Douglas Caddy

The New York Times January 25, 2011 Thomas Cites Failure to Disclose Wife’s Job By ERIC LICHTBLAU WASHINGTON — Under pressure from liberal critics, Justice Clarence Thomas of the Supreme Court acknowledged in filings released on Monday that he erred by not disclosing his wife’s past employment as required by federal law. Justice Thomas said that in his annual financial disclosure statements over the last six years, the employment of his wife, Virginia Thomas, was “inadvertently omitted due to a misunderstanding of the filing instructions.” To rectify that situation, Justice Thomas filed seven pages of amended disclosures listing Mrs. Thomas’s employment in that time with the Heritage Foundation, a conservative policy group, and Hillsdale College in Michigan, for which she ran a constitutional law center in Washington. The justice came under criticism last week from Common Cause, a liberal advocacy group, for failing to disclose Mrs. Thomas’s employment as required under the 1978 Ethics in Government Act. While justices are not required to say how much a spouse earns, Common Cause said its review of Internal Revenue Service filings showed that the Heritage Foundation paid Mrs. Thomas $686,589 from 2003 to 2007. The group also asserted that Justice Thomas should have withdrawn from deciding last year’s landmark Citizens United case on campaign finance because of both Mrs. Thomas’s founding of another conservative political group in 2009 and Justice Thomas’s own appearance at a private political retreat organized by Charles Koch, a prominent conservative financier. Justices Thomas and Antonin Scalia said in a statement released by the court on Thursday that they had each spoken at dinners at the Koch retreat and that their expenses were paid by the Federalist Society, a conservative legal group. The additional filings released by the court on Monday regarding Mrs. Thomas’s employment put Justice Thomas in the odd position of issuing two formal statements in five days about his personal dealings. Bob Edgar, president of Common Cause, said he found Justice Thomas’s explanation about the omission to be “implausible.” As a Supreme Court justice who regularly hears complex legal cases, “it is hard to see how he could have misunderstood the simple directions of a federal disclosure form.” Deborah L. Rhode, a law professor at Stanford University who specializes in judicial ethics, said the recent episodes could do some harm to Justice Thomas’s reputation. But she added that it was unlikely to have any lasting impact on him or on the disclosure requirements that give justices wide leeway to decide whether they have a financial conflict in hearing a case. Professor Rhode noted, for instance, that it was still unknown who contributed a total of $550,000 to Liberty Central, the conservative legal group that Mrs. Thomas founded in 2009 in opposition to President Obama’s policies. The amended disclosures filed by Justice Thomas, which do not include income in 2010, do not mention Liberty Central, and no regulation requires the group or the Thomases to disclose the source of the group’s financial support. Mrs. Thomas left the group in the fall. “There’s no formal mechanism for review of conflicts among Supreme Court justices,” Professor Rhode said. “Personally, I think issues like this are somewhat scandalous for the court, but from what we’ve seen when these issues have come up before, I don’t see that changing.”

Palestine papers reveal MI6 drew up plan for crackdown on Hamas• Internment and replacement of imams among measures • Document proposed 'direct lines' to Israeli intelligence • New files reveal Israel requested assassination of militant by Ian Black and Seumas Milne guardian.co.uk, Tuesday 25 January 2011 20.00 GMT British intelligence helped draw up a secret plan for a wide-ranging crackdown on the Islamist movement Hamas which became a security blueprint for the Palestinian Authority, leaked documents reveal. The plan asked for the internment of leaders and activists, the closure of radio stations and the replacement of imams in mosques. The disclosure of the British plan, drawn up by the intelligence service in conjunction with Whitehall officials in 2004, and passed by a Jerusalem-based MI6 officer to the senior PA security official at the time, Jibril Rajoub, is contained in the cache of confidential documents obtained by al-Jazeera TV and shared with the Guardian. The documents also highlight the intimate level of military and security cooperation between Palestinian and Israeli forces. The bulk of the British plan has since been carried out by the West Bank-based PA security apparatus which is increasingly criticised for authoritarian rule and human rights abuses, including detention without trial and torture. The British documents, which have been independently authenticated by the Guardian, included detailed proposals for a security taskforce based on the UK's "trusted" Palestinian Authority contacts, outside the control of "traditional security chiefs", with "direct lines" to Israel intelligence. It lists suicide bombers and rockets as issues that need urgent attention. Under the heading "Degrading the capabilities of the rejectionists", the MI6 Palestinian Security Plan recommends "the detention of key middle-ranking officers" of Hamas and other armed groups, adding: "We could also explore the temporary internment of leading Hamas and PIJ [Palestinian Islamic Jihad] figures, making sure they are well-treated, with EU funding." The latest leaks come as US state department spokesman Philip Crowley said they would "at least for a time, make the situation more difficult", while the senior Palestinian negotiator Nabil Sha'ath acknowledged that the documents were genuine and Palestinian groups in Latin America reacted with shock to the revelation that former US secretary of state Condoleezza Rice had privately suggested Palestinian refugees be settled in Chile or Argentina. Among the newly released confidential PA documents is an extraordinary account of a 2005 meeting between Israel's then defence minister, Shaul Mofaz, and the PA's interior minister, Nasser Youssef. Referring to Hassan al-Madhoun, a commander in the armed Fatah-linked al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades who was held responsible by Israel for a suicide attack the previous year, Mofaz asked Yousef: "We know his address ... Why don't you kill him?" Yousef replied: "The environment is not easy, our capabilities are limited." Israel killed Madhoun a few months later in a drone missile attack on his car. The PLO's chief spokesman, Saeb Erekat, is recorded as telling senior US official David Hale in 2009: "We have had to kill Palestinians to establish one authority, one gun and the rule of law … We have even killed our own people to maintain order and the rule of law." Erekat also complained to US envoy George Mitchell in 2009 that not enough was being done to seal off tunnels from Egypt into the Gaza Strip, the documents reveal, undermining the siege of the Hamas-controlled territory, and urged that more be done by Israel and Egypt to prevent the smuggling of goods and weapons. In an echo of the proposals in the British documents, Erekat told Hale: "We are not a country yet but we are the only ones in the Arab world who control the zakat [religious charitable donations] and the sermons in the mosque." The intelligence papers highlight the far-reaching official British involvement in building up the Palestinian Authority's security apparatus in the West Bank, which was led from the late 1990s by the CIA and recently has focused on the build-up of forces under General Keith Dayton, who was US security coordinator for Israel and the Palestinian territories until last October. Alistair Crooke, a former MI6 officer who also worked for the EU in Israel and the Palestinian territories, said that the British documents reflected a 2003 decision by Tony Blair to tie UK and EU security policy in the West Bank and Gaza to a US-led "counter-insurgency surge" against Hamas – which backfired when the Islamists won the Palestinian elections in 2006. The PA's security control of the West Bank has become harsher and more extensive since the takeover of Gaza by Hamas in the summer of 2007. Hundreds of Hamas and other activists have been routinely detained without trial in recent years, and subjected to widely documented human rights abuses. In a meeting with Palestinian officials in 2009, Dayton is recorded praising the PA's security: "The intelligence guys are good. The Israelis like them. But they are causing some problems for international donors because they are torturing people. "I've only started working on this very recently. I don't need to tell you who was working with them before," – in an apparent reference to the CIA

Did Cameron's dinner with Murdoch break ministers' code? By Andrew Grice and Nigel Morris Tuesday, 25 January 2011 The Independent David Cameron was challenged last night to explain why he held a secret dinner with James Murdoch as the Government prepared to take a crucial decision on the Murdoch media empire. The Labour Opposition questioned whether Mr Cameron had broken the ministerial code of conduct by meeting the chairman of News Corporation in Europe and Asia only a few days after stripping Vince Cable, the Liberal Democrat Business Secretary, of the power to decide whether News Corp should be allowed to buy the 61 per cent of BSkyB it does not already own. The move came as the Government faced all-party pressure over its links with Rupert Murdoch despite last week's resignation of Andy Coulson, the Downing Street director of communications, over the continuing controversy about telephone hacking at Mr Murdoch's News of the World, which cost Mr Coulson his job as the paper's editor in 2007. Simon Hughes, the Liberal Democrats' deputy leader, is expected to pursue legal action against News International over his phone being hacked rather than accept an out-of-court settlement. He is due to meet his lawyers to make a final decision shortly. He told the Commons last September that while he defended freedom of the press, "this [phone hacking] is abuse and illegality. It has to end, and we must be robust about it." Friends of Mr Hughes said he had little interest in an out-of-court settlement and was likely to press ahead with court action. They said the MP dealt with many highly sensitive constituency cases and was appalled by the prospect that information concerning them could have been compromised. Today the all-party Commons Home Affairs Select Committee may decide to hold a new round of public hearings into allegations that phone tapping was rife. Amid protests that Scotland Yard failed properly to investigate allegations about the News of the World, it is also considering whether the police take hacking seriously enough. If the committee decides to hold hearings, it would be likely to summon members of the paper's former staff, including Mr Coulson, to give evidence. The Independent revealed yesterday that Mr Cameron met James Murdoch at the Oxfordshire home of Rebekah Brooks, the chief executive of News International. The private dinner she hosted took place shortly before Christmas. In a letter to the Prime Minister last night, Ivan Lewis, the shadow Culture Secretary, asked him five questions, including: "Can you clarify whether you discussed News Corp's bid for BSkyB with Mr [James] Murdoch?" Mr Lewis said: "David Cameron's decision to attend this dinner with James Murdoch and Rebekah Brooks in the middle of a quasi-judicial process raises serious questions about his judgment. The integrity of our media is central to our democracy. That is why his answers are of significant public interest." Tory sources dismissed Labour's challenge, insisting that the social event would not be covered by the ministerial code. They said the BSkyB takeover would not have been discussed and that the meeting was not improper in any way because all prime ministers met newspaper proprietors. Mr Cameron and Rupert Murdoch are both due to attend the Davos World Economic Forum this weekend. Downing Street refused to be drawn on whether their paths would cross, although Tory sources said no meeting between the two men was scheduled. Newscorp's bid for Sky James Murdoch, the European chairman of News Corporation, is desperate to avoid a Competition Commission inquiry into his company's bid for the 61 per cent of Sky it does not already own. He fears any delay to the deal could see NewsCorp end up having to pay much more than the £7.5bn it has offered. However, Ofcom, the media regulator, has already said it thinks the Commission should investigate. The decision now rests solely in the hands of Jeremy Hunt, the Culture Secretary, given the role by David Cameron when the Business Secretary, Vince Cable, was caught making partial remarks about the Murdochs. Mr Hunt says he is acting independently and that he will make his decision purely on legal grounds. He has the power to refer the deal to the Commission if he accepts Ofcom's view that a NewsCorp takeover of Sky might damage the plurality of Britain's media, a more subjective test than the competition hurdles the deal has already cleared with European Union regulators. If he does not do so, or comes to an arrangement with NewsCorp that sees it make concessions in return for avoiding an inquiry, there will be a storm of protest about the neutrality of Conservative ministers – and almost certainly a legal challenge.

