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Alaska Attorney General Talis Colberg announced today that seven state employees will now honor subpoenas to testify in the legislative investigation of the Troopergate affair. Colberg said the decision comes in light of a judge's ruling last week rejecting an attempt to quash the subpoenas.... The Legislature's investigator, retired state prosecutor Steve Branchflower, is expected to complete his report by Friday into whether Gov. Sarah Palin abused her power by trying to force the firing of a state trooper involved in a child custody battle with her sister.

An Alaska judge has refused to block a state investigation into whether Gov. Sarah Palin abused her power when she fired her public safety commissioner this summer. Judge Peter Michalski in Anchorage said in his ruling Thursday that much of what was raised in a lawsuit seeking to halt the probe was business left to the legislative branch. Five Republican state legislators asked the judge to order a temporary restraining order. They said the investigation has been tainted by partisan politics. An independent investigator hired by the Legislative Council, which authorized the probe, is expected to have his report completed...

WASHINGTON (CBS) ― CBS 2 has learned the House of Representatives will conduct an inquiry into Rep. Charles Rangel, the Chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee. The ethics committee of Congress announced they established a subcommittee to investigate Rangel, who has already been in plenty of hot water recently. One stunning part of the determination is that the committee decided to investigate his use of congressional stationery in three separate years to seek donors for a public policy institute in his name at City College. The committee will also investigate Rangel's use of four rent-stabilized apartments leased in...

A top aide to City Councilman W. Wilson Goode Jr., feeling "harassed" by a Fox 29 probe into her work hours, used yesterday's Council meeting to label the television station and its top investigative reporter racist. ---snip--- Bryant, who is African American, also got in the face of a white Fox cameraman,

WASHINGTON - The House Judiciary Committee voted Wednesday to open the first impeachment probe of a sitting judge in almost two decades. With little discussion, the Democratic-led panel voted unanimously to launch an investigation against U.S. District Judge Thomas Porteous, a Louisiana jurist, who is charged with presiding over a trial in which the lawyers involved had given him money. He's also accused of filing for bankruptcy under a false name. Porteous was appointed by President Clinton.

ANCHORAGE, Alaska – The abuse-of-power investigation of Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin was unraveling Wednesday, with most key witnesses refusing to testify, new legal maneuvering and heightened Republican pressure to delay the probe until after Election Day. Palin initially welcomed the investigation, saying "hold me accountable," but she has increasingly opposed it since Republican presidential candidate John McCain tapped her as his vice presidential running mate.

If ever there was a need for an investigation or a special prosecutor, Fannie Gate fits the bill. Politics, Democratic corruption, and a laundry list of Clinton pals have cause Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to go belly up. How come no one wants to get to the bottom of this. Sen. Chris Dodd and Rep. Charles Rangel are up to their ears in potential criminal activity. Where are the calls for an Enron-type investigation?

Responding to Republican charges of foot-dragging, the Democratic chairman of the House labor panel said Tuesday that it is pursuing its inquiry into a spending scandal at the Service Employees International Union but taking care not to interfere with a criminal investigation. The Education and Labor Committee's top-ranked Republican, Rep. Howard "Buck" McKeon (R-Santa Clarita), suggested last week that the congressional examination of an SEIU local in Los Angeles had stalled because the union is a key ally of the Democratic Party. On Tuesday, the committee chairman, Rep. George Miller (D-Martinez), said in a letter to McKeon that the inquiry...

Republican presidential candidate John McCain has called for a top-level inquiry into the economic crisis, claiming that a corrupt and excessive Wall Street had betrayed American workers. His Democratic opponent, Barack Obama, continued to criticise Mr McCain's comment that "the fundamentals of our economy are strong". In a television ad Mr Obama's campaign asks: "How can John McCain fix our economy if he doesn't understand it's broken?" Soon after making his remark, Mr McCain defined the fundamentals of the economy as American workers and said that the backbone - and products - of those workers remained sound despite the Wall...

Rep. Charles Rangel won't step down from his chairmanship at the House's tax-writing committee, his lawyer said Tuesday. "Mr. Rangel has not considered, nor has it ever been on the table, that he would step aside from his current position as chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee," said Lanny Davis, the attorney for Rep. Rangel, a New York Democrat. Mr. Davis said Rep. Rangel is going to hire a forensic accountant to examine the last 20 years of his financial records, which will be forwarded directly to the House Ethics Committee. Speculation has grown in recent days that...

