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The justices' decision, issued without comment, is the latest setback to legal efforts to force disclosure of details of the warrantless wiretapping that began after the Sept. 11 attacks. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) wanted the court to allow a lawsuit by the group and individuals over the wiretapping program. The 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals dismissed the suit, saying the plaintiffs could not prove their communications had been monitored. The government has refused to turn over information about the closely guarded program that could reveal who has been under surveillance. ACLU legal director Steven R. Shapiro has said his group is in a "Catch-22" because the government says the identities of people whose communications have been intercepted is secret.
the has-been
But every now and then, cutaway shots from the campaign trail show a side view that makes a voter worry that a little of the Old Huck might be primed for a comeback. ... 6:14 P.M. (link) Thursday, Nov. 29, 2007 Outta There: As any conservative will tell you, people vote with their feet. Just ask Larry Craig. But that's bad news for a Republican Party whose leaders are looking at the GOP's future and deciding to walk away. The sudden, simultaneous departure of both former Speaker Dennis Hastert and Senate Minority Whip Trent Lott has been treated as a coincidence, not a trend. But congressional resignations tend to be an even more accurate forecast than Intrade. If you're checking the parties' vital signs, consider this: The GOP lost the two longest-serving congressional leaders in Republican history—in the same week.
January 2007 Archives
When I was in middle school and my eldest sister was away at college, I would help myself to her bitchin' collection of concert tees that she left behind in her bedroom... which I had taken over. I got so many compliments from the older kids on my Echo and the Bunnymen shirt. Didn't know who they hell they were, but thought it was cool. Midnight Oil and INXS were faves too. And I loved her Dream of the Blue Turtle tee from Sting's first solo tour. I'm going on about all this because the big news today is that the Police are reuniting for the Grammys, which take place on February 11. This is a big deal because, as my sis could tell ya all about, they all hated each other when the Police dissolved in 1984. The biggest drama took place between Sting and Stuart Copeland, who probably fought over whose frostilocks looked better.
Next Weeks Almanac Digest
The moon is waning. The morning stars are Mercury, Neptune, Jupiter and Venus. The evening stars are Mars, Saturn and Uranus. Those born on this date are under the sign of Pisces. They include English poet Edmund Waller in 1606; industrialist George Pullman, inventor of the railway sleeping car, in 1831; telephone inventor Alexander Graham Bell in 1847; U.S. Army Gen. Matthew Ridgway in 1895; movie star Jean Harlow in 1911; "Star Trek" actor James "Scotty" Doohan in 1920; Lee Radziwill, sister of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, in 1933 (age 75); former football star Herschel Walker, the 1982 Heisman Trophy winner, and Olympic gold medal heptathlete Jackie Joyner-Kersee, both in 1962 (age 46); and actors David Faustino ("Married ... With Children") in 1974 (age 34) and Jessica Biel ("7th Heaven") in 1982 (age 26).
Facing Backlash, Blackwater Has a New Business Pitch: Peacekeeping
The beauty of an airship is you don't need big runways and airports," Wrenn says. "You can use them to deliver supplies where airplanes can't go." Doug Brooks, president of International Peace Operations Association, which represents private security contractors (though not Blackwater, which pulled out of the group in October), says in many parts of the world, "private companies are in fact holding peace operations together." The industry, in Brooks' view, is in part a natural consequence of the West's unwillingness to commit its military forces to troubled regions, leading to what he calls "Westernless peacekeeping." Globally, such contracting is a $20 billion industry, and growing, he contends. Critics, however, note that the Blackwater name is a huge obstacle to its plans for expanded peacekeeping.
Florida Primary Coverage - Tuesday, January, 29, 6:00 p.m. - 12:00 a.m ...
Petersburg. Kelly O'Donnell with the McCain campaign in Miami. John Yang at the Giuliani camp in Orlando. Andrea Mitchell with the Clinton campaign in Daley and Lee Cowan with the Obama campaign in Kansas City. With the analysis of NBC's Tom Brokaw, the host of “Meet the Press" Tim Russert, the anchor of “NBC Nightly News" Brian Williams, chief White House correspondent David Gregory, political director Chuck Todd, Joe Scarborough, Howard Fineman, Eugene Robinson, Pat Buchanan, Rachel Maddow and Craig Crawford. From the McCain campaign, senior adviser Charlie Black, from the Romney campaign, senior advisor Bay Buchanan. And on the Democrats, Senator John Kerry of Massachusetts. This is MSNBC's coverage of the Florida primary. (END VIDEOTAPE) OLBERMANN: At just past 6:00 p.m.
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