Glenn Reynolds at Instapundit links to this eye-popping scoop ...

POLITICO: Washington Post sells access, $25,000+

 

For $25,000 to $250,000, The Washington Post is offering lobbyists and association executives off-the-record, nonconfrontational access to “those powerful few” — Obama administration officials, members of Congress, and the paper’s own reporters and editors. The astonishing offer is detailed in a flier circulated Wednesday to a health care lobbyist, who provided it to a reporter because the lobbyist said he feels it’s a conflict for the paper to charge for access to, as the flier says, its “health care reporting and editorial staff.”

The offer — which essentially turns a news organization into a facilitator for private lobbyist-official encounters — is a new sign of the lengths to which news organizations will go to find revenue at a time when most newspapers are struggling for survival.

And it’s a turn of the times that a lobbyist is scolding The Washington Post for its ethical practices.

 

A stunning development, if true. Let's hear the other side fromt the Posties. But I can promise that no one at my newspaper (The Washington Times) would allow the standards and ethics to degenerate into an fire sale of influence brokering. Yuck.

Postscript:

-- Jennifer Harper has followed up on the controversial conversation "salon" being offered by The Washington Post publisher: The Washington Post is downplaying any wrongdoing for revelations that Publisher and Chief Executive Officer Katharine Weymouth would host lobbyists and association executives in her home for off-the-record conversations with officials from the Obama administration, lawmakers and Post editorial staff. 

Details in tomorrow's Washington Times at www.washtimes.com

Well, this is infuriating.

WASHINGTON -- Spending by lawmakers on taxpayer-financed trips abroad has risen sharply in recent years, a Wall Street Journal analysis of travel records shows, involving everything from war-zone visits to trips to exotic spots such as the Galápagos Islands.

The spending on overseas travel is up almost tenfold since 1995, and has nearly tripled since 2001, according to the Journal analysis of 60,000 travel records. Hundreds of lawmakers traveled overseas in 2008 at a cost of about $13 million. That's a 50% jump since Democrats took control of Congress two years ago.

The cost of so-called congressional delegations, known among lawmakers as "codels," has risen nearly 70% since 2005, when an influence-peddling scandal led to a ban on travel funded by lobbyists, according to the data.

After arriving back in D.C. from a long, but deeply gratifying week in California, it was time to get back to work.

Monday morning I interviewed former Vice-President Dick Cheney, alongwith my co-host John McCaslin.

I asked Mr. Cheney whether the Obama administration is withdrawing from the battlefield too soon, or whether the Iraqis are ready to assume the leadership in providing safety and security for their country.

Cheney expressed deep concern and the Washington times reports.

UPDATED EXCLUSIVE:

"...Former Vice President Dick Cheney on Monday said he is concerned about U.S. forces withdrawing from Iraqi cities within 24 hours.

Mr. Cheney told The Washington Times' "America's Morning News" radio show that he is a strong believer in Gen. Ray Odierno, commander of U.S. forces in Iraq, and that the general is doing what needs to be done.

"But what he says concerns me: That there is still a continuing problem. One might speculate that insurgents are waiting as soon as they get an opportunity to launch more attacks."

More than 250 people have died in Iraq during the past week in attacks and bombings, which appear designed to shake the government's confidence and reignite sectarian fighting.

Much of the violence is in northeastern Baghdad, where hostile acts have occurred about once every other day. "

Later, CNN's liberal commentator Paul Begala attacked the Vice-President for appearing on America's Morning News, my new syndicated radio program heard across the United States.

Outrageously, Begala suggested that Cheney demeaned himself by answering our questions, and then accused him of practically murdering 4,000 American servicemen and women who died fighting the war in Iraq.

It appears that the liberal elite media is getting nervous that America's Morning News is making, breaking and driving the news cycle- just as we promised when we debuted over a week ago.

Connecticut Bloggers Put Their Stamp on "Troopathon!' Jim Vicevich, WTIC 1080, Movers and Shakers!