Pelosi orders wide Wall Street probe By: Mike Allen September 16, 2008 06:58 PM EST House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has ordered a broad, swift investigation of Wall Street and will demand testimony from Bush administration officials and captains of finance, congressional officials said. House Democrats plan an aggressive look at the administration’s role in this weekend’s meltdown, and explore further regulation and government structures that would be taken up under the new president. Republican aides accused Democrats of trying to shift blame with a series of “show trials,” but acknowledged that key officials will wind up cooperating. The hearings will...

ANCHORAGE, Alaska – The Alaska lawmaker leading an investigation into Gov. Sarah Palin's dismissal of her public safety commissioner should be removed because he appears to be manipulating the probe to damage her vice presidential candidacy, a Republican legislator says.

ANCHORAGE, Alaska - The lawyer for Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin has begun questioning witnesses who potentially could testify against her in a probe of whether she abused her public office by firing the state public safety commissioner. he Associated Press learned Thursday night that at least two of the potential witnesses were questioned by the attorney for Palin, the Republican vice presidential nominee. The pre-emptive tactic gives the governor a distinct advantage in the controversy because it means that she already knows at the outset the detailed accounts of potential witnesses against her. The questioning conducted on Aug. 26 and...

"Why aren’t the American media investigating the role of British billionaire businessman Nadhmi Auchi in supplying loans to Barack Obama fundraiser Tony Rezko? Some point to media bias, but there is another factor. Working for Auchi, who was born in Iraq, attorneys from London law firm Carter-Ruck have for several months been flooding American and British newspapers and websites with letters demanding removal of material they deem “defamatory” to their client."

LAGOS - Nigeria's anti-corruption police were questioning the head of the stock exchange after she organised a gala dinner in support of Barack Obama's U.S. presidential campaign which raised hundreds of thousands of dollars.

With the parents growing indignant and the Beijing Games winding down, the International Olympic Committee wants to “put to rest” persistent questions about the age of China’s gold medal women’s gymnastics team. The IOC said Friday there is still no proof anyone cheated, though it asked the International Gymnastics Federation to investigate “what have been a number of questions and apparent discrepancies,” spokeswoman Giselle Davies said. However, all the information the Chinese gymnastics federation presented supports its insistence that its athletes were old enough to compete.

International Olympic Committee launches probe into He Kexin's age Tim Reid in Washington, Jeremy Griffin and Jane Macartney in Beijing The International Olympic Committee has ordered an investigation into mounting allegations that Chinese authorities covered up the true age of their gold-medal winning gymnastics star because she was too young to compete. An IOC official told The Times that because of "discrepancies" that have come to light about the age of He Kexin, the host nation’s darling who won gold in both team and individual events, an official inquiry has been launched that could result in the gymnast being stripped...

FBI probe targets father of embattled Detroit mayor Leftist link only...

Russian investigators have launched a criminal case on charges of genocide in connection with the events in South Ossetia. Russia’s Interfax news agency reports that the Russian General Prosecutor's Office has said Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili may also be put on trial. Igor Komissarov, deputy chairman of the Prosecutor’s Investigation Committee, said it had "initiated a genocide probe based on reports of actions committed by Georgian troops aimed at murdering Russian citizens, ethnic Ossetians, living in South Ossetia." According to the latest figures, about 1,600 residents and 74 Russian peacekeepers have been killed as a result of Georgia’s attack on...

CLEVELAND — A federal investigation of Democratic Party leaders in Cuyahoga County could pose problems for Barack Obama’s campaign in Ohio, party insiders and political analysts say....

WASHINGTON – Senator Chuck Grassley today began asking tough questions of the Department of Justice and the FBI following the release of documents implicating Dr. Bruce Ivins as the only suspect in the Amerithrax investigation. “This has been a long investigation full of missteps and mistakes. There’s been too much secrecy up to this point and it deserves a full and thorough vetting,” Grassley said. “There are clearly a lot of unanswered questions and it’s time to start a dialogue so we can get answers.” Here is a copy of the text of Grassley’s letter. The Honorable Michael B. Mukasey...

Rep. Charles Rangel asked the House Ethics Committee yesterday to investigate allegations that he improperly received sweetheart deals on four rent-stabilized apartments at Lenox Terrace in Harlem. While denying any wrongdoing, Rangel is taking the matter seriously. He has tapped hot-shot Washington defense lawyer Lanny Davis to try to handle the controversy. In a letter to House ethics-panel chair Rep. Stephanie Tubbs Jones (D-Ohio), Rangel requested a review of "unfounded allegations against me with respect to apartment units that I have rented in my congressional district in Harlem." "Some in the press have repeatedly - and erroneously - insinuated wrongdoing...

