Cost of Iraq war could surpass $1 trillion - Martin Wolk: Eye on the Economy - MSNBC.com

Cost of Iraq war could surpass $1 trillion - Martin Wolk: Eye on the Economy - MSNBC.com:

"Those early estimates struck some economists as unrealistically low. William Nordhaus, a Yale economist who published perhaps the most extensive independent estimate of the potential costs before the war began, suggested a war and occupation could cost anywhere from $100 billion to $1.9 trillion in 2002 dollars, depending on the difficulty of the conflict, the length of occupation and the impact on oil costs."

AMERICAN BAR ASSOCIATION - BUSH BROKE THE LAW

Task Force on Domestic Surveillance in the Fight Against Terrorism: "
Task Force on Domestic Surveillance in the Fight Against Terrorism

Letter to President Bush (PDF)

AMERICAN BAR ASSOCIATION
ADOPTED BY THE HOUSE OF DELEGATES
February 13, 2006

RESOLVED, that the American Bar Association calls upon the President to abide by the limitations which the Constitution imposes on a president under our system of checks and balances and respect the essential roles of the Congress and the judicial branch in ensuring that our national security is protected in a manner consistent with constitutional guarantees;

FURTHER RESOLVED, that the American Bar Association opposes any future electronic surveillance inside the United States by any U.S. government agency for foreign intelligence purposes that does not comply with the provisions of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, 50 U.S.C. §§ 1801 et seq. (FISA), and urges the President, if he believes that FISA is inadequate to safeguard national security, to seek appropriate amendments or new legislation rather than acting without explicit statutory authorization;

FURTHER RESOLVED, that the American Bar Association urges the Congress to affirm that the Authorization for Use of Military Force of September 18, 2001, Pub.L. No. 107-40, 115 Stat. 224 § 2(a) (2001) (AUMF), did not provide a statutory exception to the FISA requirements, and that any such exception can be authorized only through affirmative and explicit congressional action;

FURTHER RESOLVED, that the American Bar Association urges the Congress to conduct a thorough, comprehensive investigation to determine: (a) the nature and extent of electronic surveillance of U.S. persons conducted by any U.S. government agency for foreign intelligence purposes that does not comply with FISA; (b) what basis or bases were advanced (at the time it was initiated and subsequently) for the legality of such surveillance; (c) whether the Congress was properly informed of and consulted as to the surveillance; (d) the nature of the information obtained as a result of the surveillance and whether it was retained or shared with other agencies; and (e) whether this information was used in legal proceedings against any U.S. citizen.

FURTHER RESOLVED, that the American Bar Association urges the Congress to ensure that such proceedings are open to the public and conducted in a fashion that will provide a clear and credible account to the people of the United States, except to the extent the Congress determines that any portions of such proceedings must be closed to prevent the disclosure of classified or other protected information; and

FURTHER RESOLVED, that the American Bar Association urges the Congress to thoroughly review and make recommendations concerning the intelligence oversight process, and urges the President to ensure that the House and Senate are fully and currently informed of all intelligence operations as required by the National Security Act of 1947.

...more

Kerry chides Bush administration on broadband - Yahoo! News

Kerry chides Bush administration on broadband - Yahoo! News: "Tue Mar 14, 7:42 PM ET

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Former Democratic presidential candidate Sen.
John Kerry accused the Bush administration on Tuesday of falling behind in its goal to make high-speed Internet service, known as broadband, universally available by 2007.
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The Massachusetts Democrat said the
Federal Communications Commission was holding up action that would allow companies to use extra airwaves in between television channels that were not being utilized.

During the 2004 presidential campaign, U.S.
President George W. Bush set a target date of 2007 for making affordable high-speed Internet service universally available. Since then, he has not discussed the goal in detail."

Many Utilities Collect for Taxes They Never Pay - New York Times

Many Utilities Collect for Taxes They Never Pay - New York Times: "Published: March 15, 2006

Many electric utility companies across the nation are collecting billions of dollars from their customers for corporate income taxes, then keeping the money rather than sending it to the government.

The practice is legal in most states. The companies say it is smart business."

The Raw Story | Congressman writes White House: Did President knowingly sign law that didn't pass?

The Raw Story | Congressman writes White House: Did President knowingly sign law that didn't pass?:

"Representative Henry Waxman (D-CA) has alleged in a letter to White House Chief of Staff Andrew Card that President Bush signed a version of the Budget Reconciliation Act that, in effect, did not pass the House of Representatives.

Further, Waxman says there is reason to believe that the Speaker of the House called President Bush before he signed the law, and alerted him that the version he was about to sign differed from the one that actually passed the House. If true, this would put the President in willful violation of the U.S. Constitution.

The full text of the letter follows:"

ABU GHRAIB PHOTOS FINALLY PUBLISHED - Abu Ghraib Files - Salon.com News

Abu Ghraib Files - Salon.com News:

"279 photographs and 19 videos from the Army's internal investigation record a harrowing three months of detainee abuse inside the notorious prison -- and make clear that many of those responsible have yet to be held accountable.

Editor's note: The 10 galleries of photo and video evidence appear chronologically in the left column, followed by an additional Salon report on prosecutions for abuse and an overview of Pentagon investigations and other resources. The nine essays accompanying the photo galleries were reported and written by Michael Scherer and Mark Benjamin. Photo and video captions were compiled by Page Rockwell. Additional research, reporting and writing for 'The Abu Ghraib Files' were contributed by Jeanne Carstensen, Mark Follman, Page Rockwell and Tracy Clark-Flory."

