Quote Of The Day - Paul Krugman

"What happened after 9/11 — and I think even people on the right know this, whether they admit it or not — was deeply shameful. The atrocity should have been a unifying event, but instead it became a wedge issue. Fake heroes like Bernie Kerik, Rudy Giuliani, and, yes, George W. Bush raced to cash in on the horror. And then the attack was used to justify an unrelated war the neocons wanted to fight, for all the wrong reasons. A lot of other people behaved badly. How many of our professional pundits — people who should have understood very well what was happening — took the easy way out, turning a blind eye to the corruption and lending their support to the hijacking of the atrocity? The memory of 9/11 has been irrevocably poisoned; it has become an occasion for shame. And in its heart, the nation knows it." - Nobel Prize-winning economist Paul Krugman, writing for the New York Times.

RELATED: Krugman's column has already caused furor in the rightwing blogosphere, with GOProud's Chris Barron tweeting that Krugman "may be the most despicable human being to ever wander the planet."

Four Years In Prison For Bernie Kerik

Former NYPD Commissioner Bernie Kerik, who almost became Dubya's director of Homeland Security thanks to Rudy Giuliani's post-9/11 cheerleading, was sentenced yesterday to four years in federal prison for lying to the feds and accepting mob money to build his house. The judge gave Kerik twice the recommended sentence. That Rudy Giuliani, he sure knows how to pick 'em!

More Woes For Giuliani

And you thought getting Pat Robertson's endorsement was bad?

Rudy Giuliani's onetime protege and business partner, former NYC police chief Bernard Kerik, was indicted yesterday on 14 federal counts including conspiracy, wire fraud, false statement on a loan application, tax evasion, obstructing an FBI investigation and lying to the federal government. The charges have been long coming, but New York television stations still interrupted daytime programming today to go live to a press conference held by the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York.

Kerik surrendered to the feds earlier today. A one-time nominee for director of Homeland Security, Kerik withdrew his nomination when it was revealed he'd hired an illegal immigrant as a nanny and that he'd had an affair with publishing mogul Judith Reagan. But that was just the beginning.

Kerik is a multi-millionaire thanks to his business relationship with Giuliani (he was CEO of Giuliani Ventures) and from his stock options with stun-gun manufacturer, Taser. Giuliani has been distancing himself from Kerik for years, but today's news will doubtlessly overshadow any other Giuliani news for a long time.