Headlines (Scroll down for complete stories): 1. Judicial Watch: Top Hillary Aide Has Sordid History'
2. American-Muslim TV Network Host Urges Votes for Democrats
3. NewsMax Scoops Media on U.N. Vote
4. Study: U. of Michigan Still Discriminates on Admissions
5. Don Imus Leaving MSNBC?
1. Judicial Watch: Top Hillary Aide Has 'Sordid History'
The Democratic operative who reportedly will chair Sen. Hillary Clinton's
presidential campaign has a "sordid history" with the Clintons, according to Tom
Fitton, president of Judicial Watch.
Former Democratic National Committee Chairman Terry McAuliffe recently told
sources that he would be Hillary's campaign chairman if she runs for the White
House, the publication The Hill reported.
He downplayed the report, but conceded that he would play "a huge role" in the
Clinton campaign if it materializes.
McAuliffe "is clearly attempting to jockey for position amongst a bevy of
Clinton fund-raising operatives who want a piece of the Hillary Clinton
campaign," writes Fitton. Judicial Watch is a conservative, non-partisan
educational foundation promoting integrity in government.
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"Given his long and sordid history with the Clintons, he should have the inside
track."
Fitton continues: "McAuliffe allegedly participated in the Clinton
administration's infamous scheme to sell trade mission seats in exchange for
campaign contributions.
"He also helped broker some seemingly shady deals between Gary Winnick, CEO of
Global Crossing, the telecommunications giant that went belly-up in 2002, and
President Clinton. Winnick donated $1 million to the Clinton Presidential
Library and subsequently received a $400 million Pentagon contract from the
Clinton administration."
The contract was later canceled by the Bush administration.
Fitton also points out that McAuliffe turned a $100,000 initial investment in
Global Crossing into $18 million within a year and a half an 18,000-percent
profit.
Judicial Watch sued McAuliffe over his million dollar-plus mortgage guarantee
for the Clintons' house in Chappaqua, N.Y., which Fitton said was "illegal." He
eventually backed out of the deal.
2. American-Muslim TV Network Host Urges Votes for Democrats
Bridges TV, the first English-language American-Muslim TV network, is expanding
into six states and creating a potential audience of nearly 2 million.
The network, which began broadcasting in the Buffalo, N.Y., area in November
2004, offers a mix of entertainment, sports, news, and documentaries.
Its mission statement declares that the network seeks "to improve the image of
Muslims in the United States" and to "offer a unique perspective on the Middle
East and the war on terrorism."
But in a recent interview, one of its hosts criticized the "Jewish lobby" in the U.S. and called on American Muslims to vote for Democrats in November.
Other examples of the network's "unique perspective" include these offerings, according to The New York Sun:
A religious figure who appeared on Oct. 3 asserted that Muslims have a duty to increase the percentage of Americans who are Muslims from 2 percent to 50 percent, and recommended that Shariah, or Islamic law, be implemented in American courts.
The next day, Bridges TV aired a speech by Muslim scholar Jamal Badawi, who in an interview raised questions about who was really behind the 9/11 terrorist attacks and suggested that Americans could be responsible for car bombings in Iraqi markets.
That same day, Imam Mohammad Alo Elahi was a guest on a news program, "Talking Points." According to his Web site, Elahi was a spiritual leader in Ayatollah Khomeini's Iranian navy, and has met with the spiritual adviser of the Hezbollah terror organization.
On Oct. 5, listeners heard an anti-Jewish, anti-Christian sermon that included the call, "May God destroy them!"
A Koranic verse broadcast on Oct. 9 praised martyrdom.
One of the stars of Bridges TV is Donald "Skip" Conover, a co-founder of the health care company CBay Inc. He hosts and produces a show called "Words Matter," and was the subject of an article in the Saudi daily Arab News in September.
In the article, Conover discussed the power of the "Jewish lobby" and called on Muslims to vote for the Democrats, the Sun reported.
"I have news for the Muslim community," he said. "All American politicians are in the pocket of the Jewish lobby today because they control a lot of money, and they spend a lot of money in politics.
"If the Muslims of America believe that they don't want Bush to have a free hand
for the next two years, then the Muslims of America need to get organized and
make sure they get out to vote for Democrats for both the House and the Senate.
Every Muslim in the Middle East who has a relative in the U.S. should get the
message across to their relatives. They need to make sure that all their friends
vote against Bush."
