Friday, October 30, 2009

SPB News for Friday


House ethics panels to probe Waters, Richardson
The inquiry will focus on whether the Southern California congresswomen violated the law or House rules. Richardson's case involves Washington Mutual; Waters' a bank in which her husband owned stock.

Disgraceful: In 8 Years, George W. Bush Never Greeted Fallen Troops — This is what a president does. … NPR notes that, … Why? … Bush also preferred to go bed early, but apparently, could never get his ass out of bed early enough to honor the soldiers he so recklessly sent off to die.

Iowa Republicans wince at Palin fee — A conservative Iowa group's effort to lure Sarah Palin to its banquet next month has had an unintended effect: Rather than exciting conservatives about the prospect of a visit from the former Alaska governor, the group's plan to raise a six-figure sum …

Passports linked to 9/11 found along Afghan border Pakistani soldiers battling their way into a Taliban stronghold along the Afghan border have seized passports that may be linked to '9/11 suspects.' Soldiers displayed passports seized in the operation, among them a German document belonging to a man named Said Bahaji. That matches the name of a man thought to have been a member of the Hamburg cell that conceived the 9/11 attacks. The passport included a tourist visa for Pakistan and a stamp indicating he'd arrived in the southern city of Karachi on Sept. 4, 2001.

Israeli spy in US wanted $2 million for his secrets The celebrated American scientist charged with spying for Israel had asked for $2 million for his secrets, federal prosecutors has revealed. The US Federal Bureau of Investigation arrested Stewart D. Nozette on Oct. 19 as he attempted to deliver state secrets to an undercover FBI agent, disguised as an Israeli intelligence operative.

The New Operations Manual from the F.B.I. In September 2008, the Bush administration changed domestic intelligence-gathering rules. The Federal Bureau of Investigation's interpretation of those rules was recently made public when the bureau released a redacted copy of its "Domestic Investigations and Operation Guide" in response to a Freedom of Information lawsuit. The new rules have given F.B.I. agents the most power in national security matters that they have had since the post-Watergate era.

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