MoveOn Ad: 23 Democrats Voting to Condemn Free Speech

MoveOn Ad: 23 Democrats Voting to Condemn Free Speech Who will they betray next?
Baucus (D-MT) Bayh (D-IN) Cardin (D-MD) Carper (D-DE) Casey (D-PA) Conrad (D-ND)	Dorgan (D-ND) Feinstein (D-CA) Johnson (D-SD) Klobuchar (D-MN) Kohl (D-WI) Landrieu (D-LA)	Leahy (D-VT) Lieberman(ID-CT) Lincoln (D-AR) McCaskill(D-MO) Mikulski (D-MD) Nelson (D-FL)	Nelson(D-NE) Pryor (D-AR) Salazar(D-CO) Tester (D-MT) Webb (D-VA)

GOP Denies Longer Leaves For Troops

September 20, 2007
GOP Denies Longer Leaves For Troops

Senate Republicans yesterday rejected a bipartisan proposal to lengthen the home leaves of U.S. troops fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan, derailing a measure that war opponents viewed as one of the best chances to force President Bush to accelerate a redeployment of forces.

The proposal, sponsored by Sens. James Webb (D-Va.) and Chuck Hagel (R-Neb.), failed on a 56 to 44 vote, with 60 votes needed for passage -- a tally that was virtually identical to a previous vote in July. A last-minute campaign by the Defense Department and the White House to kill the measure won over Sen. John W. Warner (R-Va.), an influential voice on defense policy who had voted with Webb and Hagel in July.

GOP blocks restoration of habeas corpu

September 19, 2007
GOP blocks restoration of habeas corpus

Fifty-six senators voted to cut off debate, and move forward to a vote on the bill itself, a step known as cloture. But under Senate rules, 60 votes are needed to invoke cloture.

Besides Mr. Specter, five other Republican Senators supported the measure. They were Chuck Hagel of Nebraska, Richard G. Lugar of Indiana, Gordon Smith of Oregon, Olympia J. Snowe of Maine and John E. Sununu of New Hampshire. Senator Bernard Sanders, independent of Vermont, also voted for it.

Senator Joseph I. Lieberman of Connecticut, who lists himself as an independent Democrat, was the only non-Republican to vote against it. Senator Saxby Chambliss, Republican of Georgia, did not vote.

Paulson: U.S. to Hit Debt Limit Oct. 1

September 19, 2007
Paulson: U.S. to Hit Debt Limit Oct. 1

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson told Congress on Wednesday the government will hit the current debt ceiling on Oct. 1. He sought quick action to increase the limit, saying it was essential to protect the "full faith and credit" of the country, especially at a time of financial market turmoil.

The limit is $8.965 trillion. Unless Congress votes to raise it, the country would be unable to borrow more money to keep the government operating and to pay debt obligations coming due.

Bush, Congress at record low ratings

September 19, 2007
Bush, Congress at record low ratings

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President George W. Bush and the U.S. Congress registered record-low approval ratings in a Reuters/Zogby poll released on Wednesday, and a new monthly index measuring the mood of Americans dipped slightly on deepening worries about the economy.

Only 29 percent of Americans gave Bush a positive grade for his job performance, below his worst Zogby poll mark of 30 percent in March. A paltry 11 percent rated Congress positively, beating the previous low of 14 percent in July.

Industry Challenges Impede Cancer Research

August 28, 2007
Industry Challenges Impede Cancer Research

"We discovered that industry has tried to use DQA to challenge every aspect of the NTP scientific review and release process," said Clayton Northouse, Information Policy Analyst at OMB Watch. "Special interest associations have challenged meetings, press releases, notices to study specific chemicals and other documents that are clearly beyond the parameters of DQA. Instead of seeking to improve the quality of data, the intent of these challenges seems to be to keep scientific information out of the hands of health professionals and government decision-makers."

Report: Private Contractor Oversite Lacking

September 19, 2007
Report: Private Contractor Oversite Lacking

The Iraqi government's decision to temporarily ban the security company Blackwater USA after a fatal shooting of civilians in Baghdad reveals a growing web of rules governing weapons-bearing private contractors but few signs U.S. agencies are aggressively enforcing them.

Nearly a year after a law was passed holding contracted employees to the same code of justice as military personnel, the Bush administration has not published guidance on how military lawyers should do that, according to Peter Singer, a security industry expert at the Brookings Institution in Washington.

August Homebuilding: fewest homes in 12 years

September 19, 2007
August Homebuilding: fewest homes in 12 years

Home builders in August began construction on the fewest homes in 12 years, the Commerce Department reported Wednesday.

