Breaking: Perpetual wars, deadly vaccines we can believe in: House Approves $106B Supplemental War, Vaccine Spending Bill –Wasted billions includes $7.7 for pharma-terrorists’ flu vaccines 16 Jun 2009 The House has narrowly approved a $106 billion bill to ensure financing for war operations in Iraq and Afghanistan over the coming months. The vote was 226-202. The measure contains about $80 billion to fund defense activities in Iraq and Afghanistan through the end of September. It also contains some $10 billion for foreign aid, $7.7 billion to combat foment the flu pandemic, and $1 billion in rebates for consumers who turn in their old cars for more fuel-efficient models. [The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over again and expecting different results.]
Schools put on notice they may be turned into shot clinics 16 Jun 2009 Schoolchildren could be first in line for [deadly] swine flu vaccine this fall — and schools are being put on notice that they might even be turned into shot clinics. Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said Tuesday she is urging school superintendents around the country to spend the summer preparing for that possibility, if the government goes ahead with mass vaccinations. [See: Baxter working on vaccine to stop swine flu, though admitted sending live pandemic flu viruses to subcontractor 26 Apr 2009.]
Newly Released Detainee Statements Provide More Evidence of CIA Torture Program –CIA Continues to Suppress Information From Detainee Tribunals With Heavy Redactions (ACLU) 15 Jun 2009 The CIA today released still-highly redacted documents in which Guantánamo Bay prisoners describe abuse and torture they suffered in CIA custody. The documents were released as part of an American Civil Liberties Union Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit seeking uncensored transcripts from Combatant Status Review Tribunals (CSRTs) that determine if prisoners held by the Defense Department at Guantánamo qualify as “enemy combatants.” In previously released versions of the documents, the CIA had removed virtually all references to the abuse of prisoners in their custody; the documents released today are still heavily blacked out but include some new information.
Accused 9/11 mastermind: ‘I make up stories’ 15 Jun 2009 Accused al Qaeda [al-CIAduh] mastermind Khalid Sheik Mohammed complained that interrogators tortured lies out of him, according to newly released sections of government transcripts. ”I make up stories,” Mohammed said at one point in his 2007 hearing at Guantánamo Bay. In broken English, he described an interrogation in which he was asked the location of al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden. ”Where is he? I don’t know,” Mohammed said. ‘Then he torture me. Then I said, ‘Yes, he is in this area or this is al Qaeda which I don’t know him.’ I said no, they torture me.” Yet at the same military tribunal hearing, Mohammed ticked off a list of 29 terror plots in which he took part.
CIA Mistaken on ‘High-Value’ Detainee, Document Shows –Abu Zubaida was held at secret CIA facility then transferred to Camp 7 at Gitmo. He was subjected 83 times to waterboarding. 16 Jun 2009 An ‘al-Qaeda’ associate captured by the CIA and subjected to harsh interrogation techniques torture said his jailers later told him they had mistakenly thought he was the No. 3 man in the organization’s hierarchy and a partner of Osama bin Laden, according to newly released excerpts from a 2007 hearing. “They told me, ‘Sorry, we discover that you are not Number 3, not a partner, not even a fighter,’ ” said Abu Zubaida, speaking in broken English, according to the new transcript of a Combatant Status Review Tribunal held at the U.S. military prison in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. President [sic] George W. Bush described Abu Zubaida in 2002 as “al-Qaeda’s chief of operations.” Abu Zubaida, a nom de guerre for Zayn al-Abidin Muhammed Hussein, told the 2007 panel of military officers at the detention facility in Cuba that “doctors told me that I nearly died four times” and that he endured “months of suffering and torture” on the false premise that he was an al-Qaeda leader.
US troops ask Syria to thwart al-Qa’ida offensive –Iraqi authorities say militants will launch attacks in order to claim credit for American military withdrawal 17 Jun 2009 The Iraqi government expects al-Qa’ida and Baathist ‘insurgent’ groups to launch a wave of attacks so they can take credit for compelling the US military to leave Iraqi cities by 30 June, according to a senior Iraqi minister. An American military team was dispatched from Baghdad to Damascus at the weekend to demand that Syria help choke off a guerrilla offensive by imposing greater control over its border with Iraq, Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari revealed in an interview with The Independent.
