Odierno: Progress in Iraq Approaches Point of Irreversibility
WASHINGTON, March 4, 2008 – The former commander of Multinational Corps Iraq reflected today on vast improvements made during the past 15 months and said Iraq is approaching the point where no single incident or chain of events will be able to reverse those positive trends.
And your continued optimism has us wondering about your sanity, Gen. Odierno.

Vanity Fair: Bush approved plot to oust Hamas
US President George W. Bush is said to have approved a covert initiative to overthrow the Hamas government shortly after Hamas won the January 2006 parliamentary election, according to confidential documents obtained by Vanity Fair magazine.

Cheney may have leaked secret video in Gitmo case. (Think Progress)
Lawyers for Guantanamo Bay detainee Omar Khadr have alleged that Vice President Dick Cheney’s office leaked a secret video of Khadr in Afghanistan to CBS’ 60 Minutes after a judge denied a prosecution request to play the video in court. Former Gitmo chief prosecutor Col. Morris Davis told Lt. Cmdr. William Kuebler — Khadr’s lawyer — that Cheney’s office may have been involved. Kuebler said that if proven, the leak is a “clear violation of the protective orders that are in place” in the case.
He outed a CIA agent.  There’s no reason why he wouldn’t release videos, too.

Mukasey’s Paradox (by Jonathan Turley, writing at the Los Angeles Times)
The recent decisions of Atty. Gen. Michael B. Mukasey to block any prosecution of Bush administration officials for contempt and to block any criminal investigation of torture led to a chorus of criticism… [But] I suddenly realized that there was something profound, even beautiful, in Mukasey’s action. In his twisting of legal principles, the attorney general has succeeded in creating a perfect paradox. Under Mukasey’s Paradox, lawyers cannot commit crimes when they act under the orders of a president — and a president cannot commit a crime when he acts under advice of lawyers. Such a perfect paradox is no easy task.

Senate Unanimously Confirms Filip for No. 2 Position at Justice Depsite His Refusal to Answer Torture Question (by Jonathan Turley)
The Senate Democrats have again caved on the issue of torture, unanimously confirming
Chicago federal Judge Mark Filip to be the second-in-command at the Justice Department despite his refusal to answer the simple question whether waterboarding is torture — a fact established by U.S. and international courts. As with the telecom immunity controversy, the Senate delayed the vote to suggest that they were actually taking a stand on torture and then voted with the White House to avoid a final confrontation on the question.

Civil rights cases at issue for FBI
WASHINGTON – The FBI is investigating 26 unsolved civil rights era cases out of nearly 100 referred to the bureau over the last year, Director Robert Mueller says in calling the protection of civil liberties one of his top priorities.
Gosh, you’d think they could be investigating a lot of incidents that have occurred DURING THE LAST EIGHT YEARS, now wouldn’t you?

EPA head unaware of pressures on states
WASHINGTON – The head of the Environmental Protection Agency said Tuesday he didn’t know of behind-the-scenes efforts by EPA officials to blunt state attempts to reduce mercury emissions from power plants.

EPA: No timeline for high court request
WASHINGTON – Nearly a year after being told to do so, the head of the Environmental Protection Agency said Tuesday he couldn’t say when he would comply with a Supreme Court directive and determine whether greenhouse gas emissions from vehicles should be regulated.

Sioux Indian honored for Korea heroism
WASHINGTON – President Bush apologized Monday that the country waited decades to honor Master Sgt. Woodrow Wilson Keeble for his military valor in Korea, giving him the Medal of Honor more than 25 years after he died.

Pelosi Taking Steps for Lawsuit Against Bush
House Democrats said a civil lawsuit could be filed as early as this month that challenges the Bush administration’s claims of executive privilege in curtailing aides from testifying on Capitol Hill.

Election-year budget battle looms
WASHINGTON – Democrats are offering hefty spending increases for domestic programs as they draft an election-year budget plan that still promises surpluses within four years and assumes many of President Bush’s signature tax cuts will die.

GOP planning for new battle on nominees
Senate Republicans plan to take a more confrontational approach with Democrats on judicial nominees, hoping parliamentary tactics and the bully pulpit of their presidential nominee will break a logjam over the politically volatile issue. Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Pa.), a centrist who is spearheading the negotiations within the party, said Tuesday that the options range from polite discussions to “shutting down the Senate.” His more conservative colleagues have all but ruled out the former.  

Tough cop role taken by Senate on ethics issue
The Senate Ethics Committee has emerged as the tougher policeman of congressional behavior than its House counterpart, the Standards of Official Conduct Committee, which has become embroiled in a fracas over ethics enforcement in the lower chamber. While the Senate has adopted guidelines that some experts say exceed even what is called for in the ethics reforms Congress passed last year, the House has interpreted the law more literally. As a result, government watchdog groups say, the House has opened wide loopholes in ethics rules.

Dems shift gears on Iraq
Congressional Democrats searching for a message that will resonate on the Iraq war are preparing an argument that getting troops out of the conflict is the only way to rebuild a spent military. It’s a less ambitious argument than the “Out-of-Iraq now” proposals put forward last year, but House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and other top Democrats believe it will allow the party to criticize the war without being seen as criticizing those fighting it. It could also help Democrats to portray themselves as protecting the military and national security.

Clinton scores 3 wins; McCain clinches
WASHINGTON – Hillary Rodham Clinton scored three victories in a night of revival that denied Barack Obama a ripe opportunity to drive her from the Democratic presidential race. Clarity came only to the Republican side, where John McCain made the nomination his own.

Clinton hints at shared ticket
WASHINGTON – Hillary Rodham Clinton, fresh off a campaign saving comeback, hinted Wednesday at the possibility of sharing the Democratic presidential ticket with Barack Obama — with her at the top. Obama played down his losses, stressing that he still holds the lead in number of delegates.

Huckabee drops out of presidential race
Mike Huckabee bowed to reality Tuesday and out of the Republican presidential race. “We kept the faith,” he told his end-of-the-road rally Tuesday after John McCain clinched the nomination.

McCain now has to pick a vice presidential nominee
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Now that he is the Republican presidential nominee, John McCain has a big decision ahead of him — who to choose as his vice presidential running mate.

Vt. towns vote to indict Bush & Cheney
Voters in two Vermont towns approved measures today that call for President Bush and Vice President Cheney to be indicted for violating the Constitution when they took the nation to war in Iraq… “It really carries no weight,” Brattleboro Town Clerk Annette Cappy told the wire service. “Our town attorney has no legal authority to draw up any papers to allow our police officers to do so, but the gentleman who initiated the petition, got the signatures, wanted it on the ballot to make a statement.”

California Supreme Court hears gay marriage case
SAN FRANCISCO (AFP) – California’s highest court heard arguments Tuesday from supporters and opponents of gay marriage in a case which could decide the legality of such unions in the largest US state.