family, friends and supporters of Swartz have said they believe the aggressive prosecution played a role in his suicide. The U.S. attorney for Massachusetts, Carmen Ortiz, has defended her staff members assigned to the case.

Reich told congressional staffers that the Justice Department believed federal prosecutors acted in a reasonable manner, according to the sources. He also made clear that prosecutors were in part influenced by wanting to deter others from committing similar offenses.

When considering punishment, courts are supposed to impose an ?adequate deterrence to criminal conduct" under federal statute. Swartz's "Manifesto," prosecutors said they believed, made clear that he intended to share the academic articles widely.

Reich told congressional staffers that prosecutors offered Swartz a plea bargain early in the case that would have given him a three-month prison sentence in exchange for a guilty plea to a felony, according to three sources with knowledge of the briefing who would not agree to be quoted by name. Reich told the staffers that the plea deal would allow Swartz's lawyers to argue to a judge that Swartz didn't deserve a prison sentence.

Some congressional staffers left the briefing with the impression that prosecutors believed they needed to convict Swartz of a felony that would put him in jail for a short sentence in order to justify bringing the charges in the first place, according to two aides with knowledge of the briefing.

Need help? In the U.S., call 1-800-273-8255 for the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline.

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Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/02/22/aaron-swartz-prosecutors_n_2735675.html

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Crio Bru: Cocoa-based chocolate-like drink | Melissa McEwen on ...

?I have a complicated relationship with coffee because I seem to be very sensitive to it. Even if I drink it regularly, it seems to make me a bit jittery at times. I reserve it for days I really need an edge in productivity. Other days I drink tea. I used to not be able to tolerate coffee at all because it upset my stomach, but I figured out thanks to reader Mike White that I could drink paper-filtered, but not French-press coffee. There is a lot of great coffee here in Chicago, so I'm happy I know this.

I've been drinking Cocoa tea, Tisano, for awhile now, but someone mentioned that they were enjoying a similar beverage that was a bit heavier more like coffee called Crio Bru and I got some online to try.?

I first tried the Crio Bru Cavella. When you open the bag it smells like chocolate heaven bliss. It's wonderful.

It probably works best with a french press. Because of the thicker grind it takes a long time in the paper filter. The caveat with the french press is that it is a fatty brew and you can get some oil slick on it. Since ahem some people put butter on their coffee, they might not mind it. When I'm drinking alone I usually don't care but if I'm serving it to other people I usually filter- a metal tea filter can also work OK.?

The cavella has a natural sweetness and lightness to it and does not get bitter easily. The other one I am trying now, the Coca River, is much much heartier and easily becomes a bit bitter. It probably holds up a little better to cream though. I look forward to trying more of them. I will say that it does affect me a bit like coffee if I drink the entire french press..?

I also picked up some local Chicago Kishr at the nearby Green Grocer. It's a spicy Middle Eastern drink made with the coffee cherry that is also nice as a pick-me-up.?

Source: http://huntgatherlove.com/content/crio-bru-cocoa-based-chocolate-drink

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NCAA says three former Miami assistants misled investigators

Louisville assistant Clint Hurtt is accused of committing violations while he was at Miami. (USATSI)

CORAL GABLES, Fla. -- The NCAA believes former Miami assistant coaches Clint Hurtt, Aubrey Hill and Jorge Fernandez provided false or misleading information during the probe into the Hurricanes' athletic department.

The NCAA said all three violated "principles of ethical conduct" as part of the notice of allegations served against the Hurricanes, according to a person who spoke to the Associated Press on Wednesday on condition of anonymity because the allegations have not been released publicly.

Hurtt and Hill were members of Miami's football staff. Fernandez worked on the men's basketball staff.

Several other coaches are named or referenced in the allegations, including Missouri basketball coach Frank Haith. But only Hurtt, Hill and Fernandez are facing the ethical-conduct charge, commonly known as NCAA Rule 10.1.

Hurtt is currently on the staff at Louisville. Hill is not working as a coach at this time, and Fernandez spent last season as an assistant at Marshall, resigning last May.

The notice of allegations was delivered to Miami on Tuesday, and the university is facing the charge that it had a "lack of institutional control" -- one of the worst things the NCAA can levy against a member school. The charge revolves around how the school allegedly failed to monitor conduct of Nevin Shapiro, a rogue booster and convicted felon who provided cash, gifts and other items to players on the football and men's basketball teams.

University president Donna Shalala said Tuesday night that the Hurricanes have suffered enough already through self-imposed sanctions. Through a university spokesman, she declined further comment Wednesday.

The NCAA said Hurtt and Hill committed the same violations, at least related to the ethical-conduct matter.

The NCAA alleged both provided meals, transportation and lodging to either recruits, current players or both in either 2008 or 2009. Both were interviewed by the NCAA during the course of its probe and allegedly denied providing those extra benefits, statements the NCAA said were contradicted in each case by what players told them separately.

Hurtt also took a $2,500 personal loan from Shapiro, which was repaid. The NCAA also believes he sent about 40 impermissible text messages to recruits, which typically is a secondary, or minor, violation.

