Ospina led an Army brigade in 1997 that allowed a pro-government militia to sack a village in northern Colombia. The assault left several dead, including children. “One shopkeeper was tied to a tree, had his eyes gouged out, and his tongue removed," according to witness reports. The allegations didn’t stop Ospina from joining the teaching staff at NDU’s Center for Hemispheric Defense Studies, where he taught from 2006 to 2014. There, he lectured “elite” U.S. and foreign military officers.   read more

The letter, drafted by Sen. Tom Cotton of Arkansas, was intended to undermine negotiations between the Obama administration and Iran about its nuclear program, with the GOP senators warning Tehran that any deal it signs with President Obama might not last beyond his remaining term in office. "It appears from the letter that the Senators do not understand our constitutional system or the power to make binding agreements,” wrote legal authority Jack Goldsmith.   read more

Obama’s announcement targeted seven Venezuelan officials who are now subject to U.S. sanctions. The action provoked a fiery response from President Nicolas Maduro, who accused the U.S. of trying to meddle in his country’s internal affairs and undermine his government. The sanctions will not change the economic relationship between the two countries. The U.S. is Venezuela’s top trading partner, and the U.S. imports an average of 733,000 barrels of oil per day from the South American nation.   read more

Documents show the ban had been in place since Governor Rick Scott took office in 2011. Investigators spoke with former DEP employees who confirmed that use of the terms were forbidden in any official emails, documents, or communications. "We were... no longer allowed to use [those] terms...or even ‘sea-level rise'...which was to be referred to as ‘nuisance flooding,” said Kristina Trotta. When her staff protested, they were told the order came “from the governor’s office.”   read more

While many Republican-run states are trying to restrict the number of people who vote, Oregon is going in the opposite direction. The legislation creates a system that will make it easier than ever for 300,000 to 400,000 potential voters to become actual voters. It authorizes the Driver and Motor Vehicle Services Division to electronically transfer motorists’ information to the office of the secretary of state, which keeps track of voter rolls.   read more

By most measures, the economy is in far better shape than it was when President Barack Obama took office. In February, 295,000 jobs were added, the 12th month in a row that at least 200,000 jobs were added, the longest such period since 1994. The unemployment rate, 5.5%, is the lowest since May 2008. The stock market is high and gas prices are relatively low. The outlier is wage growth, which has been stagnant.   read more

Why is it that lower-level officers are sent to prison for shedding light on CIA torture and missteps while the former director is getting off with a slap on the wrist? “I don’t think General Petraeus should have been prosecuted under the Espionage Act, just as I don’t think I should have been...” said John Kiriakou. “Yet only one of us was. Both Petraeus and I disclosed undercover identities...that were never published. I spent two years in prison; he gets two years’ probation.”   read more

“I’m thrilled that President Obama owned up to his promise to veto the Keystone XL pipeline bill today. But in the same breath I’m spittin’ mad,” said Julia Crawford, whose land was taken by TransCanada. “Nearly three years ago, with the exact same data in front of him he decided to ‘cut through the red tape and fast track’ the southern leg of this project. Where was his ‘climate test’ then? President Obama owes all of us in Texas and Oklahoma an explanation. Better yet, an apology,”   read more

The 10 biggest corporate water polluters in the U.S. spent $53 million on lobbying and nearly $10 million on campaign contributions. These companies also dumped 100 million pounds of toxics in public waterways. The top polluter in the report is AK Steel, which discharged 19,088,128 pounds of toxics into rivers and lakes in 2012. It spent $739,752 on lobbying in 2014. The biggest lobbying spender was the No. 6 polluter: Koch Industries ($13.8 million on lobbying, 6,657,138 pounds of toxics).   read more

The judge wrote that the Endangered Species Act “offers the broadest possible protections for endangered species by design [and] reflects the [U.S.] commitment to act as a responsible steward of the Earth's wildlife, even when such stewardship is inconvenient or difficult...” But the Obama administration objected to the ruling. Since 2003, the U.S. government has made four attempts to end protection of the wolves, and each time its effort was overturned in court.   read more

New rules approved by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Thursday will result in the Internet being treated like a utility under federal law and allow local governments to develop public high-speed online service. The rules were approved by a 3-2 vote of the FCC, with three Democrats voting for the rules and two Republicans against.   read more

The former inhabitants of Diego Garcia who were kicked off their island home by the British so the U.S. could develop a key military base may soon get to return home after nearly 50 years in exile. Diego Garcia was created as strategic U.S. military base during the Cold War. It also may have been involved in the CIA’s secret rendition program, serving as a refueling site for clandestine flights carrying detainees and possible “black site” where suspected terrorists were interrogated.   read more

Lorance started with tough rhetoric the day he took over. “He looks like the all-American sweetheart when you meet him,” said Staff Sgt. Daniel Williams. “But he was just so aggressive. One of the first things he said to us was, we are going to go in Gestapo-style with night raids, pull people out of houses, make them afraid of us.” Lorance ordered sharpshooters to fire rounds into a village, striking near civilians. In one case, he told a sharpshooter to torment a man by firing near his head.   read more

A warehouse on Chicago’s west side known as Homan Square has been in use for years by special police units as the equivalent of a “black site” interrogation center, reminiscent of those used by the CIA. Those questioned there, even children as young as 15, are denied their constitutional protections and are reportedly beaten and shackled. People brought there aren't even logged in. "When you go in, no one knows what’s happened to you," said Brian Church.   read more

A 2014 report by the Pentagon’s inspector general revealed the agency’s “hardware store”—the Defense Logistics Agency (DLA)—paid one manufacturer, Bell Helicopter, $9 million more than it should have for commercial parts. The overpayments to Bell last year averaged out to 392%.The report also found that American taxpayers aren’t finished overpaying for parts. “DLA may overpay as much as $2.6 million over the next 12 months on future orders under this contract,” the report said.   read more

When conservatives have argued climate change is not a human-produced problem, they often have exalted the work of scientist “Willie” Soon. But now it has been revealed that Soon received support from Exxon Mobil and the American Petroleum Institute, often blamed for generating greenhouse gas emissions that cause global warming. Soon did not disclose this financial backing while publishing numerous scientific papers, which would indicate he was trying to hide this obvious conflict of interest.   read more