After the robo-signing scandal, the banks are still using automated systems designed not to catch the numerous errors in securitization and document preparation. They aren’t complying with the Supreme Court rule because if they did, they would have to admit fault, and possibly the inability to foreclose on the borrower.

The heart of this interview by the masterful David Frost turns on Julian Assange’s distinction of anarchy from civility — and the positioning of Wikileaks as organized activity that promotes justice.

It’s pretty clear that when the President talks about his views on marriage equality as “evolving,” as he has in recent days, he’s not talking about his actual views, but the political climate. Today on Good Morning America, Vice President Biden basically confirmed this, by saying that marriage equality in America is inevitable.

A 59-year-old rape survivor with a pacemaker refused a groping by TSA agents at Austin Bergstrom airport, and was subsequently arrested, pushed to the floor, dragged, and banned from flying from the airport. While the TSA’s pornoscanners weren’t involved in this incident, it shows the newfound prevalence of TSA’s aggressive new groping strategy for anyone who doesn’t clear the first round of security checks.

Know your rights this travel season - download our “Know Your Rights” flier, and visit our TSA coverage page for more on pornoscanners and groping.

I do believe with nearly 10 percent unemployment, the government should provide more aid to those who lose their jobs, but it shouldn’t have been provided by a series of legislative band-aids.

It’s the silent filibuster, the filibuster where the Majority Leader knows that it’ll take a week to get the head of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission through the Senate, that is just a pure waste of time. And the rules of ending post-cloture time for nominations (because what’s to discuss or amend after that?), or ending the filibuster of the motion to proceed, would make those silent filibusters less painful.

I never believed for an instant that George W. Bush was reading all the books Karl Rove wanted us to think he was reading, so the “holiday Presidential reading list” genre always has to be taken with a grain of salt. But still…

This recent fight over extending the George W. Bush tax cuts is a reminder that, from a long-term policy perspective, hyper-partisan legislative overreach is extremely effective. Instead of trying to create a great bipartisan concession before doing something, you are often more likely to get broad consensus post facto once you force the system to accept a changed reality.

Bradley Manning released a statement today through his attorney, David Coombs, in order to thank those who have taken action to help him.

Sign the letter to the Commanding Officer of Bradley Manning’s brig urging for Bradley’s unnecessary POI order to be lifted

In a very interesting bit of coincidental timing, two stories have emerged on the role of Iran in Afghanistan. The Times of London (behind a subscription paywall) reported on Friday that “intelligence officials have revealed that the Iranian government is releasing significant al-Qaeda terrorists from jail so that they can help to reorganise its battered structures in border areas of Pakistan.” The Times also reported that Iran is directly aiding the Taliban in southern Afghanistan. Conveniently providing confirmation for this story, NATO informed the press that an Iranian Revolutionary Guard al-Quds officer was captured Saturday by NATO forces in southern Afghanistan.

Update: ISAF has withdrawn their claim that the captured arms smuggler was al-Quds. See the follow-up post.