Don Siegelman Disagrees With Obama On Investigating Bush

During his press conference on Monday evening, President Obama pledged to look forwards rather than backwards when it came to investigating the misdeeds of the Bush administration. It was a carefully crafted answer, designed to neither anger nor encourage individuals either side of this contentious issue. For possible victims of legal and political injustice during the Bush years, however, it wasn't nearly enough.

Don Siegelman, the former Governor of Alabama arrested on trumped up bribery charges allegedly linked to Karl Rove, wrote the Huffington Post on Tuesday to offer his opinion of Obama's answer.

Today, with a new President, everything seems brighter, more vibrant. There is a sense of hope, a new optimism... we can see change for the better coming....piercing the dark, pain of the past eight years.

I appreciate the president's desire to fix the problems created by the Bush Administration saying in part: "...let's get it right moving forward."

However, if those who have abused their power are allowed to get away with it, then it is more likely to happen again. We have seen our American Democracy threatened, our constitutional rights abused and our system of Justice subverted. We know the Bush Administration led us into war under false pretenses, used illegal wiretaps and torture to get information and used the Department of Justice as a political weapon to win elections.

For the country to safely move forward we must repair the damage done to the foundations of our democracy. That starts with digging until we get the truth as Chairman John Conyers has been doing and as Senator Leahy is now proposing and holding accountable those who have abused their power.

Restoring justice and preserving our democracy requires nothing less and that would in itself be a great legacy for our new President.

Siegelman was pivoting off of a speech given on Monday by Senator Patrick Leahy, who pushed the creation of a truth and reconciliation commission to investigate the Bush years. On Monday, Obama said he had not read Leahy's proposal and, as such, couldn't render an opinion on it. His aides have said they would provide an answer to the Huffington Post when one is formulated.

The president did say that people -- presumably Bush officials included -- "should be prosecuted just like any ordinary citizen," implicitly suggesting that if illegality is proven it would be brought to court. But, he added, "Generally speaking, I'm more interested in looking forward than I am in looking backwards. I want to pull everybody together, including, by the way, the -- all the members of the intelligence community who have done things the right way and have been working hard to protect America and I think sometimes are painted with a broad brush without adequate information."

Comments

[ReasonIsMyReligion]

1) Clear Don Siegelman's name.
2) Prosecute Bush and Rove.

Or versa visa.

[Roxanna]

I agree totally with Don Siegelman.
If these people are not held accountable for their actions. This will merely happen again.

[Mystic01]

We must investigate and prosecute. Simple justice demands it.

[Maezeppa]

What Karl Rove, et al, did to Siegleman is an outrage that demands justice.

Obama must be very careful to not appear vengeful or zealous. He must position himself so that any eventual appointment of an independent prosecutor appears to be ordered almost reluctantly and only upon overwhelming and compelling evidence.

[rshrink]

Mr. Siegelman did nothing wrong. There was all kinds of maneuvering, which led to the conviction. The only thing he did wrong was being a democrat in a state where the republicans wanted one of their own. We cannot move on if we don't take care of the problem right in front of us. That is really the issue. Denial will not work. It never has. The crooks that worked for Bush worked for Nixon and others. They will not go away unless we put them away. Consider the fact that DeLay, charged with money laundering, has still not gone to court. In some of these states, playing by the rules the rest of us play by, is sidestepped by republicans in power. This party needs to be cleaned up and if it isn't, we can expect more of the same in the future. I am supporting our president, and I also realize that we need to write him and on the blogs and encourage prosecution of the guilty parties in the Bush Admin. including Bush and Cheney.

[TexasDem0]

The criminals in the Bush administration broke the law repeatedly with arrogance and impunity. It is especially important to pursue justice to restore the principle that no one is above the law. Until justice is served, these criminals are in fact above the law and they delight in flaunting it.

[nibblybits]

This man deserves justice.

[rizvisa1]

Obama said he came to washington to change it. It seems that Washington is changing him. The first blow was appointment of treasury guy even after his tax issue, then his exception to lobbyist rule, then saying I am looking forward and not backward, and exerting Bush era state secret in SF court. This is just the beginning of this administration and I am not too happy to see the beginning. He is better than Bush, but I for one had higher hopes

[pepperdude]

As you all know, Noam Chomsky was writing about America's imperialist and neo-colonist policies long before Bush. Bush just intensified America's hard-edged reputation abroad and at home. Bush is American, and America has been known to go around knocking over governments they don't like: Panama, Chile, Nicaraqua, Iran, Vietnam. I know I am being somewhat unhistorical but the broad outlines remain true. America has a history before Bush. Maybe that needs examining too.

[pjburke]

Naomi Klein's "Shock Doctrine" speaks directly -- and very well -- to the history that you're alluding to... and connects all of that imperialist muck in South America back to our own domestic political history from the Reagan Administration through the Bush II Administration, with one common thread being the Milton Friedman/Chicago School of predatory eliteonomics.

A good, illuminating read.

[miltonista]

omg... you actually believe naomi's shock doctrine???

she misrepresented good ol Milton... knowingly. she expected you to have such a short attention span not to notice. Naomi starves for attention.­.. trying to fulfill her parents' dream.

read Milton before thinking Naomi has even a clue as to what's going on in the world. She's a self-aware propagandist.

[pepperdude]

America was not Heaven before Bush.

[BARRISTER]

True, but it sure as hell was Hell after him.

[ReasonIsMyReligion]

Ka-SMACK!

[TexasDem0]

That is a non sequitur. It is not a reason to ignore crime.

[rshrink]

No, but is was moving in that direction before Bush.

