Happy Stimulus Day to Susan Collins, Who Killed Billions in School Funding
ThinkProgress has an absolutely devastating report on 111 Republican members of Congress who have attacked last year's stimulus bill, but who have since taken credit for it. Click through for details on Republican hypocrisy close to you, but…
The FOUR OLC Opinions Retroactively Justifying Telecom Data Collection
Alright. I lied. I'm not going to post on why I think FBI went to the trouble of getting an OLC opinion that, apparently, opens a huge loophole in privacy protections from data collection until I first lay out all four OLC opinions that we know…
WaPo Retracts Report that Anwar al-Awlaki on CIA Kill List
As Steven Aftergood reports, the WaPo has issued a correction to Dana Priest's article claiming that Anwar al-Awlaki was added to the CIA's assassination list.
The article referred incorrectly to the presence of U.S. citizens on a CIA list…
Did Evan Bayh Quit Because Reid Refused to Give Paris Hilton a Tax Break?
In his statement explaining why he was quitting, Evan Bayh named the Harry Reid's decision not to let MaxTax Baucus and Chuck Grassley hold the jobs bill hostage as one of the reasons he does not like Congress.
Just last week, a major piece…
Big Brother Kidnapping Your Babies' DNA?
Because I was diagnosed with breast cancer at a really young age, doctors routinely ask if I want to undergo genetic testing. I've always responded that I'd be happy to give researchers DNA material, and even to arrange for other family members…
Why Did FBI Need the Exigent Letters OLC Memo? (Background Post)
Yesterday, I did a post on what the DOJ IG Report on "Exigent Letters" revealed about the January 8, 2010 OLC opinion exploiting some kind of huge loophole in the Stored Communications Act. Today, I'm going to look at why--three and a half years…
Why Did the FBI Need the Exigent Letters OLC Memo
Note: April 12, 2016: I accessed this today and because of some technical issues am not sure whether I published it back in 2010 or not. I'm republishing it dated to the day I wrote it in its apparently incomplete form.
I've been working…
Fresh Off Negotiations w/Rahm, Lindsey Graham Demands Military Commissions AND Indefinite Detention
I guess, once Rahm Emanuel designated him the Acting Attorney General, Lindsey Graham realized he could demand even more from the Administration. Because now he is saying he will only support closing Gitmo if he can also pass a law authorizing…
Dick and the Naked Senator: Waterboarding BFFs
Breaking! (Not) Dick Cheney loves him some waterboarding.
KARL: If you have somebody in custody like Abdulmutallab, after just trying to blow up an airliner, and you think he has information on another attack, I mean, do you think that…
Rahm's Method of Politicizing DOJ
The NYT has an account of how Rahm and Jim Messina tried to give Eric Holder a minder a year ago.
Last winter, when Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. called the United States a “nation of cowards” for avoiding frank conversations…
The Exigent Letter OLC Opinion
Update: Bob Schacht asked for more context, so here goes. This IG Report was the third DOJ's Inspector General, Glenn Fine, has done on the FBI's use of National Security Letters and "exigent letters," though this is the first to focus almost…
Second Working Thread on Exigent Letter IG Report
It has taken me a while. But I've finally gotten through the DOJ IG Report on exigent letters. Page numbers below will be to the PDF page.
Page 14: Footnote 1 notes there are Secret and TS/SCI versions of this report. Keep that in mind as…
Scott Brown and Do-Nothing Senate Will Cause 900,000 More to Lose Jobs
Count me among those who are grateful that Harry Reid scaled back the Senate jobs bill instead of letting MaxTax Baucus and Chuck Grassley use it to push through another estate tax break for Paris Hilton. That said, what he is pushing is another…
Of COURSE Blumenthal Is Running against Civilian Law
Gregg has a post up expressing shock that Richard Blumenthal, CT's craven Attorney General running to replace Chris Dodd, advocated against using civilian law for both Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and the UndieBomber, Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab. Gregg…
Dealing Away Civilian Law
In her piece on Holder's efforts to uphold the rule of law last week, Jane Mayer explained that Rahm Emanuel opposed the idea of civilian trials for the 9/11 plotters because it would piss off Lindsey Graham.
Emanuel, who is not a lawyer, opposed…
Toyota's Revolving Door and Failing Brakes
I've made a concerted effort to avoid piling on the Toyota recall story. But this excellent Bloomberg story--describing how two former National Highway Traffic Safety Administration officials helped Toyota avoid more comprehensive responses…
"The Same Old Game Playing in Washington"
The Sunlight Foundation has a superb report of the way in which Bill Tauzin, whom Obama attacked during his campaign for his slimy deal-making, pushed through a deal with the Obama White House that limited savings from the pharmaceutical…
Obama Prepares to Sacrifice Justice and National Security for Political Expediency
Check out the way the WaPo reports the news--based on three anonymous Administration sources--that Obama will be personally involved in choosing the location of the Khalid Sheikh Mohammed trial.
President Obama is planning to insert himself…
Obama to Shelby (and Others): Let Those Hostages Go
Apparently, Obama told Mitch McConnell that if the GOP didn't start releasing their hostages, he would recess appoint the whole lot of them. And, as a result of a direct threat, McConnell and his buddies released 27 of their hostages.
But…
Patterico Confirms NYT Owes Its Readers a Correction
I wouldn't think I'd need to explain this to a Deputy District Attorney for a major city like Patterico, but here are some of the definitions Merriam-Webster includes for the word "Bugger."
Bugger: (Noun) A worthless person
Bugger: (Verb)…