The 2.6% decline, to a lower-than-forecast annual rate of 1.331 million, followed July's 1.367 million. Building permits dropped 5.9%, to a 1.307 million pace, also the lowest since 1995.

"We don't expect sales to bottom out until late this year, and prices will likely moderate even further," says John Silvia, chief economist at Wachovia.

War means a windfall for CEOs

September 19, 2007
War means a windfall for CEOs

• CEOs at top defense contractors have reaped annual pay gains of 200% to 688% in the years since the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks.


• The chief executives at the seven defense contractors whose bosses made the most pocketed nearly a half-billion dollars from 2002 through last year.


• The CEOs made an average of $12.4 million a year, easily more than the average corporate chief. Since the start of the war, CEOs at defense contractors such General Dynamics (GD, news, msgs), Halliburton (HAL, news, msgs) and Oshkosh Truck (OSK, news, msgs) have made, on average, more in four days than what a top general makes in a whole year, or $187,390.

US attorney for Minnesota under investigation

September 19, 2007
US attorney for Minnesota under investigation

Rachel Paulose, the U.S. attorney for Minnesota, is being investigated by a federal office that works to protect whistle blowers, according to a political blog and a source who spoke to KARE 11.

A source with knowledge of the investigation told KARE 11 the federal Office of the Special Counsel, an independent agency, is looking into allegations that Paulose carelessely handled classified documents, and then allegedly retaliated against the person who found the documents sitting out in the open.

Private Contractors Outnumber US Soldiers

September 20, 2007
Private Contractors Outnumber US Soldiers

More than 180,000 Americans, Iraqis and nationals from other countries work under federal contracts to provide security, gather intelligence, build roads, improve infrastructure, forge a financial system and transport needed supplies in a country the size of California.

That figure contrasts with the 163,100 U.S. military personnel, according to U.S. Central Command, responsible for military operations in the Middle East. The Pentagon puts the military figure at 169,000. An additional 12,400 coalition forces are stationed in Iraq.

Security Took 'Turn for Worse' In Southern Iraq

September 18, 2007
Security Took 'Turn for Worse' In Southern Iraq

Security is deteriorating in southern Iraq as rival Shiite militias vying for power have stepped up their attacks after moving out of Baghdad to avoid U.S.-led military operations, according to the latest quarterly Pentagon report on Iraq released yesterday.

"The security environment in southern Iraq took a notable turn for the worse in August" with the assassination of two governors, said the report, which covers June through August. "There may be retaliation and an increase in intra-Shi'a violence throughout the South," it said, whereas previously the violence was centered in the main southern city of Basra.

Charges against Marine in Haditha case dropped

September 18, 2007
Charges against Marine in Haditha case dropped

LOS ANGELES (AFP) - A Marine Corps officer accused of failing to properly investigate the alleged massacre of 24 Iraqi civilians in the town of Haditha has been cleared of wrongdoing, the military said Tuesday.

A statement released from the Marines Camp Pendleton base in southern California said all charges against Captain Lucas McConnell stemming from the Haditha investigation had been dropped.

Employees Want Accused State Auditor Out

September 19, 2007
Employees Want Accused State Auditor Out

WASHINGTON (AP) — The labor union representing U.S. diplomats called Wednesday for the State Department's top auditor to step down pending the results of a congressional investigation into whether he blocked fraud probes in Afghanistan and Iraq for political reasons.

At the same time, the State Department defended the accused official, Inspector General Howard J. Krongard, saying it had no evidence that would back up the allegations.

State Department's inspector general repeatedly thwarted investigations into fraud

September 19, 2007
State Department's inspector general repeatedly thwarted investigations into fraud

Howard J. Krongard, the State Department's inspector general, has repeatedly thwarted investigations into contracting fraud in Iraq and Afghanistan, including construction of the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad, and censored reports that might prove politically embarrassing to the Bush administration, the chairman of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform charged yesterday in a 13-page letter.

The letter, addressed to Krongard and signed by the committee chairman, Henry A. Waxman (D-Calif.), who released it yesterday, said the allegations were based on the testimony of seven current and former officials on Krongard's staff, including two former senior officials who allowed their names to be used, and private e-mail exchanges obtained by the committee. The letter said the allegations concerned all three major divisions of Krongard's office -- investigations, audits and inspections.

