Back in March, Stephanie Mencimer wrote a story for MotherJones.com about Daniel Troy, the former chief counsel to the Food and Drug Administration. As FDA, chief, Troy introduced a questionable legal theory called preemption, in which agency lawyers would show up in state courts and argue that companies whose products had been approved by the FDA were protected from lawsuits even if they injured people in violation of state laws. Today, the House Oversight and Government Reform committee released a report (PDF) revealing that "key FDA career officials strongly objected to Bush Administration drug labeling regulations that would preempt state liability lawsuits." According to the report, FDA career officials said "that the central justifications for the regulations were 'false and misleading'" and warned "that the changes would deprive consumers of timely information about drug hazards." In her story, Stephanie explained how much the FDA's embrace of preemption represented a break from the past:

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In Miami, non-Cuban Latino voters are more concerned with health care than with the Castros, and this year they are beginning to surpass the Cubans in vote registration. Unlike the Cubans, they tend to vote Democratic—when they vote.

John McCain is paying attention: Colombians are the second largest Latino group in Miami-Dade County. During the final presidential debate, he advertised his support for the Colombian Free Trade Agreement, which most Colombians support and Obama opposes. Still, most of these new immigrants seem more concerned with domestic issues than with their homelands. Could new Nicaraguan, Colombian, and Cuban citizens swing Florida this November? Watch the video above. Then click here for the full story of Miami's Hispanic swing vote.

Video by Elizabeth Méndez Berry and Don Duncan.

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How much do the spies of the US government spend on their spying? Over $47 billion a year, according to budget numbers released on Tuesday by the Director of National Intelligence. And if you count the military intelligence program, the total amount is closer to $60 billion. This is only the fourth time in U.S. history that the government has publicly disclosed the intelligence budget. Secrecy News explains:

The aggregate intelligence budget figure (including national, joint military and tactical intelligence spending) was first released in 1997 ($26.6 billion) in response to a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit filed by the Federation of American Scientists. It was voluntarily released in 1998 ($26.7 billion). The National Intelligence Program budget was next disclosed in 2007 ($43.5 billion), in response to a Congressional mandate, based on a recommendation of the 9/11 Commission. And then there was today's release for 2008.

In recent years, the most passionate opponent of intelligence budget disclosure has been none other than Sen. Ted Stevens (R-AK), whose own financial non-disclosure practices have recently earned him multiple felony convictions.

In an October 4, 2004 Senate floor debate, Senator Stevens usefully marshaled all of the traditional arguments against disclosure. Most of them were false at the time. Others have since been disproven.

"No other nation, friend, or ally, reveals the amount that it spends on intelligence," Sen. Stevens said then.

In fact, the United Kingdom, Canada, the Netherlands and other countries have published their intelligence budgets for many years without adverse effect.

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Any mention of, information about, or support for John McCain, outside of a link to McCain's campaign store and an outdated opportunity to volunteer for McCain on "Super Saturday," October 25th. A Fred Thompson video, in which John McCain gets four sentences and is mentioned by name only once, gets top billing.

Compare to Democrats.org:

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