In Iraq, prisoners go on hunger strike over abuse 16 Jun 2009 Iraqi prisoners have staged a full-scale hunger strike in protest at reported calculated abuse aimed at forcing false confessions out of them. On Friday, Iraqi lawmakers televised a request for an independent inquiry into reported cases of abuse and death in the country’s prisons. Sunni lawmaker Salim al-Juburi from the National Concord Front lawmaker said that “there were violations that resulted in the deaths of detainees” in two prisons in Diyala province, northeast of Baghdad. “Eleven prisoners were victims of torture and sexual abuse in a building run by the Interior Ministry,” claimed Falah Shanshel of the Sadrist bloc.
Generals go to war over Iraq inquiry –Secret investigation will be seen as cover-up, warn Army and intelligence chiefs 17 Jun 2009 Senior military and intelligence officers have condemned Gordon Brown’s decision to hold the Iraq war inquiry in secret, warning that it looks like a cover-up. Military leaders, who have lost 179 personnel in Iraq, want their actions judged by the public, and intelligence officials say that politicians’ manipulation of intelligence should be thoroughly examined. The pressure on No 10 mounted yesterday as the shadow Foreign Secretary, William Hague, tabled a Commons debate for next week demanding that inquiry evidence be heard in public.
Gordon Brown is condemned over secret inquiry into Iraq war –Prime Minister cited national security as the reason 16 Jun 2009 The Prime Minister faced accusations of an “establishment stitch-up” after telling MPs that an investigation into the events leading up to the invasion of Iraq and the removal of Saddam Hussein would be held behind closed doors. He cited national security as the reason — a claim attacked by MPs of all sides and the families of soldiers killed in the conflict. Mr Brown said the inquiry’s findings would not be published until after next year’s general election.
Anger over ‘secret Iraq inquiry’ 16 Jun 2009 Opposition parties and campaigners have condemned Gordon Brown’s decision to hold an independent inquiry into the Iraq war behind closed doors. Tory leader David Cameron accused Mr Brown of “an establishment stitch-up”, while the Lib Dems threatened to boycott the “secret” inquiry. John Miller, whose son Simon was killed in Iraq in 2003, said private hearings would be marred by “lies and deceit”.
In reversal, GOP balks at war funding 15 Jun 2009 House Republicans are preparing to vote en bloc against the $106 billion war-spending bill, a position once unthinkable for the party that characterized the money as support for the troops. For years, Republicans portrayed the bills funding the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan as matters of national security and accused Democrats who voted against them of voting against the troops. But Republicans say this year is different. [LOL!] Democrats have included a $5 billion increase for the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to help aid nations affected by the global financial crisis. Republicans say that is reason enough to vote against the entire $106 billion spending bill and are certain voters will understand.
Palestinian human rights group to challenge UK on Israel in High Court 16 Jun 2009 Britain’s High Court of Justice is set to consider a charge presented by a Palestinian human rights group on Thursday accusing the UK government of failing to meet its obligations under international law following Operation Cast Lead. Representing Ramallah-based organization Al-Haq, Birmingham lawyers Public Interest Lawyers (PIL) is calling on the UK to comply with all of its obligations under international law. “The British government has not only failed to take any effective measures in preventing Israel’s ongoing unlawful behavior, it has positively aided it by continuing to supply arms to it,” Al-Haq and PIL contend.”
‘Hamas foiled plot to assassinate Carter in Gaza’ 16 Jun 2009 Hamas has foiled an attempt by ‘Palestinian militants’ to attack former U.S. president Jimmy Carter during his visit to the Gaza Strip, a Palestinian source told news agencies on Tuesday. According to the source, militants linked with Al-Qaida [al-CIAduh] planted two roadside bombs at a border crossing between Gaza and Israel with the intent of striking Carter’s vehicle on his way out of the coastal territory. Witnesses reported seeing Hamas forces patrolling near the Erez crossing and detonating the explosives.
Rival groups rally in Tehran 16 Jun 2009 Tens of thousands of opposition and pro-government demonstrators have held rallies in the Iranian capital, raising fears of possible clashes. Thousands of people gathered at a government-organised rally in Tehran’s central Vali Asr square on Tuesday, while a similar-sized demonstration was held by opposition supporters in the city’s north.
