WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Ralph Nader is entering the presidential race as an independent, he announced Sunday, saying it is time for a "Jeffersonian revolution."
In the last few years, big money and the closing down of Washington against citizen groups prevent us from trying to improve our country. And I want everybody to have the right and opportunity to improve their country," he told reporters after an appearance announcing his candidacy on NBC's "Meet the Press."
Asked why he should be president, the longtime consumer advocate said, "Because I got things done." He cited a 40-year record, which he said includes saving "millions of lives," bringing about stricter protection for food and water and fighting corporate control over Washington.
Nader's decision, which did not come as a surprise to political watchers, marks his fourth straight White House bid -- fifth if his 1992 write-in campaign is included.
Calling Nader's move "very unfortunate," Sen. Hillary Clinton told reporters, "I remember when he ran before. It didn't turn out very well for anybody -- especially our country."
"This time I hope it doesn't hurt anyone. I can't think of anybody that would vote for Sen. McCain who would vote for Ralph Nader," she said.
Nader was criticized by some Democrats in 2000 for allegedly pulling away support from Democrat Al Gore and helping George Bush win the White House.
Noting that he ran on the Green Party ticket that year, Clinton said Nader "prevented Al Gore from being the 'greenest' president we could have had."
Nader has long rejected his portrayal as a spoiler in the presidential race. In his NBC interview Sunday, he cited the Republican Party's economic policies, the Iraq war, and other issues, saying, "If the Democrats can't landslide the Republicans this year, they ought to just wrap up, close down, emerge in a different form."
But Clinton said, "Obviously, it is not helpful to whoever our Democratic nominee is. But, you know, it is a free country."
Nader said political consultants "have really messed up Hillary Clinton's campaign."
Long-shot GOP contender Mike Huckabee said Nader's entry would probably help his party.
"I think it always would probably pull votes away from the Democrats and not the Republicans, so naturally, Republicans would welcome his entry into the race," Huckabee said Sunday on CNN.
Nader said Thomas Jefferson believed that "when you lose your government, you've got to go into the electoral arena."
"A Jeffersonian revolution is needed in this country," he said.
Nader told NBC that great changes in U.S. history have come "through little parties that never won any national election."
"Dissent is the mother of ascent," he said. "And in that context I've decided to run for president."
Nader, who turns 74 this week, complained about the "paralysis of the government," which he said is under the control of corporate executives and lobbyists.
Sen. Barack Obama criticized Nader earlier this weekend. "My sense is that Mr. Nader is somebody who, if you don't listen and adopt all of his policies, thinks you're not substantive," Obama told reporters when asked about Nader's possible candidacy.
"He seems to have a pretty high opinion of his own work."
Obama said Nader "is a singular figure in American politics and has done as much as just about anyone for consumers."
"I don't mean to diminish that," he said. "There's a sense now that if someone's not hewing to the Ralph Nader agenda, he says they're lacking in some way."
Responding to those remarks, Nader called Obama "a person of substance" and "the first liberal evangelist in a long time" who "has run a good tactical campaign." But he accused Obama of censoring "his better instincts" on divisive issues.
Nader encouraged people to look at his campaign Web site, votenader.org, which he said discusses issues important to Americans that Obama and Sen. John McCain "are not addressing."
Sunday, February 24, 2008
Saturday, February 23, 2008
Obama / Smiley | Tavis Smiley's Ego-Trip Rejection Upsets Essence Readers
Remember Tavis Smiley's rejection of Senator Obama's offer to have his wife Michelle speak at the "State Of Black America" conference? Well, it's now upset readers of "Essence", the well-known magazine for Black Women.
Here's some of the comments readers left:
Comments
Tavis is wrong! This is NOT a DNC sanctioned debate or official candidate forum, but a forum where all voices from the African American Community are supposed to be welcome to discuss issues that matter to us. Michelle is now a prominent member of the community, so why can't she lend her voice? Tavis says otherwise, but there is not a doubt in my mind that if Bill Clinton asked to attend that he would be welcomed!
Posted by: Dee of VA | February 14, 2008 at 09:01 AM
Does Mr.Smiley realize he is shuning the wife of our next Presidential Elect? Michelle Obama is in every essence just as qualified as former first lady Hillary Clinton to appear in representation of Presidnet Elect Barrack Obama. It appears that Tavis is going off message at a crucial time when Barrack Obama needs to continue to reach out and stay on focus. We are looking for his support here in Texas and need to pull these votes together. It would have probably have been a better idea to hold the State of the Black Union in the state of Texas. This was the last state in which black found out they were free. It would be just as befitting to bring the the address that would capitalize on the black vote and bring out votes to the polls. Just my opinion.
Posted by: Dietrich | February 14, 2008 at 09:10 AM
Talk about CLASS!!! I love michelle's response to Tavis snubbing her as Barack's replacement for the event. I beleive maintaining a high road posture by Barack, as it relates to addressing all those trying to derail his campaign, is the best strategy. I am relieved to see that this is shared by his wife as well. yu go girl!!!
