Here it is in a nutshell:  CNN/Republican Party gives permission for BlogHer bloggers Erin Kotecki Vest and Katy Chen to attend and blog tonight’s debate, provided they can show law-enforcement press passes.

Because the LAPD had issued press credentials in the past, they requested their press pass from LAPD, who refused to issue them on the grounds they were “online media“, and BlogHer had not been fully vetted by the LAPD.

Not only did they deny the credentials, but every effort to expedite and cooperate with the vetting process for BlogHer was met with steadfast denial.

Earlier today, Jeremiah Owyang twittered about John Edwards’ withdrawal from the race and what we thought the reasons were.  Some of us responded that he received no media coverage, to which he retorted with this:

Interesting, a few folks here are blaming the media for not covering him. I thought WE were the media, what happened you bloggers?

Well, Jeremiah, the LAPD is what happened to ‘us bloggers’.  When bloggers are barred from attending political events on the basis that the agency responsible for issuing the press pass “doesn’t do online”, it marginalizes the many voices who are doing their best to bring the political process out of the hands of the media pundits and to the ears and eyes of the voters.

This is just wrong.  The question is, what process makes sense to get a widespread policy change on the position of bloggers’ presence at media events?

Thoughts?

Technorati Tags: BlogHer, politics, debate, LAPD, legal, media, press

No matter what party you belong to, no matter what your religious beliefs are, it should bother you when a group of nameless, faceless, moneyed benefactors organize and fund an effort to influence elections by giving pastors in key states a free Marriott weekend seminar. You should especially worry when that free weekend seminar has Newt Gingrich as the keynote speaker and a single Republican candidate, Mike Huckabee,  as a guest speaker.

Yet this is what took place in Iowa and other key states, and is continuing through the primary season. This article from my local paper yesterday sent my blood pressure up more than a few points. Here are some of the highlights:

The Rev. Rob McCoy wants the nation’s 55 million or more evangelical Christians to vote for godly representation in the White House, and he’s not afraid to say it from the pulpit, over coffee at Starbucks or at a series of revivals in states on the primary trail.

About those revivals:

Mike Huckabee, a Baptist minister and former Arkansas governor, has spoken at several of the Renewal Project events and is the only candidate to do so, even though other Republicans have been invited. McCoy said the project, run by a group of leaders who remain anonymous, isn’t about endorsing someone but exhorting Christians to bring their faith and biblical teachings to the polls. [My emphasis added]

If you Google the term “Renewal Project”, the first result will be a Northern California nonprofit organization dedicated to helping build up churches. I wrote to Doug Stevens, head of The Renewal Project and asked him if he was involved at all in sponsoring these seminars. After reading his weblog, I was certain he wasn’t, but wanted to find out directly from him rather than making a mistake. He was kind enough to respond to me this morning with an emphatic “NO”. Don’t confuse his organization with the national Renewal Project — there is no association, affiliation, or other relationship.

The Renewal Project as it relates to this national effort to lobby pastors, appears to be organized state-by-state for the purpose of undertaking urban renewal projects. Skipping down the Google results past Doug Stevens’ organization, I discovered many different sites for Project Renewal from state to state. This seems odd to me. Generally in a nonprofit structure which is organized this way, there is an umbrella site that lists affiliates by state. Not in this case. In addition to these urban renewal sites, I found this site, promoting a movie about interfaith efforts to preserve the environment, which doesn’t appear to be engaged in electioneering, either.  The California Renewal Project meeting with pastors has a press release here.

Here’s what the Star article had to say about Project Renewal:

McCoy became involved in the [sic]Renewal Project about 18 months ago at the invitation of a group leader and now speaks at the events along with Christian historians, pastors and former government leaders, including Newt Gingrich, former House speaker and author of “Rediscovering God in America.”

Evangelical pastors and their wives are invited to the two-day events, which are closed to the media. The project is funded by anonymous donors.

McCoy said the focus stays on biblical teachings, abortion, marriage and other issues defined as moral absolutes.

