Did Brennan and Napolitano Have Advance Warning of the UK Arrests?
Now that I've fetched Mr. EW from his 48 hour trip to Philadelphia from Dublin, my entire family will be in one place for the next day or so, so don't expect much posting from me in that period.
But I did want to point to this detail about…
TSA's Legal Justification for Gate Grope
The Electronic Privacy Information Center has been suing the Department of Homeland Security because it refused to engage in the public rule-making process before it adopted RapeAScan machines as part of the primary screening at airports. DHS…
Fat Trash
Get some food, find the couch and man the remote - it's time for some football!
When Did Adrian Lamo Start Working with Federal Investigators?
The first suspicious moment in the chats between Adrian Lamo and Bradley Manning occurred at 12:54 on May 22--ostensibly the second day of chat communication between them (though Manning had sent Lamo encrypted emails for an unspecified period…
Obama/Bush DOJ Update to OLC Christmas Carol
Through what can only be described as a Christmas miracle, our very own Mary has “discovered” the new version of the OLC Christmas carol, as updated by the Obama/Bush OLC.
Is James Clapper's Ignorance a Bug? Or a Feature?
Director of National Intelligence James Clapper has been getting beat up because he got embarrassed by Diane Sawyer when he admitted he had no clue about a 12-person counterterrorism arrest in the UK earlier the day of the interview.
In an interview…
State Secrets Santa and SCOTUS
2011 is going to be a busy and critical year for state secrets litigation in the Supreme Court, and the Obama Administration will be arguing for an expansion of the doctrine in the Supreme Court when it returns to business in January.
Merry Christmas
I was going to post on boring depressing things. But instead I'm kibbitzing as my cousins play Fable 3. They suggested I post this YouTube instead.
Maybe I'll get around to those boring depressing posts after Santa comes.
In the meantime,…
Gawker Coughs Up a Misleading Hairball On Bradley Manning
Gawker has published a misleading and uninformed article on the detention conditions of Bradley Manning; the truth is that he is presumed innocent and being held pre-trial, not a convicted criminal being punished.
If We're Eliminating Symbols Used for Recruitment, Why Not Drones?
Here's what Obama said in response to a question of whether and why he was going to close Gitmo.
Q But it makes me wonder where you are, sir, at about the two-year mark on Guantanamo, when closing it was one of your initial priorities, sir?
THE…
UN Describes "the Right of Every Person to ... Know What Governments Are Doing on Their Behalf"
The UN's Special Rapporteur on the Promotion and Protection of the Right to Freedom of Opinion and Expression and the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights' Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression issued a statement Wednesday laying…
Obama's EO on Indefinite Detention: Wanting Bud McKeon's Cake and Eating It Too
[Update, 12/7/11: I find I'm still linking back to this post, and cringing everytime I see I got McKeon's name, Buck, wrong. Apologies.]
I plan to do some more reading on Obama's proposed Executive Order on Indefinite Detention (not least,…
Today's Lesson from the White House: Take Hostages
As we celebrate President Obama signing into law the repeal of Don't Ask Don't Tell, I'd like to congratulate the activists who made it happen. This is the progressive high point of Obama's presidency so far, and it came because of the hard…
Cheney Freedom Discounts Bigger than Cheap Chinese Toy Discounts
In the race to see which would be discounted more quickly, Cheney's freedom won out over cheap Chinese toys at Christmas season: the final price for Cheney's freedom is $35 million.
Oilfield contractor Halliburton has agreed to pay Nigeria $35…
Vaughn Walker Issues Final al-Haramain Opinion on Damages and Attorney Fees
Judge Vaugn Walker has issued an extremely significant decision in the illegal wiretapping case of al-Haramain v. Bush/Obama. He has awarded damages and attorney fees to the plaintiffs on their claims of illegal and unconstitutional surveillance by the US government.
Obama Formalizes His Indefinite Detention Black Hole
The Obama administration is preparing an executive order that would formalize indefinite detention without trial for some detainees at the U.S. military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, but allow those detainees and their lawyers to challenge the basis for continued incarceration.
Geezer Returns: Special Old Fart Trash
In case you have not heard, some guy who last week was not a starting quarterback will suddenly start for the Minnesota Vikings tonight on Monday Night Football against the Chicago Bears. Who knows what this untested and unknown quarterback…
"Austerity" Merriam-Webster's Word of 2010
Merriam-Webster has made "austerity" it's word of the year for 2010.
Topping the list is austerity, defined as "enforced or extreme economy." Lookups for austerity peaked dramatically several times throughout the year, as people's attention…
161,948 SARs Become 103 Investigations and 5 Arrests
The WaPo rolled out one last story to shore up their "Top Secret America" Pulitzer bid before the end of the year. I agree with Glenn's overall assessment of this latest installment:
As was true of the first several installments of their "Top…
Protecting DC's Metro from the FBI and Facebook
While I've been in moving hell (one more day, a long drive, and then!!! relax), there have been two developments in the FBI's efforts to fearmonger in the DC Metro.
As I first reported several weeks ago, TSA Director and former FBI Deputy Director…