Posted by: calvin | February 14, 2008 at 09:31 AM
I respect Mr. Smiley but I could not disagree with him more on this issue. Barack Obama should continue to stay out and reach for new voters. Quite frankly this is not the time to for this issue. I attended the state of the Black union when it was in Flordia and it is the same today as it was that day. It is up to us the people to change. Mr. Smiley's thought process on this is very short sighted and comes across as someone who thinks he is now bigger than the rest of us. Let's stay on point people we may never see a black man that is on top of his game be in this position in our life time!
Peace
Faye Davis
Posted by: Faye Davis | February 14, 2008 at 09:38 AM
Tavis' insistence on Obama falling in step with his program is counterproductive. I am so disappointed in Tavis right now.
I could have added more of them. Only one was supportive of Tavis, and even then not 100 percent so. Tavis really should appologize to Barack and Michelle Obama.
NY Upper East Side Interior Designer Christine Smith Featured By NY Post
Christine Smith Interior Design Blessed By NY Post's Cindy Adams
Taking a break from politics, Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton and John Mcain, we look at Cindy Adams who "brings you the juiciest celeb gossip and celebrity news" according to the New York Post, her employer. Well, if that's the case, then Cindy's just blessed Christine Smith as a celebrity. Cindy took note of the growing presence of Smith's workers around the Upper East Side, and gushed ..
"GUYS are around hauling demolition, filling dump trucks, wearing black T-shirts that read "Christine Smith." So who's Christine Smith? A stunning, skinny, befurred, 6-foot blonde with silver buckles on her jeans and waist-length hair. And why's anyone hauling fixtures wearing her shirts? She's this season's contractor du jour. Looking like a model, this lady is demolishing johns, pulling out sinks, building walls and redoing kitchens all over the Upper East Side."
Wow.
Not only is Christine a model, but the work of her and the crew of people she employs is as well. Here is but one of the examples of the work of Christine Smith, who it can now be said rules the Upper East Side of New York. Visit her website at http://www.christinesmithassoc.com
New England Patriots In Trouble With Senator Arlen Spectre
Senator Arlen Spectre's all over this NFL problem and if Commissioner Goodell does not handle it properly it could blow up in the collective face of the league. There are some serious problems with how the Pats conducted their activities under Head Coach Bill Belichek, and it seems that there's more to this than meets the eye and it unfolds more each day.
Specter irked by uncooperative Pats, league in Spygate probe
By Mike Fish
ESPN.com
Frustrated at the obstacles confronting his investigation of "Spygate," Sen. Arlen Specter accused the New England Patriots of "stonewalling" on Friday and suggested the NFL might never get around to questioning key witness Matt Walsh, a former Patriots video assistant.
Specter's comments are in stark contrast to remarks on Wednesday from NFL commissioner Roger Goodell, who told reporters that the NFL was moving toward an agreement that would allow Walsh to tell what he knows about the Patriots' spying practices without fear of being sued.
Sen. Arlen Specter says he would like to be present if the NFL ever questions Matt Walsh, a former Patriots video assistant.
"My suspicion is that they're going to put enough conditions on it so that he won't talk," Specter, a Republican from Pennsylvania, told ESPN.com. "If they had wanted Walsh to talk, it would have been done a long time ago. They are not helped by keeping him on ice, unless they intend to [permanently] keep him on ice."
If the league gains Walsh's cooperation, Specter said he wants to be present when Walsh is questioned "because a witness' testimony can be shaded or molded by who questions him first.''
Walsh, employed by the Patriots from 1996 to 2003, has suggested that he has information, perhaps even materials, about the Patriots' video practices that could be potentially damaging.
His attorney, Michael Levy, forwarded a proposal to the NFL's outside counsel seeking full indemnification for Walsh on Feb. 14. Levy, as well as Specter, maintained that the league's initial proposal failed to protect Walsh against the possibility of being sued, and said it also required that he turn over any materials or evidence.
"They haven't taken the steps to get Walsh to come forward," Specter said. "They have the key."
Late Friday afternoon, NFL spokesperson Greg Aiello said the league respectfully disagrees with Specter.
"We have offered Mr. Walsh's attorney assurances that are fully responsive to his concerns," Aiello said. "And we have not heard back from him. ... We very much want to speak to [Walsh]."
As of Friday night, however, the league and Walsh's attorney had not reached an agreement.
An attorney for the Patriots told ESPN.com that Walsh did not have a confidentiality agreement with the franchise or anything else that might prevent his cooperation.
Specter painted a much starker, more contentious picture than the one presented by the league and the Patriots. He said both the Patriots and New York Jets have refused to cooperate with his investigation.
That it is somewhere between absurd to insulting that they won't let us talk to the witnesses.
