1/30 - Annie Duke
- Oprah. Oprah Winfrey criticized author James Frey of lying in his book "A Million Little Pieces" in a January 26 show (on-line here). The book was featured on Oprah Winfrey's book club in October 2005, but questions were raised after an investigation by The Smoking Gun website (on-line here).
- Reference to "Truthiness." The American Dialect Society did announce on January 6 (release on-line here) that "truthiness" had been voted word of the year and did recognize the Colbert Report as the first use of the word. The American Dialect Society defined "truthiness" as "the quality of stating concepts or facts one wishes or believes to be true, rather than concepts or facts known to be true." An Associated Press article about the American Dialect Society release did not mention the Colbert Report.
- The Word: Abortion/Unscripted. The Senate voted 72-25 on January 30 to allow senators to vote to confirm Supreme Court nominee Judge Samuel A. Alito Jr. and is expected to confirm Alito on January 31. Alito's nomination has been hailed by conservatives because of Alito's prior rulings on abortion cases and other documents that strongly suggest a personal opposition to abortion, though it is unclear how he would rule in future cases.
Like Stephen, President George W. Bush has taken unscripted questions in recent public appearances. In a January 23 appearance, he too received a question from a Kurd (on-line here).
U.S. retail gasoline prices (info on-line here) have increased dramatically in recent years, with retail gasoline prices increasing from about $1.00 a gallon in January 2002 to $2.20 in April 2005. Prices jumped to $3.04 per gallon as of early September 2005 in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, which struck the Gulf Coast states and the oil refineries there; such prices were highs even when inflation is taken into account; gasoline in the 1970s cost around $3 per gallon when adjusted. Prices then declined to $2.19 per gallon by year end. A primer on gas prices is on-line here.
- Tip of the Hat, Wag of the Finger. Google reportedly has resisted a federal subpoena seeking data on Internet activity in order to defend the Child Online Protection Act; the subpoena reportedly does not call for information on particular individuals' use but on aggregate activity.
An article about the recent re-discovery of a crocodile fossil that resembles an ostrich dinosaur is on-line here.
The January 30 Washington Post article mentioning a study of racial basis and political affiliation is on-line here. Professor Brian Nosek, who helped conduct the study, is on-line here and a FAQ on the Washington Post article is on-line here.
1/26 - Paul Begala
- Reference to Nagin and Thundersnow. New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin apologized on January 17 for his comments the day before that the city would be rebuilt as a "chocolate" city and that Hurricane Katrina was sent by God because of the war in Iraq. Thundersnow is a rare weather condition that involves precipitation in the form of snow rather than rain.
- The Word: Wham-o. Wham-o, the manufacturer of toys such as Frisbee, announced on January 19 that a Hong Kong toy manufacturer had acquired the company (release on-line here).
European investigators said on January 24 that they had found evidence that the United States had moved terrorism suspects to countries where torture was used, a practice known as "extraordinary rendition," but found no conclusive evidence of secret prisons in Europe, according to reports. Bush officials have denied using extraordinary rendition. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said in a December 5 visit to Europe that the United States "has not transported anyone, and will not transport anyone, to a country when we believe he will be tortured" (transcript on-line here).
1/25 - Norah Vincent
- Reference to Canada Elections. Canada's Conservative party, which is led by Stephen Harper, won 124 out of 308 seats in the January 23 parliamentary elections and thus will take control of the government. The Liberal party, which collapsed on November 28 with a no-confidence vote following the release of an initial report into allegations that the Liberal Party misused money that was intended for a sponsorship program, won 103 seats. Election results are on-line here.
- The Word: Remote Control. Iraqi citizens voted on December 15 to elect a permanent government pursuant to the constitution approved in October. A coalition of Shiite parties won 128 out of 275 seats, not enough to form a government on its own. Results are on-line here.
Iran began to remove seals on enrichment-related equipment at a nuclear facility on January 10 (confirmed by the International Atomic Energy Agency in a release on-line here). European leaders announced on January 12 that the matter should be referred to the UN Security Council for possible action, and President George W. Bush said on January 13 (on-line here) that the United States would work with other nations and with the Security Council.
- Better Know a District. Rep. Bill Pascrell is on-line here.
Pascrell did co-sponsor a resolution in 2001 (H. Con. Res. 141) that expressed the view that the U.S. entertainment industry should "immediately stop the negative and unfair stereotyping of Italian-Americans, particularly as profane criminals as portrayed in the television show `The Sopranos', and should immediately undertake a serious initiative to present Italian-Americans in a more balanced and positive manner." The resolution was introduced on May 23, 2001 but did not make it out of committee.
