Dozens of Gitmo detainees finally get day in court

In courtrooms barred to the public, dozens of terror suspects are pleading for their freedom from the Guantanamo Bay prison, sometimes even testifying on their own behalf by video from the U.S. naval base in Cuba.

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Gitmo detainee challenges judge who halted case

A man from Tajikistan seeking his freedom from the military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, is challenging a practice among federal judges here who are short-circuiting the cases of some long-time detainees.

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Figure in Abramoff scandal gets a year in prison

The former top procurement official in George W. Bush's administration was sentenced Friday to a year in prison for lying about his ties to disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff.

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In mixup, jurors find out about guilty plea

A federal court on Thursday struggled with a mixup that improperly revealed information to jurors about a pending case as they deliberated the fate of a former lobbyist caught up in the Jack Abramoff influence peddling scandal.

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Sonia Sotomayor jumps in to question lawyers

Twenty minutes into her first argument as a Supreme Court justice, Sonia Sotomayor wasn't shy about taking on two legal heavyweights in an important case that could open a door to a flood of corporate campaign spending.

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Report: Obama administration improves openness

President Barack Obama's policies on secrecy get higher grades for openness than those of President George W. Bush, yet there's still room for improvement, says a coalition of public interest groups.

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Suspension lifted for contractor tied to Murtha

Despite a growing corruption investigation, the Navy has allowed a defense contractor in the middle of a federal contracts-for-cash probe to keep working with the government.

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Suspension lifted for contractor tied to Murtha

A defense contractor with longtime ties to Rep. John Murtha will now be able to get new government work following a favorable ruling from the U.S. Navy.

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Democrats push for probe into Bush policies

President Barack Obama has been reluctant to probe Bush-era torture and anti-terrorism policies, but his Democratic allies aren't likely to let the matters rest.

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Former Defense Secretary McNamara dies

Former Defense Secretary Robert S. McNamara died Monday, according to his wife. He was 93.

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Lawsuit: White House won't release visitor records

The Obama administration is declining to release documents that would identify visitors to the White House, embracing a legal position taken by the Bush administration, according to a watchdog group that filed a federal lawsuit over access to the records.

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2 former drug dealers tied to Murtha-backed firm

Rep. John Murtha steered millions of dollars in defense work to a campaign donor and the Pentagon went along with it, even though two convicted drug dealers had been deeply involved with the company.

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Corruption probe heats up on Capitol Hill

A federal grand jury has subpoenaed a Democratic congressman in a corruption probe, the first concrete indication that a long-simmering Justice Department investigation of a top lobbying firm also has the potential to seriously damage congressional careers.

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For Sotomayor, discrimination case likely issue

When an important reverse discrimination case came before federal appeals court judge Sonia Sotomayor last year, she and two other judges issued an unusually brief decision that went against white firefighters.

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Bush criticized by former 9/11 commission member

A former member of the 9/11 Commission criticizes former President George W. Bush in a new book for not responding to pre-attack intelligence on Osama bin Laden's intentions.

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INSIDE WASHINGTON: PACs as personal slush funds?

John Edwards' mistress received $100,000 from his political action committee in an 18-week span in 2006, payments that raise this question: Can politicians use PACs as their own personal piggy banks?

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Watchdogs: Failed-bank reviews stop some audits

U.S. efforts to trace terrorist financing and money laundering are receiving less scrutiny by government watchdog offices because of the unprecedented need to monitor failed financial institutions, the Treasury Department's inspector general said Tuesday.

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Agency says bailout will cost taxpayers more

Bailing out the financial sector will cost taxpayers $167 billion more than originally anticipated, according to a Congressional Budget Office estimate.

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Environmental group fights subpoena on leak

The National Wildlife Federation on Tuesday challenged a government subpoena aimed at finding out who leaked the Bush administration's plans to weaken the Endangered Species Act just weeks before President Barack Obama took office.

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THE INFLUENCE GAME: Mixing donations, earmarks

Rep. John Murtha celebrated his 35th anniversary as a congressman by getting an early start on his next campaign, staging an invitation-only fundraising luncheon for dozens of lobbyists and defense contractors at the private Army-Navy Country Club in Arlington, Va.

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Gov't forcing wildlife group to ID leak's source

The inspector general for the Commerce Department is trying to force a prominent environmental group to reveal who leaked the Bush administration's plans to weaken the Endangered Species Act just weeks before President Barack Obama took office.

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House approves earmarks tied to FBI raids

The House decided Wednesday to spend $8.8 million on projects sought by 11 businesses and educational institutions represented by a lobbying firm the FBI raided three months ago.

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Freddie Mac investigates self over lobby campaign

Lawyers hired by mortgage finance giant Freddie Mac are quietly investigating the firm's own $2 million lobbying campaign, The Associated Press has learned. The lobbying effort helped quash proposed new regulations on the company before the housing market collapsed.

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Obama administration tries to kill e-mail case

The Obama administration, siding with former President George W. Bush, is trying to kill a lawsuit that seeks to recover what could be millions of missing White House e-mails.

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In the end, Bush rejected Cheney plea for pardon

Vice President Dick Cheney made repeated pleas to President George W. Bush to pardon I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby in the closing weeks of the administration, say individuals familiar with the effort.

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