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Longwood Gardens. May, 2013. Photo by: joanneleon
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Some question whether AP leak on al-Qaeda plot put U.S. at risk
Now, some members of Congress and media advocates are questioning why the administration viewed the leak that led to the May 7 AP story as so grave.
The president’s top counterterrorism adviser at the time, John O. Brennan, had appeared on “Good Morning America” the following day to trumpet the successful operation. He said that because of the work of U.S. intelligence, the plot did not pose an active threat to the American public.
Holder said this week that the unauthorized disclosure “put the American people at risk.”
At yesterday's Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC) hearing, the AUMF was discussed, and ideas for changing it.
Debating the Legal Basis for the War on Terror
WASHINGTON — A top Pentagon official said Thursday that the evolving war against Al Qaeda was likely to continue “at least 10 to 20 years” and urged Congress not to modify the statute that provides its legal basis.
“As of right now, it suits us very well,” Michael A. Sheehan, the assistant secretary of defense for special operations, said, referring to the “authorization to use military force,” often referred to as the A.U.M.F., enacted by Congress in 2001.
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And still others say that whatever the right policy may be, Congress should protect its constitutional role by explicitly authorizing the parameters of the war, rather than ceding that decision to the executive branch.
Pentagon 'Rewrites Constitution' Affirming Endless War
Senate hearing on the Authorization for Use of Military Force confirms congressional war powers rendered 'null and void'
Testifying before the panel, Michael A. Sheehan, Assistant Secretary of Defense for Special Operations, defended the rationale saying that if a terrorist organization outside of al-Qaeda, the Taliban or any other "associated forces" began to threaten the United States, "Then we might have to look at different authorities or extended authority or adjustment of authority to go after that organization."
Sheehan added that "when hostilities with al-Qaeda end, the AUMF will no longer be in force," ignoring the verified, self-perpetuating nature of the "global war on terror" in that American militarism has only increased hostilities worldwide.
"This is the most astounding and astoundingly disturbing hearing I have been to since I have been here. You guys have essentially rewritten the Constitution here today," said Senator Angus King (I-Maine) at the hearing Thursday.
"You guys have invented this term, associated forces, that’s nowhere in this document," he added. "It’s the justification for everything, and it renders the war powers of Congress null and void."
Given that Iran is constantly under the threat of our "all options are on the table" global wars overreach, they pay attention closely to this.
From Boston to Pakistan, Pentagon officials claim entire world is a battlefield
[...] Speaking at the first Senate hearing on rewriting the AUMF, Pentagon officials specifically said troops could be sent to Syria, Yemen and the Congo without new congressional authorization. Michael Sheehan, the assistant secretary of defense for special operations and low-intensity conflict, predicted the war against al-Qaeda would last at least 10 to 20 more years.
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[They cite Jeremy Scahill from DemocracyNow interview:] But in reality, one of the enduring legacies of the Obama presidency is going to be that he solidified this 'Cheneyesque' view of the U.S. government, which says that when it comes to foreign policy, that the executive branch is effectively a dictatorship and that Congress only has a minimal role to play in oversight. [...] But they have doubled down on this all-powerful executive branch perspective.
Norman Pollack.
What free press?
When will this criminal attack on international law stop? Probably not in the foreseeable future, as the Obama-Brennan team lays the groundwork for a condition of permanent war, as much to prevent the democratization of the class structure, by among other means the squeezing dry of the social safety net, as it is to achieve-already a work in progress-the militarization of U.S. capitalism as a vain effort to remain on top in which unilateral dominance is no longer possible.
Obama will fail, at least on the second count, which in turn will adversely affect the domestic system, driving America further into the moral void of militarism as the national policy. What does DOJ’s invasion of the AP have to do with the U.S.’s decline and growing belligerence? Everything, for when the agency of law enforcement acts the role of common criminal and invades the security of lawful activity, one instinctively knows that fascism is just around the corner.
