Kay Bailey: "Perry's actions give liberals argument to discredit death penalty"

It's just embarrassing watching her trying to squeeze herself into the space between Medina and Kilgore, on Perry's right:

"The only thing Rick Perry’s actions have accomplished is giving liberals an argument to discredit the death penalty. Kay Bailey Hutchison is a steadfast supporter of the death penalty, voted to reinstate it when she served in the Texas House and believes we should never do anything to create a cloud of controversy over it with actions that look like a cover-up."

So the greatest travesty here is not that an innocent man was executed, not even that Rick Perry is a wretched scumbag for allowing it to happen and then actively attempting to conceal it.

The most serious offense is the "cloud of controversy" the governor has created over the death penalty.

Who again are the Democrats who intend to vote for this harridan in the Republican primary in March, 2010?

Update: Medina, not surprisingly, makes considerably more sense than the senior senator. (Inquiring minds want to know: could Kay Bailey actually come in third in the GOP gubernatorial primary?)

Action for Climate Change

(This post is -- obviously -- part of today's Blog Action Day.)

If you're a conservative then you can keep on doing what you do best: deny, delay, obfuscate and avoid. If you're anyone else, you can help educate the ignorant.

Climate change in Google Earth

The human faces and stories of those who already confront climate change in their lives: Climate Orb

Kids vs. Global Warming

Pew Center for Global Climate Change's Facts and Figures (great for those who want the charts and graphics and clear explanations). Even more comprehensive data at their Climate Change 101 series.

Mother Nature Network's 15 Best Carbon (footprint) Calculators

CAP's Top 100 Effects of Global Warming includes “Say Goodbye to Pinot Noir”, “More Bear Attacks”, “Malaria Spreading in South America”, and “More Stray Kitties”.

You're more of the results-oriented type? 10 Solutions for Climate Change

Next week, on October 24, 350.org is organizing the International Day of Climate Action. You can visit their site and see what people all around the world are planning to do to demonstrate their commitment to stopping climate change.

U2 in H-Town last night

(We didn't go, but we can see Reliant Stadium from our house)

Perry's response? "Monster", "bad man" *update*

“Willingham was a monster,” Perry said. “Here's a guy who murdered his three children, who tried to beat his wife into an abortion so he wouldn't have those kids. Person after person has stood up and testified to facts of this case that, quite frankly, you all are not covering.”

“This is a bad man. This is a guy who in the death chamber in his last breath spews an obscenity-laced (tirade) against his wife.”

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Referring to yesterday's report that former Texas Forensic Science Commission chair Samuel Bassett was replaced because he refused to yield to pressure from the governor's legal advisers to quell the investigation:

“If somebody felt like they got pressured, that's his call, not ours. My folks don't feel that way at all,” Perry said.

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Back to Willingham and the case:

“He (Willingham's defense lawyer) will tell you that this man was a monster. He has come to clearly believe in his guilt,” Perry said. “He said that study that Mr. Beyler came forward with (that declared the fire was not arson) is nothing more than propaganda by the anti-death penalty people across this country.”

“How many courts looked at this? There were nine federal courts that looked at this case. Nine federal courts. It was before the Supreme Court of the United States four times. Now surely you're not saying the Supreme Court of the United States fouled up four times?”

“We have a system in this state that has followed the procedures and they found this man guilty at every step of the way. You have one piece of study that everyone is glomming onto and saying, ‘Ah-ha!.'”

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Completely reprehensible, as we have all come to expect from Perry.

This is going to get much worse for the governor if his only defense continues to be to blame "libruls" and "the media".

Update: Glenn Smith at Dog Canyon broke the news earlier today that Perry's general counsel at the time was none other than current Texas Supreme Court Justice David Medina -- who was himself indicted by a Harris County grand jury for arson.