Scooter Libby Indicted

It's official: I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby, Vice-Presidential Chief of Staff and senior White House administration offical for the entire duration of the Bush White House, has been indicted by Patrick Fitzgerald's grand jury. Five counts: one count of obstruction of justice; two counts of perjury; and two counts of making false statements.

Total: 5 counts in all.

Libby has resigned.

Please note that an indictment is only a charge, and Scooter Libby is innocent until proven guilty.

This axe hasn't completely fallen. We'll see how things shake out.

Good fences make good neighbors

As we mentioned below, California's less than two weeks away from a $50-million prop-tastic election, courtesy of Arnold's itchy trigger finger. If you're a Californian, get out and vote! Ideally, this way. We're so non-partisan at Weekly Review. In the meantime, though, check out this cute little flash-mation cartoon of "Arnold's Neighborhood" riffing on Sesame Street with all our favorite characters: Rov-er, the Cheney Monster, and Bill O'Reilly The Grouch (genuine rationale for the Iraq war will be played by Snuffaluffagus). Those who attended our sold out* show at Caroline's on Monday will confirm that Weekly Review, too, has a takeoff on Sesame Street, dystopian in a very different way. In any case, enjoy the cartoon...especially Cheney's last move.

*By "sold out" we mean "pretty damn respectably attended if we do say so ourselves."

Weekly Review at Caroline's Comedy Club!

It's on! Tonight we rock the house at Caroline's with "The Best of Weekly Review," New York's only musical-comedy-news-and-politics-current-events show. It's filled with hilarious songs and and biting political commentary, and also three-part harmonies, musical props to Nobel Peace Prize winner IAEA by people in wigs, and the grapevine. There may also be hot judge-on-judge action, but that depends on your definition of "hot" (we already know, per Harriet Miers, that the White House has a questionable definition of "judge," or at least what ought to qualify one for the bench).

Heavy eyeliner and equally questionable definition of "most brilliant man I've ever met" aside, you should come to our show! It's TONIGHT, October 24th at 7:00pm at Caroline's Comedy Club (Broadway @ 49th). Call NOW for reservations -- 212-757-4100 -- becuase that way admission is $5 (if you show up at the door say you are there for Weekly Review and argue loudly for the cheap rate; I think that might work). The show will be done by 9 and then we'll all be going somewhere to make merry. Hope to see you there!

This may be the case where the cover-up actually isn't worse than the crime

Why did we go to war in Iraq? Incredibly, there doesn't seem to be a clear reason -- or, at least a justifiable one. There were no WMDs, no links between Saddam and Al Qaeda, and precious little justificatory intelligence, but the case was made. (This case must also be made: Saddam led a horrible and murderous regime marked by his own brand of terror.) There is still so much more to be uncovered about who said and did what in the Plame leak case, and why -- but as Frank Rich points out, it is looking more and more like the crux of the matter is the war in Iraq and our reasons -- real and fabricated -- for going in. Rich points a finger at the White House Iraq Group as massive warmongering hawks; Newsweek's Michael Isikoff reports that Cheney, Libby, Rummy and co. were up to their elbows in raw intel looking for info to buttress their case: "Together, the group largely despised the on-the-one-hand/on-the-other analyses handed up by the intelligence bureaucracy. Instead, they went in search of intel that helped advance their case for war." Joseph Wilson threw a wrench into that one, and behold, the leak was on.

Fitzgerald brings it in under a week, and he's got the website to prove it. What was that about Cheney going down again? Oh, right.

"Scooter? But I don't even know 'er!"

New York Times executive editor Bill Keller has published a mea culpa memo to the Times in which he questions his handling of the Judith Miller affair, as well as the trust he placed in her on behalf of the paper and its readers. He also questions -- implicitly -- her relationship with Scooter Libby, describing it as an "entanglement." Yikes. Miller indignantly denies any relationship other than that between reporter and source; Times op-ed columnist Maureen Dowd considers Miller her own unique brand of WMD. The knives are out at the NYT, and Judy is the scapegoat. Let the record reflect that, at least at the paper, the blame flows both ways. But that's just for the coverage of the leak case and Miller's role. As for Miller's reporting on WMD and just exactly how involved she was with Libby -- well, that plot is thickening by the day.

Props to Schwarzenegger? Yikes, let's hope not.

For those of you unaware of the goings-on a few time zones to the West, an explication: Governator Arnold Schwarzenegger has called a "special election" in California for November 8th in a $50 million endeavor to pass a number of propositions. Specifically, those numbers are Propositions 73 - 80, and could conceivably have been put on the table during his bid for reelection in 2006, except that they weren't, because they are much more useful to him and his conservative base if they pass now. Why? Because they include curtailing the political activism of unionized employees, Tom DeLay-style redistricting, implementing a five-year probationary period for teachers (it's currently 2 years) and granting the Governator the ability to slash funding willy-nilly, which is unacceptable no matter how funny that phrase would sound in his goofy Austrian accent. Oh, there's also Prop 73, which would require parents or guardians to be notified before girls 17 and younger could get abortions (obviously there are cases where that would be untenable, to put it lightly).

