News Items

  • Affidavit by Daniel Ellsberg for Plowshare Activists Being Allowed a Defense of Necessity

    In 1971 I gave the U.S. Senate, the New York Times and the Washington Post copies of what have come to be known as The Pentagon Papers. I was arrested on twelve felony counts. My trial was dismissed because of government misconduct which figured in the impeachment proceedings against President Nixon…These considerations bear on two other elements of the necessity defense, the “lack of legal alternatives” and the “imminence” of the harms to be averted. Again, I speak from my own experience, but not only mine, in saying that it is the perceived insufficiency of other means, by themselves not…

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  • A Long List of Democratic Candidates Requires a Large Catalog of Their Funders

    By Sam Haut: As the first debates for the Democratic primary begin, and the list of candidates has grown to 24, it can be difficult to contextualize where each candidate has received funding from over the course of their time in office. What follows is a list of the Democratic candidates and the top sources for how much money they’ve made and where those top sources come from.

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  • NATO and US Foreign Policy: Dangers Ahead

    RootsAction.org held a news conference Thursday on “NATO and U.S. Foreign Policy: Dangers Ahead” hosted by the Institute for Public Accuracy. Speakers include former State Department officials Matthew Hoh, Ann Wright, as well as Martin Fleck. The event was moderated by Norman Solomon.

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  • Media Advisory: “NATO and U.S. Foreign Policy: Dangers Ahead”

    At 10 a.m. Tuesday, April 2, 2019 at the National Press Club: On the same day that President Trump is scheduled to meet with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg at the White House, this news conference will focus on the U.S.-NATO relationship. Speakers include former State Department officials Matthew Hoh and Ann Wright.

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  • Statement by Floyd Abrams in response to Attorney General nominee William Barr’s remarks on the First Amendment

    “It’s one thing to say that there could be circumstances in which a journalist’s need to protect her sources could lead to a potential finding of contempt of court if she refused to obey a court order requiring such disclosure. But the notion that a journalist could properly be jailed for publishing material that the government thinks could ‘hurt the country’ is something else entirely and would be deeply threatening to First Amendment norms in general and journalistic freedom in particular.”

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  • Statement on NAFTA’s “Kafkaesque” Turn

    The supposedly concluded renegotiation of NAFTA has reached a Kafkaesque stage. As the United States Trade Representative has stated: “The United States and Mexico have reached a preliminary agreement in principle, subject to finalization and implementation.” Not only the negotiations have not been finalized, and without Canada, but the texts remain hidden from the public.

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  • What’s the Cost of Medicare for All?

    Even a Koch-backed think tank finds Medicare for all would cut health care spending. In a report released by the Mercatus Center, a single-payer health care system would offset costs with even greater savings. The Intercept and other media reporting on this are citing the work of Drs. David Himmelstein and Steffie Woolhandler. They are distinguished professors of health policy at the City University of New York at Hunter College and lecturers in medicine at Harvard Medical School. They have written an analysis of the work of the Koch-backed think tank, the Mercatus Center at George Mason University, which is…

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  • Trump Team Hired Israeli Spy Firm Used by Harvey Weinstein to Attack Obama Officials on Iran Deal

    “Aides to Donald Trump, the U.S. president, hired an Israeli private intelligence agency to orchestrate a ‘dirty ops’ campaign against key individuals from the Obama administration who helped negotiate the Iran nuclear deal, the Observer can reveal. People in the Trump camp contacted private investigators in May last year to ‘get dirt’ on Ben Rhodes, who had been one of Barack Obama’s top national security advisers, and Colin Kahl, deputy assistant to Obama, as part of an elaborate attempt to discredit the deal.”