As for Abramoff, former Washington lobbyist Jack Abramoff pled guilty on January 3 to charges of conspiracy, aiding and abetting fraud, and tax evasion (release on-line here). According to the plea agreement, Abramoff admitted conspiring to defraud four Native American Indian tribes that were clients by charging high fees and taking some in kickbacks. Abramoff also reportedly admitted to engaging in a pattern of corruptly providing things of value – including trips, tickets to events, campaign contributions, and meals at his restaurant - to public officials to benefit his clients. Abramoff also admitted to a tax evasion charge for not reporting the income he received in kickbacks.
1/24 - Robin Givhan
- Reference to Gloomiest Day. According to articles (see one here), a British university researcher has developed a formula that predicts January 23 would be the gloomiest day of the year and that June 23 would be the happiest.
- The Word: Chernobyl. The Chernobyl incident occurred on April 26, 1986 and involved the destruction of a reactor and the release of large amounts of radioactivity into the environment (U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission fact sheet here). At least 31 people died in the accident or immediate aftermath of Chernobyl, and an increase of thyroid cancer has been observed in those who were children at the time and were exposed to radioactive iodine at the time.
As for potential asteroid collisions, NASA has information on potential future collisions on-line here. Of the potential collisions being tracked, only three currently are seen by NASA as "merit[ing] careful monitoring" according to a scale used for measuring the potential threat of collisions: asteroid 1997XR2, asteroid 99942 Apophis (2004 MN4), and asteroid 2004VD17. The earliest any of these three asteroids is seen as potentially impacting the Earth is 2036.
In 1989, asteroid 1989FC came within 700,000 kilometers of the Earth, passing through the Earth's orbit and missing the Earth by about six hours. The near-miss sparked Congressional action and led to NASA beginning studies on how to improve NEO-detection capabilities and how to destroy or redirect NEOs that may collide with the Earth. In 1998, NASA initiated the Spaceguard Survey and initiated its Near Earth Objects program. Still, some have called for more action. For example, in October 2004, the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics issued a policy paper calling for further action (on-line as a PDF here). Among other things, it criticized the lack of an organization within the U.S. government that would be responsible for planetary defense and called for extending search programs to find near-Earth objects that are between 100 meters and 1 kilometer in diameter.
- Formidable Opponent. Controversy has surrounded recent reports that President George W. Bush has authorized the National Security Agency to monitor communications involving U.S. persons within the United States without warrants. Bush has defended the program as focused on those communicating with members of al-Qaeda and as effective in fighting terrorism, as in a December 19 appearance where he first discussed the program (on-line here). He has also said that the program was legal and was authorized by his constitutional authority to protect the United States and by a Congressional resolution to use military force against al-Qaeda.
In explaining why such intercepts were conducted without seeking authorization from a special court created by the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, Bush said in a December 19 press conference (on-line here) that the FISA was for "long-term monitoring" and that the intercepts he ordered were to "detect" enemies and to "prevent" new attacks.
Some have questioned the legal basis for the program. The nonpartisan Congressional Research Service said in a January 5 memo (on-line here) that there is uncertainty about the legal justification for the program and that the justification "does not seem to be as well-grounded" as suggested in a December letter to the heads of the Senate Intelligence Committee. The American Civil Liberties Union, along with other groups, filed a lawsuit on January 17 challenging the wiretaps as illegal (information on the lawsuit here).
Some also have questioned the effectiveness of the program. The New York Times reported on January 17 (on-line here) that more than a dozen current and former officials said that the tips provided by the NSA based on its wiretaps did not provide much new information and distracted agents from more productive counterterrorism work. "We'd chase a number, find it's a schoolteacher with no indication they've ever been involved in international terrorism - case closed," one former F.B.I. official told the New York Times. "After you get a thousand numbers and not one is turning up anything, you get some frustration."
1/23 - David Gregory
- References to Memoirs. Questions have been raised about James Frey's memoir "A Million Little Pieces," in the wake of an investigation by The Smoking Gun website (on-line here). The memoir was featured on Oprah Winfrey's book club in October 2005.
Questions also have been raised about a new translation of Elie Wiesel's book "Night," which depicts Wiesel's account of his experiences in the Nazi concentration camps. Wiesel wrote in his preface to the new translation (on-line here) that he was able to "correct and revise a number of important details" in the course of preparing it. Some have seized upon apparent errors in the earlier translation as signs that the book is a work of fiction rather than a memoir. The New York Times article on the controversy is on-line here.