-- Sen. Arlen Specter,
on the Patriots' responses
to his investigators
Specter told ESPN.com that his staff has been rebuffed in its efforts to interview Patriots personnel about the team's videotaping practices. The Republican leader on the Senate Judiciary Committee refused to say who, specifically, he wanted to talk to, but the list presumably includes head coach Bill Belichick, his longtime assistant Ernie Adams and members of the team's video department.
"My staff has been stonewalled on that," Specter said.
After his staff made phone contact with some individuals connected to the team, Specter said they were referred to the Patriots' outside legal counsel, who rejected a request for cooperation. Daniel L. Goldberg, who represents the Patriots and also the Boston Red Sox, said that in all cases, the individuals had been previously interviewed at least once -- and in some instances twice -- by the league.
Goldberg refused to identify those individuals.
"Sen. Specter's office had called me as counsel to the Patriots to ask to interview several Patriots employees," said Goldberg, attorney with the Boston firm of Bingham and McCutchen. "I was told that the inquiry was with respect to signal-taping. And as I explained to the Senator's office, we regard this as a league matter. As such, we have fully cooperated with the league's investigation."
Asked to respond to Specter's accusation that the Patriots have stonewalled his requests for information, Goldberg said, "You look at it from our perspective. Who is the right forum for an inquiry into a matter like this? We regard this as a league matter. It deals with league rules, league enforcement."
But Specter, a one-time district attorney in Philadelphia, didn't react favorably to the Patriots' responses to his investigators.
"Well, I think that it is somewhere between absurd to insulting that they won't let us talk to the witnesses," Specter said. "Whoever heard of not being able to talk to someone because it is hearsay back from somebody else who talked to them. You have to question hearsay and reliability. I'm not prepared to accept what somebody else says these key witnesses say. What kind of an inquiry would it be if we accepted what somebody else tells us what was said?"
Our clients have not spoken to the senator or his staff and at this time have no plans to do so.
-- Jets outside legal counsel
Scott Michel
Specter's investigators also have been rebuffed in their efforts to seek access to members of the Jets' coaching staff. During the season-opening game last September at New York, the Patriots were caught taping defensive signals being sent in from the Jets' sideline. The Jets' staff is of key interest in the Spygate affair because several members, including Jets head coach Eric Mangini, worked under Belichick in New England.
"Our firm was engaged to represent certain employees of the New York Jets in connection with a request for information from Sen. Specter," Jets outside legal counsel Scott Michel said in an e-mail to ESPN.com on Friday night. "Our clients have not spoken to the senator or his staff and at this time have no plans to do so."
Specter said Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Damon Huard, a one-time backup to Tom Brady with the Patriots, refused to speak with him, too, during a personal phone call the Senator placed to Huard last Friday.
"I talked to him, and he wouldn't talk," Specter said. "I didn't go through a secretary, and he doubted that it was Arlen Specter. Maybe that is why he wouldn't talk. I don't sound much like Arlen Specter."
Specter said it is only because of outside pressure that the NFL has offered up additional information related to the Patriots' taping history. Specter explained: "To get a concession from the commissioner that it goes back to the year 2000. To get a concession that they had notes. Originally, we were only told about videos, and they only went back a half-dozen games in '06. Originally, we weren't told that the notes included the [Pittsburgh] Steelers."
Specter said he is aware of what appears to be a united league-wide front supporting Goodell's handling of the taping controversy. That support was echoed Thursday at the NFL scouting combine in Indianapolis by members of the league's powerful Competition Committee, who told reporters they believe the issue should be put to rest.
"Well, I don't want to pick a fight with everybody in the world, like all the owners," Specter said. "But they are functioning from talking points -- 'We're satisfied with the investigation.' 'Oh yes, the penalty was sufficient.' 'Oh, let's put this behind us.' 'Let's move on.'
"You have heard everyone say the same thing."
Mike Fish is an investigative reporter for ESPN.com. He can be reached at michaeljfish@gmail.com.
Specter irked by uncooperative Pats, league in Spygate probe
By Mike Fish
ESPN.com
Frustrated at the obstacles confronting his investigation of "Spygate," Sen. Arlen Specter accused the New England Patriots of "stonewalling" on Friday and suggested the NFL might never get around to questioning key witness Matt Walsh, a former Patriots video assistant.
Specter's comments are in stark contrast to remarks on Wednesday from NFL commissioner Roger Goodell, who told reporters that the NFL was moving toward an agreement that would allow Walsh to tell what he knows about the Patriots' spying practices without fear of being sued.
Sen. Arlen Specter says he would like to be present if the NFL ever questions Matt Walsh, a former Patriots video assistant.
"My suspicion is that they're going to put enough conditions on it so that he won't talk," Specter, a Republican from Pennsylvania, told ESPN.com. "If they had wanted Walsh to talk, it would have been done a long time ago. They are not helped by keeping him on ice, unless they intend to [permanently] keep him on ice."
If the league gains Walsh's cooperation, Specter said he wants to be present when Walsh is questioned "because a witness' testimony can be shaded or molded by who questions him first.''
