If anyone thought a little thing like a blood clot and hospitalization would slow Vivian Beckerle down, don't count on it. She's maybe a bit rested after a few days in a local hospital, but otherwise she's fine. I just saw here tonight and she looks great - radiant and determined to get the message out to as many Alabama voters as she can before next Tuesday.

Things are heating up even down here - the usual thuggery - stealing signs and slinging a bit of mud here and there maybe, but we're pretty civil compared to what's going on elsewhere. I have a feeling that's because no one really cares about what happens down here very much, but Bonner is spending money on TV ads and signs. Word is he'll actually drive around the district tomorrow as well.

There's a great story in the Albany Times Union today about John Sweeney (NY-20) and his work to help Jack Abramoff and his sweatshop owning patrons on the Mariana Islands.

There is a lot in the story, but this was my favorite part:

Sweeney was quoted in the Saipan Tribune on Jan. 15 [2001] as saying reports of poor working conditions in the CNMI were overblown, and that he had seen worse sweatshops back home in New York. Carlson said Sweeney was "absolutely not" aware of any severe mistreatment of workers or forced prostitution before he made these comments.

U.S. Rep. George Miller, D-Calif., a longtime champion of legislation to change CNMI wage and immigration laws, traveled to the islands in 1998 [snip].

Problems were obvious "unless you choose not to look at the facts on the ground," Miller said, adding: "A blind pig could run into the human rights violations and the exploitation of workers on the islands."

That sums up the modern Republican Party: Blind Pigs.

And we have three weeks to take them out.

To the jump...

Alabama is electing a governor this year, although it hardly seems worth the bother.

The Democratic candidate -- Lt. Gov. Lucy Baxley -- is doing her best imitation of Roy Moore, trying to tack to the right of incumbent Republican Bob Riley. It isn't working.

Way behind in the polls and apparently stung by Riley TV ads that dropped the "L" bomb on her and linked her to (gasp!) Ted Kennedy and Hillary Clinton, she seems to think she needs to be the second coming of Roy Moore.

It is a big news day, so it is the perfect day for the White House to release another snippet of their endless contacts with Jack Abramoff and support for his clients, whims and wishes.

Now there are quite a few Diaries out about this story, but I want to focus on how to use the Abramoff scandal to WIN in November.

The key is to use this moment to reframe the Abramoff Scandal narrative.

It has been about a gang of scamps ripping off casinos. Sort of an Oceans Eleven staring Jack, George, Karl, Grover, Ralph, Ed and the gang.

When that is the scandal narrative the Republicans win. The scandal gets no tractions because nobody cares if a casino is ripped off.

We need to change the narrative.

The Abramoff scandal is about forced sex, human trafficking and selling out ones values and principles for money and power

The framing that drives this home is Abramoff's work on the Commonwealth of North Mariana Islands (CNMI).

It was a proven strategy in Georgia. And now Charlie Brown is showing how this is a winning issue for Democrats this fall.

Learn how on the jump...

Perhaps Jack Abramoff said it best:

"Any important Republican who comes out and says they didn't know me is almost certainly lying," he says. Such lies are not just, well, lies, but dumb to boot, he adds, for, as his own humiliations suggest, old e-mails never die; they just sit on hard drives, waiting to be subpoenaed and then to be leaked to the press. "This is not an age when you can run away from facts," he declares. "I had to deal with my records, and others will have to deal with theirs."

I've been swimming through Republican corruption. Over the last couple of months I've been trying to compile a list of Republican candidates in this cycle who have multiple links to Jack Abramoff and the slush fund he was managing for the GOP.

Earlier this year, a reporter told Newshour:

EAMON JAVERS: I have one source who says it could be as many as 60 members of Congress that they are looking at.

I think he might be right.

Join me on the jump to meet The Abramoff 64 (34 in competitive races)...

I've been swimming in corruption.

I've been reviewing old Jack Abramoff files, documents and news clips.

Not surprisingly, the number of Republicans with ties to Jack Abramoff and the Slush Fund behind the Gingrich/DeLay/Bush era of incompetence and corruption is growing.

At the beginning of August I posted a Diary about 21 GOP Candidates tied to Jack Abramoff. Since then I've kept digging. I've gotten some nice leads, tips and suggestions. More names have been added to the list.

Now I need your help.

53 Republican candidates in this election cycle have an Abramoff problem. (And I suspect that more names will be added to the list as the research continues).

I need your help to promote these links and to help me make more connections between these candidates and Jack Abramoff and the GOP Culture of Corruption.

Each of the Abramoff 53 has multiple ties to the scandal. Some connections are politically embarrassing, some smell fishy and some are clear criminal acts.

