Terry Jones

Jones On Koran Burning: 'Not Today, Not Ever' (VIDEO)

Rachel Slajda | September 11, 2010, 12:00PM

Pastor Terry Jones

Pastor Terry Jones said this morning that his church has canceled its planned Koran burning permanently.

"Not today, not ever," Jones said on the Today show this morning after flying to New York last night. "We're not going to go back and do it. It is totally canceled."

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Danziger Bridge

DOJ Will Not Seek Death Penalty Against Cops In Danziger Bridge Case

Rachel Slajda | September 10, 2010, 5:34PM

The Danziger Bridge in New Orleans

The New Orleans Times-Picayune reports that the four police officers charged with shooting unarmed civilians on the Danizger Bridge in the days after Hurricane Katrina will not face the death penalty.

The four, charged with civil rights violations and other crimes, now face life in prison if convicted. They are accused of opening fire on several people, killing two and wounding four. Two other officers are charged with crimes related to an alleged cover-up.

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Newt Gingrich

'This Is The Final Struggle:' Newt Gingrich Sells A Movie About The Islamic Threat To America

Rachel Slajda | September 10, 2010, 5:24PM

Citizens United trailer for "America At Risk: The War With No Name"

In a straight-to-DVD movie that will premiere tomorrow night in D.C., Newt Gingrich and Citizens United warn Americans of the impending threat of radical Islam. As one of their talking heads says in the trailer, "This is the end of times. This is the final struggle."

The movie, called "America At Risk," paints the world as a dangerous place filled with radicalized Muslims who want to -- and, importantly, can -- destroy America.

"The war on terror, and the ideology behind it, have only just begun," Gingrich's wife, Callista Gingrich, intones while she and Gingrich stand in front of a green-screened New York skyline.

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Don't Ask Don't Tell

In Third Court Victory For Gay Rights, Judge Says She'll Block DADT

Rachel Slajda | September 10, 2010, 3:26PM

In ruling Don't Ask, Don't Tell unconstitutional, U.S. District Judge Virginia Philips said she will issue an injunction to stop the military from enforcing the policy.

In her ruling, in which she said DADT violates the Fifth and First Amendment rights of gay and lesbian service members, Philips agreed to issue an injunction against the policy. She gave the plaintiffs, the Log Cabin Republicans, until Sept. 16 to submit a proposed injunction and the defendants, in this case the U.S. government, another seven days to object.

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Barack Obama

Obama: Pigford II Settlement For African-American Farmers Is A 'Priority'

Rachel Slajda | September 10, 2010, 1:39PM

Farmer Robert Horton, Sr., and wife, Maggie, of Tennessee have applied to be part of the USDA's Pigford settlement

President Obama said today that funding the Pigford II settlement is a "priority" for his administration.

During his press conference, Obama was asked about the $1.25 billion settlement for African-American farmers who were discriminated against by the USDA for decades. The funding for the settlement been delayed in Congress for seven months. April Ryan from Urban Radio asked whether Obama could assure that the settlement would be funded before he leaves office.

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Barack Obama

Obama, On Jones, Says He's 'Concerned' About Copycats

Rachel Slajda | September 10, 2010, 12:37PM

In his news conference today, President Obama said he is concerned about copycat Koran-burners even after a Florida pastor has suspended his planned bonfire.

"Part of my concern is that we don't have a whole bunch of folks across the country thinking, this is the way to get attention," he said. "This is a way of endangering our troops, our sons and daughters."

"You don't play games with that," he said.

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'Ground Zero Mosque'

Koran Burning Still Off, For Now, As One Dies In Afghanistan Protest

Rachel Slajda | September 10, 2010, 9:46AM

Pastor Terry Jones, of the Dove World Outreach Center, with Imam Muhammad Musri, president of the Islamic Society of Central Florida

Pastor Terry Jones, appearing on today's morning shows, says he will not be burning Korans on Saturday even though the imam of a planned Islamic center near Ground Zero did not agree to move his project further from the site.

"Right now, we have plans not to do it," Jones said on Good Morning America.

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Don't Ask Don't Tell

Judge Rules DADT Unconstitutional

Rachel Slajda | September 9, 2010, 10:27PM

A gay rights rally.

A judge has ruled Don't Ask, Don't Tell, the military's policy banning openly gay servicemembers, unconstitutional.

The ruling comes after the Log Cabin Republicans filed a lawsuit challenging the policy.