Walsh, employed by the Patriots from 1996 to 2003, has suggested that he has information, perhaps even materials, about the Patriots' video practices that could be potentially damaging.
His attorney, Michael Levy, forwarded a proposal to the NFL's outside counsel seeking full indemnification for Walsh on Feb. 14. Levy, as well as Specter, maintained that the league's initial proposal failed to protect Walsh against the possibility of being sued, and said it also required that he turn over any materials or evidence.
"They haven't taken the steps to get Walsh to come forward," Specter said. "They have the key."
Late Friday afternoon, NFL spokesperson Greg Aiello said the league respectfully disagrees with Specter.
"We have offered Mr. Walsh's attorney assurances that are fully responsive to his concerns," Aiello said. "And we have not heard back from him. ... We very much want to speak to [Walsh]."
As of Friday night, however, the league and Walsh's attorney had not reached an agreement.
An attorney for the Patriots told ESPN.com that Walsh did not have a confidentiality agreement with the franchise or anything else that might prevent his cooperation.
Specter painted a much starker, more contentious picture than the one presented by the league and the Patriots. He said both the Patriots and New York Jets have refused to cooperate with his investigation.
That it is somewhere between absurd to insulting that they won't let us talk to the witnesses.
-- Sen. Arlen Specter,
on the Patriots' responses
to his investigators
Specter told ESPN.com that his staff has been rebuffed in its efforts to interview Patriots personnel about the team's videotaping practices. The Republican leader on the Senate Judiciary Committee refused to say who, specifically, he wanted to talk to, but the list presumably includes head coach Bill Belichick, his longtime assistant Ernie Adams and members of the team's video department.
"My staff has been stonewalled on that," Specter said.
After his staff made phone contact with some individuals connected to the team, Specter said they were referred to the Patriots' outside legal counsel, who rejected a request for cooperation. Daniel L. Goldberg, who represents the Patriots and also the Boston Red Sox, said that in all cases, the individuals had been previously interviewed at least once -- and in some instances twice -- by the league.
Goldberg refused to identify those individuals.
"Sen. Specter's office had called me as counsel to the Patriots to ask to interview several Patriots employees," said Goldberg, attorney with the Boston firm of Bingham and McCutchen. "I was told that the inquiry was with respect to signal-taping. And as I explained to the Senator's office, we regard this as a league matter. As such, we have fully cooperated with the league's investigation."
Asked to respond to Specter's accusation that the Patriots have stonewalled his requests for information, Goldberg said, "You look at it from our perspective. Who is the right forum for an inquiry into a matter like this? We regard this as a league matter. It deals with league rules, league enforcement."
But Specter, a one-time district attorney in Philadelphia, didn't react favorably to the Patriots' responses to his investigators.
"Well, I think that it is somewhere between absurd to insulting that they won't let us talk to the witnesses," Specter said. "Whoever heard of not being able to talk to someone because it is hearsay back from somebody else who talked to them. You have to question hearsay and reliability. I'm not prepared to accept what somebody else says these key witnesses say. What kind of an inquiry would it be if we accepted what somebody else tells us what was said?"
Our clients have not spoken to the senator or his staff and at this time have no plans to do so.
-- Jets outside legal counsel
Scott Michel
Specter's investigators also have been rebuffed in their efforts to seek access to members of the Jets' coaching staff. During the season-opening game last September at New York, the Patriots were caught taping defensive signals being sent in from the Jets' sideline. The Jets' staff is of key interest in the Spygate affair because several members, including Jets head coach Eric Mangini, worked under Belichick in New England.
"Our firm was engaged to represent certain employees of the New York Jets in connection with a request for information from Sen. Specter," Jets outside legal counsel Scott Michel said in an e-mail to ESPN.com on Friday night. "Our clients have not spoken to the senator or his staff and at this time have no plans to do so."
Specter said Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Damon Huard, a one-time backup to Tom Brady with the Patriots, refused to speak with him, too, during a personal phone call the Senator placed to Huard last Friday.
"I talked to him, and he wouldn't talk," Specter said. "I didn't go through a secretary, and he doubted that it was Arlen Specter. Maybe that is why he wouldn't talk. I don't sound much like Arlen Specter."
Specter said it is only because of outside pressure that the NFL has offered up additional information related to the Patriots' taping history. Specter explained: "To get a concession from the commissioner that it goes back to the year 2000. To get a concession that they had notes. Originally, we were only told about videos, and they only went back a half-dozen games in '06. Originally, we weren't told that the notes included the [Pittsburgh] Steelers."
Specter said he is aware of what appears to be a united league-wide front supporting Goodell's handling of the taping controversy. That support was echoed Thursday at the NFL scouting combine in Indianapolis by members of the league's powerful Competition Committee, who told reporters they believe the issue should be put to rest.
"Well, I don't want to pick a fight with everybody in the world, like all the owners," Specter said. "But they are functioning from talking points -- 'We're satisfied with the investigation.' 'Oh yes, the penalty was sufficient.' 'Oh, let's put this behind us.' 'Let's move on.'