News of the World phone hacking: 12 questions from the Guardian Rupert Murdoch is in London – and we're curious to know who at News International signed off more than £1m in settlements Guardian January 24, 2011 Today, Rupert Murdoch is over at News International's Wapping headquarters, where he was seen having lunch with Rebekah Brooks and senior editors in the sixth-floor canteen. No doubt the conversation was pretty amicable, but on the off chance that the media mogul wants to ask some questions about phone hacking at the News of the World, here's some we had in mind. The Guardian has already asked News International the same questions, and we will publish any answers we receive. Essentially, though, there are two key questions. First, who at News International (or indeed at parent company News Corporation) agreed to make settlement payments to Gordon Taylor and Max Clifford to end phone-hacking cases? More to the point, when they did so, what legal advice did they receive? After all, it would be an incurious board member who agreed to write out a six-figure settlement cheque, but who did not ask why. Was the person authorising the payment told that there were references to the potential involvement of other News of the World reporters in alleged phone hacking? Or is there another reason why six-figure settlements are appropriate? So here we go. 1. Which directors of News International signed off the reported £700,000 settlement with Gordon Taylor? 2. Which directors of NI signed off the reported £1m settlement with Max Clifford? 3. Who wrote the advice to directors that formed the basis of the two settlements agreed? Was it (head of legal) Tom Crone? 4. Were board members advised when settlements were proposed that there was no new evidence to link any reporter other than Clive Goodman to phone hacking? 5. Was the director or directors of NI who signed off the Gordon Taylor settlement made aware that Taylor's lawyers had evidence that two News of the World journalists were involved in hacking? 6. Have settlements been proposed in any of the other outstanding legal cases and, if so, by which board members? 7. When did the News of the World and News International first realise that there was evidence to suggest that reporters other than Clive Goodman may have been involved in phone hacking? 8. Was the News Corporation board advised as to why settlements in London (Taylor, Clifford) were agreed? 9. Why did James Murdoch and Rebekah Brooks meet David Cameron over the holiday period? Was Andy Coulson's departure discussed? 10 Was News Corp's bid for Sky discussed at that meeting? Were concessions offered to the prime minister at that dinner, such as 'hiving off' Sky News? 11. Will Rupert Murdoch review the phone-hacking evidence that has been revealed by the outstanding civil actions when he is London? 12. When precisely did Rebekah Brooks meet the prime minister? Was it before, or after, News Corp had received Ofcom's conclusions of its 'public interest' inquiry into the News Corp/Sky takeover?

Rupert Murdoch flies in to UK as News Corp stays silent on phone hackin gCompany not divulging what tycoon's son James was told when he signed off £700,000 payment to football chief Gordon Taylor by Dan Sabbagh guardian.co.uk, Monday 24 January 2011 20.36 GMT News Corporation refused to say today what Rupert Murdoch's son James was told about evidence of phone hacking by News of the World journalists when he signed off a £700,000 settlement with the football chief Gordon Taylor. The company declined to comment on any of a set of questions asked by the Guardian about which board members were made aware of the fact that the practice of phone hacking extended beyond the former royal editor Clive Goodman, and the reasons for payouts to Taylor and the public relations specialist Max Clifford. News Corp also refused to reply to further questions about what was discussed at a social meeting between David Cameron, James Murdoch and its UK chief executive, Rebekah Brooks, over the Christmas period. Rupert Murdoch today spent the day at News International's Wapping offices in east London, where he had lunch in the company canteen with his son, Brooks, Dominic Mohan, the editor of the Sun, and James Harding, the editor of the Times. There has so far been no explanation as to why James Murdoch, the chief executive of News Corp's operations in Europe and Asia, decided to sign off the payment to Taylor. One friend of Rupert Murdoch's younger son said he had failed to appreciate the significance of the hacking allegations until recently. The source said: "He had been slow to get on top of the issue until recently, because he's been so focused on getting News Corp's bid for Sky through. He's now done so, but the problem is that it's a bit late." Back in 2009 Colin Myler, then editor of the News of the World, told MPs on the culture, media and sport select committee that it was James Murdoch who had agreed to settle in the Taylor case, on the advice of himself, the newspaper's chief lawyer, Tom Crone, and their legal team. At that time Myler said: "Mr Crone advised me, as the editor, what the legal advice was and it was to settle. Myself and Mr Crone then went to see James Murdoch and told him where we were with the situation. Mr Crone then continued with our outside lawyers the negotiation with Mr Taylor. Eventually a settlement was agreed. That was it." But there has been internal criticism of James Murdoch's handling of the row, with a second source close to the company asking why he thought it wise to attend the Cameron dinner at a time when his presence would invite controversy, given that News Corp is trying to win political approval for its £8bn bid for Sky in the teeth of opposition from rival newspapers including the owners of the Daily Mail, the Daily Mirror and the Guardian.

Phone-hacking scandal: Scotland Yard accused over investigations Chris Huhne has criticised handling of allegations as Gordon Brown asks police to establish whether he was a victim by Polly Curtis and James Robinson guardian.co.uk, Sunday 23 January 2011 19.48 GMT Criticisms of the police handling of the phone-hacking scandal intensified tonight after a senior minister accused Scotland Yard of failing to properly investigate the allegations, while it emerged that Gordon Brown has asked police to establish whether he had been a victim. Chris Huhne, the Liberal Democrat energy secretary, cast doubt on News International's claims that hacking was the work of a "rogue reporter". He criticised the initial handling of the allegations by the police and accused them of reacting to his calls for a full inquiry last year by "scurrying back to Scotland Yard" and dismissing the idea in an afternoon. "It seemed to me clear that the number of people that were being hacked clearly was not consistent with it being one rogue reporter who happened to be the royal correspondent. Why would the royal correspondent be interested in hacking the voicemails of Simon Hughes, my colleague who is a Liberal Democrat MP, for example?" he told the BBC's Daily Politics. "We know the police were not keen on the subject because when I called for a very clear review of this, the police scurried back into Scotland Yard, spent less than a day reviewing it and popped out again in time for the six o'clock news to say they had discovered no further evidence." Asked whether he thought the police had been deterred from carrying out a full investigation after their failure to make charges in Labour's "cash for honours" scandal, he said: "I certainly think that may well have played a part of it because obviously they had been through a very thorough investigation there and they got nowhere, so they may have decided that messing with the political process was something that they didn't want to bother doing." He quickly added: "I really don't know, I mean you'll have to ask a police officer that." Huhne's intervention is a guarantee that the row over phone hacking won't disappear with Andy Coulson's resignation as director of communications from Downing Street last week. The former editor of the News of the World stepped down claiming that the continued controversy over phone hacking was making it difficult for him to do his job. MPs will this week begin gathering evidence for a parliamentary inquiry into the row, while CPS lawyers are expected to meet senior Met officers to discuss the evidence around phone hacking shortly. The Metropolitan Police Authority is also expected to grill senior Met officers on the case during a routine meeting this week. Sources confirmed that Brown wrote to the police this summer asking for an investigation into whether he was a victim of hacking while he was chancellor. It is understood he is concerned about messages he received and those he left for other people. The Met has replied asking for clarification about his claims. Today, Brown's aides refused to comment. But Harriet Harman, the deputy leader of the Labour party, called for a new investigation. "Hacking into people's phones is illegal. Obviously the criminal law has got to be complied with and if it is broken then it should be investigated by the police and it should be enforced," she told Sky News's Murnaghan programme. "Nobody is above the law, no newspaper editor, no journalist … For all of David Cameron's talk of trust in politics it's fundamental that people obey the law and that's what's at risk here. He should never have appointed him." Nick Clegg today suggested that as deputy prime minister he would have a role in choosing Coulson's successor. He said it was "primarily" David Cameron's job to find a replacement, adding "of course I will play a role as well". He said the scandal had not altered the coalition's path. "I don't think this government will miss a beat in terms of just pressing ahead with the plan that we've set out for the next four-and-a-half years to try and restore sense to our economy, create a sound economy, create a fairer society, and to reform our politics as well so that people trust in politics once again." News Corporation's chairman, Rupert Murdoch, will fly into London this week en route to the Davos World Economic Forum with the UK arm of his media empire facing the biggest crisis since the Wapping strikes 25 years ago, and at a time when the £8bn bid for BSkyB hangs in the balance. Murdoch is likely to discuss the hacking scandal with News International chief executive Rebekah Brooks and other executives during the visit, and will have access to the legal files relating to several cases currently going through the civil courts. An aide to the prime minister tonight said that she had no knowledge of any meetings planned between Murdoch and Cameron, or any other minister. The company is seeking to draw a line under an affair which now threatens to engulf other titles. Mark Lewis, the solicitor who represents Nicola Phillips, a publicist who is suing the News of the World for breach of privacy, revealed this weekend that he is representing several other potential claimants whose mobile phones have allegedly been hacked by journalists on other papers. They are understood to include former Labour MP Paul Marsden. Labour MP and former minister Tom Watson said: "Rupert Murdoch has to deal with the unaccountable senior executives that have let this saga go on for too long. We need a statement from him this week." The culture secretary, Jeremy Hunt, is expected to decide early next month whether to refer News Corp's bid to buy the 61% of BSkyB it does not already own to the Competition Commission. Executives have been anxious to meet Hunt to make representations to him. Tories inner circle David Cameron's inner circle has been left with no one with experience of life for ordinary people in Britain and is now exclusively made up of people from "well-off backgrounds", according to senior Tory backbencher David Davis. "There are exceptions – there's Eric Pickles and Sayeeda Warsi in her younger days," he told the BBC yesterday, "but nevertheless in the inner circle ... there won't be anyone now that brings what Coulson brought to it. There he was, an Essex boy, council-house lad, made his own way in the world and frankly never minced words. He was somebody who brought that gritty, slightly tough but necessary mindset to the Conservative leadership's thinking."

The Andy Coulson affair raises the question – who runs Britain? The deafening silence from political leaders reveals the grip Murdoch's empire has over the establishment by Jackie Ashley guardian.co.uk, Sunday 23 January 2011 20.30 GMT Westminster stories have a simple arc – the scandal; the uncovering; the refusal to resign; the resignation; and closure. Sometimes the period from the first intimation of scandal to the resignation can be a matter of hours. Sometimes it drags on for months. But it usually ends in resignation, which is a form of cleansing, and then the caravan moves on. So the Andy Coulson story seems on the surface to have a typical shape. The former tabloid editor and Cameron spin doctor denies any involvement in phone-hacking. David Cameron insists he is staying. But the story won't die. So Coulson goes, to a chorus of remarkably benign political obituaries. And we have closure. This newspaper, above all, can warmly congratulate itself; job done. Yet this is a mistaken way of seeing what has happened, and still is happening. There should be no closure, no business as usual, no letting up. Because the practice of often illegal surveillance by hacking into phones, using eavesdropping technologies and stealing documents continues. This isn't just about Coulson, or the News of the World, or even News International. Many other newspapers have been doing the same. It is not just a historical problem. One of the earlier targets, currently engaged in legal action, told me: "If you think all this stopped some time ago, you have to be bloody joking." She was told only last month that there had been yet another attempt to hack into her voice messages. The practice is endemic. Shrewd editors have passed the really dirty stuff "offshore" – to self-employed dirt diggers – but they are happy to buy and publish the results. The list of targets is apparently much wider than the investigations so far have shown, and is unlikely to be kept under wraps for much longer. So what, you might ask. The hackers' targets have been politicians, members of the royal family, the agents of the rich and famous, sports stars and anyone vaguely famous. Why should they be shown the slightest sympathy? Aren't they all in the celebrity game anyway? Why should the privacy of their conversations be respected? It is a reasonable objection, except that the circle of possible targets constantly expands as the celebrity business sucks in more raw material. Basically, anyone who has ever been known for anything, whose name might sell another half a dozen copies, is a potential target. This goes way beyond a few sleazy texts or phone messages, too. It's about pinpointing people's whereabouts, their financial and health secrets and their friendships. There is a network of peeping all around us that is becoming dangerous, even if it is so far little noticed or understood. If you know the right people, it seems to be easy to find out all sorts of private information. A few years ago, I met someone with good police contacts who casually remarked that he could get me the bank records of someone I was curious about. I wouldn't touch that kind of journalism with a barge pole, but I got the impression he thought me unnecessarily fastidious. To believe that Coulson's resignation stops this, or even much affects it, is like thinking a snow shower disproves global warming. The net may be tightening round one paper, and its owner, Rupert Murdoch; but that's not the half of it. Here's the problem. Normally, when something goes wrong we would expect it to be uncovered by the media, or MPs or the police. In this case, so many newspapers are implicated that it's naive to expect proper investigation of the story, still less demands for a change in the law. Much of the focus on Coulson was driven by editors who simply wanted the phone-hacking scandal to disappear, and hoped that his scalp would end any further scrutiny. That now seems unlikely. What about MPs? Where is the chorus of outrage from Westminster, where so many members have been targeted? You might expect this to be a huge issue in the Commons, not least because it might be seen as just retribution and revenge for journalists' exposure of MPs' expenses. There are MPs campaigning on this. But the silence from the party leaderships, where the power lies, has been deafening. And the reason is bleakly clear. Look at the reports and see the photos from any of Murdoch's summer parties, where the political class and the News International elite schmooze. There is no crude political favouritism here. At the Orangery in Kensington or the Oxo tower, you find Cameron, Lord Mandelson, Alastair Campbell, both Miliband brothers, Ken Livingstone, Nick Clegg, George Osborne – etc, etc – mingling with the News International chief, his family and his courtiers. That is only one example of the close ties woven between Tony Blair and Gordon Brown, when they were prime ministers, and Cameron now, and the Murdoch camp – the private meetings and dinners, the calls (no hacking there) and the mutual interest. We once used to think of the establishment as being cabinet ministers, archbishops, BBC panjandrums, leaders of industry and royalty. No longer. It's the links between the government and the Murdoch empire that count today – a shadowy influence-mart. We need a thorough-going clean up of the rules by which individuals can be spied on and harassed. But who can we turn to? There have been dark mutterings of police collusion and apathy. They have certainly not rushed to inform those who have been targeted. Many politicians feel intimidated, fearful of what the press might do to them if they do raise concerns. I have spoken to several MPs who are suspicious about the way cameras appeared as if by chance – but they will only talk off the record. The answer is that MPs of all parties have to understand this is just as much a question of authority, of "who runs Britain?", as Europe or the dominance of the bankers. We get steamed up about CCTV cameras and the big state, and rightly so. But what about privately sponsored snooping and the Big Hack? If the legislature is intimidated by newspapers, it is not worthy of respect and cannot be relied on to protect anyone else. We seem to be living through a digital age of exposure, much of it driven by the press. Now, perhaps, it's time to shine the light on the one profession that has too often been able to work quietly, in the shadows, without full disclosure or scrutiny – journalism.

latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-thomas-disclosure-20110122,0,2413407.story Clarence Thomas failed to report wife's income, watchdog says Virginia Thomas earned over $680,000 from conservative think tank the Heritage Foundation over 5 years, a group says. But the Supreme Court justice did not include it on financial disclosure forms. By Kim Geiger, Washington Bureau Los Angeles Times January 22, 2011 Reporting from Washington Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas failed to report his wife's income from a conservative think tank on financial disclosure forms for at least five years, the watchdog group Common Cause said Friday. Between 2003 and 2007, Virginia Thomas, a longtime conservative activist, earned $686,589 from the Heritage Foundation, according to a Common Cause review of the foundation's IRS records. Thomas failed to note the income in his Supreme Court financial disclosure forms for those years, instead checking a box labeled "none" where "spousal noninvestment income" would be disclosed. A Supreme Court spokesperson could not be reached for comment late Friday. But Virginia Thomas' employment by the Heritage Foundation was well known at the time. Virginia Thomas also has been active in the group Liberty Central, an organization she founded to restore the "founding principles" of limited government and individual liberty. In his 2009 disclosure, Justice Thomas also reported spousal income as "none." Common Cause contends that Liberty Central paid Virginia Thomas an unknown salary that year. Federal judges are bound by law to disclose the source of spousal income, according to Stephen Gillers, a professor at NYU School of Law. Thomas' omission — which could be interpreted as a violation of that law — could lead to some form of penalty, Gillers said. "It wasn't a miscalculation; he simply omitted his wife's source of income for six years, which is a rather dramatic omission," Gillers said. "It could not have been an oversight." But Steven Lubet, an expert on judicial ethics at Northwestern University School of Law, said such an infraction was unlikely to result in a penalty. Although unfamiliar with the complaint about Thomas' forms, Lubet said failure to disclose spousal income "is not a crime of any sort, but there is a potential civil penalty" for failing to follow the rules. He added: "I am not aware of a single case of a judge being penalized simply for this." The Supreme Court is "the only judicial body in the country that is not governed by a set of judicial ethical rules," Gillers said. A spokesman for the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, which oversees the financial disclosures, could not be reached Friday night to comment on what actions could be taken. In most cases, judges simply amend their forms when an error is discovered. "Without disclosure, the public and litigants appearing before the court do not have adequate information to assess potential conflicts of interest, and disclosure is needed to promote the public's interest in open, honest and accountable government," Common Cause President Bob Edgar wrote in a letter to the Judicial Conference of the United States. The allegation comes days after Common Cause filed a letter requesting that the Justice Department investigate whether Justices Thomas and Antonin Scalia should have disqualified themselves from hearing a campaign finance case after they reportedly attended a private meeting sponsored by Charles and David Koch, billionaire philanthropists who fund conservative causes. In the case, Citizens United vs. Federal Election Commission, the court ruled that corporate and union funds could be spent directly on election advertising. The Koch brothers have been key supporters of the group Americans for Prosperity, which spent heavily in the 2010 midterm election and claims a nonprofit tax status that allows it to avoid disclosing its donors. Clarence Thomas has been the lone justice to argue that laws requiring public disclosure of large political contributions are unconstitutional. A Supreme Court spokesperson later said that Thomas dropped by the private event, but that Scalia did not attend. kim.geiger@latimes.com Tom Hamburger in the Washington bureau contributed to this report.

Exclusive: Brown asks Scotland Yard to investigate if he was hacked Murdoch flies in for high-level meetings as Yard faces new questions about its conduct By James Hanning and Matt Chorley The Independent Sunday, 23 January 2011 Gordon Brown has asked the police to investigate whether he was the victim of phone hacking, The Independent on Sunday has learnt. Mr Brown has written at least one letter to the Metropolitan Police over concerns that his phone was targeted when he was Chancellor, during the latter stages of Andy Coulson's reign as editor of the News of the World. Mr Brown's aides last night declined to comment. It is understood that Scotland Yard sought clarification from the former prime minister after his request. Sources have told The IoS that Tony Blair, his predecessor as prime minister, had also asked police some months ago to investigate whether messages left by him had been the subject of hacking (he did not have his own mobile phone until after he left No 10). Mr Blair and his wife, Cherie Booth, were notably keen to preserve their privacy during their time in Downing Street. Blair's solicitor, Graham Atkins, of Atkins Thomson, declined to comment yesterday, but late last night the former PM's official spokesman denied the story. The news comes as growing criticism of the Met's investigation into widespread mobile phone message interception by the News of the World is mounting. This week, senior Scotland Yard officers are expected to come under fire when they are questioned about the hacking row by London's police authority. MPs will separately take evidence for a parliamentary inquiry into the scandal and the DPP is to meet top Met officers to discuss existing and new evidence. Two days ago, Mr Coulson said he was quitting as David Cameron's director of communications after allegations about his time as NoW editor threatened to overshadow the Government's work. He denies having any knowledge of illegal practices during his time in charge, but said continued coverage made it "difficult for me to give the 110 per cent needed in this role". Downing Street strenuously denies claims that his resignation was demanded by Rupert Murdoch, who owns the NoW. Mr Murdoch's arrival in London is expected imminently. Mr Brown and Mr Blair are the most senior political figures to be linked to the phone-hacking scandal. In September, The IoS revealed that Lord Mandelson's mobile-phone details and an invoice for research on him were among files seized by police investigating illegal activity by NoW reporters when Mr Coulson was editor. Other Labour figures understood to have been targeted include Lord Prescott, David Blunkett, Tessa Jowell and Chris Bryant. Alastair Campbell, the former Labour spin-doctor, told the BBC the controversy had now gone beyond the issue of Mr Coulson's future and "the role of the police in this is now going to become centre stage". The lawyer Mark Lewis yesterday revealed he was acting for four people who believe they were targeted by newspapers other than the NoW, which has been under intense scrutiny since its royal editor, Clive Goodman, was jailed in 2007 for plotting to intercept messages left for aides to Prince William. Mr Lewis successfully represented Gordon Taylor, head of the Professional Footballers' Association, in a damages claim against the NoW. There are at least five other lawyers bringing similar cases. Scotland Yard today faces serious criticism from Chris Huhne for its handling of the case – and its "astonishing" use of undercover officers to target eco-activists. Mr Huhne, the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, told The IoS that the recent suspension of the NoW executive Ian Edmondson had "dramatically changed the situation, and clearly the police and the Met in particular need to get to the bottom of this". Mr Huhne also said he and Vince Cable, the Secretary of State for Business, will write to the president of the Association of Chief Police Officers, Sir Hugh Orde, after being told they were added to a secret police database of criminal suspects after speaking at a green protest. He also suggested that the police have "invented" the threat posed by green campaigners to justify ongoing resources. Scotland Yard is also still trying to contain the fallout from the revelation that Mr Johnson's surprise resignation from the Labour front bench was triggered by his wife's alleged affair with his former police bodyguard. Labour targets Tony Blair The most senior political figure named in the scandal so far, involved in headline-grabbing controversies including the Iraq war and "cash-for-honours". Gordon Brown Suspicions that he was targeted while he was chancellor, at a time when his fraught relationship with Blair was a major political issue. John Prescott Acting against Scotland Yard over failure to tell him Glenn Mulcaire had listed his name. Demanded judicial review into the Met's "incompetence". Tessa Jowell Former minister in running Olympics, whose husband was involved in a high-profile Berlusconi case, was told her phone had been hacked. Lord Mandelson The IoS revealed his details were among lists of data seized by police investigating phone hacking during Andy Coulson's time as editor. Peter Kilfoyle Ex-Liverpool MP said he had been given confirmation his name was on a list of numbers uncovered by police investigating phone hacking. Chris Bryant Former Foreign Office minister who learnt police had found his details when they raided Mulcaire's office. Bringing his own case against the News of the World. David Blunkett The former home secretary feared his phone had been hacked after reports of his affair with Kimberly Quinn appeared in the News of the World.