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'Ground Zero Mosque'

Jones May Still Burn Korans: Imam 'Lied To Us'

Rachel Slajda | September 9, 2010, 10:17PM

Pastor Terry Jones

According to the AP, pastor Terry Jones says his Koran burning is suspended, but not canceled, after finding out a New York City imam did not agree to move his Islamic center further from Ground Zero.

Jones told reporters that a different imam from Orlando, who was trying to convince Jones not to burn a stack of Korans on Sept. 11, "clearly, clearly lied to us."

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'Ground Zero Mosque'

Donald Trump Offers To Buy Park51 Building -- Developer Declines

Rachel Slajda | September 9, 2010, 5:53PM

Donald Trump

Donald Trump today sent a letter to the developer of the Cordoba House, offering to buy the building proposed for the downtown Manhattan Islamic center for 25 percent more than the developer paid for it.

"I am making this offer as a resident of New York and citizen of the United States, not because I think the location is a spectacular one (because it is not), but because it will end a very serious, inflammatory, and highly divisive situation that is destined, in my opinion, to only get worse," Trump said in a letter, according to Bloomberg.

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Dove World Outreach Center

Jones Agrees Not To Burn Korans, Claims NYC Imam Has Agreed To Move Park51 (He Hasn't) (VIDEO)

Rachel Slajda | September 9, 2010, 5:12PM

Pastor Terry Jones

In a press conference just now, Dove World Outreach Center pastor Terry Jones announced that he will not burn Korans on Saturday.

Jones said he agreed to cancel "Burn A Koran Day" in exchange for Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf agreeing to move the proposed Islamic center further away from Ground Zero. Jones claimed Rauf said he will move the center.

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Dove World Outreach Center

FBI, Everyone Else Trying To Convince Jones Not To Burn Korans

Rachel Slajda | September 9, 2010, 1:30PM

Dr. Terry Jones, leader of the Dove World Outreach Center

MSNBC and CNN are reporting this afternoon that FBI agents have visited Dove World Outreach Center pastor Terry Jones.

Details were sketchy, but MSNBC reported they were there as part of security measures.

A spokeswoman for the Gainesville Police Department told TPMmuckraker that the department has been working with state and federal agencies on security and has been preparing for Saturday's "Burn A Koran Day" for more than a month.

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Dove World Outreach Center

Interpol Issues Global Terror Alert If Koran Burning Happens

Rachel Slajda | September 9, 2010, 12:12PM

Pastor Terry Jones, of the Dove World Outreach Center

Interpol today warned its 188 member countries that there may be a higher threat of terrorism if a Florida fringe pastor burns Korans on Saturday as planned.

"One of INTERPOL's primary functions is to prevent crime, and given that we have been made aware of a significant threat to public safety - an assessment which we share - it is our duty to ensure that we pass this information on to law enforcement agencies around the globe so that they can take appropriate measures," Interpol Secretary General Ronald K. Noble said in a press release.

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Dove World Outreach Center

Koran-Burning Church Has Cultish Tendencies, Protests With Westboro Baptist

Rachel Slajda | September 9, 2010, 10:36AM

Dove World pastor Terry Jones at a Westboro Baptist Church protest in April 2010.

The Dove World Outreach Center, the church in Florida whose pastor is planning to burn a pile of Korans this Saturday, trains new ministers in its "Academy" program, which requires students to work in the church's used furniture store unpaid and have no contact with their family.

A "rulebook" for the academy, as well as news reports and the church's own web site, paint a picture of a church that teaches followers total obedience. It's also a church that has expressed solidarity with the Westboro Baptist Church, with pastor Terry Jones and other members wearing "Islam is of the devil" T-shirts at a Westboro protest.

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Dove World Outreach Center

Obama: Koran Burning 'Stunt' Could 'Greatly Endanger' Troops (VIDEO)

Rachel Slajda | September 9, 2010, 8:45AM

President Obama

President Obama urged fringe pastor Terry Jones not to burn Korans this Saturday, saying it would be "completely contrary to our values as Americans." Further, he said, it could lead to a "recruitment bonanza" for al-Qaeda.

"If he's listening, I just hope he understands that what he's proposing to do is completely contrary to our values of Americans. That this country has been built on the notions of religious freedom and religious tolerance," Obama said on Good Morning America. "And as a very practical matter, as commander of chief of the Armed Forces of the United States I just want him to understand that this stunt that he is talking about pulling could greatly endanger our young men and women in uniform who are in Iraq, who are in Afghanistan. We're already seeing protests against Americans just by the mere threat he's making."

