By Dave Lindorff

In the category of yawn-inducing stories that we knew all about
before they happened, comes word that the jury of senior uniformed
officers sitting in judgement of Osama Bin Laden’s chauffeur in the
first Bush-league military tribunal to actually go to a hearing at
Guantanamo Naval Station found the prisoner, Salim Hamdan…

Drum roll please…

Guilty of supporting terrorism.

I pause here for gasps of astonishment.

It’s awfully silent…

By Dave Lindorff

Double standards when it comes to children are pretty
appalling—especially when it comes to “our” kids vs. “their” kids, but
here in America they aren’t limited to just right-wingers.

Take reaction to the US Supreme Court’s latest ruling that you
cannot execute rapists—even those who rape children—on the theory that
only killing someone justifies execution.

Politicians who make their careers by promoting state sponsored
murder have been quick to condemn this latest “liberal outrage” by
calling for more laws that would make execution the punishment for
raping a child (admittedly a monstrous crime).

It seems we are always complaining. No matter how hard we work, and how many we get elected, it seems that our ideals are always the ones that are being compromised. One need only look at the FISA compromise to feel that grassroots Democrats are just running around in circles. We need Democrats in Congress who will fight for us, even if it means breaking with conventional wisdom, and party leadership.

Enter Heather Ryan, Democrat for Kentucky's First Congressional District. In response to inquiries from potential constitutents, including myself, Heather has spoken up on the FISA compromise. From her email to my question on this issue:

Later this week, the Senate will be considering passage of the compromise on the FISA Bill. Since many voters in the First Congressional District of Kentucky have contacted me wondering what my stance on this legislation is, I felt compelled to speak on this issue.

MoveOn is finally moving on to talk about the possibility of impeachment proceedings!

Sign their petition:
http://pol.moveon.org/subpoena/

It states:

"Congress must force Vice President Cheney to respond to its subpoenas. If he continues to obstruct justice and disregard the rule of law, Congress has no choice but to begin impeachment proceedings against him."

Richard M. Mathews

Is Governor Freudenthal (D-WY) actually required to pick a Republican to replace Sen. Craig Thomas (R-WY)?

State law says so, but it may violate the U.S. Constitution. So says University of California law professor Vikram Amar writing for findlaw.com. Professor Amar is also a former clerk to Justice Harry Blackmun.

See the arguments, vote in a poll, and participate in the discussion at
http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2007/6/6/71141/06254

You will also find a sample letter there to send to Governor Freudenthal to ask him to consider all of his options.

As record high fuel prices, category 5 hurricanes, and drowning polar bears have helped slap some sense into the reluctant minds of many science-denying troglodytes, so to must the record hubris, category 5 incompetence, and drowning integrity of this administration slap some sense into the reluctant minds of the remaining reality-denying Bush supporters.

Oddly enough, you'd think that pardoning a traitor would be the last straw -- even for these people. You'd be wrong. In fact, acting as savior for the American betrayer known as I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby might be the only thing that can salvage Bush's remaining barrel-scum protectorate. That is what they find important. So too must he.

Oh, how the high and mighty are falling. A mini-Monicagate in the making! Gonazales' lawyer takin' the fifth... What next? A midnight flight to Bushco's new Paraguayan ranchero....

Gonzales Aide Won't Answer Senate Queries
WASHINGTON, March 26, 2007 (CBS/AP) Monica Goodling, a key Justice Department official involved in the firings of U.S. prosecutors, will invoke a constitutional privilege against self-incrimination and refuse to answer questions at upcoming congressional hearings, her lawyer said Monday. "The potential for legal jeopardy for Ms. Goodling from even her most truthful and accurate testimony under these circumstances is very real," said her lawyer, John Dowd... (more)

Beyond Impeachment: The Case for Pursuing Justice
By Syndi Holmes,
Co-founder of the Piedmont Centre for Peace, Justice and Cultural Exchange, Winston-Salem, NC
18 March 2007

Even if impeachment were politically possible, it is getting far too late into the year to begin the process. It will not occur because the now Speaker took the option off the table before this past November’s election.
The stark reality is that impeachment will not occur because there is no political will by either party to seek justice because politics has no morals, it thrives only on expediency. Hence, the 2008 Presidential race was deliberately started early as a distraction for the populace with the blessings of both parties to obscure any lingering thoughts of such an action.

A Fraud Worse than Enron
By Elizabeth de la Vega

Elizabeth de la Vega, appearing on behalf of the United States. That is a phrase I've uttered hundreds of times in twenty years as a federal prosecutor. I retired two years ago. So, obviously, I do not now speak for any U.S. Attorney's Office, nor do I represent the federal government. This should be apparent from the fact that I am proposing a hypothetical indictment of the President and his senior advisers -- not a smart move for any federal employee who wishes to remain employed. Lest anyone miss the import of this paragraph, let me emphasize that it is a DISCLAIMER: I am writing as a private citizen.

Reuters reports that a draft European Parliament report shows that at least some European nations knew about the secret off-shore US jails and obstructed investigations into the prisoners' transport, called "renditions" (the practice of extradicting prisoners to third countries to avoid breaking US law and subjecting prisoners to constitutional protections) and the illegal detentions at so-called "black sites."

The head of the Italian intelligence service, SIMSI, "concealed the truth" when he told the European Parliament that Italian intelligence agents weren't involved in the CIA kidnapping of an Egyptian cleric.