"You have heard everyone say the same thing."
Mike Fish is an investigative reporter for ESPN.com. He can be reached at michaeljfish@gmail.com.
The New England Patriots Spygate Problem Gets Worse - ESPN
Arlen Spectre's all over this NFL problem and if Commissioner Goodell does not handle it properly it could blow up in the collective face of the league. There are some serious problems with how the Pats conducted their activities under Head Coach Bill Belichek, and it seems that there's more to this than meets the eye and it unfolds more each day.
Specter irked by uncooperative Pats, league in Spygate probe
By Mike Fish
ESPN.com
Frustrated at the obstacles confronting his investigation of "Spygate," Sen. Arlen Specter accused the New England Patriots of "stonewalling" on Friday and suggested the NFL might never get around to questioning key witness Matt Walsh, a former Patriots video assistant.
Specter's comments are in stark contrast to remarks on Wednesday from NFL commissioner Roger Goodell, who told reporters that the NFL was moving toward an agreement that would allow Walsh to tell what he knows about the Patriots' spying practices without fear of being sued.
Sen. Arlen Specter says he would like to be present if the NFL ever questions Matt Walsh, a former Patriots video assistant.
"My suspicion is that they're going to put enough conditions on it so that he won't talk," Specter, a Republican from Pennsylvania, told ESPN.com. "If they had wanted Walsh to talk, it would have been done a long time ago. They are not helped by keeping him on ice, unless they intend to [permanently] keep him on ice."
If the league gains Walsh's cooperation, Specter said he wants to be present when Walsh is questioned "because a witness' testimony can be shaded or molded by who questions him first.''
Walsh, employed by the Patriots from 1996 to 2003, has suggested that he has information, perhaps even materials, about the Patriots' video practices that could be potentially damaging.
His attorney, Michael Levy, forwarded a proposal to the NFL's outside counsel seeking full indemnification for Walsh on Feb. 14. Levy, as well as Specter, maintained that the league's initial proposal failed to protect Walsh against the possibility of being sued, and said it also required that he turn over any materials or evidence.
"They haven't taken the steps to get Walsh to come forward," Specter said. "They have the key."
Late Friday afternoon, NFL spokesperson Greg Aiello said the league respectfully disagrees with Specter.
"We have offered Mr. Walsh's attorney assurances that are fully responsive to his concerns," Aiello said. "And we have not heard back from him. ... We very much want to speak to [Walsh]."
As of Friday night, however, the league and Walsh's attorney had not reached an agreement.
An attorney for the Patriots told ESPN.com that Walsh did not have a confidentiality agreement with the franchise or anything else that might prevent his cooperation.
Specter painted a much starker, more contentious picture than the one presented by the league and the Patriots. He said both the Patriots and New York Jets have refused to cooperate with his investigation.
That it is somewhere between absurd to insulting that they won't let us talk to the witnesses.
-- Sen. Arlen Specter,
on the Patriots' responses
to his investigators
Specter told ESPN.com that his staff has been rebuffed in its efforts to interview Patriots personnel about the team's videotaping practices. The Republican leader on the Senate Judiciary Committee refused to say who, specifically, he wanted to talk to, but the list presumably includes head coach Bill Belichick, his longtime assistant Ernie Adams and members of the team's video department.
"My staff has been stonewalled on that," Specter said.
After his staff made phone contact with some individuals connected to the team, Specter said they were referred to the Patriots' outside legal counsel, who rejected a request for cooperation. Daniel L. Goldberg, who represents the Patriots and also the Boston Red Sox, said that in all cases, the individuals had been previously interviewed at least once -- and in some instances twice -- by the league.
Goldberg refused to identify those individuals.
"Sen. Specter's office had called me as counsel to the Patriots to ask to interview several Patriots employees," said Goldberg, attorney with the Boston firm of Bingham and McCutchen. "I was told that the inquiry was with respect to signal-taping. And as I explained to the Senator's office, we regard this as a league matter. As such, we have fully cooperated with the league's investigation."
Asked to respond to Specter's accusation that the Patriots have stonewalled his requests for information, Goldberg said, "You look at it from our perspective. Who is the right forum for an inquiry into a matter like this? We regard this as a league matter. It deals with league rules, league enforcement."
But Specter, a one-time district attorney in Philadelphia, didn't react favorably to the Patriots' responses to his investigators.
"Well, I think that it is somewhere between absurd to insulting that they won't let us talk to the witnesses," Specter said. "Whoever heard of not being able to talk to someone because it is hearsay back from somebody else who talked to them. You have to question hearsay and reliability. I'm not prepared to accept what somebody else says these key witnesses say. What kind of an inquiry would it be if we accepted what somebody else tells us what was said?"
Our clients have not spoken to the senator or his staff and at this time have no plans to do so.