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'Ground Zero Mosque'

Palin Finally Repudiates Koran Burning: It's As Bad As Building A Mosque At Ground Zero

Rachel Slajda | September 8, 2010, 6:23PM

Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin

Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, one of the ostensibly mainstream politicians who has come out vocally against building an Islamic community center in downtown Manhattan, today spoke out against a Florida church's plan to burn Korans on Sept. 11.

"People have a constitutional right to burn a Koran if they want to, but doing so is insensitive and an unnecessary provocation -- much like building a mosque at Ground Zero," Palin wrote in a press release. "Book burning is antithetical to American ideals."

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Duke Cunningham

Duke Cunningham To Judge: You And The IRS 'Have Killed Me'

Rachel Slajda | September 8, 2010, 4:36PM

Former Rep. Randy "Duke" Cunningham (R-CA)

Former Rep. Randy "Duke" Cunningham, currently serving a eight-year sentence for bribery convictions, wrote a letter to his sentencing judge accusing the judge of reneging on Cunningham's plea deal and siccing the "KGB IRS" on him.

Reporter Seth Hettena posted the the three page, hand-written letter, in which Cunningham says the IRS is bleeding him dry.

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Gulf Coast Oil Spill

BP: Blowout Preventer Failed Partly Because We Didn't Maintain It Correctly

Rachel Slajda | September 8, 2010, 3:16PM

The Deepwater Horizon blowout preventer.

The Deepwater Horizon's blowout preventer, the massive structure meant to stop the well from blowing out and spilling millions of barrels of oil, failed in part because BP and its contractors weren't keeping up with its maintenance, BP's own investigation into the disaster found.

In a report released today, BP's investigators wrote that the blowout preventer had problems when the well blew on April 20 -- problems that could have been detected.

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Islamophobia

Muslims Are Just The Latest American Scapegoat

Rachel Slajda | September 8, 2010, 10:40AM

An opponent of the Cordoba House, left, argues with a supporter in front of the proposed location in lower Manhattan.

You know the stories, by now: The violent attack on a cab driver, the arson in Tennessee, the sometimes unbelievable vitriol associated with a Manhattan Islamic community center. The plans by a radical pastor to burn the holy book of another religion, plans that have been condemned even by his compatriots on the fringe of American thought.

But why? And why now?

"It's been percolating," John Esposito, the director of the Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding at Georgetown, told TPM. As Esposito tells it, America has had a problem with anti-Muslim prejudice since before Sept. 11, 2001. But it was contained, in a way, and even after 9/11 "things were pretty stabilized." The uptick began in 2004, and now it's rising to the surface.

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Gulf Coast Oil Spill

BP Investigation Released: The Oil Spill Was Everybody's Fault

Rachel Slajda | September 8, 2010, 10:13AM

An explosion at the Deepwater Horizon oil rig

BP today released the report of its own investigation into what caused the Deepwater Horizon to explode and leak millions of barrels of oil into the Gulf of Mexico.

We're still digging through the 193-page report, which you can find here, along with the appendices and executive summary. But according to BP's quick-summary press release, the company found that everyone involved had a hand in the disaster.

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Eric Holder

DOJ: Religion-Based Violence 'Intolerable'

Rachel Slajda | September 7, 2010, 6:45PM

Attorney General Eric Holder

Attorney General Eric Holder, after meeting with interfaith leaders this afternoon, released a statement this afternoon saying that anti-Muslim violence won't be tolerated.

"As the Attorney General has noted on previous occasions, violence against individuals or institutions based on religious bias is intolerable and the Department will bring anyone who commits such crimes to justice," spokesman Matthew Miller said in a statement.

At the meeting, Miller said, "the Attorney General reiterated the Department's strong commitment to prosecuting hate crimes, and noted several successes the Department has achieved in recent months."

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Muslims

Holder To Meet With Religious Leaders Today On Anti-Muslim Bigotry

Rachel Slajda | September 7, 2010, 2:17PM

Religious leaders from several faiths are meeting with Attorney General Eric Holder today to discuss the recent spate of anti-Muslim sentiment and violence.

At a press conference this afternoon following an interfaith meeting, Rabbi David Saperstein, director of the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism, said he and other religious leaders will meet with Holder, at Holder's request, later today.

