Obama’s Preventive Detention Plans Face Scrutiny 22 May 2009 The Obama administration’s efforts to craft what it calls a “preventive detention” plan for suspected terrorists will face constitutional challenges similar to those raised against the Bush regime’s policies. A White House task force reviewing detention policy is set to make recommendations in late July. The administration has floated with Congress apossible plan that would seek legislation allowing the government to hold suspected terrorists without trial indefinitely on U.S. soil… Civil liberties and human rights groups who criticized the Bush administration’s detention policies are definitive in their opposition to Mr. Obama’s plans. “It’s really crossing a constitutional Rubicon,” said Jonathan Hafetz, American Civil Liberties Union attorney who represented Ali al Marri.
The Obama-Cheney “debate” and the threat of dictatorship in America By Joe Kishore 22 May 2009 Whatever his criticisms of the Bush administration’s policies, Obama defends its basic aims. On domestic policy, he is continuing the massive handouts to the banks and Wall Street investors. On military policy, he is continuing the occupation of Iraq, while expanding the war in Afghanistan and Pakistan. His argument for legality is undermined by the fact that his administration has restarted military commissions, refused to publish torture photos, and in general maintained the anti-democratic measures of his predecessor. Whatever verbal warnings Obama may make about the erosion of democracy in the United States, the actions of his administration facilitate and accelerate its breakdown. It is impossible to combine imperialist war with democracy. The latter cannot survive without opposing the former.
CIA agents lose bid to halt trial over rendition 22 May 2009 The landmark trial of American and Italian spies accused of abducting an Egyptian cleric in Milan will continue, a judge has ruled, rejecting a defence bid to end the proceedings. The ruling was a victory for prosecutors in the first trial to examine the “rendition” process, in which the CIA allegedly abducted suspects abroad and sent them to other countries forharsh interrogation torture.
Senate Approves $91 Billion Funding Bill for Iraq, Afghan Wars –Total costs for both wars to top $900B 22 May 2009 The U.S. Senate approved a $91 billion spending bill that would fund President Barack Obama’s troop buildup in Afghanistan and block a lawsuit seeking to force the release of photos showing abuse of war prisoners. The vast majority of the money in the bill would fund military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, pushing total costs for the two wars to more than $900 billion.
Israeli toxic waste threatens Palestinian life 22 May 2009 Tel Aviv illegally dumps hazardous waste in the Palestinian West Bank, gifting cancer, sterility and mental disorders to the local population. In an exclusive interview with Press TV, Deputy Director of the Palestinian environmental authority, Jamil Mtoor, confirmed that Israel cuts disposal costs by discarding its waste on Palestinian territory at the expense of the population. “For several years, Israeli companies have been dumping solid and hazardous waste in different West Bank villages,” Mtoor said
