Mary Beth Buchanan's Going Away Present: Jack Murtha?

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emptywheel
Is Mary Beth Buchanan refusing to step down as US Attorney because she intends to take down Jack Murtha before she leaves?

Boy, That Anthrax Attack Sure Led to an Expansion of Our Anthrax Program, Huh

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emptywheel
At the still-unsolved anthrax attacks in 2001, people were raising concerns that we were breaking our treaty obligations not to do such research. But the attack led directly to a ten-fold expansion of our program.

USAMRIID Can’t Keep Track of Its Microbes

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emptywheel
Now, what do you make of the fact that USAMRIID, the lab at which Bruce Ivins was alleged to have made the anthrax used in the 2001 attacks, is having problems cataloging and tracking their high-risk microbes and biomaterials (h/t Danger Room)? The…

Pat Leahy Calls for Truth Commission

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emptywheel
I want prosecutions for Bush era wrong-doing. But barring that, we need to have some accounting for what was done. Today, Pat Leahy joined others in calling for such an investigation.
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BREAKING: Obama Continues Bush Policy On State Secrets

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emptywheel
Earlier this morning, Looseheadprop wrote about the case of Binyam Mohamed, the British subject tortured at the hands of the United States at Gitmo, including having his genitals carved selectively with a scalpel. The Mohamed case is of critical significance for a variety of reasons, not the least of which is the fact that there was an oral argument in the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco this morning in which the Obama Administration has shown its true colors and continued the assertion of state secrets to conceal US torture policy.

USAMRIID Can't Keep Track of Its Microbes

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emptywheel
Remember how one key to the FBI case against Bruce Ivins is their claim that only he had access to the flask that contained the anthrax strain used in the attack--and that they're sure that there were no other flasks of the strain? Well, it turns out that Ivins' lab, USAMRIID, shut down all research on Friday because they don't have a good inventory of all their high-risk microbes.

Comings and Goings and Dealings at the SEC

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emptywheel
One of the contemptuous SEC officials who pretty much blew off Congress last week will be resigning today. And, all of a sudden, the SEC is going after Madoff for financial penalties, perhaps reflecting the elimination of Chris Cox-era rules that made it hard to do so.

The Surge's Virgin Birth

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emptywheel
Thomas Ricks tells a tale of how Ray Odierno is the father of the surge. Problem is, Ricks' story still has obvious holes, leaving open the question of who actually birthed the plan.

The Grassley-Isakson-Coburn-Collins-Bad Nelson Bill

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emptywheel
We really shouldn't be calling the Senate stimulus bill the Collins-Nelson compromise bill. We ought to be calling it the Grassley-Isakson-Coburn-Collins-Bad Nelson bill, to memorialize where all the stupid comes from in the bill.
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Toyota Sings The Mercury Blues

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emptywheel
As the Republicans in Congress, most notably the Senate fixate on emasculating the stimulus package, stripping it and the country of hope, I want to return to another recent example of the un-American activities and bent of this group of legislative geniuses. I refer to this same group's actions and illogic in relation to willingness to kill or cripple American Auto manufacturing under the false guise it is not as good or efficient as foreign makers. Recent news from Toyota puts the lie to another Republican claim.
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"Bipartisan"

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emptywheel
If Susan Collins, Tom Coburn, and Chuck Grassley are largely responsible for the way the Senate compromise stimulus bill looks, then why are Republicans claiming it's not a bipartisan bill/?

Wanted: An Ask for Phone Calls

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emptywheel
When will Obama actually ask the millions of people on his email list to actually make calls to Congress?
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The AP's Remaining Competitive Function: Litigators for Big Media

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emptywheel
The AP is making another argument about how they're the only force that can properly use the First Amendment again.

Haggis Logic

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emptywheel
I just watched Arlen "Scottish Haggis" Specter explain how they didn't really cut $600 million in child care. He explained very helpfully that if you don't get 60 votes, then there would be no money for child care. Of course, he and Susan Collins (and, apparently, one more Republican) are the only ones standing between a bill and 60 votes.

Crazy Pete Hoekstra's Misplaced Priorities on Keeping Secrets

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emptywheel
Crazy Pete Hoekstra just revealed the classified details of his trip to Iraq via Twitter. This is one of the Gang of Eight who is entrusted with our country's top secrets.

DOD Spends More on Domestic PsyOps Than On Foreign PsyOps

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emptywheel
Between domestic psyops (public affairs) and foreign psyops, DOD spends over a $1 billion a year. And the really scary thing is, more than half of that goes toward propagandizing in the US.

Sign the Petition: Howard Dean for HHS Secretary

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emptywheel
So far, there's a lot of support in these parts for Howard Dean to be HHS Secretary. Obama has said he made a mistake by overlooking Daschle's conflicts and tax problems when he first appointed him. I'm here on television saying I screwed up, and that's part of the era of responsibility.
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What Explains Commander Lippold's Newfound Impatience on the Cole Prosecutions?

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emptywheel
Commander Kirk Lippold only ever criticized the Bush Administration's failure to bring the plotters of the Cole bombing to justice once. But all of a sudden, on the same day a Bush dead-ender tries to make it more difficult for Obama to close Gitmo, Lippold is out with accusations that Obama is politicizing the war on terror.
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