After completing an expensive study of safety problems like near collisions and runway interference, the Administration found far more dangerous conditions than anticipated. The result: it has withheld the information and ordered the destruction of documents to protect the industry from its own errors. Continue reading “Administration Withholds Safety Study From the Public to Protect Airline Industry”
Category: Congress
In what should be considered an outrage, the White House told Congress that it would grant or deny access to key documents sought for oversight on whether the two houses included an immunity provision for the telecommunication companies. Continue reading “White House Conditions Access of Oversight Committees to Key Documents on their Granting Immunity to Corporations”
Government officials have admitted to newspaper that they have used extraordinary renditions to send individuals to other countries for torture. Congress rather belatedly after six years of GOP control is now looking into these abuses. Continue reading “Congress Hears of Abuse in Extraordinary Rendition Case — Members Apologize to Victim”
A federal magistrate has rejected claims from the White House and recommended the issuance of a court order against the White House to ensure the preservation of e-mails. Continue reading “Federal Magistrate Calls for Court Order to Preserve White House Emails Over Administration’s Objections”
Rep. Pete Hoekstra, R-Mich., has opposed a modest program to save turtles being wiped out along a highway in Michigan. Continue reading “Congressman Opposes Program to Save Protected Turtles and Calls for Using Money to Build More Highways”
Despite refusing to denounce water-boarding as torture and cl aiming a lack of knowledge of the technique, leading democrats are still praising Mukasey for “at least answering the question.” He has also come out against a major reform demanded after attacks by the Administration. Continue reading “Mukasey Opposes Federal Shield Law to Protect Journalists and the Free Press”
In his confirmation hearing, Judge Mukasey has refused to say whether a well-known torture technique is indeed torture. If Democrats are serious about demanding a return to the rule of law, it is an issue that should compel Senators to withhold their votes in confirmation. Continue reading “Mukasey Refuses to Denounce Water-Boarding as Torture and Forces Democrats into Another Crisis of Principle”
The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom has attacked the Islamic Saudi Academy, a private school serving nearly 1,000 students in grades K-12 in northern Virginia’s Fairfax County. The Commission has that the school reflects a lack of religious freedom in Saudi society and promotion of religious extremism at Saudi schools. The real question is why we still have this commission funded by the federal government. Continue reading “United States Commission on Religion Attacks Islamic School”
The Senate has reportedly reached a deal giving telecommunication companies legal immunity for their possible unlawful conduct in domestic surveillance. Continue reading “Privacy and Telephone Customers About to Lose Again in Congress”
Through a procedural move, the Republicans have delayed the vote on the surveillance bill. Continue reading “GOP Delays Surveillance Bill”
President Bush has pressured Democrats to kill the genocide bill involving Turkey. Continue reading “Democrats Yield to White House and Kill Genocide Bill”
The House surveillance bill is now complete. It does not force the government to satisfy the Fourth Amendment on surveillance of citizens and allows for a relatively weak level of review — albeit more review than President Bush will accept. Continue reading “Congress Holds Out Promise of Retroactive Immunity for Telecoms”
The death of a Virginia high school student to a drug-resistant staph highlights how little the Clinton or Bush Administrations have done on this long-known crisis. Continue reading “Virginia Student’s Death Highlights Killer Infection and Inadequate Government Action”
With the government still invoking the state secrets privilege on particular requests, Verizon revealed that from 2005 through this September there were 63,700 requests for information on its customers with 720 from federal authorities. Continue reading “Verizon Turns Over Vague Information on National Security Letters”
In an amazing act of defiance, the Bush Administration has ordered telecommunication companies to refuse to disclose to Congress whether they have revealed information to the government in the ongoing investigation of a secret program. Continue reading “Bush Administration Bars Telecoms from Speaking with Congress on Secret Program”