Saturday, June 27, 2009

"Thank you from the bottom of my heart" - Melanie Morgan

(courtesy Radio Patriot and Andrea Shay-King website)

We made an astounding $603,029 dollars on our tote board at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library last night in Simi Valley, California during or 2nd annual webathon to raise money for care packages to our troops in Iraq and Afghanistan.

I am proud to report that my friend Rush Limbaugh once again wrote a personal check for $100,000, Mark Levin and other celebrites dug deep as well with contributions. Small donors, though, made up the largest portion of the broadcast on the Internet, and I am personally grateful to each and every one you who contributed to this undertaking to show our miltiary men and women that we have their back here at home.

Remember - if you missed the show - you can see it re-broadcast on uStream.tv and it is not too late to contribute. Do it now, and we might get that total up to $1,000,000 and force my co-host Andrew Breitbart to cut off his long locks yet! His son Samson too!

Move America Forward and its entire staff of Catherine Moy, Sal Russo, Danny Gonzalez, Ryan Gill, Erica Anderson, our photographer Mandi, producers Shawn Callahan and Levi Russell, Ben Mathis from Universal Television and others who helped us with this Internet broadcast thank- you so very much.

God Bless you and God Bless our troops!

At 1:00 pacific, 4:00 eastern time, the All Star Celebrity pro-troops high-tech web broadcast begins here in Simi Valley California at the Ronald Reagan Presidential library.

People from Hollywood, pundits and politicans are all joining together in person, via Skype, on the phone or by proclamation to raise money to send the single largest care package delivery to American troops in Iraq and Afghanistan - ever.

Join me on Fox and Friends at 5:30 this morning here in the West as I show you the actual package that is going to be shipped overseas.

Move America Forward is proud to honor the men and women who sacrifice each day - some even making the ultimate sacrifice - and it is the least that we can do to acknowledge our troops and show them that we have their backs here at home.

Join folks like Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, Mark Levin, Jon Voight, Gary Sinese, Carrie Prejean, John Ratzenberger, Jon Ondransik from Five for Fighting, Connie Stevens and dozens more, including my co-host Andrew Breitbart from Big Hollywood.com as well as Michelle Malkin and the bloggers, too.

And don't forget - you don't have to wait until 1:00 pacific time to log on to www.troopathon.org to make a donation - do it right now!

See you on Radio, TV and the web today - I am psyched! Send that care package and Honor Their Service!

See that Ustream.tv box on the right? It has a pre-recorded news conference from Washington, D.C. that is a place-holder for the real stream coming up this Thursday when it springs to life with our live broadcast from the Ronald Reagan Library in Southern California.

I am co-hosting this broadcast with my good friend Andrew Breitbart from Big Hollywood, and Mark Williams will also be handling the emcee duties. Our guests include Gary Sinese from CSI: New York, Kelsey Grammer, Elizabeth Hesselbeck and dozens of other stars plus both President Bush's will be involved. Each day the guest list has changed and expanded.

TheVentura County newspaper has details. Spread it around!

By Jacky Guerrero (Contact)
Tuesday, June 23, 2009

Move America Forward will host a fundraising event for the troops Thursday at the Ronald Reagan Library in Simi Valley.

The Troopathon, called “Honor Their Service,” is a Web-based event to raise money to create and send care packages to military personnel deployed in Afghanistan and Iraq. The packages will contain beef jerky, cookies, coffee and other items.

“We send the care packages to soldiers, airmen, Marines, National Guard, Air Force, sailors — anyone we can find,” said Danny Gonzalez, communications director for the group. “We will get requests from soldiers who go on our Web site and who send us an e-mail with their information or through other Web sites that we work with.

“Our troops need to know what a great job they are doing in both Iraq and Afghanistan,” Gonzalez said.

Some care packages will also be sent to troops stationed at Guantanamo Bay.

Move America Forward is a grass-roots organization committed to supporting the men and women in our military.

The eight-hour event Thursday will be webcasted on Ustream.tv. Participants will work phone banks to take donations, which also can be made online.

Throughout the event, singers and comedians will perform, Gonzalez said, although who will be participating was not yet available. Actor Jon Voight is scheduled to appear at the library and speak during the show, he said.

