Earlier today, Karen asked where I thought things were headed with Gonzales. The truth is, it’s hard to think of anything at this point that could make him leave. He’s been abandoned by moderates on both sides of the aisle, and he’s repeatedly given some of the most astonishing and embarrassing Congressional testimony in recent [...]

As it happens, my last day on Swampland will be my last day as president of People For the American Way. I’m stepping down after eight years to become President Emeritus. You can read my announcement here. I have enjoyed every moment of defending the Constitution and expanding PFAW and its related programs to better [...]

The New York Times gets it exactly right in today’s editorial on the Padilla conviction: It is hard to disagree with the jury’s guilty verdict against Jose Padilla, the accused, but never formally charged, dirty bomber. But it would be a mistake to see it as a vindication for the Bush administration’s serial abuse of [...]

Yesterday, a federal court of appeals in California heard oral argument in a case, Hepting v. AT&T, involving the Bush administration’s unauthorized domestic spying program. Here’s how two of the judges reacted to the arguments made by administration lawyers that no court can review the legality of the program because doing so would require the [...]

The Family Research Council, founded by James Dobson, has announced its plans for a “three-day ‘Values Voter Summit’ this fall, complete with a presidential straw poll.” People For the American Way staff dropped in on last year’s “Values Voters Summit” where they learned, among other things, that the anti-Christ is gay. Although there’s “no word [...]

Congress won’t be back in town for a few weeks, but I’m excited about some of the legislation that awaits their return. One of the least covered but most crucial bills would help restore popular faith in the fundamental building block of our democracy – elections. If Congress doesn’t act, around 41 million Americans in [...]

Last month, Religious Right activists in the Senate gallery made a scene by attempting to shout down a Hindu clergyman who was scheduled to deliver an opening prayer. You can watch the shameful episode here: But as if that wasn’t bad enough, Rep. Bill Sali (R-Idaho) managed to make matters much worse last week. Sali [...]

The Supreme Court’s lurch to the right following the addition of Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Samuel Alito is beginning to catch up with Republicans running for re-election. As Carrie Budoff reports in the Politico today: “Two 50-something men who wear black robes, rarely speak in public and remain unrecognizable to most Americans are [...]

We learned yesterday that right-wing celebrity Linda Chavez and her husband failed at running a restaurant in Maryland but have been wildly successful at raising millions for political groups that employ her and her family but do little else. But Chavez’s group isn’t the only one facing scrutiny lately for how it spends the money [...]