Ranks

White House drops choice for CIA lawyer - 25 Sep 2007 at 3:14pm - WASHINGTON -- The White House withdrew its nominee to become the CIA's top lawyer on Tuesday after Democrats raised concerns that the agency's interrogation techniques may be illegal. The president sent a letter to the Senate Intelligence Committee informing it of the decision to withdraw the nomination of John Rizzo to be the CIA's general counsel. The panel had been expected to consider Rizzo's nomination at a hearing Tuesday afternoon.... A CIA spokesman said last month that Director Michael Hayden strongly supported Rizzo's nomination, noting that Rizzo would be the first general counsel to come up through the agency's ranks.

'Cowboy' aggression works for Blackwater - 24 Sep 2007 at 4:31pm - RALEIGH, N.C. -- For all its high-profile failings and its reputation for "cowboy" aggression, the secretive security company Blackwater USA has never failed at its primary mission in Iraq: Protecting State Department diplomats.

Iraq ministry finishes draft law on contractors - 25 Sep 2007 at 8:44am - BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraq's Interior Ministry has finished draft legislation that would end the legal immunity enjoyed by private security contractors after a deadly shooting involving U.S. firm Blackwater, an official said on Tuesday.

U.S. snipers accused of 'baiting' Iraqis - 25 Sep 2007 at 8:52am - WASHINGTON -- Army snipers hunting insurgents in Iraq were under orders to "bait" their targets with suspicious materials, such as detonation cords, and then kill whoever picked up the items, according to the defense attorney for a soldier accused of planting evidence on an Iraqi he killed. Gary Myers, an attorney for Sgt. Evan Vela, said his client had acted "pursuant to orders."

Mukasey security detail filed complaint - 25 Sep 2007 at 2:56pm - WASHINGTON -- Emptying the trash, carrying groceries and toting golf clubs were among duties allegedly assigned to U.S. marshals protecting two federal judges in New York over the last decade - one of whom has been nominated to be the next U.S. attorney general.

Supreme Court to decide photo ID voting law - 25 Sep 2007 at 2:48pm - WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Supreme Court said on Tuesday it would decide whether voters can be required to show photo identification, a move that can limit participation of the elderly and poor in elections.

Thought for the day:
We don't know what we want, but we are ready to bite somebody to get it. -Will Rogers (1879 - 1935)