Two Drone Questions: How Did Iran Get It? What Will the Damage Be?
As I noted in an update to this post, the US has now admitted that the drone Iran claimed to down is, in fact, one of its new-fangled RQ-170 Sentinels. Sources have admitted anonymously that CIA was using the drone for reconnaissance, implicitly…
Pakistan Withdraws Cooperation From Key Border Posts, McCain and Graham Stir Pot
Although it is now a week and a half since the November 26 NATO attack on two border posts that killed 24 Pakistani soldiers, it appears that the barrage of official statements and official actions is not yet slowing. Despite a Sunday phone…
Jon Kyl Justifies Military Detention by Claiming CIA-Military Credit for FBI Interrogations
In the entire two week debate over the detainee provisions of the Defense Authorization, the champions of military detention offered almost no rationale for it (a pity, then, that the opponents barely explained why it's such a bad idea), aside…
Florida Containment Dome Crackers: How Saving $15 Million Ended Up Costing $2.5 Billion
Almost single-handedly, reporter Ivan Penn at the Tampa Bay Times (formerly known as the St. Petersburg Times) has been informing the world of the disgusting spectacle taking place only sixty miles southwest of my home at the Crystal River…
Eric Holder, Indefinitely Detained by DOD?
The most shocking phrase in the Senate's Defense Authorization detainee provisions to me was not the language affirming indefinite detention. That language simply affirms and possibly narrows the status quo. Rather, it was this language purporting…
Did Iran Hack Our Drone?
I've been saying for some time that America's hubris about drones will end as soon as one of our antagonists figures out how to hack them.
Which is why it's interesting that Iran has updated its claims to have "shot down" an American drone…
Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt Advocates Extending PATRIOT Act to Domestic Terrorists
I watched last night's Huckabee Presidential forum between thrilling plays in the Big 10.2 Championship game. Since each candidate appeared by him or herself, it lacked the entertaining in-fighting of other episodes of this reality show. But…
The Price of NCAA Trash
I have been having a pretty interesting discussion off blog with Gulf Coast Pirate about the coaching carousel and big money in college football. The long and short is that his team, the Houston Cougars, has a hot young coach, and my team, the…
Lindsey Graham's Independent Review for All Detainees in US Prisons
As I've said before, I think Carl Levin's assurances that habeas corpus will prevent the Executive from holding people without cause under his new detainee provisions (and, frankly, under the status quo) is dangerously naive, because it ignores…
Does the FBI Contend Intelligence Reports on Community Outreach Events Comply with Its Policy?
Yesterday, the ACLU released a report on its ongoing FOIA on what FBI offices around the country are doing to collect intelligence on Muslim communities and particular ethnic groups. The report found a number of cases in which the FBI mixed…
Pakistan's "Temoporary Campsite" at Center of NATO Border Post Attack Controversy
The barrage of claims and counter-claims on what took place early Saturday morning just inside the Pakistani side of the Afghanistan-Pakistan border continues at a rapid pace. On Thursday, the Wall Street Journal published an article in…
Why the Iraq AUMF Still Matters
The big headline that came out of yesterday's American Bar Association National Security panels is that DOD General Counsel Jeh Johnson and CIA General Counsel Stephen Preston warned that US citizens could be targeted as military targets if…
49% of Michigan's African Americans to Lose Their Right to Self-Governance
And now, as a break from all the shitty national news, I wanted to update you on shitty news from my home front.
Governor Snyder is about to start the process of appointing an Emergency Financial Manager for Detroit (though note, they're…
Senate Achieves Craven Punt on Indefinite Detention
Update: The vote on 1126--which would exempt Americans from indefinite detention--was defeated 45-55. Democrats voting for indefinite detention include Begich, Blumenthal, Inouye, Klobuchar, Landrieu, Lieberman, Levin, Manchin, Bad Nelson,…
Government Establishes Task Force to Combat HAMP Scams, But Not Foreclosure Scams
Treasury, SIGTARP, and the Consumer FInancial Protection Board just formed a task force to fight HAMP fraud.
Mind you, they're not aiming to fight the fraud servicers engage in--that is, using HAMP as a way to get force homeowners to stop…
Administration Has Means to Sustain Civilian Primacy without Veto
As we all wait to see whether Obama will follow through on his veto threat tied to the detainee provisions in the Defense Authorization, I want to make an observation.
The Obama Administration has the means--short of a veto--to sustain civilian…
Border Post Attack Fallout Continues: No Obama Apology; Pakistan Threatens WOT Role
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-BSoEeLgnm0[/youtube]
Pakistan and the US continue to provide widely differing accounts of the NATO attack on two border posts just inside the Pakistan border that killed 24 Pakistani troops early Saturday…
Ayotte's Pro-Torture Amendment Referred to Conference
Update: Adam Serwer informs me that I misunderstood what happened in the colloquy where this was discussed. Ayotte's pro-torture amendment was withdrawn.
I apologize for my error.
As Jeff Kaye laid out here, Kelly Ayotte submitted an amendment…
Efforts to Combat Levin-McCain Don't Do Anything to Prohibit Indefinite Detention of Americans
When he gets defensive, Carl Levin can be tremendously cantankerous (sometimes that's a good thing, but not when he's pushing terrible law like the detainee provisions in the Defense Authorization).
That cantankerous Carl Levin of late started…
Why Didn't DOJ Look More Closely at DTRA's Role in 2001 Anthrax Attacks?
[Note: This post has been updated to correct an error regarding the location of the Project BACUS facility. Erroneous material has not been deleted but has been put into strikethrough font.]
In following up on yesterday's announcement…
