Top Items:
ACLU:
Abuse of Power: The Bush Administration's Secret Legal Memos — On April 16, 2009, the Department of Justice released four secret memos used by the Bush administration to justify torture: — A 18-page memo, dated August 1, 2002, from Jay Bybee, Assistant Attorney General, OLC, to John A. Rizzo, General Counsel CIA.
Discussion:
Salon, Unqualified Offerings, Hullabaloo, The Huffington Post, Lawyers, Guns and Money, CNN, BuzzFlash.org, Washington Monthly, Firedoglake, CBS News, Guardian, Think Progress, The Moderate Voice, United States Senator …, Threat Level, The Anonymous Liberal, PERRspectives, Taylor Marsh, US Department of Justice, Atlas Shrugs, Bloomberg, DISSENTING JUSTICE, Political Machine, TPMMuckraker, NION, MoJo Blog Posts, Christy Hardin Smith, Cup O' Joe and MoJo Blog Posts
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Andrew Sullivan / The Daily Dish:
For The Record — No mention of the torture memos appears right now on the Drudge Report (which provides news of a prank at Dominos pizza), Instapundit (which mentions the new DVD for the Lord of The Rings trilogy), Pajamas Media, or Michelle Malkin. They are reacting to the evidence …
Discussion:
Stop The ACLU
Michael Scherer / Time:
Bush Approved Use of Insects in al-Qaeda Interrogations — The Bush Administration approved the use of “insects placed in a confinement box” during the interrogation of top Al Qaeda official Abu Zubaydah, according to a 2002 document that President Obama declassified for release Thursday.
Jeffrey Toobin In / New Yorker:
JEFFREY TOOBIN: HIDING JAY BYBEE — The newest round of “torture memos” have just been released by the Department of Justice. I'm only just beginning to go through them, but I have a preliminary thought. — The first, and very chilling memo in the group is an analysis of the various techniques …
Spencer Ackerman / ATTACKERMAN:
Not Even Jesus Would Forgive What You Do — One of the Office of Legal Counsel memos that was released today was the famous hidden “Yoo-Bybee Two” or “Second Bybee Memo” from August 2002. Recall that the first August 2002 OLC specified that it was acceptable to apply physical pain to a detainee …
Wall Street Journal:
The President Ties His Own Hands on Terror — The point of interrogation is intelligence, not confession. — The Obama administration has declassified and released opinions of the Justice Department's Office of Legal Counsel (OLC) given in 2005 and earlier that analyze the legality …
Andrew Sullivan / The Daily Dish:
The Banality Of Evil — Perhaps you are reading these documents alongside me.
The Banality Of Evil — Perhaps you are reading these documents alongside me.
Discussion:
Buck Naked Politics
Glenn Greenwald / Salon:
Obama to release OLC torture memos; promises no prosecutions for CIA officials
Obama to release OLC torture memos; promises no prosecutions for CIA officials
New York Times:
Interrogation Memos Detail Harsh Tactics by the C.I.A.
Interrogation Memos Detail Harsh Tactics by the C.I.A.
Discussion:
BBC, QandO, NewsBusters.org, The Caucus, RebelReports, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, BAGnewsNotes and The Other McCain
Little Green Footballs:
LGF on Glenn Beck — I still don't have a working cable TV connection in my new top-secret underground facility, so I missed Glenn Beck's show today (I wouldn't have been watching anyway, to be honest), but I understand from several lizardoid reports that Beck had some things to say about me.
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Jay / Stop The ACLU:
( Video) Glenn Beck Vs. Charles Johnson — Update: (Perhaps a coincidence or mistake, but for some reason my account at Little Green Footballs is suddenly blocked. How odd. Surely it was just a fluke; a mistake of some kind. Maybe I should have took sides?) — It's at about 7 minutes in on this video.
Jamie Larson / The Register Star Online:
Tedisco asks to be declared winner — COLUMBIA COUNTY — 20th Congressional District candidate Republican Jim Tedisco submitted a petition to the Dutchess County Supreme Court Thursday asking the judge to declare him the winner of the extremely close special election race …
Wall Street Journal:
Authorities Investigate Payments by Rattner — Steven Rattner, the leader of the Obama administration's auto task force, was one of the executives involved with payments under scrutiny in a probe of an alleged kickback scheme at New York state's pension fund, according to a person familiar with the matter.
