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_JANUARY 2009 News_
YEAR 2009 CALENDAR Printable 2009 Calendar January 2009 News History January 2009 News |
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-
Accounting
- Politics
-
Government
- Law
-
New
York - Jobs
"What
Red Ink? Wall Street Paid Hefty Bonuses." ... "By
almost any measure, 2008 was a complete disaster for Wall Street — except,
that is, when the bonuses arrived." ... "Despite crippling losses, multibillion-dollar
bailouts and the passing of some of the most prominent names in the business,
employees at financial companies in New York, the now-diminished world
capital of capital, collected an estimated $18.4 billion in bonuses for
the year." ... "That was the sixth-largest haul on record, according to
a report released Wednesday by the New York State comptroller." ... "It
excludes stock option awards that could push the figures even higher."
... "The state comptroller, Thomas P. DiNapoli, said it was unclear if
banks had used taxpayer money for the bonuses, a possibility that strikes
corporate governance experts, and indeed many ordinary Americans, as outrageous."
... "“The issue of transparency is a significant one, and there needs to
be an accounting about whether there was any taxpayer money used to pay
bonuses or to pay for corporate jets or dividends or anything else,” Mr.
DiNapoli said in an interview." ... "According to Mr. DiNapoli, the brokerage
units of New York financial companies lost more than $35 billion in 2008,
triple their losses in 2007." ... "Outside the financial industry, many
corporate executives received fatter bonuses in 2008, even as the economy
lost 2.6 million jobs." -By Ben White with contributions
by Paul J. Sullivan -NYTimes
-
Criminal
-
Home
- Financing
-
Accounting
- Law
-
Intelligence
-
History
-
Terrorism
-
Politics
"FBI
saw mortgage fraud early." ... "The FBI [Federal
Bureau of Investigation] was aware for years of "pervasive and growing"
fraud in the mortgage industry that eventually contributed to America's
financial meltdown, but did not take definitive action to stop it." ...
""It is clear that we had good intelligence on the mortgage-fraud schemes,
the corrupt attorneys, the corrupt appraisers, the insider schemes," said
a recently retired, high FBI official. Another retired top FBI official
confirmed that such intelligence went back to 2002." ... "The problem,
according to the two FBI retirees and several other current and former
bureau colleagues, is that the bureau was stretched so thin that no one
noticed when those lenders began packaging bad mortgages into bad securities."
... ""We knew that the mortgage-brokerage industry was corrupt," the first
of the retired FBI officials told the Seattle
P-I. "Where we would have gotten a sense of what was really going on
was the point where the mortgage was sold knowing that it was a piece of
dung and it would be turned into a security. But the agents with the expertise
had been diverted to counterterrorism."" ... "Both retired FBI officials
asserted that the [Republican President] Bush administration was thoroughly
briefed on the mortgage fraud crisis and its potential to cascade out of
control with devastating financial consequences, but made the decision
not to give back to the FBI the agents it needed to address the problem.
After the terrorist attacks of 2001, about 2,400 agents were reassigned
to counterterrorism duties." ... "This mass reassignment was first chronicled
by the Seattle P-I in the Terrorism
Tradeoff, a series of investigative reports beginning in 2007 and stretching
into 2008. That administration policy, the P-I reported, resulted in a
dramatic plunge in FBI criminal investigations and referrals for prosecution.
And recent data from Syracuse University researchers shows the problem
has worsened." ... "Public statements by one high FBI executive shows that
the bureau was well aware of the potentially devastating impact of rampant
mortgage fraud at least five years ago. The executive ominously foretold
the crisis in testimony before Congress." ... ""Based on various industry
reports and FBI analysis, mortgage fraud is pervasive and growing," Chris
Swecker, then assistant director of the criminal investigation division,
said in October 2004 before the House subcommittee on housing and community
opportunity." ... "Then Swecker made a chillingly accurate prediction of
the coming mortgage meltdown and financial collapse:" ... ""The potential
impact of mortgage fraud on financial institutions in the stock market
is clear. If fraudulent practices become systemic within the mortgage industry
and mortgage fraud is allowed to become unrestrained, it will ultimately
place financial institutions at risk and have adverse effects on the stock
market."" ... "Swecker went on to describe the scenario that ultimately
wrecked financial havoc around the world: "Often mortgage loans sold in
secondary markets are used by financial institutions as collateral for
other investments. ... When loans sold in the secondary market default
and have fraudulent or material misrepresentation ... these loans become
a nonperforming asset, and in extreme fraud cases, the mortgage-backed
security is worthless. Mortgage fraud losses adversely affect loan-loss
reserves, profits, liquidity levels and capitalization ratios, ultimately
affecting the soundness of the financial institution itself."" -By
Paul Shukovsky with contributions by Daniel Lathrop
-SeattlePI.NWsource
-
Cable
-
Media
- Politics
-
Lawmakers
-
Federal
- Economics
-
John
Boehner
-
John
McCain -
OH
-
AZ
"REPORT:
GOP Lawmakers Outnumber Democratic Lawmakers 2 To 1 In Stimulus Debate
On Cable News." ... "As Media Matters has documented,
during the [Republican President] Bush administration, the media consistently
allowed
conservatives to dominate their shows, booking them as guests far more
often than progressives. The rationale was that Republicans were “in
power.”" ... "It appears that old habits die hard. Even though [Democratic]
President Obama and his team are in control of the executive branch and
Democrats are in the majority in Congress, the cable networks are still
turning more often to Republicans and allowing them to set the agenda on
major issues, most recently on the debate over the economic recovery package."
... "On Sunday, conservatives began an
all-out assault on President Obama’s economic recovery plan, with [Ohio
Republican Representative and Republican] House Minority Leader John Boehner
(R-OH [Republican-Ohio]) and [Arizona Republican Senator] Sen. John McCain
(R-AZ [Republican-Arizona]) both announcing that they would vote against
the plan as it stood. Despite Obama’s efforts at good
faith outreach, congressional conservatives have continued to attack
the stimulus plan with a series of false
and disingenuous
arguments." ... "The media have been aiding
their efforts.
In a new analysis,
ThinkProgress has found that the five cable news networks — CNN, MSNBC,
Fox News, Fox Business and CNBC — have hosted more Republican lawmakers
to discuss the plan than Democrats by a
2 to 1 ratio this week:"
-
Food
-
Safety
-
Manufacturing
- Company
-
Government
- Law
-
Georgia
"FDA
Alleges Company Knowingly Sold Peanut Products Containing Salmonella."
... "There is new information available about the recent salmonella outbreak
linked to peanut butter from a plant in Georgia." ... "The Food and Drug
Administration (FDA) said at least 12 times over the past two years the
Peanut Corporation of America has knowingly sold products that had tested
positive for salmonella." ... "The FDA also claimed the company did nothing
to improve its manufacturing and sanitation practices after salmonella
was found in its plant, and that is a clear violation of the law." ...
"More than 500 people have gotten sick and the outbreak may have contributed
to at least eight deaths. " -ByLee Sausley
-KRISTV.com via -MSNBC
-
Economic
-
Legislation
-
Politics
-
Government
-
Infrastructure
- Energy
-
People's
-
Health
-
Jobs
-
Education
-
Food
-
Obama
"Republicans
Vote Against the American People." ... "The House
of Representatives passed
an $819-million economic stimulus package this evening. The vote was 244-188.
Only Democrats voted for it. 177 Republicans voted against it." ... "The
package includes both spending measures and tax cuts. The American
people would get some tax relief, money to save or to spend, perhaps to
pay the bills and put food on the table, and money would go to infrastructure
projects, for energy and education and health care, to support those who
need it, those who have lost their jobs at a time when the economy is bleeding
jobs, and down to states and municipalities, to levels of government on
the front lines of service provision." ... "You know what? It’s not just
about stimulating the economy, it’s about helping people. It’s responsive,
responsible government action at a time when government action is desperately
needed." ... "And, in the House, every single Republican voted against
it." ... "Read that again: EVERY SINGLE REPUBLICAN VOTED AGAINST IT."