BREITBART.COM - Justice Ginsburg Reveals Details of Threat

BREITBART.COM - Justice Ginsburg Reveals Details of Threat: "Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON

Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg said she and former Justice Sandra Day O'Connor have been the targets of death threats from the 'irrational fringe' of society, people apparently spurred by Republican criticism of the high court.

Ginsburg revealed in a speech in South Africa last month that she and O'Connor were threatened a year ago by someone who called on the Internet for the immediate 'patriotic' killing of the justices.

Security concerns among judges have been growing.

Conservative commentator Ann Coulter joked earlier this year that Justice John Paul Stevens should be poisoned. Over the past few months O'Connor has complained that criticism, mainly by Republicans, has threatened judicial independence to deal with difficult issues like gay marriage.

Worry is not limited to the Supreme Court. Three quarters of the nation's 2,200 federal judges have asked for government-paid home security systems, Attorney General Alberto Gonzales said this week.

Ginsburg said the Web threat was apparently prompted by legislation in Congress, filed by Republicans, that would bar judges from relying on foreign laws or court decisions.
.....

According to Ginsburg, someone in a Web site chat room wrote: 'Okay commandoes, here is your first patriotic assignment ... an easy one. Supreme Court Justices Ginsburg and O'Connor have publicly stated that they use (foreign) laws and rulings to decide how to rule on American cases. This is a huge threat to our Republic and Constitutional freedom. ... If you are what you say you are, and NOT armchair patriots, then those two justices will not live another week.'

Rep. Tom Feeney, R-Fla., a sponsor of one of the congressional proposals, wrote about the legislation on his Web site and in bold letters featured a quote from O'Connor predicting the Supreme Court would probably increasingly rely on foreign courts."

Sen. leading Katrina inquiry rejects subpoena against White House

Sen. leading Katrina inquiry rejects subpoena against White House:

"WASHINGTON -- The Republican leading a Senate inquiry of the government's botched response to Hurricane Katrina denied a Democratic request Wednesday to subpoena the White House for information."

DHS Gets Another F in Computer Security

DHS Gets Another F in Computer Security: "Wednesday, March 15, 2006; 5:00 PM

Most federal agencies that play key roles in the war on terror are doing a dismal job of protecting their computers and information networks from hackers and viruses, according to portions of a report to be released by a key congressional oversight committee Thursday.

The Department of Homeland Security, which is charged with setting the government's cyber security agenda, earned a grade of F for the third straight year from the House Government Reform Committee. Other agencies whose failing marks went unchanged from 2004 include the departments of Agriculture, Defense, Energy, State, Health and Human Services, Transportation, and Veterans Affairs."

Defense Tech: Iraq Diary Archives

Defense Tech: Iraq Diary Archives: "Captain America in the Forever War

American troops in Iraq are near-suicidal. Or maybe they couldn’t be happier. It all depends on the flavor of blog you read, I guess. But what I found in my time in Iraq didn’t cling to any neat political storyline.

Over three weeks in and around Baghdad this July, I spoke to dozens and dozens of soldiers about their views on the conflict. For the most part, morale among these infantrymen and engineers and bomb-disposers was high. Shockingly high, given the fact that they didn’t buy the Bush administration’s rationales for the war.

“Democracy? Here? Are you fucking kidding me?” one sergeant laughed, as we drove near the Abu Ghraib prison. This was from a guy from helped safeguard the January round of elections. He figures the place will collapse into civil war as soon as U.S. troops leave."

Judge deals blow to govt in Moussaoui trial - Yahoo! News

Judge deals blow to govt in Moussaoui trial - Yahoo! News: "'I am removing from this case any and all witnesses and evidence dealing with the aviation component,' Brinkema said.

'What we have in this case ... is that six witnesses -- two for the government and four potential defense witnesses, were tainted,' she said.

Aviation-related testimony was expected to deal with how much information the FAA had about possible threats to airlines and also discuss pre-September 11 security measures. The prosecution had argued the witnesses were vital, with the aviation portion of the government's argument representing about half of the evidence of Moussaoui's guilt."

Guardian Unlimited | Special reports | Baghdad official who exposed executions flees

Guardian Unlimited | Special reports | Baghdad official who exposed executions flees: "Thursday March 2, 2006
The Guardian

Faik Bakir, the director of the Baghdad morgue, has fled Iraq in fear of his life after reporting that more than 7,000 people have been killed by death squads in recent months, the outgoing head of the UN human rights office in Iraq has disclosed.

'The vast majority of bodies showed signs of summary execution - many with their hands tied behind their back. Some showed evidence of torture, with arms and leg joints broken by electric drills,' said John Pace, the Maltese UN official. The killings had been happening long before the bloodshed after last week's bombing of the Shia shrine in Samarra."

Is rising US public debt sustainable? | csmonitor.com

Is rising US public debt sustainable? | csmonitor.com:

"At $8.3 trillion, it breaks the legal limit, fueling a fiscal debate in Congress.

Between 1989 and 2000, the electronic display near New York's Times Square tracked the rise of the nation's red ink until it reached $5.7 trillion. When it shut down, the federal budget was running a surplus.