- The Word: Charlie Daniels. The Arabic news network aired an audiotape apparently from Osama Bin Laden on January 19. In the tape (transcript on-line here), Bin Laden says that the war in Iraq and operations in Afghanistan are going well from his point of view, refers to U.S. polls showing that most Americans want a withdrawal from Iraq, and offers a truce if the United States would stop "interference" with other countries.
White House spokesman Scott McClellan said on January 19 (transcript on-line here) that the intelligence community was analyzing the tape for authenticity. Regarding the possibility of a truce tied to troop withdrawal, McClellan said that the United States does not negotiate with terrorists and that al-Qaeda leaders were "on the run" and facing pressure. "If you look at the last time we heard from bin Laden, you can see the kind of pressure he's under. Last time, remember, he was telling the Iraqi people not to show up and vote. Well, we saw how that turned out," McClellan said.
- Reference to Rumsfeld Meeting with Hussein. Donald Rumsfeld did visit Iraq in the early 1980s and did meet with Saddam Hussein, but the context is worth noting. At the time, Rumsfeld was acting as President Ronald Reagan’s Middle East envoy and was visiting Iraq as one of many stops in that time period. His first visit to Iraq was no secret; instead, the New York Times reported at the time that the State Department was hailing it as “an effort to demonstrate to the Arabs the American desire for good relations with them as well as the Israelis.”
At the time, Iraq was involved in a war with neighboring Iran, a war that Iraq started with an attack in 1980 and that would go on until 1988. The United States was officially neutral in the Iran-Iraq war, but did recognize Iran as more of a threat to U.S. interests. Iranian students had held Americans hostage from December 1979 to January 1981, and Iran had threatened to cut off oil supply routes.
Iraq’s use of chemical weapons against Iran does appear to have been a concern to the United States at the time. Official documents (on-line here) indicate that the United States did know that Iraq had used chemical weapons against Iran and had warned Iraq against doing so as early as November 1983. According to official documents, Rumsfeld did not raise concerns about chemical weapons in his December 1983 meeting with Saddam Hussein, but did tell Iraqi Foreign Minister Tariq that the United States’ “efforts to assist were inhibited by certain things that made it difficult for us[,] citing the use of chemical weapons, possible escalation in the Gulf, and human rights.”
The United States then publicly condemned Iraq’s chemical weapons use on March 5, 1984. Rumsfeld visited Iraq again weeks later, and documents indicate that “bilateral relations were sharply set back by our March 5 condemnation of Iraq for CW use, despite our repeated warnings that this issue would emerge sooner or later.”
Despite Iraq’s continued use of chemical weapons, the United States formally restored diplomatic relations with Iraq in November 1984 (Iraq and all other Arab nations broke ties with the United States in 1967 after Israel’s war defeat of Egypt, Syria and Jordan).
- Threat Down: Unleaded Gas, Vatican, Kobe, Children's Advocacy Groups, Hamas. NASCAR announced on January 20 that it would start using a special unleaded fuel by the start of the 2008 season, in part responding to calls for tests of air quality for lead at NASCAR events (release on-line here).
The Vatican's official newspaper published an article in its January 16-17 edition supporting evolution and the December 2005 decision by a federal court judge that the theory of intelligent design could not be taught in public schools because of the religious purpose underlying that theory. Some have looked to the article's publication as sign of the Vatican's support, though Pope Benedict reportedly has raised concern about evolution at times as well.
Some advocacy groups announced on January 18 that they intended to sue Viacom and Kellogg to stop them from marketing junk good to young children on the basis that such business practices violate Massachusetts' consumer protection laws. A release is on-line here.
Hamas, a Palestinian group which the United States considers a foreign terrorist organization, began broadcasting on its own TV station, Al Aksa TV, on January 7. Programming includes a children's show hosted by Hazim Sharawi. A New York Times article on the station is on-line here.
- Reference to Sex Study and Medicare. The Reuters article about an Italian sex study that found that couples without a television in the bedroom had sex twice as often as those who did is on-line here.
Medicare recipients (generally people over age 65) can now choose to enroll in a new prescription-drug plan that can help save money on annual prescription-drug costs through a discount on retail drug prices. Drug plans vary depending on location, the costs that the participant will have to pay themselves, and what drugs are covered. Medicare recipients must enroll by May 15 in order to receive coverage in 2006. Information about prescription-drug coverage and about local plans is on-line here.