... "So much for bipartisan outreach. So much for [Democratic President]
Obama’s efforts to be inclusive and to seek compromise with the other side.
All the Republicans could offer was the same old tired formula of tax cuts,
tax cuts, and more tax cuts, and, when it came right down to it, when it
came time to pick a side, the Republicans sided, in unison, against the
American people and the American economy." -By Michael
Stickings -TheModerateVoice.com
-
Digital
-
Television
- Technology
-
Law
-
Wireless
- Companies
-
Obama
-
Consumer
"Plan
to delay U.S. switch to digital TV thwarted by Republicans."
... "An attempt to delay the U.S. [United States] switch to digital-only
television transmission by four months has been scuttled by the House of
Representatives." ... "House Republicans voted down a bill on Wednesday
that would have postponed the latest date for the transition to digital
broadcasting from analog until June 12. The changeover is set for [February]
Feb. 17." ... "The majority of House members voted 258-168 in favour of
the bill, but it required two-thirds support to pass." ... "Republicans
oppose the delay because they say it would confuse consumers, burden wireless
companies and would create added costs for broadcasters. [Democratic] President
Barack Obama, Senate Democrats, and consumer advocates have said the delay
is necessary to accommodate people who are unprepared."
-AP via -CBC.ca
-
Sweden
-
Military
-
Switzerland
- Politics
-
US
-
Media
- Entertainment
-
"Alba
schools Fox’s O’Reilly in WW II history." ... "Jessica
Alba is setting the record straight: Sweden was neutral during World War
II." ... "Alba and Fox TV show host Bill O’Reilly traded punches last week
after the presidential inauguration. After Alba told a Fox reporter that
O’Reilly was “kind of an a-hole;” he retaliated by calling her a “pinhead”
for telling a reporter to “be Sweden about it,” assuming she meant Switzerland."
... "“I want to clear some things up that have been bothering me lately,”
Alba blogged on MySpace Celebrity. “Last week, Mr. Bill O'Reilly and some
really classy sites (i.e.TMZ) insinuated I was dumb by claiming Sweden
was a neutral country. I appreciate the fact that he is a news anchor and
that gossip sites are inundated with intelligent reporting, but seriously
people... it's so sad to me that you think the only neutral country during
WWII was Switzerland.”" ... "Although Switzerland is more frequently cited
as an example of neutrality, Sweden did indeed follow a policy of neutrality
during World War II. History point to Alba." -By Courtney
Hazlett -MSNBC
-
Financial
-
Accounting
-
Federal
-
Enforcement
-
Florida
-
NY
-
Pennsylvania
-
Idaho
"In
Echoes Of Madoff, Ponzi Cases Proliferate." ... "Federal
and state authorities are reporting a growing number of financial scams
that echo the alleged Madoff fraud, as strapped investors seek access to
their cash amid increasingly hard times." ... "At least six suspected multimillion-dollar
fraud cases have emerged this month alone, many of them alleged Ponzi schemes,
in which investors are lured by promises of lofty returns but are actually
paid off from new victims' funds." ... "On Tuesday, authorities arrested
Arthur Nadel, the missing Florida hedge-fund adviser, who was accused by
federal authorities of defrauding clients of millions of dollars." ...
"In the latest case to emerge, Nicholas Cosmo, a Long Island, N.Y. [New
York], investment-firm owner, surrendered to federal authorities Monday."
... "The [Securities and Exchange Commission] agency, which doesn't keep
an official count, brought at least 23 Ponzi cases last year, up from 15
in 2007. It has already filed four in 2009. That tally doesn't include
actions on the state level, where allegations of securities fraud are routinely
pursued." ... "Three weeks ago, the SEC [Securities and Exchange Commission]
accused a Philadelphia[ Pennsylvania]-area investment fund manager, Joseph
S. Forte, with running a Ponzi scheme since at least 1995 that claimed
returns as high as 38% and raised $50 million." ... "Meanwhile, Idaho's
securities regulators are investigating allegations by investors in Idaho
Falls [Idaho] that they lost up to $100 million in an alleged Ponzi scheme
by Daren Palmer, a local money manager." -By Steve
Stecklow with contributions by Philip Shishkin and William M. Bulkeley
-WSJ.com
_2009
News News Reference January
2009 News
January 27, 2009 News URL: #January-27-2009-News
20090127
Tuesday
-
Barack
Obama -
Government
- Economics
-
Legislation
-
Poor
- Unemployed
-
Consumer
-
Construction
- Politics
"GOP
[Republicans] may vote no, but economists back Obama stimulus."
... "Economists think the stimulus plan that the House of Representatives
will vote on Wednesday, while far from perfect, will help stimulate the
moribund U.S. [United States] economy." ... "There's no panacea for what
ails the economy. A stimulus plan will work only in combination with other
actions, such as more aid to the banking system to spark lending and boost
consumer confidence, and the implementation of any plan will be as important
as what's in it." ... "However, most leading economists who are experienced
in public policy generally favor the stimulus plan that the House is considering
because through it the government will step up spending at a time when
private-sector spending has fallen off sharply." ... "The House legislation
would erect four pillars of economic stimulus. It would provide income
support to the poor and recently unemployed, distribute aid to state governments,
seek relatively quick employment gains through public works spending and
aim to spark consumer and business spending through targeted tax cuts."
... "Private-sector economists who support the stimulus plan say that it
could be made better, and, yes, bigger." ... ""I would make the package
bigger . . . increase the package to over $1 trillion," [Moody's chief
economist Mark] Zandi said." -By
Kevin
G. Hall -McClatchyDC.com
-
Economics
-
History
-
Federal
- Legislation
-
Politics
"Congressional
Budget Office compares downturn to Great Depression."
... "The nation's current recession is likely to be the longest since World
War II, and by some measures could be the worst since the Great Depression,
a new Congressional Budget Office forecast said Tuesday." ... "Without
a major economic stimulus plan, "the shortfall in the nation's output relative
to its potential would be the largest – in terms of both length and depth
– since the Depression of the 1930s," said new CBO Director Douglas Elmendorf
in testimony prepared for the House Budget Committee." ... "The nonpartisan
CBO is highly regarded by both parties." ... ""It could also be the deepest
recession during the postwar period in terms of the difference between
actual and potential output," Elmendorf said. By his estimates, output
over the next two years will average 6.8 percent below normal." -By
David
Lightman -McClatchyDC.com
_2009
News News Reference January
2009 News
January 26, 2009 News URL: #January-26-2009-News
20090126
Monday
-
Dick
Cheney -
Secret
-
Satellite
- Map
-
Image
-
Government
-
Home
- Political
-
History
"Cheney's
Veil Lifted on Vice President's Residence." ... "Hope
and change has come to Google Maps. The official residence of the vice
president, obscured until [Republican President] Dick Cheney's last days
in office and residence, now shines in satellite sunlight." ... "A reader
tipped us off that Google Maps now showed a clear overhead image of One
Observatory Circle ... , the address which has served as the home of the
vice president since 1974. It's the first glimpse Google users have gotten
of the place." ... "Could there be a better visual metaphor for the change
of administration? The old one hid behind blurry pixels. The new one welcomes
a close look." -By Owen Thomas
-Gawker.com
-
Iceland
- Economic
-
Crisis
"Crisis
claims Icelandic cabinet: Iceland's coalition government
has collapsed under the strain of an escalating economic crisis." ... "Conservative
Prime Minister Geir Haarde announced the resignation of his cabinet, after
talks with his Social Democratic coalition partners failed." ... "He said
he could not accept the Social Democrats' demand to lead the country."
... "Iceland's financial system collapsed in October under the weight of
debt, leading to a currency crisis, rising unemployment and daily protests."
