President Obama was elected with fanfare and promises to restore the rule of law and accountability to the justice system, specifically around indefinite detentions at Guantanamo. But the upcoming trial of Omar Khadr, a Canadian citizen taken into custody when he was just 15, seems to belie those promises.

29 million unemployed or looking for work, that’s the latest estimate, and you’d think it’d concentrate the mind in Washington. 29 million, or over 16 percent of us, need jobs and services and help to stay afloat, and to pay mortgages and grocery bills and – sigh – private health insurers.

"It Ain't My Fault" is an old New Orleans tune, a familiar one to anyone who's been around the city. The chorus has taken on new resonance in recent years, and especially in the wake of BP's oil flooding the Gulf of Mexico.At a recent benefit for Gulf Aid, hip-hop artist Mos Def put some new lyrics to the song that personalize the newest tragedy to hit the city of New Orleans.

Violence abounded in the anarchic days right after Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans, and new evidence continues to come out, even five years later, that the New Orleans police department was responsible for much of it. Investigative reporter A.C. Thompson covered "Katrina's Hidden Race War" for The Nation and helped bring attention--and accountability--to the crimes committed by officers in the days after the storm.

The battle for Congress--otherwise known as the 2010 midterm elections--is underway, and it seems that every bill that comes up for a vote is a campaign issue. Republicans are voting in a bloc against any money Obama asks for, including billions to help states continue to pay teachers, and Tea Party activists decry all government spending as bloated. Meanwhile, our wars continue in Iraq and Afghanistan, and once again a major media outlet--Time, this time--is using the body of a woman to make the case for occupation.

The battle for Congress--otherwise known as the 2010 midterm elections--is underway, and it seems that every bill that comes up for a vote is a campaign issue. Republicans are voting in a bloc against any money Obama asks for, including billions to help states continue to pay teachers, and Tea Party activists decry all government spending as bloated. Meanwhile, our wars continue in Iraq and Afghanistan, and once again a major media outlet--Time, this time--is using the body of a woman to make the case for occupation.

Laura appeared on MSNBC's Countdown with Keith Olbermann last Friday to discuss the latest wave of homophobic attacks in the U.S.--attempts to ban, possibly even retroactively, adoption by gay and lesbain couples.

A judge this week overturned California's Proposition 8, which outlawed gay marriage in the state, but the fight is hardly over. Our friends at the Courage Campaign are continuing to track the National Organization for Marriage's Summer of Marriage tour, and provided us with this footage at yet another event.

Filmmaker Natalia Almada looks at the history of Mexico through a unique lens--her great-grandfather was Plutarco Elias Calles, a revolutionary general who became president of Mexico in 1924. He remains a controversial figure, remembered as much for his legacy in founding Mexico's premier political party and helping create its government as his dictatorial style and violent rule.

This week, we're bringing you a slightly different documentary for our Got Docs feature. Strange Powers: Stephen Merritt and the Magnetic Fields follows the popular indie band The Magnetic Fields, following their odd relationships and interesting history. Kerthy Fix, a noted documentarian and friend of the show, and her co- director Gail O’Hara did a great job capturing the difficult navigation of artistic production, and if you want to see more of Kerthy's work, you won't have to wait for long: she's next putting together a doc on the awesome Le Tigre.