Today, the national debt totals $8.3 trillion, a level that could force Congress this week to raise the debt ceiling for the fourth time in George W. Bush's presidency.

The prevote debate may be tinged by election-year rhetoric, but the underlying issue goes beyond partisan politics. The rising debt tally is a reminder, economists say, that the nation is on an unsustainable fiscal course.

The economic burden posed by the national debt, economists say, is more serious now than in 1980, when a $1 trillion figure stirred national anxiety. Today, the public debt is larger as a share of the American economy, more than half is held by foreigners, and the wave of baby-boomer retirements is no longer decades away."

Iraqis Find 85 Bodies in 24-Hour Period - Yahoo! News

Iraqis Find 85 Bodies in 24-Hour Period - Yahoo! News: "Associated Press Writers 1 hour, 4 minutes ago

BAGHDAD, Iraq - Police in the past 24 hours have found the bodies of at least 85 people killed by execution-style shootings — a gruesome wave of apparent sectarian reprisal slayings, officials said Tuesday.
.....

Iraq's Interior Ministry announced a ban on driving in the capital to coincide with the first meeting of the new parliament Thursday. The ban takes effect at 8 p.m. Wednesday and lasts until 4 p.m. Thursday.
.......................

Acting on an anonymous tip, police found a 6-by-8-yard hole in an empty field. It contained at least 27 dead men — most of them in their underwear — in Kamaliyah, a mostly Shiite east Baghdad suburb, said Interior Ministry Lt. Col. Falah al-Mohammedawi. He estimated they had been dead for three days.

Residents offered scarves to help cover the bodies, which were laid out on the ground. Police guarded the site as members of a Shiite militia dug for more corpses. An Associated Press photographer took pictures of the grave but was warned not to publish them.

An abandoned minibus containing 15 bodies was found Tuesday on the main road between two mostly Sunni neighborhoods in west Baghdad, not far from where another minibus containing 18 bodies was discovered last week, said Interior Ministry official Maj. Falah al-Mohammedawi.

At least 40 more bodies were discovered in various parts of Baghdad, including both Sunni and Shiite neighborhoods, he said.

They included four men shot in the head execution-style and hanged from electricity pylons in Sadr City, where two car bombs and four mortar rounds shattered shops and market stalls at nightfall Sunday as residents shopped for food.

Scores of frightened Shiite families have fled predominantly Sunni parts of Baghdad in recent weeks, some of them at gunpoint. More than 100 families arrived between Monday and Tuesday alone in Wasit province, in the southern Shiite heartland, said Haitham Ajaimi Manie, an official with the provisional migration directorate. More than 300 Baghdad families are now sheltering in the province, he said.

....

"I wish I could tell you that the violence is waning and that the road ahead will be smooth," Bush said in the first of a series of speeches to mark the third anniversary of the start of the U.S.-led war in Iraq. "It will not. There will be more tough fighting and more days of struggle, and we will see more images of chaos and carnage in the days and months to come."

"

W.House, senators spar over move to censure Bush - Yahoo! News

W.House, senators spar over move to censure Bush - Yahoo! News: "Mon Mar 13, 6:35 PM ET

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A Senate Democrat's move to censure
President George W. Bush for ordering domestic spying ignited heated debate among lawmakers on Monday and was dismissed by the White House as politically motivated.

Sen. Russ Feingold (news, bio, voting record) introduced the unusual measure on Monday saying in a Senate speech that 'this president has done wrong' in ordering the wiretapping program after the September 11 attacks.

'The president violated the law, ignored the Constitution and the other two branches of government and disregarded the rights and freedoms upon which our country was founded,' said Feingold, a Wisconsin Democrat.
............

Attorney General Alberto Gonzales has said the president has inherent constitutional powers to conduct warrantless surveillance to detect or prevent an attack.

He has also argued that a resolution passed by Congress after September 11 authorizing the use of military force gave Bush the right to approve the eavesdropping.

Democrats have urged a broad inquiry into the program. Republicans have blocked that move, agreeing only to expand congressional oversight.

"

Radio Paradise - eclectic online rock radio

Radio Paradise - eclectic online rock radio:

"Here at RP we're not just non-commercial. We're anti-commercial. We feel that quality radio programming and advertising just cannot co-exist. We also choose to refrain from forcibly extracting money from you by charging subscription fees. We leave it up to you to decide what our service is worth to you."

Ex White House Aide Denies Theft Charges - Newsweek Politics - MSNBC.com

Ex White House Aide Denies Theft Charges - Newsweek Politics - MSNBC.com: "By Holly Bailey and Pat Wingert
Newsweek

March 20, 2006 issue - You may not recognize Claude Allen's name, but you've probably seen his face in photos, a little off to the side, a few steps away from the president. As George W. Bush's top domestic-policy adviser, Allen stuck close to the boss. He was Bush's frequent companion on Air Force One, and helped stage-manage issues like Social Security and education. A born-again Christian (his wife home-schools their four kids) and credentialed conservative (he got his start as an aide to Sen. Jesse Helms), the 45-year-old lawyer was regarded as a man on his way up in Republican politics. Party leaders, always on the lookout for conservative black candidates, pegged Allen as a future congressman or senator.