Ahmadinejad supporters hold unity rally 16 Jun 2009 Hundreds of thousands of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s supporters gather in a central Tehran square to call for unity and respect for the people’s vote. The ralliers met once again at Valli-Asr Square, where they had gathered on Sunday to celebrate the results of the country’s Friday elections with Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who according to figures released by the interior ministry won a second term in office with 63 percent of the votes.
Iran says ready for partial vote recount 16 Jun 2009 Iran’s Guardian Council says it is prepared to recount disputed ballot boxes as defeated presidential candidate Mir-Hossein Moussavi calls for the annulment of the vote. “We are ready to recount those boxes that some presidential candidates claim to have been cheated,” said Council spokesman Abbas-Ali Kadkhodaei Tuesday.
Afghan officials demand AJE report 16 Jun 2009 Afghan intelligence services holding two Al Jazeera producers have demanded a copy of a report the pair made two days before their detention. Al Jazeera was on Tuesday still awaiting information from the authorities about Qais Azimy and Hameedullah Shah, who were detained after being told to report to the country’s intelligence headquarters in Kabul two days before.
Obama vows to defend South Korea 16 Jun 2009 US President Barack Obama has reaffirmed Washington’s commitment to defend South Korea amid tension with the North over its nuclear program. “We have reaffirmed the endurance of our alliance and America’s commitment to the defense of the Republic of Korea,” Obama said in Washington on Tuesday after talks with visiting South Korean President Lee Myung-Bak.
Police watchdog to investigate Taser use 17 Jun 2009 The police watchdog will investigate the alleged repeated use of a Taser on a man in a city centre, as the victim said he will take legal action against officers. The Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) said it would be independently investigating the incident in which a man was apparently repeatedly fired at with a stun gun by police during a night out. A police officer was also apparently seen to punch the man three times to the head area during the arrest in Nottingham in the early hours of Monday.
‘Billions in US bonds’ seized on Swiss border 13 Jun 2009 Italian financial police said Friday they were holding two Japanese men stopped on the Swiss border with US bonds allegedly worth 134 billion dollars, or nearly 100 billion euros. The two men were trying to enter Switzerland from Italy by train when they were checked by customs at Chiasso after saying they had nothing to declare. The financial police at Como said 249 US Federal Reserve bonds with a face value of 500 million dollars each were found in a false-bottomed suitcase along with 10 so-called Kennedy bonds worth one billion dollars apiece.
Good Government Group Sues for White House Visitors’ Logs 16 Jun 2009 The good-government group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, or CREW, filed a lawsuit today to force the President Obama to share White House visitors logs with the public. “We’re suing because the Obama Administration has made it clear that they are continuing the policies and practices of the Bush administration and claiming that White House visitors’ records are off limits to the public,” said Anne Weismann, chief counsel for CREW. Last month CREW requested through the Freedom of Information Act that the Secret Service provide the organization with information related to top coal executives visiting the White House.
Obama blocks list of visitors to White House –Taking Bush’s position, administration denies msnbc.com request for logs 16 Jun 2009 The Obama administration is fighting to block access to names of visitors to the White House, taking up the Bush regime argument that a president doesn’t have to reveal who comes calling to influence policy decisions. Despite President Barack Obama’s pledge to introduce a new era of transparency to Washington, and despite two rulings by a federal judge that the records are public, the Secret Service has denied msnbc.com’s request for the names of all White House visitors from Jan. 20 to the present. It also denied a narrower request by the nonpartisan watchdog group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, which sought logs of visits by executives of coal companies.
‘We are fighting for our lives and our dignity’ –Across the globe, as mining and oil firms race for dwindling resources, indigenous peoples are battling to defend their lands — often paying the ultimate price By John Vidal 13 Jun 2009 It has been called the world’s second “oil war”, but the only similarity between Iraq and events in the jungles of northern Peru over the last few weeks has been the mismatch of force. On one side have been the police armed with automatic weapons, teargas, helicopter gunships and armoured cars. On the other are several thousand Awajun and Wambis Indians, many of them in war paint and armed with bows and arrows and spears. In some of the worst violence seen in Peru in 20 years, the Indians this week warned Latin America what could happen if companies are given free access to the Amazonian forests to exploit an estimated 6bn barrels of oil and take as much timber they like.
