ONE DOWN – AT 5:14 P.M. ET:  There's been an important terrorist conviction in New York.  From The New York Times:

A Pakistani neuroscientist was convicted on Wednesday of attempted murder for trying to kill American soldiers and F.B.I. agents in Afghanistan.

Federal prosecutors said the neuroscientist, Aafia Siddiqui, 37, grabbed an M4 rifle in a police station in the city of Ghazni, Afghanistan, on July 18, 2008, and fired on American officers and federal agents.

After slightly more than two days of deliberations, a jury in Federal District Court in Manhattan found her guilty.

As the jurors began leaving the courtroom, Ms. Siddiqui, who studied at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Brandeis University, turned in her chair to face them.

“This is a verdict coming from Israel and not from America,” she said, holding her right index finger in the air. “That’s where the anger belongs. I can testify to this, and I have proof.”

Ms. Siddiqui was then led out of the courtroom while the judge and lawyers for both sides discussed a sentencing date.

COMMENT:  Trouble is, the Obamans will use this case to "prove" that you can have terror trials in the heart of a big city.  Of course, this sweet lady was a foot soldier.  The mastermind of 9-11, whom Eric Holder would like to try in New York, is the equivalent of Hermann Goering.  A bit of a difference on the publicity curve.

February 3,  2010