Fernandez, the NCAA alleged, "knowingly provided extra benefits" in the form of an air ticket. The NCAA said Fernandez denied using air miles for the tickets for a men's basketball player and a high school coach, despite evidence to the contrary.

In February 2012, Miami center Reggie Johnson was ruled ineligible by the school after an investigation revealed that members of his family accepted "impermissible travel benefits" from a member of the school's former coaching staff, without specifying Fernandez or anyone else by name. The university said Johnson was not aware of the benefits, personally accepted nothing and that his family had been told they were allowed.

Johnson was reinstated quickly last season, and remains a key part of this season's team -- now ranked No. 2 in the nation and leading the Atlantic Coast Conference. The ongoing cloud of the scandal is not hurting the Hurricanes, basketball coach Jim Larranaga said Tuesday night.

"If it was overshadowing what we were doing, this room would not be packed," Larranaga said after his team beat Virginia. "We're getting so much exposure. We can only focus on the things we have control over. We have nothing to do with the investigation."

Several other former Miami coaches are named in the allegations as well, including one-time men's basketball assistant Jake Morton, who the NCAA said, among other things, accepted "supplemental income" of at least $6,000 from Shapiro. Morton is now on the staff at Western Kentucky.

Missouri's Haith is accused of failing "to promote an atmosphere for compliance," a charge specific to how he handled things when Shapiro allegedly wanted money in exchange for not going public with accusations that he paid to help the Hurricanes recruit a player.

Some of the allegations are more than 10 years old, including a claim that Shapiro bought a suit for former Miami star running back Willis McGahee to wear to the Heisman Trophy ceremony in 2002.

Other allegations include that he paid for dinners at Benihana, televisions, sneakers, Miami Heat tickets, bowling parties, one player's engagement ring, a used washer-dryer set for current New England Patriots lineman Vince Wilfork, and that he directed his girlfriend to give two former Hurricanes no-show jobs for a couple of months.

Source: http://feeds.cbssports.com/click.phdo?i=4ab9393f84b6bd7549f8db989a470906

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Blairsvillager.com: Touched

Touched

We Southerners don?t give much thought to being raised in an orphanage; we?ve always been surrounded by family. It?s who we are. But imagine for a minute that all those family members are a mystery to you.? The concept got me thinking about something we all need to do. Something so important in our family history, I?m embarrassed to say I never thought of it before yesterday.? But yesterday, think of it I did.? And I decided to take action.

There comes a times when you realize your surviving parent won?t be alive on this earth forever.? I mean we all know that already, but one day, the reality of it will really hit you deep in your belly, will render you faint, and take you to your knees.? Last Sunday, a friend at church shared with me that when her surviving parent passed away, she knew for the first time in her life what it feels like to be an orphan.? I never thought of it that way, but it made a lot of sense.

So let?s say your last parent is gone, and you?re now left to sort through all their belongings, decide what to keep and what to let go.? That?s what made me realize: I don?t know the family history of many of my mother?s cherished antiques, accessories, and sets of bone china.? I don't know who's hands have touched them or whose lives the antiques have touched. What did Mom buy through the years and what came down in the family?? I?d never paid attention, but there?s a reason.

I grew up with warehouses, storefronts, and homes filled with English and American antiques.? My father?s family were antique wholesalers who imported container loads of antiques from England.? All the homes I grew up in were decorated around them, and Mother still has a farmhouse full of them right here in Bville.? It also occured to me that when Mom married Pop (Daddy died young), which pieces came into the family with him -- he's a decsendent of the Hatfields of West Virginia (yes, the same ones who feuded with the McCoys for generations.)? Which ones have been handed down in our family, which came down through his, and which were acquired? I haven?t a clue.? So I set out to learn and record how each piece ended up in my Mom's and Pop's home, and under their dominion.? There are hundreds of items to be entered. It?s going to take untold number of hours, and fill several journals.

To be continued??.

Source: http://blairsvillager.blogspot.com/2013/02/touched.html

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Kim Kardashian Wants More Privacy? We're Not Buying It

Kim Kardashian's baby isn't due until summer, but she says that motherhood has already changed her. In the spring issue of DuJour magazine, the reality star -- looking gorgeous in a white bikini with almost zero makeup -- talks about her desire to turn over a new leaf.

Source: http://www.ivillage.com/kim-kardashian-says-she-wants-privacy-do-you-believe-her/1-a-522341?dst=iv%3AiVillage%3Akim-kardashian-says-she-wants-privacy-do-you-believe-her-522341

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The State of California Has Mark Zuckerberg's Unclaimed Paychecks Waiting

Mark Zuckerberg should fill out one of the claim association forms from the California State Comptroller's office. Turns out, he has an unclaimed paycheck from 2004 from PayPal to the tune of $308.62, BetaBeat reports. More »

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/UAS-siB7rw4/the-state-of-california-has-mark-zuckerbergs-unclaimed-paychecks-waiting

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