Tom Delay's Out OF Politics? I Don't Believe It!

I can't believe Delay's really getting out of politics. I'll be he's just changing his position from donor-receiver to donor-giver. You don't just give up the scene. I'll bet he's figured out a way to really stick around the pull some strings. But as a private person, he can do all of that, in...well, private.

He's not going anywhere. He's just moving to a place where there's less scrutiny of what he does.

49ers Stadium Issue - San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom Works To Change The Rules of The Prop D Game

S.F. seeks go-ahead for 49ers stadium
Bill would let city ask court to OK changes to '97 ballot measure

Charlie Goodyear, SF Chronicle Staff Writer
Tuesday, April 4, 2006

Mayor Gavin Newsom's administration wants to let a judge rather than San Francisco voters decide whether the 49ers can move forward with a new stadium project that is different from the one the city's electorate approved in 1997.

At the request of the mayor's office, state Sen. Carole Migden, D-San Francisco, quietly introduced legislation last month that would let the city seek a Superior Court ruling that the 49ers and the city can legally proceed despite changes from what was presented to voters nine years ago.

A top real estate development aide to the mayor said the Newsom administration is not trying to avoid public scrutiny, but merely to settle at the outset important legal questions that will have direct bearing on the feasibility of a new stadium project and presumably on how or if the 49ers will proceed.

"In no way does it short-circuit the public vetting or approval process through multiple city commissions and multiple stops at the Board of Supervisors," said Michael Cohen, a former deputy city attorney who oversees military base reuse projects for the mayor's economic development office.

"It doesn't limit anyone's ability to sue or stop the project," said Cohen. "It simply allows us to validate that what we're doing is consistent with voter-approved measures."

Passage of Migden's legislation would save the team and its City Hall backers a return to the city ballot -- and the time, money and uncertainty that go along with it -- for an on-again, off-again project with a controversial political history in San Francisco.

Peter Detwiler, staff director for the state Senate's Local Government Committee, which is scheduled to take up Migden's bill, SB1842, on Wednesday, said he has found no precedent for what the Newsom administration is asking.

"If the stated reason for the legislation is, 'We're worried about whether (the new) mixed-use development falls within' " what voters approved, Detwiler said, "why don't we just ask the voters?"

At stake are a voter-approved $100 million public subsidy for the stadium, the fate of 77 acres of public parks and recreation space, and perhaps the future of the 49ers in San Francisco.

In June 1997, city voters passed two measures that were supposed to pave the way for a new stadium and mall at the site of the city-owned stadium at Candlestick Point that has been home to 49ers games since 1971.

Proposition D, which passed with only 50.4 percent of the vote, authorized $100 million in city bonds to help finance the new stadium. Proposition F, which passed with 50.3 percent of the vote, rezoned city land under and around the existing stadium -- creating the Candlestick Point Special Use District -- to allow construction of a larger stadium and a shopping and entertainment mall.

According to campaign assertions of the 49ers and then-Mayor Willie Brown -- which were supported by the city controller in a written statement included in the official ballot pamphlet sent to voters -- the mall, which was to be developed by Mills Corp., would eventually generate enough new sales-tax revenue to pay off the city bonds and their interest payments. After the vote, however, the project hit several snags as team owner Eddie DeBartolo Jr. became embroiled in a federal corruption probe, questions surfaced over the proposed development's economic feasibility, and quibbling started over who should pay for shoring up parts of the development site sitting on landfill.

Last year, Newsom signaled he wanted the 49ers to decide whether to proceed with the project by October of this year and before the team's lease runs out in January 2007.

The team said last year it wants to stay at Candlestick and brought in Lennar Corp., one of the country's biggest homebuilders, to discuss adding residential housing to the development -- something not explicitly approved by voters in 1997. A study expected to be completed by Lennar this summer will detail exactly how much housing could be included in the project's plans.

Now, city officials have turned to Migden to help secure legal assurances and move the project forward.

An aide to Migden said she was willing to carry the legislation because of the prospect of bringing additional housing to a city where demand keeps prices high.

"The city did ask us to carry it," said Migden spokesman Eric Potashner. "Of interest to the senator is the opportunity to create more housing."

Cohen, of the mayor's economic development office, said Monday that the legislation is intended to save the city time and money as well as uphold the will of the voters.

"This is a very good government efficiency measure," he said.

A representative for the 49ers indicated Monday that the team would like the legality of a development project that differs from the 1997 version to be settled at the outset.

