Democracy Now! Friday, September 5, 2008

Today's Headlines

• McCain Accepts RNC Nomination
• Peace Activists Interrupt McCain Address
• Up to 400 Arrested on RNC’s Last Day
• Obama Finds Common Ground with O’Reilly in Fox News Appearance
• Abramoff Sentenced to 4-Year Term
• Book: Admin Conducting Extensive Spying on Iraqi Gov’t
• Pentagon Urges Delay of Iraq Troop Reductions; Afghan Occupation to Increase
• US Arrests Iraqi Journalist, Family
• Army Suicide Rate on Record-Setting Pace
• Karzai Visits Site of Deadly US Strike
• Anger Grows in Pakistan over US Attack
• Tropical Storm Hanna Kills 90 in Haiti
• Detroit Mayor Pleads Guilty, Resigns in Perjury Case
• Citing Alleged US Torture, Attorney Seeks Mental Evaluation for Pakistani Prisoner
• Cheney Pushes Georgia Membership in NATO
• UN: Aid to Poor Nations Lags

• 

  Promising "Change" in Washington, McCain Accepts GOP Nomination

  Arizona Senator John McCain accepted the Republican presidential nomination last night, promising an agenda for change and taking on entrenched interests Washington. [includes rush transcript]

• 

  Maverick? Author Paul Waldman on "Free Ride: John McCain and the Media"

  Media Matters fellow and American Prospect columnist Paul Waldman says Sen. McCain’s image as an independent maverick able to take on powerful interests is enabled by a complacent media that overlooks the facts. [includes rush transcript]

• 

  Convention Cash: Journalist Peter Stone on the RNC's Sponsors

  Peter Stone covers lobbying, campaign finance and other issues for the National Journal. We ask him the inner workings of the Republican Party and the key players and financiers behind the scenes.

• 

  Crashing the Party: Suites, Corporate-Sponsored Events Gather the Money Behind the Conventions

  The Republican National Convention in the Twin Cities, like last week’s Democratic convention in Denver, is largely funded by big corporations. We try to go inside the suites at both conventions, and speak to Colorado Senator Ken Salazar and MSNBC pundit Tucker Carlson. [includes rush transcript–partial]

• 

  McCain: "We Have to Catch Up to History"

  Democracy Now! is broadcasting from Saint Paul Neighborhood Network, here in St. Paul, Minnesota, where Arizona Senator John McCain accepted the Republican presidential nomination last night at the Xcel Center. We play an excerpt of his address. [includes rush transcript]

• 

  Abramoff Sentenced to Four Years in Jail for Corruption and Tax Offenses

  Republican lobbyist Jack Abramoff was sentenced Thursday to four years in jail for corruption and tax offenses. Abramoff is already serving a nearly six-year term on unrelated charges. The new sentence will be served at the same time, meaning he will not spend any extra time behind bars once his original sentence ends in 2012. We speak with journalist Peter Stone, author of “Heist: Superlobbyist Jack Abramoff, His Republican Allies, and the Buying of Washington.”

• 

  Nearly 400 Arrested on Last Day of RNC, Including Over a Dozen Media Workers

  As John McCain accepted the Republican presidential nomination inside the Xcel Center last night, nearly 400 people were being arrested on the streets of St. Paul, including more than a dozen media workers. Among them were Rick Rowley of Big Noise Films and Democracy Now! producer Sharif Abdel Kouddous, who had been arrested on Monday while covering another protest. They were handcuffed and detained for about an hour and a half before being released and issued a citation for unlawful assembly. [includes rush transcript]

• 

  Ramsey County Sheriff Admits Local Police Used Paid Infiltrators and Spied on Activists Including RNC Welcoming Committee

  In an interview on Democracy Now!, Ramsey County Sheriff Bob Fletcher blamed a group of 400 to 500 alleged anarchists for creating unrest in St. Paul over the past week. Fletcher also admitted local police authorities had infiltrated and spied on local activists including members of the RNC Welcoming Committee for over a year. We play his remarks and an excerpt of a press conference where members of the RNC Welcoming Committee spoke to the media for the first time.

• "We Are Not Terrorists": Activists With The RNC Welcoming Committee Speak Out Against Police Crackdown & Terrorism Charges

  Ramsey County prosecutors formally charged eight members of the RNC Welcoming Committee with conspiracy to riot in furtherance of terrorism. On Thursday other members of the anarchist group held their first press conference. One local activist accused the police of beating and torturing him in jail.

• 

  Iraqi American Sami Rasouli Says McCain Should Have Invited an Iraqi to Talk at RNC About the Effect of the Surge

  We speak with Sami Rasouli, an Iraqi American who grew up in Najaf. He left in the late 1970s and eventually moved to the United States and settled down in Minneapolis. In November 2004, nearly thirty years after leaving Iraq, Sami returned home to help rebuild his country as director of the Muslim Peacemakers Team in Najaf. He is back in Minneapolis now on a visit from Iraq and joins us in St. Paul. [includes rush transcript]