In the days before Thursday’s start to the trial for alleged Portland Christmas Tree bomber Mohamed Osman Mohamud, pre-trial hearings revealed two new details. First, the government failed to reveal to the defense an effort to “pitch” Mohamud on October 27, 2009, 13 months before they arrested him in an FBI-created plot. This comes on top of earlier revelations about a key meeting the FBI failed to tape, another failure to reveal FBI contacts, and Abu Zubaydah’s brother’s claim that, as an FBI informant, he was asked to track the then-16 year old Mohamud as early as 2008.

A very smart activism campaign by MoveOn and several gay rights groups against Target has culminated in their shareholders pressuring them for their campaign spending.

Aunt Toby is thinking about the power of the personal this week.

One of the first results of the Citizens United ruling is the creation of the business-funded group MN Forward, the allegedly “bipartisan” outfit whose actual political leanings may be divined by the following evidence: Its head honcho is Brian McClung, who less than two months ago was the deputy chief of staff Tim Pawlenty; and its first TV ads have been for Republican gubernatorial candidate Tom Emmer, who is essentially Pawlenty without the mullet and even less humanity.

But a funny thing happened on the way to buying yet another corporate-friendly Republican governor. A couple of funny things, actually.

Retailers Target, Ikea, and CVS are stepping up their propaganda efforts to coerce their employees away from organizing unions, according to Bloomberg News.