Patriot Act Renewal Passes by Two Votes

Staff / Truthdig Mar 8, 2006 The cliffhanger vote caught Republican leaders by surprise. The president is expected to sign the legislation into law before Friday. With the nation's attention trained squarely on the Dubai Ports fiasco (not that it's an unimportant issue), Congress has passed the most sweeping abridgement of American freedoms in a generation--with barely a peep from the public. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Patriot Act Hall of Fame / Shame

Staff / Truthdig Mar 3, 2006 Only nine Democrats and one Independent voted against the most sweeping abridgement of American freedoms in a generation Some of the heroes: Jim Jeffords, Russ Feingold, Robert Byrd Some of the villains: Hillary Clinton, Barbara Boxer, Barack Obama Check out the bottom of this AP story for the full list. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Tony Blair: Shut Down Guantanamo Prison

Staff / Truthdig Mar 2, 2006 The British prime minister becomes the latest to urge the closure of the infamous detention center in Cuba Jimmy Carter, Kofi Annan and Sen Joe Biden, among others, have all made similar pleas, which the White House has brushed off. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Dubai: Great Theater

Robert Scheer / Truthdig Mar 1, 2006 It's the season's big hit, a zany farce with pompous officials in the Bush administration and their hysterical courtiers in the mass media asserting positions that are patently absurd but hilarious to watch. Dig deeper ( 3 Min. Read )

U.S. to Pay $300,000 to Ex-Detainee

Staff / Truthdig Feb 28, 2006 The federal government is settling a lawsuit brought by an Egyptian who claims he was abused in a Brooklyn detention center and then deported on suspicion of having links to terrorism. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

It’s the Corporation, Stupid

Molly Ivins / Truthdig Feb 23, 2006 Regarding the UAE port deal: The people running this country are perfectly willing to outsource American jobs, wages, and health and safety standards for the sake of free trade. Why would it surprise us that national security is ditto? Dig deeper ( 4 Min. Read )

Iraq Teeters Toward Civil War

Staff / Truthdig Feb 23, 2006 After insurgents bomb one of the holiest Shiite shrines in Iraq, at least 138 die in reprisal battles --marking the worst Shiite-on-Sunni violence since the outbreak of the Iraq war. University of Michigan Professor Juan Cole calls the day "apocalyptic." Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Chertoff Goes Mum on Portgate

Blair Golson / Truthdig Feb 21, 2006 Homeland Security chief Michael Chertoff on the proposed deal to cede control of six US ports to the United Arab Emirates: "The discussions are classified" Truthdig doesn't pretend to understand the ins and outs of port ownership logistics, but we are troubled by Think Progress' revelation that a country linked with international terrorism is going to have dominion over 40% of the U cargo bound for Iraq . Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Take From the Poor, Give to the Military

Robert Scheer / Truthdig Feb 8, 2006 Where would the Bush administration be without terrorism? The sweeping rationale for irrational governance has wrought yet another outrage: the $2.77-trillion budget the president proposed to Congress on Monday. Dig deeper ( 3 Min. Read )

Andrew Sullivan on the Cartoon Furor

Staff / Truthdig Feb 8, 2006 Sullivan, whose NY Times Magazine essay on the connection between Islam and 9/11 was perhaps the best ever mainstream treatment on the subject, now takes on the Islamic cartoon controversy | essayAlso, a German journalist talks about his mixed feelings about running the cartoons in his paperwashingtonpostcom/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/02/06/AR2006020601258html?referrer=emailarticle" title="Op-ed">Op-Ed . Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Blast From the Spying Past

Staff / Truthdig Feb 6, 2006 Newly released documents from the Ford administration show that it, too, tried to eavesdrop without warrants. | storyAnd in an "apple doesn't fall far from the tree" moment, then-CIA Director George H.W. Bush "complained that some major communications companies were unwilling to install government wiretaps without a judge's approval," according to the article. Dig deeper ( 1 Min. Read )

Hamas Win Makes Mockery of Bush’s Fantasies

Staff / Truthdig Jan 27, 2006 Update:Jimmy Carter: The world should keep giving aid to the Palestinians, regardless of whether Hamas is a terrorist organization.Juan Cole: "Bush pushes for elections, confusing them with democracy, but seems blind to the dangers of right-wing populism." Dig deeper ( 2 Min. Read )