... "The economy is forecast to shrink by almost 10% this year." ... "The
coalition between Mr Haarde's Independence Party and Foreign Minister Ingibjorg
Gisladottir's Social Democratic Alliance had been under strain in recent
months." ... "It emerged that the country's banks, which had amassed debt
during years of rapid expansion, owed about six times the country's economic
output." ... "Money from around the world had also poured into Iceland
because interest rates there exceeded 10%." ... "Mr Haarde's government
responded to the financial collapse by nationalising leading banks. It
also negotiated about $10bn in loans with the International Monetary Fund
and donor countries. " -BBC.co.uk
-
Karl
Rove
-
Don
Siegelman -
US
Attorney - Politics
-
Alabama
"House
Judiciary chair subpoenas Karl Rove." ... "The House
Judiciary Committee chairman subpoenaed former White House adviser Karl
Rove on Monday to testify about the Bush administration's firing of U.S.
attorneys and prosecution of a former Democratic governor [Don Siegelman
of Alabama]." -AP
via -MSNBC
-
Seniors
- Health
-
Power
-
Company
-
Weather
-
Michigan
"Man
freezes to death after city limits electricity."
... "A 93-year-old man froze to death inside his home [in Bay City, Michigan]
just days after the municipal power company restricted his use of electricity
because of unpaid bills, officials said." ... "Marvin E. Schur died "a
slow, painful death," said Kanu Virani, [Michigan's] Oakland County's deputy
chief medical examiner, who performed the autopsy."
-AP via -MSNBC
-
John
Boehner
-
Government
- Economic
-
Legislation
-
Politics
-
History
-
Poor
-
Family
-
Women's
- Medical
-
Abortion
-
AL.
-
FL
-
MS
-
SC
-
CA
-
LA
-
MN
-
RI
-
MO
-
Ohio
-
Wisconsin
"Republicans
Irate Over Expansion of Republican-Approved Program."
... "[T]he family-planning program that [California Democratic Representative
and House Speaker Nancy] Pelosi supports expanding in the stimulus bill
was created
in 1972 under the leadership of Republican president Richard Nixon."
... "What's being proposed is an expansion in the number of states that
can
use Medicaid money, with a federal match, to help low-income women
prevent unwanted pregnancies. Of the 26 states that already have Medicaid
waivers for family planning, eight are led by Republican governors (AL
[Alabama], FL [Florida], MS [Mississippi], SC [South Carolina], CA [California],
LA [Louisiana], MN [Minnesota] and RI [Rhode Island] -- a ninth, MO [Missouri],
had a GOP [GOP=Grand Old Party=Republican] governor until this past November).
If this policy is truly a taxpayer gift to "the abortion industry," as
[Ohio Republican Representative] John Boehner and House Republicans claim,
where are the GOP governors promising to end the program in their states?"
... "Additionally, the process of obtaining a waiver for Medicaid family-planning
coverage is extremely cumbersome. A letter written by Wisconsin health
regulators in 2007 noted that some states have
had to wait for as long as two years before their request was approved.
The Congressional Budget Office has estimated that eliminating the waiver
requirement would
save states $400 million over 10 years." -By Elana
Schor -TPMDC
.TalkingPointsMemo
![]()
- Digital
-
Technology
-
Law
-
Politics
"Senate
OKs 4-Month Delay to Digital TV Changeover: Senate
votes to delay digital transition by 4 months to June 12." ... "The Senate
on Monday voted unanimously to postpone the upcoming transition from analog
to digital television broadcasting by four months to June 12 — setting
the stage for Congress to pass the proposal as early as Tuesday." ... "The
Nielsen Co. estimates that more than 6.5 million U.S. [United States] households
that rely on analog television sets to pick up over-the-air broadcast signals
could see their TV sets go dark next month if the transition is not postponed."
(1, 2)
-By Joelle Tessler with contributions by David Bauder
-AP via -ABCNEWS.com
-
War
Crimes -
Criminal
-
Military
- Law
-
Politics
"1
in 4 Americans believe the Bush administration committed war crimes."
... "In a new telephone survey, Rasmussen Reports has found that 25
percent of voters “believe [Republican] President Bush and senior members
of his administration are guilty of war crimes.” Forty-four percent of
Democrats and 21 percent of unaffiliated voters believe that war crimes
were committed while just 4 percent of Republicans believe the same." -By
Matt
Corley -ThinkProgress.org
_2009
News News Reference January
2009 News
January 22, 2009 News URL: #January-22-2009-News
20090122
Thursday
-
Secret
- Intelligence
-
Databases
-
Federal
-
Military
- Spy
-
Computer
-
Search
Engine - Technology
-
EMail
-
Communications
- Terrorism
-
Politics
"Intelligence
Agencies' Databases Set to Be Linked: After Years
of Bureaucratic Snags, System Aims to Ease Communications, Give Spies Access
to More Data." ... "[United States] U.S. spy agencies' sensitive data should
soon be linked by Google-like search systems, nearly five years after the
intelligence community was rebuked by the 9/11 Commission for failing to
"connect the dots" and detect the attack." ... "Director of National Intelligence
Mike McConnell has launched a sweeping technology program to knit together
the thousands of databases across all 16 spy agencies. After years of bureaucratic
snafus, intelligence analysts will be able to search through secret intelligence
files the same way they can search public data on the Internet." ... "Mr.
McConnell's new technology program is also addressing a more basic problem:
Spies often have trouble emailing colleagues in other U.S. intelligence
agencies, because email addresses aren't readily accessible, and messages
sometimes get eaten by security filters. Mr. McConnell aims to solve that
by uniting the agencies' email systems into a single system with a full
directory that links names, expertise and addresses." ... "Mr. McConnell's
team says this effort, called the Information Integration Program, has
experienced officials working on it full-time and is designed to deliver
tangible products every few months." ... "The first stage of the initiative
is to merge the email systems of the six largest intelligence agencies,
including the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Central Intelligence
Agency and the NSA [National Security Agency]." -By
Siobhan Gorman -WSJ.com
_2009
News News Reference January
2009 News
January 21, 2009 News URL: #January-21-2009-News
20090121
Wednesday
-
Barack
Obama -
John
Roberts - Law
-
Politics
"Obama
retakes oath of office after Roberts' mistake." ...
"[Democratic] President Obama retook his oath of office Wednesday after
Chief Justice John Roberts flubbed while delivering it at Tuesday's inauguration."
... "The do-over was aimed at dispelling any confusion that might arise
from Tuesday's take -- in which "faithfully" was said out of sequence --
and erase any question that Obama is legally the president." ... "However,
per the Constitution, Obama became president at noon Tuesday without taking
the oath." ... "The Constitution sets out the language that should be used
in the oath: "I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute
the Office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my
ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States.""
-CNN
-
Auto
-
Manufacturing
- Business
-
History
-
Michigan
- US
-
Japan
-
Global
"GM
loses global sales crown after 77 years." ... "[United
States] General Motors Corp reported an 11 percent drop in global sales
in 2008, allowing rival [Japan] Toyota Motor Corp to surpass it as the
world's largest automaker for the first time." ... "GM [General Motors],
now struggling to restructure under a $13.4 billion U.S. [United States]
government bailout, had held the title as the global auto industry leader
for 77 years and used the line in marketing." ... "But for 2008, Detroit[
Michigan]-based GM said sales tumbled to 8.35 million vehicles, pressured
by tightening credit and a slowdown that began in the United States and
spread to emerging markets where GM has been stronger." ... "GM, which
faces an end-March deadline to demonstrate to U.S. officials that it can
be made viable, has a market capitalization of just under $2 billion."
... "Toyota has a market value of about $117 billion." (1, 2)
-By Kevin Krolicki with contributions by Poornima
Gupta, Soyoung Kim, Maureen Bavdek and Matthew Lewis
-Reuters
-
Barack
Obama - US
-
China
-
Language
- Politics
-
History
"China
censors parts of inaugural speech." ... "The offending
line [to Chinese censors listening to United States Democratic President
Barack Obama's inauguration speech] was this: "Recall that earlier generations
faced down fascism and communism not just with missiles and tanks, but
with sturdy alliances and enduring convictions."" ... "Later, the president
said: "To those who cling to power through corruption and deceit and the
silencing of dissent, know that you are on the wrong side of history, but
that we will extend a hand if you are willing to unclench your fist.""
