Drudge Retort: Et_al's blog

Colorado Sheriffs Sue over Gun Control Laws

et_al — Tue, 21 May 2013 07:30:55 -0400

Fifty-four Colorado county sheriffs have joined a lawsuit against the state of Colorado arguing that the state's new gun control laws violate the Second and Fourteenth Amendments. The lawsuit takes aim at two laws Gov. John Hickenlooper (D) signed in March -- House Bill 1224, which banned high-capacity magazines limiting them to 15 rounds, and House Bill 1229, which requires background checks for all gun sales and transfers in the state. The Colorado Association of Police Chiefs have been supportive of the laws.

Congress Revisits 2001 AUMF Law

et_al — Thu, 16 May 2013 16:14:33 -0400

A few dozen words rushed into law days after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks have been used to justify U.S. counterterrorism efforts from the war in Afghanistan to warrantless wiretapping and drone strikes with little congressional oversight. Some Democrats and Republicans have begun writing legislation to update the 12-year-old resolution. "If you look back at the 60-word authorization that was put in place on September 18, 2001, and look at where we are today, there's a very, very thin thread, if any, between that authorization and what is occurring today," said Sen. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.), a leader of the effort to examine the 2001 resolution.

West Medic Arrested on Bomb Charge

et_al — Sun, 12 May 2013 13:31:51 -0400

A former West, Texas, EMS volunteer has been charged with possession of a destructive device, but multiple sources say there is no indication he is connected to the deadly April 17 explosion at West Fertilizer plant. Bryce Ashley Reed, 31, was booked into the McLennan County Jail on the federal charge then later released into the custody of Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives agents, according to jail records. Bryce Ashley Reed, 31, is accused of having the components to make a pipe bomb, according to court documents.

Obama Reluctant to Escalate in Syria

et_al — Sun, 28 Apr 2013 08:31:57 -0400

President Barack Obama said Friday that he would respond "prudently" and "deliberately" to evidence that Syria had used chemical weapons, tamping down any expectations that he would take swift action after an American intelligence assessment that the Syrian government had used the chemical agent sarin on a small scale in the nation's civil war. "But I meant what I'd said," the president added. "To use potential weapons of mass destruction on civilian populations crosses another line with respect to international norms and international law. And that is going to be a game changer."

Americans Tired of Trading Liberty for Safety

et_al — Wed, 24 Apr 2013 17:05:02 -0400

Public opinion surveys conducted since the Boston Marathon bombings indicate that most Americans -- while convinced future attacks are quite likely -- don't feel personally threatened by terrorism, and an increasing share of the public is skeptical about sacrificing personal freedoms for security. A new Pew Research survey finds that while 75 percent of Americans expect acts of terrorism to be a part of life in the future (up by 11 percent from a year ago), worry about terrorism has not increased. The most recent Fox News survey finds that -- for the first time since before 9/11 -- more respondents were unwilling (45 percent) than willing (43 percent) to sacrifice personal freedoms to reduce the threat of terrorism.

Bloomberg: Constitution Has to Change

et_al — Tue, 23 Apr 2013 20:30:10 -0400

In the wake of the Boston Marathon bombings, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg (I) said Monday the country's interpretation of the Constitution will "have to change" to allow for greater security to stave off future attacks. "Look, we live in a very dangerous world. We know there are people who want to take away our freedoms. New Yorkers probably know that as much if not more than anybody else after the terrible tragedy of 9/11."

Arrest Warrant for Tx District Attorney; Hiding Evidence

et_al — Fri, 19 Apr 2013 18:09:51 -0400

A judge issued an arrest warrant for former Williamson County District Attorney Ken Anderson Friday, after finding probable cause to believe Anderson withheld critical evidence in Michael Morton's 1987 murder trial.

Judge Louis Sturns concluded his court of inquiry by charging Anderson, who is now a state district judge, with tampering with government records (a misdemeanor), tampering with physical evidence (a felony) and failing to comply with a judge's order to turn over such evidence, for which he could be held in "contempt of court."

How an American Became Targeted for Death

et_al — Sat, 09 Mar 2013 22:14:30 -0500

One morning in late September 2011, a group of American drones took off from an airstrip the C.I.A. had built in the remote southern expanse of Saudi Arabia. The drones crossed the border into Yemen, and were soon hovering over a group of trucks clustered in a desert patch of Jawf Province, a region of the impoverished country once renowned for breeding Arabian horses. A group of men who had just finished breakfast scrambled to get to their trucks. One was Anwar al-Awlaki, the firebrand preacher, born in New Mexico, who had evolved from a peddler of Internet hatred to a senior operative in Al Qaeda's branch in Yemen. Another was Samir Khan, another American citizen who had moved to Yemen from North Carolina and was the creative force behind Inspire, the militant group's English-language Internet magazine.

