First, the good news: [Shahzan was initially] interrogated “pursuant to the public-safety exception of the Miranda Rule,” says the GOP aide. That exception allows officials to question a suspect for a period of time without reading him his rights if … Continue reading →
The meme is shaping up: poor pitiful Faisal Shahzad, helpless hapless victim of the economic crisis (i.e. Bush, capitalism, Wall Street, fat cats…). If it’s not said outright, it’s implied: the capitalist devils made him do it. After all, when … Continue reading →
And surprise surprise, he’s a naturalized American citizen of Pakistani descent, arrested at JFK Airport while trying to flee to Dubai. No doubt, however, he’s also a right-wing Tea Partying extremist who’s against the health care bill. And of course … Continue reading →
The Times Square bomb was a dud as terrorist bombs go. But police say it might have had a significant death toll if it had not been spotted so early and rendered harmless. So there’s no reason to be lulled … Continue reading →
One of Obama’s most enduring characteristics (one he shares with many on the left) has been his belief in the power of words [emphasis mine]: When the Right, in trying to figure Obama out, says “watch what he does, not … Continue reading →
Now we read the terrible news that two female suicide bombers have killed 38 people and wounded another 65 in two separate blasts on the Moscow subway. We should not be surprised by any of this. It is actually more … Continue reading →
I don’t know enough inside baseball to know exactly why Lindsey Graham is doing this. But I do know it’s the sort of thing that in the past earned him the rage of conservatives, and rightly so. That Graham is … Continue reading →
Remember Lynne Stewart? She was the defense attorney convicted of helping her terrorist client Abdel Rahman send messages to his supporters. Stewart acted in violation of an agreement that “she would not “use…meetings, correspondence, or phone calls with Abdel Rahman … Continue reading →
It appears that a military trial for Khalid Sheikh Mohammed is looking mighty good to the Obama administration right about now. The strange thing is that those legal geniuses, Obama and Holder, didn’t see that to begin with. I’m not … Continue reading →
…the House Democrats tried to sneak a provision into an intelligence bill that would ban and criminalize any interrogation tactic that a prosecutor subjectively believes is “degrading,” including but not limited to itemized practices such as “prolonged isolation,” “exploiting the … Continue reading →
These two things are not exactly related, but they seem to go together. First, the good news: Lawyers Yoo and Bybee will face no discipline for writing their memos (my take on a related issue here). Next, the bad: nine … Continue reading →
In an excellent development, the Taliban’s top military commander has been captured in Pakistan: Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, the group’s No. 2 leader behind Afghan Taliban founder Mullah Mohammad Omar and a close associate of Osama bin Laden, was captured … Continue reading →