According to a news release put out by Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Pa.), chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, the Pentagon had changed its mind about allowing five Able Danger personnel to testify publicly in the committee’s probe of the data-mining operation. Specter’s statement said they would testify at a committee hearing Oct. 5. That’s news to Pentagon Spokesman Bryan Whitman. Whitman told the Associated Press that DOD’s concerns “have not changed,” but discussions were continuing on the matter. The Senator’s office begs to differ. A spokesman said the two parties had reached an agreement. And, the hearing will be public.
The U.S. continued to move a significant amount of airpower toward the Middle East in recent days as talks to forge a nuclear deal with Iran hung in the balance. Flight tracking data indicate there was unusually heavy movement of dozens of fighter jets and other assets that might be…