Texas Proposes Nation's "Most Sweeping" Mobile Privacy Laws

et_al — Thu, 07 Mar 2013 17:32:24 -0500

Privacy experts say that a pair of new mobile privacy bills recently introduced in Texas are among the "most sweeping" ever seen. And they say the proposed legislation offers better protection than a related privacy bill introduced this week in Congress.

If passed, the new bills would establish a well-defined, probable-cause-driven warrant requirement for all location information. That's not just data from GPS, but potentially pen register, tap and trace, and tower location data as well. Such data would be disclosed to law enforcement "if there is probable cause to believe the records disclosing location information will provide evidence in a criminal investigation."

Feds Lose Pot Trial Without GPS

et_al — Tue, 05 Mar 2013 21:30:13 -0500

LegalTimes: For the U.S. Justice Department, the third time wasn't the charm in the high-profile drug prosecution of Washington nightclub owner Antoine Jones. A federal judge today declared a mistrial, the latest setback for the government after a loss in the U.S. Supreme Court last year. The trial was the third for Jones, who represented himself, and the government after an earlier mistrial in 2007 and then last year's historic Supreme Court ruling that voided Jones's life sentence. The high court concluded the warrantless use of a tracking device violated Jones' rights under the Fourth Amendment, a ruling whose scope is being assessed in courts across the country.

Lawyers Shut Up Unhappy Client

et_al — Sun, 03 Mar 2013 17:31:44 -0500

A few weeks ago McDonald's settled a class-action suit brought by Muslims regarding misrepresented food sold at one of its restaurants. After one of the class members didn't like the settlement and voiced his objections on his Facebook wall, the plaintiffs' lawyers who represented him as a class member -- and stand to get a hefty cut of the settlement -- filed in court demanding he take down the post and replace it with their own comments. The lawyers got a preliminary injunction against Majed Moughni's Facebook page. "Unbelievably enough, the court granted the motion and entered a preliminary injunction; finding that Moughni had made 'materially false, deceptive and misleading statements concerning the settlement ... and concerning the rights of the members of the Settlement Class," writes David Post on Volokh.Com.

Who Can Contest FISA Surveillance? Nobody

et_al — Wed, 27 Feb 2013 18:30:21 -0500

The Supreme Court on Tuesday turned back a challenge to a federal law that broadened the government's power to eavesdrop on international phone calls and e-mails. More broadly, the ruling illustrated how hard it is to mount court challenges to a wide array of antiterrorism measures, including renditions of terrorism suspects to foreign countries and targeted killings using drones, in light of the combination of government secrecy and judicial doctrines limiting access to the courts. Writing for the majority, Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. said that the journalists, lawyers and human rights advocates who challenged the constitutionality of the law could not show they had been harmed by it and so lacked standing to sue. The plaintiffs' fear that they would be subject to surveillance in the future was too speculative to establish standing, he wrote.

Houst Bill Unveiled to Legalize Medical Pot

et_al — Mon, 25 Feb 2013 16:42:28 -0500

Flanked by more than 150 advocates from around the country, Oregon Democrat Earl Blumenauer on Monday put forward his legislation allowing states to legalize medical marijuana in an effort to end the confusion surrounding federal pot policy.

Blumeanuer's legislation, which has 13 co-sponsors -- including GOP Rep. Dana Rohrabacher of California -- would create a framework for the FDA to eventually legalize medicinal marijuana. It would also block the feds from interfering in any of the 19 states where medical marijuana is legal.

Pozen: The Leaky Leviathan: ...Unlawful Disclosures...

et_al — Sun, 24 Feb 2013 21:16:15 -0500

Scroll down to the introduction to this draft article. A little long but interesting:

Ours is a polity saturated with, vexed by, and dependent upon leaks. The Bay of Pigs, the Pentagon Papers, warrantless wiretapping by the National Security Agency at home, targeted killings by the Central Intelligence Agency abroad: The contours of these and countless other government activities have emerged over the years through anonymous disclosures of confidential information to the press. Across the ideological spectrum, many Americans believe both that leaking "is a problem of major proportions" and that "our particular form of government wouldn't work without it." Episodically, leaks generate political frenzy.

Citizens United, Deja Vu All Over Again?

et_al — Thu, 21 Feb 2013 14:34:19 -0500

The Supreme Court's decision Tuesday to hear a campaign finance case, McCutcheon v. Federal Election Commission, in its next term gives the justices a chance to continue their dismantling of restrictions on money in politics, most notably with the landmark Citizens United v. FEC decision of early 2010.

With the new case, the court could strike a blow against fundraising limits for federal candidates and political parties.