Obama to propose strict new regulation of financial industry 16 Jun 2009 The Obama administration this week will propose the most significant new regulation of the financial industry since the Great Depression, including a new watchdog agency to look out for consumers’ interests. Under the plan, expected to be released Wednesday, the government would have new powers to seize key companies — such as insurance giant American International Group Inc. — whose failure jeopardizes the financial system. Currently, the government’s authority to seize companies is mostly limited to banks.
Gas prices pass $3 a gallon 16 Jun 2009 Oh brother, Californians dealing with double-digit unemployment, steep wage cuts and bleak 401(k) reports are getting hammered again. Gas prices crossed the $3 threshold in California on Monday, hitting an average of $3.01 a gallon, the highest since Halloween and $1.21 a gallon more than we were paying at Christmas. A 15-gallon fill-up now costs $18.15 more than it did in December. [Maybe next time Californians won't be fooled by the GOP-run media into installing a corporate troll/Nazi as governor.]
UK: Hard to eradicate risk some allies use torture –Miliband: Disclosing documents could jeopardize Britain’s intelligence relationship with US 16 Jun 2009 Britain has abandoned some attempts to gather intelligence from prisoners held overseas for fear they may be abused, the foreign secretary said Tuesday. But David Miliband also said he could not guarantee that Britain’s allies would refrain from abusing detainees. Former Guantanamo prisoner Binyam Mohamed accused Britain of colluding with the United States in his alleged torture in Pakistan and Morocco. London police are deciding whether there is evidence that British intelligence officials should face criminal charges over allegations that they were complicit in the alleged torture of Mohammed. Separately, British courts are considering several lawsuits filed by men who claim the U.K. was aware of their mistreatment overseas.
A succour-free zone: David Miliband refuses to publish old MI5 guidelines on interrogation “Information on interrogation procedures might be given to their lawyers, but that was ‘not the same as putting it on the internet.’” 16 Jun 2009 David Miliband, the Foreign Secretary, has said he will not publish earlier guidance for MI5 and MI6 on how to carry out interrogations, despite promises to publish the current version of the rules when they have been “consolidated and reviewed”. Under questioning by the parliamentary Foreign Affairs Select Committee, Mr Miliband said publishing earlier guidelines could “give succour to our enemies” and that the rules had only become “more formal” after 2004. The Prime Minister promised to publish the current rules last March.
CIA pushing Obama to uphold torture secrecy 17 Jun 2009 The US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) is urging President Barack Obama to forestall efforts aimed at releasing parts of confidential torture memos seen as ‘damaging.’ According to US media, CIA is endeavoring to cover up large sections of a 2004 internal report that depicts officers administering “degrading” interrogation techniques to detainees held on suspicions of ‘terror’ activities.
US funds terror groups to sow chaos in Iran –America is secretly funding militant ethnic separatist groups in Iran in an attempt to pile pressure on the government. 25 Feb 2007 CIA officials are understood to be helping opposition militias among the numerous ethnic minority groups clustered in Iran’s border regions. The operations are controversial because they involve dealing with movements that resort to terrorist methodsterrorists in pursuit of their grievances against the Iranian regime. In the past year there has been a wave of unrest in ethnic minority border areas of Iran, with bombing and assassination campaigns against soldiers and government officials… Funding for their separatist causes comes directly from the CIA’s classified budget but is now “no great secret”, according to one former high-ranking CIA official in Washington who spoke anonymously to The Sunday Telegraph. His claims were backed by Fred Burton, a former US state department counter-terrorism agent, who said: “The latest attacks inside Iran fall in line with US efforts to supply and train Iran’s ethnic minorities to destabilise the Iranian regime.” [Let's see. If Iran 'dealt with movements that resorted to terrorist methods' against the US, the US would have declared war on Iran in what, five pico-seconds? And, LieberBush/Boner (Boehner) would be yelping for Obama's impeachment because five pico-seconds would not be quick enough. --LRP]
US seeking ‘international front’ against Iran 17 Jun 2009 The United States has raised the idea of an ‘international front’ against, what it has long been referring to as, ‘wrongful’ pursuits on the part of Iran. On Wednesday, US Deputy Defense Secretary William Lynn depicted the formation that included Russian surveillance structures. “We are exploring the cooperation with the Russians,” he said.
