Friday, July 07, 2006

Delay stays on the ballot; Democrats Laugh!

How great is this?

AUSTIN, Texas - The Texas Republican Party must keep Tom DeLay's name on the November election ballot, even though the former congressman has dropped his re-election bid, a federal judge ruled Thursday.

DeLay, the former House majority leader who resigned from office June 9, won the Republican primary for his district in March but decided against re-election a month later.

GOP leaders want another Republican to replace DeLay on the ballot and say state election law allows them to select one because DeLay has moved out of Texas.

Lawyers for Texas Democrats argued that DeLay still owns a Houston-area home, where his wife Christine lives and where DeLay spends time. The Democrats also argued that it couldn't be shown conclusively whether DeLay would be an "inhabitant" of Texas on Election Day on Nov. 7.

U.S. District Judge Sam Sparks, who issued the ruling, has indicated he expected an appeal.

Posted by crimnos @ 10:32 AM :: (0) comments

Wednesday, July 05, 2006

CNN.com - CIA reportedly shuts down anti-bin Laden unit - Jul 4, 2006

Well, they've finally given it up officially...not that they hadn't already given it up.

CIA reportedly shuts down anti-bin Laden unit

NEW YORK (AP) -- A CIA unit that had hunted for Osama bin Laden and his top deputies for a decade has been disbanded, according to a published report.

Citing unnamed intelligence officials, The New York Times reported Tuesday that the unit, known as "Alec Station," was shut down late last year.

The decision to close the unit, which was created before the September 11, 2001, attacks, was first reported Monday by National Public Radio.

The officials told the Times that the change reflects a view that al Qaeda's hierarchy has changed, and terrorist attacks inspired by the group are now being carried out independently of bin Laden and his second-in-command, Ayman al-Zawahiri.

The CIA said hunting bin Laden remains a priority, but resources needed to be directed toward other people and groups likely to initiate new attacks.

"The efforts to find Osama bin Laden are as strong as ever," said CIA spokeswoman Jennifer Millerwise Dyck.

"This is an agile agency, and the decision was made to ensure greater reach and focus."

A former CIA official who once led the unit, Michael Scheuer, told the Times that its shutdown was a mistake.

"This will clearly denigrate our operations against al Qaeda," he said.

"These days at the agency, bin Laden and al Qaeda appear to be treated merely as first among equals."

Posted by crimnos @ 10:25 AM :: (0) comments