July
FOIA is 40. Bush agrees to comply with Supreme Court ruling on Gitmo detainees. The GAO stands firm: US Department of Education improperly used taxpayer monies for a contract with Armstrong Williams. Bush pledges to veto stem cell bill.The month ends with Israeli bombs over Lebanon, with US backing.
August
Ending a long-running Washington scandal, former Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage -- Colin Powell's right-hand-man admits to being the source of the Valerie Plame leak. And it's the one year anniversary of Hurricane Katrina. US media ignore environmental disaster resulting from Israeli bombing of Beirut.The FDA approves Plan B contraception, two years after the advisory committee recommendation. President Bush asserts that WMD was the main reason for Iraq; courts rule wiretaps illegal.
September
Congress gives President Bush his "detainee" bill after a series of Supreme Court losses. The war in Iraq is costing $2 billion a week, according to the Congressional Research Service; this is twice the estimate in 2003. And a leak of the National Intelligence Estimate says that US actions in Iraq have helped spawn terrorists.With mid-term elections around te corner, the Republican Party goes into defense mode, as Rep. Mark Foley (R-FL) resigns amid charges of stalking Congressional pages. And a controversial voter ID requirement is struck down in Georgia.
And it's the fifth anniversary of 9-11.
October
An aide to Karl Rove resigns after we learn that she provided Jack Abramoff with inside information in exchange for "sometimes-pricey tickets to nine sports and entertainment events."Media are beginning to report about the lack of progress in Afghanistan. And YouTube is the latest internet campaign tool, becoming the home to clips that may or may not have made it to the air. The Election Assistance Commission gets a black eye for sitting on a preliminary report on election fraud.
November
Democrats take control of the House and Senate, returning Washington to a more "normal" balance of power between legislative and executive branches; however, the mid-term turnover as a normal event is a myth. The election is marked by FUD advertising, which doesn't pay off. And in Flordia, we have deja vu as one election is decided by the courts due to, you guessed in, voting machine problems.The bi-partisan Iraqi Study Group recommends a "gradual pullback" of US military. And DP World returns to headlines.
December
The swearing in of new Congressman results in a faux crisis and the hospitalization of Sen. Tim Johnson (D-SD) causes pundits to wring their hands over the fragile Democratic control of the Senate.The Bush Administration tacitly acknowledges global warming is occurring when it proposes putting polar bears on the Endangered Species list. Former President Gerald Ford dies. And Somalia threatens to plunge the Horn of Africa into widespread war.
January - June 2006