Phone-hacking scandal could dog the government for months Andy Coulson's resignation is just the start as phone-hacking scandal threatens to create 'greater stench' for Cameron by David Batty guardian.co.uk, Saturday 22 January 2011 17.01 GMT David Cameron has been warned that the phone-hacking scandal that prompted the resignation of his director of communications has just begun to unravel and could dog the government for months. Political, media and legal experts said despite Andy Coulson's departure the illegal phone hacking by News of the World journalists could still create a "greater stench" for Cameron, Rupert Murdoch's NewsCorp and the Metropolitan Police. Coulson announced his resignation yesterday, following a steady drip of allegations that he was involved in illegal phone hacking when editor of the News of the World, and the likelihood that they would continue through civil court cases and possible police inquiries. Alistair Campbell, Tony Blair's former chief spin doctor, said the hacking scandal would create a "greater stench" the longer it went on. "I believe the unravelling of this issue is going to continue apace," he told Sky News. He also questioned Coulson's decision to quit, suggesting the matter was not so widely discussed as to be a resignation matter. "I don't accept that this has become so virulent, so dominant that he couldn't do his job," said Campbell. Tim Montgomerie, editor of the conservativehome blog, said on Twitter that Murdoch, Coulson's former boss, had pushed him to resign amid concern the hacking scandal risked damaging the media mogul's aim to complete a £8.3bn takeover of BSkyB. He tweeted: "Twas Murdoch who ordered Coulson to go. In Ldn this week the NewsCorp boss knew Coulson at PM's side was driving focus on his papers." Media analyst Claire Enders told the BBC that questions about News International's handling of the phone hacking scandal were particularly relevant given the takeover bid. She said that in the circumstances it would be "unprecedented and extraordinary" if NewsCorp avoided a Competition Commission investigation of the bid. "The NewsCorp share price has risen by 7% in the last week because of a view that it would be able to avoid a competition commission investigation," she told Radio 4. "Therefore, there is lots of scuttlebutt that negotiations are going on between the minister responsible, Jeremy Hunt, and NewsCorps." Suspicion has grown that News International was losing the will to fend off, or pay off, civil litigants such as the actor Sienna Miller, demanding to know the identity of News of the World executives responsible for authorising hacking of their phones. Coulson resigned from the paper in January 2007, the day royal editor Clive Goodman and private investigator Glenn Mulcaire, were jailed for hacking into the phones of members of the royal household. He insisted the hacking was done by one rogue reporter. Coulson was appointed Cameron's communications director in April 2007 and a subsequent police investigation led to no further action. The Guardian then published claims that hacking was widespread, and the clouds darkened around Coulson before Christmas when Ian Edmondson, the assistant editor (news) and close to Coulson, was suspended pending an investigation that he had been involved in hacking. Downing Street has insisted Coulson's departure was not precipitated by any fresh piece of damning evidence that would undercut his claim he was unaware that phone hacking was prevalent at the News of the World under his editorship. However, if subsequent court cases reveal Coulson did know that phone hacking was being used to secure stories, Cameron will have to assert he had been misled by his close ally, or admit that he failed to ask pertinent questions of the man who had represented his views to the country for nearly four years. Chris Bryant, the former Labour minister who is seeking to sue the police over allegations that his phone was illegally hacked for the News of the World, said Coulson's resignation raised further questions about the judgment of Cameron and the chancellor, Goerge Osborne, who jointly appointed him. "I'd like to know if Cameron or Osborne asked the Met [Metropolitan police] whether their phones had been intercepted," he told Sky News. The Metropolitan Police said the Crown Prosecution Service was re-examining the evidence from the original phone-hacking investigation and would not comment further. Paul Farrelly MP, a member of the parliamentary culture, media and sport select committee that conducted an investigation into the allegations, called for another police force to examine the Met's handling of the investigation. "There's a real issue here of credibility in the Metropolitan Police and the Crown Prosecution Service, and it is really important that there is an independent investigation into the handling of this. This happened previously when outside [police] forces were brought in to review the actions of a force such as the Metropolitan police." Tasmin Allen, a lawyer pursuing a judicial review of the hacking investigation on behalf of the former deputy prime minister, John Prescott, Chris Bryant and others, said the Met's handling of the case lacked transparency. "If there was no conspiracy, the police handling of the case so far has made it look like there is one," she told the Today programme. "There's been a huge reluctance from the start to provide any information. It's been like getting blood out of a stone." In a sign that the phone-hacking scandal is set to gather pace, media lawyer Mark Lewis, who acted for Gordon Taylor of the Professional Footballers' Association in a damages claim against the Notw, said he was representing four people who believe their voicemails had been intercepted by other newspaper groups. "This was almost kids' play time. It was such a widespread practice," said Lewis

Rupert Murdoch set to arrive in UK with News Corp mired in crisis News Corp chief's London visit next week is timely because no significant decision can be taken at company without him by Dan Sabbagh guardian.co.uk, Friday 21 January 2011 19.04 GMT Photo: Rupert Murdoch in church with Les Hinton, Andy Coulson and Rebekah Wade. Photograph: Graeme Robertson/Getty Images Rupert Murdoch is due in London next week, just as his company's attempts to close down the phone hacking crisis are in tatters. Murdoch tried to keep phone hacking cases out of the courts and out of the public eye through confidential settlements with the likes of football boss Gordon Taylor and PR guru Max Clifford. When that failed, the publisher of the News of the World insisted that phone hacking was the action of a single "rogue reporter" – jailed former royal editor Clive Goodman – and its executives chose to lash out. Rebekah Brooks – the former editor of the News of the World, the Sun and now chief executive of News International, News Corp's UK arm – blamed this newspaper. When the Guardian reported there were potentially thousands of victims of phone hacking, her message was clear: "The Guardian coverage, we believe, has substantially and likely deliberately misled the British public." Now, after Andy Coulson's departure from David Cameron's side, it is clear both strategies have failed, just as News Corp tries to win approval for his £8bn takeover of BSkyB. With News Corp mired in crisis, Murdoch's arrival is timely – because in the end no decision of significance can be taken without him at the company he has built over half a century. News Corp officials say they knew nothing of Coulson's announcement, but even with his departure, senior executives in London know it would be naive to hope his resignation will draw a line under the phone hacking affair. The company well appreciates that the drip-drip of revelation will only continue as lawsuits brought against the newspaper by actor Sienna Miller, football agent Sky Andrew and publicist Nicola Phillips, and many others, develop. Each case moves slowly, an inching forward of witness statements and court hearings that will last months if not years. Brooks had been trying, behind the scenes, to settle at least some of the civil claims – involved, lawyers say, in proposing six figure payouts. Recently that strategy has been abandoned in favour of allowing claimants to put evidence into the public domain, and if that amounts to material implicating one of its journalists, taking action against staff. Allegations loom against reporters, questions remain for former editors like Coulson, while Les Hinton, executive chairman for 12 years until 2007, seemed to be confident hacking was not widespread. Hinton told MPs last year: "There was never any evidence delivered to me that suggested that the conduct of Clive Goodman spread beyond him." Critical evidence is being extracted from the Metropolitan police. The Met is sitting on notebooks, call records and other information seized from Glenn Mulcaire, the private investigator employed by the News of the World in 2006, as part of the inquiry into phone hacking at Buckingham Palace. Each of the celebrities who sue base their claims on their names, or numbers, appearing in Mulcaire's notes. It was Miller's case, with a high court filing in December, that triggered the suspension of Ian Edmondson, the News of the World's assistant editor (news). Her lawyers noted that Mulcaire had a habit of writing the first name of the person who instructed him in the top left corner of his notes. On Miller's notes it was Ian. It is an example of the kind of revelations that are likely still to come. Each time evidence from the Mulcaire files becomes available, it is sent not just to the celebrity litigant, but to News Corp's legal team. If Murdoch wishes to view the files, he can do so. What conclusion he will draw is what will drive how his company reacts to the controversy.

Time for some Coulson jokes. Here are the best from Twitter as reported by The Guardian, January 21, 2011: Coulson resigns "to spend more time listening to other people's families". @RopesToInfinity Show your appreciation for Andy Coulson. Leave him a message of a support on your voicemail. @davidschneider Coulson first learned of his resignation when listening to David Cameron's voicemail. @bristolpaul Why did Andy Coulson resign? Because he couldn't hack it any more. @dotsmy and many others

Pressure grows on Met's phone-hacking inquiry The Independent By Cahal Milmo, Chief Reporter Thursday, 20 January 2011 Pressure was growing on Scotland Yard last night to explain its failure to interview senior executives on the News of the World amid claims that its original investigation into the phone-hacking scandal missed potentially crucial lines of inquiry. Lawyers bringing civil claims on behalf of a number of celebrities who believe their voicemails were intercepted by the private detective Glenn Mulcaire have now highlighted the roles of at least two senior staff members on the News Corporation title whose names apparently appear on phone-hacking records kept by the investigator. The names, which include Ian Edmondson, an assistant editor on the paper who was suspended last month following the disclosure of documents linking him to the hacking of the actress Sienna Miller's phone, have all been revealed in documents provided by the Metropolitan Police from its own inquiries into Mr Mulcaire. Neither Mr Edmondson or Greg Miskiw, the former assistant editor who was this week linked to an alleged attempt by Mr Mulcaire to intercept voicemails to the football commentator Andy Gray, were interviewed during the investigation which led to the jailing of the private detective and Clive Goodman, the News of the World's former royal correspondent. A further question mark was placed over Scotland Yard's inquiry yesterday with the revelation of the existence of a secure server containing emails sent to Andy Coulson, the editor of the Sunday tabloid at the time of the scandal who is now Prime Minister David Cameron's head of communications. Tom Watson, a Labour MP, called for detectives to examine the server and also reconsider an existing transcript of 35 intercepted voicemails relating to Gordon Taylor, the chief executive of the Professional Footballers' Association, which was marked for the attention of Neville Thurlbeck, the paper's chief reporter. John Yates, the Met's acting deputy commissioner now in charge of the hacking inquiry, has admitted that Mr Thurlbeck, who denies receiving the transcript, should have been interviewed in the investigation. The long-standing insistence of the NOTW that hacking was restricted to a single "rogue reporter" in the shape of Mr Goodman began to unravel this week after Mr Mulcaire made a statement to the High Court saying he had been commissioned by Mr Edmondson in separate proceedings brought by the football agent Sky Andrew. Mr Edmondson denies any wrongdoing. Legal sources told The Independent that developments left the Met in an increasingly difficult position. One senior media lawyer said: "As News of the World starts to concede that there may have been other 'rogue' reporters rather than just one, serious questions need to be asked as to why the Met limited its initial criminal investigation. They had papers naming, 'Ian', 'Greg' and 'Neville', why didn't they interview them? It is wrong that they should be tasked with investigating now. Clearing reporters helps clear the Met. It is as simple as that." Scotland Yard confirmed yesterday that there is no active investigation into the hacking allegations after the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) announced last week a new review of all evidence relating to the interception of voicemails. A spokesman said: "We are awaiting the conclusion of the CPS review. We have also written to the News of the World requesting any new material they may have in relation to alleged phone hacking." Prosecutors and police have hinted that they are considering widening the hitherto narrow interpretation of the law relating to hacking, which says that a criminal offence has only been committed when a hacker listens to a voicemail before its intended recipient. Redefined guidelines which make it an offence to intercept a message regardless of whether it is new or saved could open the door to more prosecutions. Mark Lewis, the lawyer who acted for Mr Taylor in a damages claim against the NOTW, said the extent of hacking within the paper remained unknown. He said: "It might suit the paper to portray this as another isolated example, but we need to avoid drawing a conclusion that this was not a widespread practice." What Coulson told MPs In 2009, Andy Coulson stated he did not know of "any evidence linking the non-royal phone hacking by [private investigator] Glenn Mulcaire with [anyone at NOTW]", blaming one rogue reporter, former royal correspondent Clive Goodman, for the phone hacking. Since then, the names of two further NOTW executives, Ian Edmondson and Greg Miskiw, have been apparently linked to phone-hacking records.

