MOsanthrope

Former CIA operative Valerie Plame Wilson and her husband, Joseph Wilson, have filed suit against Lewis “Scooter” Libby, Karl Rove, Vice President Cheney and unnamed administration officials. The complaint alleges:

the intentional and malicious exposure by senior officials of the federal government of one… human source at the CIA, Valerie Plame Wilson, whose job […]

Filed under: Politics, U.S., Law

Compare and contrast:

“Well, when the President does it, that means that it is not illegal.”

– President Richard M. Nixon, May 1977
 

As Congress opened hearings yesterday on the treatment of terrorism detainees, the Bush administration’s view was neatly summarized by Steven Bradbury, the Justice Department lawyer serving as lead witness. “The president,” Bradbury said, “is always […]

Filed under: Politics, U.S., Law

Updated on July 11, 2006 at 4:38 pm.
I knew him, Blogosphere….
I have accepted a position which will permit me, I hope, to do some important work. It’s been awhile since I’ve walked the walk. I start July 17.
Employees of the office I’m joining may not publicly spout off about things political. I’ll […]

Filed under: Politics, Announcements, Blogs, Employment, Law, Missouri

Updated on July 1, 2006 at 5:58 pm and 6:27 pm (I) and on July 2, 2006 at 8:02 am (II).
The whole The New York Times wants to destroy America episode has really become appalling. For obvious reasons, the crowd which presided over perhaps the greatest national security failure in American history is […]

Filed under: Politics, U.S., Law, Media

Go read digby.

Filed under: Politics, U.S., Law

Updated on June 29, 2006 at 1:31 pm (I) and 4:53 pm (II).
The talk radio crowd, which blows its collective gasket each time a judge uses the word “international” or suggests there are limits to the President’s power despite our perpetual war against terror, will not be pleased with todays Supreme Court decision in Hamdan […]

Filed under: Politics, U.S., Law

I’ve resisted the urge to spout off about the latest attempt by Senate Republicans to rile up the base with a non-issue, primarily because the consensus had it that the flag burning amendment was dead before debate even began.
No matter. Balloon Juice’s Tim has a very good take here.
Read the post and […]

Filed under: Politics, U.S., Law

I normally save things like this for Friday, but this is simply fascinating. I give you the pimp tax:

The Senate Finance Committee is expected to vote Wednesday morning on the pimp tax. The bill also calls for more jail time for sex workers.
If passed, the provision will authorize at least $2 million toward the […]

Filed under: Politics, U.S., Law

Updated on June 28, 2006 at 2:58 pm.
Senator Arlen Specter (R-PA) is balking again. This time he’s deeply concerned about the disclaimer language the President frequently appends to bills before signing them, the gist of which is “It is with great pride that I sign this bill into law which applies to everyone except […]

Filed under: Politics, U.S., Law

I see that a federal judge has ordered a moratorium on executions in my state until Missouri can “ensure that inmates do not suffer excruciating pain when they are put to death“:

Missouri Corrections Director Larry Crawford said in a hearing before [U.S. District Judge Fernando] Gaitan two weeks ago that he would clarify the execution […]

Filed under: Politics, Law, Ethics, Missouri

It was bad policy when they sold out consumers to benefit doctors and corporations, and it stinks to high heaven when they do it to benefit lawyers.
(Thanks: Steve).

Filed under: Politics, U.S., Law

As much fun as it might be to jump all over Rush Limbaugh’s latest brush with the great, gangling arm of the law (”talent on loan from Pfizer” springs immediately to mind), it seems to me that, obvious hypocrisy and trivial controlled substance law infractions notwithstanding, what prescription medications the man ingests ain’t nobody’s business […]

Filed under: Politics, U.S., Law, Media

Updated on June 24, 2006 at 2:54 pm
Don’t get me wrong: Their expressed desire to kill American citizens made the Miami wackos a threat. The feds deserve nothing but praise for their successful infiltration and apprehension of the group.
On the other hand, because the usual suspects will inevitably forget their proclamations […]

Filed under: Politics, U.S., Law

At the risk of being condemned as a sicko for the fourth time this afternoon, I’ll link to this anyway.
Mandatory sentencing guidelines do far more harm than good. There is something deeply un-American about a sentence for the crime of possessing prohibited images — no matter how offensive — which is longer than […]

Filed under: Law, Ethics

U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker, presiding over the EFF suit challenging AT&T’s cooperation with the NSA in its domestic surveillance program, asked some very good questions.
(Via Balloon Juice).

