Wikileaks, The Pentagon Papers, And The First Amendment

The lawyer who argued The Pentagon Papers case points out how Julian Assange is not Daniel Ellsberg, and how prosecuting him could have disastrous results for press freedom in the United States.

What If Roe v. Wade Were Reversed? Europe Offers A Guide

A somewhat surprising court decision from the European Union gives a glimpse of what the situation in the United States would be if Roe v. Wade were overturned.

Conservative Congressman Calls Obama Recess Appointments An “Outrage”

The reaction to President Obama’s recent recess appointments provide us with yet another example of bipartisan hypocrisy.

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Bringing Home the Bacon: It’s What Congress Does

Earmarks or no, members of Congress are going to bring home the bacon to their districts. It is what their constituents want (and expect) them to do.

Time To Put Defense Cuts On The Table

With just over a week to go before the 112th Congress convenes, battle lines are already being drawn in battle over the defense budget.

Jon Stewart As Edward R. Murrow?

Is Jon Stewart the next Edward R. Murrow? No.

Ivory Coast By Any Other Name …

Is calling Côte d’Ivoire “Ivory Coast” linguistic colonialism? Where do we draw the line when English names for countries go out of vogue?

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Ohio Congressman Sues Pro-Life Group After Election Defeat

Ohio Congressman Steve Driehaus is suing a pro-life PAC for “defamation” and “loss of livelihood” over its role in his defeat in the 2010 Elections.

Is Ivy League Education Worth the Cost?

Do graduates of elite colleges earn more because of where they went to school? Or because of the traits that got them selected?

Dear New York Times

Dear New York Times: Your tireless efforts to make me stop reading you are having the desired effect.

Veteran Diplomat Richard Holbrooke Dies At 69

One of the most active American diplomats of the past twenty-five years has passed away.

Conservatives For Higher Taxes

Politics makes for strange bedfellows and, when it comes to the debate over the extension of the Bush tax cuts, anti-tax Republicans are making common cause with soak-the-rich progressives.

Two Observations on the Health Care Ruling

Yes, a federal judge has ruled the individual mandate to be unconstitutional. However, this issue is hardly settled yet.

Student Evaluations and Teacher Performance

A new study seems to show that student evaluations of teachers are something other than a popularity contest.

Michael Bloomberg Says He Isn’t Running For President

New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg says he isn’t running for President, but he’s sure acting like a guy who’s at least thinking about it.

WikiLeaks and Journalism’s Future

Has WikiLeaks changed journalism forever?

How WikiLeaks Operates

Obama Defends Tax Cut Deal As Democrats Signal Opposition

Amid signs that Democrats in Congress might rebel against the tax cut deal he struck with Republicans, President Obama took to the airwaves today to defend it at the same time that his base is rebelling against it.

John F. Kennedy, Sarah Palin, And Separation Of Church And State

In her new book, Sarah Palin puts forward a view of the role of religion in politics that is in direct contrast with America’s own traditions.

Why Democrats Are Losing The Tax Cut Debate

Democrats are losing the debate over the extension of the Bush tax cuts, but when you look at the playing field it seems pretty clear that that they never had a chance.

Feds Block WikiLeaks From Own Workers to ‘Protect’ Info

The Obama administration is banning hundreds of thousands of federal employees from calling up the WikiLeaks site on government computers because the leaked material is still formally regarded as classified.

Anonymity and Internet Trolls

Should blogs and other online forums ban anonymous comments?

Things not to Celebrate: Secession

Roughly 150 years ago, the CSA was born. Is this something worthy of celebration?

Palin: Obama Administration’s Incompetence in the WikiLeaks Fiasco

Sarah Palin has taken to her Facebook page to raise “Serious Questions about the Obama Administration’s Incompetence in the WikiLeaks Fiasco.” They’re more interesting than I’d expected.

Four Turkeys, Zero People: The Case Of Barack Obama’s Missing Pardons

After 1 1/2 years in office, President Obama has yet to grant a single request for a pardon or clemency, continuing a thirty year trend in which the Presidential pardon power has nearly fallen in to disuse.

WikiLeaks, Secrets, and Reality

The choice is between a world in which officials can share information and carry out reasoned debates with one another and a world in which nothing can be written down.

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Classified Information and Journalistic Ethics

The two English language newspapers who have been Julian Assange’s accomplices in disseminating stolen secrets defend themselves.

Covering the Coverage of the Diplomatic Leaks

The major outlets that received document drops from Wikileaks are covering the story in different and interesting ways.

Americans Mad As Hell, Still Going to Take It

After days of hype, National Opt-Out Day fizzled. It’s a classic collective action problem.

Wikileaks Releases Diplomatic Cables, Revealing International Secrets

A new round of Wikileaks documents is out, and it opens the door on diplomatic correspondence previously hidden from the public.

McCain and North Korea

McCain brings up “regime change” in re: the DKRP and China apparently isn’t doing enough.

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DeLay Guilty . . . Of What, Exactly?

Tom DeLay is a sleazebag and has been found guilty by an Austin jury for skirting the law. But it may in fact be a miscarriage of justice despite the victim being as unsympathetic as it gets.

Bike Lane Backlash?

As bicycle advocates have been getting new lanes and other concessions in major cities across the country, a minor backlash has formed in reaction.

New Plant Raises New North Korean Nuclear Concerns

North Korea has unveiled to the world a new nuclear processing facility that puts back on the table the question of just what we should, or can, do about the fact that a rogue state possesses nuclear weapons and wants to build more.

Little Public Support For Bowles-Simpson Deficit Reduction Plan

A new poll about the proposals coming out of the Deficit Commission makes it clear that the American public needs to grow up.

Sarah Palin: I Am Engaged In Deliberations About Running For President

Yet another sign that the GOP’s biggest nightmare may actually end up coming true.

How Would I Solve the Deficit

Here’s my plan for creating a budget surplus of $126 billion by 2015 and $592 billion by 2030.

How Would You Fix The Budget? Here’s How I’d Do It

Thanks to an interactive web tool from The New York Times we can all try to make the hard political choices needed to fix the budget mess.

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Whether They Like It Or Not, Democrats Seem Stuck With Nancy Pelosi

There are grumblings from within the Democratic caucus in the House that Nancy Pelosi may not be the best choice for Minority Leader. Unfortunately for Democrats, though, they don’t seem to have a viable alternative at the moment.

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New York Times Calls On Democrats To Reject Pelosi

The New York Times has joined the mostly muted chorus calling on Democrats to select someone other than Nancy Pelosi as their new Minority Leader. In all likelihood, their call will go unheeded.

USA a Banana Republic?

NYT columnist Nick Kristoff says America’s income inequality makes us a banana republic.

Olbermann Suspended For Refusing To Apologize, But Will He Return?

Keith Olbermann was reportedly suspended for failing to apologize for making political donations to Democratic candidates, but it really seems intended to serve to justify the illusion that MSNBC’s programming is not partisan.