Shocking Result In Dannehy US Attorney Purgegate Scandal!
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bmazThe results are in from the Nora Dannehy DOJ investigation into the US Attorney firings by the Bush/Cheney Administration. And, shockingly, the Obama/Holder Department of Justice just cannot find any conduct, not one single instance, worthy of criminal prosecution.
FDL Talks Intelligence Contracting with Tim Shorrock
The Washington Post has been turning lots of heads this week with a big series on intelligence contracting. But we here at FDL have been talking about it for years, not least when we hosted Tim Shorrock--who wrote the book on intelligence contracting,…
Limp Daily Caller Attacks Journolist (Again) and Spencer Ackerman
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bmazAbout a month ago, the semi-irrelevant "FishbowlDC" and Tucker Carlson's self indulgent sandbox "Daily Caller" impressed themselves by scalping Dave Weigel from his position at the Washington Post. Fresh off the closest thing to a victory these…
The Contractors Causing Chaos but Not Out and Out Corruption
I'm beginning to agree with Rayne's comment of the other day that the only explanation for the length of the WaPo series on contractors is to please the Pulitzer committee. The other most (perhaps more) likely explanation for the style of the…
An Anonymous Government Official Doesn't Want You to Know that Lockheed Works for NSA
Tomorrow and Wednesday, the WaPo will continue its series on the Intelligence Industrial Complex. It will describe the contractors in the BWI/Fort Meade area that contribute to the NSA's surveillance programs. According to the DNI's Director…
WaPo Top Secret Story: Why Not Nominate God to Be Director of National Intelligence?
I trust you will all read Dana Priest and William Arkin's story on the unwieldiness of our Intelligence Industrial Complex. It is good, insofar as it focuses needed attention on a huge problem.
But boy is it itself unwieldy. Today's overview…
Ombud Distress
Everyone's in a big tizzy about OmbudAndy's capitulation to the New Black Panther Party scandal machine in his column this weekend.
Thursday's Post reported about a growing controversy over the Justice Department's decision to scale down a…
The Intelligence Industrial Complex Prepares for War
In my review of Tim Shorrock's important Spies for Hire, I summarized one of the most important parts of the narrative he tells in the book.
Shorrock describes, for example, [Mike] McConnell’s key role in the formation of the Intelligence…
America's Dilemma: Teachers or Food
Remember that important NYT story from early this year describing the growing number of Americans whose sole income consists of food stamps?
About six million Americans receiving food stamps report they have no other income, according to an…
The Wishing Well: Is Macondo the Mouth of Hell Silenced?
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bmazFor the first time since Macondo, the Mouth Of Hell, first blew out in a fiery explosion on April 20, killing eleven men in the process, BP seems to have the well under control and there appears to be no hydrocarbons leaking into the waters of the Gulf of Mexico.
Did Jay Bybee Accidentally Admit that CIA Experimented on Abu Zubaydah with Sleep Deprivation?
Pages 100-102 of the Jay Bybee Transcript are worth reading closely, not least for the way Jay Bybee tries to shift the focus of discussion on torture from "severe physical or mental pain or suffering" to "prolonged mental harm" to avoid the…
Jay Bybee Suggests He Wouldn't Recuse on Ghost Detainee Case
When Jerry Nadler asked Jay Bybee whether or not it would legal to disappear someone for three years, the Appeals Court Judge refused to answer, saying he might have to rule on such an issue.
Nadler: Let's assume you had been asked the question,…
Jay Bybee Admits CIA Had No Approval for Water Dousing, Diapering
On May 26, the House Judiciary Committee interviewed Jay Bybee about the circumstances that went into the Bybee Memos authorizing torture. Here's the transcript of that interview.
I'm going to read them in depth, but for now I wanted to…
Karl Rove's Self-Delusions Hit New Heights--Forgets He Outed Valerie Plame
Okay, this is one for the ages.
Karl Rove is out today with what is presumably an excerpt from his book, revealing his biggest mistake. He doesn't verbalize what that mistake is, really. Rather, he bitches about a list of Democrats.
But…
Former WellPoint VP Liz Fowler to Implement Health Care Oversight
Remember Liz Fowler? The former WellPoint VP whom William Ockham noted was the literal author of the health care reform bill?
I'm sure you'll be thrilled to learn that WellPoint's former VP will be in charge of consumer issues and oversight…
You Have a Right to Speedy Trial ... Unless They Need to Torture You First
Judge Lewis Kaplan has basically concluded that if the government can persuasively argue that government believed the torture necessary at the time, then they can torture a detainee as long as he still has intelligence value without infringing on the detainee's right to a speedy trial.
We Are All South America Now
At the point in the World Cup when five South American teams had made it to the knockout round and European teams like Italy and England performed badly, I wondered whether this year's Cup would be a kind of revenge on the IMF. All these South…
Right Wing Finally Talking about Rule of Law
Don't get me wrong. I'm happy that--after all these years--someone on the right is calling out Presidents Bush and Obama on their abuse of power (watch the video to hear Andrew Napolitano complain about Obama's targeting of Anwar al-Awlaki).
Nader:…
Omar Khadr Condemns the Military Commissions
Carol Rosenberg, recently freed from her arbitrary banning at Gitmo, posts this picture of a statement Omar Khadr read aloud in court today explaining why he wants to boycott any further proceedings. [my transcription; I've added punctuation…
Obama Comes to MI to Celebrate Korean Technology
Let me start by saying I'm thrilled the Obama Administration has focused stimulus and energy efficiency funds to support a number of new battery plants in and around Michigan. For all my complaints about the Obama Administration, it has used…
