Pentagon investigation concludes some prewar intelligence work inappropriate — but legal
WASHINGTON (AP) — A “very damning” report by the Defense Department’s inspector general depicts a Pentagon that purposely manipulated intelligence in an effort to link Saddam Hussein to al-Qaida in the runup to the U.S. invasion of Iraq, says the chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee.
“That was the argument that was used to make the sale to the American people about the need to go to war,” said Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich. He said the Pentagon’s work, “which was wrong, which was distorted, which was inappropriate ... is something which is highly disturbing.”
The investigation by acting inspector general Thomas F. Gimble found that prewar intelligence work at the Pentagon, including a contention that the CIA had underplayed the likelihood of an al-Qaida connection, was inappropriate but not illegal. The report was to be presented to Levin’s panel at a hearing Friday.
The report found that former Pentagon policy chief Douglas J. Feith had not engaged in illegal activities through the creation of special offices to review intelligence. Some Democrats also have contended that Feith misled Congress about the basis of the administration’s assertions on the threat posed by Iraq, but the Pentagon investigation did not support that. Two people familiar with the findings discussed the main points and some details Thursday on condition they not be identified.
Levin has asserted that President Bush took the country to war in Iraq based in part on intelligence assessments — some shaped by Feith’s office — that were off base and did not fully reflect the views of the intelligence community.
Palestinians in Gaza celebrate Hamas-Fatah power-sharing deal they hope will avert civil war
GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP) — Gazans danced in the streets, honked car horns and set off fireworks to celebrate a Hamas-Fatah power-sharing deal they hope will avert civil war.
The joy was in stark contrast to the gloom that descended on the impoverished coastal strip during months of deadly infighting between the political rivals. In a show of unity, some drivers flew both green Hamas flags and yellow Fatah banners from their cars.
“People are in disbelief,” Maysra Balawi, 24, said late Thursday as he tried to steer his car through jammed streets. “Today is a feast. It is the first happy protest I have seen in Gaza.”
Young men danced to the beat of drums, carrying each other on their shoulders. Celebratory gunfire could be heard in several parts of Gaza City and fireworks lit up the sky.
A coalition agreement between the Islamic militant group Hamas and the Fatah movement of President Mahmoud Abbas was signed late Thursday in the holy Muslim city of Mecca in Saudi Arabia. Under the deal, Ismail Haniyeh of Hamas will remain prime minister. In all, Hamas will get nine Cabinet posts, compared to six for Fatah. Nine other posts will go to independents and smaller factions.
Prosecution rests after NBC’s Tim Russert completes his testimony in CIA leak trial
WASHINGTON (AP) — NBC’s Tim Russert deflected criticism of his ethics and credibility as he completed a heated second day of cross-examination Thursday in the trial of former White House aide I. Lewis “Scooter Libby.
Russert, who testified that he never discussed outed CIA operative Valerie Plame with Libby, was the final prosecution witness before Special Prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald rested his three-week perjury and obstruction case. Libby’s attorneys will begin calling witnesses Monday.
The journalist was subjected to the kind of interrogation he usually gives guests on his Sunday television show “Meet the Press,” as attorneys flashed excerpts of his previous statements on a video monitor and asked him to explain inconsistencies.
A law school graduate, Russert avoided several traps defense attorneys laid before him. He seemed uncomfortable at times, however, as they asked him to explain why he willingly told an FBI agent about a July 2003 conversation with Libby, then gave a sworn statement saying he would not testify about that conversation because it was confidential.
“Did you disclose in the affidavit to the court that you had already disclosed the contents of your conversation with Mr. Libby,” asked Theodore Wells, one of Libby’s attorneys.
House Republicans vent some frustration, take aim at Pelosi’s usage of military transport
WASHINGTON (AP) — For most of the past five weeks, House Republicans could do little else but watch as majority Democrats passed major legislation without giving them a chance to propose changes or offer alternatives. So when they finally got a chance Thursday to air pent-up frustrations over how Democrats were running things, the Republicans decided to make some noise — and how. They aimed high, all the way to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
The California Democrat went before the House Science Committee in the morning to champion her commitment to do something about global warming, a rare appearance for a leader of the House.
She did so as reports swirled on Capitol Hill that she had requested a bigger, swankier government airplane than her Republican predecessor had used for trips back to her home district when Congress isn’t meeting.
