The Obama Administration is using David Iglesias as a shill for its wholesale adoption of the military commissions and prosecution based on torture championed by George bush and Dick Cheney.

If the Democrats want to pass anything in the Senate with 50 votes over the course of the next year, they have to decide now what they want to use reconciliation for and include that in next year’s budget resolution.

Rep. Alan Grayson says that legislation to deal with the Supreme Court’s Citizens United ruling, which he believes will pass the House shortly, will include a ban on direct campaign spending by any corporation who has a contract with the federal government.

For those interested, the most despised and unsuccessful president since Herbert Hoover is releasing a book in November. Great timing for the Republican Party!

Immigration just might be the issue that breaks through the White House “veal pen” strategy and forces them to deal with an issue — or risk the defection of an important part of the Democratic base in the 2010 elections.

You get the impression that Democrats would be perfectly pleased with a filibuster today from the Republicans on a financial reform bill.

On Saturday, I was at a meeting in Washington DC. where both Mitch Stewart, the Director of Organizing for America, and Democratic National Committee chair Gov. Tim Kaine laid out the strategy for the midterm elections.

One of the primary myths put forward to purchase more “Friedman Units” of patience from the American public on the war in Iraq was that we were training Iraqi troops and police forces to take over security responsibilities so that we could leave. Although there are attempts to paint a similar picture in Afghanistan today, snippets of reality are leaking into the press, showing that training in Afghanistan is a question of years, not months, and that there are not enough trainers available.

The Sunday talk shows gave the impression that both sides are moving closer to agreement, but aren’t there yet. I wouldn’t be surprised to see Republicans block consideration of the bill when it gets a vote tonight. That doesn’t mean the bill dies, however; Republicans Sunday morning took pains to say they wanted a bill and just wanted to reach an agreement first before bringing it to the floor.

• This feels oddly familiar.
• Teabagged.
• The GOP’s minority outreach program, cont’d.
• Lindsey Grahan pulls a Chuck Grassley.
• A would-be assassin named…McVey?
• The view from inside the bubble.