[Mdazes]

I believe that Mr. Siegelman is innocent. However, a jury found Mr Siegelman guilty, which lead me to believe he made some bad choices that could easier be perceived as wrong doing. Hopefully Mr Siegelman can get his name cleared. But, like President Obama I am ready to move ahead. Rome is burning there is no time for looking back.

[pepperdude]

Have you looked at the fact of the case?

[bygollymissmolly]

Read up on Siegelman and the jury. You will end up with a different opinion.

Also, he who ignores the sins of the past is bound to repeat them in the future.

[rshrink]

You don't know the whole story here. Mr. Siegelman did nothing wrong. There was all kinds of maneuvering, which led to the conviction. The only thing he did wrong was being a democrat in a state where the republicans wanted one of their own. We cannot move on if we don't take care of the problem right in front of us. That is really the issue. Denial will not work. It never has. The crooks that worked for Bush worked for Nixon and others. They will not go away unless we put them away. Consider the fact that DeLay, charged with money laundering, has still not gone to court. In some of these states, playing by the rules the rest of us play by, is sidestepped by republicans in power. This party needs to be cleaned up and if it isn't, we can expect more of the same in the future.

[ReasonIsMyReligion]

Riiiight. No way a jury could be steered. Never. Nope. Couldn't happen.

Rome is indeed burning. Time to string up Nero.

[psnyder]

Then let all the criminals out of all the jails and stop enforcing any laws, because all law enforcement and punishment is "backward-­looking." Why should somebody who, say, steals a car or smokes a joint be processed through the legal system and go to jail for something done, you know, in the past, when somebody else who, say tortured someone, even unto death, is not? That this "forward looking" nonsense sounds even remotely plausible to any of us shows how badly the Rovian Bush-Cheney administration damaged Americans' moral compass.

[edwcorey]

Obama supporters feel misled by his campaign rhetoric. He's in lockstep with Bush on the "state secrets" cover-up. He's backed down on being able, as president, to do more than one thing at a time when he focuses on the economy while allowing the Bush administration to get away with murder. He subverts the desire of his constituents who want CEOs receiving corporate welfare to jump through as many hoops as a single mother does when she needs to apply for welfare. Why is no claw-back effort going on for monies lost through corruption? He claimed to be combing the agencies to see what worked and what didn't, to reward the working and eliminate the non-working ones. We know the war on drugs doesn't work. We know the CIA not only tortures, but its activities throughout the world have created hatred, violence and distrust toward the U.S., and that the NSA was largely responsible for 9-11 by refusing to share information with the FBI. So these programs don't work. But rather than booting them, he shields the torturers and boosts the NSA's profile. He hires a drug warrior as AG, takes a drug warrior and credit card company front man as vice president, keeps Iran-contra, October-surprise principal Gates as Defense secretary, and installs a tax cheat as head of the Treasury. Here's your "change": Bush was surreptitious. Obama's in your face.

[ArticleFriendly]

Gosh.. President Obama has been in office for almost 4 weeks and he STILL hasn't fixed everything. I'm very upset that all he's done is focus on saving the country from another great depression while repubs and some dems fight him every step of the way, sign several exec orders (at least one of which Bush shut down), started the process to shut down the torture factory called gitmo, stopping illegal torture & wiretapping by our government and health care for children .... Hmmmm. Maybe we should call for an impeachment and ask Bush to come back.... NOT!

[jacqmac]

Go peddle your trash somewhere else. There have been PLENTY of whistleblowers from the W. administration talking to the new President's people. You still believe that if you think happy thoughts and do enough smoking, everything will be great. And where is the INCONTROVERTABLE EVIDENCE about all this stuff you claim to 'know'? Stop your bellyaching about someone who's been in office for three weeks, exactly, to the DAY. In the last three weeks, he's done a LOT more work than W. ever did in eight long and horrible years. He's a lawyer, and a CONSTITUTIONAL lawyer at that. You think he's really going to let these guys get away with what they did? All he's been saying is that HE isn't standing in the way of HEARINGS..­...

[kristiann]

I may be wrong, but I believe that the AG office may be waiting until they get some more Bush cronies out of the dept. Remember, there are still alot of stinking leftovers in that refrigerator that need to be uncovered.

[bygollymissmolly]

They are also waiting until they can actually conduct and investigation and find some evidence. President Obama may have said that he wants to look forward, but he also said unequivocally that "no one is above the law". I believe they will prosecute the Bush Crime Family, not not right now. If he picks that fight right now, just think about how hard it will be for him to get other important legislation passed. With the Republicant's on the warpath, and on the warpath they will be if Obama threatens to prosecute anyone in the Bush administration, it is going to be very difficult to get health care and other important issues taken care of.

I don't even care if they wait until after the 2010 elections where the Democrats will undoubtedly gain a majority that can't be obstructed, before they prosecute Bush. All I care about is that it is done.

[kristiann]

Agreed

[SPQR1775]

I agree AMERICANS will not allow the BUSH years and misdeed to be sweap under the rugg, timing is everything and there won't be any time limit on processecution. The Bush Administration time will come and those from his administration that is burrowing into the goverment of OBAMA to leak infor and continue their illegal activities. The laws of our Democracy will be enforced. Time will tell and they will get what they deserve!

[williamina]

weird

[bygollymissmolly]

williamina, the "weird" one trick pony. I often wonder what her IQ is. I'm thinking in the room temperature range.

[frynpan]

I agree, timing is everything so Obama can not come out too strong right now. But I do believe, as I have said many times, that there will be a reckoning.

[prostock69]

First of all, the AG's office is independent of the Executive Office. If Eric Holder decides to investigate, there is nothing that Pres. Obama can do. Let's wait and see what Holder does.