So, if you're ready, please join me on the jump and meet the Abramoff 53...

I've been swimming in corruption.

I've been reviewing old Jack Abramoff files and how the scandal connects to a number of GOP Candidates for the elections this fall.

Not surprisingly, it seems like everybody in the Grand Old Party was hooked into the Abramoff/Gingrich/DeLay/Bush era of incompetence and corruption.

As Jack told Vanity Fair:

"Any important Republican who comes out and says they didn't know me is almost certainly lying," he says. Such lies are not just, well, lies, but dumb to boot, he adds, for, as his own humiliations suggest, old e-mails never die; they just sit on hard drives, waiting to be subpoenaed and then to be leaked to the press. "This is not an age when you can run away from facts," he declares. "I had to deal with my records, and others will have to deal with theirs."

And there is more to the paper trail than just email. There are invoices, donations, Bills, Resolutions, appropriations and endless clues embedded in press releases, news accounts and old Web sites.

Some are politically embarrassing, some smell fishy and some are clear criminal acts.

To the Jump...

Today our grassroots effort to clean up the roadways of Alabama paid off. We made the front page of the Birmingham News!

http://www.al.com/...

EDIT: Whoops! Forgot to add the link to our site. Litter On A Stick

Thank God, finally some good news -- a new poll from the University of South Alabama shows Lt. Gov. Lucy Baxley leads Don Siegelman 45-27 with just a week to go before the primary.

A few days ago there was a Survey USA poll that showed a virtual tie in the Democratic race for governor of Alabama between Baxley and Siegelman.

I say thank God because I could not fathom that Alabama Democrats would nominate Siegelman -- a former governor who was ousted four years ago by Bob Riley in the closest governor's race in state history. Siegelman is currently on trial in federal court on corruption charges. It is his second such trial -- having beat the rap the first time.

Right up front let me just say that I don't give a rip who wins tonight's American Idol. And the reason I don't care is because I live in Alabama -- home of Ruben, Bo and Taylor. If you have to ask who they are, you aren't from Alabama or an American Idol fan.

You see, the newspapers and local TV are just eaten up with Taylor Hicks:

"Gov. Riley has been a national leader in his efforts to protect Alabama's borders. Alabama is one of only only three states whose state troopers have been trained by Immigrations and Customs Enforcement agency to question, arrest, and detain illegal immigrants. " - Bob Riley TV Ad.

Way to go, Riley and Alabama. He had something equally interesting to say about marriage in his TV ad, but I couldn't get a transcript of it. But then, he's actually one of the better options, considering that Roy Moore is still on the ticket for the GOP primaries.

The Democrats under Don Seigelman fucked up big time earlier, and now he is still a candidate, while his corruption trial is taking centerstage. Wow. Nice going, Don. That'll make sure to sabotage any chances the other Democratic candidates might have. I have no idea how good or bad Lucy Baxley is, but she'll have a long way to go to make any headway against Riley in this race, and to even begin to gain some visiblity.

A new poll just out shows former Gov. Don Siegelman, who is about to go on trial for the second time on corruption charges, is leading current Lt. Gov. Lucy Baxley 39 to 38 for the nomination to face incumbent Gov. Bob Riley in the fall.

The same poll shows Riley with a huge 44-point lead over Roy "Ten Commandements" Moore in the GOP primary.

Siegelman, as a former governor (ousted in 2002 by Riley) has better name recognition but Baxley has been around a while too and is pretty well known. Siegelman has traditionally had strong support among black voters, but the fact that an indicted ex-official is leading in the polls is a major embarrassment.

Rasmussen has a new poll out on this year's Alabama governor's race. The Republican incumbent, Bob Riley, has been riding high in the state media lately due to a huge state budget surplus and his promise to cut taxes.

But the poll shows him leading Democratic Lt. Gov. Lucy Baxley by only 47-40. Riley leads his other potential Democratic opponent, former Gov. Don Siegelman, by 49-40.

Lucy Baxley has a much better chance if the Republican nominee is Roy "Ten Commandments" Moore. She leads him 50-39. Siegelman leads Moore 46-40.

It looks like Arkansas and Florida are not the only Southern governorships in play this year. According to Rasmussen, the red, red state of Alabama is within striking distance.

Governor Bob Riley (R) holds single digit leads over two Democrats who want his job. The latest Rasmussen Reports election poll in Alabama shows Riley leading Lt. Governor Lucy Baxley (D) 47% to 40%.

Baxley is considered the favorite to win the Democratic nomination. However, Riley is also being challenged by the man he beat four years ago, Don Siegelman. In that re-match, Riley has a nine point advantage, 49% to 40%.