Conservative politicians and pundits are scheduled to participate by either phone or Web cam. Former Vice President Dick Cheney and Gen. David Petraeus have also written letters that will be read during the webcast.

The group hopes to beat the total raised last year — $1.5 million — and send more than 12,000 packages.

The event is open to the public. Those attending will have to pay the library’s entrance fee.

“We really want to help out our troops who are fighting the war on terror,” said Gonzalez.

I was walking back to my hotel from dinner this evening when a super-sized ambulance bus from Fairfax County went screaming by.

Interest piqued (since I am staying in the District of Columbia) I was horrified to discover on the Washington Times website there is a major calamity.

WASHINGTON — At least two people were killed when a Metro train derailed and collided with another train during rush hour between the Takoma and Fort Totten stations near the Maryland and District of Columbia border.

Several people were injured and firefighters were still trying to remove others from the wreckage an hour and a half after the 5 p.m. collision. One train appeared to be resting on top of the second, suggesting a head on collision.

D.C. fire spokesman Alan Etter says at least one person was killed and that this is developing into a "mass casualty event." He says crews are cutting apart the trains to get people out. He says there are severe injuries, but no indication how many.

"We believe there are preliminary reports of injuries on board, but we don't know to what extent," Metro spokeswoman Cherry-Ann Santos said.

Officials reported several injuries and D.C. fire officials characterized the incident as a mass-casualty scene. Fire officials were attempting to cut trains apart.

Fire officials said they did not know how many people were aboard the train or how many were injured.

Metro officials advised people to avoid the Red Line on Monday afternoon and evening. Trains were operating between Glenmont and Brookland and between Shady Grove and Brookland stations and from Glenmont to Takoma Metrorail stations for the remainder of the day.

Spokeswoman Taryn McNeil says the collision happened about 5 p.m. between the Fort Totten and Takoma Park stations on Metro's red line.

Monday's derailment comes more than two years after a subway train derailed near downtown Washington, sending 20 people to the hospital and prompting the rescue of 60 people from a tunnel.

It appears that Bill Keller and his editors at the New York Times only care about keeping secrets when a guy has a by-line next to his name, instead of a name-tag on his shoulder.

Folks, my blood started boiling early this morning (and I do mean EARLY) when I read the New York Times article about the escape of one their journalists from captivity in Afghanistan.

Why? Because the editor of the Times, Bill Keller, made the decision to keep the story under wraps for the safety of his man, his intrepeter and their driver.

No, I am not upset because of that - per se.

In fact, it was the responsible thing to do. What infuriates me is that just two years ago, Keller published the Top Secret FISA report that helped capture Al Quada suspects by tracking their money transactions, plus he published the SWIFT banking details, and the interrogation techniques by the U.S. Military, blatant breaches of national security that would make the Rosenbergs blush.

 As a result,  the terrorists can be trained to withstand those techniques and hold their deadly secrets that much longer.

This, of course, has jeoparized the safety and security of our troops fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan and that's why I am so angry that sparks are flying off the top of my head.

The New York Times is a disgrace, and it's editor should be ashamed of his poor judgement in the past, and I worry about the safety our troops in the future with this kind of irresponsibilty and media bias that exists now at the Gray Lady.

....in my humble opinion. 

 Congressman Steve King (R) from Iowa is defending a woman who has been sued by ACORN, the left-wing voter registration group that is under federal indictment right now.

 On our radio program, we interviewed Congressman King, and Andrea Shay King (no relation) a talk radio host from Florida who helped break this story is blogging about it again today.

 "...During the third and final hour of this morning's America's Morning News radio program, co-hosts Melanie Morgan and John McCaslin interviewed Iowa Rep. Steve King about the growing ACORN scandal.

Melanie asked King about the lawsuit being brought against Anita MonCrief.

"... Sitting in a roomful of lawyers examining this, the only conclusion we could come up with was, to shut her up, an intimidation tactic of using the courts... It (ACORN) has all the appearances of a criminal enterprise."

The interview with Rep. King begins at 17:38. They begin talking about Anita's case at 22:42.

Link to listen to the interview here.