“Khalid Sheikh Mohammed” on The Daily Caller

President Obama’s supporters have attacked his decision to try 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed via the military commission process. Some of these criticisms have merit and are worthy of debate. But the argument that military commissions won’t be legitimate because members of the Armed Forces will serve as the judge and jury is patronizing, insulting, and demonstrably false. (more)

WASHINGTON (AP) — Yielding to political opposition, the Obama administration gave up Monday on trying avowed 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and four alleged henchmen in civilian federal court in New York and will prosecute them instead before military commissions. (more)

WASHINGTON – President Obama reversed his two-year-old order halting new military charges against detainees at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, on Monday, permitting a resumption of military trials under rules he said provide adequate rights for defendants but implicitly admitting the failure for now of his pledge to close the prison camp. (more)

Humanity: an imperfect creation searching for salvation, seeking atonement, or simply the result of biology. Whatever we are also defines who we are today and the next stop on our common journey. Throughout history, the struggle for equality and human rights has been plagued by malice and corruption. Occasional examples of character emerge to inspire us all. Homer’s Hector was moral and good. He was a warrior. Unlike most characters in ancient Greek tales, he was a devoted husband and father. Hector honored his father, King Priam of Troy, simply by demonstrating restraint and profound loyalty. The courage and triumph of Moses, Cinque — the slave who led a mutiny aboard the Amistad — Nelson Mandela, Stephen Biko, Martin Luther King, Jr. and the uncommon valor of our Armed Forces, especially those who earned the Congressional Medal of Honor, figure prominently into the American identity and our concept of human rights. (more)

Attorney General Eric Holder should be preparing his resume. He ought to be joining the exodus of congressional lame ducks who have been shown the door by incensed voters. (more)

Full story: Who’s Threatening Your Civil Rights Now? – Ricochet.com (more)

Given the increase in troops in Afghanistan, the extension of the Patriot Act, the continuation of Robert Gates’ stint as defense secretary, the recent success in capturing senior Al Qaeda operatives, and the increase in effective drone attacks in Pakistan, why are so many still worried that our new president may be weak on defense? (more)

Human rights experts have long pressed the administration of former president George W. Bush for details of who bore ultimate responsibility for approving the simulated drownings of CIA detainees, a practice that many international legal experts say was illicit torture. (more)

The midterm elections are about many, many things. The elections have been nationalized by supporters of the Tea Party movement. Establishment Republicans have largely survived primary challenges, only to realize the electorate isn’t embracing them as reasonable voices. Voters are sending a different message entirely: the Democratic establishment — led by President Obama, Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid — is perceived as overreaching, grasping and power-obsessed. It’s a familiar meme; Republicans worth their political salt found this out in both the 2006 and the 2008 elections. (more)

It was clear what the two candidates in the Pennsylvania Senate debate Wednesday night wanted to emphasize about the other. But Democrat Joe Sestak was able to do it with much more flair and creativity than his opponent, Republican Pat Toomey. (more)

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan (AP) — The country’s leaders were quick to show their outrage at the sentence handed down to a Pakistani woman convicted of attacking U.S. agents, as were opposition politicians. By the time weekly prayers rolled round, protesters were battling police and the Pakistani Taliban had offered its support. (more)

The FBI says Adnan Shukrijumah is a dangerous al Qaeda operative, but his mom, who lives in Miramar, Fla., says he is kind, loving, and caring boy, the Florida Sun Sentinel reported late Friday. (more)

MIAMI (AP) — A suspected al-Qaida operative who lived for more than 15 years in the U.S. has become chief of the terror network’s global operations, the FBI says, marking the first time a leader so intimately familiar with American society has been placed in charge of planning attacks. (more)

Things haven’t been going well for Democrats lately. President Obama’s poll numbers are tanking. They’re at risk of losing control of the House and Senate. Their policies are unpopular. And they’re so jittery that last week they threw an African-American Department of Agriculture employee, Shirley Sherrod, under the bus before they had all the facts because they’re afraid of Fox News. Some people say this is all Barack Obama’s fault. He’s too ideological, too inexperienced, and too self-centered, and he’s led the Democratic Party astray. I disagree. I think Democrats have just lost their groove. (more)

Attorney General Eric Holder defended the idea of trying Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, alleged mastermind of the Sept. 11 attacks, in a civilian court on Sunday’s “Face the Nation.” (more)

If it’s Sunday, it’s Meet the Press… and Face the Nation… and This Week… and Fox News Sunday… and State of the Union. (more)

New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo, who is also a Democratic candidate for governor, alleged Wednesday that Islamophobia is what is motivating Republican gubernatorial candidate and former U.S. Congressman Rick Lazio to question plans for a 13-story mosque and Islamic community center to be built on Ground Zero. (more)