1/19 - Nina Totenberg
- Who's Attacking Me Now? As referenced in the January 10 episode and in this one, New Jersey held a black bear hunting season in December 2005, during which about 300 bears were killed (information on-line here). Such a bear hunt was authorized in 2003 after the black bear population was believed to have become aggressive and a threat to public safety. A FAQ about New Jersey's bears is on-line here.
- The Word: Public-See. Stephen is referring to President George W. Bush's authorizing the National Security Agency to intercept what Bush refers to as "international communications of people with known links to al Qaeda and related terrorist organizations" without warrants, which was first reported in the New York Times on December 16. Bush said on December 19 that the program "has been effective in disrupting the enemy, while safeguarding our civil liberties" and that he intended to continue using the program (on-line here).
Stephen also may be referring to reports that the federal government has subpoenaed data on Internet activity in order to defend the Child Online Protection Act, a 1988 law that has faced legal challenges. Some companies reportedly have complied with the subpoenas, but Google reportedly has resisted. The subpoenas reportedly do not call for information on particular individuals' use but on aggregate activity.
Supreme Court nominee Judge Samuel A. Alito Jr. said during his confirmation hearings that he did believe that there was a constitutional right to privacy, though his interpretation of such a right is probably not as broad as others'. "I do agree that the Constitution protects a right to privacy. And it protects the right to privacy in a number of ways. The Fourth Amendment certainly speaks to the right of privacy. People have a right to privacy in their homes and in their papers and in their persons. And the standard for whether something is a search is whether there's an invasion of a right to privacy, a legitimate expectation of privacy," Alito said (transcript on-line here).
- Better Know a District. Rep. Elliot Engel is on-line here.
Republicans such as President George W. Bush have long pushed for the opening of about 8 percent of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in northeast Alaska to oil-drilling. A 1998 geological study by the U.S. Geological Survey of the Interior Department (on-line here) estimated that a 1.5 million acre coastal plain (known as the "1002 Area") within ANWR contains somewhere between 5.7 and 10.6 billion barrels of oil, of which about 75 percent is thought to be extractable after about seven to ten years of development. President Bill Clinton vetoed a 1995 budget resolution that would have allowed drilling in the 1002 Area. Bush has promoted doing so as a way to increase domestic oil production and reduce dependence on foreign oil. A provision that would have allowed oil drilling in ANWR was removed from a defense spending bill in December 2005.
- Reference to Nominations. President George W. Bush made three nominations for two Supreme Court seats in 2005. Bush first nominated Judge John Roberts on July 19 to replace Associate Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, but withdrew that nomination and re-nominated Roberts on September 5 to fill the vacancy left in the wake of Chief Justice William Rehnquist's death on September 3. Bush then nominated Harriet Miers on October 3, but Miers withdrew her nomination on October 27 amidst criticism of her experience and her conservative views. Bush nominated Judge Samuel A. Alito, Jr. on October 31; Alito had confirmation hearings in January 2006.
- Reference to Roberts Decision. Chief Justice John Roberts dissented from a Supreme Court decision for his first time, when he and Associate Justices Antonin Scalia and Clarence Thomas dissented from the Supreme Court's majority decision on January 17 to uphold Oregon's assisted suicide program, which allows doctors to prescribe lethal doses of medication for terminally ill patients and which was created after voters approved initiatives in 1994 and 1997. More than 200 people have committed suicide via the program from 1998 to 2004 (see report by Oregon's Department of Human Services (on-line here). The federal government sought to block the Oregon law as violating the federal Controlled Substances Act, but this argument was rejected by some lower courts. The Supreme Court ruled in a 6-3 majority that the CSA was not meant to cover medical practices that a state had deemed legitimate (opinion on-line here).
1/18 - Frank McCourt
- The Word: Smarterer. According to the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study for 2003 (on-line here), 8th graders in the United States rank 15th among 46 participating countries and 4th graders rank 12th among 25 participating countries, with Singapore, Hong Kong, Japan, China, Belgium and the Netherlands at the top of both lists.
The "No Child Left Behind" Act, the Bush administration's main piece of education legislation, tied federal funding to accountability systems by which schools could be evaluated. If schools show poor performance on test scores and do not improve, parents have options to move their students to other schools or receive supplemental educational services. Democrats such as Senator Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.) helped pass the Act, which was signed into law on January 8, 2002, but have criticized the Bush administration for not providing the maximum amount of funding contemplated by the Act.
