In his testimony regarding the U.S. attorneys scandal before the Senate Judiciary Committee this morning, Attorney General Alberto Gonzales once again offered his Sgt. Schultz defense. Like the bumbling German guard in Hogan's Heroes, Gonzales essentially claimed "I know nothing, nothing!" Sadly, his own recent statements show that while Gonzales may be similarly stupid, he […]

From the moment he entered the White House, President Bush proclaimed the "doctor-patient relationship" the centerpiece of his policies when it comes to Americans' health care. Just not, as it turns out, for American women. As today's Supreme Court decision upholding the 2003 Partial Birth Abortion Ban Act shows, President Bush and his Republican allies […]

On its face, today's Supreme Court decision in Gonzales v. Carhart is a victory for abortion foes seeking to ban one rarely used but seemingly horrific procedure. But in the bigger picture, the Court's validation of the 2003 Partial Birth Abortion Act is a landscape-changing triumph for conservatives' slippery slope campaign to chip away at […]

In a calamitous setback for the reproductive rights of American women, the Supreme Court upheld the 2003 Partial Birth Abortion Act. In its 5-4 ruling, the Court handed Republican conservatives a major victory in their "slippery slope" campaign against choice. Sadly, the history shows that many Congressional Democrats were complicit in today's disastrous outcome. As […]

University of South Carolina football coach Steve Spurrier generally doesn't appear on anyone's list of moral exemplars in sports. His sideline tantrums, raging at referees and brief but bombastic tenure with the Washington Redskins didn't endear him to many outside of Florida, the state where he made his name. But this weekend, Spurrier showed surprising […]

British Prime Minister Tony Blair may have fatally undermined his legacy and the prospects for his Labor Party with his slavish devotion to George W. Bush and his calamitous project in Iraq. But on one small matter of rhetoric at least, the UK government may have seen the light. As the BBC reports today, Blair's […]

In anticipation of his make-or-break testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Tuesday regarding his role in the partisan purge of U.S. attorneys, embattled Attorney General Alberto Gonzales took to the pages of the Washington Post to save his neck. But by contradicting his own March 6th USA Today op-ed, Gonzales may have simply tightened […]

On Sunday, the Albuquerque Journal published an explosive article detailing the critical roles of President Bush, Karl Rove and New Mexico Senator Pete in the sacking of U.S. attorney David Iglesias. Alberto Gonzales' apparent opposition to Iglesias' ouster and the timeline of events leading up to it suggest President Bush was being less than truthful […]

Among the revelations contained in the latest DOJ document dump is the central role of the Federalist Society in entrenching the permanent Republican majority among the ranks of the U.S. attorneys. As FireDogLake, ThinkProgress and others have reported, membership in the Federalist Society was crucial to a favorable ranking by the Gonzales team entrusted with […]

If April showers bring May flowers, then this April's deluge of conservative wrong-doing should produce a bumper crop of right-wing resignations and convictions later this year. Over the past few weeks, Republican luminaries past and present have offered up an almost endless string of gaffes, missteps, ethical lapses and criminal behavior. Let's start with in […]