Think Progress

IMMIGRATION -- NUMBER OF ANTI-IMMIGRANT HATE GROUPS ROSE IN 2007: A new report by the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) released today finds that "anti-immigrant sentiment is fueling nationwide increases in the number of hate groups and the number of hate crimes targeting Latinos." The report "found that the number of hate groups operating in America rose to 888 last year, up 5% from 844 groups in 2006. That capped an increase of 48% since 2000 -- a hike from 602 groups attributable to the exploitation by hate groups of the continuing debate about immigration." This year, SPLC added the prominent anti-immigration group Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR) to its list of hate groups, prompted by FAIR's promotion of the conspiracy theory of the "North American Union" and the "theory that Mexico is involved in a secret plot to 'reconquer' the American southwest." Last year, FAIR warned that the so-called "McKennedy" comprehensive immigration reform bill proposed in the Senate "will destroy America."

CIVIL LIBERTIES -- NSA'S DOMESTIC SURVEILLANCE' HAS 'EVOLVED' TO REACH AMERICANS 'MORE BROADLY': In 2003, Congress voted to terminate funding for Total Information Awareness (TIA) a controversial data mining program set up by the Pentagon that "collected electronic data about people in the U.S. to search for suspicious patterns." The program continued in various forms by being spread across different intelligence agencies. The Wall Street Journal reports today that the National Security Agency (NSA), "once confined to foreign surveillance, has been building essentially the same system." An inquiry by the paper reveals that the agency's "efforts have evolved to reach more broadly into data about people's communications, travel and finances in the U.S. than the domestic surveillance programs brought to light since the 2001 terrorist attacks." "When it got taken apart, it didn't get thrown away," a former top government official said of the TIA program. Two current officials also told the Wall Street Journal that "the NSA's current combination of programs now largely mirrors the former TIA project. But the NSA offers less privacy protection." "A number of NSA employees" expressed concerns "that the agency may be overstepping its authority by veering into domestic surveillance."

ADMINISTRATION  --  KARL ROVE RATTLED BY STUDENTS AND PROTESTERS AT UNIVERSITY OF IOWA SPEECH: Students and citizens protested former White House adviser Karl Rove before and during a speech he gave last night at the University of Iowa. Before the speech, "groups from around eastern Iowa had been protesting his presence for two hours" and "protesters staged a mock trial" for Rove inside the student union, draping the "side of a nearby parking ramp with a 60-foot anti-Rove banner." Rove also received tough questions from the audience. One attendee asked Rove about the "true" body count in Iraq, prompting Rove to accuse the individual of "perpetuating libel on the military of the United States by accusing them of killing innocent Iraqis." Rove chastised what he said were "stupid statements" from the audience and said a comment from one man showed "a simple, stupid mind." Responding to a question about CIA operative Valerie Plame Wilson's outing, Rove said, "I haven't been indicted yet, but I fully expect to be by the end of the year." According to an agreement with the university, "Rove only allowed journalists to videotape the first few minutes of his remarks. After that, the media had to turn off all cameras and tape recorders."

"Vice President Dick Cheney will visit the Middle East next week and meet with leaders of Saudi Arabia, Israel, the Palestinian West Bank and Turkey." Cheney's office did not provide any details of what issues would be discussed during the trip.

The Senate Intelligence Committee is set to release "a detailed critique of the Bush administration's claims in the buildup to war with Iraq." The report "reaches a mixed verdict" on whether "the White House misused intelligence to make the case for war," but it does criticize White House officials for "making assertions that failed to reflect disagreements or uncertainties in the underlying intelligence on Iraq."

In a CBS 60 Minutes interview that aired yesterday, Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) promised to release his medical records "sometime in the next month or two." Yet so far, campaign officials have assured reporters at least three times since March 2007 "that they would provide the detailed information" about the senator's health, "but they have not done so."

Average U.S. gas prices "have reached a new high of almost $3.20 per gallon and will likely jump another 20 to 30 cents in the next month, worsening the pain of consumers struggling to make ends meet in an economic downturn." Prices increased “about 9.44 cents per gallon in the past two weeks" and "64 cents per gallon in the past 12 months."

Climate change research published in separate journals over the past few weeks from scientists from around the world has a "simple message: The world must bring carbon emissions down to near zero to keep temperatures from rising further."

Children in Iraq "have been more gravely affected by the U.S. occupation than any other segment of the population." According to the United Nations, "at least two million Iraqi children lack adequate nutrition" and "only 40 percent of children nationwide have access to safe drinking water."

And finally: Action star and right-wing activist Chuck Norris "has become a cult figure among the U.S. military in Iraq and an unlikely hero for some in Iraq's security forces.” Comments "lauding the manliness and virility of the actor have been left on toilet walls across Iraq and even in neighboring Kuwait." One such comment: "Chuck Norris puts the laughter in manslaughter." Troops appreciate that Norris "visited Iraq when violence was its worst and other celebrities were skittish."