by TChris

Denver residents voted to legalize the adult possession of up to an ounce of marijuana. Mayor John Hickenlooper, who opposed the measure, calls the voters’ desire for a rational drug policy “symbolic” since state law still criminalizes pot possession. It’s true that Denver can’t override state law, but nothing requires Denver police to arrest individuals for personal use possession, and it’s clear that Denver residents would prefer law enforcement to have more sensible priorities.

The legalization campaign stressed that marijuana is a safer alternative to alcohol, and argued that permitting adults to make a responsible choice to smoke pot could reduce the evils associated with drinking. It’s a strategy rooted in common sense that may appeal to voters elsewhere.

"A Denver victory clearly means that the drive to end marijuana prohibition has become a mainstream issue," said Bruce Mirken, spokesman for the Marijuana Policy Project in Washington, D.C. "For a city of Denver's size in a red state to endorse something like this is really quite remarkable."

Did Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld just buy himself a ticket to Fitzgerald's grand jury?

U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said Tuesday he could not recall if he spoke to Vice President Dick Cheney about outed CIA agent Valerie Plame.

...."How would I know if I ever spoke about it with the vice president over five years?" Rusmfeld said at a Pentagon press conference Tuesday. "I don't recall speaking with him about it, and I don't recall the department being involved. Is it possible? I mean, my goodness, that's -- that question is such a -- it's -- what is that game? Fish. Give me all your sevens or something. I mean, that's not for me."

[hat tip Patriot Daily.]

by TChris

Jersey City Police Officer Julio Luna moved to a different apartment in his apartment building, but he left his bed behind. His landlord put the bed in storage. When Luna demanded that the landlord pay him $1,000 for the bed, the landlord told Luna he could have his bed back. Luna responded by placing his landlord in handcuffs. That act prompted the landlord to agree to pay the $1,000, but when the landlord showed up the next day, he brought the bed, not the cash.

Luna again handcuffed the landlord, then took him to jail. The landlord “wasn't released until he'd agree to a deal - brokered by an unidentified cop wearing uniform pants and a white T-shirt - in which he'd give Luna a month's free rent and a free parking spot, worth about $829.” About a year later, Luna was indicted on two counts of official misconduct and one count of theft by extortion. He just agreed to enter a pretrial diversion program which -- if he completes probation -- will result in the charges being dismissed. To obtain that deal, Luna agreed that he’d never work as a police officer again.

The Washington Post today reports on the CIA's use of secret prisons overseas, in Thailand and an unnamed Eastern European country, used to house and interrogate terror suspects. America: Gulag nation. It's not a pretty picture.

The hidden global internment network is a central element in the CIA's unconventional war on terrorism. It depends on the cooperation of foreign intelligence services, and on keeping even basic information about the system secret from the public, foreign officials and nearly all members of Congress charged with overseeing the CIA's covert actions.

Murray Waas has a new exclusive article reporting that Democratic Senators are considering pressing for a Senate Select Committee -- along the lines of the Senate Watergate and Church Committees -- to investigate the Administration's pre-war intelligence claims as well as the Valerie Plame affair.

Waas recites the history of Phase I and Phase II of the Senate Senate Intelligence Committee investigation. As to Phase II, which was to examine whether the Bush Administration misrepresented the intelligence information that led us to war, Waas reports that the Senators feel stymied by the Administration's failure to provide key documents.

Waas reported last week in the National Journal that David Addington, Cheney's counsel whom he elevated yesterday to Chief of Staff to replace Scooter Libby, along with Cheney and Libby, played a key role in the decision to withhold documents from the Committee.

Karl Rove was perceived as one who stabbed Trent Lott in the back when he lost his position as Senate Majority Leader to Bill Frist. Today, it was Lott's turn.

Crooks and Liars has the video of Trent Lott today on Hardball.

TRENT LOTT: Well, the question is, that you asked, is he good for American politics? Look, he has been very successful, very effective in the political arena. The question is should he be the Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy under the current circumstances? I don't know all that's going on, so I can't make that final conclusion. But, you know, how many times has the top political person become also the top policy advisor? Maybe you can make that transition, but it's a real challenge, and I think they have to – I do think they need to look at bringing in some more people, you know, old gray beards that have been around this town for a while, help them out a little bit at the White House.

The Supreme Court heard arguments today in the case of a New Mexican religious sect that wants to be allowed to drink a hallucinogenic tea at ceremonies twice a month.

The justices were critical of the Bush administration's position that drug laws forbidding such use trumps the right of the sect to practice its religion. John Roberts and Sandra Day O'Connor seemed particularly harsh on the Government. Nancy Hollander of Albuquerque argued for the sect.

The AP notes that Justice O'Connor may be gone from the bench by the time the vote is taken in the case. How would Alito rule? That's anybody's guess. But if it comes down to a 4-4 split, it could be important.

ScotusBlog has detailed coverage of the arguments and case. The case is Gonzales v. O Centro Espirita Beneficiente Uniao Do Vegetal, 04-1084. TChris wrote about the case here.

Great news for Jamie Olis, the Dynergy exec who was royally aggrieved at sentencing by the Judge computing his guidelines at 24 years. The 5th Circuit has ordered a resentencing.

Sentencing Law and Policy provides more media coverage of the reversal. White Collar Crime Blog weighs in here. Also, Houston's Clear Thinkers has been following the case since the beginning. Click through their links.

The Justice Department's press release at the time of sentencing is here.

ABC reported this morning that Time Reporter Matt Cooper told Good Morning America that Lewis Libby had identified Valerie Plame Wilson as an undercover operative to him.

Bloggers knew this was a bogus report. ABC has now corrected its error. [Note: The article is still misleading in reporting that "One of the reporters at the center of the investigation into the leak of the identity of an undercover CIA officer, says he first learned the agent's name from President Bush's top political advisor, Karl Rove." Rove never used the name Valerie Plame when talking to Cooper.]

Bloggers on the ball: Firedoglake, Mark Kleiman (who posts the text of the original report)and Talkleft (see comments)

The transcript is not up on lexis yet, I searched. I think the ABC article got it wrong, but we'll see.

Patriot Daily was the first to alert me to the suspect article.

Houston lawyer Dick DeGuerin scored another win for Tom DeLay today. The judge who had donated to Democratic causes has been removed from the case.

Australian David Hicks, one of the detainees at Guantanamo whom the military is set to try by tribunal on November 18, alleges he was sexually abused at Guantanamo.

Hicks' lawyers say they have witnesses relating to the abuse and that the United States has photographic evidence.

Digby has a great analysis.

Here are the Senate Rules on closed sessions:

• During a secret session, the doors of the chamber are closed, and the chamber and its galleries are cleared of all individuals except Members and those officers and employees specified in the rules or essential to the session.

• Standing Senate Rules 21, 29, and 31 cover secret sessions for legislative and executive business. Rule 21 calls for the Senate to close its doors once a motion is made and seconded. The motion is not debatable, and its disposition is made behind closed doors.

Why are the Democrats doing this? According to an e-mail statement I received: