By Robert C. Koehler, Tribune Media Services So we blink, take a breath, stare once more at the vote total: 149 nay, 141 yea. War funding request denied! This is a first, fleeting and fluky though it may be. Look quickly and imagine a Congress that doesn?t feed the war god every time it pounds [...]
Archive for May 21st, 2008
21 May
White House Ignored Torture Warnings
By Dan Froomkin Special to washingtonpost.com Wednesday, May 21, 2008; 12:55 PM Top White House officials waved off early warnings from the FBI that interrogation tactics being used on detainees might be illegal, according to a new report from the Justice Department’s inspector general. The report states that FBI personnel started notifying headquarters as early [...]
21 May
Economic ‘misery’ more widespread
Some experts argue that true inflation and unemployment – the components of the economy’s ‘Misery Index’ – are higher than the government’s official figures. By Chris Isidore, CNNMoney.com senior writer Last Updated: May 14, 2008: 10:36 AM EDT Consumers seeing gas prices soar have trouble believing relatively tame government inflation readings. Some critics argue they’re [...]
21 May
Fed sees economy getting worse
Ben Bernanke & Co. lower 2008 economic growth forecast and raise their projections for inflation and unemployment; says last rate cut was a “close call.” By Chris Isidore, CNNMoney.com senior writer Last Updated: May 21, 2008: 4:34 PM EDT Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke. NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) — The Federal Reserve sees worse economic [...]
21 May
FBI’s Torture Concerns Aired
By ERIC LICHTBLAU and SCOTT SHANE The New York Times WASHINGTON — In 2002, concerned about the treatment of prisoners at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, FBI agents created a “war-crimes file” to document accusations against U.S. military personnel, a Justice Department report disclosed Tuesday. The Justice Department inspector general’s report, which took four years to complete, [...]
21 May
More Americans Fear Losing Their Health Insurance Than Being in a Terrorist Attack
By Ezra Klein, The American Prospect. Posted May 21, 2008. Will a new administration and Congress get universal health care right this time? If health insurance were cheap, we could all buy it. If universal health care could get 60 votes in the Senate, we’d all have it. But these two imperatives — the need [...]
21 May
Farm Bill’s Subsidy Costs May Rise
Billions More Could Be Paid Through Little-Noticed Provision By Dan Morgan Special to The Washington Post Wednesday, May 21, 2008; Page A02 A major new program in the recently enacted farm bill could increase taxpayer-financed payments to farmers by billions of dollars if high commodity prices decline to more typical levels, administration and congressional budget [...]
21 May
The Italian Job
Al Kamen Wednesday, May 21, 2008; Washington Post Page A17 No plans for Memorial Day? Then hurry: Seats are still available for one of the best, not-to-be-missed congressional delegations of the spring season — featuring a night at the opera — “Tosca,” of course — in Venice! You’ll take off Friday morning in ultimate style [...]
21 May
Tehran Urges New Round Of Talks
By Robin Wright Washington Post Staff Writer Wednesday, May 21, 2008; Page A09 As the presidential candidates debate whether to deal with the Iranian regime, Tehran has called for new international talks on political, economic and security issues, including its controversial nuclear program and the Arab-Israeli peace process, according to a copy of the proposal [...]
21 May
Congress’s Last Stand
americanprogressaction.org Earlier this month, President Bush sent Congress a $70 billion emergency supplemental request to fund the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Congress has indicated that it will merge that request with a separate $108 billion request that is still pending, thus setting up what is likely to be the final showdown between Bush and [...]