Iran TV Accuses U.S. of ‘Intolerable’ Meddling as Protesters Hit the Streets Again 17 Jun 2009 Supporters of Iranian opposition leader Mir Hossein Mousavi are marching again on the streets of Tehran today, state [as opposed to corporate] TV reported. It’s the fifth consecutive day of protests since last week’s controversial presidential election… Also today, Iranian state TV accused the United States of “intolerable” meddling in its internal affairs, The Associated Press reported. The statement echoes Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s claim over the weekend that the foreign media is engaged in psychological warfare against the Iranian people.
White House: US not meddling in Iran’s affairs 17 Jun 2009 The US has dismissed the remarks made by Iran that the White House is interfering in the country’s internal affairs by commenting on the election dispute. Earlier, Iran summoned the Swiss envoy to Tehran, who represents US interests, to protest against “interfering remarks” by US officials on last week’s presidential election, Iran’s state-run television reported. [See: US funds terror groups to sow chaos in Iran 25 Feb 2007 and US seeking 'international front' against Iran 17 Jun 2009.]
Sarkozy says Iran election a ‘fraud’ [He should know.] 17 Jun 2009 As the landslide victory of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in Iran’s disputed election provoked unrest, French President Nicolas Sarkozy denounces the result of Friday’s vote as a “fraud.” “The extent of the fraud is proportional to the violent reaction,” Sarkozy said Tuesday. “It is a tragedy, but it is not negative to have a real-opinion movement that tries to break its chains.” [And, where was Sarkozy when Bush bin Laden stole *two* presidential 'elections' in the US? Oh, that's right. Sarkozy -- and 99% of the US media -- were burrowing as deep as possible up Bush's butt. --LRP]
‘Israel hatching new plot in ME’ 17 Jun 2009 Hezbollah leader Seyyed Hassan Nasrallah says the recent speech by Israel’s Prime Minister suggests that the regime is hatching a new “plot” against the region. “What is happening in the region is a US-Israeli plan. There is a scheme with a clear division of roles between the US and Israel to divide the Arab region,” Nasrallah said on Wednesday.
U.S. to issue new uniforms for troops in Afghanistan 18 Jun 2009 The U.S. House of Representatives has required the Pentagon to issue new uniforms for troops in Afghanistan after hearing complaints that camouflage that was fine in Iraq doesn’t work well in Afghanistan. The requirement was included in a 106-billion-U.S.-dollar war funding bill which passed the House on Tuesday night, the Military Times reported on Wednesday.
N.S.A.’s Pinwale Examines Large Volumes of US E-mail Messages Without Court Warrants –E-Mail Surveillance Renews Concerns in Congress 17 Jun 2009 The National Security Agency is facing renewed scrutiny over the extent of its domestic surveillance program, with critics in Congress saying its recent intercepts of the private telephone calls and e-mail messages of Americans are broader than previously acknowledged, current and former officials said. A former N.S.A. analyst who, in a series of interviews, described being trained in 2005 for a program [Pinwale] in which the agency routinely examined large volumes of Americans’ e-mail messages without court warrants. Two intelligence officials confirmed that the program was still in operation.
Audit Finds U.S. Overpaid Blackwater By $55 Million 17 Jun 2009 A government audit found that the State Department overpaid the contract-security firm once known as Blackwater Worldwide by tens of millions of dollars because the company failed to properly staff its teams in Iraq. The report said the State Department should have withheld at least $55 million in payments to the company because of the shortfalls.
KBR Should Refund U.S. Payments for War Insurance, Auditors Say 16 Jun 2009 KBR Inc., the largest U.S. contractor in Iraq, should be pressed to return part of $27.6 million the Pentagon paid for the company’s war insurance premiums in 2003, according to Pentagon auditors. The Defense Contract Audit Agency recommended contracting officials begin withholding payments on future contracts if KBR doesn’t provide paperwork documenting that the insurance premium billings in 2003 were reasonable.
