The Kerry-Graham-Lieberman bill was likely the last hope for major climate-change legislation for a number of years. With Obama on the defensive and unwilling to spend political capital on the issue, and with Congress certainly getting more Republican in November, a great window of opportunity has been missed.

Kerry Eleveld of The Advocate and Chris Geidner of Metro Weekly had an opportunity to ask John McCain (R-SoreWinner) about people being hounded out of the military after being asked if they were gay based upon intrusions into their private emails. Despite the case of Mike Almy, who did not tell but was asked on this basis, it never happens, according to McCain.

I’ll agree with Sen. Lindsey Graham on one thing: “Americans still wait for justice.” That’s the headline of a column he wrote that ran in the SunNews and other South Carolina newspapers on Monday, lamenting that the U.S. government still hasn’t put the plotters of the September 11 terrorist attacks on trial. But Graham’s explanation for why we haven’t yet seen justice is actually backwards.

The New York Times today highlights a new report released by ProPublica and the National Law Journal concluding that torture and “enhanced interrogation techniques” approved by the Bush Administration and used on suspected terrorists has made it impossible to bring many of those alleged terrorists to justice.

Originally posted on Citizen Orange.

The “DREAM Now Series: Letters to Barack Obama” is a social media campaign that launched Monday, July 19, to underscore the urgent need to pass the DREAM Act. The Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act, S. 729, would help tens of thousands of young people, American in all but paperwork, to earn legal status, provided they graduate from U.S. high schools, have good moral character, and complete either two years of college or military service.  With broader comprehensive immigration reform stuck in partisan gridlock, the time is now for the White House and Congress to step up and pass the DREAM Act!

A lot has happened as we complete the third week of the DREAM Now Series.  The DREAM Act picked up two new co-sponsors in the U.S. House: Mike Thompson (D-CA-1) and Chellie Pingree (D-ME-1).  Two extremely important and influential organizations have also come out strongly in support of passing the DREAM Act as a downpayment on comprehensive immigration reform: the Center for American Progress and the AFL-CIO.  Finally, a major victory was won in Arizona where the deportation of Marlen Moreno was deferred.  Please express support for the above in anyway possible.  It has all helped build a lot of momentum for passing the DREAM Act, this year. 

Just was we have been busy moving the DREAM Act forward, though, nativists have been busy undermining it.

After the deadliest month ever for US troops in Afghanistan, panic over this failed war continues to spread to new areas. Panic had appeared to reach a peak when Stanley McChrystal was replaced as head of ISAF and head of US Forces in Afghanistan. However, the situation continues to spiral out of control under the new leadership of David Petraeus. Dominating today’s headlines are peaceful anti-American protests in Kabul following the riot precipitated by four civilian deaths in a traffic accident involving US contractors on Friday, the departure of the Netherlands from the shrinking NATO coalition and fears on the part of Senator Lindsey Graham that an “unholy alliance” between liberal Democrats and conservative Republicans could undermine the remaining small amount of support that remains for the war.

Allowing China to devalue its currency devalues American workers and businesses. Chinese currency manipulation is driving American manufacturers out of business and America workers into unemployment. For 110 years, American factories and workers have proved they can compete and win against all comers in the world. They can continue to do that if Congress places tariffs on Chinese exports to the U.S. or taxes them to compensate for the 40 percent price break the Chinese government arranges for its manufacturers. This is National Currency Manipulation Call-In Day. Tell Congress to ensure America is not No. 2.

Scarecrow, commenting on emptywheel’s post on the Kagan hearings, has shown us the way to deal with juggernauts of all kinds. Problems of mythic proportions demand commensurate responses, right? Since it’s the power of perverted narratives that has gotten us into this Waste Land, simply by recognizing and reclaiming that power, we can get the Hell out of *here.*

For months now, certain commentators and legislators have been arguing that Congress needs to pass a new law authorizing the indefinite detention without charge or trial of suspected terrorists and their supporters.

I have finally figured out how to get Obama to stop listening to all the people who are leading him down the wrong path.