“What we do is spiritual. The by-product is political,” he said, noting seminars are scheduled this month in San Jose, Louisiana, Orlando, South Carolina and San Diego.

Of course, we have no idea whether the focus stays on teaching and issues, because it’s closed to the media and funded by anonymous donors.

Let’s be clear: Mike Huckabee has the backing of this organization, along with the LaHaye organization and other very conservative right-wing political machines paving his way through key primary states. He will be writing many thank-you notes tonight to the pastors of Iowa who delivered their congregations to the caucus sites tonight, and we should be concerned, no matter what our politics or religion, because this is the prevailing attitude:

McCoy uses larger estimates. He said he believes there are about 63 million evangelicals in the nation, including about 26 million who vote.

“If we have a 5 percent increase in voter turnout, we’d dominate,” he said.

Some polls have suggested that religion plays a bigger role in states like Iowa than in New Hampshire. McCoy doesn’t question the point but asserts the influence will grow everywhere, including California.

“You’re going to watch the surge,” he said.

“I’m not saying we’re going to take the state, but we’ll wake people up.”

I still don’t know who the Renewal Project is.  If it is the loose coalition of urban renewal sites with ties to the LaHaye and Dobson organizations, it would seem to me to be violating non-profit rules by using funds for the purpose of promoting political ideologies (if not candidates) instead of rebuilding urban areas.  The use of tax-exempt funds for this purpose gives an unfair advantage to Huckabee over other candidates and to me, at least, is intolerable. 

It’s not just the free Marriott weekends that have me in a twist.   What these pastors are exhorted to do is go back to their congregations and urge them, without actually endorsing a candidate, to vote according to the teaching of that pastor from that pulpit. As a Christian, I object to this because it distracts the church from its purpose, which is to help people in need and to be a loving presence in the community. This idea of being the moral guardian of all truth and light is just wrong, and it’s more wrong when the church becomes a voice in the secular voting process.

In an earlier post, I shared my frustration and anger at having a petition that I absolutely didn’t agree with sitting on a table inside a church.  To me, the idea of secretly funding luxury weekends for pastors is even more egregious, and if people don’t wake up and start learning about candidates instead of following those pastors like sheep we’re going to hand this country over to someone in deep debt to zealots and secret organizations.   There’s a reason for election funding rules.  There’s a reason to keep churches and other tax-exempt organizations focused on their purpose and mission instead of playing politics with that tax-exempt money.  The whole purpose of exempting churches from taxes is in deference to their constitutional right to exist without governmental intervention.  If the government cannot intervene in their operation, they should not intervene in government.  I’m not just arguing the separation of church and state here — I’m arguing that the purpose of a church is NOT to elect a candidate, set a political agenda, or electioneer.

I was amazed by this blog post by Claire Brinberg on CNN.com.  This sums up EXACTLY why churches, as an institution, should stay away from the political process:

On New Year’s Eve, I was welcomed at a lovely church celebration at Grace Church in West Des Moines. I got into a conversation with Marylys Foster, a Huckabee supporter who told me she was going to caucus for “the guy who’s with Christ. I believe that somebody that believes in Christ is truthful.”

I asked Ms. Foster which issues she was most concerned with this year, and she launched into an incredibly detailed and well-informed discussion of healthcare and immigration.

“So,” I asked her, “Do you know where Huckabee, your candidate, stands on those issues?

“No,” she replied.That’s just amazing to me. She’s well-versed on the issues, and yet is supporting a candidate whose positions she doesn’t know, ’cause she’s convinced that as a man of God, Mike Huckabee will make the right decision. She trusts him.

This is how Huckabee won tonight. Is it a reasonable, valid way to nominate a candidate, elect a President?  (note to Ms Foster: Before she claims that anyone who believes in Christ is truthful, she should weigh the truthfulness of several recent high-profile falls from grace, including Ted Haggard and Mark Foley.)