"We certainly share the mayor's sense of urgency for this project," said 49ers spokeswoman Lisa Lang. "We've spent a great deal of time and money on this project over the past few years."

The Newsom administration's handling of the matter already is raising eyebrows at City Hall, however.

Board of Supervisors President Aaron Peskin said he was erroneously listed by Migden's office as a supporter of her bill and has concerns that a judge might rule on the development plan before supervisors have their say.

"The legislation in its current form is putting the cart a little bit before the horse," Peskin said Monday.

Cohen emphasized that the team has yet to present a formal development plan for the site or select a builder for the mall portion.

"We hope to know whether the 49ers and their development partners think there is even a feasible project or not before the start of the next football season," he said.

I'm Having A Lot Of Fun!

HA! Someone saw my post reporting an article on marriage problems for black women, and assumed I was having a problem. That person was also too much of a coward to reveal their name. Well, while the Bay Area does make finding a wife a bit of a chore, that says nothing for bachelor life; it's totally fun. So, if that's the "problem," I'll take it!

Heck, I love the idea of marriage, but I'll be damned if I jump into anything without looking first. After all, it's supposed to be forever, not for one year.

Wait. Didn't We Already Do This With Iraq? - Attacking Iran May Trigger Terrorism - Wash Post

I think there's a twisted logic here. We've already done a good job of keeping any terrorist units out there active. Attacking Iran will just make things worse. It's time we close the tent on the Mid East as there's so many problems here -- like New Orleans after Katrina.

Attacking Iran May Trigger Terrorism
U.S. Experts Wary of Military Action Over Nuclear Program
By Dana Priest
Washington Post Staff Writer
Sunday, April 2, 2006; Page A01 - Click on the link for the rest.

As tensions increase between the United States and Iran, U.S. intelligence and terrorism experts say they believe Iran would respond to U.S. military strikes on its nuclear sites by deploying its intelligence operatives and Hezbollah teams to carry out terrorist attacks worldwide.

Iran would mount attacks against U.S. targets inside Iraq, where Iranian intelligence agents are already plentiful, predicted these experts. There is also a growing consensus that Iran's agents would target civilians in the United States, Europe and elsewhere, they said.

U.S. officials would not discuss what evidence they have indicating Iran would undertake terrorist action, but the matter "is consuming a lot of time" throughout the U.S. intelligence apparatus, one senior official said. "It's a huge issue," another said.

Citing prohibitions against discussing classified information, U.S. intelligence officials declined to say whether they have detected preparatory measures, such as increased surveillance, counter-surveillance or message traffic, on the part of Iran's foreign-based intelligence operatives.

But terrorism experts considered Iranian-backed or controlled groups -- namely the country's Ministry of Intelligence and Security operatives, its Revolutionary Guards and the Lebanon-based Hezbollah -- to be better organized, trained and equipped than the al-Qaeda network that carried out the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.

The Iranian government views the Islamic Jihad, the name of Hezbollah's terrorist organization, "as an extension of their state. . . . operational teams could be deployed without a long period of preparation," said Ambassador Henry A. Crumpton, the State Department's coordinator for counterterrorism.

The possibility of a military confrontation has been raised only obliquely in recent months by President Bush and Iran's government. Bush says he is pursuing a diplomatic solution to the crisis, but he has added that all options are on the table for stopping Iran's acquisition of nuclear weapons.

Speaking in Vienna last month, Javad Vaeedi, a senior Iranian nuclear negotiator, warned the United States that "it may have the power to cause harm and pain, but it is also susceptible to harm and pain. So if the United States wants to pursue that path, let the ball roll," although he did not specify what type of harm he was talking about.

Government officials said their interest in Iran's intelligence services is not an indication that a military confrontation is imminent or likely, but rather a reflection of a decades-long adversarial relationship in which Iran's agents have worked secretly against U.S. interests, most recently in Iraq and Pakistan. As confrontation over Iran's nuclear program has escalated, so has the effort to assess the threat from Iran's covert operatives.

U.N. Security Council members continue to debate how best to pressure Iran to prove that its nuclear program is not meant for weapons. The United States, Britain and France want the Security Council to threaten Iran with economic sanctions if it does not end its uranium enrichment activities. Russia and China, however, have declined to endorse such action and insist on continued negotiations. Security Council diplomats are meeting this weekend to try to break the impasse. Iran says it seeks nuclear power but not nuclear weapons.

