The Republican National Committee has turned its website into a tabloid in the vein of the National Enquirer. Check out this hate-filled "article" on Markos of Daily Kos. What did he do to deserve the party's wrath? He took a vacation.

As Steve of Carpetbagger Report writes at Crooks and Liars:

Maybe I'm missing something here. Are we supposed to be disgusted with Kos for "relaxing"? Are vacations now bad? Or is the point that Kos is somehow suspect because he went to El Salvador?

The family of John Mark Karr is looking for a buyer for the movie rights to their story. They say it is to help pay for a high-powered lawyer to represent the suspect in the Jonbenet Ramsey case.

Karr's father and brother hired actor, author and producer Larry Garrison to represent them in any media deals and to help them find a top attorney to represent Karr, who is in a Los Angeles jail awaiting transfer to Colorado to face allegations he killed the girl in 1996.

But what does the family know about him in recent years? When was the last time they saw him? Reportedly, the father thought he was dead. Does anyone even want to hear their story? The story that counts is that of John Mark Karr.

Even sillier, the family thinks that the public defender's office isn't adequate.

"Right now he's got a public defender to represent him," Garrison said. "It's their desire to get someone high-level." Garrison declined to say if the family has been in touch with Karr in jail.

by TChris

One cost of staying the course in Iraq:

The Marine Corps said Tuesday that it would begin calling Marines back to active-duty service on an involuntary basis to serve in Iraq and Afghanistan -- the latest sign that the American force is under strain and a signal that the military is having trouble persuading young veterans to return.

Marine commanders will call up formerly active-duty service members now classified as reservists because the Corps failed to find enough volunteers among its emergency reserve pool to fill jobs in combat zones. The call-ups will begin in several months, summoning as many as 2,500 reservists at a time to serve for a year or more.

by TChris

The "unitary executive theory" is conservative codespeak for "all powerful president," a notion readily embraced by President Bush. In practice, our unitary executive is a government of one (or a few, if you count Cheney, Rove, and Condi), a supreme decider whose power is subject to no constitutional or statutory limits. After all, he couldn't protect us from all the suiciders while freeing the world from Islamic fascist tyranny if he yielded to the unpatriotic demands of lawmakers or judges.

To counter the academic and think tank writing that promoted (with startling success) the unitary executive theory, the American Constitution Society co-sponsored a symposium, "War, Terrorism and Torture: Limits on Presidential Power in the 21st Century," last October. Three papers that grew out of the symposium were released this week:

Unitariness and Myopia: The Executive Branch, Legal Process, and Torture by Cornelia Pillard views torture as indicative of a more general problem: an executive branch tendency during times of national security crises to view legal constraints as annoying, even harmful, obstacles to effective executive action. Pillard explores reform aimed at promoting executive branch respect for the law, even in trying times.

by TChris

For reasons explained here and here, Lt. Ehren Watada refused to deploy to Iraq. He'd rather lose his liberty than his sense of morality.

A separate question is whether he should be also face punishment for criticizing the president's decision to go to war. In an amicus brief, the ACLU of Washington argues that Watada did not sacrifice his right to right to speak out on core issues of public policy by enlisting in the military.

In addition to charges against Lt. Watada for refusal to report to duty, the military is seeking to penalize Lt. Watada for statements he made to reporters expressing his objections to the United States' involvement in the war in Iraq (see below). He is being charged with violating two articles of the Uniform Code of Military Justice: Article 88, which prohibits use of "contemptuous words" against the President and other top governmental officials; and Article 133, which prohibits "conduct unbecoming an officer" - that is, behavior which dishonors or disgraces an officer or "seriously compromises the officer's character as a gentleman."

by TChris

Frank Quattrone has to be a happy man today. Charged with obstructing a federal investigation by directing co-workers (via email) to "clean up" their files (which the feds read to mean "destroy the evidence"), Quattrone's first trial ended in a hung jury. He was convicted in a second trial and sentenced to 18 months in prison, but his conviction was overturned on appeal.

