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Detainee Denies Ties to Al-Qaida
“A Palestinian terror suspect once described by President Bush as a trusted deputy of Osama bin Laden told a military hearing at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, last month that he wasn’t a member of al-Qaida, had met bin Laden only once and that the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks were a violation of Islamic law. The detainee, Zayn al-Abidin Muhammed Hussein, but better known as Abu Zubaydah, also claimed that he was tortured during the more than three years he was held in secret CIA detention before he was turned over to U.S. military authorities and flown to the Guantanamo Bay prison for suspected terrorists last September.” (McClatchy Newspapers)

Trial Opens in Florida for Padilla, 2 Others
“More than a dozen prospective jurors were questioned Monday as jury selection began in the trial of Jose Padilla and two co-defendants accused of providing material support to terrorists. Judge Marcia G. Cooke of Federal District Court ruled that prosecutors could make reference to the Sept. 11 attacks. But Judge Cooke said they would not be allowed to suggest that Mr. Padilla, a Brooklyn-born American who was declared an enemy combatant by President Bush in 2002, and his co-defendants had been involved in the attacks.” (NY Times)

Clear Channel Gives Tate Talking Points Against XM-Sirius Merger
“Federal Communications Commissioner Deborah Tate has received talking points against the proposed satellite radio XM-Sirius merger from Clear Channel Radio, one of the country’s biggest radio broadcasters and an ardent opponent of the deal. Clear Channel Vice President Thomas English gave Tate three possible responses – each written in the first-person – in an attempt to help the commissioner reconcile her previous statements in favor of relaxing media ownership limits with the broadcasters’ position against the satellite radio merger.” (Center for Public Integrity)

Act now on Lobby Reform, Watchdogs Tell House
“Growing nervous over possible further delay, ethics reform groups have stepped up their pressure on the House to introduce its companion piece to the Senate’s lobbying reform bill. As a part of a coalition supporting reform, grassroots groups such as Public Citizen and U.S. Public Interest Research Group (PIRG) have asked their members to contact Congress to push for the bill.” (The Hill)

CIA Chief Complains About Agency’s Critics in Europe
“CIA Director Michael V. Hayden has taken the unusual step of complaining privately to European diplomats about officials in their countries criticizing U.S. intelligence programs that involve renditions, detentions and interrogations of terrorism suspects. At a luncheon last month at the German Embassy in Washington, Hayden gave a frank report on the controversial counterterrorism programs and spoke of his concern about the inaccurate information surrounding them and the “unbounded criticism” directed at them, particularly from the European Parliament, according to Western diplomats and officials aware of his remarks.” (Washington Post)

Florida-13 Task Force to Hold First Meeting
“The task force assigned to look into voting irregularities in Florida’s 13th district congressional election will hold its first meeting today at 10 a.m. The panel will investigate 18,000 ballots in Sarasota County that did not contain votes for the race.” (The Hill)

Conyers Seeks to Interview More Justice Officials
“House Judiciary Chairman John Conyers, Jr. (D-Mich.) has asked the Justice Department to interview eight additional employees in his committee’s ongoing probe into the firing of eight U.S. attorneys.The list includes four federal prosecutors who have been in the news recently as the scandal unfolds.” (The Politico)

Rep. Young Retains Law Firm
“Rep. Don Young’s (R-AK) campaign has retained a Washington law firm to represent him in connection with campaign contributions from a Wisconsin trucking executive who is now under indictment. Young hired the D.C. legal team around March 12, as the U.S Attorney’s office in Milwaukee was looking into campaign contributions by businessman Dennis Troha.” (McClatchy Papers)

To Conceal Donors, Some Political Groups Look to the Tax Codes
“An increasing number of organizations working to influence elections also are working to hide who is paying for their activities. Several political organizations colloquially known as 527s are relying more on or switching into 501(c)(4) groups, the type of tax-exempt entity that the tax code uses for advocacy groups.” (Washington Post)

Foley, GOPers Pay for scandal with Campagin Funds
“Former Congressman Mark Foley has spent more than $250,000 of his campaign funds on lawyers since he was exposed for having inappropriate sexual conversations with minors online. The law allows Foley to pay Zuckerman Spaeder LLP from his pot of over $1.5 million in campaign funds that he had amassed prior to the scandal.” (ABC’s The Blotter)

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