- Bring Them Back or Leave Them Dead. The famous Scopes trial of the 1920s did not end quite the way people sometimes think because of the play "Inherit the Wind," which was inspired by the trial. Biology teacher John Scopes was convicted for teaching evolution in 1925 and later had the conviction turned over by the Tennessee Supreme Court in 1927 on an unrelated technicality.
The United States Supreme Court did not rule on the constitutionality of antievolution statutes until 1967, more than four decades after the Scopes trial, when it declared an Arkansas antievolution statute unconstitutional because of its religious purpose (on-line here). The Supreme Court also ruled in a 1987 case, Edwards v. Aguillard (on-line here), that a Louisiana law prohibiting the teaching of evolution unless creationism was also taught was unconstitutional.
More recently, court battles have focused on criticisms of evolution and whether intelligent design can be taught in public schools. The most high-profile such battle in recent years has been the lawsuit over a 2004 decision by the Dover, Pennsylvania school board to support measures to raise criticism of evolution and to promote the theory of intelligent design. In December 2005, Judge John Jones III of the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania ruled that it was "unconstitutional to teach [intelligent design] as an alternative to evolution in a public school science classroom" because of the religious purpose underlying that theory (decision on-line here).
"To be sure, Darwin's theory of evolution is imperfect. However, the fact that a scientific theory cannot yet render an explanation on every point should not be used as a pretext to thrust an untestable alternative hypothesis grounded in religion into the science classroom or to misrepresent well-established scientific propositions," Jones wrote.
Polls taken by the Gallup organization in recent years have found that many people do believe God had some role in the creation or development of humanity. Polls from November 2004 found that 45 percent of those polled believed that God created humanity as it is now, that 38 percent of those polled believed that humanity developed over time with the guidance of God (a view consistent with that of intelligent design), and that 13 percent believed that humanity developed without God's guidance. At the same time, Gallup's November 2004 polls also found that 35 percent of those polled believed that the theory of evolution was well-supported by evidence, 35 percent believed that the theory was not well-supported by evidence, and that 29 percent did not know enough to say either way.
1/17 - Andrew Sullivan
- Reference to Food and Mental Health. The Guardian article (on-line here) cited two reports about the link between mental health and food by the Mental Health Foundation (on-line here) and Sustain (on-line here.
- The Word: Old School. Christian broadcaster Pat Robertson apologized in a January 11 letter for his comments during a January 5 broadcast linking Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's stroke to Israel's withdrawing settlements from Gaza and parts of the West Bank in 2005, a move that President George W. Bush hailed in September 2005 (on-line here) as a "tough and courageous decision" that was a "bold step for peace." “In the book of Joel, the prophet Joel makes it very clear that God has ‘enmity against those who divide My land.’ God considers this land to be His. When you read the Bible, He said this is my land. For any Prime Minister of Israel who decides he will carve it up and give it away, God said, “No, this is Mine,'" Robertson said on January 5 (release on-line here).
Robertson's comments received much criticism. White House spokesman Trent Duffy said on January 6 that Robertson's comments were "wholly inappropriate and offensive" (transcript on-line here) and Democrat Minority Leader Harry Reid said in a statement (on-line here) that Robertson's comment was "completely outrageous, insulting and inappropriate."
Robertson said his comments were "inappropriate and insensitive" in a January 11 letter to Sharon's son (on-line here and here).
New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin apologized on January 17 for his comments the day before that the city would be rebuilt as a "chocolate" city and that Hurricane Katrina was sent by God because of the war in Iraq.
- Tip of the Hat, Wag of the Finger. Canada's ruling Liberal party collapsed on November 28 with a no-confidence vote following the release of an initial report into allegations that the Liberal Party misused money that was intended for a sponsorship program. New parliamentary elections are scheduled for January 23. The Liberal Party led by Prime Minister Paul Martin is on-line here (the ad quoting the Washington Times and shown by Stephen is on-line here) and the Conservative Party led by Stephen Harper is on-line here.
The United States Supreme Court on January 17 upheld Oregon's assisted suicide program, which allows doctors to prescribe lethal doses of medication for terminally ill patients and which was created after voters approved initiatives in 1994 and 1997. More than 200 people have committed suicide via the program from 1998 to 2004 (see report by Oregon's Department of Human Services (on-line here). The federal government sought to block the Oregon law as violating the federal Controlled Substances Act, but this argument was rejected by some lower courts. The Supreme Court ruled in a 6-3 majority that the CSA was not meant to cover medical practices that a state had deemed legitimate (opinion on-line here).