-- Jets outside legal counsel
Scott Michel
Specter's investigators also have been rebuffed in their efforts to seek access to members of the Jets' coaching staff. During the season-opening game last September at New York, the Patriots were caught taping defensive signals being sent in from the Jets' sideline. The Jets' staff is of key interest in the Spygate affair because several members, including Jets head coach Eric Mangini, worked under Belichick in New England.
"Our firm was engaged to represent certain employees of the New York Jets in connection with a request for information from Sen. Specter," Jets outside legal counsel Scott Michel said in an e-mail to ESPN.com on Friday night. "Our clients have not spoken to the senator or his staff and at this time have no plans to do so."
Specter said Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Damon Huard, a one-time backup to Tom Brady with the Patriots, refused to speak with him, too, during a personal phone call the Senator placed to Huard last Friday.
"I talked to him, and he wouldn't talk," Specter said. "I didn't go through a secretary, and he doubted that it was Arlen Specter. Maybe that is why he wouldn't talk. I don't sound much like Arlen Specter."
Specter said it is only because of outside pressure that the NFL has offered up additional information related to the Patriots' taping history. Specter explained: "To get a concession from the commissioner that it goes back to the year 2000. To get a concession that they had notes. Originally, we were only told about videos, and they only went back a half-dozen games in '06. Originally, we weren't told that the notes included the [Pittsburgh] Steelers."
Specter said he is aware of what appears to be a united league-wide front supporting Goodell's handling of the taping controversy. That support was echoed Thursday at the NFL scouting combine in Indianapolis by members of the league's powerful Competition Committee, who told reporters they believe the issue should be put to rest.
"Well, I don't want to pick a fight with everybody in the world, like all the owners," Specter said. "But they are functioning from talking points -- 'We're satisfied with the investigation.' 'Oh yes, the penalty was sufficient.' 'Oh, let's put this behind us.' 'Let's move on.'
"You have heard everyone say the same thing."
Mike Fish is an investigative reporter for ESPN.com. He can be reached at michaeljfish@gmail.com.
Specter irked by uncooperative Pats, league in Spygate probe
By Mike Fish
ESPN.com
Frustrated at the obstacles confronting his investigation of "Spygate," Sen. Arlen Specter accused the New England Patriots of "stonewalling" on Friday and suggested the NFL might never get around to questioning key witness Matt Walsh, a former Patriots video assistant.
Specter's comments are in stark contrast to remarks on Wednesday from NFL commissioner Roger Goodell, who told reporters that the NFL was moving toward an agreement that would allow Walsh to tell what he knows about the Patriots' spying practices without fear of being sued.
Sen. Arlen Specter says he would like to be present if the NFL ever questions Matt Walsh, a former Patriots video assistant.
"My suspicion is that they're going to put enough conditions on it so that he won't talk," Specter, a Republican from Pennsylvania, told ESPN.com. "If they had wanted Walsh to talk, it would have been done a long time ago. They are not helped by keeping him on ice, unless they intend to [permanently] keep him on ice."
If the league gains Walsh's cooperation, Specter said he wants to be present when Walsh is questioned "because a witness' testimony can be shaded or molded by who questions him first.''
Walsh, employed by the Patriots from 1996 to 2003, has suggested that he has information, perhaps even materials, about the Patriots' video practices that could be potentially damaging.
His attorney, Michael Levy, forwarded a proposal to the NFL's outside counsel seeking full indemnification for Walsh on Feb. 14. Levy, as well as Specter, maintained that the league's initial proposal failed to protect Walsh against the possibility of being sued, and said it also required that he turn over any materials or evidence.
"They haven't taken the steps to get Walsh to come forward," Specter said. "They have the key."
Late Friday afternoon, NFL spokesperson Greg Aiello said the league respectfully disagrees with Specter.
"We have offered Mr. Walsh's attorney assurances that are fully responsive to his concerns," Aiello said. "And we have not heard back from him. ... We very much want to speak to [Walsh]."
As of Friday night, however, the league and Walsh's attorney had not reached an agreement.
An attorney for the Patriots told ESPN.com that Walsh did not have a confidentiality agreement with the franchise or anything else that might prevent his cooperation.
Specter painted a much starker, more contentious picture than the one presented by the league and the Patriots. He said both the Patriots and New York Jets have refused to cooperate with his investigation.
That it is somewhere between absurd to insulting that they won't let us talk to the witnesses.
-- Sen. Arlen Specter,
on the Patriots' responses
to his investigators
Specter told ESPN.com that his staff has been rebuffed in its efforts to interview Patriots personnel about the team's videotaping practices. The Republican leader on the Senate Judiciary Committee refused to say who, specifically, he wanted to talk to, but the list presumably includes head coach Bill Belichick, his longtime assistant Ernie Adams and members of the team's video department.
"My staff has been stonewalled on that," Specter said.
After his staff made phone contact with some individuals connected to the team, Specter said they were referred to the Patriots' outside legal counsel, who rejected a request for cooperation. Daniel L. Goldberg, who represents the Patriots and also the Boston Red Sox, said that in all cases, the individuals had been previously interviewed at least once -- and in some instances twice -- by the league.