So it was a bit of a mystery why Allen abruptly announced on Feb. 9 that he was resigning after just a year on the job. He cited the usual Washington cliche—that he wanted to spend more time with his family—but that only increased speculation that something was amiss. Some wondered if Allen had quit to protest new Pentagon rules that steered military chaplains away from invoking the name of Jesus.

As it turned out, it may not have been anything quite so lofty. Last Thursday, police in Montgomery County, Md., just outside Washington, arrested Allen and charged him with stealing more than $5,000 worth of merchandise from Target and Hecht's department stores over several months. According to police, Allen walked off with bags of items between October 2005 and Jan. 2, 2006, including a Bose home-theater system. Allen referred questions to his lawyer, Mallon Snyder, who says his client is innocent and that the whole thing is just a misunderstanding. 'He hadn't taken anything from the store,' Snyder says. 'We are denying the charges.'

That could be a tough sell to a jury. According to a source close to the investigation, who spoke anonymously because the case is ongoing, some of Allen's alleged thefts were captured by store surveillance cameras. In announcing the arrest, police said that Allen was no ordinary shoplifter, slipping an item here and there into his pocket. They say Allen entered the stores, picked out items and paid for them. He put the merchandise in his car, returned to the store with his receipt and the empty bag, and picked up the same items from the shelf. He then went to the return counter with the refilled bag, where he showed his receipt and asked for a refund."

U.S. Senate: Reference Home > Virtual Reference Desk > Censure

U.S. Senate: Reference Home > Virtual Reference Desk > Censure: "Censure

Less severe than expulsion, a censure (sometimes referred to as condemnation or denouncement) does not remove a senator from office. It is a formal statement of disapproval, however, that can have a powerful psychological effect on a member and his/her relationships in the Senate. In 1834, the Senate censured President Andrew Jackson – the first and only time the Senate censured a president. Since 1789 the Senate has censured nine of its members."

Lawmaker to press for US infrastructure ownership - Yahoo! News

Lawmaker to press for US infrastructure ownership - Yahoo! News: "Sun Mar 12, 1:43 PM ET

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A leading Republican opponent of the collapsed Dubai ports deal said on Sunday that he would press ahead with legislation requiring U.S. ownership of infrastructure deemed critical to homeland security.
ADVERTISEMENT

House Armed Services Committee Chairman Duncan Hunter, Republican of California, said that under the bill, it would be up to the
Pentagon and Department of
Homeland Security to identify facilities critical to national defense.

'If something defined by the secretary of defense as being critical American infrastructure, we would give a five-year period for divestment by the parent company so you don't have a fire sale,' Hunter told the 'Fox News Sunday' program."

Feingold Calls for Bush to Be Censured Over Spying - New York Times

Feingold Calls for Bush to Be Censured Over Spying - New York Times: ": March 12, 2006

WASHINGTON, March 12 — A Democratic senator who is widely believed to be considering a run for the White House in 2008 said today that he would seek to censure President Bush because of his domestic eavesdropping program.

Russell D. Feingold of Wisconsin, who spoke on the ABC News program 'This Week,' said he planned to introduce legislation on Monday that would censure President Bush and condemn his authorization of the eavesdropping program.

The senator, Russell D. Feingold of Wisconsin, said, 'What the president did by consciously and intentionally violating the Constitution and laws of this country with this illegal wiretapping has to be answered.' He added, 'Proper accountability is a censuring of the president, saying, 'Mr. President, acknowledge that you broke the law, return to the law, return to our system of government.' '

Mr. Feingold, who spoke on the ABC News program 'This Week,' said he planned to introduce legislation on Monday that would censure President Bush and condemn his authorization of the eavesdropping program."

The Raw Story | Retired Supreme Court Justice hits attacks on courts and warns of dictatorship

The Raw Story | Retired Supreme Court Justice hits attacks on courts and warns of dictatorship:

"Supreme Court justices keep many opinions private but Sandra Day O’Connor no longer faces that obligation. Yesterday, the retired justice criticized Republicans who criticized the courts. She said they challenge the independence of judges and the freedoms of all Americans. O’Connor’s speech at Georgetown University was not available for broadcast but NPR’s legal affairs correspondent Nina Totenberg was there.

Nina Totenberg: In an unusually forceful and forthright speech, O’Connor said that attacks on the judiciary by some Republican leaders pose a direct threat to our constitutional freedoms.
.....

I, said O’Connor, am against judicial reforms driven by nakedly partisan reasoning. Pointing to the experiences of developing countries and former communist countries where interference with an independent judiciary has allowed dictatorship to flourish, O’Connor said we must be ever-vigilant against those who would strongarm the judiciary into adopting their preferred policies. It takes a lot of degeneration before a country falls into dictatorship, she said, but we should avoid these ends by avoiding these beginnings.

CNN.com - Priests abused hundreds of Irish kids, church says - Mar 8, 2006

CNN.com - Priests abused hundreds of Irish kids, church says - Mar 8, 2006: "March 8, 2006; Posted: 10:23 a.m. EST (15:23 GMT)
DUBLIN, Ireland (AP) -- The Roman Catholic archdiocese of Dublin published a report Wednesday that says 102 of its priests -- more than 3.5 percent of the total -- are suspected of sexually or physically abusing at least 350 children since 1940, the biggest such admission to date in Ireland.