The 22 Most Corrupt Members of Congress

September 18, 2007
The 22 Most Corrupt Members of Congress

• Sen. Pete V. Domenici (R-NM)
  
• Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY)
  
• Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK)
  
• Sen. Ted Stevens (R-AK)
  
• Rep. Ken Calvert (R-CA)
  
• Rep. John T. Doolittle (R-CA)
  
• Rep. Tom Feeney (R-FL)
  
• Rep. Doc Hastings (R-WA)
  
• Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-CA)
  
• Rep. William J. Jefferson (D-LA)
  
• Rep. Jerry Lewis (R-CA)
  
• Rep. Gary G. Miller (R-CA)
  
• Rep. Alan B. Mollohan (D-WV)
  
• Rep. Timothy F. Murphy (R-PA)
  
• Rep. John P. Murtha (D-PA)
  
• Rep. Steve Pearce (R-NM)
  
• Rep. Rick Renzi (R-AZ)
  
• Rep. Harold Rogers (R-KY)
  
• Rep. David Scott (D-GA)
  
• Rep. Jerry Weller (R-IL)
  
• Rep. Heather A. Wilson (R-NM)
  
• Rep. Don Young (R-AK)
  

Senators on Watch List:

• Sen. Larry E. Craig (R-ID)
  
• Sen. David Vitter (R-LA)

IAEA: US Iran report branded dishonest

September 14, 2007
IAEA: US Iran report branded dishonest

The UN nuclear watchdog has protested to the US government over a report on Iran's nuclear programme, calling it "erroneous" and "misleading".

In a leaked letter, the IAEA said a congressional report contained serious distortions of the agency's own findings on Iran's nuclear activity.

The IAEA also took "strong exception" to claims made over the removal of a senior safeguards inspector.

U.S. Attorney Busted in Child Sex Sting

September 17, 2007
U.S. Attorney Busted in Child Sex Sting

DETROIT, Mich. -- A U.S Justice Department official has been arrested on suspicion of traveling to Detroit over the weekend to have sex with a 5-year-old girl, WDIV-TV in Detroit reported.

John David R. Atchison, 53, an assistant U.S. attorney from the northern district of Florida, was arraigned in U.S. District Court in Detroit on Monday afternoon.

Iraqis Losing Religious Freedom

September 14, 2007
Iraqis Losing Religious Freedom

WASHINGTON (AP) - Religious freedom has sharply deteriorated in Iraq over the past year because of both the insurgency and violence targeting people of specific faiths, despite the U.S. military buildup intended to improve security, says a State Department report to be released Friday.

The Annual Report on International Religious Freedom finds that all worshippers are targeted for attacks and the violence is not confined to the well-known rivalry between Sunni and Shia Muslims.

Iraq's Refugee Crisis Worsens

September 7, 2007
Iraq's Refugee Crisis Worsens

With the massive influx of refugees, Syria is starting to feel the strain.

"There's a huge impact for a country of 20 million people to receive a million and half within a few months. There is a huge burden on our services: medical, school, infrastructure - everything," says Minister of Expatriates Buthania Shaaban.

As a result of the increasing stress from the refugee crisis, the Syrian government recently announced a new visa policy which, as of Sept. 10, will only allow professionals to enter the country - effectively shutting out thousands of people.

Who said anything about benchmarks?

September 13, 2007
Who said anything about benchmarks?

Sometimes, these guys make it too easy. White House Press Secretary Tony Snow, yesterday, in his final appearance:

"No, benchmarks were something that Congress wanted to use as a metric. And we're going to produce a report. But the fact is that the situation is bigger and more complex, and you need to look at the whole picture."

Reality, as reported last week:

It was the White House and the Iraqi government, not Congress, that first proposed the benchmarks for Iraq that are now producing failing grades, a provenance that raises questions about why the administration is declaring now that the government's performance is not the best measure of change.

The administration presented a to-do list and said, "Judge us in September on these points." They've successfully completed three of the 18 tasks. In response, the new line is, "To-do lists are stupid."

Media Misrepresent Dems' Options on Iraq War: Confusing 'can't' and 'won't'

September 13, 2007
Media Misrepresent Dems' Options on Iraq War: Confusing 'can't' and 'won't'

The problem with all these accounts is that Congress does not have to pass legislation to bring an end to the war in Iraq--it simply has to block passage of any bill that would continue to fund the war. This requires not 67 or 60 Senate votes, or even 51, but just 41--the number of senators needed to maintain a filibuster and prevent a bill from coming up for a vote. In other words, the Democrats have more than enough votes to end the Iraq War--if they choose to do so.

The Democratic leadership may believe--rightly or wrongly--that such a strategy would entail unacceptable political costs. But that's very different from being unable to affect policy. To insist, as many media outlets have, that the Constitution makes it impossible for Congress to stop the war obscures the actual choices facing the nation--by confusing "can't" with "won't."