Goldberg refused to identify those individuals.
"Sen. Specter's office had called me as counsel to the Patriots to ask to interview several Patriots employees," said Goldberg, attorney with the Boston firm of Bingham and McCutchen. "I was told that the inquiry was with respect to signal-taping. And as I explained to the Senator's office, we regard this as a league matter. As such, we have fully cooperated with the league's investigation."
Asked to respond to Specter's accusation that the Patriots have stonewalled his requests for information, Goldberg said, "You look at it from our perspective. Who is the right forum for an inquiry into a matter like this? We regard this as a league matter. It deals with league rules, league enforcement."
But Specter, a one-time district attorney in Philadelphia, didn't react favorably to the Patriots' responses to his investigators.
"Well, I think that it is somewhere between absurd to insulting that they won't let us talk to the witnesses," Specter said. "Whoever heard of not being able to talk to someone because it is hearsay back from somebody else who talked to them. You have to question hearsay and reliability. I'm not prepared to accept what somebody else says these key witnesses say. What kind of an inquiry would it be if we accepted what somebody else tells us what was said?"
Our clients have not spoken to the senator or his staff and at this time have no plans to do so.
-- Jets outside legal counsel
Scott Michel
Specter's investigators also have been rebuffed in their efforts to seek access to members of the Jets' coaching staff. During the season-opening game last September at New York, the Patriots were caught taping defensive signals being sent in from the Jets' sideline. The Jets' staff is of key interest in the Spygate affair because several members, including Jets head coach Eric Mangini, worked under Belichick in New England.
"Our firm was engaged to represent certain employees of the New York Jets in connection with a request for information from Sen. Specter," Jets outside legal counsel Scott Michel said in an e-mail to ESPN.com on Friday night. "Our clients have not spoken to the senator or his staff and at this time have no plans to do so."
Specter said Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Damon Huard, a one-time backup to Tom Brady with the Patriots, refused to speak with him, too, during a personal phone call the Senator placed to Huard last Friday.
"I talked to him, and he wouldn't talk," Specter said. "I didn't go through a secretary, and he doubted that it was Arlen Specter. Maybe that is why he wouldn't talk. I don't sound much like Arlen Specter."
Specter said it is only because of outside pressure that the NFL has offered up additional information related to the Patriots' taping history. Specter explained: "To get a concession from the commissioner that it goes back to the year 2000. To get a concession that they had notes. Originally, we were only told about videos, and they only went back a half-dozen games in '06. Originally, we weren't told that the notes included the [Pittsburgh] Steelers."
Specter said he is aware of what appears to be a united league-wide front supporting Goodell's handling of the taping controversy. That support was echoed Thursday at the NFL scouting combine in Indianapolis by members of the league's powerful Competition Committee, who told reporters they believe the issue should be put to rest.
"Well, I don't want to pick a fight with everybody in the world, like all the owners," Specter said. "But they are functioning from talking points -- 'We're satisfied with the investigation.' 'Oh yes, the penalty was sufficient.' 'Oh, let's put this behind us.' 'Let's move on.'
"You have heard everyone say the same thing."
Mike Fish is an investigative reporter for ESPN.com. He can be reached at michaeljfish@gmail.com.
Friday, February 22, 2008
Peter Paul v. Clinton - Hillary To Be Called As Witness If Process Servers Can Catch Her
Peter Paul v. Clinton - Hillary To Be Called As Witness If Process Servers Can Catch Her
I got a call from a person heavily involved in the case of Peter Paul v. Hillary Clinton . The latest twist in this case came Thursday, as Judge Aurelio Munoz allowed Peter Paul's attorneys to commence discovery (sworn depositions of witnesses) after a three year hiatus, while agreeing to set a trial date at a hearing to be held in April, 2008, according to Paul's website
According to the site:
The business fraud suit being prosecuted by Hillary’s largest donor Peter Paul is finally proceeding to trial after years of delays in the appellate court fight to keep Hillary in the case as a defendant rather than a material witness. Judge Munoz allowed Paul to commence discovery (sworn depositions of witnesses) after a three year hiatus, while agreeing to set a trial date at a hearing to be held in April, 2008.
In response, Hillary Clinton’s attorney David Kendall declared that none of Hillary Clinton’s lawyers would accept a deposition subpoena on Hillary’s behalf.
Hillary is declaring that she would rather dodge process servers while she is campaigning for President of the United States around the nation than honorably accept a notice of her mandatory deposition through her lawyers!!
Hillary Clinton was dismissed as a co-defendant in the case at a hearing in April, 2007 because of democrat Appellate Court Judges’ support of her belated effort to obtain the protection of California’s Anti-SLAPP law from tort fraud conspiracy charges in raising money for her Senate campaign.