The office of Archbishop Diarmuid Martin said it was publishing its findings ahead of the expected formation later this month of a government-appointed commission to investigate the history and handling of such abuse throughout Ireland. This predominantly Catholic nation has been rocked by waves of church sex-abuse scandals since 1994."

USATODAY.com - Vermont town calls on Congress to impeach Bush

USATODAY.com - Vermont town calls on Congress to impeach Bush:

"NEWFANE, Vt. (AP) — In a white-clapboard town hall, circa 1832, voters gathered Tuesday to conduct their community's business and to call for the impeachment of President Bush.

'In the U.S. presently there are only a few places where citizens can act in this fashion and have a say in our nation,' said select board member Dan DeWalt, who drafted the impeachment article that was placed on the warning — or official agenda — for the annual town meeting, a proud Yankee tradition in New England.

'It absolutely affects us locally,' Dewalt said. 'It's our sons and daughters, our mothers and fathers, who are dying' in the war in Iraq.

The article, approved 121-29 in balloting by paper, calls on Vermont's lone member of the House, independent Rep. Bernie Sanders, to file articles of impeachment against the president, alleging that Bush misled the nation into the Iraq war and engaged in illegal domestic spying. (Related: Vermonters cling to town meeting)"

Update 11: Fastow Links Skilling to Losses at Enron - Forbes.com

Update 11: Fastow Links Skilling to Losses at Enron - Forbes.com:

"Former Enron Corp. Chief Financial Officer Andrew Fastow testified Tuesday he crafted and ran partnerships to help the company hide losses and inflate profits with the blessing of his boss, Jeffrey Skilling.

Fastow appeared contrite in his much-anticipated courtroom confrontation with Skilling and Enron founder Kenneth Lay, who are on trial for fraud and conspiracy stemming from Enron's spectacular 2001 collapse.

But he portrayed himself as a cog in a corrupt machine, with Skilling telling him, 'Get me as much of that juice as you can,' regarding the partnerships.

Fastow, 44, also fought back tears as he told jurors in a federal courtroom that his wife, Lea, pleaded guilty to a tax crime and finished a yearlong prison term last July for signing a tax return that didn't include illegal income from business deals unrelated to the partnerships.

He pleaded guilty to two counts of conspiracy in January 2004 at her urging, more than a year after he was originally indicted on charges of orchestrating schemes to manipulate Enron's books and enrich himself on the side. His plea was contingent upon the government striking a deal for his wife, who was initially indicted in May 2003.

He said Tuesday he misled his wife, and told her the kickbacks - a series of checks written to her, him and their two young sons - were gifts. She endorsed and deposited those checks. Fastow stared at the floor as the checks, with his wife and sons' names, were displayed for jurors Tuesday on a massive screen.

'I did this,' he said, tearful and fighting to compose himself. 'I led her to believe that.'

The partnerships that he said Skilling approved - LJM1 and LJM2 - were named with initials of his wife and sons, Jeffrey and Matthew, though Fastow didn't share that detail with jurors.

Fastow, who agreed as part of his plea deal to serve 10 years in prison, is a key pillar of the government's quest to"

Reuters AlertNet - IRAQ: Women attacked for removing headscarves, NGO says

Reuters AlertNet - IRAQ: Women attacked for removing headscarves, NGO says:

"BAGHDAD, 7 March (IRIN) - Since the fall of Saddam Hussein in early 2003, the number of women attacked for choosing not to wear head scarves and veils has more than tripled, according to the Women's Rights Association (WRA), a local NGO in the capital, Baghdad.

'Women are being killed because they don't wear headscarves and veils,' said WRA spokeswoman Mayada Zuhair. 'A life is being taken because of a simple piece of cloth, and someone should prevent more women from being killed by these ignorant people who that believe honour depends on what you're wearing.'

According to WRA, there have been 80 attacks to date against women and reports of four women being killed by their families in 2005. This is compared too 22 attacks between 1999 and March 2003 and one death."

Miss. sheriff's FEMA case moved to Baton Rouge federal court

Miss. sheriff's FEMA case moved to Baton Rouge federal court:

"BATON ROUGE, La. Federal prosecutors in Baton Rouge will take up the misdemeanor case against a Mississippi sheriff accused of commandeering two ice trucks from a federal reservation and sending them to relief centers after Hurricane Katrina.
...

The 53-year-old McGee had agreed last month to plead guilty to a misdemeanor charge of interfering with, intimidating and impeding a federal officer. It is unclear where that plea stands now that the case is being moved to Baton Rouge.

McGee is accused of commandeering two ice trucks September four from a Federal Emergency Management Agency staging area at Camp Shelby, near Hattiesburg.

He has said that a National Guard soldier who tried to stop the trucks from leaving was handcuffed and detained at the sheriff's office, then cited for interfering with McGee's operations.

The sheriff said he agreed to plead guilty because he did not want three deputies who acted on his orders to be prosecuted."

House Conservatives Prepare Austere Alternative Budget - New York Times

House Conservatives Prepare Austere Alternative Budget - New York Times:

"Conservatives contend that voters are disillusioned with Republicans over spending and that without a bold statement, the party faces potential losses in November. But some moderate Republicans are anxious about additional spending reductions, particularly after Congress enacted nearly $40 billion in cuts last year after a difficult fight.

