Top Items:
Washington Post:
Spy Court Judge Quits In Protest — Jurist Concerned Bush Order Tainted Work of Secret Panel — A federal judge has resigned from the court that oversees government surveillance in intelligence cases in protest of President Bush's secret authorization of a domestic spying program, according to two sources.
Discussion:
Tom Watson, The Moderate Voice, Althouse, War and Piece, RuminateThis, Hugh Hewitt, Faithful Progressive, The Washington Monthly, IntoxiNation-News …, Gateway Pundit, Daily Kos, The Poor Man, Oliver Willis, Liberty Street, TalkLeft, Politics in the Zeros, Just a Bump in the Beltway, whatever already!, Bark Bark Woof Woof, The Democratic Daily Blog, THE FULCRUM, Decision '08, How Appealing and King of Zembla
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New York Times:
Spying Program Snared U.S. Calls — WASHINGTON, Dec. 20 - A surveillance program approved by President Bush to conduct eavesdropping without warrants has captured what are purely domestic communications in some cases, despite a requirement by the White House that one end of the intercepted conversations …
Reuters:
Senators members seek spying probe — WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Democratic and Republican calls mounted on Tuesday for U.S. congressional hearings into President George W. Bush's assertion that he can order warrantless spying on Americans with suspected terrorist ties.
Anne E. Kornblut / New York Times:
Lobbyist Is Said to Discuss Plea and Testimony — WASHINGTON, Dec. 20 - Jack Abramoff, the Republican lobbyist under criminal investigation, has been discussing with prosecutors a deal that would grant him a reduced sentence in exchange for testimony against former political and business associates …
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Steven Greenhouse / New York Times:
In Final Hours, M.T.A. Took a Big Risk on Pensions — On the final day of intense negotiations, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, it turns out, greatly altered what it had called its final offer, to address many of the objections of the transit workers' union.
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wcbstv.com:Exclusive: Transit Union Split Over Strike
Discussion:
Hugh Hewitt, Red Guy in a Blue State, GOP and the City, A Blog For All, THE NEWS BLOG, Gothamist and Mister Snitch!
Michael Powell / Washington Post:
Judge Rules Against 'Intelligent Design' — Dover, Pa., District Can't Teach Evolution Alternative — A federal judge barred a Pennsylvania school district yesterday from mentioning "intelligent design" as an alternative to evolutionary theory in a scathing opinion that criticized local …
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MSNBC:
Judge rules against 'intelligent design' — 'Religious alternative' to evolution barred from public-school science classes — HARRISBURG, Pa. - In one of the biggest courtroom clashes between faith and evolution since the 1925 Scopes Monkey Trial, a federal judge barred …
Discussion:
firedoglake, Pharyngula, Respectful Insolence, Liberty Street, Pandagon and INDC Journal
Henry Weinstein / Los Angeles Times:Federal Judge Rules Against 'Intelligent Design'
Discussion:
BBC, Associated Press, Althouse, Patridiot Watch, The Moderate Voice and Patterico's Pontifications
Pajamas Media:
Who's playing with fire? (Updates) — Omar of Iraq the Model for Pajamas Media — [SEE BREAKING NEWS BELOW] — The election commission last night announced shocking preliminary results of the elections in 11 Iraqi provinces. The results "after counting 89% of the votes in Baghdad showed …
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Patrick Cockburn / Independent:
Iraq's election result: a divided nation — Iraq is disintegrating. The first results from the parliamentary election last week show the country is dividing between Shia, Sunni and Kurdish regions. — Religious fundamentalists now have the upper hand. The secular and nationalist candidate backed …
Doug Struck / Washington Post:Sunnis Allege Fraud, Demand New Iraq Elections
Discussion:
The Next Hurrah, The Reaction, Patridiot Watch, Middle Earth Journal, Decision '08 and The Mahablog
Richard A. Posner / Washington Post:
Our Domestic Intelligence Crisis — We've learned that the Defense Department is deeply involved in domestic intelligence (intelligence concerning threats to national security that unfold on U.S. soil). The department's National Security Agency has been conducting, outside the framework …
Discussion:
Betsy's Page
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Bruce Fein / Washington Times:
. . . unlimited? — According to President George W. Bush, being president in wartime means never having to concede co-equal branches of government have a role when it comes to hidden encroachments on civil liberties. — Last Saturday, he thus aggressively defended the constitutionality …
Richard Morin / Washington Post:
Poll: Bush Approval Numbers Up — President's Job Approval Rating Increases by Eight Points — Washington Post polling editor Richard Morin was online Tuesday, Dec. 20, at 1 p.m. ET to discuss the new Post/ABC poll, which shows an eight point increase in President Bush's approval rating …
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Judd / Think Progress:
Fact Check: Clinton/Carter Executive Orders Did Not Authorize Warrantless Searches of Americans — The top of the Drudge Report claims "CLINTON EXECUTIVE ORDER: SECRET SEARCH ON AMERICANS WITHOUT COURT ORDER..." It's not true. Here's the breakdown - — What Drudge says: … What Clinton actually signed:
Discussion:
Power Line, Simianbrain, protein wisdom, Mathew Gross, The Democratic Daily Blog, Let Freedom Ring, Hammer of Truth, USS Neverdock and TBogg
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Kevin Drum / The Washington Monthly:WARTIME....Do President Bush's inherent constitutional powers …
Discussion:
Unclaimed Territory, The Poor Man, Catch, Early Warning …, Hammer of Truth and Talking Points Memo
White House:
Press Briefing by Scott McClellan — MR. McCLELLAN: Good afternoon, everyone. I want to begin with talking about matters going on with the Congress right now, particularly the Senate. — The President, as you heard last night, applauds the House for its work to meet key national priorities.
worldtribune.com:
Report: Syria agrees to hide Iran nukes — LONDON — Syria has signed a pledge to store Iranian nuclear weapons and missiles. — The London-based Jane's Defence Weekly reported that Iran and Syria signed a strategic accord meant to protect either country from international pressure regarding their weapons programs.
Charles Babington / Washington Post:
4 GOP Senators Hold Firm Against Patriot Act Renewal — Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-Tenn.) could barely conceal his anger. — "The Patriot Act expires on December 31, but the terrorist threat does not," he told reporters at the Capitol yesterday.