Former CIA terrorism analyst Paul R. Pillar said that any U.S. or Israeli airstrike on Iranian territory "would be regarded as an act of war" by Tehran, and that Iran would strike back with its terrorist groups. "There's no doubt in my mind about that. . . . Whether it's overseas at the hands of Hezbollah, in Iraq or possibly Europe, within the regime there would be pressure to take violent action."

Green Bay Packers WR Javon Walker Does Not Want to Return To Lambeau Field - AP

Walker's threats ignored
Packers won't give in to wide receiver

MILWAUKEE (AP) - Wide receiver Javon Walker says he'd rather retire than return to Green Bay and play for the Packers. General manager Ted Thompson says he has no plans to placate the former Pro Bowler.

Walker, rehabilitating his right knee at his former college Florida State, told ESPN.com on Thursday that he wants to be traded or released.

"If I had to go back there, I'd retire," he said. "I don't have to play."



Thompson, who has reorganized the Packers in his 14-month tenure by firing former head coach Mike Sherman and bringing in Mike McCarthy, said Friday the organization will not concede to Walker's demands.

"During his time as a Green Bay Packer, Javon Walker has been well thought of by everyone here. I like Javon, certainly as a person and a player," he said in a statement. "There have been several highly publicized cases of player discontent in the National Football League. I don't anticipate us making any concessions in this matter."

Walker's new agent, Kennard McGuire of CSMG Sports, asked Thompson to move the veteran entering his sixth year or pursue a trade. His former agent, Drew Rosenhaus, made similar requests to management.

McGuire did not return messages left Friday by The Associated Press.

"I just don't feel like this is the best place for me to be right now," Walker told ESPN.com. "I really have no interest in being in a Green Bay Packers uniform or playing for Green Bay again."

Walker has been at odds with the organization since management refused to renegotiate his contract that had two years remaining on it after his Pro Bowl season in 2004, when he caught 89 passes for 1,382 yards and 12 touchdowns.

Brett Favre criticized Walker's threat of holding out in 2005, and Walker returned only to tear a knee ligament in the season opening loss to Detroit.

"I just don't like the way the organization runs itself," Walker said. "They want players to come up there and play hard and work hard, but when it comes time to be compensated, it's like, 'We forgot what you've done."'

Walker also said Favre's comments last year made living in Wisconsin difficult, and he felt it was unfair the team let Favre interfere with Walker's squabble with management.

"There's an unwritten rule that players stick together," Walker said.

Walker says he will not show up for training camp or come back at all for the final season of his contract regardless of whether Favre decides to retire or return. He said he'll repay the Packers the prorated portion of his signing bonus to leave Green Bay.

"Why should I risk another year of getting beat up playing for a team that I don't want to play for? That's stupid," he said.

Walker said he'll be ready for the 2006 season wherever he lands.

"If I'm going to go out and take hits, it's going to be for a team that I love playing for," he said. "I'm not going to grandstand. I just want the Packers to give me peace of mind."

For now, the Packers say the only way Walker will be free to play elsewhere is if he finishes what he started in Green Bay.

"Javon is under contract," Thompson said. "We expect him to honor it."

Reggie Bush USC Pro Day Gets Rave Reviews - 4.33 40-Yard Dash and 225 Pounds at 25 Reps - Houston Chronicle

He's ready to be drafted by the Texans. The question is, if you're the Indy Colts, who do you draft to stop him? I'll give that answer soon.


April 3, 2006, 1:14AM
Bush has powerful showing
RB demonstrates strength to go with 4.33 speed in 40

By MEGAN MANFULL
Copyright 2006 Houston Chronicle

LOS ANGELES - Southern California running back Reggie Bush entered his workout for the NFL scouts Sunday as if it were a game. It wasn't simply about targeting specific numbers.

Bush had just one specific objective: to secure his place as the No. 1 overall pick in the draft. By late Sunday afternoon, he stood outside the USC practice facility confident he had done just that.


"There's always that .1 percent chance, but pretty much I figure 99.9 percent I am (the top pick)," said Bush, who checked in at 5-11, 202 pounds. "I did a pretty good job today. I think I proved to them that I should be the No. 1 pick."

With a ticket to Houston on his mind, Bush was nearly flawless in the different stations. He ran the fastest time of the day in the 40-yard dash — 4.33 seconds. He recorded the highest vertical jump — 40.5 inches. And he recorded the longest broad jump — 10 feet, 8.5 inches.

