Anthrax Sent to Pakistan's PM Begs Question of Whether FBI Investigated Presumed Anthrax Sent to US Pak Embassy in 2001
Yesterday's revelation by Pakistan that a package containing anthrax had been sent to Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani has both shocked Gilani's security staff and provoked memories that anthrax was sent to multiple targets in Pakistan in late…
The Administration's Many Excuses for Hiding Its Targeted Killing Memo
Remember this article? It describes the debate within the Administration over how readily and extensively to acknowledge the US killing of Anwar al-Awlaki. As it describes, the debate was at least preliminarily resolved at a Situation Room meeting…
Ron Wyden Suggests Secret PATRIOT GPS Tracking May Be Illegal Under Jones
As I've suggested in my posts on US v Jones, the Justices seemed opposed to the kind of tracking we believe the government is doing under Section 215 of the PATRIOT Act. Yet of the three opinions ruling the warrantless use of GPS tracking in…
Michael Hayden's Risky and Edgy Schadenfreude
I've long suspected the reason Republicans have pursued Fast and Furious so relentlessly--and more importantly, have tried to implicate Eric Holder in it personally--is to exact revenge on the Attorney General because he deigned to investigate…
The Non-Counterterrorist Drone Loophole: Did Clapper Admit We Targeted Iranian Scientists?
One of the most interesting exchanges in yesterday's Threat Assessment hearing occurred between Ron Wyden and James Clapper--with David Petraeus, whom Wyden calls out, observing silently (the exchange starts at 1:01).
Wyden: Let me wrap up…
Newest Leaked NATO Report Aimed at Preventing Afghanistan Withdrawal?
Fresh on the heels of the "leak" to the New York Times two weeks ago of an already public report on Afghan troops killing US troops, another NATO report casting a bad light on the current war effort in Afghanistan has been leaked. This time…
Dianne Feinstein Calls James Clapper a Polyanna on Afghanistan
The takeaway the stenographers have gotten from yesterday's intelligence threat assessment is that the Scary Iran Plot means Iran wants to target us in this country.
They reported that even as Dianne Feinstein made it clear James Clapper…
Dianne Feinstein Complains about Executive Branch Blabbing
In her statement at the beginning of the Threat Intelligence Assessment hearing today, Dianne Feinstein complained that the Executive Branch continues to blab about things that are supposed to be secret (this starts around 11:00).
I'd also…
CIA's Drone Cowboys Complaining about "General Betrayus"
Remember when it was verboten to criticize David Petraeus, particularly in anticipation of his testimony to Congress?
Apparently it's okay to do so if you run a secret killer drones program. While couched in anonymous sources, this story…
Did Ivins Move the Refrigerator? New Cold Facts Cast Further Doubt on Amerithrax Conclusions
The top-notch Frontline/ProPublica/McClatchy group that has been continuing to investigate the anthrax attacks of 2001 and the subsequent Amerithrax investigation by the FBI posted some photos on Monday that they obtained through FOIA requests.…
Never Put Money within Reach of Jamie Dimon
I actually don't think Federal Reserve Bank of NY Board Member Jamie Dimon got his hands on the almost $3 billion of Iraqi money deposited in the FBRNY that has vanished.
An audit by [Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction Stuart]…
Dennis Ross' Red Phone
Ha'aretz reported today that, as part of an ongoing unpaid consulting gig with the Administration, Dennis Ross has a secure phone that allows him to discuss classified issues with the White House.
Apparently, a short while after Ross left his…
Leon's Book of Law
Glenn Greenwald and Adam Serwer already hit this part of 60 Minutes interview with Leon Panetta yesterday. But I wanted to tie Panetta's comments about how, "in his book" a citizen who wants to attack our people and kill Americans is first…
Latif: Presumption of Regularity for Thee, But Not for Me
In her opinion holding that government documents submitted in habeas corpus petitions must be treated with a presumption of regularity, Judge Janice Rogers Brown, herself, did not follow her own order. And in spite of demanding that judges treat…
Iran Repeats Claim Research Reactor Fuel Plates Object of Enrichment as IAEA Visit Could Be Extended
It has generally been viewed as a positive development that Iran has agreed to new visits from the IAEA to help ease the tension surrounding its nuclear program. Especially encouraging is a report in the New York Times this morning that Iran…
And the Drones Start Patrolling Iraq, Again
Back when I went on a tear about how drones undermine nation-states (both ours and those countries we use them in) I predicted we'd be using drones in Iraq again.
Iraq: While plenty of America’s wars have been dubiously legitimate, Iraq certainly…
Leon Panetta and the Pakistani Doctor: Yet More Double Standards on Classified Information
As the Bill Gertz article I reexamined the other day made clear, Leon Panetta became personally involved in the CIA's efforts to investigate detainee lawyers who were trying to track down their clients' torturers.
CIA Director Leon E. Panetta…
We Are All Pirates Now
I recommend you start reading this story, on how the Navy wants a floating base, a "mothership," to float around the Middle East from which to launch paramilitary operations, at paragraph 18 out of 20:
Ironically, the term “mothership”…
The Evolution of Patrick Fitzgerald's Investigation into Torturer Disclosures
Back in the CIA Leak Investigation days, we learned some interesting things from the changes in Patrick Fitzgerald's authority to serve as Special Counsel. So when the Jon Kiriakou complaint the other day mentioned that Fitzgerald's authority…
Latif and the Misattribution Problem: "All Arabs Look the Same"
I'm going to have at least two more posts on Adnan Farhan Abd Al Latif (for background see this post), both in response to this post from Mark Denbeaux and Ben Wittes's response to it.
In this post, I want to demonstrate a possible mistaken…
