* Syria Condemns US Attack as “Terrorist Aggression” * Federal Jury Convicts GOP Sen. Ted Stevens * Two Neo-Nazis Arrested in Obama Assassination Plot * Obama: McCain Thinks Giving Americans a Break is Socialism * Bush Administration Considers Emergency Funds for GM and Chrysler * Bank Bailout May Lead to Greater Bank Consolidation * $13 Billion Set Aside for Wall Street Bonuses * US Open-Air Burn Pit in Iraq Exposes Thousands to Cancer-Causing Dioxins * Eight-Year-Old Shoots Himself Dead with Uzi at Gun Show * Grand Jury to Probe Allegations of Police Beating in Brooklyn * Flooding Kills 90 in Yemen; 20,000 Displaced
Republican Senator Ted Stevens Convicted on Corruption Charges
Senator Ted Stevens of Alaska, the Senate’s longest-serving Republican in US history, was convicted yesterday of violating federal ethics laws for failing to report tens of thousands of dollars in gifts he received from friends. A jury in Washington, D.C. found Stevens guilty on seven felony counts, each with a maximum penalty of five years in prison. The 84-year-old Stevens is one of the most powerful Republicans in Congress and is the first sitting US senator to go on trial in more than two decades. [includes rush transcript]
Drilling and Killing: Landmark Trial Against Chevron Begins Over Its Role in the Niger Delta
A landmark trial has begun against the oil giant Chevron. A San Francisco district court is hearing a case brought by Nigerian plaintiffs who accuse Chevron of recruiting and supplying Nigerian military forces involved in the May 1998 shooting and killing of protesters in the oil-rich Niger Delta. The protesters were occupying a Chevron-owned oil platform called the Parabe, demanding jobs and compensation for environmental damage to their communities. We play an excerpt of Democracy Now!‘s award-winning documentary, Drilling and Killing: Chevron and Nigeria’s Oil Dictatorship, and we speak with two activists. [includes rush transcript]
Van Jones on "The Green Collar Economy: How One Solution Can Fix Our Two Biggest Problems"
In a new book, the well-known community activist and attorney Van Jones lays out a plan for a green economy he says could help solve the nation’s economic inequality while also addressing the long-term environmental threats to our survival as a planet. [includes rush transcript]