FISA Court Chief Judge Reggie Walton objects to the characterization of his court as a "rubber stamp" that will approve literally anything. Even though they approved an order to spy on every goddamn phone call in the United States. President Obama objects to the media...
Just because the whole world seems to be talking about closing Guantanamo Bay prison -- not to mention the President of the United States -- doesn't mean it's going to happen any time soon. Not if congressional Republicans have anything to do with it. Distracted by...
Last night news broke that a FISA court granted the NSA an insanely broad warrant for literally every single call made by Verizon customers over a several month period.Tens of millions of phone calls. It gets worse. Apparently even though FISA judges are essentially...
UPDATE: 'What's next?' Less than 24 hours later and we can answer that question. It's called total content awareness, or PRISM, reported tonight by The Washington Post. "I'm just an average man, with an average life. I work from nine to five; hey hell, I pay the...
I received a sad missive from a friend who has been working in Kabul as a civilian teacher on behalf of the U.S aid effort on and off for the last 11 years. A staunch believer in the inevitable triumph of democracy over the Taliban and Afghanistan's brutal warlordism,...
The sharpest minds and most dedicated activists in the progressive mold will gather under a single roof for the annual Left Forum this coming weekend (June 7-9) at Pace University in NYC. But even amongst this select assemblage, one panel will stand out. For it...
The court martial of Pfc. Bradley Manning on charges that could land the celebrated Army whistleblower in prison for life, enters Day Two at the Fort Meade courtroom in Maryland on Tuesday. Check in with Kevin Gosztola and Alexa O'Brien, who are both covering the...
Everybody the world over knows that drones are the next big thing militarily, so it probably seemed like a safe bet when German Defense Minister Thomas de Maiziere signed off on investments in the "Euro Hawk" drone. That's just the sort of thing a DM, especially one...
Today Attorney General Eric Holder held a meeting -- the second of three -- with journalists from high-profile organizations including the ABC, The Wall Street Journal, and POLITICO, in order to discuss how to placate them during any potential, future Department of...
The unprovoked massacre of 16 Afghan civilians by U.S. Staff Sgt. Robert Bales drew shock and horror from people all over the world when it happened last year. And it should have. An American soldier, armed to the teeth, committed one of the most heinous atrocities of...
