USA TODAY: Trump must expose Obama-era power grabs: Column By James Bovard, January 6, 2017 Opening the books on the outgoing administration would be a booster shot for democracy. President-elect Donald Trump will face pervasive doubts about his legitimacy from the day he takes office. His opponents will likely portray him as governing in unprecedented […]
Tag Archives | Secrecy
Wash. Times: Hillary’s Anti-Transparency Bargain
Washington Times, October 27, 2016 Hillary’s Anti-Transparency Bargain by James Bovard President Obama recently condemned the Republican Party, claiming that its “central principle” is to suppress voting. But, while his administration piously pledges to protect voting rights, it has almost guaranteed that Americans will be blindfolded on Election Day. While the Justice Department will deploy […]
My 2 Cents on Wikileaks, Clinton, & Watergate
I will be writing more about Wikileaks in the coming days and weeks. But here are some preliminary observations from a recent Press TV monologue: The recent WikiLeaks disclosures about US Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton reveal the “shocking” calculations of her campaign… says an American analyst. “What WikiLeaks is providing, it’s showing to the […]
FFF: Presidential Fear-Mongering versus Freedom
from the Future of Freedom Foundation – PRESIDENTIAL FEAR-MONGERING vs. FREEDOM by James Bovard After the San Bernardino massacre late last year, Barrack Obama made a rare speech from the Oval Office. His most memorable line was his declaration that “freedom is more powerful than fear.” That epigram might have made John F. Kennedy’s speechwriters […]

Counterpunch: TSA’s Punitive Gitmo-style Groin Grinding
Counterpunch, March 23, 2016 TSA’s Punitive Gitmo-style Groin Grinding The Transportation Security Administration finally obeyed a 2011 federal court order March 3 and issued a 157 page Federal Register notice justifying its controversial full-body scanners and other checkpoint procedures. TSA’s notice ignored the fact that the “nudie” scanners are utterly unreliable; TSA failed to detect […]

MP3 of TSA Tribute on Bob Zadek Radio Show San Francisco
Here’s the MP3 of yesterday’s radio interview with Bob Zadek on San Francisco’s AM 910. We had fun giving a vigorous patdown to the TSA (the agency was not allowed to “opt-out” from the show). Bob’s producer Charlie Deist said he especially enjoyed the riff on how reactions to TSA are an ink blot test of people’s […]
USA TODAY: Budget Bill Leaves No Boondoggle Behind
USA TODAY, December 17, 2015 BUDGET BILL LEAVES NO BOONDOGGLE BEHIND by James Bovard Republican congressional leaders are like a football coach who believes the secret to winning is to punt early and often. House Speaker Paul Ryan and others are claiming victory over the 2,000-plus page appropriations bill, but this is a “no boondoggle left […]