The new budget proposal is certain to be assailed by Democrats who accuse Republicans of forging ahead with tax cuts that benefit the affluent and add to the deficit while reducing support for those most in need.

'This president will have piled up more debt than all of the presidents preceding him,' Senator Kent Conrad of North Dakota, the senior Democrat on the Budget Committee, said Monday as he joined other Democrats in accusing Republicans of shortchanging domestic security."

Pentagon, Homeland Dept. objected to UAE port deal

Insight:

"At least three security agencies raised objections to a takeover by a United Arab Emirates state-owned company of the operations of six major U.S. ports.

Congressional sources said the Defense Department, Homeland Security Department and Coast Guard expressed objections during the review by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States of the state-owned Dubai Ports World, which bought the British-owned Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Co. P&O has managed port operations in New York, New Jersey, Baltimore, Miami, Philadelphia and New Orleans.

'All of the rules were bent on this one,' a congressional source said. 'We had a major security review managed by political appointees.'

But most of the objections were not recorded in the proceedings of the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS), the sources said. They said the objections remained off the record for 'technical reasons.' Later, the heads of some of the agencies denied that their representatives raised concerns."

Buffett blasts excessive executive pay

Buffett blasts excessive executive pay

Mar 4, 2006

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Berkshire Hathaway Inc. Chairman Warren Buffett used his latest annual letter to shareholders to blast excessive executive pay, a ballooning U.S. trade deficit and rising fees for professional money managers.

"Too often executive compensation in the U.S. is ridiculously out of line with performance," said Buffett in his 2005 letter. See full text of Buffett's letter.

Buffett said the problem lies in the way executive compensation is decided.

"Huge severance payments, lavish perks and outsized payments for ho-hum performance often occur because comp committees have become slaves to comparative data."

Buffett said compensation committee members are bombarded with pay statistics and told about new perks that other managers are receiving.

"In this manner, outlandish 'goodies' are showered upon CEOs simply because of a corporate version of the argument we all use as children: 'But, Mon, all the other kids have one.'"

The billionaire investor, known as the Oracle of Omaha, also had a few choice words for rising fees paid out to professional money managers.

"These costs are now being incurred in amounts that will cause shareholders to earn far less than they historically have," said Buffett.

He added that these fees may cause equity investors to earn "only 80% or so of what they would earn if they just sat still and listened to no one."

State: Voting machine security alert sent

State: Voting machine security alert sent: "March 4, 2006

TALLAHASSEE - The state recommended on Friday that elections officials across Florida enhance security safeguards for all voting systems after tests in California and Tallahassee exposed weaknesses.

Leon County Supervisor of Elections Ion Sancho called the technical advisory a vindication of his findings last year that some Diebold optical scan voting machines can be hacked by election office insiders to change results.

'In other words, you could steal the election and no one would ever know,' Sancho said."

Democrats insist Congress must decide on ports - Yahoo! News

Democrats insist Congress must decide on ports - Yahoo! News: "Sat Mar 4, 12:43 PM ET

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Democrats on Saturday kept up the drumbeat of criticism of the Bush administration for approving a state-owned Arab company's plan to manage U.S. ports, saying Congress must decide whether the deal should go through.

In their weekly radio address, the Democrats also called for a dramatic increase in the screening of cargo arriving at U.S. ports, and increased resources for the
U.S. Coast Guard.

'I was outraged to learn that the president wanted to outsource operations at some American ports to the United Arab Emirates,' said Francine Busby, a candidate for the congressional seat left vacant in California by disgraced former Rep. Randy 'Duke' Cunningham.

'Congress should review and decide on whether or not this deal should proceed,' Busby said in the Democratic radio address."

BBC NEWS | Business | China 'to dwarf G7 states by 2050'

BBC NEWS | Business | China 'to dwarf G7 states by 2050': "China's economy is projected to grow so fast that it could outstrip all developed nations by 2050, a report by Pricewaterhouse says.

The Asian giant's economy is set to double in size between 2005 and 2050, according to the report.

As with other developing countries, a key driver for China's rapid growth is its younger, cheaper workforce, it argues.

India, meanwhile, is expected to be the world's fastest-growing economy."

BBC NEWS | UK | UK Politics | Blair 'prayed to God' over Iraq

BBC NEWS | UK | UK Politics | Blair 'prayed to God' over Iraq: "Prime Minister Tony Blair has told how he prayed to God when deciding whether or not to send UK troops to Iraq."

BBC NEWS | Americas | Pentagon reveals Guantanamo names

BBC NEWS | Americas | Pentagon reveals Guantanamo names: "The US defence department has released the names and nationalities of some of the inmates detained at its Guantanamo Bay prison in Cuba."

Ex-congressman Cunningham sentenced to 8 years - Yahoo! News

Ex-congressman Cunningham sentenced to 8 years - Yahoo! News: "Fri Mar 3, 8:27 PM ET

SAN DIEGO (Reuters) - Former U.S. Congressman Randy 'Duke' Cunningham (R), who pleaded guilty last year to taking $2.4 million in bribes, was sentenced by a federal judge on Friday to eight years and four months in prison.
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It was the longest prison sentence ever given a U.S. congressman, prosecutors said, topping the eight-year sentence given in 2002 to Ohio Democrat James Traficant for bribery, tax evasion and racketeering.