Which brings me back to the original question I asked: Who are the shadowy figures behind the national effort to lobby pastors, aka “The Renewal Project”? I don’t have answers, just a lot of questions. Here are some things to ponder:

• In 2000, Congress passed the American Community Renewal Act, allowing for tax incentives communities designated as “renewal communities”. You might be more familiar with the term “Empowerment Zone”, which is also part of the law, giving business incentives for opening, expanding, and hiring local residents.
• Part of the American Community Renewal Act gives “community & faith-based non-profit organizations the opportunity to purchase HudHomes, at discounts up to 30 percent, under the Direct Sales Program.” (link)
• The California Renewal Summit site (organizer of the California pastors’ summit) has this under their “Making a Difference statement”: “Organized in 2000, the Community Renewal Project increased its presence through California’s diverse communities by hosting conferences that bring faith, community, business and elected leaders together to enhance their efforts to strengthen their communities.
• Monetary awards for faith-based initiatives in 2007 totaled over $57 million dollars

Is it mere coincidence that these organizations, ostensibly founded around revitalizing floundering communities, are being used to organize grass-roots political efforts? Is the American Community Renewal Act really a backdoor to government-sponsored political activism?

Why should anyone trust this murky web of non-profit funding when they intentionally hide behind a dark, anonymous mask? To me, the only reason to remain anonymous is to shield oneself from the consequence of exposure, particularly when putting forth a faith-based agenda and backing a faith-based candidate. If I were to use a quote from the Bible to drive this point home, it would be this one from Ephesians 5: “Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them.“

Upcoming Renewal Project Events: Florida (January 21-22)

(image: Marc Ambinder)

Technorati Tags: Mike Huckabee, Iowa, faith-based funding, campaign funding, Renewal Project, back door, politics, religion, faith, tax-exempt organizations

I watched “To Kill a Mockingbird” last night. Then I awoke to this and wondered if I fell asleep and stepped back 40 years in time. Shame on the mainstream media for ignoring this so long while they trumpet every stinkin’ move OJ, Britney and Lindsey make with excruciating detail. But I truly knew I was in an alternate reality when Israel’s strikes on Syria were overlooked in favor of a gratuitous shot at the Democrats yesterday and the Democrats stood up in Congress and not only took the shot, but agreed with it, embraced it, and slapped truth in its face in the process. Where was the outrage when John Kerry was SwiftBoated by the Rovian Junta?

What a disgrace.

Nice to know that everyday defendants face harsh prison sentences every day — even innocent ones — while Scooter Skates.

Technorati Tags: Scooter Libby, sentence, prison, commuted, George Bush, dictator, lawlessness

“…Lord, there’s danger in this land
You get witch-hunts and wars
When church and state hold hands.
- Joni Mitchell, Tax-Free (1985)”

(continue reading)

Written in solidarity with those blogging on this Easter weekend against theocracy. Read more here.

Technorati Tags: blogagainsttheocracy, first amendment, politics, religion, theocracy, culture

(warning: political opinion and/or commentary follows)

I’ve written about Josh Wolf a couple of times here trying to bring attention to the absurdity of his situation.  Wolf has the unique distinction of being jailed for eight months for refusing to turn over his videotapes of a San Francisco street protest.  In his own words:

When I was subpoenaed in February of last year, I was not only ordered to provide my unedited footage, but to also submit to testimony and examination before the secretive grand jury. Although I feel that my unpublished material should be shielded from government demands, it was the testimony which I found to be the more egregious assault on my right and ethics as both a journalist and a citizen.

Reading between the lines, I believe that the intent was to force Wolf to identify the protesters by name in order to provide the next lead to unraveling this little group of anarchists.

Wolf has published his unedited video.  I have watched it.  You should watch it, too.  While I don’t agree with everything this group did or stood for, I respect their passion and also the fact that they initially complied with police requests to get out of the street.  Unfortunately, as things escalated, so did they.  There are some images that I will have difficulty forgetting — particularly the army of policemen armed in full riot gear marching behind this ragtag group. (Note: This is not a child-safe video)

Click To Play

Watch it for yourself.  Post your reactions in the comments if you like.  And if you agree that jailing Wolf for eight months in a Federal prison was an overreaction and overreaching abuse of power, consider making a donation to his defense fund.  If you have difficulty loading from here, try the link on his blog.  I suggest you stay away from the comments unless you enjoy mindless flaming — evidently Matt Drudge linked this from his site so there are lots of crazed Drudge Report flamers on there.