- Andrew Sullivan's Blog. Andrew Sullivan's blog is on-line here.
1/16 - George Stephanopoulos
- Reference to MLK and Wiretaps. Controversy has surrounded President George W. Bush's authorization of warrantless intercepts of international communications of some people within the United States, which was first reported on in December. Bush has defended his action, saying that the intercepts were of "international communications of people with known links to al Qaeda and related terrorist organizations" (on-line here). Bush has said that the program "has been effective in disrupting the enemy, while safeguarding our civil liberties" and that he intended to continue using the program.
As noted, the FBI conducted surveillance of Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. on the basis of concern over communism and national security. The FBI has 201 pages of its 16,659-page file, most of which are focused on the investigation into King's assassination, on-line here.
- The Word: Closed. Various surveys have estimated that the number of illegal immigrants grew dramatically over the 1990s. The U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service estimated in 2003 that there were 7 million illegal immigrants in the United States in January 2000, almost doubling since 1990 (on-line as a PDF here). A more recent study by the Pew Hispanic Center (on-line as a PDF here) estimated that there were 10.3 million illegal aliens in the United States in March 2004.
President George W. Bush has proposed a three-part plan for border security, consisting of: (1) prompt return of illegal immigrants, (2) reforming immigration laws to allow longer detentions of illegal immigrants, and (3) stopping illegal entries through increased manpower, technology and infrastructure (see speech on-line here).
The United States gains around 900,000 legal immigrants a year, gaining 946,142 in fiscal year 2004 (source on-line here.
- Reference to Specter. Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Pennsylvania) said on the January 15 edition of This Week that he was skeptical of the basis for the warrantless intercepts of communications authorized by President George W. Bush. Specter reportedly noted that impeachment was possible if Bush acted unconstitutionally, but added "I don't see any talk about impeachment here. I don't think anyone doubts the president is making a good-faith effort. He's acting in a way that he feels he must." (story on-line here).
1/12 - Professor Kenneth Miller
- Oscars. The producer of the Academy Awards announced on January 5 that Jon Stewart would host the March 6 awards ceremony (press release on-line here.
- The Word: Double-Stick Tape. The Miss America Organization announced on January 11 several changes for the 2006 pageant scheduled for January 21, including the elimination of the "quiz show" and "casual wear" elements (press release on-line here).
Confirmation hearings regarding the nomination of Judge Samuel A. Alito, Jr. to fill the Supreme Court seat currently head by Associate Justice Sandra Day O'Connor ended after five days on January 12. Alito's nomination has been hailed by conservatives because of Alito's prior rulings on abortion cases and other documents that strongly suggest a personal opposition to abortion, though it is unclear how he would rule in future cases. Alito said during the hearing's first day that a judge's obligation was to follow the rule of law in deciding cases and not to have agendas or preferred outcomes. A copy of Alito's opening statement is on-line here and a transcript of the hearings thus far are on-line via the New York Times here for Day 1, here for Day 2, here for Day 3, here for Day 4, and here for Day 5.
- Better Know a District. Rep. Steve Rothman is on-line here.
1/11 - John Stossel
- The Word: Whatever. Confirmation hearings began on January 9 regarding the nomination of Judge Samuel A. Alito, Jr. to fill the Supreme Court seat currently head by Associate Justice Sandra Day O'Connor. Alito's nomination has been hailed by conservatives because of Alito's prior rulings on abortion cases and other documents that strongly suggest a personal opposition to abortion, though it is unclear how he would rule in future cases. Alito said during the hearing's first day that a judge's obligation was to follow the rule of law in deciding cases and not to have agendas or preferred outcomes. A copy of Alito's opening statement is on-line here and a transcript of the hearings thus far are on-line via the New York Times here for Day 1, here for Day 2 and here for Day 3.
Much attention has focused on a 1985 job application by Judge Samuel A. Alito, Jr. that was released by the Ronald Reagan presidential library (on-line here). In the job application, Alito included a statement of principles in which he expressed his conservative philosophy and expressed pride in his role arguing against abortion rights and affirmative action.
Regarding abortion and affirmative action, Alito wrote: "Most recently, it has been an honor and source of personal satisfaction for me to serve in the office of the Solicitor General during President Reagan's administration and to help to advance legal positions in which I personally believe very strongly. I am particularly proud of my contributions in recent cases in which the government has argued in the Supreme Court that racial and ethnic quotas should not be allowed and that the Constitution does not protect a right to an abortion."