For Republicans, feeling muzzled and still blue over losing control of the House, the irony was too good to ignore.
A waste of the taxpayers’ money, some said, claiming her trips would cost $15 million a year if she used planes such as the military version of the Boeing 757-200. In its commercial configuration the 757-200 usually seats 175-190 passengers.
Los Angeles hospital van spotted dumping paraplegic man on Skid Row, police say
LOS ANGELES (AP) — A hospital van dropped off a paraplegic man on Skid Row, allegedly leaving him crawling in the street with nothing more than a soiled gown and a broken colostomy bag, police said.
Witnesses who said they saw the incident Thursday wrote down a phone number on the van and took down its license-plate number, which helped detectives connect the vehicle to Hollywood Presbyterian Medical Center, the Los Angeles Times reported on its Web site.
Police said the incident was a case of “homeless dumping” and were questioning officials from the hospital.
“I can’t think of anything colder than that,” said Detective Russ Long. “There was no mission around, no services. It’s the worst area of Skid Row.”
The case comes three months after the L.A. city attorney’s office filed its first indictment for homeless dumping against Kaiser Permanente for an incident earlier last year.
Edison’s light bulb may be on the endangered list; lawmakers propose switch to fluorescent
EDISON, N.J. (AP) — One of the inventions that put this central New Jersey town on the map could go the way of the typewriter and the horse and buggy if some lawmakers have their way.
The incandescent light bulb, perfected for mass use by Thomas A. Edison in the late 19th century, is being supplanted by fluorescent lighting that is more efficient and longer lasting.
Last month, California Assemblyman Lloyd Levine announced he would propose a bill to ban the use of incandescent bulbs in his state.
And Thursday, New Jersey Assemblyman Larry Chatzidakis introduced a bill that calls for the state to switch to fluorescent lighting in government buildings over the next three years.
“The light bulb was invented a long time ago and a lot of things have changed since then,” said Chatzidakis, a Democrat from Burlington. “I obviously respect the memory of Thomas Edison, but what we’re looking at here is using less energy.”
Global Positioning System chip inside sneakers can locate wearer with press of a button
MIAMI (AP) — Isaac Daniel calls the tiny Global Positioning System chip he’s embedded into a line of sneakers “peace of mind.” He wishes his 8-year-old son had been wearing them when he got a call from his school in 2002 saying the boy was missing. The worried father hopped a flight to Atlanta from New York where he had been on business to find the incident had been a miscommunication and his son was safe.
Days later, the engineer started working on a prototype of Quantum Satellite Technology, a line of $325 to $350 adult sneakers that hit shelves next month. It promises to locate the wearer anywhere in the world with the press of a button. A children’s line will be out this summer.
“We call it a second eye watching over you,” Daniel said.
It’s the latest implementation of satellite-based navigation into everyday life — technology that can be found in everything from cell phones that help keep kids away from sexual predators to fitness watches that track heart rate and distance. Shoes aren’t as easy to lose, unlike phones, watches and bracelets.
The sneakers work when the wearer presses a button on the shoe to activate the GPS. A wireless alert detailing the location is sent to a 24-hour monitoring service that costs an additional $19.95 a month.
Bud Selig unsure whether he will attend games as Barry Bonds chases home run record
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Barry Bonds might get a telephone call from baseball commissioner Bud Selig instead of a handshake if the San Francisco Giants slugger breaks Hank Aaron’s home run record. Selig wouldn’t say Thursday whether he would attend any Giants games if and when Bonds closes in on the mark.
Selig insisted that Major League Baseball would celebrate Bonds’ potential feat exactly as it does any other major milestone, such as a pitcher’s 300th win. Last year, Selig telephoned San Diego closer Trevor Hoffman when he became the career saves leader.
“I wasn’t there when Roger Clemens won his 300th game. That’s a matter I’ll determine at some point in the future,” Selig said at a baseball luncheon hosted by Fox Sports Bay Area. “Let me say it, and I’m not going to say anymore. That’s it.”
Does he even want Bonds to pass the 755 homers of Aaron, who played his final two seasons in 1975 and ’76 with the Selig-owned Milwaukee Brewers?
“It is a fact Hank Aaron and I have been friends for 50 years, close friends,” Selig said. “When you’re the commissioner, you just don’t think about that. I have said before, if and when Barry Bonds breaks that record it will be handled the same way that every other record in baseball that’s been broken was handled.”