I suspect the US Attorney in Wolf’s neck of the woods is a ‘loyal Bushie’, since he wasn’t on the firing hit list of US Attorneys. And here I thought it was all about voting rights.

Technorati Tags: Josh Wolf, anarchy, protest, legal, civil rights, vblogging, US Attorney

In this season’s 24, there are two ongoing conflicts. The first is the international conflict: Terrorists aided and abetted by the Russians have five nuclear bombs they intend to detonate in the US. Two have gone off; three are still out there waiting for the immortal Jack Bauer to find and defuse before they devastate the US. This conflict is not the one that intrigues me.

The more interesting conflict is the internal philosophical conflict taking place between the Vice President and the President over the best way to handle the terrorists. The President wanted to co-opt the assistance of the Muslim community; the Vice President took a far more hard-line stance on the issue, insisting that all dissenters should be jailed and marshall law declared. TV being what it is, this conflict is taken to the extreme, with a fringe group of fervent hawks plotting to assassinate the President in order to install the Vice President in power so that the plan to secure the United States can be executed.

The interesting part of the conflict is the fervent belief in both camps that they are right and doing what’s best for the country. Of course, they’re also drunk with power (particularly the VP) and willing to go to any extreme to advance their agenda.

This is also the reality of our current Administration. I read through the documents released today by the Attorney General with regard to the firing of 8 US Attorneys, and they are truly disturbing. It’s clear that the plot to replace these 8 USA’s is hatched by mandate of the administration and carried out by fervent believers who truly believe they’re acting in the best interests of the country (at least, in some cases). But what they did is immoral at best, and likely illegal (though I’m not an attorney and can’t say for sure). Read the documents for yourself. Some of them read like 24; others like The West Wing (with a distinctly right-wing flavor).

After reading these documents and doing some other research on this and related abuses (such as the FBI’s violation of Patriot Act Guidelines), I am now convinced that impeachment proceedings should begin right now. No matter how fervent the believers are, we cannot have a rogue administration willing to break every law on the books in order to advance their agenda.

Related:
Homeland Security Tests Snoop Computer System
US Buildup in Iraq Getting Bigger (evidently the Administration didn’t tell us the full extent of the plan)
Frequent Errors in FBI’s Secret Records Requests (one might wonder if the word “error” is being too kind)
Firings Had Genesis in White House

Technorati Tags: 24, Bush administration, US Attorneys, impeachment

In the ongoing saga of “can-you-believe-this-no-I-can’t-what-can-they-be-thinking-in-Congress”, we have this little gem, via Mashable.com, about Ted Stevens’ revival of the idiotic DOPA law:

Section 2, meanwhile, is DOPA: The Sequel. DOPA, you’ll remember, would ban access to social networks and chat rooms in US schools and libraries. Banning MySpace, Bebo, Xanga, YouTube or Friendster in school sounds like no bad thing, you might think. But the DOPA bill was so extensive that it could have meant Wikipedia and many news sites were also banned - any site, really, that allowed users to sign up. The terms of this new bill are the same - schools would have to filter sites that are offered by a commercial entity; allow the creation of profiles; allow blogging or journals; allow users to enter personal information or enable communication between users. In short: almost all interactive websites would be blocked. The new bill adds another requirement, too: “monitoring the online activities of minors”, which sounds like schools would have to track the sites kids visit.

Hey, Sen. Stevens, the Internet isn’t a big TRUCK you can run over kids with. It’s a series of TUBES. Massive, massive TUBES. Connections. Social connections. Collaboration. Community. Quit trying to legislate the next generation of Internet users off the Net and focus on more important issues.

Related Links: Andy Carvin: Lifting the Hood on DOPA Jr.

Technorati Tags: Ted Stevens, DOPA, Internet legislation