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  • From the desk of Noam Chomsky

    From the desk of Noam Chomsky

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  • 15 Years Later: The Whistleblower Who Almost Blocked the Iraq War

    Media Advisory: Press Conference to Mark 15th Anniversary Of Leak by GCHQ Translator Katharine Gun Revealing US “Dirty Tricks” at UN for Iraq War When:  Thursday, 1 March 2018 at 11:00 a.m. Where:  Head office, National Union of Journalists Headland House, 72 Acton Street, London, WC1X 9NB Who:  Katharine Gun, Thomas Drake, Matthew Hoh, Jesselyn Radack This press conference will take place the day before the 15th anniversary of the Observer’s publication of the explosive March 2, 2003 story “US dirty tricks to win vote on Iraq war” — based on a leak by GCHQ translator Katharine Gun — revealing the US National Security Agency’s UN surveillance memo that aimed to grease the way for the…

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  • * Election Protection Wiki * Registration Concludes in Many States

    CONOR KENNY Kenny is the managing editor of the Election Protection Wiki. He said today: “Recent presidential elections were marred by controversies and disputes. Scores of organizations and thousands of individuals have been working to investigate and reform U.S. elections, issuing reports and information on topics such as electronic voting machines, voter suppression campaigns and…

  • The Financial Crisis: Now What?

    DAVID KOTZ Kotz is professor of economics at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. He said today: “The $700 billion Paulson bailout bill passed Congress, but as its critics warned, it has not stemmed — or even slowed — the financial crisis. It is great for the bankers, but it does nothing to solve the…

  • Voter Challenges: The Montana Example

    The Great Falls Tribune of Montana reports that “the Montana Republican Party … challenged the eligibility of 6,000 registered voters in six counties that historically are Democratic strongholds.” TERESA JAMES James is an attorney for the voting rights organization Project Vote and author of the 2007 report “Caging Democracy: A 50-Year History of Partisan Challenges…

  • 5,000 Doctors Challenge Private-Insurance System

    Over 5,000 U.S. physicians have signed an open letter calling on the candidates for president and Congress “to stand up for the health of the American people and implement a nonprofit, single-payer national health insurance system.” Noting that the nation’s private-insurance-based model is failing by denying needed medical care to millions, wasting resources and driving…

  • Youth “Apathy” and Access to the Political Process

    JENNIFER ROSENBERG WENDY WEISER Rosenberg is a voting rights fellow and Weiser is the deputy director at the Brennan Center for Justice at the New York University School of Law. The Brennan Center has published a student voting rights guide that identifies laws and regulations relevant for student voters in all states. Rosenberg said today:…

  • Fresh PSAs for Voter Registration Available

    Many states end voter registration on Oct. 6. A listing of voter registration deadlines by state is available online. New public service announcements for voter registration are available for stations to air. To register to vote, individuals should call 1-888-VOTE-SMART or go to ProjectVote.org. MICHAEL McDUNNAH Communications director for Project Vote, McDunnah is available for…

  • Voter Registration Deadlines — PSAs Available

    In the next several days, about half the states have their voter registration deadlines. The group ElectionPreparedness.com has produced a public service announcement encouraging people to register. The Institute for Public Accuracy strongly urges media outlets to encourage their audiences to ensure they are properly registered. To register to vote, individuals should call 1-888-VOTE-SMART or…

  • The VP Debate

    MICHELLE GOLDBERG Author of the book Kingdom Coming: The Rise of Christian Nationalism, Goldberg was recently in Alaska and wrote the pieces “Sarah Palin, 21st Century Theocrat” and “Palin’s preacher problem: Antisemitic remarks are not uncommon in churches that Sarah Palin has attended in Alaska.” RAY McGOVERN McGovern works with Tell the Word, the publishing…

  • The Rights of Students to Register and to Vote

    SUJATHA JAHAGIRDAR Jahagirdar is the program director for the New Voters Project of the Student Public Interest Research Group (PIRG). PIRG was founded 30 years ago, and the New Voters Project currently has a presence in 24 states and on 150 campuses. She said today: “The youth vote is on the rise. … Visiting campuses…

  • Bailout: “No Lasting Positive Effect”

    [NOTE: Correction* appended below.] JAMES THINDWA FRAN TOBIN The group Jobs with Justice is organizing protests around the country today. Thindwa is executive director of Chicago Jobs with Justice; Tobin is the group’s Midwest regional organizer. The protest in Chicago begins at noon Chicago time in front of the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago. JOHN…

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