Free Republic

Wayne County Judge Ronald Giles has revoked Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick's previous bond and ordered random drug screening on Friday based on testimony from two detectives in the accusations that Kilpatrick assaulted Detective Brian White.

State Senator Derrick Shepherd has been released from the Jefferson Parish Jail after being arrested on charges of simple battery, theft and unauthorized entry of a dwelling. Thaise Ashford, 29, Shepherd's former girlfriend, reported the aggravated burglary early Saturday morning. She says he broke into her home, punched her in the stomach, stole her cell phone and $100 cash. Deputies from the Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office secured a search warrant for Shepherd's home in Gretna. There, sheriffs say they found Shepherd on the sofa with a "young female on top of him performing what appeared to be a lap dance."...

When she arrived in Congress last fall, Rep. Laura Richardson sought out a vehicle that would match her newfound status. She settled on a 2007 Lincoln Town Car - the choice of many representatives who lease their vehicles at taxpayers' expense. But hers was distinct: at $1,300 a month, it was the most expensive car in the House of Representatives. Richardson, a Democrat who represents Carson, has since become known for defaulting on two home loans and losing a third house - in an upscale neighborhood in Sacramento - at a foreclosure auction. But her history with vehicles has been...

The Cuyahoga County corruption scandal has blown gaping holes in leadership atop the Democratic Party and county government. In targeting Commissioner Jimmy Dimora, federal agents are aiming at the man who has been in charge of the county Democratic Party for 14 years. The county commissioners office should function while Dimora endures the investigation -- he is only one of three commissioners. But throughout his reign over the party, Dimora has been chided for failing to build an infrastructure that could survive a crisis. The party could sputter with a weakened chairman in place. With Dimora clinging to his political...

House Tables Resolution To Censure Rep. RangelBy Christopher Lee Washington Post Staff Writer Friday, August 1, 2008; A15 Rep. Charles Rangel (D-N.Y.) had a tough July, and yesterday he had to scramble to keep it from ending on another down note. Rangel and his fellow Democrats beat back a resolution by House Minority Leader John A. Boehner (R-Ohio) that would have publicly censured the chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee over his rental of four New York City apartments -- including one he used as a campaign office -- at below-market rates. The measure branded the apartment deal...

TROY, Mich. (AP) - The husband of U.S. Sen. Debbie Stabenow told authorities that he used the Internet to arrange a $150 sexual tryst with a prostitute at a metropolitan Detroit hotel, police said Wednesday. Thomas Athans, 46, co-founder of the liberal TalkUSA Radio network, was stopped by police who were investigating prostitution at the hotel, according to a police report obtained by The Associated Press. Athans, in a statement issued by his attorney, apologized and said he "fully cooperated with law enforcement. My family and I are dealing with this matter in a personal and private way." Stabenow, D-Mich.,...