Seymour Hersh Unleashed January 20, 2011 Foreign Policy.Com http://blog.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2011/01/18/seymour_hersh_unleashed DOHA, Qatar—David Remnick, call your office. In a speech billed as a discussion of the Bush and Obama eras, New Yorker journalist Seymour Hersh delivered a rambling, conspiracy-laden diatribe here Monday expressing his disappointment with President Barack Obama and his dissatisfaction with the direction of U.S. foreign policy. "Just when we needed an angry black man," he began, his arm perched jauntily on the podium, "we didn't get one." It quickly went downhill from there. Hersh, whose exposés of gross abuses by members of the U.S. military in Vietnam and Iraq have earned him worldwide fame and high journalistic honors, said he was writing a book on what he called the "Cheney-Bush years" and saw little difference between that period and the Obama administration. He said that he was keeping a "checklist" of aggressive U.S. policies that remained in place, including torture and "rendition" of terrorist suspects to allied countries, which he alleged was ongoing. He also charged that U.S. foreign policy had been hijacked by a cabal of neoconservative "crusaders" in the former vice president's office and now in the special operations community. "What I'm really talking about is how eight or nine neoconservative, radicals if you will, overthrew the American government. Took it over," he said of his forthcoming book. "It's not only that the neocons took it over but how easily they did it -- how Congress disappeared, how the press became part of it, how the public acquiesced." Hersh then brought up the widespread looting that took place in Baghdad after the fall of Saddam Hussein in 2003. "In the Cheney shop, the attitude was, ‘What's this? What are they all worried about, the politicians and the press, they're all worried about some looting? ... Don't they get it? We're gonna change mosques into cathedrals. And when we get all the oil, nobody's gonna give a damn.'" "That's the attitude," he continued. "We're gonna change mosques into cathedrals. That's an attitude that pervades, I'm here to say, a large percentage of the Joint Special Operations Command." He then alleged that Gen. Stanley McChrystal, who headed JSOC before briefly becoming the top U.S. commander in Afghanistan, and his successor, Vice Adm. William McRaven, as well as many within JSOC, "are all members of, or at least supporters of, Knights of Malta." Hersh may have been referring to the Sovereign Order of Malta, a Roman Catholic organization commited to "defence of the Faith and assistance to the poor and the suffering," according to its website. "Many of them are members of Opus Dei," Hersh continued. "They do see what they're doing -- and this is not an atypical attitude among some military -- it's a crusade, literally. They see themselves as the protectors of the Christians. They're protecting them from the Muslims [as in] the 13th century. And this is their function." "They have little insignias, these coins they pass among each other, which are crusader coins," he continued. "They have insignia that reflect the whole notion that this is a culture war. … Right now, there’s a tremendous, tremendous amount of anti-Muslim feeling in the military community.”" Hersh relayed that he had recently spoken with "a man in the intelligence community... somebody in the joint special operations business" about the downfall of Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali in Tunisia. "He said, ‘Oh my God, he was such a good ally.'" "Tunisia's going to change the game," Hersh added later. "It's going to scare the hell out of a lot of people." Moving to Pakistan, where Hersh noted he had been friendly with Benazir Bhutto, the journalist told of a dinner meeting with Asif Ali Zardari, the late prime minister’s husband, in which Hersh said the Pakistani president was brutally disdainful of his own people. Hersh described a trip he made to Swat, where the Pakistani military had just dislodged Taliban insurgents who had taken over the scenic valley, a traditional vacation area for the urban middle class. Hersh said he asked Zardari about the tent cities he saw along the road, where people were living in harsh, unsanitary conditions. “Well, those people there in Swat, that’s what they deserve,” the Pakistani president replied, according to Hersh. Asked why, Hersh said Zardari responded, “Because they supported the Taliban.” (Note: Hersh's conversation is not recounted in his 2009 New Yorker article on Pakistan's nuclear weapons, presumably because it coudn't be verified.) The veteran journalist also alleged that the CIA station chief in Islamabad, who was recently recalled after his name surfaced in Pakistani court documents and in the lively Pakistani press, had actually been fired for disputing the plans of Gen. David Petraeus, who took over the Afghan war last summer after General McChrystal was summarily dismissed. "When Petraeus issued a very optimistic report about the war in December that he gave to the president," Hersh said, the station chief "just declared it was bankrupt... internally. He just said ‘This is completely wrongheaded. The policy's wrongheaded.' Off he goes. Out he goes." "I've given up being disillusioned about the CIA," Hersh said. "They're trained to lie, period. They will lie to their president, they will lie certainly to the Congress, and they will lie to the American people. That's all there is to it." Hersh was speaking on the invitation of Georgetown University's School of Foreign Service, which operates a branch campus in Qatar.

David Cameron met Rebekah Brooks after Vince Cable lost BSkyB power PM visited News International chief's home over Christmas amid storm over Rupert Murdoch's bid to take full control of BSkyB by Nicholas Watt and Dan Sabbagh The Guardian, Thursday 20 January 2011 Rebekah Brooks lives near to David Cameron's consistuency home. David Cameron was a guest of Rebekah Brooks, the chief executive of News International, at her Oxfordshire home over the Christmas period – just days after he transferred ministerial responsibility over Rupert Murdoch's bid to take full control of BSkyB. Shortly before Christmas, Cameron stripped Vince Cable, the Liberal Democrat business secretary, of his powers on media takeovers after Cable was recorded telling undercover journalists that he had "declared war" on Murdoch. Cameron handed the responsibility to the Tory culture secretary, Jeremy Hunt. Hunt is due to decide soon whether to refer the company's bid for BSkyB to the competition commission after receiving a report by the media regulator Ofcom. News Corp is making a £7.5bn bid to buy the 61% of BSkyB it does not own. Shadow culture secretary Ivan Lewis last night described Cameron's decision to meet Brooks as "extraordinary". "People will question his judgment at a time when ministers are making a quasi-judicial decision about News Corp's bid for BSkyB," Lewis said. "The prime minister may be in breach of his own ministerial code, which requires openness and transparency. There is an arrogance about this prime minister that is slowly coming to the surface." A Downing Street source played down the significance of the social engagement and pointed out that Brooks is one of the prime minister's constituents. The source said: "To suggest some kind of impropriety is laughable. The prime minister regularly meets newspaper executives from lots of different companies." Cameron visited Brooks and her husband, the racehorse trainer and writer Charlie Brooks, at their Oxfordshire home over the Christmas period. Cameron is MP for Witney and his constituency home is near the couple's house. The disclosure of the meeting comes as News International faces pressure over allegations of illegal phone hacking at the News of the World. Andy Coulson, Cameron's communications director, resigned as editor of the News of the World in 2007 shortly after the jailing of the paper's former royal editor, Clive Goodman, and a private investigator, Glenn Mulcaire for phone hacking. Coulson has always denied knowledge of illegal phone hacking. Ian Edmondson, the paper's assistant editor (news), was suspended last month after the News of the World was alerted that Mulcaire would say in evidence that the executive had instructed him to hack the phone of the football agent Sky Andrew. One senior Tory said that News International's central defence – that a "rogue reporter" was responsible – appeared to be crumbling. "This all appears to be closing in. It has always been obvious there were others. People just didn't know the names." Cameron, who declined to say on the Today programme earlier this week whether Coulson had offered to resign, said that his communications director was embarrassed by the revelations. "Of course he, as anyone who is human would be, is extremely embarrassed by the endless publicity and speculation about what happened many years ago when he was editor

News of the World investigator had Andy Gray's password, court told Glenn Mulcaire made record of Andy Gray's mobile number, password and pin, says Sky Sports commentator's lawyer James Robinson and Nicholas Watt guardian.co.uk, Tuesday 18 January 2011 21.56 GMT Andy Gray is the latest in a growing list of public figures to take legal action against the News of the World. A private investigator employed by the News of the World made a record of the mobile number, password and pin belonging to the Sky Sports commentator Andy Gray, the high court was told today. Gray's lawyer Jeremy Reed said notebooks belonging to Glenn Mulcaire, seized in a police raid of his home in 2006, showed he had also noted the number the former footballer used to access messages. "The only purpose of calling that number would be to go into voicemails," Reed said. Gray and the comedian Steve Coogan went to the high court today in an attempt to force Mulcaire to reveal which News of the World journalists ordered him to hack into their mobile phones. They are the latest in a growing list of public figures to take legal action against the paper. Mulcaire's notes also reveal he wrote "Greg" in the lefthand margin. Reed said Mulcaire was in the habit of writing the name of the News of the World executive who had commissioned him and "Greg" referred to Greg Miskiw, a senior journalist at the newspaper at the time. Gray's lawyer told the court that Mulcaire's phone bills, which were also obtained by Scotland Yard, prove Mulcaire called Gray's mobile more than a dozen times in 2005 and 2006. Mulcaire is refusing to name News of the World executives in this case on the grounds that he could incriminate himself. He has admitted he took orders from Ian Edmondson, the paper's associate editor, in a separate case brought by the football agent Sky Andrew. Mulcaire's lawyer Alex Marzec said: "Some documents have been produced by the Metropolitan police that may show [Mulcaire] was interested in Mr Gray. They don't show there is any interception [of voicemail messages] at all." The hearing was adjourned until 31 January after the judge said Coogan and Gray should submit evidence about which voicemails had been targeted. A full trial has been scheduled for November. Meanwhile, Andy Coulson, the Downing Street director of communications, is alleged to have used a special email server reserved for senior executives at News International while editor of the News of the World that may contain evidence. Tom Watson, a Labour member of the Commons culture select committee, made the claim in the House of Commons yesterday as he asked the attorney general about the new Crown Prosecution Service investigation into allegations of phone hacking at the paper. The existence of the special email server, also used by the News International chief executive, Rebekah Brooks, may be significant in the new CPS investigation and a separate internal enquiry by the News of the World. It is understood that emails sent and received by Ian Edmondson, a news executive who was suspended as part of the internal investigation, are being examined. Watson believes that the special server for executives, established to protect sensitive financial information, may contain important emails. Watson asked the attorney general, Dominic Grieve, in the Commons: "Are the law officers confident that the CPS are giving the right advice? In particular, are they asking the Metropolitan police to examine the separate secure email server used by the News International executives at the grades of Andy Coulson and Rebekah Wade and to examine the existing illegally transcribed phone message made by Ross Hall for Neville?" Speaking outside the chamber, Watson told the Guardian: "It is absolutely vital now that the attorney general is confident that there is a proper investigation in which all the servers are examined and not just one." Watson's remarks came after Keir Starmer, the director of public prosecutions, announced last week a "comprehensive" review of all phone-hacking material held by the police. Starmer acted after new information emerged in civil cases brought by celebrities who believe their phones were illegally hacked by, or on behalf of, the News of the World. In the latest case, Mulcaire, who was jailed in 2007 along with the paper's former royal editor Clive Goodman, submitted a statement to the high court confirming that he had been asked to hack into voicemail messages left on a mobile phone belonging to Sky Andrew, who is suing the paper for breach of privacy. Ian Edmondson was suspended after the Guardian reported in December that his first name had been written across notes relating to the hacking of Sienna Miller's phone. The Guardian reported last year that a telephone conversation, transcribed by the former News of the World employee Ross Hall, was marked with the name Neville. There is only one journalist on the paper with that first name: the chief reporter Neville Thurlbeck. Grieve indicated to Watson that the CPS was prepared to examine all relevant material. Citing a letter from the Metropolitan police acting deputy commissioner John Yates ahead of last week's CPS announcement, the attorney general said: "That letter makes quite clear that he wishes to re-examine all the material collected in this matter and to then seek the advice of the CPS and the DPP in relation to it." Grieve had earlier told MPs: "The roles of the police and CPS are distinct. The police investigate allegations of criminal conduct and the CPS provides them with advise where requested to do so and takes prosecution decisions. The constitutional role of the law officers is to superintend the CPS. The law officers are not involved in the provision of such advice. "On 14 January the DPP announced that the CPS will conduct a comprehensive assessment of material in the possession of the Metropolitan police service relating to phone hacking following developments in the civil courts cases taking place on this issue. The purpose of this assessment is to ascertain whether there is any material which could now form evidence in any future criminal prosecution relating to phone hacking." Katherine McKinnell, shadow solicitor general, raised questions about the conduct of the police. "As the attorney general is aware, there have been serious concerns expressed about the handling of the News of the World phone hacking investigations to date. Whilst the announcement of a comprehensive assessment of all the material held by the Metropolitan police service is to be welcomed, could [the attorney general] confirm whether he shares the concerns about the handing of the case to date? Could he also tell the house what prompted this change in direction only a matter of weeks after the CPS announced that there was no admissible evidence upon which they could properly advise the police to bring criminal charges?" Grieve replied: "The hon lady must understand that any investigation in accordance with the crown prosecutors' code must take account of what information and evidence there is available. If evidence and information becomes available which warrants looking further at the matter then that is exactly what happens. In this particular case evidence or information has emerged in the course of civil proceedings which gives rise to a justification and reason for looking again at the material. That is exactly what the police and the CPS are going to do." See also: http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/interactive/2010/feb/24/news-of-the-world-phone-tapping

