This Is A Banana Republic  —  What defines such a republic?  How about an executive that ignores the rule of law, commits war-crimes and then destroys the actual evidence?  Today's bombshell is that the CIA has done just that with respect to tapes made recording the torture of enemy combatants.

C.I.A. Destroyed Tapes of Interrogations  —  The Central Intelligence Agency in 2005 destroyed at least two videotapes documenting the interrogation of two Al Qaeda operatives in the agency's custody, a step it took in the midst of Congressional and legal scrutiny about the C.I.A's secret detention program …

CIA Destroyed Videos Showing Interrogations  —  The CIA made videotapes in 2002 of its officers administering harsh interrogation techniques to two al-Qaeda suspects but destroyed the tapes three years later, CIA Director Michael V. Hayden said yesterday.  —  Captured on tape were interrogations …

Mormon in America  —  How Mitt Romney came to give The Speech—and how he did.  —  Did Mitt Romney have to give a speech on religion?  Yes.  When you're in a race so close you could lose due to one issue, your Mormonism, you must address the issue of your Mormonism.

Boldness, Watered Down  —  It's not easy being a politician from a minority faith, especially when it comes to explaining your own traditions — sometimes even to yourself.  —  Al Smith, the first Catholic to be nominated for president by a major party, found his faith under vicious attack in the 1928 campaign.