This quote by the historian shows the way that Obama and all the president's men are leaving themselves open to these kinds of claims and criticism. Quote: "The CIA's view and the American military's view is that there are all sorts of crimes going on by the Yemenis and the Associated Press have been exposing it. Actually what's been going on here in reality, the Associated Press are exposing war crimes by people in their own country. What we've got here, squaring up, is the American military industrial complex, led, in this case, by Eric Holder. He is the Attorney General but he is some kind of "Devil's Advocate". If you remember the film, he's that kind of lawyer. He's the first ever in American history to be held in contempt of Congress, so he has certainly not got his hands clean. On the other side is the tradition of a free press and the effect of this massive trawl is effectively a fishing operation --months of Associated Press' telephone line, is it has a horrific chilling effect on journalism. [...] He's not doing his job. He's doing the job of the American military industrial complex which is very frightened about actually being exposed by people like Associated Press for the things that they are doing."
AP Surveillance: 'Govts taking our rights away, not Al-Qaeda'
Up to a hundred reporters and editors at the Associated Press have been targeted, in a massive US government surveillance operation against the news service. AP is calling the monitoring network - created by the Justice Department itself - unprecedented in size and scope, and a gross violation of privacy. One consequence of this surveillance scandal is that whistleblowers will now think twice, before calling a news desk - that's according to investigative journalist and historian, Tony Gosling.
Jake Tapper is picking up the Benghazi story, and not the stupid things the Republicans have been harping about (talking points and emails). MSM might finally be getting to the part of the Benghazi story that I've been saying, is a big deal, and not the blase non-scandal that the hipster left says it is. Let's hope they finally get to the forest through the trees. This is a start, but it's not just the CIA that has to be looked at here, though that's part of it.
Yes, this is a good starting point for getting to the heart of the story. Why didn't they defend him? Why is nobody focusing in on this point? Because that path leads to the real scandal and the real national security issues, not the stupid talking points or emails. Susan Rice wasn't in Benghazi and she's not to blame for being given inaccurate talking points to take to the airwaves.
Horrible attack in Kabul. The group claims to have done it in protest to the status of forces (SOFA) agreement being negotiated between the US and Afghan government. There has been recent news leaks from Karzai saying we will retain nine bases after 2014. The night raids continue also, which have always incited retaliatory attacks. The insurgents killed and injured Americans but the injury and casualty count was much higher among their fellow citizens.
Attack on U.S. Military Vehicles Kills at Least 16 in Kabul
KABUL, Afghanistan — A Toyota Corolla packed with explosives rammed a pair of American military vehicles in the Afghan capital, Kabul, on Thursday, setting off a blast that killed at least 16 people, including 6 American military advisers, and shook the relative calm that has prevailed for months in the city, Afghan officials said.
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Hezb-i-Islami, a relatively small insurgent faction that often competes with the Taliban for influence, claimed responsibility for the attack, which also wounded more than three dozen Afghans. Haroon Zarghon, the group’s spokesman, reached by telephone in Pakistan, said the bombing was carried out by a 24-year-old man who had grown up south of Kabul.
More attacks against Americans will come soon, Mr. Zarghon added, saying that Hezb-i-Islami was dismayed by the current talks between Afghanistan and the United States about a long-term security deal under which thousands of American soldiers could be based in Afghanistan for years to come.
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Capt. Faizullah, an Afghan Army commander at the scene, said an Afghan interpreter for the coalition had been killed along with the American advisers. The Americans worked with the intelligence department of the Defense Ministry, which is about half a mile from the scene of the attack, said Captain Faizullah, who like many Afghans uses a single name.
Kanishka Baktash, a spokesman for the Ministry of Public Health, said the blast also killed nine Afghan civilians. Many of their bodies were burned beyond recognition.
100 Days of Hunger Strike: US no closer to Gitmo shutdown
This is depraved. What's more depraved is that things like this are likely to be used as a bargaining chip. Planned Parenthood is used in the same way. First come the threats to cut it, and the protests, and then some concession is made that is nowhere near a fair deal and gives us some unacceptable subsidy for oil and gas or some such. It's depraved and this is a regular event nowadays, going after the f'ing food stamp program.
Liberal House Democrats slam ‘cruel and harmful’ cuts to school meals for poor children
The cuts to SNAP would remove about 2 million people from the program, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. Additionally, roughly 210,000 children would lose access to free school meals.
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“We should not be cutting the safety net for our most vulnerable while maintaining costly government subsidies for the well-off junk food, oil and gas industries,” Rep. Steven Horsford (D-NV) added. “A Nevada child in my district who receives a $1.48 per meal is not the problem with the federal budget. The problem is corporate welfare and the special interest giveaways that litter our tax code.”