CIA Fights Disclosure of Interrogation Report –White House Urged to Maintain Secrecy 17 Jun 2009 The CIA is pushing the Obama administration to maintain the secrecy of significant portions of a comprehensive internal account of the agency’s interrogation program, according to two intelligence officials. The officials say the CIA is urging the suppression of passages describing in graphic detail how the agency handled its detainees, arguing that the material could damage ongoing counterterrorism operations by laying bare sensitive intelligence procedures and methods.
Obama, Lee warn North Korea; missile on the move 17 Jun 2009 The leaders of South Korea and the United States told North Korea to drop its atomic ambitions and stop threatening the region while media reports on Wednesday said Pyongyang was moving ahead with plans to launch a long-range missile. After a summit with South Korean President Lee Myung-bak in Washington on Tuesday, U.S. President Barack Obama said a nuclear-armed North Korea would pose a “grave threat” to the world. [Yes, only certain nuclear-armed countries are 'grave threats' to the world. Allies of the US -- albeit nuclear armed -- do not pose a 'grave threat' to the world.]
DHS Conducts Continuity of Operations Exercise (DHS) 17 Jun 2009 The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) conducted an exercise to test the readiness and capabilities of federal departments and agencies–coordinating with the White House–to execute their Continuity of Operations (COOP) plans today. The exercise, known as Eagle Horizon, is a mandatory annual exercise for all executive branch departments and agencies coordinated by DHS through the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and its National Continuity Programs (NCP) Directorate… Emergency Relocation Group members were sent by their respective agencies to pre-planned alternate locations and asked to implement COOP procedures.
President Obama Calls on Americans to Serve –Unveils ‘United We Serve’ Initiative to Be Led by Corporation for National and Community Service (AmeriCorps) 17 Jun 2009 President Obama called on all Americans to help in our nation’s recovery by volunteering in their communities this summer in a video messagereleased today by the White House and the Corporation for National and Community Service… The United We Serve initiative kicks off on June 22, and runs for 81 days through a new National Day of Service and Remembrance on September 11.
US hate crimes spike 17 Jun 2009 The election of Mr Barack Obama as the first African-American US president, the financial crisis and immigration have formed a lethal cocktail leading to a spike in hate crimes, rights leaders warned on Tuesday. ‘This toxic combination of the financial crisis, a significant political change, and concern about shifting demographics has created what could be a combustible combination,’ Mr Wade Henderson, head of the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights, told reporters.
Bachmann Boasts About Breaking The Law: I’m Refusing to Fill Out the Census By By Ali Frick 17 Jun 2009 Next year, the 2010 Census will be sent to every American household, as required by the U.S. Constitution. The far right has issued dire warnings of the Census; on a May 29th episode of Bill Bennett’s radio show, RNC Chairman Michael Steele intoned, “Certainly the collection of this information is going to be part of an ongoing political campaign by this administration.” In an interview with the Washington Time’s right-wing radio show this morning, Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN) declared that she would break the law and refuse to answer the Census questions, beyond noting the number of people in her household.
Obama pushes reform to restore investor confidence –Obama envisions Federal Reserve as risk regulator17 Jun 2009 President Barack Obama will lay out on Wednesday his vision for reshaping U.S. financial regulation, aiming to tighten oversight of the largest firms whose excessive risk-taking triggered a global recession. The proposals will include closing one bank regulator and creating new overseers for big-picture economic risk and consumer financial product safety, according to a document detailing the administration’s proposal.
Breaking: Senate OKs bill to keep detainee abuse photos private –If Congress doesn’t keep pictures private, White House will, senator says 17 Jun 2009 The Senate Wednesday passed by unanimous consent a bill that would prevent the release of controversial photos of alleged U.S. abuse of prisoners and detainees. The bill, sponsored by Sens. Joe Lieberman, R-Israel, and Lindsey Graham, R-South Carolina, had originally been part of the war funding supplemental bill passed Tuesday by the House. But House Democrats stripped that part of the measure from the bill, and the senators proposed it as stand-alone legislation. Earlier Wednesday, Graham said at a Judiciary Committee hearing that he had received assurance from White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel“that the president will not let these photos see the light of day.” [CLG is willing to publish them. All-around hypocrite -- Joe LieberBush -- doesn't decide what should or shouldn't see the light of day (while condemning Iran for blocking text messages and Tweets of anti-government demonstrations), in an effort to hide evidence of US abuse/torture of prisoners and other war crimes. --LRP]