The Justice Department confirms and says they will release a "readout" of the meeting after it occurs.

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Afghanistan

NATO Chief Condemns Koran Burning Ahead Of Meeting With Obama

Rachel Slajda | September 7, 2010, 12:28PM

NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen

The chief of NATO agrees with the top U.S. commander in Afghanistan: A radical Florida church really shouldn't burn copies of the Koran.

"I strongly condemn that. I think it's a disrespectful action and in general I really urge people to respect other people's faith and behave respectfully. I think such actions are in strong contradiction with all the values we stand for and fight for," said NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen, according to The Cable.

"Of course, there is a risk that it may also have a negative impact on the security for our troops," he added.

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Terry Jones

Koran-Burning Pastor Sticking To Plans Despite Petraeus Warning (VIDEO)

Rachel Slajda | September 7, 2010, 10:30AM

Dr. Terry Jones, leader of the Dove World Outreach Center

Terry Jones, the pastor of a small radical church who plans to burn Korans on Sept. 11, said this morning that, although he takes the top U.S. commander in Afghanistan's warning seriously, he will still go ahead with "Burn A Koran Day."

Yesterday, Gen. David Petraeus said that Jones' demonstration could endanger American troops in Afghanistan. Geoff Morell, the Pentagon spokesman, echoed those concerns today on MSNBC, saying burning Korans would put troops in more danger throughout the Muslim world.

But Jones, in an interview with CNN this morning, said he isn't swayed.

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Afghanistan

Petraeus: Koran Burning Could Endanger Troops

Rachel Slajda | September 6, 2010, 12:39PM

General David Petraeus

Gen. David Petraeus, the top U.S. commander of the Afghanistan War, said today the planned burning of Korans by a Florida church could put American troops in danger.

"It could endanger troops and it could endanger the overall effort," Petraeus told the Wall Street Journal. "It is precisely the kind of action the Taliban uses and could cause significant problems. Not just here, but everywhere in the world we are engaged with the Islamic community."

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Blackwater

NYT: Blackwater's Shell Companies Won Millions In Secret Contracts

Rachel Slajda | September 6, 2010, 12:29PM

A Blackwater employee

According to the Senate Armed Services Committee, Blackwater has created 31 shell companies in order to win military and CIA contracts without revealing its notorious name.

Chairman Carl Levin released a chart of the subsidiaries to the New York Times last week. According to the Times, at least three of the companies have been awarded secret contracts. One official said Blackwater, now called Xe Services, and its subsidiaries have been paid $600 million in classified government deals since 2001.

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Dove World Outreach Center

Afghans Protest FL Church's Koran-Burning Plans: 'Death To America'

Rachel Slajda | September 6, 2010, 10:40AM

Dr. Terry Jones, leader of the Dove World Outreach Center

Hundreds of Afghans demonstrated outside the U.S. Embassy in Kabul today against a Florida church's plan to burn Korans on Sept. 11, shouting "Death to America" and "Long live Islam."

The AP reports that members of parliament and religious leaders spoke at the rally, where protesters called for the death of President Obama and burned Rev. Terry Jones in effigy.

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C Street

Details On C-Street's Midnight Intervention For Ensign

Rachel Slajda | September 6, 2010, 9:44AM

Sen. John Ensign (R-NV)

When Sen. John Ensign's housemates on C Street found out about his affair with the wife of an aide, they burst into his room and woke him up to stage an intervention.

Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK), a fellow C-streeter, had found out about the affair weeks earlier and confronted Ensign, according to the New Yorker, which is out with a long story about Ensign (R-NV), the C-Street House, and the Fellowship.

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Islam

Muslim Groups Push Back Against Increasing Hate Speech

Rachel Slajda | September 6, 2010, 9:29AM

The press conference announcing My Faith My Voice.

As anti-Muslim sentiment appears to be on the rise throughout the country, with high-profile protests against mosque construction and a handful of violent episodes against Muslims, Muslim groups are pushing back.

Last Monday, a group of young Muslim professionals from the D.C. area launched My Faith My Voice, a web site that encourages fellow Muslims to upload their own PSAs explaining that although they are Muslim, they're not terrorists.

"When we see our loyalty as Americans questioned, that's something we take very seriously," the group's lawyer, Hassan Ahmad, told TPM. "The point of the campaign is one of bridge building, reassurance, an invitation to listen to who we actually are ... that Americans of other faiths will lend an ear and listen."

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