- Threat Down: Dads, Robots, Warner, Bears, the Associated Press. Farris Hassan, 16, visited Iraq from December 25 to January 1 using an entry visa because his parents had been born in Iraq. Hassan apologized to the U.S. military in a January 9 interview for diverting resources to assist him after his presence in Iraq was known.
The Spirit land rover landed on January 3, 2004 in Mars' Gusev Crater, and the Opportunity rover landed on Jan. 25 in the Meridiani Planum, on the opposite side of the planet from Spirit. These rovers are part of NASA's ongoing efforts to locate areas on Mars that may once have contained water and thus would be likely areas to find evidence of past life. Both rovers have continued to operate for more than one Martian year (about two Earth years). NASA has information on Spirit's anniversary on-line here and about Opportunity's on-line here, and about the program on-line here.
Virginia Governor Mark Warner, who is expected to run for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2008, announced on January 6 (release on-line here) that biological evidence from a 1981 case that resulted in a 1992 execution was being re-tested using new DNA technology. The case involved Roger Keith Coleman, who was convicted for raping and murdering his sister-in-law. “This is an extraordinarily unique circumstance, where technology has advanced significantly and can be applied in the case of someone who consistently maintained his innocence until execution. I believe we must always follow the available facts to a more complete picture of guilt or innocence," Warner said.
The American Dialect Society did announce on January 6 (release on-line here) that "truthiness" had been voted word of the year and did recognize the Colbert Report as the first use of the word. The American Dialect Society defined "truthiness" as "the quality of stating concepts or facts one wishes or believes to be true, rather than concepts or facts known to be true." An Associated Press article about the American Dialect Society release did not mention the Colbert Report.
- Reference to Teacher Tenure. Teacher tenure laws, which many states have, give teachers special protections that most employees don't have from being terminated. In most states, an employer can terminate an employee for any reason, so long as it does not violate certain laws such as anti-discrimination laws or whistleblower protections. If an employer does terminate a person wrongfully, that person can sue but does not necessarily get to keep his or her job during the interim. What some people call "teacher tenure" laws reverse the normal situation. Once a teacher has been working for a few years, they cannot get fired unless the employer first shows that there is a good reason to do so, which usually involves having a public hearing. This means that it is harder for a school district to fire a teacher, but not that a bad teacher always gets to keep his or her job.
For example, under New York state law, many teachers get tenure after working for three years. Once they have tenure, they cannot be disciplined or removed except for "just cause" and in accordance with procedures that allow for a public hearing that can involve witnesses, cross-examination and written decisions. Similarly, in California, many teachers become "permanent employees" after two or three years. Permanent employees cannot be dismissed except for certain charges including immoral or unprofessional conduct, dishonesty, unsatisfactory performance, or certain conditions making them unfit to instruct or associate with children. Permanent employees can demand a hearing before being dismissed.
Such laws shift the balance in the employer-employee relationship in favor of the teacher. Normally, the employee has to show that he was wrongfully terminated after the fact. Under these laws, it's the employer who has to show that the termination of a teacher is appropriate.
- Reference to Iraq Study. Harvard University expert Linda Bilmes and Columbia University Professor Joseph E. Stiglitz, who won the 2001 Nobel prize for economics, presented a paper on January 9 suggesting that the Iraq war would cost somewhere between less than a trillion dollars to more than $2 trillion. A release on the study is on-line here.
1/10 - Carl Bernstein
- Truthiness. The American Dialect Society did announce on January 6 (release on-line here) that "truthiness" had been voted word of the year and did recognize the Colbert Report as the first use of the word. The American Dialect Society defined "truthiness" as "the quality of stating concepts or facts one wishes or believes to be true, rather than concepts or facts known to be true."
- The Word: Sleeper Cell. Among other things, the coming retirement of baby boomers (those born between 1946 and 1964) is likely to lead to much higher Social Security costs, a fact which the Bush administration and others have cited as a reason for reforming Social Security. For more on Social Security, go here.
- Stephen Colbert's Balls for Kids. New Jersey held a black bear hunting season in December 2005, during which about 300 bears were killed (information on-line here). Such a bear hunt was authorized in 2003 after the black bear population was believed to have become aggressive and a threat to public safety. A FAQ about New Jersey's bears is on-line here.