Iraqi poll: US Surge Has Failed

September 10, 2007
Iraqi poll: US Surge Has Failed

About 70% of Iraqis believe security has deteriorated in the area covered by the US military "surge" of the past six months, an opinion poll suggests.

The survey for the BBC, ABC News and NHK of more than 2,000 people across Iraq also suggests that nearly 60% see attacks on US-led forces as justified.

This rises to 93% among Sunni Muslims compared with 50% for Shia.

AP Fact-Checks Bush Iraq Speech

September 13, 2007
AP Fact-Checks Bush Iraq Speech

BUSH SAID: "Anbar province is a good example of how our strategy is working," Bush said, noting that just last year U.S. intelligence analysts had written off the Sunni area as "lost to al-Qaida."

FACT CHECK: Anbar is not secure, accounting for 18 percent of the U.S. deaths in Iraq so far this year - making it the second deadliest province after Baghdad.

Military donors turn to Democrats

September 14, 2007
Military donors turn to Democrats

Service members have traditionally supported the Republican Party, but, since the war started in 2003, there has been a dramatic shift away from financial backing for GOP candidates for president and Congress, the nonpartisan Center for Responsive Politics reported.

So far this year and in the 2004 election, about 40 percent of contributions from donors identifiable as military members has gone to Democrats, compared with about 25 percent in the 2000 and 2002 cycles, the center's study said. Service members gave about $1.8 million in the 2004 cycle and about $330,000 so far this year, the study stated.

Democrat Barack Obama, who is calling for a troop withdrawal to start immediately, has received the most of any presidential candidate from uniformed service members - about $27,000.

Dollar's retreat raises fear of collapse

September 13, 2007
Dollar's retreat raises fear of collapse

On Thursday, the dollar briefly fell to another low against the euro of $1.3927, as a slow decline that has been under way for months picked up steam this past week.

"This is all pointing to a greatly increased risk of a fast unwinding of the U.S. current account deficit and a serious decline of the dollar," said Kenneth Rogoff, a former chief economist at the International Monetary Fund and an expert on exchange rates. "We could finally see the big kahuna hit."

While most economists just a few months ago would have dismissed the prospect of a dollar collapse outright, they now are debating the possibility that something on par with the dollar debacle of the 1970s might just happen again.

The major holders of dollars - notably the Chinese, with their $1.3 trillion in currency reserves - have little incentive to see the dollar weaken, and their support provides the dollar with a bulwark of strength. And since investors need to stay diversified, and U.S. markets are deep and liquid, abandoning the dollar wholesale is hardly a realistic option.

Election 2008: 62 Democratic Senators

September 13, 2007
Election 2008: 62 Democratic Senators

The media are simply focusing on the 22 Senate Republican seats at stake in 2008. But the Republican senators considering whether to retire, and the smart K Street money, are homed in on the 2010 elections as well, where another 19 Republican Senate seats are at stake.

Do the math. Locked into the fate of one of America's most unpopular presidents in history, with the national mood favoring a tidal wave of change, with Republicans plagued by endless scandals, and with a president pushing a disastrous war onto the desk of his successor, 41 Senate Republican seats are in jeopardy in 2008 and 2010.

CREW: Investigate why "No Child Left Behind" funds are being spent on Neil Bush's company

September 12, 2007
CREW: Investigate why "No Child Left Behind" funds are being spent on Neil Bush's company

Congress in the midst of debating legislation to re-authorize the controversial "No Child Left Behind" (NCLB) program. A three-month long investigation by CREW raises serious questions about the use of NCLB funds to pay for products sold by Neil Bush, the younger brother of President George Bush.

CREW is requesting that the Department of Education's Inspector General (IG) investigate why federal NCLB funds are being spent on educational products sold by Ignite! Learning, a company founded and headed by Neil Bush. Our letter to the IG can be found here.

Mike McConnell lied to Congress about major terror plot in German

September 12, 2007
Mike McConnell lied to Congress about major terror plot in German

Sept. 12, 2007 - In a new embarrassment for the Bush administration's top spymaster, Director of National Intelligence Mike McConnell is withdrawing an assertion he made to Congress this week that a recently passed electronic-surveillance law helped U.S. authorities foil a major terror plot in Germany.

After questions about his testimony were raised, McConnell called Lieberman to clarify his statements to the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, an official said. (A spokeswoman for Lieberman confirmed that McConnell called the senator Tuesday but could not immediately confirm what they spoke about.) Late Wednesday afternoon, McConnell issued a statement acknowledging that "information contributing to the recent arrests [in Germany] was not collected under authorities provided by the 'Protect America Act'."