Rep. Rangel Files Ethics Charges Against Himself Wednesday, July 23, 2008 WASHINGTON — House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Charles Rangel, D-N.Y., filed an ethics complaint against himself Wednesday with the House Ethics Committee. The move is believed to be unprecedented. The Washington Post recently ran articles and an editorial raising questions about Rangel's potential involvement in raising money for an academic center named in his honor at City College of New York.

Federal prosecutors have dropped their criminal probe of fiscal irregularities and tax fraud by the Rev. Al Sharpton and his National Action Network. Lawyers for the civil rights activist said that means Sharpton's tax tangle won't result in an indictment or jail time, or even an appearance before a grand jury, though he's agreed to pay millions in back taxes. It also means the feds aren't pursuing allegations the civil rights leader extorted contributions from corporations in exchange for not protesting against them. Prosecutors would not comment, but law enforcement sources confirmed that the criminal probe is over. Bottom line:...

When you're the subject of congressional questioning, no matter how much you may protest about it being a witch hunt, they'll insist it's not! Check out the latest "Geeks On Caffeine" cartoon and see just what huge liars these congressional reps are when faced with this "witch hunt" accusation! NOTE: The author has requested that you visit his web site and refrain from copying and pasting the cartoon within the thread. Thanks!

Former Atty. Gen. Testifies Today Former Atty. Gen. John Ashcroft answered questions about his role in the drafting of detainee interrogation rules. In his opening statement, Ashcroft admitted that he had "limited recollection" of the events pertinent to the committee's inquiry.

Rep. Charles Rangel, chairman of the powerful House Ways and Means Committee, says he plans to file an ethics complaint — against himself. The move comes after a Washington Post reporter wrote a story raising questions about the New York Democrat’s efforts to raise money for an academic facility in Harlem that will bear his name. The story suggested that Rangel violated House rules by sending out letters bearing an official congressional letterhead seeking funds for the Rangel Center, to be located at the City College of New York, from Donald Trump and other wealthy individuals. At a press conference...

Securities regulators from several U.S. states raided the St. Louis headquarters of Wachovia Securities on Thursday as part of a broad investigation into questionable practices involving auction rate securities, Missouri officials said. Missouri Secretary of State Robin Carnahan's office said the "special inspection" at the Wachovia affiliate, the former A.G. Edwards, concerned the $330 billion auction rate securities meltdown. It said regulators were looking for information about Wachovia Securities' sales practices, internal evaluations of the auction rate securities market, and marketing strategies. A spokeswoman for Wachovia was not immediately able to comment. The bank owns 62 percent of Wachovia Securities...

Rep. Charlie Rangel (D-N.Y.), chairman of the powerful Ways and Means Committee, called on the House ethics committee to investigate his role in raising funds for the "Rangel Center" at City College in New York. In a combative press conference this morning, Rangel went after the Washington Post for reporting that he was sending out letters on official congressional letterhead soliciting funds for the center from corporations and wealthy individuals with business before his panel. "The review should be done as soon as possible so as to clear up any misunderstandings regarding my efforts to cnnvene meeting to discuss partnerships between...

LONDON (AFP) - A 19-year-old man was arrested under British anti-terror laws on Monday in connection with an investigation into a suspect already charged with terror offences, police said. Police detained the man in Bristol and searched his home. His arrest was linked to the probe into 19-year-old Andrew Ibrahim, who was detained in Bristol in April. Following Ibrahim's arrest, police carried out a series of controlled explosions after searching his suburban home. Ibrahim has since appeared in court accused of plotting to commit acts of terror. Details of his alleged offences cannot be reported until a trial takes place....

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - The Ulysses solar probe will cease operations around July 1 after nearly 18 years in outer space, NASA announced Thursday. The U.S.-European spacecraft has been suffering from a decline in its plutonium power for some time. Despite conservation measures by ground controllers, the power has dwindled to the point where thruster fuel soon will freeze up. Ulysses already has surpassed its expected lifetime by almost four times, traveling 5.4 billion miles since its launch aboard space shuttle Discovery in 1990. "When the last bits of data finally arrive, it surely will be tough to say goodbye,"...

June 10, 2008: For more than 400 years, astronomers have studied the sun from afar. Now NASA has decided to go there. "We are going to visit a living, breathing star for the first time," says program scientist Lika Guhathakurta of NASA Headquarters. "This is an unexplored region of the solar system and the possibilities for discovery are off the charts." The name of the mission is Solar Probe+ (pronounced "Solar Probe plus"). It's a heat-resistant spacecraft designed to plunge deep into the sun's atmosphere where it can sample solar wind and magnetism first hand. Launch could happen as early...