- Reference to Wiretaps. President George W. Bush has defended his authorizing the National Security Agency to intercept what he refers to as "international communications of people with known links to al Qaeda and related terrorist organizations" without warrants, which was first reported in the New York Times on December 16. In a December 19 press conference (on-line here), In explaining why such intercepts were conducted without seeking authorization from a special court created by the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, Bush said that the FISA was for "long-term monitoring" and that the intercepts he ordered were to "detect" enemies and to "prevent" new attacks. Bush has said that the program "has been effective in disrupting the enemy, while safeguarding our civil liberties" and that he intended to continue using the program.
- Reference to Deep Throat. The secret of who provided deep background information to Washington Post reporter Bob Woodward during the Watergate investigation remained just that for more than 30 years, ending as W. Mark Felt, the former number 2 official at the Federal Bureau of Investigation, revealed his role in late May. Only four people were known to know the identity of "Deep Throat": Woodward, his reporting partner Carl Bernstein, former Washington Post editor Bed Bradlee, and Deep Throat himself, who wished to remain anonymous. Many tried over the years to determine Deep Throat's identity based on the information he provided and through some reported details such as Deep Throat being a smoker and drinking Scotch. The tag "Deep Throat" itself came from a popular 1972 pornographic movie.
1/9 - Nancy Grace
- Reference to O'Reilly Appearance on Letterman. A transcript of Bill O'Reilly's January 3 appearance on The Late Show with David Letterman is on-line here.
As for Rosa Parks, she was jailed and fined in 1955 for refusing to give up her bus seat to a white man. Her act helped inspire the Montgomery, Alabama bus boycott that was led by Reverend Martin Luther King Jr., as well as the larger civil-rights movement. Parks received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1996 and the Congressional Gold Medal in 1999, and she died on October 24, 2005 at the age of 92.
- Reference to Alito. Confirmation hearings began on January 9 regarding the nomination of Judge Samuel A. Alito, Jr. to fill the Supreme Court seat currently head by Associate Justice Sandra Day O'Connor. Alito's nomination has been hailed by conservatives because of Alito's prior rulings on abortion cases and other documents that strongly suggest a personal opposition to abortion, though it is unclear how he would rule in future cases. Alito said during the hearing's first day that a judge's obligation was to follow the rule of law in deciding cases and not to have agendas or preferred outcomes. A copy of Alito's opening statement is on-line here and a transcript of the hearing's first day is on-line here.
Among other things, a 1985 job application by Alito that was released by the Ronald Reagan presidential library (on-line here) is likely to be a centerpiece of the confirmation hearings. In the job application, Alito included a statement of principles in which he expressed his conservative philosophy and expressed pride in his role arguing against abortion rights and affirmative action.
Regarding abortion and affirmative action, Alito wrote: "Most recently, it has been an honor and source of personal satisfaction for me to serve in the office of the Solicitor General during President Reagan's administration and to help to advance legal positions in which I personally believe very strongly. I am particularly proud of my contributions in recent cases in which the government has argued in the Supreme Court that racial and ethnic quotas should not be allowed and that the Constitution does not protect a right to an abortion."
Some supporters of the Alito nomination organized a telecast on January 8 to rally support among churchgoers. A transcript of the telecast, "Justice Sunday III: Proclaim Liberty throughout the Land," is on-line here.
- The Word: _____. Former Washington lobbyist Jack Abramoff pled guilty on January 3 to charges of conspiracy, aiding and abetting fraud, and tax evasion (release on-line here). As part of his plea agreement, Abramoff agreed to cooperate with an ongoing criminal investigation, which could help lead to charges against others.
According to the plea agreement, Abramoff admitted conspiring to defraud four Native American Indian tribes that were clients by charging high fees and taking some in kickbacks. Abramoff also reportedly admitted to engaging in a pattern of corruptly providing things of value – including trips, tickets to events, campaign contributions, and meals at his restaurant - to public officials to benefit his clients. Abramoff also admitted to a tax evasion charge for not reporting the income he received in kickbacks.
White House spokesman Scott McClellan said on January 4 (on-line here) that Abramoff's behavior was "outrageous" and that Abramoff "needs to be held accountable, and he needs to be punished." McClellan also said that while it was possible President George W. Bush may have met Abramoff at some point, "[t]he President does not know him, nor does the President recall ever meeting him."
- Truthiness. The American Dialect Society announced on January 6 (release on-line here) that "truthiness" had been voted word of the year and did recognize the Colbert Report as the first use of the word. The American Dialect Society defined "truthiness" as "the quality of stating concepts or facts one wishes or believes to be true, rather than concepts or facts known to be true."
