Wednesday Political Potpourri

John Dean on the Impeachment of the President:

A prolific author, most recently of the New York Times bestsellers “Worse Than Watergate” and “Conservatives Without Conscience,” Dean discussed with Truthdig managing editor Blair Golson (via e-mail) his view that the Democrats should not initiate impeachment hearings unless they have strong reason to believe the Senate would then vote to remove Bush from office – or else risk the kind of “sham” proceedings that characterized the Clinton impeachment saga.

Record $1.3 Million Spent so far to Elect Groen to Washington State Supreme Court:

Breaking all records, reported campaign contributions and spending to elect John Groen to the Washington State Supreme Court now exceeds $1,294,608. Over half a million dollars ($557,980) alone has been spent by by the BIAW (Building Industry Association of Washington) and PAC's it controls.

The BIAW and other special interest groups are trying to defeat current Supreme Court Justice Gerry Alexander. Groen is running on a program of defending developer interests over those of individual property owners and comunities. The BIAW is trying to elect their third Supreme Court Justice that represents their special interests. Previously they were the main spenders to elect James Johnson and Richard Saunders to the Court.

E-Voting: Corrupted Machines Not Needed to Rig an Election:

You don't need to corrupt the software in electronic voting machines to gain an unfair advantage for one party in an election. All you need do, in certain, select precincts (e.g., ones which vote predominately Democratic), is simply delay getting the the electronic cards needed to operate them when the polls open.

Air America To Declare Bankruptcy, But Progressive Radio Remains Strong:

Air America Radio will announce a major restructuring on Friday, which is expected to include a bankruptcy filing, three independent sources have told ThinkProgress.

Air America could remain on the air under the deal, but significant personnel changes are already in the works. Sources say five Air America employees were laid off yesterday and were told there would be no severance without capital infusion or bankruptcy. Also, Air America has ended its relationship with host Jerry Springer.