What Might Be Lurking in WikiLeaks' "Thermonuclear Device"? January 18, 2011 http://legalschnauzer.blogspot.com/2011/01/what-might-be-lurking-in-wikileaks.html It appears increasingly likely that WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange will be extradited to Sweden and turned over to the United States for criminal charges of a dubious nature. That brings heightened urgency to this question: What is contained in the "thermonuclear device" of government files that WikiLeaks has vowed to release if harm comes to the organization or its leader? Little is known about the files that WikiLeaks possesses but has not released, so we can only make an educated guess. But a source tells Legal Schnauzer that the files could include information about Bush-era crimes, including political prosecutions, stolen elections, U.S. attorney firings, and more. One hint came when Assange said in a recent interview that he has "insurance files" on Rupert Murdoch and his global media company, News Corporation. But we've seen signs that WikiLeaks' "big bomb" goes way beyond anything involving Rupert Murdoch. The strongest insight we've seen came in a recent Time magazine profile of Assange in its Person of the Year issue. WikiLeaks, it turns out, obtained sensitive information by piggybacking on the work of Chinese hackers. Time explains: The worst--or best, in the view of advocates for radical transparency--could be yet to come. John Young, a New York City architect who left the WikiLeaks steering committee after clashing with Assange, says the group members are storing "a lot more information underground than they are publishing on the surface." Some of it comes from a hacker-on-hacker sting in 2006, when data jockeys at WikiLeaks detected what they believed to be a large-scale intelligence operation to steal data from computers around the world. The intruders were using TOR, an anonymous browsing technology invented by the U.S. Navy, to tunnel into their targets and extract information. The WikiLeaks team piggybacked on the operation, recording the data stream in real time as the intruders stole it. In an encrypted e-mail dated Jan. 7, 2007, decrypted and made available to TIME by its recipient, one of the participants boasted, "Hackers monitor chinese and other intel as they burrow into their targets, when they pull, so do we. Inxhaustible supply of material?... We have all of pre 2005 afghanistan. Almost all of india fed. Half a dozen foreign ministries. Dozens of political parties and consulates, worldbank, apec, UN sections, trade groups." The theft scandalized some WikiLeaks insiders, and Assange has held back from publishing most of its fruits. But shortly before his arrest in London, he issued a veiled threat that "comes straight out of cypherpunk fiction," according to Christopher Soghoian, a well-known security researcher. Last July, it turns out, as controversy erupted over its release of the Afghanistan war logs, WikiLeaks had posted, without explanation, a 1.4-gigabyte encrypted file called "insurance.aes256." Some 100,000 people around the world have downloaded it. On Dec. 3, Assange said in an online chat with readers of the Guardian newspaper that the file contains the entire diplomatic archive, most of which has yet to be released, and additional "significant material from the U.S. and other countries." He added, "If something happens to us, the key parts will be released automatically." From a domestic standpoint, the most intriguing information might be the reference to "political parties" and "trade groups." Could that mean the Republican Party during the George W. Bush years? Could that be one reason GOP guru Karl Rove seems particularly determined to see that Assange is "hunted down"? Could "trade groups" include the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, which has been a powerful force in the GOP's electoral strategies. Our source finds it particularly interesting that the WikiLeaks files were obtained on the backs of Chinese hackers. This brings to mind SMARTech, the Chattanooga-based company whose servers hosted 2004 presidential-election results for Ohio, plus Bush-administration e-mails that went outside of official White House channels. According to several published reports, SMARTech CEO Jeff Averbeck has ties to Oak Ridge National Laboratory and the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) and possibly has routed information through servers at those federal facilities. Says our source: If I was working in Chinese intelligence, I think Oak Ridge Labs would be an inviting target for hacking. If SMARTech has used those lines, the Chinese might have obtained all kinds of information about stolen U.S. elections. I would want the NASA and TVA servers, as well, and who knows what the Chinese might have found there? With information about stolen elections and more, the Chinese could blackmail the U.S. government for about a century. I suspect Assange has stuff we haven't even thought of. The next court date in Assange's extradition battle is February 7. Meanwhile, we can ponder these questions: Is it possible that WikiLeaks will force the U.S. government into rediscovering its conscience? Wouldn't it be ironic if we wind up having to thank Chinese hackers for helping to get our democracy back on track, to essentially save us from the criminality of the Bush years?

News Media News of the World phone-hacking scandal News of the World phone hacking: now Paul Gascoigne is ready to sueTabloid newspaper's actions said to have hindered recovery of vulnerable footballer as he deals with alcohol and drug problems Jamie Doward and Jenny Stevens guardian.co.uk, Saturday 15 January 2011 21.43 GMT Ex-England footballer Paul Gascoigne is the latest celebrity to sue the News of the World in the phone-hacking scandal. Photograph: Owen Humphreys/PA Paul Gascoigne, the former England footballer, is to become the latest celebrity to sue the News of the World, alleging that he was a victim of the phone-hacking scandal that has rocked Rupert Murdoch's media empire. His solicitor, Gerald Shamash, confirmed today that proceedings would be issued within days. Shamash claimed that Gascoigne was in a vulnerable mental state and that his recovery had been hindered because of the stress of believing that his phone had been hacked. "It has made things even more difficult for his general wellbeing," he said. Gascoigne has been fighting drink and drug problems for years and been in and out of rehabilitation clinics. The Observer has now established that the comedian Steve Coogan has also issued proceedings and that Chris Tarrant, the television presenter, and the jockey Kieren Fallon are expected to launch legal actions soon. There are now at least five law firms representing alleged victims of phone hacking. Lawyers from all five have confirmed that they expect more claims to be filed in the next few weeks. So far, four people have settled claims against the newspaper before they reached court, including the celebrity publicist Max Clifford. The increasing number of people who are suing or threatening to sue the paper has raised fresh questions about how widespread the practice of phone hacking was on the newspaper while it was edited by the prime minister's director of communications, Andy Coulson. Senior executives on the paper maintain that the practice was the work of a rogue reporter, Clive Goodman, who was jailed in 2007 for his part in the scandal. But many believe that hundreds or even thousands of phones were hacked by a private investigator, Glenn Mulcaire, while he was working for the newspaper. Questions are being asked about the role of the Metropolitan police, which was obliged by the Crown Prosecution Service to inform suspected victims that their phones had been hacked. Paul Farrelly MP, a member of the parliamentary culture, media and sport select committee that conducted an investigation into the allegations, said he was concerned that the Met had adopted a new policy towards requests for information from suspected victims. Previously someone could request that the Met scour its files to establish whether their phone had been hacked. Now Scotland Yard asks for a suspected victim to outline on what grounds they believe their phone has been hacked before making a search. "We found great fault with the police investigation and to that we can add the conduct of the Crown Prosecution Service [CPS], which simply rubber stamps the Met's totally inadequate handling of the affair," Farrelly said. John Kelly, of the law firm Schillings, who is representing a number of people seeking damages from the newspaper, said it was important that a comprehensive list of victims was established. "Unlawfully intercepting phone calls is a massive invasion of privacy," Kelly said. "We will not know the full extent of how widespread this activity was until we know exactly who was targeted. It's in everybody's interest for the Met and News Group to let people know if they may have been a victim. In the meantime, more claims will continue to be brought." In answer to a freedom of information request, Scotland Yard has confirmed only that there were 91 individuals whose pin numbers, for their mobile phone message services, were found in material seized from Mulcaire. In a sign of the growing disquiet at the Met's handling of the investigation, the director of public prosecutions, Keir Starmer, announced on Friday that the CPS had agreed to conduct a "comprehensive assessment" of all material held by Scotland Yard relating to phone hacking. Charlotte Harris, the solicitor representing the sports agent Sky Andrew, who is bringing a claim against the newspaper, said she trusted the assessment would be robust. "The interpretation of whatever documents or other evidence should not be something that is done by the Metropolitan police alone," Harris said. "An independent eye is welcomed given the civil claims, the reported settlements, the suspension of Ian Edmondson and the new internal investigation by the News of the World." News International, parent company of News Group Newspapers, said the News of the World would "continue to co-operate with any request from the police or the Crown Prosection Service David Cameron: Andy Coulson deserves to be given a second chance PM defends his communications director but refuses to deny claims that Coulson offered to resign Hélène Mulholland, political reporter guardian.co.uk, Monday 17 January 2011 10.06 GMT David Cameron said Andy Coulson 'should not be punished twice for the same offence'. David Cameron said today he has given Andy Coulson, his director of communications, a "second chance" following revelations about phone-hacking at News of the World when he was editor and warned that his aide should not be "punished twice for the same offence". Speaking on BBC Radio 4's Today programme, the prime minister stood by his communication chief as he failed to quash weekend reports that Coulson offered to resign for the damage to the government caused by his involvement in a newspaper phone-hacking row. But he notably did not say, as he as done in previous comments about the affair, that he accepted his PR chief's assurances that he had been unaware of hacking during his editorship of the tabloid. Cameron said that "bad things happened" when Coulson was editor of the News of the World, but resigned "when he found out about them", which the prime minister said was "the right thing to do". "I almost think there is a danger at the moment that he is effectively being punished twice for the same offence. I judge his work by what he has done for us ... I gave him a second chance. I think in life sometimes it's right to give someone a second chance. He resigned for what went wrong at News of the World. I would just argue working for the government, I think he has done a good job." He added: "Of course he was embarrassed, but he has had a second chance from me to do this job. I think he has done the job in a very good way." According to the Mail on Sunday, Coulson has admitted that the allegations concerning the bugging of celebrities' phones while he was editor of the News of the World are making it harder for him to carry out his duties at No 10.But the paper said Cameron and the chancellor, George Osborne, had turned down his offer to resign, instead offering him total support in his battle to clear his name. Coulson quit as editor of the News of the World in 2007 over the phone-hacking row, but has always maintained he did not know it was going on. Since then, a string of allegations have surfaced that have cast doubt on the notion that phone tapping at the paper was down to one rogue reporter, Clive Goodman, acting alone. Pressed on the claims today that Coulson offered to quit over recent developments, Cameron refused to divulge "private conversations" other than to say that Coulson was "extremely embarrassed" by the reports "as anyone who is human would be". But the prime minister said that he judged his staff on whether they were doing a "good job", telling BBC Radio 4's Today programme that Coulson "can't be responsible for the fact that people write articles about him". It emerged last week that the Crown Prosecution Service is due to undertake a comprehensive review of phone-hacking material, including examining evidence that has emerged since the trial of Goodman, formerly royal editor at the News of the World, and private investigator Glenn Mulcaire, including revelations published by the Guardian which suggest that phone-hacking was rife at the paper. Coulson has always maintained he knew nothing about Goodman's actions NoW phone-hacking scandal: News Corp's 'rogue reporter' defence unravels Glenn Mulcaire tells high court that News of the World's head of news asked him to hack voicemail messages James Robinson guardian.co.uk, Monday 17 January 2011 20.48 GMT Glenn Mulcaire said in the court statement that several other executives at the News of the World were aware that phone hacking was taking place. News Corporation's defence that phone hacking at the News of the World was the work of a single "rogue reporter" was on the verge of collapse tonight after Glenn Mulcaire, the private detective at the centre of the case, said the paper's head of news commissioned him to access voicemail messages. Mulcaire is understood to have submitted a statement to the high court this afternoon confirming that Ian Edmondson, the paper's assistant editor (news) asked him to hack into voicemail messages left on a mobile phone belonging to Sky Andrew, a football agent. Andrew is suing the paper for breach of privacy. It is also understood that Mulcaire said in the court statement that several other executives at the News of the World were aware that phone hacking was taking place, although he does not name them. A spokesman for the News of the World said: "This is a serious allegation that will form part of our internal investigation." Edmondson was suspended by the paper before Christmas after he was named in court documents in a separate case against the News of the World brought by the actor Sienna Miller. His computer has been impounded as part of the paper's internal investigation and the company is trawling through his emails. He is expected to be questioned after colleagues have been interviewed. Mulcaire's decision to name Edmondson helps to explains why News Group acted so quickly to suspend him. Mulcaire's lawyer, Sarah Webb, said: "It's in court documents. I'm not prepared to comment." The admission by Mulcaire, whose legal fees are believed to be met by News of the World publisher, News Group, which is part of Rupert Murdoch's media empire, contradicts the paper's repeated claim that only a single journalist – the former royal editor Clive Goodman – knew about his activities. Executives at the paper, including its former editor Andy Coulson, now David Cameron's director of communications – have stuck to that version of events since Goodman and Mulcaire was jailed in 2007 for illegally intercepting voicemails left on mobile phones belonging to members of the royal household. A Downing Street spokeswoman said: "We have nothing further to add." Files seized by police in a 2006 raid on Mulcaire's home show that Mulcaire wrote "Ian" in the margins of a transcript he made of messages left on Miller's phone. Miller's lawyers had contended that "Ian" referred to Edmondson, an executive at the paper who was hired by Coulson and worked closely with the former editor during his time at the paper. Mulcaire had a habit of writing the first name of whoever had asked him to conduct hacking in the top left corner of his paperwork. His conviction in 2006 along with Goodman rested partly on the fact he had written "Clive" on his files. Lawyers acting for Nicola Phillips, a publicist suing the paper for breach of privacy, won a high court ruling in November ordering Mulcaire to name the executives who ordered him to hack into phones. He appealed against that ruling, however, on the grounds that he could incriminate himself by doing so, and the court of appeal has yet to hear his case. It is unclear why Mulcaire has decided to name Edmondson now, although it is thought lawyers acting for several other litigants, including the comedian Steve Coogan and the Sky Sports commentator Andy Gray are preparing to make the same request. Murdoch has pledged "immediate action" against anyone found hacking again. News Corporation had fought a long battle to prevent details of the phone-hacking affair becoming public. The Guardian revealed in July 2009 that News Corp had paid the PFA chief executive, Gordon Taylor, and two others a total of £1m in a secret out-of -court settlement in exchange for dropping a hacking case. The documents relating to the case were then sealed by the court. The celebrity publicist Max Clifford received £1m last year in a similar settlement.

