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Holder: If My Independence Is Compromised, I'll Resign
Politics on HuffingtonPost.com —
Midway through the day, Eric Holder's confirmation hearings have contained moments of contention and brevity. But the one thread that stands out is just how much wholesale change is wanted by -- and being promised to -- members of the Judiciary Committee.
Over the course of several hours, Holder pledged to end the practice of waterboarding, review the process of warrantless wiretapping, and end politicization of the Justice Department. One of the stated priorities of the president-elect, the closure of Guantanamo Bay, was also on the to-do list. But that venture, Holder acknowledged, would be held up in the short term by institutional barriers.
"Guantanamo Bay ...
Holder: If My Independence Is Compromised, I'll Resign
The Huffington Post | Full News Feed —
Midway through the day, Eric Holder's confirmation hearings have contained moments of contention and brevity. But the one thread that stands out is just how much wholesale change is wanted by -- and being promised to -- members of the Judiciary Committee.
Over the course of several hours, Holder pledged to end the practice of waterboarding, review the process of warrantless wiretapping, and end politicization of the Justice Department. One of the stated priorities of the president-elect, the closure of Guantanamo Bay, was also on the to-do list. But that venture, Holder acknowledged, would be held up in the short term by institutional barriers.
"Guantanamo Bay ...
FISA court expected to rule that President can wiretap without a court order.
Think Progress —
The New York Times’ reports that the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court is expected to issue a major ruling validating “the power of the president and Congress to wiretap international phone calls and intercept e-mail messages without a court order,”even when U.S. residents’ personal communications are involved:
In validating the government’s wide authority to collect foreign intelligence, it may offer legal credence to the Bush administration’s repeated assertions that the president has constitutional authority to act without specific court approval in ordering national security ...
Holder on Executive Authority
Daily Kos —
What a breath of fresh air Eric Holder's confirmation hearing was. From "Waterboarding is torture," to this exchange, we're going to have a real lawyer at the helm again. FEINGOLD: Is there anything in the FISA statute that makes you believe that the president has the ability under some other inherent power to disregard the FISA statute? HOLDER: No, I do not see that in the FISA statute. That's important for the editorial board of the Wall Street Journal and for the LA Times to note. Here's Media Matters: A January ...