Steven Stalinsky, executive director of the Middle East Media Research
Institute, writes in the Sun: "Bridges TV claims that its 'major purpose' is 'to
build bridges between American Muslims and other Americans.' After viewing the
channel, I find this highly unlikely."
News that Venezuela and Guatemala were locked in a battle for a non-permanent
seat on the United Nations Security Council suddenly broke in the media on
Monday, Oct. 16 but NewsMax reported the upcoming battle more than two weeks
earlier.
The Insider Report, sent out on Oct. 1, disclosed that Hugo Chavez's Venezuela
was eagerly pursuing the Latin American seat, while the United States was
promoting Guatemala for the seat instead.
NewsMax's U.N. correspondent Stewart Stogel disclosed that the Bush
administration was less than enthusiastic with the prospect of confronting
vehemently anti-American Chavez for two years on the Security Council, as well
as during the time he would assume its rotating presidency and control its
monthly agenda.
The rest of the media caught up with the story by reporting that Venezuela and
Guatemala were deadlocked after 10 rounds of voting failed to anoint a winner to
fill the Latin American seat.
On Thursday, after 35 rounds of voting had still not produced a winner, the
General Assembly decided to suspend voting for a week.
Guatemala had 103 votes in the 35th round, Venezuela had 81 and there were seven
abstentions.
A two-thirds majority is necessary to win the seat.
4. Study: U. of Michigan Still Discriminates on Admissions
The University of Michigan's discrimination against white and Asian applicants
the subject of a landmark 2003 Supreme Court decision is more severe than
ever, a new study reveals.
The study by the Center for Equal Opportunity (CEO), based on admissions data
released by the school in response to a Freedom of Information request filed by
CEO, shows that the grades and standardized test scores of black and Hispanic
undergraduates in 2004 and 2005 were far lower than those of their white and
Asian counterparts.
Last year, the median black admittee's SAT score was 1160, versus 1260 for
Hispanics, 1350 for whites, and 1400 for Asians. Median high school GPAs were
3.4 for blacks, 3.6 for Hispanics, 3.8 for Asians, and 3.9 for whites.
The data also showed that African-American and Hispanic applicants who scored
1240 on the SAT and earned a 3.2 grade point average had a nine out of 10 chance
of being admitted to the university, while white and Asian applicants with
similar scores and grades had a one in 10 chance.
The disparities were found in the law and medical schools as well.
The study could affect the Michigan Civil Rights Initiative, which is on the
Nov. 7 ballot. The initiative would bar the state and local governments from
granting preferences based on race, sex, or ethnicity in public employment,
contracting, and education.
CEO's president, Roger Clegg, said the study results are shocking in light of
the U.S. Supreme Court's 2003 decision to strike down the admissions program
used by the University of Michigan's main undergraduate school, according to The
New York Sun.
"The Court found that by automatically granting minority applicants 20 points
out of the 100 needed for admission, the school failed to consider applicants on
an individual basis and thereby violated the 14th Amendment's equal protection
clause," the Sun reported.
CEO Chairman Linda Chavez said in a statement: "What is really remarkable is
that the weight given to race by the University of Michigan in its undergraduate
admissions is actually heavier now than under the system that was struck down by
the Supreme Court in 2003."
According to Clegg, black students are now 71 times more likely than white
students to gain admission, whereas in 1999 they were 24 times more likely to be
admitted.
A spokesman for the university, Julie Peterson, called CEO's study "flawed" and
"shallow" because it did not take into account all the information considered in
the admission process.
But Terrence Pell, president of the Center for Individual Rights the law firm
that represented the plaintiffs who sued the university said Michigan
continues to enforce a "completely segregated double standard."
He added: "This ought to be an issue in every state that has a top-ranked state
university because every one of those states is using double standards
comparable to Michigan's."
NBC's announcement that it was eliminating 700 jobs has some media insiders
wondering what the cost-cutting move will mean for radio talk-show host Don Imus.
Imus simulcasts his show on the MSNBC cable channel, which is expected to see
major cuts. It's already been announced that the parent company will move
MSNBC's operations from Secaucus, N.J. where Imus hosts his radio show to
the network's Manhattan headquarters.
According to the Web site Mediabistro.com, "a tipster alleged that Imus' cable
deal wasn't being renewed, but a spokesperson called that 'completely untrue.'"
NBC News President Steve Capus told TV Week that he met with Imus and "we
literally are working out how we are going to do this. We have looked at so many
options."