... "Chinese translations of the speech published Wednesday omitted that
line and the earlier one on communism. The government, however, has allowed
the full English text to be published." -By Edward
Wong -IHT.com
-
Barack
Obama -
Federal
-
Military
-
Prison
- Terrorism
-
Law
-
Politics
-
US
-
Guantanamo
- Cuba
-
Canada
"Obama
Seeks Halt to Legal Proceedings at Guantanamo." ...
"In one of its first actions, the [Democratic President] Obama administration
instructed military prosecutors late Tuesday [January 20, 2009] to seek
a 120-day suspension of legal proceedings involving detainees at the naval
base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba -- a clear break with the approach of the
outgoing [Republican President] Bush administration." ... "The instruction
came in a motion filed with a military court in the case of five defendants
accused of organizing the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the United States.
The motion called for "a continuance of the proceedings" until May 20 so
that "the newly inaugurated president and his administration [can] review
the military commissions process, generally, and the cases currently pending
before military commissions, specifically."" ... "The same motion was filed
in another case scheduled to resume Wednesday, involving a Canadian detainee,
and will be filed in all other pending matters." ... "Such a request may
not be automatically granted by military judges, and not all defense attorneys
may agree to such a suspension. But the move is a first step toward closing
a detention facility and system of military trials that became a worldwide
symbol of the Bush administration's war on terrorism and its unyielding
attitude toward foreign and domestic critics." ... "The Supreme Court ruled
that, contrary to [Republican President Bush] administration claims, detainees
at Guantanamo were entitled to challenge their detentions and that the
naval base was not beyond the reach of federal law." ... "Eventually more
than 550 detainees were released; only three were ever put on trial and
convicted." -By Peter Finn
-WashingtonPost
_2009
News News Reference January
2009 News
January 20, 2009 News URL: #January-20-2009-News
20090120
Tuesday
-
Barack
Obama -
John
Roberts - Politics
-
Religion
-
Race
-
Civil
Rights - Justice
"Barack
Hussein Obama: 44th president of the United States:
Inauguration 2009." ... "A BIBLE WITH SIGNIFICANCE." ... "[Democratic President
Elect] Barack Obama laid his hand on a Bible used in [Republican President
Elect] Abraham Lincoln’s 1861 inauguration. The chief justice in 1861 was
Roger Brooke Taney, author of the Dred Scott decision barring blacks from
citizenship." ... "In his inaugural speech, Barack Obama said, “Forty-four
Americans have now taken the presidential oath.” There have been only 43
different men serve as president; [Democratic President] Grover Cleveland
served two non-consecutive terms." ... "At 47, Barack Obama is the nation’s
fifth-youngest president. The youngest was [Republican President] Theodore
Roosevelt (42), followed by [Democratic President] John F. Kennedy (43),
[Democratic President] Bill Clinton (46) and [Republican President] Ulysses
S. Grant (46)." ... "Barack Obama was one of 22 Senate Democrats to vote
against Chief Justice John Roberts’ confirmation in 2005, so this was the
first time a justice has sworn in a president who voted against him."
-AJC
-
Hillary
Clinton -
Texas
-
New
York -
Foreign
- Donations
"Texas
senator [Republican Cornyn] blocks [Democratic Senator] Clinton's state
confirmation." ... "The confirmation of [New York
Democratic Senator] Hillary Rodham Clinton to be secretary of state will
be held up for at least a day due to the objection of a single senator.
[Texas Republican Senator] Sen. John Cornyn, R[ Republican]-Texas, said
he wanted "a full and open debate and an up-or-down vote on [Senator] Sen.
Clinton's nomination."" ... "He said important questions remain unanswered
concerning the foundation headed by former [Democratic] President Bill
Clinton "and its acceptance of donations from foreign entities. Transparency
transcends partisan politics and the American people deserve to know more.""
... "In her testimony, Clinton said the foundation would provide a clearer
picture of its annual donations." -By Jim Abrams
-AP via -Yahoo
_2009
News News Reference January
2009 News
January 14, 2009 News URL: #January-14-2009-News
20090114
Wednesday
-
Torture
-
War
Crimes -
Government
-
Military
- Terrorism
-
Intelligence
-
Detainees
- Medical
-
Human
-
Rights
- Law
-
Inpector- US
-
Guantanamo
Bay - Cuba
-
Saudi
"Detainee
Tortured, Says U.S. Official: Trial Overseer Cites
'Abusive' Methods Against 9/11 Suspect." ... "The top [Republican President]
Bush administration official in charge of deciding whether to bring Guantanamo
Bay [Cuba] detainees to trial has concluded that the [United States] U.S.
military tortured a Saudi [Arabia] national who allegedly planned to participate
in the [September] Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, interrogating him with techniques
that included sustained isolation, sleep deprivation, nudity and prolonged
exposure to cold, leaving him in a "life-threatening condition."" ... ""We
tortured [Mohammed al-]Qahtani," said Susan J. Crawford, in her first interview
since being named convening authority of military commissions by Defense
Secretary Robert M. Gates in February 2007. "His treatment met the legal
definition of torture. And that's why I did not refer the case" for prosecution."
... "Crawford, a retired judge who served as general counsel for the Army
during the [Republican President] Reagan administration and as Pentagon
inspector general when Dick Cheney was secretary of defense, is the first
senior Bush administration official responsible for reviewing practices
at Guantanamo to publicly state that a detainee was tortured." ... "Crawford,
61, said the combination of the interrogation techniques, their duration
and the impact on Qahtani's health led to her conclusion. "The techniques
they used were all authorized, but the manner in which they applied them
was overly aggressive and too persistent. . . . You think of torture, you
think of some horrendous physical act done to an individual. This was not
any one particular act; this was just a combination of things that had
a medical impact on him, that hurt his health. It was abusive and uncalled
for. And coercive. Clearly coercive. It was that medical impact that pushed
me over the edge" to call it torture, she said." ... ""I sympathize with
the intelligence gatherers in those days after 9/11, not knowing what was
coming next and trying to gain information to keep us safe," said Crawford,
a lifelong Republican. "But there still has to be a line that we should
not cross. And unfortunately what this has done, I think, has tainted everything
going forward."" ... "Crawford said she believes that coerced testimony
should not be allowed. "You don't allow it in a regular court," said Crawford,
who served as a judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Armed
Forces from 1991 to 2006." ... "In May 2008, Crawford ordered the war-crimes
charges against Qahtani dropped but did not state publicly that the harsh
interrogations were the reason. "It did shock me," Crawford said. "I was
upset by it. I was embarrassed by it. If we tolerate this and allow it,
then how can we object when our servicemen and women, or others in foreign
service, are captured and subjected to the same techniques? How can we
complain? Where is our moral authority to complain? Well, we may have lost
it."" ... "The harsh techniques used against Qahtani, she said, were approved
by [Republican President Bush's] then-Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld."
(1, 2,
3)
-By Bob Woodward with contributions by Julie Tate
and Evelyn Duffy -WashingtonPost
-
Bradley
Schlozman
- Political
-
Government
- Employees
-
Election
-
Civil
Rights -
Enforcement
"Bush
appointee saw Justice lawyers as 'commies,' 'crazy libs,' report says:
[Republican President Bush appointee] Bradley Schlozman, who supervised
civil rights and voting rights lawyers, broke the law by considering political
affiliations in deciding who can serve, an inspector general's report says."
