Libertas Continued

Here is a question: If you torture confessions out of people, and use those confessions as evidence, how do you ever know what the truth is? I can torture you into saying your mother murdered Abraham Lincoln, that doesn't make it so. Should I arrest and imprison your mom? What will she say about you, when I torture her? In less than one week, the San Francisco 8 - former Black Panthers and other activists - will have a preliminary hearing in San Francisco. They are being charged with the murder of a police officer in 1971. The charges are based on confessions extracted by torture, and it is clear that the indictments against these men are an attempt to rewrite the history of the Black Panthers and the gains of the Civil Rights movement. Take action today and support the San Francisco 8 . In 1973, New Orleans police employed torture over the course of several days to obtain information from members of the Black Panthers about the death of Sergeant John Young, an officer of the San F...

BY SHANNON MORIARTY PUBLISHED APRIL 22, 2009 @ 09:20P An individual working full-time at minimum wage cannot afford the average cost of a one-bedroom apartment in any state in the U.S., according to a new study. Now more than ever, low-wage workers are facing significant barriers to making ends meet, and the lack of affordable housing just complicates matters. This explains why most low-income families are one paycheck, one sickness, or one personal tragedy away from missing a rent or mortgage payment and becoming homeless. The report, entitled " Out of Reach ", was released last week by the National Low Income Housing Coalition (NLIHC) . The report, in all of its detail, makes two notable observations.

Dear Citizen: I received your letter and understand your support for holding the Bush Administration accountable for the warrantless surveillance program of American citizens and the CIA's detention and interrogation programs. I strongly agree that the Bush Administration made grave mistakes while in office. The fact that President Bush went outside of the bounds of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 (FISA) after 9/11 was, in my view, unnecessary and an overreach of the Executive Branch. Last year, Congress passed the FISA Amendments Act to ensure that abuses like the Terrorist Surveillance Program do not occur again. While that legislation provided immunity from prosecution for private telecommunications companies that may have provided assistance to the government, Congress has taken no action to affect lawsuits against the former government employees who created or authorized the program. There are pending lawsuits now against some of these employees that are un...

According to the score card published by the Center for Constitutional Rights , the first 100 Days of the Obama Administration have fallen far short of the Change We Need. I can't begin to express my disappointment with the situation. It seems like we hired a hero, and got someone who plans on saving only those wealthy enough to pay for the change they want. I'm sick to my stomach. Here is a quick Review: Prosecutions and Accountability - Incomplete Ending Torture - Unfinished Promise Ending Unlawful Detention and Extraordinary Rendition - Early Hopes Fading Fast Abolishing Preventive Detention - Dangerous Silence Protecting Dissent - Action Needed Reigning in Presidential War Powers - War Machine Rolls On Ending Abuse of the State Secrets Privilege - Continuing Bush's Path Stopping Warrantless Wiretapping - Impunity Immunity Rolling Back Executive Power - Imperial Presidency

Dear CCR Supporter, March 2009 marked the 6th anniversary of the illegal war and occupation of Iraq, resulting in the occupation, devastation, destruction and the loss of hundreds of thousands of Iraqis, American and other human lives. An end to the senseless war and occupation of Iraq is long overdue. As part of its 100 Days campaign, CCR has released "Amend the War Powers Resolution," a white paper addressing the problem of presidential war-making at its core. The paper provides an overview of executive abuse of war-making power and calls for the restoration of checks and balances. It also calls for a revision of the War Powers Resolution to prohibit all executive acts of war without Congressional authorization and an end to the illegal wars launched by the Bush administration. Click here to download the new paper from CCR's website. Six years is far too long for any war, much less an illegal one. Read the white paper , send it to legislators and use it in your work to...

If Obama will not defend the US Constitution, and enforce the law, then who will? Without independent oversight from the courts we have no rights. The only recourse is vigilante justice and ultimately rebellion.

Dear Friends, For the past eight years, Karl Rove blurred the lines of legality again and again - putting his own priorities above the law, and even above the lives and safety of Americans. In addition to being one of the chief architects behind the war in Iraq, Rove was also allegedly involved in in the outing of CIA agent Valerie Plame, in the harassment and prosecution of Alabama Governor Don Siegelman, and in the firing of nine U.S. attorneys for political reasons. Congress has subpoenaed Rove to testify about these matters again and again, but until recently, he's refused to testify. Rove's agreement to meet with the House Judiciary Committee is a step in the right direction, but it is nowhere near enough. I just took action to tell President Obama to appoint a special prosecutor to investigate Rove and -- pending the outcome of that investigation -- to prosecute him to the fullest extent of the law. I hope you will, too. Please have a look and take action. http://act.cred...