The good news for Quattrone is that he won't face a third trial:

U.S. District Court Judge George B. Daniels approved a one-year deferred prosecution agreement, calling for the charges to be dismissed if Quattrone stays out of trouble for one year.

The agreement required no admission of guilt. This is an excellent result for Quattrone's defense team, and an embarrassment for the Southern District of New York prosecutors who handled the case.

by TChris

Eleven individuals who were arrested for plotting to blow up airplanes were arraigned today in a British court. Eight are charged with conspiracy to commit murder and something called "preparing acts of terrorism." They will be held in custody until they appear at the Old Bailey, London's criminal court, on Sept. 4. Two of the three who face lesser charges will return to court on August 29, while the last defendant will return to court on September 19.

The fate of the remaining arrestees is less clear.

Of the 12 detainees who have not yet been charged, one, a woman who was not identified, is to be freed, authorities said. The rest are being held under British counterterrorism laws that allow up to 28 days of detention without charges, said Susan Hemming, a lawyer from the Crown Prosecution Service. ...

[Prosecutor] Hemming said the authorities had not decided whether to seek the further detention of any of the suspects still being held without charge. Under counterterrorism laws, the authorities must apply to a High Court judge by Wednesday to detain them for another seven days.

The news is still focused on Ramsey coverage, but you don't have to be. Here's a place to discuss whatever's on your mind.

by TChris

North Carolina's new Innocence Inquiry Commission is a worthy experiment. It gives wrongfully convicted prisoners a final chance to prove their innocence after the judicial system has declared their convictions final.

Cases will be reviewed by a finely balanced, eight-member panel: a judge, a prosecutor, a sheriff, a defense lawyer, a victim's advocate, and three at-large members. If a majority finds compelling evidence of innocence, the case would go to a panel of three Superior Court judges, who would have to rule unanimously to overturn the conviction.

Whether the panel will feel insulated from political pressure to keep the convicted behind bars is unclear, but North Carolina is at least responding to the serious problem of wrongful convictions.

USA Today reports on the number of death row inmates in the U.S. refusing to appeal their sentence. One of every eight persons on death row is now volunteering to die.

Death row volunteers account for 123 of the 1,041 executions carried out since capital punishment resumed in 1977, according to the Death Penalty Information Center, a group in Washington, D.C., that opposes the death penalty. That rate -- about 12% -- has held constant for nearly 30 years.

This year, five of the 37 murderers put to death were volunteers. Two of the remaining 14 prisoners scheduled for execution have asked to die. Some volunteers, such as Elijah Page -- scheduled for execution in South Dakota next week -- give no reason for their choice.

Why do the condemned volunteer for death?

Jon Bon Jovi on Larry King Live singing an acoustic version of Who Says You Can't Go Home. I made the video myself and put it on You Tube.

As I've probably said before, I think he has the best face in music. The other night I didn't think anything would distract me from the incessant Ramsey coverage and as I was channel surfing, I came across his hour long appearance on LKL. I watched the whole thing.

by TChris

In the judgment of his former local supporters,Tom DeLay has made a mess of things.

[Republicans] are in such disarray now that the hope of backing a single write-in candidate has essentially vanished. There are three declared write-ins, and one top state Republican, Land Commissioner Jerry Patterson, is urging Republicans to consider voting for the Libertarian candidate, who does have a spot on the ballot.

Citing the divisions and the $3 million that Democratic nominee Nick Lampson has raised, two leading political analysts -- Charlie Cook and Larry Sabato -- changed their ratings of the seat this week to "leans Democrat." It had been "leans Republican" only a few days ago.

Nick Lampson has a chance to clean up DeLay's mess. Reading the linked article about none-too-happy-with-DeLay Republicans, you might particularly enjoy the timeline entitled "The Rise and Fall of Tom DeLay."