Cunningham, a decorated Vietnam War pilot and eight-term California Republican who tearfully resigned from the House of Representatives in November, was also ordered to pay $1.8 million in restitution."

CORRECT: Democrats seek Senate debate on debt limit - MarketWatch

CORRECT: Democrats seek Senate debate on debt limit - MarketWatch: "Mar 3, 2006

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- Senators will have to vote in coming weeks to boost the federal government's debt limit in order to avoid default, setting the stage for a debate over President Bush's fiscal stewardship.

Treasury Department officials told Senate staff members that the federal government would hit its statutory borrowing limit of $8.184 trillion some time during the week of March 20, news reports said.

'We don't have any scheduled debate on this. And I don't frankly think that the [Republican] leadership wants to schedule a debate on whether we should and the degree to which we should increase the federal debt,' said Sen. Max Baucus of Montana, the senior Democrat on the Senate Finance Committee. 'And I think the reason is pretty clear. It's because it's embarrassing.'

The House has already passed a $781 billion increase in the debt limit. "

U.S. Cites Exception in Torture Ban

U.S. Cites Exception in Torture Ban:

McCain Law May Not Apply to Cuba Prison

By Josh White and Carol D. Leonnig
Washington Post Staff Writers
Friday, March 3, 2006; Page A04

Bush administration lawyers, fighting a claim of torture by a Guantanamo Bay detainee, yesterday argued that the new law that bans cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment of detainees in U.S. custody does not apply to people held at the military prison.

In federal court yesterday and in legal filings, Justice Department lawyers contended that a detainee at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, cannot use legislation drafted by Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) to challenge treatment that the detainee's lawyers described as "systematic torture."
....
U.S. District Judge Gladys Kessler said in a hearing yesterday that she found allegations of aggressive U.S. military tactics used to break the detainee hunger strike "extremely disturbing" and possibly against U.S. and international law. But Justice Department lawyers argued that even if the tactics were considered in violation of McCain's language, detainees at Guantanamo would have no recourse to challenge them in court.
....
"Unfortunately, I think the government's right; it's a correct reading of the law," said Tom Malinowski, Washington advocacy director for Human Rights Watch. "The law says you can't torture detainees at Guantanamo, but it also says you can't enforce that law in the courts."

Legal fight over US National Guard pay intensifies - Yahoo! News

Legal fight over US National Guard pay intensifies - Yahoo! News: "The lawsuit, initially filed in January, names Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld and Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, and appears to be the first such suit in the U.S. Army National Guard, which has faced mounting demands since the September 11 attacks, lawyers in the case said.

January's complaint says the National Guard owes the soldiers for meals, car fuel, hotel costs and daily allowances.

The amendment, filed in U.S. district court in Boston on Thursday, says Massachusetts National Guard officers deliberately refused to pay the travel expenses of on-duty soldiers, as way to cut costs."

Operation Truth

Operation Truth: "In late February 2006, the Journal of the American Medical Association posted striking new findings about the severity of the mental health crisis facing returning Iraq veterans.

* 35% of Iraq veterans have already sought mental health services.
* Almost 20% of Iraq veterans report a mental health problem, while 11% of Afghanistan veterans report a problem.

These numbers have been growing steadily as new waves of veterans return, and as veterans cope with multiple tours in theatre. As early as July 2004, a New England Journal of Medicine study concluded that 15 to 17% of Iraq veterans suffer from major depression, generalized anxiety, or Post Traumatic Stress Disorder."

New York Is Sued by U.S. on Delay of Vote System - New York Times

New York Is Sued by U.S. on Delay of Vote System - New York Times: "Civic groups, which have complained for years that New York was moving too slowly, are now concerned that the federal lawsuit will rush the state into adopting a flawed voting system. 'The rotten H.A.V.A. implementation process on the state level shouldn't be mirrored by a rotten judicial enforcement process at the federal level trying to impose a solution on New York,' said Neal Rosenstein, the government coordinator for the New York Public Interest Research Group."

BBC NEWS | Europe | Soviets 'ordered Pope shooting'

BBC NEWS | Europe | Soviets 'ordered Pope shooting': "An Italian parliamentary commission has concluded that the former Soviet Union was behind the 1981 assassination attempt on the late Pope John Paul II."

Saudi Qaeda ideologue sets rules for oil war: Web - Yahoo! News

Saudi Qaeda ideologue sets rules for oil war: Web - Yahoo! News: "In the manifesto, which was recently posted on an Islamist Web site, Enezi said disrupting oil supplies was the best way to hurt the U.S. economy and destabilize the Saudi royal family."

CNN.com - Lawmaker: Port deal never probed for terror ties - Mar 1, 2006

CNN.com - Lawmaker: Port deal never probed for terror ties - Mar 1, 2006: "WASHINGTON (CNN) -- A review of a United Arab Emirates-owned company's plan to take over a portion of operations at key U.S. ports never looked into whether the company had ties to al Qaeda or other terrorists, a key Republican lawmaker told CNN on Wednesday.

Rep. Peter King of New York, chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, said officials from the Homeland Security and Treasury departments told him weeks ago that their 30-day review of the deal did not look into the question of links between DP World and al Qaeda."

