Barack Obama Opts Out of Public Financing

Obama and Clinton on Unity tour...

Senators Barack Obama and Hillary Rodham Clinton boarded a plane together here today, destination: Unity. That's Unity, N.H., of course, the site of their joint appearance, a rally where the Democrats are scheduled to formally bury their rivalry and move toward the general election. As the name of the city suggests, the trip is rich with symbolism.

Here is the full video of Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton today on their Unity tour...

Oil Speculators Under Scrutiny from congress.

OPEC to increase oil production, will it help with gas prices?

OPEC blames weak dollar, and predicts $170 per barrel for oil.

The president of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) Chakib Khelil predicts that prices of world crude oil could reach the US$150 to $170 range per barrel before summer ends.

Is it "peak oil" or speculative bubble?

Gas Price Solutions...The good, the bad, and the ugly.

McCain Top Adviser Says...Terrorism Help Production

McCain and GOP unleash anti-Obama plan.

After weeks of criticism from Republicans about the leisurely pace at which they seemed to be preparing for the general election, McCain's campaign has apparently settled on a highly personal campaign theme that aims to differentiate McCain and Obama on both character and issues. The strategy: Paint Obama as conventional politician who always takes the safe and easy political road, then amplify the distinction by framing McCain as a patriot, somebody who has put sacrifice above self. It's seemingly an effort by McCain to remind voters of his Vietnam-era heroism and compelling life story while touching on key issues to avoid running purely on biography. The message also is designed to underline McCain's unique record of service to his country without touching on subterranean questions about Obama's patriotism. Whether it will work or if the famously improvisational McCain will even stick to it is an open question.

Supreme Court Rules Against Death Penalty for Child Rapist

Supreme Court rules against ban on guns.

Supreme Court Decisions - Exxon Valdez Opinion On Damages May Have Broad Impact...

Just this week, the justices handed out one of the year's most important business victories in a 5-3 ruling that ordered a $2 billion reduction in punitive damages against Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM) for the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill in Alaska. The Exxon Valdez damages case eventually could prove to be one of the biggest business cases in recent years, said

Mark Levy, who heads Kilpatrick Stockton LLP's Supreme Court and appellate practice. "It's potentially a very significant decision," Levy said. "Right off the bat, there's reason to think state courts will pay attention to it and it will be influential on constitutional issues." Corporate groups consider reducing punitive damages awards one of their top priorities. Chamber President

Tom Donohue earlier this week hailed the Exxon Mobil decision, calling it "good news for companies concerned about reining in excessive punitive damages."

The Department of Justice (that is a laugh)Inspector General and the Office of Professional Responsibility determined that the DOJ "weeded out" applicants who had liberal or Democratic ties. This improper screening program peaked in 2006 when ideology disqualified at significant number of newly graduated lawyers and summer interns. Simply put, rookie attorneys with Republican roots got the jobs and their liberal counterparts were passed over. The same mindset in the White House and the DOJ resulted in the scandal over the fired US Attorneys and the eventual resignation of Attorney General Alberto Gonzales.

From TPM-TV...

Ideology based hiring broke the law...

McDonald and Elston did not return telephone calls seeking comment yesterday. Experts said they are unlikely to face sanctions for what investigators called deliberate "misconduct" because they have left government employment.

White House refuses to open EPA email.

Remember last year's SCOTUS ruling that the EPA had to figure out if CO2 was a danger to human health? Well, the EPA complied with that, as they were obliged to, and in December they issued a report to the White House ruling that, yes, greenhouse gases are pollutants, and as such they've got to be regulated. But the White House never received that report and, as a result, they say that they don't have to comply with it. Why didn't the White House receive the report? Because they refuse to open the e-mail. You just can't make this stuff up. The White House says that if they don’t open the e-mail, it doesn't count. The EPA has hacked out big chunks of that report the parts that recommended, y'know, doing stuffin order to get the White House to agree to open the e-mail. A decade ago this would have been the stuff of farce. And a decade from now this will all just be a bad memory. But right now, thanks to the boiling-frog effect, somehow it's just not shocking that we have a president that is employing the logic of a toddler. If we pretend that there are no greenhouse gases, will they still harm us?