Filed under: Politics, U.S., Law

In a previous post, I linked to a Wired News article detailing the NSA’s warrantless domestic wiretap program. The article was accompanied by copies of sealed documents describing the NSA operation, including details of a secret facility housed in an AT&T building located in nearby Bridgeton, Missouri.
Today, FiredUp! Missouri links to a […]

Filed under: Politics, Business, Law, Internet, Missouri

The next time you catch me whining about that appointed case some judge ordered me to prosecute, you might remind me of this:

Gunmen kidnapped and killed the number-two lawyer on Saddam Hussein’s defense team, making him the third attorney for Iraq’s former president to be murdered during the crimes against humanity trial.

In retrospect, handling that […]

Filed under: Employment, Law, World

Updated on June 20, 2006 at 10:54 am.
Not that long ago, media outlets and several politically savvy bloggers were parroting statements made by attorneys for former Bush Administration procurement official, David Safavian, suggesting that the government’s case against Safavian was relatively weak and the first trial in the Abramoff scandal would likely result in an […]

Filed under: Politics, U.S., Law

Updated on June 15, 2006 at 6:41 pm and 7:50 pm.
Our march toward a police state continues:

WASHINGTON (CNN) — A split Supreme Court ruled Thursday that drug evidence seized in a home search can be used against a suspect even though police failed to knock on the door and wait a “reasonable” amount of […]

Filed under: Politics, U.S., Law

Because, gentlemen, Fitzgerald won’t charge him.
Please take a moment to join me in scratching Jason Leopold off the credible new media reporters list.

Filed under: Politics, U.S., Law

Look for Republicans in Congress to propose a gated communities tax credit and a few multi-billion dollar no-bid prison construction contracts to address this:

WASHINGTON (CNN) — For the first time in 13 years, the violent crime rate has jumped significantly in the United States, with the biggest increase in the Midwest, according to figures released […]

Filed under: Politics, U.S., Law

Comparing the ad hoc corruption of Democrats like William Jefferson to the GOP’s K Street juggernaut is a bit like comparing apples to the Chernobyl disaster. Just ask the DeLay family:

A registered lobbyist opened a retirement account in the late 1990s for the wife of then-House Whip Tom DeLay (R-Tex.) and contributed thousands of […]

Filed under: Politics, U.S., Law

It’s not difficult to understand why the middle-class increasingly bears the brunt of the U.S. tax burden: middle-class taxpayers rarely write multi-million dollar checks to lobbyists. In contrast, a mere 18 ultra-rich American families have spent $500 million on lobbying efforts aimed at repealing the estate tax, which affects only two percent […]

Filed under: Politics, U.S., Law

The rubber stamp Senate strikes again:

WASHINGTON — After hearing assurances he will be independent of the Pentagon, the Senate on Friday easily confirmed Gen. Michael Hayden, a career Air Force man, to head the CIA.
* * *
Hayden, who headed the National Security Agency for several years, became a lightning rod for the debate about the […]

Filed under: Politics, U.S., Law

Kenny Boy: Guilty on all counts.

Filed under: Politics, U.S., Law

Careful, Fitz. The last guy who ticked him off was shot in the face:

Vice President Cheney was personally angered by a former U.S. ambassador’s newspaper column attacking a key rationale for the war in Iraq and repeatedly directed I. Lewis “Scooter” Libby, then his chief of staff, to “get all the facts out” related […]

Filed under: Politics, U.S., Law

Updated on May 25, 2006 at 9:01 am.
Yesterday, I indelicately noted the irony of House Speaker Hastert’s newfound concern about unchecked executive power. Two words, Mr. Speaker: N-friggin’-SA. (Okay. That’s not even one word, but you get the point.) Try this one: Got Patriot Act?
Perhaps the realization that the […]

Filed under: Politics, U.S., Law

Go read Glenn Greenwald.
Here’s the teaser:

Yet again, Senate Democrats show that they have no more concern for the rule of law and for the excesses of this administration than Senate Republicans do. Due to their really pitiful passivity, they are every bit as much to blame for the excesses and abuses of the administration as […]

Filed under: Politics, U.S., Law

Various Congressmen were shocked — shocked I tell you — to learn that the FBI searched the capitol hill office of Rep. William Jefferson (D-LA) just because the Congressman was videotaped accepting a $100,000 bribe which he then banked in his freezer.

(Washington, D.C.) Speaker of the House J. Dennis Hastert (R-IL) issued the […]

Filed under: Politics, U.S., Law

Truthout Executive Director Marc Ash has posted an update and defense of Jason Leopold’s May 12 column which alleged an indictment of Karl Rove is imminent:

We know that we have now three independent sources confirming that attorneys for Karl Rove were handed an indictment either late in the night of May 12 or early in […]

Filed under: Politics, U.S., Law