... "To Bradley Schlozman, they were "mold spores," "commies" and "crazy
libs."" ... "He was referring to the career lawyers in the Justice Department's
civil rights and voting rights divisions. From 2003 to 2006, Schlozman
was a Bush appointee who supervised them." ... ""My tentative plans are
to gerrymander all of those crazy libs right out of the section," he said
in an e-mail in 2003. "I too get to work with mold spores, but here in
Civil Rights, we call them Voting Section attorneys," he confided to another
friend." ... "He hoped to get rid of the "Democrats" and "liberals" because
they were "disloyal" and replace them with "real Americans" and "right-thinking
Americans."" ... "He appears to have succeeded by his standards, according
to an inspector general's report released Tuesday. Among the newly hired
lawyers whose political or ideological views could be discerned, 63 of
65 lawyers hired under Schlozman had Republican or conservative credentials,
the report said." ... "The inspector general concluded Schlozman violated
the civil services laws while at the Justice Department. While the president's
appointees are entitled to run the department and set policy, they are
prohibited from considering "political affiliations" in deciding on who
serves in career positions in the federal government." -By
David G. Savage -LAtimes
_2009
News News Reference January
2009 News
January 10, 2009 News URL: #January-10-2009-News
20090110
Saturday
-
War
Crimes -
Human
Rights -
Military
- Politics
-
Israel
-
Palestine
-
"UN
calls for war crimes probe into IDF shelling of civilian-occupied building
in Gaza." ... "With fighting all around them, Israel
Defense Forces [IDF] troops knocked on the door of the Samouni clan in
Gaza City [Gaza, Palestine] last weekend and told them to leave, directing
them to the building owned by a relative. Twenty-four hours later, three
shells slammed into the structure where dozens of people were huddling,
according to survivor accounts Friday." ... "A newly released United Nations
report said 30 people died in the shelling, citing four unidentified survivors
who spoke by telephone. It called the shelling "one of the gravest incidents"
to happen since Israeli infantry and armored troops entered Gaza [2009
January] Jan. 4 to quell Hamas rockets on Israel." ... "Other accounts
given to The Associated Press and an Israeli human rights group provided
lower casualty figures, but all agreed that shells hit the large, unfinished
warehouse-like building a day after Israeli troops told them to get inside
it for their safety." ... "Allegra Pacheco, a senior UN [United Nations]
official in Jerusalem [Israel's capital] who helped draft the report on
the incident for OCHA, added: "We are not making an accusation of deliberate
action" by the Israelis." ... "UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi
Pillay said the UN report should be the basis for an investigation of "war
crimes elements." Her spokesman, Rupert Colville, said the "war crimes
elements" would refer to allegations that Israel impeded medical teams
trying to care for wounded civilians and failed to care for those injured
in the attack." ... "Pillay told an emergency meeting of the UN Human Rights
Council in Geneva that any harm to Israeli civilians by Hamas rockets was
unacceptable, but it did not excuse abuses carried out by Israeli forces
in response." ... "On Thursday, the International Committee of the Red
Cross in Geneva accused Israel of "unacceptable" delays in letting rescue
workers reach three Gaza City homes hit by shelling, where they eventually
found 15 dead and 18 wounded, including young children too weak to stand."
-Ha'aretzDaily
-
Corporate
-
Government
-
Accounting
- Politics
-
History
-
Military
-
Reconstruction
- Gas
-
Alberto
Gonzales -
Torture
- Law
-
Intelligence
-
Pat
Tillman - US
-
Afghanistan
-
Guantánamo
- Iraq
"Eight
Years of Madoffs." ... "Three days after the
world learned that $50 billion may have disappeared in Bernie Madoff’s
Ponzi scheme, The Times led its front page of [2008 December] Dec. 14 with
the revelation of another $50 billion rip-off. This time the vanished loot
belonged to American taxpayers. That was our
collective contribution to the $117 billion spent (as of mid-2008)
on Iraq reconstruction — a sinkhole of corruption, cronyism, incompetence
and outright theft that epitomized [Republican President] Bush management
at home and abroad." ... "The source for this news was a near-final draft
of an as-yet-unpublished 513-page federal history of this nation-building
fiasco. The document was assembled by the Office of the Special Inspector
General for Iraq Reconstruction — led by a Bush appointee, no less. It
pinpoints, among other transgressions, a governmental Ponzi scheme concocted
to bamboozle Americans into believing they were accruing steady dividends
on their investment in a “new” Iraq." ... "The report quotes no less an
authority than Colin Powell on how the scam worked. Back in 2003, Powell
said, the Defense Department just “kept inventing numbers of Iraqi security
forces — the number would jump 20,000 a week! ‘We now have 80,000, we now
have 100,000, we now have 120,000.’ ” Those of us who questioned these
astonishing numbers were dismissed as fools, much like those who begged
in vain to get the Securities and Exchange Commission to challenge Madoff’s
math." ... "What’s most remarkable about the Times article, however, is
how little stir it caused. When, in 1971, The Times got its hands on the
Pentagon
Papers, the internal federal history of the Vietnam disaster, the revelations
caused a national uproar. But after eight years of battering by Bush, the
nation has been rendered half-catatonic. The Iraq Pentagon Papers sank
with barely a trace." ... "After all, next to big-ticket administration
horrors like Abu Ghraib, Guantánamo and the politicized hiring and
firing at Alberto Gonzales’s Justice Department, the wreckage of Iraq reconstruction
is what Ralph Kramden of “The Honeymooners” would dismiss
as “a mere bag of shells.” The $50 billion also pales next to other sums
that remain unaccounted for in the Bush era, from the $345 billion in lost
tax revenue due to unpoliced offshore
corporate tax havens to the far-from-transparent
disposition of some $350 billion in Wall Street bailout money. In the old
Pat Moynihan phrase, the Bush years have “defined deviancy down” in terms
of how low a standard of ethical behavior we now tolerate as the norm from
public officials." ... "Not even a good old-fashioned sex scandal could
get our outrage going again. Indeed, a juicy one erupted
last year in the Interior Department, where the inspector general found
that officials “had used cocaine and marijuana, and had sexual relationships
with oil and gas company representatives." ... "Back in the day, an oil-fueled
scandal in that one department alone could mesmerize a nation and earn
[Republican President] Warren Harding a permanent ranking among our all-time
worst presidents. But while the scandals at Bush’s Interior resemble Teapot
Dome — and also encompass millions
of dollars in lost federal oil and gas royalties — they barely registered
beyond the Beltway. Even late-night comics yawned when The Washington Post
administered a coup de grâce last week, reporting
that Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne spent $235,000 from taxpayers to
redo his office bathroom (monogrammed towels included)." ... "It took 110
pages for the Center for Public Integrity, a nonpartisan research organization,
to compile the CliffsNotes inventory of the Bush wreckage last month. It
found “125 systematic failures across the breadth of the federal government.”
That accounting is conservative. There are still too many unanswered questions.
" ... "Just a short list is staggering. Who put that bogus “uranium
from Africa” into the crucial prewar State of the Union address after
the C.I.A. [Central Intelligence Agency] removed it from previous Bush
speeches? How high up were the authorities who ordered and condoned torture
and then let the “rotten apples” at the bottom of the military heap take
the fall? Who orchestrated the Pentagon’s elaborate P.R. [Public Relations]
efforts to cover
up Pat Tillman’s death by “friendly fire” in Afghanistan? " -By
Frank
Rich -NYTimes
_2009
News News Reference January
2009 News
January 9, 2009 News URL: #January-9-2009-News
20090109
Friday
-
Abramoff
-
Cheney
-
Secret
- Illegal
-
Politics
-
Computer
-
Archives
-
Federal
-
Investigation
-
Censorship
"Judge
rules against White House on visitors logs." ...
