Sunday Roundup

This week, as Nemo barreled up the Northeast coast, a different storm hit Washington, centered on Congressional oversight of the lethal use of drones. Given how little official concern there was about the issue during Obama's first term, this tempest was a welcome development. The long overdue debate was occasioned by the leak of a memo detailing the administration's legal justification for drone strikes, and the confirmation hearings for CIA director nominee John Brennan -- the president's frequent "kill list" co-author. With the memo's legal reasoning even broader than suspected, Congress is considering setting up special courts, like those currently used for authorizing domestic surveillance, making it at least as hard for the government to kill suspected terrorists -- including American citizens -- by remote control as listen to their phone conversations. Let's hope that as Nemo blows over, efforts to bring accountability to drone killings will continue at full force.