Legalities of Corporate Tax Incentives Before Court - New York Times

Legalities of Corporate Tax Incentives Before Court - New York Times: "March 1, 2006

The Supreme Court takes up a major case today about the legality of tens of billions of dollars in tax breaks that states and local governments award businesses each year to build new factories or offices, or just to stay put.

Supporters consider the subsidies vital economic development tools while critics denounce them as corporate welfare that helps some towns but weakens the national economy.

The case before the Supreme Court was filed by a group of Ohio residents and small-business owners who are challenging $280 million in state and local tax breaks to DaimlerChrysler for investing $1.2 billion in Toledo to expand a Jeep factory in 1998.

Both sides say that if the court strikes down the Ohio subsidies it will lead to major changes in the use of state and local tax incentives to promote investment.

At issue is whether tax breaks for companies that build or expand factories within Ohio discriminate against other Ohio companies that choose to invest in a different state. State tax laws that favor in-state businesses over those in other states have vexed America from the start and were a major reason that government under the Articles of Confederation proved unworkable."

Stars & Stripes

Stars & Stripes: "Wednesday, March 1, 2006

WASHINGTON — Seventy-two percent of troops on the ground in Iraq think U.S. military forces should get out of the country within a year, according to a Zogby poll released Tuesday.

The survey of 944 troops, conducted in Iraq between Jan. 18 and Feb. 14, said that only 23 percent of servicemembers thought U.S. forces should stay “as long as they are needed.”

Of the 72 percent, 22 percent said troops should leave within the next six months, and 29 percent said they should withdraw “immediately.” Twenty-one percent said the U.S. military presence should end within a year; 5 percent weren’t sure."

Anti-Bush protests hit India ahead of visit - Yahoo! News

Anti-Bush protests hit India ahead of visit - Yahoo! News: "NEW DELHI (Reuters) - Tens of thousands of Muslims and communists took to the streets across India on Wednesday, protesting against the visit of U.S.
President George W. Bush, hours before his arrival."

Morgue pressed to stay quiet - Concord Monitor Online - Concord, NH 03301

Morgue pressed to stay quiet - Concord Monitor Online - Concord, NH 03301: "March 01. 2006 8:00AM

O
fficials overseeing Baghdad's morgue have come under pressure not to investigate the soaring number of apparent cases of executions and torture in the country, the former U.N. human rights chief for Iraq said yesterday."

Spying program illegal, Senate committee told - Americas - International Herald Tribune

Spying program illegal, Senate committee told - Americas - International Herald Tribune: "WEDNESDAY, MARCH 1, 2006
WASHINGTON A group of legal specialists told a Senate committee that President George W. Bush's domestic spying program is illegal and may set a precedent that allows wartime presidents to break laws freely in the name of national security.

In its second hearing on the once- secret surveillance program, the Senate Judiciary Committee heard testimony Tuesday from a number of law professors and former officials. Most voiced skepticism of the president's assertion that his wartime powers allow him to bypass the courts and spy on Americans' international calls and e-mail messages without warrants. Bush's legal theory, they said, is both wrong and dangerous.

'This is a defining moment in the constitutional history of the United States,' said Bruce Fein, a lawyer who served in the administration of President Ronald Reagan. He said the theory used by the administration 'could equally justify mail openings, burglary, torture, or internment camps, all in the name of gathering foreign intelligence. Unless rebuked, it will lie around like a loaded weapon ready to be used by any incumbent who claims an urgent need.'

But other specialists disagreed.

In his testimony, Douglas Kmiec, a Pepperdine University law professor who was a Reagan administration lawyer, endorsed the White House's assertion that Bush's power as commander in chief allowed him to set aside the warrant law and eavesdrop on Americans.

And a former CIA director, R. James Woolsey, who served under President George H.W. Bush, said the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001 transformed all of the United States into a battlefield, and that Congress could not restrict a president's constitutional power to conduct war as the commander in chief sees fit.

'Unlike the Cold War, our intelligence requirements are not just overseas,' Woolsey said. 'The country has been invaded, though of course not o"

Majority of NOLA Residents Approve of Mayor's Response to Katrina

Majority of NOLA Residents Approve of Mayor's Response to Katrina: "Approval Ratings

When asked whether they approve or disapprove of the way five government leaders or organizations handled the response to the effects of Hurricane Katrina, New Orleans residents give the most positive ratings to the city's mayor and the city's police. Fifty-four percent of New Orleans residents say they approve of Nagin's response to the hurricane, and half say they approve of the New Orleans police. Residents are much more negative in their other assessments, giving the state's governor, Blanco, a 33% approval rating, Bush a 23% rating, and FEMA a 22% rating."

President Bush Makes Surprise Visit to Afghanistan - New York Times

President Bush Makes Surprise Visit to Afghanistan - New York Times: "March 1, 2006

NEW DELHI, March 1 - President Bush made a surprise five-hour visit to Afghanistan on Wednesday to meet with President Hamid Karzai and to see for the first time the country created after the United States went to war against the Taliban in retaliation for the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.

In a news conference with Mr. Karzai, Mr Bush said he remained confident of the capture of Osama bin Laden, the mastermind of the Sept. 11 attacks, as well as the apprehension of the Taliban leader Mullah Muhammad Omar. “It’s not a matter of if they’re captured, it’s a matter of when they’re brought to justice,’’ Mr. Bush said."