Amy Gardner / Washington Post:
Moran Campaign Contributors Have Business Before Brother — More than a dozen defense contractors with business before U.S. Rep. James P. Moran Jr. (D-Va.), a member of the powerful House Appropriations defense subcommittee, have donated thousands of dollars to Moran's younger brother Brian, a candidate for governor of Virginia.
ABCNEWS:
Blind Amputee Has to Fight AIG for New Plastic Leg, Wheelchair — While Executives Get Bonuses, John Woodson Gets “Cheapest They Could Get Away With” — An Oklahoma man who lost an eye and a leg in Iraq says the giant insurance company AIG refused to provide him a new plastic leg and fought …
Discussion:
AMERICAblog News
Chloe Albanesius / PC Magazine:
Time Warner Scraps Bandwidth Cap Testing — Time Warner Cable has shelved plans to test consumption-based billing until it can improve its “customer education process,” the company announced Thursday. — “It is clear from the public response over the last two weeks that there is a great deal …
Paul Krugman / New York Times:
Green Shoots and Glimmers — Ben Bernanke, the Federal Reserve chairman, sees “green shoots.” President Obama sees “glimmers of hope.” And the stock market has been on a tear. — So is it time to sound the all clear? Here are four reasons to be cautious about the economic outlook.
Discussion:
The Big Picture
Charles Krauthammer / Washington Post:
Barack Obama's ‘New Foundation’ - a Sting in Four Parts — Franklin Roosevelt gave us the New Deal. John Kennedy gave us the New Frontier. In a major domestic policy address at Georgetown University this week, Barack Obama promised — eight times — a “New Foundation.”
Jim Iovino / NBC Washington:
Jesus Missing From Obama's Georgetown Speech — White House asked university to cover symbol — Amidst all of the American flags and presidential seals, there was something missing when President Barack Obama gave an economic speech at Georgetown University this week — Jesus.
Discussion:
Fox News, Scared Monkeys, Political Machine, The Western Experience, The Powers That Be, Wizbang and Pharyngula
RELATED:
Mary Williams Walsh / New York Times:
A.I.G. Chief Owns Significant Stake in Goldman — Edward M. Liddy, the dollar-a-year chief executive leading the American International Group since its bailout last fall, still owns a significant stake in Goldman Sachs, one of the insurer's trading partners that was made whole by the government bailout of A.I.G.
Wall Street Journal:
Veterans a Focus of FBI Extremist Probe — WASHINGTON — The Federal Bureau of Investigation earlier this year launched a nationwide operation targeting white supremacists and “militia/sovereign-citizen extremist groups,” including a focus on veterans from Iraq and Afghanistan …
Greg Giroux / CQ Politics:
Big Early Money for Democrats Defending ‘Frontline’ — “Raise money early” is probably the most oft-repeated advice given to the 40 House Democrats singled out by party officials to receive special assistance, as they prepare to defend against potentially serious challenges in the 2010 elections.
CNN:
Afghanistan to change controversial ‘rape’ law — KABUL, Afghanistan (CNN) — The Afghan government will change a law that critics say legalizes rape within marriage for Shia Muslims, President Hamid Karzai told CNN Thursday. — Karzai told CNN's Fareed Zakaria that he and others were unaware …
Peter Urban / ConnPost.com:
Only 5 state residents donated to Dodd — WASHINGTON — Connecticut Sen. Chris Dodd appears to have looked everywhere but his home state to fuel what pundits anticipate will be one of the most hotly contested races in the nation in 2010. — The five-term incumbent reported raising just $4,250 …
Newsdesk / Clout St:
Burris fundraising total: $845 — U.S. Senator Roland Burris, the controversial appointee to the seat once held by President Barack Obama, is holding his first campaign fundraiser since he took office this weekend—and the financial report he filed this week shows he could use some political donations.
Discussion:
Senate Guru, Eye on 2010, The Capitol Fax Blog, Swing State Project, Scorecard's Blog and D-Day