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NEWS ABOUT: Carl Levin

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Gitmo 'Torture' Modeled on Chinese Grilling of US POWs

Communist methods became US training manual

(Newser) - Guantanamo Bay interrogators learned their techniques from Chinese Communists who used them on American POWs in the Korean War, the New York Times reports. A 1957 Air Force chart labeled Communist Coercive Methods for Eliciting Individual Compliance detailed methods like prolonged standing and exposure to cold, and was used as... More »

Ex-Pentagon Lawyers Face Grilling in Torture Probe

Defense Department lawyers played bigger role in Gitmo than first thought

(Newser) - Pentagon lawyers had more input than was initially thought into the harsh interrogation techniques used on Guantanamo Bay prisoners, sources close to a Senate investigation have told the New York Times. Documents from 2002 reveal that officials in the Department of Defense, then run by Donald Rumsfeld, researched techniques like... More »

As Prices Soar, Congress Aims at Speculators

Out-of-control traders may be driving up oil, food costs, pols say

(Newser) - Congress is blaming rampant commodity speculation for rocketing gas and food prices, and berating regulators for letting it happen, the New York Times reports. Unless watchdog groups like the Commodities Futures Trading Commision crack down, Carl Levin says, "we don’t have a cop on the beat.." Joe... More »

Petraeus Foils Senators Seeking Exit

General, Crocker continue testimony on Capitol Hill today

(Newser) - David Petraeus and Ryan Crocker head back to Capitol Hill this morning after a grueling day of testimony that was short on substance and clear goals, writes the Washington Post. Pressed repeatedly yesterday to describe what "conditions" they would like to see before recommending a troop withdrawal, the general... More »

Senate Grills Petraeus on Basra

McCain mixes up Sunnis, Shiites again

(Newser) - The campaign trail ran through a scheduled Senate Armed Service Committee appearance by David Petraeus and Ryan Crocker today, as John McCain and Hillary Clinton helped grill the general and ambassador on Iraq. McCain zeroed in on the the widespread Iraqi defections in Basra last week, saying, “It was... More »

Mich. Inches Closer to June Re-Vote

Approval of privately financed primary must come within week

(Newser) - Michigan’s Democratic primary will take place—again—on June 3 if Barack Obama and the state legislature agree on a re-vote and private funds can be raised, the Detroit Free Press reports. Negotiators struck a tentative deal this afternoon on a full-fledged primary repeat, which state lawmakers must approve... More »

Mich., Fla. Closer to Approving Re-Votes

DNC chair leaves mail-ins up to states

(Newser) - Michigan and Florida senators appeared closer today to approving mail-in re-votes for their disqualified primaries, the Swamp blog reports. DNC chair Howard Dean said he also supported the mail-ins if state leaders can agree with Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama on how to run them. “I have to run... More »

Oil-Rich Iraq Should Fund Reconstruction, Say Senators

US taxpayers are footing bill instead

(Newser) - Why isn't an Iraq that's rolling in oil dollars funding its own reconstruction? senators Carl Levin of Michigan and John Warner of Virginia want to know. The Armed Services' Committee honchos wrote the Government Accountability Office saying Iraq is doing little to help itself despite a projected $100 billion in... More »

Army to Shorten Combat Tours

Three years between deployments

(Newser) - The Pentagon aims to trim tours of duty in Iraq and Afghanistan from 15 months to a year with an eventual three years between deployments, the Army's top general told the Senate Committee on Armed Services yesterday. The change will be made after the military reduces troop levels this summer,... More »

Credit Card Execs Grilled Over Rate Hikes

Lawmaker threatens legislation to stop sudden increases

(Newser) - Lawmakers grilled credit card execs today over the practice of hiking interest rates on customers who pay on time, the AP reports. Senator Carl Levin called it unfair, but Bank of America and Discovery execs said that factors like credit scores also affect rates. "It's important criteria for how... More »

Washington Takes Aim at Credit Cards

Lawmakers vow to tackle rate hikes, reform arcane fee system

(Newser) - Dem lawmakers vow to finally rein in credit card companies after years of consumer complaints, the Washington Post reports. They want lenders to scrap random rate hikes and inscrutable fees, and plan to tackle it in a hearing next week; one rep has already drawn up legislation. But industry lobbyists... More »

Push to Put Private Guards Under Military

Congress wants military in charge, despite resistance from Condi

(Newser) - Despite reluctance from Condoleezza Rice, Congress is pushing to bring all private security guards operating in Iraq under US military control. The Senate included military oversight of private contractors in its 2008 defense bill, and the House is likely to follow, the AP reports. The bill's sponsor, Sen. Carl Levin,... More »

Troop Withdrawal Timetable Fails in Senate

Anti-war Dems have had a bad week

(Newser) - Antiwar Democrats continued their losing streak today as a Senate measure to set a timetable for the withdrawal of troops from Iraq didn't get enough support to keep it alive. The vote on the amendment to a defense authorization bill, which would have mandated a drawdown to begin in 120... More »

Dems Willing to Deal on Troop Pullout

They're easing off deadline after some surge progress

(Newser) - Senate Democrats are signaling they are willing to compromise with Republicans on a timetable for withdrawing troops from Iraq. The Democrats, who pushed before the summer recess for a pullout deadline next spring, have been undercut by some progress in Iraq and the success of the White House in maintaining... More »

GOP Senator: Start Bringing Troops Home

Warner raps Iraq PM, calls for limited pullout by Christmas

(Newser) - In a significant break from his previous support for the White House's Iraq policy, John Warner said today wants to see some US troops home by Christmas. The influential ex-chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee has opposed Democratic attempts to force withdrawal, CNN reports, but now says a partial... More »

Maliki Must Go: Senator

Iraq needs 'more unifying' leader, says head of Armed Services Committee

(Newser) - Iraq's Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki must go, says Senate Armed Services Committee chairman Carl Levin, who yesterday called on the nation's parliament to replace him with a "more unifying" leader if Maliki can't quickly forge political peace among rival factions. Maliki's current talks with Iraqi leaders is the "... More »

Michigan to Shift Primary to Jan. 15

Move forces New Hampshire earlier; Iowa mulls December

(Newser) - Michigan is about to move its 2008 presidential primary to January 15th, sources inside the state Democratic and Republican parties tell MSNBC. A bill shifting the date will go before the state senate next week. The move will provoke other early states to move to earlier—as early as December—... More »

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