The biggest surprise to the more than 150 scouts and NFL personnel watching, however, was Bush's ability to complete 24 repetitions on the 225-pound bench press. That beat the majority of his teammates, many of whom are bigger than him.

"He took his shirt off, and I mean, he was huge," USC quarterback Matt Leinart said. "You should have seen the looks on (the scouts') faces. They already know how fast he is. They didn't know he looked like that."

Bush hopes that image stays with NFL scouts, who have criticized him at times because of his size.

It was an image that definitely left an impression on Texans coach Gary Kubiak and general manager Charley Casserly, who watched every move Bush made.

"That was my biggest surprise," Kubiak said. "I knew he was what he was. But to bench-press what he did at his size was pretty impressive."


Young vs. Bush

The Texans are weighing their options between drafting Bush or Texas quarterback Vince Young. They will meet with both players at their Houston offices this week, and because they hold the top pick in the draft, they can begin contract negotiations with one or more players at any time.
Bush will visit Reliant Stadium on Thursday. Young will visit and go through an on-field workout with the Texans on Friday.

Bush doesn't figure his association with Young will end even after the draft. The rivalry that grew between them in college is one Bush expects to continue in the NFL, especially if they are drafted by teams in the AFC.

"They will try to make that Reggie Bush vs. Vince Young," Bush said. "I think it'd be good. It'd just be an ongoing rivalry."


'Class individual'

Bush, who has never visited Houston, will be joined Thursday by his agent, Joel Segal, and his marketing consultant, Mike Ornstein. Because Bush had dinner Saturday night with Casserly and Kubiak, much of Thursday will be spent meeting with Texans owner Bob McNair and some of the assistant coaches.
"We spent a couple of hours with him, and you get a little more read on his personality, more than a 15-minute interview in Indianapolis," Casserly said. "I think he's a class individual, well-spoken, genuine."

Many in the league agree with Bush, taking it as a foregone conclusion he will land in Houston on April 29. That doesn't mean other teams weren't setting up meetings, though.

After Bush's four-hour workout, Tennessee Titans general manager Floyd Reese, coach Jeff Fisher and offensive coordinator Norm Chow met with Bush. After working with him for two years as the offensive coordinator at Southern Cal, Chow praised his former standout.

"I think he's a tremendous player," Chow said. "He's so explosive."

As for the potential of playing against him two times each season, Chow was less thrilled.

"We don't want to even think about it," he said.

megan.manfull@chron.com

Penn State QB Michael Robinson and Boston College WR Will Blackmon: Tweeners for the 2006 NFL Draft - Pro Sports Group's Jeff West

Tweeners for the 2006 NFL Draft

A couple months ago, Consensus Draft Services explained the definition of a "tweener" prospect for the NFL Draft. A tweener is a player who may play one position in college, but be ill-suited for that same position as a professional. Generally this occurs when a player has the athleticism to excel at the position in college, but does not have the requisite size needed to play the same position at the professional level.

In April of 2005, DeMarcus Ware (Troy State) was selected in the first half of the first round based on his athleticism. As a collegiate defensive end he played at 225 pounds and used his athleticism to dominate his opponents. A 225-pound defensive end would likely be tossed around easily by most NFL offensive tackles. So Ware made the transition from a 4-3 defensive end to a 3-4 outside linebacker and was coveted by NFL teams once they saw he had the athleticism to make the switch. A few picks after Ware was selected, the outstanding Georgia defensive end, David Pollack, was selected by the Bengals with the intent to move him to a 4-3 outside linebacker position.

Now the 2006 NFL Draft is approaching and a new group of "tweeners" has emerged. CDS will take a look at some of them in this issue.

The play of Michael Robinson at quarterback has been largely responsible for the success Penn State has enjoyed this season. Robinson is a big play QB who can succeed in the right system in college, but scouts believe he will likely have to consider a move to wideout or running back to continue playing as a professional. He certainly has the athleticism to make the change, following in the footsteps of a player like Antwaan Randle-El.

Another player who is considered a tweener, not based on size or athleticism, but experience, is Boston College's Will Blackmon. Some players are firmly entrenched in a position in college, only to have to learn a new one in the NFL. Others have the advantage of a head start. After establishing himself as one of the top corners in the NCAA as a junior, Blackmon decided to give wideout a try as a senior. However, despite some moderate success at WR, CDS believes that he will be drafted as a corner since truly good ones are so hard to find. He would be a nice double threat in the NFL, much like Champ Bailey and Deion Sanders were early in their careers, however he has probably hurt his draft status some since he has not played much corner as a senior.

