Democracy Now! Tuesday, August 12, 2008

Today's Headlines

• Russia Orders End to Georgia Fighting
• Bush Administration Proposes Gutting Endangered Species Act
• CBO Report: US Spends $100 Billion on Private Contractors in Iraq
• McCain to Hold Fundraiser with Abramoff Associate
• Colorado National Guard to Operate 24-Hour Camp in Denver During DNC
• Indian Security Forces Kill Protesters in Kashmir
• Humanitarian Activists to Sail Boats to Gaza
• FBI Admits Obtaining Records of Reporters
• 13 Peace Activists Arrested at Wisconsin National Guard Base
• Longtime Foreign Correspondent John Cooley Dies

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  Bolivian President Evo Morales Wins Critical Referendum on His Presidency

  More than 63 percent voted to back Morales’ government—nearly ten points more than the 54 percent that elected him in December 2005. The recall pitted Morales against governors who have pushed for autonomy for their resource-rich provinces. [includes rush transcript]

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  Federal Judge Rules US Government Owes Group of Native Americans $455 Million for Unpaid Royalties on Drilling for Oil and Gas

  We speak to Elouise Cobell, the lead plaintiff in what was the largest class-action lawsuit against the US government. The Native American plaintiffs were seeking $47 billion, the total amount of lost royalties since 1887. [includes rush transcript–partial]

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  China Deports 28 Members of Students for a Free Tibet for Staging Protests in Beijing

  We speak to John Hocevar, founder of Students for a Free Tibet, and the citizen journalist Noel Hidalgo, aka noneck, both of whom were just deported by China. Hidalgo used his cell phone to film most of the footage of the protests shown across the world.

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  Chinese American Writer & Activist Helen Zia on the Olympic Games, the Role of Protest and President Bush's Visit to Beijing

  In a piece called “Why I Will Carry the Olympic Torch,” Helen Zia wrote earlier this year, “A peaceful and better world is possible through friendly engagement and mutual understanding, not violent confrontation and polarization. It’s an Olympic message, a possible dream that our global civilization and everyone who is a part of it can aspire to—and for which I am proud to carry a torch.”