The Three Heroines of Guatemala: The Judge, the Attorney General and the Nobel Peace Laureate
The Three Heroines of Guatemala: The Judge, the Attorney General and the Nobel Peace Laureate
Former Guatemalan President Efrain Rios Montt was hauled off to prison last Friday. It was a historic moment, the first time in history that a former leader of a country was tried for genocide in a national court. More than three decades after he seized power in a coup in Guatemala, unleashing a U.S.-backed campaign of slaughter against his own people, the 86-year-old stood trial, charged with genocide and crimes against humanity. He was given an 80-year prison sentence. The case was inspired and pursued by three brave Guatemalan women: the judge, the attorney general and the Nobel Peace Prize laureate.
Interior Department Bows to Oil and Gas Industry Pressure, Weakens Fracking Rules
Updated rule weakens protections from those proposed a year ago
WASHINGTON - May 16 - The U.S. Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Land Management (BLM) proposed an updated set of rules governing hydraulic fracturing, or “fracking,” on public lands today. The controversial oil and gas development technique—in which drillers blast millions of gallons of chemically treated water into the earth to force oil and gas from underground deposits—has been linked to air and water pollution and public health problems.
The updated proposal eliminates protections included in the version proposed last year and fails to include safeguards demanded by environmental and public health advocates.
Canada’s global tar sands tour continues despite risks to its reputation
Canada’s top government brass continues to tour the world in an effort downplay the harmful impacts of tar sands oil. Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper takes his taxpayer funded show to New York City this week where he will visit the Council on Foreign Relations and is expected to use the platform to continue to gloss over the severe environmental consequences of developing the Canadian tar sands. Across the Atlantic, Canadian Environment Minister Peter Kent is in Brussels, trying to convince European Union decision makers not to label tar sands oil as a ‘highly polluting fuel.’ Both Harper and Kent’s visits this week are consistent with a lengthy public relations tour aimed at distancing facts about the consequences of developing harmful tar sands oil from public debate. In Brussels, Kent was met by a slew of protesters enraged by the Canadian government’s attempts to interfere in European affairs. Similar concerns follow Harper when he is in the United States. If the current travel schedules of Canada’s top officials is any indication, as long as there are pro-tar sands arguments to be made, the show will go on.
While the oceans heat up, capitalist governments seem more interested in determining what profit and new territory they will reap from it rather than honestly addressing climate change.
Canary in the Ocean': Massive Fish Flight Shows Climate Change is Here
Study shows unprecedented worldwide fish migration as waters warm
As ocean waters continue to heat up along with the rest of the planet, fish and other aquatic life forms are fleeing from their habitual regions to find the lower temperatures they have depended on for centuries, according to a new study released Wednesday.
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The research is one more confirmation that “global change is real and has been real for a long time,” Worm added. “It’s not something in the distant future. It is well underway."
Big business eyes Iceland's Arctic treasures
Global warming is opening up opportunities for shipping and mining companies, as melting ice means the Arctic is more accessable.
Russia is already aggressively exploring for resources in the north and China could be the latest to jostle for the arctic's assets.
Al Jazeera's Tim Friend reports from Iceland.
Action
Kevin Gosztola soliciting funds to help continue his excellent and tireless reporting on the Manning trial. Remember, he was virtually the only one reporting on it at times. I hope he is well funded for the court martial trial. He deserves a Pulitzer for his journalism on this. It will be interesting to see if the media does a turnaround on Manning and Assange now that they have had their epiphany and a taste of the whistleblower witch hunt. But unlike the MSM, Kevin needs the funding from his readers to keep going. Without Kevin and some others like Alexa O'Brien, the government would have succeeded in keeping most of the Manning situation in the dark.
To Those Who Have Supported My Coverage of Bradley Manning’s Court Martial (So Far)
Every dollar donated to help fund coverage of Bradley Manning has helped transform me into a foremost journalist on one of the biggest cases in military justice history.
Every post of mine shared on Facebook or Twitter has helped amplify critical coverage that is keeping the world informed of how the government is prosecuting Manning as if he is a traitor that aided terrorists.
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I hope you will keep sharing my reporting with family, friends or those in your social network, and, when possible, make donations so I can remain a fixture in the press pool at Meade and keep up my coverage of the Manning case.
With gratitude,
Kevin Gosztola
Firedoglake.com Journalist
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