"A federal judge on Friday rejected the [Republican President] Bush administration's
latest attempt to keep secret the identities of White House visitors and
declared that the government illegally deleted Secret Service computer
records." ... "[United States] U.S. District Judge Royce Lamberth concluded
that the deletions took place before October 2004 when the Secret Service
transferred large numbers of entry and exit logs to the White House and
then deleted copies of them." ... "The deletions ceased after the archivist
to the United States instructed the Secret Service to stop the practice
and after various private organizations went to court in an effort to gain
access to the logs, according to papers filed in the case. The deletions
go back at least as far as 2001, the government's papers added, the year
President George W. Bush took office." ... "Secret Service logs have been
used in investigations by Congress and federal prosecutors." ... "In the
spring of 2006, in the midst of an influence peddling scandal involving
lobbyist Jack Abramoff, the White House and the Secret Service quietly
signed an agreement declaring the Secret Service logs identifying visitors
to the White House are not open to the public." ... "Four months later,
[Republican Vice President] Cheney's office told the Secret Service in
a letter that visitor records for the vice president's personal residence
"are and shall remain subject to the exclusive ownership, custody and control
of OVP [Office of the Vice President]."" -By Pete
Yost -AP via
-Yahoo
-
Jobless
-
Employers
-
People
"Jobless
Rate Hits 7.2%, a 16-Year High." ... "The nation
lost 524,000 jobs in December, reflecting a pervasive fear among employers
that if they fail to shed workers quickly their companies may go under
in a recession poised to become the worst since the 1930s." ... "The unemployment
rate, meanwhile, jumped to a 16-year-high of 7.2 percent, the Bureau of
Labor Statistics reported on Friday. The growing army of the unemployed,
at 11.1 million, is nearly 50 percent bigger than at the start of the recession
a year ago." ... "The December decline in jobs came on top of similar losses
in October and November. Not since 1980 has the work force shrunk so much
in just three months. Companies across all industries are grappling with
sales that are deteriorating rapidly just as they lose easy access to loans."
... "The total number of jobs lost in the recession now totals 2.59 million,
counting upward revisions for October and November, with many more job
losses expected in coming months." ... "Nearly as troubling, hundreds of
thousands more people sought full-time work in December but could not get
more than part-time jobs." ... "If those workers are included, the so-called
total unemployment rate swelled to 13.5 percent, from 12.6 percent in November
and just 8.7 percent at the start of the recession. Total unemployment
includes the officially unemployed, the part-timers who seek more hours
and the nearly 300,000 who would like a job but tell pollsters from the
Bureau of Labor Statistics that they are too discouraged to look." -By
Louis
Uchitelle with contributions by Jeff Zeleny
-NYTimes
-
New
York -
Police
- Terrorism
-
Electronic
-
Communications
-
Reporting
-
Photos
- Internet
-
Censorship
- Politics
-
US
-
India
"NYPD
Wants To Interrupt Mobile Communications During Attacks."
... "The New York Police Department wants the ability to interrupt mobile
phone service and other electronic communications during terrorist attacks."
... "Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly told the U.S. [United States] Senate
Committee on Homeland Security that the November attacks in Mumbai [India]
illustrated the dangers of instant reporting from the field while an attack
is unfolding." ... "The terrorists used cell phones and other devices to
communicate while the attacks were in progress, Kelly said Thursday. Witnesses
in India also provided instant updates on the situation using cell phones,
digital photos on the Internet, and Twitter -- communicating what they
saw as it unfolded." ... "It's unclear if authorities in New York could
cut off attackers' cell service and other electronic communications without
causing wider disruptions." ... "Millions of New Yorkers used phones --
landlines and cell phones -- to let out-of-town relatives and friends,
as well as each other, know that they were OK after the [September] Sept.
11, 2001, attacks. In many cases, those in the middle of the chaos relied
on those watching the news outside of New York City [New York] for information
to help them decide whether to flee the island of Manhattan [New York City
burrough] by ferry, to head uptown, or to stay put." ... "As a New Yorker,
I can't imagine an attack without the ability to let my family know I'm
OK or the ability to exchange information and offers of assistance with
friends scattered throughout Manhattan." -By K.C.
Jones -InformationWeek
_2009
News News Reference January
2009 News
January 8, 2009 News URL: #January-8-2009-News
20090108
Thursday
-
Corporate
-
Government
- Regulations
-
Workers
-
Safety
- Medical
-
Science
-
Environment
-
History
-
Earth
- Oil
-
Auto
-
St.
Paul -
Minnesota
-
Wyoming
-
Utah
-
Obama
- US
-
Netherlands
-
World
"Bush
Pushes ‘Midnight Rules’ to Support Companies as Term Ends."
... "[Republican President] George W. Bush is using the waning days of
his presidency to implement a raft of pro-business regulations, triggering
vows by the incoming [Democratic President Elect] Obama administration
and congressional Democrats to gut the measures." ... "Bush is proposing
changes to federal rules that critics say make it more difficult to protect
U.S. [United States] workers from exposure to toxic chemicals, reduce the
use of employee medical leave and open more land to oil and gas exploration.
The effort is supported by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and trade groups
representing companies including [Netherlands-based] Royal Dutch Shell
Plc [Public limited company] and Dow Chemical Co. [Company.]" ... "The
Interior Department today is publishing a rule that would lift a 79-year-old
executive order prohibiting oil shale development in Wyoming and Utah.
Yesterday, the Bush administration postponed regulations requiring cars
and light trucks to be more fuel efficient by 2011." ... "Bush’s regulation
on toxins, which isn’t final yet, would change the way workplace exposure
to poisonous substances is measured, and is supported by associations representing
companies such as Dow, the biggest U.S. chemical company, Exxon Mobil,
the world’s largest oil company, and 3M Co., the St. Paul [Minnesota's
capital], Minnesota-based maker of 55,000 products." ... "The change is
opposed by the United Mineworkers and other unions. They argue it would
delay new health protections for workers by requiring a lengthy regulatory
process before new standards could be issued. " -By
Holly Rosenkrantz and Mark Drajem -Bloomberg
-
Israel
-
Palestine
- People
-
UN
-
Military
- Politics
"Red
Cross criticises Israel for blocking access to Gaza injured."
... "Israel today came under fierce criticism from humanitarian groups
for delaying access to the injured during its offensive in Gaza
[Palestine area] as fresh fighting killed at least 11 people, taking the
death toll over 700." ... "The unusually strong condemnation coincided
with a UN [United Nations] announcement that it was suspending its operations
in the territory in response to what it said were Israeli attacks." ...
"The International Committee of the Red Cross accused Israel of "unacceptable"
delays in letting rescue workers reach three homes in Gaza City that had
been hit by shelling." ... "The group said the Israeli army refused rescuers
permission to reach the site in the Zaytun neighbourhood for four days.
Once Red Cross teams reached the area yesterday, they found four small
children next to their dead mothers at one home. They were too weak to
stand up on their own. One man was also found alive, too weak to stand
up. In all, there were at least 12 corpses lying on mattresses." ... "In
another house, a rescue team found 15 survivors, including several wounded.
In yet another home, rescuers found three bodies. Israeli soldiers posted
at a military position nearby ordered the rescue team to leave the area,
which it refused to do." ... ""This is a shocking incident," said Pierre
Wettach, the Red Cross's head for the region. "The Israeli military must
have been aware of the situation but did not assist the wounded. Neither
did they make it possible for us or the Palestine Red Crescent to assist
the wounded."" ... "Other groups such as Médecins Sans Frontières
have also criticised Israel for blocking access to people injured during
the crisis." ... "Israel has also come under strong criticism from the
UN, which said it was halting all aid shipments into Gaza, citing attacks
on UN staff and buildings." ... "The announcement came shortly after the
driver of a UN truck was shot and killed by tank fire near an Israeli border
as he was about to pick up an aid shipment. The UN said the delivery had
been coordinated with Israel and that the vehicle carried a UN flag and
insignia. Earlier this week, at least 40
people were killed when two UN schools were hit by Israeli gunfire."
-By Mark
Tran -Guardian.co.uk
-
Corporate
-
Government
-
Military
-
Virginia
- US
-
Iraq
-
Afghanistan
"Army
Sends 'Dear John Doe' Letters to Families of Fallen Troops."
