Bad Deeds for 10-18-2007

Fred Thompson Proposes to Cut Social Security Benefits by 25 Percent – Republican presidential candidate Fred Thompson proposed to curb the cost of Social Security by cutting projected benefits by as much as 25 percent over the next 33 years, according to the estimate of one conservative think tank. The presidential candidate broached his proposal for limiting the cost of Social Security at a Republican presidential debate in Dearborn, Mich., earlier this month.

Proposed FCC Rule Would Allow One Company to Own a Newspaper and Broadcast Station in the Same market – The chairman of the Federal Communications Commission is proposing a plan that would wrap up by the end of the year the long-running debate over how many media properties a company should be allowed to own in a single market. Among the rules that are potentially on the chopping block is a ban on one company owning a newspaper and broadcast station in the same market. The rule is of particular interest to Tribune Co., which is the subject of a pending buyout led by real estate magnate Sam Zell. Minorities have been shut out from owning television stations — the nation’s most influential form of media. 96.74% of TV stations are white-owned.

Most Fake Bombs Missed by Airport Screeners – Security screeners at two of the nation’s busiest airports failed to find fake bombs hidden on undercover agents posing as passengers in more than 60% of tests last year. Screeners at Los Angeles International Airport missed about 75% of simulated explosives and bomb parts that Transportation Security Administration testers hid under their clothes or in carry-on bags at checkpoints, the TSA report shows. At Chicago O’Hare International Airport, screeners missed about 60% of hidden bomb materials that were packed in everyday carry-ons — including toiletry kits, briefcases and CD players. San Francisco International Airport screeners, who work for a private company instead of the TSA, missed about 20% of the bombs, the report shows. The TSA ran about 70 tests at Los Angeles, 75 at Chicago and 145 at San Francisco.

Senate Caves-In to Bush on Telecom immunity – The Senate sealed an expected deal this week with President Bush to grant major telecommunications companies — including Verizon, Comcast and AT&T — immunity from prosecution for their role in the President’s warrantless eavesdropping program if they can “demonstrate to a court that they acted pursuant to a legal directive in helping the government with surveillance in the United States.” News reports have fingered phone companies AT&T and Verizon as major players. Both firms are entangled in several class action lawsuits for handling over millions of customer files. Verizon recently admitted that it had honored requests for information at least 720 times without a court order.

Investigation Reveals White House Revolving Door on Iraq Public Relations – Political operatives who have promoted President Bush’s Iraq war agenda and their role in spreading “good news” about Iraq, are in a public relations revolving door among the Republican Party, the White House and the private sector. A series of connections exists between the Bush administration and two subsidiaries of the PR giant Burson-Marsteller, particularly BM’s own “grassroots” firm, Direct Impact. For example, Burson-Marsteller, which had hired former National Republican Congressional Committee communications director Craig Veith to oversee their Media Relations Practice, appointed him CEO of Direct Impact in late 2002.

As head of Media Relations, Veith and Prince Bandar, then Saudi ambassador to the US, had signed an agreement for Burson-Marsteller to work on repairing Saudi Arabia’s image in the wake of 9/11 – just three days after the attacks.

Veith was joined at Direct Impact in 2003 by a prominent GOP campaign strategist, Steve Schmidt, who had held Veith’s former job of communications director for the NRCC since 2001. Schmidt left Direct Impact a year later to become a top strategist in the Bush-Cheney ’04 campaign, where he ran the rapid response operation. He then joined the White House staff as a Senior Adviser to the President and a Counselor to the Vice President.

In April 2005, former Bush-Cheney ’04 Midwest regional political director Dave DenHerder joined Direct Impact. DenHerder would become Direct Impact’s COO in September after Veith, who had been both CEO and COO, departed to found his own firm.

The most recent news buzz about Burson-Marsteller has been about their contract with the embattled security contractor Blackwater USA

Regards,

Jim