This morning the Senate Judiciary Committee held a hearing on the "reporter shield" law.  I know everyone here is still very focused on the Rove story, and I thought people might be interested in how the Senate is playing a role in the story.  The issue of journalistic privilege is complicated - it creates some real questions about who should be protected, and how.  Do journalists really need the same privilege as lawyers? The clergy?  Senator Kennedy made a statement at the hearing, and addressed the Rove issue directly in his comments on journalistic privilege.  His comments aren't extensive, but are interesting in the larger context of this story.

The Justice Department is opposing the bill - 31 states already have a shield law, and this one has support.

Rumsfeld Rejects Notion that Iraq War Is a Quagmire - Reuters

From the Reuters report on the Senate Armed Services Hearing this morning:

"This war has been consistently and grossly mismanaged," Sen. Edward Kennedy, a Massachusetts Democrat, told Rumsfeld. "And we are now in a seemingly intractable quagmire."

"Our troops are dying. And there really is no end in sight. And the American people, I believe, deserve leadership worthy of the sacrifices that our fighting forces have made, and they deserve the real facts. And I regret to say that I don't believe that you have provided either," Kennedy added.

Kennedy asked Rumsfeld: "Isn't it time for you to resign?"

Rumsfeld noted he twice offered his resignation to President Bush last year during the Abu Ghraib prisoner abuse scandal, and that Bush declined to accept it. "That's his call," Rumsfeld added.

Join Senator Kennedy in calling on Secretary Rumsfeld to Resign (Again)!

I'm the new Internet Operations Manager for Senator Kennedy's re-election campaign.  We just launched our new website: http://www.tedkennedy.com.  We also had a great call with a group of bloggers on Monday, including Chris Bowers.  The Senator really enjoyed it, and was impressed with the extent to which the bloggers understood the complexities of the judicial nominations process and the nuclear option.

We're focusing on opposing the nomination of William Myers to the federal bench - he was rejected by the Senate last year,and the president has re-nominated him.  Senator Kerry and Senator Boxer have both supported our petition to say no to Myers - you can, too, at http://tedkennedy.com/page/petition/nomyers.
Our campaign has joined the current online effort against the GOP abuse of power by  speaking out against William Myers and the other unqualified nominees.  Senator Kennedy is committed to bringing this discussion to the forefront, and getting people to understand the ramifications of Republican abuses like this one.  

This is only the beginning of our online efforts, and I look forward to keeping you informed about the upcoming work of Senator Kennedy on poverty, education, immigration, civil rights, and much more. I am excited about what we can accomplish  in the online community together - even in the face of the current environment. Come and visit (often!), check out our journal and get involved!

Thanks!