Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid took the senate into closed session today over intelligence leading up to the Iraq War. Raw Story reports this has happened only 53 times in Senate history, with the last time being during the Clinton impeachment hearings.

Here's a large portion of Sen. Reid's statement (received by e-mail.)

This past weekend, we witnessed the indictment of the I. Lewis Libby, the Vice President’s Chief of Staff and a senior Advisor to President Bush. Libby is the first sitting White House staffer to be indicted in 135 years. This indictment raises very serious charges. It asserts this Administration engaged in actions that both harmed our national security and are morally repugnant.

by TChris

To avoid playing the president's game by allowing the Alito nomination to distract from the Bush administration's other blunders, it's worth noting that -- just days after the Pentagon urged the media to ignore the milestone of 2,000 dead American soldiers in Iraq -- the death toll has increased to 2,023.

The six deaths [Monday] bring the number of U.S. soldiers to have died in Iraq this month to 90, the highest number of American deaths there since January when 107 Americans were killed.

More big news from Murray Waas at the National Journal:

Cheney and Libby blocked information to the Senate Intelligence Committee investigating pre-war intelligence, in particular, claims that Saddam had weapons of mass destruction:

The new information that Cheney and Libby blocked information to the Senate Intelligence Committee further underscores the central role played by the vice president's office in trying to blunt criticism that the Bush administration exaggerated intelligence data to make the case to go to war.

....The Intelligence Committee at the time was trying to determine whether the CIA and other intelligence agencies provided faulty or erroneous intelligence on Iraq to President Bush and other government officials.

by TChris

Even as President Bush tries to pump up support for a war that has claimed 2,000 American lives, John Kerry announced a specific proposal to begin bringing troops home. Noting that “it is essential to acknowledge that the insurgency will not be defeated unless our troop levels are drawn down,” Kerry called upon the president to bring home 20,000 troops over the Christmas holidays, after the December parliamentary elections. Kerry has said that it would be reasonable to return all the troops within 12 to 15 months.

by TChris

Trying to get ahead of the headlines that will remind us of the 2,000 American soldiers who lost their lives in Iraq -- a milestone that will likely be was reached today, if it hasn't been already -- the military is cautioning reporters "not to look at the event as a milestone." Lt. Col. Steve Boylan argues that the number is "an artificial mark on the wall set by individuals or groups with specific agendas and ulterior motives."

Nonsense. The number is real, representing 2,000 men and women who are no longer alive, thanks to the Bush administration. There is nothing "artificial" about those deaths. While it may be thought arbitrary to report that the number of dead has reached 2,000 (as opposed to 1,999 or 2,001), reporting the fact that the Bush administration has sacrificed the lives of a growing number of American soldiers has nothing to do with agendas or motives. It is the tangible result of this administration's decision to rush to war.

Bump and Update: Bad news. Kidnapped lawyer Saadoun Sughaiyer al-Janabi has been killed.

*****
Original Post (10/20)

The AP is reporting:

Ten masked gunmen kidnapped the lawyer for one of Saddam Hussein's co-defendants Thursday, police said. Saadoun Sughaiyer al-Janabi, who was in the courtroom for Wednesday's opening session of the trial, is one of two lawyers for Awad Hamed al-Bandar, one of seven Baath Party officials being tried with Saddam.

by TChris

The vote to ratify Iraq's draft constitution will be audited in light of reports of fraud and suspicious numbers of ballots cast.

Iraq's electoral commission said Monday it intended to audit "unusually high" numbers in results coming from most provinces in the country's landmark referendum on the draft constitution.

...

The electoral commission's statement came as Sunni Arab lawmaker Meshaan al-Jubouri claimed fraud had occurred in Saturday's election -- including instances of voting in hotly contested regions by pro-constitution Shiites from other areas -- repeating earlier comments made by other Sunni officials over the weekend.

Just go watch over at Crooks and Liars. Think Progress has the money quote:

The fact of the matter is that when we were attacked on September 11, we had a choice to make. We could decide that the proximate cause was al Qaeda and the people who flew those planes into buildings and, therefore, we would go after al Qaeda…or we could take a bolder approach.

by TChris

Update: More information about the coaching, from Voice of America:

Before the event, the officers were seen and heard rehearsing their statements to President Bush.

According to AP, Scott McClellan says "the troops were expressing their own thoughts." What a coincidence that they "all gave Bush an upbeat view of the situation." Editor & Publisher reports McClellan's furious attempt (including a futile "I'm sorry, I don't know what you're suggesting") to deflect inquiries into his earlier assertion that "there would be no screening of questions."

Update: NPR has an audio of part of the rehearsal on this page.

.....
original post:

Via video, the president spoke to the troops today, asking questions about the progress they were making as Iraq approaches a ratification vote on its proposed constitution. As we've come to expect from this administration, the seemingly impromptu session was carefully scripted.

by TChris

The mayor of Colorado Springs refuses to support a program that matches volunteer mental health counselors with soldiers who served in Iraq because, he says, the program’s supporters are “anti-war” and “anti-Army.” The two men who organized the program both served in Iraq. What’s anti-Army about their desire to help soldiers cope with the stress and trauma of war?

The mayor initially supported the program, but later flip-flopped.

by TChris

Military reservists have recently taken more than their share of casualties in Iraq. About half of active duty troops in Iraq today are reservists.

For the first nine months of 2005 reservists accounted for 36 percent of U.S. deaths, and for August and September it was 56 percent, according to Pentagon figures. The Army National Guard, Army Reserve and Marine Corps Reserve accounted for more than half of all U.S. deaths in August and in September -- the first time that has happened in consecutive months.

Saddam Hussein's trial will begin October 19. Knights Ridder reports on the rules of the Iraq tribunal trying Saddam Hussein:

Once the court is finished with the first case, Saddam will likely face another trial for allegedly committing similar crimes in other communities, mostly Shiite Muslim and Kurdish areas, the official said. ....If he is sentenced to death in the Dujail case, he will also begin his appeals process, the official said. Should he lose his appeal, he'd be executed 30 days later. That could occur, the official continued, "before all the cases have been decided."

Who made the court rules?