As the Obama administration argues in court for the right to track the locations of cell phones, a leading lawmaker on civil liberties issues wants to update current legislation to help solve the problem. A Justice Department attorney went before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit Friday to argue that authorities don’t need to obtain a search warrant in order to gain access to the location information of Americans’ cell phones. Civil liberties groups, however, argue...

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It’s been more than 15 years since the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) guaranteed American workers the ability to take time off for a newborn, or serious family medical emergency. The drawback, however, to leave under FMLA always has been that such time off mostly has been unpaid, leaving workers having to figure out how to pay their bills. With a $50 million State Paid Leave Fund, the Obama administration is now proposing a new program that would...

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A legislative response to the Supreme Court decision in Citizen United vs. FEC unveiled Thursday by Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) is a start, but doesn’t address Congress’ reliance on Wall Street and other big special interests, according to two watchdog groups. The two reform groups, Public Campaign and Common Cause, urge Congress to pass the Fair Elections Now Act to give voters back a voice in government. Schumer and Van Hollen introduced Thursday...

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Democrats are looking to make political hay — and at least in one case, raise campaign cash — out of several recent remarks made by prominent Republicans. In an email to supporters titled “Bizarre,” the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC) calls attention to statements made at last weekend’s Tea Party Convention in Nashville, Tenn. “Did you hear about last weekend’s National Tea Party Convention? We could laugh it off as the lunatic fringe, but that would miss the point,”...

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The news broke an hour or so ago tonight… Rhode Island Rep. Patrick Kennedy will not run for re-election. Kennedy will “retire after eight terms in office, bringing an end to his House career just months after his father, legendary Massachusetts Sen. Ted Kennedy, passed away.” “My father instilled in me a deep commitment to public service,” Kennedy said in a video announcing his retirement. “Now having spent two decades in politics, my life has taken a new direction...

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Former President Bill Clinton was taken to a New York City hospital today after experiencing chest pains. His office said that Clinton underwent a heart procedure. Doctors inserted two stents into his native coronary artery after one of the bypass grafts from an operation five years ago became obstructed. “President Clinton is in good spirits and will continue to focus on the work of his foundation and Haiti’s relief and long-term recovery efforts,” his counselor, Douglas J. Band, said...

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A group of conservative Republican House members has banded together with a collection of small- and medium-sized businesses and an Atlanta-based conservative public interest law firm to file a legal challenge to an EPA finding that lays the foundation for the agency to regulate carbon emissions. Representing 13 U.S. representatives, 17 companies and associations and itself, the Southeastern Legal Foundation (SLF) Wednesday says that it filed a petition for judicial review in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the...

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Greg Mitchell over at E&P In Exile had the link to this on his Twitter feed:  ABC fought to get them and AP is distributing them. They come from policehelicopter circling the burning towers and despite the thousands we’ve seen still feel unique.  The LA Times has 10 photos posted… Seeing them certainly brings it all back. Sphere: Related Content

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