I guess today’s revelations that the [tag]NSA[/tag] is maintaining a [tag]database[/tag] of every [tag]domestic[/tag] [tag]American[/tag] [tag]phone call[/tag] has rattled the [tag]White House[/tag] at least a little, because [tag]Bush[/tag] felt compelled to make a brief public statement today. “First, our international activities strictly target al Qaeda and their known affiliates. Al Qaeda is our enemy, and […]
Now that he’s given up all those pesky policy responsibilities, [tag]Karl Rove[/tag], assuming he’s not indicted, is turning his attention on the midterm elections. Or, more accurately, what he’s going to do to smear as many Dems as humanly possible during the midterm elections. This fall’s election season is going to make the past three […]
The list of Republicans lawmakers facing criminal investigations was already pretty long (DeLay, [tag]Cunningham[/tag], Ney, Frist), but we can now add another. Federal prosecutors have begun an investigation into Rep. [tag]Jerry Lewis[/tag], the Californian who chairs the powerful House Appropriations Committee, government officials and others said, signaling the spread of a San Diego corruption probe. […]
I’m usually inclined to pretend [tag]Ann Coulter[/tag] doesn’t exist, but it’s worth noting that she has a bit of a legal “problem” on her hands. About a month ago, I noted that [tag]Coulter[/tag], for reasons that are still unclear, was registered to vote at two separate South Florida addresses and tried to vote in two […]
Today’s installment of campaign-related news items that wouldn’t generate a post of their own, but may be of interest to political observers: * The Dem establishment entered Virginia’s Senate primary in a big way yesterday, with several major players endorsing former Navy Secretary [tag]James Webb[/tag]’s campaign. Among the party leaders throwing their support behind Webb […]
Call it “incremental progress.” The number of high-profile supporters for [tag]public financing[/tag] of federal political [tag]campaigns[/tag] grew a little bigger yesterday with a bi-partisan group of well-known former [tag]senators[/tag]. Just $6 per citizen is all it would take for Congress to fund publicly every federal campaign every year, contend four former U.S. senators. Democrats [tag]Bill […]
The [tag]Justice Department[/tag]’s ethics office had launched a probe of the department’s lawyers who approved the president’s [tag]warrantless[/tag]-[tag]search[/tag] program. Yesterday, the investigation ended – because the NSA wouldn’t give Justice clearance. The head of the department’s Office of Professional Responsibility, H. Marshall Jarrett, wrote in the letter to Representative Maurice D. Hinchey, Democrat of New […]
In January, Gen. Michael Hayden, then the principal deputy director of national intelligence, the federal government’s interest in American [tag]phone calls[/tag] was “targeted” and “focused” on the [tag]al Qaeda[/tag] terrorist network. As it turns out, there’s a little more to it than that. The [tag]National Security Agency[/tag] has been secretly collecting the phone call records […]
To his credit, he warned us. Over a week ago, Scott McClellan told reporters that the Secret Service logs of [tag]Jack Abramoff[/tag]’s [tag]White House[/tag] visits may not be the complete story. The Secret Service’s records documenting convicted lobbyist Jack Abramoff’s contacts with [tag]Bush[/tag] administration officials may not reveal all such meetings, the White House said […]
At this point, I’d be very surprised if [tag]HUD[/tag] [tag]Secretary[/tag] [tag]Alphonso Jackson[/tag] is able to keep his job. [tag]Housing and Urban Development[/tag] Secretary Alphonso [tag]Jackson[/tag] apologized yesterday for telling a Dallas business group that he had rejected a HUD contract because the contractor had criticized President [tag]Bush[/tag]. Jackson said he made up the story. “I […]