Obama Considering Commission On Bush Admin Torture

"Despite the hopes of many human-rights advocates, the new Obama Justice Department is not likely to launch major new criminal probes of harsh interrogations and other alleged abuses by the Bush administration," Newsweek's Michael Isikoff reports. "But one idea that has currency among some top Obama advisers is setting up a 9/11-style commission that would investigate counterterrorism policies and make public as many details as possible."

"At a minimum, the American people have to be able to see and judge what happened," said one senior adviser, who asked not to be identified talking about policy matters. The commission would be empowered to order the U.S. intelligence agencies to open their files for review and question senior officials who approved "waterboarding" and other controversial practices.

Obama aides are wary of taking any steps that would smack of political retribution. That's one reason they are reluctant to see high-profile investigations by the Democratic-controlled Congress or to greenlight a broad Justice inquiry (absent specific new evidence of wrongdoing). "If there was any effort to have war-crimes prosecutions of the Bush administration, you'd instantly destroy whatever hopes you have of bipartisanship," said Robert Litt, a former Justice criminal division chief during the Clinton administration. A new commission, on the other hand, could emulate the bipartisan tone set by Tom Kean and Lee Hamilton in investigating the 9/11 attacks. The 9/11 panel was created by Congress. An alternative model, floated by human-rights lawyer Scott Horton, would be a presidential commission similar to the one appointed by Gerald Ford in 1975 and headed by Nelson Rockefeller that investigated cold-war abuses by the CIA.

For his part, Obama's expected nominee for Attorney General, Eric Holder, has long spoken out against the Bush administration's torture policy.

In 2004, for example, Holder told an American Constitution Society conference, "The notion that the Department of Justice would in essence sanction the use of torture as part of the President's plenary power over military operations is as wrong as it is shortsighted. This position flies in the face of the entire history of American law, helping to create a climate in which unnecessarily abusive conduct can somehow be considered legitimate."

Also in Newsweek, Dahlia Lithwick writes on "The Job Ahead for Holder," noting that he "will face tremendous pressure to go after those who authorized torture."

Comments

[HaywireMac]

When weighing the value of investigating the creation and conduct of current interrogation and detention policies, the new administration and the next Congress should be urged to consider not only the violations of human rights and the unconstitutional expansion of executive power, but the risk and compromise to national security current torture policies represent.

Whether guided by fear or blood lust, officials at the very highest level of the Bush Administration squandered intelligence resources on interrogation techniques that are immoral, illegal and ineffective.

By authorizing the use of waterboarding and contracting with foreign governments to conduct even more ghoulish tactics, these leaders have discouraged allied intelligence services from cooperating with the CIA, thereby jeopardizing future counter-terrorist operations and making the U.S. more vulnerable.

[Badger84]

As an FYI for those of you who are wondering what torture is and what role the attorney general has in enforcing laws prohibiting torture, see title 18 of the United States Code, sections 2340 and 2340A. Sorry, I don't have a convenient link but I know y'all have skills.

[Badger84]

Yes, please. Torture cannot be allowed to stand unchallenged as precedent. If it does, we lower the bar forever.

[Kynn]

When Gerald Ford pardoned Richard Nixon, he do so in order to move past Watergate and heal the wounds.

Gerald Ford did the exact opposite. Since that time, a growing sense that our government can do whatever it wants and there's nothing that can be done about it has taken hold of the generations that grew up during and after Watergate.

Now we see that the government can violate international law, they can scam us into wars, they can spy on us, they can lock us away forever with no recourse.

Getting the facts out is a step, but Justice demands payment. Gerald Ford paid the price politically when he pardon Nixon.

I fear Obama may have to pay the price for Bush's atrocities unless the actual guilty party is brought ni front of Justice.

[jasjohn128]

We (and the rest of the world) need to know all the worst of what's been done in our name at Guantanamo. We need to drag into the light all those who authorized it or (by their silence) gave implied consent.

But let's not do anything to damage the chance of putting these people on trial, in an international tribunal, for war crimes. It's time for the United States to join the International Criminal Court:

http://www.icc-cpi.int/about.html

"The ICC is a court of last resort. It will not act if a case is investigated or prosecuted by a national judicial system unless the national proceedings are not genuine, for example if formal proceedings were undertaken solely to shield a person from criminal responsibility. In addition, the ICC only tries those accused of the gravest crimes."

Bush, Cheney, Rumsfeld, Feith, Woo, and that whole rotten bunch of bloodthirsty warmongers deserve to end their days in prison or at the end of a rope.

[lafrance]

while somewhat disppointed I can see the common sense in doing a 9-11 style thing to correct the abuses rather then punishment.
We all know the awful things the Bushies have done and frankly, what are we going to gain other then to cause deep riffs and resentments.
If we truly want to start a new era and new beginning and change the tone of debate and in Washington, pursuing punishing or retribution for the sake of it could stall or even kill off that.
I know after the republicans kept stalking clinton and then impeached him for a stupid affair, the resentments and anger stayed for such a long time and it's time to kill off this tit for tat and one upsmanship. that is what is so tiring about these dumb baby boomer wars of the past 40 years. the culture wars and constant games between left and right ever since the 60s
It's gotta stop somewhere. And things need to be put behind us and really begin a new era and cut off the boomer wars and ongoing ideology fights.