http://quixoticjoust.blogspot.com/?spref=fb This Jan. 16, 2011 blog entry, which is a transcript of a dated interview with a former writer for Forbes Magazine who learned too much, clears up some of the mysterious events for which there have been no apparent answers. It boggles the mind in its revelations. The announcement today that a former bank employee has turned over to WikiLeaks information on over 2000 secret Swiss bank accounts presents a new and updated angle on matters detailed in the interview.

News Media News of the World phone-hacking scandal News of the World phone hacking: now Paul Gascoigne is ready to sueTabloid newspaper's actions said to have hindered recovery of vulnerable footballer as he deals with alcohol and drug problems Jamie Doward and Jenny Stevens guardian.co.uk, Saturday 15 January 2011 21.43 GMT Ex-England footballer Paul Gascoigne is the latest celebrity to sue the News of the World in the phone-hacking scandal. Photograph: Owen Humphreys/PA Paul Gascoigne, the former England footballer, is to become the latest celebrity to sue the News of the World, alleging that he was a victim of the phone-hacking scandal that has rocked Rupert Murdoch's media empire. His solicitor, Gerald Shamash, confirmed today that proceedings would be issued within days. Shamash claimed that Gascoigne was in a vulnerable mental state and that his recovery had been hindered because of the stress of believing that his phone had been hacked. "It has made things even more difficult for his general wellbeing," he said. Gascoigne has been fighting drink and drug problems for years and been in and out of rehabilitation clinics. The Observer has now established that the comedian Steve Coogan has also issued proceedings and that Chris Tarrant, the television presenter, and the jockey Kieren Fallon are expected to launch legal actions soon. There are now at least five law firms representing alleged victims of phone hacking. Lawyers from all five have confirmed that they expect more claims to be filed in the next few weeks. So far, four people have settled claims against the newspaper before they reached court, including the celebrity publicist Max Clifford. The increasing number of people who are suing or threatening to sue the paper has raised fresh questions about how widespread the practice of phone hacking was on the newspaper while it was edited by the prime minister's director of communications, Andy Coulson. Senior executives on the paper maintain that the practice was the work of a rogue reporter, Clive Goodman, who was jailed in 2007 for his part in the scandal. But many believe that hundreds or even thousands of phones were hacked by a private investigator, Glenn Mulcaire, while he was working for the newspaper. Questions are being asked about the role of the Metropolitan police, which was obliged by the Crown Prosecution Service to inform suspected victims that their phones had been hacked. Paul Farrelly MP, a member of the parliamentary culture, media and sport select committee that conducted an investigation into the allegations, said he was concerned that the Met had adopted a new policy towards requests for information from suspected victims. Previously someone could request that the Met scour its files to establish whether their phone had been hacked. Now Scotland Yard asks for a suspected victim to outline on what grounds they believe their phone has been hacked before making a search. "We found great fault with the police investigation and to that we can add the conduct of the Crown Prosecution Service [CPS], which simply rubber stamps the Met's totally inadequate handling of the affair," Farrelly said. John Kelly, of the law firm Schillings, who is representing a number of people seeking damages from the newspaper, said it was important that a comprehensive list of victims was established. "Unlawfully intercepting phone calls is a massive invasion of privacy," Kelly said. "We will not know the full extent of how widespread this activity was until we know exactly who was targeted. It's in everybody's interest for the Met and News Group to let people know if they may have been a victim. In the meantime, more claims will continue to be brought." In answer to a freedom of information request, Scotland Yard has confirmed only that there were 91 individuals whose pin numbers, for their mobile phone message services, were found in material seized from Mulcaire. In a sign of the growing disquiet at the Met's handling of the investigation, the director of public prosecutions, Keir Starmer, announced on Friday that the CPS had agreed to conduct a "comprehensive assessment" of all material held by Scotland Yard relating to phone hacking. Charlotte Harris, the solicitor representing the sports agent Sky Andrew, who is bringing a claim against the newspaper, said she trusted the assessment would be robust. "The interpretation of whatever documents or other evidence should not be something that is done by the Metropolitan police alone," Harris said. "An independent eye is welcomed given the civil claims, the reported settlements, the suspension of Ian Edmondson and the new internal investigation by the News of the World." News International, parent company of News Group Newspapers, said the News of the World would "continue to co-operate with any request from the police or the Crown Prosection Service David Cameron: Andy Coulson deserves to be given a second chance PM defends his communications director but refuses to deny claims that Coulson offered to resign Hélène Mulholland, political reporter guardian.co.uk, Monday 17 January 2011 10.06 GMT David Cameron said Andy Coulson 'should not be punished twice for the same offence'. David Cameron said today he has given Andy Coulson, his director of communications, a "second chance" following revelations about phone-hacking at News of the World when he was editor and warned that his aide should not be "punished twice for the same offence". Speaking on BBC Radio 4's Today programme, the prime minister stood by his communication chief as he failed to quash weekend reports that Coulson offered to resign for the damage to the government caused by his involvement in a newspaper phone-hacking row. But he notably did not say, as he as done in previous comments about the affair, that he accepted his PR chief's assurances that he had been unaware of hacking during his editorship of the tabloid. Cameron said that "bad things happened" when Coulson was editor of the News of the World, but resigned "when he found out about them", which the prime minister said was "the right thing to do". "I almost think there is a danger at the moment that he is effectively being punished twice for the same offence. I judge his work by what he has done for us ... I gave him a second chance. I think in life sometimes it's right to give someone a second chance. He resigned for what went wrong at News of the World. I would just argue working for the government, I think he has done a good job." He added: "Of course he was embarrassed, but he has had a second chance from me to do this job. I think he has done the job in a very good way." According to the Mail on Sunday, Coulson has admitted that the allegations concerning the bugging of celebrities' phones while he was editor of the News of the World are making it harder for him to carry out his duties at No 10.But the paper said Cameron and the chancellor, George Osborne, had turned down his offer to resign, instead offering him total support in his battle to clear his name. Coulson quit as editor of the News of the World in 2007 over the phone-hacking row, but has always maintained he did not know it was going on. Since then, a string of allegations have surfaced that have cast doubt on the notion that phone tapping at the paper was down to one rogue reporter, Clive Goodman, acting alone. Pressed on the claims today that Coulson offered to quit over recent developments, Cameron refused to divulge "private conversations" other than to say that Coulson was "extremely embarrassed" by the reports "as anyone who is human would be". But the prime minister said that he judged his staff on whether they were doing a "good job", telling BBC Radio 4's Today programme that Coulson "can't be responsible for the fact that people write articles about him". It emerged last week that the Crown Prosecution Service is due to undertake a comprehensive review of phone-hacking material, including examining evidence that has emerged since the trial of Goodman, formerly royal editor at the News of the World, and private investigator Glenn Mulcaire, including revelations published by the Guardian which suggest that phone-hacking was rife at the paper. Coulson has always maintained he knew nothing about Goodman's actions

Swiss whistleblower Rudolf Elmer plans to hand over offshore banking secrets of the rich and famous to WikiLeaksHe will disclose the details of 'massive potential tax evasion' before he flies home to stand trial over his actions Ed Vulliamy The Observer, Sunday 16 January 2011 Rudolf Elmer in Mauritius: “Well-known pillars of society will hold investment portfolios and may include houses, trading companies, artwork, yachts, jewellery, horses, and so on.” The offshore bank account details of 2,000 "high net worth individuals" and corporations – detailing massive potential tax evasion – will be handed over to the WikiLeaks organisation in London tomorrow by the most important and boldest whistleblower in Swiss banking history, Rudolf Elmer, two days before he goes on trial in his native Switzerland. British and American individuals and companies are among the offshore clients whose details will be contained on CDs presented to WikiLeaks at the Frontline Club in London. Those involved include, Elmer tells the Observer, "approximately 40 politicians". Elmer, who after his press conference will return to Switzerland from exile in Mauritius to face trial, is a former chief operating officer in the Cayman Islands and employee of the powerful Julius Baer bank, which accuses him of stealing the information. He is also – at a time when the activities of banks are a matter of public concern – one of a small band of employees and executives seeking to blow the whistle on what they see as unprofessional, immoral and even potentially criminal activity by powerful international financial institutions. Along with the City of London and Wall Street, Switzerland is a fortress of banking and financial services, but famously secretive and expert in the concealment of wealth from all over the world for tax evasion and other extra-legal purposes. Elmer says he is releasing the information "in order to educate society". The list includes "high net worth individuals", multinational conglomerates and financial institutions – hedge funds". They are said to be "using secrecy as a screen to hide behind in order to avoid paying tax". They come from the US, Britain, Germany, Austria and Asia – "from all over". Clients include "business people, politicians, people who have made their living in the arts and multinational conglomerates – from both sides of the Atlantic". Elmer says: "Well-known pillars of society will hold investment portfolios and may include houses, trading companies, artwork, yachts, jewellery, horses, and so on." "What I am objecting to is not one particular bank, but a system of structures," he told the Observer. "I have worked for major banks other than Julius Baer, and the one thing on which I am absolutely clear is that the banks know, and the big boys know, that money is being secreted away for tax-evasion purposes, and other things such as money-laundering – although these cases involve tax evasion." Elmer was held in custody for 30 days in 2005, and is charged with breaking Swiss bank secrecy laws, forging documents and sending threatening messages to two officials at Julius Baer. Elmer says: "I agree with privacy in banking for the person in the street, and legitimate activity, but in these instances privacy is being abused so that big people can get big banking organisations to service them. The normal, hard-working taxpayer is being abused also. "Once you become part of senior management," he says, "and gain international experience, as I did, then you are part of the inner circle – and things become much clearer. You are part of the plot. You know what the real products and service are, and why they are so expensive. It should be no surprise that the main product is secrecy … Crimes are committed and lies spread in order to protect this secrecy." The names on the CDs will not be made public, just as a much shorter list of 15 clients that Elmer handed to WikiLeaks in 2008 has remained hitherto undisclosed by the organisation headed by Julian Assange, currently on bail over alleged sex offences in Sweden, and under investigation in the US for the dissemination of thousands of state department documents. Elmer has been hounded by the Swiss authorities and media since electing to become a whistleblower, and his health and career have suffered. "My understanding is that my client's attempts to get the banks to act over various complaints he made came to nothing internally," says Elmer's lawyer, Jack Blum, one of America's leading experts in tracking offshore money. "Neither would the Swiss courts act on his complaints. That's why he went to WikiLeaks." That first crop of documents was scrutinised by the Guardian newspaper in 2009, which found "details of numerous trusts in which wealthy people have placed capital. This allows them lawfully to avoid paying tax on profits, because legally it belongs to the trust … The trust itself pays no tax, as a Cayman resident", although "the trustees can distribute money to the trust's beneficiaries". Now, Blum says, "Elmer is being tried for violating Swiss banking secrecy law even though the data is from the Cayman Islands. This is bold extraterritorial nonsense. Swiss secrecy law should apply to Swiss banks in Switzerland, not a Swiss subsidiary in the Cayman Islands." Julius Baer has denied all wrongdoing, and rejects Elmer's allegations. It has said that Elmer "altered" documents in order to "create a distorted fact pattern". The bank issued a statement on Friday saying: "The aim of [Elmer's] activities was, and is, to discredit Julius Baer as well as clients in the eyes of the public. With this goal in mind, Mr Elmer spread baseless accusations and passed on unlawfully acquired, respectively retained, documents to the media, and later also to WikiLeaks. To back up his campaign, he also used falsified documents." The bank also accuses Elmer of threatening colleagues. http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/blog/2011/jan/17/wikileaks-latest-developments