One position that is sometimes hard to define is the H-back position. Is the player a tight end or is he a fullback (or both)? Tulsa's Garrett Mills is one of the most productive tight ends in the country, yet he wasn't even considered for the Mackey Award because of his ability to line up in the backfield as a blocker. Vernon Davis (Maryland), a junior who might consider declaring for the draft, is another player who would be ideal in the H-back position. He is a bit undersized to be used as a blocker on the line of scrimmage consistently in the NFL, but would be a dangerous threat as a receiver out of the backfield and would be very effective picking up the blitz with his blocking ability.

There are a number of other players following in the footsteps of DeMarcus Ware and David Pollack for the upcoming draft. North Carolina State's Manny Lawson has had a solid year as an undersized pass-rushing end, however at 240 pounds with outstanding athletic ability and blazing speed, he will likely be looked at as an OLB in the NFL. Brandon Guillory of Louisiana-Monroe could be this year's Ware, coming from a small program to make draft headlines. Guillory, with a strong showing during post-season workouts, should garner some interest as a 3-4 OLB who has pass-rushing ability along with the athleticism and speed to drop back into coverage when needed. Florida State's Kamerion Wimbley is quickly climbing draft boards with his production as a sack artist in 2005, however he too is undersized by NFL DE standards at only 240 pounds. If he puts up good 40-yard dash times after the season, he could be a candidate to switch to a 3-4 outside backer. A little-known prospect from tiny Anderson University in Indiana, Wyatt Gayer should make some noise this off-season with his workouts. Gayer is a smallish DE (6' 2" and 250 pounds) who projects well to a 3-4 OLB position. He is productive on the field and is an amazing athlete with surprising speed, quickness, and strength.

There are a number of collegiate defensive tackles who might not have the size or strength to play the position in the pros. LSU's Claude Wroten is a 4-3 DT who is having an outstanding season. He has the size and speed and strength to continue playing the position at the next level, but he's really ideally suited to be a 3-4 defensive end. At nearly 300 pounds with uncommon quickness, he could be dominant at that position. There are some DTs in college who are productive without Wroten's size. Cal-Poly's Chris Gocong leads the nation in sacks playing a lot of 3-4 DT at about 265 pounds. He would have trouble holding up at the point of attack inside in the pros (unless he was able to add another 25+ pounds while maintaining his strength), so he will likely be looked at as a DE because of his athleticism and speed (4.7 forty).

Another common move for prospects is from linebacker to strong safety. A strong safety has to be tough enough to be an effective run stopper, but still quick enough to provide solid pass coverage. Michael Boulware of Seattle made the switch after it was determined that he was too small to play outside linebacker in the NFL. Auburn's Antarrious Williams has played weakside linebacker quite effectively in college, but is too small to consistently take on the bigger blockers in the NFL. He does have the speed and coverage skills to effectively make the change to strong safety in the NFL. Stanford's Jon Alston is another player who has outstanding speed and athleticism at the OLB position, but at 6' 1" and 220 pounds with very good speed, he's a prime candidate to be tried at the SS position where his size would be a better fit. Devin Conwell of Ashland (Ohio) University is a tad small for the LB position at 6' 2" and 216 pounds, and has seen some work at SS this year. With his athleticism and football intelligence, the big-hitting Conwell could be a nice sleeper tweener in the NFL Draft.

Finally, the last move to be discussed is the cornerback to safety (or vice-versa) switch. One of the top prospects coming into the season was Tennessee's Jason Allen. He was a stand-out free safety who might have been a first-round selection in 2005, however he agreed to go back to Knoxville for his senior campaign if he was allowed to switch to corner, a more coveted position. By all accounts, he was playing well at corner before suffering a season-ending injury. It will be interesting to see how quickly he can get back to good health and what position he will be drafted for. Jimmy Williams is another player who can play either the corner or safety position. His versatility and skill at both positions will likely make him a top ten selection in April.

There is a marked difference between the collegiate game and the NFL, and success and production at a position at the collegiate level does not guarantee the same success in the NFL. However, a player may translate success at one position into opportunity at another position.



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Jeff West - Site Editor, Scout, Writer, Administrator