[FreedomAgain]

Bush and Cheney should be brought to justice. They violated 3 of the 4 Geneva Conventions that were set in place starting over a hundred years ago and formulated through 1949. Why is everyone scared to challenge Bush and Cheney? I realize that we have some important things going on right now, but having to deal with issues because of Bush's deliberate destruction of America, should not pardon Bush and Cheney from the crimes they have committed. The GOP spent millions of dollars to take down Clinton for his marital affair. Bush and Cheney have destroyed the trust of the American people in their leaders, and the worlds trust in America, and should be brought to justice along with others that participated. They may have had too much power to be addressed at the time, but we need to bring them to justice and not sweep it under the rug and forget about it. We need to undo some legislation that Bush enacted to get those powers, and enact some legislation to ensure it doesn't happen again. I would say Bush himself was a greater threat to the freedom of America than the cold war itself by undoing constitutional liberties granted to the citizens of the US.

We need to make ammendments to the constitution to include electronic communication and phone communication in the illegal search and seizure clauses of the 4th ammendment as well.

[FreedomAgain]

In reply to my own post, if I had the choice of prosecuting Bush for war crimes, or giving Universal Healthcare to America, I would choose Universal Healthcare.

[lafrance]

that is the whole thing. It's time to let the boomer era die off. We need to put the political capital and gains into the good of the country and people. Health care and jobs and stimulus packages.
We can either use our time, money and capital in punishment and keep the ongoing left vs right wars and 40 year old boomer wars going or we can channel it into doing good and countering the corrupt and evil of this administration with the positive and new era of the one coming in.
We have a choice. End the dark era and times and pursue a new day and era. Or keep the whole tit for tat going for another 10 years.

[nomoreofthesame]

If the inquistion was good enough for Hussain it should be good enough for Bush, Rove and Cheney.

[NWBrunette]

"Obama aides are wary of taking any steps that would smack of political retribution."

When in the world are Democrats going to grow a pair and stop worrying about what everyone thinks? Especially after we just won in an historic landslide. We should be stetting the agenda, not waffling around trying to make sure everyone's happy. It's important to investigate and go after criminal charges because our Constitution is at stake. There is nothing more fundamental than that in our country. The Democrats should act like it, rather than just throw up their hands and go "oh well."

[Yermammy]

A Truth Commission should be formed. That way it can't be seen as partisan. I don't see what's "partisan" about upholding the Rule of Law, anyway. After all, if the President doesn't follow the law, why should we? Hmmmm?

[JohnHKennedy]

.
TO STOP THE PARDONS,

TO KNOW WHAT THE PRESIDENT KNEW AND WHEN

A courageous Congressman MUST RISE to Offer An Impeachment Resolution

During the Lame Duck House Session in December.

An IMPEACHMENT RESOLUTION WILL STOP THE PARDONS

YOU all need to contact Rep. Kucinich and ask him to continue his fight for Impeachment.

A great many impeachment and accountability advocates contributed to both his presidential and House re-election campaigns. He needs to do this, but given the pressure from Pelosi he will need your support.

YOU all need to contact Rep. Kucinich and ask him to continue
his fight for Impeachment of Bush and Cheney.

PLEASE TAKE THE TIME TO DO THIS.

YOU ARE PAYING A PRICE FOR THE BUSH-CHENEY CRIMES.

SHOULDN'T BUSH & CHENEY?

http://House.gov

CALLS & FAXES are best.
800-828-0498 & ask for his office
.

[CheshireCat2]

IF there were enough time, you still need 67 votes, which will not happen.

Turn off your caps, switch beverages to something a bit more calming and then leave your keyboard.

[Yermammy]

You need 67 to CONVICT, silly. That's not what he's proposing/demanding. Once the impeachment proceedings are underway, THE PARDONS ARE RENDERED NULL AND &VOID. Why don't you KNOW that? Hmmmm? You calm down and go read sometime.

[CheshireCat2]

OK. Let's try this again. I was unable to hang around and to debate the issue, but nevertheless you can go to the profile post and see the lame answers that were posted to these questions. None of them were in defense of our soldiers, all defended the enemy combatants.

Well, what do you do with the 250? Give them walking papers?

Some of the ones who have already been returned to Iraq and Afghanistan have taken up arms against us.

Is it OK with everyone here if they just go ahead and ki-ll more of our soldiers?

1,000 posts here and I have yet to see that concern.

[LeftCoaster64]

As someone who voted for and supports Obama, I respectfully submit that any investigation/oversight is the responsibility of Congress, not the President. The Congress should conduct investigations into what happened under Bush and procede wherever the evidence leads. Obama should have little or no say into where these inquiries lead. He is charged with making sure laws are faithfully executed, not with investigating Bush. The people have a right to know all the gory details.

[CheshireCat2]

Good post!

Question: Would any of the ideologues ever have a change of mind when they learn the gory details?

[Yermammy]

Oh, you mean the Congress that took Lieberman back upon Barack's recommendation? THAT Congress? LOL. Get a clue. All he'd have to do is tell Nancy to do it and it would GET DONE. I wonder why this isn't happening?

[JNF]

Bush brought criminals to Justice
¦and to the White House, VP Office, DoD, etc.

[sparkey]

Considering commision? I'll believe it when it happens. Until then, it's just political talk. President Obama, start putting that commision together, now. Show the American public who voted for you that will indeed make a change and that you're a man who make a change for the better and not a man who will things stay the same.