by TChris

As TalkLeft discussed here, Ken Starr is trying to persuade Gov. Schwarzenegger to spare the life of Michael Morales. The judge who sentenced Morales to death now thinks he shouldl live. Today, the Mercury News weighs in:

Innocence is not at issue in Morales' case. He committed a terrible crime. But the state appears to have wrongfully condemned him to death, under false pretenses. If so, killing him would be an injustice.

Lewis Libby had a court hearing today. His trial is set for January, 2007.

Raw Story analyzes the Libby filings from January 31 and reports that Libby's lawyers say his superiors authorized the Valerie Plame leak.

Former federal prosecutorElizabeth de la Vega opines why Rove is not off the hook.

Continuing from my post below, here is today's unsealed information in the Judith Miller case from the newly revised opinion (pdf):

With respect to Miller, the special counsel seeks evidence regarding two exchanges with I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby, Vice President Cheney's Chief of Staff and National Security Adviser: first, an in-person meeting in Washington, D.C. on July 8, 2003, and second, a telephone conversation on July 12, 2003. Before the grand jury, Libby testified that although he had previously learned about Wilson's wife's employment, he had forgotten it by July 8 and recalled no discussion of Wilson during his meeting with Miller. (I-105, 134-35, 279.) As to the July 12 conversation, Libby stated, "I said to her that, that I didn't know if it was true, but that reporters had told us that the ambassador's wife works at the CIA, that I didn't know anything about it." (I-208.) Because other testimony and evidence raises oubts about Libby's claims, the special counsel believes Miller's testimony is "essential to determining whether Libby is guilty of crimes, including perjury, false statements and the improper disclosure of national defense information." (8/27/04 Aff. at 28; see also id. at 1-2.)

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuithas issued a per curiam opinionorder unsealing portions of Circuit Judge David S. Tatel's previously redacted opinion concurring in the judgment in the Judith Miller Grand Jury subpoena case. You can access the newly-reissued, partially-unredacted opinion at this link (pdf). [Via How Appealing]

by Last Night in Little Rock

In the Civil Rights / Vietnam War protest era, spanning over a decade, the FBI routinely engaged in surveillance of anyone associated with either. It was in the J. Edgar Hoover FBI playbook, and Richard Nixon required his FBI to keep files on war protestors. (Ok, you got me; there's probably a report or two on me.)

Today's NY Times has an article about the NYPD videotaping demonstrators in NYC. The strange part about it is that they are videotaping NYPD officers demonstrating for lack of a contract with the police union. The union sued the NYPD claiming First Amendment intimidation, and the allegations read like the Hoover horror stories of the 60's-70's.

Atrios has this link to Rep. Boehner's voting record on religious issues. It's scary.

That prompted me to do a little research. Here's his abysmal record on abortion. Not surprisingly, he's terrible on criminal justice issues. Check these out:

Say hello to the Nation's new blog, The Notion:

Starting today, The Nation launches The Notion blog, which will feature light, off-the-cuff commentary, spontaneous reaction to breaking news, and unfiltered ruminations on debates of the day. Readers should expect lively debates, insightful critiques, crucial questions, bold new visions and the occasional sophomoric Bush joke. Notion contributors will interact and respond to each other, as well as readers who post comments.

It has an all-star lineup:

Investigative reporter Murray Waas has a new article on PlameGate up at the National Journal. Shorter version: What comes after PlameGate and RoveGate? Maybe CheneyGate.

Murray reconstructs the May - July, 2003 timeline, and supplies additional details. After previewing Murray's article below, I am going to add another dot that I find significant, one I've written about several times, Cheney, Libby and Catherine Martin's July 12th plane ride to Norfolk, VA to commemorate the U.S.S. Reagan.

by TChris

The president gives the impression that the NSA only eavesdrops on Americans who dial Osama bin Laden's cell phone number, but are we to believe him? The American Friends Service Committee fears that the government is spying on peace activists, protestors, and others who exercise their right to disagree with the Bush administration. To find out if those fears are justified, the ACLU yesterday filed a Freedom of Information Act request on behalf of the AFSC and other groups that might be targeted by a domestic surveillance campaign.

The ACLU is seeking the disclosure of all documents maintained by the Department of Defense on the individual groups. Many of the groups involved in today's action, such as the Rhode Island-based Community Coalition for Peace, have already learned that they are listed in the Pentagon's Threat and Local Observation Notice (TALON) database.

An AFSC director explains the importance of the request:

by TChris

What does it mean to achieve "justice for all"? Nancy Moore shares her thoughts.

by TChris

The new boss:

U.S. Rep. John Boehner of Ohio upset a former deputy to indicted Texan Tom DeLay on Thursday to become majority leader of the scandal-rocked U.S. House of Representatives. ... Republicans effectively gave a vote of no-confidence to Blunt, the acting majority leader and a close ally of DeLay.

Same as the old boss? In most respects, probably yes (they share "lifetime ratings of 94 from the American Conservative Union"), but this article highlights one difference: Boehner is less willing to take harsh steps to curb undocumented workers if those steps would actually punish businesses for hiring them.

Update: More on Boehner:

by TChris

Gay-hating evangelicals usually makes themselves look silly. Occasionally, they make themselves look dangerous.

The silliness comes from critics of "End of the Spear," a film that tells the story of American missionaries in Ecuador. Some Christian fundamentalists are appalled that the film's lead actor is gay. (Mel Gibson was apparently unavailable.)

More than 100 pastors of churches across the country signed a letter drafted by [Rev. Jason] Janz and addressed to Every Tribe [Entertainment] expressing their disappointment in the casting of Mr. Allen. ... "Does anyone really believe that Chad Allen was the best possible actor for Nate Saint?" Mr. Janz asked in his Jan. 12 Web log entry, referring to one of the characters in the movie. "That would be like Madonna playing the Virgin Mary."

Casting Madonna to play the Virgin Mary would actually be an inspired choice, but let's not digress. Here's where the danger surfaces: