Since the Hamdan ruling a year ago, there’s been some uncertainties surrounding the Bush administration’s interrogation policies, with ambiguous lines dictating CIA policy. The good news is, the White House said yesterday it was clearing things up with an executive order “barring the CIA from using torture, acts of violence and degrading treatment in the […]
The God Machine this week is focused on just one story, an odd controversy about a fundamentalist anti-science textbook that’s been showing up in the mailboxes of credible people nationwide. In the United States, opposition to the teaching of evolution in public schools has largely been fueled by the religious right, particularly Protestant fundamentalism. Now […]
Guest Post by Morbo I have to say, I’m really disappointed. The last Harry Potter book comes out today, the fifth movie was just released, and what am I getting from the Religious Right? Nothing. Nada. Zip. TV preachers and self-appointed fundamentalist guardians of public morality used to go crazy over these books. With the […]
Today’s edition of quick hits. * Bush will undergo a routine colonoscopy tomorrow, and under the 25th amendment, will temporarily transfer power to Dick Cheney. The procedure is expected to take about two and a half hours, during which time Cheney will no doubt be tempted to start several new wars. * The president acknowledged […]
Much to Dale’s dismay, the response to Friday Cat Blogging has been surprisingly strong and positive. As such, here’s another pic of Smithers. In this shot, we see her enjoying a file-holder near my desk that she has now claimed as her own. The chances of this ever being used to actually hold files are […]
OK, just one more post about Fred Thompson’s lobbying work for the pro-choice National Family Planning and Reproductive Health Assn. I know I’ve had a few, but this is a good one. If you’re just joining us, here’s a quick rundown: * The LAT discovered that Thompson worked as a lobbyist for the group, pushing […]
About a month ago, we learned about a bizarre situation in which one of Mitt Romney’s top campaign aides came under investigation for allegedly impersonating a state trooper. According to reports, the senior aide, Jay Garrity, allegedly pulled over a New York Times reporter in New Hampshire and said he had run his license plate. […]
Yesterday, ABC News ran a very misleading report about Barack Obama, sex-ed, and young children. Today, the AP is equally irresponsible, running this headline: “Obama: Don’t stay in Iraq over genocide.” The far-right quickly went apoplectic, suggesting that the senator is indifferent to genocide. One conservative called Obama an “idiot,” adding, “So Genocide is OK? […]
Sen. David Vitter (R-La.) probably thought he was in the clear, or at least close to it. He was exposed as a hypocrite who hired prostitutes after running on a family-values platform, he went into hiding for a week, and he returned to the Senate as if nothing had happened. From what I hear, the […]
I make no secret of the fact that I’ve always been an admirer of former President Clinton, but I’m willing to concede one of the secrets of his success: he benefited from having ridiculously awful enemies. This is not to say the president’s considerable skills didn’t serve him well, but even when he stumbled, he […]