... "The Army mistakenly sent letters addressed "Dear John Doe" to 7,000
family members of soldiers who died in Iraq and Afghanistan, unleashing
calls from troubled relatives and prompting a formal apology yesterday
from the Army's top general." ... "The letters, mailed late last month
by the Army's Casualty and Mortuary Affairs Operation Center in Alexandria
[Virginia], contained information about private organizations that assist
families of the fallen. But in what the Army called a printing error by
a contractor, the letters did not contain specific names and addresses;
instead, they had the placeholder greeting "Dear John Doe."" -By
Ann Scott Tyson -WashingtonPost
-
US
-
Israel
-
Palestine
- Iraq
-
Afghanistan
-
Military
- Terrorism
-
Political
-
History
"The
lessons of Gaza." ... "The Israeli military action
in Gaza [Palestine area] raises both moral questions and strategic ones.
The moral issues are more complex than partisans on either side are prepared
to admit. Not so the strategic issues: here the verdict is clear. Israel's
return to Gaza constitutes a tacit admission of strategic failure now stretching
back four decades." ... "Indeed, the punishment inflicted on the residents
of Gaza all but ensures its perpetuation." ... "For the United States,
engaged in a struggle against radical Islamists that mirrors Israel's conflict
with the Palestinians, the implications of this story are several. Israeli
troubles in the West Bank [Palestine area] and Gaza over the past 40 years
suggest the following:" ... "First, getting in may be easy; getting out
is the hard part. Once embraced, a tar baby becomes impossible to release.
For this reason, the notion that intervention offers a handy problem solver
is an illusion." ... "Second, occupation by outsiders produces alienation,
resistance, and radicalization, nowhere more so than in the Islamic world.
The longer the stay, the more severe the reaction." ... "Third, as instruments
of pacification, conventional armies possess modest utility. Rather than
facilitating political solutions, coercion only exacerbates the underlying
problem." ... "This approach hasn't worked for Israel and won't work for
the United States. Yet this approach describes US policy in the global
war on terror, which has been based on expectations of intervention, occupation,
and superior military power enabling the United States to dictate the conditions
in which Muslims in places as remote as Iraq and Afghanistan should live."
... "Even if Israel seemingly has no choice, the United States does. To
exercise that choice by replicating the errors Israel has made in its relations
with the Palestinians would be the height of folly." -By
Andrew
J. Bacevich via -BostonGlobe
-
Women
-Jobs
-
Money
-
Civil
Rights - Law
-
Politics
-
California
"Courts
using Ledbetter decision to ‘undermine civil rights principles across the
board.’." ... "Tomorrow, the House is set to take
up the Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, which would overturn a Supreme Court decision
that restricted a woman’s right to bring pay discrimination lawsuits. The
House handily
passed the bill last year, but Senate conservatives blocked it after
[Republican] President Bush threatened
to veto it. On a conference call organized by [California Democratic
Representative] House Speaker Nancy Pelosi today, Marcia Greenberger, co-president
of the National Women’s Law Center, explained that the faulty Supreme Court
decision
has been stretched to cripple all kinds of anti-discrimination laws:"
"GREENBERGER: So now we’ve got these judges taking the Ledbetter decision to absurd lengths and saying that the most entrenched and invidious discrimination — now that those who have the courage and the knowledge and the ability, for the first time to combat are out of time. It is an outrageous approach, an undermining of civil rights principles across the board. It’s now causing real misery, as was described not only for women and their families in pay…but for all victims of discrimination.""Check out the Center for American Progress’s Fair Pay Calculator, and learn more about the fight for fair pay, here. Firedoglake has more." -By Ali Frick -ThinkProgress.org
-
US
-
Israel
-
Palestine
-
Syria
-
Egypt
-
Military
- Intelligence
-
Terrorism
-
Politics
-
Poor
-
Families
-
Food
- Health
-
Human
Rights
"An
Unnecessary War." [by former Democratic President
Jimmy Carter] ... "I know from personal involvement that the devastating
invasion of Gaza [Palestine area] by Israel could easily have been avoided."
... "After visiting Sderot last April and seeing the serious psychological
damage caused by the rockets that had fallen in that area, my wife, Rosalynn,
and I declared their launching from Gaza to be inexcusable and an act of
terrorism. Although casualties were rare (three deaths in seven years),
the town was traumatized by the unpredictable explosions. About 3,000 residents
had moved to other communities, and the streets, playgrounds and shopping
centers were almost empty. Mayor Eli Moyal assembled a group of citizens
in his office to meet us and complained that the government of Israel was
not stopping the rockets, either through diplomacy or military action."
... "Knowing that we would soon be seeing Hamas leaders from Gaza and also
in Damascus [Syria's capital], we promised to assess prospects for a cease-fire.
From Egyptian intelligence chief Omar Suleiman, who was negotiating between
the Israelis and Hamas, we learned that there was a fundamental difference
between the two sides. Hamas wanted a comprehensive cease-fire in both
the West Bank [Palestine area] and Gaza, and the Israelis refused to discuss
anything other than Gaza." ... "We knew that the 1.5 million inhabitants
of Gaza were being starved, as the U.N. [United Nations] special rapporteur
on the right to food had found that acute malnutrition in Gaza was on the
same scale as in the poorest nations in the southern Sahara, with more
than half of all Palestinian families eating only one meal a day." ...
"Palestinian leaders from Gaza were noncommittal on all issues, claiming
that rockets were the only way to respond to their imprisonment and to
dramatize their humanitarian plight. The top Hamas leaders in Damascus,
however, agreed to consider a cease-fire in Gaza only, provided Israel
would not attack Gaza and would permit normal humanitarian supplies to
be delivered to Palestinian citizens." ... "After extended discussions
with those from Gaza, these Hamas leaders also agreed to accept any peace
agreement that might be negotiated between the Israelis and Palestinian
Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, who also heads the PLO, provided it
was approved by a majority vote of Palestinians in a referendum or by an
elected unity government. " -By Jimmy Carter
-WashingtonPost
-
Barack
Obama - Financial
-
Jobs
-
Government
- Lawmakers
-
Mass
"Lawmakers
and Financial Experts Question Obama's Tax Cuts."
... "At least two tax cuts that are part of [Democratic President Elect]
Barack Obama's stimulus package have been criticized by lawmakers, tax
experts and economists for being potentially too expensive and ineffective,
signaling that they are likely to face resistance on Capitol Hill as congressional
leaders begin direct negotiations with the president-elect's team." ...
"Both Democrats and Republicans have questioned a provision that would
provide a $3,000 tax credit to companies for every job created and, possibly,
for every job spared. They contend that the idea would be ripe for abuse
and difficult to administer." ... ""It is tough to see how a company that
is seeing its sales slaughtered in today's recession is going to hire just
because it gets a few thousand dollars per new worker from the government,"
Howard Gleckman wrote on the TaxVox blog for the Tax Policy Center, a nonpartisan
think tank. "Profitable firms would merely take the credit for bringing
on workers they were already planning on hiring."" ... "[Massachusetts
Democratic Representative] Rep. Richard E. Neal (D-Mass. [Democratic-Massachusetts]),
chairman of the Ways and Means subcommittee on select revenue measures,
said the scenario that worries him is that of the employer who lays off
thousands of people and then is subsidized for hiring back a few hundred."
(1, 2)
-By Shailagh Murray -WashingtonPost
-
Consumer
-
Home
- Law
-
Government
- Politics
"Citigroup
Backs Bankruptcy Courts Cutting Loan Rates (Update1)."
... "Citigroup Inc. [Incorporated], one of nine U.S. [United States] banks
to get government aid, agreed to support legislation that would let bankruptcy
judges cut mortgage rates for at-risk borrowers, three U.S. senators said
today as financial industry lobbyists said the compromise was flawed."