Scientists have discovered what may be ice that was exposed when soil was blown away as NASA's Phoenix spacecraft landed on Mars last Sunday, May 25. The possible ice appears in an image the robotic arm camera took underneath the lander, near a footpad. "We could very well be seeing rock, or we could be seeing exposed ice in the retrorocket blast zone," said Ray Arvidson of Washington University, St. Louis, Mo., co-investigator for the robotic arm. "We'll test the two ideas by getting more data, including color data, from the robotic arm camera. We think that if the hard...

An FBI probe into the May 4 bombing of a federal courthouse led to a woman being charged Friday with using a false identification to try to obtain explosives. Authorities said, however, that no one has been charged with the bombing, which damaged the courthouse lobby and sent more than 100 nails and other shrapnel flying as far as two blocks. No one was injured. Rachelle Lynette Carlock, 31, was arraigned in federal court in El Centro on an eight-count complaint charging use of false identification to obtain explosive materials, being a felon in possession of explosive materials and fraud....

OSLO (Reuters) - Canada will be investigated on suspicion of violating rules for registering greenhouse gases that are the mainstay of a U.N.-led fight against global warming, official documents show. Canada played down the news, saying it was taking quick steps to ensure it complied by the rules. Ottawa could be suspended from rights to trade carbon dioxide if found to be in breach of the rules by the enforcement branch of the U.N.'s Kyoto Protocol. Greece was suspended last month, the first state to face such a sanction. "On 5 May 2008 Canada was given an official notification of...

DETROIT - A prosecutor poised to reveal the results of her probe into whether Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick and his former top aide committed perjury or other crimes insists her own re-election bid did not affect the investigation. On Monday, Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy will put an end to two months of speculation when she announces what she found in her independent review of a text-messaging sex scandal that has consumed the city. "We're not the ones that created this scenario," Worthy said Friday. "We are the ones who simply want to do the right thing and do a thorough...

MANCHESTER, England - A city police chief who led an investigation into charges that Britain cooperated with secret CIA flights to transport terrorism suspects without formal proceedings has been found dead, his deputy said Tuesday. Manchester Chief Constable Michael Todd, 50, was found dead in Snowdonia, about 240 miles northwest of London, Deputy Chief Constable Dave Whatton said. He had been missing since going out for a walk Monday during his day off. Whatton said the body, which was found Tuesday afternoon, had not yet been formally identified but he believed it was Todd. He said a coroner's inquest would...

NEW YORK - The federal investigation into a high-end prostitution ring linked to Gov. Eliot Spitzer apparently began last year as a financial probe by the Internal Revenue Service. The investigation into the Emperors Club VIP gathered more than 5,000 telephone calls and text messages, and more than 6,000 e-mails, along with bank records, travel and hotel records and surveillance. But it was unclear whether Spitzer was a target from the start or whether agents came across his name by accident while amassing evidence. Conversations were recorded about someone identified as "Client 9," including that a prostitute identified as "Kristen"...

SAO PAULO, Brazil (AP) - A team from Brazil's Labor Ministry found "degrading" living conditions for 133 sugarcane workers employed by an ethanol company whose investors include former President Clinton and other high- profile financial players. At five sites inspected, workers "complained they were suffering from hunger and cold, and all of the locations were overcrowded and with terrible sanitary conditions," according to a statement issued Friday by Jaqueline Carrijo, who led the inspections last month. The target of the probe, Brazil Renewable Energy Co., known as Brenco, apologized over the weekend and said it is fixing the problems at...

Firms under scrutiny regarding certain bidding practices Antitrust and securities regulators are considering charges against a handful of large banks, bond insurers and some of their employees as part of an investigation into certain municipal-bond investments. Bank of America, UBS AG and bond insurer Financial Security Assurance Holdings Ltd. last month received notices from the Securities and Exchange Commission indicating civil enforcement action may be taken against them for potentially violating federal securities laws about bidding practices on contracts that manage municipal funds. The "Wells notices" sent by the SEC, which the companies disclosed in regulatory filings, also give the...

The ranking Republican on the Senate Finance Committee says the televangelist ministries that he's investigating for alleged financial misconduct may be ignorant about the seriousness of his probe, but they're "not going to get away with their stonewalling." Senator Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) says he is sending out a second letter to well-known "prosperity gospel" ministries, asking them to address allegations they are using their tax-exempt status to pay for lavish lifestyles. Grassley reports he has received the cooperation of only two of the six televangelists under investigation -- Joyce Meyer and Benny Hinn. The ministries of Paula White, Eddie Long,...