CNN: Mystery 9/11 aircraft was military 'doomsday plane'

September 13, 2007
CNN: Mystery 9/11 aircraft was military 'doomsday plane'

Shortly before 10 am on the morning of September 11, 2001, amid rumors of a fourth hijacked plane headed for Washington, DC, a mystery aircraft appeared in restricted airspace over the White House. There has never been an official explanation for this incident, which has provided abundant fuel for 9/11 conspiracy theories.

CNN has now learned from two government sources that the mystery plane was a military aircraft and has determined that the blurry image on video appears to match photos of the Air Force's E-4B, a specially modified Boeing 747 with a communications pod behind the cockpit.

US sufffers decline in prestige

September 12, 2007
US sufffers decline in prestige

The US has suffered a significant loss of power and prestige around the world in the years since George W. Bush came to power, limiting its ability to influence international crises, an annual survey from a well regarded British security think-tank concluded on Tuesday.

The 2007 Strategic Survey of the non-partisan International Institute for Strategic Studies picked the decline of US authority as one of the most important security developments of the past year – but suggested the fading of American prestige began earlier, largely due to its failings in Iraq.

But a more fundamental loss of clout occurred at a strategic level. "It was evident that exercise of military power – in which, on paper, America dominated the world – had not secured its goal," the survey says. The failings in Iraq created a sense around the world of American power "diminished and demystified", with adversaries believing they will prevail if they manage to draw the US into a prolonged engagement.

Al-Qaeda in Iraq: 1 to 5 percent

October 2007 (posted Sept.15, 2007)
Al-Qaeda in Iraq: 1 to 5 percent

The State Department's Bureau of Intelligence and Research (INR), which arguably has the best track record for producing accurate intelligence assessments, last year estimated that AQI's membership was in a range of "more than 1,000." When compared with the military's estimate for the total size of the insurgency—between 20,000 and 30,000 full-time fighters—this figure puts AQI forces at around 5 percent. When compared with Iraqi intelligence's much larger estimates of the insurgency—200,000 fighters—INR's estimate would put AQI forces at less than 1 percent. This year, the State Department dropped even its base-level estimate, because, as an official explained, "the information is too disparate to come up with a consensus number."

Majority of Sunnis and Shia Support Attacks on US Forces

September 10, 2007
Majority of Sunnis and Shia Support Attacks on US Forces

For example, by 57% to 43%, those polled back “attacks on coalition forces.’ This broke down to 93% of Sunnis in favor, 50% of Shia, and 5% of Kurds. In contrast, only 7% of the sample supports attack on Iraqi forces.

Asked separately, 48% said attacks by al-Qaeda in Iraq on U.S. forces were "acceptable" with 51% finding them unacceptable. Yet only 1% backed al-Qaeda attempts to take over any areas. So sympathy for al-Qaeda was extremely low -- except when it comes to hitting U.S. troops.

President Petraeus?

September 13, 2007
President Petraeus?

The US commander in Iraq, General David Petraeus, expressed long-term interest in running for the US presidency when he was stationed in Baghdad, according to a senior Iraqi official who knew him at that time.

Sabah Khadim, then a senior adviser at Iraq's Interior Ministry, says General Petraeus discussed with him his ambition when the general was head of training and recruitment of the Iraqi army in 2004-05.

"I asked him if he was planning to run in 2008 and he said, 'No, that would be too soon'," Mr Khadim, who now lives in London, said.

Corruption has crippled Iraq

September 7, 2007
Corruption has crippled Iraq

U.S. officials say the battle to clean up Iraq's government has suffered a "serious blow" with the resignation of the nation's top corruption fighter. The former watchdog, Judge Radhi Al Radhi, tells NBC News that Iraq's current government, headed by Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, is riddled with so much corruption that the U.S. must stop supporting it. Rahdi is now in the United States, and his departure from the Iraqi government comes just as the U.S. prepares for a key report from Gen. David Petraeus about the military "surge" in Iraq.

Arctic Ice the Size of Florida Gone in a Week

September 10, 2007
Arctic Ice the Size of Florida Gone in a Week

An area of Arctic sea ice the size of Florida has melted away in just the last six days as melting at the top of the planet continues at a record rate.

2007 has already broken the record for the lowest amount of sea ice ever recorded, say scientists, smashing the old record set in 2005.

From September 3 to September 9, researchers say 69,000 square miles of Arctic ice disappeared, roughly the size of the Sunshine State.