DOJ Hired Lawyers Based on Political Affiliations

DOJ hired on the basis of GOP affiliations; editors of The New York Times call out the soft bigotry of Iraq; Dean Baker looks at the long-term impact of Iraq on the economy; Michael Schwartz says Cheney has long had his "eye on the prize" of Iraqi oil; Ralph Brave looks at the Doolittle scandal; GOP convention papers ordered opened by court; housing market is in collapse; thousands of children worldwide die from tainted medicine; and more ... Browse our continually updating front page at http://www.truthout.org

t r u t h o u t | 05.07

DOJ Hired Lawyers Based on Political Affiliations
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/050707A.shtml
Congressional investigators are beginning to focus on accusations that a top civil rights official at the Justice Department illegally hired lawyers based on their political affiliations, especially for sensitive voting rights jobs.

The New York Times | The Soft Bigotry of Iraq
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/050707B.shtml
The editors of The New York Times write: "Whether out of blind loyalty or blind denial, most Congressional Republicans are prepared to back up President Bush's veto of the Iraq spending bill. It is now essential that the revised version not back away from demanding that Iraq's prime minister, Nuri Kamal al-Maliki, finally deliver on the crucial national reconciliation measures he has spent the last year dodging. And it must make clear that American support for his failures - and Mr. Bush's - is fast waning."

Dean Baker | The Economic Costs of the Iraq War
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/050707C.shtml
Dean Baker writes: "President Bush is right to be concerned about economic growth. It provides a basis for rising living standards. But his concern that reducing greenhouse gas emissions may slow growth is inconsistent with his apparent lack of concern about the economic damage done by the war in Iraq."

Michael Schwartz | The Struggle Over Iraqi Oil: Eyes Eternally on the Prize
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/050707D.shtml
"The date when the struggle for Iraqi oil began is less critical than our ability to trace the ever-growing willingness to use 'any means necessary' to control such a 'vital prize' into the present," writes Michael Schwartz. "We know, for example, that before and after he ascended to the vice-presidency, Dick Cheney has had his eye squarely on the prize."

Ralph Brave | Will Doolittle Do Time?
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/050707E.shtml
"Whether Doolittle used his office and performed specific acts in exchange for monies paid to his wife's company," writes Ralph Brave, "is the central legal issue at hand. But whatever the resolution of the question, nothing can wash the stink off a clearly corrupt arrangement."

GOP Convention Papers Ordered Opened
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/050707F.shtml
The city cannot prevent the public from seeing documents describing intelligence that police gathered to help them create policies for arrests at the 2004 Republican National Convention, a judge said on Friday.

American Dream Sours as Housing Market Collapses
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/050707G.shtml
The explosion in defaults began last autumn, but many Americans are now realizing that the contagion is spreading.

Thousands of Children Die From Poisoned Medicine
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/050707H.shtml
The kidneys fail first. Then the central nervous system begins to misfire. Paralysis spreads, making breathing difficult, then often impossible without assistance. In the end, most victims die. Many of them are children, poisoned at the hands of their unsuspecting parents.

VIDEO | Democrats Not Backing Down on Iraq Bill
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/050407K.shtml
House Democratic leaders are indicating that they are not ready to back down in their confrontation with President Bush over Iraq. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and other party leaders are considering a bill that would fund the war as Bush wants, but only guarantee the money through July. After that, Congress could block additional money from being sent if the Iraqi government does not meet certain political and security goals.

VIDEO | LA Police Attack Crowd at Pro-Immigration Rights Rally
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/050307B.shtml
One day after several reporters and camera operators were injured while covering an altercation at an immigrant rights rally in MacArthur Park, news organizations condemned the Los Angeles Police Department for its use of batons and riot guns against members of the media, and some said they were considering legal options.

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