At that hearing, after dismissing Hillary as a defendant, trial court Judge Aurelio Munoz admonished David Kendall by telling him unequivocally that any effort to deny Senator Clinton’s testimony as a witness in the case would be “Dead on Arrival”. To emphasize his point, the Judge followed his statement by saying “Did you hear that Mr Kendall?”
In typical Clintonian hubris and contempt for the judicial process, Hillary had her diminutive counsel with the over inflated ego state to Paul’s lawyer, Colette Wilson, that none of the three lawyers of record representing Hillary in the case would accept a witness subpoena for her deposition on her behalf, and that there would be no cooperation in the process the judge stated should include Hillary’s testimony.
In other words, Clinton's lawyer have no interest in following the judge's orders.
I directly called Peter Paul, the plaintiff (person who filed the fraud lawsuit against Bill Clinton, and to which Senator Hillary Clinton is considered a part of) to get more background on this story. In response to the remarks of Clinton's attorney, Paul said "It denegrates her office as a server of the public. After abusing the First Amendment to be dismissed (from testifying as a witness in the fraud trial), now she's challenging a judge's order. Telling the plaintiff's lawyer that she will not cooperate without being served (a subpoena ) by a process server."
Paul reports that his team will have a process server in Texas and Ohio, where Clinton is campaiging. According to Paul, It's now a race against a 70-day clock: "They're (Clinton's legal team) hoping to 'run the clock," Paul said, "and hope that they get a summary judgement." (That means a decision where the judge is convinced there's not enough evidence to warrant a trial-by-jury). If Senator Clinton's served by a process server, she has to testify, which would then give enough evidence to have a jury trial.
All of this means that Hillary Clinton will be chased by process-servers as she's campaigning in Texas and Ohio. This is a race to watch. Stay tuned.
Cogan's View of The Court
Doug Cogan, who made the movie "Hillary Uncensored", was outside the court on Thursday and gave me his take on the matter. "It really is remarkable that the candidate (Clinton) who wants to be the chief law enforcement officer for the nation continues to scoff at the law" Cogan says the Clintons never expected Peter Paul to come back from Brazil (where he was imprisoned several years ago) alive.
"I would love for some reporter to ask Hillary if she's going to obey the court's order," Cogan remarked.
Cogan explains that there is compelling evidence that Dave Kendall submitted false declarations to the court, from assertions that Hillary Clinton met Paul in 2000, when this video shows Clinton and Peter Paul talking about when they met in 1993.
As a note, this is my video on the FEC side of Peter Paul's battle against the Clinton's:
Officer in Clinton's motorcade dies
(CNN) – An officer involved in Hillary Clinton's motorcade in Dallas, Texas was killed in a motorcycle crash Friday, the New York senator confirmed.
Clinton released a statement saying she is “greatly heartsick over this loss of life in the line of duty.”
The officer was thrown at least 30-40 feet in the accident, which occurred on the Trinity River Viaduct as Clinton's motorcade made its way through downtown Dallas.
The Dallas police department has not yet confirmed the death, or released the identity of the officer.
“I want to express my deepest condolences to the family and the Dallas police department on this tragic, tragic loss," said Clinton.
She added that she had called the Dallas Police chief, and would call the family at an appropriate time, and was grateful for the police department's service.
"I am certainly grateful for all they do for me and more importantly what they do for the citizens of cities like Dallas,” she said.
There have been two fatal accidents involving motorcycle officers escorting President Bush’s motorcade over the past 18 months.
On August 28, an officer from Rio Rancho, New Mexico died when his motorcycle crashed as the motorcade approached the airport in Albuquerque. The officer, Germaine Casey, was 40. He was the lead motorcycle in the motorcade when the crash occurred.
On November 23, 2006, a Honolulu Police motorcycle officer crashed on wet roads during the President’s motorcade in Hawaii…he died of his injuries a week later. Two other officers injured in the crash were released from the hospital. Steve Favella was 30.
Clinton released a statement saying she is “greatly heartsick over this loss of life in the line of duty.”
The officer was thrown at least 30-40 feet in the accident, which occurred on the Trinity River Viaduct as Clinton's motorcade made its way through downtown Dallas.
The Dallas police department has not yet confirmed the death, or released the identity of the officer.
“I want to express my deepest condolences to the family and the Dallas police department on this tragic, tragic loss," said Clinton.
She added that she had called the Dallas Police chief, and would call the family at an appropriate time, and was grateful for the police department's service.
"I am certainly grateful for all they do for me and more importantly what they do for the citizens of cities like Dallas,” she said.
There have been two fatal accidents involving motorcycle officers escorting President Bush’s motorcade over the past 18 months.
On August 28, an officer from Rio Rancho, New Mexico died when his motorcycle crashed as the motorcade approached the airport in Albuquerque. The officer, Germaine Casey, was 40. He was the lead motorcycle in the motorcade when the crash occurred.
On November 23, 2006, a Honolulu Police motorcycle officer crashed on wet roads during the President’s motorcade in Hawaii…he died of his injuries a week later. Two other officers injured in the crash were released from the hospital. Steve Favella was 30.
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