Attorney General Michael Mukasey has informed Nancy Pelosi that he will not enforce the contempt citations issued by the House last week. He informed the Speaker that neither Josh Bolten nor Harriet Miers committed any crimes, and therefore the Department of Justice didn’t really see the need to prosecute them: U.S. Attorney General Michael Mukasey refused on Friday to pursue contempt citations issued by the House of Representatives against a current and a former White House aide for not cooperating in a probe of the firing of U.S. attorneys.Saying no crime was committed, Mukasey rejected a request by House Speaker...

WASHINGTON, (AP) -- The Agriculture Department abruptly ordered congressional auditors to leave its headquarters and told its employees not to cooperate with them. "You are hereby instructed not to meet with any member of the (Government Accountability Office) today, or until this matter is resolved," Michael Watts, a top USDA attorney, wrote to employees Wednesday in an e-mail obtained by The Associated Press. The auditors were seeking information for an ongoing audit on Agriculture's office of civil rights and its handling of discrimination complaints. Specifically, they were investigating allegations that the department had previously provided false information for the audit....

WASHINGTON (AP) -- House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has asked for a grand jury investigation into whether White House chief of staff Josh Bolten and former counsel Harriet Miers should be prosecuted for contempt of Congress. Pelosi is demanding that misdemeanor charges be pursued against Miers for refusing to testify to Congress about the 2006 firings of federal prosecutors, and against Bolten for failing to turn over White House documents related to the purge.

<p>1. Russians Suspected in Shooting of Kremlin Critic Near D.C.</p> <p>One year ago, Kremlin critic Paul Joyal was gunned down in the driveway of his suburban Maryland home. The case remains unsolved — but some see the hand of Russia in the shooting.</p>

Lerach claims kickbacks were commonplace among class-action litigators when he was practicing. "Everybody was paying plaintiffs," he said in a letter inadvertently made public by his own attorneys last week. This should trigger a wider-ranging federal investigation of the plaintiffs bar, if indeed such a probe is not already being conducted. Senate and House Democrats, many of whom in years past received multiple campaign contributions from Lerach and others at Milberg Weiss, could demonstrate a laudable independence by opening a congressional inquiry.

A former finance director in Orange Cove is suing Mayor Victor Lopez and the city, alleging he was fired from his job for investigating financial irregularities involving Lopez's sons. Odilon Ortiz filed suit Friday in Fresno County Superior Court seeking about $1.5 million in past and future income, benefits and damages. The suit alleges the mayor didn't report his compensation correctly. Ortiz also claims his sons pocketed money they received from a vendor for returning materials they bought with public funds. David and Victor Lopez Jr. work for the city. Lopez says the allegations are false and records will show...

FBI Probes 14 Companies Over Home Loans Tuesday January 29, 7:00 pm ET By Alan Zibel, AP Business Writer FBI Says 14 Companies Under Investigation for Possible Fraud in Connection With Subprime Loans WASHINGTON (AP) -- The FBI on Tuesday said it is investigating 14 companies for possible accounting fraud, insider trading or other violations in connection with home loans made to risky borrowers. Agency officials did not identify the companies under investigation but said the wide-ranging probe, which began in spring 2007, involves companies across the financial services industry, from mortgage lenders to investment banks that bundle home loans...

It hasn’t generated a lot of headlines, but in the world of religion and politics, it’s a pretty big deal. Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), the ranking Republican on the Senate Finance Committee, recently asked six high-profile, hyper-wealthy Pentecostal televangelists for their financial records, under the suspicion that they’re using their ministries for personal gain. (Imagine that.) Not surprisingly, most of the televangelists’ ministries have been loath to cooperate with the inquiry. One in particular is pledging a holy war. Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) has gone after more than a few iconic nonprofits during his tenure atop the Finance Committee, including...

The federal investigation into the firing of nine U.S. attorneys could jolt the political landscape ahead of the November elections, according to several people close to the inquiry. Washington’s attention has been diverted from the scandal since the August resignation of Alberto Gonzales as attorney general, and has focused instead on Democrats’ efforts to hold White House officials in contempt for ignoring congressional subpoenas to testify on Capitol Hill about the firings. But recent behind-the-scenes activity in several investigations suggests that the issue that roiled Congress in 2007 could re-emerge in the heat of the election year. Two inquiries by...