Obama’s Delicate Balance On National Security

While President Obama’s liberal allies are decrying his decision to refuse to release hundreds of additional detainee-abuse photographs, Pentagon officials — and nearly 200,000 troops in Afghanistan and Iraq — are breathing a little easier. Their argument that the photos could endanger soldiers by potentially inflaming anti-U.S.

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The Drew Peterson Murder Case: Will Hearsay Evidence Seal His Fate?

“Testimony from the grave.” That’s what prosecutors are calling a key part of their strategy against Drew Peterson, the former Illinois police officer arrested last week on charges that he murdered the third of his four wives. It may sound like just another melodramatic turn in the tabloid tale of Peterson, who has been under a cloud of suspicion since his petite fourth wife, Stacy Peterson, disappeared in the fall of 2007 after reportedly telling relatives that she wanted to leave what she described as an abusive relationship. But the prosecution’s strategy against Peterson, 55, could in fact be based on a controversial new Illinois law that allows for the admission of hearsay testimony.

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Sessions Could Make Obama’s Supreme Court Fight Tougher

Political junkies who weren’t thrilled at the prospect of a relatively staid confirmation process for President Barack Obama’s as yet unnamed Supreme Court nominee can rest easy. This week Senate Republicans named perennial bomb thrower Jeff Sessions, 62, of Alabama to be the top Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee, promising to bring at least a few sparks to a confirmation process that — if Minnesota’s Al Franken is seated — was bound to be relatively easy. While Sessions alone can’t change the basic legislative math that promises whomever Obama picks to replace retiring Justice David Souter a fairly easy path to confirmation, he can certainly liven up the proceedings

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CNN poll: Generations disagree on same-sex marriage

A new national poll suggests a majority of Americans oppose legalizing same-sex marriages, but the survey indicates a vast generational divide on the issue. Fifty-four percent of people questioned in a CNN/Opinion Research Corporation poll released Monday say marriages between gay or lesbian couples should not be recognized as valid, with 44 percent suggesting they should be considered legal.

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White House already on a hunt to replace Souter

A process begun months ago among White House lawyers to quietly compile a list of possible Supreme Court picks has accelerated with word Justice David Souter plans to step down form the bench later this year. The nominee would give President Obama an immediate opportunity to place his stamp on the nation’s highest court, and perhaps to begin cementing his legacy with a lifetime appointment to that bench. Obama on Friday said he will seek “somebody with a sharp, independent mind and a record of excellence and integrity.” That person must honor traditions, respect the judicial process and share Obama’s grasp of constitutional values, he said

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Judging the Candidates to Replace Souter

Supreme Court Justice David Souter has long said that he wanted to leave the court and Washington. An intensely private native of small town New Hampshire, he has never warmed to the nation’s capital, socializing infrequently and focusing his energies on work and jogging after hours. While he has told many that he would stay on “for the duration,” most understood that to mean the tenure of Republican control in the White House.

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