Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen (originally aired May 15, 2004)
| > | Hardball: Abu Ghraib Prison. The abuse of prisoners by U.S. service members at Iraq's Abu Ghraib prison reportedly took place from October to December 2003 and was then reported within the military on January 13, 2004. The military then initiated a criminal investigation and an administrative review. At least six individuals reportedly faced criminal charges as of March 20. As of May 7, at least 12 individuals reportedly face criminal or administrative actions including being relieved from command and being referred for criminal charges.
According to press accounts of the administrative investigation's report by Major General Antonio Taguba, the report found that inadequate training and inadequate numbers of guards contributed to the breakdown of command and discipline at the prison and also blamed military-intelligence officers and civilian contractors who had much control of prisoners. According to a New Yorker piece by Seymour Hersh, Taguba's report lists abuses including: "breaking chemical lights and pouring the phosphoric liquid on detainees," "sodomizing a detainee with a chemical light and perhaps a broom stick," and "using military working dogs to frighten and intimidate detainees with threats of attack, and in one instance actually biting a detainee."
Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld has faced criticism in recent weeks for the abuses of Iraqi prisoners that took place at Abu Ghraib prison and accepted responsibility for those abuses in a Senate hearing on May 7, 2004. "I am accountable for them. I take full responsibility. It is my obligation to evaluate what happened, to make sure those who have committed wrongdoing are brought to justice, and to make changes as needed to see that it doesn't happen again," he said according to prepared remarks (on-line here).
Rumsfeld reportedly has been criticized by President George W. Bush for not bringing the extent of the abuse to his attention earlier and for Bush having to find out about the photos from television, but Bush and White House spokesman Scott McClellan have said that Bush continues to support Rumsfeld and resists calls for Rumsfeld's resignation. Bush said that Rumsfeld was doing a "superb job" (transcript on-line here).
| | > | Hardball: Al Sharpton Reference. The Federal Election Commission reportedly ruled in early May that Reverend Al Sharpton was not entitled to federal matching funds because he personally contributed more than the legally allowed limit. Sharpton has criticized the ruling as the result of pressure by "right-wing groups seeking to deny my campaign matching funds through a series of spurious complaints" (statement on-line here).
| | > | Weekend Update: Changes to Interrogation Policy. According to a senior military official, Lt. General Ricardo Sanchez modified the interrogation policy used in Iraq on May 13 to eliminate certain techniques, such as "stress positions," from even being considered for use. Under the revised policy, the military can still isolate and segregate prisoners from the general population. A transcript of this background briefing is on-line here.
| | > | Weekend Update: Bush on Rumsfeld. President George W. Bush's comments on Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld are on-line here.
| | > | Weekend Update: Athens 2004. Athens hosted the first Olympic Games in 1896 and will host the 28th Olympiad from August 13 to 29. There have been concerns that the facilities will not be ready in time, but organizers are still optimistic and said on May 12 that they were confident that the remaining venues would be completed in time. A statement is on-line here. |
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West Wing: Santos discusses a lawsuit about intelligent design
West Wing: Electoral map as of the 10/9 episode; Santos needs to catch up big-time
SNL: The Miers nomination
South Park: Inspired by Katrina
Boston Legal: End to assault-weapons ban
Daily Show: A 2004 study found that 21 percent of young people regularly get their campaign news from comedy shows like the Daily Show with Jon Stewart and Saturday Night Live. So, some footnotes.
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By Stephen Lee
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