Swiss whistleblower Rudolf Elmer plans to hand over offshore banking secrets of the rich and famous to WikiLeaksHe will disclose the details of 'massive potential tax evasion' before he flies home to stand trial over his actions Ed Vulliamy The Observer, Sunday 16 January 2011 Rudolf Elmer in Mauritius: “Well-known pillars of society will hold investment portfolios and may include houses, trading companies, artwork, yachts, jewellery, horses, and so on.” The offshore bank account details of 2,000 "high net worth individuals" and corporations – detailing massive potential tax evasion – will be handed over to the WikiLeaks organisation in London tomorrow by the most important and boldest whistleblower in Swiss banking history, Rudolf Elmer, two days before he goes on trial in his native Switzerland. British and American individuals and companies are among the offshore clients whose details will be contained on CDs presented to WikiLeaks at the Frontline Club in London. Those involved include, Elmer tells the Observer, "approximately 40 politicians". Elmer, who after his press conference will return to Switzerland from exile in Mauritius to face trial, is a former chief operating officer in the Cayman Islands and employee of the powerful Julius Baer bank, which accuses him of stealing the information. He is also – at a time when the activities of banks are a matter of public concern – one of a small band of employees and executives seeking to blow the whistle on what they see as unprofessional, immoral and even potentially criminal activity by powerful international financial institutions. Along with the City of London and Wall Street, Switzerland is a fortress of banking and financial services, but famously secretive and expert in the concealment of wealth from all over the world for tax evasion and other extra-legal purposes. Elmer says he is releasing the information "in order to educate society". The list includes "high net worth individuals", multinational conglomerates and financial institutions – hedge funds". They are said to be "using secrecy as a screen to hide behind in order to avoid paying tax". They come from the US, Britain, Germany, Austria and Asia – "from all over". Clients include "business people, politicians, people who have made their living in the arts and multinational conglomerates – from both sides of the Atlantic". Elmer says: "Well-known pillars of society will hold investment portfolios and may include houses, trading companies, artwork, yachts, jewellery, horses, and so on." "What I am objecting to is not one particular bank, but a system of structures," he told the Observer. "I have worked for major banks other than Julius Baer, and the one thing on which I am absolutely clear is that the banks know, and the big boys know, that money is being secreted away for tax-evasion purposes, and other things such as money-laundering – although these cases involve tax evasion." Elmer was held in custody for 30 days in 2005, and is charged with breaking Swiss bank secrecy laws, forging documents and sending threatening messages to two officials at Julius Baer. Elmer says: "I agree with privacy in banking for the person in the street, and legitimate activity, but in these instances privacy is being abused so that big people can get big banking organisations to service them. The normal, hard-working taxpayer is being abused also. "Once you become part of senior management," he says, "and gain international experience, as I did, then you are part of the inner circle – and things become much clearer. You are part of the plot. You know what the real products and service are, and why they are so expensive. It should be no surprise that the main product is secrecy … Crimes are committed and lies spread in order to protect this secrecy." The names on the CDs will not be made public, just as a much shorter list of 15 clients that Elmer handed to WikiLeaks in 2008 has remained hitherto undisclosed by the organisation headed by Julian Assange, currently on bail over alleged sex offences in Sweden, and under investigation in the US for the dissemination of thousands of state department documents. Elmer has been hounded by the Swiss authorities and media since electing to become a whistleblower, and his health and career have suffered. "My understanding is that my client's attempts to get the banks to act over various complaints he made came to nothing internally," says Elmer's lawyer, Jack Blum, one of America's leading experts in tracking offshore money. "Neither would the Swiss courts act on his complaints. That's why he went to WikiLeaks." That first crop of documents was scrutinised by the Guardian newspaper in 2009, which found "details of numerous trusts in which wealthy people have placed capital. This allows them lawfully to avoid paying tax on profits, because legally it belongs to the trust … The trust itself pays no tax, as a Cayman resident", although "the trustees can distribute money to the trust's beneficiaries". Now, Blum says, "Elmer is being tried for violating Swiss banking secrecy law even though the data is from the Cayman Islands. This is bold extraterritorial nonsense. Swiss secrecy law should apply to Swiss banks in Switzerland, not a Swiss subsidiary in the Cayman Islands." Julius Baer has denied all wrongdoing, and rejects Elmer's allegations. It has said that Elmer "altered" documents in order to "create a distorted fact pattern". The bank issued a statement on Friday saying: "The aim of [Elmer's] activities was, and is, to discredit Julius Baer as well as clients in the eyes of the public. With this goal in mind, Mr Elmer spread baseless accusations and passed on unlawfully acquired, respectively retained, documents to the media, and later also to WikiLeaks. To back up his campaign, he also used falsified documents." The bank also accuses Elmer of threatening colleagues.

Swiss lawmakers angry at alleged US spying program Jan 17, 6:53 AM (ET) GENEVA (AP) - Swiss lawmakers are calling for the ouster of U.S. diplomats implicated in an illegal surveillance program in Switzerland as authorities probe whether such activities took place. The Swiss Justice Ministry says there is evidence that the U.S. mission to the United Nations in Geneva conducted an unauthorized surveillance detection program similar to ones allegedly run in Norway and Denmark. The Swiss government had denied U.S. authorities permission in 2006 and 2007 to conduct such programs for security reasons in Geneva and at the U.S. embassy in Bern. Yet a U.S. diplomatic cable leaked by WikiLeaks describes the surveillance of a Muslim couple parked across from the U.S. mission in Geneva in 2005. American officials say they won't comment on a security issue.

The Martin Luther King Conspiracy Exposed in Memphis by James Douglass Probe Magazine The following appeared in the May-June 2000 issue of Probe magazine, (Vol.7, No.4) and is mirrored from http://ctka.net/pr500-king.html with permission of the author. http://www.lewrockwell.com/orig12/douglass-jim1.1.1.html

News Media News of the World phone-hacking scandal News of the World phone hacking: now Paul Gascoigne is ready to sueTabloid newspaper's actions said to have hindered recovery of vulnerable footballer as he deals with alcohol and drug problems Jamie Doward and Jenny Stevens guardian.co.uk, Saturday 15 January 2011 21.43 GMT Ex-England footballer Paul Gascoigne is the latest celebrity to sue the News of the World in the phone-hacking scandal. Photograph: Owen Humphreys/PA Paul Gascoigne, the former England footballer, is to become the latest celebrity to sue the News of the World, alleging that he was a victim of the phone-hacking scandal that has rocked Rupert Murdoch's media empire. His solicitor, Gerald Shamash, confirmed today that proceedings would be issued within days. Shamash claimed that Gascoigne was in a vulnerable mental state and that his recovery had been hindered because of the stress of believing that his phone had been hacked. "It has made things even more difficult for his general wellbeing," he said. Gascoigne has been fighting drink and drug problems for years and been in and out of rehabilitation clinics. The Observer has now established that the comedian Steve Coogan has also issued proceedings and that Chris Tarrant, the television presenter, and the jockey Kieren Fallon are expected to launch legal actions soon. There are now at least five law firms representing alleged victims of phone hacking. Lawyers from all five have confirmed that they expect more claims to be filed in the next few weeks. So far, four people have settled claims against the newspaper before they reached court, including the celebrity publicist Max Clifford. The increasing number of people who are suing or threatening to sue the paper has raised fresh questions about how widespread the practice of phone hacking was on the newspaper while it was edited by the prime minister's director of communications, Andy Coulson. Senior executives on the paper maintain that the practice was the work of a rogue reporter, Clive Goodman, who was jailed in 2007 for his part in the scandal. But many believe that hundreds or even thousands of phones were hacked by a private investigator, Glenn Mulcaire, while he was working for the newspaper. Questions are being asked about the role of the Metropolitan police, which was obliged by the Crown Prosecution Service to inform suspected victims that their phones had been hacked. Paul Farrelly MP, a member of the parliamentary culture, media and sport select committee that conducted an investigation into the allegations, said he was concerned that the Met had adopted a new policy towards requests for information from suspected victims. Previously someone could request that the Met scour its files to establish whether their phone had been hacked. Now Scotland Yard asks for a suspected victim to outline on what grounds they believe their phone has been hacked before making a search. "We found great fault with the police investigation and to that we can add the conduct of the Crown Prosecution Service [CPS], which simply rubber stamps the Met's totally inadequate handling of the affair," Farrelly said. John Kelly, of the law firm Schillings, who is representing a number of people seeking damages from the newspaper, said it was important that a comprehensive list of victims was established. "Unlawfully intercepting phone calls is a massive invasion of privacy," Kelly said. "We will not know the full extent of how widespread this activity was until we know exactly who was targeted. It's in everybody's interest for the Met and News Group to let people know if they may have been a victim. In the meantime, more claims will continue to be brought." In answer to a freedom of information request, Scotland Yard has confirmed only that there were 91 individuals whose pin numbers, for their mobile phone message services, were found in material seized from Mulcaire. In a sign of the growing disquiet at the Met's handling of the investigation, the director of public prosecutions, Keir Starmer, announced on Friday that the CPS had agreed to conduct a "comprehensive assessment" of all material held by Scotland Yard relating to phone hacking. Charlotte Harris, the solicitor representing the sports agent Sky Andrew, who is bringing a claim against the newspaper, said she trusted the assessment would be robust. "The interpretation of whatever documents or other evidence should not be something that is done by the Metropolitan police alone," Harris said. "An independent eye is welcomed given the civil claims, the reported settlements, the suspension of Ian Edmondson and the new internal investigation by the News of the World." News International, parent company of News Group Newspapers, said the News of the World would "continue to co-operate with any request from the police or the Crown Prosection Service