Prosecutors and misconduct (2003-06-26)
A new study from the Center for Public Integrity shows a pattern of proscutors who are bending or breaking the rules to uphold the law. The study showed that, since 1970, individual judges and appellate court panels cited prosecutorial misconduct as a factor when dismissing charges at trial, reversing convictions or reducing sentences in at least 2,017 cases. Some of the most common allegations of prosecutorial misconduct involved improper closing arguments and excluding jurors on the basis of race, ethnicity, gender or some other discriminatory grounds.

In 28 cases, involving 32 separate defendants, misconduct by prosecutors led to the conviction of innocent individuals who were later exonerated.

The Center has a map that lets you look up information on prosecutorial misconduct in every state. They also offer a searchable database of judicial rulings on misconduct.

A heart? We don't need a heart! (2003-06-18)
The Democratic National Committee's Bushenstein Flash movie about Bush's judicial appointments is not subtle, but its weirdness makes up for the lack of nuance. I especially like the Supreme Court threat advisory--set at orange.

The master of low expectations... (2003-06-05)
...is apparently our president. Yesterday, Bush told reporters inquiring about whether the Middle East peace process met his expectations, he said "I am the master of low expectations." So, I assume they lived up to his standards. I bet Bush pere is proud.

Two days ago, Bush told Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, "I said you were a man of peace. I want you to know I took immense crap for that." I guess this bon mot goes along with those low expectations. But hey, he got the Israeli and Palestinian prime ministers to shake hands for a photo, and that's all that matters, right?

These juicy bits provided courtesy of the Bushisms section of The Truth About George, a handy little organizing tool of the National Organization for Women.