There's a lot at stake in this election; Arnold's popularity is tanking and voters are fed up (did we mention that it's costing taxpayers $50 million?), but let's not forget that is a state that voted for Arnold Schwarzenegger in the first place. So who knows what will happen. Either way, "Weekly Review" will probably write a song about it, if we can find something catchy to rhyme with "Schwarzenegger."

In the meantime, check out this handy primer for the gist of the issues, and watch "The Daily Show" mock the Governator here, along with the guy who wrote that handy primer, because let's face it, in order to be in politics in California you gotta be in pictures.

Disclosure: "Weekly Review" is friends with the primer-author-and-Daily-Show-Arnold-fighter mentioned above, insofar as one can be friends with a crazy California vegetarian.

99 Reasons But The Republicans Ain't One

True, that title makes no sense, but at least it showed that I'm down with the hep kids. Courtesy of Hill n' Beltway mavens FishbowlDC we have a dispatch from what Andrew Sullivan called "The Special Olympics of Comedy": Washington's "Funniest Celebrity Contest," held last night at the Mayflower Hotel and featuring Americans for Tax Reform President Grover Norquist, Slate's John Dickerson, Congressman Brian Baird, D-Wash., Adam Schiff, D-Calif., the previously-mentioned (and reputedly bearish) Sullivan and DC Mayor Anthony Williams(rejected title for this post: "Washington's funniest celebrities are neither funny nor celebrities. Discuss.") Excerpted from Fishbowl DC's thorough round-up of the event is this gem from California Congresswoman Linda Sanchez (who is a Democrat, natch):

"Top Ten Reasons I Don't Date Republicans"
By Congresswoman Linda Sanchez

10. The only time they believe in fiscal restraint is when the dinner bill comes.
9. His idea of getting to second base is fondling my stock portfolio.
8. He thinks that Emily's List is a call girl service.
7. His idea of oral stimulation is getting me to recite the Contract with America.
6. He thinks that white pantyhose and pearls are sexy--and you should see what he wants me to wear.
5. Because when Republicans say that they want to create opportunities for minorities, that means they want to date me and [her sister] Loretta.
4. Despite all the hype, I still can't find his weapon of mass destruction.
3. His pending prison term for political corruption is just another excuse for him to be emotionally unavailable.
2. Republicans are only interested in screwing the poor.
1. Because they make love like they make war: they lie to get in and don't have a plan for what to do once they get there.

In related news, that doesn't bother too many New Yorkers.

Dick going down because of leak?

Rumors of Dick Cheney's resignation are being floated in today's "U.S. News & World Report" based on the unfolding PlameGate leak investigation which implicates his chief of staff I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby, whose name is both long AND goofy. I wouldn't bet on Cheney's resignation; he's of the "pry it out of my cold, dead hands" variety. Plus, the Veepship has been pretty good to him. Still, the more that comes to light in Fitzgerald's investigation, the worse it looks for people right up the ladder reaching into the Oval Office. Patrick Fitzgerald's grand jury expires October 28th; we'll see what indictments are handed out when the dust settles. Until then, we'll have to content ourself with this.

p.s. We have a Cheney song based on this -- and it doesn't even have a play on the word "Dick!" Mature judgment call or missed opportunity? You decide.

White House Watch: Cheney resignation rumors fly [US News]
Frank Rich: It's Bush-Cheney, Not Rove Libby [NYT]

This is not a joke. Why is this not a joke?

Bill O'Reilly was on "The Daily Show" tonight. Point being, this actually exists.

"Weekly Review": Gettin' Bloggy With It

Welcome to the "Weekly Review" blog! While we're on hiatus prepping for our all-star* show at Caroline's, consider this blog your go-to place for links, diatribes, and random musings on the Bush Administration, the media, the pundits, the blogosphere, and all the crazy wackiness (and wacky craziness!) in between.

"Weekly Review" is just that: a weekly review of the ever-changing events in politics and the media, tracking the 24-hour news cycle in song with a brand-new musical comedy show every week. And yes, the songs ARE as wordy as that sentence. We have a ridiculous and melodious canon thus far (an oeuvre, if you will) with songs about topics including but not limited to the Bush Administration, the Supreme Court, Karl Rove, Cindy Sheehan, UN softie John Bolton, the oft-indicted Tom DeLay, the Creationism vs. Evolution debate (an intelligently designed number if I ever saw one), Dick Cheney's ever-tickin' heart (for those who believe he has one), Hillary Clinton's fave video game, the clear and foreceful electoral mandate of her fellow Democrats, Bill Frist's clear and forceful medical mandate, whether "Scooter" is an appropriate nickname for someone that high up in the government, and what makes us swoon about Alan Greenspan's fiscal policy. That last one is not a joke. We really have a song about it. It's a torch song, because interest rates are HOT.

The show has been tons of fun to do and I can objectively and impartially say that it's hilarious, totally entertaining and politically satisfying (uh, maybe not so much if you're a Republican). I am neither objective nor impartial, but either way you should come: it's on Monday, October 24th at 7:00pm at Caroline's Comedy Club on Broadway btwn. 49th & 50th. Admission is $5 with reservation, so call 212-757-4100 and make one.


*If you define "star" to mean "underemployed actors who have day jobs" then yes, we're all stars!