Free Republic

WASHINGTON - U.S. District Judge Royce Lamberth has raised many an eyebrow with his adjective-laden opinions in favor of the thousands of American Indians suing the government for mismanaging billions of their dollars. On Tuesday, an appeals court panel was asked to decide whether his rulings show he is too biased to continue with the 10-year-old lawsuit. "It is exceptionally rare for us to make this request we are making today, and we make it urgently," Assistant Attorney General Peter Keisler said, arguing that Lamberth should be removed from the case to "restore the appearance of fairness." Lamberth, a Texas...

Forty and counting. That is the number of former and current government employees facing possible contempt charges in the contentious case over the government's handling of Native American trust funds. The scope of the controversy is unprecedented. The Interior Department, home to a large portion of the accused employees, is an agency under siege. Interior officials are saying that Cobell v. Norton is hampering their ability to fix the trust and is taking a toll on the work force. Deputy Secretary J. Steven Griles recently told Congress that some employees have refused to work on the trust anymore -- and...