Funny how a bunch of white conservatives from the South hate Thurgood Marshall.

I can’t believe the GOP thinks God gave them guns…without also adding he gave them tax cuts.

Alexandra Burke — All Night Long.

While one Colorado clergyman is fighting his arrest for possession of pot (claiming his status as clergy in the Ministry of THC allows for sacramental reefer use), a pastor in California is up in arms over the NAACP’s support of the November ballot initiative to legalize recreational marijuana use.

I just can’t make up my mind – which Republican statement from the week so far was the most embarrassing? Sure, John Boehner threw out some gems, but let’s not minimize the contributions from Kentucky and Illinois Senate candidates Rand Paul and Mark Kirk, who have both shown great promise in this particular field.

There are some very big questions in the days ahead which will require more resources to find and publish the truth – we have primary elections and then the mid-term, all of which could be spun by the mainstream media and by partisan politicos. There are commissions stacked with corporatists working against the interests of the people, and investigations into corporations and individuals which when finished could result in indictments or mere findings; somebody must be ready to tackle these to answer the tough questions. Firedoglake will be here to get to the bottom, and you can help the Firedoglake family, both crew and readers, with your donation.

In response to a question from DiFi, Kagan suggested that SCOTUS’ decision in the Hamdi case–which relied on the 2001 Authorization to Use Military Force passed after 9/11–applied to Iraq and Afghanistan. Perhaps it was just a misstatement on Elena Kagan’s part, but it’s one that I hope she corrects before her confirmation hearings are done.

Just moments ago, we met our goal of raising $50,000 for Firedoglake with 30+ hours to spare. This is amazing. More than 1100 people contributed an average of $42 to support Firedoglake’s independent progressive movement.

It’s really incredible: $50,000, ahead of schedule. To everyone who contributed, and anyone who supported us but couldn’t give: thank you. We can’t do this without you.

In fact, your outpouring of support has been so amazing that we’re setting a new goal and extending our deadline. It’s ambitious, but can you help us raise $60,000 by the end of the day on Friday?

With the replacement of General Stanley McChrystal as head of US forces in Afghanistan by his commanding officer, General David Petraeus, the fallout from McChrystal’s multiple failures continues.

Alice Rivlin is the chief wonk appointed by President Obama to the debt commission, and has long supported cutting Social Security benefits as a way to address the country’s financial woes.

Alex Lawson caught up with Rivlin and asked her about her plans right after his famous interview with Alan Simpson when the commission met two weeks ago, and she didn’t want to talk about it.

But it appears Rivlin’s ideas are gaining important support.