Exclusive: The Secret War Against Iran
“A Pakistani tribal militant group responsible for a series of deadly guerrilla raids inside Iran has been secretly encouraged and advised by American officials since 2005, U.S. and Pakistani intelligence sources tell ABC News. US officials say the relationship is arranged so that the US provides no funding to the group, which would require an official presidential order or “finding” as well as congressional oversight.” (ABC’s The Blotter)
Schumer Defies Justice
“Sen. Charles Schumer (D-NY) last week ignored a plea from the Bush administration by demanding that Kyle Sampson name other U.S. attorneys the Justice Department had been planning to fire. Schumerâs query to the former chief of staff to Attorney General Alberto Gonzales at last Thursdayâs Judiciary Committee hearing is notable because he made it in highly public fashion after the Justice Department already gave him access to the answer.” (The Hill)
New Mexico GOPs Face More Questions About Iglesias
“Statements from Sampson, who served as chief of staff to Attorney General Alberto Gonzales before resigning last month, to the Judiciary Committee last Thursday are placing additional pressure on New Mexico GOP Sen. Pete Domenici (R-NM) and Rep. Heather Wilson (R-NM) for making potentially coercive calls made to US Attorney David Iglesias. Domenici and Wilson dispute the nature of the calls; the Senate Ethics Committee has opened an investigation into the matter, while members of the House ethics panel have refused to comment on whether theyâve launched a probe.” (The Hill)
Police Log Confirms FBI Role in Arrests
“A secret FBI intelligence unit helped detain a group of war protesters in a downtown Washington parking garage in April 2002 and interrogated some of them on videotape about their political and religious beliefs, newly uncovered documents and interviews show. For years, the FBI and D.C. police said they had no records of such an incident.” (Washington Post)
NIH Sidelines Contractor in Conflict Inquiry
“The National Institutes of Health has temporarily suspended a federal contractor that had been reviewing the health dangers of chemicals for the government while also working for the chemical industry. For eight years, Sciences International, an Alexandria, Va., consulting firm, played a major management and scientific role at the federal Center for the Evaluation of Risks to Human Reproduction, which is responsible for deciding which chemicals harm human reproduction.” (LA Times)
