Weekend Watchdog

Every Friday in our Weekend Watchdog feature, we post suggested questions for scheduled Sunday guests. You can add your own questions in the comment thread. We'll also include contact information for the shows, so we can let them know what their viewers want asked.

And on Sunday at 4 PM ET, tune in to Air America Radio's "Seder on Sundays" program, where I'll offer the Weekend Watchdog Wrap-Up.

1. Several politicians are booked to discuss the virtual pardon of Scooter Libby: Sens. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y. and Orrin Hatch, R-Utah on CBS' Face The Nation; Rep. John Conyers, D-Mich. on ABC's This Week and Reps. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., and Chris Cannon, R-Utah on Fox News Sunday.

The critical question for all of them is:

Does the commutation of Scooter Libby's jail sentence amount to obstruction of justice on the part of President Bush?

Several have directly accused Bush of obstruction of justice, including Ambassador Joe Wilson, blogger-journalists Marcy Wheeler and Josh Marshall, and our own Rick Perlstein. Also, Washingtonpost.com's Dan Froomkin noted that our Founders did not believe the pardon power included the power for the president to "stop inquiry and prevent detection" of crimes associated with himself.

2. Sen. Chuck Hagel, R-Neb. (NBC's Meet The Press) has long been critical of the president's strategy in Iraq.

Now, several Republicans are getting attention for criticizing the "surge" strategy, even though they stop short of supporting an actual end of the occupation.

Sen. Pete Domenici, R-N.M. is supporting a bill implementing the recommendations of the bipartisan Iraq Study Group, but he said that would allow "the U.S. military [to] maintain a long-term but more limited presence in Iraq--focused on protecting American personnel and interests... ." And as noted here before, Sen. Richard Lugar, R-Ind. supports "some level of American military presence in Iraq" to remain, in part to "protect oil flows."

So the question for Hagel should be:

Do you agree with others in your party who criticize the "surge" and want reduced troop levels, but still support occupying Iraq indefinitely?

3. No one appears to be booked on the Sunday shows specifically to talk about Live Earth and the climate crisis.

Nevertheless, with all the attention generated by the global event on our planetary emergency, it would particularly egregious not to raise the issue with those who are responsible for crafting legislation to address the problem.

So all the shows should ask their guests:

What plan do you support to solve the climate crisis?

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