... "Citigroup in November got $306 billion of U.S. government guarantees
for troubled mortgages and toxic assets to stabilize the bank. The deal,
brokered by the Federal Reserve, Treasury Department and Federal Deposit
Insurance Corp. [Corporation] required the bank to modify terms for guaranteed
troubled loans based on a model created by the FDIC." ... "Congress has
passed several measures in the past year to stem home foreclosures, including
a $300 billion bill passed in July aimed at helping 400,000 borrowers keep
their homes. Senate Democrats were unable in April to adopt the bankruptcy
proposal. Republicans, and the banking industry, said the plan would raise
costs because lenders would try to recoup losses in court with higher rates
on other loans." ... "The revised bill Citigroup endorsed would give judges
the ability to adjust principle payments or interest rates on existing
loans, and could extend the term on the loan, according to the language
of the bill, which would force lenders to take losses without a say in
bankruptcy court proceedings." ... "Citigroup accounted for 7 percent of
the U.S. market for servicing home loans as of Sept. 30, according to the
Inside Mortgage Finance newsletter in October. " -By
Margaret Chadbourn -Bloomberg
-
Money
-
History
"Consumer
Borrowing in U.S. Falls Record $7.9 Billion (Update1)."
... "Consumer borrowing dropped by a record $7.9 billion in November as
Americans scrambled to boost savings in face of the deepening recession
and amid an investor exodus from securities backed by credit-card and other
loans." ... "The slump brought consumer credit down to $2.57 trillion,
and capped the first back-to-back monthly decline since 1992, the Federal
Reserve said today in Washington. The biggest decrease came in securitized
assets, an area where Fed policy makers are creating a new $200 billion
lending program to shore up credit." ... "Today’s figures foreshadow a
prolonged drop in consumer spending as households try to reduce debt with
their net worth declining and job losses accelerating, analysts said."
... "The Fed’s figures don’t cover borrowing secured by real estate. In
October, credit fell by $2.8 billion, previously reported as a drop of
$3.5 billion. " -By Shobhana Chandra
-Bloomberg
-
Dick
Cheney -
Douglas
J Feith
-
"Scooter"
Libby
-
Noteworthy
-
Military
- Politics
-
History
-
Book
-
Petroleum
-
Money
-
US
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Israel
-
Palestine
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
"Neoconservatism
dies in Gaza: he recent Israeli offensive has put
the final nail in the coffin of the [Republican President] Bush administration's
Middle East fantasy." ... "The Gaza War of 2009 is a final and eloquent
testimony to the complete failure of the neoconservative movement in United
States foreign policy. For over a decade, the leading figures in this school
of thought saw the violent overthrow of [Iraqi leader] Saddam Hussein and
the institution of a parliamentary regime in Iraq as the magic solution
to all the problems in the Middle East. They envisioned, in the wake of
the fall of Baghdad [Iraq's capital], the moderation of Hezbollah in Lebanon,
the overthrow of the Baath Party in Syria and the Khomeinist regime in
Iran, the deepening of the alliance with Turkey, the marginalization of
Saudi Arabia, a new era of cheap petroleum, and a final resolution of the
Israeli-Palestinian conflict on terms favorable to Israel. After eight
years in which they strode the globe like colossi, they have left behind
a devastated moonscape reminiscent of some post-apocalyptic B movie. As
their chief enabler prepares to exit the White House, the only nation they
have strengthened is Iran; the only alliance they have deepened is that
between Iran and two militant Islamist entities to Israel's north and south,
Hezbollah and Hamas." ... "The neoconservatives first laid out their manifesto
in a 1996 paper, "A Clean Break,"
written for an obscure
think tank in Jerusalem [Israel's capital] and intended for the eyes
of far right-wing Israeli politician Binyamin Netanyahu of the Likud Party,
who had just been elected prime minister. They advised Israel to renounce
the Oslo [Norway's capital] peace process and reject the principle of trading
land for peace, instead dealing with the Palestinians with an iron fist.
They urged Israel to uphold the right of hot pursuit of Palestinian guerrillas
and to find alternatives to Yasser Arafat's Fatah for the Palestinian leadership.
They called forth Israeli airstrikes on targets in Syria and rejection
of negotiations with Damascus [Syria's capital]. They foresaw strengthened
ties between Israel and its two regional friends, Turkey and Jordan." ...
"They advocated "removing Saddam Hussein from power in Iraq," in part as
a way of "rolling back" Syria. In place of the secular, republican tyrant,
they fantasized about the restoration of the Hashemite monarchy in Iraq,
and thought that a Sunni king might help moderate the Shiite Hezbollah
in south Lebanon. (Yes.)
They barely mentioned Iran, though it appears that their program of expelling
Syria from Lebanon and weakening its regime was in part aimed at depriving
Iran of its main Arab ally. In a 1999 book called "Tyranny's Ally: America's
Failure to Defeat Saddam Hussein," David Wurmser argued that it
was false to fear that installing the Iraqi Shiites in power in Baghdad
would strengthen Iran regionally." ... "The signatories to this fantasy
of using brute military power to reshape all of West Asia included some
figures who would go on to fill key positions in the Bush administration.
Richard Perle, a former assistant secretary of defense under Reagan, became
chairman of the influential Defense Policy Board Advisory Committee, a
civilian oversight body for the Pentagon. Douglas J. Feith became the undersecretary
of defense for planning. David Wurmser first served in Feith's propaganda
shop, the Office of Special Plans, which manufactured the case for an American
war on Iraq, and then went on to serve with "Scooter" Libby in the office
of [Republican] Vice President Dick Cheney." ... "The neoconservatives
used their well-funded think tanks, including the American Enterprise Institute,
the Washington Institute for Near East Policy (WINEP, an organ of the American
Israel Public Affairs Committee), the Jewish Institute for National Security
Affairs, and the Hudson Institute, among others, to promote this agenda
of the conquest of Iraq as a solution of all ills." ... "The biggest danger
facing the United States is that there will be no true "Clean Break" --
that the neoconservatives will somehow find a way to survive the Bush administration,
and continue to influence American foreign policy." (1, 2)
-By Juan Cole -Salon
-
Barack
Obama - Economic
-
Jobs
-
Politics
-
Government
- History
-
Iowa
"Harkin
Fears "Trickle-Down" Stimulus." ... "Democratic senators
are still emerging from their closed-door briefing with [Democratic President
Elect] Obama economic adviser Larry Summers ... but a senior Democratic
senator, Iowa progressive Tom Harkin, just gave me a dire buzzword: trickle-down."
... ""There's only one thing we've got to do in this stimulus, and that's
create jobs," Harkin told me. "I'm a little concerned by the way Mr. Summers
and others are going on this ... it still looks a little more to me like
trickle-down."" ... "Likening Barack Obama's economic recovery plan to
the failed
supply-side excesses of the [Republican Presidents] Reagan and Bush
years is a bit of a Cassandra moment. But Harkin didn't back down. "What
I'm hearing from Mr. Summers is that they've got a different approach --
tax breaks, and this and that," he said. Harkin warned that, much like
the outcome of George Bush's $600 stimulus package last year, recipients
of quick tax cuts "are going to be salting it away, not spending it.""
... "When I asked if he felt his concerns were heard during the meeting,
he looked to the floor and slowly shook his head. It was almost forlorn."
-By Elana Schor -TPMElectionCentral
.TalkingPointsMemo
-
Larry
Craig
- Politician
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Idaho
-
Minnesota
-
Police
"Ex-Senator
Craig accepts sex sting guilty plea." ... "Former
[Idaho Republican Senator] Sen. Larry Craig has ended his effort to void
the guilty plea he made following his 2007 arrest in a men's toilet sex-sting
operation, his lawyer said on Thursday." ... "Craig was arrested at [Minnesota's]
Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport on June 11, 2007, by an undercover
police officer who said the lawmaker peeked at him repeatedly through a
crack in a stall door, sat down in the stall next to him and used hand
and foot signals to indicate he was soliciting sex." -By
Andrew Stern with contributions by Michael Conlon
-Reuters
