Eric Holder Interview With Jim Lehrer

Eric Holder talks about the decision to try KSM and other 9-11 detainees in civil court in New York. Holder says that he only informed Obama of his decision. Obama is hands off with the AG's office, he said. Full interview/transcript here.

Holder says Greg Craig didn't resign because of Gitmo.

Musicians Sign up for National Campaign to Close Guantanamo

Music is a powerful thing and when musicians get involved in an effort (as opposed to actors/celebs) they can make a difference. This is what Obama needs, some wind at his back to compensate for the trolls throwing boulders in front of every step he takes. It seems that the Party of No is only out there to impede progress. Cheney's crew used music to torture:

A handful of musicians have joined up with the movement to close Guantanamo, protesting the reported use of loud music to soften up detainees for interrogation. The group includes Trent Reznor, R.E.M., Pearl Jam, David Byrne, Jackson Browne, Rise Against, Rosanne Cash, Billy Bragg, the Roots, Tom Morello, Michelle Branch, Steve Earlie, Rise Against, the Entrance Band, Joe Henry, and T-Bone Burnett.
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The musicians joined the newly launched National Campaign to Close Guantanamo pressuring Congress to cooperate with the Obama administration in closing the prison, spearheaded by anti-war activist and former Congressman Tom Andrews along with Lt. Gen Robert Gard (ret.).
Read more at Marc Ambinder's blog

From the National Campaign to Close Guantanamo:

With the release of a 30 second television ad, a new campaign was launched today to close the US prison at Guantanamo Bay. The campaign, called the National Campaign to Close Guantanamo, was launched with a press call with Retired Generals Bob Gard and John Johns, VoteVets.org Chairman Jon Soltz and former US Congressman and Director of the National Campaign to Close Guantanamo Tom Andrews. The campaign will support President Obama’s call to close the prison and urge Congress to reject the scare tactics of Dick Cheney, and the far right, and shut down the Guantanamo.

To combat the right-wing fear machine, the National Campaign to Close Guantanamo will run political ads and lead a grassroots campaign in both Washington and key Congressional districts.

Former Vice President Dick Cheney, principal architect of the torture policy of which Guantanamo has become an international symbol, and his daughter Liz, have led a concerted right-wing smear campaign, using many of the same scare tactics that the former Vice President used to persuade Americans of the need to invade Iraq, are now attempting to stampede Members of Congress and the American public into keeping Guantanamo open. Common Dreams

White House Stepping Up Efforts to Close Gitmo

This is one of those stories that makes me wonder if it's really a story. At the same time the AP reports that the White House might not be able to meet the deadline, it reports that the White House has stepped up its effort to meet the deadline. So which one makes the better headline? The one that says the White House is boosting efforts to close Gitmo by January or the one that says they might not be able to keep that promise?

Obama's aides have stepped up their work toward closure and the president remains as committed to closing the facility as he was when, as one of his first acts in office, he pledged to shut it down, said the officials, who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity in order to more freely discuss the sensitive issue.

They said the White House still was hoping to meet the deadline through a stepped-up effort. AP